Queen of Birds
Seamstress, Costume Designer, and Costume Historian
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Something about "busy hands"

9/9/2016

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So I don't drive, but I have places to go and things to do, which means I spend a lot of time on public transportation. I don't listen to music on the bus like normal people, because I get worried that I'll forget my stop or something - but I can't just sit there with my thoughts because then I'll have time to worry about other things. So my solution since about June has been ~*knitting*~! I don't really like to sit with no project in my hands in general, so the knitting also comes with me to church** and the theater, and even just watching TV with my parents (the Great British Baking Show, if you must know. Or Project Runway.). I've got a lot done already.
My knitting project of choice is triangular shawls. They're in garter stitch, and i start with one stitch and do an increase at the beginning of every row. the first one, i did on extra small needles and it came out very tight but too stiff for a shawl, so I unpicked it. But the second one is this beastie!
Picture
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So huge and nice! There's a funny stripe effect, where I went from one yarn to another. They looked like the same color in the skein but in fact are not. I think it looks pretty weird flat but all right on the body. I think maybe I'll do a button and loop on either end of the front edge, because its big enough I could wrap it around and button behind me (if you see what I mean).
The second shawl is this one:
Picture
Its a bit smaller, and it's all funny and variegated. I had two skeins of that so it all matches. The skein's still attached at the corner because I want to give it a decorative border - maybe crochet? - so I bound off with yarn to spare. When it's done, it's going in my Etsy shop.
And right now I'm working on yet another, this time in Navy blue.
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This one is going to get a border with some stripes and maybe get big enough that I can use it for 1860s reenacting. I can't quite tell if large knitted shawls were a thing then, or if it was really just large fabric shawls or knitted sontags (which are a bit of a different shape). I found one thing claiming to be a Godey's knitted shawl but it seems a little bogus...
** - I always feel like I have to explain the "going to church" thing, because there's churches and there's CHURCHes. It's a Unitarian Universalist church. So, not on the CHURCH-y end of churches - very light on the Jesus and heavy on the interfaith exchange. Its just a nice community and for the most part people there are concerned about the same social justice problems that I am. And we sing pretty music and hymns and stuff, which I find very pleasant.
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    Nancy K McCarthy

    I can't stop myself from sewing constantly, and I have a lot of strong opinions about costume design. On the blog I'll post little tutorial things and updates of stuff that I'm working on.

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