Irene Dunn.

I wish I could tell you that I had woken up this morning and lost completely my increasing servitude to the harsh taskmaster that is Lace… but no.

Last evening, after several misstarts on Project Purple, I decided to go back to the Icarus which was languishing sadly on my bookshelf:

This is being knitted in Handmaiden Lace Silk. Funnily enough, it is in the Rainforest colourway which I just finished working with – but doesn’t this look different from the Fleece Artist Rainforest in the April Showers?

Also, yesterday I purchased yet another lace pattern, the Scheherazade by Melanie Gibbons:

… and decided to order the book Heirloom Knitting by Sharon Miller. Sharon is responsible for such gorgeous patterns as these:

Man, I wish I could knit that!

Swoon.

In other news, was I ever surprised to read in the Toronto Star this morning that Bill Clinton is a huge hit in Canada – and making huge bucks accordingly:

WASHINGTON–Bill Clinton landed at Pearson International Airport one day in the autumn of 2005, and by the time he boarded his plane at the end of the day the former president’s excellent Canadian adventure had earned him $475,000.

In that one day in the GTA, he had earned double his annual salary as president of the United States…

In three days in mid-October 2005, he earned $900,000 for four speeches: one on Canada-U.S. relations in London, Ont.; two Toronto speeches – one to The Power Within and another to the International Centre for Business – and a speech to The Power Within in Calgary.

Similarly, the following winter, he earned $1.32 million in six days of Canadian speeches in Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Regina and Vancouver.

This article also mentioned that he has made approximately $24 million billion squillion dollars in public speaking engagements since he left the White House. I don’t know about you, but at a certain dollar figure the amounts of money become so high that it is almost meaningless – you know, what’s the difference between $10 million and $100 million? that sort of thing.

Yeah right. And why can’t we find some Canadian role models anyway?!?

(Like who? Steve-o and Muldoon?!?

On second thought, forget I said that.)

But Bill Clinton, although he might be richer than God, is after all only a mere mortal. And I also read in the Star today that there might be scientific proof of the existence of God in the next while.

GENEVA – The father of a theoretical subatomic particle dubbed “the God particle” says he’s almost sure its existence will be confirmed in the next year. British physicist Peter Higgs first postulated the existence of the particle in the makeup of the atom more than 40 years ago…

Well, I’m ahead of him. I already have proof of the existence of God, as signalled to me while out for a walk the other day…

Here is God’s work in all its splendour!

Happy Tuesday!

Actually, although it’s April it wasn’t showering yesterday – which is a good thing, because look what I found when I went out for a walk!

Lo and behold, a lace shawl… here, of all places:

OK, OK… I know I can’t fool you all that easily – especially not any of my dozen or so faithful readers who are by now bored rigid by photos of this shawl in progress.

So – might as well get right down to the specs.

Introducing: April Showers, in all her finery!!!

Pattern: heavily modified from the wonderful Hanami pattern by Melanie Gibbons. The only method to my madness in messing around with this pattern was that I had just finished the Storm Water Scarf

… and was dying to knit the Hanami but couldn’t face any more basketweave for a while. One day I will knit the pattern as written though – I love it, especially the seeming randomness of the cherry blossoms/droplets.

Yarn: Fleece Artist Italian Silk, in the Rainforest colourway. I used the better part of two skeins (each skein has 115 g and 350 m).
Needles: Addi Lace – 3.5mm and 3.75 mm

Beads: clear seed beads from Arton in Toronto – approx. 650 (I lost count).

Size: 70″ at widest part, 26″ at deepest part

Date Started: 26 March 2008
Date Completed: 3 April 2008

Notes:

– I am very challenged mathematically and so it took some time for me to figure out how to go about this. I ended up changing gears somewhat halfway through as the yarn actually grew much faster than I had thought!

– For those who have the Hanami pattern and would like to try this at home:

(a) I strung on approximately 200 beads to start. I used these for the border only. All the other beads were put on as I went with a .75mm crochet hook. (There is a very useful tutorial on how to work with beads here).

(b) I then cast on 20 stitches (the 16 stitch repeat plus two at each end for a garter stitch border). I used the beaded cast-on as per the pattern.

Isn’t it pretty?!

(c) Throughout the project I did a beaded edging by inserting one of the beads I’d strung in between the two first stitches and the two last stitches on every right-side row.

(d) I started the pattern from the bottom/end (Chart G) and did 32 rows each of Charts G, F, E, D, and C in that order, then the first 4 rows of Chart B. That’s when I started to run low on yarn and had to pack it in.

