Friday, February 25, 2011

In (and on) the bag

I'm still a bit wobbly today after yesterday's adventures, but I'm hoping to knit today.  Last night I got in about 76 stitches on a pair of socks before thinking: why?  and letting my arms crash back down to the blanket.  Perhaps I'll do better than 76 this morning. 

There is room for more than that, as you can see:

Yep, I'm hoping the third time's a charm with these guys, even if this is actually the fourth - I've lost count of how often I've frogged them, now.  The one in the knitting bag is about as far along, both right up to the gusset and feeling super comfy, not a bit too tight and hopefully not too long.  It's snowing again as I type so if I'm very lucky and finish them this time, I might actually get to enjoy them in all their mohairy warmth before we start to see spring.

But let's talk for a moment about the knitting bag, the first I bought from tinyhappy.  At the time, I didn't care what it looked like - I just really wanted one of Melissa's bags and they kept selling out before I could get to the shop.  I bought this one without even thinking.  Nonetheless it's turned out to be my favourite, the one that's always in play no matter how few projects I might have on the go (and sometimes there really are only two or three.)

It's partly because the cheery floral lining is a perfect match for the rest, partly because the exterior is lovely Japanese linen, so soft and smooth with a little sheen to boot.  But a lot of it is the doily on the front, which is knit, not crocheted.  I guess my mum and her friends did more crochet than anything else because a knitted doily seems unusual to me, and this one is especially lovely with its intricate pattern:

Amazingly it's been knit out of cotton on small needles, I could swear by hand, and every stitch is perfect which is more than I can say for anything I'd knit in cotton on small needles. I think it's been worked from the outside in and I also think I probably have this very pattern in one of my vintage home decorating magazines if only because the pinwheel in the middle is a pretty common theme.in any medallion structure.  But if I don't, I might break down and try to figure out how to replicate it. It's just so pretty!

1 comment:

heklica said...

I don't particularly like doilies but this one is really pretty.