Caturday XIX

Welcome again to Caturday, the day I dedicate to The Kitten and her cuteness, and invite you to do the same with your kitties!

As I have mentioned before, The Kitten is strictly an indoor kitty.  But we like her to have all of the creature comforts she might experience outside.  She has some catgrass.  She likes it very much.  I found it quite interesting that when we gave it to her, even though she had not experienced it before, she immediately went and ate it.  Curious.  We recently added catnip and parsley to her little garden (after seeing the same on My Cat from Hell) but she isn't at all interested in it. 


Serious business, this munching on grass shenanigans.

Do you have any kitty stuffs you'd like to share?  Fill in the Mister Linky and link back, if you please!

Noosa

I can highly recommend a visit to Noosa.  I spent last week there and was very pleased indeed.  The weather was just nice enough to encourage me outside, without being uncomfortable - I am not a hot weather person at all.

A little mosiac. 
Row 1:
You may have already seen the beach progress of my latest shawl | Eggs Benedict for breakfast every day | The hotel pool
Row 2:
Interesting finds at the Eumundi Markets - chicken gourds and felted lily scarves | These Brushturkeys were everywhere - so bold, walking inside cafes and shops like they owned the joint
Row 3:
A cruise along Noosa's rivers and canals with this dude.  Was actually one of the more enjoyable parts of the holday | beach | all aboard the Darwin Diva.  I quite like the way Virgin names planes
Row 4:
beach | beach | beach

And finally, a good sunset can make anyone feel like a pro photographer!

WIP: delightful

I was on holiday last week.  This is how progress on my shawl looked like at the time:

Also featured in this photo:  my white white Melbourne feet.

I have renamed my shawl to Sailor's Delight, at the suggestion of Lisa.  I quite like the new name, more than I do the pink/purple colour scheme, but I will soldier on and hope the overall effect will be pleasing.  I'm not sure if I have enough yarn at this stage, so that too could prove annoying.  It currently measures 61cm.

And, astoundingly, during my holiday I cast on and nearly completed Thinking of You.  And as a matter of fact, I cast off last night.  I've made the scarf shorter than in the pattern, at the request of the recipient.  Also, I have the sneaking suspicion that I have done this whole thing wrong, as I can't really see the yarn overs.  Maybe with blocking?  Looking at other projects, the pattern in the pre-blocking photos look much more pronounced than mine.  We shall see.  I haven't had a chance to take a more recent photo, so here is one at an earlier stage, included for, you know, posterity.

I didn't take this one to the beach, far too complicated to take the pattern and all that jazz. 

And now, what am I reading?  Yesterday I started reading two books.  What on earth is wrong with me?  I found myself a lovely little online version of Pride and Prejudice and have been sneaking a chapter or two in whenever I have a free moment.  A close friend of mine had never read P&P, even though she is an avid reader.  I ordered her to read it immediately - and guess what??  She hated it.  I am seriously reconsidering my friendship with her. 

via

And during my commute, I have been listening to Jane Eyre, my all time favourite book.  It has been far too long since I last read this book, and am enjoying it immensely (am I allowed to say that about such a depressing story?).

via

-Linking to-

WIP Wednesday (Tami's Amis)

WIP Wednesday (Ambassador Crochet)

Yarn Along (Small Things)

Keep Calm and Craft On {Crafting on} (Frontier Dreams)

What you doing Wednesday (SusanD1408 Crochet Addict)
Hookin on Hump Day (My Merry Messy Life)

Caturday XVIII

Welcome again to Caturday, the day I dedicate to The Kitten and her cuteness, and invite you to do the same with your kitties!

Today, curious kitty is curious.  The Kitten is always interested in what we're doing.  I managed to snap a few piccies of her checking out the lap top. 

And the following caption was suggested by a friend :)

Today, other people's cats.  This is Anastasia and Skelli, my sister's housemate's kitties.  Skelli is the white one.  He is deaf.  The poor thing is so frightened of me when I visit, he doesn't know me yet.  He likes to hide/sleep in the middle of his guardian's bed under the covers.  Anastasia then likes to sleep on the top of the covers, on the lump made by him.  <3

Inbred Anastasia and Skelli!  Have not yet subjected The Kitten to this...

Do you have any kitty stuffs you'd like to share?  Fill in the Mister Linky and link back, if you please!

Caturday XVII

Welcome again to Caturday, the day I dedicate to The Kitten and her cuteness, and invite you to do the same with your kitties!

