Sunday 3 January 2016

It Feels Like Nothing Gets Done

It is a new year and I am still harboring the cold from 2015.  This cold has been hanging around so long I am thinking of giving it a name.  Something annoying; a name most people would make fun of like Poindexter.  Poindexter is like a family member  you didn't invite to your house.  You can't say no to his staying with you as it would upset your mother.  Now he has made himself at home and you can't get him to leave no matter what you say or do.

I woke up this morning and I have lost my voice.  This is the latest manifestation of symptoms.

I like to take time off work between Christmas and New Year's.  I do cleaning that needs to be done at least once a year; stuff my cleaning lady is not expected to do.  I feel like I am putting my house in order before my busy season at work.

Poindexter is slowing me down.  I can only do a little before I am coughing, sneezing and wanting to take a nap.  The cold is only part of why I feel I can't get anything done.

One of the chores I planned was to clean the oven.  It is a self-cleaning oven so really not that big of a deal to clean.  However, from year to year, I cannot remember how to set the stove to the self-cleaning cycle.  I need the instruction manual.  Luckily I can remember where I keep it.  It is in the cubby in the living room coffee table.  

I opened the door to the cubby on Monday.  Half the stuff avalanched out on the floor.  Time to clean up the cubby.  I sorted the assorted pieces and then started putting them in better places.  Included in the cubby were maps and atlases.  We have a separate place to store those but the space would not hold any more so time to clean up the map storage.  This lead to wiping the dust off the other shelves in the storage unit.

In the cubby were computer and other assorted cables.  I keep those in the basement.  The basement ones seem to have gotten spread out so I found a clear plastic bin, rounded up the cables and then had to reorganize to free up space in the shelving in the basement for the bin.

There were various clipping I saved from newspapers and magasines and other assorted sources.  I started a storage box for those some time ago and stored it in the bedroom closet.  I retrieved it and added the cubby clippings.  I grabbed an empty storage box for the floor protectors found in the cubby.  This lead to combing the various drawers to collect all the other floor protectors stored there.

In between going upstairs and downstairs to deal with the assorted items in the cubby, I took breaks and worked on the squares for the afghan.  Of course finishing one lead to blocking it and the other squares previously finished.

On one trip upstairs, I saw that the laundry basket was full, so down to the basement it went on a trip down with something else.  I started the laundry and of course each trip down to move clothes from the washer to the dryer meant I moved stuff on that trip.  This included moving left over yarn from the afghan back to its storage bin in the basement and gathering yarn for the next upcoming projects.

It took all day to deal with a small amount of stuff.  In the end, the oven got cleaned - on Saturday. Now I have to put the instruction manual away.  That could take another whole day!

While I have not yet finished all the cleaning chores I have assigned to myself, I have made some progress on the knitting front.

All 20 squares for the afghan are complete.  The last 5 are blocked and waiting to be sewn together.  They will also be sewn to the previous 15.  Then the border has to be added.  I still have not worked out how I will finish it but I am strongly leaning towards an I-cord edge.

I held a blocking party.



The cardigan is still in progress.  It is partially assembled, the button band is done and I am waiting to get buttons to complete the buttonhole band.  I want to be sure I make the button holes the right size.  Button buying entails a trip to Fabricland in Windsor.  I don't yet feel up to it.   But once I have buttons I can finish the assembly and add the collar.

Cody's vest is done.



I used a basic vest pattern from the Patons pattern book "Back to Basics".  I made some modifications.  I raised the v-neck.  Hubby tells me that most v-neck patterns have the V too low.  He likes them higher up on the chest.  I followed his advice.  I hope Cody agrees.  I also made the arm scye wider so the shoulders are narrower.  I like vests to end at the shirt sleeve seam.  I think when the vest edging hangs over the top of the arm it just screams "home-made".  I am trying to achieve a hand-made couture look.

I also added a cable up the front.  I modified a cable pattern from the Knitting Stitch Bible.  I think the cable adds decorative interest but is still very manly.  I hope Cody agrees.

The yarn is Cascade - The Heathers 220.  The colour is 2429 - Ireland.  I purchased the yarn in Heather's basement.  Heather's mother used to have a yarn store in Windsor.  I believe the store closed when she received an unsolicited offer to purchase the building.  It was too good to turn down.  The yarn went into storage including all the yarn that had been ordered for the next season.  Heather set up shelving in her basement for yarn.   If you know Heather, you can make an appointment to go to her house and shop.  As space opens up on the shelves, more boxes come out of storage.

When I block sweaters, I like to layer the pieces.  I lay out the first sleeve and pin the piece out to size.  I then pin the second sleeve on top of the first sleeve as all the details are already worked out.  The fronts get put on top of the back for the same reasons.  It takes a little longer to dry, but once the sweater is completed it will be double thickness when drying anyway each time it is washed

Setting up the blocking this way also means less time bent over the bed laying out pieces.  I can also assure all pieces that should be the same size are in fact the same size.

Because of the drying time, I had time to complete another entry - something made from novelty yarn.  Meet Harvey Hedgehog.





I am in love with this guy.  So much so that he is currently sitting on my coffee table.  I am not ready to put him away with the other finished entries.

I saw the pattern in the Mary Maxim catalog.  The pattern is Tinsel Hedgehog by King Cole and was free with the purchase of Tinsel Chunky Yarn.   I had to have it so the next time I was London [Ontario] I stopped at the store and bought yarn to get the pattern.  Now I knew that I was going to only need one ball of yarn to make one hedgehog for the Fair.  I just cannot figure out why I came home with two balls.   Maybe Harvey needs a Harriet?

The pattern also requires a small amount of DK yarn for the face, ears and feet.  I used some left-over yarn from my odds and ends bin.  I chose beige.  I was tempted to use a lovely green but settled on beige as it was more realistic.  Why a polyester tinsel hedgehog  that is only inspired by a real hedgehog and is not a realistic portrayal in the least must be beige to be more realistic is one of those confusing conundrums that makes me, me I guess.

Hubby and I like to go to the movies at this time of year.  It is part of our holiday traditions.  Once I finished the afghan squares, I was out of movie theatre knitting.  I knit while waiting for the movie to start. The lights are only dim and there is usually enough light to see what I am knitting.  I will also knit through the movie if the project is simple enough.  Legs of socks are my usual choice but any plain knitting will do.  So I cast on the Levity Shawl.  The first part is just garter stitch with increases every row.   I am using a DK cotton and linen blend.  I thought it would make a lovely summer shawl.  The yarn is discontinued and I bought a lot of it from the Mary Maxim clearance room in the Paris [Ontario] store.  My original plan was to over-dye the yarn with indigo.  I have not gotten around to that and it is a lovely green on its own.


I can't seem to get the white balance right on my camera.  The photo looks blue.  I think it is the yellow light from the lamp I used to add light for the photo.  It is again a very dull gray day outside.

I think it is time for a nap.  Maybe that will help encourage Poindexter to leave.

P.S. We saw Joy, Star Wars - The Force Awakens and Brooklyn.  We enjoyed them all very much.

1 comment:

  1. Sorry to hear about Poindexter.

    I knit my button hole bands, then take thee sweater to the store and try out the buttons for size!

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