What I made, by Sharon

I wouldn't normally request a picture book from NetGalley, since I am not a childhood educator, parent or grandparent, but when I saw the charming Who Will Adopt This Pet by Melanie Middien   I could not resist.  This is the description:  A boy and a girl go to a pet shelter to find the perfect new pet. Instead, they find a very scruffy, unloved dog. Who will adopt it? Not them! They go on a mission to find an owner for the toothless, farty, yappy, three-legged canine but no one wants him. But when they are offered a perfect dog, what will become of their scruffy new friend? This is a charming book, with fun illustrations and a rhyming scheme that I could imagine reading with and to a child who was too young to read. It has the underlying message that a pet doesn't have to be perfect to be perfect for you, overlaid with really fun illustrations and text. I would loved to have had this in my hands as a paper, rather than e-book.  

After my initial dabbling with polymer clay I bought quite a lot of stuff. I didn't mean to, but (unlike knitting, which you CAN do with just two sticks and some lovely string) it helps. I bought an extruder and a pasta maker and a bunch of molds. i also bought rainbow colours, because I love a rainbow. This weekend I was at home with time, which is something that doesn't happen often, so I made rainbows! I'm really pleased with how the colours came out. Every time I make colours I make a set of buttons, and these are the best yet. I also made earrings - I discovered that you can buy quality silver findings at the bead shop around the corner. There are surprisingly comfortable to wear, because they are so light. I really just want to make pretty shapes. I love reaching into the pocket of a random work dress and pulling out a pretty coloured polymer clay star. Because I am a practical person, I guess my next projects will be more stitch markers. Or maybe I'll juat make m...

 As anyone who has been around here for a while knows, I try to keep my stash relatively small. This holds tension with the fact that I enjoy buying yarn in person, and at fibre festivals, and I usually only go to two or three a year. Also, I (almost) exclusively buy Australian dyed and milled yarn these days, through a combination of wanting to support the Australian yarn industry, and how our dollar + postage makes American and English yarn quite spendy. So, I went to Bendigo and bought yarn for 5 major projects, which took my stash to about 25 kms. What I didn't mention at the time is that I had ordered 1600 meters from Bendigo Woolen Mills: My mother asked for a cardigan for her birthday at the beginning of November, I thought this yarn was perfect and it was on special and they gave me the perfect pattern for free (sort of perfect pattern, I won't be knitting colour changing yarn in pieces.).  Also, the project I am currently working on is for a friend and she ...

 It's the third week of Stephen West's sock-a-long and I've finished the clue:  This is fun and chaos, so fairly typical for Stephen! Next clue is out Thursday, and I've got size six feet, so these will be done in a flash. I'm also knitting a jumper for an acquaintance . I started it last Wednesday and it's knitting up really fast - I guess 4.5mm needles and plain stocking stitch will do that. The yarn is Zealana Air, which is so, so beautiful - it's cashmere, possum and silk. So soft, so warm. I'm reading Salt and Skin , by Eliza Henry-Jones. It's a novel about an Australian family who have moved to a Scottish Island. There is lots of trauma hinted at, and I'm enjoying the slow unfurling.  I'm not sure if I've mentioned I'm listening to Anthony Mara's Mercury Pictures Presents . It's a World War Two book, focusing on "enemy aliens" in America and the film industry and family and so many other things. In Mara's...

I've been so busy (and having so much fun) that I haven't had a chance to post about my finished Scotch Mist jumper. I was obsessed with knitting a cream cable jumper - which I have some concerns about, given my lifestyle (my lifestyle involving lots of red wine, coffee, chocolate and various other grubby-making activities.) But the heart wants what  the heart wants, so I took the risk.The yarn is Fairfield Finns yarn, and it's from Bacchus Marsh, so very local to me. It still smells a little like sheep, which is something I find quite delightful.  Thea Coleman's pattern worked out perfectly, although I made some changes, including the gauge. I also knit the sleeves with ribbing instead of the reverse stocking stitch the pattern called for - there is just no context in this design for reverse stocking stitch.  I took it to Bendigo last weekend and wore it quite a lot, and it is still unstained! Here it is, in action with Kris and Katie on the way home. My favo...

I finished the charity jumper for an 8 year old yesterday. It came out well, and used early 1200 meters of yarn which is an impressive amount to get through in a week - holding yarn double will do that!  I've very nearly finished the second sock for the second clue of the Contrast Blast Socks . The next clue comes out tomorrow, so not long to wait. They are so cute, and have been a lot of fun to knit so far. I'm reading another NetGalley review book Heavy Metal Symphony by  A.K Polombo. It's told in two timelines, one giving the background and one moving forward. It sort of feels like a romance, but it's about Ava trying to work out where her relationship went wrong and if it's worth saving. It's a good read, and a little bit different from the usual. To read my all my book reviews, and to see everything I knit, you can find me on Ravelry as  Sharondoublekni t and on GoodReads as  Sharondblk .  I'm joining in with Kat from  As Kat Knits  for Unra...

  And what a fabulous weekend it was. We drove up on Thursday afternoon without incident, and checked in to our house - it was a more modern 3 bedroom, with a large table perfect for sitting around and knitting and drinking tea and / or gin. We had our traditional Thursday night Thai, this time with me, Katie, Kris, Deb and Lea (a work friend of Deb's). Delicious.  Friday took us to the show, and it was a perfect day, sunny and lovely. Look at that sky! Look at those sheeeeeep.  We went to the Women of Wool luncheon which was (as usual) tasty, entertaining and a nice chance to sit down! Friday night was pizza at Suzanne's and more chats and laughs with friends. Saturday I finished my shopping - I did very well, buying everything that was on my list, and nothing that was not:  From top to bottom, that's yarn for this cabled jumper , this colourwork jumper I'm going to make as a dress, the Drawing Sweater , Andrea Mowry's Rose Cardigan  and Leon's Winter Set...

