Post Blocking Puzzle

Helen Raveller had a good idea and suggested that I post a photo of the Puzzle Wrap hanging on the same hanger as before, to show you the post-blocked state. It's crinkled a bit across its width now, instead of fitting exactly, because it's got a bit wider.
Folded, with the crystals still resolutely refusing to twinkle. The crystals I put in Icarus twinkle quite happily, so I don't know what's wrong with these ones.

I've also done one that shows you how it might look when artfully draped.

But I have narrow shoulders and artful draping doesn't always work. We'll see. To recap, this is Sharon Miller's Pink Puzzle Wrap, done in an alternative way with every second row purled so that the pattern turns out much larger and the knitter, if easily confused, doesn't get in such a muddle. It's done in the prescribed yarn, Rowan Kidsilk Haze, in the shade Trance. I had to Photoshop all of these photos because the originals were all too blue, but they're quite close now. I probably shouldn't have made it so long, but I like it and it's better than too short.

I'm going to take the All Seasons Cotton Wrap Top with me, so that I can keep inching up the back. I'm also taking the Golden Gail which isn't finished yet. I wonder if I dare block it at my temporary residence if I finish it in time. I might take something else, maybe Karius, although it isn't much more mentally stimulating than the Wrap Top.

Thanks very much Janet, for the recommendation about The Red Violin. I shall track it down. I caught glimpses of a Chinese version of Hamlet called The Banquet while I was trying to pack, and I want to watch it when I get back. It looked absolutely terrifying. While I was going in and out of the room, I kept hearing the heart-stopping sound of a sword being drawn from its scabbard, and then a dull thud.

That sound has been engraved on my brain ever since I saw La Reine Margot, where it featured rather a lot.



On that cheerful note, I leave you. I'll be back in about a week, although I can't promise when I'll post.

Floaty Puzzle Finished

I've finished the Puzzle Wrap for the second time. It's four repeats longer and has a couple of hundred crystals in it, which are resolutely refusing to twinkle in this photograph.

It's 92 inches long at the monent, which is, em, quite long, but I'm hoping to make it wider in the blocking so it might not grow too much. I think I'll have to block it folded in half: cross your fingers for me.

There's a new adaptation of Emma on BBC just now. I can be very unforgiving about telly Austen but Emma isn't one of my favourites so I'm less impatient about it. And the lead actress is at least trying to look as if she isn't wearing any make-up. Jonny Lee Miller is Mr Knightley and once one gets past his boyish looks, I think it's an interesting interpretation. He is nearly 40, after all. But Mr Elton is too good-looking; I think I would have swapped him with the actor who's playing Frank Churchill. I wouldn't swap Michael Gambon with anyone.

The point of interest here, though, is that there's some nice knitting, although I can't find any photographs of it. Michael Gambon as Mr Woodhouse has a wide grey scarf knitted in alternating bands of garter stitch and seed stitch. I can't work out how it is straight at the sides and doesn't go in and out when the stitch changes. Perhaps it's some very floppily spun wool of great authenticity. Someone else had a rust-coloured scarf knitted in rib, which was rather nice too. I'll look out for photos.

I met another knitblogging Helen last week when she came to Edinburgh for the day. As well as having the same forename and following the same profession, Helen and I both have an Aunt M_______ who lives in the County of N___________ . We managed to talk without interruption from 1.00 till about 5.30, so we must have a lot of other things in common too. There was a brief lull while we investigated K1 Yarns, which had some new things since my last visit, including Reggae Ombre sock yarn with very slow stripes in it and their own K1 Laceweight Linen in absolutely beautiful shades. If I hadn't already bought some fine hemp yarn at Woolfest which remains unknitted, I probably would have got some of that.

I've posted before about the Big Picture site that the Boston Globe maintains, and they've got a series just now about Autumn.

Caitlin Snow, 2, walks through a Gladiator Pumpkins on Wednesday, September 30, 2009 on Connors Farm in Danvers, Massachusetts. Connors Farm owner Robert Connors had to ship the pumpkins in from Michigan because of his low yield this year. Heavy summer rains encouraged black rot (Didymella) and Phytophthora Blight among his crops. (Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff)

They're the usual mix of the expected (but brilliantly executed) and the staggering but I thought this one was particularly relevant to a woolly blog.

A shepherd leads his herd to grazing grounds down from the mountains along a tunnel in Zakinskaya hollow, about 70 km (44 miles) south of Vladikavkaz, Russia on October 5, 2009. (REUTERS/Kazbek Basayev)

I think one of those sheep is a sheep dog - click through to see it more clearly. And do go to the site to see the whole series - definitely worth taking a moment.

