Dragon Rambles

Ok, so my attempt to get back online didn’t really work. Let’s try that again shall we. Meanwhile, what have I been doing while I haven’t been online? Good question, what HAVE I been doing?!

On the craft front, I finished the pieces for Alta (the multi-colour jumper I was knitting), but haven’t gotten around to blocking the pieces and sewing it up. That seems to be a theme for me, which is really why I should stick to one-piece knits.

I’ve been doing some work on those baby quilts I’m making for my cousins. But mostly in terms of cutting pieces. Man does that take a bit (draw and scissor cut). You can see I’ve been busy with this lovely little pile that was on my living room floor earlier in the week.

Which, of course, I kept trodding in and tracking around the house. But this did eventually result in a nice bundle of pieces ready to start sewing together. There should be enough pieces here for about 20 blocks.

I’ve also been doing more planning for my trip later this year, mostly with trying to track down the right pack and boots. So after having narrowed down the pack to three via lots of online research, I went to London yesterday to try them on, get them fitted and buy one. My next post will be all about the packs, what I did/didn’t like about each, which I chose and why. While I brought a pack home with me, the saga that has become my search for a good pair of hiking boots did not end yesterday. I need to think about that for a little and hopefully will get a pair in the next week or two – as I’ve been without hiking boots now since Jan.

One of my friends from work is having a baby in the next few weeks, so we’re throwing a baby shower for her. She is happily having a boy. Not that I don’t like little girl babies, but now that they make decent boys clothes, it’s so much fun buying for them. I like the types of clothes that make them look like miniature men. And since I always buy size 6-12 months since I know the mum generally has lots of smaller stuff, and bub grows out of the smaller stuff so quickly, I had plenty of choice. A quick visit in Baby Gap yesterday while in London (handily right around the corner from my new favourite outdoor shop), and score!

You also can’t go to London without catching up with Charlotte. I think it’s a law. She was stuck at home on dogsitting duty, so we visited her house instead. And force fed her cake. I don’t think she’ll ever let me come over again

I love her house, it’s in a perfect location and I loved seeing all of her quilts, cushions and other homemade goods around the house. It was a lovely, if short, visit. Next time I’ll try and come to London with just visiting in mind and no pesky shopping trips. As I was leaving though, she did give me a slap on the wrist for not blogging lately. So Charlotte, consider it successful

And as everyone else in the UK has already blogged – Spring has finally arrived. Like everybody else, Macros is enjoying the sun

I went for a walk at lunchtime today and took my camera so one of my workmates could take a photo of me wearing Cora to share. Now, I’m really not photogenic, but she did get a nice photo.

You can’t see much of my new jumper here though. So I’ll show you one of the ones where I’m looking and feeling like a dork. This is me laughing at myself. But at least you get a good view of this looking and feeling like a dork. But at least you get a good view of this gorgeous pattern.

Oops, I disappeared there for a bit didn’t I. I think I’ve mostly caught up on blog reading, though to do so I was very economical with commenting. Looks like you’ve all been up to loads.

My time offline has been well spent though. I finished that jumper I was knitting and have worn it a few times. I need to get a pic of me wearing it and will share once I have.

The day I finished that one, I cast on a jumper with my other birthday yarn. A pattern that had just been released a couple of weeks earlier and that I loved: Alta.

I do like this yarn and how it’s knitting up, but I’ve also started thinking that I’d like to make this again with a single colour tonal yarn. Plus, there’s an error in the chart for the front. I spotted it when I started but didn’t follow my gut and instead followed the pattern. By the time I was sure my gut had been right, there was too much to undo. So I’d like to make it again correctly and with a yarn that will showcase the pattern more.

Making these two jumpers I’ve discovered I really like knitting garments with thicker yarn: they knit up so quickly!

I’ve also started planning the two quilts I want to make for my cousins. They are sisters. One has just had her first baby, the other is due with her first in June. I want to make play/cot/lap quilts. You know, a quilt that baby can play on on the floor, that could be used in a cot and later has a quilt to snuggle under on the sofa when they’re a but bigger. I’ve made this sort of quilt before and I love knowing that it’ll be used for at least 5 years. I’m going to make one for each of them probably the same or similar (from the same fabrics at least), aiming to have them done in June/July. I’d like to try and hand piece, but will machine quilt (for speed).

Other news:

I renewed my NZ passport. And got it one week after I sent off the application. That’s a far cry from the 6 weeks my UK passport renewal took in Australia a few years ago. But given the price has gone up and the passport is now only 5 years instead of 10, really, they can afford to be quick.

Work is going well. Very busy, but I like it. This is the first job I’ve had where the weekend comes around very quickly. Week time is still not as fast as weekend time, but the gap has narrowed significantly.

I’m heading to Cardiff in a couple of weeks for a meeting tied up with my old job. Might have to visit a couple of my favourite shops while I’m there. Though it’s a quick trip with more time spent getting there and back than will be spent in Cardiff.

