Intarsia, In-farce-ya
Ah, intarsia, thou wicked knitting skill. How easily the arrogant tumble on your many strands of twisted wool.
This is what I am knitting for Daniel’s birthday and no, it will not be done in time.
Not least because I’m learning intarsia as I go and it’s tougher for me than I thought it would be. So I’m spending a lot of time tweaking the fabric and shoving at the joins to see if I can make them look better. They do not look pretty right now.
All I can say is, this better be one of those times when blocking performs miracles.
Speaking of miracles, I’m going to plug a yarn store here: Two Swans Yarn. Karen (the owner) specializes in Jamieson’s and Rowan yarns and if they have what you need, buy it there. I got my yarn almost before I had submitted the order. It was well packaged and Karen had enclosed a little personal note and there’s free shipping for orders over $25. Basically, it was what an online shopping experience ought to be and I like feeling that there’s a real person at the other end of the ether. Oh, and look at this. I’m not buying it but isn’t it tempting? Right there is one of the secrets to why knitting is so addictive. Color.
This is what I’m knitting with the scarlet Jamieson’s Spindrift I bought. The pattern in from the winter Interweave Knits. It’s being knit for a friend who asked me if I could knit her husband a red tie. Weeeeeellllll, I supppppppose. I had never thought I’d knit a tie, but hey! That’s part of the wacky wonder of knitting. Who knows what you’ll knit next? So, a tie it is.
Oh, but back to the sweater. As you can see, it will include the full range of planets from our solar system, knit in Plymouth Encore worsted from a pattern I got at Stitches East. Good pattern designer, good store, good all around. Oh, and she helped me choose the right colors of Plymouth since, as she said, when you have to buy eight colors for a child’s sweater, the wool had better be 1) washable and 2) reasonable. Uh-huh. I am adding polar ice caps to Mars because Daniel notices that sort of thing, and I think that Venus is looking a bit squashed, but that’s totally my intarsia fault.
Actually, intarsia would make a good swear word and we’re looking for some of those since the time that Daniel’s teacher told us that he had spent the day saying “Damn it!” and “Damn!” for pretty much everything that required an emotional reaction, which in Daniel’s case is everything. So what about intarsia?
What do you say when the pipes burst and your carefully knitted planet sweater gets felted?
InTARSia!
What do you say when your daughter tries to “help” by pulling out your needles and unravelling four inches of twisted knit ribbing?
InTARSia!
What do you say when you go to a birthday party where all the other parents are either lawyers or doctors and who are soooo stressed because they can’t decide which of all the wonderful schools who want to take their child, who are begging to take their dullasdishwater child, would be best for their little darling?
Bollocksbollocksbollocks. InTARSia!
InTARsia! You may have started a trend. I am saying it without any provocation.
You are too cute. I am glad you aren’t attempting the Milky Way (would that also involve intarsia?), because we might not ever hear from you again.
Your inTARSia is looking absolutely amazing. I love intarsia . . . it’s like being an artist. What a great pattern .. . . bright colours on black. Can’t wait to see it finished.
LOL… love it. I’m always up for new swear words.