A couple of rows of knitting a day.

Hello! Hello and thank you for everything and for being there for me and for making me HAPPY!

Thank you so much for all your support on my last post, it's been overwhelming. I wanted to get back to normal as soon as possible, and back in the blogging world I know and love. You've all helped me to do this.

I said in my last post that I would delete it once I returned, so as to get back to my usual jolly subject matter without a blip. But when I delete a post, as I did with Monday's post, I was dismayed to find typepad deletes all your comments on that post. Fortunately, I have all the nice comments from that post in my e-mail box, so it will be the same with the second post I will have deleted, the comments will be lost from my blog, but not from my e-mail. I read every single comment, and there were an astounding number of them, over 85, so please don't feel your message will have gone un-read, not at all. And I've saved them to a file on my computer, so I can have them as a reminder of your support. I'm very sorry if I've not responded to your comment, it's not that I don't want to, it's just that I struggle with not enough hours in the day, I'm very sorry, it doesn't mean your comment wasn't valued, not at all, every comment was appreciated enormously, and felt like a hug, and well.................. just amazing! Thank you so much.

So shall I get on with getting back to normal?!!!! May I say, it is really nice to get back to normal. I love normal!

This is how every day starts for me, with a cup of tea (brought to me by Hugo, isn't that luxurious, and very nice of Hugo), the dogs come up too, and they are allowed in the bed for a cuddle. We know this is considered unhygenic, but we don't really care, cuddles in bed with the doggies are just too wonderful to think about hygiene.

And then I do a few rows of knitting before the day starts properly. To me, this feels luxurious. To be brought a cuppa and the doggies, and sit in bed knitting away! I often think about all the people who have to get up in the morning, only to be launched straight into a day of stress, and I think I'm very fortunate to have such a gentle start to each day. I listen to the radio whilst I'm knitting, and hear the news, the disasters around the world reported on, Japan, New Zealand, the way their lives will never be the same again, and how tragic their situations are. The polar opposite of my situation, tucked up in bed with my dogs and my knitting, my cup of tea sitting beside me. Alice of blog Crochet with Raymond, (Raymond is rather well known in blogland for being a character and a very handsome chap, even Hugo knows him and asks after him, or rather, I give reports on Raymond's progress through life occassionally), lives in New Zealand, and has talked of these subjects in a touching way. I have to say, Alice is also a very jolly person, and a great person to make you feel cheerful.

You might have noticed some knitting in the photo of me in bed, Douglas next to me, on Hugo's side. This is my "got-fed-up-with-what-I-was-knitting-need-something-else-to-work-on-but-will-ahem-return-to-laid-aside-piece-in-the-future-at-no-specified-point-aren't-I-a-naughty-knitter" knitting.

And more stripes are being knitted. I've gone from a Fair Isle phase to a stripes phase. This time, purple and green stripes. Not to everyone's taste of course, so I was delighted to see that Lisa from blog Bobo Bun is knitting a gorgeous jumper for one of her girls in exactly the same colours, you can see the post it's in here. I love the thin rows of colour on the top half, and the thicker bands of colour on the bottom.

Here's the pattern in close up, I hope you can see it on your screen. The piece in the photo is knitted in a dark yarn, so it's a bit hard to see the look of it.

The pattern is from King Cole, and it's a tunic top. Except that I'm elongating it into a dress. Yes, funny that, a dress! I can't remember when I wasn't knitting dresses.

What I've done so far is do a provisional cast-on, and knitted the top cabled part of the pattern, then taken off the provisional cast-on, put the live stitches of the back and front sections on the circular needle, and now I'm knitting downwards, towards my knees sort-of-thing. Because I'm knitting in the round on the circular needles, I only have to do a knit stitch, no purling, which is very pleasant. You always get a slight step effect when knitting stripes in the round, at the point where one row ends and the other begins, but it's only slight, and will appear down one side of the dress, and not be too noticeable I think. Or rather, I'm not too bothered about it.