I was asked if I’d like to take a day off work in May and go to France for the day. Trick question? Guess I’d better finally finish putting my kitchen in order so I can let myself buy some le creuset. Now to just whittle down my list. I think at the moment there are 4 of us going. And the whole purpose of the trip is to shop. Looking forward to it already, but something tells me there’ll be no savings that month

I’ve almost narrowed down my itinerary for my mega holiday in Nov-Dec. Am going to try and book flights next weekend. Very exciting.

Think that sums up what’s been happening here. Now off to get ready to visit with friends this afternoon.

It’s been quiet around here lately, I know. I’m also behind on blog reading but am trying to catch up.

Yesterday, being the end of Feb, was time for wrapping up Feb’s theme-a-licious progress. So what was Feb’s theme?

Figural February: Who are the people in your neighborhood…your WIP neighborhood, that is? Give your people-populated projects some face time this month.

Ok, that was pretty easy for me. First up, my drunken gnome quilt. I finished appliqueing the gnomes falling down the stairs. The bigger gnome up to the right? Well he’ll be swing from the light when I’ve finished him.

And I finished the see-saw block.

I also started a new jumper with my birthday yarn. I figure since I’ll be wearing this (hopefully soon), I’m the “people” in my project, so it has to count too

Not sure if I’ll be joing in with March’s theme as I still haven’t ordered the fabric I need. And it will probably take a while to get here, so I’ll see.

So, linking up to the Theme-a-licious Feb wrapup.

And, since it’s the first of the month, to fresh sewing day at Lily’s quilts.

Yep, I’ve been pretty quiet on blogland this week. I’ve skimmed through most of the blog posts in my reader but haven’t responded to them all. So if you didn’t hear anything from me, sorry, but I have been reading.

So what have I been up to? Well, remember the last time you were in constant pain for a solid week? Not enough to stop you functioning, but enough to make you very very tired, all the time? Well, that’s been my last week.

Sat, I succumbed after my trip into town, and curled up on the couch to knit for the afternoon. But I did rouse myself enough to go out with a friend to a local pub quiz. And it was confirmed that I am crap at pub quizzes. Especially those aimed at people who have been living in the UK for years, if not their whole life.

Sunday, I had friends over. We had a belated “xmas” meal and exchanged gifts. I got an awesome interchangeable needle holder. And I’ve just realised I forgot to take a photo, and it’s upstairs and I can’t be bothered to go get it right now. Perfect colours for me and just what I need. I had been considering trying to make myself one. Getting one as a gift was a much safer option

While my friends were here, I brought out the pile of fabric I had compiled for possible alien colours for my space invaders quilt. One of my friends does graphic design for publishing, so I figured he had to be helpful for picking colours . His first move was to pick out all the Kona solids and discard the rest. His comment was that they were shiny and popped up from the matt-ish black background better. Of course, this might just be because the Kona fabric was the only ones that were not prewashed. I’ll wait and see what they look like after I’ve washed them. But these were the colours he picked:

Still really hard to photograph with any colour accuracy. So, ignoring the purple on the left which I’ve had in my stash for ages and will be used for the bonus ship, the greens are: emerald, jade, candy green, pond and ice frappe. He was suggesting the three lighter greens with one of emerald or jade as the darker colour. But I still think the jump is a bit much, so I’m thinking of using both emerald and jade and dropping ice frappe.

Of course, if these lose their “shinyness” after being washed then the Bella solids and other ones I have are back on the table and I can probably get a smoother gradient.

Originally, I was wanting more teal greens for the aliens, and was then going to pick more royal blues for the home bases and gun. But if I do go with these colours, then I think I’ll go with Kona turquoise and peacock.

It will be interesting what the Kona looks like after washing, because if the Bella really is a flatter colour, then that will be the black I buy.

Wednesday night saw me baking 3 dozen cupcakes. Enough to take to the meet up at the local craft store on Thursday evening, and to take some in to work. Well, I wasn’t completely happy with how they turned out so I baked a batch of brownies on Thursday morning before work. Thursday evening was a blast. There were many of us there, all who don’t do Valentines day (and no, we weren’t all single). Lots of fun, chatting, cake and brownies (as I wasn’t the only one baking) and a very small amount of knitting.

And what have I been knitting off and on this week? Well, remember the birthday yarn I bought on my last trip to London? Well, I’ve started to turn it into one of these.

It’s going to be scrummy to wear. And I’m still loving this colour.

Other highlights of the week… I got a message from my brother. He and his fiance love the shawl and really appreciated the thought and time behind it. So they haven’t been crossed of the hand-knit gifts list . I’ve also continued to jog and have been out three nights this week. We are now in three weeks of an eight week program to be able to jog 5Km. I’m finding it’s much easier to do with someone else than relying on being able to make yourself go. Oh, and I’ve booked my holidays from work for later this year. Five weeks off in Nov/Dec. i have lots of fun planned and it will be my last big spend before I get serious about saving for a house deposit. I’ll tell you all about my plans in another blog post. This ones getting kinda long.

