I hear they make good ice-cream there

This morning, I fly out to Iceland, and I cannot wait.  The first part of the trip is for The World Scout Moot.  This is an international event for young people aged between 18 - 25.  The general format is that everybody starts off in one location, then move to a second location, known as an expedition centre (Kenya in 2010 had three or four; Iceland has ten) before all joining back up together in a final location.  In this case, our final destination is Úlfljótsvatn Scout Centre (where my friend Amy will be staying with a group of Guides just after we leave).

I've spent most of the prep time (up until the last fortnight or so) feeling entirely under prepared.  I didn't go to the first briefing weekend and I slept through half of the second.  I hadn't slept well on the Saturday night, woke up with a headache and halfway through breakfast felt like I was going to throw up.

Half asleep in a tent; exactly how I expect to look in Iceland

I have a two bag allowance for both the outbound and homebound flights.  On the way out, my tent will be my second bag, and I'll be taking this pouch in my rucksack.

On the way back, this pouch will be opened out into my second bag, containing my tent

Oh look - lots of lovely space.  What on earth could I put in there?!   Since my friend Jane wants to knit this sweater (PDF) from Istex and I want to knit the Lauvisa jumper by Karie Westermann I don't think filling the bag is going to be much of an issue. If I can find any Icelandic related stitch markers, or nal for nalbinding, then so much the better.

Of course, I've prepped all the essentials:

Yarn: Opal 20 Years, Kerzen/Candles colourway
Patter: Flying North by Maria Montzka

The pattern is free on Loveknitting and is called Flying North which is exactly what I'll be doing.  As we're above the Arctic circle, there'll be a lot of orange and yellow sun, and orange is the colour of the moot, so it all works out quite nicely.

I've got a list of stuff to do - including a thermal spa (it's been a horrifically stressful week; I'm surprised I've cried as little as I have).  I've been told about the Icelandic Phallalogical Museum which sounds right up my street.  As part of the trip, I'm going to be snorkelling in (or near) Thingvellir National Park.  As it's a Scouting event - there will be badges.

Naturally, I'll be visiting The National Handknitting Association of Iceland.  This blog mentions wool being available at the grocery stores, which is something I want to see for myself and this blog mentions Icelandic yarn with silk.

 I need to be on the train in about an hour and still haven't bought my insurance.  (Yes, I've sorted my knitting, but not the important stuff; priorities!)  I've got a three hour flight which will be dedicated to sleeping rather than knitting.  I have no idea how all my gear fitted into the rucksack, but it did.  

Let's do this.  See you on the other side - with photos and yarn! 

Flying out on Friday

I'm flying out on holiday on Friday and have an overwhelmingly long to-do list.  So, of course the most important thing to be doing is writing blog entries!  

The multi-coloured fraternal socks are finished, and I had a happy yarn accident, courtesy of Phileas Yarns (with a 10% discount, it would be rude not to).  I went for the yarn/colourways of: Explorer - Reynisfjara, Rambler - Hot Dog in Coney Island and Rambler - Bac Ha.  There were at least three others I wanted, but I was being restrained.  There will be photos...

Pattern - Time Traveller Socks by Liz Sedmak
Yarn - King Cole 50 50 (discontinued)

I did try to make sure that both socks were started at the same point of the colour patterning, but somehow it didn't work as expected.  I guess that's part of the fun of knitting; seeing how it all turns out.  I also did a garter stitch gusset for a bit of variety. 

The toe-up Hermione's are going better than expected.  I was going to wait until after holidays to make them, but what the heck.

The Gender Games by Juno Dawson
Hermione's Every Day Socks - yarn: West Yorkshire Spinners

The Gender Games by Juno Dawson is the book I borrowed last week - and it seemed the perfect book to start reading over Pride weekend.  I don't always like the style of writing, but I agree with the points that she's making - so am sticking with it.

 Look at the waffle-y lusciousness of these socks:

Just look!

I love them - and I cannot wait to knit another pair (or several) after coming back from holidays.  I think I've worked out how to do the waffle pattern on the toes as well.

Yesterday, we went to a barbeque, held at a colleague's house, the other side of London and then some.  (Hertfordshire, to be exact).  That meant train journeys, which meant knitting time.  I decided to take the blue and red socks, on which I'd turned the heel too early.  Sock one has been sorted and knitted up to the point that I can do the gusset increase - but hadn't quite steeled myself up to sort out sock two - until yesterday.  On the down side, it's fiddly sorting out mistakes on socks.  On the plus side, I could get rid of this:

Remember - mistakes remind you that it's hand knit by a human.

I have no idea how it got there, and I had begrudgingly accepted it was there.  However, the perfectionist in me is pleased to get rid of it.

I put a lifeline in, trying to catch every stitch:

 and then pulled the needles out and ripped.  It's only on doing that, I found the two stitches that I hadn't caught on the lifeline.  Such is.

Counting stitches on the Thameslink platform at St Pancras railway station holds no fear for me.

59 stitches.  No, 61 stitches.  What ?

So - 59 stitches. Does that include the dropped stitches or not? 

No photos of the party - I was too busy having fun.  I knew a grand total of three people at the beginning of the party, and several more by the end.  We discussed French politics, built a fire and toasted marshmallows.  I also found out that one of my consultants is also a knitter.  We've already bonded over sharing a name and now this!  She's only been in our department five days and I already like her.

Do you have a summer holiday planned?  What's on your to-do list, and what have you been knitting? 

I Do Love Me a Good Rainbow

On Friday night, I met friends for dinner - after being reminded by a colleague to actually go home at some point.  Everything you read about unrealistic expectations in the NHS are true.  I can't do all the stuff I'm expected to do and leave work on time every day; it's as simple as that.  

