Jo Knits!

06.30

Well I'm jumping into the tank top frenzy but not being like everyone else as usual, I will be knitting a top for Zoe! ;) On our girls date this weekend, I had Zoe choose yarn for a project I would knit her. Well once she saw the "belly tank" pattern, she was smitten. :) I was thinking of buying an extra ball of yarn to lenghten the top but nooooooo Miss Zoe would have nothing to do with that. "Mommy it's a belly top, my belly gotta show!" She's so cute! LOL! ;) I'm so happy she likes that I knit her little projects. This weekend she said she wanted to learn crochet. I wonder if she isn't too young but crochet would probably be easier than knitting at first. Hummm... She's such a little artist, she'd cost me alot in yarn! ;)

I started swatching last night and I'm at 21st over 4" and the pattern says 18st/4". So is it really useful for me to keep on knitting this swatch or can I assume I just need to up a needle size?

Have you all tried the Magic Loop technic yet? I've been knitting this sock using magic loop and it is such a pleasure to do so. I really like dpn's but as you all know, I like to experiment! LOL! I tried magic loop using a 24" needle but it was pretty tight, so off I went and splurged on a new 29" needle. ;) It's really nice and I don't seem to have any ladders on each side of the sock anymore. To be quite frank, I knitted the toe on dpn's and then switched to the long circular needle. With the heel part, I had half of the stitches resting on another needle while knitting the heel. So this isn't a complete sock using magic loop but for the plain stockinette part, it's a real charm to use only one circ. I didn't even put a marker on my needle. I did mark which sides are the top and buttom of the sock. That way I know where to start the heel.

I'm not sure I would try knitting two socks at once on either one circular needles or using the 2 socks on 2 circs technic. Just having all the yarn not get tangled would drive me nuts. LOL! I just gotta make sure to always knit the twin sock right after I finish the 1st one. Anyway I make it a game for myself. I try to knit the 2nd one fast than the 1st, this time it's working, I still have a few days to spare! LOL!

Last night was the first time that I turned to my knitting book (nope not plurial yet!) ;) to refer to an information. I'm so used to looking online for knitting related information it felt weird. At the same time it was so nice, I actually have a knitting book that I can look up stuff in! ;) I believe I will be ordering a few of the books on my dream list from the crafterschoice.ca site. They seem to have quite a few of the ones I want and the introductory deal is pretty interesting. 3-4 books for a 1$ each plus super high shipping! LOL! It still ends up that I get a few books for the price of one. I will try to order all the most expensive books I want and then only have to buy cheaper books to fulfill my 'contract' with them. Then I can cancel, I know you usually never cancel from those clubs! Though I think I will 'cause they often offer great deals to have you come back to their book clubs. Also my mom's looking for crochet and gardening books so we should find enough books to keep us happy for a while. :)

Have a great week! :)

I still need to order that daypack pattern. Rob can you make me remember? LOL!

06.29

Dh was out to see friends last night and I spent the whole evening watching HGTV with my mom. :) I knitted up the whole foot part of the 2nd HotSox sock. I can't wait to start on the heel part, I'll be using a new heel technique. I saw it HERE but it's the same method that was published in Interweave Knits in the fall 2000 issue. It was just so nice to finish up the foot part last night. LOL! I had tamari almonds waiting for me to munch on as soon as I would finish the foot. Boy, did I ever knit fast! ;) I love almonds and they are good for you, ok, the plain ones are but hey, they can't be that bad either. ;)

Yesterday I had a "girls date" with Zoe, we went shopping just her and I all day. Had lunch together and of course she was a perfect angel all day too. ;) We finally found her little sunglasses that weren't too big. Oh dear, she looks like such a little Diva with them. God I love my daughter, she's just so sweet! :) Of course some other days not so sweet....... but all in all I'm lucky to have the kids I have. Yes, I'm being a little lovey dovey right now, what can I say. I just think my kids are the greatest. It's one of the perks of being a mom, we all think alike on that part. ;)

This past week I watched the Oprah show twice, both shows were really thought provoking for me. One was about how everyone has a story, everyone has something interesting to share about their life. I don't always realise that but it is true, even the people I hate surely have some great things I could learn from. Then the other show was about people who can't say no or are just too busy with so many things. The show was called de-stressing your life. A show guest was suggesting we think about what our teenager dreams were, have we realised them, how can we incorporate those dreams in day to day life? Sometimes with put ourselves aside for family, work and it is important to feel like we have a purpose other than serving/pleasing others. We are aloud to strive in our own personal lives. :)

What is up with me? I keep typing up these neat entries (or so I think!) LOL! I think Melissa is making me do it. I really like what she writes up everyday! :)

hugs,

06.28

Ever seen those Phildar knitting books! oooh lala! I spend 30 minutes in a store yesterday oooh-ing and aaah-ing over them. Even my mom got into them and couldn't believe all the cute patterns.

I wonder if there's anything wrong with the french patterns, like is the sizing good or different since it's european? Then again could I follow a pattern written in french? LOL! I have so much difficulty understanding a pattern written in english. ;) When I knit and follow a pattern, the pattern just isn't following me! LOL! I never took the time to read any french knitting books, so maybe I could survive.

Those Phildar book are really niiiiiiiiice. :) Then I'd have to buy the phildar yarn. ACK! It's expensive. lol! ;)

Have a great weekend!

