Fate

Sometimes fate seems non-existant, I decide what happens to me, I plan my day, life trundles on...good things happen, bad things happen, it's life.

Othertimes fate holds a gun to my head and frogmarches me straight into the path of destiny, there is often a collision, it is usually messy, but it is always positive.

Today was one of those days.I pottered around this morning, drove in Christchurch to visit an antique shop I saw yesterday, Flash has a hankering after some genuine old signs for our BBQ area, and I had seen some in their window.

First I went to the huge Sally Army shop, and picked up a vintage chenille bedspread and a milk bottle carrier (complete with 4 glass milk bottles) for $5, then to the secondhand bookshop with the largest pile of "Stitchcraft" magazines I have ever seen! they didn't have many knitting books, but the number of vintage magazines and leaflets of knitting patterns was astounding, I picked up a delightful 1950's "Dressed stuffed toys" complete with templates, a bed jacket pattern book with pattern names like "femme fatale" and "gondola" (the imagination reels!) a gorgeous "Practical knitting illustrated" which "Daddy and Jayne" gave to "Dear Mummy, with the dearest love" in 1946, which makes this intriguing book even more special, it contains patterns for everything - the whole family, the house, even toys.In 1954 "Bruce" sent "Shirley" "Les Tresors de la Broderies" (embroidered treasures) and it is stunning, even in black and white (although there are a couple of colour plates) I can't wait to study it further, and I wonder whatever became of Bruce and Shirley...his message read "Christmas 1954, I send this little spoonful of the wealth of Europe, wishing I could send it all!"10 vintage knitting magazines completed that purchase.

The antique shop was closed (until tomorrow...) but the bric-a-brac shop next door was not...10 metres of 1970s braid for $1 and a vintage wooden Lichfield sign from the mens department of Ballentynes department store.

I turned the car in the direction of Akaroa, my destination for the day, and drove for maybe 5 minutes until I remebered directions from the "Crafty Girls" book, ah! there's a knitting factory shop around here somewhere...well it had closed down - but there was another huge thrift shop in it's place...2 more chenille blankets and 2 vintage pinnies for Blaise...ok, back on the road!

20 minutes later, in the gorgeous bleached blonde Canterbury countryside, I pass a plastered block building on the side of the road "Yarn" it says in big letters..."Tai Tapu wool carders and spinners"...in a split second I toss up turning the car around, or checking it out on my way back from Akaroa, I turn the car around, Fate does a victory lap.

Inside the small shop are shelves and rack of spun yarn, all different plies and wools, hanks of fine coloured wool are hanging on a wall, flax baskets on the floor are overflowing with carded roving, there are posters of sheep breeds, a couple of spinning wheels, and an almighty racket coming from out the back, I poke my head around the door and behold a huge machine carding yarn, obviously it also spins and plies and puts yarn onto cones, but don't ask me to explain it.

I catch the eye of the man operating the machinery, he comes around, past bags labelled with names and fibre types, one with cashmere locks spilling out, another with chocolate wool trying to escape.I am afraid that I did not get his name, I did not take photographs, I did talk a lot, and listen a lot, and almost swoon when I realised that here were people who could spin yarn for me! who would sell me small amounts of undyed merino on cones! (when I say small amounts, I mean up to 10 kgs...the other spinners I have spoken to are not interested in small fry like me) I did remember to leave my contact details, and to take his.

For those in Canterbury who didn't know about them - here are their details:

Tai Tapu Wool Carders

P O Box 56, Tai Tapu, CanterburyPhone 03 329 6859 Fax 03 329 6889

Various/mixedFine, medium, strongWhite, Black and coloured, DyedAll processed fleece. Custom carding Carded B&C wool. Carded dyed wool. Wool/mohair, wool/alpaca blends.Weaving singles. Hand knitting yarn. Agents for Majacraft products.

Not in the roadtrip book, but should be on your list.

The charming wool man gave me a part cone of a cable spun merino to play with, they also had felted merino yarn, we had a great chat about yarn and sheep and organics, pollution, you name it...but once again i found my words failing me...I know a lot about fibre, knitwear production, yarn counts, tex, wet processes etc, but you think it sounds like I know anything at all when I talk to other knitters/yarn people? no it bloody doesn't.

Magical realism is the genre I invoke when I think about my problems communicating with others...I am an intelligent woman, but unless you are a close friend or family member you will think I am either intensely shy or slightly thick."Years ago a man took her words from her, to this day she is still re-gathering them"

Enough of that.Elated I continued my journey to Akaroa, a French settlement on Banks Peninsula,outside of Christchurch, I drove windy roads up and down steep hillsides, the roadsides strewn with lupins, yarrow, evening primrose, heliotrope and vipers bugloss, I stood at the crest of a hill to take photos and marvelled at the way the european herbs have become part of the landscape, huge comfrey plants nestled at my feet, mullein and ladies mantle were tucked under a nearby apple tree, weighed down with a heavy crop - this is a NZ heritage tree, like so many by the roadside it is the legacy of an apple core tossed from a car window during an interminable car journey to the seaside many years ago.

I passed golden fields full of dirty sheep, irrigated emerald fields full of fluffy white pompoms of sheep, sheep on the road, sheep in trucks, under trees, lined up against fences to catch the shade.

I passed a sign which read " cheap lawnmowers, low maintenance, self propelled" then I realised they were selling sheep!

I drove through swarms of white butterflies, while the sun shone hot on my arm, and the sky sweated a brilliant singing blue, past fields of broccoli which smelt like cabbage soup as they slowly steamed in the intense heat, to Birdlings Flat a beach with wild turquoise seas (no photo - I couldn't do the colour justice) and dunes of flat grey pebbles - a wild and desolate place, the link goes to a jewellery company who manufacture unique jewellery from the stones and NZ paua shell (scroll down). I will return in winter, I can imagine the desolation to be more powerful when it is isolated.

I arrived at my destination - 2 words - "twee" and "cloying" the village of colonial wooden cottages and newer plaster buildings nestled at the feet of rolling hills, next to a tidal estuary, is as it is always described - pretty cottage gardens, sympathetic town planning, french street names and shop signs, and maybe if I was with a companion I may have enjoyed it more, but a quick wander down the street convinced me that the journey was indeed more important than the destination, the shops offered the same tat as the giftshops in the mall at home, the 2 galleries did not inspire me to purchase, a visit to the Wool gallery saw me leave town empty handed.

15 minutes later in "Little River" I perked up, the craft shop there was full of local products, the coffee refreshing, I bought a turquoise bowl to remind me of the colour of the sea in this wild place, had a chat with the proprietress about Holly's course, and the state of the ozone layer, and left feeling recharged.

Now I am back in the motel, my daughter had a long day at Uni, and is passed out on the bed with a book, I should drag her into town for a good meal before I return home tomorrow, but she looks settled, maybe we'll order Thai...I have enjoyed the opportunity to blog daily that this trip has afforded me, hopefully not too much time will pass until our internet is connected at home, as I have things to tell you!

trail mix?

today I returned to Hands Ashford - and this time I could purchase whatever I wanted, no quarantine this time! The little bags in the picture above are neither spices nor trail mix ingredients (I was teasing Holly) but madder, brazil wood, cutch and cochineal (beetles-shhhh) I have had enough of not being able to source coloured organic merino, so have decided to have a go myself. Years ago when I lived on Waiheke I dyed yarn with eucalyptus leaves and lichen, using baking soda, and copper and iron cooking pots as mordants instead of metal salts, I ended up with ranges of pinks, apricots and purples, some of which I still have in baby garments knitted back then - and they are still colourfast. In later years I grew rose madder for pinks, yarrow and coreopsis, and used alum - in tiny quantities, to fix yellows from the coreopsis and yarrow. I am going to experiment with my purchases, as well as walnut shells and onion skins - hopefully I'll end up with a range of subtle elegant, colourfast shades, which I know to be safe. The organic spinners I have spoken to are wary of commercial "organic" dyes, and fair enough, I only need to dye a moderate amount of yarn, they are responsible for a lot more than that.

I purchased some Touchyarns 4ply merino in the "Blackwatch" colourway , it is beautifully soft, and very reasonable at $15 for 100g.I have started on a wee basket stitch cardigan of my own design, I think this stitch pattern should bring out the colours well.

