The Minion Speaks!

Against the advice of many fellow overlords, I have decided to allow The RedHeaded Minion to speak directly to you - the inhabitants of the blogosphere.  And so - without further interruption - I bring you this important message.

~TSMK


It hit me at 2:14 am (I do all my best thinking in the wee hours of the morning) that I should introduce myself and let you, dear readers, get to know me a little bit. (If you really don't care and would rather skip to the update on the website, skip down to "And On the Techno-Geek Front..."


As far as physical appearances, Leeloo has the same color hair as I do, and if it stays as hot here in Michigan as it has been, chances are good I may make an attempt at pulling off her style of clothing as well! I'm pretty short (about 5'2") and pretty average in bone structure and looks (though, Mr. RHM disagrees with me on that). I'm very proud of my red hair - as it falls half-way down my back.

I am a (former) techno-geek for a large company that most of you have never heard of. I say former, because although I still do consulting work for them from time-to-time, I had to leave the Company. Some of you may recall a recent lawsuit filed by a woman who claimed she was fired from a financial institution because she was simply too attractive. I shouldn't really go into specifics - but let me just say I know how she feels. My "official" title was "I.T. Coordinator" even though I had no one to 'coordinate'. My responsibilities were that of the Network/Systems Admin, Web designer and Help Desk all rolled into one.

After I left my old post, Mr. RHM and I went into business for ourselves (well, okay, he kept his "real" job/career and I dealt with all our business stuff) and our business is now at the point that I need other things to keep me busy during the day (hence, becoming TSMK's minion).

I knit, my daughter (sub-minion B) knits & crochets and my son (sub-minion C) is starting to knit. I'm not that skilled yet, but I know a good deal when I see one, so I jumped at the chance to enhance my stash and do some techinical work! I also train search dogs, and own/am the handler for 2 beautiful German Shepherd females.

I have a bit of a twisted sense of humor (probably from my work and training in Emergency Services) and I'm a bit of a Jill-Of-All-Trades...

And On the Techno-Geek Front...

Over the course of the next few weeks, I will be testing the new website. I want to make certain it is compatible in all web browsers, and still looks good/is easy to read/the new functions work well.

What this means for you:


It means that occasionaly when I am testing something the redirect that automatically takes you from www.thestraightmaleknitter.com to www.thestraightmaleknitter.blogspot.com will not work. Most of you (if not all of you) have historically accessed the site through blogspot anyway, so it will not affect most of you.


Please, feel free to send me your ideas/questions/suggestions/comments - I really do look forward to hearing from you.. My email is redheadedminion(at)yahoo(dot)com. (Yes, like TSMK has said, that REALLY is my email address).


In terms of specific changes, we will be incorporating a photo gallery for sure - and are evaluating a number of other interesting ideas as well - like a feature that allows you to link to a designer's website to order patterns/books/yarns, etc. from past (and future) projects that TSMK does.


Okay... I think that's it for now.. I look forward to becoming an integral part of the TSMK team :-)

Happy Reading!


The RedHeaded Minion

A bit of housekeeping

Just over a year in to the blog, and it seems time to make a few changes.

No, this will not now become a forum for discussing Choreplay.  That has been done.

However, I recently learned that the http://www.thestraightmaleknitter.com/ domain has become available.  And like a 15 year old boy being offered a ride in a bus filled with scantily clad cheerleaders I jumped at the opportunity.  So readers can now access the blog through either the blogger site or the stand-alone domain.  At present, the domain will redirect readers to the blogger site.  But soon - all that will change.

How, you ask?  How can a banjo-playing neoluddite learn the skills necessary to develop a web presence?  It is true, it seems on par with the World of Warcraft commercials featuring Mr. T. 


Well, I'll tell you how.

I've acquired a minion.

And not just any minion.  A redheaded minion.  Those are the best type.  Plus, my minion is female.  Yes. You heard me right.  I have a redheaded female minion.  Truly, world domination cannot be far away. 

