RSVP: Otherwise Engaged

You might be confused about what I've been doing for the past two years, if all you had to go by were my most recent purchases....

As a matter of fact, I've not touched dear neglected Bea in two years. I've spindled a whopping 50 grams of adorable fluff since the beginning of the year.

There's no rational reason to purchase these, or is there? Well, Juno Fibre Arts appears to end business soon, if not already. Catch it while you can, that's what I say.

This one contains camel. Camel fluff. You heard it. Camel in this fluff. It's for research and learning purposes. 

There'll be no irrational spending here!

PS. Exciting times ahead. Soon, soon!

Sneaky sneaky... on how to get to where you want to be taking baby steps in secret

I never imagined that writing would be the most difficult thing to get back to after the fog of sleep deprivation lifted. Mind you, that fog lingered like nobody's business and it doesn't need much encouraging to return.

It's not wonder that the Big Plan was put into hibernation for a while, at least that's how it would seem. In the very early hours of sleep deprivation (otherwise known as the beginning of motherhood) I was in desperate need of some comfort knitting.

Fortunately, I had some one-of-a-kind hand dyed sock yarn on hand and no idea what to do with it.

You can always knit a pair of socks. You can, but no new mom should be forced to make 2 of a thing, not unless she really wants to. It can be a struggle to juggle a tiny little babe, no less than 4 tiny little dpns or a tiny little circular needle for magic looping, a ball of yarn as well as keeping track of where your sanity disappeared to. And then have to repeat the process because not many people only need one sock. Trust me on this.

There isn't a bag hidden away with two different socks and 2 balls of yarn in it. (It's in plain sight, mocking me and my cold feet)

So what to knit?

It had to be a luxury item compatible with grabby hands and unfortunate spillage. Luckily, I had some gorgeous yarn at hand that's also easy to wash.

And that, as they say, was only the beginning. The Big Plan?

Baby, it's on...

WIP Wednesday, back again

Last Wednesday, a week ago, I didn't do a WIP Wednesday. There were 2 reasons for it, the main one being that not one project got itself finished or even close to finishing. To be honest, none of them are very inspiring at the moment. This is bad, because it often leads to startitis. Instead of casting on more unwanted projects, I chose to buy more yarn. Yeah. Whaddayagonnado? It'll become an O.W.L.S. which I hope to finish before Spring.
The other, non-secret Christmas knitting thing that was going on last week was a full agenda. Yeah. again more of the same. Increasing work hours, therapy, teaching (being taken out to dinner to practise "ordering in a restaurant") and tidying meant there was little time left on the computer. The next day I got to get up at 5am to drive to the airport, drive back home after standing at the gate for over an hour with a Texan in the passenger seat. The day after that looked a little (completely exactly) like this from our hotel window.

On Monday it was back to work (such fun), and back to work on projects that will not be finished in time. Hurrah!
So now, another Wednesday, I've stolen the laptop back from the Texan for 30 min so I can post this, the newest secret WIP.
Don't smirk, it's a present and needs to fly on Tuesday. So there.

So now I just need the Texan to put last weekend's actual pictures on here and make this laptop speak with the printer. There might be a chance I won't go ballistic before the weekend, but I'm not making promises. I just wish I could spin all day.

WIP Wednesday, projects that just go on and on and on...

You get it, right?

I have a few works in progress that just never seem to end. Working is all dandy and such when it comes to the expansion of the Mighty Stash, but it sure doesn't help with tackling it to the ground. As any good fiber hoarder will agree, things do tend to build up if you can't spend every waking hour trying to turn the mountain of yarn and unspun fiber into pretty things to wear and give away. However, you're not going to learn about them today. Nuh uh. You see, I forgot to take pictures when there was light and I was too busy about cake and flowers anyway. Some pictureless projects instead then...

In the Springtime, I brought some lace home which was in desperate need of dyeing. Since then, I've spun lace, and more lace, and all of it was turned into lovely shawlettes for me to wear (see here) and the bland blank skein of lace just sat and waited....

I can safely say it is now a lovely colour, which I can't show you because it's the trial of something secret!!! The trial is coincidentally also my first ever attempt at designing something myself, if you don't count Alexia's mittens, also here.

A while back we got some baby merino in white to try out our first dyeing experiment. I went all out and got 10 balls when that turned out to be fun! Some of those ended up in the mittens, others are now slowly turning into another secret project, of which I can tell you nothing!!!

I can't leave you without a picture, so as it's our 4th anniversary, I'll leave you to enjoy this lovely couple...



I can't believe it's 4 years already. It feels like yesterday and a lifetime away...