Authentic

I have the good fortune of calling a very talented and lovely woman both my friend and mentor. From time to time Deanna will invite me to do cool things with her which is really a super nice gesture since she has lots of much cooler friends and a husband and three children she could easily pick over me. Thursday night I got to spend some great time with her at the Fabulous Fox Theater in Atlanta watching Wicked.

As a former music education major it shames me a little to admit that I have never seen this musical and as an avid reader is shames me further to admit I haven't read the book either. After having seen the musical I really want to read the book. And the songs were fantastic; the girl playing Elphaba had an amazing set of pipes!

But hanging with Deanna is more than just getting to see a critically acclaimed musical. There's usually some good food and always some good conversation and last night I even got a surprise.

About a month ago Deanna was off in Germany doing a series of really big speaking engagements. Deanna and her husband were missionaries in Germany and know people in pretty much every European country (as far as I am convinced) so Deanna knows her way around the continent. For part of her trip she was visiting friends in Norway and look what she brought me:

Real live Norwegian knitting patterns!

Oh, but the goodies don't stop there.

You know, just an authentic Austrian knitting book.

A wonderful Austrian knitting book picked up in, you guessed it, Austria. So very, very cool. This book is a classic.

 

 

CABLES!!!

And it's all about cables. Cable charts, pictures of cables, cables on sweaters, cables on socks.

A sweater pattern full of cables. Can't read a word of it but just look at the craftsmanship!

Deanna had no prior knowledge but I harbor a deep love of cabled things. I might even consider tackling one of the majorly complex looking cabled knee sock patterns (with detailed instructions on how to shape the calf) in this book because....

She also bought me sock yarn. From Austria. With which to make socks like Austrians do. I'm one lucky gal and Deanna's one heck of a friend.

A Day Late

So I know that I promised on Monday that I would post pictures of the Presto Chango baby sweater on Tuesday and then yesterday I didn't do it. But I had a good reason. I was out doing something very un-Melissa like. I went to a musical. By myself. And guess what...I had a good time.

Being in education I'm bombarded weekly with offers for discounts on 100s of things I neither want now use. But late last week I got an email from my big boss (the head honcho of the whole county) that there was this offer for free tickets to a local playhouse. On a total whim I thought, Why not? I should live a little. Get out, see some stuff, go places. So I sent the contact woman an email and bam! I'm hooked up with free tickets.

The musical was entitled The Dinosaur Musical. The name says it all. Think prehistoric family fun. I'm not sure I would have paid to see it on Broadway (I mean, there were 2 fart jokes in the thing) but it still made for a better evening than sitting on my bum at home. Plus there was a free reception before hand with cheese and wine (for free!) and I ran into an old friend of mine from college and we spent most of the night catching up so I really wasn't lonely being all by my lonesome.

But now I'm here to post some pics. The Presto Chango baby sweater as it currently stands.
Close up of the front panel.
Close up to see the yarn, which, by the by, I loved working with. Can I say that enough?
And a picture of the front panel alone but with with a very off color, I wanted to show some of the detail a little better.
Blocking the front panel is going to be the best part. I think the lace pattern will really open up and look nice. And it's generic enough that it doesn't look too feminine so it should do well for a boy or girl (though for some reason I imagine this as a boy's sweater, don't know why).

Outside of finishing a few little projects (blocking, seaming, sewing on buttons), I have nothing major planned. I think I may spend a little time on the pink sweater but I'm kind of biding time until next month. See, I limit my yarn spending to between $40 and $50 a month and I usually hit that in the first week. This month I bought a really expensive skein of Be Sweet Magic Ball. Next month I'm getting a ball winder, a skein, and some DPNs off eBay so I can wind yarn and start working on some other things I have planned. Until then it will be me and sweater and black holes of knitting.