Joss Whedon online musical number

Go now. Right now. Watch this.

I love Joss Whedon.

Arrowhead shawl is done!

I was going to title this "I think I may have become French" but thought people searching for it may not have look at it ;)

So why French? Because apparently I have become the kind of person who wears scarves as an accessory - quite a new thing for me.

In that vein, I've been knitting the Arrowhead shawl.
And the detailed up-close photo:

And the stretched out to see it all together photo:

and the pre-blocking photo. Anyone considering not blocking, take a look at this compared to the after photos. Huge difference.
This is possibly the best use I've ever done of variegated sock yarn. Thoroughly recommended. (Touch 4ply, if you're wondering).

troll boots .. or why I won't have cold feet anymore

I finished my Fuzzy Feet.

They are very very nearly dry.

I got impatient and hand felted them, which was not difficult and most consisted of what I imagine non-knitters would do to a hand knitted item that was really dirty. Or perhaps had a nasty stain.

I tried them on periodically wet while felting them, checked inside and out to compare colour and evenness to decide which I liked better and so on.

Then they got worn wet for a long time to shape them, then put in front of the heater to finish drying.

They fit pretty well I think.

Making jumbo socks

For felting.

My house is kind of cold, and my feet, once cold, stay that way.

So, I'm making a quick-knit pair of slippers. Fuzzy Feet from knitty to be specific.

First one is done. Note the comparison of size with my converse hightops. It's waiting a mate before being felted. (No, not a gauge error).

And progress is being made on the scarf/shawl. Since you knit from the point and get bigger, I'm slightly bored with it as the shine of very quick rows disappears with the increasing number of stitches. Which is fine, and I'll get back to it after finishing my slippers.

They are much quicker and I'm sure a few more episodes of Dead Like Me will do it. I love this series, I'd forgotten all about it until it came up in conversation at Stitch and Bitch recently, and I have reaffirmed my love of its quirky-macabre humor. Wonderful.

Decisions, decisions..

Ah, siblings have no respect for stashbusting.

My brother is going to be a dad. It is their first child, and is a naturally big deal for him and his partner.

Of course, this requires knitted goodness.

Now... I love my brother. But....


well...

He doesn't take care of stuff the way I do. (Actually, the way most people do.) Anyway, this means that baby stuff for them will require a certain level of unkillable-ness to it.

Since this generally means either cotton or mega-superwash wool or (gasp!) acrylics.. I really do not have anything suitable in my stash, and certainly not in the quantities required. Okay, I can do a hat or booties from stash and probably will, but I am thinking you know, its my brother, and I think I need to go the whole hog and knit them a baby blanket.

Those of you who knew me around 4ish years ago may recall much complaining on my part as I finished my last baby blanket - for my nephew-in-law. It was moss stitch. It was beautiful. But it was moss stitch and therefore god awful slow to knit. (At the time it was also the largest single piece of knitting I had done.)

So, while I am definitely more experienced now, and prepared for the slowness, I still want to pick a more interesting choice to knit.

And this, dear reader, is where you come in.

I am considering one of two patterns, and looking for suggestions for not-too-expensive unkillable yarn.


Pattern One : The Pinwheel round baby blanket.

This would be knitted in probably rainbow striped colours I think. The good example shown above by Knittingnav via flickr.

Pattern two : Moderne Baby Blanket from Mason Dixon.
Again in different colours to those shown here (by Katinka31 via flickr again), since they don't know what they are having.

What do you think? Opinions? Thoughts?

Warning : Unrelated-to-knitting content. A letter to my mentor.

Okay, this is an out of the ordinary thing. I don't even know if I will send him this link or not, but I feel like I want to get this out there.

Tomorrow, Friday, a man I greatly respect is retiring. This man was instrumental in my career and I am very, very grateful to him.

I'd write his name, but I don't have his permission to put it up, so I won't.

But I like the idea that my gratitude be out there in the ether of the web, spreading good vibes about him, because he so very much deserves them.

I have a small gift for him, that I will give him tomorrow. And this letter, which I will also post below.

Cheers. Next post will be back to the knitting, promise.

Hello,

I’ve thought a lot about this, and am still not entirely sure what to write.

Mostly, what I need to say is simple, but terribly important.

Thank you.

I am incredibly grateful for all of the support, and guidance you have given me over the years I have known you. I know, absolutely and in truth, that I would not be where I am today without your help, knowledge, guidance and encouragement.

Through you I have learned to read what people are really seeking as well as what they say. How to suggest a new way of doing things without telling the client they have been doing it wrong. How to weather office politics with decorum and self-respect. How to moderate my extremes and still be true to myself and what I believe in. How to better pick which battles are worth fighting and which will just cause you grief later. How to get clients on side. How to teach without being didactic. And, hopefully, as I now take on my own management responsibilities – how to be a manager while respecting what your people bring to their work.

It was an honour and pleasure to have worked with you.

I wish you all the very best life has to offer.

Sincerely,

Me.