Free at Last

I can't find my camera, so you will have to take my word for it that I've finished the second sleeve of Mavis. My friend hasn't decided what sort of collar she wants, so until she does I am free of obligation. I realized that since I got Knitting New Scarves in October, I have been knitting things for other people , first Christmas presents and then Mavis. That's a long time. The freedom thus achieved has led me straight back to the Kauni cushion / sampler, which I picked up with little cries of joy. At some time soon I will have to decide where I am going with this and when to stop it. I am tempted to keep going until the yarn runs out - I can get a cushion made to fit it, after all, rather than stifle its gloriousness for the sake of fitting it to some existing cushion. It might be a completely different size after washing and blocking. I am sure the yarn will bloom beautifully. I suppose I could even felt it, although my reluctance to put in the effort of knitting something large but ending up with something small, makes me disinclined. I can't show you a picture of the Kauni either, but I am hoping the camera will surface later today. It is lost in a space about 11 feet square, but that space is well covered with yarn, books and remote controls so it's not as easy as it sounds.

In order to avoid being completely pictureless, here is a shot of Hazel Tindall who held her title as the World's Fastest Knitter at the weekend. Be sure to turn your speakers on for the full excruciating effect. How she manages such a sweet smile while that's going on I can't imagine; it makes me want to lie down and weep.


For a full account of the event, go over to kmkat's blog - she does it more than justice. Her shots of the competitive knitters include a Fair Isle vest worn by Hazel and one of those lovely jackets from Poetry in Stitches worn by Miriam Tegels, as well as another Fair Isle worn by Hazel's husband. The author of Poetry in Stitches is Solveig Tisdal; I think the -dal in Tisdal and the -dall in Tindall are both from the Norse, like the Dales in Yorkshire which were thoroughly explored by the Vikings, just as Shetland was - dale is Norse for valley.

I bought another set of vintage Boye knitting needles on eBay at the weekend, to replace the set that evaporated in the hands of Royal Mail. I did wonder if this might have the effect of sending the first set rocketing through the letter box this morning, but no. So I reckon I have about a week to work on the Kauni and anything else that takes my fancy, before my friend makes her mind up about the Mavis collar or the second lot of needles arrives and I have to decide between the Habu scarf and something else. The issue may be slightly clouded by the fact that this morning I bought the pattern for Knitspot's Gust; I have been sorely tempted by this since I saw it on the designer's website, and then at Knitting Linguist. The only thing I can say in my defence is that I didn't buy the yarn as well, although I love that Pacific colourway. Every attempt to hunt around on the sofa for my camera reminds me of just how much yarn I have that is ideally suited for this project.

Many thanks for the comments about the surrealist photo of the gloves. You are quite right; the hands must be from plaster mannequins. I am a bit disappointed to lose the mental image of a group of immaculately dressed models contorted behind the newspaper, but the pose is familiar from shop window displays of my youth. And as a fan of disembodied limbs and print, Angus McBean or one of his imitators seems a distinct possibility. I've added a little grey jigsaw of it to the sidebar.

Between failing to deliver the needles, the postman has succeeded in delivering a book, but it must wait for the camera.