The end of last week saw me the recipient of a couple of things from two very sweet and thoughtful people.
This came from Nathalie over at KnittingNatty. Because it’s summer in Australia, it contains wonderful cool recipes for many diabetic friendly meals, libations and desserts and the magazine itself is bright and full of color - a welcome change from the local dreariness. This is, in a very real sense, my first diabetic cookbook and I can’t wait to try some of this stuff out. It was an incredibly thoughtful gift. Many thanks Nat!
Then there was this…
...from Jo Ellyn in Oklahoma. She had found the tutorial All Aboard the Entrelac Express useful for teaching a student about the entrelac technique and sent me this as a thank-you :) Tatting is one of those things I never could get the hang of. Just look at what beautiful work is in this bookmark! Thank you so much Jo Ellyn; I will use it with great pride and pleasure.
As for the weekend’s knitting, I did start a purse while we were watching North by Northwest, Saturday night on one of our local PBS stations. The movie was on PBS, not the knitting - well, you know :) I don’t know if it was Hitchcock or Cary Grant that got under my skin (and it’s not as though I don’t know this film practically by heart!) but the purse didn’t work out to my liking. No mistakes, in fact it was turning out well and according to the nebulous little plan that was floating around in my head - I just didn’t like it. So it got ripped yesterday afternoon and this got started instead:
This is the SOS - Special Occasion Slipper from Socks Socks Socks. It’s a fast knit and I like the construction method a great deal. The slipper is interesting enough not to be boring as it starts being worked flat, goes to being worked in the round and incorporates a small bit of easy lace.
Now the recipient has a tiny frame - little bitty hands and feet. And, because this is a gift, ergo a surprise, and because she isn’t here for me to conveniently measure anyway, I took things into my own hands in terms of sizing. This is beautiful alpaca DK yarn on size 6 needles. The pattern, which is for a woman’s small, calls for worsted weight on size 7 needles. You guessed it; the slipper might fit an eight or nine-year-old but it isn’t going to fit my friend no matter how small she is. So, I’ll add a mate to this for the Dulaan bag and dig out one of those lovely hanks of Classic Elite Wings to make the slippers with. On size 7s, of course :)
I also spent a lot of yesterday working on the blanket which is actually starting to look like a blanket. It’s really a gratifying piece of work because although it is essentially stockinette, over and over, it does require attention and mild concentration to pick up the stitches and decide on the color changes - but it’s easy to work. Just about perfect television knitting and I am surprised at the extent to which I look forward to working on it (as opposed to working on half a dozen other small things!).
I hope all your weekends were good and that the world finds you feisty this cold Monday morning!
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I didn’t know you were diabetic! Last year my kid sis was diagnosed with hypoglycemia (the one where your blood sugar gets too low) which can be a precursor to diabetes (our mom had that). She wasn’t making much effort to alter her diet in healthy ways but we had a good talk over Xmas so maybe she will now. I hope your efforts are successful!
What wonderful presents. The bookmark is certainly beautiful.I like the slippers too.I am a huge Hitchcock fan.
Toni - Well, if it was the shock to her that it was to me, I can certainly undertand her being in denial for a while. Fortunately, things are coming along slowly, but well.
I will certainly hold a good thought for your sister!
Maureen - Me too! I can remember watching “Rear Window” when I was just a kid and jittering for hours afterwards, I was so wound up :) No sleep that night - LOL!
Did you hear that University of Minnesota researchers have reversed type 1 diabetes? Now, I am not in favor of animal testing, but monkeys were cured by pig cells and no longer needed insulin after a month (and neither animal was harmed). Essentially, humans could be treated with porcine cells the same way. I think this is very promising news in diabetes research, and there is the possibility of human treatment in the next few years.
Colleen - That’s certainly interesting and hopeful news!
Robbyn, as usual, you have inspired me!! Your entrelac directions made what was confusing to me now crystal clear…THANK YOU!! My confusion with entrelac I have discovered has been confusion of my own making!! Again..thanks…YOU ROCK, my friend.
Happy Knitting as always :0)
Becca - Glad you find the tutorial useful! It’s nice to know it helps :)