(e) My initial plan was to increase by 4 stitches every two rows by making one stitch immediately before and each border sequence on each side:

RS: K1, place bead, K1, M1 … [pattern to last 3] … M1, K1, place bead, K1.

WS: K1, place bead, K1, M1P … [pattern to last 3] … M1P, K1, place bead, K1.

However, by the time I finished Chart E (again, going backwards) I realised the shawl was growing a bit too disproportionately horizontally. For the rest of the shawl, until the last 4 rows, I only used the increase sequence on the RS. In the last four rows for some reason unknown to me, I reverted to increasing two every row as above.

I’m not sure if this resulted in the little pointy ends or not – that was not planned, nor was the downward curve of the edges. But we’ll just call that a little design feature, shall we?

(f) At the same point that I stopped increasing every row, I switched to the 3.75mm needles. This was primarily a practical call as my 3.5mm needles have a far shorter cable. I suspect, however, that that resulted in part in the little pointy ends – the top part stretched more during blocking.

(g) I started placing beads again at Chart E (74 rows in) – I wanted to create an effect of raindrops hanging in the air. At first I placed them more or less at ramdom where there was space. Later in the pattern, when the spaces between the yarnovers grew larger, I placed one or two beads in each 16-row sequence on both RS and WS, depending on where the plain stockinette spaces were. Oh – thanks to Amy, by the way, for giving me the idea to use clear beads. I like the effect!

Well, that’s more than about enough design blather from me for now, I should think. Except to say that the shawl is apparently a hit with the Brouhaha household.

Hey, even my harshest critic seems delighted!

Thinking about getting back to some mosaic work has been haunting me of late. So, I was very happy when my friend G. brought me some photos of a piece I had made for her many years back:

I had forgotten how pretty it was! Now I want it back. The piece is approximately 20 inches in diametre. To the best of my recollection, it was made using an old tabletop I found in some garbage area or other.

Speaking of garbage, I just learned about the work of Rod Humby, who is a real genius when it comes to making mosaics out of found objects. For example, this piece uses old chair backs:

This one was made using blocks stacked one on top of the other:

And this?

Everything but the kitchen sink! Anyway, check out his website,
The Joy of Shards Mosaic Resource. If you don’t immediately rush out and buy some tile grout and cover a table or two in your place after that, there’s something wrong with you.

Having said that, I won’t be able to get back to any mosaic work today. Why not? Because I started work on Project Purple yesterday and am now obsessed. Sorry, no pics: I’m thinking about trying to get it published. It should be done in the next couple of days, everything being equal.

(What’s that? You thought I was going to start on the Pheonix Rising by Sivia Harding? Hah! Approximately 23 minutes after deciding that, I changed my mind and hauled out the Silken.)

Speaking of Sivia Harding, she has just published a new pattern for the River Rock scarf, which was previously only available in the No Sheep for You book. This was my version, made last year:

This year, Sivia has outdone herself, coming up with four variations on the theme and providing a great bead tutorial as well:

The pattern is available for sale on her website. And, not to blow my own horn of fabulousness, but I have a small connection with this version: Sivia asked me if I had any suggestions about the pattern before publishing it, and has very graciously given me a credit!!

Which makes me feel all shiny and happy…

Happy Sunday!

Well, I’m in a bit of a stushie this morning, as JJ calls it.

Why? I can’t decide which project to start on next. Should it be the Muir

using Kidsilk Night:

or Phoenix Rising with Claudia Handpaints’ custom colourway “Sivia’s Hot Brick Orange”?

You can appreciate, I’m sure, what a tough choice this is. My first instinct is to go with the Muir, simply because I keep meaning to knit it but never quite get around to it.

But as I look around the house, preparing to go find the Kidsilk Night (the stash, having grown to epic proportions, is now housed in several locations throughout the apartment), I keep seeing brick orange:

Is Carmen Miranda trying to tell me something?!?

And then I spot this other piece of mine:

Hmm. And what’s this on the Globe and Mail today on the photo page?

It’s rather spooky, actually – seems as though brick orange has evolved into the only colour, taking over the world. Is this a sign?

Hey, where is that little voice coming from telling me to listen up? JJ’s at work and I’m alone here, aren’t I?

Oh. Quack has just told me that I’m being extremely selfish in even dickering over this decision, given that Phoenix Rising would go so well with his beak.

Well, that settles it – Phoenix Rising it shall be.

But hold on a minute! What about Project Purple, my top-secret design project?!

Sigh. I really must stick to my decision for once, I think. And anyone, all those brick orange must have meant something. Besides, the Phoenix Rising project has beads too!

Er… but so does Project Purple.
And orange beads to boot!

