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the knitted dolls...
Nov. 29th, 2010 06:30 pmA bit belatedly, here are the girleens who go with the diddy accessories.
(technically they are the same character. ahem.)
The pattern (which was a birthday present) is here: http://www.theretroknittingcompany.co.uk/images/5dec10/bestway947a.jpg
Obviously, Girleen No. 2 is not in WAAF uniform. I altered the pattern a bit.
I just love her lacy knickers.
(technically they are the same character. ahem.)
The pattern (which was a birthday present) is here: http://www.theretroknittingcompany.co.uk/images/5dec10/bestway947a.jpg
Obviously, Girleen No. 2 is not in WAAF uniform. I altered the pattern a bit.
I just love her lacy knickers.
still crazy after all these years
Sep. 2nd, 2010 09:18 pmgive a girl an orange pencil and she will dress a made up character.
teach her to knit and she will dress herself.
the drawing dates to about 1977. I was 12. No, she is not meant to have a broken leg.
The pattern for the sweater dates to the 1940s... not sure when. I blame![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
tiboribi for putting me onto this excellent method of procrastination.
the evil sara is whispering in my ear, "dye your hair blonde."
teach her to knit and she will dress herself.
the drawing dates to about 1977. I was 12. No, she is not meant to have a broken leg.
The pattern for the sweater dates to the 1940s... not sure when. I blame
tiboribi for putting me onto this excellent method of procrastination.the evil sara is whispering in my ear, "dye your hair blonde."
(no subject)
May. 28th, 2010 03:02 pmFound this on sartorias's birthday blog entry:
I am still discovering the extent to which writing a book about the French Resistance has left me shell-shocked. I can no longer look at a picture of the Eiffel Tower WITHOUT BURSTING INTO TEARS.
Also, despite my pride last night when I woke up and realized I hadn't dropped a single stitch, I cannot, in fact KNIT IN MY SLEEP. The *unpicking* the following day had me laughing out loud (some might say: IN STITCHES, haha).
sartorias's birthday blog entry:I am still discovering the extent to which writing a book about the French Resistance has left me shell-shocked. I can no longer look at a picture of the Eiffel Tower WITHOUT BURSTING INTO TEARS.
Also, despite my pride last night when I woke up and realized I hadn't dropped a single stitch, I cannot, in fact KNIT IN MY SLEEP. The *unpicking* the following day had me laughing out loud (some might say: IN STITCHES, haha).
postwar reconstruction
May. 18th, 2010 11:22 amI have to show off the first knitting project I've done since before Sara was born. It is all tiboribi's fault as she keeps pointing me to 1940s knitting patterns. These are out of a book called "Essentials for the Forces" which the Victoria & Albert Museum have made available on-line.
yes, they convert into mitts--perfect for sitting at my desk in our freezing house! Actually the cool thing about these is that the needles and wool I used were inherited from the cleared-out estate of our neighbor's 86-year-old mother when she died a couple of years ago.
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What else... Vintage ballpoints. I've managed to get hold of an "Eversharp Reporter" that dates to 1951 or '52. It's not particularly special but for a ballpoint it's pretty old. I am getting very clever about making old ballpoint pens work again. SO NERDY. I love writing with them.
and boy oh boy do I bestow the slanty rodent eyes on those pestilent SNIPERS on eBay who keep swiping Miles Martin Biros from me in the last 5 seconds of an auction. >_> EVIL PEOPLE
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This isn't anything to do with material obsessions I picked up while writing a novel this winter, butestara has very kindly written an article thanking me for a donation of the German edition of The Winter Prince to her school. She also talks about the way the Internet encourages a community relationship between writer and reader. I thank her for the lovely tribute! The story's here if you're a German reader.
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Remember Mark's snow caterpillar?
This is what the front garden looks like today.
tiboribi's fault as she keeps pointing me to 1940s knitting patterns. These are out of a book called "Essentials for the Forces" which the Victoria & Albert Museum have made available on-line. yes, they convert into mitts--perfect for sitting at my desk in our freezing house! Actually the cool thing about these is that the needles and wool I used were inherited from the cleared-out estate of our neighbor's 86-year-old mother when she died a couple of years ago.
-----------------
What else... Vintage ballpoints. I've managed to get hold of an "Eversharp Reporter" that dates to 1951 or '52. It's not particularly special but for a ballpoint it's pretty old. I am getting very clever about making old ballpoint pens work again. SO NERDY. I love writing with them.
and boy oh boy do I bestow the slanty rodent eyes on those pestilent SNIPERS on eBay who keep swiping Miles Martin Biros from me in the last 5 seconds of an auction. >_> EVIL PEOPLE
------------------
This isn't anything to do with material obsessions I picked up while writing a novel this winter, but
estara has very kindly written an article thanking me for a donation of the German edition of The Winter Prince to her school. She also talks about the way the Internet encourages a community relationship between writer and reader. I thank her for the lovely tribute! The story's here if you're a German reader.-----------------
Remember Mark's snow caterpillar?
