What Have You Been Up To Lately?

I've been desperately trying to keep myself busy lately. Here's a couple pictures of what I've been up to:

I finished a baby hat and Maggie modeled it for me.

She got me back by sleeping on my face.  A couple of times.

I'm working on a new sampler quilt out of the 2008 Block-A-Day orphans.  This is the general layout...

And this is my first mock-up.  What do you think?  I need feedback people!

I also tried another recipe out of Martha Stewart's Cookies - Chocolate Pretzels.  Not as chewy as I would have liked them to be, but shaping them was fun.

This desperate plea to the child has been on the fridge for the last week or so.  My due date is the 11th...here's hoping!

B-7, World Series

Today's block is B-7, "World Series" (10 pieces). Frankly, this pattern makes me think less of baseball and more of pie, but that might just be me. I followed Anina's guidance on this block, and am thrilled with the results (mostly). As you can see, the top right has been patched to complete the block. Since there's applique over it, so it's not very obvious, but still - regrets.

This puts my number of pieces to 1,001!
52 blocks
3 triangles
0 kites
1,001 pieces!!!

And, as a special treat for Patrick, a couple pictures of Maggie trying to build a blanket fort on the corner of my sewing desk.

The Return of Percival

A few years ago we opened our curtains to a surprising sight: there was a raccoon on our porch! Patrick named him Percival, and we were interested to note that he was missing the majority of his tail. Yesterday he came back.

I could tell it was the same raccoon because of the tail. There has been a lot of speculation as to how a raccoon loses most of its tail and survives.


The cats were much slower to react than I expected. Sure, they crowded to the window, but the inflated tails (see above) were slow to appear and they never made any noise at all.

When we have birds or other cats outside this window, the cats chatter and growl. Maybe they didn't dare try that with Percival because he's kind of an unknown quantity.

I opened the window a little to make some noise and scare him away, but all I achieved was to peeve him enough that he turned over my watering can. Does anyone have tips on how to keep raccoons away? We don't keep our trash outside, so that's not the issue.

Tomorrow - crafty update.

Finished Objects! - Booties, Shawl Collar Sweater, Electric Oreo Hat

Why did no one tell me how fast and easy baby knits are? My friends Erin & Todd became parents in January, and the projects are so speedy!


These are some booties I tried, as modeled by the tiny man himself. They're a first attempt, but didn't end up working out because of my issues with stretchy bind-off. I'm going to try again, but there are other projects calling me first. This pattern was from a knitting desk calendar, whose publisher escapes me now.


(Um, ignore the cat model.) This is Debbie Bliss' Shawl Collar Sweater. I got it out of Essential Baby, but it's been published a bunch of other places. The sleeves roll up and the collar folds down. It is not technically "finished" because I still have a ton of ends to weave in. (Seriously, just ignore the cat.)


And this is my hat! I say "my hat" because I concocted it myself! I borrowed the cast on from The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns and the crown decrease from my beloved Andean Chullo. I dubbed this combination of colors "Electric Oreo."


The yarn is Knit Picks Palette in Bittersweet Heather and Noro Silk Garden Sock. I continue to be deeply enamored of the Palette, but the Noro was a gift and I don't think it's quite for me. I had multiple breakages and lots of places where the fiber wasn't twisted at all. Still, it's a striking colorway, and I know lots of knitters just love it. It was good that I got to try it and make up my own mind.


You guys, you knew there was going to be a tassel, so why act surprised?

February Lindsay Sweater - Finished!

Yes, bloggy peeps, I have been gone for a while and sporadic and uninformative after I returned. But now I give unto thee, The February Lindsay Sweater - FINISHED!


I put the final stitches in the left sleeve today at lunch. I had already woven in most of my ends, so there was very little left but to block it.

I wet-blocked this sweater to get some extra length out of it. In the picture above it is not quite 17".


After a quick bath in some lukewarm water and baby shampoo, however, it is more than 20"! The sleeves will also be a little bit longer. I bought deer antler buttons in New Zealand that I'll be using on this sweater, so I still have those to add.

I know these aren't great pictures, especially of the lace pattern, but I'll have better photos after it's dry and I can wear it. For now, have a gratuitous "cat at Christmas" photo.


The Pickle is king of the sparkly forest.

Ever Have One Of Those Days?

Ever have one of those days when you just can't drag yourself out of bed?


You peak your head out hoping that fresh air and daylight will imbue you with the energy that a few fitful hours of so-called rest have not, but to no avail.


You slap the crap out of your alarm clock for its audacity and unmitigated gall. No one is going to tell YOU to get up when you are so clearly unready.