At Last, Reversible Knitting

Knitting
I finished unravelling the end of the Puzzle Wrap (I only resorted to scissors once although I resorted to bad language more often) and I've started adding the beads. I'm not doing a huge number and I'm not doing them in a very thorough way, more a bit of twinkle. I can't get a decent photograph. They're very small Swarovski crystals, no colour but an aurora borealis coating so that they sparkle amazingly. The bride's mother is convinced that it will rain steadily all day, so sparkly dew drops could be an appropriate look.

The trouble is, Reversible Knitting arrived at the same time as the beads and I am almost unable to put that down - I don't know which way to turn. There isn't much point in my reproducing any of the photos that are available on Grumperina's thorough review, but here is an item that isn't.

Reversible lice - how clever is that?

And a reversible hat. I haven't done any swatching yet because I Must Finish the Puzzle Wrap and if at all possible the ivory and gold Gail as well, but I haven't been able to resist quite lot of peeking.

The book is beautifully put together, of course - clear instructions and clear photographs and something I noticed on my third or fourth run-through - the different types of stitches are shown on different colours of background. Picked Up against avocado, Openwork against orange and so on. The colours of the book are really juicy, and follow through into the colours of the garments in the pattern section: the whole book is designed around the same colours, very harmonious. I don't think I've seen that done before.

This Faux Wrap was designed by Lily Chin. The cables are reversible so that the cuffs can be worn down and long, or folded and three-quarter length, and the collar can be worn high and buttoned, or open.

I am just boggled by how Lynne Barr's mind must work. I'm very poor at visualization and find it extremely difficult to think in three dimensions: she must have an extra ration of whatever it is that I'm lacking. I wonder how far she can model these designs in her head before she picks up the needles.


Gail photos
I thought that language might be Portuguese, Mary Lou, but I didn't want to risk getting it wrong. I used to have a Brazilian friend whom I could have asked, but I went on holiday with her once and we haven't spoken since.

Drama
I was wakened this morning by someone delivering a parcel (no, it wasn't wool; it was one of my other weaknesses) and while I was signing the thingie, he said, 'Have you had a fire in the stair*?' I said no, and he remarked that there was a strong smell of burning. I muttered something about checking and he said something sensible about always best to be on the safe side, so after he'd gone I couldn't quite sneak back to bed as I had planned. It was mostly the smell of burnt food but with a plasticky element. I put some clothes on because I hate talking to the fire brigade in my dressing gown, and I texted one of my neighbours. I didn't get a reply from her so I started trooping up and down stairs sniffing at letterboxes. I don't know if you've ever done that, but it's not something you want to be caught doing.

I was fairly sure it was one of the ground-floor flats and I hammered and knocked for a while to no answer, which wasn't very encouraging. I hadn't heard from the neighbour I'd texted so I started to visualize her unconscious in a haze of smoke but her letterbox was pristine. I can vouch for it.

So I rang 999 and there was all the clanging and nee-nawing and so on, and they knocked on the ground-floor door and this time, she answered. It turned out she had burned her supper at about three in the morning: she must have burned the handle of the pan too, given the plasticky element. My other neighbour appeared and said she'd been in the shower when I texted. She also said that the supper-burning neighbour never answers the door, so that's useful to know.

I apologised to the firemen - I know it's not necessary but one feels such a fool - and they left after they'd checked up and down the stair (I didn't catch them sniffing letterboxes but they have little meters that tell them what sort of smoke it is).

So that was an exciting start to the week. I hope the rest of it is less dramatic and that I don't have to get dressed in a hurry again.

'Stair' is the Scottish term for all the flats on a single staircase, sort of equivalent to 'block'.

Two Steps Forwards, One Step Back

Puzzle Wrap
I decided just to finish off the Puzzle Wrap with the yarn I had, and did my four little cast-offs, one for each point. I wove in all of my loose ends. Then the next day I decided that after all I do want it to be very long (it's 72 inches just now, pre-blocking) and actually I do want to put beads on it.

I got another ball of yarn almost instantly from AllSewYarns on eBay, who always posts things at the speed of light, but I'm now drumming my fingers waiting for the beads and trying not to think about the postal strike. I am passing my time by unweaving my loose ends and undoing the four cast-offs and picking up all the k2togs and ssks so it's probably a good thing that I'm not in a rush. I haven't photographed it because it's a mess of loose ends and dropped stitches, and it's not a pretty sight.

Just Another Raveller asked me if I would knit it again, or if I'm glad to be done with it. Usually when I'm knitting something I like, I think constantly of other yarns I would like to see it in, or alterations I might make 'next time' I knit it. I didn't do that with this pattern, but no, I'm not glad to be done with it. I like the yarn and I'm looking forward to the occasion when I shall wear it (hurry up, beads) so I'm feeling fondly towards it. I'm pretty sure I could stand to knit it again.

