I'm sitting at my computer, surround by books and half-finished knitting projects. Post-its covered in scribbled notes cover my desk, the covers of books, the walls that surround me. A half-finished cup of tea has gone cold.
I look up and out of the window, searching for inspiration. The sky is delicately mauve. When I hold my breath, I can hear the faint pattering of hailstones. I stand up, move to the window, lean my head against the glass. The hailstones become snow, falling in huge soft clumps. As they hit the ground, they disappear. If I wasn't watching, I'd never know it had been snowing.
In the time it takes for one song to become another on the radio, the snow stops. The mauve sky peels away, revealing a deep blue barely flecked with clouds. The mass of cloud hanging over the hills in the distance is the only sign of the interlude, and even that is fast leaving.
A few weeks ago, it would have been fully dark by this time of day. Now, sitting by the window, I don't even need the light on. The winter didn't last forever, after all.
Everything feels very still and quiet, as though the world is holding its breath. Juliet is putting out new leaves, growing tall and spindly towards the fading sunlight. She knows that the spring is coming. She always knew.
Wednesday, 7 March 2012
Thursday, 23 February 2012
Read this book: Wide Sargasso Sea
I was fourteen years old when I first read Jane Eyre. I read it at first hesitantly, lingering over the descriptions, unsure of whether to allow myself to be drawn in to Jane's point of view or not. At that point, I was still figuring out how the process of reading against the grain worked (I may never be done figuring out how to read against the grain). I couldn't figure out which books to read how - do we take this one at face value? Do we read this as an allegory? Why do we read this one ironically but not that? I raced through most books, but Jane Eyre deserved more, and I could tell. I wept when Helen died, and recoiled in horror from Bertha Mason, the mad wife in the attic.
I reread that book so many times over the next few years. The summer that I was sixteen, I took a copy of Wuthering Heights on a family holiday to France - the last family holiday I went on - and devoured it over and over in the space of a week. I played the song over and over on my MP3 player. My girlfriend at the time was a soprano with a lovely voice, and she had given me a recording of her performance of Wuthering Heights. My family did not like my girlfriend, and they soon became sick of hearing about Wuthering Heights.
When I returned home, I felt faintly guilty for loving Wuthering Heights so much. Jane Eyre had come first, to me, and I loved it so much, but it wasn't as exciting as Wuthering Heights. My sixteen year old self loved the gothic, and Jane Eyre, for all the gothic tropes it employs, did not have quite high enough drama for me. When a classmate insisted upon my choosing a favourite book, I deliberated for long minutes between Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre. I don't remember which I chose, only begging to be allowed two, because these books were so important to me. I was refused. "You can only have one favourite book."
Packing books for university, Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights both came with me. They were too much like old friends to leave behind. They stood on the tiny bookshelf in my room in halls, with The Handmaid's Tale, Burning Your Boats, Frankenstein. In that first semester, I didn't read either of them, but they were there, their presence comforting to me. In my second semester, Jane Eyre was on the course, and I was thrilled.
By this time, I rejoiced in reading against the grain, scouring texts for their ill-treatment of women. The obsessions which would come to define my study had emerged, and Jane Eyre ticked most of the boxes - the nineteenth century, early feminism, madness, suicide, women. I wrote an essay decrying Rochester as a villain, pointing out all of the parallels where he behaves in the same way as other characters who are punished for their actions. With Rochester settled in my mind as an evil character, I began to wonder at Bertha Mason, his insane wife, locked up in the attic.
Mad? I thought. Wouldn't anyone be mad at being treated like this? Wouldn't anyone object to being dragged away from their home by an indifferent husband; wouldn't anyone turn to drink? Wouldn't anyone seek love where they can find it, if their husband was Edward Fairfax Rochester? I became convinced that she was a victim of his indifference, not mad but sad, vulnerable, lashing out where she could. I began to love Bertha Rochester.
In class, we read an essay by Spivak, discussing problems of colonialism as addressed by Jane Eyre and Jean Rhys' Wide Sargasso Sea. From the quotes in Wide Sargasso Sea, I saw that I was not the only person who read Bertha as victim rather than villain, Rochester as villain rather than victim. I acquired a second hand copy of the book and devoured it the day it arrived.
