Day of rest

Tomorrow is a rest day in Le Tour and I'm going to rest as well. I'm about 1/2 done the shawl (and halfway done the yarn) so I'm ahead of schedule. I need a little break from the blanket. It's only been just over a week, but it's not like me to immerse myself so fully in a project.

I may work on my shawl for the Edmonton Knitters lace-a-long as I haven't started Clue 3 yet...


Or I may start the sleeves on my cardigan...

Or try both?

TdF Update

The tour is living up to the hype. Man oh man. I have 2 different feeds of the Team Time Trial Tivo'd today just to try and get it all in.

I'm on track for completion of my race.

The shawl will be a total of 30 inches, so for the 3 weeks of the tour, I need to complete 10 inches per week. I'm at about 7 inches 4 days in and I haven't even knit a stitch today. On track.

In other knitting news - I got nothing. It's all baby shawl all the time.

In Training

Le Tour de France is less than 48 hours away. The team presentations were today and there are still some outstanding issues to be resolved. So not everything is quite ready. At least not everything in Monaco.

Here at Chez T, everything is ready to go.

Calculations have been made.


Swatches have been measured.


And pattern notes made.


The plan: a baby blanket/shawl for my new niece's baptism. It has a flower theme and it will be light and pretty and accented in pink. With 3 weeks and 21 stages to do it. I hope to be as successful as I was last year.

Allez, allez, allez.

Arrivee a Paris

I made it into Paris. Safely. I dragged my body around the country following the riders with my knitting needles, over the undulating foothills of the Pyrenees to the snow-capped peaks of les Alpes.

Now I can sip champagne and wear mon maillot jaune.

And I think my golden fleece is a little bit more stylish than Sastre's.

Somedays I needed a suitcase full of courage to keep at the gull lace stitch when I really wanted to knit some socks. But I did it. In less than 21 days. I have to say I'm pretty darned proud of myself.

I'll miss my friends Paul and Phil. A Bientot my boys.

So, just like a lot of the cyclists, I'm now heading for Beijing. This time as part of Team Edmonton in the Ravelympics in the event of the Scarf Stroke (why do I do this to myself?). I guess I'd better get off the bike and into the pool!

For the Love of France

As part of the TdF KAL they have a few contests along the way (this is a highly organized KAL).

In order to enter this intermediate sprint contest, I need to either discuss how my project is related to the Tour, how I relate to cycling OR how much I love France.

I'll go with the loving of France. Because I do. Love. It.

Our best picture of the trip

In 2002, I visited this hallowed place. We stayed with a friend just outside of Versailles and got to spend about 5 days in and around Paris.

I have to say if there is one place in the world I would drop everything to go to, it would be France. It has such a magnificent feeling about it. The wine, the food, the scarf-wearing ladies, the architecture, the museums, the language, the Left bank, the shopping. My love and I got sick and tired of continually saying "wow" and "amazing". You quickly lose your ability to provide adequate adjectives to such a place.

One of my favorite memories was packing up a lunch, of baguettes and cheese of course, and eating it at Versailles near Marie Antoinette's village. She had a little village made for her on the grounds of Versailles, because she wanted to feel like a commoner, in the privacy of her own home. She was quite the lady that Marie.

The Queen's Hamlet

The Orangerie

We got to experience a bomb scare at the Louvre. I think you really can't have an authentic visit to Paris without a bomb scare.

I bought stockings in an amazing department store in Paris. I still have them. I think all women should own a pair of French stockings.

When my mom and dad went to France they brought me home Toile. I actually made a knitting bag for J. out of some of it. I have a fascination with all things toile and dream of wall-papering one room in my house in it. I think maybe because I see it as "girly" and there is not much girly about me, or anything else in the house.

Our last night in Paris

My husband promises to take me back one day. Maybe to go see Le Tour, or maybe just to stroll down the Rive Gauche and eat some croissants and drink a cafe au lait.

Either way, I can't wait.

Decisions, Decisions

Sometimes I can't make a decision to...well, come to a conclusion. I waffle back and forth and back and to the side and still can't decide. On some things, I'm entirely decisive. Politics, certain parenting decisions (those regarding sleep at least), and food.

Not with knitting however. Is it that there is too many choices? Or is it that I just get bored easily (yep, probably that one)?

So, in order to decide what to make I need some of your help. Hopefully you can be more decisive than me.

