Is anyone still out there...........

..........one very delinquent blogger is now back.

Now I thought about giving all sorts of lame excuses since the truth sounds even lamer but I figured honesty is the best policy in this case.

Truth #1: By nature I need lots of "alone" time and I haven't been getting so much of that lately. I now have a very social job that consumes 30 hours of my week and 2 busy children that insist on having many friends. New Zealanders are a friendly bunch and I find myself attending more dinners, parties, bbq's and "just drinks" that we have time for. So as a result I have severely neglected other parts of my life, just ask my knit night group - Tanya who? It is not just you; I haven't been reading blogs lately nor taking the time to comment, even Ravelry only gets a look in.

Truth #2: While I still love knitting, it doesn't consume me like it used to. I have been doing more and more other crafts and have had less and less knitting to discuss. Yes there is always something on the needles and yes I knit most every day but it doesn't fill my every waking thought like it used to. Now given I am the Kiwi Knitter would a blog that allows other crafts to make an appearance be okay?

See I miss blogging. I miss the connections that I made with so many of you. I love the feeling of the internet knitting village that blogging helps to create. I miss the chance to have my say, completely uninterrupted. I would still like to blog but it will always be on this erratic schedule I am afraid, it will always be feast or famine. Don't you hate it when you discover these truths about yourself?

Will you have me back?

I am off on a big jetplane........

A family holiday is happening. I will try to post at some point throughout the trip. We are heading to Christchurch (get out your map boys and girls) for 4 days of camping, then we are off to Brisbane, Australia for some family time and some heat. We will be in Aussie for about 2 1/2 weeks. All of my family live there (mum and 3 sisters and all the extras that go along with it). I am the last holdover still in NZ. Best of all I get to see my new niece again, she is now almost 1. Can't wait. See you soon.

A little quilting for a little gifting..........

So my sister. She has a lot, she doesn't want to have a lot and she doesn't want anymore.......except from me.


That is her new rule. No gifts please, oh except from you Tanya - you can make me a cool thing that I can't buy in the store, like a king size quilt please.


Sorry no king size quilts around here for quite a while so I thought this might work instead.



She likes to write notecards with gifts. I have decided to give a homemade container with quilted cards in them. I got the idea of the cards from Denyse Schmidt. I am making 2 sizes, biggies for regular cards and littlies to go on gifts.


Did I mention how much fun this is? Did I mention how I am digging through the scrap box and using them all up?



Ignore the fabric box, I am keeping that, it was decided that she wouldn't like it as much as I liked it. Yep I decided that.

So wrong, so very very wrong..........

How can I go from this:



To this within a few weeks:


And that is not all. I have what I like to call my mending basket (it should be known as the black hole) and in it I have 5 pairs of socks, all made of Socks that Rock, all with holes within a short time of completion. I think I must be a slow learner.

Is it just me or does this yarn not stand up? Or am I just really hard on my socks? I want to go on to the Socks that Rocks Ravelry group and ask but I am too scared that I might be thrown out of that town real fast. Okay I am not too scared, I just haven't got around to it. Well maybe I am a little scared, socks that rock groupies are rabid, I remember them from Stitches West.




It would break my heart to throw them away so now I am attempting to darn them, not easy stuff I tell you, especially since the hole is so big. I don't like this darning business so much. Another reason to be pleased summer is around the corner...........

The right way, don't you know...................

So the kids and I took ourselves off to a knitting class at our local library a couple of days ago. It was arranged and run by the local knitting guild for kids and I wanted to support them.

Now let it be said I have always thought this whole "it is not your Grandma's knitting" is just total crap but I also think it needs to be said that many of the old guard need a good boot up the bum.

While we were there a young new knitter was struggling and it was decided that because she was left-handed she was having an extra tough time. I then piped up with "perhaps she should have a go at Continental". Apparently not. Apparently she needs to learn the "right" way and then she can go on to try the other (less valuable) ways of knitting. I of course argued a little. I was very firmly put in my place that it was extra important that she was taught the right way and no other way at present. The long and short of it was that I started to teach her Continental but too late the damage was done. She struggled with that also. She lamented that she should go back to the right way and perhaps she wasn't good enough to knit. She stopped.

Another woman spoke up (she was a parent) and said that she knits completely differently from everyone here and because of that and all of the comments she receives she doesn't knit much and she didn't think she should be the one to teach her kids. I asked if the end result looked the same. The answer was yes. Well then it is the right way isn't it. No.

I wanted to scream. but here is the thing all of these women were really lovely, really helpful, they bought yarn and needles to give away to the kids and they truly believed in what they were doing. And maybe there is something to passing on the local knitting style but at what cost? How many knitters do you lose and still feel like you have won? Do they have the right to discriminate against other artists and crafters? Why is this so different from other forms of discrimination? (I won't tell you what they thought about crochet). Am I wrong to feel so cranky about all of this still? They are doing the class again next week. Is it wrong to be daydreaming about a massive sit in of rebel continental knitters?

Show and Tell...............

A couple of FO's for your enjoyment.............

Shedir, still unblocked. It is a little of the unloved child at present. When will I learn that beanies are a tough sell for me. I love the hat, just not on me. Maybe when it is blocked.......oh damn who am I kidding.

Ann Budd's fingerless mitts from Weekend Knitting. These were a hit at knit night. They are a sassy little number that can be whipped up before the movie is over. They are joined with a three needle bind off but they really should have a provisional cast on and be grafted using garter stitch. Since a recent love-love relationship with a tubular cast on I am all about the cast on. While I will always come home to the continental cast on, that tubular, man that is one sexy ass of a cast on. Next post I will show you the goodies.

Would it piss you off to say go check out the knitty gritty on Ravelry?

There could be truth to it.........

The other day Stella was saying that all of us kids in Ravelry were leaving out the ones who are out in the cold. We have gone quiet; we are not blogging, commenting or visiting other forums. While I would like to strongly deny the possibility, well, here's the thing, it could be true. See I think I have a set tolerance for how much time I can sit in front of this glowing screen and - well - I have become Ravelry's bitch.



But I wish it wasn't still exclusive, I wish you could all join me there. Does that make any difference? Do you feel any better? No? Will a FO help?






Jaywalkers: Cherry Tree Hill Supersock Yarn, Size 1 Addis - more details on Ravelry, check them out.



Jokin, just jokin Stella, keep your knickers on.