Wednesday, May 27, 2009

The Mist Lace Scarf And The Cat


Well, here it is, my lace scarf. I just have to sew in the ends and take some decent photos of it.

It blocked up really well thanks to the Knit Picks wires and pins and as for the blocking mats, well, they are marvellous. It takes a while to get rid of that nasty chemical smell that you get with new foam, but if you can get past that, then the tiles themselves are great. I particularly love the fact that I can put them together according to the shape of my piece. In this case I made my blocking board 2 tiles deep and 5 long. I bought two boxes of them rather than one, just to be sure that I could easily block larger projects (each set contains nine 12" mats.) They slotted together beautifully and the pins slipped effortlessly into the foam.


The blocking took place in my bedroom. Having spent so much time on this scarf, I just had to find a place where the yarn could do its thing without the risk of a cat or child accidently destroying it.

My cat, Oliver, has often been tempted. Unattended yarn is like a red rag to a bull with him. I once caught him sneaking up on a pair of Two-At-A-Time socks. When I sprinted across the room yelling at him to "Get Off!" he panicked (wouldn't you?) and took off, catching the yarn around his neck and dragging my "work-in-progress" with him. Cat and knitter could be seen tearing around the house yarn and swear words flying. I finally cornered him in the front room. He looked innocently up at me with a heel flap dangling from his ear. As he resembles the ginger cat in "Shrek," you can picture the look he gave me. "Hard luck, cat," I thought, "if you had the voice of Antonio Banderas, I might fall for your charm, but not this time. I'm not so easily taken in."

Somehow I managed to retrieve my socks from my manic moggy. Actually, I think he was just as relieved as I was. Getting caught up in a mass of fiber and needles was proving to be less fun than he'd anticipated, I think. He looked at me as if I'd saved him from a terrible fate and then slinked off to lay in the sun for a while. Miraculously not a stitch was loss.

Since then I've had to be far more vigilant when Oliver is anywhere near my knitting (yes, he's named after that cuddly little kitten from the Disney animated movie, but he's about as far from that image now as a cat could possibly get.) Even leaping up to answer the phone can mean that when I return I get halfway through the next row to find the yarn has been gently gnawed through in my absense. Obviously blocking lace requires a room with a closed door and if necessary a full blown barricade.

When I took pictures of my work he 'pretended' to protect it.


When I started to block he positioned himself at the top of the stairs in a nonchalent fashion.......................but watched everything!


Somehow the scarf survived and therefore so did he, but the battle lines have been drawn.

10 comments:

Rudee said...

The scarf is stunning Jane. I love the color, I love the pattern, the whole thing. The cat is a little devil with the yarn though. Watch him closely!

suse-the-slow-knitta said...

it looks fabulous and you'll feel like a million dollars when you wear it (the scarf that is, not Oliver)

knittingqueen said...

Very pretty scarf, Jane! And in your beloved purple! A job well done. As for Oliver--someday he will be as old as my Alice. Alice, who has become completely useless and spends 23 1/2 hours a day on my bed. I could knit a furry cat toy full of catnip right in front of Alice and she would turn the other way. That's what happens when you're a 16 year old passive aggressive feline.

Frida said...

Waw beautiful - love the color :)

AliBlahBlah said...

Gorgeous scarf, and the images of you and the cat tearing around the house with your wool are hilarious. I have a 3 year old I have the same issues with. I am a closet cross-stitcher (hangs head in shame) and Anna recently took a pair of scissors to EVERY silk in my work bag.

Anyone want to adopt a child?

Jane said...

Hi Ali,
Thanks for commenting. Glad you've finally got the wildfire smoke out of your hair. Stay safe in CA.

Welcome Frida - by accident or design (I'm honestly not sure which), 'Royal' purple has become my signature colour. Today I'm wearing lilac, a lovely lighter shade of...well.....purple!

KQ - I have to confess that dear Oliver will not live to see 16 (not because he tangles one time too many with my knitting, but because he's sick.)Right now he seems fine, but last summer we were told that he could have 6mths or 6yrs, they don't know.He's still here, so we're hoping for the 6yrs!

Jane said...

Ali - I just reread your comment. YOUR SILKS!!!! Sounds like Anna's exploring her creative side!

T.M. said...

Beautiful scarf and the color is great. I've never knitted a scarf/shawl that needed to be blocked but am just getting ready to do so. Do you prefer the blocking wires or pins?

Unknown said...

Beautiful Lace here!!! I think Oliver believes he is helping you somehow .... and when your back is turned he wants to tackle the intruding woolen creature. Funny story and makes me miss my cat (yes, believe it or not !)

Jane said...

Welcome TM. I really liked using the wires, but I think pins have their place too. I guess it probably depends on your project.
Kimmie - Oliver is such a curious cat, but yes, he probably thinks he's protecting me from something 'strange.'

Blog Widget by LinkWithin