In search of....

There's a bit of it around - lack of inspiration in the face of the need to blog every day for Blogtoberfest. I love the concept, but am struggling to not only find the inspiration but the time for a post everyday.

Bells lamented it, Kylie is suffering, other Blogtoberfest goers are wondering what they got themselves in for and even Blogtoberfest SuperMama, BigCat, is feeling the squeeze. Rosered helped out with a list for Bells, that she very generously shared, and will get many people (including me!) out of a tight spot, I'm sure.

Well, I can't do anything about the lack of time (but oh, how I wish), but just to add to the inspiration mix, Bells, Kylie and I have concocted another little scheme to kick start the brain cells on those slow-blogging days. Bells mentioned it in her post yesterday.

If you check out all our posts from yesterday, you'll see they all feature the word or theme transform. That's because it's the word I chose from the page of my Macquarie Dictionary that Pirate Jim picked yesterday afternoon. We thought we might do this every second day, so that there is some inspiration sitting there if we need it over the course of the month.

If you're feeling stuck for inspiration, pop on over and at the bottom of each day's post, I'll give you the Word of the Day for the second next day (that means two days away). A word randomly selected from a page in my Macquarie Dictionary, third edition, once Kylie or Bells give me a page number (up to 2478).

You might choose to make this your post theme, or just to try and get it in the text somehow.

This is just a way of sparking something off in your brain, and providing extra fodder for Blogtoberfest!

Also, I am very honoured to have received a Blogtoberfest Spirit Award from BigCat. Thanks! I'll wear it with pride!

Every now and then everything comes up roses

I guess everyone has them now and again - moments of clarity that transforms what you're doing or how you think; an epiphany; an "a-ha" moment (and I don't mean Norwegian bands in tight jeans).

My mum taught me to knit when I was about 4 or 5, and I knit in exactly the same style as her. Until recently, this was pretty absolute; I used standard Australian patterns from ACS, almost exclusively their yarns, and I knit garments the same way as my Mum (whom I should add is a brilliant knitter who test-knit for ACS in the 70s). That is, in pieces - back, front(s), sleeves, sew up seams and pick up stitches for neckbands, button bands etc.

I thought that's how one knit.

I never thought I'd say this, but I reckon Donald Rumsfeld may have been onto something when he postulated that not only were the "known unknowns", but there were also "unknown unknowns".

I had no idea that my knitting would be so transformed by my exploration of the knitting community via the web and blogging. There were (and still are) indeed unknown unknowns.

The knowledge that has transformed my knitting, probably more than any other thing I have learned recently, is that garments can be knit in one piece, from the top down, or bottom up. One piece. No seaming.

Although this isn't anything new to, oh probably a goodly 99% of the knitting world, it was news to me a few months back when I figured it out.

One piece. No seaming. Wow.

It has changed the way I look at garment construction. I now understand how things go together to make a garment and if I see a pattern knit in pieces, I immediately want to know if it is essential to construct it that way, and if not, how I could make it in one piece. Without seams.

Although my first top-down one-piece was a wrap (so it was straight, really), my current deadline WIP is a roll-neck jumper that I've done in this style, in the round. I can't show it to you right now, because it's a gift, but let me tell you I am totally chuffed with how it is working out. I reckon it might even fit the intended recipient!

Now that I've got the top-down seamless by the short-and-curlies (to borrow a very elegant phrase from my mother), I am really looking forward to the next "a-ha" moment that transforms the way I craft.

What was your ephiphany?

p.s. the spellchecker in Blogger reckons Rumsfeld should be "misfield". Maybe someone should have spell-checked his name back in, say, 2001, and taken the hint.

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The word for Monday is lend.

Day 10 - Im going to sea, dont try to reason with me.

Beloved is back from his work trip this afternoon, so things are on a more even keel around here. I may even have something vaguely interesting to say tonight.

I wanted to thank everyone who shared their favourite lullabies and songs in the comments; I hope everyone who read them enjoyed them as much as I did. It seems to be one of those things that is so individual and personal and memory laden. I hope that I'm giving my kids some deeply connected memories with the songs we sing and the traditions we start while they're still young. Those are precious things.

There has been some dribs and drabs of stash enhancement going on over the last weeks and months; I'm not brave enough to document it a la Rosered, but almost all of it has a plan (some people seem to think this is important!), once the current deadline WIPs are done. I thought tonight I might lay some of those plans out - perhaps it will shame me into actually doing some of them. But then again, perhaps not.

Sorry, no pics (cant be arsed, frankly! And most of it isn't photographed - it doesn't count as stash that way!), and all the patterns links are from Rav. And no particular order, either.

