School Holiday Knits
My holidays got all rained out so I got to spend some time in la-la land among pointy needles and stitches. Here are my finished holiday knits:
Spirogyra Gloves
The free pattern is from Knitty. I love that the simple pattern repeats produce such stunning shell stitches which make the gloves look harder to knit than it actually was. But I don’t like the yarn I’ve used. Yes, Panda Purla is soft and very cheap but the yarn is linty, making the gloves look very old, worn and fuzzy. Not the look I’m after but it’s still quite a pleasure to wear. I would love to make them again with nicer yarn.
Pocketbook Slippers
If you are not a knitter, you probably wouldn’t have guessed that these…
could be worn as slippers!
They are a rather clever design by Mrs M. S. Draves and are aptly called pocketbook slippers (for the uninitiated, pocketbook means a purse or a handbag). I made the modified version by Miss Twiss. I’m not happy with the way she designed her buttonholes as they were a off-centre and small. So for my second pair of pocketbook slippers, I’m using Knittinghelp’s one-row buttonhole instead.
My mother-in-law found them rather amusing when she received her slippers and thought that her great niece, Nikita, would also love a pair. Nikita is 9 and lives in NZ. So I’m making a pair for her using Panda Zoomy which is just so thick and soft. I’m almost finished with them but I ran out of yarn! I’m thinking that I will buy one more ball of Zoomy to finish the slippers and I’ll probably have enough leftover to make a mini Fourteen scarf for her too! She would be all rugged up for the bitterly cold NZ winter!
When a House Becomes a Home
We’ve had a busy school holidays and have spent a lot of energy on the house. We’ve plastered the walls and ceiling where the old wall used to be. I would say we are halfway through this project but we’ve put all the tools away for now as we’re both back at work tomorrow. There is no way I want to look at those tools in the dining room for one more day! The rooms look more finished since the last update.
Gee, the photos make the rooms look soooo small. Anywhooo… did you notice the pretty blue curtains in the living room? I sewed them! I’ve made curtains in the past when I was still living at my mum’s. They always ended up puckered and either too short or too long or both at the same time! My mum would have to unpick the bottom hem and re-handsew it AFTER the curtains were hung!
So when I bought the sewing machine last year, I also bought a curtain sewing book. The instructions are crystal clear and I’ve learnt so much! I guess you can’t just wing it when sewing curtains. Hehe.
The curtains were designed (by the author) with pleats that are only at the top part of the curtains. It was a bit more effort but it was well worth it. The result is a more elegant and structured look. Richard reckons they look like a waterfall. By the way, the curtains cost us only $30 in material!
Last but not least, the 80 litre hot water system that came with the house started leaking very badly and it had to go. Richard’s dad got us a “new”, dirt cheap ($200!), MUCH bigger 315 litre one which they installed UNDER the house! It was very impressive (and comical) how they fit the massive tank through a small 60cm door. The two men were really in the zone when they were installing it yesterday. The worked non-stop for at least 5 hours! Kudos to you both!
Boxing Cat Video
I wish Olly could do this!
Knitting Podcast, Slippers & Cat Beret?
I’ve finished knitting my spirogyra gloves yesterday and they’re sitting in front of the fan getting blocked. The cold, wet weather is slowing down the drying process. I want to wear them!
Anyway, last night I pulled out my semi-finished cat pillow that I’ve been knitting since last November (I think). It’s my own design and since then, I’ve thought of better ways of knitting it. I found the current pattern terribly boring and repetitive. So low and behold, I frogged it – all of it. I unravelled the entire project and all the yarn is now stored away in my stash basket. It was emotionally hard to do but I feel liberated now!
Now, I’m ready for a project. I thought I’ll do something simple and decided on the pocketbook slippers. Today I turned the tv off, started knitting and for the first time, listened to knitting podcasts. Yes, you heard me. Knitting podcasts. I know, I’m a geek. I listened to Brenda Dayne‘s and Kelley‘s podcasts. I think I’ve found my new favourite thing. I was in flow!
So I’m happily knitting my slippers and I’m almost finished one of them and then, I’ve realised I misunderstood the pattern! Since I was almost finished I thought I might as well finish it and see what happens. Well, the slipper won’t fit. I have small feet but the holes are pretty dang small!
I showed it to Richard. We laughed. Then I showed it to Ifa. She said she would LOVE the slipper on her head as a beret! Oh, she looked like a French star! And to finish the look, she had to have a cape. So Richard put a cape (aka crochet bed) on her and she was ready for her big debut! She asked for a cigi to finish the look but I had to draw the line there. Doesn’t she look divine? 
P.S. Yes, she is half-asleep on my belt and next to the very warm laptop fan.
Malay for Aussies: Letter E
There are two ways to sound the letter E – “er” and “aye“. I’ve covered the “aye” sound below.
Salihan’s Voice (Native Malay Speaker)
Richard’s Voice (Aussie Learner)
Get automagic 
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