Little visitor

Rocky alerted me that we had a visitor tonightand Rocky's alerts consist of sitting in the window and howling at the top of his lungs like he's being horribly abused. Now Rocky alerts about all kinds of things - bunnies, neighbours, squirrels, so I peeked out the window but couldn't see what set him off. So I went outside to see what was up.

This time it was a lovely little kitty.He obviously belongs to somebody- he's in great shape and looked to be about a year old and judging from the thickness of neck, I was pretty sure he was still intact. He turned around, tail up and gave me a good view - and yep - a full pair.

I don't mind people having outdoor cats, but it really upsets me when they don't get them fixed. It's safer for the kitty - less fighting - and helps keep down the unwanted kitty population - why don't people understand that?

Anyway, enough griping. Mr. Kitty stayed for a little scritchand a little snack and then continued on his way. Rocky still won't stop sniffing my pants.

*****
I wore my Veylas to work to day and ... I feel a new obsession coming on. I want fingerless mitts in all sorts of colours! What are your favourite fingerless patterns?

Victorius Veyla

Veyla is done! And I LOVE them!Sorry about the craptacular picture- I finished them up at 10 pm and didn't want to wait to show you. And it's damn hard taking a picture of your own hand. I will get Mom to take some proper shots later this week.

Many of you know how I feel about buttons. They can easily make or break a project. (Check out some of the other Veyla's on Ravelry to see what I mean) .And these gloves are so pretty the buttons had to be PERFECT.

Since Tux's recent adventures have pretty much drained my bank account for the next eleventy billion years, I wasn't really in a position to buy buttons at the moment. But, Mom to the rescue again. She let me raid her buttons jars and I found these
PERFECT! I had not considered brass at first, but we put them on the glove and I knew they were the ones.

I've got some new socks on the needles, and I intend on making some headway on fable this week - but you'll have to wait to see more on those.

Punkins

Voila - the secret knitting is revealed:
I made mom a pair of Nutkins (or Punkins, in this case) for her birthday. Her birthday was yesterday, but she was recovering from all the excitement at Knit Camp, so I took them to her today (with a cake too!)

Nutkin is one of my favourite patterns. I find it just flies by and you have a pair of beautiful socks in no time. It does have one draw back however - with the pattern as written, the socks tend to twist when you wear them, so for these ones, I mirrored each 16 stitch pattern.It creates a nice effect, and will hopefully keep them from twisting. Sadly, these were not knit from Wandering Cat Yarn (as mom hoped when she spied the sneak peak picture), but some Auracania I had in the stash. The Auracania isn't all that soft, but I'm hoping it will soften when she washes them. It was the perfect colour for Mom, but I guess I'm still going to have to dye up some Campfire and knit her another pair, because that's what she really wants. Other mods include a picot hem - just cause I think it's cute (it's also Miss Pee's hem of choice). And I only did four pattern repeats for the cuff because I didn't want to run out of yarn (only 360 yards per skein) and NOT because I don't have the patience to make full length socks as Mom will try to tell you.

So, Mom is happy to have birthday socks, and I'm happy to finally be able to show you all. I hate keeping secrets!

Knitting! Huzzah!

Excuse me all - may I have your attention please? I have an important announcement to make!

I FINALLY have knitting to show you!!!!

I've had a weekend chock full of knitting and it's been so nice!

First, I finished up my secret knitting.That's all I can show you for now. The recipient won't get it until tomorrow, so I'll post more details then.

Once I cast off that project I was just itching to cast on for something else. I really should have gotten back to Fable, but the call of cracking open a new skein of yarn was too strong. I considered socks, but Dave was hogging the computer and I hadn't yet printed out the pattern I had saved for the socks I wanted to knit next.

So I knit a few more rows on Starry Zetor while I considered it, and eventually decided on Veyla.
I've loved this pattern since I first saw it - it's at once bold and feminine. And as I sit directly under the ventilation system at work and my hands tend to get quite cold, it's a practical choice too.
For yarn I chose my Alley Cat in "Opium Den". I had set this aside to make a pair of Rivendell socks, but I needed something neutral that would go with almost everything I wear to work. I love this colour. As the name suggests, it's a smokey grey, but what the picture doesn't show are the undertones of purple, blue, and green.

I went down to a 3mm needle as I tend to knit loose. I also have smaller than average hands. I knit both the right and left cuff up last night. The pattern doesn't say to block them, but I really think lace needs to be blocked. Once I got them pinned down I realized I'd lost my spray bottle of water. I could have unpinned them and soaked them then pinned them down again, but that was too much work - so I got out my bottle of Febreze. It worked pretty well and they smell lovely, but it did make it a little stiff, almost like starch, but they lose that stiffness as you handle them.

I have to redo the left cuff, because I realized I messed it up. But this afternoon I forged ahead with finishing up the right hand.
I love the little details in this pattern. Especially the thumb.