Tomorrow I plan to drive out to Akaroa - a French settlement on the coast an hour from Christchurch, I have a copy of the "Crafty girls road trip"book, new batteries in the camera, and a whole day to myself, I plan to explore the galleries and shops, especially the Paua pearl gallery (blue pearls) but somehow I don't think I'll be buying anything there! The book has a few a few glaring holes: Geoff's Emporium of Dominion rd, and behind the new library in Henderson are legendary, but missing. I would thoroughly recommend the book to anyone planning any travel in NZ, especially those from overseas, it is wonderful to have all of those resources in one place, the author has done a lot of work.

All sounds well at home, Flash has not continued with the demolitions (the fridge didn't fit in the kitchen, so a couple of cupboards had to go...the dishwasher pipe was behind the back of the glassware cupboard...so that had to go) the girls are mucking in well, even cooking dinner and making his lunch for him, however they did lose Frasier for a few moments...I wonder if they checked his favourite hiding place? better not tell him about the local Indian restaurant nearby my motel...it's called "A taste of Bengal" hmmmm.

The Layla and Frasier show

yes it's me again,broadband still not in residence but getting closer...we now have a dedicated adsl jackpoint thanks to the lovely telecom man who visited last thursday, now we are awaiting delivery of a new router which will not happen while I am here in Christchurch, and the final "switch" to be thrown to actually connect us ( it has got to the point where whenever I imagine that moment I see a bearded man in coat tails brandishing an outlandishly large pair of scissors as he awaits the moment - when he will cut the red ribbon fluttering in front of him and the assembled crowds - hurrah! the Broadband is connected - hurrah!)

Flash has coined a new pseudo-medical term for this semi-connected, semi-delusional state I am currently inhabiting, my feelings of being slightly lost and disjointed, the feeling that there is .something. missing. he says that I am "unplugged from the matrix" and he is correct, I miss my cyber social life, wandering the virtual neighbourhood visiting my friends - has the cold cleared up? how was the first day of school? the baby must have grown a lot, how did that green wool knit up? how was SSK? It is wonderful catching up with family and friends, but half my life is unreachable at present except for the slightest of contact - I am thankful that I have been able to maintain my business suring this time - but there is a lot of updating work to do there.

Holly and I returned to Christchurch today, she starts Uni tomorrow, and I am here until wednesday, when she will move into her flat, this time we know what to do, where to go, what to expect. I am looking forward to spending some quality hours in secondhand bookshops and antiques shops tomorrow, wandering the unspoilt goodwill stores with their treasures of hand embroidered tea towels and candlewick bedspreads. I will be searching for "The Loving stitch" which has been been discontinued, but should be available somewhere in this country! it will make a good companion to my copy of "Thrift to fantasy" a beautiful and expansive book describing domestic crafts from NZ's history. Christchurch still provides good hunting for those of us on the lookout for vintage treasures.

I was going to post photos of my workroom, I am so happy with it, the light, space and wonderful views, but unfortuantely it is presently marred with a 7 foot tall "cat tree", as this is Frasier's "quiet" space for when he needs time out - hopefully it will move to a less conspicuous part of the house soon! oh I can't wait until our lives are just slightly quieter - just for a bit...my mum says that the drama only stops when you die...and even then it continues, but you no longer care! but have i told you about the washer and dishwasher? hmm yes I think so... the brand new bed which broke the first time we slept in it (don't think those thoughts, we were just sleeping...too tired!) (1/16th inch steel - should have been 1/8th used to make the centre brace and slats with huge knots - not a good combination)the flooding dishwasher? the fact that the house had obviously not been cleaned for a long time and I still keep discovering pockets of "ick"...but have I told you about my new herb garden, the fence Flash put up to keep the kitties safely in the entertaining areas, the evenings spent languishing in the spa with a wine, the stars, and my dear husband, the native tuis with their beautiful liquid song, (see one here at youtube)the utter quiet and peace after living on that intersection on Parramatta Road, the big blue LandRover Discovery sitting in my (steeeeeep) driveway, and those aforementioned kitties:

Layla

(yarn? what yarn?)

Frasier

I'm not really biting the zombie baby...

well this is boring

yes we are still sans internets, Telstra Clear have told us that they would be delighted to have us as customers, but it will take "about a week" for us to be connected, that was over a week ago, we are on kiwi time for sure.

The unpacking has finally ended - now the rearranging begins, we have only lost 3 lampshades, which is ok, because I was planning on knitting some, and I am sure that when that project has been completed the missing ones will be found - it's all good. We have received a quote to have our appliances repaired, thank goodness the weather has been good, and that we have Charlotte's washing machine (which will one day be my felting washing machine) so washing has not been troublesome. I have started work on the herb garden, and have loads of little vegie seedlings ready to go in when I have made a bed for them, I was standing in the garden hanging the washing out in my bare feet, and remarked to Flash that I hadn't had my barefeet on mud for more than 2 years, it felt nice.

A blogiversary and my 39th birthday have passed the blog by, the birthday was wonderful, Flash bought me a wheel cover for the LandRover, and a matching keyring, and Mum bought me a company registration and some number plate surrounds with justjussi.com on them, which look to have already brought me some business! and of course Frasier came home. No photos because I am not on my laptop, but we have heaps, he is personality plus, he just can't-sit-still! he is in your face, smooching and loving, playing, tearing around like a mad thing, and telling you all about it in his lion cub voice, last night he helped his Dad build the home theatre system for upstairs - he has to have a say in everything, Layla is not impressed, so they haven't met properly yet, but she is becoming more curious about him, so hopefully it won't be long, she is only a couple of weeks older than him, so we'll just take it easy and not push them.

The girls are back at school, and Holly and I are dropping her car off at the car transporters today, it was just too much to think about driving it to Christchurch, so we are flying down on Sunday to do the whole Uni thing again, at least this year we have a better idea of what we are doing, and I will have room in my suitcase for all of the op shop bargains!

I am still feeling out of it, but much closer to getting back in!

fallen off...

the face of the earth

not really, but it feels like it. We are in the midst of the great unpacking, there are over 170 boxes, and the packers had great fun...the handset of the phone was in the box labelled "patio" the base of the phone was in a box labelled "sewing", all of the peices of my pasta maker were in 1 box...but the handle was in a box labelled "bathroom 1", I suppose they need to do something to liven up their job!

we are incredibly tired, Flash and I were unpacking until 4.30 am, then got 3.5 hours sleep, on the upside I have lost 3 kgs in the last week without trying!

The girls are happier than they have been in weeks, their rooms are lovely and face onto the back entertaining deck, they are spending hours lying on the camp beds (blow up) in the pool, as the temperatures here are very hot.

Layla came to live with us yesterday (she has been in a cattery since Charlotte moved our of her flat) she is a delight, so curious and chatty, she is the same age as Frasier, so I can't wait to see how they get on, speaking of our boy, he has just had "the snip" and will be home on the 10th.

The knitting room is looking great, i will post photos (we are still in the "during" phase) and I can't wait until we have everything set up, Flash is setting up the other half of the room as a study, it is going to be so much fun.

Hopefully internet access will be up and running soon, until then I am getting about 20 minutes every couple of days, hence the lack of posting and blogging, can't wait to catch up with all of your blogs and see how things are going for you and your families, and I can't wait to share photos of our new home

fallen off...

the face of the earth

not really, but it feels like it. We are in the midst of the great unpacking, there are over 170 boxes, and the packers had great fun...the handset of the phone was in the box labelled "patio" the base of the phone was in a box labelled "sewing", all of the peices of my pasta maker were in 1 box...but the handle was in a box labelled "bathroom 1", I suppose they need to do something to liven up their job!

we are incredibly tired, Flash and I were unpacking until 4.30 am, then got 3.5 hours sleep, on the upside I have lost 3 kgs in the last week without trying!

The girls are happier than they have been in weeks, their rooms are lovely and face onto the back entertaining deck, they are spending hours lying on the camp beds (blow up) in the pool, as the temperatures here are very hot.

Layla came to live with us yesterday (she has been in a cattery since Charlotte moved our of her flat) she is a delight, so curious and chatty, she is the same age as Frasier, so I can't wait to see how they get on, speaking of our boy, he has just had "the snip" and will be home on the 10th.

The knitting room is looking great, i will post photos (we are still in the "during" phase) and I can't wait until we have everything set up, Flash is setting up the other half of the room as a study, it is going to be so much fun.

Hopefully internet access will be up and running soon, until then I am getting about 20 minutes every couple of days, hence the lack of posting and blogging, can't wait to catch up with all of your blogs and see how things are going for you and your families, and I can't wait to share photos of our new home

Look at me!

