I've been sick off and on since my loving son gave me germs a few weeks ago. Add in the weather changes and the tides and moon cycle and whatever else you want to add in to make things seem the way you need them to seem-- I just haven't done much knitting. I just haven't felt like it.
I was having headaches until my son came to visit this week-end. As soon as he walked in the door the head-ache I'd been fighting since I could stand upright after the worst of the illness just disappeared. So at least he and I both felt better.
Now, during my bout of illness, while on a call (it really does help to keep my conscious brain somewhat occupied while the rest of my brain does the 'work' when I am working--that's how I got into automatic writing--I needed something 'legitimate' to occupy myself with while actually in front of clients rather than the phone clients and then--automatic writings began there...what can I say?) I started going through etsy--not ebay--just etsy--I really do prefer etsy--I have bouts where I go looking for wedding dresses--even though I have patterns here on-hand. I want a pale blue dress--but much like Mammy and her petticoat from Rhett--I want scarlet or crimson underskirts that both no one can see and honour the Ancestors --red and gold--that's going to be a very interesting twist.
Anyway--the issue w the dress as it stands at the moment is -- most of the ones I like are sleeveless or with a scooped neckline. I don't want any of my tattoos showing at all at my wedding--don't ask me why--everyone who goes to my wedding will know in advance about my tattoos--I just don't want them showing in the bridal pictures for some reason. Which makes me ponder the whole shrug, shawl and veil angles alot more--cohesively than should be necessary. And I am wearing my hair down--and as curly as I can get it too.
All that means is--I spend alot of time on etsy looking for and at different things.
The other day it was shawls. There are so really tremendously beautiful things on etsy--and some of them are at such incredibly good prices--and then others the prices are so high--despite knowing the work that went into them--you wonder if the people were stoned when they priced them. There were several shawls I would have been happy just to be able to buy the pattern for them.
But as I was scoping out shawls -- I kept thinking that some of the really simple ones (you know--garter stitch or stockinette stitch, in acrylic yarns--and not under $45-50 to start--the ones where I am thinking an online trip to knitpicks is a good thing :-) ) --and I started thinking--all that yarn I have--I have lots of yarn that is really very pretty and nothing to really do with it--and here are these so simple rectangles of knitted fabric--some really were just garter stitch--plain garter stitch--with plain yarn--for such large amounts of money--that I kept thinking why? Why buy something like that when I can knit it myself?
So that's what I am doing.
I took a little stash dive--and I found a plastic bag full of a pretty (and kinda weird looking) ribbon yarn. It's a ribbon, that has tufts periodically--like a flower petal--one petal on each side of each tuft, two petals per tuft (not making much sense am I?). I had a bunch in the bag, different colours. No labels. And mostly unwound from their balls or whatever--and all tangled and knotted up with each other--which explains why something like that would be given to me. Here, T, this is too much trouble for me, but I know you love this stuff--so have at it.
So, I worked on untangling as much as I could--it did involve some cutting, yes. And it did take a couple days, yes. But I managed.
Since there are about 5 or so different colours, I am taking 1 colour and knitting for 2 rows, then taking a different colour for 2 rows, then alternating til one colour runs out--and then I switch that colour to something different--so whenever one colour runs out I start another colour--that way there is a continuity to the thing, as well as alot of variation in colouration. Which is pretty cool.
I've been scoping out yarn, ever since my one client asked me to knit him something and I wanted to use noro keureyon (I ended up with a nice multi-coloured wool--but can't remember what it is right now--I bought it local though--it has nice variations in it--nothing like noro of course, but still so lovely)--this means lots of ebay (and etsy too, though not so much) searching--so I had searches for noro of all sorts--and the recycled sari silk and everything else too--this shawl I am currently working on looks alot like recycled sari yarn mix--although when you get close you see the yarn is different.
Wish I knew what it was--cause as weird as it is on its own, it's working up really pretty.
I've been working on the thing off and on for two weeks--so I'll keep you posted.
