Avast, mateys!

Yesterday be "International Talk Like A Pirate Day"!

And since I, Cap'n Bellyache, be too lazy to have updated this here blog yesterday, I be updatin' ye all now. It must still be International Talk Like A Pirate Day somewhere in the world!

Yer ol' Cap'n had to work yesterday, manning the mizzenmast and scrubbin' the poop deck (when ye be workin' with the little bilge rats as I be, ye all have ter muck in and help!), and so I brought me own brand o' pirattitude to the classroom, dressed in my approximation of piratical finery: three-quarter pants and dunlop volleys (for when I be scrubbin' the deck), a striped blue (maternity!) shirt and a red bandanna. The young lads and lasses aboard the ship didn't know what was goin' on!

Me own little buccaneer got in on the pirate act, too. Me First Mate dressed him him in his big boy 'Pirate Jammies':Now all I be sayin' is, roll on September 19, 2009 so we can be settin' sail for the next Talk Like A Pirate adventure! Weigh anchor, ye scurrrrvvy swabs!


Yaaaarrgh!

Roll up, roll up! Free gifts for... three!

Here it is again, ladies and gents! This is the part where I spruik for a "Pay It Forward" recipient... I mentioned this a couple of posts ago, and quoted from Andrea of Runcible Spoon, who is getting ready to send me a handmade gift that I feel I have done nothing to deserve... until NOW.

"The Pay It Forward Exchange is based of the concept of the movie Pay it Forward where acts or deeds of kindness are done without expecting something in return, just passing it on, with hope that the recipients of the acts of kindness are passed on.

So here's how it works. I will make and send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment to this post on my blog requesting to join this PIF exchange. I do not know what that gift will be yet, and it won't be sent this month, probably not next month, but it will be sent (within 6 months) and that's a promise! What YOU have to do in return, then, is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog. I will now Pay It Forward to you THREE, I wonder who you will be?! Please, be a PIF. You will enjoy it just as much as we do! And, remember— you have 6 months to get your gifts done!"

Just leave your details in the comments, and as said above, I will make a handmade knitted gift for the first three people that do so. And to deserve your lovely gift? Just 'Pay It Forward' to more wonderful knitters.

It's just that easy!

Tell us something we don't know!

This little article was snuck into the social pages of yesterday's Sun-Herald newspaper, describing trends and buys that are becoming more popular or less popular right now... I don't really think any more need be said, except for 'duh'!Although, "it's cheap"? Clearly they're not taking the whole 'stashing' exercise into account, are they?
I've found a good use for wine glasses whilst pregnant... the first baby hat is complete!

Is it weird though, that I'm unusually proud of the first lot of I-cord I've ever attempted? Does it ever stop being entertaining, knitting and re-knitting the stitches where they feel like it's supposed to be flat, and yet... a little wee tube!I love it.

Babies, babies everywhere!

August has truly been a fertile month. I know of at least four friends and family members who have popped in August or are well due to pop late August (ie. now!).

So at the moment, I've put aside my Noro lace scarf (which is probably the best option for me at the moment - I can't knit more than three rows without screwing up! I'd like to blame pregnancy hormones for my total lack of ability to count, but I know it's because I still try to watch DVD episodes of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' while knitting...

I have taken up one of two wee hats that I really should have got started, like, the day I found out these two little darlings joined the world, but I was more than a little waylaid with my scarf. And then there's a little face washer for each in the queue. Here's the first hat, nearly there. I hopefully should have it done by tomorrow afternoon, especially since we're off to Sydney. I do all my best (by my best I mean my most productive, of course!) knitting as a passenger on long car trips.The yarn is Shepherd 'Colour 4 Me' 8 ply. I don't think it has a colourway, per se, but it doesn't have a bunch of numbers that are probably irrelevant to most people. I bought it under consultation from WonderBoy, at Lincraft... he's pretty good with colours. Loves purple, for some reason.

Still, it'll be good to get going of some baby stuff for my Little One!

I do love knitting and using face washers. I find that they're the softest to use on delicate skin, even more so after each wash and trip through the dryer. I use the patterns that most people knit to use as dishcloths, but... I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I just can't bear to use these lovely handknits to scrub dishes and wipe the benches with!

Which is why I've recently spent a heap of expanding my face washer yarn stash (Peaches n' Creme) at The Wool Shack, in Perth. They are a great bunch of people to buy from; exceedingly helpful and friendly - they called me once after I'd ordered a heap of Peaches n' Creme, to apologise that they had run out of one of the colours I'd asked for and to ask which I'd like instead. Such lovely, personal service! Sadly, however, they are now unable to stock Peaches n' Creme because the freight costs are just too expensive. I sympathise with them - I tried to order from their American website and found that the cost of the yarn was fantastic, even with the exchange rate, but the cost of the shipping was about three times the cost of the yarn itself. Boo. :(

I just wish I knew of a similar worsted weight cotton yarn for face washers and dishcloths available in Australia. Any ideas?