And this weekend? Well, since I’ve been so tired all week (and still am), I’m planning a quiet one. I have some work that I have to do before Monday, but otherwise my plan is to dig out my winterkist quilt and put in some quality sewing time. In between the naps. Basically, this is one weekend where I’ll be minimising my interaction with the outside world and just recharging.

Hope you’ve all had a good week and have an even better weekend.

Last weekend, after blocking the shawl for my brother’s wedding present, I took it to show to my friends at the local craft store, as promised, before I put it in the post.

They very kindly helped me take a photo of it

The colour is not acurate, but isn’t it pretty. If the recipients don’t like it, then they’re obviously heathens

Yesterday, I had a lovely day out in London. Nicki joined on the train down, and we met up with Charlotte in West Hampstead.

We stopped for some sustenance and a chat before Charlotte took us to Village Haberdashery, which Annie opened up for us. She’s so sweet.

I picked up some scrummy yarn that I just had to have (looking forward to seeing this knit up into a jumper).

And some kona solids to add to the bella solids I have in the hope I can get 4 colours to make aliens.

I also found out that Annie sells the batting I need for hand quilting, so I’ll be ordering some for moonglow. And that she’ll be starting some classes that I may want to attend. Given all the pretties that were there (including a brand new yarn shipment), I’m really impressed that I came home with just this. But I’ll be calling her soon to arrange for more stuff to come home to me.

Unfortunately, Charlotte had to head home after this, so we were down to two. But the fun didn’t stop there. We headed to Camden Rd, where I had a great chat with a guy who knew just what I wanted in leather hiking boots. He’s going to order some in for me to try and I’ll head back to London in a couple of weeks to pick a pair. Why am I not buying some closer to home? Because everyone is now all about gortex and it’s really hard to find full grain leather boots, let alone decent ones.

That important business over, it was time to hit Camden Lock markets for a browse and some late lunch, before heading to Islington to visit Loop. Yes, I bought myself another present, some yummy madtosh dk, which I’ll start knitting with this week.

We finished off our day in London camping out in a coffee shop having a drink and a good chat, before heading back to Bishops Stortford to join Nicki’s husband for dinner. We tried a new (?) place that serves tapas-like meals to share. They were ok. We probably could’ve made better ourselves, but the whole point was that we didn’t want to.

A leisurely meal and more good conversation and then I was heading home, getting back to Saffron Walden at 10pm. It was a fun day, but a long one. And I’m tired today. Like I always seem to be after a day in London. Why is that, I wonder.

Thanks Nicki and Charlotte for a fun day

One of my blogging friends is running a year long craft-along: Theme-a-licious. I’ve decided to join in, at least for some of the months.

This month’s theme was all about gardens and flowers. Well, this month I’ve been busy working on my brother’s wedding present. I was originally being careful not to post pics, but really, I think I’m safe. I don’t think he or his fiance read my blog.

I’ve knitted a shawl in (I hope) the wedding colour. It is meant as a wedding/baby shawl. The bride can wear it at her reception if she chooses, and it can be used for their babies for certain occasions, like coming home from the hospital and naming ceremonies. I hope it is something that ends up being passed down through the generations.

I’m sure some of the motifs must fit with this month’s theme

It’s currently blocking on my bed and will be posted this weekend.

Linking up to today’s January wrap-up post.

February’s theme is people. Work’s for me. I’ll be putting in some time on my drunken gnome quilt

Yesterday I summed up life in 2012. Today I thought I’d look back at my sewing and knitting progress in 2012.

First up: knitting!

I made my first pair of socks (thanks Granny)

And my second.

A shawl

Or three

A throw (though it’s STILL waiting for me to block it)

Some lace. One of which I can’t show you yet.

And two cardis that are just waiting for me to finish the sleeves (no recent pics of these).

In sewing, I started learning to make clothes using a sewing machine (It’s progressed beyound here but I haven’t hemmed it yet)

And continued piecing quilts by hand. I didn’t do much on my farmer’s wife sampler, but I managed to bring the total of blocks up over 30.

Instead I focused on finishing moonglow. Well, at least the piecing.

Oh, and I made a cushion for Macros

Hmm. That really was a lot. Especially for me. Can’t wait to see what I can accomplish this year

I’m going to my work xmas ball next weekend. We were advised to dress warmly as it’s help in an old building with high ceilings. Hello! Formal dress for women doesn’t usual come in warm. And my dress has neither sleeves nor shoulders. Could be worse, I could be wearing my other black tie dress which doesn’t have a back either.

So, after getting that warning, I quickly went searching for a “fancy” shawl to knit. One that I could make in a thicker yarn so as to add warmth. Also I had to have enough yarn on hand in a colour that would go well with my red dress.

I cast off yesterday afternoon after picking up a crochet hook, and it’s now blocking. I didn’t do a very good job of pinning it out into a neat and even circle, but it still looks good. And will be warm. And that’s what counts.