Scheherazaad

Me? In a Jane Austen Novel?

2009-07-29T15:44:00.002-04:00

Odd quiz but fun. I think it is more likely that I am in an Emma Thompson movie.

Still Knitting

2009-07-17T11:18:00.003-04:00

I have been knitting pretty constantly since the beginning of my vacation. It has almost become a job, but I still love doing it. I went away for a few days to relax by Lake of Bays in Muskoka. I justsat on the beach and looked at the sky and knit. As the cloud formations drifted by the Ooh La Lace Dress was knit back to normal. The alternating of 2 balls at once is not visible from the outside. I am just starting the third repeat. When the third repeat is finished I will have passed where I was when I had to frog.

My alternate WIP is a summer top by Lana Grossa. It is almost finished. I'll try to post a photo soon

Tink Tink Tink ......

2009-07-10T14:47:00.003-04:00

The saga of the Ooh La Lace Dress continues. I took a deep breath girded my loins and plunged into correcting the damage. Actually I gathered up my knitting and skeins and drove over to my LYS where sympathetic knitters could comfort me in my grief and help me stay determined to do what must be done. I ripped back to the life line (more life lines needed in the future). I then proceeded to swatch each remaining skein of yarn. All the knitters agreed that it was impossible to determine the relative shade of the yarn by strand alone, so the swatches were necessary. I have labeled each swatch and skein from darkest to lightest (photo below). Now I am tinking (unknitting stitch by stitch) the remaining 4 rows of lighter yarn. Once this is done, I will commence to knit from darkest to lightest skein alternating skeins. Proving that I can do the right thing.

Ohh No Not the Frog Pond!

2009-07-08T11:00:00.004-04:00

I have just met my first challenge with this project and surprise surprise it’s not the lace. Last weekend I decided to work on this dress outside in my garden. I usually only knit this at night in bed. I am on my third pattern repeat and my second ball of yarn, Its about 12 inches long now. As I hold the knitting up to my leg to check for length I notice what? A stripe! A colour change! Mixed dye lot? This is Handmaiden yarn. There are no dye lots or colour ways assigned to skeins because each batch varies, and apparently each skein varies within a batch. Mine was a custom order of a single batch: this is as good as it will get. They do recommend knitting with two skeins at once to minimize colour differences and pooling but this does not always work and I was reluctant to do this when knitting circular lace. I’m not frogging. I will have to figure out a way to work with the colour variations, especially since they are not that obvious when on the skein. My daughter says it just looks like an intentional fade, but I’m, worried about what happens when the next darker skein comes in.

- Either I introduce the next darkest skein immediately after this one is finished, and when it is finished start knitting with the remaining four skeins two at a time.
- or I frog 15 rows back to my life line (four rows above the shade/skein change) and start knitting two skeins at a time.
- Another option is to frog back to the life line and introduce the next darkest skein (I can only identify one) and then continue with the remaining four lighter skeins.

I’m afraid that knitting with two skeins alternating will create a ridge in the circular lace. What I really want to do is just continue knitting one skein at a time and pray that it all looks like a sophisticated fade in and out (fat chance!). The yarn is a semi solid as it is a mix of silk and linen which absorb dye differently.

I have posted a photo of the dress-in-progress below. The colour is not quite dark enough and I think the shade contrast is exaggerated. The “cast on” photo shown in the previous post is closer to the actual colour. Neither of the photos conveys the sheen and depth of the yarn. I lined up all of the wound skeins from light to dark. Again the photo colour is lighter than the actual colours. I looked at all of the yarn and the knitting in the sunlight, (morning, afternoon and evening) in the shade, in artificial light etc… Sunlight creates the most noticeable contrast and artifical light the least.

Ooh La Lace Pour Moi

2009-06-08T16:15:00.003-04:00

I finally have my lace summer dress (by Shirley Paden, in Lace Style) on the needles. First the yarn, Flaxen, took forever to arrive from Hand Maiden. But it is so beautiful and so worth it. Then I had to wind the skeins into balls. It took two attempts to get the cast on right. The original pattern has a slit in the back, but I am knitting this circular with no slit. I did not make a swatch because the pattern has a 45 stitch, 26 row repeat, and uses 6 needle sizes. I am a loose knitter so I am hoping that by starting with the needle size in the pattern I will allow enough ease for walking. After I knit past the area where the slit would be I will take the piece off of the needles for a fitting. If it works out I will then proceed to gradually decrease to a needle size 3 sizes smaller than what the pattern requires, because that it is the difference that typically gives me gauge. I will also not have a turtleneck or buttons down the back. A jewel neckline should allow enough ease to wiggle into the dress.

Starting Is More Enticing Than Finishing

2009-03-08T09:44:00.006-04:00

February is over and my mittens are not finished. I till have one thumb and the blocking left to do. hopefully I can finish before next February. They would be excellent mittens to wear now in the late winter and in the early spring. The green and purple and black remind me of Blue Heron Tulips in my Spring garden.

I may not have finished in February but I did start projects. Starting is so much more enticing than finishing. My Habu lunch bag kit arrived in the mail. The yarn is multiple strands of coloured silk bound together with black silk. It creates a beautiful tapestry like effect. Blue and green roving is also in the kit, to make a felted handle. The instructions are a hoot. Very brief. You have to be an experienced crocheter to make sense of it, but the diagram is excellent.

Lunch Bag Kit

I also started the Anastasia socks, in red cotton/lycra Fixation. They are to be my March break travel project. I don't have wooden needles so I hope I don't have trouble taking them on the plane.

Anastasia

I finally photographed Curly Locks, the Fleece Artist mohair, and Flaxen, the Handmaiden silk/linen that I received before Christmas. Both of them are intended for Shirley Paden patterns. I have started swatching Curly Locks for a cardigan, but I probably won't knit that until next fall.

Curly Locks

The colour and feel were just so tempting that I couldn't resist swatching. How can yarn be so beautiful that I am happy to knit nothing but a swatch with it. The Flaxen is for the Ooh La La Lace dress and shawl, from Lace Style. I should start that some time in spring. But when will I finish?

Flaxen

February is for Finishing Photos

2009-02-23T08:42:00.004-05:00

I finally took some pictures of projects that I finished in December. The spiral scarf is the first crochet project that I have done in decades. I love crochet but crochet eats yarn. This scarf tooke 3 skeins of Manos yarn. I made it as a sample for my Fashion students. Most of the students enjoyed the project. The scarf incorporates all of the basic crochet stitches in a very straight forward way and produces a fun and funky accessory. I actually wear this scarf a lot, almost every day. I also made a matching head band to keep my ears warms, and avoid my "big hair".
I made the hat for my son. This is the first thing that I have hand knit that he actully wears. It fits him very well as long as he has short hair. Unfortunately once his hair grows it becomes a problem, just like mine.
Now if I could only finish those Druid mittens! I have closed the tops, but still have to knit two thumbs.

Spiral Scarf, Manos del Uruguay Wool Clasica

Hat for a Skater-Boy, Cascade 220 Superwash

February is for Finishing

2009-02-08T21:29:00.002-05:00

Interlocking Balloons

This weekend I joined the Ravelry forum group February is for Finishing. This group is to encourage the finishing of knitting UFO's. Now I am sure that one of the reasons that more timely finishing doesn't happen is because of too much time spent on Ravelry being encouraged to start too many projects. It's hard to kick a bad habit when it is so much fun. Despite my scepticism I have joined this support group and will try to act in good faith. I have proposed to finish:

1. Interlocking Balloons Scarf
2. Druid Mittens
3. Airy Wrap-Around Lace Sweater

All are fingering weight projects, and number 1 and 2 have lengthy charted patterns. I am only on row 21 of Interlocking Balloons' approximately 410 rows. I have to just knit the last 20 rows of shaping and the thumbs of both mittens. The endless wrap-around ties need to be started on project 3. This weekend I worked on the scarf and the mittens. The scarf was designed for sport weight yarn and although I love the single strand of Dale Baby Ull that I am using I am beginning to think that two ends would be much more efficient and just as pretty.

Showing Some Stash

2009-01-24T14:38:00.004-05:00

I thought I would show a little stash today. I'm not very good at keeping an inventory of what I have. It is all in my head and each yarn comes forward in my mind when I want it for something. at the Kitchener Knitting Fair last fall there was a vendor selling Habu. I only became aware of Habu, a Japanese textile producer after I joined Ravelry. Their products reminded me of Junichi Arai and other forward thinking Japanese textile designers that I first became aware of in the 80s. There is a Habu store in NYC. When I go there I fully expect to blow all previous yarn and textile buying budgets. i have to find some kind of control for this or I could be in trouble. I love the innovation and interesting textures this yarn has and produces in resulting textiles. I bought the two yarns below without even knowing what I would do with them. They keep me dreaming of infinite design possibilities. This yarn is inspiring. At the moment I think the fishnet (cut up Indonesian linen fishing nets), which is very prickly, will be trim for a bag. The Fique a type of pineapple fibre will become a summer hat.

