August 01, 2005

Proof That I've Been Knitting

I'll take a brief respite from Ireland photos to indulge in some fiber-related ephemera. But before I do, guess who showed up at my house yesterday? Ladies and gentlemen-- back from Belgium, Israel, Spain, Italy, Holland and other Lands Far Away, please welcome my son Randy, with his beautiful curls allowed to grow out for the first time in many years. I understand he was a big hit with the ladies! It's good to have him home for a couple of days before he's on to Japan and Thailand.

Besides working on restoring old blog entries-- which will take quite some time-- I've been making some progress on the Fir Cones Shawl. The richness of the green is beautiful against the ebony of the piano, and makes me think of wearing the shawl with nothing but black.

FirConesOnPiano.jpg

While riding around Ireland I did make good progress on the Hanne Falkenberg Mermaid. In fact, exactly halfway through the trip I had completed exactly half of the Mermaid body.

MermaidHalfDone.jpg

The design is very interesting to knit and will be very flattering to wear. Perhaps I'll complete the other half on the Alaska trip?

Little spindling was done, but I did produce a small skein of 2-ply from the Lorna's Laces roving I took with me.

spindledLornaSkein.jpg

Here is a picture of art that was on a coaster at the Mal Dua House in Clifden. It's the first celtic sheep I've ever seen, though I've seen many other celtic animals. Later on I also saw this design on a celtic drum.

CelticLionAndLamb.jpg

I think the two animals are supposed to be a lion and a lamb. For my own version of the lion and the lamb, I only have to look in my own back yard.

SherlockAndGingerOnDaddysLap.jpg

Posted by Sheila at August 1, 2005 10:44 AM Posted to Family | Fir Cones Shawl | Ginger | Inspirations | Ireland | Knitting | Mermaid | Sherlock | Spinning | TrackBack
Comments

Handsome Randy, handsome Grey, handsome Sherlock.
mmm... kitty? Pretty kitty.

Mermaid, very nice! What wonderful colors - will go great with your hair. Did you get the kit from Yarn Barn? Finishing it in Alaska sounds like a plan... what kind of yarn is in the kit? ($250... yikes. Maybe after I finish school...)

Sravana

Posted by: sravana on August 1, 2005 12:22 PM

Ginger kitty. They all thank you :-)

Don't pay $250 for an HF kit, ever! Look on the sidebar of my blog and find Sommerflugen under Le Shopping. The kit will cost less than $125, including shipping, and they are very, very nice. You can't buy the yarn for much less than that. It uses jumperweight Shetland, so when you have finished your first one, you can use the pattern and different colors. I hate to advocate not shopping in your own country, but marking something up four times is just silly.

Posted by: Sheila on August 1, 2005 12:36 PM

Well, you can see for sure from the photo that you're his mom, he looks so much like you! Anyhow, I'm jealous that he's going to Thailand. It's one of my favorite destinations. There's a silk store called Jim Thompson, and I bought some silk chenille blankets there which my family has really been coveting as of late... I highly recommend them, if he has room in his luggage!

The Hanne Falkenberg Mermaid is gorgeous! Can't wait to see what it looks like when it's done.

Posted by: Jon on August 1, 2005 08:12 PM

Randy looks as though travelling agrees with him. He looks really healthy and relaxed. How wonderful that he appeared on your doorstep! BTW, your new blog photo is gorgeous!
Diane

Posted by: Diane on August 1, 2005 08:57 PM

Hi Sheila (wave-wave)! YOur ombre background is really pretty...The 'S' in the reclusive 'R' is neato mosquito too.

Posted by: tanya on August 2, 2005 07:16 AM

Talk about the apple and the tree... wow! Your son really takes after you. In looks, anyway. ;-)

Alaska is going to be incredible. I envy you that trip more than the Ireland excursion. (Though qiviut probably aren't as cute or snuggly as 'beehive' lambs.)

Posted by: Beth S. on August 2, 2005 08:57 AM

Thanks for the hint re: HF kits. I went to the website - guess I need to babelfish it, because I couldn't find my way around. That's okay - it's nice to know about that store.

Maybe I'm missing something, but where did you find the pattern for your keepsake shawl? It's yet another thing to add to my "to do" list.

Ginger kitty. Pretty kitty!

Posted by: sravana on August 3, 2005 08:46 AM

Can't believe how fast you're going on Mermaid. Question re: beginning Mermaid I-cord - I can't quite get how long to make it. If 24 I-cord rows to each 10 cm, and we're to pick up 171 sts at 25 sts/10 cm - I have a feeling I'm missing something. How did you figure it?

Posted by: nara on August 6, 2005 07:49 AM

Nara, just knit your I-cord to about 70 cm long and don't bind it off. It should be plenty long to pick up your 171 stitches, then just ravel the extra length back. Remember that your I-cord "rows" are going to be the base of your body "stitches", so you're going to be picking up one stitch per row, with another one squeezed in every 10 cm. Does that help?

Posted by: Sheila on August 6, 2005 09:41 AM

Thanks, Sheila. That really does help.

Posted by: nara on August 7, 2005 12:44 PM
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