My Other Half told me that not everybody remembers the German 1979 Eurovision entry. Which is totally a shame as you are about to find out..
Apparently my mum sprained her wrist trying out the dance moves back in 1979. The apple does not falls far from the tree.
This is pure unadulterated lust. 1300 yards of peridot green with hints of bronze. Alpaca/merino/silk. Lace. Lust. My brain is galloping through all the relevant patterns. My heart is beating fast. You non-knitters, you have no idea how a knitter's pulse can race just by looking at some yarn. It is a heady feeling.
Thankfully the yarn is already mine as I actually dyed it myself yesterday afternoon. Woo.
Isn't it funny how I can always make time for lace knitting even though my knitting schedule is already full? Is that similar to how sock knitters think? Just one more skein of laceweight sock yarn? Just one more shawl pair of monkeys? Maybe I can relate to the sock knitters after all.
I really did not mean to make this yet another post about knitting, but somehow I succumbed. I do have links to share, but first: more knitting!
I finished the first of my The Vicar's Mitts and I'm overjoyed. Most glove patterns run too big for my ludicrously tiny hands. They are much too wide and then paradoxically too short for the upper part of my hand ("this bit") which therefore must be longer than the average hand. Witness the joy of designing a pattern that fits you like a .. erm .. uhm .. er.. glove!
If I were to be critical, I'd probably want to extend the corrugated ribbing cuff for added warmth, but I'm thinking a longer cuff would ruin the look. And I love how it looks and fits. I should do this self-designing lark more often. It's very gratifying.
(I do apologise for the photo. it is the oddest thing: on Ravelry the photo is crisp and beautiful; uploaded to Flickr, the same photo turns overly sharp/defined; here it turns blurry. What gives? And no, the glove hasn't been blocked which is why it is slightly lumpy.)
So, links.
And on a final note, I have definitely become Middle Class with a capital Em and Cee. I went out shopping for booze (long story) and I came home with organic ginger beer from a local brewery. Well then.
My commuting project is zipping along nicely.
I'm currently knitting the Larisa scarf for myself in Kidsilk Haze, shade 582 (Trance). The beads are teardrop-shaped beads from The Bead Company. Recently Rhiannon finished knitting Larisa and seeing somebody else's version of your own design is the coolest thing imaginable (it felt even better than when I got published some years back and that felt pretty good). I have no deadline for this scarf - it is just a portable project and if I can sneak in one or two repeats of the lace pattern on the bus, I'm happy.
I'm currently waiting for the new Kim Hargreaves book, Touching Elegance. Clever people have tracked down some blurry photos from eBay and I've been trying to guess which yarns were used for the various designs. Straight off the bat, I'd say that Patsy is my favourite. Not that long to wait, though, as the book should be arriving in stores next week (should being the operative word). I was wearing my Icelandic jumper earlier today in anticipation of proper autumn knitting (the weather is still a bit too warm, though) and I cannot wait to get started on some lovely woollen cardigans.
Mmmm. Wool.
Some linkage:
I'm currently working on some seriously awesome colourwork mitts. I would have said "fair-isle mitts" but I recently got told off by someone who said that "fair-isle" was reserved for patterns stemming from Fair Isle, so "colourwork" it is.
However, the mitts are quite North Atlantic in their conception, design and composition. I'm using Shetland 4ply wool, the geometric pattern is inspired by Faroese pullovers, and the colours are lifted directly from a fair-isle colourwork pullover my gran knitted me when I was about eleven years old. I wanted a pair of mitts that reminded me of my cultural heritage and I think they'll fit the bill. I'm calling them "The Vicar's Fields mitts" in honour of some childhood memories.
When I put the first few details up on Ravelry, some of you contacted me to hear if I would make the pattern available. I have thought about it and have come to this decision: I will not be writing up a full pattern for these mitts. I will, however, put all my notes and charts up here on this blog, so if you want to knit these mitts, you can. I make fairly extensive notes whenever I knit, so there will plenty of information for anyone fancying their own Vicar's Fields.
Meanwhile I have had time to think about the last few days' events. The one thing about Knit Camp which really struck me was the emphasis upon British wool, British yarn, and sustainability. Everywhere I went I heard people saying they chose to spend their money on local vendors, local dyers, and local sheep breeds. Blacker Designs was one of the busiest stalls with their yarns from British flocks (and they had some wonderfully obscure breeds too). Toft Alpaca and Artisan Threads also benefited from the attention, but Shetland Handspun (no website) and the Rare Breeds Survival Trust really saw people talking. Later this year I'm part of an event about British wool and British yarns, so I was really excited to see the buzz surrounding local, organic yarn. Good thing Garthenor wasn't at Knit Camp or I would have walked away with their fabulous undyed organic laceweight which I have been coveting for ages.
Speaking of laceweight, someone has talked me into knitting her a Laminaria. I took a lot of persuading ..
James Robertson is a writer whose books I enjoy very much, but I do not see him mentioned much. I was surprised and delighted to see a two-page feature on Robertson in The Guardian this past Saturday; the feature coincides with a new novel, And the Land Lay Still. I could have done without the Guardian proclaiming that Robertson was aiming to write the Great Scottish Novel that this country 'so desperately needs', though, partly because I think the Great Scottish Novel has already been written and partly because I think Robertson is aiming for something else. I picked up Robertson's The Fanatic on a whim some years ago and thought it a great, complex read about Scottish identity, the Scottish psyche and Scottish history. A very clever and entertaining book. I was less enamoured by Joseph Knight which read more .. postcolonial, if you like, and I am mildly allergic to postcolonial novels after certain university courses (long, sad story). The Testament of Gideon Mack was Robertson's big breakthrough novel and I really enjoyed its sinister humour and subversive take on a psychological thriller. It felt more mainstream/accessible than The Fanatic and also reminded me a bit of Mikhail Bulgakov's marvellous The Master & Margarita. I'm yet to read And the Land Lay Still (I'm still reading Ulysses and then David Mitchell's latest will be next) but, yes, I'm really looking forward to a new James Robertson book.
If you are in the UK, I warmly recommend watching Women's Institute: Girl Talk. A simple premise: visiting the educational HQ of Women's Institute and talking to some of the ladies participating in the courses. And then as you learn a bit about some of the nice ladies, your eyes might just get a bit misty. One of the best hours of television I have watched for quite some time. Yes, I feel profoundly middle class now, thank you.
(I have also just checked out some of the available WI courses and am drawn towards Victorian Corset Making and Copperplate Calligraphy which should surprise absolutely no one)
Finally, my parents recently went to the Czech Republic on holiday and as a souvenir they bought me a book on Czech cooking. I was very amused to find a recipe for "Home Pig Feast" which starts: 'put the pig's head, knee and tongue in a pan..' The entire thing is served with a sauerkraut salad which is basically some sauerkraut mixed with horseradish. I think I'll politely give that one a pass.
Ah yes, the Ravelry picnic. I was too exhausted to properly enjoy myself, but it was nice to see familiar faces (and famous faces). I'll play catch-up with the world once I've had some sleep.