I know this because Mrs. TSMK is also redheaded.  Although she clearly is not my minion.  I'm more of her minion, but that's a whole other blog post.  Harnessing the power of the redhead can be a scary thing - like splitting the atom.  This should be interesting.

I've never met my minion, nor even seen a photo of her in any significant detail. And for that reason I'm free to assume she bears a startling resemblance to Leeloo from The Fifth Element.  At least, if Leeloo had enjoyed knitting and agreed to be compensated in yarn.

So Leeloo has agreed to assist in developing the domain site as an upgrade to this forum.  When we're finished, we hope to have some additional functionality not available (or at least that I can't figure out how to manage) on the blogger site.  For example, a gallery of finished objects.

But this is an interactive forum.  And so we're soliciting input into what other additions/improvements you might like to see on the blog.  If you have any suggestions, please feel free to email them to redheadedminion@yahoo.com.  No, seriously.  That's Leeloo's email address.  Too cool.


So far, Leeloo has already exceeded my expectations, as she drags this neo-luddite kicking and screaming into the world of social media.  For, starting last Friday, I'm told I now have a facebook fan page.

As a second item of housekeeping, I'm pleased to announce that I've mailed off four skeins of Cascade plus two skeins of my handspun to Amy in Iowa. 

As the selected participant in the TSMKBO-YAG event, Amy indicated that she prefers purples, blues and greens.  So, purples, blues and greens it is.  Along with one skein of black/brown for construction of the Echidna.  I can't wait.

~TSMK

What would you choose?

Suppose you were given a choice. You could have any conceivable superpower. What would you choose?

Super strength? Well that worked well for Superman, but by the 50th time you accidentally pulled a door off of its hinges or crushed a kitten you might begin to rethink your selection.

Super senses? Spiderman did well with this one. But personally, I’m not sure I’d want Palatka to smell any stronger. And I definitely wouldn’t want Hell to be any louder. So I’d pass on that one as well.

Invisibility? That’s intriguing. But I think it might be a prelude to mental illness. If I had the ability to be invisible, I’m thinking my personal hygiene would begin to suffer. And once your personal hygiene goes down the drain, madness must soon follow.

No, for me there would be only one choice: the ability to manipulate time.

With this power, you don’t need any of the others. Plus, this power gives you the chance to stretch out those periods of life that you want to savor and to accelerate those things you would prefer to be over.

I’d like to say that I would use this power only for good - like stopping time in order to scoop up the small dog that has wandered into traffic before it got hurt. I would indeed use it for those types of purposes.

But, I’m afraid I would use it for other – somewhat less charitable - purposes as well. Like slowing down time just enough so that every evening when Mrs. TSMK gets ready for bed her normal cadence of disrobing is transformed into a sultry striptease. That would be awesome.

Unfortunately, I cannot manipulate time in normal space and so I am unlikely to find a way to surreptitiously change my bedroom into a gentlemen’s club. But I can manipulate what I’ll call Blog-time.

And I now exercise my right to do just that. Notwithstanding earlier suggestions about the length of time that TSMKBO-YAG would remain in effect. I hereby declare the giveaway completed. For I have made my selection.

There were many excellent entries. And in truth, I wish I could pick more than one. But in the end, my choice was clear. Amy from Iowa ran away with this one.

For you see, Amy suggested that I need a mascot for my desk. But not just any mascot. No, Amy recognized the deeply spiritual nature of this journal and, in recognition of my admittedly unusual leanings, she committed to making: The Echidna.

And so, with Amy’s help, I will be paying homage to the all-knowing echidna who sits at the center of the universe. She will knit together the skin of this spiny deity – although he will not be anatomically correct and she will therefore not attempt to knit a representation of his four-sided penis. I will work to create a suitable environment within my office for him to sit. And, once appropriately enshrined, The Echidna will prove a worthy subject of contemplation and reflection.

Thank you to all who participated.  And thank you Amy for your fantastic submission.  Echidna permitting, I will post pictures on his arrival.