Jane, K, L and I will meet up every so often for a catch up, and putting the world to rights.  We had to grab K before she disappeared down the Proms rabbit hole.  She sings in several choirs and is a season ticket holder; it's how she met her husband.  I've been to three last nights (one in the seated area, two in the arena - of which one was on the grid.  Trust me, it's a big thing to be on the grid).  Annoyingly, the proms I really want to see are in Iceland, so no idea if I'll get to the last night this year. 

So, we chatted about all sorts: work expectations, Proms, holiday plans, IVF, running, knitting, cherry coloured velvet.  As usual, there was the usual swapping of stuff; I got Guide badges, turkish delight and the loan of a book.  Whilst we were eating, we had the amusement of watching the staff blowing up balloons and trying to work out where to hang them - all in rainbow colours for Pride.  It was only as we were planning on leaving that we realised, as four Brownie leaders, we would be brilliantly placed to help, but it was far too amusing to watch.  Although, it did bother me that the red balloons were in the wrong place:

Within Guiding, I am known to my Brownies as Rainbow Owl.  I love the colours of the rainbow - so totally loved walking down Oxford Street (one of Europe's busiest shopping streets) and seeing all the rainbows.

Please forgive the photo quality; the camera on my phone isn't great - and the light levels were dropping. 

Liberty's of London displaying their rainbow flag

Tea!  (I've walked past this shop so many times - still haven't been in).

 

With a pun my dad would have been proud of:

I loved this shop, whose rainbow coloured display was allowed to spill out on to the pavement: 

Rainbow coloured pavement! 

Even the bus stops wanted to get in on the act:

As I've nearly finished my current pair of socks, it's time to cast on another one.  (I'm attempting the Yarngasm Box O Socks challenge - so far at two pairs of socks, out of twelve.  I need to get the needles going.

The next pair is going to be my version of Hermione's Everyday Socks (blog entry with pattern here and Ravelry link with downloadable PDF here) but toe up.  I've not got the courage to knit a cuff down after my first attempts; I'm happy with what I know.  It would seem that at least one person has already had the same idea - so I won't have to re-invent the wheel.  After her attempts to improve the rights of elves I think she would be an ally of the LGBTQ cause, so of course rainbow coloured yarn would be entirely appropriate.  But which yarn to use?

• Top row: Austermann Step: Ennis,  Esslinger Wolle: Regenbogen-bunt; Opal - Mein Sockdesign: Feuervogel

• Middle row: West Yorkshire Spinners signature 4 ply: Rum Paradise -   Regia 4 Ply - Clown (discontinued); Opal - Funny Sparkle: Witty

• Bottom row: Opal - Mein Sockdesign: Over the Rainbow; Opal Schafpate VIII: Blickfang; Zauberball: Frische Fische

• Far right: Owl About Yarn: Rainbow

What's your next project to cast on? 

Lets Talk About Socks, Baby

The sock knitting continues.

I finished the pair for Mr Knitty.  They are a bit big, but they were made, and received, with love.  He has a higher internal temperature than I do, so wanted to wait until the weather was a bit cooler, before he wore them.  Yesterday was their maiden voyage.  He showed them to a couple of people, but told me that neither of the people he really thought would appreciate them were working that shift.

Me: Why do you think they would particularly appreciate them?
Him: Well, they've both mentioned yarn...

Regia Pairfect - Granite colourway

I knit them using the Time Traveler Socks pattern by Liz Sedmak.  As a relatively new sock knitter, this is my current go-to pattern.  This was the first time that I'd used the Regia Pairfect yarn.  For those who don't know, the yarn is provided as two separate, matching sections, divided by a length of yellow yarn.  The idea being that you can knit two socks which are guaranteed to match.  Youtube has a couple of videos which explain.  The German one is here and a Scandinavian one (I'd guess Danish) is here.

Instep of the birthday socks

The yarn is set up to knit cuff down.  As I knit my socks toe-up and knit both socks separately and at the same time, I had to prep the yarn first by unwinding it and re-winding it in the opposite direction and getting rid of the yellow yarn between the two balls.  I've heard criticism that there's not really enough of the main yarn, due to an excess yellow yarn.  As Mr Knitty doesn't like long legs on his socks, I did have yarn left over - so can't comment either way on this one. 

He didn't get them on his birthday, which wasn't a problem.  Of course, I had it in mind that he'd worked out that I was knitting him socks (although he denied it when asked).  So, one morning when he was up earlier than expected I said (without thinking) "normally this is the time that I'd be knitting your socks".  Oops.  Cat well and truly out of the bag. 

The advantage of that, is that I could take it with us when we went out for dinner to celebrate, at a local Chinese restaurant.  Apparently knitting and tea just have to go together - and who am I to argue? 

The rules of tea and knitting still apply when going out for dinner

Once completed, we were able to do an assessment on what worked and what didn't.  The pattern is available with either a 60 stitch or a 64 stitch width, and has a ribbed pattern.  We worked out that a better fit for Mr Knitty would either be 60 stitches with ribbing, or 64 without.  

64 stitches plus ribbing is a bit too comfortable

But they're finished and all properly woven in and have been broken in - so it all counts as a knitting win. 

Why yes, my husband was happy to pose in his socks on the doorstep.  When I say 'happy', I probably mean bemused.  He's known me long enough to be used to my quirks.  No face, but please may I draw your attention to the hairy legs; he was very keen that they should be included.  

What has your knitting week brought you, quirky or otherwise?