A couple of years ago I was going out for dinner with a co-worker while at a conference . Also going was a former co-worker and her husband. The restaurant was just across the street from the hotel. I was planning what knitting to take with me. Now I was not actually planning to knit through dinner. I was just planning for any "in-case" emergency.
So I put the current project in my project bag. Then I thought, what if one of us is taken ill and I have to accompany the ambulance to the hospital. There could be hours spent in the emergency room. I put a second project in the bag. Another horrible thought. What if the restaurant was taken over by terrorists and I had to hide in a closet for two days until rescue arrived. I stuffed the bag with enough yarn for a year.
So I hauled this overstuffed over-sized project bag with me to the restaurant and of course there was no ambulance, no terrorists and no knitting during dinner.
This year at the conference I was going to be brave. I was not going to buy a ticket for the crazy train. The project bag would stay behind. I was going to dinner with friends and I was not taking knitting with me. Just as I was heading out the door of my hotel room this thought hit me. What if I get to the lobby first and have to wait. I picked up the project bag.
I did get the back done for the man's sweater during the conference. I have this dream that one of these days there will be others knitting at this conference but so far I am the only one. I did have one participant recognize my bag as a project bag and asked what I was knitting.
I think I should have put something in the photo for scale. This is 28" long and 25" wide. When blocked it will be slightly narrower and slightly longer.
Most of yesterday was spent adding fringe to the poncho. Cutting fringe is always a challenge. Simply wrapping the yarn around another object stretches the yarn. Once cut, the yarn contracts so that each yarn piece is a different length. I like to use a hard cover book to wrap the yarn around to get the fringe length. Hard cover books have a cover slightly longer than the inside pages. This gives a channel for the scissors to cut the ends. I choose a book with the width approximately the length I need for the fringe. For the poncho each fringe is one strand of the three types of yarn used. Each stretched differently being wrapped so I had to take care that there was ample slack in each yarn as it was wound around the book cover.
Once finished my next problem was to get it photographed. A flat poncho is dull and lifeless. Actually it is hard to lay flat at all and have it look like a poncho. I wanted a model. I have three nieces and one granddaughter, all beautiful young women who would willingly model for me but all live a long way away. My friends were all unavailable yesterday afternoon. Time for some creative thinking. I went to Essex Source for Sports (I have connections). They kindly lent me one of the manikins from the store window and carried it outside to the old Carnegie Library building for photos.
I think the fringe turned out okay.
The On Hold socks are a really enjoyable knit now that I have the 12 row pattern repeat memorized. I am even keeping true to the pattern for the gusset and heel shaping. The only change I have made is to add a bit of shaping in the back for the calf.
Once I finished the poncho I concentrated on the socks. Even last night during the trick or treat event. Hubby is the one who hands out treats at the door. He always manages to say something to the kids to get them to speak to him. I get to stay in the background and laugh; after all kids say the darndest things.
The first child was amazed that he was the first trick or treater to arrive. (Someone always has to be first). He looked at the bowl of treats and said what a waste. Hubby and I discussed this afterwards because we were not sure what he meant. We finally decided he meant "what a waist" if we ate the leftover treats.
One little girl after getting her two treats demanded to know why her brother got two treats. Hubby explained that she had also gotten two but must not have seen them go in her bag. I suspect she will grow up to be a feminist.
Near the end of the evening, one little boy wondered if we had many children come. He confused the full bowl of treats with a low turnout. Hubby explained that he had refilled the bowl four times. The boy looked at the bowl, held out his bag as if to say that if we didn't have many kids, perhaps we could give them all to him. It was the same look our dog gives when food is left on the kitchen counter. She looks up at the counter, looks at us with a look that obviously means if you don't want it, can I have it?
Hubby upped the count from two to three for him.
There were a few chants of "Trick or Treat". There was one girl who gave the longer version of "trick or treat, smell my feet, give me something good to eat". They all take me right back to childhood. But there is one chant I miss hearing. I can't remember ever hearing it here in southern Ontario. It was a common chant in Winnipeg. I long to hear "Halloween Apples". The sing-song always sounded haunting and sad with flavouring of alms for the poor. But each Halloween I hear it in my head and remember my years in Winnipeg; many child voices' repeating and echoing down the street.
I used my time to progress on the sock.
Almost complete sock. Just the ribbing at the top to complete then the blocking. The problem with socks though is you have to make two.
Glad to hear you got through the conference. That poncho turned out stunning. I knew that once I saw it put together it would take on a totally new look, and I was right. Keep on rockin'
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