~TSMK

TSMKBO-YAG Update & a Confession

First - the update:

As of today, we're approximately one week into the TSMKBO-YAG and things are definitely interesting.  I've received a number of very appealing offers, ranging from hats to bowls to amigurimi.  And yes, I've been referred to as Delectable.  I confess I rather like the sound of that last bit.

And lest anyone forget, the selected participant will be receiving 4 skeins of Cascade 220, along with two rustic skeins of yarn, hand-washed, hand-carded and hand-spun by yours truly. 

And now - the confession:

I can't pick.  There, I said it.  Now it is out in the open.  And after all, since the first step is admitting you have the problem I feel good about coming clean.  Whew - catharsis can be exhausting.

But I still can't pick.  At least not with respect to knitting.  I'm actually getting almost decent at my clawhammer banjo efforts - and can passably flatpick when required.  But picking at knitting?  That's another story altogether.

This past weekend I took a class at my LYS and still all-time favorite shop.  The class was intended to teach picking to those of us who throw.

I throw.  Vigorously.  And I think I'm relatively quick at it so I wasn't interested in learning to pick in order to gain speed.  No, I wanted to learn because like an idiot I recently purchased Traditional Scandinavian Knitting by Sheila MaGregor and Mostly Mittens: Ethnic Knitting Designs from Russia by Charlene Schurch.

Apparently, one of the traditions in traditional Scandinavian and Russian knitting is to use as many colors as possible.  I've knitted a few multi-hued things in the past, but have always thought it would be nice to find a way to knit with one color in each hand.  Picking offered me the promise of doing just that.








But alas, that promise went unfulfilled when my fingers revealed their true stripes.  Manual dexterity was a thing of the past.  In fact, as the class progressed I actually began to wonder if perhaps my fingers had been drinking.  That sounds strange, obviously, but if I recall correctly a lesson learned in my youth - this is entirely possible.



If Mr. Bimble can hire the crew.  Then perhaps I have my own Mr. Bimble - or Mr. Bumble.  Or an entire Mr. Bumble family.  And if that is possible, then it is possible that they were drinking on the job.

Yes.  That must be it.  It isn't that I lack manual dexterity, it is the besotted Bumble family living in my fingers which must be blamed.  I must speak to The Echidna about them and perhaps get them into some form of twelve-step program.











And so, although I cannot yet adequately pick, I will soldier on.  I want to make some multistranded mittens for use this winter, and so need to get started. 

On a positive note, I finished my first foray into the world of entrelac: a blanket for the child of a coworker.  Some will recognize it as the blanket which first caused me to come to grips with my adorableness.  Finished and blocked, it is roughly 28" x 48" - or the approximate size of a crib mattress.  Berroco Comfort in pink and white, with a pink i-cord edging.  At approximately 49,000 stitches (not including the edging), this one took quite a while from start to finish, although its progress was interrupted for a period by the need to complete the Jungle Party Stole.  Now that it is done, I can get back to working on the next item to be given away (which should follow soon after the completion of TSMKBO-YAG.


~TSMK

An Important Public Service Announcement

I’d like to direct this post to any single straight male non-knitter readers. Unfortunately, I don’t think I have any such readers. And so, I’ll ask my regular readers to please forward this on to anyone who fits that description. It is important. Don’t worry, I’ll wait to continue until you’ve done so.

Ok – there. That should be enough time.

Now gentlemen – I have a very serious message for you. You must learn to knit.

I know. This comes as a shock to many of you. For many of you have been conditioned to believe that doing anything remotely artistic or craft-related will somehow shrink your testes. I assure you, there is no scientific basis for this myth.

But more importantly, I’m here to tell you an important secret. And it is a secret – so I’d appreciate it if anyone who is not a single straight male non-knitter would look away. The secret is this:

Many women think male knitters are sexy.