Habu AOS Fishnet Yarn

Habu FQ-1 Fique

Knitting: The Chosen Obsession (addiction)

2009-01-17T09:06:00.008-05:00

I have cast on the second sleeve of the Shirley Paden Belted Wrap Jacket(BWJ) or I-75 Jacket(I-75). If I finish this garment by the end of April I will be very happy. Then I can wear it to NYC for the Ebony Elite Knitting workshop at FIT. I'm not sure this is possible with only commuting knitting but hopefully after the report card marks are in I can devote a few days of solid knitting to this project. In the mean time I still have other FOs that I should post plus new yarn. I bought gorgeous yarn from Fleece Artist that I just love and can hardly wait to swatch. I'm trying not to swatch until after my report card marks are in. Knitting is allowed because I think it is a better addiction than drugs or drinking which would surely be the only alternative in the face of all this marking and grading.

Belted Wrap Jacket by Shirley Paden, Interweave Knitting winter 2005

Happy New Year

2009-01-11T20:19:00.006-05:00

I typically don't make official New Years resolutions but I think that I should at least try to write more blog entries this year. The major thing holding me back is that I like to include photos and my camera has been out of service. I now have another one that I can use. Also my school schedule (teaching and taking courses myself) doesn't leave a lot of self indulgence time. If I'm going to be self indulgent I would rather knit than take and upload photos of knitting. Of course Ravelry also steals a lot of time, but less and less these days now that the novelty has worn off. That said my current knitting project is part of a Ravelry KAL from the forum "We Love Shirley Paden" I have completed one sleeve of the Belted Jacket. I knit most of it on my road trip to Florida during Christmas break, so I call it the "I-75 Jacket" (once you cross the border the main Highway to Florida is the I-75). This is the first time that I have knit shaped lace. I found the increases difficult because every time I started a row I would have to calculate how many YOs and K2togs would fit. The decrease rows were more obvious. Now I am comfortable reading the lace without the pattern so that should make the next sleeve a little faster.

Mitten Medley

2008-08-15T17:42:00.002-04:00

The Team Drunken Knitters had an Olympic Opening Ceramony pub party last Friday. I managed to pick up my mittten pattern just before I got there. I was actually only swatching during the ceremonies. I did not cast on until Saturday. Several people had multiple Olympic projects. Definitely a lot of Hopeless Overcommittment. We watched the ceremonies on the pub widescreen TV. It was an amazing depiction of 3000 years of Chinese history. A lot of wire work was featured, tying Hong Kong in nicely, probably unintentionally.

The Druid Mittens are progressing well. I am very happy with the way the Noro colour changes look on the cuff pattern. Last night nina at creative Yarns showed me how to knit cables without a cable needle. This will be very useful for this mitten as it has multiple tiny cables per row. I need to start working on my WIP Wrestling.

I also just bought the Vogue Italia Black Issue. More about that next time.

A Long TimeComing

2008-08-08T13:23:00.002-04:00

Its been so long since my last post. I almost completely dropped out of the Blogosphere; only dropping in sporadically to read other blogs. I was too busy during the school semester and then when it was over I completely avoided all but essential email on my computer. I was still knitting and finished a couple of pairs of socks. The ankle socks in the photo are 40" wool, 45% cotton, 15% polyamid and ohh so comfortable. I wish I could have knitt faster and knit more pairs.

This blog started because of the Knitting Olympics, Winter 2006, started by the Yarn Harlot. Now a new Olympics is starting today and a new Knitting Olympics: The Ravelympics. The Ravelympics is definitely a child of the Internet 2. Ravelry members world wide have created both teams and events. I have entered two events: WIP Wrestling and the Mitten Medley. I started a wrap in the spring for the Diva, for an Ebony Elite KAL. It is still unfinished and I will now wrestle it to the end of the Ravelympics. In a show of bravado or absolute foolhardiness I entered the second event. If I can't finish one object during a KAL how do I expect to finish two? My mitten pattern is Jared Flood's Druid Mittens, as seen on the cover of Vogue Knitting Fall 2008. I still have to run out and get my pattern this afternoon, for this evenings cast on.

Do the Math (Before You Knit)

2008-03-23T10:24:00.004-04:00

I lost some time on my Honeycomb Socks because I had to unknit back a row. Unknitting an entire row of two-sock-at-the-same-time-Magic Loop is not a good time. The pattern is not multi-sized and of course I am not using the same yarn as the pattern so all numbers have been modified. I also changed the heel. So why do I expect this pattern to work? Because I just have to "do the math". Since this is a toe-up sock I can try it on as a knit. No problem. No problem if you don't get to comfortable to stop before you increase. I reached the part where I have to increase for the Honeycomb pattern stitch. I wasn't starting with the same number of stitches as the pattern so I knew I couldn't end up with the same number either. Somehow I made myself believe that I could still end up with the multiple of 12 stitches needed for the Honeycomb pattern, by randomly increasing as I knit. I did my two rows of increasing. I had too many stitches and they were not a multiple of 12. Surprise!! How could I have such misplaced faith? I took a deep breath and admitted to myself that I would have to rip back my increases. How many? I had no idea and was thankfully now convinced that improvising would not work. I got a pencil and paper and drew a diagram and started calculating. I unknit a row of increases. I recounted my stitches. I was so lucky. I could stop unknitting and proceed to knit following my calculations. Lesson learned? I could improvise one row of increases but not two? Maybe, but in the future I'll just do the math before I increase at all. Especially if I am knitting two-socks-at-the-same-time-magic-loop.

Adventurer

2008-03-18T20:52:00.003-04:00

Pattern: Honeycomb Socks by Katie Himmelberg
Yarn: Lang, Fantomas Color
Needles: Addi Lace 2.5 mm
Modifications: gusset heel

It's time for a knitting update. This is the year of adventurous knitting (says Knitting Daily). I have joined the Magic Loop KAL on Ravelry under the Adventurer category. My entry is toe-up socks, two at a time. This is also the first time that I have knit a gusset heel. I followed Maia's online instructions. I found the yarn in Romni's basement. I'm not a total fan of self-striping yarn but I am happy with the way that this one stripes. This will be my last pair of wool socks for the season. It is time to move on to summer sock knitting. I plan to knit ankle socks for the summer to wear with my Converse. On Sunday I reorganized my Ravelry Queue. I moved all of the summer knitting up to the first page It felt almost as good as if I had actually finished the summer knitting and could look forward to wearing cool knit dresses and sleeveless lace tops. I have started knitting the Airy Cardigan, but that is for the Diva and could never fit me.

Garden in the Snow

2008-03-10T17:40:00.003-04:00

The view out my front door

This will be a very indoors March Break for me. February has been nothing but snow and more snow. This trend continued over the weekend. As a result DH and I walked to the shopping plaza with our backpacks to pick up necessities. Fortunately I have my knitting and plenty of other indoor tasks to occupy me. I finally took my amaryllis out of hiding so I should have some blooms to show shortly, despite the blanket of white that is now my garden. The photos below show my garden furniture peeping out of the snow. I didn't think early enough to bring them in. For monthes the snow has been too deep to do anything about it. So now they are evidence to the depths of accumulated snow.

March Break At Last!

2008-03-07T20:07:00.003-05:00

This is how far I have knit the Airy Wrap. I hope to advance a lot faster during March Break. There will be no fancy or plain vacations just resting and not teaching. I woud like to start on some of my crochet ideas for summer but I have to finish three socks and the Airy Wrap first.
Last weekend I went to Brooklyn for a funeral. It was very frustating going to NYC for such a short trip and not being able to see any galleries or shop. It was good to see my relatives. As usual we all lamented that we were not getting together for happy events. Hopefully I can go again this summer.

Why You Should Not Knit for Anyone Else

2008-02-18T08:59:00.002-05:00

School Products, cashemere/silk, 400 yds/50 gm

Long ago I had my own knit design business and studio. I produced knitwear for wholesale and for custom order clientele. Patience and tolerence were virtues that I had to practice regularily. Now I have moved on to another career path and have left that all behind. I thought. While cruising yarn stores in NYC last summer I came across a beauutiful cashmere silk. As a well trained shopper I realized that this unnamed shade of pink/lavender (no not mauve) was not my colour. But it was perfect for my daughter (henceforth called The Diva). It was also not a weight that I ever knit. The retailer told me that it was perfect for shawls. I love shawls but I have yet to knit one. The weight of this yarn was less than fingering weight...less than lace weight. We could either call this cobweb or thread. OK I could knit with multiple ends. I walked around the shop for almost an hour squeezing a skein of this soft yarn in my hand. Naturally I was seduced and left with 6 skeins of yummy yarn in a colour I would never wear in a weight that I had never knit.

