Oolong knits

Disclaimer: the title of this post may be misleading. Just saying... Kitchener stitch is a bind-off technique. It is often used to bind-off the toes of socks, the tips of mittens and the shoulders of sweaters, because it allows for two pieces of knitted fabric to be bound off seamlessly. In other words, Kitchener stitch is to bind-off what provisional cast-on is to cast-on. First things first, grafting and Kitchener stitch are not exactly the same thing. In knitting, grafting means joining two fabrics in such away that the join is invisible. You can graft two sides together (selvage-to-selvage grafting), graft a selvage to an end of the fabric (this will, of course, be visible), and graft two ends together. Kitchener stitch achieves the latter. Second things second, the historical background. Contrary to what most people think, Lord Kitchener did not invent this stitch. He probably did not even know how to knit. Neither did he claim its authorship or order someone else to invent...

Now for something completely different, Scrap Bag by Frankie Brown. I do not recommend knitted (or crocheted) bags, because, from my experience, the fabric is too stretchy and the bag is deformed with even the smallest weight you put in it. This bag avoids that problem because it is lined. A bit of work, but pleasant if you like sewing as much as knitting. The lining includes a plastic canvas in addition to the weaved fabric, so that the bag stands up and stays open on its own. Nice! I would suggest in addition to line the handles if you want to carry the bag with you and do not want the handles to become longer and longer and also uglier and uglier in the process.

I really hate those constant warnings of "strong language" or "mild sex". They are everywhere, TV, film theatres, etc. I think they treat viewers (or readers) as if they are stupid and weak minded. Who the hell has problems with "strong language"? It is just that: LANGUAGE. The big, scary thing. And as for sex scenes, goodness, just grow up! It is just sex. Bees do it too. And now there is this thing called trigger warnings that risks ruining our reading experience too. All of this shit reeks of self-righteousness and self-importance. (Yes, I am angry. I am very polite when I am not very angry). Why am I so angry? Because this is just one example of a set of social phenomena that is threatening free thought and expression as well as the sanity of still-sane mortals. Paradoxically, it is at universities, the greatest bastions of free and critical thought, that these phenomena are growing stronger. And the fact that these are US universities (and mediocre ...

I find myself frequently returning to Purl Soho's designs , partly because they are mostly free, partly because we seem to share a preference for simple and beautiful. I really appreciate the unpretentiousness (yep, that is a word and I got the spelling right at first attempt, unbelievable!) of their designs. Cap Sleeve Lattice Top is a sleeveless top with an extremely simple design (it is pretty much a rectangle with a slit in the middle) enhanced by a some lace details (I love the eyelets that finish off the rib edge). I took the photo from fancytiger . I hope she does not mind.

I am knitting a sleeveless sweater that I have designed. My design follows an unusual constructions. First the top of the sweater is knitted. By top of the sweater I mean the region where the armholes go, which must be knitted flat. This region is knitted starting in the bottom of the back with a provisional cast-on and then going up over the shoulders and finishing with the bottom of the top of the front (I got that right!), just where the armholes end. Here the stitches on the needle are joined in the round with the stitches of the cast-on and the body of the sweater is knitted top-down and in the round. Believe me, it sounds a lot more complicated than it actually is. My main reason to choose this design is precisely because I wanted to make this project as simple as possible. My inspiration for this design was Purl Soho’s Cable Back Shell . A nice, free pattern. Check it out! But I have changed a few important things. First and foremost, I am not sure how far my yarn is going, so...

I have already reviewed My Brilliant Friend, the first book of this series. But after reading the other three I have realized these books are actually one single novel divided in 4 volumes for convenience. So instead of reviewing them one by one, I have joined my review in one single extra post. That said, much of what I have written in my previous post definitely applies to the entire novel. And I could leave it at that, but I do have a few more things to say. To begin with, a warning to the future reader, this is really a single book. For example, it can be argued that the first volume does not even end where a chapter should end, considering that the second book will continue to describe the continuation of the scene that ends it. None of the volumes ends in a way that feels like an ending has been reached, even if they do not end with a standard cliffhanger, they still end too abruptly. So, if you are planning on reading it, be prepared to read a very looooong book. Is it worth...

Spring Kerchief by Sachiko Uemura is not a kerchief, but a plain triangle shawl. I love it, despite (or is it because of?) the extreme simplicity of its design. The choice of yarn and colours is key here.

I am back from holidays and that partially explains why I am a day late with my post. I still have a lot (and I mean a lot) more plants in my garden to write about, but I would like to take a break and write about something else too. The question is what? While on holidays I thought about a million (OK, maybe only a handful, but I like to exaggerate) things that I would like to say here, but now that I am sleepily sitting in my chair typing away I am too lazy to write about any. Lame post, great holidays and a nice enough photo. Next week there will (hopefully) be a better post. Oh, by the way, I have finished reading the 4 Neapolitan novels by Ferrante, so a new post for my book club is also in the makings.

Forest Mystery by "Amanita" Agata Mackiewicz is a truly beautiful design in one of my favourite colours (even if I have no clothes in it).

I have several Rhododendron bushes in my garden. Their flowers started to come out in mid-May, with one exception. This is the one in the vase, a young bush, and it blossomed earlier, late April. I think it is an Azalea. Rhododendron like acidic soil and plenty of water, but dislike tap-water (hard tap-water reduces acidity in soil). Good thing that it rains so much where I live. They like a good amount of acidic mulch such as chipped conifer bark, that should be renewed each spring when the soil is still moist. They do not need to be pruned, except for the removal of unhealthy, dead, diseased and damaged shoots, unless some shaping is required. If necessary, prune immediately after flowering. Do this by lightly cutting back shoots. Here you can read more about it.