I finished the body
and arms of my Black Rose Cardigan and I’ve laid them out to block. I only hope that they dry in time as I still need to sew them up and add the border. I keep going to see if it has dried but it has been frustratingly slow dry even with the heating up on full!
Sirius gets highly excited every time I open the door.
I started back to work today but I sure felt a bit dopey still so I put a chicken in the oven for dinner and made a batch of chicken soup as I’m sure it is the best antidote to illness. Glad it is Saturday tomorrow! I have knitting to get finished. I’ve got one sleeve completely finished and one to go then button band. I’ve looked at the pattern again and decided to make it a simple ribbed colour instead of a shawl collar as it would better show off the pattern.
Sirius would love to do more than sniff the chicken! But he is good boy. Unlike some of those Minnesotan kittens I know 
I would have dearly loved to have made some Cranford mitts whilst I read this book but I’ve been rattling along trying to finish my Black Rose Cardigan before the end of January. It is a beautiful pattern and I might even have enough yarn left after making my cardigan to make some mitts but we’ll see…
I’ve had quite a bit of work scheduled this week but had to reschedule some of it as I lost my voice yesterday! Not the best thing for teaching so I’m going to have to catch up with all of that. I am not one to rush to the doctors every time I have something wrong but after having pneumonia, it has made me a bit conscious of what is going on with my body and having been poorly for quite a bit of the past fortnight, I thought it was a good idea to have it checked out. Unbelievably, my blood tests and xrays were back already this morning and I have the all-clear – just a viral illness so resting as much as possible and fitting everything in. Phew! It did mean that I managed to finish Cranford though
I did receive a very Cranford-esque gift in the mail from my friend Tomo. This beautiful necklace will look lovely when I’m wearing my (hopefully-finished-in-time) Black Rose cardigan. Thank you, Tomo!!
Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
I had never read Cranford and watched with interest when the series came on the TV several years ago. Elizabeth Gaskell was one of the authors I’d meant to read but never got round to so I watched the series and really enjoyed it and promised myself that I’d read the book one day. I know that many of those series do employ some artistic interpretation so it was nice to read the Gaskell’s original tale. I always remember at school being advised to read the book first so I could imagine my own interpretations of the characters and I do kind of wish that I had first but Dame Judi Dench as Miss Matty did stick in my mind as I read Cranford for the first time.
If you haven’t seen Cranford, let me give you a brief synopsis of the tale. It is the story of a small village with a close knit community of older women. There are the Jenkyns sisters, the daughters of rector; Miss Pole, a well-meaning busy body; Mrs Forrester, a widow; the Honorable Mrs Jamieson, a well-to-do widow; and Miss Barker. The women are not wealthy and but do maintain a gentility according to their means. The tale is told through the eyes of a visitor to the Jenkyns sisters, Mary Smith, who describes village life through the eyes of an outsider. Mary is slightly related (but I wasn’t sure how) to the Jenkyns sisters and is someone to whom they, and particularly, Miss Matty correspond with and seek comfort in the company of.
The novel begins when the Brown family come to settle in Cranford. Captain Brown with his ignorance of Cranford ways causes a stir but his kindness is well-known. He has two daughters, Jessie and Miss Brown, the latter being quite ill and cross despite and certainly give the ladies something to talk about.
It isn’t a novel of high drama but does draw some lovely characterisations. I am always bemused by the lace incident which I was glad to read was an actual part of the novel and not an invention by the screen writers for the TV series. In case you haven’t seen it, I’ve put a link to the video for your amusement:
As someone who loves reading a good mystery, Cranford is certainly a change of pace for me. I loved it though as I revelled in the characterisations and descriptions of daily life. It is a story that goes fairly slowly but does have a story that runs through it. The happiness of the Jenkyns sisters is blighted when the older sister, Deborah dies and Miss Matty’s living is diminished due to bad investments and you can’t help but become interested in what has happened to their younger brother who left the village in disgrace many years before and was presumed dead. I’d definitely consider reading another of Gaskell’s novels and I’m surprised I hadn’t read one of her novels before.
I’m trying to decide what to read next. Do I join Team Middlemarch or shall I go for something else? I was considering re-reading the Scarlet Letter again but pao mentioned Lord of the Rings but some of it (especially the spiders) are a little nightmare-inducing. I want to read a Dickens’ novel this year as it is the bicentenary of his birth this year and I’d like to go to Rochester to see the festival this year. I’ve read a few of his classic novels: ‘Little Dorrit’, ‘Great Expectations’, ‘Nicholas Nickleby’, ‘David Copperfield’ and ‘Bleak House’ but not delved past those. I thought I might try out some of his lesser known works – maybe Dombey and Son or his American Notes. What’s your favourite Dickens? Or is there something you can’t put down that I might enjoy?