I’m so confused… well, I think I should sign off now and make my final decision.

Well, Bad Kristina is clearly holding the reins these days. I went AGAIN to the LYS today and bought two skeins of this Zephyr laceweight:

It’s the Ruby colourway. I simply couldn’t resist.

And… I felt vindicated when I came back to the office and checked the Globe and Mail website only to find this photo:

Isn’t the colour similar? Me and a cowardly bullfighter… lots in common!

Oh, and despite hanging out with these reprobates last night:

…I managed to make some progress on my April Showers. No pic today because the camera is at the office. But she’s getting quite big!

And – I do have some self-control after all when it comes to yarn. When I was at the LYS today, they had JUST had a shipment of Handmaiden stuff… sitting there on the floor, winking at me through a huge clear plastic bag, even (I swear to this) calling my name.

They told me that it couldn’t be sold yet as there was no price list. I was sorely tempted to pay for what I was buying, take out my huge keychain, bop the salesperson over the head and run with the yarn… but I didn’t. That earns me some kind of knitters’ medal, no?

Um…

No. I guess not. I do feel, however, that I will deserve a medal if I don’t rush back there tomorrow before the next PayDay (15 April) to check out the new Handmaiden wares. I have spent my yarn budget for the first half of the month (and probably have at least 10 km of yarn in my apartment as a result – including probably 5 km of Handmaiden products) and don’t have a credit card… so this shouldn’t be so difficult.

In other news, I’m having a difficulty finishing off my April Showers shawl. Tonight I just figured out why. The Italian Silk is so luxurious and soft…

Hard to knit when you have an adult blankie that you’re knitting, eh? (and perhaps this is the secret attraction of knitting. To think I made fun of my little brother who carried a piece of his blankie into his twenties teens…

sigh.

(I did catch JJ sucking his thumb with my shawl in progress as well – but he won’t allow me to publish the pics. Oh well.)

Anyway, here is a photo of the shawl – I hope to finish it by Friday …

Stay tuned…and in the meantime run, don’t walk, to find some Fleece Artist Italian Silk!!

Well, the sun was shining (for part of yesterday, anyway) and it started to feel almost like spring!

As well, there was lots of good sunny energy at my office what with what the postman brought.

First, there was my parcel from Sivia Harding with all the goodies I had bought in her yarn auction:

crabapple red linen!

Blue Moon lace merino! And lots of Handmaiden (gasp!) mohair… now discontinued, by the way:

It’s even all wound up! I was so chuffed.

And then, as a surprise, I got a package from a friend in Ottawa containing a pattern, the Estonian Garden shawl by Evelyn Clark:

AND… (drumroll please): not one, but two skeins of Malabrigo laceweight in the Jewel Blue colourway!!!

(Methinks the friend is hinting that I should make her a shawl. Sucker!)

So, that’s my personal news… but what about the rest of the world?

Well, one of this week’s hot news topics is the annual publishing of the list of people known as the Sunshine Club – public servants who get paid $100,000 or more per year in the province.

Last night on the news there was the usual back and forth and jumping up and down in Parliament over this issue. Defending the government: our esteemed Deputy Premier the Honourable George Smitherman. His most recent claim to fame was announcing a plan to wear a diaper in order to see how seniors in care homes live – and you can imagine how this went over.

No idea where the Right Honourable Dalton was for the Sunshine Club debate – maybe he was hanging George out to dry?!

(I know, I know… I couldn’t resist).

Anyway, George of course defended the huge increase in salaries. He had a tough time of it from the Honourable Bob Runciman:

(doesn’t he look happy here!!?! I wonder why…?)

… big-time small-town Tory, who kept shouting how ridiculous it was that the number of people on this list has increased by 110% since 2003 when the Liberals were first elected.

But Bob has a short memory. He certainly wasn’t complaining last year around this time when all the MPPs got together and voted themselves a 28% pay increase.

Hmm… let’s see where they’re at on the Sunshine list:

RUNCIMAN ROBERT Leader, Official Opposition $143,303.03 plus taxable benefit of $260.00

SMITHERMAN GEORGE Minister, Health & Long Term Care $161,039.88 plus taxable benefit of $292.15

Oh – now I see why Bob’s pissed off!

What continues to amaze me about this list (although I don’t know why it should, really) is that well over 50 per cent of people employed with the power utilities are making more than $100,000. Obviously I’m in the wrong gig….

Oh – and by the way, the salaries shot up immediately the government (Mr. Runciman’s party at that time, mind you) allowed power provision companies to privatise in the late 1990s.

Like I said, a short memory. Ah, politics.

