I was literally going round and round in circles this weekend. Or trying to.
It was a weekend of emotions ranging from excitement at starting a new project to frustration, anger and finally contentment. The things I do just to join in with Sian's rather brilliant idea to see if we can all learn something new at the weekend. Having been moderately successful with my first effort at sock making (positive side - I ended up with a wearable pair of socks, negative side - stitch tension was variable to say the least) I was eager to get going on a second pair. Sian makes amazing footwear using a circular needle and it seemed to me that if I too had a circular needle, all my tension issues would be resolved. New wool and a circular needle arrived in the post on Friday and at the beginning of Saturday afternoon I couldn't have been more wrong. Never mind the tension on the needles, the tension inside of me was at breaking point! It looks relatively straightforward on a YouTube video; cast on here, slip stitches there, start knitting. But there was something I was missing. Some vital clue on why I could not see how on earth 64 stitches in a straight line were going to end up in a tubular shape. I watched clip after clip of various video lessons until I realised that the clips I saw went from
- Cast on stitches - to -
- Knit in the round
No one mentioned the fact that there was a '1 ½' stage where you slid the stitches down onto the flexible bit and pulled the loop through so you could then divide the stitches onto both needle ends. Once that penny had dropped I sank back in my chair with relief and got to grips with it. But, just be aware of what a lucky escape you had Sian, I was definitely thinking that the only way to sort it out would be to get on a Ryanair plane and head off to the Emerald Isle to sit round your table and have a cup of coffee and some one to one tuition. I would even have picked up one of those airport sized giant toblerones at Stansted to bring as a thank you. Hey, actually that doesn't sound such a bad idea!
Practice makes perfect
It's mid way through the Easter Holidays for me, and I've spent a lot of time in the kitchen experimenting with new recipes. We have friends coming over for dinner in a couple of weeks time and I wanted to try something new for dessert. My mum used to make the most amazing meringues, and although I've got her old recipe, mine never taste the same as hers did. Looking through my new cookery book I came across these little beauties. Tiny meringues sandwiched together with crème fraiche, lemon curd and crushed raspberries. So having learnt my lesson on Saturday about concentrating properly, and looking at instructions from start to finish rather than skim reading over the bits I think I know, I decided to give them a whirl. This was so much easier than starting a new sock - I think I've found a new favourite dessert!
Quick off the mark
The weather was so glorious on Saturday that we decided the time had come to uncover the summer patio furniture which had been carefully packed away at the end of last year. We wiped it down, brought out the cushions, put a throw over the seats, went indoors to make a coffee to bring out and enjoy it sitting in the garden, (another first for this year) however, look who got there first ...
9 comments:
so frustrating when there is a gap between instruction steps - glad to hear you found the answer - I love circular needles for knitting
I think it's a brilliant idea! Bring toblerone! Bring meringues! Just bring yourself! It'd be great :) The dessert looks delicious. It reminds me of a kind of bun my Grandma used to make with a pastry case filled with jam and some kind of coconut and a meringu-ey, coconut top. If you ever find a recipe for something similar, I'd love to hear it.
I'm really glad you didn't lose heart with the socks though and kept going. I'm learning to love circular knitting: hats, next, maybe?
Have a great week
Now meringues I can do. Socks? Not so much. I admire your perseverance. Have a great week off Deb.
Definitely several LOL moments in your week recap - laughing with you. Lucky you getting out to sit on the patio. Sending happy thoughts your way for a wonderful week ahead ...
Oh you are so much better than me, I would have chunked the needles and unfinished sock! Yay you for sticking with it! Those meringues look delish :)
I now know who to email when I get started on circular needles - I do admire your persistence. A knitting day with Sian would be splendid , wouldn't it! She's a mean hand with the coffee-making too. How lovely to be feeling that summer is a-coming; it's a bit more variable and chilly up here. Wishing you every success with those socks and your dinner party - that meringue combination sounds heavenly.
The meringues make perfect sense to me, and look amazing (lucky friends) .... The knitting bit! Well I think I must be reading a foreign language. Not one bit did I understand until you got to the toblerone lol
I'd have given up on the videos and booked the flight myself! And Coco knows a good thing when he sees it!
Hello! I have just popped over from Sian's blog. You are very brave trying those socks. Meringues I do make sometimes they are more successful sometimes than other times. I have been given a few tips along the way. Don't use fresh eggs ( that is quite important to us as being egg producers if I don't stash some away then all the eggs I can find are one day old.) some people say leave the whites in the fridge overnight. I am too impatient to do that. I do however freeze egg whites when I just use a yolk and they are great for meringues. Your dog looks a sweetie by the way. Oh and if you do go to visit Sian would you take me along? I would love to meet her!
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