I Don't Like Mondays....

My laptop has some major problems, plus all my symptoms have flared up. Not a good combination. Back next week, I hope.

Dirndl Bag

I chose this name because the shape and pattern of the bag remind me of my favourite dirndl skirt, when I was little.

Any cotton or ribbon yarn can be used, as long as the tension on the label is around 20sts to 4 inches/10cm. If you use one of the bulky ribbon yarns, with a tension of 10sts to 4 inches/10cm, then halve the number of stitches and rows to get the same size bag.

I used Pingouin Tricotine in lavender, and Sirdar Milano in navy, but both of these are discontinued.

The finished size is approximately 8 inches/20cm deep by 12 inches/30cm wide. Gauge is not crucial to this project, but I worked at a gauge of 12 sts and 5 pattern rows to 4 inches/10cm.

If you wish to have a more versatile bag, you may wish to line it – I left it unlined, to act as a beach bag.

Materials:

About 540yds/500m of ribbon yarn A
About 210yds/190m of ribbon B
6mm (J) crochet hook
Pair of bamboo handles 4.5inches/11.5cm diameter

UK instructions:

Working with two strands of yarn A held together, work 20dc around one of the handles. Turn.

Row 1: ch3, work 2tr into every dc. Turn.

Row 2: ch1, work 1dc into first tr, 2 dc into second tr. Continue across the row alternating 1dc and 2dc. Turn

Row 3: ch3, 1tr into every dc across. Turn.

Row 4: ch1, 1 dc into every tr across. Turn.

Work 3 more rows, alternating dc rows and tr rows. Fasten off.

Repeat for second handle, but do not fasten off.

Next row: Begin working with one strand of A and one strand of B. ch1, dc across the row, and then on across the last row of the first handle section. At the end of the row, sl st to the first ch to join into a round. From now on, you will be working in rounds, with one strand of A and one of B, but still alternating dc rounds with tr rounds.

Next row: ch3, tr around, sl st to 3rd of commencing ch.

Following row: ch1, dc around, sl sl to commencing ch.

Continue with one A and one B until you have worked 10 rounds in total in those colours. Change back to two strands of A, and work a further 4 rounds. Turn the bag inside out and ss the bottom together.

US instructions

Working with two strands of yarn A held together, work 20sc around one of the handles. Turn.

Row 1: ch3, work 2dc into every sc. Turn.

Row 2: ch1, work 1sc into first dc, 2 sc into second dc. Continue across the row alternating 1sc and 2sc. Turn

Row 3: ch3, 1dc into every sc across. Turn.

Row 4: ch1, 1sc into every dc across. Turn.

Work 3 more rows, alternating sc rows and dc rows. Fasten off.

Repeat for second handle, but do not fasten off.

Next row: Begin working with one strand of A and one strand of B. ch1, sc across the row, and then on across the last row of the first handle section. At the end of the row, sl st to the first ch to join into a round. From now on, you will be working in rounds, with one strand of A and one of B, but still alternating sc rounds with dc rounds.

Next row: ch3, dc around, sl st to 3rd of commencing ch.

Following row: ch1, sc around, sl sl to commencing ch.

Continue with one A and one B until you have worked 10 rounds in total in those colours. Change back to two strands of A, and work a further 4 rounds. Turn the bag inside out and ss the bottom together.

Here we go again

Yet again the humidity has beaten me, and I am unable to blog properly this week. The lack of sleep (and presence of unpleasant and disturbing dreams) is really starting to annoy me now!

I'm used to having quite a narrow life, but having it narrowed even more is very irritating....

It's Tennyson time!

Radios 3 and 4 are obsessed with Tennyson at present - last Thursday (August 6) was the 200th anniversary of his birth. I have what I thought was a fair working knowledge of 19th century English poetry, and I tended to lump him in with Wordsworth as Poets Who Irritate Me. However, as there are so many of them around - anniversary programmes, not PWIM - I listened in to some of them.

I discovered one thing pretty quickly:

Tennyson Is Not Wordsworth.

In fact, what I have heard so far sounds quite modern, and surprisingly full of tags of lines which I recognise - but not of clichés. There's a lot of Tennyson on line, and I wholeheartedly recommend you try a little.

If all you know of Maud is, 'Come into the garden, Maud', and you think it sounds like a trite drawing-room ballad, think again. It is weird and creepy and very disturbing.

Or try In Memoriam, a massive work written after the death of his best friend, which considers not only love and grief, but also scientific ideas such as evolution.

And if you want an example of a poet having huge fun with words and sounds, try The Eagle. I had to learn this for a drama exam, and to my shame I had never realised it was by Tennyson...

I'm all for people reading more poetry, but I never thought I'd find myself championing Tennyson!

Good news week

First of all - I got a cheque for my bank charges, in full, by return of post, with no haggling. I am somewhat better disposed to the company now!

Secondly, my mum and sister came to visit for the day on Thursday, and we had an absolute blast :D Mum was in fine form - even though she refuses to wear her hearing aids ;) - and I haven't seen her laugh so much for ages.

Mind you, she made us laugh, too. A couple of days before, there had been a meeting at her sheltered accommodation which my sister had attended with her, so that she could tell Mum what was being said (I mentioned the hearing aids, didn't I...). At the end of the meeting it was obvious that further discussion was needed, and my sister asked if more notice could be given of the meeting next time - there were several relatives there, and she didn't think she was the only one with other commitments. To which Mum piped up: 'Yes, she should have been in court this morning.'

Every head in the place turned to look at my sister....

...who explained that she is a magistrate, and should have been on the bench that day!

Mum also loved my Raspberry Ruffles shawl, and has apparently been telling all her friends about it. I'll be making one for her for Christmas, in another of Patricia's gorgeous hand-dyed yarns, called Elsinore - blues and greens, very seashore! And a quick plug - if you want to see Patricia's gorgeous yarns for yourself, why not nip over to her Etsy shop, Yummy Yarns UK? I can guarantee that whatever you buy will be well worth the asking price!