1. There was some Bendy purchased a few weeks back - mostly for a gift jumper (in progress), but one has to make up the free postage threshold!

• Waving Grass in Rustic 12 ply in Spiced Plum for the Princess for next winter;
• Little sister's dress in heather cotton for this summer;
• Avita in maritime blue cotton - but I'll modify the straps because I don't like the ties.

There was Bell's little Berry adventure that yielded some Cascade 220:

• 2 skeins of a gorgeous red (9404) that will become a Toddler Tunic;
• 2 skeins of teal (9455) that may just want to be a February baby sweater for next year.

Bells also arranged a small Knitpicks shipment:

• Wool of the Andes in two shades of purple for a Green Zebra
• Mainline cotton in red for a baby swing jacket

Bec put me onto the very lovely Utiku yarn from NZ:

• 200g of Watermelon will become an Oriental Lily;
• I'm as yet undecided what 200g of Blueberry will be though.

There have been plenty of Spotties purchases as they cleared out their winter stock:

• some Mode Vera Torte will become a Boogie Vest for me;
• a few balls of Lion Brand cotton that will make many things including a Confection Baby Shrug, a Daisy and perhaps some longies
• Im not owning up to the rest just yet.

There was a German shipment in July that included:

• Garnstudio Paris cotton for a 100-2 Jacket with Rib
• Garnstudio Alpaca that is just so nice to smoosh it doesn't need a plan

Lincraft blowouts:

• Balmoral Tweed (green) that is now partly a U-Neck Back-to-school Vest;
• Patons Smoothie for a Wicked;
• more Balmoral Tweed (grey) for another vest, or maybe a Tree Jacket.

I would like it noted I have passed on numerous enhancement opportunities in the recent past, despite the temptation. I am strong, I tell you.

And I haven't listed anything I want to do for the Summer of Lace.

I expect that should keep me off the streets for a while.

One last thing - I wanted to mention a new-ish blogger on the block who is an old friend from my Blue Mountains days. Liz runs the Button Bower (if you like vintage buttons you must go there)and also crafts beautiful jewelry and objects from buttons and other vintage thingies. And she's a scientist by day! Drop by and say hi; she's having a giveaway for Blogtoberfest too!

Now, if I dont get back to the couch and my knitting, this list will remain just that.

Dear Teacher.....

Please excuse Georgie from posting anything intelligent or worthwhile on her blog tonight. As you know, she has really good intentions, and signed up to Blogtoberfest in good faith, but after today she just doesn't feel she can deliver. Even with me here to help her out while Beloved is away for work, it's been a difficult day.

If the Pirate was asleep at his usual time of 7:30, instead of still bouncing in and out of bed like a jack-in-the-box for the last 90 minutes, then maybe she could have come up with something interesting.

If the Princess hadn't had an hour-long screaming session that started at the precise moment dinner was placed in the table, then maybe she would be in a position to string a few words together.

If she hadn't spent most of the day walking around the Plaza with me, waiting while I tried on clothes, trying to get the self-serve checkout at the LargeLetter store to work, patiently following me around the supermarket, and taking me to the yarn store (ok, ok, I didn't say it was all hard work!!), she might be in some sort of state to sit upright at the computer.

If she hadn't been woken three times in the night by the Princess, then four times by the Pirate before he finally climbed into bed with her and then took 95% of the available space while she clung to the remaining 5% and shared it with the cat, perhaps she might be able to relate an interesting anecdote about her day.

And I haven't mentioned the other tantrums, tidying, bathing, cooking and wrangling that has taken place today. Or the six, 45-minute breastfeeds that she's delivered since 6am.

So I'd appreciate it if you excuse her for tonight. I'm sure she'll be back at her best tomorrow night.

Yours,
Georgie's Mum.

Rock a bye baby

Thanks for all your great comments about MCNs - its so interesting to hear other's experiences! One of the selling points I forgot to mention was nappy rash - Princess Grace had it when I was using disposables in the first week or so (before I was confident she was big enough for the clothies), but after 24 hours in cloth - gone. And not a skerrick since. How good is that?

When I put the Princess to bed of an evening, I usually sing her a lullaby as she lays in her cot, swaddled up like a sausage and big eyes gazing up at me.

Sadly, I can't write music and so can only tell you the words, not the tune:

Moon, moon, shining and silver,
Moon, moon, silver and white,
Moon, moon, whisper to children,
Sleep through the silvery night.
Shine, shine, shine, shine,
Sleep through the silvery night.

