Very-Slightly-Late Birthday Present



The scarf is pretty much done, only a week late! But Seamus did get some other nice things for his birthday, so he didn't mind. Putting on a black fringe now, I'll take pictures of him wearing it soon.


The keystone/triple tau came out a bit oval-y, a bit bumpy. I've not done intarsia inside another pattern, it got a little messy, especially since it was worked in the round. Lots of tying on and breaking off. It's super thick too.


The box of plaid scraps is growing, I've separated it out into darks and lights. Still not sure whether I'll do foundation pieced scraps, or log cabins, but either way, I'll probably do it with a light/dark separation, and probably set it in a 'barn raising' pattern.
I've also been playing with some tiny little snail trail blocks. This is about as small as I can manage by hand. Any smaller, and the pieces start to fall apart as I sew them, or the seam allowances get really bulky.
I know there are ways to get even smaller by using paper foundations on a machine, but I'm thinking I'll use this to make the pocket of my vest, so I need to keep it to hand techniques. The Snail Trail block looks a lot like traditional horn pattern, so I think, done in solid silks, it'll be a nice pocket detail.

And finally, my latest thrift-finds. The book is a great guide to netting, bobbin, and needlelace. All the 'contemporary' projects in it are the usual ugly hemp/wool abstract wall hangings that seem to have dominated fiber arts in the 70's. But the stitch patterns and diagrams are good. I also found these turquoise doc martens, quite a bonus.

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