Back in the states and hard at work again, but that doesn't mean that I can't show you some more photographs. The last days of our trip were spent at the Gladstone Pottery Museum and at Chatsworth (the home of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire) in the Peak District. The first is a preserved and restored historic pottery manufactory in the city of Stoke-on-Trent. Bottle ovens, so named for their distinctive shape, filled the 19th-century Staffordshire skies with belches of black smoke while, ironically, producing sparkling white bone china and decorated earthenware. You can see several in the photograph at left. Most of the manufacturers that remained in Stoke pulled down their bottle ovens in the first half of the twentieth century. While the skies are now much cleaner, I must admit to a small desire to see Staffordshire as it once was. Historic films can get you close....and a walk through Gladstone can put you right inside an oven or a startlingly noisy slip-making room, which may be as good as it gets. I loved this place with abandon and shot a ridiculous number of photographs.
Above is the color mixing room in the decorating shop, with the bottle ovens in the courtyard just visible through the window.
Below is a slip-casting mold for jug handles. It beguiled me.
Such images were for research and future teaching, of course! I also threw a pot..on a modern wheel, but in the same room where pots had been thrown for more than 100 years. It actually made it home with me, the poor ugly little thing. I can't fire it because I haven't a kiln, but it squats on my desk and murmurs to me of all thinks kaolin. A hollow imp. An inclaybus....ok, I'll stop now.
Saturday, which dawned rainy and cool but quickly became gloriously sunny, found us taking a series of buses and trains from Stoke up to the Peak District. We began at Buxton, where we were so early I actually managed to take photographs of architecture without mobs of people in the way. Witness: The Buxton Opera House.
I have never seen anything to approximate the brilliant emerald of English fields. American grass and sunlight just can't achieve the same glory as a jewel-bright meadow encrusted with pearly sheep set in a granite bezel and nestled into the hill's bosom.
There I have waxed poetic and it has removed the worst of my writerly stubble. What a lovely image. Moving right along....Once we arrived in yet another impossibly perfect small town, Chatsworth was only about a 20 minute walk from the bus stop. In some ways the journey proved more satisfying than the destination, as this stately matron of an English home was aswarm with rather shockingly rude tourists who threw themselves down staircases, into sacred spaces and across historic architecture in search of the perfect vacation snap. It infuriated me. This was someone's home!
But once we moved outside into the soothing grounds I relaxed a bit. And managed to get the second sunburn of my trip. Quite a feat in England, or so I am told.
The pond below was in the rock garden up the hill and to the right of the famous waterfall gravity-fed fountain.
The GF and I could not decide if we liked the modern silver balls that made up an installation sculpture floating in the pond. We thought the ducks weren't sure either. We shall not speak of our "last" day in the country, as it entailed much drama, tears, a bit of hair-pulling and unexpectedly large quantities of cash in order to make it on a plane home. But I'm here, I have Rowan yarn purchased in England, and I'm knitting something from Jane Sowerby...just for the symmetry of the thing. Next week my life changes as I begin the new fellowship and my dissertation becomes my job for the next nine months. While I'm sure I will be knitting on the train to and from Philly, that will be the extent of it for awhile, so my production will probably decrease rather sharply. But stay tuned, as I have the finished Aquila shawl to unveil (I finished her in England but need to block properly for her photoshoot);I'm hard at work on a pair of Pomatomus, and the aforementioned Sowerby in kidsilk haze. Tasty.
Now I just have to design an appropriate sweater. 
Glitterati, a scarf based on Crazy Aunt Purl's design. It helped me use up all sorts of odds and ends with what I think is a quite fun result. Fringe is awesome!
Wrought, a cowl-necked sweater with leafy detailing at cuffs and collar that I came up with on the fly. Cascade Eco-wool on size 8 needles. The yarn was a gift from my mum. It makes me think of fresh wrought iron, hence the name.
I had been waiting to post about this sweater because I just could not find the right buttons. They couldn't be too shiny, too bright, too anything that would distract from the fabulousness of the collar and the yarn...mmmmmmm debbie bliss silk alpaca...mmmmmmmmmmmmm. Ahem. Right, so I waited for nearly a month, looking, looking, and finally found the PERFECT buttons while shopping for buttons for the Olympic sweater. It took trips to three stores before I gave up and went to JoAnns. I'm so glad I did. They were having a 50% off sale and I got these for a song. And they are Goldilocks buttons: juuuuust right.
See what I mean? Matte copper, simple, craftsman-like pseudo handmade detailing (i.e. fake hammering marks and scribing), not perfectly round. I think they match the aesthetic of this pattern. It is my urban fairytale sweater. I wear it constantly, usually with jeans and boots, and feel really quite stupendous in it. All thanks to my sister, who gave me this delicious yarn for the holidays. Thanks Sis, you made this possible!!!!!