That bears repeating, so I’ll repeat it: Many women think male knitters are sexy. Not every woman feels this way, of course. But many do. And consider for a brief moment the consequences of this important fact. Because many women lust after male knitters, and there aren’t many straight male knitters. . . a single straight male knitter could find himself in the enviable position of having to select from a bevy of beautiful admirers.

I know this. First, because I am adorable. Also, because yesterday I received one of the greatest emails ever written.

I won’t reprint the email in its entirety – it is far too personal. But suffice it to say that I received this message from a young woman in Southern California. For purposes of this posting, I’ll refer to her as “Sophia”. She wrote to offer up that she was single, enjoyed spinning fleece into yarn, and was looking for a straight male knitter who might enjoy her . . . talents.

Sophia discreetly asked whether I might be single, and suggested that she would not be adverse to a relationship with a gentleman friend in Washington state.

Yes. That’s right. Sophia suggested that the two of us consider entering into a romantic relationship based, in part, on our mutual love of yarn.

And there’s more. Sophia included a picture of herself in her email. Two photos in fact. Plus a photo of her lovely handspun yarn.

After a brief email exchange (during which – it should be noted – I honored fully and at the first opportunity the terms of my marriage contract and informed Sophia of my pre-existing and well-established pair-bonding with Mrs. TSMK), Sophia gave her blessing that I might describe her “proposal” in this journal. In fact, Sophia gave permission for me to use her photos as well.

A true gentleman would never be so bold as to take advantage of a lady’s position. And so I will not here post her photo. But allow me to describe her.

Sophia is slender – with tousled strawberry blond locks neatly framing her face and delicate cheekbones and jaw. Having a distinct pout to her lips and a fine Grecian nose, she resembles slightly some of the more exuberant representations of Aphrodite - although I assure you Sophia was (alas) fully clothed in her photo.

There is an innocence in her face, which is counterbalanced slightly in the photo by a partially exposed tattoo above her breast. Gentlemen, I submit to you that this woman is stunning.

But back to the original thread – she sent me her proposal without ever having seen or met me. All she knew of me was that I knit. And, in fact, I doubt very much that she read the blog – as she didn’t know I was married – and so she likely didn’t have a feel for my particular sense of humor or ahem eccentricities.

This, gentlemen, was lust based solely on fiber.  Lest you think I exaggerate, let me give you one additional fact.  Sophia said I was "delectable".

Just so there is no mistake - allow me to present the definition of the word:

Delectable:
- adjective - 1.  delightful; highly pleasing; enjoyable
                   2.  delicious

- noun -       3.  an especially appealing or appetizing food or dish.

Gentlemen, this goddess described me using a word typically only reserved for fine cuisine.  It doesn't get any better than that.

And so, I suggest to you that like the ability to cook risotto, play passably well at least one musical instrument (not including your armpit), change the oil in your car and explain with some measure of confidence the basic principles of geometry – knitting is a skill that every man must have.

And with that, gentlemen, I leave you to go about your business.  Thank you for listening, and adhering, to this important public service announcement.

~TSMK

Oh – and another thing. If anyone wants an introduction to an attractive single woman in Southern California – let me know. I’ll be happy to facilitate an exchange of email information.

TSMKBO-YAG - Upping the Ante

After much thought (and one suggestion) I've decided to up the ante slightly.  So, in addition to the Cascade 220 - the selected participant will also receive two of my own attempts at handspun.

The cream skein is laceweight - about 165 yards.  The brown skein is worsted - about 75 yards.  Both are rustic.  But both were hand picked, washed, carded and spun by me. 

~TSMK

The Importance of Ritual

Today marks the one-year anniversary of this blog. It has been a lot of fun, and more than a fair amount of work. I’m averaging slightly less than one post per week. That doesn’t seem like a lot, but it takes a decent amount of time for me to center myself, make contact with the all-knowing echidna who sits at the center of the universe, channel his energy and then put pen to paper (or finger to keyboard, as the case may be). Plus, all that time takes away from my available knitting time, so the more I write the less I might seem to have to write about. Quite the paradox – Zeno would be proud.