When I was taking the photos of the dress I'm currently knitting, I thought, I know, I'll get the piece that is in semi-retirement (the Bibette dress) out to photograph with it, and that will make for loads of stripes in some of the photos. Stripe-fest in fact. It was at the bottom of my knitting bag, and I lifted it out, and then saw something else at the bottom. I found two sleeves! I'm almost finished on the Bibette dress, and I've abandoned it! Rationality isn't always my strong point. Aaaaahhh that's it, I know what it was, I was having to think too much, because it's my own pattern, and I just wanted to work on something straight forward, be told what to do by a pattern. The reason for that is that I'm work work working all day till 11 p.m each night, even most weekends, on my sculptures, and I just want my knitting to be something where I'm told what to do, rather than thinking for myself.

Can you believe how nearly finished the Bibette dress is! There might be some length to add to the bottom, I'm not sure, but if there is, well that's not difficult. I was getting in a pickle over the proportions so the set-in sleeve would fit nicely. I tried applying Elizabeth Zimmerman's instructions for proportions, but it didn't work. Or maybe it's just that my maths is appalling, and I need to try harder.

So the long and the short of it is that I have very little time for knitting these days, I'm limited to a few rows in bed in the morning. That's one of the reasons all I seem to blog about these days is my sculptures, I've not much else to talk about but work.

Talking of work, I should be scuttling back to it now. Well, have a lovely weekend, it's a beautiful day here, I hope you have this lovely weather too, and that it lasts over the weekend. Cheerio! Love Vanessa xxx

Comments

[Jennyff]

Oh I was just trying to comment on your last post sending you good thoughts and here you are back to your cheery and colourful self. Well done you. Gorgeous knitting, loving the tunic. I start my day too with a cuppa in bed delivered by Mr FF and I read for a while. It is indeed a great start to the day and I'm all for you having the doggies in there with you, people can be far too hygienic. Hope you weekend is wonderful.

[Clare]

oo your back I'm so happy to see you back, your posts always brighten my day when I see them in my google reader :)

Douglas looks very comfy

keep smiling

Clare xx

[Gill]

Welcome back Vanessa
Glad you feeling better!
Lovely to see how you start your day - Hugo is so well trained isn't he!!!!!!!!

[Teresa Kasner]

Dear Vanessa, how nice to see your new post! I always turn my laptop computer to show my husband your adorable doggie.. he always says.. what is that? LOL.. I always say.. it's a long haired dachshund! hehe Glad to see you back in your cheerful mood.

I put a giveaway on my blog.. want to give it a go for a pair of my earrings? :-)

Hugs from Oregon, USA -- Teresa :-)

[Carol]

Lovely to read the "bounce" in today's post.
My morning start is similar to yours, DH brings me a cup of tea and the morning paper then the cats climb in.
Have a great weekend, looks like we will be getting some nice sunny weather.
Carol xx

[ella]

good to see you back....really envy your morning routine x

[June]

Glad that you're feeling better after the nasty comment. The dog is seriously cute. Our standard dachshund is going to visiting the dog parlour on Wednesday - he looks a bit like Cousin It from the Adams Family at the minute!
June

[Madeleine]

Good to see your lovely doggies share their bed with you, great lifestyle!

[Puppet Lady]

I like to start the day with a cup of tea in bed too. Trouble is, I usually have to get up and make it myself! I then take it back to bed and read - bed is my place for reading. I'm not keen on knitting in bed, doesn't seem to work for me ergonomically.

Have a great weekend.

[Bess at Fixing My Thoughts]

Haven't been able to visit for awhile and I obviously missed something, but I'm glad to hear that whatever it was, you are doing better. I just love that tunic pattern and your colors for it are ever so pretty! And little Douglas is such a sweetie. Bess

[greenrabbitdesigns]

Good to have you back Vanessa, you certainly sound like your 'old self' again! :)
Vivienne x

[Meredith]

Vanessa, So glad you are feeling better. I love the new dress, I am making a summer dress from the new Stitch and Bitch book. Love it but I actually have to knit it to make progress on it, hmmm... now there is a new concept. Knit to make progress.
Have a great weekend,
Meredith