06.27

Competition

Everything in life is a competition. As kids, we strive to run faster than the next, have more A's than others. We get older and like to brag even more, some make more money aka feel more important. As parents, some will brag that their child are little geniuses, walked at X months, started talking, writting, reading way earlier than 'your' child. We send them to the best schools to have them be even smarter. Then some people like to show off their cars, that go faster, make more noise. Whatever! I've never been big on competition, I prefer encouragement. ;) Who cares in twenty years that Lucas started walking 2 months before Zoe did? Maybe he was just eager to catch up to his big sister. ;) Who cares which one can swim the fastest, except maybe when you are at the Olympics. Why compare kids when there main goal is to just have fun? Oh well, I'm no competition for anyone, I try to find time to do what I please and try to not live for others but to live my life as *I* feel like it.

Then we judge people... LOL! That's a whole other ball game, I find it hard to not judge on others. Why is it that I'm the only one who just wants peace and quiet in my own backyard. Some days I feel like installing an 8 feet high opaque gate. Why do others feel the need to snoop in on us, see how we live, relax, just plain old enjoy ourselves. We don't scream, the kids have plenty to keep them busy and we simply relax out there. I just feel like whining but this is all true anyway. It's not all worded well but if I wrote it in french how many would actually be reading this exact sentence? ;) Maybe the neighbours are just keeping current with my knitting projects. Aha! That much be it, when they say: "hun!? YOU knit? That's so old fashion, why was your time?" They must really mean: "Oh cool, I never saw circular needles, you make really neat socks!" Right? LOL! ;)

Yesterday, I received the sweetest birthday gift. Amy, sent me some Fisherman's wool yarn. It is especially nice becuase I can not find it locally nor have I seen it available at any online Canadians stores. Amy, isn't blogging right now because she is busy being a mommy to 2. One sweet new baby boy, seems to take up all her free time, which was used to knit. ;) Thank you so much Amy, your gift was very much appreciated. Now check out what I plan to knit with it!!! Nope, not wool soakers after all. LOL! Mystery project, stay posted for my details. I'm starting this new bag mid july. So grab on some wool, a few kool aid packages and get the pattern from ThreadBear Fiber Arts. If anyone plans on knitting this, let me know! :)

hugs, have a grrreat weekend!

p/s: How many of you have an indoor pool? ;) (excuse the blurriness, I may have dropped the camera a few too many times today)

06.26

If you ever tried the figure 8 casting on method and didn't like it, why not give it another try? I tried this method a while ago and hated it, I couldn't seem to tighten the first row well. Yesterday after repeat frogging, I thought "what do I have to loose?" I had been frogging all day after. LOL! So I sat here on my comfortable computer chair (bday gift from mom last year) ;) and looked at all the pictures shown: here, here and here. Sometimes the descriptions aren't exactly the same and it makes more sense after reading from a few places. Also, I'm always over checking the pictures. Oh NO! My yarn isn't going that way or how did they do that? LOL!

Well, I finally succeeded, my error the 1st time I tried was tightening that first row too early. I did it when my toe part was almost complete and it looks GREAT! I couldn't be more pleased. :) Next up on my experimenting list is to try this yarn over short row type heel.

Good thing some knitters share their knitting knowldge with others, hun? I love this online knitting community. If I could I'd have you all over to my house but that would make for so many people! ;)

Great news!!! Terri is finally back from her trip. Check out the souvenir she brought back too, pretty cool! :)

06.25

2:40pm: (begin rant) NEVER knit a toe up sock using a backward loop as a Make 1 stitch, never pick up between stitches either. That would create holes on each side of the toe and won't look right! So WHY am I doing those dang stupid errors? If I haven't restarted this sock ten times I haven't frogged it once. So THIS time I'll increase by knitting in the front and back of the stitch. I tell ya, if this doesn't go any better Carl will NOT get a 2nd sock! ;) I hate how knitting makes me feel so clueless sometimes. Geez! I know I have a brain, so why isn't it helping me? (/rant)

The 1st HotSox is DONE!!!! :) I casted off using the sewn cast off.

Elizabeth Zimmermann's Sewn Cast off

This is from Knitting Without Tears; it has been a favourite of mine for many years (hmm, that's an ambiguous sentence - I meant the cast off, but it applies equally to the book. . . .)

Break yarn, leaving a tail about 4 times as long as the circumference of the sock. Thread a tapestry needle.

* sew forward (right to left) through two stitches as if to purl, leave the stitches on. Sew backward (left to right) through one stitch as if to knit and remove the stitch.

Repeat from * until you run out of stitches. Work in tail on the inside of the sock and trim any excess.

It was easy and fun to learn something new again! LOL! I've started the second sock and felt adventurous, so I tried the short row cast on. That didn't go to well, not sure why I had big bumps on one side. So I frogged and frogged and frogged. I've started this toe part four times now and I'm not so happy anymore! LOL! ;)

I'll try i again while I'm at the mommy&coffee time at the daycare this morning. Then I won't see these 'lovely' women for the summer! I can't say I am too sad about it. By going to the meetings, the kids would get access to the daycare for a 3-hour period for free and it gave me time to knit, knit, knit! :)

Have a great hot and humid sunshine filled day. ;)

Lucas quietly talking with his fishies! :)

06.24

~*~Happy St-Jean-Baptiste!!!~*~ below is the Quebec flag

The 24th of June marks the Feast of St John the Baptist. This is known as St Jean Baptiste Day to French speaking cultures.

