Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Sleepy time and 2010 FO#16: Baby Surprise Jacket in Green

I work from home, so I have a lot of flexibility in how I structure my day.  I'll admit that some days that means I work in my pyjamas until half an hour before Sam is due to get home and I don't apologise for it!  But my day does usually involve getting up, doing stuff on a computer for six to seven hours and then cooking dinner.

However, today I woke up and I just wasn't feeling it.  I was sleepy, cranky, cold and a bit petulant. I may have stamped my foot when I couldn't get two bits of bread to separate so I could toast them.  So when Lucy jumped onto the bed for her morning nap, I popped right on the bed beside her her and slept my morning away.  I'm not a big napper because a) I can't get to sleep at night a lot of the time, let alone during the day and b) I always feel like time napping is wasted time, even if all I would done in that time is watch The Real Housewives and played on Ravelry.  After today's lovely warm cuddly morning, I'm reviewing my napping policy.  I think I could really get used to sleeping in the day, plus who says no to extra pussycat huggles?  Certainly not me!

You know who else naps a lot? Babies do.  So, let me show you a baby jacket I finished in December for a new baby, also called Lucy (was she named after my cat? I think so, although the mother denies it.)
How good was my segue? I'm improving.  Soon I'll be making dad jokes and bad alliterating puns on the Internet - it's only a matter of time...


This is Elizabeth Zimmermann's very famous Baby Surprise Jacket, knitted in Knit One Crochet Too Ty-Dy Socks in green.  The pattern deserves its reputation as a much-lauded must-knit - it's all tricky short rows and nifty geometry held together by the knit stitch.  It didn't take much actual knitting time to finish the jacket but it is a very small jacket - suitable only for teeny tiny newborns.  I used 3mm needles, but I'd go 3.25mm or 3.55mm if I was to knit it again in 4ply. I hope the mum likes it and it keeps the baby warm, because even though it's summer in Melbourne it snowed yesterday! Oh Melbourne, your weather is so bloody annoying charmingly unpredictable.

I'm slowly catching up with my blogging. A few more posts to go...

Saturday, January 7, 2012

A Day in the Country: A Trip to Bendigo

I had the pleasure of having my lovely boyfriend at home on holiday for two whole weeks over Christmas.  I wanted to take advantage of this as much as possible, so last Wednesday we packed up the car, locked the cat inside with much water, food and air conditioning, and drove to the country.


The first stop was the Beechworth Bakery which, funnily enough, is not actually in Beechworth, rather in Bendigo (There is a bakery in Beechworth, but we went to the satellite location.)
A visit to the lovely city of Bendigo is not complete without a visit to the Bendigo Woollen Mills. Bearing in mind my new year's resolutions I didn't buy a single thing, but even being close to the wool gave me a happy.

Next was a visit to the Bendigo Art Gallery to see their photograph exhibition of famous stars from the 20s to 40s.  I enjoyed it because I watch a lot of old movies, but I think Sam was like 'Orson who?'. The exhibit didn't seem so much curated as hung on the wall, but the gallery is gorgeous and the day was so delightful that I think I could have been shown a room full of blank walls and still had a good time.


Next was the obligatory visits to local vineyards to taste the best that Victorian grapes can offer. First was Balgownie Estate, which was a gorgeous winery with nice wine, yummy food and a relaxed afternoon vibe.


Next was Sandhurst Ridge Winery. They had delicious red wines and the winemaker himself took us through the tasting.  By this stage I was slightly toasted and enjoyed everything that everyone said! I was full of love for everything and everyone. It was like getting away from Melbourne and the stresses of everyday life resulted in an unbelievable surge of happiness and relaxation.  I *have* to get away more often.


We were greeted by a poor deflated hot kitty when we got home.  She's such a sook - the house was a chilly 21 degrees, she had treats all over the house and there were at least six toys in various nooks and crannies, proving that she had been having at least a little bit of fun while we were gone.  Little brat!


January Resolutions


As part of my WIP-down resolution, I took a long hard look at the projects that have been hanging around just a little bit too long.  I love the way my Frankensocks look from the cuff down, but I do hate the way those cuffs looked.  So, this...


..became this!


I have a plan for this itty bitty balls. Watch this space...

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Goodbye 2011, Hello 2012

It's that time of year again - time too look back on what has been and happened over the last year and plan and dream for the next 12 months.  In 2011 I spent two months in hospital and the two months after that totally whacked out on painkillers, so if I can remain fully conscious and coherent for nine of the next twelve months, I'm already doing better!

My goals for last year were pretty simple.

In 2011, I will:
1. Finish at least 20 knitted objects, and blog about every single one.
2. Decrease stash from 62 (eek!) to 40, by either using the yarn or destashing it.
3. Finish at least two of my blankets on the go.
4. Finish at least one of my jumpers on the go.
5. Knit at least four things for me and only me.
6. Lose 7kg.
7. Decrease total WIPs to no more than five in total.


This is going to be a terrible summary paragraph - I'm so far behind photographing and blogging that I don't even know what I have done and what I haven't done! Item 1 is done (I promise...more photos and recaps to come!).  Until I update my Ravelry stash I don't know if I met item 2, but I have a suspicion that I might not have...maybe I went down to 50 (I hope. I really tried.).  I didn't finish either of my blankets or either of my jumpers (fail).  I did knit at least four things for me (win). I don't have bathroom scales any more but I reckon I am definitely down at least 5kg from last year which, even though it isn't quite 7kg it is close enough that I feel pretty darn good about it. WIPs will have to wait until I update Ravelry, but I'm definitely over five.  Last year I was at 11 WIPs at this time, so I hope it's fewer than that.

In 2012, I will:
1. Decrease stash from [whatever it is] to [a number that is 15 units less than that] by either using the yarn or destashing it.
2. Finish two of my blankets on the go.
3. Finish at least one of my jumpers on the go.
4. Lose another 7kg.
5. Decrease total WIPs to no more than five in total.

There are a couple of mini goals I want to get out of the way in January.  I want to finish photographing and blogging everything I finished in 2011. I want to update my Ravelry stash and project details.  I want to update the blog so the sidebars are correct and up to date and I want to find out how well I did goal-wise!

Best wishes to everyone for the year ahead :)