Plants that should come with a warning label

My HP-less weekend turned out well for the garden as I spent most of my time digging, pruning and more digging and pruning.

Years ago, I planted a Euonymous - purple winter creeper is the common name - don't know the last part of the latin name - to grow up one of the brick porch columns. It sounded like a good idea at the time and it very politely clung nicely to the brick without support and even did a little horizontal ground covering in a spot that is quite dry and was (operative word .. was) bare.

In recent years it has not only creeped but has leaped - all over the front garden. It roots everywhere it touches ground and sends multiple shoots off in all directions, each of which roots again. It shoots underground and under rocks, around corners and through anything in its path. Result?

BIG MESS.

It has even grown up and through a cedar and the dogwood (Cornus Mas) that the city planted about 14 years ago. I have avoided it and ignored it and it has not taken offence but rather has taken off - everywhere. I filled 2 big bags and 2 plastic bins with it and have barely made a dent in it.

Warning label needed there !

The other plant that should sport a warning label is even worse. It leaps over short houses in a single bound and shows no mercy whatsoever. Its only redeeming feature is its fall colour - which is stunning.

The varmints name..... VIRGINIA CREEPER

My neighbour TWO doors up (that is north) planted it several years ago to cover up an ugly fence. Ever since then, I have been digging it out of my back garden, pulling it out of the eaves and pulling it off the fence on the SOUTH side of my garden.

Today was the limit. I found some on the south side of my FRONT garden.

How the heck did it get there????? It was even competing successfully with the first plant varmint and had I not pulled it I am sure it would have taken over the front - perhaps saving me from digging up the Purple Wintercreeper

Duel to the death - Purple Wintercreeper vs Virginia Creeper.

Word to the wise. If it says "creeper" on the label..... avoid. Or buy some good pruners.

No knitting on MS3 but I did start a sock in a yarn that Ainslie sent me for my birthday. Lovely rich merino, blended and spun by Janet and Tracey at Wilton Road Fibre Mill (they spin the Romney Sock for Chris English and me). Gorgeous colours and a lovely soft tweedy effect which I am knitting in my generic reversible rib (Round 1 is K3, P3. Round 2 is K1, P1 - multiple of 6 stitches) on 66 stitches. I will post a picture (and the promised MS3 pic too)

No Harry Potter for ME

I got up this morning expecting to go and buy my copy of HP from my favourite neighbourhood book store - Mabel's Fables - and then take my knitting and my book over to Starbucks and sit and knit and read.

Curses.... foiled again

Mabel's Fables was sold out (they sold 400 copies last night at midnight) but I did go to Starbucks with my knitting.

Caffeined up, next stop Home Depot for porch paint and such for a big painting day tomorrow. Just as well there was no HP for me.

Reading starts Monday when Mabel's new stock arrives.

Current obsessions

I have always been a proponent of the cheap (or for red bird that should perhaps be cheep) and chearful stitch markers and a pencil and paper or magnet board for keeping track of rows and pattern repeats.

Not no longer nohow!!!

I bought my first fancy stitch markers from Zero and bethbrown on etsy.com and am completely obsessed. Since my premier purchases, I have bought more from bethbrown, some from crimsonorchid, HideandSheep and just yesterday - 3 more from Zero. And most of them are in use in my many and various projects that I have on the needles.

Turquoise from bethbrown - small and delicate and perfect for socks

A little larger turquoise - these from Zero - in use on my top down Silkroad DK Tweed sweater

No more small hair elastics for me. I am now a devotee of knitting bling

And then it got worse and I bought a row counter bracelet (actually 2) from crimsonorchid. It is a set of beads on memory wire that works like an abacus. Two rows of beads - a "ones" row and a "tens" row and you just slip a bead past the guard (pretty Swarovski crystals) when you complete a row. You can count up to 99 rows with it and then start over if you go past 100/200 etc. Wear it on your wrist and never lose your spot!

