Sunday, December 10, 2006

So true!

What Kind of Reader Are You?
Your Result: Dedicated Reader

You are always trying to find the time to get back to your book. You are convinced that the world would be a much better place if only everyone read more.

Obsessive-Compulsive Bookworm
Literate Good Citizen
Book Snob
Fad Reader
Non-Reader
What Kind of Reader Are You?
Create Your Own Quiz


This is so true, I am truly addicted to reading!

Saturday, December 09, 2006

Stranded

So I joined the Stranded and have been searching for the perfect project, something that I can get to start over the holiday peroid (i.e. something from the UK and not something that has to travel overseas at the busiest time of year). Someone must have heard my desparate pleas as I have found the perfect project in the new Knitty - corazon, pink and white stranded mittens with a heart inspired fair isle pattern. I immediately phoned my mum and she is getting the yarn and needles for my for xmas - gotta love the mum! I am not going to be using the stated yarn for two reasons, one i wanted a really soft yarn and having used this before its not that soft and secondly,I couldn't find the colours, so I am trying a new yarn. It is by Sublime, a reasonably new company whose yarn I've yet to use, and is the Baby Cashhmere Merino Silk DK in Vanilla and Piglot. I have looked at these yarns before but they colours are very muted and subdued which isn't something I've been looking for in previous projects but for this it looks perfect.

After three attempts I have given up on the Swallowtail Shawl for now, until at least I go to my Mums and photocopy and enlarge the charts. However, having seen Piglottie's Forest Canopy Shawl in a Rowan Tweed 4ply (a similar yarn to the Rowanspun 4ply i was going to use for the Swallowtail) I think I will use the Rowanspun to make myself a Forest Canopy Shawl. I have 5 x 25g so will make it slightly larger like Piglottie's.

Hope everyone is having a good run up to the festivities. If I can persuade Karl we may well get the decorations out this weekend!

Thursday, December 07, 2006

Unfortunately Mrs Bobs babies didn't survive - we are not sure why but in her infinite wisdom she ate them. I know it gross but is actually quite common. We believe it is probably because she was such a young mother that she couldn't look after them. Although we didn't intially plan on breeding her and Mr Bob we have decided that in the new year we will probably try again. We did however complain to the pet store that i bough them from saying how we bought them as two males and they gave us a FREE cage, and not just any old cage any cage we wanted - after some deliberation we went for the Rotastak Creepy Castle. We already have one of these with two of our roborovski's in, but as we already had all the other rotastaks they had Karl chose the Creepy Castle (probably because parts of it glow in the dark)

I have been busy knitting my Xmas gifts. I completed the second of my stepdads bed socks and also managed to finish my mums hat. I also completed another two washcloths. FO pictures soon.

So whats left:

  • gloves for mum (to match hat and scarf)
  • Sock for stepdad (father and son socks form IK Fall 06)
  • Second bed sock for mum
  • Washcloths
  • Lavender bathbombs


I can't see it being a problem as I can knit up until xmas eve, what is worrying me however is that the yarn for my Shetland Shawl will arrive very soon and it is going to take alot of willpower to not cast on and knit that instead.

I received an e-mail today saying that the Sock Hop yarn I ordered has been despatched. I can't wait for it to arrive. I plan on using two of the skeins to make a pair of RPMs.

Whilst reading socks-for-mum I learnt about Stranded - the colorwork challenge. I had been thinking about learning colorwork as one of my new years resolutions and this is just the help I need. I joined up right away. I am looking for a simple beginners pattern, something small like socks, mittens or a hat. If anyone has any suggestions please let me know. I have my eye on the Fiesta Mittens and I love all of these Red Bird Knits socks. I found the Red Bird Knits website today, they have the most wonderful sock patterns. Talking of colourwork there is lovely free pattern for a hat over on brooklyntweed. This is definetely on my to-do list.

The rain appears to have quitened down now so I shall try to get some sleep before Uni tomorrow and 3hrs of genetics. I feel a LARGE eggnog latte with extra shot being needed.