Week 9, 2006 Goals

M's second sock: instep
Internet Search: Man's knee high sock pattern
Decluttering: Empty a binder
Reclaiming Bedroom: Step 2: Empty in and around night stands

Week 8, 2006 Goals
Goals Done
Except:
Decluttering: Empty a binder Incomplete (no excuse)

I found a site that explained how to do a photo trick. By moving your mouse over a picture it would change. I had thought of using it to show before and after pictures of my bed but I couldn't get it to work. I will keep trying to find the way to make it work. I wish I knew the names of the things I would like to do on my blog so I could just search the internet for them.

I emptied my bed. My goal now is to keep it empty. You would think that it would be easy but it is so convenient to put things there.

A Gold Medal for Me!

Photo added on another day.
I finished my miniature sweater yesterday. I know it is quite a small piece of work compared to everybody else's most other people's but I finished it. I feel proud of myself because 1)I designed the sweater myself 2)I searched for suitable stitches for it 3)I finished it (and it wasn't even a present for anyone).
Of course the camera is not here when I want it off with its owner so I can't take a picture but I'll add one when my son the camera is back.

My First UFO is Finished!

I know that that doesn't sound very exciting but some of my ufo's are really old. My weaving was done when my son (now a teenager) was small enough to sit under the loom to push the pedals for me and he has always been the tallest in his class.

I took the picture and uploaded it all by myself (well, along with the notes I made). The poppana is only small (22cm X 45cm) but it's done.

Decluttering Tips

Last week's internet search goal was to look for some tips on decluttering. Most places seemed to have the same sort of ideas.

What I came up with:
- Write down why you want to declutter so that you can look at it to remind yourself when the job seems too daunting. Also write down your ultimate goal. Think of something to work towards to reward yourself. Not that a decluttered home isn't reward enough, but something to remind you of all of your work.
- Set an alarm for 10 – 15 minutes, or however long you can honestly believe you will work on decluttering. Or choose some music that will last that long. You can continue after your time is up if you still feel like it. Even though it isn't much time, you will have worked on decluttering! Don't pull everything out or you might end up with a bigger mess than you started with.
- Choose an area to work on. You could use your first session to create a list of areas you want to work on and then divide them into suitable sessions. Don't jump from one area to another or it might not look like much progress has been made.
- If you get rid of one item a day, in a year you will have 365 less objects a day and daily it doesn't take up much time.
- Fix or mend items that have been waiting to be repaired or get rid of them! If you can't use it, why keep it?
- Don't bring something new into your home unless you get rid of something. New in, old out.
- Get four boxes or bags and label clearly (so you don't get rid of the wrong things)
- To keep
- To repair
- To give away (and be sure to give them away)
- To throw away
- Assign a home for everything. This will make it easier to find things and elimate the need to buy a new one because you can't find the old one. Keep like things together and near where they are used, if possible. Cards and wrapping paper. Writing paper, stamps, envelopes.
- Make up a card to use when faced with items you aren't sure whether to keep or not. Include questions like:
     - Do I need it or use it?
     - When was the last time I used it?
     - Why would I want to keep it?
     - Can I live without it?

I started the heel on M's second sock. I decided to put the stitches that are on hold onto a piece of yarn to see if that would prevent stretching if they had waited on the needles. I'm hoping that the gaps will not be so big. Will have to see if it makes a difference.

Week 8, 2006 Goals

Week 8, 2006 Goals (Is the goal measurable?)
Magazines: Read 1-2 and get rid of them
Tapes: Listen to 1-2 and label them
Floss (I forget so often)
Knitting: heel and gusset on M's second sock
Internet Search: Sock toe patterns
UFO: Zigzag edges and hem them
Decluttering: Empty a binder
Reclaiming Bedroom: Empty off bed and KEEP it empty

Week 7, 2006 Goals
Magazines: Read 1-2 and get rid of them Done 5
Tapes: Listen to 1-2 and label them Done 2
Floss (I forget so often) Done
Knitting: Do cuff on M's second sock Done
Internet Search: De-cluttering tips (at least 10 sites) Done
Make fudge for A's Valentine's gift Done
UFO: Decide how to finish it Done - zigzag edges and hem
Decluttering: Empty a binder Done


This is one of the reasons why I want to reclaim my bedroom. Every now and then I empty most of the stuff off of the bed but it tends to start looking like this soon after.

