Offline

How long does it take to change ISP these days? Two weeks - that how long I have been offline trying to get disconnected from one and hooked up to another. Most of the down time was Telstra stuffing about. I have gone from broadband to superfast broadband as these days people design webpages with huge graphics and the waiting for the site to be useful is just too long. Not as painful as dial-up mind you! My mother still dial-up and I can make a cup of tea and sandwich in the time it takes for yahoo.com to load. I find that once you have fast internet, you cannot go back - like driving a car with manual window winders after electronic windows. Sadly for my mother broadband isn't available in her area.

However there is a silver lining to being offline - I have managed to do quite a bit of knitting. I have finished my sisters' socks - all three pairs ready to go on their ski trip in October. I like this pair the most - the mock cables really stand out against the stripes and I really like the colour. They also fit my feet like a glove.

I have also started knitting some socks intended for me with the Live 2 Knit yarn I bought a few weeks ago. It really is beautiful yarn. I will publish some pictures in my next post.

And in case you thought I wasn't busy enough, I started my crochet course! The class goes for 4 weeks at 1.5 hours each Saturday. Only had 1 class so far - we learnt how to cast on a chain, get the tensioning right and do some double crochet. Unfortunately I don't think I am doing it quite right

Everything looks wrong to me although the photo makes it look better than it actually is! The stitches aren't lining up and I keep thinking there should be a discernible pattern. So I am loathe to keep practicing the same stitch until I see the instructor again. I believe we are learning doubles and triples next week so I hope I can pick it up ok. I am not sure I am going to take crochet up in a big way - knitting is so much more relaxing.

Like I need more wool...

Oooooh. Look what arrived in the post today...

and...

My yarn from Live 2 Knit and 4 balls of Opal Sock Yarn from ebay. The opal yarn is for Christmas socks or something - gifts anyway. The Live 2 knit yarn is for myself, and myself only. I am going to give pomatomus or some lace pattern a go first off, and probably use the candy colour first - being a girl. Then I may consider knitting the greenish wool for my mother-in-law, but only if I really feel generous.

Love getting goodies in the mail.

In other news, and you won't believe this, guess what I was given by a complete stranger while walking my dogs and Rowan last Wednesday? A crochet baby blanket:

I was walking along a nearby cafe strip and this lady came up, "this is for your baby, I would like her to have it" and placed it on the pram. The she walked off, before I could say the baby was a "he" or thank her for this lovely gift. And it really is lovely, made from soft wool and very well made. Only criticism is that its not in my favorite football team colours, but Rowan doesn't care. He already loves pulling it over his head or making wrinkles in it. Do you think she sensed I was a fellow knitter?

Craft exhibition

I went to a craft exhibition yesterday. I wasn't going to bother as these things tend to be a waste of money but my mother-in-law was going and it gave me a chance to get away from home. I took Rowan along which I knew was a risk but it would have given me an "out" if the fair was particularly boring.

As expected, the craft fair was a bit of a rip off - paid $13 for a whole lot of advertising. At least half the stalls were about scrap-booking which is not my thing. There were 3 wool stalls - one from a store I used to frequent called Crossways Wool & Fabrics based in Subiaco. I had a look over their wares and nothing has grabbed me like some of the wool available online these days. I did however sign up for a crochet course as I really want to know if a person can be BOTH a knitter and do crochet - not either or. It starts in a few weeks and I really am looking forward to it.

In other news, I bought some more sock wool of ebay. Four ball sof Opal Prisma in various colours for $7 a ball. They was quite a few sockenwolle balls at the craft fair yesterday - all for $15 plus so I am very happy with the bargain. They will make good presents for christmas.

Here is a snap of a recently finished pair: (edited to add....bloody blogger refused to let me up load this image...stay tuned)

They are a rather loose pair of socks and the next pair I will cast on fewer stiches. Sadly this pair is going to "fall asleep" more than the pair I knitted previously. Bit to loose in the rib, and there wasnt enough of it!

I have started the next pair and now onto the heel. I love how the cables are coming out and also love the purple. After a K1P1 rib, I am using a P3, Cable3 (K into from of second stitch on left needle, then knit into back loop of first stich of left needle, slip both off together) repeat. The pattern has been bastardised from Katie's blog, which is a trimmer sock than the one I used for the red strippy socks. I hope to finish this pair in a few weeks so I can knit something for myself.

May the best knitter win!

In an attempt to familiarise myself with the international sock community, plus I am getting rather addicted to the knitting socks, I am participating in Sockwars. It sounds like a lot of fun and an interesting way to exchange socks. Sadly for Rowan, I can get fiercely competitive at these sorts of things so there will be no fun in the park until my socks are finished.

Speaking of socks, I am now 2/3 way through knitting socks for my sister's hood holiday later this year. Its not going to be surprise for one, as I think my mother-in-law let it slip to sis-in-law when they were both over babysitting Rowan today.