Soft minty green and white from crimsonorchid. This one is counting MysteryStole 3 rows for me

I inaugurated the first one for MysteryStole3 and have gone and bought 2 more.

This one is from HideandSheep and isn't in my grubby hands yet

I have to keep my PayPal account empty to stop me from buying any more

And the stitch markers.... oh the stitch markers.........

More from Zero - bigger and will embelish my sweater projects.

Go see what I mean or if that isn't getting you where I think it is - go to etsy.com and put stitch markers in the search line.

Can you resist this gorgeousness!!!!

Clue 3 est fini!

Bleary eyed and weary but I have caught up and have completed Clue 3 of the Mystery Stole 3.

insert picture here when daylight returns.....

It is very beautiful and I am thinking Melanie is some clever woman. Very happy with the mohair and the colour, although not one I would usually choose or wear, my eyes are very drawn to that colour these days.

I realized after I started knitting with it that it is almost exactly the same colour as one of the African Violets I potted up with 2 other blue/purple ones this spring and is also almost exactly the same as one of the paint tester pots I bought to try on the house trim (and rejected, my neighbours will be happy to hear).

Last year it was burnished orange (not even a glimmer of thought to try this on the house - although.............)

This year it is mauvey purple

What next???

Less renegade - more frog

Got a few rows into Clue 2 and realized I had made a boo boo and after trying to tink - not an easy task in mohair - and making a mess, I gave up and tossed the whole lot.

Restarted on Sunday (in stocking stitch this time) and got to the middle of Clue 2. Finished Clue 2 today and am on the 1st row of Clue 3 of which I have made a bit of a mess so need to check and probably tink back to the beginning of the row.

I actually like the stocking stitch version better so it is a good thing.

Today's my birthday and my son took me out for dinner - my choice was Indian and it was delish. He also gave me DVDs of Bleak House (the Gillian Anderson one which just played on PBS) and the Timothy Dalton Jane Eyre (an excellent version imho of which I had the tapes). I expect to do some hearty dvd watching in the near future - which of course also means some hearty knitting. Twas a very good day!

Mystery Stole 3 renegade

Call me a renegade

Not black or white and done in garter stitch

It will look a whole lot better once it is blocked

Must get back to work - processing sock of the month to the sounds of Supertramp

Mystery Stole - just me and 6,000 other knitters

The numbers are staggering - more than 6,000 participating in the Mystery Stole - closed now, thankfully as I receive many digests per day of postings from the group.

I was busy working on my July sock design so couldn't really get started until today although I did cast on for it on the weekend but ripped as it wasn't looking very neat.

My plan - use Filatura di Crosa Centolavaggi which is a very fine superwash merino that I get my supplier to bring in for me (the one I talked about in my last post). Colour is charcoal grey. The designer suggested black grey or cream.

I got about 15 rows into it this evening on my 2nd attempt and was having trouble seeing the K2togs and SSKs so I decided to scrap it again and use some of the Filatura di Crosa Baby Kid Extra I picked up at aforementioned supplier today (got a guy to scale a ladder and open boxes for me) in a rich purpley mauve.

I know not exactly black or grey but the colour was singing to me - so on I cast.

I finished the first chart and realized I was doing it in garter stitch instead of stocking stitch - I actually like it just fine so I will continue. Done up to row 58.

Very pretty - will post when I get my scanner (that's my %$%^&*&^%$#@@@@@@ scanner that is not cooperating today) working again.

You may have noticed that more shopping therapy happened today - had to pick up some Jitterbug for a customer so took advantage - mustn't waste gas and come back with an empty trunk after all. Filatura di Crosa Baby Kid Extra in 5 colours, some more Kureyon (new Fall 07 colours) for eBay (search by user name musthaveyarn) and some more of the Regia Canadian Colors that I used in my Bird Foot sock -the real stuff not a substitute this time.

I see a Lizard Ridge in my future too (perhaps in Silk Garden since it is a little lighter in weight). The cats will love it! And so will I.

Must knit!