*Gush*
Forgive me, readers, for I have sinned. It has been very nearly a month since my last post. Between traveling, dancing, and writing the document that wouldn't DIE, I've managed to get some knitting in, but not blogging.
So imagine my surprise when my nearly-month-old post received not just a comment, but a comment from, ahem, the Yarn Harlot herself.
Now, I am not the type to get star-struck. In fact, I once hitched a ride with Aiofe Clancy after a Cherish the Ladies concert (she and her husband saw me running after a shuttle bus I had just missed, took pity, and drove me all around Weston, Massachusetts for half an hour looking for a T station), and managed to hold up a very normal conversation and not jump up and down in the back seat.
So I was highly surprised:
a- to find myself tongue-tied during the book signing after Stephanie's talk in Cambridge in April. I had serious difficulty explaining that my name was not Crystal (who had lent me her yarn harlot book, which I kept for months, spilled diet coke on, and dipped in the bathtub, before I finally bought her a new copy, keeping the old one with her name in it for myself).
b- by how giggly-fan-like I got when she included the picture of Team MIT on her blog entry about that talk
c- that I literally DID jump up and down and run to tell my husband when she commiserated about steeking here yesterday.
So now that I've admitted to being a silly, giggly fan (for shame!), I'll take it the whole nine yards:
Steph, thanks for writing. There is just nothing like your work to make a knitter feel _understood_. I even made my husband read a few pieces from your first book, and, while I think he still doesn't get it, he does finally understand that not only am I the only one like this, but there are enough of us out there to demand our own genre of humor. And thanks also for making me (a former library employee) laugh hard enough to dip a book in the bathtub.
Now, on to some actual knitting content:
1- I haven't done a single thing on snowflakes and arrows. I was mad at it, and then it got really warm in Boston. I'm ready to make up, but I think I'll wait until early fall, when it'll be closer to wool-wearing season.
2- I started Green Gables in a baby pink Rowan Calmer. I ripped out Soul to harvest the yarn. I will always love Soul as my first cables project, but I don't think it would ever have been flattering, even if I did get it to fit (or figure out how to work short rows into a solid-cable project). I made this down to the under-bust (it's top-down) and ripped it out three times (once as written, once without the decreases, and then once with increases) before deciding to just make the next larger size. Haven't gotten around to that yet, though. At risk of repeating myself, I LOVE THIS YARN. It is essentially the summer equivalent of Aurora 8: soft, stretchy, and wonderful in every way. Doesn't come in as many colors as aurora 8, alas.
3- I started the Retro Throw as a graduation present for my sister the rapper.
I'm wondering if there might be an error in the pattern. It's a blanket knit with a sport-weight yarn on size 10 needles. (?!?!?) Not only did I not get anything even CLOSE to gauge, but when I knit up a square just for the heck of it, it used a LOT less yarn that the pattern said it should per square. Plus, it's really flimsy at that gauge. I've worked two squares double-stranded, and that gives a much nicer hand, but is still a slightly finer gauge, and appears to be taking slightly MORE yarn than the pattern predicts. I like it best this way, so I'm just going to do it, and will order more yarn if I run out. (Stripes are great for hiding dye lot differences!)
Good night for now. I'll leave you with an image to ponder:
My sister's graduation (this morning) closed with a somewhat corny, over-the-top rendition of New York, New York by one of the school's vocal groups. And the faculty of the Steinhardt School at NYU, joined by this year's distinguished alum award recipient, Judy Blume, did a kick line. It was awesome, it was hysterical, and I got it on video.
You heard it here first. :)
So imagine my surprise when my nearly-month-old post received not just a comment, but a comment from, ahem, the Yarn Harlot herself.
Now, I am not the type to get star-struck. In fact, I once hitched a ride with Aiofe Clancy after a Cherish the Ladies concert (she and her husband saw me running after a shuttle bus I had just missed, took pity, and drove me all around Weston, Massachusetts for half an hour looking for a T station), and managed to hold up a very normal conversation and not jump up and down in the back seat.
So I was highly surprised:
a- to find myself tongue-tied during the book signing after Stephanie's talk in Cambridge in April. I had serious difficulty explaining that my name was not Crystal (who had lent me her yarn harlot book, which I kept for months, spilled diet coke on, and dipped in the bathtub, before I finally bought her a new copy, keeping the old one with her name in it for myself).
b- by how giggly-fan-like I got when she included the picture of Team MIT on her blog entry about that talk
c- that I literally DID jump up and down and run to tell my husband when she commiserated about steeking here yesterday.
So now that I've admitted to being a silly, giggly fan (for shame!), I'll take it the whole nine yards:
Steph, thanks for writing. There is just nothing like your work to make a knitter feel _understood_. I even made my husband read a few pieces from your first book, and, while I think he still doesn't get it, he does finally understand that not only am I the only one like this, but there are enough of us out there to demand our own genre of humor. And thanks also for making me (a former library employee) laugh hard enough to dip a book in the bathtub.
Now, on to some actual knitting content:
1- I haven't done a single thing on snowflakes and arrows. I was mad at it, and then it got really warm in Boston. I'm ready to make up, but I think I'll wait until early fall, when it'll be closer to wool-wearing season.
2- I started Green Gables in a baby pink Rowan Calmer. I ripped out Soul to harvest the yarn. I will always love Soul as my first cables project, but I don't think it would ever have been flattering, even if I did get it to fit (or figure out how to work short rows into a solid-cable project). I made this down to the under-bust (it's top-down) and ripped it out three times (once as written, once without the decreases, and then once with increases) before deciding to just make the next larger size. Haven't gotten around to that yet, though. At risk of repeating myself, I LOVE THIS YARN. It is essentially the summer equivalent of Aurora 8: soft, stretchy, and wonderful in every way. Doesn't come in as many colors as aurora 8, alas.
3- I started the Retro Throw as a graduation present for my sister the rapper.
I'm wondering if there might be an error in the pattern. It's a blanket knit with a sport-weight yarn on size 10 needles. (?!?!?) Not only did I not get anything even CLOSE to gauge, but when I knit up a square just for the heck of it, it used a LOT less yarn that the pattern said it should per square. Plus, it's really flimsy at that gauge. I've worked two squares double-stranded, and that gives a much nicer hand, but is still a slightly finer gauge, and appears to be taking slightly MORE yarn than the pattern predicts. I like it best this way, so I'm just going to do it, and will order more yarn if I run out. (Stripes are great for hiding dye lot differences!)
Good night for now. I'll leave you with an image to ponder:
My sister's graduation (this morning) closed with a somewhat corny, over-the-top rendition of New York, New York by one of the school's vocal groups. And the faculty of the Steinhardt School at NYU, joined by this year's distinguished alum award recipient, Judy Blume, did a kick line. It was awesome, it was hysterical, and I got it on video.
You heard it here first. :)
posted by Nadira at Monday, May 08, 2006
2 Comments:
I like how your retro throw is looking!
As OLD as I am ... I was almost tongue tyed myself when I asked Stephanie to sign all 3 of my books. I felt silly & thrilled at the same time! Hey, love the retro afghan blocks ... reminds me of my high school dayz.
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