Chemo caps

My stepmother is battling cancer and chemo has claimed her crowning glory (her hair). She has been remarkably positive, using this as her opportunity to break out of her normally dignified and staid pose. She wanted to make her hairlessness an upbeat time to be offbeat!

Of course, needles were immediately whizzing on this side of the world, and these are the results (modelled by DD)

















And now I am going to cross-stitch her a little motivational sampler ....

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NSFW (not safe for work)

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NSFK (not safe for kiddies)

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IFNSAA (in fact, not safe at all!)

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The most useful thing I have ever knitted ....

A while ago I won a couple of skeins of home-dyed yarn from Qessentia (http://qessentiak.blogspot.com).




She comes from my home country (South Africa) and included wooden carvings of some of the wild animals that roam the streets of Johannesburg.
(No, they don't really roam the streets, but some people still believe they DO!)



The yarn was so beautiful, I decided that it had to make something very special that I would keep forever. Not a hat or a bag or anything as mundane as that ....

I searched the whole world wide web and finally decided on ... A bolster cushion!! I have never knitted one, or had one, or actually even seen one before, but got to work creating one.

Easy really..... knit a rectangle, sew to make a tube, get husband to roll section of foam from baby matress into stiff sausage (!), stuff ... the tube, tie ends.

Don't you think it looks like a giant sweet? That just makes me love it all the more!!

I can use it behind my lower back, shoulders, neck, head and even prop up my tired ankles. OH!!! I am so in love with it!!





Have a go, you won't be sorry!
And thanks again to Qessentia for dyeing such beautiful yarn - and sending it to me!! Jy is 'n ster!

My next knitting project ....

Each one, teach one

In the spirit of passing on my knitting addiction, I taught DD the basics ... and this is what she created :








Methinks the student will soon become the master ....

I KNITTED A YAK!!

Well, no ... not a real yak ... let me 'splain .......

Firstly, it would be worth your while to note that I am um ... er ... rather rotund (read "really fat") with broad shoulders and an even broader butt.

Anyhoo, a family member (who does actually LIKE me!) sent me some yarn and a pattern to knit for myself ...


The yarn is very soft and huggable, BUT it is that hairy, fun fur and is a bright blue just to make matters worse!

After the coughing/laughing/snorting fit, I showed DD who declared "Mom, you would look like a YETI or a YAK in that thing!" - Hence the blog title!

I felt obliged to knit the yarn up, but opted for a throw/afghan, which Precious the Cat immediately decided was her long-lost mamma cat, snuggled into it and claimed it for herself! At least SHE doesn't look like a yak in it!

And so it continues .....

I can hear you all now ... saying ... "OMG, just what is that Lulu knitting NOW???"







Any guesses???








Well, here are the other constituent parts ...














Aw, a teddy for my other friend "J" - couldn't give "K" the *purse* without giving "J" something too .... She wanted a Mr Bean Teddybear. I thought there would be hundreds, nay ... thousands, of patterns to choose from .... WRONG!! N-O-N-E !! So I designed one from pictures I found on the internet. DH offered to stuff it with foam - no such thing as toy stuffing available here! It grew and grew and grew as DH got more and more enthusiastic with his stuffing (*ahem*). Finally it was the size of a five-year old child. So I had to begin again with a smaller version, which I stuffed with the insides of a pillow that I inherited from the Dubai mega pillow fight (but, that's quite another story!!)





A bit more realistic, I think ...

NSFW .... A-G-A-I-N !!

...Or, How the Penis Purse became the Penis Picnic Pack ...

You all remember the Penis Purse, don't you?


W..e..l..l, SOMEBODY'S husband was mightily upset when he saw HIS WIFE knitting it - saying "People will think you modelled that midget thing on me!! OMG"








So SOMEBODY'S WIFE said "Give me the measurements YOU think it should be"
And it turned out like this :
(I am not going to take the bait and say anything about there being place for some liquid refreshment and a bag for your nuts)














As compared to the Penis Purse!




All SOMEBODY'S WIFE can say is : Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha*cough*hahahahahahahahahahahahahahah
*wishful thinking*
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!

If Thickness was a Sickness - we'd all be dead!