[Jessie]

Great to see you in bed knitting! What a lovely start to the day, mind you I'd find it very hard to stop and get out of bed if it was me!xx

[kate is greedy]

Oh thank goodness you are back - I was worried (but I have been a bit sick for the past couple of days so I couldn't leave a comment because I couldn't get out of bed). I for one often have an animal (or child - they are the most unhygenic creatures of all) hop into bed with me. In fact yesterday, Grassy thought she was so clever because she learnt how to jump on to my bed - neither of them are terribly good at jumping. And as for cups of tea... is it wrong to admit that I have Archie trained to make me my morning-cup-of-tea-in-bed for days when Jonno is up early milking the cows. I call it training for later in life when he has a partner with similar day-emerging methods. Lots of love, Kate xxooxx.

[Aunt Bee]

I love reading your blog and all the others I visit, I live in Christchurch, and the highlight for me is to visit blogs of lovely people who aren't in our situation. We are optimistic and positive about the future and the rebuilding of our city, but still nervous as we have after shocks everyday. I love to read about everyone's life and their creations (I think I'm very nosy). I'm glad your sitting in bed knitting, it makes me smile. And we need smiling.

[Frances]

Vanessa, those dresses you've made and are making are all wonderfully colorful and stylish. I can only remember knitting myself a dress once...think it was in the late 1960's. Perhaps it was short enough to nowadays qualify as a tunic!

I do like the way that you get your days started. But I would have to have the cup filled with coffee!

Best wishes. xo

[Liz W in Missouri, USA]

I almost didn't look in today, bacuse I thought you might not be here - but I'm so glad I did, and so happy that you are feeling better. I think the beginnings of your days are part of what makes you the happy person we all adore. Hugo is a lovely person who obviously cherishes you and wants all good things for you. Lucy snuggles with me, too and I love the morning when she is still a little sleepy doggie and she squeezes in as close as she can to be warm and cuddled.
As usual - I'm in awe of your dresses and can't wait for the day that you will model them for us - perhaps dancing with Evangeline.

[amanda makes]

What a beautiful Pic of you and your doggy! Sorry you've had a crappity crap time. Well done you for rising above it. Love you loads! Amanda xxx

[Jacqueline]

How lovely to see you Vanessa, it was a wonderful surprise when I noticed that you had posted. Douglas looks very at home under the covers. Our cat is sometimes allowed on the bed, but she only lies on top, and usually about foot level. Glad to see you back, and knitting. Have a lovely weekend.

[Kate]

That morning bed looks blissful.
I am so impressed you have the patience to knit whole dresses...my attention span is thick wool scarf level these days, I have two fairisle projects on the go, but have stalled on them as one required thinking too hard, the other I realised I had knitted the ribbing completely wrong and it needed to be undone and re-knitted...somehow the easy peasy big knitting is preferred of an evening after a busy day, can't imagine why....

[Isabelle]

Yipee! I don't understand what happened, but I'm glad everything is back to normal and that you're feeling cheerful.
Bon week-end Vanessa!
Isabelle

[ilsa-fay]

There is nothing nicer in the whole world than starting the day with a lovely cuppa and knitting a few rows in bed -especially with a doggy! Love your knitting!:-)

[The Muse of The Day]

I see that you have found balance. It is a wonderful thing, isn't it? In another few years, when my children are grown, I am going to ask my "Hugo" to help me start my day off the right way with a nice cup of tea. I think it seems so civilized. I am glad to see that your blog is back to normal- that is, it is back to being all yours. You go girl! Carolina

[Alessandra]

Welcome back!
I don't knit in bed as you do (maybe one day I'll have a try!), but usually I sit on my pink sofa in my work room! And like you I usually knit with my cat Margot, who lays beside me purring all the time ! Lovely! A big hug, Alessandra

[BodilE]