I'm Frasier, I'm 10 weeks old and get to go home to my new family in 2 weeks time, hopefully they will be ready for me. I have just found out that I will have an adopted sister, the same age as me! Charlotte's black shorthair kitten Layla has been accepted into the family, today she went to the vet to make sure she has no nasty bugs - the vet fell in love with her, she is cute and smoochy and talks a lot, just like me.


Justine is still running around like a crazy woman - Flash is off on work retreats - lucky bum, but it's all good, moving day is next tuesday - they better have my room ready!


Here's another photo for you to be going on with, to show you all my cool spots (excuse the lack of cropping - the mouse died - thats my breeder Mum holding me, she has the coolest house, full of Bengals and Maine Coons)

an apology

I feel so bad, I haven't replied to commentors or emailers - my situation at present is that I get 30 minutes on the internet A DAY! the first 20 is spent checking my work email, and orders, checking the shopping cart has no manual orders waiting, that sort of thing, then and only then can I check other things, bank accounts, bills and finally blogs, so I am still popping in to visit some of you - but don't have time to comment, or reply to comments.

This exile will be over very soon, I am learning patience

best wishes to everyone

wheeeeee!!

and finally - it came out today, even more page space than I expected, in the "Family" pages, nothing will shake the smile on my face today.

The Knit Rangers

Living in a motel is great, the wet towels disappear, clean ones appear...cooking is limited to ham and cheese croissants and salads, all cooked meals are prepared by someone else...laundry too disappears and returns freshly pressed.

My new (to me) machine is set up in the lounge of our suite (Flash and I share a 1 bedroom suite with courtyard, the girls share a room in the main building) it chatters through the day, but I turn it off late afternoon so as not to annoy the neighbours, I am learning a lot and can see how this contraption will be like having a workmate, although I will still have to make my own coffee! I have seed trays lined with jiffy pots on the patio, merrily getting greener as the oregano, coriander, basil and various other herbs and basic veges sprout and grow.I have cut off the bottoms of water bottles and planted cuttings from my Mum's collection of herbs, the warm, humid weather will ensure they take. I am not at home, but am preparing for it, this quiet time will not slip through my fingers.

My whinge yesterday arose from a common complaint - the indifference of LYS owners. I had organised for some very nicely priced Noro Cash Iroha from Little Knits to be sent to my Mum, in preparation for my arrival, I had my photocopied-from-my -copy- of- the- book- pattern for the Hourglass sweater (including the corrections from the website) and just needed the needles - 4.5mm in 80 and 30 cm lengths, I also needed a ball winder, as in my dumbass-ness I had forgotten to pack one.

I arrived at the first LYS, quite big, a national chain, nice selection, but nothing out of the ordinary. I found the 80cm no problem, and asked for the 30cm - none in stock, but I can order them in, no ball winders - once again we can order them in. No problem, I got some long dpns instead of the 30cm circ, and said "don't worry, mine will be here in a couple of weeks" but just trying to chat, ask about local knitting groups - no real response, there was no one else in the store who was demanding attention, so I felt a bit flat, on the upside, they were unpacking the latest issue of Yarn magazine.

I then went to another, an Auckland chain, a few more interesting yarns in skeins, but still very old-fashioned (what do want Justine? Purl, Loop?) asked for the 30cm circ, "they don't make them" was the response, and I couldn't help myself - I advised the assistant that yes "they" do make them, that I have 4 in my collection on the way from Sydney, but that it would be really convenient to have some now - her response was that "of course they have them in Australia" but not in NZ - how ridiculous! it's a global community, and I want to buy locally.

I have heard good reports of a small shop which opens a few hours a week, in someone's backyard studio, and I may have to continue internet shopping, but as far as knitting groups go, I am not close to the 2 I have heard of...so have decided to start my own, in Titirangi - not quite sure of the venue as yet - but I have a couple of places in mind...anyone who lives in the Waitakere Ranges or central or West Auckland (or anywhere else!) is welcome to contact me at my gmail address (top of the sidebar) once I have a place organised I'll contact everyone and the Knit Rangers will be in action!

I am envisaging a lively group of opinionated knitters, young, old, experienced and novice, all enthusiastic, all up for a challenge, willing to teach and be taught, the chatty and the quiet, but all with something to contribute - meeting on a weekday evening. Let me know your suggestions, what do you want in a group? (merit badges have already been suggested!)

catching up

The Bate’s Motel

Our flight into Auckland was delayed, thus arriving almost an hour late, so it was almost 10.30 when we met our cab drivers, who had waited patiently for us.

We should have found it strange that neither of our Corporate drivers had been to these serviced apartments before, they are situated in a nice part of town, 2 minutes from the city.

On arrival at the apartments we found our keys had been taped to the office door – the owners left every evening. The drivers unloaded our bags and left them in the carpark, watched on by numerous curious residents, we then hauled all 16 bags up a flight of stairs and gasped as we saw our rooms…breeze block walls (cinder block) stained ceilings, furniture that had seen much better days, covered in numerous dubious stains, rotten boards in the bathroom…we showed the girls how to lock their door, and then we pounced upon the Yellow pages, and made a list. Next morning (after replacing their pillowcases with our own…) we awoke bright and early and started phoning around to find a replacement motel (unfortunately the PA who had found the motel in the first place, was fooled as we were by the photos which had obviously been taken 20 years previously) eventually we booked ourselves into a nice, clean centrally located motel, sighs of relief all round.

That was then a week ago, this is now…
Just Jussi garments are a prize in the NZ Woman’s Weekly on sale this week ! this is major advertising for the cost of 8 garments, I am very happy.

We did an inspection of our new house yesterday, and are even happier than we were when we bought it, I cannot wait to move in, and after days like today in Auckland – the pool is looking very inviting.

especially after the high temperatures today, we spent the day at Piha - photos to follow.

I am working on a new blog for Just Jussi knitwear, then I can concentrate on my other knitting, making, family and friends on this blog.

I am in a kind of limbo at present, tomorrow I will tell you all why I am feeling like "I am the only knitter in this village"

we're baaaaa-ack

we are home, safe and well, we have had some adventures in the past few days, and I will enlighten you when I can. Internet access is very patchy at present, but will improve shortly.

Many stories to tell, so will try to organise my thoughts and give each the time it deserves.

The first motel...horror story

The vehicle...romance

Frasier...our new baby

ok, I'll show you a couple of photos of Frasier's Dad, just to give you an idea.

His name is "Rebel" he is a brown spotted Bengal - here is what the International Bengal Cat society have to say "The Bengal is a medium to large domestic feline that originates from crossings of the small Asian Leopard Cat (ALC) to the domestic cat in an attempt to create a companion with an "exotic" look but a domestic temperament. After four to five generations of Bengal-to-Bengal breeding, the breed is recognized for championship competition by most international domestic cat associations including TICA, ACFA, GCCF, and AACE."

Frasier is just 7 weeks old, and while we spent 2 hours playing with 6 baby bengals, I completely forgot to take photos, even of our little one, after he chose us. His markings are pretty much the same as his Dad's, even down to the red around his head and legs. He will come home a couple of weeks after we move into our new house (at the end of the month) and I will finally be able to post kitty porn!

Happy New Year

I am vexed,
there is this news article from the South Island of New Zealand...were the hikers from NZ? I hope not, I cannot imagine any of the hundreds of trampers I have met in the NZ bush ever behaving in this manner, it is disturbing.

then there is this, 15 years ago I wept with anger and horror at the genocide of the Kurds, years later I met a family from Kuwait who had lost everyone in their families, EVERYONE, nanas, grandpops, aunties, uncles, cousins, and the horror, the fear...and now they are both teachers, raising their 6 children (some born in refugee camps) to be Kiwi kids, I still have the pictures those kids drew for me the last time I saw them, the last day I worked as their parent's case manager, so full of hope for the future, maybe they have had more babies since, their motivation was so strong that their family would not be removed from the earth.

Saddam Hussein was a monster, and I think that, probably he deserved to die, that death was the only solution to the ongoing problem he presented, that if anyone deserves a punishment of death - it was he, we all know what he did, there is no question as to his guilt.
But...does his death by hanging diminish us? does it diminish the hangman? I am not talking from a Judeo-Christian standpoint, but from the standpoint of a Mum who realised that you don't teach a kid not to hit - by hitting, I do not feel that anything is gained by the death penalty, and that there is a facet of innocence lost.