The date originally was the pagan celebration of the summer solstice. King Clovis of France christianized the event by making it a religious celebration of the birth of John the Baptist. John the Baptist is known as the Precursor of Christ, rebirth, and the light to the world, which explains the link to the solstice. Bonfires were lit to symbolize the light of the World.

Ok what that basically means is today is a National holiday for all Quebecers. We celebrate by playing loud french music, cooking on the BBQ and drinking beer. There's a big party at a park with music and more beer, by 9PM everyone is drunk and either it is funny or (for parents mostly) scary! ;)

So dh is off work to celebrate, I'll be knitting inside as it is too hot and humid to go out outside with my two feet in the kiddie pool. ;)

Have a great day!

06.23

I made up a little list of the books I am in search of.

If anyone has them and are willing to part with them for a good price, let me know. :) I would really like finding these books used aka at a cheaper price. I have 2 knitting books and I think it is time for me to explore a bit more of the knitting world. I've been window shopping on amazon.ca, amazon.com and indigo.ca this weekend. I can't believe the difference in prices in the same books. Sometimes it would even be cheaper to order a book from the States.

This weekend at the knitting get together, I understood that buy yarn (that always seems too expensive for me) is usually quite a good day anyway. If you look at how much it costs to knit per hour using said expensive yarn. Well it doesn't end up as expensive in the end. Especially when you don't knit fast either. ;)

Also I need to learn that frogging is my friend. I have to get over the fear that I'll mess up a pattern and need to start over. Its OK to do so, it is OK to need to re-start a project a few times before it being like you want. I just might try my hand at knitting a sweater 'cause it will be OK! ;)

So that's it for today! Have a great week! :)

06.22

Oh yeah, so yesterday was a BIG day for me! :) I went to meet two local knitters. Now just that is special enough, well noooooooo! We spent the afternoon talking in FRENCH! LOL! Ok so I live in a french proving but always have associated knitting with english. Simply because most of the sites, blogs, I go to are in english. To get to meet two Montrealers who knit and spoke french was like an amazing thing. Well at least to me! :p

Oh my goodness, I had SUCH a blast! Cleo and Véronik are two of the nicest persons I have ever met. :) I learned so much from just listening both of them talk. LOL! Véronik almost convinced me to try knitting a sweater (my absolute worst nightmare) ;) Cleo was so sweet, she brought along a gift for my birthday! We both had alot of fun looking through my new Interweave Knits issue that she had just given me! :) If I ever had a list of projects I wanted to knit, well it's all mixed up now. I might try the origami baby kimono from page49 and I really like the earflap hat and knitting rose pins from the previous page. I'm thinking of making a rose pin for my mom's birthday next month. :) I always figured that the IK mag. was too advanced for me so I wouldn't read it. Well that's how you learn, I'm slowly reading through all the articles and am enjoying this magazine a lot.

Back to the knitting gathering. We didn't just stick to talking about knitting, which made me learn more about each one. I truely feel like I made two new friends yesterday and when you don't have many it is such a great feeling. :) We talked over coffee and after we discussed about books, like which ones were worth buying. I'll be checking for a few books online to see if I can save! ;) One funny thing did happen when I got home. I was thinking of buying a book today (Knitting for Dummies). Well it seems that my mom went to the library today and rented that exact book for me! LOL! ;)

We ended up spending 3 hours!!! talking before I left with Carl. I can't believe I am typing this but...... I can't wait for the next time we get to meet! :) I think we will be meeting without using the knitting.meetup.com service. Weekends are easier for most to meet and it is a great excuse to spend a fun afternoon without the kids! ;)

Thank you Cleo and Véronik for such a nice afternoon! I hope Carl didn't talk too much! LOL! ;)

There you go, I have survived my 1st non-meetup get together! It was so much more fun that I had expected. NOT that I thought they would be boring! LOL! I was simply afraid that we would all be ackward and not have much to say. Boy was I ever wrong, we couldn't stop! I felt like I had two knitting teachers by my side! ;) It was a great day, I sure hope they liked me too! LOL! ;)

Small update on the HotSox, I'm almost done with the first one. I want to add some ribbing at the top. Finally dh will be inheriting these socks, simply because he's rough on his socks and I prefer he goes through these ones that Regia socks. ;) The red picture is of the stitch pattern I used on the leg. It's called parallelograms2 and is available at the about.com site (aka beware of the popups).

06.21

You're a young knitter, just starting out. Welcome
to the fold! Find yourself some nice soft yarn
and grab a latte- it takes a while to finish a
project but it's well worth it.

Are you a knitter?
brought to you by Quizilla

I think it suits me perfectly! :)

So what did I do today? First I got up bright and early and cleaned up the whole house, the place was kinda messy with yesterday's tea party! ;) Thank you SO very much to everyone who sent me nice wishes and e-cards. It was a really nice birthday to have so many happy comments on my blog! :)

Yesterday, Tori came over and spent the afternoon, we talked while the kids ran around in the backyard. It was really nice! She gave me two beautiful necklaces, I couldn't have been more pleased! :) In the evening we rented a little movie (Quebec-Montreal is the movie's name, it's a french movie). Really quiet and really relaxed and I simply LOVED my day. :)

Now today, what was it that was so special about today? Hmmmm.... geez! I forgot. Guess I'll try to remember by tomorrow! :P

June 20th. :)

Finally, it's my birthday! WOW! What in the world will I do now that I am 26 years old. Well let me start by inviting you all to my little party! :)

It's pretty early so I will start off with a latte, I hear Tiffany, makes the best ones in Canada! Well, why not grab a cupcake or two, to go along with the coffee or tea of your choice. I'll wip up a dishcloth if anyone makes any spills.

