Monday, May 29, 2017

Age of Brass & Steam Kerchief from The Wool Cabin—Day 1

Good for what ails you...

I’ve spent the last five days nursing a cold so nasty I couldn’t even manage to knit until yesterday.  For me, you know that’s drastic!  I hardly ever get sick, but when I do, I seem to go big.  I had other plans than lying on the couch for the Memorial Day weekend, but alas, they were not to be.

Before this weekend’s terrible germ warfare began, I did get the chance to start The Age of Brass and Steam Kerchief.  Unwinding the Intrepid Tulips yarn from the hank into balls proved to be a tricky business—this unique yarn likes to “stick” to itself.  I’m guessing Intrepid Tulips dyer Sarah Marsden gave this merino-bamboo blend the name “Bamboo Frost” on account of its alluring sheen.  According to Marsden, this shimmering effect comes from the different ways the dye strikes the two fibers. It’s got the frosty, shiny look I normally associate with acrylic fibers, but feels silky and and knits with all of wool’s lovely qualities.

For fun, I went in search of possible inspirations for the Orange Flower Yarn pattern title.  It may just be a general steampunk reference. “The Age of Brass," however, also seems to apply to early resistance to the Women’s Suffrage movement, as in the cartoon below.
Library of Virginia image

Opponents to women’s voting believed that granting such civic rights would begin a dangerous slide to aggressive masculine behaviors and general “man-hating.” As a woman and a voter, I’m grateful wiser opinions prevailed.


This is a pleasant, untaxing pattern, alternating basic increasing stockinette sections with touches of eyelet detail—perfect knitting for an under-the-weather gal in need of a diversion as she recuperates.

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