I feel that I do not know my question, I most certainly do not know the answer, maybe I would feel differently about the death penanlty if someone harmed one of my children, maybe I would be rejoicing now if I were someone harmed by Hussein, I know that if the death penalty is warranted by anyone - he warranted it, but I still feel a deep sense of unease.

The house has been packed and moved, and will set sail in just over a week, the cleaners came in, did 3 hours work and left (2 of them) for $350. I was LIVID! no one was answering the phone at the removal company, but they got an earful, and will do so in person on tuesday. The floors were washed, the carpets vacuumed, the bathrooms and kitchen wiped over...thats it! no stove, no walls, no windows...I was so angry, I had explained that the most important thing was the walls...grrrrrrrr.

However, that was not enough to dampen our enthusiasm, we shopped big time for makeup, underwear and a couple of items of clothing for me (all will bcome clear in time) and shirts and power ties for Flash, had a great lunch down at The Rocks, and dinner with Maria at Red Chilli in Chinatown mmm Sizzling chicken! came home and collapsed replete on our airbeds ( we are doing it tough in order to be here for the New Years party on our roof - it is an institution!) Today Flash and I finished our shopping, and had the car groomed in readiness to hand it back. I scored at Dymocks with "Christmas Stockings" for $5, and "Yarns to dye for" for $10 (which seemed a bit strange because it is pretty recent...but who am I to argue?) Not that I am knitting much at present, it is difficult with only an airbed for furniture! I don't know what we would do without the laptop and 5 disc set of the first series of Boston legal.

Wishing you all a very happy New Year!

tidings of comfort and joy

Christmas is quiet this year, of our six we only have one child to celebrate the day with. Blaise is the sole recipient of our Christmas cheer, I have only one stocking to fill, it is strange.

Our house is chaos, where the dining room was is now a pile of belongings, I keep trying to tell Flash that the packers are used to just coming in and packing, they don't need you to get everything out for them, but he is not convinced. He has also built and un-built (I know it's not a word) every blasted flatpak, in fear that we will be charged duty on any new items, he has done something with his drill, and angle grinder and an alun key to make this faster, now I have to convince him to work the same magic on my ballwinder!

Merry Christmas everybody, if you have commented or emailed and I have not replied, I am sorry, I have not caught up with everyone's blogs for over a week, and I fear the next couple of weeks will be the same, there is so much to do and not much time to do it, but tomorrow we will relax and talk and laugh, there will be no cleaning, no housework apart from the dishes.

p.s. when Flash went back to IKEA to get the substitute doors for the workroom, magic happened! the doors I wanted in the first place were sitting there on the shelf, acting all nonchalant, the computer was wrong! (sorry, it was a data entry error)

Have a wonderful Christmas, from a temporarily substantially reduced me and mine, to you and yours.

IKEA - it's Swedish for divorce!

My house looks like a flatpak factory exploded, every vertical surface has a wafer of brown cardboard leant against it, the fold-out couch (from IKEA) is loaded with boxes, all bearing that familiar logo (actually the outdoor setting is from another company - but lets keep it simple).
The reason that our place looks like a satellite storage facility, is a pretty obvious one...money...we sold or gave away half of our belongings when we moved to Australia, we didn't know when we would be returning. Now we are going home and there are some things we need, furniture in NZ is expensive, the Auckland IKEA doesn't open until 2008 and we would prefer to spend more on important things (jewellery and champagne) and less on kids bedroom furniture.

But seriously, Flash has insisted that I purchase my home office setup, so that I have things almost exactly as they are in my dreams (except they are from IKEA), the office has white walls and pale blue carpet, so I am going with white and natural wood (I think they call it "birch"), loads of shelves and cupboards, a cutting table, and a desk which the two of us will share, and lovely curtain fabric in shades of beige, chocolate and pale blue. I keep daydreaming of finally having space to keep my sewing machine and overlocker on a bench available when I need them, of being able to find the embroidery threads without upending the button boxes, and of stacking my yarns in a visually appealing manner - ready to go at a moments notice, instead of being packed into plastic boxes and forgotten. Anyway - enough daydreaming, back to the point.

We arrived at IKEA early, to avoid the queues, and with a list which we had compiled using the website and catalogue, we eagerly marked the location of each item and even took time out for a coffee and a shared "Dime" slice at the cafe (mmm - Dime)so secure were we in our ability to complete our mission without incident. The warehouse floor was confusion, but we held hands and managed to find almost all of our list, but dammit! the glass doors for the "Billy" shelf units had sold out...won't be in until monday or tuesday, bollocks, and that metal DVD cabinet - it's on the slow boat from Scandinavia, it will be 4-6 weeks. We leave in 2 weeks people! Finally I resign myself to lining up at the checkout, with Flash promising to take a lunchtime trip on tuesday to get the doors.

Tuesday arrives, but the doors don't, seems they are on that slow boat too...my dreams lie in tatters, those doors pulled the whole room together, without them I am bereft.
For a minute or 2, then I ask Flash if he could go back and pick up some other doors, the ones you decorate yourself with paper or fabric, they sound good, I can use some of the curtain fabric, yay we're back on track!
Flash emails his brother, since he works near IKEA they may as well meet for lunch, his brother replies and suggests that he could "pick the stuff up from IKEA" for Flash, so that they get a longer lunch together, to which Flash replies, and copies me in on the email:

Great Idea - thanks for offering to pick something up from Rhodes for me... but obviously you have never been to IKEA !

1. thread your way round the entire place which is the size of a football field, and designed so you can't cheat - you have to follow their track. (while your wife sings the IKEA song to herself, and you know you won't get that bloody song out of your head for a week)

2. go to the Warehouse area and pick the product yourself …it will be out of stock

3. join a queue to talk to a staff member

4. who will look at you blankly while you try to pronounce a Swedish word which sounds something like “skanky ho” and won’t know anything - just paid to show up and wear the yellow uniform.

5. Once you've shown them how to use their computer to look up the product you'll have to thread your way BACK to the display area to see what their proposed replacement for the out of stock item looks like.

6. Ironically - the area you have to go to will be just past "kiddie land" so you are now limping because some stupid bitch ran you over with her "Bugaboo space station"(tm).You will get to the display and see that the recommended replacement is fugly but you will see something else that looks better

7. limp all the way to the fecking warehouse to see if they've got it but you would have forgotten the "location coordinates"

8. So - you'll limp over to a staff member - show them how to use a computer and find its out of stock !

9. GO back to step 5.

10. repeat this process several times (avoiding the married couples who are also repeating the process and speaking to each other in low and measured tones)

now it is wednesday, apparently I will get my doors tomorrow, then I will have 4 more little flatpaks to find stacking space for, I'm thinking of building myself a little fort and cuddling up inside it with some pillows and blankets - to hide from the inventory lists, the interminable cleaning and organising - so that I can spend 10 minutes dreaming about the fun we are going to have in the new house with the kids, the cats, the garden...and the sounds of Flash swearing because he has lost the bloody alun key!

There has been knitting, it is looking quite good, I will reveal all in time

more making

Loving this soft trees pattern from "Little Birds" quick, easily adapted and customised.

I didn't use the suggested rice or lentils to stabilise, and eliminate the rounded base, as I don't think the NZ Customs department would like them.

today I will try to find the plastic pellets used to fill beanie toys, but I don't mind the rounded bottoms.

this is the sum total of our Christmas decorations this year, we are going very minimalist - given that our belongings will be packed up on December 27.

Blogger beta does not seem to like a lot of people judging by the emails I have received...sorry...maybe try commenting as "anonymous" and add your name to your comment

Oh I just had to

I know, I know - never blog twice in a day!

But I HAVE to!

we have a house, the contract has just gone unconditional, so I can tell you now...I am SO excited!

In a leafy, bushclad suburb, on a north facing (that's good in the southern hemisphere) hillside with views of more bush, a quiet road with neighbours who are not too close, but close enough, bush walks, native birds, shops and cafes are a few minutes walk away.

We were a bit concerned when we started looking at properties, to afford most of the houses we liked would have meant selling the cottage, and we couldn't face that, but then we found this house, and it is fantastic! 4 decks, a new spa pool and an inground pool for summer living. 4 bedrooms, an upstairs parents retreat containing a master bedroom with walk-in wardrobe, ensuite, and best of all a huge lounge which will be my work room - I have to share it with Flash, but I'm sure we will find a corner for him...! off the upstairs lounge is a small balcony with room for a couple of chairs - perfect for relaxing with a glass of wine in the evening.