After our little snacks yarn and needles await you all to keep us busy for a while. I also have some undyed yarn hidden in the basket for those who would like to play with kool aid and dye a few skeins. Our washing machine is ready for any projects in need of felting.

Also, I heard that Cleo will be at a special "non-meetup" knitting gathering saturday! She has bribed me into coming by offering a gift of the latest Interweave Knits issue. Well, I'm no fool! ;) Published designer Veronik Avery will be joining us, so I will get to meet the creator of the Shimmer Aran sweater pattern, (it's at the p.50 if you have the issue). How neat is that? ;)

As silly as it may sound after my big post from yesterday, I am quite excited to meet them both. This time it will be in a book store. Once again Carl has agreed to come and push, I mean encourage me to meet these knitters. Ok, so he gets to buy the new Harry Potter book also! ;)

Oh and for those coming at my tea party, I might even share some of my new Regia yarn! ;) Hey everything is negotiable! LOL! Bring some yarn, we'll swap something. Anyone coming with Denise interchangeable needles, I'd love to try them.

So have a great day on this special June 20th date, may we all enjoy each others company and not fight over the potato salad! LOL

p/s: In actual real life, the kids are going to daycare in the morning and that's all I know. I'll update tomorrow on what happened! :)

pp/s: Thank you SO much for your invaluable support yesterday. I even received some of the nicest emails I have ever gotten. I feel like I made new friends too. This is why I love blogging, even though I may feel alone in my life, on the internet there are new friends awaiting to meet everyday! :)

06.19

Not much to say today... The knitting meetup which I was SO nervous to go last night didn't happen. Well it did but I was the only one who showed up. Did get there a little late at 07:15pm and then stayed until 8. Never saw a knitting person in the place, I had placed yarn and my knitting project on the table so it was quite obvious I was a knitter. Good thing Carl came, at least I wasn't totally alone in the coffee shop. I felt SO sad and hurt that no one showed up. I took it personally (of course!) It was such a huge event for me, why don't they show up and meet me? Sure my hair looks funny and I still get a few odd pimples, I still think that I am friendly. Oh well.... I don't think I will participate in another meetup anytime soon. It really hurt me and I am not ready to be physically sick all day again just to have no one to meet at the end. I felt so bad for dh, he left work an hour earlier to come with me, he even took a nap before we went so he'd be rested. He gets up at 04:40am and by 8pm he's pretty beat.

If only I had known this could happen... :( So nope, no more see you next time for me. Yes, it is childish and it's all about me but I've made it this far with no knitting friends. It can stay that way for a while longer. Just wished I could hae someone explain to me how to avoid holes in short rows! ;) I was so sad, mad, pissed off, that I didn't even buy the Interweave Knits magazine like I had planned. Now, of course, I regret that 'cause I really liked that rose pin and wanted to knit one up for my mom's birthday in July. I just don't think it's worth 9$CAN to pay for a knitting magazine.

I have to take a picture of my 1st HotSox sock. I'm just past the heel, FINALLY! Wearing size 10 shoes ain't all that fun! ;) Hopefully with this rain, I'll get some time to knit today.

So as for yesterday, it's just a bad memory. I had other things that weren't going well yesterday and it just really completed my day in the same way it had started. Oh well...... good thing I have my blog to rant on! ;)

p/s: Now on to more happy new!!! My birthday is tomorrow! LOL! :) I will leave the back door unlocked tonight, so you can all come and decorate. Please leave the computer though, if you must leave with it, I'd love a laptop in it's place or an IMac, I see Amy has one for sale! :-P I'm sure we can arrange for overnight shipping. ROFL!

pp/s: I will make up a VERY basic page to add all the knitters birthdays on it. Then we can all send wishes to those who get older! ;)

hugs,

06.18

Sorry about the lack of update on actual knitting. I have been so busy in the past few days that knitting hasn't been happening! I did finally start the heel part of the 1st sock using HotSox yarn. Lucas kept waking up last night so I couldn't knit much. I never quite know where I'm at when knitting a short row heel. Did I just wrap this stitch or not!? So confusing to me, all the stitches look the same! ;)

Thought I'd post a picture of that dear sweet guy that brought me home some Regia yarn 2 days ago. In the pic you can see him hand sewing a hem on some pants. He's so cute, don't go say he's sweet 'cause he likes to think he's this big mean machine kinda guy! ;) Some days are good and others are bad but I sure love that guy o'mine! :)

He can sew, cook and even knit, though he prefers to crochet! He's got it all and I'm keeping him, well..... for yarn and a few patterns, I might be willing to lend him for the weekend. He can make and repair just about anything and he's got a few good jokes to say too! LOL!