Wide Sargasso Sea speaks of belonging to places and people, of deceit and love and appetite. It speaks of colonisation of people as well as landscapes, and of power and where power can come from. Set mostly before the events of Jane Eyre, Wide Sargasso Sea humanises Bertha while painting the landscape about her in such rich colours that it becomes clear that upon arriving in wet, grey England, anybody would have gone mad. Rhys does amazing things with prose, with character, with nationality and languages and everything about this book is amazing and thoughtful and rich.
In short, please read this book. If you have any interest in Bertha Mason, or Jane Eyre, or feminism, or colonialism, please read this amazing book.
I reread that book so many times over the next few years. The summer that I was sixteen, I took a copy of Wuthering Heights on a family holiday to France - the last family holiday I went on - and devoured it over and over in the space of a week. I played the song over and over on my MP3 player. My girlfriend at the time was a soprano with a lovely voice, and she had given me a recording of her performance of Wuthering Heights. My family did not like my girlfriend, and they soon became sick of hearing about Wuthering Heights.
When I returned home, I felt faintly guilty for loving Wuthering Heights so much. Jane Eyre had come first, to me, and I loved it so much, but it wasn't as exciting as Wuthering Heights. My sixteen year old self loved the gothic, and Jane Eyre, for all the gothic tropes it employs, did not have quite high enough drama for me. When a classmate insisted upon my choosing a favourite book, I deliberated for long minutes between Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre. I don't remember which I chose, only begging to be allowed two, because these books were so important to me. I was refused. "You can only have one favourite book."
Packing books for university, Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights both came with me. They were too much like old friends to leave behind. They stood on the tiny bookshelf in my room in halls, with The Handmaid's Tale, Burning Your Boats, Frankenstein. In that first semester, I didn't read either of them, but they were there, their presence comforting to me. In my second semester, Jane Eyre was on the course, and I was thrilled.
By this time, I rejoiced in reading against the grain, scouring texts for their ill-treatment of women. The obsessions which would come to define my study had emerged, and Jane Eyre ticked most of the boxes - the nineteenth century, early feminism, madness, suicide, women. I wrote an essay decrying Rochester as a villain, pointing out all of the parallels where he behaves in the same way as other characters who are punished for their actions. With Rochester settled in my mind as an evil character, I began to wonder at Bertha Mason, his insane wife, locked up in the attic.
Mad? I thought. Wouldn't anyone be mad at being treated like this? Wouldn't anyone object to being dragged away from their home by an indifferent husband; wouldn't anyone turn to drink? Wouldn't anyone seek love where they can find it, if their husband was Edward Fairfax Rochester? I became convinced that she was a victim of his indifference, not mad but sad, vulnerable, lashing out where she could. I began to love Bertha Rochester.
In class, we read an essay by Spivak, discussing problems of colonialism as addressed by Jane Eyre and Jean Rhys' Wide Sargasso Sea. From the quotes in Wide Sargasso Sea, I saw that I was not the only person who read Bertha as victim rather than villain, Rochester as villain rather than victim. I acquired a second hand copy of the book and devoured it the day it arrived.
Wide Sargasso Sea speaks of belonging to places and people, of deceit and love and appetite. It speaks of colonisation of people as well as landscapes, and of power and where power can come from. Set mostly before the events of Jane Eyre, Wide Sargasso Sea humanises Bertha while painting the landscape about her in such rich colours that it becomes clear that upon arriving in wet, grey England, anybody would have gone mad. Rhys does amazing things with prose, with character, with nationality and languages and everything about this book is amazing and thoughtful and rich.
In short, please read this book. If you have any interest in Bertha Mason, or Jane Eyre, or feminism, or colonialism, please read this amazing book.
Friday, 27 January 2012
The blocks
Here are the first four blocks of the skill builder. All of them were done with fabric from my stash, hence the scrappy appearance. I'm trusting that the quilt will come together, and even if it ends up ugly, it'll be good for snuggling under.
Four of the fabrics in this log cabin block were from previous projects. The red and the yellow were used in the coasters that were my first patchwork project, and the pink and darker green were part of the cushion covers that I showed you a few days ago. The lighter green came from a box of random yarn and fabric that my knitting group had.
