Ravelympics, Part Deux

As my second Ravelympics project, I tackled the lovely Owls pattern by Kate Davies. I've been admiring the pattern for quite some time, and purchased it finally this month, particularly because it was one of the Help for Haiti patterns.

Enough babbling, time for yarn porn!

 

  

Modifications:

I extended the bottom ribbing and added several rows of colour to the bottom, yoke, and sleeves.  I also added length in the torso to make it a bit longer for my slightly odd shaped body.  As the yarn was quite chunky and warm, I decided to make short sleeves instead of long ones, figuring I'd get more wear out of it that way. 

I also eliminated the short row shaping at the neck and did only 1.5 inches of ribbing to finish, because I liked the wider neckline. 

I haven't put eyes on my owls, as the buttons I had selected looked rather alarming.  I'm going a-button hunting tomorrow, but if none appear I'm quite satisfied with the no-button look.  It is rather odd to sport blind owls though, I must admit.

The yarn, Sirdar Click Chunky, was quite easy to knit with and is fairly soft for an acrylic blend. I am looking forward to having such an easy care handknit sweater, to be honest.  It isn't a Cadillac of yarn, that's for certain, but it knit up quite well and on gauge for me.

Just a hometown girl at heart

Though I may look like a stylish London woman (in the dark, if you squint, and don't look directly at me) I grew up in rural Canada.  More specifically, the eastern province of New Brunswick, which borders the Atlantic Ocean and the much more famous provinces of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.

I'm not surprised if you haven't heard of New Brunswick.  The entire province has a population of less than a million people.  You might be missing something very special, though, so I thought I'd let you in on a few NB knitting secrets in my next few posts.

This past Christmas I was grasping at last minute knitting present straws, casting about looking for something to knit for my brother in law.  As a last resort, I decided to try my hand at knitting socks.

Having avoided socks like the plague in the past, I decided I needed some expert advice. I scurried through the cold to Yarns on York in Fredericton, a lovely knitty haven in the historic downtown.

The very helpful Trish led me to some sufficiently manly self striping yarn, then asked about my needle preference. I confessed to the sin of not owning any dpns at all. Not a problem, it seems.

On the back wall I found a selection of needles, but my eye was immediately caught by the words, "Rocky Brook Needles." I know that brook, I thought. 

Upon closer examination, I discovered the needles were handcrafted in New Brunswick, using NB wood products and recycled packaging.  Sold!

I won't comment on the socks, as they are still unfinished and never made it into anyone's Christmas parcel. I tried to take a photo, but my camera rebelled.  Needless to say good equipment is not enough to make a finished product.  The needles, however, are fantastic. 

I enjoy wooden needles because of their warmth in the hand.  These particular ones are birch, though they are also available in walnut and cherry.  The finish is almost perfect, smooth with just that right amount of friction to keep the stitches flowing smoothly. 

Don't let the website fool you–these are high quality knitting tools, produced in a sustainable way, in a tiny corner of a large country where unemployment is rife and the young have migrated to make a living.  The heritage shawl pins are stunning.


It makes my heart sing to see such innovation and quality coming from home.  If you are in the market for a special knitting treat, you can't go wrong with Rocky Brook needles.

Stay tuned for more next post on a wooley New Brunswick institution!

Trendy knitting? Middle class? Women only?

Whaaat? Women are KNITTING? IN PUBS?

'Cause the all caps really helps. 

When this Daily Mail article popped up on the Twitterverse, I was immediately suspicious.  After all, it is the Daily Mail. 

One sentence in and I almost stopped.  A Sex and the City reference? Someone definitely didn't do their research on this one.

By paragraph three, I was ready to throw something. That was before the horrid picture even came into view.