Back home in Toronto I showed the yummy yarn to The Diva. She agreed that it was the perfect colour for her. The thought of a hand knit item being left behind in some club, taxi or cafe was not appealing to either of us so we settled on the idea of knitting a cardigan, which when not hanging on to her arms would hopefully be tied securely around her waist. The Diva showed me her favourite cardigans: all very thin and plain. Well this one was definitely going to be thin, but how about lace for a change? The Diva arched an eyebrow and looked at me suspiciously. Not a frumpy sweater? I showed her a lace sweater that looked to me very young and fresh here. She vehemently declared: "They look like worms!!" What to me was a classic Barbara Walker lace pattern put to use in a modern sweater was to her worms on a sweater. I sighed and then showed her this. We agreed that it was cute. I stared swatching using two ends on 2 mm needles. The rib was fine. I started the lace. I fell asleep on the bus. The next time I picked it up I put it aside for a sock. I tried again. My knitter's heart went cold. I didn't want to knit this pattern. What to do? I told The Diva that I couldn't knit it. I would make her something else with some other yarn. The Diva said OK how about a red hat. Great i thought I have two shades of red wool in my stash. No she said to both and then showed me her red sweater: a deep wine burgundy sweater. Sorry I said I can't knit outside of the stash right now.

While cruising through Ravelry I spotted Lily Chin's reversible cable shawl. I wanted one. Maybe I could wear pink/lavender. I started another swatch. I had been warned that this could be a long and boring knit. Well it is also frustrating when knitting two ends with unfriendly needles. My knitters heart failed again. I revived it with two different sock patterns on Magic Loop. There is something about Magic Loop that just makes me feel good. It gives me a sense of spatial competency, especially when I am feeling incompetent with anything else that I am doing (which is much too often). Again while cruising through Ravelry I spotted a desireable pattern. This happens so often on Ravelry that it is a wonder that I even remember what has been saved in my knitting queue ...that is why the clever people at Ravelry have created it as a visual part of member notebooks. Anyway this pattern was knit top down --one of my favourite methods because it is great for "fitting while knitting". The required yarn was very thin and knit on large needles. But the yarn was mohair. Itchy but the hair fills in the spaces left by a loos gauge. What would cashmere do? Other Ravelers swore that the sweater knit up quickly. Could this be the one? I showed the airy wrap to The Diva. She nodded enthusiastically. I immediately started swatching on 4 mm Addi Turbos. A lovely swatch but not airy enough. I swatched on 7 mm Addi Turbos. Love it!! I have now cast on. Yeah!!

The Hooker Returns

2008-02-09T18:56:00.000-05:00

I have been knitting continuously to keep myself sane in a very stressful time. Ravelry prompted me during the Christmas break to knit the the neck warmer, Tudora and beret, Le Slouch in the photo above. Both are knit with Malabrigo merino worsted colour "Little Lovely". I am now knitting the second Pomatomus sock and another pair of socks on circular needles, magic loop, two at a time toe-up. I'll post photos next time. When? Hopefully sooner than later

Unfortunately I have found little time to blog. I confess that Ravelry is probably to blame for this. Any spare moments I have I tend to log on to Ravelry. The founders are right. Ravelry is not like pancakes. You can't stuff yourself and get tired of it. You can only be called away by real responsibilities(do I really have to go to work?),sleep, or maybe actual knitting or crocheting. Ravelry has aroused the inner knitwear designer in me. Their database of yarn, patterns and photos,notes and comments of real people(fellow Ravelers)and their knitting and crocheting is mind blowing and useful to the extreme. As a result I will soon start my first crochet pattern in years.

I would like to keep all non crafting writing on Livejournal, but if I can barely find time to write on one site how will time toI write on two?

So this is Christmas.......

2007-12-23T16:13:00.000-05:00

And I'm sick in bed. Chills, fever, sinus congestion etc.... I hope to recover enough by tomorrow to bake a little somethin' somethin'. The DH cooks New Years Eve dinner Polish style every year. For one of our early Christmas's when the children were still toddlers I made Christmas decorations from wallpaper cut-outs. They have stood up well over the years (they don't break). Now they are part of our Christmas tradition. Can paper be an heirloom?

Raspberry Beret

2007-12-17T18:29:00.000-05:00

My transit knitting is a beret (free pattern from Knit and Tonic)using the pink Malabrigo yarn shown above. Actually calling it pink is an understatement. It is actually shades of "beet pink", but the beret looks like a "raspberrys and cream" colourway. I won't have a chance to do any knitting photos until my Christmas break next week. I can hardly wait. In the mean time the count down is on and I am being hevavily distracted by the web forum Ravelry. I have set up my notebook on Ravelry but again I can't add any photos until the break. Sigh.

http://knitandtonic.typepad.com/knitandtonic/

Happy Hanukkah

2007-12-08T17:09:00.000-05:00

I love holiday food. Celebrations by definition bring out the best food. Especially during these times of self denial in the name of good health. With fats now being considered absolutely sinful how can you not embrace a holiday that exhorts you to fry all of your food in fat. Maybe not all of your food, but as much of it as possible and as in deep a fat as possible. So in honour of Hanukkah and the miracle of the oil I made latkes today.

As well as commemorating a miracle latke's also remind me of good times with my mother-in-law (MIL). My MIL speaks only a few words of English and I speak only a few words of Polish, but we both enjoy sporadic outbursts of cooking, particularily for celebrations. My husband has fond memories of his mother's latkes and detests most commercial latkes and their resemblance to hockey pucks. He criticized my first attempts at latke making as too coarse. My recipe only instructed me to peel, grate and drain the potatoes. My MIL made latkes for us during her first visit, and I watched closely. She hand grated the potatoes on the smallest holes. Then she drained the grated potatoes through a tea towel and squeezed out as much liquid as possible. I have yet to read a latke recipe instructing to squeeze finely grated potatoes in a tea towel, yet this appears to be a most essential step that ensures minimal separation of the batter.

I rarely hand grate my potatoes, as I fear shredding my nails and fingertips. For years I processed the potatoes with short pulses in the food processor, but this leads to a lengthy appliance cleanup. Last year I bought a mandolin. I can't explain why but it is easier to clean than a food processor and although it is not an electric appliance it is much more efficient than a hand grater. So today for the first time I grated my latke potatoes on the mandolin. It worked like a charm. Above is a photo of the golden finished product. Pass the sour cream --yes even more fat. The righteous can have applesauce.

Off the Treadmill

2007-12-04T19:59:00.000-05:00

Since my "breather" last Friday I seem to have stepped off of the treadmill that my life has become. Actually it started the night before on the Thursday. Instead of staying at work until 9:00 pm (I do all marking and prep at school, none at home) I left at 5:00. Instead of driving directly home I went to an Indian sweet and snack shop that a co-worker had recommended. My co-worker had recommended the samosas. They were excellent. Especially since they were being cooked fresh to order. But while I was there I couldn't resist buying some salty spicy snacks (Surati Delight, but I think of it as Gujarati trail mix) and some sweets made with condensed milk -- an instant sugar rush. I couldn't just have one. I had to buy the mango, cashew, pistachio and coconut flavours -- so that I could share ;)

Fortunately I ate my share of the samosas in the car on the way home. When I got home my daughter informed me that we couldn't eat because we had to go and have a family night at her university gym. Daughter, DH and I, all went to the gym and worked out for two hours!! I can still feel it!! (The abs still hurt). Anyway that took away any guilt that I may have felt about scarfing down three samosas.

The next day, Friday, after my workshop I went to my hairdresser for a much needed hair cut. She did a total transformation. My curly head is now straight. Black hair with copper tips is now brown with copper highlights. I've gone from Grace Jones to Halle Berry. My hair has not been straight since the 80s. She reassured me that I can always wet and scrunch it curly again. This may well happen after the first shampoo. Only now I've discovered that I can fit more hats on my head with straight hair than with curly. My love of accessories may win out.

On Saturday night I went out with my daughter and my sister to an actual movie theatre. We saw Elizabeth The Golden Age. I am so glad that I caught that on the big screen, my eyes devoured every detail of the costumes. They skimped on most of the costumes but Cate Blanchett had costumes that were lovingly detailed. I have to make something based on one of them. I loved the movie even though some of the dialogue was odd: "My Bitches wear my collar!". For a moment I wondered just which hood Elizabeth was from.

Last night I came home early again (7:00), and finished off my Indian sweets with a cup of Earl Grey tea, and a nice lavender scented salt bath. I think this is not just about getting off the treadmill but more about defending myself against SAD -- that depression I feel when the daylight hours are short. I hope it works because there is at least another two months before the days will be noticeably longer.

A Breather

2007-11-30T23:48:00.000-05:00

Today was like a breath of fresh air. Cold but still fresh. It was a professional development day, therefore no classes to teach. I attended two lectures and a workshop . The workshop was called PJs for Preemies. We learned how to make clothing for premature babies. There is no commercial source of clothing for premature babies who are tiny and weigh only a pound or two. The Hospital for Sick Kids has developed a program for student volunteers to make clothing for hospital bound preemies. There is a photo and an article here with more details. I look forward to introducing this activity to my students.

Baby You Can Drive My Car

2007-11-23T22:54:00.000-05:00

Today was a wonderful day. A program for first year teachers allows me to take 5 days of my choice away from my classroom to professionally develop my teaching. Today was my first day. I went to my mentor's school to observe her teaching and to consult with her on curriculum planning for a fashion course. I will be introducing my own classes to sewing in a couple of weeks and I will teach a fashion class next year.

