one sleep

well, time has sort of flown and sort of not at the same time. the monkey returns tomorrow afternoon and it will be a great relief.. but i'm also overwhelmed with tiredness. i'm sort of hoping he has ferocious jet-lag so i don't look so weak needing to go to sleep before nine tomorrow night.
school has been good, if busy. lots of teachers away at band camps and development days and so the relief staff are pretty stretched. one just gets very tired. i fell asleep on the couch this afternoon.. which is a lot less relaxing when you're alone somehow. when i have a rough day usually, and fall asleep, i get woken by monkey with a cup of tea about 15 minutes before dinner will be ready (all those socks i knit for him make a little more sense now dont they?). It kind of sucks to have to wake up and have an argument with the fridge by yourself. and i am not in the least delightful when i have to wake up. so yes. tired and a wee bit cranky.

i am past the heel for my first peacock sock.. no new pics because vic's is a little clunky and i cant be arsed. i am about 3rd through second body piece of pink sweater...

and i'm fading. I give up. i loves you all, thankyou for the kind words.

Peace Out
Ms Spider xo

5 sleeps left

well, i'm past the halfway mark. i was doing quite well up to a point... and then i got some fabulous news and it was just too much that my monkey wasnt here to celebrate with me. so i've been a little contrary, swinging between deeply glum and embarrasingly cheery.
but the news is... i got an early offer of permanency for next year! of course it relies on my completing my course work and graduating and everything but it is just SUCH a relief... but yes, sad to not have him here to be happy with me...

Have been knitting (who's surprised?). Borrowed Vic's camera so i actually have some things to show off :)
firstly, a better pic of my vest. Love. It.
because i finished that i needed another sweater... so i eventually decided on Pam Allen's Wheat-Ear Cable Yoke Sweater from Interweave Knits Summer 2007. I'm using cleckheaton country that i 'won' on good yarn karma. it's not brown like the cable detail and its not as purple as the other pic... stupid camera.
I'm enjoying it. I'm a bit over for gauge but i really wouldnt want to knit this yarn any tighter.. and i feel like i need a slightly roomier sweater for bloated days ;) i'm enjoying it, though it was a real relief to hit the cable charts finally - all that stocking stitch was making me a leeetle crazy.

Oh and my shawl is progressing slowly. this is the silk i spun and it is SO fine, cant get over it. i think this is a long-term commitment WIP.

And i've been doing a lot in the garden of late - it's my baby! i visit my plants several times a day.. does that make me a geek?
today i edged the vege patch with brick-things. I've done this to my flower beds but hadnt got to the vege patch until today. it was a bit of an effort (bloody hot today!) but i'm glad i went through with it - it makes it so much easier to keep the grass out and the veges in. and it looks purdy. ignore the slightly uneven height of the edging... it just shows where i was impeded in my digging by the presence of trees ( we have these weird ornamental pistachios that i'm never sure how to prune.. fact is i'd like to take them out. why plant something if it doesnt make nice flowers or something you can eat? not even decent shade? weird)
and yes, lots of my veges have gone to seed. so much easier than buying more seed really... self sowing lettuces are a godsend in summer...

anyway, i have to go knit a front piece and two sleeves before i get to do the fun cable yoke-y bit so i'm off. thanks for all the kind words.. i'm ok. just missing my geekier half, you know ;)

Peace Out,
Ms Spider xo

in-vest-ments

Well.. in four short days... i have a vest.
i love it, it is beautiful! the pattern is genius, the yarn is perfect... swoooon!
sadly i have to borrow vic's camera.. and it's blocking in a dark corner.

but voila!
yes, its washed out and all.. but you gotta feel the love ^_^


and this is the result of some bus knitting i've been doing.. not the only pair, you always need baby stash, right?

thanks for all the lovely comments... i'm ok. feeling a little fragile and all.. and the bed is too cold. got used to that great lump of a boy didnt i? it's his birthday tomorrow which is making me sad... we should be going out for sashimi and drinking nice wine. instead i'm at home, eating kitchen-cupboard-mix-up pasta and studying. yerk. at least he's having a good time right ;) ?

Peace Out,
Ms Spider

my bonnie lies over the ocean

So on friday my monkey left for Ireland. For two weeks. i know this probaby makes we sounds really wet but.. that's a long time. in a year we've spent maybe 6 nights apart and since i moved in only one. and that one night sucked.
so it's fair to say i'm a little out of sorts. getting my ravelry invite helped a little.. except that he's got my camera and i want to upload my entire stash :p

I also cast on two items in two days (i blame monkey). The Handsome Triangle Shawl from Victorian Lace Today in my own handspun silk and the back-to-school vest from Fitted Knits in Jo Sharp silkroad DK tweed. sadly these photos were taken before 8am Friday morning and are not accurate depictions of the projects nearly two days later.

guess i'll have to hijack a camera at snb tomorrow!

