Kool Kitty Musings

Day 1 in the Knitting Asylum

And Nat has managed to get this far:

How's that tension looking to you Tree?

Anyway there will be some light at the end of the scarf tunnel so to speak... I have already eyed up and purchased my next project. Oops

Not yet ready for the Noni bag as I think it will be rather technical for me, so I stumbled over another bag project in Binns today:

It's the plum/pink one - I thought it was cute... let's just hope I work out all the jargon and manage to use 2 colours without ending up with a great big hole somewhere...

Anyway I'd best get back to the needles...

An ode to my lunch

My word, it's not often one goes into M&S for a spot of lunch and comes out with something exceedingly healthy, even in their healthy option range!

But i did just that completely unwittingly.

M&S count on us Orzo pasta and slow roasted tomato salad.

320 g pot

1.5 syns

That's right, just 1.5 syns and it is the nicest salad I have had in ages! I must get more! But it's £3 a pop.

But if you are on SW and in M&S I urge you to get some it is quite simply divine!

Also I have purchased a new top (1 size smaller than before), new trousers (still large arse - hmpf), PJs, Benetint pen, a bag knitting kit, stitch counter... and that's it!

Clickity-clack

Oooh well the knitting consignment has arrived from Tree!

In preparation I went and bought The Knitter's Handbook which looked the best of the lot for nice clear diagrams and tips, plus a range of useful information and instructions on various stitches/patterns/techniques.

So now that dinner is out of the way, and I had a disastrous trip home in the rain again (managed to get in just after Masterchef started) I am in for the night, off to change into something cosy and get casting on!

But please, feel free to kick my arse into gear as I MUST haul myself to the gym tomorrow night! I MUST!

Gone postal

And in a nice way too!

I received the first of my CHA wishlist items.... yum yum yum.

And because it was sooo nice I took photos!

Nice eh? Well I was all set to be a bit creative tonight - but instead I didn't get in until pretty late due to a huge traffic jam and well, I started a new read today, another Nora - Carolina Moon and I am feeling terribly tempted to keep reading that!

But we shall see what happens, it's project catwalk and America's next top model tonight so who knows!

And tomorrow evening I have carved out some time to start my little knitting project as Tree zoooomed to the PO today and has sent me some needles and wool to get cracking with, not that I was desperate or anything... {sniff}

Time for a bit of Zing

Can't believe it's the end of the weekend already!

Had a great driving lesson yesterday, only stalled once and that was it! Then I met up with Zoe for lunch at Pizza Hut followed by a movie, Music & Lyrics, followed by a quick mooch around the shops.

Didn't buy anything interesting, just a new pen for my Filofax, the ring binder for my style file (niiiice) and a mag bag for future knitting storage alternatively shopping!

Today I spent most of it working - nasty project - fingers crossed that I never hear about it again now that I've dispatched the files.

Have also been to the gym and been downloading some new tracks to work out to - current favourite tune from the Stick It soundtrack - Missy Elliot's We Rung This (great one for the cross-trainer). Anyway the other night at the gym I was contemplating my work-out music needs and came to the conclusion that I really did need a shuffle in the end. I like my Archos player but it's just too slow sometimes and not the easiest thing to create playlists on. All I need for a workout are pumpin' tunes and quick skipping between them and the ability to wear it during weights and on the ergo, not just treadmill/cross-trainer/wave-walker - hence a shuffle was required.

Not just any shuffle, but this zinging orange one:

I could have had a pink one, but the Archos is pink, and really I feel a bit pinked out - it was between the green one and the orange one, and for some reason my little collection of Hambly rub-ons sprung to mind and it was the orange that won!

Also I pre-ordered the new Sims Expansion Pack! Hope they arrive on Friday!

Knit one, purl one

I have been challenged... well OK I sorta challenged myself with the dutiful assistance and iron rule of Tree that before I would allow myself to invest in and try my hand at this project:

I would have to successfully complete an introductory knitting task.

Namely, a scarf.

My Yoda of Knitting has kindly promised to send me some yarn and needles to get me started (it's the casting off I can never do! But I'll have plenty of time to resolve that - it will be a long scarf) and I have until the 9th to complete this little project.

Hm.

I'm not sure if I want to succeed or not as the Noni bag (called In the Sculpture Garden) will cost a bomb to make (but ooooooooh so worth it) and I am not known for actually finishing projects {she says glancing at the trunk of X-stitch projects started 5 years ago and still on the go}

Mmm pancakes!

Well it was rather nice yesterday to get reacquainted with a pancake or two... or three... OK it was six I admit!

3 of which had a little original Vancouver Maple Syrup drizzled on - yum...

But the really weird thing, I lost 2 lbs! And that was before I went to the gym today, so lets hope it continues like that this week as I have my gym assessment Friday. Eeek.

