The adventures of Savannah! (the stole formerly known as SOTSii)

Well, it's official - I am a lace knitting champion and Viking Queen!

Why? Because I have finished the Savannah stole by Nautical Knitter.


The stole pattern was given to me through a mystery knit-a-long... my first, but by no means my last! It was originally known as Secret of the Stole II.



Although I had very severe growing pains initially with the project (I would consider it my first major lace project) and as a result nearly flung it off the balcony in a hissy fit on a couple of evenings, I'm now very glad I stuck it out.



Even though I did all the work for it (with encouragement from my blog friends and the very kind Nautical Knitter, I should add), it's almost like getting a big huge belated Christmas present!!


Specs:
Yarn: Malabrigo Lace, 125 grams (2.5 skeins) - laceweight merino in Azul Profondo colourway

Needles: 3.25mm

Start Date: 21 January 2008

Finish Date: 18 March 2008

(Amazing to think that it grew so much in that space of time, really!)

Unblocked size: 62" by 19.5" d



Finished size: 70" w by 24" d

(approximately 11 inches too long for me to model with the traditional wing thing (I don't know what you call it). This is the closest I could manage:

Notes:

- I already have a ton bunch more Malabrigo in the stock. It drapes wonderfully and is ultra soft!


- The pattern was relatively simple once I managed to figure it out and to learn that I am not invincible and just have to count and use lifelines like all the other mortals!


- DK (Nautical Knitter) was extremely encouraging to myself and others. It was a pleasure to meet her and I would definetely recommend any future KAL with her.

- I added beads in between rows 153 and 412 (I think). I enjoyed doing this but in future would place them with a crochet hook rather than stringing them on.

- as usual, it looks better on Aphrodite than me!

- I had a lot of fun photographing this. Because the sun was shining (for once) on Saturday, I decided to take a little stroll to Casa Loma:

...which some guy, Sir Henry, who decided that he wanted to live in a castle built between 1911 and 1914. A fitting tribute to my SOTSii, I thought.

However, in order to get to Casa Loma I had to walk through Millionaires' Row a rather high end part of the city which is either referred to as "Lower Forest Hill" or "Upper Annex" in the real estate ads depending on which neighbourhood is more popular that week.

Although these are not gated communities (yet, anyway), the people who live here seem to think that they are entitled to special treatment. For instance, one woman who lived in a house which looks like this:


... came outside and started to give me a piece of her mind for daring to take a photograph of the SOTSii on her sidewalk. This on the public pavement, mind you.

Well. She didn't realise that she had a pinko who also happens to be a lawyer on her hands. In other words, I have many years of professional training in talking for hours and boring people to death until they agree with my point.

So, I did have a few words with her, something along the lines of "Where there are municipal signs,

...I am free to walk - my taxes pay for this privilege and as a tenant I pay proportionately higher property tax rate, more than double, as it happens - so in fact this means that if I want to bring a lawnchair along, put on some tunes and hang out here all day, I'm free to do so. And, by the way, I've been known to sing aloud in Greek and the background music can be quite whiny indeed. Oh, let me advise you that should you have a problem with me, you're free to call your City Councillor and see how far you get... "

She ended up fleeing the scene. And I ended up getting a rather good picture of the SOTSii taken right on her property!!

Heh heh heh.

I wanted to try the same stunt at this place:

.. but thought they may well have two or three guard dogs who love to feast on red pinko trespassers.

So I headed straight to Casa Loma, where apparently they had been warned that I was on my way:

I must confess I did have a look around for the smoking police (did you know they have more tobacco by-law enforcement officers in this City than residential property inspectors?!). Seeing no one, I did get this photo:

... as well as many of the others above.

As I was leaving Casa Loma, I spotted this huge residential property across the street:

You won't be surprised to know that it was actually this which caught my attention:
... so of course I just had to take a photo.

So, after a fun filled morning it was time to take the yellow blue brick road

out of Millionaires' Row (how I do love slumming)


... and back to my very own humble abode.