Some of the same fabrics have been used here. The red stars, darker green, and gold as before. The yellow with green sunflowers was left over from a project bag that I made last summer; the cat fabric (I love the cat fabric so much) was the coasters, and the centres of the lighter squares was the cushion covers again. The light fabric with blue flowers was from a dress I made myself - it turned out hideously ugly and ill-fitting, but I really like the fabric. Good job, too, because I've oodles of it left.
Here we have more of the cat fabric. The cats have birds on their heads! It's so fun! The floral fabric is one that I bought with the idea of making a project bag, but it's too light for that really, and anyway, I needed something light for the background of this block. Two of the triangles were sewn on back to front, but I didn't notice until the end, and I didn't care enough to unpick the whole darn thing and resew them. Once it's part of a quilt, nobody will notice, right?
This one's my favourite, so far. The background fabric is that hideous dress again, and we have the pink from the cushion covers and the cats up at the top there. Bottom left we have more of the fabric from my knitting group, and two new fabrics in the middle and lower right. I bought both of those with project bags in mind, but I was getting low on stashed fabrics (I have a small fabric stash), so I broke into them for this block and the next. The yellow has bees on it. Bees! It's fantastic, I'll try to get a better picture when I've recharged my camera. The purple is a very pretty subtle flowers and stars and variegation print. Michael chose the layout of this one, because I couldn't decide how to arrange the blocks. I think he did a good job.
I have some of the pieces for the next block cut out, but not all. Hopefully I'll get it done on Sunday. I've been super busy this week reading for my dissertation; I got through The Beauty Myth and The Female Eunuch this week. Both are very much of their time, but very important books in the feminist canon. For pleasure I'm still reading Possession. I've started using Goodreads; this is my profile over there. Add me as a friend! I've been enjoying reading people's reviews of books that I've read or am planning to read.
Four of the fabrics in this log cabin block were from previous projects. The red and the yellow were used in the coasters that were my first patchwork project, and the pink and darker green were part of the cushion covers that I showed you a few days ago. The lighter green came from a box of random yarn and fabric that my knitting group had.
Some of the same fabrics have been used here. The red stars, darker green, and gold as before. The yellow with green sunflowers was left over from a project bag that I made last summer; the cat fabric (I love the cat fabric so much) was the coasters, and the centres of the lighter squares was the cushion covers again. The light fabric with blue flowers was from a dress I made myself - it turned out hideously ugly and ill-fitting, but I really like the fabric. Good job, too, because I've oodles of it left.
Here we have more of the cat fabric. The cats have birds on their heads! It's so fun! The floral fabric is one that I bought with the idea of making a project bag, but it's too light for that really, and anyway, I needed something light for the background of this block. Two of the triangles were sewn on back to front, but I didn't notice until the end, and I didn't care enough to unpick the whole darn thing and resew them. Once it's part of a quilt, nobody will notice, right?
This one's my favourite, so far. The background fabric is that hideous dress again, and we have the pink from the cushion covers and the cats up at the top there. Bottom left we have more of the fabric from my knitting group, and two new fabrics in the middle and lower right. I bought both of those with project bags in mind, but I was getting low on stashed fabrics (I have a small fabric stash), so I broke into them for this block and the next. The yellow has bees on it. Bees! It's fantastic, I'll try to get a better picture when I've recharged my camera. The purple is a very pretty subtle flowers and stars and variegation print. Michael chose the layout of this one, because I couldn't decide how to arrange the blocks. I think he did a good job.
I have some of the pieces for the next block cut out, but not all. Hopefully I'll get it done on Sunday. I've been super busy this week reading for my dissertation; I got through The Beauty Myth and The Female Eunuch this week. Both are very much of their time, but very important books in the feminist canon. For pleasure I'm still reading Possession. I've started using Goodreads; this is my profile over there. Add me as a friend! I've been enjoying reading people's reviews of books that I've read or am planning to read.
Sunday, 22 January 2012
A quilt, perhaps
I've decided to join in with Leila's We Can Do It! Skill builder sew-along, only about seven months late. Today I hauled out my sewing machine, got out my stash of quilting weight cotton, and got really stuck in to the cutting and sewing. I finished the first four blocks today, the log cabin, nine patch, churn dash and pinwheels. My plan is to make a throw to go over the back of the sofa.
