our little city celebrates the first friday of each month with special events and open houses throughout our downtown. we live very close by, but we’ve participated only a few times—we always manage to forget.
but this month, laura pulled us out of our comfy chairs and signed us all up for a knit night at carpe diem coffee shop, right in the thick of first night happenings.
the theme this month was ice sculpture and as david and i approached our destination, the carving was already underway. the sculptor working our block had a pizza slice going in front of the parlor next to the coffee shop, where a second large block awaited his attentions.
we piled ourselves into the warm, steamy room where our compadres were already gathered and knitting away.
we grabbed a couple of coffees, settled in, and soon were enjoying some acoustic guitar and songs while we stitched.
carpe diem owners patrick and cathy wyatt, couldn’t have been more welcoming to us—chatting with us during the very few lulls in evening traffic and insisting that we should stay as long as we liked and come back any time to visit and hang out.
finding myself in a rush that evening and somewhat between projects (but admittedly, with no small number of UFOs), i grabbed a cake of stone soup fingering yarn that was wound up months ago because i’ve been wanting to knit a pair of socks from it, just to find out if it will work well for wearing underfoot.
i got excited when the travertine shade first came in and decided i should knit them from that color. but i hadn’t started yet because i was waffling over the pattern. what i was really jonesing for was a simple pair of stockinette socks—something that knits up quickly and without much attention. also, i just adore the stockinette fabric that this yarn produces (see my scotty cap as an example). but i kept fighting with myself that i should design something new.
in the end i did decide on a (mostly) stockinette sock—but with just one esoteric detail; a little twist if you will, of a single rib running down the leg. after much discussion among us over where exactly the stripe should be placed (during which, i knit my ribbed cuff), the die was cast as i began working down the leg.
the truth is, the stripe can go anywhere—the possibilities are almost endless. and on the other sock, it just might turn up in a completely different spot (i’m toying with putting it straight down the back calf like a stocking seam, but you never know). and then again, if you really want to upset the apple cart, you could put two on one sock.
inside our cozy den, as the discussion plumbed the fuzzy depths of sock scenarios, our sculptor worked steadily outside, turning that big chunk of ice into the recognizable form of the shop logo.
by the time we left, its inner self was revealed, as well as that of the block next door . . .
where the pizza baker himself was found posing with the results.
off we went to home, to try for a good night’s sleep—for the next day, we’d be off once again, me, emily, and erica B. to our mill downstate, where we’d visit and have a good look around.
luckily, we did get on the road on time because the weather was just awful and it would be smart to get there while it was still light. emily drove (thank goodness), while erica and i knitted and we all chatted.
erica is working on a creel hat for her boyfriend, which she is knitting with her skein of red festivus sport.
isn’t it gorgeous? i think he’s going to look adorable in it.
we had an absolutely excellent time at the mill—we kept saying so all the way home. and it’s a long story, so i will be back next time with a full report about that.
in the meantime, try to stay warm in these plunging temperatures and stay away form anyone who even hints at being sick with flu, ok?
10 thoughts on “ice, ice, baby”
Love the Creel hat in festivus. Looking great. You all are just having way too much fun in your outings. Wish I could be there with you all. Looking forward to hearing about the mill. Go team knitspot.
Ice sculpture, awesome! I think I need to start a nice simple sock too, that looks like a good idea.
What a great way to start the new year–where knitters gather, there’s always great conversation, lots of sharing, and of course lots of yarn– yay! Can you tell I never want to let go of the holidays?
Seeing those ice sculptures has reminded me of a trip we took to Poland when there was an ice sculpture event for Valentine’s Day. It was incredible to watch the artists creating their works of art. Love Erica’s hat, the colour looks good on her too, I do hope she will ‘borrow’ it from time to time!
What a great town! Cozy post – thank you!
What a cozy time! I just love that red Festivus – wore my set from the club patterns to work today in the cold, snowy weather- warm as could be!
The sheep pic is great – they look so cozy.
That looks like such a fun trip. i hope you all managed to avoid the worst of the weather on the way home!
I made a pair of leg warmers last month that where the back third was ribbed and the front of the leg was stockinette. I was using dpns and to avoid an obvious ladder in the front of the leg I inserted one rib running down the front to disguise what would have been a ladder. A design element was born……
editung my last comment….I need to proofread before hitting submit….
“…leg warmers last month where the back third…..” 😉
We managed to forget all about First Friday this month, even though it’s always so neat to go and see the ice sculptures! I’m really liking the sock–I’m so intrigued by the thought of all the possibilities, that I’m almost tempted to start a sock!
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