My mentor has a great sense of humour and is able to both teach her students and talk to them about important life issues in an interesting and hilarious way. I watched a class of grade 10s first introduction to sewing machines. They got to sew on paper without thread; first following straight lines and then curvy lines. They were all genuinely excited, even the boys. You would have thought it was their first time driving a car!

We discussed various resources. Finally I'll be able to use all the fashion stuff (old labels, magazines, pattern slopers, PR photos) that I have been storing for years. I feel reassured now that twenty years of my life won't just become a fond memory. Instead it will be a source of lessons for another generation of creativity.

The photo is one of my favourite photos of a rose (Souvenir de la Malmaison) from my garden. A summer memory used to celebrate life on a winter day.

Baby it's Cold Outside

2007-11-17T17:38:00.000-05:00

Yes it is cold outside. We haven't had a single day above 10 C all week. My moebius neck warmer is my first cold weather finished object this season. The tropical colours help me think extra warm thoughts. The yarn was an impulse buy when I was in NYC this summer. It was my second trip to Seaport Yarn. I got lost on the first trip and the shop was closed by the time I found it. It was well worth the second trip. Seaport Yarn is a "must see" in lower Manhatten packed with all kinds of good yarn deals and a sales person with good advice. I was looking for sock yarn when this novelty yarn caught my attention and refused to let go. It's Colinette Giotto, and it comes in many delicious colours. It was very difficult to choose just one. I did buy sock yarn too -Aussi Sock photo below -which I'm using to knit the fingerless gloves Fetching . Although by now its already cold enough for fleece lined mitts.

Kiss of the Spider Woman or Happy Halloween

2007-10-31T20:58:00.000-04:00

I love these spider glasses. I made them last Saturday for a Halloween party. They are based on a costume from the Martha Stewart Living Magazine. Very easy to make and very effective. The rest of the costume is below. I wore a crinoline to represent my web. This is my first Halloween as a teacher. It was very exhausting. I have three classes and I did a 2 week long party planning unit with each of them. They finished off with actual Halloween parties, one each day. I am exhausted. I cooked a pasta dish for each class, and they baked cookies and cupcakes. I supervised them planning, making invitations and menus, decorating and cleaning up. It was a lot of work but I think it was worth doing. The kids and I definitely learned a lot while having a good time.

I'm a Teacher for Real!!

2007-09-12T10:51:00.000-04:00

I finally landed. On Friday August 31, I went in for an interview for a one semester History position and came out with a permanent full time Family Studies position. Four days later I was in the classroom teaching courses I had never taught before and loving it. I have two Grade 9 Individual and Family Living classes and one Grade 11 Living Spaces. They were all thrilled to hear that we would be cooking and sewing (gingerbread architecture, for Living Spaces). No one has taught sewing at this school since before the new millenium. I plan to teach sewing even if I have to do it with only one sewing machine. The eight machines here still need to be serviced. Baby steps for now but I hope to eventually bring back the Fashion classes.

For my happy dance play:
"I'm bringing sewing back!!" [sung to the melody of Justin Timberlake's "Sexy Back"]

Harlem Knitter-que

2007-09-01T21:43:00.000-04:00

I have finally got a chance to sit down and post some NYC photos. I had an absolutely fabulous time at the Knitter-que in St. Nicholas Park, Harlem, and I remembered to take photos too. Everyone was working on a project or two that covered a diversity of techniques.

Sherrin was working on a crochet commission in Jamaican flag colours: a giant Jamaican granny square afghan.

Iris knitted, frogged and knitted again Pomotomus magic-loop style. Actually there was a lot of magic-loop happening that day, including my own toe-up sock project.

Chante one of our hosts, was spinning merino sock yarn. When I spotted the spinning wheel in the park I immediatly knew that I had arrived at the right BBQ.

Dr. Donna was knitting away at her own pattern for a cotton head scarf

Yvonne was crocheting a hobo bag. Accessories of all kinds have become popular traveling projects.

Marva was knitting a green bag. Marva was accompanied by her young industriously knitting granddaughter who was proof that the next generation can carry the knitting torch.

The cutest project had to be Tawana's Koigu baby socks. Not only cute but also obviously happy-making.

Kim is my new magic-loop hero knitting simultaneously two socks that rock.

Shameka shared her source for British knitting magazines while knitting a snuggle sweater. Shameka also makes the most soul satisfying rice and peas I have ever had (sorry Mom, but it is true). I definitely took some home with me. Shameka I need the recipe. Please! Please! Please!

Our other host Sahara is knitting her own lace pattern shawl in two colors. She makes it all look so easy but I am sure it is not. She is just amazing.

More later on yarn and books bought in NYC.

2007-08-11T22:16:00.000-04:00

I love New York!! I had a great time at the Sistah Friends Knitter-que. Approximately twenty knitters gathered in St Nicholas Park. We talked, ate, drank, and knit from noon until sunset. It became too dark to knit so we had to stop. A good time was had by all. Not only is this a group of accomplished knitters but also talented cooks. The BBQs were literally and enthusiastically manned by faithful "friends of knitters". Thank you Harlempurl and SistahCraft for planning a great event and bringing together a wonderful group of people. I will post more details and photos next week after I return to Toronto.

2007-08-11T00:28:00.000-04:00

I travelled to New York by bus on Wednesday. The original plan was for my husband and me to drive, but on Tuesday evening he injured his shoulder in a cycling accident. He was left too sore and stiff to drive or sit through a 10 hour drive. I did a lot of sock knitting on a bus ride that stretched into 12 hours because of delays at the border. The good side to this is I totally missed the subway chaos that resulted from a tornado, and flooding in Brooklyn. Yes a tornado in Brooklyn. The roofs of several houses were torn off, and parts of the subway flooded. By the time I arrived the subway was running normally.

Probably because of the torrrential rain that accompanied the tornado the weather cooled down and the next day was sunny and pleasant. My meetings were finished in the morning and I went off to meet the talented Sahara of Sistahcraft. We talked knitting for hours, then she pointed me in the direction of School Products. There I bought some beautiful mauve cashmere/silk (photos next week). I walked on to a Japanese book store to browse the craft books. The choice was so overwhelming that I became indecisive. The books and their designs were so elegant and beautiful that I even wanted books on crafts that I don't make: children's soft accessories, lunch bags, crochet motifs to applique etc...

By nightfall I was still walking and my legs ached. I love walking in New York but I think I over did it. Fortunatly the next day was rainy and I traveled less and used the transit more.

2007-08-07T11:14:00.000-04:00

GOING TO NEW YORK CITY!

Look an actual knitting photo. This is my first ever toe-up sock. I am working on both at the same time in hopes of avoiding second sock syndrome. I am getting ready for a trip to New York City (the socks are coming with me). It has been almost four years since I last went. This is a long time for me as I absolutely love New York. I will be staying with a friend in Harlem and reviving an art history research project that we started years ago. My husband will be coming for the drive. My knitting revival started in NYC 8 years ago when I was graduate student. Since then so many new shops have opened up or I have just become aware of them. In between research I hope to make a pilgrimage to as many yarn shops as possible and maybe even visit a local stitch and bitch.

2007-07-23T11:01:00.000-04:00

Lazy Summer

I am still enjoying a lazy summer. So much so that I now call myself (whenever I am actually talking to myself) "the world's laziest stay at home mom". Because I feel a little guilty I try to schedule a few chores a day (loads of laundry, dishes etc...), but with a limit of one hour per day. I failed on Saturday when I logged eight hours of laundry (washing, sorting, folding, organizing and putting away). You know that you are really lazy when laundry becomes an event in your life. Today I will avoid house work. Today's event is to complete all teaching related paperwork. Yes it just keeps on coming. This time it is benefits and "ocassional teacher list" renewal. I will also go out to buy the craft rings needed for my Knit The Classics project: a watch pocket from an 1848/49 edition of Godey's Lady's Book. The benefits of all this laziness is that I now have no dark circles under my eyes and a near flawless complexion.

2007-07-18T20:16:00.000-04:00

Valerian + Summer = R&R

I have become very lazy or determined in my rest and relaxation mode. I have not even exerted myself to post for ten days although I have spent a lot of time reading other blogs. My main exertion is to exercise: running two miles a day and lifting weights. I have busied myself with gardening, summer reading (The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, by Anne Bronte) and rediscovering crochet. I have already completed two pot holders and I am eager for more. (Yes I am hooked). I also worked out several sample forget-me-nots, from the pattern mentioned in my previous post. I had to seek out Portuguese needlework suppliers to find cotton yarn fine enough. I am so thankful to live in a multicultural city. I will have to post some crochet photos soon. For now I leave you with a close up of the valerian that grows in my back yard. I'm not sure if it is as intoxicating as valium but as I spend a lot of time in the back yard it may be partially to blame for my summer langour.

