I am somewhat lucky/unlucky.
I was lucky to secure myself a spot on Jared Flood's Plan Your Own Aran workshop, hosted by Alice at Socktopus on the 9th of June.
I was also lucky to get tickets to join an audience for a recording of QI, the nicest, cleverest show there is, with the ever-lovely Stephen Fry.
But we were then unlucky in that we didn't get into the audience for the evening that we were invited. They got full up, but luckily we were told we could ring up and arrange for priority tickets, because we couldn't make our initial invite.
So I rebooked our invitation. Unluckily, on the same evening as Jared's workshop. Because I'm an idiot, but also because there were only two evenings left.
Unluckily, last week my hayfever turned into a horrendous cold. This is why for those of you paying attention, it's Saturday and yet I am not out walking to train for Trailwalker. I am at home, diminishing stocks of Kleenex Balsam.
Luckily, I did not sneeze very loudly at all during the QI recording we finally attended. It was fantastic fun and I learned loads about the episode's chosen topic.
Finally, I am lucky in that my husband is Nick Irish. Because he felt sorry for me and booked me into Jared's other workshop, Seamless Sweaters.
Jared Flood. The Jared Flood.
I'd have been in awe if it weren't for the fact that while I was chatting to some of the other people taking the class, Jared walked right up and said hello to people he already knew - this was his third workshop hosted by Alice, and I think his fifth overall since Ravelry Day - and then turned to me and said, "I haven't met you yet. Hi, I'm Jared," and happily shook my hand.
He's quite a sweetheart. I think it's because he just exudes comfort. It's a good thing, because I was never really good at math and Seamless Sweaters had a fair bit of math in, but Jared got us comfortable with the subject in no time. Jared likes his numbers.
I mean, really likes his numbers.
So we learned how to construct a sweater seamlessly, from the bottom up. This had a lot to do with numbers and gauge and measurements, but also plenty to do with choices. We learned the various pairings and not-quite-pairings of decreases and knitted a swatch to demonstrate these differences. We learned a new way of doing a left-leaning decrease so that it better matched the right-leaning decrease.
Here's Jared showing us where things were on a standard V-neck jumper. He had this, a Cobblestone jumper as well as a gorgeous cabled caridgan with him, to demonstrate the various techniques and bits of math to us.
I think the only thing I really missed out learning with Jared was steeking, which he covered in the Plan Your Own Aran class that I had to miss. I could have gone along to the Hemlock Ring Blanket class, too, later the same evening, but I figured I already pushed my luck plenty with getting into this class.
Though it would have been nice to not have been a sniffling, sneezing mess all throughout the class.
I finished my swatch when I got home:
From the bottom corner clockwise: paired k2tog/ssk; paired ssk/k2tog; slip 2 as if to k2tog, k1, pass 2 sts over; and slip 1 as if to knit, k2tog, pass 1 st over.
Amazing how different they look when you see them all on one swatch like that.
Unluckily, the day out to take the class finally did me in and I had to stay home from work yesterday with my stupid cold. And we had to cancel the training hike because my cold meant that two of us were out. But despite such dismal things, at least I get to be well fed by the hubby.
Thanks, Nick: fluffy pancakes with mascarpone, chilled mango and Little Scarlet jam.
And thank you, Jared Flood, for such a wonderful workshop and for giving us your time so generously.
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