Finished Objects

Finished Articles
Originally uploaded by BerlinerBabe

Objects in the finished object pile may appear to be more numerous than in real life.

There is :-

1x Evenstar
1x Gothic Baby Blanket
1x Anastasia Socks
1x Neefje Steefje socks
1x Super Carla (ends sewn in at last)
1x Citron
1x Coquille
1x Nightsong

Actually that's 8 FO's so not too bad really. Now I don't feel nearly so guilty about buying 14 balls of Drops silk tweed and another Hanne Falkenburg kit. I have no idea what to do with the silk tweed but it was too nice to leave in the shop especially when it was reduced to silly money. I blame Winni again. She is my dealer/pusher and told me that the wee LYS in Alt Tegel has a SSV (summer sale). Unfortunately Drops will be leaving their stock forever (something to do with Drops making things difficult for stockists) which is a shame but hence the summer sale. its a shame as I kind of like Drops but I suppose if I really want it, I can order it online.

I've got socks for Frank OTN and the stupid picture won't upload. Stupid stupid Flikr. Ach I'll sort it later.

I managed to get a bit of knitting done while on holiday. The Anastasia socks are for me and were completed not while cycling along the Elbe as that is a bit too complicated but at various stops along the Elbe while on bike tour.

Since the photos of Frank's socks won't load then the photos from the Elberadweg won't either :o( which is a bit of bummer as its very pretty. We were really lucky with the weather too and cashed in our luck when we booked the train back on Saturday and missed the high water and floods where we'd been staying. If anyone is looking to start a business, there is a distinct lack of campsites between Torgau and Meissen.

Oh and boys and girls, that extra centimeter really does matter. I had a really, really sore behind only a few days into the tour and that never normally happens. We discovered that my saddle was too far back so we moved it 1cm forward. It made the biggest improvement ever. Actually so much improvement that we managed 75km the next day. All in all we did about 500km on our bikes.

I actually enjoyed things soo much that I've decided to get even fitter and signed up for a new gym which has spinning classes. Not the wooly spinning stuff but the bike spinning stuff which I used to do ages ago and loved it.

Sod it socks

They're finished at last! Diana now has her socks and incidentally that's also one of her legs in them. Will get a better photo some other day but that's the best I can do considering that it's half time in the Germany v Spain semi- final and damn hot. Poor soul had to stuggle to get them on and then had to almost scrape them off. Too hot for wooly stuff.

....there's no place like home...

Yes, its another iPhone sock. So far, I've knitted 3 of those babies and that one up there is the 4th. No doubt I will be required to knit more of them so I won't say that its my last one but I think I might branch out in to fair isle or aran patterns for the next one. I'm getting a bit bored with stocking stitch.

It kind of started with mine then McGee at O's wanted one for his new ipod thing and then my boss wanted one. She really is the boss and I'm too scared to say no. That's not true, she's a good boss and asked me nicely and like the good little civil servant I am, I complied. When she got hers, she did what a good recepiant of knitted items should do, and showed it off to everyone within showing off range. Said showing off action however has consequences and another colleague wants one. That's the one now on the needles.

I must admit that even though I'm trying not to cast on anything new and yes 4 iPhone covers does count as casting on, its kind of helping me keep on the straight and narrow when it comes to finishing my current wips and ufos. I've now finished the Evenstar and gorgeous as it is, I was right, it should be gorgeous on somone else and not me but I'll worry about that after its blocked.

I'm made excellent progress on Diana's socks. I really just need her to try them on. I have spotted a (ahem) deliberate mistake on one of the socks but if anyone spots it then they're looking too close. Actually I might put a nice wee sparkly thing there or a bow or something just to make it different. And the Gail or Nightsong shawl has made tremendous leaps and bounds. My MIL thinks the pattern looks Irish and in the colour of green that's there. I would tend to agree. I'm on the last pattern repeat and then it calls for the edging.

Talking of edging. On the Evenstar (photos to follow when blocked and looking lovely) there are 2800 beads. And to the woman in the bead shop where I bought the beads, YES YOU CAN PUT BEADS ON WOOL USING A CROCHET HOOK WHILE KNITTING - Phew, glad I got that off my chest. She decided to tell me that i couldn't possibly KNIT with beads and a crochet hook. She wasn't even anything to do with the shop, just another customer but one that had to stick her nose in. She didn't like it much when I ignored her a and bought the beads anyway. Will take the shawl to the shop to let them see the beads on the shawl. They will like that, its a nice shop.