Well, I lay awake all night thinking about my latest work-in-progress:

In fact, stewing about it. Why?

Because I don’t know if the lovely Fleece Artist Italian silk is organic or not.

I think I’ve really taken to heart all of the advertising recently in which large multinational corporations are telling us that we should care about the environment and global warming.

These ads (and please tell me they exist outside of Canada – surely we can’t be the only caring country out there!) usually feature cute video footage of little kids playing (and, depending upon the ad, a dog or two) in a large field with the type of green grass that only comes after huge daily watering sessions.

Overshadowing the giggles of the kiddies, however, is a sombre voiceover telling us just what bad shape the environment is in, and what we can do to change all of that. You typically don’t even know what the ad is for until the last moment when a logo flashes up onto the screen.

I got so curious after seeing such an ad that the Hudson Bay Company has been running for the 512th time this week that I had to find out what it is they’re selling (all that the ad refers to is a mysterious programme called “New Renaissance”).

Once at the website I had to search long and hard to find out what I was looking for. A link from the home page called “New Renaissance” looked promising, but clicking it simply led to their online shopping catalogue. All roads lead to shopping, I guess.

(I’m reminded of a conversation I had some 15 years ago when the term “organic” was still in its infancy as a marker for luxury products. We were in a Greek restaurant on the Danforth where, ahead of their time, almost every meat was advertised as “organic”. My father didn’t know what the word meant. After I went on for a few minutes explaining about free range chickens and all that, he paused for thought, and then said “Oh, eet means expensive.“

Indeed.)

I finally found out what I was looking for under the (get this!) “Social Responsibility” tab on their website. “New Renaissance” is the Bay’s codeword for a whole new line of products made from organic cotton and bamboo – mostly luxury linens and towels.

Finding the prices was yet another challenge. Finally I was successful, though – and most of the prices were in the three figures. This is what the website told me about that:

That’s why we can pay our organic cotton farmers a 30% premium above conventional cotton prices. We also commit to buying the cotton before the crop is grown, so farmers have security of income too. Our cotton is produced by a group called Agrocel in Gujarat, India, which works with 20,000 small-scale farmers, using Fair Trade principles to support them in the conversion to organic farming. We think that makes organic cotton all the more worth the extra money.

Well, that’s nice, isn’t it? The farmers get 30 per cent more, the Bay at least 100 per cent more. Does that sound like “Fair Trade” to you?

Now, don’t get me wrong. Protecting the environment is an admirable goal, trust me – as is taking steps to pay farmers better. However, it seems that priorities are still skewed on some level. The Bay, after all, seems to feel that its customers are willing to pay luxury prices for such everyday household items as…

…the humble vacuum cleaner!

(Everyday, that is, unless you live in my apartment. Maybe we just need one of these to solve all of our housework issues!)

Now, just when did they start making vacuum cleaners that look like racecars? And – $500.00?? For that price I’m not buying one unless they throw something like this in to operate it for me as well:

Oh, and on this very same website where they lecture on (and on, and on, if you care to visit enough links – there seem to be more links on the Bay website about how much they care for the environment than there are telling you the prices of what it is they’re actually selling), they carry useful environmental educational toys for the kiddies such as these:

(Would that be the fuel efficient Hummer, do you think?)

Oh, and check this out:
This is a toy intended for children 18 months through five years of age. I like the subtle messaging about learning to keep that car filled up all the time. And, with the price of gas these day it could wind up being a really good educational toy on how to add (although I don’t know that your average 18 month old could actually count that high).

But my favourite part?

Comes with a hose, pretend nozzle, credit card swipe and special cut-out credit card [emphasis added].

I wonder if the cut-out card is a Bay store card? Three guesses, and the first two don’t count.

Anyway, am I the only one out here who sees a bit of a mixed message? However, it is instructive to remember that, notwithstanding all the preaching by the corporations (and the Bay is by no means the only one, just the one I’m picking on today because I find their ad the most obnoxious), they exist for one reason and one reason only. That is, to sell things to dupes like you and me by making us think that we need those things to be better people.

Which brings me back to my original topic, as pretty much the only thing I buy that makes me feel like a better person is… well, you know:

…lovely yarn. Oh, and shiny beads.

(This is my April Showers shawl in progress. Can anyone tell what pattern I modified to make this, pray tell? I know a couple of you out there have knitted the original pattern.)

The Fleece Artist website has no “Social Responsibility” tab, unfortunately. But then again, it is only a small cottage industry.

So I will have to continue losing sleep over the provenance of the silk, I guess. At least the beads are safe… or are they?

Wishing you a wonderful (oxymoron?) Monday.