All went
well yesterday. The paint on the dining room woodwork is now definitely grey
(as wanted), not blue. It’s lighter than the old paint, but appears to be the
same shade (if I’ve got my terms right). Today we should see some paper on the
walls. Is the end in sight?
Our flat,
at some point in the past, expanded to take in two rooms and a bathroom from
next door. One end of our present dining room was partitioned off, to make a way
through. (That's the door to the dining room, on the left, half-way along.) The one time we voluntarily embarked on decoration for that room, we
treated the passage as part of the room, as I think one must. So the old paint
and the old wallpaper are still there. I have no memory at all of the horrors
which must have been involved in moving those books.
This
picture is wholly misleading, except for the layout. The old paint, to the
right, is in real life appreciably darker than the new paint, to the left. Goodness, how lucky we are to live in this house.
Strathardle
Thank you
for your comments. Greenmtngirl, yours in particular crystallised thought. Of
course we must keep on going there, as long as we physically can. Energetic and
resourceful Helen will be here soon. She can think of stratagems. What we lack
(and once had, until death intervened) is a close and reliable friend nearby who can be summoned in a
real emergency. Our house is out of sight of any other, although not all that
remote. The footpath along the burn past our garden seems to be less and less
used.
Knitting
Here is the
first of the current pair of socks. Is it not truly zauberlich, the way the
yarn arranges the dark bits to coincide with toe, heel, and ribbing? Needless
to say, the same thing isn’t happening on the second sock, and probably
wouldn’t have even if I had wound on to a dark bit to start with (since
Zauberballs don’t repeat).
Thank you
for your help with the Magic Cast-On. I am particularly interested by your
comment, Pamela, and will certainly make my next attempt sitting at a table.
But not moving the left hand? We shall see. The videos all go on and on about
top-needle-bottom-yarn, and vice versa. Again and again I thought I was doing
that, with great style – only to find that the top and bottom needles were
completely unconnected with each other.
My problem
was (is) a failure to understand how the yarns lock together.
Catmum, I
think what I did this time – when I had finally succeeded in casting on – was
to knit into the back of the stitches on the first needle. That’s a small
problem, compared to the basic one. I’ll crack it eventually.
FiberQat, I
will remember – how could I forgot? – your offer that I skype with Judy Becker.
Me? That will remain the ultimate threat, and promise.
Next,
however, I’m going to turn to Candace Strick and “Strick-ly Socks”. Perhaps the
Italian flag, yarn-wise, for Hellie Ogden, Rachel’s daughter?
The
decorators are here.