NETWIFM: Duncan McFarlane!

Not Exactly [Last] Week In Folk Music: Duncan McFarlane!

We didn't go to Folkmob last week; we were just knackered.

But Tuesday night at Sharps was something not to be missed-- the guest was Duncan McFarlane, and he is completely worth your time if you have the opportunity to go and see him. stevieannie, I think you would particularly enjoy his driving mix of traditional and original-nodding-to-traditional material, not to mention his obvious homage-to-Nic-Jones guitar style. He was fun, he was energetic, he was right there and not at a distance, and he was really enjoying himself. He was chatty and personable at the break, got everybody to sing along, and didn't take himself too seriously.

My itty bitty floor spot went OK; I sang "Shirt of Lace" with the lap harp and it wasn't awful but it wasn't perfect either.

( Good and bad parts about this experience. )

TKN: Second Camelot Sock: There is light at the end of the tunnel!

The Knitting News:
Second Camelot Sock: There is light at the end of the tunnel!

--but I'm afraid that means it's still a long way to the grafting of the second toe.

Things I've improved from Sock 1 to Sock 2:

• Better control of Yorkshire Tweed through colour changes in the sideways garter stitch cuff.
  
• More consistent stitch-pickups around the cuff and better grafting all around.
  
• Comfortable stranded knitting with this wool right away, since I'd just come from doing it on the other sock: the patterning on the leg of the second sock is clearer than the first sock, because the tension and habit of two-handed stranded knitting is back in my hands.
  
• Less-confused read-through of the heel flap instructions made me simplify the heel flap colour changes; as a result, this heel flap has more clearly defined colour changes.
  
• Same as above with the heel-turn itself; the colour changes are much nicer and better defined on this sock. Of course, that's the part nobody will see, but still.
  
• A pattern alteration will make the gusset and sole patterns more clearly defined across the sock. The pattern itself calls for the round to begin at the left gusset, after the heel stitches, which resulted in an uneven gusset and sole pattern. I simply knitted around 'til I got past the right instep and declared that the beginning of the round. Now I have a consistent sole and gusset pattern across the sock instead of a weird jog 2/3 of the way around the sock and a strange and visible change of pattern right on the heel (not that you can see that part anyway, but it makes me happier to know that it looks perfect now, aside from the little bit of striping that occurred while I was setting the pattern).
  

I am not sure, but I may very well make this sock about half an inch longer than the first one, because on the first one I started the toe decreases a wee bit early. I always forget how long my toes are! I know, I know: they're right there while I'm knitting; you'd think I would have this skill. I think the problem is really more spatial than anything else. Kinda like the little finger joke, which I won't retell here, but yeah, I'm just like that.