Malabrigo Lace Swallowtail

I had barely clicked on 'Post' for the last entry when I remembered the pattern that I abandoned because the Schaefer Anne yarn was too busy and realized that it was perfect for the Malabrigo. So I cast on for a Swallowtail Shawl.
Bottle of matching nail polish included for scale. This is Malabrigo Lace, Gretchen, 100% wool. The label in the photo in the previous post is 3.5 inches long, so the Malabrigo mouse must have been about 5 inches long. It is miraculously soft, but actually I think I prefer the weight I used for this scarf. In laceweight it doesn't have much spring or sproing. It's going to be beautifully soft to wear, but I like something that has bit of twang on the needles. I'm not having to check the charts any more (although that may be why the second last block of budding lace has an extra row in it) and it's satisfying to do. I have been making progress on this and not doing the Trellis, because the Trellis makes me feel stupid. I know I'll return to it, but it's nice to have a break.

This darkish blue absolutely soaks up light and I'm thinking I might put some beads towards the edge to brighten it, but I should probably wait and see if I can follow the charts before I start getting any big ideas.

I've been trying to resist buying a copy of Evelyn A. Clark's Knitting Lace Triangles, but I finally cracked and ordered one today. The mathematical progression of these designs appeals to my obsessive side, and I love this one that Brouhaha made. I was resisting the book because I have some Evelyn Clark patterns that I haven't knitted yet, but I decided that I wasn't going to let that hold me back any longer. After all, it never has before.

The baby that I knitted these hats for is going to have a cousin in October. The cousin will be of Scottish, English, Italian and Australian descent so that gives me lots of options. I was thinking about a shawl and I found some yarn that is 50% Shetland and 50% merino and I thought that would be good if the merino is Australian. It would be even better if the yarn were processed in Italy but that's probably too much to hope for. The baby daddy is a keen, one might almost say fanatical, supporter of Newcastle United FC but even he might draw the line at vertical black and white stripes on a baby. I could make this hat in the colours of the Italian tricolour by adding in some red.

I watched The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford last week. I know some people have complained about it being slow but I enjoyed the way that it took the time to tell its story. I don't think it would have benefited from being told in the usual 90 minutes; the extra time was needed to build up the tension. I thought the historical feel was well done, and that the characters avoided that freshly washed and coiffed look which so often brings down period films. Casey Affleck has such a pretty face that I think I've overlooked his acting abilities in the past but he was very good in this. Garret Dillahunt, whom I couldn't have put a name to, turned in one of those performances that leaves you worrying about the character for the next day or two, because of his fragility; he kept coming back to me and I had to keep reminding myself that he wasn't a real person. I think the film left open the moral questions effectively, but I won't say any more about that in case you haven't seen it yet - you may think you know what happens at the end but there are still some surprises.