Monday 28 April 2008

tales from the white coated and safety goggled world of tea cosy knitting...and some other stuff

as some of you may know my day job involves working in a male dominated industry in an office full of men...now one of these men values the restorative qualities of a nice cup of tea (as I do myself) and along with certain other redeeming features of his this shared passion for tea (well, for time away from our desks making sure the kettle has boiled, at least) has ensured that we have become good friends over the past 8 or so years since we met...Anyway, Nich turned 40 this year. When I enquired what he would like as a gift he asked for a tea cosy, as he'd been given a shiny new tea pot for Christmas...

...(exhibit A)...
(note the attractive fossil)

I jokingly told him he would need to furnish me with dimensions if he wanted a snug fit in his custom built cosy and he duly turned in these...


...(exhibit B)...
(note the attention to detail - though I did have to work out the circumference myself, can you believe that?!)

He is now convinced that the knitting practice is one so scientific that it involves not only the most precise measurements but also the wearing of safety goggles and a white coat (although I think he may be secretly hankering back to his previous existence as a research chemist). Which makes me laugh...very few things could possibly be less scientific than my bus knitting...

anyway, the cosy has been cast on and will be unveiled at the weekend...watch this space...

I am again overwhelmed by the number of comments to the last post...it was great to read about everyone's favourite seaside treats and I am now more determined than ever to get myself to Portugal to check out the wonderful clams, squid and other seafood mentioned, along with the chilled white wine...now that sounds like my kind of place (not until I've shaken the half stone or so I put on over my four days in France though...unbelievable! never knew one moule could have such an impact!!!). The British contingent do love their fish and chips and sandwiches it seems, while seafood also figures large for the North Americans. To be honest it ALL sounded delicious to me.

My new friend the random number generator tells me the winner is no 16, which appears to be Varenia (whose stitching looks a lot more professional than mine - oh dear...). So Varenia, drop me an email with your address and I will pop the lavender sachet in the post to you in sunny Southern California.

It was, as always, lovely to discover new blogs out there and I'll be popping by them all to say hello as soon as I can...

I'll leave you with a sneak peek of something I've been playing with recently...just to add a bit of colour...


ps time for a tea tasting update...I invested in some Russian Caravan tea today (the kids were intrigued by the name) as suggested by a number of people previously - mmm, I quite like it. The smokiness isn't as pronounced as in Lapsang Souchong (obviously as it is a mix) but adds a lot to the flavour...I could quite like this one...might try with just a dot of honey, if that isn't against the tea drinkers code of course

16 comments:

Ali said...

Funny funny measurements chart. Love it.

Jodie said...

Yum ! Russian caravan.
That Teapot measurement pic would make a great fabric design - you could print it onto one of those fabric sheets through your printer.

Anonymous said...

How funny. Men!

Anna - Three Sneaky Bugs said...

Love the exhibits. He must really want that tea cozy. (and it would make a good design)

angharad handmade said...

That is a seriously detailed teapot diagram! I agree with the other commenters too - it would make a fab fabric design. Happy knitting!

Unknown said...

Check out Jodie - she can come up with some genius idea without even trying!!!

I have that teapot (amongst many others), but no fossil...hmmm. Can't wait to see the tea cozy - I hope it is as complicated as those measurements suggest it should be.

JuanitaTortilla said...

Oh wow -- I bet you, you'd be getting far more different information on teapot's dimensions from a woman!
That was WAY SPECIFIC!
But great!

I refuse to believe that men think and view the world differently (from women), but I've been proven wrong, time and again...

Charlie P said...

Brilliant! I had no idea that tea-cosy design required a degree in engineering. I love the look of the thingy at the bottom- is it going to be a teatowel? whatever it is or will be, the colours are v. nice indeed.

Miaou said...

LOL at all the measurements! Such a "man" thing to do. I am felting a tea cosy for my mum and when I asked her for the size she said "about 7 inches tall" - that's all the info I got!

dressmaker in training said...

The diagram was so cute:)

VSJensen said...

hi annie! i can't believe i won, yay! thank you so much! i tried to click on the link in your profile to email you and for some reason the link wouldn't work so i can send you my address. my email is wholegrainbaby@yahoo.com if you want to send me your email then i can contact you that way. again, thank you so much! i'm so excited! and thanks for the link to my blog, too :)

flapjacs said...

Hi! popping in to check out your blog, you are officially entered in my green giveaway, thanks so much!

I am off to have a cup of tea now, probably just Lipton. I do have some caramel tea from Stash but I'm saving that.

Your colleague's drawing is awesome, I love the way you've told the story, had a chuckle.

Anonymous said...

Hi Annie,
Just stopping by to say hi and hope your doing well. Its cold here in Minnesota and we can't wait for summer to come.
Are you having an "English" summer there?
Let's catch up soon on Radio Free Nation.
Your friend,
Marty

Anonymous said...

What teapot?

The "attractive fossil" appears to be a Jurassic ammonite... my guess is that it's from the Hettangian strata from near Dorset.

Things Hand Made said...

Thats an interseting hint of gingham. I ahve been playing around with gingham aswell.

Unknown said...

What a fun post!

I wrote you an etsy mail and wonder if you have received it?
-Emily in Norway xx