Lovely Things

This has to be my song of summer 2011. It's so lovely in all its pomo pop glory.

Other lovely things right now:

• I find this picture of David Tennant in the Fright Night remake strangely compelling. I always did have a weakness for almost-Glaswegian men wearing eyeliner.
• "Not since Bowie before him had anyone been as responsible for raising awkward questions between parents and their sons as Brett Anderson." Suede is back in fashion here in the UK - so the media say. Suede fell hard from grace when fey, lithe men wearing girls' shirts were displaced by laddish beer lout music (i.e. Oasis). I particularly liked the quote: "Apparently it wasn't just me who'd been sat at home in 1995 doused in glitter and eyeliner watching Performance on repeat" .. oh no, dear journalist, oh no.
• I should rewatch Velvet Goldmine soon too.
• Moving on from eyeliner and glitter, how about a Warhol Spock? Okay, so it's Leonard Nimoy wearing makeup but it's slightly different..
• My beloved kiwi band The Phoenix Foundation is being championed by the mighty hipster godfather himself, Jarvis Cocker. Going Fishing is always on my iPod. Kiwi music is the best, honestly.

And with that, I am off to back my bag. Not-so-sunny Aberdeenshire awaits and I have books and knitting to pack.

Boom! Boom! Chaka! Chaka!

This is one of my favourite weeks of the year: the Eurovision Song Contest week. For my non-European readers, imagine American Idol with 45 different countries competing. Then add xenophobia, bad blood, neighbourly love, dubious ethnic costumes, weird instruments, and mangled lyrics. The combination is oddly compelling. The first semi-finale took place yesterday with the second one happening tomorrow and the finale is on Saturday. Here are some selected highlights:

• Armenia delivered an astonishingly bad, yet classic Eurovision performance in the first semi. It did not progress past the first stage. It was a bit of an upset for a nation that has done very well in recent years.
• Despite myself, I actually like Ireland's song although it features the dreadful Jedward twins (to spare you googling, just watch this clip and weep for humanity). I feel dirty.
• Georgia was one of my personal favourites in the first semi-final which tells you a bit about the level of talent. It is not a classic year.
• Meanwhile Russia's "Alex Sparrow" and Sweden's Eric Saade are fighting it out for the Cute Twink Singing Club Anthem award. I actually prefer Saade's 2010 effort which didn't make it past national finals.
• Iceland has a very strong song with a big sob-story background. I expect this to do very, very, very well.
• Germany won last year. Unusually the winner has chosen to defend her title and she has opted for a seriously cool, dark little song. Go, go Germany! Israel has also sent a former winner. I don't think Israel will do well this time around.
• Finally, my two "home countries" which are both doing well with the bookmakers. Blue's "I Can" is the strongest UK entry for over a decade and this is the sort of stuff the UK should be entering every year*. Denmark's also being hailed as a potential winner. I loved the song when Andreas Johnson sang it in the Swedish 2006 finals. Bad boy Denmark for ripping off a Swedish song.

(* I have heaps of ideas of who to represent the UK at the ESC. Alexandra Burke, Little Boots and The Saturdays would be fabulous if completely unlikely competitors.)

Just to finish off, some of my recent ESC favourites: Turkey 2008, Bosnia & Herzegovia 2008 (which included knitting ladies!), Romania 2006 and France 2007. For sheer WTF-ness, try Azerbaijan 2008. For cuddliness, try Norway 2009 (which won).

And Sweden 1983 which spawned a life-long Eurovision love.

Shiny Special One

Happy birthday, dear Darth Ken. The Buffy to my Xander. The Rosenkrantz to my Guildenstern.  The Han Solo to my Chewbacca. The Kirk to my Scotty. My most frequent blog commentator.

(Somewhere in my vault, I have a photo of Darth Ken wearing crushed velvet and a Plaster of Paris grotesque half-mask . In the same photo I am wearing black sparkly lipstick, a bodice constructed out of a pair of leggings and a velvet skirt. Man, the mid-90s were really scary. That photo will never see the light of day).

On the Kitchen Table & Beyond

How much, do I love Sirri 1ply? It's uneven, slightly overspun and reeks to high heaven of sheep. It's absolutely fantastic. Oh, I LOVE it. I pulled out my hibernating Aestlight shawl last night. I started it over the Christmas holidays last year and it was promptly put into hibernation on Boxing Day. I now remember why: I find all the garterstitch deadly dull. I now have to decide whether to pull out all that garterstitch or find some inner backbone to get those last twenty rows done before I pick up stit... aghr, I think I'll just call it a day.

The Kidsilk Haze in Jelly was just sitting randomly on our kitchen table. I really like those two colours and textures together. Hmmm..

Also on the kitchen table: my needle book made by Chookiebirdie, aka Lorna Reid. This little book has kept me company for a few years now.

I have visited Lorna's studio many times (she is just a few doors down from my very good friend, Ms Old Maiden Aunt) and eventually decided that I would love her to make me a small needle book. I did not give Lorna many guidelines - just that I loved moss green. Lorna promptly delivered this lovely needle book: moss green and aqua and orange and an owl. Everything is so beautifully finished.

I spot something in the background too. I wonder what that could be? I'll hopefully get you a proper shot of that "mystery object" later this week if the notoriously fickle April weather complies. For now, let's just say I cast off last night and I'm ever so slightly oh my word.

