Back in Business

Finally I know that I'm not crazy. Went to the Physio today and after a lot of poking and prodding around, it seems I have a bit of strain on my neck muscles and, whatever they did, it's made my shoulder feel a whole lot better. Not completely healed, but much better than it has been in awhile. I'm sure it's going to involve a lot more trips back to the physio, but at $5 a visit for a undergrad student and tutor, I'm not complaining. Very well run - before poking and prodding me, the student conferred with the tutor, who also checked to make sure everything was okay.
If anyone else in Adelaide is interested in cheap physiotherapy through UniSA go to: http://www.unisa.edu.au/hls/clinics/physio.asp.
The upside of this is that hopefully I'll be firing on full thrusters when it comes to my knitting.
Which is good, as I'm slowly cleaning out my stash and preparing to buy more. [Denise groans].
Thankfully the beige blankie is growing nicely, devouring all beige yarn in the stash tower. 85cm of granny square is a lot of yarn, but despite the colour, it will be keeping someone in Mongolia warm next winter. And me warm as I make it.

We've both finished a few other projects recently. I've finally finished a baby beanie that I've had on the needles for a few months. It's made out of this horrible baby cotton nylon stuff, it has no stretch to it, feels too smooth to be natural and doesn't have much warmth to it. But it does look kinda cute now I've got it finished. The bear is Richie the handmade bear, one of Denise's creations. As well as knitting, Denise also handsews bears and other stuffed toys (we have a cat pattern somewhere waiting to be cut out).

Rodney Rooster is our next model. Denise got him for me, for the first birthday I had that Denise and I were together. He's an overstuffed, over bright rooster, and he was great to cuddle all those nights Denise was in Melbourne and not with me. He's modelling Denise's latest cast-offs - her maroon socks, which are wonderfully warm (but they have another owner already, and it's not the rooster) and a baby beanie she's made for her (still) pregnant friend. The baby is imminent.

I've been making beanies to get rid of those odd balls that honestly go with nothing else in my collection. The black and fluoro beanie was the first odd ball project. And Al Bear makes such a nice model.
I made this from my generic circular needle beanie pattern. I cast on 88 stitches on a 40cm 5mm circular needles, knitted til I had just enough yarn to finish it, started decreasing at regular intervals, got to the end and realised I had a bit to much left and made a pom-pom. It fits my head though.

I've got a big box full of clothes and such to go to the Angel Knitting program. It's helped me deplete my stash of all those odds and ends that together can end up making a pair of socks or a beanie, or a hideous big beige blankie. And it's surprisingly warm.
Thanks to Denise for fixing my 'typos'.