(It's really hard to take a picture of your own hand, let me tell you)

I still need buttons. My first thought were for pearl buttons, but after going through my stash, I think some nice pewter ones would work too. I have some perfect ones, unfortunately they are much too big, so I'll have to keep looking.

And once, I get these finished, I will go back to Fable. Autumn is definitely here and I'm in the mood for sweaters!

Tuxdate the Third

I know, I know you want to see some knitting.....

Well the good news is, the freelance work is done for now, so I'll have more time to knit
I should even have something to show you by the end of the weekend.

In the mean time here's some more Tux news. We just got back from our most recent (and hopefully final ... for a while at least) vet visit. Tux of course, is happy to be home:We are going to keep his insulin dose where it is for now and she gave me a test kit to monitor the blood sugar in his urine. She also showed me how to test his blood sugar using the same type of blood glucose monitors diabetic people use, so I can do it at home, and will only have to bring him back the vet if his levels drop too low or too high - which is fantastic because I've spent a small fortune taking him up to the vet to get tested every other week! I can also get his insulin over the counter from the pharmacy so I don't need a prescription - that really surprised me!

She's still optimistic we can get him into remission, but honestly, treating the diabetes isn't as bad as all that. It's a small amount of insulin, so it's not that expensive (vet visits excluded) and he takes the needle really well - most of the time he doesn't even notice. Regulating his blood sugar will help him lose weight, and live a long and happy life (albeit one without special treats like ice cream and leftover cereal milk).

I'll keep you updated on his progress.

And, just so they other two don't get jealous at all the attention Tux has been getting - here is some more cuteness to overload on:

Princess Peno:
and Rotten Rocky:Now - I'm going to go knit!

Tuxdate 2

It's been a pretty busy weekend.

In between dinner and shopping with mom, hauling a carload of guitars for Dave's school, visiting the grandparents, and just little every day tasks, I have managed to do a bit of knitting - but I can't show you, because it's secret knitting.

I can however, give you another update on Sir Tux.Friday he had his vet visit and it turns out I was a little too optimistic in my last Tuxdate.

Unfortunately, just changing his diet didn't cut it. I now have two months worth of insulin and needles in my fridge. So, it's two needles a day at breakfast and dinner. The vet set it at a low dosage, and she's pretty sure we can keep it there. She even said some cats, especially younger cats (Tux is only five) do go into remission, so it might not be a forever thing.

He also hasn't lost as much weight as I thought - just half a pound. But I guess that's better than no pounds lost, or gaining weight.

Poor kitty has to go back up next week so we can make sure we've got the dosage right.

But otherwise, he his usual lazy lovable self, so it's not as bad as all that.

I think the cats are trying to tell me something....

... but I'm not sure what it is.

As I'm sure I've mentioned before, Peno likes to dump her water dish. Tux's urinary diet food has a tendency to make him thirsty, so I like to have a big bowl full of water so he doesn't run out while I'm at work. (And it has to be glass - they won't drink out of plastic or metal bowls.) So I gave them my large glass salad bowl. It was very narrow at the bottom, and wide at the top, and for some reason, before drinking, Peno has to bring her water dish toward her by hooking her claws on the lip and pulling back. Of course, the shape of the bowl made it easy to tip, and I often came home to water all over the floor.

So, I started changing up the bowls. I thought my heavy mixing bowl would be a good fix, but nope she still manage to dump it. We went through a few other bowls before I finally, I gave in and gave them my favourite glass casserole dish (not really a big deal, Dave already broke the lid). It seemed perfect, it was shallow and wide and not so tip-able. And for a while, it worked.

Until the other day when I came home from work to water all over the floor. I thought perhaps they were just roughhousing and one of them bumped it or got knocked into it.

Until the next day when I came home to water all over the floor. *Sigh* ... I filled it back up and made mental note to start searching for something else.

But the very next morning, I woke up to water all over the floor again. Pressed for time, I threw down a towel, filled up the dish and ran out the door to work.

And what did I find when I got homek? The entire towel was in the water dish!

Any one care to translate?

In other news....

You may have noticed I've been a total blog slacker lately. Freelance work has picked up again and I've had little time to knit, or blog, or just generally feel sane. But, it's hard to say no to the extra cash.

However, on Sunday, I did say enough is enough! Dave and I spent the entire day on the couch watching the entire fourth season of the Tudors. And I knit away on the crackghan.(Cat included for scale) It's about 2/3 done, and I'm loving every inch of it!

So, I'll try to keep you updated (and get some knitting done so I have something to update on) but if you don't hear from me for a few days, don't worry, I can be found under a mountain of work, somewhere behind the accumulating pile of dirty dishes and laundry (because if you know if I don't have time to blog, I'm certainly not taking the time to clean!)

Tuxdate

Yay it's Friday! I have barely picked up the needles all week, with the exception of the hour I stole to knit two squares on the crackghan.

