tania howells

away

We got to go away this weekend! A little north of the city to my good friends farm. It was a beautiful weekend and there were fields and forests as far as the eye could see, walks and fresh apples from the tree in the yard, it was heaven. Lia actually makes the best cappucino in the world, it had me buzzing for hours. I got to work a bit on my second bear which I like way better than the first- thicker nicer yarn. We read the paper, sat around doing a jigsaw puzzle and had cup after cup of tea. Good times. Thank-you so much Lia! - a picture of the shadow of a seed thingy I liked-

also! please notice the button to the first craft show of the season in the top right corner! :)

I needed a little someting to spruce up my winter coat, which I will need shortly. I made this pin with 3 circles of polar fleece sewn on a stiff piece of white stuff- whatever its called- inspired by the circle pins I have in my scrap book ( top left ).

I got my Knitty stuff! I really love how the mug turned out and the tote bag is so much better than I expected- big and roomy with a nice print of the image. Perfect for my knitting.

Have a lovely weekend everyone!
♥

My friend and I went to the Monster Factory party last night! The new line of monsters are super cute and I got to meet Rhya after all this time! We live so near to each other and have never met, so I was pleased as punch to have finally said hello. Alas, I had no cash to buy the cutest little monster with gym socks on (you can sort of see him in the photo on a button), but I did score some buttons.
It was a great show, congrats!

clap your hands and say yeah!

I am so so so exited about Jess's new knitting pattern book which you can buy here for only 8 bucks!!
It looks so pretty, I can't wait to get my hands on one.
Attention all you babies out there, there might be an unusual toy in your future for you to enjoy.

sweater weather

A quick sketch for another job involving knitting!

I am feeling so much better today, yesterday I was so grumpy and anxious! Must be a Monday thing. I kept feeling like I had so much to do but I was totally unorganised and couldn't really do anything properly.
Near the end of the day I saw this post at Kim's and it really put things back into perspective. What a lovely image of the plain parade float with only a banner saying "enjoy your life". Indeed. That's all you need to remember. ( I see she has tagged me for 20 things! fun!)
Today I went to aquafit, had a nice lunch of soup that my beloved portugese downstairs neighbor-granny left for me, stitched up the bottoms of a bunch of these guys with a bunch of emails etc in the middle. Soon I will walk to work for a change. I have started my later fall shifts, so I don't have to be in till 4 and it is too chilly to bike today. That should take around 45 minutes and I can listen to some tunes on the way!

*enjoy your life*

The bear is coming along! It's really fun to be learning little tricks that I didn't know before, like how to add on arms by picking up stitches. I am loving this knitting stuff because it is so skill specific. There is a project for every skill level and you can see your own improvement.

I have added to new categories - knit-o-lator to deal with my growing obsession, and sweet mail swaps to showcase the wonderfulness that came in the mail from from ♥you!♥

I am the delirious new owner of an Izik Levy robot pendant and a granny smith apple pendant! A present! For no reason!! So of course I sent him a pile of Simmy stuff which he said he liked. Yay! I tried to take my own pictures, but it was a dismal failure, so I swiped some of his. I wore my robot to work and ran around showing him to everyone. According to my owners manual, he is "programmed to love and protect his owner whenever worn or displayed". Thank goodness! He is very close to my throat and if he were a mean robot... well there is no telling where my day could end up.

Thank you sooo much Izik! I love my robot and apple!!!!!!!!!

illustration friday- cold

One of my habits is drawing stuff in the margins of magazines and newspapers as I go through them for our files at work. I am always deeply happy to find a clean space to draw something. In the theme of "COLD" this week, I was doodling some ideas and I liked this one. I didn't really notice the text till after! Why not be an elle girl AND the woman of the year? AND win all those awards? heck, I have done less in a day before.
It IS starting to get cold. By the time I got home yesterday on my bike, my ears were aching like crazy. I want to still ride for a bit longer, and a hat won't fit under my helmet so I am going to accesorize with a head scarf a la Audrey Hepburn and see how that works.

I have almost negelected to mention this great tee I got in a trade with Jacinta Sue. It is so pretty! thank you Jacinta!