Today, just a beautiful picture of The Kitten being beautiful.  Isn't she beautiful?   

I'm sexy and I know it.

And, perhaps something not so beautiful, Nicholas Cage Cats. What the hell internet?  Who comes up with this?  Seriously, there are people out there, patiently sitting at their computers, superimposing NC's face onto pictures of cats.  SO creepy, but also awesome.  Enjoy.

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via



via

So, any kitty stuffs you'd like to share?  Fill in the Mister Linky and link back, if you please!

Fo: Fruit Tingles, Jellybeans...

...are two of the things suggested to describe the colour of this yarn.  Perfect colour for a little girl, no? 

I made this for niecicle number 3, aged 2 and a bit.  I hope it fits.  Here it is on two different models.  

I tried to make the same face as Precious.  The camera just loves her.

The top model (on so many levels) is Precious Hugs, one of the few toys I have retained from my childhood.  She's a bit worse for wear - dirty, original clothes gone - but I can't part with her.  Anyone else have a Hugga Bunch?  Anyone else remember the movie?  *sigh nostalgia*

Model no 2 is yours truly, as you can see the hat also streches to fit my big fat head.  According to my favourite size chart, this hat should fit (as children 12mth - 3 yrs apparently have an 46-48cm head) as it measures about 22cm in width.  I made the child size pattern.

WOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWW.

Pattern:  Lindsay Hat (Chunky)
Needles: 6.00mm circular, magic circle baby!
Yarn: 70g of Panda Amber in Rainbow
Size:  8.5" wide, 8" long, plus it rolls up in the most fetching way.
Ravelled here

-Linking with-

Tami's Amis FO Fridays

Fiber Arts Fridays at Wisdom Begins in Wonder

Natural Suburbia for Creative Fridays
I've Made Friday at SusanD1408 Crochet Addict

WIP: are you sitting down?

Well, are you?  Because this is going to blow your socks off!

Alright, enough of being a giant nerd, but what I'm trying to get at here is how happy I am with my Sailor Purples Shawl.  After a mini roadblock last week, I managed to get around to dyeing some yarn and have started adding stripes.  Now, the original intent was to have a bunch of different purples, but what I got from dyeing was some purple, but also pink and burgundy.  Still, I think it's looking pretty rad (I mean look at how that that yarn in the second stripe is working up!), but it will probably need a new name.  It's measuring 48 cm now. 

Only nominal progress on Finn (as a few of you guessed correctly last week) so no photos, but I am pleased to report that I have FINISHED all the motifs for Blissful Flowers, but only have the following dirty picture for you.  Now I just need to add fringe and block!  Do I add the fringe before blocking?  I think I will because the yarn is a bit kinky.

Check out that edging bro.  Masterful.

Still listening to The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes, and nearly finished re-watching Sherlock season 2.  I'm really enjoying both.  The book is quite amusing, Sherlock is all 'don't worry Watson, you can't help being stupid' while at the same time always reiterating how much he values his friendship a la 'that's my Watson'. 

I know how much y'all like gifs.  This took me ages to find (via)

Tangentially, check this tumblr for pwning Sherlock fanart!!!!

-Linking to-

WIP Wednesday (Tami's Amis)

WIP Wednesday (Ambassador Crochet)

Yarn Along (Small Things)

Keep Calm and Craft On {Crafting on} (Frontier Dreams)

What you doing Wednesday (SusanD1408 Crochet Addict)
Hookin on Hump Day (My Merry Messy Life)

ETA:   Also a WIP is the look of the ol' bloggie.  I've mad a few small changes, you like?

Oh yeaahhhhhh

I dyed some yarn baitches!  Wooo dye!   I've already mentioned that I was going to dye some yarn so that I had a few more purpley coloured stripes for my Sailor Purples Shawl .  I had about 200 grams of remnants of laceweight yarn I purchased from the bargain room at BWM skeined into little bunches.  

Who else sees a blank canvas?

Dye Job #1 - Kool Aid

Firstly, I have never consumed kool aid.  We don't get it here.  Well, now we do, in those shops that are popping up all over the place selling American lollies and drinks and such.  Most of my knowledge of kool aid comes from Dane Cook's jokes about it.

