greenolive

12 step programs...

Day 13 through 15 of my holidays

Do you think they have 12 step programs for wool addicts?

After spending the better part of the last three days, Day 13, 14 and 15 of my holidays, sorting and cataloguing my wool stash, I now acknowledge I have a problem.

Hi, my name is Martine and I'm a wool addict...

Just so you know I'm not exaggerating, I have 619 different types of wool/yarn. I haven't even added up the total of balls or skeins, its too scary. If I hazard a guess its probably around 3,000 to 4,000. Some wools I only have one ball, others I have upwards of 10 balls.

There's an old adage in management, you can't manage what you don't measure, or words to that effect. So, now I've measured and counted, I hope I'll be able to manage it.

I promised Mr greenolive that there will be NO MORE wool in 2008. Even if it's some fabulous silk yarn for $2 a ball!

I don't think I'll ever get through this wool, even if I knit for 1 hour every day for the rest of my life!

And, I haven't even started on sorting the fabric stash yet...

To swatch or not to swatch?

The tale of an impatient knitter

To swatch or not to swatch? That is the question.

In my case the answer is more often than not, NOT. Which is probably a big mistake given I rarely use the yarn specified in the pattern. Something to do with the fact that most knitting mags and books are published in the northern hemisphere and I live in the southern hemisphere. And yarn shops down under only stock a limited number of northern hemisphere yarns. Oh, the fact that I'm an impatient knitter (blame it on being Taurean!) probably has something to do with it. Once I have the yarn, pattern and time to knit I can't be bothered wasting it doing a swatch to check my tension. However, after too many too big/long/wide projects I might be learning an important lesson: Do a swatch to check the gauge.

There was Mr greenolive's Jo Sharp jumper of 2001/2002. It's now been unravelled and awaiting a second attempt. On closer inspection of the photo I can now see the jumper was big anyway...

There was Rose's Wrap, with attempt number one ending up over two metres long. Attempt two was much better...

So, in the desire not to waste any precious knitting time, I've decided to do a swatch from now on. (Those of you who swatch without fail will be nodding your head in a knowing manner.)

In the last week I've fallen in love with a dusky pink 100% bamboo yarn. And I managed to secure it at a 20% discount. (I know my holiday list said sort the stash, not buy more stash!) I found the perfect pattern, a singlet from Vogue's Simple Knitting, Spring/Summer 2006 issue. It's got a V-neck, ideal for those of us with cleavage, and is fairly fitted, perfect for those of us with a waist.

As the yarn I was using was a bit thicker than the specificed yarn, and I wasn't sure of the sizing, I decided to swatch. The ideal: 5mm needles, 20 stitches, 24 rows. My swatch: 5mm needles, 19.5 stitches, 23 rows. I decided to chance it. Let the knitting commence...

After knitting about 10 rows I measured my width against the pattern's width. Ooops! A bit too wide. Okay, I'll just knit a size smaller, that make's sense doesn't it?

Again, about 15 rows in, I checked the width. Still too wide. Bugger. I decided to check my tension. Instead of the original 19.5 stitches in my swatch, I managed to knit 18 stitches in the garment. Double bugger!

Determined not to be deterred (another Taurean trait) I did another swatch. This time with 4.5mm needles. My tension was almost perfect! Attempt number three commenced...

Bugger! About six rows in, when everything was going swimmingly, I discovered a big and very messy knot about 6/8ths of my way through the row. Maybe I could make it to the end of the row and then rejoin the yarn at the side I thought. No such luck!

So, attempt three abandoned. And I've unravelled all eight balls of yarn looking for knots. About half of the balls had them.

By now my knitting inspiration had worn off. I just hope this dusky pink bamboo yarn doesn't get relegated to the "some day" drawer. I really need a dusky pink singlet to round out my summer wardrobe!

All I want for Christmas is...

well, besides world peace, an end to poverty and to stop global warming I mean!

This...

and a pair of Jackie O inspired sunglasses.

I have been very, very good all year. (First born children always are. It's No 2 and No 3 that are naughty!)

The makeup picture has been stuck on the fridge for the past two weeks. And I've mentioned the sunglasses several times.

Mr greenolive doesn't drive and he doesn't like crowds. So as he can't walk to Chaddy from Mt D, the only way I'll get these is to drive to and queue at Chaddy myself!

Rose's wrap

The history of the handmade

The tale of a blog post, a connection and a wrap knitted from silk.

This blog post led to a connection. She left a comment. It seemed we were in the same boat. And about the same age. I was touched by her Mum's situation. I felt compelled to knit her something. Her Mum and my Grandma have the same name. And both their surnames start with Z.

Finally, after one false start, Rose's Wrap was finished. Made from a silk-blend yarn in rose tones, the yarn seemed perfect for the project.