Taking Back My Bedroom

In a pile of my magazines I came across a notebook from the year 2000 describing how I WAS going to take back my bedroom from the storage room that it looks like. I had glued in pictures cut from magazines and everything. Things haven't changed in there very much.

According to Sue Kay at myhouseandgarden.com ”Procrastination is the major obstacle to decluttering. So start now.” Is six years long enough to procrastinate?

I started to read a knitting blog and the writer said to take out your knitting and have a nice read. I haven't thought of knitting while reading but maybe that's because I usually read books, which have to be held. I got my knitting, which is ribbing at this time, so nothing that I have to look at while doing. I tried to read the blog while knitting but I keep stopping to knit. It is something that I will have to learn though.

I was planning to post my blog entry this morning but realized that the fudge picture was still on my son's camera and I don't know how to use it. (I still have to ask which is the power button.) I guess I should get out a pencil and notepad and take some lessons (and take the pictures myself).


The fudge was really good. I left out the lime rind because I didn't want to spoil the taste of the white chocolate. Next time I think I will leave out the white chocolate (less fat and sugar), honey and vanilla sugar (less sugar).

I Made Fudge for the First Time

Happy Valentine's Day!
I just finished making A's some white chocolate fudge for Valentine's Day. If the cooled-down fudge is anything like what I scrapped from the pan, is will be toooo easy to eat. Fortunately it only makes a small amount. The recipe is from a Finnish magazine called 'Pirkka' so the recipe is in Finnish. If anyone wants it in English let me know.

M's first sock is finished.
I know that the sock looks big compared to the cuff but it fits well. I used Novita Nalle which is a Finnish yarn. I don't like the toe because I decreased every row and that left a ladder on each side. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I had to use large needles because I knit so tightly and the socks would have been too small using the needle size required.

I found a site that has podcasts about knitting that can be listened to from the computer. I started with episode 11, so I still have all the previous episodes to listen to. Well, actually, I will probably have to relisten (I know that that isn't a real word, but it's shorter than ”to listen to it again” and it makes sense doesn't it?) to episode 11 again because if I start typing I forget to listen!

Week 7, 2006 Goals

Week 7, 2006 Goals
(Goals should be measurable!)
Magazines: Read 1- 2 and get rid of them
Tapes: Listen to 1-2 and label them
Floss (I forget so often)
Knitting: Do cuff on M's second sock (just having the goal to 'work on them' isn't measurable)
Internet Search: De-cluttering tips (at least 10 sites)
Make fudge for A's Valentine's gift
UFO: Decide how to finish it
Decluttering: Empty a binder

Week 6 Goals
Read 1-2 magazines Done – 12
Tapes: Listen to 1-2 and label them Done
Work on M’s socks Done - First sock
Internet Search: homemade birthday card ideas Done
UFO: choose a project Done (Finish off poppana edges)
Eat only 5% fat cheese Incomplete (Edam cheese is too good.)

Who would believe a knitted piece only 25 stitches wide would be such a nuisance? I don't know how many times I have undone all or part of my choice for the Knitting Olympics. Maybe I should have just used someone else's pattern instead of trying to do one on my own.

I undid the toe on M's sock. I thought that I would put the stitches onto 2 needles and reduce them that way but something went wrong.


Let's see if I can get a picture now. It should be of one of my shelves of magazines.

If the sock fits

M's sock fits her foot, so I can finish it up and start the other one. Hopefully with the help of the notes I made for the first sock the second one will go faster. She has already bought the wool for her husband's socks so I can just start on those when hers are done.