It may seem that I've not really completed a lot of things since my last post and that was...how many weeks ago? Well there's a reason for that. I've been traveling for work and when i do that, I'm limited to knitting time and to what projects I can take with me. The Evenstar was left untouched, I packed Diana's socks in the hold luggage (metal needles and not a chance of getting them on the plane) and the Gail was sneaked on in my hand luggage. I've been to Dublin (didn't get to the wool shop and was very sad about that), London (went to Liberty's and John Lewis but didn't buy anything) and the Hague (didn't have time for wool shopping).

I'll be back in London in less than 3 weeks but I doubt that I'll be shopping. I booked a much better hotel this time round (its a bit more expensive anyway) as the last one was awful and I didn't really enjoy the stay. The chamber maid came in a stilly hours like 8am. Aparantly you have to put up a DND sign if you don't want to be caught naked in the shower by the chamber maid at that time in the morning. And the italian boys down stairs from me really liked the spanish girls upstairs from me and would communicate through the window. I politely suggested that she either give him her phone number of that they go forth and multiply down at the bar. I think they opted for the 2nd choice. Oh and there was queue a mile long, bus loads of people queuing for the world's crappiest breakfast.

Oh and just another wee whinge to the courting couple who invaded my space on the flight back from Den Haag. Because of your slurping noises and severe lack of propiety, I got an upgrade to business class and you didn't. Neener, neener, neener. And even though the noises sounded as if you were auditioning for a low budget prn movie, you actually have to have sex to join the mile high club. I would class that attempt as FAILED

And to finish this off at last and to relate to the title. Now that I'm home and have finished the Evenstar, I can get right on with blocking it and getting started on finishing the Peacock Feather shawl which has been on my needles for an eternity.

Stashbusting

Lately, I've been trying not to cast on new things. I won't say that I've failed miserably because to an extent, I've been semi successful.
Hmm, let me think....... Finished objects compared to WIPS UFOs and new projects......... actually take that right back, i have failed miserably.
Okay so I finished a small lap blanket thing AND my new iPhone sock (see photie). I've also gotten stuck into Diana's socks which got lost, found, lost again and then frogged. This time I'm trying something new in that, i'm knitting 2 at 1 time. I have attempted that before but I gave up as too fiddly however, I appear to have gotten the hang of it now. Icidentally, Diana has only been waiting for her socks since September 09. Not good.

I think I'll be trying the 2 at one time method for more knee highs and stockings on the future. Keeps SSS to a minimum but I do seem to have developed leg length lethargy and i've not even arrived at the increases.

One new project which can't be lumped in with my lack of finished objectness is the rogue sweater which I will be casting on as soon as I have Berni's measurements. She also got a knitting menu for her b'day and chose the rogue.

I also managed to trade my soul for an Iphone. I love it. It's even got knitting apps. I do think that raveley should set up an app. If they did, my life would be complete and I would never want for anything ever again.

My evenstar is nearly at an end. Only 900 beads to go, block it, see if it suits me, decide that it doesn't and give it away to someone who will love it and hug it and call it.. Eh......Evenstar?

Pfaff-off

Well I didn't update my U2 at the Brandenburg Gate post and I haven't written anything for ages but I've been doing real life stuff like stressing about work and giftmas and doing social things and other rubbish. I've travelling a bit too. Had a nightmare over Christmas when they lost my bags with 4 hanks of Wollmeise and the giftmas presents in it. ANYWAY.....I'm back, I've finally stopped running around and now I can't think what to write. Typical.

Here's what I did at the weekend



Are you jealous?

I was down in the land of bier, brezels and wollmseise again with some friends and we had an excellent time. Good food, good bier, good company and lots of knitting time.

Seriously though, its not all for me and it will probably be my last Stash Enhancing eXcursion in a long, long time. Wait, did I not write that in October? I think I did but since I've just bought a flat, I really will have to tighten the purse strings and actually knit some of the stuff I've bought.