A quick update....

Socks-2!

Pattern: Simple sock in three sizes (Cat Bordhi-Socks soar on two circular needles)

Yarn: Knit Picks Dancing (41% cotton 39% wool 13% nylon 7% elatic)

Amount: approx 310 yds

Needle size: 2 mm & 3 mm (casting on and off)

The pattern is highly recommended for beginners, concise and easily understood with helpful tips and tricks not provided in most sock patterns.

Clapotis is waiting for more yarn to arrive from Knit Picks.

And yes ladies, I hear you, as soon as Fushia Gable is laundered I will model it for posting here. You know, I wore it on my ill-fated trip and it was very nearly left behind at the hotel. (shudders!!!)

The End?

Thank you, to those who knew I was in Bangkok for a project meeting, for your SMSes and concern. I managed to find a taxi to the airport and caught the earliest flight out with help from the friend of a friend who did the flight changes after being woken up with frantic phone calls from another friend of a friend (I guess).

I pray this is indeed the ending to the drama I last blogged about. What else can beat walking right into a military coup two hours I landed, checked into the hotel and went out for a late dinner?
BBC World and CNN were reporting about tanks and a coup right in the area near my hotel when the reception to BBC was suddenly cut off while CNN came back intermittenly. All the local stations were playing patriotic music videos. No news is really bad news in such a situation, especially when the phone calls started coming from family, friends and woken up bosses. There was talk of a curfew and it did occur to me I'd have to find my way to the airport immediately if I want to get out quick. But there was no way of knowing if the streets were safe or if a taxi is available at that time.
After much deliberation, the hotel seems safer and since there was nothing I could do till the morning I tried to get some sleep in between taking peeks out of the window to see if there were vehicles on the road as that would mean there's no curfew enforced.
Surprisingly I was quite calm, largely due to the behaviour of the hotel staff who went about in their usual friendly and helpful manner. Infact I noticed the same calmess throughout the next day, at breakfast, the driver and airport staff. Every Thai exudes an understanding and reassuring attitude towards us even when the hotel lobby was choc-a-bloc with guests trying to find taxis and dealing with the crowd at the airport.

So that was that! In and out of Bangkok within 24 hours, nothing accomplished but an experience to remember. In retrospect, it would have been safe for me to stay on, but then the worst could also happen. Meetings can be resheduled.

I managed to finish the first repeat of Hanging Garden on the flight and much as I tried to knit while waiting for the TV channels to come back, I couldn't concentrate.

I'm enjoying knitting this pattern much much more than the Feather and Fan stole I had frogged to cast on this.

Annie and Doreen , sorry, no ball winders but I did find these mother-of-pearl buttons at the airport. Probably paid too much for them but how could I leave without buying anything knitting related? I had planned to look for hand crafted baskets for my WIPs too. Oh well!

I fell asleep on the couch right after I reached home yesterday and just can't bring myself to get up to get into the office this morning so have decided to take the day off to catch up on the knitting I missed out!

Drama after drama

Ever had one of those weeks where everything seems to happen at the same time and left you wondering what's next? My dramas started on Tuesday and went right through the week.

I found out I've got to have at least 2 more hanks for Clapotis and was to-ing and fro-ing with the ladies at Knitpicks to try and rush the additions into the first order made on Monday. Too late, but they've got the same lot, despatched off immediately and were super friendly and helpful.

The next few days were hectic but so far so good till Friday, the major drama, when I realised I couldn't make it out of the country for a business trip on Sunday. Which explains why I'm here blogging instead of somewhere else!.

We went for this on Saturday:

It's a one man show and if you haven't heard the Gospel of St Luke, King James version, told word for word and yet so comprehensible, don't miss this if it ever comes to your neck of the woods. Like Bruce Kuhn the actor said "it's great to have so many of you pay big bucks to come listen to a gospel story!".

The matinee audience was provided with a pre-show drama by me missing what I insisted was a mysterious step, falling with a thud on the theatre aisle and landing on my knee! Walking is a pain since then.

My trip is on and the flight is tomorrow. Negotiating airport steps will be an agony though. My ankle has had all the treatments I can think of. Chinese massage with kung-fu oil, infra light 2x a day, ankle guard to take off some pressure, socks to keep warm at night and prayers for a miracle.

In the meantime I've casted on a Rowanspun 4 ply jumper for DH that will give me hours of mindless stockinette knitting and Sivia Harding's Hanging Garden to knit when I have some quiet time the next few days. Doesn't look like I will be doing much shopping on this trip anyway!

And by the way, the pictures of both the jumper and stole refused to upload, so I guess that's the cue for me to say bye2 and wish all of you and especially myself, a safe and fruitful week ahead.

Dropping stitches is fun

Oooh! the joys of un-knitting.It's great, this deliberate dropping of stitches in Clapotis . I find myself rushing with the knitting and anticipating gleefully the rows where the drops are made. Is this a manifestation of the destructive trait that some say are inherent in us?

There's so much written about this pattern so I'm not going to say very much except I'm really amazed at how the designer came up with such a unique knit . It's knitted with Knitpicks Twist in Moonlight.

Fushia Gable (office casual 3) went to the office today and that is why it's looking rather tired and slightly creased at the bottom. It's been a quick and easy knit and for a first try at top-down knitting, I'd recommend it.

Pattern : Green Gable

Yarn : Bendigo, Harmony ROSE, 8 ply,30% wool 69.6% cotton 4% Lycra

Amount used : approx 700 yds

Needles : 4 mm & 3 mm

Mods : Sleeves, body and ribbing were lengthened. Instructions for size 40" followed to achieve chest size 36/38 with DK yarn gauge.

Will knit the pattern again but in a smoother and softer yarn. The lycra content gives this a nice stretch however, the yarn is better suited for a 'rugged' look.

DPNs, 2 Circs and Magic Loop

Sometimes, the best of plans just don't seem to work the way we want them to! My first pair was knitted with DPNs and this one on 2 circulars while the next pair with magic loop. Then I'd move on to toe-up and other fancy patterns and techniques.

Call them what you will, porcupines, barbecue sticks etc but I miss my DPNs!!! The resting cirular and its dangling needles irritated me so much, I left the gusset and went surfing for magic loop instructions. I switched and am happy I did! How is it that I think 5 dpns look so neat while a 2nd circular drives me up the wall beats me too!

I've been busy knitting, moving from one WIP to the other but with no FO to take pictures of with our new camera. It's got all these cool features, especially the Indoor function that I'm dying to try out, so let me introduce you to my duck collection.

mmmm mm

They're bought during my travels and some are gifts from friends and family. There's duckie pictures on my wall too, but I'll have to take each one separately to show them off properly. Showing them all would make this blog entry crawl I'm afraid.

Happy knitting in the week ahead everyone!