good old fashioned fun

One of these days I'm going to go back and count how many of these blog entries I start with an apology. On second thought, maybe not, that sounds depressing. Anyway, yes, it's true, I'm apologizing for lack of blogging yet again. I've just been super busy at work preparing for a workshop (I leave for Belize on the 21st!), as well as taking care of personal stuff (securing a place to live not inhabited by my mother) and primarily knitting on the Modern Baby Blanket, which, while I expect it will eventually be pretty, is boring--all garter stitch, all the time.

I do have a few knitting updates. First, I've finished and stuffed Elefante's body, but without legs or a head, it just looks like an over-large hacky sack:

I'm nervous about attaching the legs, I want him to look all snuggly and adorable, not lopsided or stricken with gout.

I've also cast on for Delphine. It's not knitting up as fast as I'd hoped because even though it's knit in the round, it's got plenty of purl stitches. I don't have much to show for my efforts yet:

I will admit up front, I did not do a gauge swatch for this project. Why? Well, gauge swatching for knitting in the round is a pain in the arse. Also, I decided the model in the photos looked about my size (hardy har har). And finally, I'm knitting in cotton, so if it's too big, I can shrink it. If it's too small . . . well, it's lace, it should stretch. Yes, I'm well aware that this is a bad plan. But I'm embracing it nonetheless. Remind me I said this when I'm giving this to one of my pregnant friends for her child, or shipping it to Nepal for the Abominable Snowman.

The Frog Tree Pima Silk . . . I don't love it, I have to say. I've used Cascade Pima Silk in the past and it was lovely and soft. This is not lovely and soft. It's also very splitty. I guess we'll see what happens after it's washed. Hopefully it will be more comfortable to wear than to knit with.

And now, some randomness. I spent Independence Day weekend in Colonial Williamsburg, which was quite lovely (minus the FIVE hour drive back to DC, a trip that should top out at 2.5 hours).

Here I am pouting after I found out that the peanut soup I've been dying to try since my last trip to Williamsburg when the Kings Arms Tavern was closed is made with chicken stock, and therefore not vegetarian friendly:

I did keep an eye out for any knitting-related fun to share with you all--afterall this was colonial times, knitting was all the rage.

There was a spinning, weaving and dyeing shop:

where i learned about how colonial Americans used stale pee to set the dye. Lovely thought, huh? Apparently they don't stick with that particular technique in the reproduction, I can't imagine why.

I also saw some adorable sheep, but I must've forgotten my camera that day. Well, you all know what sheep look like, I assume.

There were drop spindle, scarf, and hat kits in the shops--all ugly and overpriced--as well as scratchy, plain handknit hats selling for $30, and bizarrely made in New Zealand--how authentic. And I saw one of the character actors knitting a sock on the front stoop of a house, though I decided against harassing her for a picture.

And finally, but disappointingly, I found this:

The sign says "Leicester long wool yarn $22." The colors were quite nice, but there was no mention of yarn weight or put up. Was this $22 for a pair of socks' worth of fingering weight, or $22 for a few yards of some indeterminate, useless weight? No clue. And it was scratchy, so I held off.

The worst part of the trip was that I brought no actual knitting with me to DO. So yes, I was forced to waste those miserable 5 hours in the car staring out the window. Never again.