Last week I was going to show you my completed mittens (the second pair) and the almost-completed book, St. Catherine of Siena by Sigrid Undset. Alas, (well, not alas exactly) I'm still reading the book and greatly enjoying it, but the mittens (which are no longer needed in our 60+ degree weather) are too loose in the wrists and, very much alas, fall off if I relax my hands and swing my arms while walking. That's not a very good trait for a gorgeous, fluffy, soft pair of Alpaca mittens to have. They are pretty much perfect in every other way. And I have two pairs. At some point I will find some elastic thread and attempt to run it through the wrists to make them more snug. Any other suggestions? Unraveling and starting over is NOT to be thought of! :-)
After the Mitten Mishap I turned to simple crocheting of Warm Up America rectangles and my book. Much more satisfying!
St. Catherine of Siena was (dare I say, "is"?) an amazing saint. I had never heard more than the basics that she was the youngest of 22 children and brought the Pope back from Avignon to Rome. But she was much more incredible than that. There is a wealth of information about her life and miracles. I am so happy to have discovered her at last, and I'm quite pleased that I bear her name (though I highly doubt that was intentional) and share her Italian heritage!
Linking up with Ginny's Yarn Along.
Did you try to wash the mittens in hot water? Or would they shrink too much all over?
ReplyDeleteI think it's pretty safe to say St. Catharine (I noticed it's spelled with an "e" in your book, but I have heard the traditional spelling of her name was with an "a") is a saint. If that's what you meant. As a doctor of the Church, I also have not read a lot about her. I'll have to check that book out (although the odds of our library having it -- pfft).
I don't think they would shrink since they're an alpaca/acrylic blend. :-(
DeleteI imagine her name was actually Caterina or Catarina, but I don't know which. I've only ever seen it spelled "my" way. :-) As for being a saint, there are simple saints like Therese of Lisieux (also a Doctor of the Church) who had an ardent love for Christ from the earliest years, led an exemplary life, and wrote a great treatise, but Catherine had so many more "marks" of sainthood! She subsisted almost entirely on the Eucharist for years; she could tell the difference between a consecrated and unconsecrated host; she routinely had ecstasies while she communed with God; she learned to read and write from the Holy Spirit, and learned everything she knew about theology that way, as well. Her great work The Dialogues is the result of what she said while in ecstasy; she had the stigmata; she could read souls and cast out demons; many miraculous cures are attributed to her (during her life). I could go on, but as you can see, there are Saints and there are Saints. :-)
This is a book that is worth buying if your library doesn't have it!
I'm sorry about your mitten fail. Maybe you could think about them differently. Maybe they belong in Nest Egg Knits paired with a copy of The Mitten. They are perfect in color and size for that! You could make a host of little animals to stuff in there... I know you LOVE to make little animals.
ReplyDeleteSt. Catherine is one of Judith's patrons! I love her, but haven't read much beyond Lay Seige To Heaven - Louis de Wohl. I read it when I was pregnant and I've felt very close to her since then.
an off the wall idea.....if you made an icord and ran it around and through the top of the ribbing.....maybe put a couple fluffy pompoms on the ends of the icord, you could 'tighten' the wrist up a bit, tie the icord in a bow, and pretend that the icord was part of the design element. you could even make it in a contrast color....and different colored pompoms!
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