Q: An oversized knitted cardigan- beautiful, warm, soft, snuggly, enveloping...and in a sublime ecru colour. What could be more heavenly?A: When that cardi is handknitted especially for you by your grandmother!
I met Elise and Gianmarco in Brick Lane on Sunday and I let out a little yelp of delight followed by a "Oooooo knitted by Nana. We love that!*" when Elise revealed that her cardigan was knitted by her grandmother.
Hmmmph. I tried knitting classes the Christmas before last with my lovely friend Ewah. It was in a word, disastrous. It ended in tears: mine. I don't know why but I just couldn't get the hang of it. And the instructor, a very camp blustery sort of chap, didn't help matters when he asked, in front of the entire class of my fellow knit and pearlers, whether I suffered from a learning disability!!!
Helllllllooooooooooo um, no, not one that I am aware of anyway! I mean it was suppose to be a stitch and bitch class but crikey, I didn't think I would be the subject of the bitchin'! What did I do? I think I just went bright red, let out a twitter of nervous laughter, shrunk a bit lower in my seat and prayed to the Good Lord that the class would finish soon so I could go home and knock back a stiff gin and tonic. And I never went back. For my hard earned £, I got 2 teeny misshapen long knitted "things" (a scarf perhaps I hear you murmur? um, no, just 2 little "things" which could never be described as scarves, even on a very good day), 2 knitting needles and a ball of sad looking wool. Oh yes, and a big dent to my creative self confidence.
My dear friend Lizzie from Australia tried to advance my efforts when she came to visit us a couple of months later. Having a patient teacher made all the difference...but I still don't think knitting is going to be my most successful creative pursuit.
Unlike Elise's grandmother.
Thank you so much Elise and Gianmarco for enduring me and my camera- you guys ROCK!
*note to self: psychiatric help should probably be sort when one continually refers to oneself as "we". We are not Gollum in Lord of the Rings :)