Seeing Hillary's cute Lotte reminded me of this book. I got it for my 6th or 7th birthday from a girl I think, named Tanya. I love this book still to this day,maybe even more now. The pictures are wonderful - by Ilon Wikland. Lotta's room looks just like mine did, all messy and full of cool junk. ( click to see bigger!) Her birthday is at the same time of year as mine, when all the blossoms are out. She got such nice things for her birthday, but what she really wants is a grown up bike. She ends up stealing one from the nice granny next door, crashes in the bushes and loses her pretty bracelet! She finds it again though. In the end her kind moustached daddy brings her home a mini grown up bike so she can ride with her older brother and sister. The last page is a picture of her birthday dinner- spaghetti and meatballs and salad! The best dinner ever.

The things I made with these prints. I am still trying to decide whether or not to have the girls as little stuffies or one regular pillow . I didn't really leave enough seam allowance on them so they looked a bit funny as individuals! The birds however turned out just how I imagined them and I like them just fine. squak! They are around 4-5" tall.

little things

These are from a previously mentioned doomed kids book project. I just found them again when going back to look at the images to try and remember the order of layers I needed to create colors on top of colors without them muddying. I forget this stuff in the blink of an eye, even the easy things!
I have a nice feeling of accomplishment today because I crossed 8 out of 9 things of my to do list! It doesn't matter that they were some as simple as "send Ken a birthday card!" or "answer so and so's email!", I still feel like I have done things. I also had on my list to start a new Christmas card for this season, which is why I needed to remember that layers thing. So that is in the computer now and partially colored, ahh that's better.

♥ I am loving Hel-looks! It is so cool to see what the kids in Helsinki are wearing. I found it over at Liquid Sky arts.
♥ Then also, the Wardrobe-re-mix site is fun too. I need some fall ideas! I found that over at Krissy's blog.

before after

It's that time of year again! Leaves all over the place. I am exited because I just got my Mother Bear pattern the other day. It is getting to be the perfect weather to knit and I need a new project. Not having kids of my own yet, making toys always seems to leave me kind of - well, I never know where to put the things. Our place is already over run with beautiful things that have faces. I do know some charming babies though, and soon I can start making stuff for them. In the meantime it's nice to think I can do something useful for the world like make a bear for this project. I'll keep you posted! The pattern seems like I may be able to figure it out. Ofcourse, I am busting at the seams for Jess Hutch's booklette! Seasoned knitters, is this what happens? You learn to knit one day and limp along with a garter stitch for months and then suddenly all you can think about is knitting. I brought a ball of yarn to work to teach my co-worker and I kept gazing wistfully at it all afternoon... goondness! Snap out of it!

illustration friday - lost

The Illustration Friday theme this week is lost and as part of my getting back into the swing of my routine, I will try and do a picture *each week.

*might not happen, knowing me.

This little raindrop on the cloud has lost his way! Oh boo hoo! Really he is just a younger raindrop and needs a little encouragement.

Well, it's a new week and I go back to work this afternoon! It is an odd feeling after 8 weeks "fightin' the man" to go back again. It feels like the first day of school! Especially since I don't start till 2:00, like I am in kindergarten.

This is an image I did last year. The book has just been released so I can finally show it. It was a neat project because they wanted me to do more "real" kids instead of the stick type guys I usually do. I often think I should try and do that more, they are way more applicable than the other ones. If you live in Ottawa and have kids, this is the book for you!

Oh no.
I hadn't read the news at all and my "perfect day" yesterday has evaporated with the horrifying news of another disaster.
how frightening and awful - I can only - well what can I do? send out my prayers and maybe donate something... and give thanks...
:(

library round-up and baby hats

Saturday was another one of those types of days I just love. We met our friend Sam for Dim sum and stuffed ourselves silly, then continued on in Kensington Market, which if you haven't been to Toronto, is a great neighborhood with a ton of veggie, cheese, bread, health food and vintage clothing shops. Sort of like a mini Camden Market in London. Anyway, I got a bunch of bagels and fresh fall apples, some honey and tea. Then we decied to go to college street where I sat on a sunny patio and had a cappucino while Paul went and looked in a book store. Later we split up and I went to the library on the way home. I got some great books, including America Knits. I am totally enjoying reading through it, not for the patterns, but the mini biographies on a ton of knitters. I love reading about how people live their lives and do what they love, it is so interesting!
Another book I found is Baby Style by debbie bliss, which apart from being impossibly cute, also had instructions on how to do swiss darning. I had never heard of it before but it was just what I needed to spruce up my third attempt at the gnomey hat.