So I AM the luckiest girl in the world. She even let me get away with mac & cheese with left-over pot roast for dinner last night to let me try and finish the sweater. The reason I got so close and didn't get the gold was the damn steek. It was my first steek ever and I may never do this again. Ok, I'm lying. It's pretty damn cool as a process. But you have to get the crochet stitches much, much tighter than I did to make it work. I crocheted, I took several deep breaths, I put the sweater down for an hour, and then I cut. Everything looked great (no pictures b/c I was working too fast at this point to stop and find the camera), and then I tried to pick up stitches for the I-cord button band. All went well until we got to the yoke. Then stitches started popping out of the steek. My heart almost stopped. Seriously, all that work and this is how it was going to go down?!!? After much crying and several failed attempts to stop the yarn bleeding I gave up. I put the sweater down and went to bed (it was 3 am on Saturday night). The next morning, filled with bright enthusiasm and four cups of coffee, I had a plan and some dpns. I would knit a separate binding that I would then sew over the steek to seal it, stabilize it and act as a button band, all in one. Garment construction 101, right? More than 50 inches of stockinette later I was ready to start sewing. I made two attempts to knit the neck band on to the active stitches still on a holder but experienced massive fail. The problem with knitted-on Icord on size 8 needles: it's freaking ugly. I mean frankenknit ugly. So I ripped, and knit, and ripped and knit and finally realized I would have to do the entire band separately. I did. I was ready to sew it on at 6:45 last night. Yeah. Which was why I was only two button-holes away from finishing when Neil Young finished his "song." Do you feel my pain, knitters of the world? 17 days of constant knitting (ok, a few hours each night in front of Bob Costas, but still!) and I'm two buttonholes away from glory. Is this how Plushenko felt? This colorwork felt like my quad, I tell you what. So the band is on, I will probably rip out the crocheted button-holes and re-do them since they are slightly off.
overall glamour shot, with supersized at no extra charge steek:
"Yes, mother, I approve."
Clearly we have motivational issues.
Food consumed: migas, coffee (not enough!), pink lady apple
I have worn it on dozens of occasions since I finished it in England and blocked it on the ugly carpet of my dorm room. She is the perfect size (except for blocking, which was difficult in our little hardwood cottage), weight and color. I humbly believe she is the best thing I have ever produced. In order to keep the needles clicking I have begun (and nearly finished) a pair of Pomatomus...
see my Rav page for comments on these. I LOVE them, mostly because they fit my calves without mods; which is a pretty rare thing for all sock patterns and especially for Cookie A's.
I will show you the bounty that is the full haul later, but for now...feast your eyes on a very simple seafoam pattern scarf that (IMHO) shows off the yarn to its best advantage. It's peacocky goodness! Yarn: DK weight 50/50 silk/Rayon. Needles: US 7 circs.
Above is the color mixing room in the decorating shop, with the bottle ovens in the courtyard just visible through the window.
Below is a slip-casting mold for jug handles. It beguiled me.
I have never seen anything to approximate the brilliant emerald of English fields. American grass and sunlight just can't achieve the same glory as a jewel-bright meadow encrusted with pearly sheep set in a granite bezel and nestled into the hill's bosom. 
There I have waxed poetic and it has removed the worst of my writerly stubble. What a lovely image. Moving right along....Once we arrived in yet another impossibly perfect small town, Chatsworth was only about a 20 minute walk from the bus stop. In some ways the journey proved more satisfying than the destination, as this stately matron of an English home was aswarm with rather shockingly rude tourists who threw themselves down staircases, into sacred spaces and across historic architecture in search of the perfect vacation snap. It infuriated me. This was someone's home! 
But once we moved outside into the soothing grounds I relaxed a bit. And managed to get the second sunburn of my trip. Quite a feat in England, or so I am told. 
The pond below was in the rock garden up the hill and to the right of the famous waterfall gravity-fed fountain. 
This cardigan has been rustling through my mind like autumn leaves for a long time. I wear it constantly, as the mostly cotton yarn makes this a three season sweater. This is a personal pattern I designed after seeing the leaf pattern on the Muscari socks (which I adore and will knit soon) and a couple of Norah Gaughan's fabulous patterns with similar collar reveals. The sweater is knit from the top down in the round, beginning at the collar. The collar stitches are knit on the reverse so they will appear right side out when worn. The same stitch appears in a single repeat row at the cuffs. Moss stitch button band. The waist is slightly fitted. I have been debating with myself about the number of buttons ever since I finished the sweater. I LOVE these buttons but they almost overwhelm the neutral tones of the sweater... but they also emphasize the leaf theme. Thoughts?
If there's enough interest (please comment if you are interested!!!), I'll publish the pattern. Those of you who have knit a top down cardi and done basic lace can complete this sweater with no problem. It's quite easy and quick. Big needles are good for that!!