Happy Monday (and if you have today off as a holiday, I don't want to hear about it. I'm on my way to work. Grr.

But here's my newest spooky creation in progress:

heh heh heh.

And... a free on-line mag accepted my Shazam! pattern for publication! The site is called All Free Crafts, and it's great. The Shazam! is found here! Yippee!

the true meaning of Easter

I read this on a website yesterday afternoon and found it very inspirational. I'm sure you will as well.

Easter is all about Jesus rising from the dead and scaring the hell out of his disciples who had moved on after his death to selling Chicklets to tourists. But sometimes I wonder if God was just a real forward-thinker. My guess is He convinced Christians to celebrate "Easter" to lay the groundwork so that hundreds of years later ... He could share his second greatest gift with us...

What is it, you ask?...

The Cadbury Creme Egg.

Seriously. I believe everything I read on the Internet. Just ask this guy.

(Although I must confess that I cheated on Cadbury when I was a kid. My favourites were some of the offerings from Laura Secord ...


... which even came in a large size! I don't know what size actually - the website says 300g/12 oz. - but it might as well have been a pound of gold as far as I was concerned!
I mean, a peanut butter chocolate egg - what's not to like?!

But I digress. Actually, I don't believe that the true meaning of Easter is chocolate (although lots of chocolate certainly does make the whole effort worthwhile!). Instead, to me, Easter is about colour. And lots of it.

I know, I know... too cute for words. But I couldn't resist! It reminded me of this Lace Silk I bought recently...

I actually thought it would be called "Easter" because of the colours. But it's actually called Popsicle. This name makes me shiver even though the first day of spring has passed - I'm still drinking snow cocktails to try to keep warm!

But, as is my wont, I digress. Not colourful enough. Next...

Well, today I had to pop along to the LYS to buy stitch markers:

I must say that I showed remarkable restraint today. I had gone in to buy stitch markers, and left only with this kid mohair:

Um, I guess the http://brouhahaknits.blogspot.com/2008/03/evil-spirits-in-angus-ontario.html">anti-mohair phase is definitely over now.

Then I went home and blocked my new Tuscany. Thought I'd photograph it upside down for a change:

(I did this partly because I didn't want you to see that I was idiotic enough to have to use THREE blocking wires on the top because I didn't bother to check to see if I had longer ones. Of course, I did. Sigh.)

Actually, though, it looks quite different from this perspective. Spookier. I like it. I wonder if I could get W to wear it like that?

I realised when I started to plot my new design project - secret stuff! - that this, too, is an Easter colour.
At least, it is in the Greek Orthodox tradition. The priests wear fancy purple robes in almost exactly this shade at this time of year (or so, at least, is my dim recollection surrounded by all the mists of the time passed since I last set foot in a church). It was a colour of mourning, apparently.

Red is also a big colour for the Greeks at Easter. They dye all the eggs red (that's red like the blood of Christ. I kid you not.)

Don't you love these web pictures of food on a white background. It looks as though it is flying through space! Anyway, this is traditional Greek easter bread called tsoureki. MMM.

However, I don't get any today because today is not "my" Easter. That doesn't happen until 27 April. Aphrodite is all miffed this morning because she doesn't get any candy. See? She's not talking to me!!!

Her problem. She should just suck it up, like I had to do. Besides, the leftover candy goes on sale on Monday!!! And - hey! - I never gave her permission to wear my Savannah stole (finally blocked - long boring post with millions of pics on Monday. This was known as SOTSii to me until today when the name was finally released.

Anyway, much to my surprise, JJ came home last evening and presented me with these for "his" Easter:

As you can see, I'll have to fight for them. And in case you're wondering where Bubbles went, s/he has been shipped off to boarding school.

(If you're any type of fan of soap operas, or ever have been, expect hir to come back a few weeks from now, magically 18 years old and pregnant/on drugs/etc).

I did relent and give one to Aphrodite, so now she's happy again.

Happy Easter/Sunday/feast day/whatever it is that you are celebrating today!