Cute as Pi

You will recall there was knitting that took place while I was in labour with the Princess.

Although it's bee finished for months, I've been too lazy to blog the item in question. So finally, here it is.

Princess Grace's Birthday Pi Blanky.

It is of course based on Elizabeth Zimmermann's Pi Shawl. I'm such a dreadful copy cat that once I saw Bell's beautiful Pi Blanky I knew I had to make one of my own, and cast this on as a brainless knitting project when I was about 7 months pregnant.

Pattern: EZ's Pi Shawl, from Knitter's Almanac (Rav link)

Yarn: Bendigo Woollen Mills Classic 8 ply in Tuscan (200g) and a grey colour I'm not sure of (about 220g). I had the Tuscan in the Stash (yay) and Bells gave me the grey.

Needles: 5mm Knitpicks options

Mods: I guess one doesn't really modify and EZ pattern, does one? As you can see, it just did the eyelet rows on the increase rows in the red section, then about every 6th row in the grey. I did the ordinary garter stitch edging.

Here it is blocking:

To give it a final lift, I ran two rows of running stitch in Tuscan around the edge. Thanks for this suggestion, Quilting Mick, it's perfect!

And finally, here it is with the recipient. Shhhh.

Suits her, don't you think?

Nothing much

That's what happened today - not much at all.

Rain overnight, an early visit to the markets, friends whom we havent seen in about 5 years for a bbq lunch, kids tearing around the backyard (it stopped raining), cleaning up afterwards, leftovers for dinner and collapsing on the couch with a Hitchcock film on the teev, a cup of tea and knitting in my lap....

So, instead, just a quick piccie of the wee ones taken yesterday.

Nice one, Nana

Today, 3:45pm, home. Nana (my mum) and Pirate Jim are talking on the telephone.

PJ: I'm getting my hair cut today Nana.

Nana: Really? Are you going to get a spike?

PJ (giggling): Nooooo, Nana, I'm not getting a spike!

4:00pm, local hair salon. PJ is sitting in the hairdresser's chair.

Hairdresser: What are we doing today, PJ?

PJ: You're cutting my hair.

Me: Short back and sides, please. A little off the top.

4:07pm, local hair salon.

PJ(entirely without prompting): Can I have a spike please?

Hairdresser: Sure thing!!

4:10pm, home.

Dis one's for the lay-dees....

Yeah, thanks for that, Nana.

Goody two shoes

I'm not sure if blogging twice in one day gets me brownie points, but as Amy pointed out, it was still her yesterday when I posted on my this morning, so maybe I'll count that as yesterday and this as today.

Today was a fabulous, lovely, shiny day - it was warm (26oC), sunny and lightly breezy. The Princess and I headed to our local plaza / mall to do some clothes shopping for me. It was a much more successful expedition than I've had in the recent past, and I was even fiscally responsible enough to lay-by everything instead of buying it straight up. Aren't I good?

Then after a lovely impromptu lunch with Kuka, who works very close by, we came home, threw the doors and windows open, and while Princess G slept, I finished off a little sewing project.

I've been trying to make a pair of these shoes for about two weeks, but kept getting stymied - first I didn't have the right interfacing, then I didn't have the right thread, then I didn't have the right elastic....

Anyway, today, I finally did the last 30 minutes work required, and was very satisfied with the result.

The pic is a little too blue; they're actually light and dark purple. And the sole pulls in a bit where the tops and heels join, but I think that's because the soles might be too thin to resist the elastic (just two layers of cotton, no interfacing or fleece).

Sweet, na?

I've got lots more of these planned. They use a teeny amount of fabric, and take only about an hour or maybe two to make, now I know how to do them.

Wow, two posts in less than 24 hours - whoda thunk it?

Can you spell "irony"?

For a whole lot of reasons, I have been very quiet on the blog front lately ("Really Georgie? No!" How kind of you to say so....).

Since being at home on maternity leave with the Princess, I find if I sit down in front of the computer, hours just get sucked away, I do an email or two, read some blogs, do a little Ravelry-ing, and the whole day is gone.

I have lots of goals for my leave, not the least of which is to enjoy my special time with the Princess (but never doubt I have a massive, multi-layered list of Things to Do), and unfortunately being on the computer excludes every thing else. I don't think sitting on my lap watching the screen counts as suitable stimulation for a 3-month-old.

I have made a conscious effort to reduce my screen-time. I don't want to find whole days have been sucked out my week by faffing about the internets. I don't want to find it's January, I'm heading back to work, the Princess is 6 months old and I've done nothing of consequence with this very important time. I am very privileged to have significant maternity leave in a country where many women are forced to go back to work after just 6 weeks (and many don't even get any remuneration for those 6 weeks), and I feel obliged not to fritter it away on frivolous things.

It's spring here in Canberra, and I want to enjoy being outdoors with the Princess and Pirate Jim. I would like to achieve some long-standing goals around the home, such as decluttering and re-organising all the stuff we have. I want to have more than an hour a day to spend on knitting. I want to get back to sewing, and crocheting, and spinning, I cant do that from in front of the computer.

As a consequence I have dropped out of the blogging habit, and although I try and read them, I comment much less often on other blogs. I still read, but I just observe, don't participate as much. I have been an appalling correspondent of late, and am dreadfully behind in returning emails.

But I miss it. I have decided that, rather than feel guilty about my screen time, I need to be more disciplined, give myself discrete windows of usage time, and not stray from that.

So ironically, rather than step further back from blogging, I will step up instead, and take on a challenge. Blogtoberfest has started over on Big Cat's Emporium, and I'm signing up. There's no pressure, just the challenge of posting every day. I'm a day late, but better late than never, I say!

