Monthly Archives: July 2015

Stupidity strikes again!

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My life has been crazy lately.  I have been dealing with a quadruple super whammy of stressful events.

1. House renovations.  Yes, the dreaded renovations – lovely when they’re done, hell while they’re happening.  We’ve had all the windows in the house replaced, and then the kitchen was gutted and rebuilt.  Plus, various other things – fences torn down and put up again, the garage redone, etc.

2. The beautiful 22-year old daughter decides to backpack by herself through Eastern Europe syndrome.  Emma had a ball; she visited 16 cities in 9 countries in 5 weeks.  She had a huge variety of adventures, many of which she probably should not have mentioned to her parents until long after the fact.  She had 5 weeks of fun; I had 5 weeks of fretting.

3. Trying to write a master’s thesis while working full time.  Enough said.

4. Making a major change in life direction, while fretting at every opportunity.  (More on this in a future post.)

We all know that knitting is good for stress, right?

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During the renovations, we were offered the use of some friends’ house.  We packed up a suitcase and moved in, and right in the midst of all of these other stressful things, we lived for three weeks out of suitcase in someone else’s house.  I took one knitting project with me: the beautiful Laelia cardigan which I am knitting in fingering weight yarn.  This cardigan has lace panels.  These lace panels require concentration.  It turns out that knitting may be good for stress, but, in my case at least, knitting lace is not.

A while back, I wrote a post called “How to be stupid at knitting” in which I told the sorry tale of an incredibly stupid knitting adventure.  Stupidity strikes again!  I knit two rows and realized that I had made a mistake in the lace.  I painstakingly tinked two rows, a stitch at a time.  I knit two more rows; again with the tinking.  I finally decided that it was crazy to attempt to knit this beautiful lace cardigan in the state I was in.  I wished so hard that I had a simple stockinette or garter project on the needles; something that went round and round, mindlessly.  Every day, I glanced longingly at my knitting and thought, if only I could do some mindless knitting, but all I have with me is this cardigan with lace panels, and I can’t knit lace right now.

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So, I spent three weeks without knitting a stitch.  Yesterday, days after moving back home, I had one of those Eureka moments:  I COULD HAVE JUST KNIT THE SLEEVES!  There are few things as mindless as knitting sleeves, in the round, in fingering weight.  I could have totally done that, even in a state of stress.

These photos show what the sweater looked like a month ago.  Unfortunately, they also show what it looks like today.

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Pattern Radar July 2015

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It’s been a while since my last Pattern Radar post.  These are semi-regular posts in which I highlight patterns which have caught my attention.  Normally, when I write one of these, my “favorites” box is overfilling with new and interesting patterns; this time not so much.   In any case, here are the ones that have lately caught my eye.

I really love the geometry in this cabled pullover called Allium by Nick Atkinson for Yarn Stories:

© Nick Atkinson

© Nick Atkinson

Combined with the lovely green (I am a sucker for green), this one definitely sparked my interest.  I think this would look fabulous on a very shapely person, and would also impart a beautiful silhouette to a slim, willowy person.

I like the drape and swinginess (is that a word?) of this lovely pullover by Maria Chiba:

© Fairmount Fibers

© Fairmount Fibers

I like the ease of it, and can imagine wearing it in a pale shimmery silky grey, on a breezy summer evening, while sipping prosecco.  Called Oxidar, you can find it here.

I adore Shifter by Julia Gunther:

© Julia Günther

© Julia Günther

I must be really attracted to this kind of shaping with ribbing; you can see it in the lovely Audrey which I knit for my daughter Emma, and also in the shapings of the ribbing for my Escher cardigan.  I think this example is very sophisticated but also casual and fun at the same time.  I would even overcome my zipper trepidation to knit this pullover.

I have a fondness for classics, and this one really does it for me:

© Knitscene/Harper Point

© Knitscene/Harper Point

This is the Hyannis Port Pullover by Cecily Glowik MacDonald from Knitscene Fall 2015.  I think it is beautifully designed and proportioned; I would wear this all the time if I had it.  I also love the styling and the photo shoot.  (We should ask: Why aren’t there more women of colour in knitting pattern releases?  Designers and pattern producers seem to be labouring under the impression that we want all sweaters displayed on young, slim, white women.)  Here is another fabulous photo from this shoot:

© Knitscene/Harper Point

© Knitscene/Harper Point

I don’t think of myself as a poncho person (I remember vividly too many hideous ponchos from the 70s), but I must admit that I find this one kind of cute:

© Anders Schønnemann

© Anders Schønnemann

It really has a casual chic vibe to it.  It is called Ella, and is designed by Lene Holme Samsøe and published in Perfectly Feminine Knits.