My very sweet knitting pal, Maryannlucy ... you remember her from previous posts, don't you? ... sent me a fab parcel the other day. And inside was a fab, fab, fab bag knitted by her very own self and felted especially for me ('cause I'm "felting-challenged", you know).
This is the bag ...

You will notice that the straps are not quite equal length ...

"Shame" said DH, "maybe she is old and did not notice they were so different" - "She's young and a very talented knitter", I SNORTED!!!

"Shame" said DD, "maybe she ran out of yarn" - "No way, MAL is a perfectionist, she made it like this ON PURPOSE", I INSISTED!!!

Maybe the long strap goes over the shoulder and the short one around your wrist ... well, only if you are a pretzel!

I KNEW THERE WAS A REASON ... I JUST HAD TO FIND OUT WHAT IT WAS ......

"Tummm da rumm dumm" *Cue the best Sherlock Holmes detective-type music

I pulled and poked and pushed ....



Nope,that's not right .....

Nor is that .....

And THEN I found it - the secret tuck .... OMG, is this not the most wonderful, clever, exceptional, unique and just plain fab bag you have ever seen?????I love it I love it I love it I love it I love it I love MARYANNLUCY.

Oh, yes .... did I tell you it is knitted in NORO!

I swear, if she wasn't already married, I would propose to her!!

Blocked - AGAIN

... also known as : You've got something stuck up your butt - oh,it's your head!

Well, they have done it again - these CLEVER clots who control everything we see and do here -
Ravelry is banned again ... it is listed as a "social site" which, of course, means everyone who logs into it is looking for depraved, degrading, disgusting, amoral, immoral kicks!
... Mind you ... there is the beanis pattern ...

*Sigh*

So, until they come to their stupid senses, this blog is my only way of communicating with the outside world ...

All the way from the Arctic ...

Months after it was posted, I finally received a lovely swap parcel from Megera who lives in northern Canada ... this girl sent me PHOTOS of the Northern Lights over her house !! Just how COOL is that??????

Anyway, Precious and I ripped into the parcel and out popped some gorgeous handspun yarn ... a red, then a blue, then a green ... then more yarn - fabulous variegated yarn (I knitted it, that same night, into some slipper socks) ... then more yarn - *faint* sock yarn : 2 balls of grey and 2 balls of denim blue, so soft and squishable ...

And, in between these treasures was a stunning stained glass ornament of the Northern Lights - hung in a window, it is just breathtaking! And a real eskimo mug which is perched on top of the tv so I can admire it constantly. Then there was a packet of teas - such unusual flavours (including Labrador!!) - they have made my whole house smell divine!

Ah, I can just hear you all saying - "what a wonderful package" .... but wait, wait, there's MORE!!

Vogue Knitting Magazine *gasp* and .... Interweave Knits *omg* The issue with the pattern for THE mittens!

Thank you so very much Megera, it was a looong wait, but so very worth it!

Definitely NOT SAFE FOR WORK OR KIDS ....

May I present to you ..... a gift made for my friend "K"
(because I can SO see her whipping it out to pay for something at the store)

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NOT SAFE FOR WORK !

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Gives new meaning to "Shake your money-maker"

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Ladies and gentlemen .... the Penis Purse ! Complete with coin "sack" and note roll
And, btw, the more money you've got, the stiffer it gets!

And now for something completely different ....

And ... OH SO APPETISING ...

Been busy ....

A month ?!?!? Has it really been A MONTH since I last posted ...omg, time sure flies when you're having fun!!

I have been having me some fun - with my knitting. I hauled out all the UFO's that have been mocking me for months ... some were frogged with glee, some were neatly repacked back in the cupboard and some were actuallllly turned into FO's!! Have a peek at these :

DD's new "butterfly" jersey - I love this colour on her, and it goes with lots of other colours.















The yarn I bought in Italy recently is slowly becoming a shrug/shawl/jersey - based on Knitty's Convertible, but, as usual, with loads of my own modifications.















At the moment it looks kinda like a crazy coloured butterfly ....

THE most deeevine Christmas stocking EVER!

Once again http://maryannlucy.blogspot.com/outdid herself with her Christmas parcel to me ...Don'cha wish your knit-pal was SPECIAL like mine? Don'cha?