Have a great day! Tonight is my first knitting meetup, I'll be physically sick all day with stomach cramps and all, just because I am nervous. I am SO shy it's not even funny. People that know me can't believe it, I feel so comfortable with people once I know them, it's the getting to meet and know them part that really terrifies me. I'm such a baby, that's why dh will be coming with me, for support! He can push me in the door when I get there and decide I'm too scared/shy to go in. ;)

06.17

I love my boyfriend! Click on the box to see what's inside!!! :)

He works in a warehouse that empties containers day in and day out. Sometime they have overstock and if nobody claims it then, after a while they either throw it away or the employes jump in and share the loot! Seems there are many yarn lovers at his work.

I can't believe how lucky we got this time! He made sure I'd have 2 balls of each color of the Regia yarn. What a sweetie! :) Almost makes up for him having to work last night. He did drop off the box before going back, said it would keep me busy while he was working! LOL! He got home 6 hours later, finally! He leaves for work at 5:30am and well the man needs to sleep! (He tends to be grumpy without enough sleep!) ;) Oh if anyone is curious I received these colors of yarn:

Busy day today, it's the yearly administration board meeting with all the members of the "moms day out" daycare this morning. ACK! I'm vice-prez in the board so I think I showed at least go and fake smile through the meeting. It would be too obvious for me to knit though. ;)

Don't forget buy balloons and streamers to decorate 'cause friday is my BiG day! ;) Oh and I like cheesecake and buttercream frosting chocolates cakes! You know just in case someone feels like baking! ;)

Have a great day! Be sure to go outside and take in some rays before the sun decides to go hide again! ;)

06.16

Should we make up a calender somewhere to have knitters write in when it is there birthday? If you have read anything from my blog in the past few day, you know it will be my own birthday in a few days! ;) I want a BIG fuss, 'cause I'm such a kid. Since being a parent, birthdays just aren't the same. No more going out and partying all night, no more free rounds just 'cause, no more singing at the kareoke bar, no more seeing those male nude dancers! teeheehee! Oh THOSE were the days! :P

In the past weekend, it was the birthday of two knitters and I think they deserve getting a little wish from others. Just 'cause it's so fun to receive happy wishes as you get older! LOL! So if you didn't know that Tiffany or Ginny got older recently, hop on your mouse and click the names, it'll bring you to their blogs! :) Now if you recently had a bday, I'm sorry but I didn't know, that's why we need a place so we can all know when is YOUR birthday! :)

Again, I want to thank those who come my little blog and stop to leave comments. Most of you knitters are years ahead of me in your knitting knowledge and it is a pleasure to read your tips, seeing the projects you knit and just having mentors all around the world. I'm sappy, what can I say. ;) Being the weird one who knits is not always fun, then I come on my computer and BOOM! a whole new world awaits me. Friendship waiting to happen, laughs that some of you provide with your own blogs. Knitting is such a fun hobby, I'm so happy I started that instead of ...... who knows what? ;)

I haven't knitted all weekend so no updates there. In the home stretch until my 26th birthday, wishing you all a great new week! :) I think this week I'll try Kool Aid dyeing! What are you trying?

JoLives has a new entry. I want a new template (yes, already) so expect a few things not working in the next few days! LOL! Maybe this time I'll remember to save things before changing them.

I just had to copy Chris and know what kind of blogger I am, so here is my result.

You are an enigma wraped in a mystery, you blog
for yourself. You have your own reasons for
doing what you do. We are still glad your here!


What kind of blogger am I?
brought to you by Quizilla

06.15

Happy Father's Day!!!!

I don't even have time to make up a nice graphic, we are off for the day to celebrate! :) 1- yard sale 2- Canadian Tire! LOL! (hardware store) 3- fresh produce market 4- you never know where we'll end up! ;)

Happy Father's day to all the dads, who take the time to change diapers, read stories to their young ones. Who help build confident little people into proud adults, who love their kids as if they were the next wonders of the world. Thank you to all the dads who take the time. :) Celebrate and be proud that YOU are a father, it's not always a fun 'job' but I think you can find rewards in it everyday! :)

Happy Father's day! Sure wish I could celebrate with my own father but he's left our world a little too soon.

hugs, and GO OUTSIDE 'cause there is a SUN shinning out there today! :)

06.14

Well surprisingly enough yesterday I did NOT knit out in a park or somewhere. It was....... RAINING and it did so all day. There were still plenty of tourists to see as they were happily walking around in spite of the rain. It's funny but I am proud to be a Montrealer when we have big events like this Fomula One weekend. People from all over the world buy tickets a year in advance and come shop around town. I like it when the city is filled with happy tourists, the 'ambiance' is great, everyone is smiling and just enjoying themselves! :)

Ok that said, yesterday I was disappointed in the two book stores I went too. First one had only one knitting magazine to check out (Knit n'Style) and no Folk Shawls book. Then the 2nd store has like 3 knitting magazines (Interweave, FCEK and the Knitting Digest) nothing new for me to look at. Again no Folk Shawls book, I went down town to check that book and since I never saw it, it was a bit disappointing. :( Guess I'll have to order it online, without having a clue of what's inside. Ah, the joys of living in a city big enough to receive an international racing event but not knit friendly! LOL!

OH! As I was heading for the subway station I did found an old 2nd hand book store. I noticed simply because the book in the front window was the Big Book of Knitting. LOL! Didn't have time to check it out more but believe me next time I'm in town I will!!! :) I never found knitting books at a 2nd hand store before, perhaps it is because I went to mainly french second-hand book stores!?