Option #1: February Lady Sweater
I guess I want to be like everyone else in the entire world, and make this. I have a yellow-ish yarn to go with it, so it will fit the theme of Maillot Jaune (the Yellow Jersey).

Option #2: The Tilted Duster
This was my original plan. It really doesn't fit the theme at all. It will also be near impossible to finish, but the point is to pick something challenging.

Option #3: Argosy
This is the newest member in the fleet of choices. I think a scarf is very French so it fits the theme. And I want to make it with this yarn that J. picked up for me from Toronto. I am currently in love with this yarn and want to eat it. It's 100% silk and hand-dyed by the amazing dyers of Handmaiden.


And this is actually something I can wear this summer.

Option #4: An Abridged Lace Ribbon Scarf
I'd use the same yarn as above, but make a skinnier version of the scarf, because I only have about 250m. Again, this is something I can wear right now. And I'm ALL 'bout instant gratification.

Option #5: The Aleita Shell
I bought yarn to make this shell this summer, and it keeps getting pushed back. The yarn is yellow (again fitting with the theme). It's pretty. It's summery. It's not overly exciting, but, I don't hold that against it.

I think those are the main options. I am open to other suggestions, because I'm sure that won't muddy the water at all. You have till Friday July 4th to comment. We cast-on July 5th.

(Oh, and I already know what J. will suggest....I've written it down and will let you know what my guess is after she comments.....)

Things I Hate

Ok - I'm trying not to be negative (no comment necessary J.) - but sometimes I just get swept up in negativity. I just have to get these things off my chest as they are currently eating away at me.

Things I Hate:

1. Cheaters. Of any type really. But right now, I really hate the cheaters in the TdF. I love the TdF. It is one of the highlights of my July. But given the events of the last few days, I'm so sick of it all. I'll still watch and I'll still be hopeful of a good win in Paris, but there will always be that little bit of doubt in the back of my mind that anyone crossing the line on the Champs is doping. That's sad.

2. Knots. In regards to knots in my balls of yarn. I frogged MS3 twice, and the last frogging resulted in some knots. I hate that. It is such a waste of good yarn. So there I will sit, trying to untangle those f*)&%*#g knots in order to spare 2m of yarn.

3. Liars. At least those liars who park in the Moms & Tots parking when they are neither a Mom, nor have a Tot. Seriously. Few things throw me over the edge like this one. The other day I actually stood in front of one of those parking signs and pointed at it very vigorously while someone (neither a Mom nor a Tot) pulled out of the spot. Not my finest moment.

It's been a rough week. Between the cheaters, some knots and some liars, I need some good yarn therapy.

Like this - beautiful EZ Baby Leggings in my new favorite yarn - Socks that Rock. I absolutely love the color.

Or how about this....it also makes me happy (after a rocky start). My MS3 is progressing beautifully.

And lastly, a couple more things that make me happy (non-yarn related).

Flowers from my garden

I also lucked out and won an air conditioning unit today from a local radio station - seriously!! That makes me happy.

And my 2 boys. They always (well, almost always) make me happy.

Oh, do I feel better.

Retro Knitting

My Grandma recently moved into a new place. She's needing more and more help, so the family decided to move her. While cleaning out her old place, the 4 daughters split most of the "good stuff". My Mom kindly passed on some beautiful things - like some teacups (I have a nice little collection, all from my Grandma) and some of Grandma's old knitting things. I actually never remember seeing my Grandma knit, but supposedly she did. I know (and remember) her doing a lot of sewing, but never knitting.

As I'm the only one of her grandchildren who knits, I got anything related to knitting. There really wasn't much left, mostly magazines and some massive balls of Red Heart Acrylic. A lot of the magazines are from the 70s and 80s; good for a laugh or two, but the piece de resistance is a Monarch Yarn knitting magazine from 1935. It is in amazing shape and has my Grandma's writing here and there, with notes beside a couple of patterns. I love looking at it and thinking about what my Grandma knit from it. Did she make my mom anything from it? Who else did she knit for? What kinds of yarn did she use?

So, I've decided to knit something from this beautiful and memorable book for my new neice or nephew, due to arrive at the end of September (using some STR in the Autumn colorway - perfect for an autumn baby).

In Tour de France KAL news, I was almost done Clue #2 of MS3, but last night made the decision to frog and start over. So some good cycling and some bad knitting. My boyfriend (at least, that's what I call him) finished 2nd in Stage 2 and got the Green Jersey. Yeah!

And this morning an unbelievable finish by Cancellara - worked on some socks because it was just too exciting.