Looking forward to a bit of creativity Friday when I get in from the gym - might make another foldy card for a certain country bumpkin's birthday... hm-hhhhhhmmm....

Right off to watch The Closer now on Virgin Central - hope they do show Season 2 one day in this country! Gaaaaaaaaah... oh mind you, 1941 is on ITV 2 right now - me and my brother used to watch that alll the time, we watched it so much as kids that the VHS tape was worn out i places!

OMG the wasteland!

Well it's only been 24 hours, but it felt like a lifetime!

This weekend I made the discovery that ntl/virgin media whatever they are called now had not taken any payment for my dial-up Internet connection since November. So we tried to ring them Saturday to sort it out, but they had no clue who I was or what I wanted... great start.

I tried to re-enable payment online but it kept rejecting my card on Sunday.

Then I thought yesterday I'd get in touch with them again and try someone else, they hadn't cut me off or anything.

Well low and behold I come home to a reminder notice saying that I had not answered any previous correspondence (because I hadn't received any!) regarding payments from my CC.

So onto the phone I got and tried to sort it out, as well as my original master e-mail address that has become invalid due to all the spamming it got.

So that was all fine, I was told it was all fixed, payment went through, even my e-mail had been reinstated.

Hm... an hour later I go to sit and dial-up and get my e-mail, and what have they done? Cut me off!

I tell you it's been a rather frustrating day, not least due to work pressure, but trying to explain the whole saga to a gazillion people, and ntl/virgin having their computers down and unable to look owt up.

After a rather expensive call to technical support I seem to be fixed and online again, and I think I can use my original e-mail account again! :oO

My driving lesson has been moved to Saturday morning as my instructor's car is in the shop - so need to work out with Zoe what time we're off to see our flick. I'm likely working the rest of Saturday and Sunday as it's mega busy right now - joy.

And I have a severe case of eye strain - I really should get off the PC and get an appointment at the opticians! Should I be taking any supplements for my eyes I wonder, ma had some she bought in Poland so I may need to try those.

The only good thing that has happened so far this week is that I lost 4 lbs, but I am about to have some pancakes - probably with cheese... and one sweet one as well, it's pancake day. But fear not I am gymming tomorrow night, then Thursday night, then Friday I have a review session on Get Results.

And breeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaatttttthheeeeeeeee

Hope everyone has a nice Shrove Tuesday!

Style file success

Looks like all that pruning and magazine clipping has worked! I felt inspired by one of the examples I scrapped today when doing this week's card dare.

The challenge was to make a card that featured folds, and here we have it:

That's it flat on the scanner, obviously looks a bit nicer when it's stood up...

Lots of nice KI, now I just need to find someone with a birthday, soonish!

So I'll have to pop to a stationery shop for a nice ring file for my style file, unless anyone can suggest an online stockist of really trendy stationery? ;o)

One 15" stack of mags later

And we're done....

All my old issues of crafting mags and stuff have been converted into my style file and what remains has gone for recycling. :oD

It was rather a mammoth effort in the end and there are rather a lot of Ki LOs in the products section, strange that...erm...

So after all this you'd think I'd be chomping at the bit to get started on something creative. Well, actually... no - what I am eager to do is get some new mags just so I can cut them up! Shocking - this activity should come with a warning after all.

Also I am feeling a bit out of sorts, having a very clumsy day which involved walking into the edge of the dining room table and bruising my left thigh... followed an hour or so ago by me tripping up the garden steps and I now have a huge black bruise on my left knee and a lump on my right thigh and grazed hands - classic!

So I wonder if I should really risk my life and use a paper trimmer and paper for the rest of the day... it's got me a bit worried I must confess. :oS

Also I managed to get some clippings of Roger la Borde stash for EK Success - I just love Roger la Borde's Vie en Rose style from Mary Claire Smith - especially how it was used on the cover of Katie Fforde's books! Love it... and I shall have to add clippings of his artwork to my file some time.

Just a little scrapping...

...of another kind!

Well today was supposed to be a creative day. Unfortunately that didn't quite happen, I got back from the gym after 1 and by 2 was ready to get down and create, but spent much of the afternoon trying to sort out some techy related issues then by 4 realised that I wasn't going to get much done really before tea.

So I decided to tackle a project I've been meaning to get started - my pile of magazines and converting them into a style file! :oD

I went through cutting bits out: product inspiration, LO ideas, techniques, cards, projects, you get the drift ready to paste onto some paper and file away.

So I just need to get some dividers and a nice funky file and we'll be ready to go... I only managed about 10 magazines and I am determined to keep this up now - it's very liberating and I seem to be making much better use of the mags as I am storing away snippets of ideas as well as whole examples and making notes for them as they go in. Just another 50 mags or so to go through now!