Anyway, that's just another boring entry but yesterday was busy enough I only did a little knitting while watching the "Catch me if you can" movie. Good movie! ;)

Have a great rainy weekend. Sigh, no yard sales when it rain.

p/s: SO sorry if my pictures are missing, it seems that my free picture hosting place is not behaving.

pp/s: JoLives, is updated, since I don't write often in it, I'll be sharing when I do update. You choose to go read or not!

06.13

I'm off for the day, it's beautiful out and I shall be back in the afternoon. :)

Also I will be knitting in public too! If I'm brave enough in the subway (which I have done before but I had dh besides me), I'll knit in a park just gazing at the tourists passing by! ;)

This weekend is the Grand Prix in Montreal aka a HUGE racing car event! Many tourists will be in town and usually that means alot of people happily walking around the streets and stores. :)

Jo Lives is finally update:

Have a GREAT weekend and happy father's day to all the dads! :)

06.12

Well I have decided to not persue my interest in weaving. I've been checking out all the used weaving looms for sale. To be honest, I never even touched one so I think that I would benefit from a class on this subject.

I am still considering machine knitting though. Being that I am deathly afraid of knitting sweaters (me and patterns do mix well!) LOL! I think a knitting machine would give me the chance to knit sweaters and other projects. I would never give up hand knitting, just celebrated yestreday, 9 months since I taught myself to knit on the internet! :) These are the two links that I keep sharing for those who want to learn to knit. Common Threads and StitchGuide.com These two places have little videos to see how the stitches are done. Never have I had someone knit besides me in these past 9 months. My mom can knit but never did attempt socks! ;) As for socks, now that I just said that, the place I learned from is Terri's amazing site. Socks 101

Amazingly enough, most knitters are pretty nice too! LOL! ;) I have received tons of encouragement and support in these past few months. I still consider myself a newbie knitter, maybe an advanced newbie! ;) If it weren't for all those knitting blogs out there, I would still be doing garter scarves! ;) Before I leave you for today, a pic of HotSox1 :)

hugs, wishing you all a sunshine filled day! :) I'll be knitting outside today!

06.11

Well I received a request yesterday and me being so sweet and all... I decided to go and seek an answer for the request. Ginny, nicely asked me (almost begged!) :-P for me to knit up some socks and see how the new Bernat Hot Sox yarn behaves. So this morning at my mommy&coffee "thing" I started a pair of socks.

I'm still at the toe of the 1st sock but really like the "fabric" that results from my knitting. The yarn is 60% acrylic and 40% nylon, so it does feel like acrylic while you knit it but I don't mind, just a warning for those who do! The yarn is soft and not rough to the touch but it has that little sheen acrylic yarn has.

I hope our fellow blogger from GinnFizz will be happy with today's review! :) I will keep on knitting the socks and tell you how they feel as soon as I am done! LOL! ;)

Here are two shawl patterns that I have been looking at. I really like them both, one is free from the internet (Trinity Stitch shawl) and the other a Highland Triangle shawl is from the Folk Shawls book. To me they are similar, not exactly the same, as the finishing edges are nice on the 2nd shawl. On friday, the kids will go to daycare all day and I just might go spend some time drooling over a few books at the bookstore! LOL!

Please take the time to check out Maus at Knits 'n' Things, there are some gorgeous pictures to see! :) Notice the Highland triangle shawl in the June 4th entry.

Later friends! :)

06.10

Well I feel like I need to say I'm sorry... Maybe I ruffled a few feathers with my Knitty critic sunday night. My purpose was NOT to hurt anyone but just give my opinion about the patterns available. I dress very tomboy-ish so froufrou stuff isn't for me. That said the articles were GREAT, I really enjoyed Bonne Marie's short row pictures. Also a review of the Denise Interchangeable Needles was alot of fun to read. That of course is because I am looking into buying some for a few months, I just haven't done it yet.

Please notice that I am not the only one who has had reservations about this last issue. Don't make this all about me because usually I'm the quiet one! LOL! I truely adore Knitty and it's purpose for sharing free funky patterns and a whole lot of amazing knowledge. Also remember that I haven't been knitting for a year yet, it will be 9 months as of tomorrow! I don't have years of experience nor have I seen over the years summer magazine issues with mostly tank tops to knit. I am just a newbie knitter that can't follow patterns too well! LOL! :)

Well that said! Yesterday was the 50% off sale at Value Village and I bought a knitting machine!!! It's old, I can safely say it's older than me! LOL! I saw the exact same machine but with more accessories on Ebay. Small world, so here it is: Brother Profile 588. It was 12,50$ on sale, so if I can't figure it out at all then it can go back to the store and I'm not out of any money. I'll let dh play with it and see what he comes up with! LOL! There was even some REgia yarn at the sale but only a partial ball and it was black but to know that someone in Montreal knitted ith Regia yarn made my day! LOL! Remember that in my little area of the world I am considered the weird one for liking to knit! Oh well, they are missing out on so much. ;)

Last week I bought a little Thing-a-ma-Jig kit, it is a little set to make wire projects like beaded knitting markets (ok they don't say that on the kit) lol! or small jewellery. I haven't tried it yet but hopefully I can make some cute little trinkets. :) I bought a small kit 'cause I didn't feel like spending alot before even knowing if I liked it. There are some kits that are 50$US and even more but frugal me wanted to make sure I enjoyed playing with wire first. :)

Yesterday I found some great new yarn at Walmart, I bought 2 balls of Crazy Hot and 1 ball of Red Hot. They received alot of the Lion Brand yarns that I've seen online and also received new Bernat yarns, like a very cute cotton ribbon. The kids enjoyed touching them all! LOL! I was tempted to buy the Knitting Made Easy cd-rom, thought I might learn something but with all the knitting links I have I wasn't sure it was worth it. I'll just add that to my birthday list! ;) Lucky me, got my Fisherman's wool in the mail, I'll need to try kool aid dyeing before knitting up another soaker for Lucas! :) It is the 1st time I have seen a ball of Lion's Brand fisherman's wool. The patterns on the band are really nice too, bummer I can't find this yarn locally. Also I bought the yarn from an online mom so the price was a fraction of what I've seen it online.