I posted it over a week ago, and fingers crossed, it might reach the good ol' US of A by Christmas.

I hope Rose likes it. I have visions of her snuggling up in bed or on the couch with the wrap around her shoulders.

I hope she wears it every day, not just keeping it for "good".

Day 7

And I've crossed off step one on my long list of things to do during my 22 days of holidays.

In case you don't click the link, it was: make all Christmas presents.

And at 4pm on Friday, day 7, I finished the last present. A ruffled sundress for my niece Hannah. It was touch and go. I sewed for 7 hours straight (except for toilet breaks) on Friday. I swear I'll never sew something with three gathered tiers on it again!

Anyway, dress finished. Wrapped. And in Express Post bag by 4.30pm on Friday. The nice post office man assures me it will reach its destination by Monday. God I hope so. Otherwise I'm going to look like a pretty crappy Aunty.

I'm sure it will look heaps better with a real-life, wriggling, four-and-a-half year old girl in it!

10018

omigod!

Just in case you don't believe me, and to prove it to myself, this is a screen grab of my blog stats. And if you look closely at the lifetime page views figure, you'll see that it's 10018!

Ten thousand! I've had ten thousand views of my blog. I'm not sure exactly when it clicked over, or who the ten thousandth viewer was, but hey, what a milestone.

The regulars among you will know I like to count and measure things, so you'll smile a knowing smile as you read this. To the rest of you, normal programming will resume now...

Day 6

I'm almost a third of the way through my holidays!

And, I'm still on step one! It is the most important and most labour-intensive of all the steps, so that's probably ok. And I'm almost finished too. Thank goodness!

Yesterday was Thursday and Melbourne was hit by a ring of severe thunderstorms. I was unlucky enough to be caught in them, but lucky enough to get home safely with out any damage to me or Jazzy-Jazz (the new-ish Honda Jazz).

View from the deck, looking west, towards Melbourne as the storm approaches. Photo taken by Mr greenolive as he worries about wife driving around down there somewhere and not answering her mobile phone!

I managed to navigate the 14 flooded-road-crossings and four major-intersctions-without-traffic-lights without out incident. And I'm not talking country lanes either, rather major roads with three lanes flooded where cars had to merge into the least flooded lane and crawl through. I saw quite a few stalled cars and thanked my lucky stars I didn't end up like that! As I said I got home safely, but only after a white-knuckled drive and several episodes of talking to myself to keep calm and focused.

The road outside our house turned into a river of dirt and debris. Can I just say that this is a mere puddle compared to my flooded road crossings!

Today, Friday, they forecast even worse thunderstorms. Both Mr greenolive and I thought it very sensible to postpone my planned Christmas shopping trip to the city because we didn't want a repeat of yesterday's drive home. Plus the thunder hit several train signal boxes and the heavy rain flooded the tracks in several places yesterday. My train line, the Belgrave line, was affected yesterday, and commuters were stranded for several hours. So my plan B in terms of transport is not really looking great either. I'm just going to have to deal with the hordes of shoppers on Saturday. The lesser of the two evils I suppose.

This is a very long-winded way of telling you that I have all of today to finish the Christmas presents in step one. The theme for this year has been knitted wash cloths, and so far I have made seven.

Organic cotton knitted wash cloths for my Mum and Sister (and their better halves), made in shades called Forest, Cafe and Chocolate. The cotton is lovely to knit with and apparently the cotton is grown in these colours.

Plus, I made kiddie versions for J, M and H, my sisters three kids. Though the colours and cottons are not quite so sumptuous!

I must thank Di and Megan for inspiring my organic-cotton-knitted-wash-cloth obsession. I can't see it stopping any time soon!

The only thing left to make is a sundress for H. It's all cut out, I just need to sew it. I've got all of today to finish it, but I just need to find my sewing mojo. Truth be told I'd rather curl up on the couch with a midday movie and some more of that organic cotton!

Day 4

of my 22 days of Holidays!

This is how I've been feeling lately: a bit tangled and messy.

I've only been at work for just over three months, but I was really hanging out for my holidays. With weekends and public holidays I have 22 days off. And, I have a list a mile long of things I want to accomplish during the break:

1. make all Christmas presents

2. finish all just-started, half-finished and I'm-not-quite-sure knitting projects (or else, rip out and regulate to stash)

3. decide what I want to make during the next 12 months and pull all the ingredients out of the stash

4. sort the rest of the stash (buttons, ribbons, beads, wool, fabric, etc) and pack away the stuff I'm not going to use in step 3 above

5. re-catalogue and sort all the greenolive stock I have for Etsy and/or markets and pack away in an easy to reach spot in readiness for all those Etsy sales which will come flooding in...