PS : Sorry this pic is so late ... I had to search all over the computer for it ... Guess in which directory DH saved the photo ...
Christmas? No!
Daughter? No!
Knitting? No!
Abu Dhabi Scenic Places? Yes, of course!!
Men!! You just gotta love them!

Still hanging onto Harry

We received some blue and some silver yarn in our Harry Potter Swap (DD is a Ravenclaw after all!) I wanted to knit her something kinda magical/not-run-of-the-mill, but because (a) there was only one ball of each colour and (b) it is really thick yarn and we live in a desert ... it was difficult to imagine what to do.
But, viola, inspiration hit and this is what it said : Knit a star, knit a cushion ... wait, knit a star cushion!!


















I wanted it to be flat, not stuffed with lumpy stuffing (if you get what I mean ....) So I bought a crib matress and cut it to fit. I edged it with black sparkly thread crocheted all around (well, it IS a star, it has GOT to have a bit of sparkle!)
Of course, madam Princess had to inspect it first, but luckily she approved.
It really turned out well, DD sits on it, lies on it, props it behind her back, cuddles with it, uses it as a bed accessory, and just basically lurves it!

Pixieriot also sent us the Charmed Knits book and the embroidery yarn recommended by them to knit a bookmark ... so I knitted it too ...



Let it be noted here and now that this is the VERY very very first time I have actually knitted a pattern EXACTLY as written and with EXACTLY the recommended yarn!!
(Big step for me!!) ... For goodness sake, I even cut the bloody fringes EXACTLY the length the book said!

Knitting for others (Part 3)

Less religious than me, you cannot get
And MORE religious than my sister, you cannot get
Explain THAT if you can!

Sis loves anything with a religious overtone, so, based on the prayer-afghan which I saw on this blog : http://hissyknit.blogspot.com/

We have the prayer bookmark ....

Knitting for others (Part 2)

Ah, baby knitting is so much fun ... but, unfortunately, I don't have any babies to knit for ... or I DIDN'T! Now I am knitting for premature and stillborn babies in hospital (organised by a Knitty Knitter : http://christophersdonations.blogspot.com/ )

It's like doll knitting - but I guess, they ARE little dolls, aren't they? Bless them!

Knitting for others (Part 1)

I love knitting (in case you didn't know!) but I don't really love wearing stuff that I have knitted for myself ... don't know why, but I seldom knit for myself. So, with that in mind, and now that DD can knit for herself, I am on a charity knitting binge. My first efforts were for injured soldiers in hospitals in America (requested by a fellow Ravelry knitter : http://knitplaywithfire.wordpress.com/small-comforts/ )

I don't have much yarn in my stash and there is none available here in the UAE, but I used what I had and these are what I managed to create :


















Unfortunately, weeks after being posted, the package was returned to me - in a "slightly dishevelled" state .... note to self : Don't post parcels over Christmas, unless they are FOR Christmas! So, I shall re-post it (and re-pay the Dh150 ... aka 285 Rands ... aka 40Dollars!!) ~Sigh~ Well, I hope when it finally gets there, they like them and can use them!

My Big Fat Greek Socks

So ... yeah ... DD went on her very first "alone" trip - no Mommy and Daddy (although, Grandad and Grandma were with her). And the place they chose to visit - the Greek Islands ... well, nobody said DD had cheap tastes!!

I wanted a small part of me to be with her, so I secretly knitted her some socks with the Greek flag on them. She got to unwrap them on the plane en route to Athens. I am so glad I did them because apparently she was a bit homesick (missing Momma) the first couple of days and hugging and snuggling the socks helped!! Awwww!

Some UFO's came to settle in my home ....

Sometimes, when I read through my blog, I wonder to myself ... do you ACTUALLY do any knitting? Or do you just waffle all day? Well, Yes, I do occasionally knit - mostly then frog, then knit again, then frog again ... now you understand why there are so few FO pics!! But every now and then I do finish something ... Like this :

A friend sent me some Sari yarn to try - it was a small ball and therefore, it became this .... A sweater for my cellphone!! (Which often complains of the cold!)















But, I just gotta say, although it is pretty yarn, it is a f**king bugger to knit with : it is lumpy and bumpy and twists and coils around itself -





In other words, it is just plain crappy!






But at least my little cellphone is as snug as a .... well, as a cellphone in a sweater!