This house has everything we need and want, ok, so the kitchen is smaller than we would prefer, but on the other hand there is a seperate laundry ( sometimes the domestic goddess persona overcomes me - I have been daydreaming about shelves of neatly folded towels and laundry supplies - but it doesn't last long!), the bathrooms are a bit dated - but there are 3 bath-type rooms downstairs, so we can have one daughter washing her face or having a bath, while another is in the loo, and a third having a shower. There are a few things to fix, but they are minor, and easily sorted.

There are 2 woodburners, one in each lounge, so Flash is planning trips with the chainsaw and trailer, squirrelling wood away for winter, I am making plans of the plants we will need for the front garden in order to avoid mowing the lawn, and visiting Ikea (not yet in NZ) for cheap new curtain fabrics for the kids rooms...and I just can't stop jumping up and down with joy!

Now we can relax and have a nice Christmas, befor it all goes crazy again - the movers will be in at the end of December to pack and move us home.

not exactly a pattern

Machine knitting looms large in my life, I am quite passionate about what these machines can accomplish - even the most basic ones. I saw a quote in a book once saying that tools are necessary for the creation of helpful or beautiful objects, underneath this quote was a quote from the author of the book "a knitting machine is a tool".

I hand knit for various reasons: to keep my hands and mind busy when I am waiting, to relax, to make a connection with other knitters and with those I am knitting for.

I machine knit to get my ideas out of my head quickly - as evidenced by the Noro scarf, I would never have hand-knitted that scarf, I hated hand knitting the yarn, but from start to finish that scarf took me a little over an hour, using a technique I learnt while hand knitting. I love this transfer of ideas, and the fusion of different techniques, as shown in the cable scarf I knitted for Flash's Dad.

I used some lovely chocolate merino/cashmere/nylon yarn from the Knittery, a thickish fingering weight. I cast on 40 sts,using waste yarn (leaving 5 metres tail) and arranged the needles over both beds as follows:

working from each end to middle(I will describe 1 side, work the other as mirror)

needle 20 on MB (main bed) needle 19 & 18 on ribber, next 12 needles on MB, 2 on ribber, 3 on MB

-the middle 6 sts are for a 3x3 cable which is worked every 10 rows.

There are many different variations on this theme, the important thing is to ensure you have a couple of ribber sts close to the selvedge to prevent rolling, and a couple either side of any cable to make it show up well. You can't go wrong with experimenting as long as you follow these guidelines.

When I had a few metres of yarn left I took the scarf off on waste yarn, and then slipped the sts onto a 3mm straight and knitted 8 rows of garter st for the hem, I repeated this at the other end of the scarf (hence the waste yarn cast on and long tail) this also helps to prevent rolling, and makes me feel that I have put some hand knitted goodness into the gift.

On the domestic front: things are moving quickly, we are both constantly juggling - movers coming to give quotes, negotiating with real estate agents who if they had their way would be bringing people through in the middle of the night

(best one this week - "can we bring people through before 10 am, so that the apartment isn't too hot?" - the back ground to why this is funny is that our apartment has 18 ft high windows, so by 9 am it is pretty warm in here, add to that the fact that we have been requesting the agent who uttered the above sentence to fix the air conditioner on a bi-weekly basis for the past 6 weeks, you can understand why we have suggested that maybe an open home at 12 noon would give prospective tenants a more realistic view of the apartment.)

I hate moving at Christmas, I have done it a couple of times because it makes sense with the school year (Feb - Dec in NZ and Oz) but thats the only sensible thing about it, it is hot, lawyers and bank staff are on holiday, hotels and airlines are booked out, and we are packing and stressing when we are supposed to be on holiday relaxing! Still, it will all be worth it when we are settled into our new house with everything unpacked and in place, there should be enough summer left for us to get some relaxation in.

The dread pirate twins

you can't see the brass earrings to well in this picture, but they are there, these guys have furry felt faces and make me smile everytime I look at them.

(pattern: minimoopy from Carly as per previous post)

today the blog is brought to you by the letter "M"

Maisie can't read yet, so even if her Mum, my sister, does read the blog - Maisie won't know that I have made her a Moopy for Christmas (thank you so much for sharing the pattern Carly!) I am thinking of making a pirate Moopy for her big brother.

The scarf in the background is for Flash's Dad, who doesn't read the blog either - so I am safe!

"M" is also for mammogram ...which was clear yipee! so sorry to the comments I have not replied to...theres a lot going on behind the scenes at Just Jussi.

formalities

"the only constant is change"

I have tried to raise my girls according to the principle - that change is to be embraced, not feared, because change is a surety.

so why am I trying not to notice that the changes that are occuring in my life concur with a steady march towards middle age? I am 38, many of my schoolfriends are having their first babies now, my eldest daughter is about to hit 20, I can no longer call her a child.

and my baby, although still tiny, scrubs up into a gorgeous young woman.

not goth,not emo, a unique child with a theatrical disposition

hidden depths

Over a year ago I purchased 3 balls of Noro Aurora (colourway 6) on a whim, I liked the sound of it, I loved Silk garden so expected to love the aurora...I didn't, it was scratchy, like carpet yarn, it had nasty shiny lurex wraps, it wasn't what I expected. I tried to knit a scarf in a snowshoe drop stitch pattern and gave up after 20 rows, it didn't feel right, and I wasn't doing the colours any justice.

The aurora languished in the stash, overlooked and unloved, I pushed it to the bottom of the chest, feeling guilty for my inadequacy, my inability to get the best from this yarn.

On monday night, in the midst of house drama ( I'll get to that in a few days) I had a sudden flash of inspiration - my brain is constantly on the lookout for a diversion - I'll do a short row scarf on the knitting machine, it will enhance the colours and relieve me from having to hand knit scratchy yarn. I cast on 40 sts and used max tension, and all 3 balls.

The aurora complied...mostly... it did try to drop sts whenever 1/2 or more of the sts were on hold, but judicious use of weights fixed that, the sts were very easy to pick up, they just sat and waited for me, and the results were stunning...Flash came home yesterday while it was blocking, and almost gushed at it's beauty, the short rows enhanced the colour changes with an effect reminiscent of oil pastels on a black canvas, even the lurex is not out of place, providing accent flashes every few inches.

The scratchiness disappeared on washing - I expected this, I am always having this conversation with people, they think silkgarden is scratchy, I say "Wash it!!!" the metamorphosis is amazing, the scarf is soft and just slightly fuzzy. I used lukewarm water and woolwash, as I didn't want any felting to occur, but I think this patterning would look great felted in grey tones, as an afghan or cushion covers.

Blaise thinks it looks like an impressionist landscape - I don't know but I love the curves.

I wonder if I know anyone who would like it? maybe a certain young woman who is having a birthday soon?

One out of the box

"A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good egg even though he knows that you are slightly cracked." -- Bernard Meltzer

(clockwise from front in pink - me, Lara, Donni, Sandra, Mary-Helen,Ailsa (go and see her letter to knitpicks), Em - Donna-David)

despite Sydney's thunderstorms, these intrepid souls braved the weather and congregated not on the deck as we had expected, but in the function room on the roof, which was cosy nonetheless. I tried hard not to cry despite the beautiful gifts and the cards with all the words that I didn't want to read, there will be enough crying.

thank you

Donni gave me a box for my memories, here is great picture of my mate, I can't believe I didn't take photos of everyone, I just got caught up.

To know someone here or there with whom you can feel there is understanding in spite of distances or thoughts expressed ~ That can make life a garden.

--Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Questions

Why would a "punk rock girl" have flowers in her hair?

And why in the performance of "Black fingernails - red wine" that I saw on tv recently, did the lead singer say "omo" is this the beginning of product placement in songs?

Why did my blog get 600 hits last tuesday?

Did it have anything to do with Yoga socks ? because I have been getting a lot of emails about them this week.

No, sorry, I can't knit them for you.

yes I know that you are busy.

Yes it would have been on my statcounter - but I didn't check it until friday, and it only records the details of the last 100 pageloads.

Yes I may have to upgrade.

Why is it that every time we organise to go away lately - it gets cancelled at the last minute?

How am I going to live without Deus coffee?

How have I lived without Atomic coffee for the past 2 years?

