Damn it's bright out
I'm so happy its sunday and yet I still have 2 days left to do whatever we want! Last night we went to see Superman and I was very pleasantly suprised that they kept it simple and good. We both enjoyed it.
Prior to that I went out with some ladies to go on a yarn crawl of Roswell/Buckhead in Atlanta. First stop, Cast on Cottage for that hempathy and pattern book I wanted;
After that we hit Stings & Strands where I was terribly bad and got some Debbie Bliss pure silk for a tank top. I only did it because Claudia did it (hehehe!!!) and plus I wanted to support Strings & Stands which has recently moved to a new location. Stop by and check them out, it's INSANE how much yarn they have.
The one thing that struck me was that all 3 yarn stores we went to (also Why Knot Knit but I was good and didn't get anything) had Katia Jamaica, every single one! Before this summer I had never even seen this yarn before so I can only guess it is new. It's actually decent yardage so after taking that into consisderation the price wasn't that horrible.
A few weeks ago when I visited home, I found this blanket in my mothers car;
Turns out is was my grandmothers, so I promptly looked for a label because it looked hand made.
And so it was! I wonder if the fiber was handspun as well, from the looks of it I would say yes. Turns out Clifden Connemara is a place.
This link has an old guide from 1960 which lists Millar's in it as having handwoven tweed. That was about all I could find on the internet about them. I can only guess that around that time my Grandmother was there, or someone in her family was and purchased the blanket. It's so pretty, has a few small holes from moths. It's fairly rough too and the ends look felted. I'll treasure it always. I love how it has my favorite colors in it.
------------- funny quote -------------
From E! Naomi Cambell special, a reporter talking about a story about her; "I thought the readers would be more sympathetic of that angel, rather then that she been stuffing half of columbia up her nose". My husband and I could not stop laughing, he said it in such a nice british accent.
Comments
Debby says;
You found the pattern and hempathy!! Can't wait to see the swatch and cast-on.
What a treasure you have, your grandmother's blanket...those things are priceless (if very warm in all the heat).
Happy 4th!
David O'Connell says;
Wonderful to see my grandfathers product. Yes he did spin the yarn. He was well known for his ability to blend colours. I often spent time in the old mill in the fifties. He bought the wool, had a large dyeing vat that I used to stir as the water boiled. He graded the wool and spun it in a spinning machine that moved back and forth as the wool spun on to the bobbins. All his equipment was run by large belts from a diesel engine. The mill now no longer in existance was situated over a water fall that poured into Clifden bay. My grandfather died in 1973. The mill was taken over by my Uncle Albert and then my cousin Ronnie. Ronnie is now retired and the mill and shop closed in 2006. I am returning to Clifden this year from Oregon to stay three months in a home I rented so that our family and friends can experience the history. I must say that my grandfather was a wonderful fisherman and lover of dogs.
David