2007-07-07T20:34:00.000-04:00

Running from Temptation

Today I drove downtown to buy avocados. Why so far? As I explained to DH (after 20 years you would think he knew already) that I take my avocados seriously (heh I'm from the Caribbean) and I needed a half dozen to prepare for a picnic tomorrow. It was pointless to buy them at the local grocer rock hard or rotting. Downtown where there is a higher concentration of avocado afficianados you can buy them in varying states of ripeness within one greengrocer or amongst three on the same block. For some reason downtown also seemed to be twice as hot as my back yard -- like a concrete oven. Anyway to improve my stamina and disposition for the choosing of perfect avocados and guacamole ingredients I decided to dip into the air conditioned basement of a discount book seller. At one point I picked up a new copy of a baby knitting book that I have borrowed often from the library. I carried it for 10 minutes and put it back (haven't I memorized those patterns yet?). In the basement I was confronted with the ultimate temptation: a table loaded with vintage needlework books. There was a copy of the Simplicity sewing magazine (sewing for teens) that I used when I was learning to sew at the age of 12. There weres two stacks of "Golden Hands" books (I loved browsing through those books as a teen). They are like an encyclopedia of needlework techniques, but each volume contains a variety of techniques with no order that I have ever figured out. It looks like something that may have been sold as a series, issued one at a time, each containing something for everyone (who could hold a needle). There were macrame books and issues of Mccalls magazine. I already own many of these and I began to feel guilty even looking. I thought of my stacks of magazines and books at home, like the one pictured above. It was published in 1952, and still has its 15 cent price sticker from Woolworth's. I don't remember where I got it from but I was attracted by the crocheted "forget-me-not" spiral placemat set on the cover. I love for-get-me-nots. I love them so much that I let them cover the vegetable bed like a blue carpet every spring (I clear them when I am ready to plant but they seed so much that they come back again every year). The forget-me-nots on the magazine cover are crocheted as a braid that is applied to a spiral grid or "filet". Even the idea of a grid that is a spiral rather than a rectangle gives me a thrill of inspiration. Anyway I plan to make the forget-me-not braid and apply it to something this summer.

2007-07-06T19:11:00.000-04:00

Salvia Cambridge Blue

I'm back after months of no blogging. Salvia Cambridge Blue is also back after a year underground. I planted it from seed two years ago. Last year I had a few blooms and this year it is a small swath in front of David Austin rose Molyneux.

I love my garden It kept on thriving and producing beautiful things even though I had to neglect it all spring. I am so glad that the school year is over. I feel like I don't want to know the answer to anything or teach anyone anything. Meanwhile I am searching for a new contract for September. Who would like to hire this brain dead teacher? Anyway I am determined to relax, enjoy the summer, and get back to me --"Back into the woman I used to be" (todays music by K-OS, "Man I used to be")

2007-04-07T11:00:00.000-04:00

Spring time in Ontario. Iris Katherine Hodgkin in bloom, intermittent sunshine, below freezing temperatures and snowing sideways. sometimes I wonder that anything other than trees and grass grows here. Every year people voice surprise at this spring time weather, but I have many memories of snowstorms and blizzards greeting me on my birthday, April 4. Often followed by a glorious spring. It is also Easter this weekend (which also often coincides with my birthday). I have no special plans, just as much relaxation as possible and a ton of marking. I had a really bad cold all week and took the last two days off to recuperate. i do sincerely hope that the supply teacher survived my class. Why must students terrorize supply teachers? I actually asked the class this question the last time I was away. They claimed that the supply teachers are too uptight. If this is true the terrorizing can only make it worse or be the actual cause. Sounds like a vicious circle.

2007-03-19T19:51:00.000-04:00

Witch Hazel

I have had a lot of trouble trying to access blogger lately with this new system, so I am even further behind in posting than I wanted to be. In two days it will be the first day of spring and we are still snow covered and freezing, but the witch hazel is in bloom. At first I couldn't believe it when the flashes of red caught my eye. I had to walk right up to the shrub and marvel at its audacity to bloom when the temperature is still dipping below freezing.

2007-03-02T17:45:00.000-05:00

March Enters Like a Lion

It is incredible how easy it is to get out of the habit of writing, and doing something just for yourself. I missed the entire month of February. So much happened. Part of the problem is that I love posting photos but I have no time to take photos and download them. Also I spend a lot of time working on lessons plans and marking and then I shut down for the night. I think I'll just start with a list of what has happened this month

- School play: The Importance of Being Ernest, coordinated costumes and supervised students
- Attended Workshop: How to Run a School Fashion Show.
- Black History Month Quilt Exhibition: gave a talk at the opening
- Black History Month Quilt Exhibition: conducted a gallery talk and quiltmaking workshop
- Lunar Banquet: Year of the Pig
- taught drama students how to make masks
- taught history students how to make terracotta pots.
- report cards
- parent night
- completed a lovely pair of purple baby booties with Dale Baby Ull
- still knitting baby blanket
- read: "The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs"
- came home early one day and cooked dinner for the whole family: Taco Night

2007-01-14T22:20:00.000-05:00

I love museums. Last week I took my Ancient History class to the Royal Ontario Museum to study the ancient Egyptian and Greek collections. They all had a good time and were amazed by much of what they saw. Even though I have been to this museum many times I also learned a few new things. For example the jar above was designed for pouring water over a bather's head. The wide curved lip fits the curve of a head. My class will be making clay pots modeled on ancient Greek shapes and decoration . This one is a new form to me. The scene painted on it is a wedding scene. It appears as if the groom is literally taking or grabbing the bride by the wrist. I am a great admirer of ancient art but this is a good example of why I never dream of living in past eras.

2007-01-03T09:32:00.000-05:00

I have taken lots of photos but don't have time to download them so my posts will have to do without images. I have had a wonderful holiday. I blissed out with family for seven days, cooked, knitted and gardened. Can you believe gardening in January in Ontario!!I I divided and moved perennials! Meanwhile indoors my knitting butt is getting kicked by a baby blanket. I have ripped out and reknit many rows of this blanket. The baby was born two weeks ago and I am not halfway done yet. All I can say is that I have finally memorized the pattern, and I can now drop and pick up rows of garter stitch . I am knitting Sam's blanket from Yarnharlot.The rest of this week will be devoted to marking assignments and prepping for school. I feel like the luckiest teacher ever. I'm busy but it is not overwhelming. Several new teachers that I graduated with are suffering so much. My only worry is how to nail down a contract for next year.

2006-11-23T21:43:00.000-05:00

The Honeymoon is Not Over Yet!

This was day four of teaching. I love teaching, I love the school and I love the kids. Apparently the kids love me too. One of my drama classes really gave my day a boost when after our first class they gave me a standing ovation. I have never had a standing ovation for anything before. Some claimed that it was the best drama class they had ever had. One boy said that it was the first drama class in a month that he was not sent to the principal's office. The principal was thrilled and congratulated me. I don't think I did anything special except be me, and listen to what the kids had to say. Also all of the students are glad that they don't have a supply teacher anymore. They had five in the last two months. Now if I could only get more sleep. I am up late every night creating lesson plans. I'm looking forward to sleeping on the weekend.

2006-11-19T22:12:00.000-05:00

YES!!!! I Am A TEACHER!!!

I had my final documentation session on Friday and everything went smoothly. My TB test was negative and my Police Check was validated. I start on Monday morning. My schedule includes two Grade 10 Drama, one Grade 10 ESL Drama, one Grade 11 Ancient History, and two Grade 12 Anthropology, Psychology and Sociology. I am ecstatic!!! I am doing a lot of happy dancing. Finally I have been hired and with an exact match to both my teachables. The position isn't permanent, but the contract runs to the end of June. I am covering someone's maternity leave. I am just glad that I am now in the school board system and will be eligible for a full time "To Hire" interview. Classes of my own!!! 150 students worth!!! All those names!!! Thankfully I love name games.

I worked in the garden today for the first time in over a month. I got my son to rake leaves and I dug up the dahlia tubers and put away the wooden stakes and lawn furniture. Just in time. It started snowing this evening. It should only be a light snow. I still hope to do some planting next weekend!

2006-11-11T20:22:00.000-05:00

I finally had my first interview for a teaching position. I am ecstatic! It is as if this job has my name on it. I never dreamed that there would be an opening for both of my subjects in one job: History and Drama. I am now waiting for the bureaucratic process to be completed . I won't know if I have the position for another week or more. In the mean time I will go and have my police check and TB test done.

I am knitting the Sienna Cardigan by Ann E. Smith, from Interweave Knits with Jo Sharp Merino. It is not the yarn suggested or the same gauge so I hope it turns out OK. I finished the back last night at the knitters' pub night.