I had the machine out a couple of days ago, and finished off a cushion that was begun back in about May. My Mum and I made the pieced fronts and got the backs ready for sewing, but only one got finished that day. It took until earlier this week for me to get around to making the piping and assembling the second cushion.
The cushion on the right has been in use for months, the one on the left is the new one. I figured out piping for these, which I really like. You can see, though, that the sofa needs a throw or quilt to hang on the back of it.
I had the machine out a couple of days ago, and finished off a cushion that was begun back in about May. My Mum and I made the pieced fronts and got the backs ready for sewing, but only one got finished that day. It took until earlier this week for me to get around to making the piping and assembling the second cushion.
The cushion on the right has been in use for months, the one on the left is the new one. I figured out piping for these, which I really like. You can see, though, that the sofa needs a throw or quilt to hang on the back of it.
Friday, 13 January 2012
10 facts about me
* I feel a close affinity to ladybirds (ladybugs) and hedgehogs. I think that if I was an animal, I would be a hedgehog.
* I have a phobia of moths and butterflies. They horrify me. Apparently, this is a fairly common phobia.
* My favourite scent is coconut. I use coconut shampoo and conditioner, and sometimes coconut soap. I also love gingerbread and honey scents. I don't wear perfume.
* My favourite kind of cake is a traditional Victoria sponge cake, with jam and cream. For my last birthday cake, I made an almond sponge cake and sandwiched it using raspberry jam. It was delicious.
* My favourite sandwich is apple jelly with peanut butter. I love salty and sweet things together.
* A shaman once told me that my power animal is a river, and my spiritual ancestors are the east and west wind, which appeared to me as red and white chinese dragons. This was during a guided meditation session. I am wildly sceptical of this sort of thing, but it makes for a fun story.
* My favourite colour is deep purple, an aubergine shade. I also love blues and greens, and have a problem with buying too much teal yarn.
* I strongly identify as a Ravenclaw in terms of the houses from Hogwarts. I value intelligence and learning. In the Knitting and Crochet House Cup, I play as a Slytherin, which is great.
* Around 75% of my yarn stash is sock weight. I knit primarily with sock weight yarn. Sometimes this is a bad thing, because projects can take ages to get done. The stash that is not sock weight is mostly DK.
* I like using bamboo needles more than metal. I've never used wooden needles, but I'd like to at some point. I warp all the knitting needles I use because my gauge is quite tight. I knit with the yarn in my right hand, and when I hold it in my left, my gauge is a lot slacker.
(This post is partially to help with anyone doing Crappy Day Packages for me. I hope it's helpful, and if it's not helpful, I hope it's interesting. Doing My Best has a Crappy Day Package exchange going on at the moment, and there are three days remaining in which to sign up. I took part in the last one, which was great fun. If you're wondering whether to sign up, go for it!)
* I have a phobia of moths and butterflies. They horrify me. Apparently, this is a fairly common phobia.
* My favourite scent is coconut. I use coconut shampoo and conditioner, and sometimes coconut soap. I also love gingerbread and honey scents. I don't wear perfume.
* My favourite kind of cake is a traditional Victoria sponge cake, with jam and cream. For my last birthday cake, I made an almond sponge cake and sandwiched it using raspberry jam. It was delicious.
* My favourite sandwich is apple jelly with peanut butter. I love salty and sweet things together.
* A shaman once told me that my power animal is a river, and my spiritual ancestors are the east and west wind, which appeared to me as red and white chinese dragons. This was during a guided meditation session. I am wildly sceptical of this sort of thing, but it makes for a fun story.
* My favourite colour is deep purple, an aubergine shade. I also love blues and greens, and have a problem with buying too much teal yarn.
* I strongly identify as a Ravenclaw in terms of the houses from Hogwarts. I value intelligence and learning. In the Knitting and Crochet House Cup, I play as a Slytherin, which is great.
* Around 75% of my yarn stash is sock weight. I knit primarily with sock weight yarn. Sometimes this is a bad thing, because projects can take ages to get done. The stash that is not sock weight is mostly DK.
* I like using bamboo needles more than metal. I've never used wooden needles, but I'd like to at some point. I warp all the knitting needles I use because my gauge is quite tight. I knit with the yarn in my right hand, and when I hold it in my left, my gauge is a lot slacker.
