Yarnlove

Yes, I've now accomplished one sleeve, but had to undo half of the back (it made quite a ball of yarn). I still think it's progress, though. I finished the left sleeve yesterday, and as I've made the front and back a bit longer since I'm so enourmously tall I had to give the sleeve the same proportions, so the sleeves might turn out ridicously long. On the other hand it's nice when it's cold, and it might actually look good.

I found the most adorable buttons the other day! I think they will add that little extra something Irish to the colchique. Since I can't take a decent picture with a digital camera you will have to imagine the mother of pearl finish. They've got some nice folkloristic holes too!

Colchique: After finally reaching the godron on the front and the very exciting point fantasie No 2 I discovered that the godron I've made on the back was not the same as in the pattern. I made it 3 stockinette + 3 reverse stockinette instead of 2+2. I realized it would cause problems with the diamond pattern and that it would probably look better with the slightly neater 2+2, so I'm looking forward to reknitting half of the back. A few hours later I misplaced the cable in the first diamond and had to frog 3 cm. Grrr!

On the much brighter side is the fact that my knitting friend Fi delivered a baby boy yesterday. The grenouillère I made will soon keep a very small person warm, and I can't wait to sniff that little marcipan thing!

Well, I have promised to tell you about not only knitting but also cookies and other crafty stuff. Yesterday I made a hazelnut pie, intented for the days between Christmas and the New Year according to the recipe (found on the web). I think it works fine in November as well. If you're a strict Atkins, add some whipped cream.

Crust: 2 dl flour, 100 g butter, 2 tbsp sugar. Mix it good, add a couple of tbsp of water if it doesn't make a dough. Fit it into the bottom of a pie pan. Chill it while you are making the filling:

Roast 200 gr of hazelnuts, let cool and then peel them. It takes a while, so put on some good music... Prebake the crust for 10 minutes in 225º (Celsius). Then mix in casserole: 50 g butter, 1 dl sugar, 1 tbsp each of milk (or cream), flour, syrup and cocoa. Simmer for a minute or two and fold in the hazelnuts. Spoon it into the pie shell and bake for another ten minutes.

Enjoy!

Oh well. Erik's camera was well hidden behind a framed photograph on the chest of drawers in our room and not as lost in the taxi home as he first thought, and I am now happy to present to you the evidence of our lovely Saturday evening at the local castle. On the right is me in the dress with which I endured some disciplinary problems. I don't know where I'd been if it wasn't for the "Hollywood fashion tape" I covered my chest and back with before zipping up the dress...

The occasion was, if I haven't metioned it before, the 175th anniversary of the fancy choir Erik sings in, Allmänna Sången. The enormous party took off with a three hour concert at the University, and after a quick walk in the rain (since the buses which were supposed to transport us through it never showed up) we enjoyed a three-course meal and Swedish folk music by Väsen, then some fireworks and a cool live band playing jazzy stuff 'til 2 in the morning. Just lovely.

So, the fancy ball is now but memory, though quite a lovely one. The dress turned out very nice and it appeared to stay up by itself, but that was not the case, especially not on the dancefloor... I wasn't the only idiot at the banquet; about one fourth of the young ladies had strapless dresses. It is indeed very stylish, but oh so restraining. (Note to self: add straps until next time)

Unfortunately, Erik seems to have lost his camera on the way home, so we have no pictures of the evening. Yet. I brought my pre-historical APS camera and took some photos, so as soon as I've finished the roll there will be pictures.

Today I've made pizza for my brother who came by with an odd friend and then spent at least six hours playing scrabbles (www.betapet.com) on the web. I can tell I've been doing it too long because my left hand has gone numb from my slightly twisted position.

Oh well. Apart from the essay-writing I will begin tomorrow, I'm quite happy to be done with the dress and able to continue on the colchique. :-)

This is why I won't pass on this course that ends today: I've done some great progress on my colchique! It's a wonderful project, with just enough things happening every row and then, and it's quite a quick knit, too. As I've read other people's knitblogs, I've realized that I'm what you would call a "slow knitter" who takes moths to finish projects. Last winter I made a shawl collar cardigan, and it took me six months! This summer, during vacation and such I finished a shawl collar sweater (shawl collars are so stylish!) for my boyfriend in only two months, which is definitely a personal record. This current project may therefore become a new personal best, and I hope it will be done by X-mas when I'm going up north *brr* to see my mom.