Bring it on! Now, I'm just off to check Rav, and my email, and the weather in Belgrade....

I'm it

Bells tagged me for a meme, thinking I needed some bloggy inspiration, bless her cotton socks!

She's right, I do.

So without further ado, here are Seven Random Things about me:

1. I wanted to be a vet from when I was about 5 years old. Even though I did pretty well at high school, university came as a bit of a shock to me and I only got very average marks in first year Science (first year of the general science degree was the requirement for entry into the vet program). I applied every year through my Science degree and never got in; I did however get a scholarship to do my PhD.

2. I don't have a sweet tooth at all. I appreciate fine sweet things (good dark chocolate for example, or lemon tart) but can mostly take or leave chocolate, cakes or other sweets, or stop very easily after one piece. Being in the same room as a pavlova makes my teeth ache. I do, however, have a raging savoury tooth and can devour chips or savoury biscuits by the boxful.

3. My favourite snack is Jatz crackers. I used to be a Savoy girl, but when I moved to Darwin I couldnt buy Savoys so moved over to Jatz, and never went back. I have been know to eat a box for lunch. Love them with cheese, mustard pickles, smoked mussels or just on their own.

4. Others have noted their ickiness about feet, so they might want to avert their eyes now. I love cutting my toenails. It gives me a great sense of satisfaction, and I force myself to wait until they're quite long (not claw-long, just a few millimetres) before I cut them.

5. Despite having a couple of dozen pairs of shoes, I wear my blunnies almost exclusively. I *want* to wear other shoes, but I'm just too lazy and value comfort too highly.

6. My first car was a Holden Escort with a 2.0L engine. It went like the clappers. My second car was a red short-wheel base Nissan Patrol diesel. It didnt go so fast, but I thought it was still pretty cool. I once drove from Melbourne city to Brunswick (only about 10 kms) with 11 people in it.

7. I had pet rats as a teenager. My first, Ratty (inspired, I know), used to go most places with me, sitting on my left shoulder. I got a kick out of freaking out checkout chicks at the supermarket and the librarian at the public library when she peeped out from under my hair or ran down my arm to sit on my wrist.

So that's a few random thoughts.

Here are seven people I'd like to know more about (apologies if youve already been tagged this round):

1. Bec from Kids, Knits, Classes, etc
2. Kuka
3. Pransell
4. Kate from Knitting and Knotting
5. Strikerin
6. Twitchy Fingers
7. Cindy2paw

Saturday is for swatching

You're probably aware I've had a bit of mental blockage about starting new projects, particularly larger items, since the Princess arrived (Ok, ok, long before that). I've spent the last few weeks trying to actively play down the angst and get myself a bit organised - lots of Ravelry-ing, updating and prioritising my queue, a good Toss of the Stash (you are so not seeing the photos of that little exercise), researching patterns and yarns. And polishing off a few lingering WIPs.

While I still have a few of those pesky WIPs hanging about, Ive made some good progress and finally my head is in the right place to make a start on some new projects.

My German god-daughter, Little Miss M, turns 4 at the end of October - the end of autumn start of winter in Europe - and I have (for better or worse) started a tradition of knitting her a jumper for each birthday. So I've ordered the yarn from Bendy for that, but in the meantime I thought while I had the desire to cast on, I'd run with it. I've paired off patterns and yarn in the stash, so had a few options.

What's a procrastinator to do when faced with choice?

Why, swatch of course! So I picked two - one big (gotta get back on the big-things horse, its been way too long) and one small.

The "big" project is a Goldilocks project: not too big to be intimidating, not so small as to be avoiding the issue, but j-u-s-t right.

Stephanie Japel's Back to School U-Neck Vest from Fitted Knits. An adult-sized garment, but not the whole catastrophe of front, back and two sleeves. Easy does it, don't want to get spooked.

When Lincraft had their Balmoral Tweed out for $2 a ball a few weeks back, both Bells and I snapped up 10 balls with exactly this pattern in mind. The yarn is listed in Rav as DK/8ply, even though the ball band says worsted, and others have told me I'd have trouble making the 18 sts / 10 cm gague required. And the yarn did feel a leetle thin as I was knitting it.


Well ner-ner-ne-ner-ner, because I got 17 sts on the 4.5 mm needles recommended! The fabric is only slightly more open than I would like, and so I'll go down to 4 mm (I typically gain or lose a stitch per needle size) and just keep an eye on the length and reckon I'll rock it in.

I'm loving the waffle stitch that makes up the bodice too.

My "little" project is of course something for the Princess. (Btw - I've shelved the Wollmeise for now. Too much pressure. Thanks for all your suggestions, but as Beloved is fond of saying "it needs a little bit more thinking").

Given that spring has sprung, I figured I'd better get cracking on some lighter-weight garments for her. I'm hoping the berry baby hat has broken the hoo-doo on knitting for her. So first cab off the rank is Blossom, a sweet little sleeveless (hmm, pattern developing here!) wrap around dress.

Big W had a $2 yarn sale last week (what is it with me and $2 yarn???) and I got 4 balls of Cleckheaton Cocoon, a yarn whose colours I love and have been dying to try but was put off by its 4-ply-ness.

So after all the chores were done, I retired to the deck with a cuppa and the latest Yarn to swatch.


I'm still waiting for it to dry (yes, people, I even wet-blocked my swatches!), but it looks like I'll come in a stitch under the 24 sts required. The fabric is quite open, but is lovely and soft and drapey even before a bath, so I think it will be lovely for this garment.

The Princess seemed quite pleased with this outcome when I told her.


Now I've just got to decide which one to start first...like right now.....arrggghhh, the indecision is killing me!! Maybe I'll swatch for something else.....