Back to school
It’s that time again. The children have reconvened to spread merry tumult and germs in the schoolyards, and those of us who work in the schools are settling in for the long voyage of the academic year. For me, a vast new project: shaping our little school’s curriculum for publication. I spoke with my dear friend Curtis today; he’s a newly minted professor unveiling the complex delights of Chaucer and Keats to a cohort of first-years who have almost certainly never worked so hard nor learned so much. I envy them: Curtis is a smart and passionate guide when it comes to literature (and apparently they think he looks like someone hot on TV). I’m going to reread The Eve of St. Agnes this week just so I can pretend I’m back in the classroom with him. Vicarious study of literature is the best I’ll be able to do this year; my two-job schedule won’t permit me time to take classes this term. Remembering the tingles I got when I set foot in a university again last year, I regret it. But it makes me all the more excited for my cousin, who’s going back to grad school after giving over the last seven years to raising her boys. Surely this grand occasion calls for a present.
Wine and Roses mitts from last winter’s Interweave Knits. The yarn is the scrummy Jade Sapphire 2-ply cashmere silk specified in the pattern – we got some in at the store and I knew I was going to have to make these lacy mitts with it. My cousin likes deep aubergine purples, so I think these will be a nice accessory to her fall wardrobe. They’re also a little symbol of her new modicum of release from constant parenting, since silk and cashmere are not exactly the fibers of choice for handling small sticky boys. For one weekend a month when she jets off to California for her intensive classes, she can slip into these luxurious adult handwarmers, and have her fingers free for taking notes and paging through tomes of Jung and Freud.
It’s thanks to Megan the Knitting Philistine and her Fiberlicious yarn photography movement that I thought to pose my work in progress with actual eggplants. It’s also thanks to Megan that the mailman brought me these:
My first order from Good Soapworks of Athens! I could smell them before I even picked up the box. I chose the warm spice and citrus scents I love for dark winter mornings: sweet orange, clove, cinnamon. Since I was out of bed at five this morning to catch Brazil vs. China in women’s World Cup soccer, I got a foretaste of the coming months – rising in the dark when even the cat prefers to stay snuggled in the blankets. It’s a downside of the return to school all too easily forgotten during the summer. But my spicy and soothing new soap will help pry my eyes open and wake me more pleasantly. And speaking of the cat…
My fur is all up in your knitting. Mwahahahaha!
And pssst…speaking of fingerless mitts, the Axel Mitts are now on the Patterns page as a PDF at last. (Thanks for the reminder, Kristen, and for the Rockin’ Girl Blogger nomination!) Happy fall knitting!
Posted: September 16th, 2007 at 2:50 pm
What a lovely and thoughtful back-to-school gift! The color is just gorgeous.
Posted: September 16th, 2007 at 4:17 pm
mmm, aubergine, it just says autmunal things to me. i love the photo with eggplant, very nice touch. for some reason my bloglines also kicked in your lief pullover post and i now know what my next twin boy project shall be, i am currently enamored of all things cabled and that looks like it is just right.
Posted: September 16th, 2007 at 4:27 pm
Goodness me! What a beautiful color! You are so talented in your knitting I am green with envy! I’m still learning and stuck on scarfs! However, that doesn’t stop me from buying delicious yarn — and if I had seen that color in the store I most certainly would have bought it.
Posted: September 16th, 2007 at 6:42 pm
What a lovely post — I’m resolved to stock up on some delicious soaps for the dark coming months. Scent is such a powerful tonic for the spirits.
And what a perfectly-chosen gift you’re making for your cousin. A mom of two young children will really appreciate the indulgence of a just-for-her luxury, and those mitts are such a beautiful pattern and colour.
Posted: September 17th, 2007 at 3:28 am
I loves your kitteh. And the colour you are using for those mitts is so pretty.
Posted: September 17th, 2007 at 4:32 am
I know you’re going to miss taking classes, but at least one of your jobs leaves you surrounded by yarn! The mitts will be beautiful and I’m sure your cuz will appreciate them. Oh, and Hi ‘Gus!
Posted: September 17th, 2007 at 4:33 am
If those scented soaps really do pry your eyes open on those chilly dark winter mornings, I might need a case or two. They sound delish.
I love the photo of the knit in progress with the perfectly matched eggplants – and Mingus! I think cat fur is a fine substitution for mohair.
Posted: September 17th, 2007 at 5:11 am
it’s so hard for me to believe that it’s back to school time but i look at all the kids in their uniforms in brooklyn and i’m reminded that it’s september. what happened to the summer? anyway, those are some gorgeous mitts you’re making there. i love how they perfectly match the eggplant
Posted: September 17th, 2007 at 5:31 am
those mitts will be beautiful. silk, purple. perfect. I hate getting up in the cold and dark. i take the dogs for their morning walk at 5. ick. i guess it’s that time of year!
Posted: September 17th, 2007 at 6:19 am
Wow, the Wine and Roses mitts are going to be gorgeous! And thanks for reminding me I’m almost out of Megan’s soap — must go order!
Posted: September 17th, 2007 at 8:25 pm
I am not a purple fan but whoa! That is gorgeous! Yay for the pattern too – I want to make a pair. Congrats on the nomination also!
Posted: September 18th, 2007 at 8:17 am
Your mitts are to-die-for. Really. They need no beautiful eggplant props, but I’m glad I could help with the inspiration. And YOU, m’dear, have inspired ME to rush quickly to investigate whether I have the appropriate fiber to make myself some Wine and Roses mitts! Also, you just happened to choose every one of my favorite soap scents! I hope you enjoy them!!
Posted: September 18th, 2007 at 10:23 am
The knitting is beautiful, but I find I love the photography even more! The light is captured so perfectly.
We’re planning on leaving for OFFF Saturday morning, hopefully arriving around noon or 1pm. I’d love to get to meet you there!
Posted: September 20th, 2007 at 10:34 am
Your mitts are so pretty! I was hoping to see someone make them, as I’d love to try the pattern myself some day. They look prettier here than in the styled photographs. Perhaps that’s why Mingus wants a set for himself?
Sometimes I miss school too. I think you appreciate it much more when you’re out for a while, and have a chance to discover the subjects you really want to study. Literature would be one of mine too.
Posted: September 20th, 2007 at 11:14 am
wow what a great color! It’s a great Fall project, very thoughtful for a busy mom.