As I am a creature of habit, I would like to find a way to incorporate my blogospheric efforts into my daily routine. To develop a ritual of putting finger to keyboard at the same time every day. This approach serves me well in many other aspects of my life. I know, for example, that every morning when I brush my teeth I will place my left hand on the edge of the sink, lean on that arm, and stare at my face in the mirror during the process. By engaging in this ritual every morning, I inure myself to the potential shock that might result if I failed to stare at myself for simply a few days, and returned to the looking glass to see the steady effects of the aging process.

Ritual is good. It is healthy. And it helps us cope. Just ask a few of my retirement-age colleagues who still come to the office every day. If they failed to come to the office they might die – or at least suffer the pangs of catastrophic constipation.

I am a fan of ritual. So much so in fact that I make a practice of incorporating ritual into my life wherever possible. And I hope to share the benefits of ritual with others. So, for example, I underwent the arduous challenge of Internet-based ordination so that I might be qualified to officiate at weddings and other similarly ritual-laden ceremonies. But despite the book that came with my excellently laminated card proclaiming me The Right Reverend TSMK, my ordination did not provide me with any insight into how I might incorporate ritual into my blogging.

No, this effort (and its recently launched companion blog: http://bytesofgrass.blogspot.com/) are apparently unaided by ritual. The echidna will not be constrained.

And so, without ritual, I must fall back on what I find motivates me most about this blog: the readers. And as I am not hindered by scruples, I am prepared to offer continued incentive toward readership. Yes. That’s right. I’m giving something else away.  I’m hereby announcing the start of the TSMK BLOG ONE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY GIVEAWAY (the “TSMKBO-YAG”).

But this something is not a finished object (but stay tuned for an FO giveaway in the next month or so). And it is not without price. Here’s the deal. I’ve decided to give away something from my stash. Several somethings, in fact. I’m giving away four skeins of my favorite workaday yarn – Cascade 220. But there’s a catch. I’d like to receive something in return. Specifically, I’m hoping we can reach a deal on an FO. I supply the yarn and the recipient uses some of it (absolutely no more than two skeins – preferably one skein) to make me something. It can be something for my office. Something for me to wear. Something that will spur me to continue to blog about the absurdity of being a straight, knitting, skateboarding, banjo playing, lawyer father of three.

Deal?

If you’re interested, shoot me an email at tsmkblog@yahoo.com, and let me know what you would propose to make and what color Cascade 220 you would prefer to use (I have it in many, many shades). I will keep this offer open until at least August 15 – subject to extension or early close in my sole discretion.

~TSMK

A Five Dollar Box of Guilt

This past weekend, several of our neighbors had a garage sale. It was one of those multi-family, take over the cul-de-sac kind of events – complete with a lemonade stand. Our own children chose a bake sale, and cleverly convinced Mrs. TSMK to purchase their raw materials and make their inventory. This is a fantastic business model, as it effectively reduces their cost of goods sold to $0.

I did not participate in the garage sale, although I did chaperone the bake sale for a period of time. I brought out a camping chair, and sat behind the young entrepreneurs offering reminders of how to make change. And picking wool. A lot of wool in fact. I’m about one bag through my original three bags full, and am starting to get the hang of it. Of course, I’ve since become some sort of a magnet for free fleece, so I have a long way to go before I’ll catch up with my inventory.

Like many (I hope), I occasionally find myself overwhelmed with the things I want to do, the things I need to do and the things I feel like I should do. Turning the fleece into usable yarn falls somewhere within intersection of things I want to do and things I feel like I should do. It isn’t exactly a need, but there is nevertheless a psychic cost to allowing the fleece to sit unattended. It is, in essence, a large, somewhat scratch and sheep-smelling albatross around my neck. And so, it feels good to be making headway on the fleece. More on that in posts ahead.

