This is the lovely deep rib knitted in rounds for the neck. I am a big fan of the "V' neck style of shaping with the decreasing either side of the two central vertical stitches. It appeals to my sense of neatness! Two rounds to go before sewing up.
What would you think if I showed you this...?
Yay - new project time! I know you will be glad to see I am sticking rigidly to my 'colours' - it makes life so much easier - all clothes match each other, which is a big plus in my book. Changed a bit from the original to include more oranges (and a green!) I am desperately keen to get started but will chivalrously wait for my knit-a-long partner, blogless Suzy, to purchase her yarn. As a 'winter' person she will be picking black, grey, purple and blue, with maybe a cheeky pink thrown in for good measure. I will take a photo of her range so you can see just how colour incompatible we are!
Oh, and as I was arranging the yarn on the kitchen worktop, I couldn't help sharing with you how beautifully neatly my husband arranges the fruit selection...
You can just imagine how neat the inside of our fridge is...
With work seeming like more of a chore than usual at the moment, bring on the weekend please so that I can:
1. Watch my boy Happy Jack playing two gigs. Charly Brown on Friday night and a farewell Little Big Band set at the Hob in Forest Hill on Saturday afternoon. Jack has been playing with them for a few years now, and along with fab drummer Elliott (also of Charly Brown fame), bows out this weekend to allow younger (and smaller) boys and girls to take to the stage. He has learnt a massive amount from band leader and Muso Supremo Suliman, so a big thank you to him for being an inspirational teacher to all the little rascals.
2. Visit one of my favourite local pubs with my favourite local people to watch England put on an inevitably disappointing performance against (European? I think not) Israel. A masochistic activity I know, but somehow we're always there....
3. Console ourselves, after the above performance, with a yumalicious meal at a top local restaurant - but which to choose?
4. Practice my alto sax scales. Two weeks in and I am loving it - lessons with our 'personal music teacher' Suliman - and although not quite up to Lisa Simpson's standards yet, I am hopeful of a rendition of the Pink Panther theme tune some time soon.
5. Finally finish my Katy (half a sleeve to go!) so that I can wear it before the weather realises it needs to fast forward back to spring.
I decided that I needed to get a few thing finished (or at least progressed) before I launched into Maddox, including a 4-ply beaded cardigan as a present for my mum which has been on the needles for far too long. It looks fab and fitted beautifully - the pictures I took of it on a hanger really don't do it justice so I'll try and get a shot of it being modelled... Much progress also made on a Debbie Bliss Katy jumper for me in an obviously delicious smelling shade of orange!
Only a sleeve to go and then I can start something else!
Finally up and running on Carolynand Shell's Maddox knit-a-long. I am finding the Jaeger Extra Fine Merino Chunky very lovely to knit with but Carolyn you are right - it doesn't go very far! I'm glad I was persuaded to buy all 20 balls in the Liberty sale pack, and not the 18 suggested in the pattern.
A sleeve completed and almost up to the armhole shaping on the back. Think I am going to have to work on my camera technique though...
In honour of Carolyn, a list-making Piscean after my own heart.
Shell and Suzy - aka clever but clueless (thanks to Jack Johnson for that great summing up lyric) - once had the idea of a "spot on.com" website where we would basically give our opinions on what we had done, seen, eaten, listened to etc in the course of our days. Thinking that we could impart our wisdom and excellent taste on the world at large... ;) Sadly the name had already been registered and the idea sort of died. So, apart from the knitting stuff, this blog could sort of become the "spot on.com" that we never had. Anyway, I digress - here are the highs and lows of February.
Gigs Went to three, and by far the best was The Decemberists at Shepherd's Bush Empire. A sitting down, singing and smiling so hard your face starts to hurt type of gig. Beautiful songs beautifully played and sung, and they enjoyed themselves so much. In fact I think Level 1 of the Shepherd's Bush Empire might be one of my favourite places to be, as we saw The Cat Empire there soon after, although it was impossible to sit down with the beats those cats were throwing out. Plus the whole of Aussie West London in one venue - we were seriously outnumbered! On the subject of Shepherd's Bush, which can feel like a bit of a gastronomic desert for those not well acquainted with the area, we have found this little gem called Albertine's, a pretty accurate review of which can be found here. Because when one gets to a certain age, the idea of a meal and a decent bottle of wine become a little more important than catching the support band. The disppointment of the month was John Martyn at the Roundhouse, although the refurb job is fantastic, the company was lovely and the ice ceams after at Marine Ices were as good as ever. I should know better than see old blokes churning out their back catalogue to make a few quid - are you listening Bob Dylan? - but as Solid Air is such a wonderful piece of work, and he was supposed to be playing the whole thing from start to finish, we were really looking forward to the gig. Sadly he growled and slurred his way through a load of pretty unrecognisable tracks, and apart from the odd glimmer of his old self, it seemed like he was just there to pick up the cheque.
CDs As a self-confessed girly swot I naturally had to learn off by heart the newest Decemberists (The Crane Wife) and Cat Empire (Two Shoes) releases before the gigs and can happily confirm they are both FANTASTIC! Also getting a lot of listening was Liam Frost and the Slowdown Family and Regina Spektor's Begin to Hope which is a bit too quirky for me in some places but has some wonderful tracks. Jamie T's Panic Prevention and Just Jack's Overtones were in the mix as well - so many new CDs, so little time!
In other news, film attendance was a bit disappointing - only managed to seeNotes on a Scandal and found it uncomfortably skin-crawlingly excellent if a little far fetched. Judi Dench was superb and I reckon would have won a load of awards if that pesky Helen Mirren hadn't have been around.
Otherwise, ate interesting food at Magdalen(sliced pig's head, anyone?) and tried to finish up a cardigan for my mum that seems to have taken about 3 years to complete. Pictures soon!
Eating, knitting, drinking wine and listening to music - preferably all at the same time. Spending time with friends, especially if I can persuade them to learn to knit too. Going to gigs with my boys. Walking my gorgeous greyhound, Berty. I dream about the time when I don't have to work and can travel around the world watching sport. I have to be colour co-ordinated at all times.
This is the lovely deep rib knitted in rounds for the neck. I am a big fan of the "V' neck style of shaping with the decreasing either side of the two central vertical stitches. It appeals to my sense of neatness! Two rounds to go before sewing up.
Yay - new project time! I know you will be glad to see I am sticking rigidly to my 'colours' - it makes life so much easier - all clothes match each other, which is a big plus in my book. Changed a bit from the original to include more oranges (and a green!) I am desperately keen to get started but will chivalrously wait for my knit-a-long partner, blogless Suzy, to purchase her yarn. As a 'winter' person she will be picking black, grey, purple and blue, with maybe a cheeky pink thrown in for good measure. I will take a photo of her range so you can see just how colour incompatible we are!
You can just imagine how neat the inside of our fridge is...
