casapinka

Riabh

A new baby blanket design called Riabh. The name came from my weekend experience where crocheting this really calmed my nerves as my normally heterosexual kitten (no judgement here) started yowling and hitting on our 8 year old cat. Poor thing, you can see her look at us as if to say, "Did you really have to get a lesbian kitten? Is Junior not enough for me to endure?"

We were waiting another month to spay her (mistake), preferring to travel to Lapland and all over creation first. Anyway,  It's a "striped"  blanket and a tabby cat is "striped" and the Irish for tabby cat is "Cat Riabhach." So, it's called Riabh.

Unintentionally,  it's a rainbow sorts. I should have named it the Gay Cat Pride Baby Blanket. That would have been a great marketing tool. Find it on Ravelry here.

Rainbow Yarn

 

(Houston, we have a problem.)

 Honey, how should I know? Maybe one of those altruistic-type thieves broke in and left them in exchange for your Monty Python video set.

 

Need Test Knitters!

Anyone want to test knit a baby cardigan? It's done in DK or sport weight on a US size 4 needle. It's made to go with a little dress that is being tested right now. Please email me if you'd like to give it a go. It's made from the top down and is seamless. I'll also send you the matching dress pattern when it's ready to go. 

Ikea Krokig Clothes Hanger

I have to say that I'm very happy with our new coat rack. I looked around for a long time. It needed a number of hooks and had to be very strong, as I knew Junior would try and horshoe toss his backpack onto it when I wasn't looking. . Also, it couldn't be too or the  kids couldn't reach it. Now, coats and backpacks have a single place. Of course, it belongs in the currently very dark entry way, not the living room where it's pictured.  Oh, and the design is great. Assembly, which is intuitive and fun (you can choose the order of hook sizes and colors) really makes one appreciate good design. The base is heavy and it doesn't wobble at all. Kudos to designers A Huldén/S Dahlman for this, probably the best $20 Ikea purchase I've made!

Pink Kitchen

I wasn't planning on painting my kitchen doors pink, it just happened. My goal was to get the kitchen white so I could start from scratch and brighten it up. The door to the left is to the pantry. Yes, we actually have a little room for a pantry! Living in an old caretaker's cottage means lots of interesting nooks and crannies that have been turned into useful spaces. The door on the right goes into the living room. The paint is Valspar Pink Flutter from Lowes.

Always good to show as ugly of a "before picture" as possible. The walls were creamy/yellowish/something. 

And the table got a coat of paint as well. I haven't gotten to the benches yet, most likely because we eventually want chairs. White benches and kids don't really go together so well.  The fabric for the blind is different to what I'd normally choose, with its gray background but I really like it. I have a yard of it draped over the window, just to test drive it. Husband really likes it but more on that another day.

Everyone is gravitating to the brighter space. It looks so much bigger than it did. The cabinets are still a darkish wood which will have to wait a month or two to be changed. Here, I prime the table as Mark primes the walls. 

This is a good representation of the original kitchen color, without touchups. The yellow-y wasn't pretty.It wasn't cream, wasn't yellow, nor linen, nor even beige. I didn't know what it was and it didn't, either! With minimal light coming in, save for late afternoon, all I knew was that I wanted it gone and now it is. Of course, the harsh overhead lighting doesn't help, but one thing at a time.  

Simple Shawl Pattern

I've just published a new shawl pattern, simple but very soothing to do. You can find it on Etsy here or Ravelry here. I always encourage people to use Ravelry because patterns are automatically stored as PDFs in your library. I used Tosh Merino Light in Mourning Dove but it would be gorgeous in most fingering weight yarns. I've listed a number of them at the Ravelry site, including those available in Europe, Australia, and of course New Zealand, where I lived for a year (and very dear to me.)

Now, if you'll excuse me I have some painting to do in the kitchen while Husband is on call. Thirty-six hours to complete some walls and a table, mostly done by my friend, Mark. It'll be done in stages but I predict Husband won't even notice until the cabinets are - blasphemy! - painted. Currently there are cream/yellow walls, brown wooden cabinets, ugly curtains and white doors. Feel free to predict or make suggestions!

Snowy Dawn

This was Casapinka at dawn this morning, taken from our bedroom window. You can see that it's still snowing. A perfect day to knit and drink tea while writing up knitting patterns and making sketches of new designs. It probably ruins the image but I was awake at dawn because Jun'ette was sick and ended up making it to the door of their bedroom - right where Junior's Beyblades were laying in wait. To say that Junior was "pissed off" is to massively understate his ire. Having his sister touch is Beys is criminal, never mind throwing up on them. 

Pink Noro Taiyo

I went with a friend to buy her first yarn! I taught her to knit about a month ago and she's been practicing on some yarn out of my stash. She was ready to take her first steps on her own, though, and this is what she selected. It's Noro Taiyo, a bit hard for a beginner due to the "thick and thin" nature of the yarn and the stubborness of the silk but so worth the effort. I made a simple cowl pattern for her, cast her on and away she went.

Cath Kidston Draft Excluder

While in Ireland my SIL, Niamh, gave me some pretty Cath Kidston fabric. We've had a terribly cold draft in the kitchen which has made the entire downstairs at Casapinka rather like Lapland! Hmmmm...the simplest fixes are often the best. Cue the very Irish "Draught Excluder." I stuffed it with popcorn kernels and voila, no more draught! I photographed it on the window sill in the Knitting room and luckily I made two because Juniorette snapped one up for her windowsill which doesn't have a draught at all.

I think all the windowsills in Casapinka will become hypochondriacs just so they can have one of these. It's funny how a couple of button eyes and an embroidered mouth can make some fabric into a pet. Very simple and speedy and our kitchen is now toasty despite not having my coveted Aga!

Pink Dish Drainer

Do I paint my kitchen white and pink? Pink and white? White walls with pink cabinets? Pink cabinets with white walls? And what about the "Tuscan backsplash" (please give me anti-nausea medicine, quick.) It's new, it's perfect. It's tuscan colored as only something outside of Tuscany can be. Can I get some epoxy paint over it quick so Husband won't even notice? And the five doors - what about them? Surely there should be some happy yellow stripes in there, somewhere. I'm out of breath now...maybe a pink dish drainer from Rice will do until I can figure it all out.