It was the right thing to do….
I shall adopt your excellent suggestion, Cynthia, and refer to it as the Florence Griswold Stole henceforth. I now love the process of knitting it, and the pattern (interlocking Griswolds?) is crisp and clear.
The original attempt was beautiful, and would have made a classy stole, and no one would have noticed the wonky stems. But it wasn’t fun to do. I will remember what you said yesterday, Ron: “If you are not happy with the stole now, you will not be happy with it in a week.”
So today I’ll go on with that – for pure pleasure, knitting with alpaca-and-silk is hard to beat. But first I’ll finish the ASJ swatch – with a blunter needle and perhaps greater caution, in the hopes of splitting fewer stitches. I can’t change the yarn, Fishwife. It’s non-negotiable, as I believe Prince Charles once said of Mrs Parker Bowles. It’s my recent purchase of blogger’s yarns – Franklin’s Panopticon and Amy’s Vintage Office and the Modesitt one I think of as Gerry’s Roadkill although that’s not quite what it’s called, plus other beautiful yarns with evocative names.
With the swatch finished, I’ll have my data and can work on the maths.
Reading What Housework? this morningI discovered the February Lady Sweater, the last knitter in the universe to do so. I went straight to Ravelry and queued it. I think maybe enthusiasm is returning.
Non-knit
Rachel sent me this yesterday, although I think Helen must have taken it. It shows the Ogden children with the Ogden tree, the abies koreana. Now that’s what a Games Day tree picture should look like. Is it so good because the early evening light is better than morning glare? Or do I need a new camera or (more likely) a few lessons?
From left to right we have Hellie, a recent graduate of Newcastle University now carving a path for herself in the difficult world of publishing; Joe, going in to his second year at Nottingham University, reading politics; Lizzie, going in to the 6th form – she’s just received good GCSE results; and Thomas-the-Elder, our barrister. A fine set – and the tree has grown well, too.
The original attempt was beautiful, and would have made a classy stole, and no one would have noticed the wonky stems. But it wasn’t fun to do. I will remember what you said yesterday, Ron: “If you are not happy with the stole now, you will not be happy with it in a week.”
So today I’ll go on with that – for pure pleasure, knitting with alpaca-and-silk is hard to beat. But first I’ll finish the ASJ swatch – with a blunter needle and perhaps greater caution, in the hopes of splitting fewer stitches. I can’t change the yarn, Fishwife. It’s non-negotiable, as I believe Prince Charles once said of Mrs Parker Bowles. It’s my recent purchase of blogger’s yarns – Franklin’s Panopticon and Amy’s Vintage Office and the Modesitt one I think of as Gerry’s Roadkill although that’s not quite what it’s called, plus other beautiful yarns with evocative names.
With the swatch finished, I’ll have my data and can work on the maths.
Reading What Housework? this morningI discovered the February Lady Sweater, the last knitter in the universe to do so. I went straight to Ravelry and queued it. I think maybe enthusiasm is returning.
Non-knit
Rachel sent me this yesterday, although I think Helen must have taken it. It shows the Ogden children with the Ogden tree, the abies koreana. Now that’s what a Games Day tree picture should look like. Is it so good because the early evening light is better than morning glare? Or do I need a new camera or (more likely) a few lessons?
From left to right we have Hellie, a recent graduate of Newcastle University now carving a path for herself in the difficult world of publishing; Joe, going in to his second year at Nottingham University, reading politics; Lizzie, going in to the 6th form – she’s just received good GCSE results; and Thomas-the-Elder, our barrister. A fine set – and the tree has grown well, too.
What beautiful grandchildren. You must be proud!
ReplyDeleteI'm SO glad you're now happy with the new Griswold stole. Having finished Princess, a slog of epic proportions, you deserve a project that gives you sheer satisfaction to work on. The lace yarn can always be used in a project calling for 900+ yards of laceweight, and I'm sure you'll find something stunning.
Happy knitting!!
Cynthia
I wish you luck with the February Lady Sweater! I spent over one month this summer swatching and calculating and knitting and after 3 starts I have given up and bought my daughter a cardigan from H&M! I just could not get the neck to work, it was either too tight or too high and too irritating every time. I know many many successful ones have been knitted but not mine. I took heart from Ravelry to find that I was not the only one who ripped yarn out in despair.I am sure yours will be more successful.
ReplyDeleteTo fix a split stitch in garter stitch, find yourself a 2 headed crochet hook. It has hooks on both ends and just keep sliding and turning so you are always on the right side. I don't know where I got my 2 headed hook, but I love it!
ReplyDelete