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« November 2005 | Main | January 2006 »
Whilst running around like a headless chicken looking for presents for my significant other, I walked through Trafalgar Square. The Norwegian Christmas tree was looking splendid, so I had to whip out the camera:
Happy Xmas to you all! Will be back when the seasonal madness is over.
Now, like any a tease should know, leaving people wanting more often results in disappointment. I would love to show you the most amazing and breathtaking haul from that yarn stall in Cologne, after all they had a fine range on offer: from sock yarn to mohair. Some of it was British, so I resisted (such as Black Sheep), but there was some fine 100% Alpaca in a range of natural colours labelled Quito:
So two skeins of a rich chocolate brown came home with me. And, I also bought 2 skeins of the German handspun, knowing full well that I would regret not buying any more because it is very soft (though it is dramatically thick and thin, which concerned me). Isn't that a great colour combination?
So, if you were expecting more pictures of yarn, I am afraid I was very restrained this time. I did buy some cute vintage Christmas ornaments though:
Now it is time to reveal who spoilt me and who I spoilt during this round of secret pals. This month I received two packages from my SP6, she knitted me a scarf and included other knitting goodies and then chose to surprise me with some great fabric squares and other sewing goodies in the last pack. Thanks Janice (can you let me know what your blog is?)
I sent gifts to Glenda, a Canadian university student living in Newcastle. Her take on being in Britain is sometimes very funny. I have not yet decided if I will be participating in Secret Pal 7 (I keep dithering... shall I or shan't I?)
Thanks so much for my birthday wishes! It may seem that I spend my time romping around Europe, but it is only a temporary phase of good fortune (due to lapse in Februay 2006... maybe!). I used to refuse to even think about Xmas until after my birthday, which is precisely 12 days prior, but have now given up the struggle and this year decided I really wanted to visit Cologne's Christmas markets. Markets plural because there are six in total: so plenty of seasonal shopping opportunities.
The first port of call was the Dom market. On the first day, the two spires of the cathedral disappeared in the midst, otherwise they are unavoidable and you can't help but catch sight of them as you walk around the city:
There we slipped into a popular pattern, to eat a grilled bratwurst in a rye roll and drink Glüwein (I am so back onto eating a sensible diet for the next week!). Over the next few days we explored the other markets - one of which is on a boat and the other is a Medieval themed one, as well as this fairy tale one near the Three Kings Gate:
The top fairy tale was - unquestionably - Hansel and Gretel, the focus being on gingerbread houses and other gingerbread goodies:
Many of the markets sell you the glüwein in a special mug (Father Xmas obviously keeps leaving his boots littered around the place!)
We came back with about 3 different ones each; my favourite coming from the Medieval market, because the simple plain teracotta pot had a dragon impressed upon it. Cologne's idea of the medieval period involves a lot of dragons, quartz and other stones, woven baskets and mead. Visitors - notice the anachronistic SpongePants Bob on that kid's backpack? - get to mingle with Ye Olde Medieval Folk to watch the juggling and other entertainment:
The 'Ye olde Medieval Folk' wear wooden clocks, a variety of oddly shaped felt hats, woollens and coarse cloth. The place is atmospheric because it is lit by candle light and there is the smell of burning wood, baking bread and roast suckling pig floating in the air. I resisted buying the Dragon's Blood and stuck to such 'modern' fare as Xmas tree decorations from the other markets. Many stalls sold just about every type of ornament you could hope for, from wood to resin, but my favourites have always been the very fragile hand blown ones:
So many to choose from - did you ever think you wanted a pink squirrel on your tree?:
To my great surprise, there was even a yarn stall in Altmarkt with a wide range of German handspun and Alpaca from Ecuador (among a lot of other yummy stuff):
Now, how civilised is that! Uh - oh... that reminds me, I had better dash off and keep up with my Xmas knitting....