I used this tutorial to dye my yarn.  I used the microwave method.  Now, I experienced a few problems.  The tutorial says use 1 packet of kool aid for every ounce of yarn.  (Come on USA, use the metric system already!!!)  Google tells me this is 28 grams, so I used 2 packets of grape kool aid for 66 grams of yarn.  Well, 2 packets was no where near enough for this amount of yarn.  So after going through the process, I had to use another 2 packets to get a bit more coverage for my yarn, and even then it's still very patchy.

Another lesson learned, I probably should not have been wasting time taking pictures of partially dyed yarn, because the yarn sucked up the colour from the kool aid fast.  Mega fast.  The liquid was going clear before my very eyes.  The instructions instructed me to 'add my yarn and enough water to cover it' to the kool aid mixture.  Next time I would add extra water first so my yarn could be submerged all at once, rather than some of it missing out on the dye because there was not enough liquid to cover it straight away.

Anyway, the results.  I could not photograph this yarn true to colour.  But as you can see, even after 4 packets of kool aid, I could not get consistent coverage.  Not sure what my problem was, too much yarn at once mayhaps?  I didn't stir it enough?  I think it comes back to the yarn sucking up the dye super fast and me not being quick enough to get it all in there.  Nevertheless, I quite like the varigated result. 

Afterthoughts:  People actually drink this stuff?  It's sooooo potent!! There must be sooo many chemicals!  I'd definitely do this again, maybe in smaller batches.  It leaves your yarn with a lovely fruity aroma, so that's also a plus!  Also this:

via

Dye Job #2 - Food Colouring

It was really difficult to find a tutorial for this method that I liked.  Most of them I found told me to soak my yarn overnight in vinegar, or some other tedious process.  Sorry, but I want results NOW!!  Then I found this video, and there was much rejoicing.

I dyed three lots of yarn using this method.  First, I dyed some with red only, wanting a pale pink colour.  The result was the below shocking neon magenta colour, so I dyed it a second time with purple (3 parts red, one part blue).  I'm quite happy with the result!!

Next I did straight purple, using the 3 parts red 1 part blue concoction.  Sorry, I didn't take any pics of these unwound.  Finally, I overdyed a couple of blue remnants with red.  I poured a LOT of red into the water, and was very surprised how much of it took.  I was expecting purple, and got burgundy.  I'm diggin' it though - pictures of this one wound below.

Blue + red = purple right?  Not necessarily!

Afterthoughts:  I also like this method.  It was quick and easy, and I managed to get some varied results, so I was quite pleased. 

Now I've got about an extra 175 grams of purples (and red) to add to my shawl.  Looking forward to seeing how it all pans out!

The final verdict:  dyeing was tons of fun!  So many steps involved though (I'm mainly thinking about skeining, washing, drying and winding up) so it's a slow process, and I have a new appreciation for all those indie dyers out there!

Caturday XVI

Welcome again to Caturday, the day I dedicate to The Kitten and her cuteness, and invite you to do the same with your kitties!

The Kitten had her yearly vaccination this week.  I don't know if this happens with your kitty, but The Kitten just gets so sad for a couple of days after.  I compare it to a person with the flu, all she wants to do is sleep, and she only gets up for the bathroom.  It's so sad!  Luckily she's bouncing back now and making up for lost time by being extra cute.

RAWR

Today, Cats on TV.  In a comment on last week's post, Ashely mentioned a TV show I had not heard of before: My Cat From Hell.  I immediately hunted it down, and wow, A and I were intantly hooked.  This fellow, a cat behavioralist, or as I think of him, a cat whisperer, comes into people's homes and helps them with their problem felines.  And not just any problems - no - some of these kitties are feral - you can't pet them, you can't approach them.  Very sad.  Anyways, with a few little tricks, Mr Galaxy (yeah, that's his name.  As an aside, I like how 90% of the people who meet him are all like, 'oh he wasn't what I was expecting') sets the kitties straight and they turn into beautiful affectionate cats!  Amazing!  I had tears a few times just because the cat guardians didn't know what else to do, knowing that if they wouldn't be able to rehome their furbabies as they were just too vicious. 

One of the things A and I love about this show is all the things recommended to do with your cat we already do!!   Play with your cat?  check.  Make sure your cat has her own space?  Check.  Don't be rough with your cat?  Check/Duh.  Best cat guardians ever!   

If you'd like to participate in Caturday, enter your deets below and link back here!

FO: finally

This should not have taken me so long.  Seriously.  I'm putting it down to my relative inexperience as a knitter, and the yarn being ridiculously fiddly for my skill level.  11 months from start to finish!  I'm not quite that slow, as a lot of that time includes when I put this item into hibernation while I leveled up. 