But you get up anyway and try to go about your day, because you're grown now and there are no time-outs in the adult world, even if you really need one.


Still, as you hike up your big-girl panties and chin up to the day, a murky pall hangs over you; the remembrance that yesterday started just the same way, and isn't that proof enough that you really ought to have stayed in bed in the first place?

The moral of our story: Vacation cannot come soon enough.
(Photos by Patrick, Whiny Crackpotting by Lindsay)

Looking Forward

OK, I'm not going to lie to you. Right now is kind of spooty, so instead of focusing on it, I'm going to concentrate on the good stuff. Or at least whine in between photos of happy things.


Have you seen the Fall '09 issue of Interweave Knits? I am totally making these Bandelier Socks in shades of green and brown.


Maggie, sweetest cat in the world, has been fitting herself onto my lap wherever she can. My lap has been hard to come by, considering I've worked 13 extra hours this week (with more to come tomorrow). I am lucky to have such a lovable feline to come home to. Look at that little snuggle-face!


And what about these guys? Honestly, you just can't beat them. (I've tried*, the little one is fast and the big one is...well, bigger than me.) I will be focusing on having these cuddly characters at home while I work another extra 8 tomorrow.

All the extra hours are earning me comp. time for my upcoming trip to New Zealand, so I can't really complain. It does serve to make me a wee bit cranky at the moment, though.


* Of course I'm joking! I would never beat a cat.

Wicked Frickin' Martha: Halloween Edition

Hi guys! I'd wish you a Happy Halloween, but I wouldn't mean it, so let's not make a farce of this. The thing is, I really hate Halloween.

I'm too old to party like I did in my youth, I don't have kids to take trick-or-treating, and I live in a neighborhood populated entirely with scantily-clad, apparently motherless teenagers who have the audacity to try and score free candy from me. Between the fact that they are old enough to get jobs and BUY their own candy, and that they are so inappropriately dressed for both their age and the weather, the idea of rewarding these behaviors with candy makes me feel like my head will explode!

OK, tirade over. This post is supposed to be about the little in Halloween that I can appreciate - food & decorations!


My friends, Michelle & Erin, took me out for a belated birthday brunch last weekend, and we went to our local pottery painting place, The Painted Plate in Olympia, WA. They generously treated me to the cakestand I painted. If you can't tell, they're supposed to be Autumn leaves.


I had these miniature gourds arranged differently before, but I was excited to start using my cakestand as a centerpiece and transferred them. I love the dots at the base.


I also made some pumpkin-y goodies (to cheer me up while I'm hiding in the back bedroom with all the lights off so kids don't ring my doorbell). On the left are Pumpkin Spice muffins - just a small can of pumpkin and a spice cake mix. I got the wrong mix, so these are 4 points (Weight Watchers), but made correctly, this recipe is only 1 point each! On the right, mini pumpkin tarts! I couldn't find a small can of pumpkin, so I had to decide what to do with the rest of the giant one I bought, and these mini graham cracker crusts were just staring at me. I made some substitutions in the filling recipe and these only come out to 3 points! I can't wait to try one - I like my pie cold, so it'll be a little while.


And of course, I couldn't make a Halloween post without my resident spooky cat, The Pickle. He has been a snuggly one all week, but that's par for the course when Patrick is away.

This post has been very cheering to write. Maybe Halloween isn't that bad. So, I guess (if I must) Happy Halloween!

The Endless Purple Sock

This sock took so long to knit that it's actually not done yet. I'm still knitting it in the present, but future me came back to show me pictures of encouragement.


Not that the slow progress is due to my feline helpers at all...


After all, they're yarn lovers themselves. They love the way it tastes.


Oh, this darn sock. I started it for a bit of no-brainer knitting in front of the television. And then there was laddering. And then there were dropped stitches. And then there was Magic Loop (which is a kind of knitting where you only use one big circular needle).


I'm told that my snail's pace at Magic Loop can be solved with practice. Which is good news, because I have another whole sock to make!

In other news, I started my new job last week and it rocks! Also, I finally, finally made it back to a quilt guild meeting tonight. I think it's been since around March or April! Tonight was show & tell, and I showed my finished Miniature Baltimore Album and my (laughably named) March Quilt. Now to get some more UFOs finished for next month!

Finished Skirt, An Aging Shnoodle, and Cats at Peace

Yesterday I turned 29. Patrick took me out to a lovely dinner in Olympia, where we had some killer Thai food.


Also, this is the skirt I made! I wore it out to dinner - excuse my goofy squint-eye. It fits well and I'm looking forward to making more. Patrick also made me a delicious birthday cake and sat through the worst pirate movie ever made - Cutthroat Island - just to humor me on Talk Like A Pirate Day. What a guy!