2006-10-31T22:31:00.000-05:00

Witch Hazel (I love the fall colour of this shrub)

I think I have finally recovered from the trauma of my French Teacher interview last week. I'm fairly sure that I aced the written part but the rest was very awkard. When I arrived at the interview the receptionist seated me in a side room and told me to begin the written exam (an essay on a pedagogical question). Five minutes into this an interviewer (retired school principal) comes rushing into the reception area upset that an interviewee is either late or missing. Of course the interviewee in question was me. The much agitated interviewer insisted that I stop writing and immediately follow her for my oral interview. She introduced me to her colleague who would be asking me questions in French. They then proceeded with a tag team interview: one question in French, the next in English the next in French etc.... This I had not expected. I thought that the French part would only be casual questions and totally separate from the English interview of pedagogical questions. I had prepared my English answers, but I could not orally answer academic questions in French. Of course at the elementary level students know only the present and past indicative tense and I had not expected to be questioned at a higher level. Naturally my discomfort with the alternating French questions affected my response to the English questions. I can only hope and pray. They will give me the results by the end of the week.

2006-10-22T19:05:00.000-04:00

Molyneux

Life is crazy busy. Moylneux is still blooming even after our hit of frost. Dahlias and chrysanthemums are still at it too. I have only had time to look at the garden not actually be in it or do any work. It has been very rainy anyway. I have been supply teaching almost daily and filling out job applications. Some of these applications have deadlines of only 24 hours. I have been at this with no interviews for too long now so I finally decide to do something daring. I applied to teach Elementary French. I got called for an interview within two days. Can I teach Elementary French? Probably, but the real question is can I pass the School Board French interview and exam. French is not my teachable. I only use it for personal use and research. I stopped studying it after first year university. To add to that french teacher burn out is the fastest of all subjects. But desperate times call for desperate measures. I'll write again after the exam on Thursday.

2006-10-13T16:41:00.000-04:00

Tigerella (unripe)

This is my first post for October. I have been very negligent about writing. Either I am not in the mood or I am totally preoccupied with job hunting. Job hunting must be one of the worst full time occupations ever. Very intense. Much too intense. But today was different. I actually got to teach today. I was called in this morning for a day of supply teaching at a small private school. I had a drama and a science class with grade nines. My modest selection of dama games were well received. I learned everyones names and they had fun. In science class they explained logic truth tables too me, since I had no science to teach. The day ended with a party for a departing teacher.

Last night was the first frost. I was ready for it. I wrapped the zucchini plants and some of the tomato plants (including the ones above) in floating row cover cloth. The day was sunny but ended with actual snow flurries. Fortunately I captured some good fall garden photos on the weekend. I will try to post some in the days to follow.

2006-09-29T19:19:00.000-04:00

A Good Week

It is definitely fall now. Cool, crisp sunny days. Scarf weather. I find that a scarf makes all the difference between feeling chilled or snug. The garden is still flourishing and I hope that we don't get any frost for a while. The hydrangea above, Limelight, is one of my favourites. It's blooms are on long branches that poke through here and there, beneath and above the perennials and canes of climbing roses in the bed. At this time of year I have a hard time deciding whether or not to cut and dry the blooms or leave them to brighten the fall garden.

I haven't had time to knit this week. Last weekend I got lucky and got three days in a row of on set wardrobe calls. I've never been so happy in all my life to be sewing and not sleeping. I worked on Hair Spray. Those 50s clothes are really starting to fall apart now, which makes a lot of work for people like me. I will post some knitting on KTC later.

I'm still looking for a job . This week I started calling on private schools. This is extremely frustrating. I'm actually going to go to the Los Angeles school board presentation and apply there too.

2006-09-20T11:48:00.000-04:00

Down the Garden Path

The weather has been wonderful the last few days. After too long a hiatus I finally made it into my garden. I spent four hours just dead heading perennials and roses and then tying up tomatoes. I can't believe that I might actually get to harvest tomatoes. I planted mine out very late so they are all still green. I'm amazed that they made it past the flower stage. If the weather stays mild I'll taste garden fresh tomatoes this season. Each plant only has a few tomatoes but they are all heirloom tomatoes so I have high expectations. As I tied the skinny tomatoe stems to bamboo posts I wondered if their is a particular kind of self-righteousnesss that comes from planting heirloom vegtables. This was no bumper crop but I was definitely excited by the outcome. I remembered the words of writer Jamaica Kincaid who wrote about how much she enjoyed her few heirloom tomatoes each year; and wondered how anyone could enjoy tomatoes that looked just like the ones from the store and whose only distinction was that they were grown at home. Is this a type of snobbery? Are we tomato connaiseurs or are we truly enjoying a little known pleasure. I believe it is the latter and hope that some day the pleasure of home grown heirloom tomatoes and other vegetables can be appreciated by more people.

I am not an orderly gardener. As you can tell from the photo I like a wild somewhat self sufficient garden. (One writer refers to this type as a gin and tonic gardener - in my case make that a mango martini or margerita.) I didn't get a chance to photograph the veggies but just try to imagine tomato plants surrounded by squash vines, forget-me-nots and greens.

2006-09-12T23:09:00.001-04:00

I have spent the last two weeks filling out applications, packaging my CV and visiting school principals. After graduating from a year long teacher training program I am in the same position as before I started the course: unemployed and frantic. Maybe worse: I now also have added $5,000 of debt. It wasn't supposed to be like this. We were told that teachers are in demand. If this is the case, they may be in demand but they are not being hired. I have not received a single call from any of my applications. I am now applying for supply, adult education and night school. I am willing to teach in any high school class room. This is very frustrating. Somehow I feel ripped off. Sigh.

My teaching life in a package:

1. cover letter, personalized with name of institution and vice principal
2. resume
3. references.
4. Ontario College of Teachers Certificate
5. Summative Evaluation of Field Experience: Drama
6. Summative Evaluation of Field experience: History
7. Envelope

2006-09-06T17:34:00.000-04:00

Truth, Justice...

Hollywoodland still of a club scene

On Friday September 8 Hollywoodland opens in movie theatres here in Toronto. I worked on this film last year, when its title was Truth, Justice and the American Way. Apparently DC Comics wouldn’t allow the original title (or the Superman “S” to appear in promotional material). I guess DC is afraid of tarnishing Superman’s image by associating him with the real life violence that ended the life of the actor George Reeves. In my mind it will always be “Truth, Justice”. I had a great time on this film set, helping to dress the background actors. The costume designer Julie Weiss was a force of nature. Some people hated working with this forthright individual but I loved it. She made her presence felt wherever she was and made the costume department an important part of the film set. Often on set costumers are made to feel as if they are in the way of the production. Julie made it clear that the costumes were just as important an element as any other technical aspect (lighting, sound etc..) and that we had to be allowed the time and space to do the job properly.

The film takes place in the 1940s and 50s, and featured several elegant Hollywood scenes: clubs, parties etc… We had hundreds of background actors to dress. Julie wanted each and every one of them to be ready for a close up. In other words picture perfect and historically accurate in dress and manner. Most of the actors had no experience getting into the layers of clothing that were worn in this era, and they had to be assisted in dressing themselves. On set final accessories and alterations would be added as we found out where the director placed each individual and where the cameras were in relation to each actor. At one moment Julie called me over. With here hands she gathered the draping fabric on an actress’s bodice and said: “Make this a Fortuny.” The very idea that she thought that with a few stitches with my needle and thread I could transform this gown into a Fortuny gave me a confidence that before that moment I have rarely felt.

I hope Hollywoodland does well, and that the audiences appreciates the artistic efforts made in this production. Julie Weiss was nominated for a Tony for The Elephant Man. She was overlooked for Frida. I hope she gets nominated for an Oscar for Hollywoodland.

2006-09-04T13:05:00.000-04:00

The Time Traveler's Wife
(possible spoilers ahead)

Now that I know how to create links in my sidebar I have joined three blog lists over the last few days: GTA Knitters, Sistah Friends Knitting, and Knitting the Classics. I have lurked on various GTA and Sistah Friends blog sites since I started blogging, so it was kind of natural to join. Knitting the Classics (KTC) is a recent discovery. It combines two of my favourite activities: reading and knitting. The group reads a book a month and knits projects inspired by the current book. I don't have a lot of knitting time so I find the knitting part a little daunting. Also as a designer I know that what I usually create for another person (real or fictional) will not necessarily be desireable for myself or anyone else I know. I have dealt with time restrictions before but the other factor is new: to create something for someone else that will also be useful for me in some way. Making a gift for someone else coud be one way out but that still requires thinking of more than one individuals requirements.

The KTC book for September is The Time Traveler's Wife. I read it last year but I really liked the book and I don't mind reading it again. I find very few contemporary books that use language that appeals to me in a way that makes me just want to read for the love of the words on the page and the images that they conjure. The Time Traveler's Wife also had the added appeal of conjuring a time that I had lived through and remembered fondly. It's strange to think of part of my past becoming nostalgia.

The book focuses on the time traveler and his wife, but I have chosen to make something for the time traveler's daughter. Although I did give a spoiler warning I will say no more about her now other than that she also travels through time. As a time traveler there is very little under her control but efforts of preparation can help. Initially I thought that a warm versatile garment would be useful. When she travels she always arrives naked, so a hidden garment could come in handy. The almost size free poncho that can also be worn as a skirt, designed by Carrie Brenner, shown in Handknit Holidays, would work well.