As usual, before the Australian sheep and wool show, I spent A LOT of time planning. What do I already have in stash, what so I want to knit?  What if  buy the wrong yarn? What if I buy too much? or too little? (Planning Posts from 2012 ,  2013 ,  2014 ,  2016 ,  2018  and  2019 , 2021  and 2022  can be found under the links)  , I freak out about shopping and spend a lot of time pondering smallish decisions (you should be thankful I've not blogged about the whole shower cap drama!). So, my stash is currently 27 items and 16,256 meters, which seems quite high considering I haven't bought much yarn recently (although I did acquire nearly a kilometre from a destash). The oldest yarn is from January 2021, and I'll be knitting with that this weekend.  I wrote a list of what I think I'll try to plan to buy at Bendigo. Here is the yarn It feels like a lot, but its just a couple of cardigans, a jumper and a dress. And Leon's ...

I decided to participate in Stephen West's Surprise Sock-a-lone because his MKALs are always fun. The clue came out on Thursday, but I was finished my Scotch Mist jumper (pics to come) I didn't cast on until Sunday. So now I have the first clue finished: I'll be casting on a charity jumper while I wait for the next clue. I'm reading a NetGalley review book  The Black Crescent   by Jane Johnson.  It's set in Morocco in the 1950s, and it deals with big topics, including colonialism, resistance, loyalty and of course love. I'm enjoying it so far - Jane Johnson is very good at evoking an historical moment. It's going to be all review books all the time around here - the pendulum has swung and I have a fair few outstanding books for the rest of the year. First I requested some, and then a couple of publishers contacted me to see if I wanted to review books by authors I had previously reviewed. Yes please! And now I feel like a real influencer! I might do a monthl...

Well final for the moment anyway! I pulled out my fancy blocking device to block some squares I knit for a blanket for April, who is moving away.  While I had it out, I decided to have a look at my crotchet squares. I've realised that  my ideal blanket will be organised in terms of colour, and some of these are very much "learning squares". Still, I blocked them and laid them out. I realised I need one more of the larger size to make up the centre of the blanket.  and then maybe two more of the smaller size. Or maybe nine more to make it actually symmetrical. Anyway I'm going to crotchet these together, put a border around it and then I'll have a finished blanket, instead of a pile of random squares.  Look how much flatter, neater and better they look after blocking. It really is magic.

When I was 24 I lived with a flatmate for a year. We met because she had put an ad for a flatmate in the local paper - that's how old this story is. We had a riotous time. There was drinking and boys and late nights, heartbreak and a cat called Matey, and I have no photos of that time at all.  After a year and a half I packed up and went overseas, and Luna has been on a variety of adventures herself,  including becoming a midwife, moving to Tasmania and living a rather eclectic life. She moved back to Melbourne a couple of years ago and at Christmas a bunch of us from "the old days" met up for a drink and a catch-up. She asked if I would knit her a black jumper, and I'm pretty sure I said no. A couple of months ago she messaged me and somehow we ended up planning this   jumper . She sent the jumper she wants the handknit to look like - it's kind of stiff and made of mohair or fake mohair.  We decided on Zealana Air, and she ordered it. It arrived earlier th...

I really despair  of my naming conventions! The Scotch Mist cabled jumper is going well I did the collar last night and weaved in all the ends - I don't know how a single coloured jumper had so many ends, and now I've just got the sleeves to go.  I'm reading The Lost Jewels by Kirsty Manning  and enjoying it. It's a duel timeline novel, featuring a protagonist form now and her great-grandmother. There is pain and I imagine there will be healing. I'm listening to Wild Apples , which was the free Audible book for June. It's a about a woman who gets divorced and is forced to move back to her home town and in with her difficult mother. There is drama and there is pain and I assume there will be healing. To read my all my book reviews, and to see everything I knit, you can find me on Ravelry as  Sharondoublekni t and on GoodReads as  Sharondblk .  I'm joining in with Kat from  As Kat Knits  for Unravelled Wednesday and Kat from the  Bookdate...

and then WASH IT. I did swatch for my Scotch Mist jumper - a teeny tiny swatch to get the hang of the cable pattern and then a stocking-stitch swatch to work out what size to make - I'm using 8 ply on an aran jumper (again!). When I finished the body, it came out at just shy of 36 inches, which is fine, I'd calculated it at 37 inches, but my notes say i was hoping for closer to 40.  After blocking tit's come out at just under 40 inches. Everything relaxed. This didn't surprise me, the pattern has a lot of knit one below, and they have opened up to this more lacey effect. I like this too, but I might have been a bit less surprised about how much it relaxed if I'd washed my teeny tiny swatch.  Now, dry quickly please, I'm aching to get the collar and sleeves on. 

I was sitting here, obsessing about what I was going to knit next, (and next, and next and next) and I started thinking about my Starnkeeker cardigan which has been resting since mid-may. I've decided I want to go full colourwork, including the sleeves (basically a Tirdaigh, also by Kate Davies, same stitch count, so I can change horses mid-stream).  I'll need to work out how much more yarn I need, but I know I can buy that from the Purl Box at the Bendigo sheep and wool show (in two weeks!). Now, as discussed, Starnkeeker  is not really suitable for public knitting. I just realised, looking at my queue, that after I finish my current jumper , the Stephen West Surprise Sock Knit-a-long and some squares I'm contributing to a communal project, the next three (possibly four) projects I have planned are fantastic for knitting in public. So, I'm going to buy the rest of the yarn at Bendigo, and make a concerted effort to knit this at home (or at work on my lunch breaks...