A Long Time Gone

I haven't forgotten or given up on this blog. Life has dealt some nasty surprises and priorities had to be observed. I won't dwell, but will explain. It began with the diagnosis of my mother's terminal liver cancer. She lived 20 short days after this terrible announcement. My beloved mother is gone and I can still scarcely believe it. Then, 40 days later, my father had a massive heart attack and passed away 4 days after that. Medical people say that this happens frequently with elderly couples, but that's scant consolation when it's your parents who have gone in a short span of time. No time to grieve for one properly before you're planning the funeral for the other. Thank God for my five siblings. Together, we're learning to live in a world without our parents. If there can ever be a silver lining to a dark cloud like this, it's this: We're closer than we've been for many years and are learning what we're made of..

Knitting as Therapy

My knitting has served as a cheaper form of therapy than a psychiatrist. Heck, maybe I have gone bonkers and don't know it, but I did finish the most beautiful thing I've ever made. The Melon Shawl from Victorian Lace Today by Jane Sowerby has been my obsession and consolation. Without further ado:

Pre-blocking photo....the stash basket is only a hint of the total. Nuff said about that!

After blocking...first image.

Second image....after blocking.
Yarn: Louet Kidlin Pixie (Kid mohair, linen, nylon)
Color: Grasshopper
Needle: Inox size 7
Time to complete: One month

I am a slow knitter so the time to completion is easily bested by faster, more dedicated knitters, I'm sure. The pattern is easily memorized and goes fairly quickly once you've done that. The knitted on edging was a new thing for me, but again, it was easily put to memory and flew right along, even by my slow standards. I did find a better explanation on how to do the knitted on edging in Traditional Knitted Lace shawls by Martha Waterman.

I would change one thing. The needles. Inox are pointy all right, but those cables wanted to kink right back up even after the hot water treatment and the hair dryer trick. The yarn is not particularly slippery, so Knitpicks needles would have been better....if I'd had them. But...no. You can bet they're the next purchase to be made.

My current project is the Shoulder Shawl in Syrian pattern on page 130 of VLT. I'm using Rowan's Kidsilk Night in the Macbeth color. That's a deep, eggplanty purple with a bit of shiny spun into it. I'm really knitting this one slowly so I won't have to frog anything. Kidsilk is a non-froggable yarn. Ask me how I know that.

It's good to be back. There will be more photos and updates. I haven't fogotten the Victoria Shawl in the curry Zephyr.

Finis
Arachne