Off to go work on my Confetti socks a bit more. Maybe I won't frog them this time. ;)

06.09

The summer edition of is out!!! Of course that's the only thing people will be talking about today! LOL! ;)

Here are the patterns I liked aka most likely to actually knit: Broadripple socks created by our beloved black dog aka Rob!!! Secretly I'm hoping that if all tell Rob we'll make his socks maybe he'll give us a special price on the yarn? ;) That would be soooooo nice wouldn't it be? We'll even let him lead a knit-along! ;) Then there's Easybreezy, a tank top for little misses. The sizing starts at 7 though and Zoe is only 4yo. With all the tank-alongs going on now, a tank for my little girl would make her SO happy! :) I may not wear tank tops but she sure loves them. Following is the childHood, a hooded cardigan, which again my little miss princess would adore. Daisy is a cute baby sweater that I prefer without the "extras" on it. Would be cute to knit for every pregnant mom I know. Then there's the Tasha bag, I really like the cable detail on the bag. I LOVE cables but I'm too intimidated to try knitting an irish fisherman sweater. I know I'd probably do it all wrong! LOL! One day...... one day! :)

So there, that was my choices of patterns from Knitty. Basically I don't see myself wearing any of the adult patterns and this issue made me wonder how popular is Knitty among women without children? I say this because of the sixteen patterns in this issue five are for kids. That may be not that much or maybe it is!? I don't know, surely I appreciate seeing free kid patterns out there. Just made me wonder what others thought of it.

So back to reality, yes there is life apart from Knitty! ;) We just had our best yardsale weekend of the year. I found circular needles (5/1$) and a knitting folding bag that stand up with wooden legs. (I'm sure there is a better name for this) LOL! Dh found a Dreamcast video game for a GRRRREAT price, he couldn't be happier and both kids loved the treasures we found for them also. My mom bought 2 beginners tapes of TaeBo, YAY mom!!!! I've been wanting those tapes since forever. Of course she did NOT buy them for me but for her own self BUT I get to punch and kick along with her. Zoe and my mom are now my exercice buddies. Poor Lucas got in the way of mommy throwing a kick. No black eye but I sure felt bad, Lucas always comes to me when I'm exercising. If I'm doing floor stretches, he's usually sitting ON me also. That sweet child UGH! ;) He is SO cute though! lol!

Well a new week start and I hope everyone is well. I still need to knit handles for my Suki, I think I'll just knit 2 in different colors 'cause I know I don't have enough of every color to knit rainbow handles. ;) I can't wait to felt it but I want to finish the handles first.

I did complete Lucas's bucket hat but as always when I'm following a pattern...... the hat didn't turn out as expected! LOL! 1st time is was way too big, even look floppy on dh's head and now it seems to small for Lucas. Oh well.... I might have to stick to knitting felted bags! ;) Though tonight I started on a pair of socks for myself, using some Confetti yarn that I HATE! We'll see how long that will last, I may need to go emergency yarn shopping, just give in and admit I'm a sock yarn snob! LOL! I want Regia socks!!! ;)

hugs,

06.07

Well...... all good things come to an end. I've had a BLAST knitting the Suki but now it's done! Waaaaaaah! ;) Yes, I'm quirky, I feel sad that such a fun and EASY project is about done. I still need to decide how the straps will be, either one of two and also which colors to use!? I'm out of purple, almost out of red also, either I knit i-cord strap(s) or I knit length-wise. Then the felting needs to happen too. Still basically most of the knitting of done. :( I'm officially calling the Rainbow Suki the funnest project I have ever knitted!!! :) I could make 20 bags! LOL! Yes, really! ;) I might have to try knitting one of those backpacks too. One in every size, I baby Suki for Zoe, a mini backpack for Lucas. ;)

I got a few suggestions concerning lace and shawls. I might try either a Lace Cable Bookmark or a String of Hearts bookmark. Then Chris, suggested a beautiful shawl for me to try.

It's from the book: Folk Shawl and the model of the shawl is Highland Triangle, if you click of the name you will see the shawl knitty by Wendy. :) I must agree with Chris, that shawl is just gorgeous! Need to go to the book store soon and check out that book! :)

Oh it such a happy day, rain is about to start (what else is new!?) but still I am happy! :) Off to yard sales, will yarn find it's way back to my house? ;)

06.06

No time to knit yesterday, it was a crazy day. I'm still on schedule though and plan to finish the Suki today!!! :) Then I have to decide if I want 2 straps like the pattern suggests or only one strap like Kim so conveniently did. I really like her idea but I don't know what to do yet.

