Cover girl

Ha, guess which yarn store got first crack at the Vogue Trunk Show that features the lovely Twinkle tunic that I'm smitten with? That's right, Webs! I love my job!

If anyone thinks this is a totally frivolous garment, I submit this: evidence that this is the best possible line of defense against harsh Northeastern winter wind!

I'm knitting Xmas gifts like nobody's business. I should get back to it right now! Glass of wine, check! Bad television (the WB), check! It's knittin' time!

Skrilla

P.S. Psssst, Everwood RULES.

Today was entirely gray and rainy. Which doesn't bother me one bit =) The bad weather is due to a hurricane named after a knitter (Wilma Flintstone), so how can I be bothered by it?

With store credit I got a few things today, totally guilt-free shopping. More Burly Spun to finish the Twinkle-esque tube, some Classic Elite Lush for the amazing Knitty surprise that happens to match my footwear and taste in knitting bags. My fondness for skulls isn't a pirate thing. I'm half Mexican, so it's partially a Day of the Dead thing, and also a little poison bottle warning.

I am tenatively teaching a class next semester for the popular Lelah top by Christine at Knitting for Boozehags. As a lady who knits in bars and attempts Fair Isle under the influence, I fully appreciate this blogger. The education coordinator asked for something youthful and this top is it. It's beautiful, and offers the opprotunity for a lesson in knitter's modification/math, which is something I fully encourage.

The Boy has a fantastic new hobby--he applies his incisive Aries judgement and killer taste reviewing new music for WMUA, the UMass Amherst radio station. Right now we're making fun of a bad Kelly Clarkson knock-off.

I mentioned in my last post that I'm working on a design for Knitty. This new blog coincides with an attitude shift. I had always thought (cynically and egotistically) that if I couldn't contribute something entirely novel to the pattern lexicon, that I shouldn't bother at all. It has to do with my persistant suspicion that there is nothing new under the sun. I studied this concept in college, and even taught a colloquium on it, but it did nothing to make me feel better about my odds of being a designer with Something to Say.

Anyhow, recently a few things have happened to push me over the edge. I kept saying to myself "I could do that!" when I saw new patterns and I suggested a key modification to a pattern that is actually going to be on television soon. When I heard that, I realized that I could absolutely be contributing to the massive design collection, and that it was silly to slight myself before I'd even tried.

That's it for now, I've miles to knit before I sleep. BTW, thanks for all the kind welcomes, everyone.

CR

While I'm supposed to be finishing up work knits and tackling Christmas gifts, I couldn't help but cast-on for a top based on this amazing Twinkle design that happens to be on the cover of Vogue Knitting (a version of it at least).

I'm not following the pattern, it calls for three stands of a bulky weight yarn held together, no thanks. I'm using Brown Sheep Burly Spun on size 15 needles. Instead of working it up from the bottom, I'm going top down with the help of my favorite lady, Barbara G. Walker. Knitting from the top-down is the most organic, sensible way to knit, and I'm going to be advocating it next spring at Webs in a top-down sweater class tenatively named "The Downward Spiral". Anyhow, this knit may make me look totally ridiculous, not to mention hippy, but I don't really care because:

A) The Burly Spun is seriously delicious. Soft and gorgeously handpainted. The color is named Strawberry Patch.

B) Sweaters with that much clever detail are the perfect winter doldrum antidote, in my opinion. When it gets gray out I take it upon myself to wear obnoxiously bright outerwear.

I don't feel too bad about the diversion because it's knitting up so quickly.

I have finished one thing! It's a sock for the store, knit from Berroco Foliage. You can get the pattern free with the yarn, and they knit up extremely fast. They are calling this a washable Kureyon, and while it's not quite as wooly, it does share the nice subtle striping of Kureyon, which is great fun.

Lastly--I found out that I'm going to California in February to work Stitches West! I'm excited, I've never been to California, but I'm slightly bummed that I won't be meeting any East Coast bloggers. My family finds it hilarious that I'm going off to a yarn convention. They're like "wait--yarn?!". Yes, yarn =)

Yikes, it's three and I've done nothing but blog!

CR

Blogwarming

Hi, I'm Cirilia, and I'm a knitter. I've been over at Livejournal for awhile now, but this seems to be the platform of choice for most knitters out there, so I made the switch. If I can manage to beef up my HTML skills a bit, this should be a better blog than my last.

For any new readers: I live in the lovely Pioneer Valley in Western Massachusetts. I am shacking up post-graduation with a grown-up Boy Scout and we'd really love a cat or pug or something, but our landlords disagree. I hope be an academic in the field of cultural studies, and I apply to graduate school this winter. In the meantime, I'm a full-time yarn peddler at Webs in Northampton. I've lived abroad for a lot of my life and want to explore even more of the world, especially India, Japan, Canada, Iceland, Austria, Norway, Sweden, etc...

As for as knitting, my Nana taught the basics, but the rest was all me and my library card. I like classic shapes knit in quality yarn. I like wit, like puffed sleeves or high collars, anything that looks like it's taken from another era. I prefer to knit using the methods of my heroines Elizabeth Zimmermann, Maggie Righetti and Barbara G. Walker, but I'm also astonished by the efforts of all the emerging designers on the Internet. This is dorky and Virgo of me, but I'm also concerned with my technique. I've been sloppy in the past and invented methods for doing things, but I'd like to learn the 'proper' ways.

Lately I've been knitting for the store and for the holidays, which leaves little time for any 'fun' knitting. While I'm not fretting about my upcoming GRE test or working at Webs, I'm working on a design to submit to Knitty and an article to submit to another favorite magazine, Bitch.


That's it for now, I'll be back soon with pictures!

Skrilla