Blackberries and nannas

The blackberry crumble's all gone, and there's still no sign of my Blackberry. Dad and I ordered Bold 9700s and have been anticipating their arrival since Friday. In the meantime I've been scouring the 'net for cases. I'm determined to enclose my phone in something bright as, although it's a great piece of tech, it's far too business-y for my liking. I think I'm going to go with this one in purple. I love this one in hot pink, but it doesn't protect the bottom of the phone - and given my reputation for prematurely killing mobile phones, I think full protection is the way to go ...

The scarf is continuing to grow, and I'm looking forward to showing it to my friend tomorrow. She's offered to check on it for me so she can suggest ways to make it look neater/make sure I'm not doing anything ridiculous :)

I wrote to Aneeta Patel, author of Knitty Gritty - the best "learn-to-knit" book available as it uses photographs to show you what to do and doesn't bring in the purl stitch until you've completed two projects - last week as I was a little overwhelmed by my 40cm needles and wasn't sure whether to go with the 25cm ones that she appears to be using in her book.

She finally wrote back yesterday and said the 40cm weren't a good idea.

For the chunky scarf in Knitty Gritty 40cm is really too long and you'll find them unweildy. I'm not sure why the shop assistant suggested you buy them!

Alas I'm already a tenth of the way through (I proceeded without waiting for Aneeta's reply on the advice of my friend who thought the longer ones were better for preventing slippage). Still, it was nice getting email from the author of a book I love and she seems really friendly. I wrote back and asked her about her experiences as a non-Caucasian member of the Women's Institute as I'm thinking about giving N1WI a go. It would be great to meet up with fellow nannarific 20-somethings and swap ideas/learn new skills. Amusing article about the rise of young WI members here.

Another option is to attend the the Tuesday 'Knit Night' at the fabulous Drink, Shop & Do, but this clashes with barbershop practice (4-part a cappella harmony, not hairstyling!) Decisions, decisions. D, S & D is also a potential venue for our Brown Owls crafting club. Exciting!

I close with a picture of the most fabulous handmade wooden knitting needles this newbie has seen. You can find a small Artviva selection on UK sites if you look carefully, but I'm guessing I'll have to head down under to enjoy the whole range.