Age of Brass & Steam Kerchief from The Wool Cabin—Day 5

What everybody wants...

This is one project where the bind-off is definitely not the last step.  In its un-blocked state, this is too small to be of any use, even as a kerchief.  This one needs “aggressive blocking” to take its rightful shape.  The way the fiber behaves, I have a sense it’s going to take the blocking beautifully.  Those eyelet rows will open up as the stockinette lays out flat and the bind off edge gains definition.

Earlier this week I “auditioned” for a speakers’ critique group I wanted to join as I seek to ramp up my public speaking career.  It’s a fine organization, but the mutual critiquing of each other’s presentations means I’ll spend three hours of sitting and listening twice a month.  Sitting and listening. Not my strength—I’m far too fidgety for long lecture/meeting scenarios.  And yet, I felt I could benefit a great deal from joining this group. 

What did I do? As I listed my qualifications and skills, I also asked, politely and professionally, that I be allowed to bring my knitting.  I explained that if I am knitting, they will get the best of my attention. I told them what I tell every presenter: “I’m not knitting because you bore me or I think you’re wasting my time, I’m knitting to help me focus my concentration on you.”  

Isn’t that what every speaker wants?  Isn’t that the exact opposite of what normally happens?  You know what I mean—people tune out after 20 minutes and check their phones or tablets, thinking the speaker doesn’t see.  Come on, we see.  No presenter wants to look out and see what, way back, we used to call “the Blackberry prayer”: head down, hands in lap, but typing, not praying.

They said yes.  I joined the group.  Knitting will get done, speaking will gain strength.  Everybody wins!

Age of Brass & Steam Kerchief from The Wool Cabin—Day 4

Giftability...

While I tend to favor full shawls over shawlettes or kerchiefs like this, they do have one attribute I like: they’re giftable.

A full shawl represents a serious commitment of time and artistry.  And, often, the expense of  multiple skeins of yarn.  This project takes one skein of just about anything—so you can go simple or sublime.  And while it’s not something you could just knock off in an afternoon, you don’t feel like you’ve given a month of your life to its creation.  That’s not to say I don’t choose to give lavish gifts of knitting now and then, it’s just that some knitting is easier to gift than others.  

This pattern, with it’s perfect balance of simplicity and style, its modest size, and its flexibility to be basic or luxurious, makes ideal gift knitting.

With the last of the eyelet sections completed, I’m nearing the final steps of this pattern. Nothing is more enjoyable than finishing up a gift project and getting ready to delight the recipient.  Here’s hoping your experience of knitting The Age of Brass and Steam does the same for you.

Fresh Till Cowl from Yarniverse - Day 5

Madeline-tense...

OK, now I’m worried.  

I love the color, the length looks okay—maybe a bit short, but that could be easily fixed in the blocking process.

It’s the curling that has me anxious.  There’s enough stockinette in this project for the piece to be curling in on itself in the way that stockinette does (and the way I hate).  It makes me nuts when my beautiful stitches are hidden in a sausage roll of stockinette.

It looks so nice and flat in the pattern photo.  I love the way it looks in the pattern photo.  I’m not loving the way it looks laid out on my table.

Keep calm and give the thing a bath.  This is what I’m telling myself.  Don’t judge a knitted piece before you’ve blocked it, especially one with openwork like eyelets.

So….deep breath, and to the tub it goes!