Anyway, I bring up the garage sale because while sitting there, minding my own business, picking my wool and fielding the occasional question from curious onlookers, one of my neighbors (“Fred”) approached me with a box. A reasonably large box, it was stuffed to the brim with yarn. Some of the yarn was crocheted into the start of something. Some of the yarn was still in skeins.

Fred offered up the box, complete with all contents, for $5. After a raised an eyebrow, he started to explain. When he and his wife (“Wilma”) were dating, she had begun to make him a blanket. As they dated, she worked on it from time to time. But ultimately, when they married, Wilma lost interest. Laughing, he suggested that perhaps she’d figured she didn’t need to finish the blanket because she’d already achieved her objective in making it – convincing him to stick around.

But Fred and Wilma had married about ten years ago. And ever since then, Wilma had been moving the box around from house to house, closet to closet, and feeling vaguely guilty about not finishing the project that whole time. Now, finally, it was time to let go of the project.

I bought the box, of course.  At 197 yards per skein, thirteen skeins in the box and a total purchase price of $5, this works out to roughly 5 yards per cent.  I'm too cheap to pass up that good of a deal.  But after buying it, I started thinking about the story told me, and of Wilma's decision to let go of the project.  This is a huge deal.

I know because I recently released an albatross of my own. She was a 1976 Alfa Romeo Spider that I’d had since college. Her name was Cecilia. Mrs. TSMK and I drove her all over the place for years, even left our wedding reception in her. She was fun, and fickle, and perhaps the most absurdly impractical car you could own. Back home in Florida, she made some sense. Here in the Pacific Northwest, however, she leaked like a sieve any time it rained (which is of course about 270 days a year). And she didn’t like to start. And she didn’t have a back seat.

I loved her. And I carried her with me from Florida to Washington, D.C., and then to our current home. Over the better part of two decades I held on to that gorgeous piece of steadily rusting sexiness.

But when she ran she didn’t run well. And often she didn’t run at all. So just a few weeks ago I said goodbye to Cecilia and sold her to a fellow from Portland who has the time and energy and disposable cash to make her lovely again. I miss her tremendously. But if I’m honest I also feel an immense sense of relief. I’ve removed one item from my list of things that I feel like I should do – restoring Cecilia. There are plenty of items remaining in that list, but again – it feels good to make headway.

~TSMK

A Field Trip

Some time ago, I posted about a trip I made to a well-known LYS, only to be frustrated by an environment that I’ll charitably refer to as less-than welcoming. Plus, they didn’t have what I was looking for. That’s a bit of a double-whammy.

In response to that earlier post, I received a number of comments. One of those comments came from someone affiliated with another LYS, suggesting that I give their shop a try and even offering that they “specialize in not being snobby.”
And so I did.

Yesterday, we had the whole family up and out of the house early as we needed to run some errands on the Seattle side of the water. After an initially delicious but later somewhat sedating breakfast at a local institution, we made our way to a number of local retail haunts. For the oldest guy, we made a stop at the Lego store. For the middle guy – a place where a child can make his own stuffed animal and then plead with his parents for miscellaneous swag to go with the toy. Honestly, did we need to make a Darth Vader costume that will fit a teddy bear?

For Mrs. TSMK a local apparel retailer to exchange an item or two. For me – after a quick trip to my favorite snowboard/skateboard shop – we headed down to Kent.

More specifically, we headed down to Renaissance Yarns. I hadn’t been there before, and managed to get turned around while driving through Kent. But ultimately we found the spot. Tucked conveniently around the corner from an ice cream shop in an open-air mall.

I knew at once I would like the store, for they had hand-knitted and hand-crocheted lingerie hanging in the window. Clearly, this was my kind of place.

We were greeted immediately by a very cheerful clerk. As is typical, she initially approached Mrs. TSMK and asked her if she needed help. I know this is a bit sexist, but kind of like this common mistake as it typically gives me a chance to elude the clerk and begin examining the shelves. I seized upon that opportunity in this case, and immediately went about exploring the shop.

