Only One Week To Go!

Well its been a busy couple of weeks! TypePad gave me some grief and I was unable to leave any comments on TypePad blogs. I contacted their technical support who were absolutely brilliant. Tons of emails flew back and forth between us and after a few days, all was sorted. They were really grateful for my patience and help and I was happy with their excellent service.

Work has been better. A new system has been implemented for one of my bugbears and is working well. So it does look like they are now keen to bring other systems and procedures up to date. Good. I love new systems ;)

Unfortunately my own system for doing some sewing up each weekend has failed miserably. My poor Malabrigo is still waiting for some loving attention. But I've finished work now till the New Year so I have great plans this week.....


I have been knitting though and the back and left front of my Fletcher coat in Noro Iro are now done. After taking the photo though I ended up having to frog all the moss stitch at the top. It was only after I started the garter stitch rows that I realised the left front did not match the right! And darned, it would have to be the back that needed redoing....I'd misread the amendments and started the garter stitch rows on the wrong side. Oh well. All re-done now and looking good.

The 2nd STR sock is almost done and should be finished this week. So it will be new STR socks for Xmas then. Cool!


I've had a card making blitz as you can see. I always put off card making till the last minute but once I get going enjoy it. Knitting calls to me you see and card making is an awfully messy and time consuming business! I'm just so fussy - what can I say ;)

Online bingo has grabbed my attention a little too. I used to love playing bingo on holiday when I was young in the seaside resorts. I've never joined a bingo club but saw an offer I liked the look of and its surprisingly fun. Well it was for a day or so till I got bored of not winning. But I've had a few goes since and won a few pounds. Keeps me out of trouble anyway......

I have bought some bits and bobs recently but nothing out of the ordinary. A few Lana Grossa mags from Germany and a ball of Regia Stretch that asked to come home with me. Obviously I couldn't refuse. But I worry a little about my sock stash. They take so long and I've gotten so particular with the brands that my old regulars are still sitting patiently waiting in the sock yarn stash box. My favourite regular sock yarn is Milenweit but I gotta admit I just love handpainted yarns. They're just too pretty to resist you see...



Yup, so of course I couldn't resist the offer of more STR from DH for Xmas. Aren't they gorgeous? I haven't opened it yet though as am not allowed. Though it didn't go quite as planned as DH said to order an extra skein and order 3. Which seemed fine at the time until the parcel took longer to arrive and I realised it was probably held up in customs! I was right, unfortunately and had to pay £8.11 for VAT & PO charges. Won't be doing that again. Will stick to 2 skeins in future ;(




DH had also promised a skein of Colinette's Jitterbug too and Popsicle was the shade I chose. Even Thunder was interested and got in the way but I managed to take another without the furry beast.


Thunder says its important to keep warm in the cold winter and snuggling on the sofa in mums dressing gown (whilst she's wearing it of course!) is a great way to keep warm ;)


Custard says hello to everyone and asks for more organic sunflower seeds please ;) And not to worry about his eye. At his age his tear ducts don't work so good so mum has to help him open his eyes most days. Can you believe he's 33 months old now!

Wishing you all a Happy Christmas and New Year!

Where does the time go

After my last post and the crappy time I'd had I was kinda hoping for a better time. It didn't quite materialise but there is light at the end of the tunnel......maybe normal service will resume soon!

Work has continued to give me stress. Different reasons this time. Mostly that its antiquated and outdated and though I was brought in to make changes and bring it more up to date, in reality it just hasn't happened. You just wouldn't believe the stuff I have to sort out because other staff aren't capable enough or have never been made to do their jobs properly. I'm not learning anything new in fact am going backwards. It's a very small company and hasn't been working out as expected, or as I was led to think it would.

So of course I went in last week to hand my notice in. But didn't quite manage it. I ended up agreeing to see how it goes. They've promised to give me full support in the changes that need to be made and have agreed 100% with the issues I raised. So not at all what I expected but it was nice to be so clearly wanted! So, we'll see how it goes. It's given them a real wake up call and they've realised that if I leave and someone else comes in, the same problems will happen. As I've been there 2 months already, a little longer is ok. Otherwise I'll just temp.

No results yet from my tests as they've turned into a quite a disaster. I got a letter from the hospital which started off ok with the first paragraph being about me, but then it went on for 2 pages talking about someone totally different. So apparently according to the hospital I'm now a policewoman with a cat and dog allergy. Frustrating isn't the word really. It didn't help either that I had another reaction last weekend. I woke up the next morning with a puffy face - even thats a new one for me!

At least DH now has a new van which I found for him after a lot of searching around the main dealerships on the internet. We viewed it and knew my DH would like it and so we picked it up last weekend. There were fun and games with the paperwork that I really didn't need, but hey, we got it and its happily parked in it space ;)

Of course all this has meant knitting takes a bit of a back seat and I don't have a great deal to show. I have been making good progress though and finished my Hoodie in Malabrigo which is even all pressed too. Just the lovely sewing up to do......

But I just haven't got round to taking any photos this post. I should have some next post. She says hopefully :)

To soothe my work troubles I started the Fletcher coat in Noro Iro which I got 2 Xmas's ago. It is perfect as it feels so earthy and tactile and the perfect calming yarn. My gauge is spot on and I'm lovin knitting with it. It is a very sturdy yarn so perfect for a jacket or coat. The silk in it means it sheds a few fibres which show up quite well on our cream sofa. Remind me not to get a cream sofa again please ;)

Why is it I keep remembering something I should have mentioned after I've posted? I did it again, but I can't believe I didn't mention that I signed up for the Socks That Rock Sock Club and have my ID. Here's hoping I have the money ready in the New Year....

Though it certainly was a surprise to see the cost it is without a doubt my favourite sock yarn and I love the idea of getting packages throughout the year. I'm putting my bonuses from work towards paying for it and I really think it will be worth it. Having been disappointed with handpainted yarns before, I know this is highly unlikely to happen with STR. There is something so magical about this yarn that I can't wait to pick up a sock I'm knitting with it so I can feel that amazing texture. It really is addictive.

I'll leave you with some more holiday photos. Yep more still from Malaysia this year. Just what you need in this cold winter weather ;)