Aboutaboutabout

About Fair Isle knitting

I have discovered that if you wish to attract attention and impress the snot out of people, knit a large Fair Isle project in public. I don't think I have been complimented so much on my knitting in one day than I was yesterday when I worked on my grandfather's Hillhead slipover. And I'm not just talking about at the book launch, either. I mean out and about on public transit. It even inspired one young woman on the train (who 'can only knit scarves', according to her, but I say feh, knitting scarves still makes you a knitter, there ain't a thing wrong with scarves) to ask me questions, such as how come I get stocking stitch when all I'm doing is the knit stitch (since when she wants stocking stitch, she has to alternate knit and purl rows). So I got to explain the concept of 'knitting in the round' to her and how that affects things. I love seeing the lights go on in people's heads when they get the concepts.

I also have to admit to shamelessly showing off the slipover to the Harlot herself (after getting my book signed, yippee). I remain embarrassed about this, because I didn't segueway nicely into it or anything, I just said, 'this is what I'm working on' and pulled it out in the most showoffy manner. Not suave at all. However...she loved it. :) I'm not sure if that justifies the gaucheness of the showing-off, though. Hopefully it does.

But possibly the best compliment was when two ladies sit down next to me at the launch, and one of them pointed to my work and told her friend, "Now that is hardcore." How about that, eh? I can fool people into believing I'm a hardcore knitter! Woo! Whooda thunk it.

About meeting people

I met lots of people at the book launch last night. Aven recognized the Hillhead slipover and came over to say hi. She's just a lovely person, we had a fun little chat. I also happened to sit near the Yarn Harlot's family - her sister-in-law Kelly and a really nice lady that I think is the Harlot's mother-in-law. They liked the slipover, too. I also ran into a friend of mine from the SCA, who works for Thomas Allen, the Canadian distributor of the book. He said that the tour was going well, all very successful, that people seemed to enjoy Harlot (well, duh) and I assured him that he was quite right and she was terrific. And then as I was leaving the museum, I walked down to the subway with two friendly blogger ladies, one of whom is Sue (whose daughter Lara is a real cutie-patootie, I tell ya).

About the launch itself

It's a good thing the Harlot's husband (god that he is) recovered her speech from her computer because it was a good one. Very funny, very well delivered. Incidentally, Joe was going around the whole evening looking proud as punch. Harlot looked fantastic in new pants and great hair, very sophistocated. She worked on her Koigu sock during the question and answer period (during which I failed miserably to remember to ask her what bookbookbook #2 was about, DAMN!), and I got pretty depressed about my own knitting watching how she does it. She knits like butta. Smooth, fast, easy - sigh. I really do need to start going to the Lettuce Knit ess-n-bees, maybe I can pick up how she does it. I suspect it's going to mean not using my thumb to hold the working yarn, which is a frightening prospect.

Anyway, it was really quite weird wandering around the launch and recognizing people who didn't know who the heck I was. I mean really, what is the etiquette for this kind of thing? How do you approach someone whose life you know a lot about and that you think is really cool and with whom you'd like to strike up a friendship, all because of a blog, and not come off like an obsessive stalker? How? Has Miss Manners covered this?

About revenge

I tend to spend too much time in the bathroom during my before-bedtime routine. This is because it's just about the only time I ever get to read. :) So my husband knows to occupy himself with something interesting while waiting for me to emerge. Last night, he chose to knit during the wait. He's very proud of all this knitting he's doing, by the way - he's done ten rows so far. Finally I realised that it was late, I was tired, and we would be exhausted tomorrow if we didn't cut out all this nice relationship reconnecting chatting and go the heck to bed. So I went over to the light switch and said, "We're going to bed now." He looked up at me, and an evil, evil grin spread across his face as he said,

"Okay, just let me finish this row."

If my daughter had not been sleeping I would have let out an anguished howl of horror at hearing my own fateful words echoed back to me. I am so screwed.

Snowdrop cloth for DH's aunt

Got going on this again today. I am now fewer than 11 rows away from the mid-point, after which I can start decreasing. Woohoo! And I forgot to mention in my last blog entry that I spent some time with some spare yarn and needles working out how best to do the decreases. I think I have come up with something that looks very nice:

Hillhead slipover for Grandpa

I got a lot done on this yesterday. Lovin' it, lovin' it. It now looks like this: