Pattern: Bellatrix

Yarn: Cherry Tree Hill Sock-It-To-Me, Indie Dyer’s WoW warlock dreadsteed inspired “Fiery”

Needles: 2.75mm bamboo DPNs

Babble: Anyone familiar with the Bellatrix pattern will be able to tell straight off that I made some minor changes. Most notably, the fact that I stopped the pattern after the gusset decreases and continued the foot in plain stocking stitch. Other changes include the slipped-stitch rib heel flap, and a 64 stitch cast-on so I could do a stretchier 2×2 rib on the cuff (I decreased down to the required 60 sts on the last round of rib). I also only did 5 pattern repeats on the leg; any longer and I’d be fighting to fit the cuff around my calf. Long skinny legs, I do not have.

I have officially fallen in love with Sock-It-To-Me. I had heard some mixed reviews regarding CTH’s other sock yarns, but the eminently generous meterage is what persuaded me to ask for this as a base. It is so scrumptiously soft, it’s a joy to knit with and a pleasure to wear. And I still have enough left over that I could easily knit myself a second pair of socks or a pair of fingerless mitts.

The pattern itself was very easy and a ton of fun. Intentionally dropping stitches can be incredibly cathartic … especially when your other project is a chunky fair-isle that’s making you pull out your hair.

When I was beaten and injured on the school soccer field, stubborn pride didn’t let me show them they’d succeeded in hurting me. It was that same stubborn pride that kept me going through the pain after the doctor assumed I was faking it because I didn’t bruise. That same stubborn pride that refused to let the pain win and kept me pursuing my interests and passions.

Thanks to that stubborn pride, I live a relatively “normal” life. I have a job, albeit part time but this is what I can manage, physically. I have a social life. I can still participate in physical activities I love, such as dancing and hiking, so long as I’m aware of my limits and listen to what my body tells me. Yes, I’ve had to give up some things, like horseback riding and biking, because the twist in my skeleton simply will not allow for my body to comfortably assume the required positioning.

I’ve known for years that, eventually, as the twist becomes steadily worse because all I can do is treat the symptoms, I’d have to resort to physical aids. I always hoped that the necessity would come later rather than sooner.

In the past year, I’ve had to fight my pride and face facts. There are days, like today, that if I want to continue leading this relatively normal life of mine, I need a walking stick. I haven’t wanted to admit it, because even though I know better, it feels like a defeat. But I also know that if I keep being stubborn and insisting on trying to walk normally without aid, my crooked pelvis is only going to rebel and I’ll be in more pain and even less able to do the things I’ve fought tooth and nail to be able to do.

Even if it’s just walking to the train station so I can get to work, where I should be right now, instead of stretched out in bed because my right leg is refusing to work properly.

Will I need to use a walking stick every day? No. Not yet. But having one to hand will mean that in those instances when my body does throw a tantrum, I will have the aid needed to continue in a relatively normal manner. Whether I’m walking home from work or walking down a nature trail with friends.

I refuse to allow this to be a negative impact upon my life. I will do what is necessary to allow myself to continue leading an active, social, “normal” life, and I will not be shamed by it.

And that’s just in the States. Hate and bigotry and ignorance is a worldwide disease, and the fight for gay rights is also worldwide. America just gets most of the press.

California isn’t the only state working towards taking away the rights of gay couples, they were just the most overt (for now). Think of the states who are working to ban adoption by “unmarried couples” — where, incidentally, gay marriage is currently illegal.

Homosexuality is not a disease, it’s not contagious, and, news flash, it’s not a life-choice like being ChildFree or becoming a Buddhist monk. The kiddies are not going to “catch it.”

I am saddened, deeply saddened, by what’s happened in California. I’m sad for my brother, I’m sad for my cousin, I’m sad for my friends, and I’m sad for all those whom I don’t know, but care about anyway, because they’re human and deserve the right to express their love however they see fit, just like heteros or those of us in hetero relationships.

And to everyone who fought, and spoke out against, and who continues to fight, and speak out against, homosexual discrimination, I am so proud of you, and you have my love and support. For what it’s worth.

Needless to say, I’ve been playing with it whenever I can. My very first bit of yarn is a sad little affair. But my second….

I was actually using some new wool that was marketed for purposes of needle felting, not spinning. But hey, roving is roving, I said to myself when I bought it. And it seems I was right! Haha. Or at least lucky, anyway.

This second bunch was tri-coloured: cream, turquoise and navy blue. I really like the effect. It’s a subtle almost-heathered-but-not-really variegation. And when you combine the solid and the multi-coloured together….

It’s actual, honest-to-goodness knittable yarn! I’m indecently pleased with myself, especially given how fine I managed to spin it. It’s not even, but it’s not nearly as slubby as I was led to expect my first attempts to be. Nor as thick, obviously. And when I weighed it:

Exactly 50 grams. Woohoo! Of course I haven’t the first clue what the metreage is, but that’s okay.