A few links for you:

• The Art of Fashion. Exactly what it says on the tin. I could happily read an entire book on this topic.
• Most Underappreciated Films of the Last Decade: a nice run-down which provides inspiration for our DVD nights.
• Hugh Grant(!) - yes, that Hugh Grant(!!) - steps right into the fray with an excellent article about British politics, British media, Rupert Murdoch, whistle-blowing, and phone-tapping. A must-read if you have the slightest inkling what I'm on about. Hugh, I loved you in Maurice (especially with your moustache-of-repression) and forgive you for everything you've done since.
• This little girl knows her Star Wars (YouTube link) I especially like her bow and the Storm-Trooper's fist-pump. Made me grin like an idiot.
• And speaking of videos and me grinning like an idiot, let me recommend When Harry Met Sally 2. Does the very thought strike fear into your heart? You should be first in line to watch this.
• The Dumbing Down Of Quilting. Also, take time to read the comments. The arrogance displayed by some of the people (including the blogger) is astounding. My jaw hit the floor, so it did*

(* does anyone know if the "so it did" emphatic subclause in a declarative sentence is particularly Glaswegian?)

Day Five: Song

Hello FLS, my old friend, I've come to knit you again, Because pretty yarn came softly creeping, And I can knit you while sleeping, And the shawl that was frogged yesterday Still remains Within the knitting basket of doom.

In restless dreams I walked alone Wondered if I should knit Cobblestone, 'neath the halo of a second-hand lamp, I turned my eyes to the weather cold and damp When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of bright light That split the night And touched the knitting basket of doom.

And in the naked light I saw Ten thousand possible projects, maybe more. Projects without assigned yarns, Projects with scary-looking charts, Projects that look fabulous - but not on me And not one made me Disturb the knitting basket of doom.

Head said you do know Your yarn stash like a cancer grows. Find some sweater amount for Hey Teach*, Take these patterns and an FO this month you may reach. But my hands like idle raindrops fell, And rested By the knitting basket of doom.

And so to the great knitting goddess I prayed I looked at items I had previously made. And the signs were flashing, By the sweater amounts I had been stashing. And the signs said, top-down it shall be It'll be easy garter-stitch and fancy-free And suit that lovely wool-alpaca yarn you have kept in the knitting basket of doom..

(apologies to Simon and Garfunkel)

*no longer in my queue as per April 2011

--

Alas, I have suddenly fallen ill and I am currently resting in my bed. I hope you enjoy this little filk which I originally wrote in August 2009. I have updated the links though :)

I hope to be fully recovered in time for tomorrow's blog post. Until then you can find more blogs participating in the Knitting & Crochet Blog Week by googling 2KCBWDAY5.

Is 'Sixthly' Even A Word?

First of all, congratulations to Ms Old Maiden Aunt whose yarn was just featured in the new Winter edition of Knitty. I particularly like how the Knitty people have made a lovely page banner out of a close-up of Lilith's yarn. The yarn was used for Palisander, a beautiful scarf by Denmark's own Signest (congratulations to you too, obviously!). Man, this knitting world is really freaking small at times.. Secondly (and just to prove my point), there is a photo of yours truly, Ms Celtic Stitcher, and SoCherry in the February edition of UK knitting magazine, Let's Knit. We were just knitting away at The Life Craft's knitting night and somehow a photo made it into a magazine. In all honesty, I am only an occasional guest at The Life Craft's knitting nights for one reason or another, but I am a huge fan of the shop and have enjoyed their hospitality on many (camera-less) occasions. It's great to see the gals (and guys!) of TLC getting national attention.

Thirdly, since Friday I have knitted 1 back, 1 sleeve and 1 front of my Purple Rain cardigan. You have to love 7mm needles and their Instant Gratification factor. I hope to have the cardigan finished by the end of the week which sounds bizarre to me after having spent five months knitting another cardigan (more on that one later). Seeing as my working week will be marked by a work-related train journey north, I should perhaps start planning my next big project..

Fourthly, I have already planned my next big project. In fact, I have planned my TWO big projects which will keep me occupied the next few weeks and then some. I recently bought some Rowan Silky Tweed in a delicious mustard yellow and my skeins are destined for the Acer cardigan by Amy Christopher (rav link). I have admired that cardigan for a long time and as the yarn is a light aranweight with excellent stitch definition, I get the feeling it'll be a match made in knitting heaven. My other planned project is Fancy from the new Rowan magazine. The photo does not show it, but the jumper has a goddamn fabulous Estonian-lace-ish stitch pattern going for it. I'm helpless in the face of Estonian-lace-ish stitch patterns, so a Fancy in chartreuse green Kidsilk Haze will be on my needles soon. I first thought of making it in black but then decided I was clearly mad.

Fifthly, friends mentioned above have persuaded me to give my red alpaca cardigan some time in the knitting basket. Time to let me get over myself and my body image. It's not the cardigan's fault that I had a few too many mince pies at Christmas nor that I'm more Christina Hendricks than Nicole Kidman body-wise. The alpaca'll probably wet-block really well too. Cough.We shall see.

Sixthly, speaking of celebs, I could not resist looking closely at the Red Carpet fashion at yesterday's Golden Globes and I loved the 1930s cut of Angelina Jolie's green dress. Very Old Hollywood and yet very current. Sigh.