I think I just answered my own question...

Where can I get Koigu in Oz? What are we going to do about Knitpicks?

Why did my alarm go off at 5.27 am? Have I forgotten something?

Why does the thought of having to shift again make me feel queasy - and speaking to moving company representatives makes me physically ill? (truly - this is a tell all blog)

What are the inhabitants of Bougainville called? Isn't it too hot to wear black jeans there?

How did I accumulate this much sock yarn?

What if they lose it? I'm going to have to catalogue every ball aren't I?

I'm feeling nauseous again.

Is it wrong to covet a Prada wallet?

It is small...but perfectly formed.

And when Tiffany's say "we don't sell jewellery - we sell the blue box" why can't you just buy the bloody blue box?

What is it about the blue box?

"Babies are a wonderful way to start people" yes I agree - but bunnies would be a wonderful way to end them, or kitties...can we start genetically engineering people to be cute and cuddly when they age?

Why was Boston Legal on so late? Was it so that I would have to buy the DVD?

and why does Bones seem to be on at a different time every week? to keep me on my toes?

or to make me buy the DVD?

trimmed the tree yet?

in absentia

my excuse - my Mama was here from Auckland - for the last time before we too go home. We had a great week - Blaise had a week off school, so everything worked well, there was much shopping...

We visited Goulburn on thursday, we were aiming for Canberra ( the nation's capital) but undershot and got waylaid by lunch at the Paragon cafe
a trip back in time!

Then a visit to the Big Merino! Blaise grabbed the moment and the Philishave from the glovebox.

Isn't it cool when you can bend the rules of physics to your own devices!

we visited the new Sydney Wildlife Experience - the conclusion? GO! The butterfly house alone kept us captivated for 20 minutes, the place is very well organised to ensure that tourists stay out of the sun, and so well dsigned that you don't know what is around the next corner

The Nana survived despite our carelessnees - we exposed her to the perils of sun and alcohol, good Australian things - and she pulled through, what a trooper!

No plans have been made for our return to NZ, The skirt reminded me that knitters are alive and well and living in Auckland (thank goodness) we are looking at houses and should return home for a few days soon to hopefully purchase before we move. I am living in a dreamworld - but I know reality will hit any moment.

In knitting news, the angioplasty sock is moving along slowly ( we had the Nana here, and were having to much fun for socks!) one Elfine sock is finished SS syndrome has set in. For those visiting on saturday for the cake degustation - I will be sure to post my address and phone number on wednesday or thursday.

Cause everything is different over there*

so, the post I have been avoiding - and there will be little detail as there is still some sensitivity.

Just over 2 years ago we uprooted 3 of our girls and dragged them kicking and screaming (not quite literally - but almost) to Sydney.We promised that it would just be for 2 years, a new adventure, a broadening of horizons, a wise career move.

2 years later - and we are torn...when we lived in Auckland we both worked fulltime, and had 5 kids at home, we used to visit our country cottage almost every weekend, and every weekend I was torn, I felt as though I had 2 lives - a mad crazy one, and a peaceful invigorating one, I wanted to live in the country,but circumstances did not allow, commuting was out of the question - it was just a bit too far, moving was not an option. Now I feel like I have a Sydney life and an Auckland life - let alone the cottage!

My relationship with Sydney has been rocky, I love living near the city, the excitement, the shopping, restaurants, King St, I hate the crowds and the noise,the pollution, the violence, the heat. I have avoided forming friendships because I always knew I would be leaving, and have kept the nicest of people at arms length,because at 38 I know that leaving hurts. Spending family time with our dear friend Jason, playing "Articulate" will never be the same.I have seen my girls grow from children into young women here, confident and outgoing. I joined SSK, and met the most amazing group of people, scientists, singers and artists all brought together by a fetish for yarn, I treasure those afternoons in that little upstairs room at Barmuda,drinking tea and listening to the banter, catching Mary-Helen surveying the group with affection for all the world like a proud mother hen.

I don't know what the knitting group situation is like in Auckland - please email me if you know of any, or even any of the crafting groups I have heard of,any Auckland bloggers out there? I can't be the only jafa knitblogger. I am thinking of starting a crafting group myself (Anne get that cross-stitch out, and let Anna know she is in my sights) it will be in the central/west for anyone keen - email me!

Discovering this country, hiking in the Blue Mountains, delighting over kangaroos, koalas, lizards, snakes and even spiders, revelling in the open road as I drive down to Wollongongfor SnB with another delightful group of chicks, given a choice I would buy the house next to Ailsa and sit with her on her back verandah in the evenings, knitting and setting the world to rights, planning escapades with Donni and Sharon.

Some time after December 20, we are going home, to Auckland. The stress levels are winding up again, the calendar is out on the kitchen table, my organisational side is kicking in - here we go again, movers (what if they lose my yarn?)Where are we going to live? do I go over and buy a house before we leave? or do I include the family in that decision? the one thing I do know now is that it will all be ok, that we will muddle through,the boxes will eventually all be ticked.

This is where you guys come in - an important even for me, some closure. I am hosting a knitting soiree on Saturday 2 December from 12.30 onwards, there will be refreshments and nibbles (and cake of course!) Everyone who knows me, has met me, or reads the blog and feels that they know me is welcome - seriously, this is my last chance to spend time with you, so please feel free to drop in.We will be on the roof of my building, there is a delightful sun-drenched deck (plenty of shade available) loads of seating (heaps more than the photo), views of the entire city. Drop in for 10 minutes or stay until evening.I will post the address and entry directions a couple of days prior to 02/12. emails are welcome, to let me get an idea of numbers - but not mandatory.

on tiptoe

The angioplasty sock has dragged interminably, it found a new lease on life, or rather I did, last week and completed it on monday evening, tried it on Flash prior to sewing up the toe...and yuk...I obviously had not decreased anough sts at the gusset, and it was too loose. Flash was fine "no one will ever know" but I'll know, you will know everytime you put the wretched things on - because I'll have to make the other one match! I did the only thing I could do, I ripped - and Flash looked aghast as the toe, then foot, then heel of his sock disappeared, I then re-wrote everything in my little notebook so that I don't make the mistake again, and happily re-knitted the heel and gusset, and told him that it's all a walk in the park from here on in, so I can put the sock safely to the side while I work on something else for a few days.

On monday I dyed all of my remaining fingering weight alpaca, around 700grams, for some unknown stupid dumbarse reason I thought that just because the other times I dyed this yarn the colours had been muted and misty, that this time would be different - I would mix my dyes stronger, leave them on longer, cook them longer, use mind control if necessary to make that alpaca (did I mention it was also bleached?) pick up the colour. So I painted on my undercolours, so far so good, painted on the darker, stronger, brighter overcolours - wahoo!beautiful, exactly as I had planned...into the microwave for 7 minutes...a wee rest, then into the water - out of the water and yuk, colours have faded - I can't even figure out where that dye went, it wasn't in the rinse water! I tried cooking even longer, and that worked slightly, but the optimum time was 8 minutes, it didn't get any better than that. I hadn't ruined 500g of alpaca, as they are good baby colours, so I can always use it up in that way, but it was disappointing.Finally my brain caught up, I painted the last few skeins in muted, bleached seashell colours, beiges, salmony pinks, softest blue, silvery grey, I listened to the yarn, and it worked beautifully.

I then went about looking for a sock pattern to use with my new pretty yarn, something lacey yes! seashell type lace would be perfect - nothing I found corresponded with the idea in my head,I was not going to design a pattern myself - lace socks are scarey right? you need a degree in maths to work out the shaping...and then I found the Elfine's socks,(scroll down a bit) designed by Anna, who is a perfectionist of the highest order, her designs are exquisite.

The socks in the picture are green, and the lace is leafy, but still I thought they would suit the yarn, and then I struck a problem - Elfine's socks are knitted on 2 circs, while this something I have heard of, I never wanted to go to that dark place myself, loving as I do my 4 bamboo dpns. I studied the pattern, yes I could alter it to suit the dpns, but it would be clumsy, the magic of the pattern is in the 2 circs...so I took a deep breath, found 2 wee circs, and using Judy's magic cast on, I commenced to knit scarey lace socks on 2 weirdo circs.(did I mention I have never done toe-up before either...)

