Monday 17 December 2007

Excellent work

There is nothing so fine to a needle person as a piece of work well done. This probably was my finest weekend ever. I faced a challenge with the wrist warmers. I worked them through a dozen times - or so it seems - and I won in the epic battle between vision and possibilities of a yarn.I worked the main part through a couple more attempts. I tried working the lace in the round on the hand, but found my brain was not capable. I tried working it again, but still lost track of the pattern. I decided to finish knitting and then join the palm as part of the finishing. The loops for the tie are crocheted chain 3s, and a single crochet, and the across the palm, there are several rows of back and front loop single crochet. I opted for a crocheted tie with beaded ends ( Knitting i-cord was taking way too long for this time of year). I put beads on and took them off, I tried beads in several places, along the tops, along waves of the pattern, and each time the beads distracted the eye. The silver beads overwhelmed the silver threads running though the fabric. The project needed the smoky black glass beads lined with silver rather than the simple silver beads I had.

If you look hard enough the tops of the wrist warmers, they seem a little loose. My hand model, the redoubtable SS (you recall her from this post ), has tiny dainty hands (which probably morph) and very fine arms, but if I recall correctly the giftee also has fine hands. If needed, I can do quick and easy adjustments. I can narrow the width of the palm of the hand, and shorten the chain loops for the ties if needed to get to a perfect fit.

I will try to get better pictures from the giftee, but for now these will have to suffice. They are far far nicer than the pictures show and there is nothing yet in knitting that has pleased me so well. They are stunning and I am so glad I made the attempt and did not give up.

The weekend was so much more. Sunday morning I did these in that nice thick quick to work up chunky weight Misti Alpaca I picked up the other day. Calorimetry, for a second time (I like this pattern and this giftee likes wearing it), and a set of wrist warmers from the leftover bits. I may make these a bit longer in the arms, I do have a bit of wool left, but I will wait and see if they meet the needs of the giftee first.

Tthe swift that Mr Needles made saw action. The Handmaiden is wound. I worked with the yarn for a bit, but I can't say I'm content with the pattern I've chosen. That is today's goal. Find a pattern more suited to display the lovely colours of this yarn, and then knit my buns of before Christmas.

I know I said if I finished it, I finished it, that I wouldn't stress about it, but there still is the wish to finish just one more gift for one more person. I'll have plenty of time to knit over the holidays. Thankfully our office closes down from the 21st to the 2nd of January, and we will be doing a lot of traveling, and I will be sitting with my mother in law for a couple or three days. These things will give me long stretches of work time, so if someone doesn't get something right at Christmas, they will get it just after. There is also my shawl to finish and some non-holiday socks, for me in the bag, begging for time.

I'm looking forward to January, when I can begin the project for my daughter in law, of the soft and luscious Rowan Bamboo tape. And that green Cascade 220 will turn into something lovely for SS. And then there is all that other nice yarn, the new green lace alpaca yarn and that delicious Arctic Lace book, and some Zephyr lace, and well, a bunch of stuff in the stash.

I really am going to finish some other work too. My hardanger pillow keeps calling to me, and there are some other pillow designs I mean to make for the reading nook in my study. I'm thinking a knitted lace, in a pure and unsullied white, with a soft blue lining, maybe a knitted ruffle...

I'm getting myself into trouble just thinking about it. A little of this sort of trouble is very good for the soul.

2 comments:

Gina said...

Love the gloves. Baeutiful job!

Anonymous said...

Those are beautiful. One of these days I'll have time to blog about some things I have made. The fingerless mitts I made for my son were a disaster, but I saved them by sewing up the holes and reinforcing the edges with crochet. I didn't even take a picture of them, they were so bad! I lost stitches (one time I pulled a whole dp needles' worth out because I thought it was the free needle!), I added stitches, I messed up the binding off. So, hats off to you - those are gorgeous.

mostlylurking