I'm happy to join Kat and fellow Unravelers for Unraveled Wednesday, with a small palate-cleanser of a project, the Sophie Scarf that much of the knitting world seems to be making.
No soft cashmere or qiviut had miraculously made its way into my stash, but I did have an extra ball of Knitpicks Swish DK left over from my BSJ, so cast on six stitches and began. My first attempt was a little tight, so I went up a needle size and started again. It's better this time, but the fabric still feels stiff, and some of my i-cord looks a little wonky. I was going to cast on for a third time, but I decided this was my practice Sophie and I'd see how I felt after it was finished and blocked. I do have to pay attention to what row I'm on and I haven't yet figured out a good way to do that aside from a row counter, so this is not mindless meditative knitting for me like the Hitchhiker pattern.
I finished three books last week. All the Dangerous Things was only two stars for me, and the only thing the author excelled at was the use of similes. There were so many it was like trying to count the stars in the sky. An example: "... seeing that man - his eyes like peeled grapes as he stared into the darkness; the way he creaked back and forth in his rocking chair, a methodical rhythm like someone had wound up a key in his back ...". I thought that "eyes like peeled grapes" was simultaneously creepy and hilarious.
A Silent Fire: The Story of Inflammation, Diet, and Disease was informative enough to earn three stars. The winner was a pre-publication copy of The Wind Knows My Name by Isabel Allende. It's an engrossing story of war and immigration told through two different children in Austria in 1938 and the United States in 2019. I have started Spare and Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude so it looks like a good reading week ahead.
What are you making and reading this week?
I have contemplated Sophie's scarf (shawl?) I just love the color you are using to knit yours! I do think Applied I-cord does look wonky until it is washed... then all those stitches relax and snuggle up with their neighbor and it is lovely!
ReplyDeleteI have not stopped thinking about The Wind Knows My Name... I really like how Allende posed the refugees of WWII with those of today... living with the same danger, the same threats to life, and yet... not much has changed.
I will be eager to hear your thoughts on Spare! :)
Your I-cord looks pretty good from here! Everyone seems to be knitting this little scarf these days. I'm glad to hear the good review of Allende's new book, and I'll be interested to hear what you think of Spare.
ReplyDeleteI'm working on yet another charity hat and trying to finish The Transit of Venus (I have 80-ish pages left).
"Eyes like a peeled grape" is definitely a creepy phrase! Reminds me of a Halloween party I went to as a young kid where you closed your eyes and peeled grapes were passed around - supposedly eyeballs. Yuck! I'm knitting on a sock and a cowl and hope to start a hat. I finished "The Book of Goose" but didn't really enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely color for your Sophie scarf! (I probably should knit one of those . . . instead of this awful cardigan I've shackled myself to. Sigh.) I agree with Kat -- applied i-cord looks kinda funky at first, but once you more of your scarf knit up, I'll bet it will look better AND behave better after a block. XO
ReplyDeleteWill be interested to see how you like Spare.
ReplyDeleteI have a knitting friend that loved that pattern, I can't wait to see what you think about it!
ReplyDelete"There were so many it was like trying to count the stars in the sky." I see what you did there....
ReplyDeleteYour integrated I cord will be fine. It always looks a bit wonky until washed and blocked.
I love the color of your Sophie scarf and I haven't heard of that pattern before now so I'm going to check it out. I just started listening to Spare yesterday and so far I'm finding it very engrossing.
ReplyDeleteI love the color of your Sophie scarf! That pattern just might be the one to get me knitting again!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Debbie! I'm not sure if I'm the type to wear a little scarf around my neck, but if not, I think it will make a good gift!
DeleteSilent Fire sounds right up my street, given my recent reading history on pandemics and cellular biology. Just requested it from the library. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteBonny, I had to start my Sophie Scarf over halfway through ... when I realized I'd put the increases on the wrong end of the row and I didn't want to fudge the decreases to match. I think washing and drying is going to fix up yours perfectly. (also, I have a row counter hanging on the right side of my piece. it's easy to keep up with the RS/WS that way ... but yeah, I'm still counting up to 8 every time ... and now that I'm close to the 33 stitches for switching the pattern, counting the stitches every so often, too)
ReplyDeleteI am going to put the Allende book on my TBR list although it might be awhile. I am anxious to see what you think about the Sophie Scarf. I sure like the color of that yarn. My LYS thinks the pattern is great and I've seen it in other places. I was actually thinking of the bigger version - the Sophie Shawl - as the pattern for my sapphire blue handspun.
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