I'm so glad to see you back allready, Snuggling up with Douglas in bed looks really cosy! Love your knitting too, the dresses looks really nice. I know all about naughty knitting, starting on one thing, creative mind wandering, a new thing one just have to try, and then after some time discovering a forgotten project at the bottom of a bag or a drawer. But then the forgotten project is much easier to finish because it's allready half done! I call it multitasking :) Here in Norway the sun is allready shining, reflecting in an almost painful manner on the white snow, beautiful! Have a lovely weekend! :)

[Katie]

Ah lovely, glad you're back so soon! Hope that you are enjoying a glorious spring Saturday like we are in the Midlands.
Katie x

[Sandi Lee]

I would smile like that too if I was able to have a cuppa and a quick knit in bed, but alas I don't have a partner to spoil me, although I could get out and get one for myself, but once out I stay out. It is 10.39pm and I am sitting on the couch finishing off a purply blue knitted dress for my granddaughter and you have reminded me it is time for a cuppa!!
x Sandi

[Amanda]

A lovely, thoughtful post. Thats the right way to start the day, thats for sure!

[Planet Penny]

Aaah, that's the way to start a blog post, a picture of a cute cuddly doggy! Douglas so SO cute...A great way to start the day,and I'm so happy you are on the up again,
love from Penny and Higgins xxxx

[debbieamy]

I haven't commented before, but I should have because you give me so many smiles. I am a knitter and started reading your blog because of your knitting. I have always enjoyed your colorful knitting, and your beautiful pictures, and your polka dot shoes. But now you are doing these truly amazing sculptures, and I cannot look at Louise or Florence, even on a hard day, and not grin. I didn't have time to read all the comments, but in case no one else has mentioned this, you can keep your stripes from jogging. When you are ready to knit the first stitch in your second row of a color, lift up the first stitch of the row below, place it on your left hand needle, and knit this stitch along with the first stitch of your second round of a color. I hope I explained that so you can understand what I am trying to say. I could show you very easily, except you would have to come to Illinois, or I would have to come to England, and that would not be very easy.

[Jude]

Our first dog used to sleep with me when we lived on the boat...
Dewi is far to big to share.
I wonder if I could get a bit of hookery done before I get up in the mornings...hmmm!!
Take care
jude

[Lamorganna]

Oh the sun is shining again! I think I'll buy some yarn this weekend and knit something springlike.

[penelope dubois]

Well, all I can say is, I wish I had a Hugo.
However, I have a furry friend who sleeps with me! I have to get my own tea, though.
Love your projects and glad to see you are back to yourself!

[noknittedknickers]

What a lovely way to start the day. I get the tea in bed at weekends sometimes, but that's about it! C.x

[Alice and Raymond!!!]

Well Vanessa I have to say I am so glad to see you back! I popped over to say hello and leave a comment telling you how much I would miss you while you took your break and boom, here you are in bed, a gorgeous photo of you in your life and douglas looking too cute for words! What a lovely slice of life and I have to say, you are enviably lovely in the morning!!!!! How do you do that?
I was going to write to you and tell you that it is so understandable that you take a break, that sometimes it just feels like we need to because even though blogging is fun, we share so much of ourselves with the world and sometimes it can get too "big", well, thats how I feel anyway.... I'm sorry to hear that someone sent you a vindictive e-mail, thats the things with this lark, once we put our views out there, people comment on us and say bullsh*t sometimes which is totally rude, it;s just that the computer is annonymous so they say things they wouldn't say to out faces. I was thinking, why do we let one bad comment cancel out 1000 lovely comments? I know I try not to let that happen anyway!
OK then, I've just had a lovely burst of Vanessa-goodness so I'll go back to zip-lock bagging my stash! (glamorous life!) I'll think of you tonight when I'm going to bed with my knitting! You'll be waking up to yours! (whispers- thats one of the cool things about having fur-babies isn't it!!! Unlimited knitting time ;OP)
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

[Jane]

I'm so pleased to see that you are feeling better and are back to your blogging best!

Jane x

Ps, did you receive the e-mail from me regarding the little cafe in Tynemouth-I'm not sure whether I sent it to the correct e-mail address!!!!

