I've been a-craftin'

Now that we're all moved into the new house and the musical has had its closing night, I've found myself with lots of time to craft up a storm.


My first toe-up sock is done and the second one is well on its way. I got the Socks That Rock yarn in my Knitters Tea Swap package from Becky and it is beautiful yarn. I love the crazy colours and it's a wool and silk blend that knits up really squishy and shiny. I also knit my first short-row heels and I am smitten -- no need to pick up stitches!


Binding off the top was a little difficult. I ended up doing it three times because my bind off was too tight the first two times. On the third time, I tried something called the Russian Bind Off, which worked like a charm. I do miss the kitchener stitch though. There's a special place in my heart for the kitchener stitch.

In the midst of my crafty streak, I sewed up this little curtain for the kitchen. It matches my place mats and will soon match my walls . . . I will get around to painting those walls.


And I picked up these Eleanor Grosch Keds the other day. I had been coveting them, but they were nearly $50. I saw these on sale at the mall last week -- $19.99. They were the last pair and they were in my size. Awesome.

FO: Preppy Polo Shirt

I braved the 27ºC weather with a wool sweater to show you all my newly finished polo shirt!



Pattern: Preppy Polo Shirt by Jenna Adorno
Source: Not Another Teen Knitting Book by Vickie Howell
Materials: 2.5 skeins Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in Provincial Rose, bits of Cotton Fleece in Wild Sage and Victorians Pink and three pearly buttons from Gramie's stash
Needles: US 6/4 mm bamboo straights and US 4/3.5 mm circs.
Started: June 5, 2007
Finished: July 19, 2007


I'm very happy with this sweater! I love the colours and the fit is great. I knit my first hem and it turned out quite nice. I also knit my first placket and collar, which also turned out looking great. The collar curls a bit, which can probably be remedied with some steaming/ironing/vigorous blocking.

(The back of the sweater is meant to be longer than the front to mimic most of the polo shirts you can buy nearly everywhere.)


Photo creds go to Kenneth who was kind enough to take these shots in the blistering heat!

The perfect Sunday afternoon

Lazing on the patio, soaking up the sun, alternating between reading a good book and a magazine and drinking sun tea . . . it doesn't get better than this.

Are we there yet?

We're almost there, kids. Just be patient.


Just checking in to say the preppy polo shirt is almost done. I tried it on this morning and it fits beautifully with one sleeve. Here's hoping the collar doesn't screw up the fit. Expect a proper FO post very soon.

Settling in

Guess what arrived in my mailbox this morning?

A package from Purl!


Filled with some lovely textiles!


That became place mats for my new kitchen table!


We're settling into the new house. There are still a few boxes that need to be unpacked and as soon as that's done, I hope to start painting. All of the walls are white in this house, except for a few atrocious wallpaper borders. I'm planning to paint the kitchen mint green and purple (like the place mats) and the living room will be a boring beige colour since we have a red couch and a freakishly bright yellow chair (that you can see in the background in the above photo). I haven't decided on colours for the other rooms -- that will be done later. I just want to get the kitchen and living room done as soon as possible.

Oh! and the toe. The toe is better but it's still a huge annoyance. I think I'll be able to dance on Thursday, which is opening night for the musical. We had a dress rehearsal last night and I fell . . . I'm going to try to avoid any spills Thursday night!