And I am such an ad junkie that I may just have to store away some of the really pretty ads like the one for doodlebug in the current Papercrafts with the tweety birds and bird boxes.

Right, suppose I should have a mooch around and get some more mags sorted. I got a great link for a card sketch inspiration blog today, hope to check it out tomorrow, but not holding my breath if today was anything to go by!

Ahh sniff sniff

I have just turned the last page on Shopaholic and Baby and this so reminds me why Sophie Kinsella is my favourite chicklit author... granted she hasn't written as many books as some and I liked but didn't love the Undomestic Goddess, but it's more to do with the fact that "Can You Keep a Secret?" was my introduction to the whole happy world of chicklit and it's always been my benchmark.

The latest read was great - yes if you've read Shopaholics before you'll recognise the plot patterns - but that's why you read the Shopaholics and why you just love Becky.

And well I always manage a few bleary eyed moments reading Becky books and I do remember getting very teary in Can You Keep a Secret? - I'm odd like that... :oP so yes I have got all a bit wistful now that I've finished the latest Shopaholic, feels great to have read it but sad at the same time as that's it... for now, unless there's Shopaholic and Daughter coming out in a few years, and fingers crossed for some more stand-alone books like Can you Keep a Secret?

I may just have to reread it one of these days. So that now leaves me wanting to fill the post-fab-read-blues ce soir. Think it's time to put on a DVD - Stick It, for some reason I like films like this as well, the ones where no matter how bad you know its going to be, once you've started watching you have to see it through to the end. We'll see it looked promising in the trailers we saw when Zoe and I went to see the Devil Wears Prada. hehe

Also the gym must have done me good last night as I am rather more aware of how many muscles the human has than for my own liking right now - but I must get in there again tomorrow to fill my quota, plus next Friday it's a review session on Get Results which includes weigh in, and I feel a bit despondent with that side of things - but my trainer said the inches are definitely going so I could just be converting to muscle a bit right now, well lets hope its that and not my chocolate affliction earlier this week. But the past couple of days I have been feeling like SW is going better, so lets hope that's the case and I can get back on the right road with it all.

Couldn't resist any longer!

Well seeing as there are 17 people ahead of me at the library for the latest Shopaholic I made 2 trips to Waterstone's today.

The first one I cam out empty handed as I thought hm.. I can resist.

But then I went and read a few reviews on Amazon and just knew I couldn't hold out any longer!

So on page 55 now, but have the gym to disappear to in a bit, but as soon as I am out of the bath tonight I will have my nose stuck in it again. hehe

And naturally, as is the story of my life, I couldn't stop there and promptly picked up Anybody Out There? by Marian Keyes and the new Bernadette Strachan - Diamonds and Daisies

But phew managed to spend less than £20 however I really hate having to buy Chicklit in Hardback, even Shopaholic books - I think we'd need an overdraft the size of Becky's to cope with the latest books at £17.99 a pop RRP!

Frustrating Tuesday

Well it is the 13th so naturally it's not been much of a great day.

Work was very hectic and have had to prod and poke at my schedule to squeeze stuff in, where we shall see! Then I had a driving lesson home and grrr so frustrated with myself, I can't believe how down hill (no pun intended) it went. It started well tonight but I'm just not getting mind and foot coordination going with the whole clutch to gas ratio! David my driving instructor said I did fine, but I know I didn't do great which is what I want and thrive on! So why did it start so well and go to pot so fast?? Eeek... anyway next lesson is next Tuesday night so keep clear people!

And why am I on the PC tonight? I should have been at the gym. But bathroom numero uno is out of action so that leaves the upstairs bath which takes an age to heat water for... I fully intend gymming tomorrow night and may just have to finally try out the sauna there after... but we'll see.

Anyway I suppose what it boils down to is that today should have been my grandma's 89th birthday - but it's the 3rd one without her and it still feels strange. Anyway before I get all mushy, I'll repost this LO as a little happy birthday to her.

Oooh could this be the answer?

It seems the purple EK Success corner rounder is good for making scalloped edges?

Here's the tip

The example using the smaller green one

Now who stocks the purple one??

AWOL

Oops!

So I have neglected blog land a little recently - blame the weather (OK we didn't get everlasting snow or anything so pretty), the return of the tummy bug, general lack of creative imagination, energy and hm... chocolate cravings that have needed careful abating!

Anyway, it's a new week and already it's not looking all that hopeful for me to be back feeling tip top. No sooner have I rid myself of the tummy bug, but now I have the headache from hell all day. Still I will soon have my order of BG Phoebe papers to overcome this malaise! hehe

Yes, my first CHA wishlist order went through - look I know I said I didn't need any more collection packs, and I don't! I was strong, I showed restraint... it just so happened it wasn't as much restraint as I'd originally intended, but I have weighed it all up and yes I can see myself using all the papers in the Phoebe range - so those are what I bought. No alpha stickers, no tags, no fibres... just 3 sets of rub-ons to go with them and that was it from BG for this season. Restraint see??