(This post is partially to help with anyone doing Crappy Day Packages for me. I hope it's helpful, and if it's not helpful, I hope it's interesting. Doing My Best has a Crappy Day Package exchange going on at the moment, and there are three days remaining in which to sign up. I took part in the last one, which was great fun. If you're wondering whether to sign up, go for it!)
Tuesday, 10 January 2012
Making things
Here are the few things which I made for people for Christmas last year.
My sister received this Ishbel Beret:
And embroidered into the hem of the brim was a message: "For Beth with love from Cayt Win. 11"
I managed to confuse her by marking the wrapping 'Do Not Bend'. I also bought books for my Dad, and wrote "Handknitted by Cayt" on the packaging. It's good to make people laugh.
Beth also received these fingerless gloves, another Ysolda pattern in the same yarn.
For my brother, I made gloves. The cuffs were done in stranded colourwork, and I embroidered patches in conductive thread on the thumb and forefinger to make them smartphone-compatible. I also knit his name, my name and Winter 2011 on the insides of the cuffs.
Here they are being expertly modeled by Michael. You can see the grey/shiny part of the thumb that is touch-screen conductive. Both of my siblings gifts were knit in Old Maiden Aunt, Beth's in 100% Superwash Merino in Seen the Ocean, Al's in Merino/Cashmere/Nylon in Derelict Daughter.
I also knit a pair of socks for my Nanna. Her favourite colour is blue, so they are BLUE. Here is an end-on picture. They are Sunshine, by Cookie A.
Aside from Michael's socks, which you've seen before, I made a pair of socks for my dear friend. This picture is one that she took, not me.
The pattern is Skew, by Lana Holden, and apparently they fit her very well.
So that's all the handmades I gave for Christmas, only two weeks after the fact!
My sister received this Ishbel Beret:
And embroidered into the hem of the brim was a message: "For Beth with love from Cayt Win. 11"
I managed to confuse her by marking the wrapping 'Do Not Bend'. I also bought books for my Dad, and wrote "Handknitted by Cayt" on the packaging. It's good to make people laugh.
Beth also received these fingerless gloves, another Ysolda pattern in the same yarn.
For my brother, I made gloves. The cuffs were done in stranded colourwork, and I embroidered patches in conductive thread on the thumb and forefinger to make them smartphone-compatible. I also knit his name, my name and Winter 2011 on the insides of the cuffs.
Here they are being expertly modeled by Michael. You can see the grey/shiny part of the thumb that is touch-screen conductive. Both of my siblings gifts were knit in Old Maiden Aunt, Beth's in 100% Superwash Merino in Seen the Ocean, Al's in Merino/Cashmere/Nylon in Derelict Daughter.
I also knit a pair of socks for my Nanna. Her favourite colour is blue, so they are BLUE. Here is an end-on picture. They are Sunshine, by Cookie A.
Aside from Michael's socks, which you've seen before, I made a pair of socks for my dear friend. This picture is one that she took, not me.
The pattern is Skew, by Lana Holden, and apparently they fit her very well.
So that's all the handmades I gave for Christmas, only two weeks after the fact!
Sunday, 1 January 2012
Reading for Pleasure, revisited
Well, as can be seen from my list of books read for pleasure last year, I didn't manage to read a book every week for pleasure. I read 43 books for pleasure last year, and while I began several more, the ones that I did not finish did not make it onto the list. I've decided to continue with this enterprise - I do think it's worth doing - and am recording books read for pleasure this year, too.
Of the books I read last year, 5 were non-fiction, and 38 were fiction. 8 were graphic novels or comic books, and 14 of the fiction novels were young adult or children's books. I read two collections of short stories. I also read over 20 books for various classes.
Of all the books I read last year, there was only one which I felt afterwards was a bad book, and that was the Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. I found it cutesy and ill-researched, unlikely and unnecessarily unpleasant. I would recommend When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, by Judith Kerr, for a book from the perspective of a child about World War 2. There was also one, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, which I felt I had missed the window in which I would have most enjoyed it. That book, I think, would have been much better for me to read at 17 while taking myself far too seriously, because I found it challengingly immature, but I think I would have loved it five years ago.
