What a day!

Sam and I trotted off to the Quliting and Craft Show at Jeff's Shed today and had a lovely day wandering the stalls buying things we didn't really need! We meet up with Susan, Tara and Susan's beuatiful daughter Nadi. We saw Suzie Q's gorgeous quilt (I think it should have won but I know very little about quilts) and saw many other beautiful quilts.

Finally, I found another way to waste my time! The minute I got home I had to whip out all the charms and "fixin's" that I bought and start immediately making stitch markers. Hope you like the products of my new little hobby!

Old gold Ballerinas

Old Gold Shoes

Silver Princess Crowns.

Silver Shoes

Silver Ballerinas

The Week the Rangas took over the World

My ranga met one of his favourite rangas!


Cameron Ling was very charming and was very impressed that a fellow Ginger carried his playing number. Rohan got his hat and jumper signed as well as two photos signed for his brothers. There are some past and present footballers who could well learn from Cameron, he was exceedingly gracious and nothing was too much trouble.

Jellybeans!

Cheerful even on the dullest day!

Some sneak previews of my new design....

Also coming in a straight unisex cardi as well. I am looking for a name and a few more test knitters (sizes 2-14). If you have any suggestions for a name pop on a comment. If you want to do a test knit drop me an email.

I would apologise....

but I really don't feel like it. I know it has been an age since I posted and don't think I haven't had notions of doing so. I really, truly have, however the notion never cemented into the reality and thus no posts. I guess I am a little bit sorry, but I am sure your lives are all travelling along just fine regardless.

I have finished some things since last we spoke...

Knit it down in Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran. I love this yarn and the result is a nice cozy, warm casual jumper. Just right for weekends with jeans.



And I finally succumbed to common sense and made a Central Park Hoodie using BWM rustic 12ply (just like Sam) in the Earth colourway. After procrastinating several weeks regarding the seaming (you know how much I love seaming), I love the final result. If it has any faults it might be a tad too warm at times!

And during the procrastination I made a new striped scarf to replace the one taken from the pub in which I left it and an aran weight shawl for the pink swap. I am finally free of the Jo Sharp Desert Aran that I hated so much! The scarf is made in balls of dodgy Spotlight yarn seeing as I just couldn't justify another Noro scarf. The result is nowhere near as nice as the original but it is a fair substitute.


The other news is that I am working on a new design. Teasers and details to come but I can tell you that it is a cabled coat/cardi/cropped cardi for boys or girls in 8ply.

Well I did take the camera...

We have just got back from a lovely, relaxing 5 days at Wymah Valley Resort on the "shores"* of Lake Hume, just the other side of Albury. It was in fact so relaxing that whilst I took the camera with us I didn't take a single photo.

You will need to believe me when I tell you that the kids had a great time swimming, riding their bikes, at the kid's club, going to the movies, Easter egg hunting, going to the petting farm and dozens of other things. You will also need to believe that I had a lovely time relaxing with my friends and doing a little knitting (and drinking and trivial pursuit).

This is what I have to show from my weekend. A Central Park Hoodie looking like it is on the way to done....


* I say "shores" because the lake is so depleted that the shore is actually about a kilometre from the resort at the moment. One day the drought will break. One day.

My own private Everest.

Yesterday, through the slight haze of a beer induced headache, it came to my attention that Jason was playing his cricket semi-final. "Not a problem" I thinks to myself, "he should have fun and I will laze about the house pretending not to see the refuse from the night before, watching some TV and generally being sloth-like". Then the non-hungover voice spoke words of reason. "If Jason is playing in the semi-final then that means that he has, at best, three weeks of cricket left and, if he loses, today and tomorrow!"

"Today and tomorrow?" hungover Jacki thinks. Not that I hoped he would lose but I have to admit that the hungover Jacki was rather pleased with the thought of the season being nearly over. "But you are making him a cricket vest" says non-hungover Jacki "and if he loses this game he won't play again until next summer. Wouldn't it be nicer if you finished it for tomorrow?"

Hungover Jacki thought about this for a moment (or ten) and agreed that "yes, that would be nice" and my sloth-likeness turned into knitting-like-a-manic-to-finish-the-vest-todayness.

I knitted like a woman possessed. I made up the pattern as I went. I messed up the pattern, frogged back and made it up again. But Everest was climbed! At 12.30am last night the blocking started and it was finished this morning under (thankfully) brilliant Autumn sun.

At 12 noon Jason pranced off to cricket in his new vest. Okay the back was still a mite damp but other than that it was finished!


I love the centre cable, it looks oh so fancy (but really wasn't that hard) and I would like to report that the whole thing was done without a cable needle. Do yourself a favour - learn to cable without a cable needle! You will never go back.

If I am to be honest the neck finish is so-so and a more finicky person would do it again, but Jase is happy and thus I am happy.

Bad Jacki, Naughty Jacki

Well, I guess you know that you have neglected your blog when even your mother tells you "it has been a long time since you posted anything on your knitting blog thing". Yep, she calls it a blog thing. Those wacky older people, sorry, I mean people "of a certain age".

Now that I have ensured that my mother is going to kill me, disown me or refuse to babysit the kids; I suppose I should move on to something interesting.

Problem is, there hasn't really been that much of interest happening. Of course stuff has been happening. Hell, I have a husband and three kids. Stuff is ALWAYS happening. But nothing "blog-worthy" seems to have gone down. FOs have been thin on the ground owing to school information nights, housework, a social life, trips away and life in general.

I did finish a cardi but I really need to take nicer photos of it to blog it properly. I'll get back to it okay?

I have started a few things. A jumper for me is in the naughty corner owing to a rogue stitch at the underarm that refuses to cooperate. We will have a stern talk at some stage and it might survive through to completion. I have also frogged Jason's cricket vest after many complaints as to its incorrect sizing (okay it was a little snug) and I have restarted a new version. Here is a progress shot with showy big central cable....


I also have a pair of socks on the go after seeing them on the Yarn Harlot's blog called Sleepy Hollow. Yes I do feel like a bit of a Harlot Harlot following Steph but if you look at them you have to admit they are darn nice socks and I am intrigued with the gusset technique. Is it really my fault that I get a little excited by a new gusset technique? I never said I wasn't geeky. Look, there isn't much to see but here you go (I only started last night okay).


Well there you go Mum, I updated the "blog thing", my apologies for my slackness but sometimes real life gets in the way of cyber life - thankfully.