I want to knit myself so socks!!! I have the Confetti yarn waiting too (you might remember I started a sock but frogged it, not satisfied with how it was looking). I think that will be my birthday gift to myself! :) I shall be 26 years old in 2 friday from today. So stock up on e-card links 'cause I'd love a few cards on June 20th! LOL! ;)

Each year I want a big fuss for my birthday but it never happens. Actually last year was the worst bday ever. Dh worked all day, didn't give me anything and we ended up in a fight. UGH! This year I want the royal treatment! ;) Oh and I DESERVE it too! :-P

I never knitted lace and I think I'd like to try it. Cleo says it's something I've been missing out on, so of course now I really want to try it! ;) I was thinking maybe a bookmark but then I thought, well that's pretty lame, no? I don't even have time to read. Then again, I could send it to a great woman that was almost like a grandmother for me for years. She just moved back to Italy and I bet she'd love a lace bookmark for her bible (she's very religious but in a lovely way). ;) Oh how I miss her so, Mrs Lavender made the greatest homemade pasta and ACK! I miss her little cakes with nuts and all. waaaaaaaaaah! Yup, I think she'd love a little lacey bookmark! :) Ok, now where to start? No, no I'll wait until I finish Suki, try lace and then make sock for myself. I can wait on my socks, Mrs Lavender is THAT important to me! ;)

Oh also anyone has a suggestion for a gorgeous BUT easy shawl? Something not too froofroo but that feels just right to wear when watching tv or blogging in a room where the air conditioner is on too high! ;)

hugs, have a great weekend :)

06.04

4:14PM

I'm in LOVE with how quick this bag is knitting, the colors green and blue are done. I had a mommy & coffee meeting this morning aka 3 hours of knitting. :) Just need to ball the purple yarn and I can start the last stripe and decreasing part of the bag!!! :)

Thank you so much Chris for giving me the opportunity to knit in this great knit along! :)

12:37AM

My fellow Canadian knitting friends! I have found Cascade 220 within the country!!! :) Know how much are you willing to pay to know where? LOL! ;) Ok, ok, you're all broke, right? Here you go: Knit and Stitch. Just so you know the guys at Threadbear Fibers Arts do sell Cascade 220 at a cheaper price but with shipping and custom fees... Anyway, it's been my pleasure to search and find at least one source for this yarn! :)

Now come on, no hugs? ;)

Flavors, cherry, orange and lemon are knitted, my fruit salad Suki only needs kiwi, blueberry and grape before it's done! I LOVE this project, already I want to knit up another bag. :)

I will update more later, after a few hours of sleep!

06.03

Late on my Suki schedule, I need to wind the yellow yarn. DONE! ;) Dh wants to try to 'build' a winder similar to this. I don't see why, my Rota-Spin works just fine! LOL! ;)

I'm really enjoying adding a color stripe a day, no stress and it's pretty easy to find time to knit 15 rows throughout the whole day.

Yesterday I chatted with a knitter, I learn she lives in the same province then OMG! She lives on the same island as I do. LOL! So I guess from now on I can say I know someone local who knits! ;) Cleo just started her own blog so be sure to say hey and make her feel welcome to the friendly world of knitting bloggers! :)

I updated my favorite links, seperated the Canadian blogs from the rest, just 'cause I wanted them to stand out. :)

06.02

I totally forgot to celebrate this event on friday so here it is! ;) I started blogging as a way to try to stay sane, this was months before I learned to knit! LOL! Much has happen in this last year and friends I've made in the blogging world is what makes me want to write day after day. :)

I was up at bright and early, the sun is out and we'll go play outside all day I'm sure. I did check out the knitting bloggers ring! WOW! We are now up to 246 members on it, I 'only' visited the first 50 blogs this morning. I used to read all the blogs on the ring once a week, I could do it all in a day. I've been on this ring since january and I believe the number of members has doubled since. Guess knitting is not a lost art after all! ;)

Since locally no yarn store seems to carry yarn winders I created my own (as seen in the previous post!) I also created my own counter to use on a circular needle. Simply slip a piece of yarn in the counter and not it to a marker. Works well and again it is cheaper than buying the real thing! ;) Though a yarn winder would be neat! LOL! I think I could have dh make a swift out of wood but not a winder.

Here's my update on Rainbow Suki, I'll add a color a day so by sunday if all goes well, I'll be knitting the handles! :)

Knitting with Cascade 220 sure is a treat, I almost feel like I could become a yarn snob and just knit with this wool until I die! LOL! Soooo sooooft! Also knitting double strand sure makes it go fast. I really like how it looks, maybe I could attempt a sweater!? I like the big stitches. :)

I played around with the skeins of wool that are making up my Suki bag, made this cute button. :) You are welcome to download it and link to me from your blog! Instead of changing the whole template I made a button, what can I say, I'm so 'wild'. :P

P/S: We went to see the movie Finding Nemo last night. WOW! Run and go see it, you'll spend a great evening I promise! :) At the time we went there were more adults then children and you could hear the adults laughing all throught the movie! ;)

June 1st :)

Knitters, get your wool and circ's and let's start our own SUKI!!!!!!

But before don't forget to wind all those skeins into yarn balls. You don't own a yarn winder, like every other member on the knitter's blogger list? Don't worry 'cause have I got something for YOU!!! I present you the RotaSpin! :)

Rainbow Suki shall be started after a few hours of sleep! :)

p/s: Thank you Chris, for making this possible! :)