At first I felt clever - Judy's cast on is beautiful, the pictures are clear and easy to follow, then as I worked the toe increases I felt clumsy, like a new knitter, the circs dangled in an annoying fashion,but I just kept telling myself that dpns were a little unweildly at first, and I was right - it got better. I am halfway through the first foot, and loving it, the yarn is so soft and buttery, the colours soothing and evocative, it is easy to tink back a few sts when the count is slightly off, how could I have thought this was hard? why have I waited so long? I am already designing my first lace sock in my head, while I am knitting the sock I never thought I would knit - knitting lets me do the "one day a thing that scares you" without placing myself in mortal danger, it helps me to realise that there is nothing I will encounter that can't be broken down into bite-sized pieces and managed.

Between typing this and posting it, I was looking around the blogs and arrived at Nora's, where she has just finished - you guessed it - Elfine's socks! They look so pretty in the blue and green colourway.

Another find this week - Dave from "Sticks and string" the podcast came to SSK on saturday, his podcast is easy to listen to, and well produced, he has obviously put a lot of work into organising it, and I wish him well.

cramped

post-cleaning, we have found ourselves with an excess of "stuff", the stash fits into 6 plastic boxes, which are currently living in the lounge as they have outgrown the utility closet fondly known as my workroom.
The work knitting doesn't fit on the blocking board - the couch has been pressed into service. It's a good thing that Flash is in lockdown at the University this week, his favourite seat has been useful, and I have been able to work late into the evening - a no-no when a spouse is around, but I have missed him, they have him organised from 6.15 am to 11.15 pm, so I get to speak to him for a total of about 5 minutes a day - when he has toilet breaks.

and my interest in "organising" has reached Martha-esque proportions (note that I have not organised myself to the extent that I may be called Martha - I just dream about it - the organising that is...not being Martha - that's just creepy) this ribbon organiser has to be the ultimate.

and I have a favour to ask of one of you, dear readers...I have a little pile, about a dozen objects, which need a home, they are all samples and I am not willing to sell them, as I like what I sell to be as close to perfect as I can get it - these may have stitches showing through, or maybe the shape isn't what I wanted, whatever, most are in Organic merino - which is not machine washable - so there is no point in my giving them to a charity, not fair on the recipients to be given an item which then turns into a drowned lump in the washing machine, and I wouldn't expect people who having enough problems coping with what life is throwing at them to spend even 5 minutes handwashing baby clothes.

The question is - is there anyone out there, who lives in a COLD climate, who has contact with parents to be,(the clothes are mostly 0-3 months size) who you think would be open to the idea of handwashing little sweaters and cardigans - all that is really needed is a swish in Eucalan or Kookaburra woolwash, doesn't even need rinsing. Please do NOT contact me if you just want to hand them out to friends and family as baby gifts - you can go knit those yourself!

STOP PRESS!

Cece got in first, and I know those sweaters are going to be loved.

to do today

If you haven't already you must go and visit Pia's (sorry, Alison's) blog and see what the delightful Miss is wearing, look out she'll have her own "what not to wear" column by the time she is five - syndicated in the all the best publications!

Found this gorgeous place (courtesy of My Mama) "Apple of my eye" if you need a gift for a baby (and you have already sent them a Hoodie from Just Jussi) go here...now! ( the Box tower - Shaker ABC is so cute)

Ailsa's comment that her husband may get lucky more often if she had a lace sampler on the bedroom ceiling was a fascinating one, I have started looking at my Barbara Walker treasuries slightly differently...but Ailsa, have you thought about getting a four poster bed, and making a complete canopy out of lace samples...things could get way more adventurous! (running and ducking for cover)

Ok, to make up for that one - you have probably seen Patricia Waller's amazing work, but if not - get thee over there immediately - I know it's not right - but I am liking the conjoined twins...

order

I like order, I love knowing that the backs of cupboards are spotless, underneath the beds are clutter free, the freedom of knowing that the house is clean, clean, clean, and my husband is the same, when he cleans the bathroom he stacks chairs in front of the door to stop the girls using it.

I have had times in my life when my desire for a neat house has cost me in terms of human relationships - I remember when we lived on Waiheke Island, Holly was almost 3, Charlotte a baby - lying in her pram in the middle of the lounge(room) happily cooing and babbling at her mobiles, and me frantically vacuming around her, thinking " I really should stop this and play with the babies" it was PND, but a kinder, gentler form, and when I told my GP that I felt I was cleaning a bit much he told me I was silly, I had little children, it was good that the house was clean...

I remember having my dearest friend to stay with her 3 girls, the same ages as mine - what should have been the coolest week, was spent tensely as I couldn't just let the kids go for it, I had to keep tidying up - and I had the same thought " I really should stop this"...and that friendship ended...and I realised that cleanliness is not next to Godliness, with 3 kids it is next to impossible. So when I moved in with Flash, and we had 5 kids, I relaxed - not too much, the communal living areas had to remain tidy - but I learnt to close their bedroom doors so I wouldn't have to see.

We were advised late last week that we would be having an inspection of our apartment soon, so I went into overdrive on friday, and again on saturday morning, and when all of the cleaning was done, Flash and I went and bought a filing cabinet, and emptied 5 different filing boxes into it, and made 60 different categories ???!!!

Donni popped in on her way back to Wollongong on saturday afternoon, and I was so pleased to see her, but tired and a bit withdrawn, and after she left I realised that I had done it again... the combined stresses we have on us at the moment (inspection, Flash is away a lot at the moment, being away from the family in NZ etc) made me retreat into cleaning and tidying to reinstate external order -when the inside is in disarray...I didn't go to SSK, Wollongong snb, Pub knitting, I didn't go out with Flash for our traditional saturday breakfast. I cleaned, filed,and worked...and felt bad.

They say the unexamined life is not worth living, I am trying to learn from previous experience, and finding strategies to become a better person, I am paying attention to the warning flags, and am blessed that I am surrounded with a wealth of friends and family, and an understanding husband who finds me endearing.

To this end today I am working, I have not left the house - but I have gone to "the office" and will be back at 6pm (ok I'm on a lunch break now!) the dishes and vacum cleaner I walk past do not affect me - they belong to "home" they'll be there waiting for me at the end of the work day, oh,and I am definitely getting a cleaner!

seriously though folks

this is supposed to be a knitting blog right? well that's why you all come to read it - those of you who aren't my friends and family back home anyway. I am perturbed...this is a knitting blog, and I have no knitting to talk about, I have knitting...but it's the same old kidsilk haze shawl with the artyarns regal silk and Louisa Harding kimono stripes, it will become more interesting when I add the lace border, much more interesting, interesting in the way that watching a guy walk the high wire without a net is interesting, but until then it's bloody boring, as are the socks - Opal Elements - nice, but blogging boring.

I spend almost all day every day knitting, and I have no knitting story for you! I can tell you that I have just finished a little organic merino cardigan which is beautiful in it's simplicity and will be posted on the website soon.

I have had requests for samples from a couple of the big shopping blogs for "Mommies", so you know what I am going to be doing with most of my weekend, free advertising is the best kind (and kind of necessary right now!) also through my advertising quest I have met Louise from GiGi designs she designs the cutest kids clothes, so go have a look! it is so wonderful to be meeting all of these exciting, supportive, interesting people, and people who just want to see you succeed, people who understand that if good people make it, they will pull others up with them - rather than step on them to get to the top.

I have other, bigger things to tell you all, but the ground keeps shifting on me, and announcements are best made in fact (no I'm not expecting - thats tummy fat) so I'll keep quiet for a bit longer.

why is that man...? and free beanie pattern

Yesterday Flash and I made our way to (that waking nightmare of consumerism) Fox Studios to see Al Gore's "An inconvenient truth" - I had formally known Al as the man who says he "invented" the internet.

Say no more.

I no longer feel that way, I was going to write a long critique of the movie, but as you will shortly see, I do not have the strength of will to stay awake that long, suffice is to say: I enjoyed the movie, it reminded me to be a bit more careful, it validated my decision not to own a car given my present circumstances, it showed me that NZ is the best place for my family to live (majority hydro-electric power, Kyoto ratification, awareness) despite Madame Sydney's being so gosh darned attractive. It made me think that wether or not man is creating this current situation, if things continue the way they are going...maybe in 20 years Australia will be looking aggresively at NZ, due to Oz's worsening drought and salination issues, that NZ could become Australia's farm...by force. I know that is a bit radical, but who knows what will happen in the extreme?

Do not bother to argue with me as to the reason for Global warming, I am walking a nice middle ground, I know it is happening, and I am reducing my family's ecological footprint, I am also crabby and have not had much sleep.

