Saturday, October 14, 2017

Disappointment.

There I was at 3:55, Nancy Marchant’s “Beyond Basic Brioche” class on the screen, finger poised on the button for the moment it went live. 4:00 came and went. Nothing happened. It wasn’t until 4:01:30 or so, that I grasped that I had to refresh the screen. The class was sold out.

I went on to the tucked cowl class, and got it, so at least I’ll meet Marchant. (And I’ve got her on Craftsy, anyway.) I also got the dropped spindle class. Then I looked around for others. TomofHolland, Donna Smith, Felicity Ford – all sold out. By this time it must have been fully 4:08.

I’m proud of Edinburgh for having such a successful Yarn Festival. Proud of the organizers for getting through all that without a system crash. I’ve just been reading through the notes on Ravelry, and find that we were clearly reminded to refresh the screen at 4.

Otherwise, little was achieved today. I got my homework done, and had a good Italian lesson. I think my sister’s presence sort of distracted me last week, even though of course she wasn’t in the room with me and Federica. My head seemed to function slightly better today.

I knit a little, but not much. Buachaille twists back on itself, as some yarns do. I don’t expect my spinning class to make a spinner of me – I’m much too old and too clumsy – but I hope to come out understanding that phenomenon, and grasping, as distinct from just reading about, the difference between woollen- and worsted-spun.

Cats

Not much progress. Paradox would like to be friendly, but bravely puts up with constantly being repulsed. Perdita no longer seems afraid of her sister, and sometimes even seems curious about her, but continues to hiss and growl.


It is interesting how different they are, born of the same mother and reared in the same human family. Paradox is almost cloying-ly friendly and purr-y. Perdita never sits on a lap and never purrs. 

9 comments:

  1. I am persevering with the brioche sample scarf. I've managed to go from side to side with the increases/decreases and think I have the hang of it. Debating now whether to finish the scarf or go on to the next lesson, two-color brioche, which is what I need to learn to do the Soutache.

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  2. =Tamar10:25 PM

    All I know is that woollen- and worsted-spun each have advantages.I believe woollen-spun will pack more tightly and be warmer in a closely knit garment, but might be less durable. In most modern activities, resistance to abrasion isn't much of a problem.

    Cat personalities will vary wildly even within the same litter in the same environment. It may be partly genetic, but they can also change suddenly. Cats, eh?

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  3. Oh. I hope you have better luck next year!

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  4. Anonymous11:29 AM

    Nancy Merchant is teaching in Dublin in May 2018. Here's the website woollinn.com if you could take a short flight. Ann

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  5. There's a very good Craftsy spinning class by Jacey Boggs-Falkner about spinning woollen to woursted, with a great deal more detail than you'll get in a three hour class. Not that I'm trying to discourage you from learning to spin, of course! But she does relate much of it back to knitted samples, which you might find interesting and helpful. https://www.craftsy.com/spinning/classes/drafting-from-worsted-to-woolen/35118

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  6. As one of seven children of the same parents, I’d say cats must be no different than humans. We are all so very different. Sorry you didn’t get the class, glad the event is such a success. I like the idea of a spinning class just to understand the yarn more.

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    1. I took up spinning (two wheels and multiple spindles), but dropped it for attendance at kid soccer practices and games et al. I still buy fiber and may take it up again. BUT spinning taught me so much about yarn construction that I am eternally grateful.

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  7. Oh dear! Perhaps Paradox is too much of a good thing, after all.

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  8. and then you get a cat whose personality changes many years later... which one of mine did. Perdita is not attacking Paradox which is very good news... Perdita will come around... she is already ... she just needs to get used to the new animal in the house..and thank goodness that Paradox has such an accommodating disposition. Perdita may eventually warm to her or they may come to a diplomatic stand off and just frequent different parts of the house... but its very good news that Perdita has not attacked Paradox.

    so sorry about the class. that is disappointing

    good luck with the Italian lessons

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