A bit more practice, and I’ll be ready to spin the scrumptiously gorgeous turquoise and silver merino/silk roving I got for my birthday.

Broken.

I am gutted.

Kerroan’s going to ring up the company he ordered it from tomorrow to get it sorted. Doesn’t help how I’m feeling tonight, though. Defeated, depressed and utterly picked on by the Universe. Doesn’t matter if it’s truth or just whingy melodrama. Sometimes—most times—I feel like I can never have anything nice. Something’s always gotta go wrong, or break, or get stolen, or….

I’m going to bed.

Let me explain:

One of the ladies who works at the Global Cafe in Reading, where our weekly knitting group meets, organized an artsy crafty musicy event for yesterday (12 Oct 2008). She approached Felix and invited the group to set up a table and do some knitting as part of it. Since the Global and RISC are all about fair trade eco-friendly save the planet stuff, it was proposed by Felix and happily accepted by all of us that we did some fun recycle themed knitting.

Plastic shopping bags and old T-shirts were gleefully sacrificed to the cause and turned into yarn. Gigantic knitting needles were procured (with many thanks to folks at Prick You Finger for letting us borrow them!) and, because we are totally silly, when Emmylou suggested we all turn up to knit in our pyjamas … we did!

The main project was making bunting out of our recycled yarn on the gigantic needles. The massive needles made it in a way as much performance art as knitting, since you really had to get your whole body into the motions. Random bouts of bursting into little dance routines as the mood and music tempted only added to the overall zany craziness.

I have no idea where that amazingly bright white globe came from. We had originally thought it was flash glare off of the FRRS balloon, but as you can see in the pic, the balloon is actually further to the left. Our theory now is that Gemma has a pet ghost.

I also worked on some smaller recycled plastic bag knitting. Using Hakucho’s Big Bag as a jumping off point, I just started playing about with creating a bag. Mine is looking to come out much more square-shaped, and I’m thinking I’ll play around a bit with a different handle set-up. Thanks to the joy that is Ravelry there’s a bunch of different knitted plastic bag ideas I can browse through.

All in all it was a fabulously fun night, and come Tuesday we may have a new addition to the group! Huzzah!

First there was a mild case of laziness. “Oh, I’ll photograph this FO next week and post….” Then there was no internet connection whatsoever. Boom, broadband died. Took a ridiculously long time to fix, since the people who broke it wouldn’t accept blame (and couldn’t figure out how they broke it, anyway).

Then there was a much needed and absolutely wonderful week long holiday in Tenby, Wales. Miracle of miracles, we discovered working broadband when we got home. (They don’t know how they fixed it, either. Ha.)

So now I’ve got a backlog of finished projects I need to photograph, and new stash to play with, and photos from Wales to edit and upload.

And I’m getting a spinning wheel, which will probably be more fun to play with than an already neglected blog. But I will start posting again! I have to justify the hosting for this site somehow.

Pattern: Ladies’ Striped or Plain Tank Top by Sarah Hatton (Rowan Pure Wool Family Collection)

Yarn: Rowan Pure Wool DK in Ultra-Marine (009) and Cypress (007).

Needles: 3.75mm and 4.5mm bamboo circulars. I had to go up in needle size to achieve the correct tension.

Babble: I had originally intended to make something completely different out of the Pure Wool DK, so now I’m left with 3 whole balls and most of a fourth to play with, out of my original total of 11. (If anyone’s wondering how that math works, the dye-lot I had matched some that one of my coworkers had bought, so I gave her 3 to make up enough for the Ladies Cabled Tank Top from the same book.)

I really, truly enjoyed knitting with this wool, enough so that I actually managed to stay mostly monogamous and finish the garment in 10 days time. 9, if you subtract the evening I slipped and cheated on it with some Cashsoft 4-ply. It knits beautifully and noticably softens after washing, but will fluff a bit. It’s just one of those things you gotta live with, and personally, I really don’t mind a bit of fuzziness. As long as I don’t look like an overgrown muppet I’m happy.

The only thing that disappointed me were my needles. Both my 40cm 3.75s and 4.5s broke while I was knitting, right at the cable join. This makes me a sad panda.

Pattern: Meadow by Martin Storey, feat. Rowan Classic Nature

Yarn: RC Bamboo Soft, sh. 105

Needles: 3.75mm bamboo circs

Babble: Lovelovelove this yarn. It is so incredibly soft and silky and just feels divine against the skin. I hope Rowan keeps it around a good long time, because I will use it again.

You do have to be patient with it, because it will split like crazy otherwise. Don’t let that put you off, though. The finished fabric is so worth a little extra diligence.

As for the design itself, it’s very straightfoward and easy to follow. The lace pattern is easy to memorize. It’s easy to slip into a meditative rhythm where the time and the knitting just seems to fly right on by.

It does plague me with my personal problem, which is the fact that it doesn’t want to sit nicely across my chest. The front desperately wants to slip open and sit on either side of my boobs. Harrumph. That said, I still can’t wait to wear it out and about.