[Melissa]

I love the dress you're nearly finished. Sometimes I think if I were to attempt a garment of that magnitude it would take me years!
As an aside, we let our dachshund sleep with us. We tried making her sleep in her own bed, but she's too darn cuddly to pass up! Frequent baths and sheet changing help me get passed it :P

[Jenni at Baa-me Kniits]

Looking lovely as ever!!! Wish I looked like that in the morning :-) Both of those dresses are to die for....Maybe I will have to knit a tunic?? I think I am too old for a dress but a tunic over jeans...Now that I could do. Glad you are feeling better and smiling xx

[Lynne]

What an adorable photo of Douglas.
Sorry you've had a rough time of late, I've missed what's been happening, but really pleased that you have bounced back.
I love your sculptures. They make me smile.

[Victoria]

What a lovely start to your day ...... and that dress is looking fab. x

[Helen]

So good to see you are back and happy again, Vanessa! How sweet to see you knitting in bed there with your morning tea and doggies! Your knitting looks beautiful and is tempting me to knit a tunic/dress too, after the next two things on my list! Have a lovely week ahead.
Helen x

[Miss holly]

O.k so is that the cutest little dog on earth.........!!

[Chris, milatos]

Hi Enjoy your knitting in bed, and your dogs they are family. What lovely photos of you your dog and your work. Keep it up.

[debs]

Glad you are back - doggies in beds is good in the Two Bones household and was even the point of discussion on Radio 4 recently when a medical doctor declared that doggies in bed is not all that bad and that you catch much nastier germs from other humans than you ever would from a doggy. Yeah for the doggies is what I say. I am also a lucky girl who gets a cuppa in bed almost every morning from DH.

[Jenni at Baa-me Kniits]

Hi Vanessa, love that King Cole pattern would you be able to tell me where I can get it from please??? I have been dreaming about wearing a top like that so I must have to make one :-) I think we have all been feeling a bit of doom and gloom this year, you are not the only one feeling tired and unmotivated and it only takes a little thing that we would normally not take to heart to knock the stuffing out of us these days. I hope you are looking after yourself and take heart in knowing you are not alone. xx

[Barbara]

Dear Vanessa, Lovely to see you with your knitting in bed, I'm loving both your pretty dresses, I think today you deserve an extra two rows! Never worry about not replying, life is so busy everywhere ...

Plus Snowy would like to send his thoughts on hygiene: I don't know how to spell it, I don't know what it is and I don't care, I just want to snuggle ... and when Mummy tries to take a photo of her knitting on the white floorboards I sit on it!

[Siobhan]

I'm so so pleased that you didn't stay away long, it is very good to see you!

I love your pictures - who wouldn't want to have a cuddle with something so cute as Douglas? I totally approve of dogs and cats and any other little furbies for that matter curling up with us, you can be too fussy and miss out! You look very lively for first thing, that's a lovely photo of you, you look very well and happy - I would have to wait until the pillow wrinkles iron out! Your mornings sound the best they can be (not my best time!)What a lovely man Hugo is for bringing you tea in bed. Am loving your knitting - all the colours are very complimentary and rather lovely together. I do like the pattern you are using. It's good to do what we are told sometimes isn't it? Your very own Bibette though is amazing and is going to look excellent when it is finished, no hurry though is there now that Spring is here and then you can wear both your dresses next winter. (Hurray Spring IS here, it's official now). Your blog cheers me up (even if I'm happy to start with!) so I hope you can be happy writing it too.
xx

[Trekky]

Such a cute doggie in the bed! Looking very cosy indeed. Knitting in bed sounds a fantastic start to the day - I must try it sometime :)

[Julie]

Hi Vanessa

I am currently knitting the same tunic but am struggling with the pattern. When it says T2 (twist 2) does that take up 2 stiches or 4? I always seem short of stitches at the end of some rows particularly row 3. Would be grateful for any advice!

[Matthew Leanna]

Aww, I missed those weekday mornings where you can lounge around a bit before heading on to work. It's easier now though ever since I took to blogging to earn a living. At least I can still work from home!