I also added the birdie Scenic Route papers from my list and that was it.

So to make way for the new stash I attempted to make a dent in the existing stash and to start using the stuff that I hoard more than any other.

Namely KI!

Yes, I love it dearly, but I must use it.

And so I have - I tried to overcome the creative draught - I have no idea what's causing it or how I can rid myself of it, but it must go!!!

Here's a card using Pieces of Me papers and accents plus those cute little MM stickers:

It's for a certain couple who are expecting!

Then I had a little play with the February Self-Addressed kit and the scallop trimmer blade... hm I really would love something that cuts big scallops - is there such a thing??

And my word, I used some eyelets!

Then I did try to do one of the challenges for the Self-Addressed cyber crop, but was feeling so ghastly that it just didn't come together, but here it is anyway:

Anyway, that's the sum total. I received the March issue of Papercrafts magazine and armed with my post-its went through it last night marking up ideas to cut out and file when the next issue arrives. Some lovely card ideas, especially the one with the specs on a birthday card, very trendy and funny!

And speaking of funny, oh dear last night's Top Gear. Man alive... I'm going to have to catch the repeat just to rewatch it all again!

Tonight's viewing pleasures include Project Catwalk, and America's Next Top Model - excellent, first it's Masterchef then I am off gymming it - will see how long I last. Have put in my order for Shopaholic & Baby at the library, but am feeling very tempted to buy it... especially since I will finish Myrenn's Gift en route to work tomorrow - and Judi it is a very good read! ;oD

And on those random thoughts, I'm off!

It's arrived!

This month's Self-Addressed kit, the first one back on my subscription, and very nice it is too. :oD

Alas not up to playing tonight - am just so tired, so am hitting bed to watch Ugly Betty at 9.

Working from home after my driving lesson tomorrow - if it snows properly I will be quite happy as I can enjoy it from indoors, just need to get to the gym for my personal trainer session tomorrow night!

Also Judi, I am getting into Myrenn's Gift now! It has definitely grown on me after the seriously gruesome bits, now gruesome-ness is down a notch, but it's got more intriguing! :oD

Didn't stop me picking up some fluffy chicklits from the library the other day!

A bit more stash usage

OK, I did manage to get down and use up some old-ish stash (OK the alpha stickers are the oldest thing on the page here apart from the photos) in response to a sketch challenge.

Used up old AC alpha stickers, including the green ones - but had a crisis as didn't have an "r" in black or the other set that was the nearest in size and colour matching, so had to slice an "m" up for that! Background is KI pieces of me cardstock, orange paper from BG Gypsy pad, rub-ons are AC and the orange ones are Hambly, brads are AC and the date stamp is just one of those self-inking office ones.

Also made a card for my Auntie's sister in Poland - can't believe she's about to turn 40, not that she looks it - she just does not age!

Kind of wish I could keep on crafting but I really need to go to bed soon, still trying to get over this tummy bug I've had the past week.

Success!

I actually did manage to make something at today's crop with my haphazardly packed stash. hehe

First off Basic Grey Blush got a bit of a work-out, spent ages cutting out the flower detail and trying to come up with something where stuff wasn't stuck onto the photo as it's an original and may need to be taken out for scanning etc. later on.

Then I got the brainwave of a little Boho-ness and realised belatedly that my new  7Gypsies rubons would be ideal paired up with BF Pharmacy stamps

So here we are, and there's a little Rhonna birdie sat in the tree!

The other LO was using up some of a LRS KI kit - playful line which wasn't my favourite of collection V - but nice all the same, time for a little "play" with my relatively new KI stamps too!

Anyway had better tidy up a bit now that I've got those scanned and uploaded. hehe

With any luck I shall be scrapping again tomorrow!

Crikey

Looks like it's a "... and the kitchen sink too" kind of crop for me tomorrow!

I just know that except for the LRS kits I have packed (not sure if there are photos to go with them) that none of the stash I've got in there is likely to work together - and no doubt when I get home I'll be scouring my stash for just the right thing I know I have somewhere... somewhere...

Hm, so yes, Ang's car will be well packed tomorrow!

But thankfully no late-night packing for me as I am now ready to sit down and watch Ugly Betty and then probably put on a DVD and nod off!

Also the CHA wishlist is coming along nicely, have managed to keep my Scenic Route list to just 5 sheets of paper. Just 5.

Although BG Phoebe is really growing on me, but must NOT buy a collection pack!