The prisoner

Today there are no photographs, no tales of being sucked into the LYS while browsing through the merchandise at the greengrocers.

Today, I am a prisoner in my own home.

I jest not. I am locked in, with no way of getting out.
This is in a very, very large part due to a certain someone not paying attention to where he put his house keys after he locked the front door last night, and having to take mine this morning in order to go to work.

This will also be my excuse for there not being anything interesting for dinner.

The sock is doing rather well though. (His name is Wario, it seems)So is my left index finger, now that the nerves in one spot are completely dead. Handy, that.

I've had a few questions, so I'll answer those in an attempt to look popular!

The shawl. Yes, it's really that bad. Yes, I also admit that I may be forever biased towards this yarn. This is not a warning that everyone should unload any of it that they have in their stashes, but a gentle reminder that it may not be the funnest thing to knit ever.

The shawl was blocked using a couple of types of pin.
The first was a tub of rust free, glass headed pins. They were purchased in the "yarn" shop in town, Simpsons, for the outrageous price of £2.90. Outrageous, indeed, especially as I really could have done with a second tub to properly block.
As it happened, I had my fabulous Clover knitting marking pins to hand, and they saved the day.

The pirate washcloth: I'll post a "how to" soon. As soon as I can make out the scrawled handwriting of my pattern, that is. I use the word pattern in the loosest possible sense here.

It's still cold and ick outside. My Jack Skellington mug is almost permanently full of tea and held between my far-too-cold fingers. Tea is my friend. Warms you up on the inside and the outside.
My current brew is Celestial Seasonings red vanilla, with honey. It's the only one of their teas that I've tried, and I do like it. Is anyone else a fan? Other recommended flavours?

Right, this chocolate ricecake ain't gonna eat itself...

Barter doesn't count, right?

Some of you may remember my incessant whining about the shawl from hell. Some others of you may have guessed that the mystery photos yesterday were of said shawl.

Yup, I blocked the bitch.



It's done and dusted, and I'm delighted that I can now fold it carefully before abandoning it to the back of the wardrobe. Having finally completed it, I don't think I could possibly bear to let my bridesmaid wear it. I'd run the risk of ripping it off her shoulders and stomping it to death while holding a glass of post-ceremony champagne.

The shawl itself is quite nice, really, and I stuck with it til it was done. The chances of me ever wanting to see it again unless I am very, very (very) drunk are slim to non-existant though. That said, I reserve the right to drag it out of its confinement and reblock it before thrusting it on my poor bridesmaid a week before the wedding, if my new plan B doesn't happen.

My plans for the wedding shawls/stoles/wraps have changed again. This too means that I've broken my yarn diet, but only to the tune of USD$20, which ain't so bad. I have ordered some black laceweight, and I plan on having one shawl made out of it by (hopefully!) Halloween. Depending on how long it takes to arrive, of course.

This should really be called "The Disclaimer Post".

Having finally decided that no, I wasn't just going to suck it up and keep battling on with the demon yarn, I was left with 3 balls, bands intact, of yarn that I never want to feel next to my skin again.

...and here's where the magic happened...


Was turned into


Ain't it great?
I brought the yarn to my LYS (who stocks it) and traded it in for sock yarn!
The photo isn't great - I can't seem to get purples to come out purple instead of blue. These will eventually be turned into stripey knee socks. I do love my stripey knee socks!

Yesterday was International Talk Like A Pirate day, and was one of the quieter SnB's that we've had, in terms of volume, as there seemed to be a large amount of poring over piratey charts done. There was still cake though, don't worry.
I managed to get my supersized washcloth done and finished yesterday and all!



Not the most fantabulous thing I've ever cast off, but Mister is delighted with it, and broke into some appreciative yarr-ing.

All in all, this means that since Monday, I've finished 2 projects, and my WIP's are back to three - one of which is the blocking of the scarf of longness.

The next thing that I really need to start working on is Christmas knitting. I need to get a hat and mittens to match my scarf done so that my extremities don't freeze off in New York. Frozen fingers are unable to squidge new yarn. This is not an option. Himself also needs gloves and a new hat for the trip, as he has grown his hair and the hat I made for him last Christmas no longer fits.

Who else? My parents are the obvious ones, as they'll appreciate the goodies. Both got scarves last year, and will probably get socks this year.

I am paranoid that I've left it too late, and will have to start pulling all nighters with lots of tea, tiger balm and season 2 of Rome come November.

...and this week was sounding so productive for a minute...