Extreme Knitting Redhead: Shawl showtime and nearly there on the crochet front

Monday, August 24, 2015

Shawl showtime and nearly there on the crochet front

Shawl Showtime

I've finished my laceweight version of the Miss Dashwood shawl and I'm really pleased with how it's turned out. Although the border required my full attention, the body was easy-peasy and great TV knitting.

Blocking wire, pins and mats at the ready. The shawl looked really small at this stage.

I finally bought myself some mats for blocking rather than using large towels spread on the spare bed! Rather than spending silly money on the expensive mats from the knitting companies I chose these cheap and cheerful playmats which I bought for a fraction of the price. I've read cases of the more expensive ones bleeding colour when damp wool is place on them but the reviews of these was good and they are perfectly adequate.

Tilly thought this was tremendous fun and decided to add more of her hairs to the wet wool to join those already knitted into the fabric!

I'm helping!

It's wonderful to see the pattern brought to life as you pin and stretch the knitting. Of course I hadn't got enough fine T pins for all the picots and had to resort ot dressmakers pins.

The reason I chose a laceweight rather than double knitting yarn was that I wanted a light and airy shawl, to wear with the point at the front and the ends dangling beside it, to fill the triangular gap at the neckline of my favourite blanket jacket.

The blue yarn was chosen to bring out the blue stripes in the jacket.

It's too hot to model it myself but this gives an idea of how it will look.

Circles of the sun

I've just got one more square to make which I'll probably do this evening and then it's time to join them. I shall either use the brown or dark red and will make the backing out off the same fabric as our diningroom curtains.

Playing around with the position of the squares

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Mum's Story

In 1997 my mother, then aged 81, had a series of minor strokes. Shortly after that we started to notice behavioural changes notably memory loss and confusion over everyday items. We thought it was just old age finally catching up with her. Then she started wandering and had violent mood swings. Although she already lived with us it became obvious that she couldn't be left alone for long and so I left my job to care for her. The next few years saw a gradual decline into the blackness that is 'vascular dementia'. My normally placid mum became violent and aggressive. She had psychotic incidents where she would see imaginary people (children hiding in her wardrobe, Russians sitting on the stairs, women stealing her clothes) and she would shout at them and sometimes throw things too. She was so convincing that we used to go and check that there wasn't anyone there! When my sister died mum did not know who Judy was or that she was her daughter. There came a point when I suddenly realised she no longer knew that I was her daughter and this was a terrible time for me. In the last 2 years that she lived with us, life for us all became almost unbearable as she needed 24 hour care - she couldn't be left alone at all because she would either wander off or hurt herself, she never slept for more than 30 minutes at a time during the night, she became incontinent and incapable of doing anything for herself. Finally my husband and I realised that we could no longer provide her with the care that she needed and she went to live in a special care home where the team did a splendid job caring for her in the last few months of her life. There she lived a zombified existence unaware of who she was, what she was or where she was. It was heartbreaking. She died in March 2005, the day after her 89th birthday.

Thank you for taking the time to read mum's story and I hope you'll dig deep and sponsor me using the link below to help find a way of beating this destructive disease.