My hope this coming year is to read more substantive books for pleasure - I'm reading Possession, by A. S. Byatt at the moment, and I'm finding it dense and mentally nourishing, in the manner of fruitcake. I will be seeking out more Booker prize winners and books which are Great as well as being great. I also hope to read more collections of short stories. I received Forbidden Cities, which is a collection by P. Morris, for Christmas, and I'm excited to read more of that. I'm also hoping to read more adult novels, hoping for a higher proportion of grown up books to young adult books, and since I read no drama whatsoever in 2011, I'd like to read some in 2012.
Of the books I read last year, 5 were non-fiction, and 38 were fiction. 8 were graphic novels or comic books, and 14 of the fiction novels were young adult or children's books. I read two collections of short stories. I also read over 20 books for various classes.
Of all the books I read last year, there was only one which I felt afterwards was a bad book, and that was the Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. I found it cutesy and ill-researched, unlikely and unnecessarily unpleasant. I would recommend When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, by Judith Kerr, for a book from the perspective of a child about World War 2. There was also one, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, which I felt I had missed the window in which I would have most enjoyed it. That book, I think, would have been much better for me to read at 17 while taking myself far too seriously, because I found it challengingly immature, but I think I would have loved it five years ago.
My hope this coming year is to read more substantive books for pleasure - I'm reading Possession, by A. S. Byatt at the moment, and I'm finding it dense and mentally nourishing, in the manner of fruitcake. I will be seeking out more Booker prize winners and books which are Great as well as being great. I also hope to read more collections of short stories. I received Forbidden Cities, which is a collection by P. Morris, for Christmas, and I'm excited to read more of that. I'm also hoping to read more adult novels, hoping for a higher proportion of grown up books to young adult books, and since I read no drama whatsoever in 2011, I'd like to read some in 2012.
Thursday, 22 December 2011
Joyous and blessed Solstice to you!
It's here! It's today! It's the solstice!
Here is the time where the days start getting longer and the nights start getting shorter. The sun is coming back, and I'm thrilled. I can't wait.
In some cultures, there's a tradition of having new clothes for Yule or Solstice. Jólaköttur, or the Yule Cat, takes sacrifices from those who don't have new clothes at Yule. I don't celebrate Yule, but I have a new hat anyway. I lost my most wearable hats, and had to whip this one up in a hurry. It's such a lovely pattern. Yarn is - you guessed it - Old Maiden Aunt, in Derelict Daughter and natural/undyed Merino 4 ply. The pattern is Selbu Modern, a free pattern. Since this hat was made with my leftovers from my mittens, it was a very economical hat.
Here is the time where the days start getting longer and the nights start getting shorter. The sun is coming back, and I'm thrilled. I can't wait.
In some cultures, there's a tradition of having new clothes for Yule or Solstice. Jólaköttur, or the Yule Cat, takes sacrifices from those who don't have new clothes at Yule. I don't celebrate Yule, but I have a new hat anyway. I lost my most wearable hats, and had to whip this one up in a hurry. It's such a lovely pattern. Yarn is - you guessed it - Old Maiden Aunt, in Derelict Daughter and natural/undyed Merino 4 ply. The pattern is Selbu Modern, a free pattern. Since this hat was made with my leftovers from my mittens, it was a very economical hat.
Tuesday, 20 December 2011
Rad'idin
Last year I took a class on language and gender, and wrote a paper on the constructed language Láadan, a language created by Suzette Haden Elgin to express the experience of woman in the way that languages of patriarchy express the experience of men. One of the words which has no direct translation in English from Láadan is rad'idin. It means roughly 'a holiday which brings with it so much work that it is a dreadful burden rather than a holiday'. An un-holiday, if you will.
I think that this time of year causes much of this feeling. Speaking to my mum on the phone she's expressed a feeling of being overwhelmed, and I'm certainly feeling it (of course the labrynthitis doesn't help much). Before I go back to visit my parents for Christmas, I want the house clean, and it's currently... not. Not to mention, the stuff like reading more books for pleasure this year (that sort of fell by the wayside when the autumn semester hit) and the knitting I still have to do are hanging over me. I'm currently test knitting a shawl with over 350 stitches per row, and 26 rows to go before casting off and blocking and photographing so I can provide feedback to the designer, and did I mention that the deadline is looming?
