Almost Can't Believe it

So do you remember this picture?

When they weren't too bad, but still a tiny bit too short for me.

Well, would you believe this:

Right Hand

Left Hand

I would not have, there is some serious growth going on here. The only thing that I have changed is adding the garlic, base coat, nail polish concoction to my bi-weekly manicure session.
These puppies are strong like heck, but not so strong that they snap instantly if you jam them on something.
And for this week just to let them all catch up, the nails that were long enough I used just base coat, the rest got base coat with garlic.

Also it is Tuesday now, and this polish was applied on Thursday, 5 days, no chips not to shabby. Fingers crossed that I can make it a full 7 days this week, as I am not around.


Moral of the story, put some garlic in your nail polish and enjoy.

A

Its here!

So my order from Knit Picks has arrived! Isn't this site amazing? I love it.
Anyway, so I will un-box everything and then hopefully be able to get a move on with the girlie blanket I am working on (it needed a longer cable, to make knitting easier).

Then I am going to start work the Glass Knot Afghan, and a sweater from this same set of patterns, and a hat as well. I will be a busy girl. Instead of jumping straight into a huge colour work pattern I decided to practice a little bit.
So using Chroma fingering and Pallete in black (www.knitpicks.com) I started working on the Monument Tam from the same set of patterns. This is soo pretty, and it just glows like stain glass, and I prefer using a pre-verigated yarn over having to remember to switch yarns every few rows. I have also almost got myself down pat on using Continental and English style knitting at the same time, and then I do not need to drop and pick up yarn every few stitches. This is tricky for me, and is not great for my tension, but like everything it will come with time.

I do not know if I am any fonder of any one project than another, but I think we all need a balance, between items that take us a day, versus projects that require a significant amount of planning, and time to get them finished. Either way for me it is all about keeping my hands occupied so I do not fall asleep while sitting down. I wish I could take this with me on the plane this week :(. I am sure I could but I would hate to loose my needles that would be most unfortunate.

The Garlic Project/New Challenge

Has anyone done anything exciting recently? I was at a dinner on Monday night, which was delicious, well done to everyone at the Banff Springs! And then last night I was at a Malbec tasting, as I believe it was International Malbec day. Great way to spend an evening.

Well, considering that four of my nails have just finished the grow out process after removing acrylic splints things are looking good. The nails that finished their grow out decided to break off instead of growing, but that is done with now so, I can in all good faith start this process in earnest, and can go in search of a splinting process that my nails do not hate, and need severe attention after they are removed. Maybe, if I am lucky they will respond so well to the garlic polish, that I will never need to splint again......yeah right.
My pinky nail is 1.2 cm long at this point in time so I would say that is a great improvement. So now it is the waiting game. The picture is not overly impressive, but it's there!!! Party for me. My other nails, since writing the above have also responded positively to this treatment, and other than my room smelling like garlic for a bit after I do this, I think they look phenomenal. Breaking and splitting have been non-existent, and my nail polish has been staying on a bit longer, about 2 days longer, which makes a hug difference, only needing to do one's nails every week instead of every 4 days, or every Sunday and Thursday as became my habit, but no more! (unless I need to)

My next challenge, seeing as something is working, I think will be to knit a sweater, yes that is right you read that correctly, I the professed do not want to knit a sweater person, wants to knit a sweater. I just need a challenge, hopefully I do not live to regret the decision. I won't be starting this weekend, but I will start. So keep your eyes peeled.

Then this weekend, or tonight by hook or by crook, I will fix all my woven bracelets, as I miss wearing them greatly, pictures will follow.

See ya.
A

The pink Blanket

Well, I am alive and well. My grandmother passed away but that us life and something unpreventable so there we are. However it is due to her that I can infact knit, so I thank her for thay from the bottom of my heart. I finished the large pink blanket, I think when I cast off there were around 2000 stitches but I won't think about that because it took me a week to cast off. Now it is just waiting in its box.

Look how pretty, it is all wrapped up and ready for gifting, now I just need to see the baby girl that it is going to. I hope she gets it before she is 10 years old, which until it was actually completed I was not too sure about.

I also completed a hat which is a birthday present but I am just waiting for her to come home again. This hat is perfect for her as she has the biggest heart and this hat has four hearts on the top so it makes it ideal. Before this hat was completed I did also complete a different version of the Tardis hat.

Well that is all I know of for now, except that based on my lack of great pictures I really need to find my good camera.

Peace

-A

Time for Change

This is about nothing all that crafty, but it is about a change I am trying to desperately make in my life. Fat loss. Yes ladies and gentlemen, and those who are yet to make up their minds. I need to do this for me, no one else but me, and with lots of good luck I hope it sticks permanently, this time. *crosses fingers*
With my 25th Birthday only 9 crazy months away, and me wanting to throw myself a Masquerede I need to be at my goal weight in that time frame so I can start planning it! Really I just want a fabulous dress with a decent sized hoop skirt, not talking Gypsy wedding large but large enough to make it difficult to get through a doorway. So to make this happen I should get down 70 lbs, I have already done 10 but it took around 4 months to make that happen. Which yes is awesome, but not good enough. So, in making sure this happens I have taken some positive steps towards my goals (for real this time), starting by gathering around me friends that share the same interest to rid ourselves of our extra fat, and I have started working out 4 days a week. Not a lot, but more than I am doing now, and when it starts to become a habit, I will start to do more.
I am also learning such fascinating things as 7000 jumping jacks is 1 lb of fat...so if you do 100 a day for a week then there is 1 lb, break the 100 down into 50 twice a day and you are good. And you don't need any equipment to do them, you can do them anywhere, and believe you me, right now, I am prepared to do them anywhere.
So with that out of the way, congratulations to Nicole for winning the Top Chef Canada Challenge last night! I did not watch it last night as Doctor Who took precedent, and watching food shows late at night just makes me eat...so it counters the above, slightly. Might watch today while I eat my lunch, who knows.

Well with that I am almost finished a scarf (not really, but I like to think I am so I will have that to talk about next time). Also if you will recall I knitted that gorgeous blue and then pink circle blanket, and I have just started another one in that same vein, but I am inventing the pattern for it as I go, it thus far, looks really cool, and I cannot wait to share it with you. Pictures of course not the pattern, as I think if I tried to write it down the mass confusion that would ensue would not be worth it.

Back to the grindstone.

-A