2paw mentioned the novel March which I’m putting on my to be read list for later in the year. Deirdre mentioned the Mason-Dixon most haunting booklist and there are more than a couple on there which I’d like to read such as Gaiman’s ‘Coraline’ and ‘The Leopard’ by Lampedusa (which I think I last read at university) but don’t remember too well.
Choices, choices
All this book talk is clearly too much for Tamyra! She’s about to fall off the sofa!!
I’m taking a moment to take part in Silverpebble’s Making Winter blog hop. This month’s theme is Cosiness and Comfort.
Tamyra is a very floofy cat and we are enjoying her big fluffiness as she is starting to shed her winter coat for spring. It does mean that she has to be brushed more which she has never been keen on so bribery plays a large part in getting that job done. She gets to share a packet of wet cat food with Sirius whilst the brushing is taking place. They only ever get that particular treat when the brush comes out so I’m hoping that it will encourage some positive association. I’m going to miss her super fluff when she’s finished molting on the carpet
I’m racing along as much as I can to try and get my Black Rose cardigan finished for the end of January. I’ve finished the back and front now and
have started on the first sleeve. I’m doing it in the round so it won’t take as long with the sewing up but I just remembered I still have the button band and shawl collar to do after that but I might just get it finished as my Monthly Apparel project if I focus and get a move on!
I’ve already decided what my Monthly Apparel project for next month is and that is to spin up enough Alpaca to make some mitts. I would love to make some Fetching mitts with it but wonder how the different textures would work with it as there are lots of slubs and irregularities in my spun yarn.
I would hold it together with some other yarn such as some dark turquoise Drops Alpaca I have in the stash to make it the right weight. I think the long stripes at the front would be a good showcase. What do you think?
Tamyra thinks all the yarn is for her.
(sorry no photos this time! Just trust me – it is tasty and really good for making your feel better when you’re under the weather)
To make stock base for soup:
Turkey carcass (including any bits of skin) stripped of meat
4 carrots, put in whole
Bay leaf
Water
Salt and pepper
Place all of the above into a large saucepan, cover with water so about an inch about turkey carcass, bring to the boil and simmer until you have a nice stock for a good couple of hours.
To make up soup:
Strain bones from turkey stock and pick off any bits of turkey that might yet be hanging off the bones.
Add:
Leftover gravy
Leftover roast potatoes
A couple of spoons of stuffing (I used chestnut)
Blend these with the stock until you have a smooth soup. Sprinkle with chopped fresh herbs before serving – sage and parsley are very nice. If you are feeling adventurous, you could add other leftover veg such as brussels sprouts and parsnips. The parsnips would make it a little sweeter.
Serve with crusty rolls.
Sirius is happy to take his turkey any way he can!
Pao woke me when I was meant to be up and out and at a breakfast event but I felt so unwell he made me a cup of tea and drove me over to where I was meant to be then picked me up so I could deliver the bridesmaids’ jewelry to the bride to be. I’m thankful as she was thrilled with the sets I’d made. Afterwards, we headed home for sofa time to watch Ratatouille and then Dr Who which is just what I needed. Not sure why I still feel so icky still as I’m almost out of antibiotics so I should be feeling better surely??!
Knitty!
Wonderful tutorial on how to do a Russian join by the super-talented Susan B. Anderson.
Crafty!
Yum!
kitty!
Most of you correctly mentioned spinning as part of yesterday’s activities but you missed out of what Tamyra was pictured with.
To her right is a piece of weaving. I went on a course called from Fleece to Fabric where we spun in the morning and wove using a peg loom in the afternoon. I would have posted photos yesterday but had to figure out how to get them off my phone as I’d forgot to put my camera’s memory card back in the camera. Doh!
It was good to be reminded about how to card fleece into rolags.
It is so easy to make a spindle. An old CD or DVD is perfect but I took my own drop spindle with me as I have a very special one made by Sarah’s dad. It is gorgeous.
It was also good to be reminded about how to draw the fleece along which I’d forgotten how to do
and putting it into a figure of eight was a handy tip for when you had enough to put on the spindle.
I think it will be a while before I can get my yarn as smooth as his.
After a good morning on spinning, we got to get creative with the peg loom and Claire in the afternoon.
I’d not woven before but I could see how that could become addictive. I must not start another hobby. I have quite enough, thank you.
I did enjoy weaving some of the yarn I made in the morning into my own piece of fabric.
For some reason I fancied using two different colours for the basic weft(?)
The weaving bit did proceed a lot quicker than the spinning.
Ta-da my finished piece. I really had a fun day although it was tiring and today I feel a bit under the weather again. It has inspired me to investigate spinning a bit more though.