Michael has his birthday in January (silly month to have a birthday if you ask me, which of course he didn't), so I'm trying to make his birthday gifts as well as frantically finishing off Christmas gifts for people. It's solstice tomorrow and instead of doing something to celebrate, I'll be spending it either tucked up in bed like I have been for the last two weeks, or very slowly doing light housework. That's after I manage to drag myself to the doctor, of course.
Ideally, in the next two weeks I'd knit three pairs of mittens, one hat, finish the scarf and the shawl I'm working on, read 14 books for pleasure, clean my house from top to bottom and sew some last minute gifts. I'm actually more likely to spend it sitting in bed, knitting and reading, but failing to do the housework that needs doing. The only things that will definitely get finished are this shawl and the one gift I have yet to finish off, because the gift is such little work remaining. Actually, I'll go and do that now.
None of this was helped by my losing my two most useful, wearable hats, and having to make myself a new one pronto, because it's too cold to go out without one. I whipped up a beret over the last two days, and it's blocking now, near a radiator to speed the process along. Photos to come... sometime.
I think that this time of year causes much of this feeling. Speaking to my mum on the phone she's expressed a feeling of being overwhelmed, and I'm certainly feeling it (of course the labrynthitis doesn't help much). Before I go back to visit my parents for Christmas, I want the house clean, and it's currently... not. Not to mention, the stuff like reading more books for pleasure this year (that sort of fell by the wayside when the autumn semester hit) and the knitting I still have to do are hanging over me. I'm currently test knitting a shawl with over 350 stitches per row, and 26 rows to go before casting off and blocking and photographing so I can provide feedback to the designer, and did I mention that the deadline is looming?
Michael has his birthday in January (silly month to have a birthday if you ask me, which of course he didn't), so I'm trying to make his birthday gifts as well as frantically finishing off Christmas gifts for people. It's solstice tomorrow and instead of doing something to celebrate, I'll be spending it either tucked up in bed like I have been for the last two weeks, or very slowly doing light housework. That's after I manage to drag myself to the doctor, of course.
Ideally, in the next two weeks I'd knit three pairs of mittens, one hat, finish the scarf and the shawl I'm working on, read 14 books for pleasure, clean my house from top to bottom and sew some last minute gifts. I'm actually more likely to spend it sitting in bed, knitting and reading, but failing to do the housework that needs doing. The only things that will definitely get finished are this shawl and the one gift I have yet to finish off, because the gift is such little work remaining. Actually, I'll go and do that now.
None of this was helped by my losing my two most useful, wearable hats, and having to make myself a new one pronto, because it's too cold to go out without one. I whipped up a beret over the last two days, and it's blocking now, near a radiator to speed the process along. Photos to come... sometime.
Monday, 12 December 2011
Secret Crafting
I've been engaged in a good deal of covert crafting - well, not covert really, because the recipients of some of this work do not live with me, but knitting which I've been avoiding speaking about on twitter and on here, knitting which I've been avoiding photographing too clearly, not wanting to show it in its entirety just in case. I've taken some partial pictures, though, which I'll show here. Full pictures to come in a couple of weeks' time.
I also made a pair of mittens for myself, adapting the popular Endpaper Mitts into a pair of mittens.
They're pure wool, and very soft. It's the first major stranded colourwork item I've done, and I'm very pleased with how it worked. The cuffs and thumbs are solid purple, and otherwise they're patterned all over. I've one more gift on the needles, and I'm test knitting a fantastic shawl at the moment as well - pictures of that to come. I also got some more silk hankies from Juno Fibre Arts, and I'm planning to knit mittens from them. Silk is much warmer than wool, so hopefully they'll make a good warm pair of mittens.
I also made a pair of mittens for myself, adapting the popular Endpaper Mitts into a pair of mittens.
They're pure wool, and very soft. It's the first major stranded colourwork item I've done, and I'm very pleased with how it worked. The cuffs and thumbs are solid purple, and otherwise they're patterned all over. I've one more gift on the needles, and I'm test knitting a fantastic shawl at the moment as well - pictures of that to come. I also got some more silk hankies from Juno Fibre Arts, and I'm planning to knit mittens from them. Silk is much warmer than wool, so hopefully they'll make a good warm pair of mittens.
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