It is a small shop, but very well lit.  Like my LYS, it is exceptionally clean and is very well organized. Much of the inventory I recognized: good workmanlike stuff like Cascade 220, various kinds of Rowan tweed and similar yarns. But there were a few things I hadn’t seen before. My favorite of those was Zauberball sock yarn. I had read of this product on Ravelry, but hadn’t had a chance to see it up close. On inspection – I liked it very much. It comes in a bunch of vibrant colors and is a nice 75/25 blend of wool and polyamide. It feels very soft. I don’t really need any more sock yarn. In fact, I don’t really need any more yarn of any type as I’m spinning more and more (another 200 yards or so of lace weight last night). But I couldn’t resist and ended up buying two Zauberball err. . . balls. 

 

Who knows, maybe one will turn into a Christmas present.

In the back of the store came the biggest and coolest surprise. They have a whole wall filled with interesting roving for spinning, along with a number of other spinning accoutrements. I see this as seriously cool – and took the opportunity to point out a nice double-treadle wheel to Mrs. TSMK as a possible Christmas present idea. She didn’t look too excited about the possibility, but didn’t become actively sick at the notion either. So maybe there’s hope.

And so, all in all, I’d have to say that I enjoyed my trip to Renaissance Yarns quite a bit. The shop was welcoming and carried good product – all at reasonable price points. The clerk was very friendly, and didn’t seem particularly shocked that I was the knitter in the family. I can’t say for sure when I’ll be back, as I’m rarely in Kent. But if I find myself in the neighborhood with some time to kill – I can absolutely see me making my way back to the shop.  Especially if they have a pattern for those very hot pink boy shorts that were displayed in the window.  I'm pretty sure Mrs. TSMK needs a pair of those.

~TSMK

A Day at the Zoo

Some time back, I made a baby blanket for a colleague, to celebrate the fact that she was about to become a grandmother. It turned out fairly well, and she appreciated the gift.

My colleague serves on the Board of Directors of our local zoo, and after seeing the blanket she asked if I would consider making something to donate to their annual charity gala and auction. Of course I said yes, and set about trying to decide what to make.

Ultimately, I opted to make the India Stole – a pattern by Sylvie Beez. It is a relatively straightforward lace stole. Really the only tricky part is that it is knit from the center out. You use a provisional cast on, and knit outward. When you finish one side, you go back and pick up those provisional stitches and knit outward in the opposite direction.

Oh. And it is beaded. Not a few beads, mind you, but several hundred tiny, tiny beads of purplish-black.

I chose to do it in black Jaggerspun Zephyr, which is a 50/50 blend of superfine merino wool and tussah silk. It has a nice sheen to it, and is easy to work. The whole project was done on what are still my favorite needles, Addi Turbo Lace circulars. And the beads were threaded on, one at a time, with a crochet hook of microscopic proportions.

I finished the project in late June, blocked it, and brought it into the office. While here, we set about searching for an appropriate model for a few photos. Of course, we wanted to find someone wearing a bright enough color to show off the lacework. Ultimately, I couldn’t opt for just one model and ended up with three. And so, three beautiful friends: BL, NC and HO each took turns wrapping themselves in my work for the photos. It was a bit like a dream I remember having when I was about 15, except there was knitting involved and the three ladies in question were fully clothed.

Photos taken, I handed the stole off to my colleague.

The auction was last Friday. The stole was displayed as part of the silent auction – with a short write-up about it having been donated by a local oddball and blogger named The Straight Male Knitter. I’m pleased to report that the stole did well. It received only a single bid – but that bid was at the guaranteed purchase price amount – and so it cut off any additional bidding. That tickles me – the first person to bid decided she wanted to ensure purchase and not leave anything to chance.

The zoo got the cash for the stole and the stole got a new home. And, as luck would have it, the stole was actually purchased by the wife of a friend and former colleague.  Pretty cool.  Hopefully they'll let me do something similar again next year.
~TSMK