I also found Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris which I have read before but cannot wait to read again. It is SO FUNNY.
Later that day, we looked through books, had tea, I made a big squash soup and we ate bagels. It was a perfect day.

Momentarily, we are rushing off to Paul's mum's for the full on no holds barred Thanksgiving feast. Woo! Thank god for mum's, how does one pull togther a feast of such greatness?? I am not sure I could...though I guess one day I might.

Happy Thanksgiving Canadians!

* note to self * you need a links list of the gazillion blogs you love to visit!!

bonus day!

Today is a bonus day! I don't have to picket at all like I thought! Our hours are reduced and I had enough added up already - now I have thursday and Friday totally free! I should pop in and place my ratification vote at some point in the day Friday though.
I have tidied up my inbox, gone to aquafit, had some lunch and now I am screening the above little ladies to be made in to pillow/doll type things, inspired by Rosa's little ones.. I ♥ hers! Next will be a bird in the same size.
I made this screen a long time ago and never really used it, so I am glad they will become something.

Here is my last day on the picket line - the stitch and bitch! It was such a great way to end this long situation. It summed up perfectly the fact that I never would have met such great people, connected on such a basic level and enjoyed the feeling of a real community. Everyday at work we never have the chance to just chat and hang out. I haven't "hung out" this way since school, when there was nothing really to do but be there. Here is a great article summing up things beautifully.
(thanks for sending it to me Mar!)

And thank you all for all your great congrats messages from yesterday! It'll be great to be back at my job and in to my routine and YES more regular visits to the sushi place! mmmm...
:)
xox

yipee! We are back to work on Tuesday! Conveniently, Monday is thanksgiving here, so we get an extra day to loaf. Finally! This is the 8th week of the lockout and "THEY" ( "they" is always a funny word - who is THEY?? Our barganing comittee) reached an aggreement at the last minute in our favor. So that means I get to see my beloved books at the library again, not to mention the probable mountain of magazines to be checked in. But you know what that means- 8 weeks worth of People Magazine to catch up on!

We still are picketing this week, I want my full week of strike pay - and today is another stitch and bitch. I am teaching my left handed co-worker to knit continental style. She hopes that will make it easier for her. We have only a couple of days to soak up the last of the summery weather at camp picktlinecbc.
Then I can get back into the groove of putting everything on my desk in alphbetical order - I HAVE to for filing, not because I am obsessive.

OH! The other extra fun news is yesterday me and Krissy met for a tea/chatting/knitting meeting! I had the best time chit chatting away and before we knew it 3 hours had passed. We have plans to have a cake and british decoration magazine looking party soon. I can't wait!
♥ thanks Krissy!

ps, now you can always click on the images for a larger view. I always have them like that now, but before I had them at size as seen.

Not too much to report today so I give you pictures! Here is the boy cat modeling the latest scarf - thin one, not really for warmth, out of the gorgeous recycled sari yarn from Hip Knits. I started making it on the fake stitch and bitch day. The real stitch and bitch day last week, by the way, was FUN. I met a bunch of women I would never have met without the lockout and we are doing it again this week. We even hope to carry on with it once - I was about to say once school starts again! It has felt like a wierd summer camp this lockout, what with the bbq's, live music and chatting. - once we get back to work. That may happen soon since we just got an email from the union saying that some aggreement has potentially been reached. They have to get it dealt with before hockey starts - that is CBC's bread and butter. Here is some great fabric I found on a pair of pyjama bottoms at the goodwill yesteday. I thought I might chop it up and use it for things. We'll see. Here is my view of the boy cat who needs to be on my lap when ever ( though oddly not right now, maybe they are in the yarn again...) I am on the computer. He gazes up at me this way, it is very cute. Sometimes he likes to touch his nose to mine, silly thing.