Golden Gail
I'm getting on quite well with the golden Gail. Now that I've got past the unconventional nature of the chart, it's a straightforward and gratifying knit.


The designer has posted a description of how to block this shawl. I don't understand the language it's written in, but it has such fabulous fotos that it doesn't matter.


Reversible Knitting
I pre-ordered Lyyne Barr's Reversible Knitting a while ago, to the extent of actually paying for it, and got an email from Amazon on Friday telling me that it is on its way: according to their tracking information it is presently in Droitwich.


Then today I heard from Judith that her copy has already arrived - on a Sunday, no less - and it is unbearably exciting. She directed me to this very detailed review here by Grumperina, which includes lots of illustrations and also pointed out that it is available at a better price at W.H. Smith's. I am now in a frenzy of impatience.

Less Puzzling Now

I've been inching forwards on the Puzzle Wrap. I should explain, it's called a Puzzle because it starts with a provisional cast-on and when you've knitted to the first end and cat off, you then pick up again where you started and knit in the opposite direction. This means that when you finish you have no discernible cast-on.

I'd always thought that this sort of thing left me with a big chance of ending up with a disaster. I've done it on the toe of toe-up socks but there wasn't very much at stake there. I was a bit more trepidacious this time.

Here we are at the first end.

And after finishing all the little cast-offs.

And here we are removing the waste yarn after the successful pick up.

Un morçeau de gâteau.

If it weren't for the Different Dye Lot Disaster, it would be invisible - to me, at any rate.

Actually, the DDLD is much more visible in the photographs than it is in reality. And, because of the construction of the stole, the lighter shade is in the middle and the ends are both dark, so I don't think it'll be screamingly obvious.

I won't embarrass myself by telling you how long it took for me to get into the swing of this pattern: there were times when the real puzzle was how I managed to have a different number of stitches on every row.

But I'm rattling through it now. I've just finished a repeat and am trying to decide whether I have enough yarn to do one more repeat before the final cast-off. And whether, after all, to put a few beads at this end. Since one end contains far fewer mistakes than the other, it would be nice to be able to find it easily. Just a few crystals, shimmering like dew drops...

Too Poorly to Post

Thanks very much for all the nice compliments about the Queen Anne's Lace veil. Really, the pattern did all the work.

Sorry about the silence. I've been too poorly to post, and last week I was too poorly to attend Annie Modesitt's Combination Knitting class. Very tiresome. I understand everyone else had a whale of a time.

I have been knitting. It's taken me an embarrasingly high number of repeats to feel that I'm getting into the swing of the Puzzle Stole: this pattern looks as if it should be obvious to the point of tedium, but I still find myself having to check what row I'm on and which way my decreases should be pointing. For some reason, it's hard to read the row below. I love it, though; the yarn makes me smile every time I pick it up - if ever a yarn were agressively fluffy, or robustly floaty, this is it.


Yes, I have got a new pair of Crocs; silver ones which make me look as if I have Cyberman's feet.

It's Kidsilk Haze, in Trance, and it's darker than it looks here. I was thinking of putting some beads at the ends (the advantage of starting a stole in the middle is that you can put off decisions about the beginning) because my top has sequins on it, but then I realized that my bag will probably have sequins on it too (understated, moi?) so I don't think I will.

The ivory and gold bride's shawl - you know, the one I'm not knitting - is going more smoothly, precisely because the row below is very easily 'read' and I can spot an error immediately.


It's Gail, aka Nightsongs. I found it very hard to get started with this pattern and gave up the first time with mutters of, 'This is supposed to be enjoyable, for goodness' sake.' (Let's just pretend I said 'goodness'.) I started on the lovely Feather Duster instead but I forced myself to admit that it cries out for a fluffy yarn and so had another go at this. I added a centre stitch and things fell into place the second time; I think the yarn and the pattern suit each other very well.

I've also cast on the navy blue garment that I meant to do before Anhinga swept me off my feet, which is the Wrap Top from All Seasons at the Mill in that lovely inky navy, Dusk. This is dark enough that it can only be knitted in daylight.

It's an irregular rib so I've used stitch markers; pathetic, I know but better pathetic than having to rip. I knitted a Mistake Rib Scarf once and it nearly drove me insane, all the thinking and the counting and the checking.

I'm starting with the back which has a long boring bit, so I hope that'll help me get into the rhythm.

The colour here is totally wrong: it's much darker. And inkier.

I came across this on John Naughton's blog: they're bollards with a twist at the University Library in Cambridge (the original one, not the one in Massachusetts). It gets even better at about one minute in, so hang in there.



