Friday, August 6, 2010

Mindless fun

Equipment: Google Chrome browser (or equivalent)

Step 1: Find a pattern you like online (e.g. via Ravelry), that is only available in a language that is foreign to you.
Step 2: Get frustrated by the fact that you can't read the pattern.
Step 3: Notice the bar at the top of the browser offering to translate the page. Click on 'Translate'.

Result:
"... When the song is 33-34-35-36-36-37 cm in height, with head in both hands at the edges of the road for every 2 row 1x4-4-5-5-6-6 s and then start raglankavennukset. Ie both edges of the ..."


Still, I should be recreate the pattern.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Testing the mobile blogger

Guess where I'm off to in about 36 hours' time? Just checking to see whether I can realistically blog from the iphone.



Had a very satisfying day, with a visit to the dentist proving once again that I have a very active imagination. And for the first time in months I can smile with confidence! Also had a haircut in preparation for my trip.
Knitting projects and apparatus for next week sorted, just need to pack some optional extras like clothes and toiletries. Last time I checked the forecast it seemed like packing a sun hat or sandals would be wildly optimistic, but one can always hope!
Cheerio!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:Glamorgan Rd,Richmond,United Kingdom

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Back on planet Knit

Umm, I seemed to have disappeared for a while, but I'm back. I've been composing posts in my mind ever since the last one, but I just lacked the will to sit down and do it. Story of my life...

So what have I been doing? Apart from working and eating and sleeping, I've managed some fibre folly as well. I finished the Transverse Cardigan (Ravelry link). It has been much too hot to actually wear it, but but I should get some wear out of it when it gets cooler. I might move the buttons a bit higher; it looked right when I sewed it on, but when I wear the cardi the button bands do not quite line up at the neckline. I need not have worried about running out of yarn - I only used 8.5 skeins, which means I have 4.5 left over. I've just cast on Sonja's cardigan (Ravelry link) with the left over yarn - my friend Antoinette's 3 year old daughter is in a pink phase, so this should be perfect for her. I love the 'in threes: a baby cardigan' pattern by Kelly Herdrich, and will probably be knitting the same pattern for another 3 year old. The yarn for the two projects are quite different (one in the rather dense 40% wool/60% cotton of Mirasol Cotanani, the other in very soft and much loftier 100% merino from Coldharbour Mill/ Fibre Harvest/ John Arbon), so I'll be able to compare how the same pattern knits up in different yarns.

I've also finished another shawl (my third one this year) - it's the Travelling Woman by Liz Abinante of feministy.com, using some sock yarn by Nurturing fibres (bough from Purewool) that I brought back from my Christmas holiday in South Africa. It is destined to be a Christmas gift - better not say who for, just in case!

Lastly, I also knitted some fingerless mitts from some of my own handspun, inspired by the SpinDoctor podcast KAL. This was lovely fibre from FeltStudioUK, which I totally mangled on the Ashford Joy. The Joy and I are not getting along very well, and I was trying to do a thicker yarn than usual, which did not work. The result was a very uneven yarn, but the knitted product looks nice, in my opinion. Only one problem, the one mitt is noticeably (when feeling them) chunkier than the other... I might have to keep them for myself!


That's enough for now - don't want to overwhelm anyone with a 3000 word essay just because I've not posted for ages. I'm on leave this week, so I should be able to fit in another post of two before I'm off to Knit Camp in Scotland this weekend. Cheers!