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...

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 :)

Happy New Year! And 2010 FO# 15

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I can't believe that the next year is actually over.  Between starting a new business and spending much to much time at various medical establishments, the last twelve months have been challenging (to say the least!). Here's hoping 2012 is blissfully uneventful, quiet, and involves lots and lots of knitting.

A full update on the Christmas knitting will be following shortly.  Below is the first completed gifted present - Ben's Birthday socks knitted in Opal Prisma.  The recipient seems to like them!

WIP Wednesday 7/8...ish

Just a short post, because I am busy knitting!  Only one week to go, and still much to do! (Yes, there are lots of exclamation points floating around in my brain right now! And I imagine will be until Christmas has passed.  So many things to cook! Presents to wrap! Drinks to drink!

Without further ado, I present to you 2011's 15 finished object which is also a completed Christmas present (yay!).

These are simple socks - standard 64-stitch top-down heel-flap-and-gusset.  The yarn is Cascade Heritage Paints, which is lovely and soft and gorgeous to knit with.

The recipient of this gift always seems very happy whenever I give her handknitted presents, but I never see her wear them, so these socks are a test to see whether or not I should continue to knit her gifts.  Seriously, though, who wouldn't  love these socks? They're gorgeous, even if I do say so myself.

The spreadsheet says I am 77% [62%] through my Christmas knitting. It looks like I'm not going to make it this year. At least the journey has been fun so far :)

WIP Wednesday 6/8

There's something about the particular insanity that messes with my sense of reason and reasonableness at Christmastime.  I think the sight of all the twinkly Christmas lights and the smell of gingerbread cooking that flicks a little switch in my brain, transforming me from eccentric and a little bit interested in wool to full-blown wackadoo crazy must knit to show how much I love! And, come Christmastime, I love everybody (except for the people who work in every post office I've been to.  Do they train you not to smile?)  Some may state that it's a batshit crazy a little bit silly to start a baby jacket for a baby that's due in four days with 4-ply wool and a pithy set of instructions, especially when there is still 40% of Christmas knitting to be completed.

Some may. Clearly not me.

Knitting completed: 60% of original plan, 49% of revised unrealistically optimistic plan.  Knitting time passed: six of the eight scheduled weeks.  I don't see a problem here at all...

PS: I've done a lot of my shopping online this year and I'd like to recommend T2. Their service was wonderful - my package arrived in a beautifully-wrapped gift box and included a free sample and a bonus $10 gift card.  Shipping was free (for orders over $60, which mine was) and I got a courtesy email checking that everything arrived safely and I was happy with my order.  I unreservedly recommend buying online from T2 and I will definitely shop there again.  Probably before Christmas, if I don't get all of my kntting done...

WIP Wednesday 5/8...ish

Yes, it's Friday, not Wednesday, but the weather has been so cold and miserable for the last two days I haven't been able to stay outside long enough to take the photos.  Plus everything looks pretty much like last week!  The lateness of my blogging is not helped by the fact that I am having a massive slack day. I don't know why, but today I am find it incredibly difficult to motivate myself to do anything. I know I should clean the bathroom, hang out the washing, put away the dry clothes but really, all I can muster is a "meh".

So, here's a progress shot of all of the socks on the go:

According to my trusty Christmas spreadsheet, I have completed 57% of  my original knitting plans and I am 47% of the way through my crazy insane revised plans.  Not great but, really, today I don't actually care.  Meh indeed!

PS: Has anyone read the December issue of Donna Hay? Also very meh - I am kind of regretting asking for a subscription as an anniversary present...

All Stockinette Socks All The Time: Christmas Wednesday WIPday 4/8

It's time for the weekly Christmas knitting update and really, it looks pretty much like last week.  The mens' socks were going well until Lucy got a bit antsy and pulled out the needle from the almost-finished heel flap:

Look at Herself here, all innocence.  "Who me?", she says.

Yes you, naughty kitty!

I finally bought the needles I needed yesterday, so I was able to turn the heel on Sock #1 for Friend S. I also completed the miraculous rare occurrence of going into a wool shop and buying only what I needed to get.  Amazing!

After I took the first bunch of photos it was too nice to go inside, so I picked up the live stitches and finished turning the heel on the Boring Brown Sock:

Turning a heel flap-and-gusset style while magic looping is a massive PITA and I wouldn't recommend it, but to get our Christmas knitting finished, sometimes we need to do things we don't want to do.

My handy spreadsheet tells me I am 48% finished if I stick to Plan Original and 39% finished if I aim for Plan CrazyPants with the two additional pairs of socks.  Not too bad, but not great after.  I have a quiet weekend coming up, so I hope for great things next Wednesday.  Wish me luck!