Showing posts with label crinoid shawl. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crinoid shawl. Show all posts

14 October 2007

If Tinking is Technology, I'm A. Afarensis.

Thanks to Anne, my co-conspirator in fiber adventures, and Lindy, my tea swap pal, I have signed up for the Mystic Waters KAL. I think it would be a good project to use up one of the blue laceweight yarns I bought this weekend from Lisa--probably the Baby Alpaca Lace. I'm knitting SotS with that in purple right now and I love working with it.

Speaking of SotS... I cast on my first point yesterday, and worked on it for a while. I tried slipping the pearls on with a flexible wire beading needle, which worked great. The problem was that the yarn was doubled going through the pearl. This meant that more often than not, the yarn got stuck inside and--as metal is stronger than alpaca fiber--the beading needle would end up cutting the yarn on its way out. The upside was that the pearl was securely fastened, even if it was bobbing in the wind. I fixed them with some clear nail polish. I'm going to let them just hang loose for now, because I love the way they look, color-wise, with the yarn.

[Courtney forgot to add a picture]

Yes, there are some mistakes... I attribute this to having been a stubborn and intractable child; I never learned to count properly. The Man told me I had to learn. Of course, The Man wanted me to learn multiplication and long division, too. Yeah, I showed the system what's what. Now I'm an accountant and I have an adding machine. So go ahead, buck the establishment. Take a look at your local newspaper or elected official--most of those kids never learned proper grammar and they still became journalists and Congressmen. We have calculators and spell-check for a reason.

Unfortunately, there is no technology that can cover your ignorance in lace knitting... yet. Unless you count tinking and lifelines as technology.

I finished the Crinoid Shawl! I know, I haven't posted any pictures of it since I cast on. That's because I've only pretended to be working on it, and now I've pretend-finished it. No, seriously, I'll take pics and post those soon.

Since I've finished one thing, I want to start another. According to my Ravelry queue (how I love that thing), Cherie Amour is up next. But considering current projects, I want to do a little finishing before I cast on for something new. So instead of a fall sweater, Cherie Amour may be my new spring sweater.

On a completely unrelated note:
I don't know why I love hedgehogs so much--I've never even seen a real one. Blame it on a childhood involving lots of Beatrix Potter.

I saw the captioned one on I Can Has Cheezburger?.



Concise explanation of the post title: Australopithicus afarensis is thought to either be an ancestor in the development of Homo sapiens, or a side branch that never evolved further. A. Afarensis did not have stone tools (which are considered to have been a big step forward in human evolution). Please connect the rest of the dots yourself to see the whole picture.

10 October 2007

The Knit Goddingdom Five O'Clock News

Updates:
  • Boléro Anastase
    • frantically working to finish homework
    • ordered 3 yards of 2" curled ostrich feather for edging from CA
    • praying that feathers arrive by Friday
    • G Street for lining and notions Thursday
    • hoping to finish during my class at Stitches East
  • Bryan's Beanie
    • finally found the perfect pattern
    • cast-on after Stitches East
  • Crinoid Shawl
    • excruciatingly close to finished
    • will not work on it until after Boléro Anastase is complete.
    • only four more rows, then bind-off
  • Jacket for Mom (aka Belled-Sleeve Cardigan)
    • on hold until Crinoid and Boléro Anastase are complete.
    • still really like it
  • Secret of the Stole
    • planning to cast on after Stitches East.
    • bought beading wire and flexible needles; will try with pearls
Current reading (er, listening... I listen to audiobooks whenever I'm in the car--it's hard to have road rage when your imagination is engaged--and a lot of the time I'm knitting):
  • Pratchett, Terry. Going Postal.
    • Just finished it. It's brilliant and hilarious. It was my first Discworld novel, and was a good introduction to the goings-on of Ankh-Morpork.
  • Pratchett, Terry. Reaper Man.
    • A little slower than Going Postal. Would not the best introduction to the Discworld novels. Even though the pace lags slightly, I can't stop listening to it.
  • Herbert, Brian. Dune.
    • haven't started it yet. I've seen the TV miniseries and have heard that the book is much, much better.
Never fear, the snark and insanity haven't left... they've simply been too busy to sit down and chat. Never fear, they shall return. With teeth. Sharp, pointy teeth of... ah... yes! sharp, pointy teeth of truth, light and justice. I imagine they probably also glow in the dark.

29 August 2007

About the Crinoid...

I'm trying so hard to avoid a Gollum reference, but the line that keeps running through my head whenever I think of, look at, or pick up the Crinoid Shawl is, "We hates it! We hates it! It burnssss usssss!"

Now, I have nothing against the lovely people at Morehouse Farms. I met a couple of 'em at MD S&W and they were delightful, friendly and helpful. Nor is there anything wrong with the kit: the instructions are well-written; the merino yarn is soft, springy, and a beautiful deep red. However, I feel it should come with a warning label:


470 st-st over and OVER and OVER again. It makes perfect car knitting, because I can look out the window while knitting it and not have to worry about counting or patterns or anything. The downside is that when one is not being driven somewhere, and instead finds oneself curled up on a comfortable chaise with a seaside view, the shawl presents its surprisingly potent soporific powers...

Picture coming soon. Oh, not to mention the beach-knitting update, and the things I bought at the knitting shops of Pawley's Island... two words: MARABOU and FEATHERS.