I leave you with pictures of veges from my garden... all since long digested but as i still have brocolli to pick and carrots to yank they count still.. right?


the carrots were hugging :) i had to pry them apart.. that tail-y bit on the one on the left was wrapped around the one on the right! i love my garden, even the veges get one well together ^_^

Peace out,
Ms Spider xo

Booyah!!

I got my ravelry invite - hooray!!
this is me... see you in the spring.

er.


next spring?

Fitted Knits - A Review

Fitted Knits - by Stefanie Japel

As the cover tells us, this books contains 25 patterns. Of these 25, there are:

• 5 tanks/shells/tees
• 4 sweaters
• 10 cardigans/jackets/coats
• 1 dress
• 2 vests
• 1 suit (comprising of a skirt and jacket)

Of these patterns there are twelve i would knit and wear (and one of which i already have done).
The size range is from a bust of 34" to 40, 42, 44, 46.5"

The layout is very attractive - this is a darn pretty book. The photos show the items well - none of this arty-farty blurry, weird poses that distort the clothes.
Shaping and detailing is easy to see, and there are plenty of pictures of each item. You will have a good idea of what you are making before you finish seaming ;)

There is a really good opening guide about knitting items so that they fit your shape! If you've never quite had the guts to do the maths and are sick of boxy sweaters this is for you! Stefanie is clearly a knitter first and has a lovely no-stress approach to the whole thing. her patterns are straigh-forward top-down pieces so you can try them on as you knit - definitely a plus!

Drawbacks?
While the styling for the book is gorgeous and VERY glampyre... the point of the book is knitting clothes that fit your precise proportions, and quite obviously the pictured knitwear was not made for the models! While this is a totally understandable thing - who would knit for the models??? it does mean that some of the pictures dont look as fabulous as they could and you need to use your brain a little - if you work to your measurements then you shouldnt have problems, but it does help to have some idea of what suits you.

Favourite Patterns: These will give you a good idea of the shapes in the book, as well as Stefanie's knack for detailing.

Tested Pattern: Airy Wrap-Around Lace Sweater (my photo is blurry, not hers).
This is marked as a 'challenging knit' because it contains a little cables and lace. This would probably be a good first cable/lace project because the needles are big and results are quick!
It knit up very swiftly but if i made it again i would either make the ties shorter (they are both over a metre!) or included a keyhole at one side to feed the tie through. I dont need too much bulk around my middle.

Here is mine (have a tremendous zit today and refuse to pose):


Rating: A+. This is a bloody good book. Even if it ain't your style do have a read of it. She has shapely design down pat and a few words from the wise can never hurt. Not for the timid beginner... but if you are a timid beginner then go out on a limb! yarn doesnt bite! (except for that fun fur crap, that stuff'll kill you... or your taste anyway).

Back soon with more about my life. Thanks to everyone who said nice things... i'm feeling much better and have been offered a more permanent position at school - HURRAH! Karma is my biatch!

Ms Spider

a very bad day

I like to believe in karma... and after today i'm kind of wondering what i did that was so very very wrong! or maybe i'm just due something pretty fab now.

did you know that Action buses are considered by action to be 'on time' if they arrive 7 minutes either side of their estimated time of arrival? you see wherer i am going with this? i am nearly always running after the bus (awkward if it's a heel day).
This morning i was prepared. I had my shower the night before. I was ten minutes early for the bus. it was late for the first time ever. and i discovered that i didnt have my wallet. OR my phone. and my keys are attached to my wallet.

Yes.

I walked back home and discovered that by some freakish coincidence all the windows in my house were closed. This rarely happens because i like the fresh air and with share houses someone tends to be here all the time. unfortunately, Monkey was at work and Vic and Phil were down the coast. after trying (and failing which stressed me out even more) to break a small window with a brick wrapped in a sack i tried the miniscule loo window... and it was open. It is NEVER open. It is usually locked! i sure as hell did not open it. It is also approximately 15cm wide and 1.5 metres off the ground... over the toilet. my years of gymnastics pay off.

Then the taxi was late.

Then when i got to school i was rostered on with a class every line, all day and a lunchtime duty outside with the new rule that we have to wear bright orange high-visibility vests. orange is SO not my colour.

Got home to discover i had only been paid for one week of work instead of two.

then i had a dentists appointment (which cost more than my one week's pay) which resulted in two fillings, three needles and some serious drill interference to my gums and root of my tongue.

i got home from the dentist, had a big cry (much to Monkey's concern) and then ordered thai food and watched Monsters Inc. Resisted urge to get blazing drunk. too spaced out from anastheasia to knit. sigh.

So. I didnt go to SnB. I wanted to... but i could only chew without eating the inside of my mouth half an hour ago and i dont like to be seen drooling in public (might make the yarn sticky).

I'll get back to you all when i'm feeling a little less like god hates me.

the worn out
Ms Spider

PS. i have a plethora of new books from amazon that i will review for you soon, as soon as i come to terms with god hating me.