These Boots Are Made For Walking

Ummm…I succumbed to the current fashion. How non-damselfly-like of me, huh? I got a pair of pirate boots…er, knee boots. These ones:

They’re Blondo Marias and way more feminine than my usual footwear. They are also waterproof and have velvet lining in the front for warmth. I blame it all on T-Man. He took me to the mall so we could go see the “RED” movie with Bruce Willis et al. We were early. We walked around the mall. I tried these on. They stuck to my feet and wouldn’t let me go until I paid for them. Not cheap so I hope they last longer than the fad itself. At least my legs will be warm and dry this winter! A reward for finally having clear skin.

Oh. The movie was great too. Lots of bullets but also great characters and an actual plot that one could follow. Helen Mirren with a submachine gun. ’Nuff said. We had popcorn for dinner.

One more FO for you:

Alien’s Frogimono

For: my impending granddaughter

Begun: Sometime in late September, 2010 (forgot to note!)

Completed: October 9, 2010

Yarn: SRK On Your Toes Limited Edition 4-ply sock yarn with aloe vera, 75% superwash wool/25% nylon, colour 3821, dyelot 2274, 100g = 360m. 1 ball. Small amount of hand-dyed Sisu needed to finish neckline.

Needles: Addi Lace circulars, 3 mm

Pattern: Garter Stitch Baby Kimono by Joji Locatelli (free Ravelry download). Size: 1-3 months.

Comments: I chose the second size because I want her to be able to wear this sweater all this winter. I nearly finished it with one ball but ran out just at the end of the second sleeve. I did buy a ball of purple yarn in Jo-Ann’s in Lincoln City, OR thinking to finish with that while we were on vacation but it didn’t look as well as I’d hoped. Luckily I have lots of sock yarn scraps in my stash so this one in aqua-greens coordinated quite well. However I did get the cute buttons at that store so all was not in vain.

This pattern is quite easy to knit though it’s a little confusing to be working the sleeves flat with the seam on the top rather than under the arm. The mattress stitching of the garter edges went quite well – once I got the hang of choosing a top loop on one side and a bottom loop on the other and keeping consistent. It’s nearly invisible when blocked (although one of the stripes doesn’t quite match up properly, but who’s going to notice?). I crocheted the ties with doubled yarn and they ended up kind of curly. A bit fiddly to tie but hopefully it’ll give her a little extra growing room.

I’m nearly finished another baby sweater, this time for my new grand-niece. (Her parents read this blog and they know I’m making it but haven’t seen it yet.) She’s too teensy for it anyway! She will grow into it quickly though, I’m sure. Coming soon.

It ended up being quite sunny yesterday and I managed to finish clearing the pots off the deck and putting them into the greenhouse for the winter. I also cleared out some of the plants in the dye garden, added lime (because most of the dye plants like it) and planted fall rye where the coreopsis was. No need to leave bare dirt over the winter to wash away in the rain. I’ll probably pull out most of the woad too as soon as I harvest the last of it for one more try at blue. I think the weather is supposed to be ok tomorrow so maybe I’ll do it then. I’d like to take it just to extraction and then try to save the indigo as sludge or dry it all the way to powder. I’ll see how that goes. I just don’t have anything that I want to dye right this minute.