Yarn modelling

What better thing to do on a lovely, sunny October long weekend than rummage through the stash and take some photos?

In the wooden bowl is a skein of medium weight Sunstone from Blue Moon Fiber Arts along with a silk and merino two ply in Lime Delight from The Knittery.

In the blue bowl we have merino 4 ply in Roses from The Knittery. I've had this yarn for a while, and love the subtle colour variation, but still havent found quite the right project for it.

And finally in the silver bowl, once again its the Sunstone with the beautiful 4 ply Roses. Any suggestions about what I could make with the Roses?

Socks from the vault

These three (in theory) pairs of socks were the first socks I made, back in '05. I was particularly inspired by self-patterning yarn at the time, and the Squeeze's large feet were just the thing to show off the self-patterning Opal elemente yarn and the ringels Regia yarn to perfection. Given the hard wear and machine washing they have endured over the last few years, they've held their shape and colour remarkably well. The pattern for the Opal elemente sock was a freeby from The Wool Shack that came with the yarn. The pattern for the two Regia ringels is Patons Town and Country sock pattern.

Kittens and flowers and yarn

And some pretty pictures to look at to recover from the zombie shots below. First up is Squeak inspecting some beautiful silk and merino 2 ply that Daphne from The Knittery dyed specially. Its called Lime Delight and I'm planning on making my Mum this stole.


And heres a variation on theme. Its two skeins of Sea Silk in Ebony from Purl Yarns nestled up with the Lime Delight. This is destined to become a hamani stole inspired by the beautiful one made by Split Yarn.

Down amongst the undead

It was grey and gloomy Spring morning, a constitutional law essay to write, my archaeology thesis to edit, the house to clean and the garden to garden, so what better moment could there be to spontaneously decide that we must go and join a Zombie Lurch! I must confess, I've never lurched before. But with the promise of make up provided, my Squeeze and I rummaged in the dress-up cupboard and found in no particular order, an old safari suit, and a djellabah and a kuffiyeh. I became a Steve Iwrin zombie and the Squeeze became variously Sheikh ya Zombie or a beardless version of Osama bin Zombie. We were also joined by Nicole Zombie-Kidman, who strenuously maintained that she wasnt really a zombie but was still recovering from a big night at the Golden Globes, and the famous Victorian era African explorer zombie, Stanley Kerbab.


















And what better way to wind down after a morning of lurching and moaning and (fuitlessly) seeking bbbbraaaaaaiiiiiinnnnnnnnssssssssssssssss?


Despite thorough showering, I can still smell the raspberry topping used as the base for the fake blood.

Socks and ponies

As it happens, there is a link for me between socks and ponies. I'm in the final stages of writing my Hons thesis on the origins of horseback riding, and its weighing in at about 46 000 words. A beloved colleague offered to edit it for me, and for payment we settled on socks of her choice.

She decided on Waving Lace socks from Favourite Socks. She has nearly finished the last chapter, and I'm about one third through one the foot. Heres a shot of my progress modelled on the only appropriately circumferenced object to hand, a bottle of Stolly.



I know this site has been short on pony content to date, so if you've ever wondered what the difference is between a zorse, a zonkey and a zony, wonder no more.....

At home with Australia's leading sock model

Euq says: "When I'm at home I like to lounge in my Jo Sharp stockings. Hand knitted from Jo Sharp Alpaca Silk Georgette in Pebble, these stockings feature a delicate lace panel and lace edging. Hmmmm, so soft, so luxurious......."

The source of sock infidelity

Yes, there is a reason behind my recent spate of sock infidelity. A friend lent me Lucinda Guy's book And so to bed. This little top said "knit me, I'm small and involve lots of mildly interesting patterning", and being a fickle wench, I replied "sure thing!".



As summer is approaching, I whipped this little number up out of Lincraft's Bamboozle, a 70% bamboo 30% cotton blend. The yarn tends to separate into strands very easily, so I'm not sure how this top will hold up to a frolicsome two year old.

Still its turned out real pretty.

The Importance of Dental Hygiene

Hey kids, remember to clean those teeth! Otherwise you could go from being a stunt-ridin' cool cat...


to this...


Squeak now has an extra expensive smile with less teeth and the added indignity of an unfashionable face-hair cut.

Socks of shame and funky monkeys

Uh oh, look at these three socks, socks of shame. Yep, I've turned the heels, and my fancy has turned to other things. The lonely jaywalker in Socks That Rock Fire on the Mountain has been stalled at this stage since May. The snicket sock in Socks That Rock Rose Quartz, such a delicate shade, has stalled since July. The winding cable sock, in Darks Reds from The Knittery, wound to halt last week. What is it about turning a heel?

There is some respite from all this sock loneliness though - a pair of monkeys in STR Luna Sea.

The joy of a newly rediscovered old finished object

I was in a colleague's office today and there was this little beauty I made sitting on his tea pot! Gorgeous huh? He wanted "the gayest tea cosy ever" and when presented with this said it was "the gayest thing I've ever seen"! High praise indeed.

The idea came from a similar cosy on Yarnstorm. The pattern is from Rowan Classic Home book five and I crafted it from some cheapo five ply cotton from Lincraft and then sewed on rows and rows of glass fake pearls. I went with glass because I was worried the hot tea could potentially cause melting and lead to loss of shine.

Here's another shot. Isn't she photogenic?

Black Sheep and exotic (almost) socks

Saw the independent New Zealand movie Black Sheep last night. It was hilarious, as you'd expect a zombie sheep movie to be. There was a nod and wink to the pioneers of the genre, as soon as the prop plane whirred on to the screen, you just knew that there'd be some zombie mulching at sooner or later. There were some lovely farming in-jokes involving drenching guns and the inevitable joke about how much a man can love a ewe. Eeeuuuuwwwweee indeed! Oh, and it has a happy ending.


Not much sock action this week, so I thought I'd post some pictures of some crafty footwear I bought in Uzbekistan a couple of years ago. The navy and red slippers I bought in Khiva, an oasis town near(ish) the Caspian Sea, and below the now almost completely dry Aral Sea. Some of the local Turkomen women in Khiva sell knit wear on the streets around the old town.

These socks, featuring an anchor motif on the toe picked out with white embroidery, are just one of many designs. A lot of the designs appear on carpets and in embroideries as well. They also have exquisite shawls made from hair taken from the neck of the Bactrian camel, which they say makes the finest and warmest garments.

These little slippers came from Bukhara, another oasis town. They are of felt made from the neck hair of Bactrian camels. They are embroidered with silk from local silkworms and are corded with twisted silks around the edges of the sole. Their laces are also made of twisted silk cord.