Though I'm not a representative of the Stitch and Bitch group mentioned in the article, I am a member.  So I thought I'd point out:

1. We don't just knit in pubs. We knit everywhere. Tube, park, museum, bus, cafe, bakery...
2. We aren't just women.  Men knit too, peeps. 
3. We don't just knit.  We crochet and spin, dye and yarnstorm.
4.  The word sisterhood makes us gag.
5. Middle class? Here I thought we didn't have any class.
6.  There is no mention of cake in this article. We don't want knitting with cocktails. We want knitting with cocktails, tea, cake, and chattiness.

You would think that a reporter writing about a group (which charges no membership or attendance fees) might show up to a meeting before writing such an article. Or perhaps contact several knitters or the organisers for a lovely quote.  Alas, no.  Research is not the forte of modern journalists, it would seem.  But that's a whole other story.

Service Denied

The local coffee shop in Shoreditch has not once but twice managed to get on my nerves this week. Beware the wrath of the blogger.

I'm 31 weeks pregnant. I have, throughout my pregnancy, been drinking a maximum of two cups of coffee a day, which is the recommended limit from the medical community.  For the last several weeks, I've switched to decaf at home. There is no scientific evidence to support that light caffeine consumption has any effect on the baby's development.

Many people feel that they have the right to offer you unsolicited advice or judgment as soon as they discover your pregnant.  Apparently the barista at The Bean is one such person.

Several days ago, a colleague and I went in for an afternoon coffee. I ordered an Americano with milk.  The barista looked me up and down and said, "Decaf?" in a condescending tone. 

"No," I replied.

Off she huffed to make the coffee, which took longer than usual, because SHE MADE ME A DECAF ANYWAY.

Rather than make a scene, I just left.

This morning has been busy at work, so I decided to go for a coffee and a pastry as an escape.  Another barista served me, and happily started making my evilly caffeinated beverage. My blonde friend from several days ago retrieved the coffee, again looked me up and down, and huffed. Set the coffee in front of me without a word, gave me a dirty look, and went back to doing whatever self righteous baristas do when they aren't serving customers.

This is a good point to start ranting and raving, but you've all heard it before.

Olympic Victory!

Last night, I finished my Travelling Woman shawl, and I'm so pleased with the result.  I didn't get a chance to photograph it properly, but here is a shot from my phone to tide over until the weekend.

 

and a closeup of sorts:

 

The colours are off, and don't really do the yarn justice.  It was a treat to knit with, Manos del Uruguay Silk Blend. My only beef was finding five knots in one skein.  Sigh. 

Finished! Sylvi!

Okay, I bit the bullet and sewed it all up.  Presenting my version of Sylvi!

 

  

 

Ravelympics!

Tonight the Olympics begin.

I love the Olympics.  They even top the Stanley Cup final in the race for favourite sporting event to watch.

What is it about the Olympics that is so inspiring?  Watching these athletes give their all, I am inspired, energised. As a child, I remember setting cross country ski courses across our yard and drawing up swimming schedules for "training," briefly adhered to but created out of a determination to be part of the action someday.

In fact, I was a small part of the 1988 Calgary Olympic Games. Small part in that I was only 8 years old, and I carried the actual Olympic torch as the relay made its way through New Brunswick. My memory of the event is fuzzy, though I do recall the torch was extremely heavy and that it is hard to run on a snowy highway with snowboots whilst carrying something that is on fire.


However, this time around, I've chosen to participate in a different way. I'm an actual competitor this time in the Ravelympics. The Short Track Shawl event, to be precise, for Team Stitch and Bitch London.

Ravelympics, you ask? Why, you must not be a knitter.  The online knitting community Ravelry hosts their very own stitching Olympics concurrent to the sporting event.

What does this mean? Knitters, crocheters, and spinners choose a project, choose a wittily named event, and cast on during the opening ceremonies.  The goal is to complete the project by the close of the Olympics.

Not that I'll be staying up until 2 am to cast on my Travelling Woman shawl, mind you, but I'll be doing so first thing tomorrow morning.

So I'm doubly excited to begin my first shawl (which I hope to wear to my wedding next summer) and watch Canada go for gold. The cursing level may reach an all time high, particularly if I'm knitting during the hockey games.

Let the Games begin!