It was quite the respectable haul this year! I got two knitting books I'd been hankering after, some excellent DVDs (if you haven't heard of The IT Crowd, I highly recommend it!), and some other exciting gifts. My in-laws sent me a plethora of gift cards, and I'm looking forward to doing some shopping.


In other news, the cats are starting to get along better. This was taken Sunday, and since then Maggie's collar has come off. Her leg is looking much less disgusting, and no one has chased anyone else through the house making devil noises. Peace at last!

This Post Brought To You By The Dulcet Tones of Aimee Mann

No sleep. One cat yowling from his (perceived unjust) confinement. One cat clumsily scraping into everything, robbed of her depth perception and frantic for contact. Long night.


No sleep for me that is. After a long night and eight hours of her own confinement, Maggie could be found in blissful repose on my March quilt. Poor thing is having a very hard time getting comfortable with that foolish thing on her head, so I didn't have the heart to move her. The Pickle might be taking a field trip this weekend. A couple of days without anyone locked up should help our collective peace of mind immensely.


Oh, and quilts. I finished the remaining leaves and strew them about the vine border (strew is SO a word, I looked it up). A little applique glue, and Bob's your uncle, this baby's ready to go through the machine. I won't be doing any of this by hand because of my thumb issues. Still, that is a ton of sewing to do, even by machine.

Hey - I have one leaf left - where should I put it?

The Winter of Maggie's Discontent

Today was a bad day.


It started last night, when I noticed that in the last 24 hours, Maggie had licked a hole the size of a quarter through the fur in her right front leg. This morning I called the vet, who later injected her with antibiotics and gave her this stylish lampshade to wear for the next week.

In addition, she has surmised that this obsessive over-grooming is stress-related, most likely due to the fact that Maggie has been getting the snot kicked out of her by one over-rowdy The Pickle. As a result, he has been confined to a bedroom without the company of his favorite punching bag.


So for those of you who were wondering, this is what my stress-related obsessions look like. Patrick is still gone, and it is no picnic wrangling one cat into a bedroom against his will and wrangling another cat into a "buster collar" that needs to be tied in a knot to close. Tough to do with one hand. Cranky Lindsay ensues. Nancy Pearl had to come and show you the lovely pile of leaves I've been working on. She says, "Shhh." Thank you, Ms. Pearl, I find that very soothing.


I don't know if you noticed, but the knot I tied in Maggie's collar ends in a bow, which gravity and wiggly feline have maneuvered to the front. She looks like a prairie settler! There's my silver lining...

Applique Prep - Charm Star

Today I started in on my next UFO - the Charm Star quilt - last touched in December of last year! The center is a Lone Star pattern with no fabric repeated; hence it is a Charm Star.


I put a vine around the border with the intent of adding applique, and that's what I started work on today.


These patterns are traced from Quilts in Bloom, an inspiring book given to me by my mother-in-law. I'll trace out more eventually, but this was a good first batch to work with.


Next I sorted scraps to use as leaves and flowers. This adds to the scrappy aesthetic of the quilt and busts some of my massive scrap stash to boot. The Pickle came to investigate, naturally. He can smell productivity anywhere in the house, and immediately rushes to participate. Unfortunately, he is usually more of a hindrance. I can't tell you how many times Patrick or I have been doing homework and had The Pickle lay down across our books. In this photo it is important to note that the remaining half of the seat is what has been left for my use; he didn't get up once I'd sat down.


And this is the sum total of my efforts for the day. The four-petal blossoms and the thistle-like flowers eventually became fusible applique instead of freezer paper applique because of the narrow void between their petals. Still, everything else is turned, starched and prepped for addition to the quilt. More tomorrow, I hope.

One More UFO - Count It!

I set out this Labor Day Weekend with the ardent goal of getting a few more projects socked away.


Well, we had such gorgeous weather that it was pretty difficult to keep my focus!


Luckily, I had a little help from my fourt-footed friends. I was kept under constant furry surveillance, monitored for signs of wavering from my goal (and they weren't always this subtle).


But it's done! Six months after the fact, the March quilt has crossed the finish line. It's quilted and bound, but no label as of yet.


From the back you can clearly see my the quilting. Unfortunately also evident in this photo is the bearding problem I'm having with the batting. It's Kyoto Bamboo, and while it was very easy to baste and quilt, it's pilling through the fabric more than I'd like.


In other news, I took advantage of JoAnn's holiday sale to pick up a couple skirt patterns and some fabric. Above is the silk paisley stripe I'm working with at the moment, on View B of Simplicity's New Look 6300 pattern. I also bought 4881 with the intent to sew View C.