6. weed out the winter clothes, send stuff we don't wear to Vinnies

7. sort out the clothes that no longer fit me and for once in my life be realistic: I'm not going to lose that 30kgs I put on thanks to the Asthma steroid drugs and under-active thyroid am I?

8. sort out the ever-growing magazine collection, including the stack on ripped out pages

9. space bag everything!

10. sit back, relax and enjoy the tidy abode that no longer looks like the store room of some amazing yarn/fabric shop! Mr greenolive will be so happy, every room except the kitchen and bathroom has piles and boxes of my stash lurking.

As of yesterday, Tuesday, Day 4, I was making progress on step one. I'm going to have to pick up the pace a bit I think. Or rope Mr greenolive into helping with step six and nine and put him on cooking and washing duty. A small price to pay for a stash-free house!

A recipe for Christmas bunting

A simple, easy Christmas recipe your whole family will enjoy year after year.

INGREDIENTS

1 dose of inspiration

Generous amount of red-themed fabric

1 willing Husband wielding triangle template and pinking shears

1 length of binding or ribbon

Sewing thread

Sewing machine

A few lazy hours of "quality" time

Your favourite Christmas CD

METHOD

1. Insert CD into CD player and press play to create appropriate Christmas mood

2. Photograph all ingredients artistically

3. Remember to take work-in-progress shots throughout process

4. Trace and cut multiple triangles from selection of fabrics (Husband job)

5. Get Husband to make you a cup of tea or fix you a drink

6. Pin triangles to length of binding or ribbon in a carefree, random way (ie, not too matchy-matchy)

7. Sew triangles to binding

8. Admire you handiwork as Husband attaches binding to wall/ceiling/window frame without falling of step-ladder or stool

9. Download photos, write blog post and upload artistic shots to flickr site

10. Be the envy of all your non-crafty friends!

being content

a new state of mind for me

It's taken 40 years, but I think this week I realised what being content means.

The realisation kind of crept up on me. And the fact that I can consciously acknowledge that I'm content is a significant milestone in my personal growth.

I've always been striving for more. Wanting more. As if more would make me content. Usually the more equals more money, as in climbing the corporate ladder.

In mid-2005 I got more. I cracked the A$100K salary ceiling. I certainly got more. More than I'd bargained for. More meetings. More politics. More stress. More angst. More money didn't make me happy. But I was trapped on the work treadmill and couldn't get off. Or rather, I didn't feel I could get off. If I chucked in my job what would become of us? My sense of responsibility kept me firmly on the treadmill, ignoring my feelings of dread each day I went to work.

In March 2007 I got less. A lot less. I was made redundant. I had no job. My sense of worth and value had been so tied up in that salary and position. I questioned my value. Was I so crap that they decided to get rid of me? In the absence of any real explanation, or at least one that made sense to me, that's what I felt. I knew it wasn't true. But that's how I felt.

After I got over the emotions associated with redundancy, and the realisation that I'd probably not find another job at the same level I'd been at, I started to feel thankful. I didn't have to go to that place every day. Be stressed out by back to back meetings, never having time to do any work. I didn't have to deal with the politics and the lack of support from my boss. I didn't have to do a job that I wasn't enjoying.

After five months, this job at Monash University came up. It wasn't what I was looking for. When it was offered to me I didn't want it. I told them I didn't really want it. But they saw something in me and told me they wanted me. That was a good feeling, very seductive and very affirming.

It's only 12 months I told myself. It's a job said Mr greenolive. It's a lot less responsibility and stress. It's a lot closer. They seem really nice. It's at another university, in the IT Division again, I know how that works and what its like. Why not I said?

And so, three months after starting, I've discovered what work/life balance feels like. Of how supportive and understanding a boss can be. Of how one can be sick and not feel guilty that they aren't at work. Of how my skills and experience mean I can make a contribution that is both wanted and appreciated. Of how good you feel when someone tells you how glad they are that you are there.

I've learnt to live with earning A$30K less. It's about A$100 less a week in my take home pay. I've learnt that my worth isn't represented by my salary or position. And I've discovered that less stress is worth A$100 a week to me. And to Mr greenolive. That's a big lessopn for me to learn.

And just this past week I've learnt what contentment is. Or rather, I've discovered I'm content. Two jobs were advertised within the IT Division. One was the same salary I'm on now, but permanent. It was in communications, and involved both print and web. I could have done it with my eyes closed and two hands tied behind my back. The second was in change management, at a higher salary, about A$10K more. Once again, an easy job for me.

For about 30 minutes I thought seriously about them both. I even discussed them with Mr greenolive. But I decided I wasn't prepared to give up what I had now. Even for more money or recognition.

I don't know what will happen when my contract ends in August. And I'm ok with that. I'm content with where I am now.