I've heard it a few times on Playschool, but haven't been able to find anything more on it.

It's become a special quiet time for the Princess and I. She seems to like my singing - possibly the only person in the world who does, as Beloved snorts when I try to sing and even Pirate Jim says "Stop singing Mama!" if I try to sing along with Playschool!

Before PJ knew enough about music to know my how bad my singing is, our special song at bedtimes was "Twinkle twinkle little star". First time around I didn't have so much confidence, or Playschool, and my repertoire was very limited. He'll sometimes still let me sing it, and sings along now too, which I love.

It got me to thinking though - what's your favourite lullaby? The one you sing (sang) with the special wee ones in your life, or the one that was sung to you.

I'd love to hear about it!

The Princess's new clothies

When Pirate Jim was a mere bump and we were getting ready, as you do, I was quite determined that disposable nappies were the way to go. I had read what little information there was on the question of disposable vs. cloth, and to me there was no question. The production and landfill costs of disposables were preferable to me compared with the cost of producing and washing cloth nappies.

In my mind, though, cloth nappies = the large terry squares that I was nappied in back in the 70s. That had to be folded, that leaked, that needed pins and horrid plastic pilchers and to be soaked in a stinky bucket of bleach, that had to be somehow dried in winter. All that water, detergent, power, time...it was not for me. I had my arguments sorted and I was quite adamant.

But every time I ditched one of those things in the bin, I felt just a little uneasy. Although I liked to think I was trying to tread lightly, since cotton is so intensive to grow, all that water and detergent and power, yadda yadda, I thought that there had to be a better way.

Luckily there are many, many way cleverer people in the world than me, and they had it sorted ages ago.

I stand here before you, admitting I was wrong, and shouting from the rooftops that there is a better way. I am a true believer!

In the months before the Princess was born, I became aware of this "new" thing: Modern Cloth Nappies, or MCNs as those of us in the know like to call them (Yes, as usual I'm light years behind. Stop laughing down the back).

I did some research, talked to some friends who were there before me, got myself a mentor (not a compulsory step, but when you're like me and need hand-holding for something new, it helps) and I was away.

Pockets are my nappy of choice, and I love them. They are easy to use and dry so quickly. I wont bore you with the details (I suspect I'm nearly the last person on the planet who knows about these anyway), but suffice to say I am sold. Love them.

I wasn't initially sure about what they looked like or how they worked (thank goodness for my very patient mentor!), so I bought my initial stash (yes, we MCNers have another sort of stash - another selling point if you were still wavering!!) from a respected seller who carried lots of different brands and types.

But then my mentor suggested building up the stash by sewing my own. I was astounded - I could do that?

Yep - and I did. Lots of free and purchased patterns are available online; I found one that I liked, bought in the supplies and had a bash.

Behold, nappy stash!

Aren't they groovy? And it's enormously satisfying - not only am I reducing all that waste but I made these myself. The first one (front centre) is a bit gumby, but it still does the job.

Bring on summer so the Princess can get out in her funky new bum wear!

And whats even better - shhh, don't tell Beloved - is that now I have the perfect excuse to maintain yet another stash: the nappy fabric one. Sometimes I am so sneaky I amaze even myself!

This is.....my favourite kitchen thing

I haven't played "This is...." for yonks, but given the kitchen is my favourite room in the house, I felt it was time to come back.

I love kitchen stuff. LOVE it. I love to cook (except lately, when it's become about getting folk fed before the regular evening meltdown happens), love to entertain, love browsing cookbooks - I have an entire bookcase for them - love food mags and I love all the stuff that goes with cooking and kitchen-ing. Put me in a kitchenware store and I wont be out for a week.

So how to choose my one, single, most favouritest thing?

Perhaps my KitchenAid stand mixer that I coveted for years before Beloved put one under the Christmas tree for me?

I adore it, but it's not my favourite.

My Microplane grater? Close, very, very close, but no cigar.

Lemon zester? Citrus reamer? Scanpan classic frying pan? Juicer?

Nope. It's this.

My stick mixer. The thing that makes it my absolute favourite is the mini-processor bit. Its the perfect size for mincing garlic, onions, ginger etc., chopping herbs, making pastes - all the things I use a processor for without having to haul out my Big Bertha processor. And it does it in a flash, then goes straight into the dishwasher.

When I'm in the cooking zone, I use this several times a week. The whisk is also really handy too, except I've lost the little sleeve off the end at some stage, tragically.

So there you have it - and if you dont, you should get one.

No startling car accident post-script from me; just a cuppa and knitting on the couch. Bis morgen.