Me, I'm going back to the couch.

Anhinga At Last

You'll be relieved to hear that I've finished Anhinga. I unpicked the seam and re-did it, and I'm fairly happy with it. I have modelled it, Janet, but you'll have to go the Ravelry for that treat. I think in the end that I wasn't sufficiently experienced with the Rowan Bamboo Tape and I made mistakes with that, especially in the seaming, which have let the pattern down. Thanks for the suggestion about sewing it with a different yarn, Sea, but the principle of seaming with the same yarn is deeply ingrained in me. I want to knit it again in wool, maybe even in a semi-solid or slightly variegated yarn, and probably in the next size up. I would like to knit something else in the Tape too before too long.

I finished and blocked the off-blog project.

Susan wins a coconut because she correctly identified the Queen Anne's Lace Shawl. This was intended as a wedding veil but I've decided it's a christening shawl. No, the bride isn't pregnant :) It's just that I don't think she's keen and I'm backing off: brides have quite enough people contributing bright ideas about what they should wear / sing / say / do on their wedding days and I don't want to add to the clamour.


So I'll put it away for a year or two and I can produce it with a flourish when the time comes. I made her christening robe when she was a baby and I dare say it's been stashed away somewhere, so they'll make a good set.


I made it from Henry's Attic 20/2 Spun Silk: I bought 1000 yards and I've got 27 grams left - seriously, I used about three quarters of it. I used a 3mm Addi Lace circ. I bought special hand-made silver ring stitch markers from Spindle Cat Studio and they worked very well, didn't make holes at the pattern-joins and didn't catch on anything. It blocked to 35 inches wide.


The pattern is easy to follow and the massive task is chopped into very manageable chunks. The only thing I found confusing was that the charts omit plain rows, but I got round this by marking them in large red letters before I started. I couldn't actually see what I was doing, i.e. read the row below, until the last section, so I was quite relieved that a pattern emerged when it was blocked. When I'm making a triangular shawl I never start a row unless I'm sure I'll have time to finish it, but because of the spiral nature of this, I could pick it up and do a couple of segments any time, although in practice I usually did a few rows at a time because I was enjoying it so much.

I absolutely loved knitting this; I never regarded it as a chore. I abandoned things I should have been doing; I took my glassses off and ignored the television so that I could peer at it more intently; and I made the larger version so that I could work on it longer. I would knit it again tomorrow.

I have another navy blue project in mind, which I was about to start when I got swept off my feet by Anhinga, and I may cast that on soon, but meanwhile I got sidetracked by a skein of Kidsilk Haze. Oooooh, fluffy.


This is Sharon Miller's Pink Puzzle Wrap pattern, which Jean very generously gave me some time ago. I cast it on at the time, and then quietly put it away - the pattern is written as knitted lace and my poor brain shut down on the return rows. However, since then I have noticed that Sharon says you can do it with purl return rows and that's what I'm doing. It makes the diamond shapes much larger and I like the rhythm of Thinking and Not Thinking which it requires. It's Rowan Kidsilk Haze in Trance which is impossible to photograph but is a bluey green. Or perhaps it's a greeny blue. It depends.

I'm making the narrower version and it's 23 inches wide now. I expect it will block wider. It is quite insanely fluffy and floaty and it's for me.

I see there's a new version of Wuthering Heights coming up on ITV. I'm not a Bronte fan at the best of times, and I see Cathy Earnshaw has injected lips and carefully tended eyebrows


so I think I shall save my blood pressure and watch something else. He has to be the wettest Heathcliff I've seen for some time.

I shall stick to watching the episodes of Wallander from Swedish television which are being shown on BBC4 just now. In the episode Fotografen, Krister Henriksson turned in possibly the best bit of drunk acting I've ever seen (and the victim's husband was played by the chap from Poldark, which was distracting for those of us with an eye for trivia) and all of them are spellbinding. Perhaps the best thing on British television at the moment is Swedish televison. Or is that mean?

I'm so glad you liked Cinema Paradiso, Mary G. and even more that you left a comment. I sometimes pore over my Google stats and wonder just who those dots represent, so it's nice to put a name to a dot.

Speaking of Google, that thing they do of tracking what you're looking at and then posting ads that match is driving me nuts. Certain items that I've looked at online are now cropping up in endless permutations on other sites. I'm looking for an item of furniture just now - I won't name it here because that'll only make things worse - so I looked at examples on a certain website - ditto - and now, every time I go to IMDB or whatever, ads for those products start revolving around the periphery of the page - the items that I decided not to buy because they were the wrong size, or the wrong colour or because I didn't like them, are pursuing me in perpetuity. Aaargh. How do I make it stop?