Fabricfan’s Blog

We are back after a unseasonal  warm spell in Toronto. We watched the news to see what was happening at home, so we weren’t shocked to see snow. I saw some wonderful trees with snow in south Vancouver, something I never normally see, as we don’t go driving when it snows.
Toronto was wonderful, a really good visit with family. We went to the Bata Shoe mueseum, I loved the modern fashion shoes but I was completely charmed by the shoes representing the animals of the Chinese zodiac, for the little children to wear, also some precious hats were exquisite.
We treked out to the distillery district, great shops, also went to the fabric area on Queens Stree West. One shop Price Roman had great evening clothes with Chinese brocade. Very modern styles. We went to Romni, Lettuce Knits and Alterknits.
I bought very little this trip and knitting wasn’t a priority.

http://amazon.ca/s/ref=nb_ss_b/701-4331232-6184308?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Beyond+wool

I just got Beyond Wool and another sewing book from  Hampstead House for a really good price a couple of weeks ago.  It has some good patterns and a bit of background about the other yarns in the book.

The weather situation here remains changeable with sunny periods,, torrential downpours and today depending where one was driving on the North Shore rain, snow and a bit of hail thrown in for good measure. Five minutes later I was home and the rain had nearly stopped. I think it has been a week today that we have had to boil water due to turbidity. I finally resorted to bottled water for tea and for doing my teeth.  We can at least see the bottom of the toilet again. This is a good sign.  It will be good to be in Toronto for a few days and hopefully leave the water problems behind.
I started another pair of socks,     eyelets again, this is pair number 10! The colours are a little darker than the photo.

I wrote to the yarn harlot a couple of times lately and mentioned that I had at long last complete my KO top, so it was nice that she took the time to read my blog and then to email me.

It has been another rainy week with the odd break where it was relatively dry and one was able to go out and get things done like shop. I hate grocery shopping when its raining and having to get things in and out of the car.
For a very brief period of time, I was able to see some of the mountains, not the tops but I did see the snow line. I haven’t seen the mountain tops since October, I think I am in withdrawl.  I didn’t know I was addicted to the mountains.

Good news, I finished the Christmas knitting list and have even blocked it all. The last pair of Stashbuster Lace Handwarmers are done and are larger than the first pair I did. There was no needle size in the pattern from Spun Magazine  and of course my notes were non existent the first time around. But I still love how they look.

Sewing news: I have been inspired lately to get something done and there was also a deadline.I went through the stash, found skirt fabric and made a dash to the store for material for the top and a pattern.  I complete it all in one day!  I think it is because the sewing room is finally arranged in a way that I like. That has only taken  15 years or so and my sewing table has been  under the window facing south, east and west, the closet has moved , new tables and bookshelves have appeared.
My table is now near the door but facing the tv,  I have been labelling and sorting drawers of small sewiing items. It is not perfect yet with stuff still on the floor. I need one more light and then the stack of ironing needs to be done and I will gain tons of cutting out space. I actually had fun sewing, it has been a long time since I said that.
http://www.timmelfabrics.com/index.htm   The SWAP contest on this site has energized me.



I have heard good things on line about this pattern company, so broke down and ordered a couple, I haven’t gone through the stash yet to see what I will make. I will even make muslins this time.

Stand Up and Cheer:
My Knitting Olympic Giotto Self designed top is completed. It is a halter top with a crochet edge on the hem and neckline. I used 2 hanks of Giotto, it went through a series of trials and tribulations and I have only a few yards left.  I think I will still add some elastic to the top edge at the back, although I did take it in somewhat with the crochet, it still tends to slip a bit and expose my bra back.

The eighth storm since the beginning of November! Checking the drains is just part of the routine. When a friend mentioned she wanted to go to a garden shop, I leapt at the chance to join her. The rain really makes me feel housebound.
We ventured down to the Mandeville Garden centre and were pleased to find that they weren’t floodeed  out. It was like being inside a drum under the green house roof(plastic) with the torent of rain coming down. Then there was thunder. I picked up a few bulbs for late planting, an amarylis and a few Christmas goodies. Then the lights flicked and finally went out. We poked around in the darkness for a bit and were finally asked to make out way to the check out as it was becoming dangerous.  We did shop at another garden store and had a lunch after 3pm.
Knitting seems like a good activity for tonight.

Last week at the doll meeting, two friends gave me things from their stash.
I received a box of wool , cream, very  fine, no yardage or care symbols on it, wrapped in tissue with Les laines Georges Picaud printed on it! 10 ball  of Nutte fin with 40 grams each. There was even  a knitted swatch. My friend thinks it is from 1969 when she  designed and machine knit sweaters for a store in West Vancouver. Don’t think I can do this justice yet. The colour is a little dark in the photo. The yarn band is not as pink.

Another friend gave me the fabric you see in the photo, there is quite a bit, enough for a dress. She had received it from her sister.  I ordered a couple of patterns this week on line and when they get here I will post a link and tell  of my plans.

The best friends sweater I finished drawing out the pattern full size. I am seriously reconsidering the whole project, crikey, it looks big. I need a friend, who knows about fit, to come over and remeasure, rather than ask my husband  ro help again. I am really concerned about the depth of the sleeve. I have been laying out my jackets to see how they compare. Garter stitch cotton is going to drape differently from a woven  and finding a comparable weight is hard. Obviously I am still in a problem solving stage of this project. I want to start it before Christmas.

This song is in my head today, yesterday “We are the Champions”. We had a good time on Sunday night watching
http://itsakindamagic.com/ the show was great.  It was a family affair for some as the folks in their sixties brought their kids in their 30’s. Very few under 20 and a whole lot of people over 60.  Not a crowd who wanted to stand and wave their arms all night.

My friend, Louisa, got a mention of her website in Fiber Femmes, congrats to her it is a well deserved honor. http://www.fiberfemmes.com/article16.htm

I finished my socks, I am quite happy with them.  I finally went into publisher and set up a journal page to keep track of the details of my knitting projects.  I am working on drawing out the schematic of the Best Friends jacket  by Sally Melville, the size is enough to put one off knitting. I am taping a roll of paper together and comparing it to jackets in my wardrobe. I need to make the sleeves 2 inches longer and I think the sleeves are too deep for me, I don’t need all the extra fabric around my middle.
I need to get the last of the Christmas presents on the needles.

Pineapple express makes me think of Hawaii, warm sunshine, lovely beaches and tall drinks. But today, it is totally different, it refers to our weather system!! Yes it is quite warm, 15 degrees but the rain that accompanies it is a torent, deluge, insane, record breaking, mess.
Whatever the airport official measurement is, the north shore can double, triple, or quadruple the number.  The average rainfall for Novemer is 180 mm, and the airport had 85mm by the 4th. Another big deluge is expected tonight.
I rushed out and took a picture after the rain,

excuse all the wires, you’d never think that there is a mountain behind that cloud.
Sunday, we went out to the boat, there was a dry spell for a couple of hours, although most of the bushes had lost their leaves, I wanted to concentrate on the small things. So I took closeups, remaining berries and leaves.




I should really carry my camera more often. The other day at Chapters, there was leaves on the sidewalk, all colours and shapes, it always gives my inner child a thrill. I love collecting leaves.