Attended a spinning class at the Handweavers Studio yesterday. This particular class is not for the squeamish, because you literally are spinning straight from the fleece. So just imagine the state of your hands after a few minutes: slippery with amber lanolin, flecks of dirt and dried grass, and a distinctive sheep aroma. However, Nancy makes sure that you are familiar with the right bits of the fleece to pick and spin and points out which bits to avoid (luckily I was not seated at the tail-end end of the table!).
The day is spent getting to know the fleece, how to use a drop spindle, how to use carders to roll rolags, and, finally, how to use a spinning wheel. We used an Ashford Traditional Single Drive, which was easy but I am pretty sure I would prefer one with two pedals like the Joy Double Treadle. Although Nancy reckoned I was very much like a learner driver (i.e. gripping the stearing wheel so hard it would scream if it could), because I pinched the yarn like I never wanted to let it go, I did produce something. So here is my bit of unwashed Jacob: on the left, straight from the spindle; and, on the right, wound off the bobbin and ready to ply.
Th other day, I showed a bit of handspun but did not revel a jot about the fibre. Sadly, I know who I got it from but not what it is... I reckon a silk and wool mix, but... anyway, I bought it at Woolfest and it came from Whingam Wool Works (that is what it says on the bag). I have now knitted the strand into a hat for an Xmas present (hope he doesn't read this entry!):
I am 38 on Tuesday, enjoying my birthday, and will be in Koln... photos upon my return.
I would love to show you some FOs, but some have to be kept a secret. But I am madly knitting my way through to Xmas deadlines (though I think I have been a bit ambitious). I can show you one knitted present which will be an FO soon enough, a cushion for one of my great-aunts (plus piles of Xmas presents in progress):
As I have mentioned before, I am on sabbatical - which should mean more knitting time... ;-). However, having got some deadlines out of the way, I am currently spending my days at home organising my research materials so that I can start writing up. I have been time-hungry for the last three years due to combining full-time work and study, so I am quite far behind. Furthermore, I am not a neat person, so wading through three years of box files to re-file that which is useful and weed out that which is now irrelevant is quite stressful. So what have I been doing to de-stress?
I am quite proud of this, not because of the quality of the spinning, but because I managed to spin a 45 yard skein! It has had a bath, and is drying out before being knitted up into a new life.
Oh, and I would like you to meet Master Tightly (origin of the name due to underground anouncement overheard on day completed: 'please hold tightly'). My softy skills are rudimentary, as I sewed him up without carefully considering the point of entry for stuffing, hence his 'cabbage ear' (he thinks it is a heroic battle scar).
Just realised that I have been blogging for over a year now! What I never anticipated when I started was how the experience of blogging goes beyond the virtual and enters the material realm. Take the BBM3 foodie swap: not only did it inspire our household to make Christmas puddings - one of which was sent to Mia in USA - it also meant that I received these goodies from Caryn.
Caryn made us some tasty flapjack-type food bars, which are very tasty indeed, and included some yummy Scharffen Chocolate, a pack of cherries and of blueberries (these are so tasty with yougurt for breakfast!), and some Trader Joe's Tempting Trail Mix. And, to satisfy the garden lover in me, she also included a card with seed which - if I lived in the right part of the world - would attract hummingbirds (one of our most exotic garden visitors is a woodpecker, but a hummingbird would be amazing!).
Now you may be asking, where is the knitting content? Christmas knitting... have to keep some things under cover! But I did receive a fibre treat in the post yesterday, because I ordered a spindle kit from Hello Yarn. I kept missing out on this kit because they tend to sell out very fast, but I was lucky a few weeks ago and managed to get a hand-dyed wool top called 'fairy fingers'. I love all things fairy - the moss and bark loving kind who inhabit dark realms, not the pink and fluffy and sparkly girly ones. I only spun a little bit to check it out...
This kit is so worth it, because Adrian includes a pre-prepared strip of pre-drafted and in the form of a tidy little nest for comparison purposes. That really helped me when making this 7 yard skein. I am saving the rest until after my first spinning class which is in a couple of weeks.