Pattern:  Gauzy Gathers Scarf
Needles:  3mm and 7mm
Yarn: Rowan Kidsilk Haze
Ravelled here

Here's a rare picture of my face.  I thought it was about time.  Plus I think the scarf looks fab against my new mustard top. 

Lookin' fine in my Finn hat.

I wore this scarf yesterday, and I think it gave me a rash.  I'm putting it down to spite, due to the fact it took me so long to finish.  Seriously dudes, I am not allergic to ANYTHING!  So annoying, given how much angst this piece has caused me.  

Tanya attempts to be arty with close up shots of fuzzy stockinette.

I'm now thinking of giving a crochet version a bash, using Lynn's crochet stockinette technique.

-Linking with-

Tami's Amis FO Fridays

Fiber Arts Fridays at Wisdom Begins in Wonder

Natural Suburbia for Creative Fridays
I've Made Friday at SusanD1408 Crochet Addict

WIP: roadblock

How annoying when you cant keep working on something because you need to do something else before you can move on.  Work on my Sailor Purples Shawl has been stalled right now because my purple yarn is not working for me.  I pulled this yarn out of a 200g bag of remnants I picked up from BWM containing mostly white, and some purple lace weight yarn.  Unfortunately it's a wee bit too thin for my liking.  I'm going to have to work with the yarn doubled, and I just haven't had time to rewind it.  Plus I wanted to dye the white remnants into other shades of purple, and arrange the order of all the purples into the most appealling pattern.  So, this shawl is on temporary hiatus.


Yarn, Y U So skinny?

I needed a new train project, and because I have three niecicles, but have thus far only made two hats, niecicle numero three needed a hat.  So, I cast on a Lindsay Hat.  True, I could have chosen something a bit more complicated (because of my awesome knitting skillz), but I really like my train projects to be easy peasy Japanesey.  I like the way this hat has a rolled turny-uppy bit (brim?? :P) so it doesnt matter if it's a bit long. 

Also diggin' the poolin'

Oh, and I started one more thing.  What could it be?

I've been rewatching Sherlock (which is, like, one of the bestest shows ever), and in the special features on the blu-ray Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss (I am such a crappy fangirl, I didn't even know Gatiss was Mycroft.  doi) talk about adapting the books into the show.  I was inspired to check em out.  I managed to find an audiobook of The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes.  I realised I should have started with one of the first novels (omg there's one called A Study in Scarlet) or something, but this book is still good because it contains an assortment of cases in bite sized pieces (around 40 mins each) so you get a bit of flavour for what Sherlock is all about.  I'm quite enjoying it!  It's fun listening for all the bits Moffat/Gatiss picked out and put into the show. 

MF could not get any cuter. (via)

-Linking to-

WIP Wednesday (Tami's Amis)

WIP Wednesday (Ambassador Crochet)

Yarn Along (Small Things)

Keep Calm and Craft On {Crafting on} (Frontier Dreams)

What you doing Wednesday (SusanD1408 Crochet Addict)
Hookin on Hump Day (My Merry Messy Life)

June Movies

I'm sure you're wondering what movies I watched last month...  well, I will ease your little mind and show you!  And as an extra special bonus, instead of showing you some boring movie posters, I'm taking my inspiration from Lisa and posting pictures of crafty things kinda related to the movie. 

What to Expect When You're Expecting (M)

Totally not my choice in movie, but there was nothing else showing at the right time so my friend and I went.  And do you know what, I was pleasantly surprised.  Cameron Diaz cannot act to save her life imho, however the rest of the cast were fantastic.  The Dudes Group were a highlight for me.  And, unexpectedly, I got a bit teary in a couple of places.  So, I would recommend this movie. 

I'm sorry, I don't know where this is from so can't give credit.  I love it though, it makes me laugh every time.

MIBIII (M)

It was really good to see J and K on the big screen again!  A great popcorn movie, and Josh Brolin did a fanstastic young-Tommy-Lee-Jones.