We are not told much about where she travels to but it is likely mostly in Chicago and often in winter. A cozy garment like this one would be just what she would be looking for on a naked arrival in a Chicago winter. A parka would be even better but would be difficult to hide. A knit garment could be easily rolled up and tucked away. My major problem with this garment is that I don't wear ponchos or wide skirts. Also it would definitely take me longer than a month to knit this item. So I had to come up with something else. Another cruise through Handknit Holidays produced another Carrie Brenner designed solution:

A bag to hold items, such as clothing that could be used during her unexpected arrivals. The bag I would use but the time to knit is still a factor. Brenner also designed an accessories pouch to go with this bag;

This would also be useful. It could hold money, keys and a cell phone amongst other things, and it would be just as useful to me as it would be to a time traveler.

I think I will use the left over yarn from Bad Penny or maybe black cotton. I have a lot of suitable yarns in my stash for this project. I also like the idea of using the traditional stitches of a vintage counterpane to make a modern item for a time traveler.

2006-09-01T10:43:00.000-04:00

KNITTERATI (& OTHER FIBRE FOOLS)

At last I have links to my favourite blogs on my blog page. I am terribly html illiterate and could not have done it without help from the two Knitterati Amanda and Dawn. Over the weekend I hope to add more links and some buttons. At last I can add the Knitting Olympics button from the event that started this blog in the first place. With any luck I may even be able to link to the Pomotamus KAL site. Knowledge is power, but a little knowledge is dangerous. I could be in for some trouble.

2006-08-31T14:48:00.000-04:00

A Rose by Any Other Name

Fortunately I have never discarded my old passports, and all of them include my middle names. I have now been certified by the Ontario College of Teachers (OCT) as fit to enter an Ontario classroom and teach secondary school history and drama. But some force in the universe is still messing with my name. Noting that my transcripts for my masters degrees had not yet arrived either at my address or the OCT. I called the institution that granted me this degree. According to their files when I had attended the institution I had a different last name. I would have to send a written notice to change this. Change what? I have never ever changed my name? What is going on. According to their records the transcript seems to have my correct name but I await its arrival to confirm this. Who would change my name and why? Sloppy administrators? Someone hacking into the system in an attempt to apply for a job with an auction house, museum or academic institution? Could this be a desperate form of art espionage?

In the mean time I spent Monday pounding the pavement looking for job oppurtunities. I spoke to several principals who all felt that my best oppurtunity lay with registering to supply teach. I have but will not hear of any results until October.

2006-08-24T17:45:00.000-04:00

Stand Back! Knittah Venting!

I'm caught in a bureaucratic net, and I am very pissed off. I submitted in person the last of my documents for my certification with the Ontario College of Teachers: my signed police record check and my Canadian passport. My name on my passport does not include my two middle names. I've never noticed this detail before. It has never been an issue when showing identification before. I've been allowed into corporations, government institutions, airplanes and several foreign countries without a hitch. But for now I am not allowed into an Ontario classroom because my middle name floats in and out of my identification and is not present on my one piece of identification that names my place of birth. Why this inconsistency you may ask? My middle name is long (after all there are two of them). They do not fit onto all applications. When they do I write them in. When they don't I skip them. Very simple. But a serious problem for the Ontario College of Teacher. What awful thing happened to a student, someone's child because of a missing middle name of their teacher? My mind is reeling. Many bad things have happened in many schools, but I find it hard to believe that any of them could have been prevented by the omnipresence of a teacher's middle name. Aarghh!! Okay, I'm done now. I've called my mother to ask her to look for documents containing my middle name and my place of birth. I'm going home now to also look for the same. On the subway I will continue to knit Bad Penny. I just need to complete the waist ribbing.

2006-08-18T09:12:00.000-04:00

I Want To Be Queen

Part of Madame Butterfly’s Entourage.

This parade is filled with a mind blowing amount of colour and movement. It seems surreal but it is created and enacted by very real people every year, using various materials and methods to create costumes and colourful movable structures for kings and Queens to parade in. I marvel at the materials and designs of this spectacle.

Many feature fantastical heads of sea creatures, birds, and spirits.

Some individuals get right into the spirit of self adornment. I wonder what he had to do to remove the silver?

Not only do the costumes and structures have to look good but the wearers have to be able to dance and strut their stuff. Some of the assemblages are twenty feet across. During the King and Queen Contest the participants dance and whirl on stage, and then they do it again at the parade the next day. At the parade the Kings often make a game of rushing and whirling towards the onlookers and sweeping or knocking them over with the wings of the costume

Trinidad and Tobago had a World Cup soccer team this year so they were a “little” (just a little) soccer obsessed. The winning King this year was called D’Soca Warrior (Caribbean’s cannot resist puns) and one of the Queens: “Keep Your Head Up T & T We Going World Cup 2010”. The Queens had a four way tie(??). One of the winners Madame Butterfly was in my previous post. And another winner, my favourite, Euphoria is the last queen below.

I took a lot of photos of D’Soca Warrior. I even got close enough to risk getting knocked over (his wings brushed the top of my head)

D’Soca Warrior

D’Soca Warrior closeup

The best male individual was Keeper of D’Cup.

Keeper of D’Cup

I WANT!!

I WANT TO!!

I WANT TO BE!!

Euphoria

I WANT TO BE QUEEN!!

My sister and I walked and danced the full route length of the parade from beginning to end to beginning , about 7 km, and 4 hours—we left at 6:30 pm and the parade scheduled to end at 5:00 pm was not yet over.

Good bye “wonderful festival that has lost its true name”. I still love you by any name. I will be there again next year.

2006-08-17T12:55:00.000-04:00

Toronto Caribbean Festival

Toronto Sun, front page August 6, 2006

This is technically not a knitting post so you can stop reading now if that’s what you are looking for. But I love Caribbean culture (I admit to being biased but I’m Jamaican and I think that’s allowable) and I am sure it must have some influence on my design and knitting style. I did take “Bad Penny” with me to the parade and knit on the subway all the way there and back.

The 40 year old event known as Caribana was renamed this year because of financial and legal strife. These difficulties were generally unknown to or ignored by the one million participants who gathered in Toronto’s streets to participate in this annual event, apparently the largest street festival in North America. Here I am below wearing my Jamaican urban cowgirl ensemble.

After forty years (yes I attended the first Caribana parade) I am more practical than flashy with my look. Eight hours of sun, heat and crowds is nothing to get flashy for. The first time attended I traveled like this little girl, on my dad’s shoulders.

Later on as a teen-ager, when I ditched my family and went with a posse of girlfriends I would have had the 70’s equivalent of the outfit worn by these two young ladies, but no cell phone.

How can they hear anything with all the noise around them. Teen-agers must truly live in the cocoon of an alternate universe where they can only hear their own voices. Below we have the typical encounter of two people who haven’t seen each other since last years parade. I used to spend half my time at parades doing this. I think that was one of the main reasons we went.

I went with my sister. My daughter was supposed to come too but she partied too hard the night before and was ill. She missed a good parade, but I was able to focus on taking lots of photos without the distraction of body guard duty. The parade was schedule to start at 10:00 am at the grand stand of the Canadian National Exhibition. We started in China Town with a dim sum lunch at noon. We could have eaten at the parade but I wanted to sit down and have something different. The entire 3.5 km length of the parade was lined with food vendors of every kind of Caribbean food, including mountains of fresh coconuts.

I have featured the Grace truck because this truck stopped at intervals and dispensed much needed free grapefruit pop. Thank you Grace.

We arrived on Lakeshore Blvd by 2:30 pm. This is good timing for this event. The parade never starts or finishes at the designated time. You can not synchronize an event that features maximum improvisation and audience participation and photo ops.

Many tourists took the opportunity to have themselves photographed with paraders.

I’m sure that the truckers driving the 18 wheel flat bed trucks had the most stressful jobs of the parade ;) How could they possibly concentrate on driving through crowded streets with scenes like just outside their cabins.

The gyrations known as “whining”/ “whinin’” (is there a correct spelling for this?) were up to the usual standard set by Trinidad and Tobago Carnival which is the example that this Toronto’s festival follows. There is even a King and Queen contest. Now I have never wanted to ride a flat bed truck while “whining my waist line” (really and truly, you have got to believe me), but I have always wanted to be Queen. More on this in my next installment.

2006-08-17T09:48:00.000-04:00

This is the 3 skeins of Malabrigo that I bought at the Naked Sheep. This is a big deal for me because I am supposed to be working strictly from my stash. I have a large stash. I used to pay for storage for this stash before I moved out of an apartment and into a house with a basement. But this yarn is beautiful. I can think of so many things to knit with it other than the tea cozy. I'm sure there will be leftovers.

Here I am at my last fitting of "Bad Penny". I was going to start the bottom ribbing at this point but after studying the photo for awhile I've decided to add another 3 inches to the body. "Bad Penny" was designed as a short sexy top but I think that trend is coming to a close. Also I would rather not worry about whether or not my zipper is showing like it is in the photo. Where was the stylist?!! (Oops she's in the photo!!)