I was disappointed to realize that the cable in the picture of the Basic egg cosy sweater wasn't included in the pattern, so I've been searching for a small cable pattern. I found a 2 stitch cable at 'Craft Yarn Council of America' and I will try that on a swatch. If it is too small then I will look for a 4 stitch cable. I think I will make my own pattern as I would like a more noticable rib around the bottom. Either 3 or 4 rows. I would also like to do a honeycomb stitch but I don't know if it will be too big for such a small sweater.

Tinking the socks

I stopped counting the stitches on each needle as I was doing the toe for M's sock. When I did count them, I realized that I had made a mistake somewhere and now have to tink it. (Tink is 'knit' spelt backwards, so I am undoing one stitch at a time.)

I decided to join the Finnish knitting Olympics if I can find out how to do it. I'm only going to do a small project because I really shouldn't start anything new and I have these socks to finish. I saw this Basic egg cosy sweater at 'A Good Yarn' and thought that it would be small enough not to feel guilty over. The cable will be something new for me to try. If it goes well then I can make more.

Sock almost done

Well I finally figured out that I couldn't just write in the link in the text, so now it is showing in the last entry. Yeah! It's nice that we can go back and change what we have done. Still haven't figured out how to add info to 'about me' though. And now I noticed that the second entry is in first position. That will have to change too.

Now I'm not sure if I want to do that purse or a few others I have found or a combination of some of them. Sigh. Need to make a decision before the Olympics start. I'm at the toe of the first sock. Will knit it up but won't take the needles off before M tries it on. I would prefer her to try it on now as I don't like to undo things and I doubt I could let myself frog it.

To purse or not to purse

I still haven't figured out how to get the pictures showing. Should concentrate on figuring that out but it can wait.

I had to undo the sock for a few rows because there were so many holes where the decreasing is done. I compared the pattern I usually use to the one that I am using (which is on the back of the label). The one I'm using says to decrease every row. The one that I usually use says to decrease every second row, or at least that is what I thought it said because I didn't read more than that. Actually I should have knit one extra row after each decrease row until the correct number of stitches was reached but it looks ok like this anyway.

I've been thinking of joining the knitting or crocheting olympics but for which team? I think I know what I would like to knit but I'm not sure. It's a purse at Chez Plum and called an Isabeau purse. I don't really use purses but I would like to use up my yarns and stuff. Oh well I still have a few days to decide.

First Entry

Now that we have finally dared to get internet at home, I decided to start a blog. About nothing spectacular but just to help me focus on what I should be doing. That would include crafts (knitting, crocheting, card making, whatever else should, could and would like to be done), de-cluttering (if we move we have too much stuff that doesn’t need to be taken with us), eating healthier (I need to loose weight for my health and I would like to eat less processed foods if possible) and anything else that comes along the way.

Something like this:

Daily tasks:
Read 1-2 magazines (I have hundreds of them and if we are going to move I’d rather not take them with me. I know I could just throw them away but I do want to read them.)
Work on M’s socks

Daily goal at this time:
Eat only 5% fat cheese (we don’t have fatfree cheese here)

Weekly tasks:
Internet search of the week: homemade birthday card ideas

Monthly goal:
Find a ”unfinished project” and work on it

Whenever someone asks me what my hobbies are, I always include handicrafts. One day I started to think about when had I actually last done any crafting. And realized that it had been long enough ago that I shouldn’t really include it in my hobbies. So I decided to do something about it. Fortunately my sister D sent me a ball of crochet yarn and I crocheted about 10 bookmarks to send back to her. Then sister R wanted crocheted snowflakes for her Christmas present last year. I made 12 of them (getting most of the patterns from the internet).

Now I’m working on a pair of socks for my friend M. She mentioned that her family needed wool socks and I said I could knit her a pair. She gave me a ball of wool and now I’m at the heel of the first sock. I had to undo the heel turn a few times because I wasn’t concentrating on it very well. But now it’s done and I can try to attempt to pick up stitches for the gusset. I haven’t used such thin wool before and it seems to take so much longer to knit.