We are stitched in black (sorry, I'm reaching...) (via)

Mabo (H)
Oh my goodness.  This movie.  This movie had me very very torn.  At first it made me disgusted to be Australian.  And then, the Aussies got redeemed just a smidge, only thanks to the High Court.  This movie resonated with me particularly, as all Australian lawyers will have studied Mabo at uni.  However, I never knew much about the background and history of Eddie Mabo.  The movie was intercut with actual news footage, showing politians and the public's attitudes at the time.  I cannot imagine any of those things being said today, so horrible!  And offensive.  I'm the first to admit my knowledge of aboriginal culture is very limited, so I can't comment on that stuff, but this movie was brilliant.  I was sobbing my eyes out, really!  It would be totally unorstralian of you if you do not see it.  Plus Deborah Mailman, need I say more?

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Knocked Up (H)
Much more low brow than the previous movie, I had avoided this movie for ages because it looked super stupid.  Then it was on TV so I gave it a shot, and it was actually pretty funny.  Had I known Paul Rudd was in it I would have watched it sooner.  I looooove Paul Rudd!! 

I want to be pregnant just so I can wear this.  Not really.  Maybe I can wear it when I feel I have a food baby. (via)

Wunderlust (H)
Sticking with the Paul Rudd theme, this movie was ok.  There was this one part that had me on the floor -  Paul Rudd was talking to himself in the mirror, yeah, you know the scene right?  This movie was worth it just for this scene.  I'm not a Jennifer Anniston fan though, bleh. 

Not from this movie - but look!  A Paul Rudd bday card!! (via)

Last Action Hero (H)
Arnie!  You can't not like Arnie.  Hadn't seen this movie in ages, so we special ordered it in from JB HI FI.  On blu-ray too (lah de dah).  Oh it's so awesome.  It's a parody of all the action movies you've ever seen, and it has some coolio cameos too.  

I could not find an Arnie related crafty thing.  But advice Arnie is pretty creative, eh? (via)

Chronicle (H)
A different take on the superhero genre.  It's done like a documentary.  I really enjoyed it, though it took a while to get cracking. 

Yes, Lisa featured these, but I am copying becuase she's so cool (via)

Penelope (H)
I'd been wanting to see this for ages.  It was awesome!  I really enjoyed it.  Predictable yes, but a cool idea for a movie, and tons of amazing actors in it!  James McAvoy!  Peter Dinklage!

Piggy! (via)

Annie (H)
I saw Annie the musical last month.  It was not as good as I expected.  And that's a pain considering how expensive the theatre is.  Though I will say, I wouldn't mind if Anthony Warlow adopted me, he was amazing!  So after being a bit disappointed, I went home and watched the movie.  And it was awesome, just as I remembered it.  Annie was a movie I would watch repeatedly with my mother, and I'm happy to say it has lost none of its charm.  I even had a little tear in my eye when they sang Tomorrow.  Albert Finney is just wonderful.

You can bet your bottom dollar! (via)

Adventure Time (M)
Ok, not strictly a movie, but for some reason my local cinema had a one-session-one-weekend only showing of a selection of Adventure Time episodes.  (I actually think it was to advertise the toys just out in Oz because we were given a bunch of advertising junk).  Needless to say, I was there! It was amazing on the big screen.  They showed a couple of episodes from the new series, plus some fan favourites (Fionna and Cake!!).  AND we all got a Finn hat with our ticket.  Legendary! 

must.make.crochet.version (via)

Brave (M)
I'd been waiting for this one for a while.  It was a really beautiful movie.  Often it looked real (as long as there were no characters in frame).  And I was mesmerised by Merida's red hair. 

Being ginger is so hot right now (via)

The Devil Inside (H)
A popped this movie on when I wasn't really in the mood for watching a movie, so I continued to crochet instead.  Well, it didn't take long for me to start watching the movie rather than concentrate on the crochet.  It's another doco style movie, chronicling a woman's journey to find out what happened to her mother, after an exorcism was performed on her resulted in the deaths of those exorcising her.  Not for you if you're squeamish, but I do love me some horror.

Rawr (via)

Rock of Ages (M)
Wow.  Such a great movie.  So many great songs!  And it was funny as. My most favorite part was the duet between Alec Baldwin and Russell Brand, and I am not a Russell Brand fan, but I didn't mind him in this movie.  Wow, I kinda complimented Russell Brand there, you're welcome Russell Brand.

Pick up your geetar! (via)

The Thing (H)
How have I not seen this movie before?  It was freaking brilliant.  The effects were top notch, even 30 years later.  And Kurt Russell!  The Russells have certainly done their work this month, kudos Russells! 

See what I did there? (via)

Key: 

H = home
M = movies

The stand out movie for this month was most certainly Mabo. 

Have you seen any good movies lately??