For some reason the name "Bad Penny" brings to mind the 80's bad girl song Brass in Pocket (Chrissie Hynde and the Pretenders).

'CAUSE I GONNA MAKE YOU SEE
THERE'S NOBODY ELSE HERE
NO ONE LIKE ME
I'M SPECIAL, SO SPECIAL
I GOTTA HAVE SOME OF YOUR ATTENTION
GIVE IT TO ME
'CAUSE I GONNA MAKE YOU SEE
THERE'S NOBODY ELSE HERE
NO ONE LIKE ME
I'M SPECIAL, SO SPECIAL
I GOTTA HAVE SOME OF YOUR ATTENTION

GIVE IT TO ME

On that note this bad girl will continue knitting "Bad Penny" into a long lean sexy top.

2006-08-16T16:53:00.000-04:00

Yesterday evening I finally made it to the the yarn shop The Naked Sheep. That was my first visit. I went mainly to see Rowan Classic Home 5, because I have become obsessed with the tea cosy. Unfortunately (or fortunately because it saved me $40) the tea cosy was the only pattern in the book that I think I would knit. Unfortunately for my wallet I found another book: Knitting Nature by Norah Gaughan. Gaughan is my favourite Vogue Knitting designer of the 1980s. This is her first book. It is as awesome as her previous knitting designs, so it had to come home with me. I memorized the tea cozy pattern and bought some lovely yarn to make it with. The Naked Sheep stocks Malabrigo: soft worsted weight merino from a womens coop in Uruguay. The yarn is hand painted. I wanted all of the colourways but I focused on the tea cozy pattern and bought one green and two burgundy/pink skeins( called Little Lovely). I hope they work because I won't have the heart to exchange them and I will go broke buying more.

2006-08-15T15:08:00.000-04:00

Bad Penny is coming along fine. I did a fitting last week and it fit perfectly on the top half. The nice thing about knitting a top down raglan is that you can try it on as you go. I hope the bottom end works out too. I should know by next week.

My next project will be a birthday gift for a friend. I really like the garter stitch tea cozy in Rowan Classic Home 5, but I am reluctant to buy the whole book for just one pattern, especially at Rowan prices. I might just fake it without the pattern. After all I will have to buy yarn for this, as I have nothing suitable in my stash.

Now what I do have suitable yarn for is a sweater based on that silver dress in the post below. But not silver: emerald green or sapphire blue mercerized cotton. I could also do a gray wool version. I took a closer look at the construction of that garment today and it looks daunting. The usual Italian bravura finishing. If I go for this it will be a much simplified and/or abstracted version.

2006-07-19T11:38:00.000-04:00

Now I’m trying to make up for my lack of posting by posting twice in one day. I had a little time on my hands yesterday and got back into online fashionista mode. I checked into www.Firstview.com to discover what direction fashion knitting is taking. In my opinion Laura Biagiotti is one of fashion’s knit design eminences. I was more than inspired by what I saw on Firstview in her Spring 2006 collection.

I have to at least try those rayon cables as a top.

Her crochet goes way beyond the Edwardian derivatives we see in most modern day crochet styling for dresses.

These are the freshest Irish lace designs I’ve seen in a long time. You go Laura.

2006-07-19T10:54:00.000-04:00

This is Bad Penny from www.knitty.com, a cute short sleeve top down raglan. Knitty has become my favourite pattern source. I don’t know when I’ll get to knit anything else. My plan for now is to master the top down raglan, by knitting Bad Penny (and gain a cute top in the process). I love techniques that minimize post knitting finishing. Once the technique is mastered I will be able to convert other patterns to top down raglans. But there is a down side: carrying around an entire garment while you knit. I am only a third of the way through Bad Penny, and it is already a little awkward on the subway.

2006-07-13T16:55:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I finally cast off the first Pomatomus sock (photo pending). To celebrate I cast on a neck down raglan sweater to knit on our road trip to Montreal this weekend. I and the Zakrzewski clan are driving to Montreal. DH’s mother has a friend who lives in Montreal, or that’s what she told us when she initially added this trip to her itinerary, while still in Poland. When DH finally spoke to the friend to get directions we discovered that she lives outside of Montreal in a Saint-Bruno – “the prettiest town in Quebec”. We will find out this weekend. So we have rented a mini van to drive DH, his mother, his father, his sister, her eight-year old son (the new Dennis the menace), and myself to Quebec. My kids have developed alternate plans. Just as well since I don’t know how and when we are going to see Old Montreal on this schedule. I’m just going to go with the flow and knit my sweater.

Last weekend the Zaks went to Guelph and DS and I went to Chatham for the annual reunion of my father’s school buddies and family. It was a glorious weekend. Beautiful weather. I spent most of my time lying on a blanket in the apple orchard. I only got up to eat or refill my glass with Jamaican rum punch. Every summer weekend should be like this.

2006-05-15T10:10:00.000-04:00

Woodland Pomatomus

Yesterday I went to the Eastview Community Centre to help the young girls learn how to knit. Eastview is the "other side of the tracks" of gentrified Yuppy Riverdale: subsidized housing, white trash with bad dogs, teenagers of all ethnicities with gangs, knives and drugs, and hard working new immigrant families. I went last week for a tour and introduction. This week I sat down with a ten year old Somali girl and showed her how to knit. I cast on 12 stitches for her so that she could make a fashion scarf. She said that knitting made her hands hurt. That was because she held on to the needles very tightly. I suggested that she take a break but she said she was having fun. Ahh music to my knitter's ears. Her mom said that all the knitting has to be done at the community centre because it is not safe to take the knitting home because of safety issues. at first I was suprised but then I realized this was sensible. They have a family of eight children between infancy and age 12. At least one of them will be able to think of something dangerous or silly to do with knitting needles, or just unravel it and start a fight or tears.

I brought my Pomatomus sock with me (it had to leave the woodland). They were very impreessed with the sock and the circular needles. They were convinced that I could knit. The most proficient knitters (mothers) in the group had learned in East Africa (Somalia and Eritrea). They knit continental style. I knit English style. I told them I would try continental with them later. They want me to show them how to use the circular needles and how to knit socks. That could be fun. I'll have to tell Maureen to stock up on sock yarn from the Lewiscraft clearance sale. Maureen says that they are having trouble attracting girls between the age of 14 and 20. Some of them came this week, though because they heard that I know how to knit iPOD cases. I promised to show them how next time. I wonder how many will show up. We will have to use novelty yarn. They don't have any wool and it is generally too expensive for the community centre budget. If they get interested in felting I will see if we can get stash donations from the knitting guild.

2006-05-14T12:04:00.000-04:00

Pomatomus KAL

I forgot to post the Pomatomus KAL symbol. I first found out about the KAL from the sock's designer Cookie's site. Several people have finished already, and have some very beautiful socks. I enjoy the challenge of knitting mostly on the public transit. I can now knit standing or walking without stress. Below is the web address for the Pomatomus KAL

www.polarsun.net/twistedthistle/static.php?page=pomatomus&PHPSESSID=698b526df9b09dd9070148203bab8a68

2006-05-14T11:46:00.000-04:00

Pomatomus Tree

I made good progress on the Pomatomus. I have finished the leg and now have to rearrange the stitches for the heel. I made a few mistakes but nothing major enough to make me tink. I took a break and tried to start some mindless knitting as an alternative. Its an acrylic afgahan that I fouynd in my UFO stash. It was crocheted but I thought I might rip it out and knit it instead. I'm not really enjoying it so I may have to give up and start something else. The acrylic is not as resilient as the other yarns I've worked with this year. Maybe I'm getting spoiled. I'll go back to the Pomatomus this week or start a neck down baby raglan.

2006-04-20T15:11:00.000-04:00

Pomatomus Cast On

I am knitting Pomatomaus. A wonderful sock pattern that I found at Knitty. I want to join the Pomatomaus KAL but I am having difficulty signing up. I'll try again later.
I made several swatches for this sock and have finally settled on 3mm circular needles using the magic loop method. There is also a circular needle sock KAL. maybe I will sign up for that. I am using cotton lycra instead of wool because these are summer socks: orange blend Cascade Fixation. The colour reminds me of orange creamsicles.

2006-04-20T14:14:00.000-04:00

I knew it would be difficult to post regularily. My life is too crazy with a family, school and job hunting. I also already journal on livejournal. Anyway now that my course work is over I will try to do better. I will start off by at least posting my finished Olympic knitting: the Jaywalker sock by Grumperina. Unfortunately I have still not learned how to do any of the html linking.

2006-02-01T18:19:00.000-05:00

Training for the Knitting Olympics started today. I cast on and started a two two rib in Magic Loop. I knit 5 rows. All of this was done on the TTC: bus, subway and subway station. It started very slowly. The cable shifting is very fiddly, but I was able to increase my speed after row 2. Maybe I should reconsider doing Magic Loop and buy a short cable needle for the Olympic event. Unfortunately I probably have to special order it. I'll see how it goes tomorrow.