Here is another one from Yarn Stories; it is called Sloop and designed by Amada Crawford:

© Amanda Crawford

© Amanda Crawford

I have some very pretty grey silk merino blend yarn in my stash that would work really well for this.  I am considering knitting up a swatch and seeing if Emma is interested.  This is another example of casual chic, with good details and classic lines.

I am usually not a fan of triangular shawls, but this one is really striking.  I also completely love the photo, which is pretty much perfect:

© Justyna Lorkowska

© Justyna Lorkowska

The pattern is called Seiklus Shawlette and it is designed by Justyna Lorkowska.  It is pretty irresistable in this grey and would also be lovely in black (though it would take a brave knitter – or one with much younger eyes – to knit this in black).

I love the designs of Tin Can Knits, the designing duo otherwise known as Alexa Ludeman and Emily Wessel.  They recently both gave birth to baby boys and released a pattern collection of adorable baby knits.  I can usually resist baby knits, but this pattern really stands out.  I would invent a baby to knit Peanut:

© Tin Can Knits

© Tin Can Knits

And while we are on the topic of kids, Kate Davies and Jen Arnall-Culliford recently released some down-sized versions of their adult sweaters, Bluebells and Bruton.  Called Wee Bluebells and Wee Bruton, they can be found in Cross Country Knitting, Volume Two.

© Cross Country Knitting

© Cross Country Knitting

For some wonderful photos, and close-ups of the sweaters themselves, I recommend you read Kate’s post (actually, I recommend you read all of Kate’s posts – I never miss one).

That’s it for this edition of Pattern Radar.  Happy knitting, everyone!

Textile experiences: Three for London

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I’ve been into London quite a bit the last few weeks, both for business and pleasure.  While there, I have had three textile experiences.  The first was quite unexpected.  I had a few hours between meetings and decided to spend them working in the British Library.  While there I chanced upon the artwork Magna Carta (An Embroidery) by Cornelia Parker.  The accompanying text says in part:

Magna Carta (An Embroidery) is a major new artwork by the acclaimed British artist Cornelia Parker that celebrates the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta in 2015.  Fabricated by many hands, it replicates in stitch the entire Wikipedia article on Magna Carta as it appeared on the document’s 799th anniversary. […] Cornelia Parker captured the Wikipedia article on Magna Carta on 15 June 2014 and output it as a printed pattern on fabric.  The fabric was then divided into 87 sections and sent around the country to be stitched by more than 200 people.  The sections were subsequently reunited and sewn together by the Royal School of Needlework, the international centre of excellence for the art of hand embroidery.  The finished piece is almost 13 metres long.

It is an arresting piece of needlework with beautiful craftsmanship, which manages to impart a fresh and modern outlook to the Magna Carta.  It was lovely to watch its impact on people, many of whom seemed to come upon it by chance as I did and then become captivated by it.   Its size makes it nearly impossible to photograph, but you should definitely read the press release put out by the British Library which has many detailed photos, background on the artist and the process, and snippets on many of the people who contributed to the work.

One of the days in which I was working in London was a Thursday, and as I was debating whether to take the train straight home at the end of the day or to hang around in London for a few hours, inspiration hit: Thursday night is Knit Night at Loop in London.  I really love Loop, its a great knitting shop with a cool and relaxing atmosphere.  I frequently stop there when I am in town but I had never made it to a Knit Night before.  It turns out (surprise, surprise) that Knit Nights are fun, and are filled with people who know what you are talking about!  It has been a long time since I have chatted with a bunch of knitters and I enjoyed it immensely.

Interestingly, shortly after I arrived, the chair next to me was taken, and I looked up to see someone whose face I know from Ravelry, but had never met.  I said “Are you Kate?”  and she said “Hello Kelly, I loved what you did with Escher.”  So funny.  It is the first time that I have run into someone who reads my blog.  Funnier still, Kate normally resides in Australia and had just arrived in London, so it really was a chance meeting of two expat knitters from different sides of the globe who knew each other from Ravelry.  Isn’t the knitting world great?  (Hi, Kate!)

I’ve saved the best London textile experience for last.  I went to the Alexander McQueen exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum!  I was absolutely blown away by this event.  It was truly remarkable.  I don’t usually pay all that much attention to the catwalk, and wouldn’t have called myself a fan, but this exhibit was astonishing.  I can see why McQueen was controversial, but there is no denying the absolute genius and craftsmanship in his work.  The exhibit is spectacularly curated: it is more a piece of theatre than a museum exhibit.  The exhibit is closing on August 2nd.  I have just read that the museum will be open around the clock on the final weekend because of the demand for tickets.  If you have any chance of getting to see this, don’t miss it!