This is what the front garden looks like today.
Challenge 25
Oct. 21st, 2009 05:04 pmTo further enlighten my previous post, rather than have this get lost in the comments, I can tell you here that this is a policy launched by UK RETAILERS (not a government scheme, so not something that can be deemed legal or illegal, I don't think). It is called Challenge 25 and was launched chiefly to combat underage alcohol sales. However, it is up to the retailers to decide (I think) what they'll put their red-and-black stickers on, and one of the ways they decide is by referring to lists drawn up by the local council authority. I think. [Red-and-]black-listed merchandise is also flashed up on the register at check-out with a huge red block that covers a third of the screen (I know this 'cause I saw it).
here is one of the lists of suspect goods from Kent
here is one from Angus
And there's a nice bright image of the classic "Challenge 25" iconography here. Alas, I can't find a picture of the cute little red-and-black stickers they've pasted on all the packets of knitting needles.
Needless to say, if you do a bit of googling and lurking on this subject, you quickly discover that I am not the only one ranting about it.
here is one of the lists of suspect goods from Kent
here is one from Angus
And there's a nice bright image of the classic "Challenge 25" iconography here. Alas, I can't find a picture of the cute little red-and-black stickers they've pasted on all the packets of knitting needles.
Needless to say, if you do a bit of googling and lurking on this subject, you quickly discover that I am not the only one ranting about it.
rant alert
Oct. 21st, 2009 09:00 amsometimes britain scares me a little. All this in the last two weeks:
Here is the story of the mother who was not allowed to buy a bottle of wine in a supermarket (yes, that would be MORRISONS) because her 17-year-old daughter was shopping with her.
Here is the story of the man who was sentenced to 18 months in jail because he is an idiot (he gave his 3-year-old niece a cigarette and filmed it while all her cousins watched and laughed). While I appreciate that it is BAD to give a three-year-old a cigarette, there is something about this sentence that doesn't rest easily with me. (Did you know that the term "passive smoking" was coined in Nazi Germany?--I am not a smoker, but I am agog. Suddenly all the references to the "anti-smoking Gestapo" make a lot more sense. Hitler's anti-tobacco campaign was years ahead of its time.)
But what I *really* want to rant about is the fact that at our local big homewares outlet (yes, that would be DUNELM MILL) you are not allowed to buy KNITTING NEEDLES if you are under 25. Let's think about this. You could, for example, have been flying an F16 for 5 years in Iraq, but you are not allowed to KNIT in Perth. You could be a brain surgeon, but you are not allowed to knit in Perth. You could be John Keats and live your WHOLE LIFE without being allowed to knit in Perth.
I think I'll stop there.
Sara was the one who wanted the knitting needles, incidentally. After the Morrisons-mother-daughter-wine incident, she was very, very worried that we would be stopped at the checkout in Dunelm Mill and not allowed to buy our 8 mm knitting needles (the very fat ones that would be about as dangerous as a STICK off a bush in the garden, which we could have for free instead of £ 2.85). But I, cravenly, did not inform the cash register assistant that I was buying them for my 12-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER. TO KNIT WITH.
and the cash register assistant did not ask me for ID.
Here is the story of the mother who was not allowed to buy a bottle of wine in a supermarket (yes, that would be MORRISONS) because her 17-year-old daughter was shopping with her.
Here is the story of the man who was sentenced to 18 months in jail because he is an idiot (he gave his 3-year-old niece a cigarette and filmed it while all her cousins watched and laughed). While I appreciate that it is BAD to give a three-year-old a cigarette, there is something about this sentence that doesn't rest easily with me. (Did you know that the term "passive smoking" was coined in Nazi Germany?--I am not a smoker, but I am agog. Suddenly all the references to the "anti-smoking Gestapo" make a lot more sense. Hitler's anti-tobacco campaign was years ahead of its time.)
But what I *really* want to rant about is the fact that at our local big homewares outlet (yes, that would be DUNELM MILL) you are not allowed to buy KNITTING NEEDLES if you are under 25. Let's think about this. You could, for example, have been flying an F16 for 5 years in Iraq, but you are not allowed to KNIT in Perth. You could be a brain surgeon, but you are not allowed to knit in Perth. You could be John Keats and live your WHOLE LIFE without being allowed to knit in Perth.
I think I'll stop there.
Sara was the one who wanted the knitting needles, incidentally. After the Morrisons-mother-daughter-wine incident, she was very, very worried that we would be stopped at the checkout in Dunelm Mill and not allowed to buy our 8 mm knitting needles (the very fat ones that would be about as dangerous as a STICK off a bush in the garden, which we could have for free instead of £ 2.85). But I, cravenly, did not inform the cash register assistant that I was buying them for my 12-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER. TO KNIT WITH.
and the cash register assistant did not ask me for ID.