So, since I have no knitting to show you, I thought I'd give you an update on Tux - or a Tuxdate!
Tux is doing super well. He was suppose to go back to the vet last Saturday to check is blood sugar, but due to a cash flow issue, I had to reschedule for next week.

However, he has definitely lost weight. He's marginally more active (I think he's always going to be a lazy boy) and he's started jumping on the bed from the floor again. He used to have to jump on the blanket chest first, then to the bed. So, at the very least the change in diet has helped his health, if not gotten the diabetes totally under control - we'll have to wait to find that out next week.

Now, I've got a whole weekend ahead of me, so I think I'll go find said not-quite-so-fat cat, snuggle up and do some knitting!

Weekend Wrap-Up - just a little late

It was a long-weekend here in Canada (Labour Day!) but it still wasn't long enough *sigh*

Dave and I had a pretty quiet one, mostly. I lazed around and knit, while he played pirate and monopolized my computer (which is why you didn't get this wrap-up yesterday).

We did have a short but enjoyable excursion to the lake where he tried to teach me how to skip rocks, and I mostly just re-injured my back. He bounced light-footed across the rough-bouldered break water like it was a flat sidewalk, while I slowly, and clumsily tried to follow without falling in the water. Eventually, I convinced him to sit down one of the nice flat rocks near the shallows and we watched the sun set. No pictures - I forgot my camera.

But back to the knitting - because that's what you're really here for.

So what was I knitting this week you ask?

Oh a little bit of this, and a little bit of that - sweaters, socks... and a few projects that have been laying about for ages.

Long-time readers may remember mention of my "drunken knitting project". It was a pinwheel blanket I started knitting out of left-over wool for the cats.

Nice and mindless, it was great for the nights when Dave and I got into the wine, but I actually hadn't touched it in a while. Sunday, I was going through my basket and realized it was pretty close to the cast off stage, so I pulled it up and finished it up.I had intended to throw it in the washer and felt it making it an extra snuggy cat-blankie, but as you can see - someone claimed it. I guess it's her birthday present.

Another project languishing in that same basket was my ten-stitch blanket. Made with Patons SWS, I long ago decided this project was likely to end up as a cat-mat too. It wasn't very soft, and I got a little bored making it, but the cats seemed to like it. I had one full square done, and the second was just a few rows from completion. So out it came, and finished it got.

But what to do with just two 19" squares? Despite what the cats may think, there really are enough cat-mats laying around here.

Then I had a brain wave - sew them together, knit a strap and into the washing machine it went.

I need to toss it in again (the strap didn't felt well) and find a button. I'm debating on lining it, but either way this will make a fantastic knitting tote! I'll put all my notes together and release it as a free pattern soon.

And, a final thank you to all you awesome knitters who stopped by the shop to snap up our latest yarns. There are a few skeins left from that update, but not many. Thanks again!

Work hard - knit harder

Another long weekend is upon us and to celebrate the end of a long, hot, sticky summer, we at Wandering Cat yarns are having a super-fantabulous-end-of-summer yarn update.Over the last few weeks, Mom (and occasionally me) has been busy dying up yarn and hording it. Tomorrow, it's all going in the shop!There will be gorgeous new skeins of Slinky Cat in fingering (as seen above) and lace, Fluffy Cat in fingering and lace, Alley Cat, and possiby some Top Cat too!

As the temperature drops, and thoughts of autumn dance in your head, why not treat yourself to a skein or two to keep you warm and cozy as the cooler weather sets in?

Update will go live around 11 a.m. EST Monday, September 6! Don't miss out!

My little Birthday Girl

As I was going through some paperwork today, I came across Miss Peno's adoption papers .......and discovered that today is her birthday! And not only is it her birthday... ...today she's officially a Senior Cat - seven years old!
You'd never really know it... ...except maybe for the fact that she's suddenly grown two white whiskers (all the rest are black)She loves to chase her mice, and even plays fetch......but only if the boys aren't around...
and you throw it into the kitchen.While she still won't come out for company... ... in the last few weeks she's developed a fondness for being a lap cat..... especially when I'm knitting the crackghan.She's still very skittish, but has an absolute silly streak!And loves nothing more than relaxing in a toasty sunbeam.
She's the first one in the kitchen to beg for scraps...
...but prefers her meat raw - and loves fish above all!Of the three cats, she is definitely the "good" one...
...but you still can't trust herOf course, being the only girl-cat isn't easy.So today she got to spend the day however she wanted (not that it's different from any other day)
And how did she decide to spend her momentous seventh birthday?Snuggled up with friends of course!
Happy Birthday Pretty Princess Peno!

Quickie

This is just a quick post, as I'm not feeling well and I think it's time for bed.

My Figgy Pudding Fluffy Cat has dried and I did indeed start Fable.
This is definitely going to be a lesson in patience.

Fingering weight sweater - slow to show progress. But it's going to be so pretty when it's done and the Fluffy Cat is divine!

I'll be back with a proper blog entry when I'm feeling better.