corner collection 2

Ahh, my nightly retreat. Sometime around 10pm this is the seat I sink into, hoping to knit or maybe catch up on The Daily Show. The basket lamp might not count as task lighting but if I sit just so there is enough light to illuminate my little projects.

No new dolls are in the making, so I think I better start using my day job as the excuse. It's an awesome job, but also pretty demanding. By the time 10pm rolls around, this seat is all I can think about as I put my brain to rest.

march break

It may not be a vacation, but March has certainly been a break from "making". Jay's show is up and the opening over, so life can return to normal now. Sadie's Swing Thing is getting there - slowly - but here is a picture in progress. I've started a sleeve and the Noro is working up quite differently; it's less stripey but still a great combination of colour. And the best surprise of the month is this great Camilla Engman softie called Kola. Friends of ours got her for us as a good luck charm (we're so spoiled!) and the whole family is smitten with her. Sadie danced a jig and Jay moved around old collections to give her a prime spot on the mantle. I think she'll bring me some charm for sure - time to get back to creating!

corner collection

We have a small, small house. When I took this picture I was only 4 feet from the other exterior wall, actually we could lay Jay down twice and make it from one side to the other. We don't even have many corners, but somehow a photo like this makes your space seem bigger. I've had great fun poking around the Flickr group "Corners of My Home" and I especially enjoy Tracy's submissions. I'm not ready for the Self Portrait challenge, but I could use a good reason for tidying up the corners of our tiny home. This is across from the computer and all of Sadie's books are on the bottom shelf. She likes to sit tucked in behind the chair reading to herself. And these shelves - built by the industrious Jay - hold a number of our collections. We are confirmed pack rats and a small house keeps us in check...in theory.

recovery

I wanted to call this entry "stomach explosion" but it would have tainted the image above for all the wrong reasons. So before the recovery story, here is the invite to Jay's show which opens Wednesday at le.gallery. The opening reception is Friday, March 17th for anyone in Toronto, and Jay will be exhibiting new Gum Blondes that haven't even made it to his website yet. I guess they're hot off the . . . jaws?

As for the recovery story, all my knitting and making came to a grinding halt as a nasty stomach flu took over our house (never good before an art show, but it'll work out.) Jay and I were totally struck down, the details - far too disgusting to share. Thank goodness my Mom came to our rescue! She stayed with us, took care of Sadie and even slept on our couch to give us the help we so desperately needed. She was the ultimate MOM, and I feel incredibly lucky that she was so quick to help. Thanks Mom - you're the best!

wool explosion

Once upon a time I was addicted to knitting miniature sweaters. I really thought my knitting would stay small and repetitive, but something has gone terribly wrong. Here is a sweater for Sadie, partly based on the idea of the boat neck baby sweater from Debbie Bliss' Baby Knits but knit without a pattern which explains its HUGEness. At least she'll get two winters out of it, and by next year that tiny ponytail might actually stay in her hair (they last about 7 minutes now!) And then if that wasn't enough, my good friend Elizabeth at the addictive Elizaboothy started the Swing Thing from Magknits and I felt compelled to try it too, so at the height of Saturday's windstorm Sadie and I walked to Knitomatic and picked multicoloured Noro for it. You can see the yoke almost finished in the left side of the third photo. The rest of the wool pictured is from a trip today to Romni; the rust Silky Wool is for me to try a top-down raglan, and the mauve Jo Sharp is reserved for Sadie, because I'm sure I'll figure out something else to knit for her.

I've completely lost control.

pink, oh so pink

Today, my Olympic news is a bit better than the Canadian Men's Hockey team. Pictured here is my completed challenge, fuzzy pink fringe and all. I didn't actually sign up for the Knitting Olympics, but I perservered in the shadows and finished my project with time to spare. I'm not crazy about the stripe effect; variegated wool is new to me having spent the last five years knitting with solid colours and the occasional tweed fleck for kicks. As simple as the pattern looked, I had to make adjustments so that Sadie's noggin' could fit through (though her noggin' might be extra-large, I have a C-section scar that would swear that's the case!) She's not wild about wearing it yet so I'm leaving it on the floor with her pile of hats hoping that she warms up to the idea. Yeah, right.

mouse nap

Sadie's nose is oozing unpleasant stuff but on the bright side she took a three hour nap this afternoon. After a bit of internet time I gave myself a stern talking-to and dragged my tired Sunday body to my sewing corner to make good on the time she was giving me. Under the spell of an old Cowboy Junkies album and a foggy just-before-falling-alseep idea last night this little guy came to life, snout and all. I've used wool suiting instead of blankets which means my stuffing job will have to be improved. I think mice have been filling my head since seeing Vicki's little squeeks, though I'd also like to get going on some bird babies in a fashion similar to Little Red. Of course I hope Sadie's nose clears up, but it's terribly nice of her to give me lumbering naps every so often.

(P.S. It probably goes without saying - my absolute first choice is to hang out with Sadie all day. The mice and birds, as cute as they could be, can't rival my girl.)

the games begin

I didn't actually sign up for the Knitting Olympics, but I did decide to quietly participate during today's Opening Ceremonies, and that's got to count for something...right? There wasn't really a way I could cast on at work so instead, I picked my project and grabbed the wool on my way home from work (I seem to be stopping in at Knitomatic on my way home every Friday so my winter knitting is definitely a full-blown addiction). My Olympic challenge will be the "Fuzzy Wuzzy was a Poncho" for Sadie from the Yarn Girls Guide to Kid's Knits. It's not that the pattern is challenging but finishing it in 16 days will be. I also have a book to finish for my book club in the same time, though it's a completely different style of thing, and I'll need this pink and fuzzy project to balance the gore of Chuck Palaniuk.

little red

Better late than never - here is my submission for A Month of Softies. I thought I would take a break from wool and my usual construction methods and spend more time on the fabric. The first few lines of "Little Red Riding Cap" are machine embroidered on a few layers of linen, and I used a photo transfer and some hand embroidery for the face. It was invigorating - but also incredibly challenging - to work more freely...but I think I'll keep it up.

winter addiction

Is it the January blues? The post-holiday wind down? I just can't stop knitting, and my butt wants to be glued to the couch. So here are some finished projects - a mauve scarf for Sadie, some itsy bitsy legwarmers in a multicoloured alpaca and a pair of red wristlets for me. That would be me modelling a wristlet and then Sadie trying everything on (she prefers the legwarmers as sleeves - is she telling me she needs a sweater next?) I've almost finished my MOS entry, but a nasty cold over the weekend has delayed that progress. My other excuse for avoiding my sewing machine and being a couch potato is that Jay has a show in March at Le Gallery so I've been using the time after Sadie goes to bed to catch up on movies he would hate while he spends late night hours in the studio. Hey, no complaints here!