Not a Cat Person

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I haven't laughed this much in a while!

What's going on at my house....

I always find the insanity of the Christmas season a little bit overwhelming. I have 22 patients that I am responsible for planning Christmas for, making November and December the busiest months at work, I have a whole lot of friends to catch up with, and I never have any idea what to get my parents for Christmas...... All of this combined turns me into a bit of a bah humbug.
Hence, not much posting lately.
I don't want to complain about having so many friends, or being able to spend time with my family, or having a job where I can bring a bit of joy to people....... but there just isn't enough time in a day!

Anyway- I finished all the skull hats, and they were a big hit! At first mom thought they were all for the baby as she got bigger, but caught on by the end of the day. We're getting together today, so hopefully I can get a picture of them on the intended wearers.




We also had a bit of a swatch-a-pa-looza here. I wanted to start on the blissful jacket. I tried 3 different sizes of needles. I got the stitch gauge pretty close, but my rows are way off. How can I get my stitches right, but have really short rows?

The pink is the yarn I bought to make the Donna sweater, but I don't think the wool is soft enough for me to wear snug to my skin. So I am envisioning a fitted vest with a cable down the front and a hood....... perhaps my first design?

So I did start the back of the Blissful jacket. I guess I'll just keep measuring as I go along and add length if I need it. I keep forgetting that it's in reverse stocking stitch, so I had taken a bunch of shots of the inside of it before I finally got it right. Not very exciting to look at yet!



I also bought a copy of Jess Hutchison's Book of knitted toys. They are totally different than most toys you see. My brother saw the robots on line and sent a link to me, so I'm sure he'll get one in his stocking this year..... Hopefully I can knit some up quick for all the little ones I hang around with. I can't believe it's only 5 weeks until Christmas!

I love Happy Bunny

What "Happy Bunny" phrase are you? you suck and that's sad You are a very compassionate and sympathetic person. You use your divine sense of humor to cheer up a situation.

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Knitting with Boobs

or for boobs... well you know what I mean.

I have big boobs, I always have.
I remember being told by a teacher in grade 6 that if I didn't wear a bra, he was going to have to send me home.
For years I wore big, baggy men's shirts with leggings to try and cover them up...

But enough with my issues, lets get on with the info.

Since I took up my knitting needles again, I have had success with making sweaters that fit. Besides my issues with gauge (that's a whole other story), I'm guessing it has something to do with the shape of my body vs. the shape of the sweater, in other words, FIT.

To understand fit, you might want to start with Jenna Wilson's article in knitty. She even mentions the bust issue:

"If you are choosing a size to fit a bra cup measurement that is deeper than a B-cup size, don't be tempted to add extra ease, or choose a larger size, simply to accommodate the bust. If you need extra fabric to cover the bust, chances are what you need is length, not extra width. That extra length is often best added by incorporating short rows, where possible, to the front of the garment."


The whole concept of short rows is still beyond me, I think it's something I'll have to try a few gazillion times before I get it.

But I took a pattern drafting class at the Naked Sheep, with Kate Atherley, and this was her solution.

I call it the "Boob Band"


Our breasts aren't sticks, so we need to add a bit of space for them. Start with the sweater size that fits the rest of you best, then make adjustments to make some room for your bust (make sure you measure yourself properly- wear your good "perky bra"). Start increasing from your natural waist, to the BOTTOM of your bust line. Then you knit straight for awhile. This will create sort of a band around them, giving them lots of room without distorting the rest of the garment. Make sure the ease is the same all the way through, don't just knit to your exact bust size! Then you'’ll need to add extra decreases in the shoulder shaping to get to the correct shoulder width. I tried to draw a picture to help.....





From what I've read, using short row shaping will give you an even better fit. My next project will definitely be one that specifically uses the shaping for larger busts, so that I can try to understand the concept.
I can't do anything without researching it to death.... so I'll share some of my findings:
A really good description on knitty
the Miracle of Short Rows- Another good description

Some Patterns:
Donna this one will be my next project
Shapely Tank this is the one she talks about in the knitty article

And a calculator to figure it all out.... wow!

If you come across any other good articles or ideas, please let me know, because I swear, I will never knit an ill fitting sweater again! (said with my hand over my brow, in an accent a la Scarlett O'Hara)

Surgery has it's Benefits....

Thanks for all the get well wishes! I'm starting to feel much better.
I think I caught a cold too, which probably doesn't help. Can I tell you how annoying it is to have a really runny nose, and not be able to blow it or even use a decongestant? Not so fun!



After the 48 hours of continuous sleeping ended, I am able to spend most of the day awake, but still feel a little woozy if I stand for too long, so what's a girl to do? Sit on the couch, watch movies, and knit, of course! I have managed to finish two of the hats for the upcoming shower gift (I want to knit matching skull hats for mom, dad, and baby, did I mention that?), and I've started on the baby one. I used the London Beanie pattern for the hat, and the skull pattern from here. The hats were knit in the round, so I did the skulls in duplicate stitch. It took me a few tries to get the hang of it, but I'm really liking it now.

I also realized I never showed you my finished Booga Bag- here it is. I love it! I use it all the time, so it's starting to get a little fuzzy. It's keeping it's shape, which is impressive, considering all the crap I carry around in my purse.....





This afternoon I plan on testing out the new tear duct by watching Hotel Rwanda.

DACRYOCYSTORHINOSTOMY Part 2

Operation is over..... from now on my tear duct will no longer be blocked (or so they say). I'm tired, and feel like I've caught a nasty cold (which really sucks because I'm not allowed to blow my nose!), but other than that, I'm ok.

Tracey sent me flowers. I LOVE getting flowers! Thanks Tracey.


And I have a whole week off of work, and all this knitting to do. And apparently some tidying up to do....


And for those who are not weak in the stomach, and have that train wreck kind of curiosity.....

Not too bad, considering it was only yesterday.