Flash works for a multi-national, I was impressed by the fact that they have instructed (and will pay for) all of their staff to see this film, maybe Al is right and people are causing all of these effects, maybe he is less than correct and this is a normal cycle, it doesn't matter, we should all be trying to reduce pollution.

The reason my brain isn't working sufficiently for me to go any further with Al?

at 10 pm, these guys arrived and started scraping all of the ashphalt off the road outside our windows, then they pushed it up to this truck which sat and beeped loudly, and crashed, and smoked...there was much yelling, beeping, scraping and jack hammering, at one stage a man took to the road in a frenzy with a pick axe, Blaise asked what the road had done to him? had it insulted his Mother? (yes this is all so close that we could ask questions) it was entertaining for the first hour or so...but at 2 am it was not so good, my eyes were sweating beneath my sleep mask, and I could no longer stand the earplugs, which did nothing to stop the pounding noises from outside, except to add the ka-dunk, ka-dunk of my beating heart, at 5am they relented, thus ensuring us 1 hour of relative quiet.

We have a new free baby pattern - for handknitters, a super cute, super quick and easy mock cable rib beanie.

Knit in Cleckheaton Country silk, it will work with any wool based yarn which gets 22 sts x 30 rows to a 10cm (4inch) swatch on 4mm (us6, uk 8) needles.

Pattern is here

organised chaos

you can tell when Flash is away...the house is not untidy, but there are piles everywhere, laundry...kitchen table...coffee table, the kitchen is kept spotless because of the risk of cockroaches in this town...but thats about it, his side of the bed contains pads of paper, pens, books, stitch guides, magazines and yarn, the table is now "marketing central" more books, pens, paper, coffee cups...the couch is my relaxation area, more yarn, needles, coffee cups, and dvds.
I need an office - bad.
I also need help guys.
(not the pharmaceutical kind)

I noticed today that someone from The Gap ( yes THE gap) had spent an hour perusing my site, now I can understand that they may wish to ensure that I have not copied any of their designs, and am flattered that they are concerned about such a small player...BUT... on the other hand, knowing that all of my designs are original...I am slightly worried that some "designer" (the job description a few years ago was - someone who goes overseas four times a year and buys garments to take apart and copy) has decided that because I am such a small player, they can "borrow" my designs without any fuss.

I have a "terms of use" statement on the site, and have printed out their details from my stats collector (IP address and activity path etc.) but am not sure what else I can do to protect myself. I did have "no right-click" installed on the pages, but that stopped some people frim being able to navigate the page, and as I was told by a web designer - these are easy to disable, and if someone wants they pictures they can just print screen, and it doesn't work in Safari (most designers have Macs).

My second concern is that I have basically no advertising budget, a small (black and white) ad in a USA magazine is $46K (yes you read right). I am working at my marketing plan at present (the resident Sales and Marketing Guru is rightly baffled - being used to obscene marketing budgets - but is trying to get on board quickly) any ideas folks? I have joined a press release service (free intro offer - yay!) and have signed up for Google adwords, I am not sure where to go from here, gone are the days when you could send a "freebie" to a magazine and have them include it in their fashion pages, now it is a freebie and lots of cash!
I'm open to any suggestions.

(the knitting in the picture? - simple triangle shawl in kidsilk haze, with stripes of Louisa Hardings Kimono, and Artyarns Regal silk, will have a lace border)

new and improved!

the new Just Jussi website is UP!
I am really happy with this total change of look, as I have said so many times, I am a knitwear designer, not a website designer!

The talent behind the camera is Lara - and I am forever in her debt, we have formed a symbiotic relationship which I know will have positive outcomes for both of us. I am grateful to the families for being so gracious, friendly and warm towards me, and this fledgling of a business.

If you find any problems, once again, let me know...and if anyone knows how to fix that gap at the top of the "Home" page, I would appreciate some advice!

I had a wonderful weekend, SSK on saturday, and Knitting at the Courthouse pub in Newtown today, knitters are such nice people.

if you can't say anything nice...

you aren't trying hard enough.

Has everyone seen this Yarn standards ? I love this site, I have bits of it printed out and sellotaped to the wall for ease of use. It contains all of the information you need to ensure a successful project - head sizes, other sizes, standard (american) abbreviations, symbols etc. Good stuff!

I was browsing at Threadless and found a t-shirt that I thought Lucia might like, and then one that I thought would be perfect for the Yarn harlot, and this one is perfect for almost all of us (yes I bought it, and a couple of others)

Go and see Iris and congratulate her on the new arrival, and Alison - who needs some support to evict her recalcitrant bub.

I'm sorry if you are trying to download my free patterns, I have changed webhost and am waiting on a couple of details before I upload the new and inproved website, I'm sure that I will be able to dot the "i"s in the next couple of days.

All is quiet here, Blaise is on holiday in Bateman's Bay, Flash has big work stuff and Maria has been lying in bed reading, and playing online games, you can tell when a teenager has run out of cash! I haven't managed to convince her to knit...yet. I did send a little package with Blaise though, her friend is 17 years old, and knits scarves and gloves, so I sent along some Lorna's shepherd sock (wound into centre pull balls) and some cotton self-patterning (can't remember what) a cute homemade DPN case, dpns, pattern and the URL for knitty, I told her to knit a scarf with it if she ends up wanting to stab people with the DPNs, but to keep the dpns and case for later - she will need them one day!

Cherry has a couple of blogs and a website, all are absolutely delightful, I am so envious of her studio at Pixie Wood, it makes me anxious to get back to NZ and get started on my studio at the cottage. If you are an artist or crafter you may want to participate in her partner programme. Cherry has some lovely recipes, and her styling is exquisite.


(see Maria does exist! and no, Charlotte did not lick the snake)

here she goes again

the cult of celebrity does not sit well with me, I don't watch much t.v., I don't read women's or celebrity magazines, I watch movies and listen to music, I read voraciously, I wouldn't know most of todays stars if I fell over them. I am grateful to those I do watch, read and listen to - for sharing their talent and making the world a richer place, stories must be told, just as they always have been. A great performance will send shivers down the spine, but I have no admiration for thise who are famous for being famous, it seems to me that if you are poor, your wrongdoings are evil, if you are famous they are entertainment.

To me there is no difference between Penn Gillette and Brenda Dayne - both entertain and enlighten me through their podcasts, they both challenge me to look both inside and out, to grow and accept life's challenges, they are both people who refuse to be compartmentalised by society, and if I had the pleasure of meeting either of them I wouldn't be screaming, fainting or sneaking photos to sell to Hello! I would thank them for giving me so much pleasure (and get a photo for the blog!)

Which in a roundabout way brings me to the reason for this post, Tracey Ullman and Mel Clark's book "Knit 2 Together" was released recently, I didn't pay much attention as I tend not to buy "pattern books" preferring "ideas" books (the recent purchase of Norah Gaughan's Knitting Nature is the exception that proves the rule - her designs are so inspirational that they transcend mere pattern) however, reading the article in the fall issue of Vogue knitting was very disappointing, it was 3 pages about Tracey - (I must say here that while I know who she is, I haven't actually seen her in anything since the "Tracey Ullman show" so while she may be extremely well known in the US, she is moderately well known in NZ) and if she had written the book alone, then it would have been a wonderful article - it is great to see celebrities championing knitting, and showing the rest of the world that their prejudices are outmoded.
Tracey talks about knitting the way that we do, she is one of us, and that is wonderful...BUT...the article only mentioned Mel as an adjunct to Tracey, I am a knitter and a designer, I want to know about the WHOLE process, both people, how they worked together to come up with the designs. I read somewhere that Mel was originally from NZ, I don't know if this is true, but if it is I want to know how she ended up owning a store in California, where the knitting has taken her both physically and personally, because as I mentioned - my celebrities are those I can relate to: Brenda with her self-awareness and openess, talking about her human frailties in the light of motherhood and relationships, Stephanie who as a hippy-ish mother of 3 daughters I can relate to, who presents herself to us foibles and all, and whose yarn adventures "knit" us together as a community, and Norah who astounds me with her ability to see knitting from such different angles, and manage to communicate these to us mere mortals without making our heads explode.

So, in closing, I hope that Tracey and Mel's book does well, that it brings new knitters into the fold, and encourages old ones back, but in future I would hope to see a knitter's slant to an article such as this, especially in a knitting magazine.