This week I have a mystery to solve with the help of you, dear Readers.

David and I have been staging our own personal Luis Buñuel film festival. You can do fun things like this when you don’t watch TV.  I know, I know, there’s TiVo if you find the ads tiresome, but we like to support the guys at our local independent video store  who seem to stock everything that’s ever been made.
Buñuel’s movies are in Spanish, subtitled in English, which makes them counter productive for those of us who can’t sit on a sofa sans needles, except that you might just want to put your knitting down anyway, because they’re so beautiful you won’t want to miss a frame.

If you have an appetite for social commentary, his scathing portrayal of Spanish politics and customs, fascism versus socialism, the Church and the bourgeoisie will give you plenty of nourishment.  Or you can enjoy the stories at face value, as dark romances where women are used, but always have the last word. If this all sounds a bit heavy handed, fear not. Buñuel has a light touch and is often funny.The wallpapers, silverware, embroidered table cloths and crocheted bedspreads make a satisfying meal, to say nothing of the superb acting and richly textured settings. It’s a feast, with lashings of hot chocolate and delicious Spanish cooking.

Our two movies this week were Viridiana, made in 1961, and Tristana, from 1970. Both feature young women who are seduced, with tragic consequences, by the old devil who shows up in many Buñuel films and is always played by Fernando Rey. It’s painful to see these innocents in the grip of the lecherous old man, but without giving the plots away, they do manage some revenge. I think Buñuel liked women.

Here’s where it gets interesting: the lovely young women in both these movies are knitters. Viridiana, played by Mexican actress Silvia Pinal, wears a knit(or crochet?) cape, and is seen throwing her knitting into the fire, so deep is her despair. Buñuel makes a point of showing this in detail. Needles, basket, yarn, everything gets tossed into the flames. She does shake off her seducer and gain her freedom but does she really need to burn her knitting to do it?

Here she is, about to do the deed….

Tristana, played by Catherine Deneuve, is seen wearing a capelet very similar to the one worn by Viridiana. She, too, knits. Now get this: Catherine Deneuve, a French actress in a Spanish movie, is NOT knitting continental. She’s knitting English style.

But the most important question is: are the capes knit or crochet? I’ve tried stopping  both movies multiple  times to try to figure this out,  but I don’t have the answer. Look closely. Any ideas?

Tristana

Viridiana

and finally, my favourite line from Tristana…..

Isn’t is satisfying to make things for your house? You get to enjoy the making, the using, and  you have a daily reminder of all those hours you lovingly stitched something that you’ll have forever.

It used to be my ambition to have a completely home made house.  Not being much good with hammer and nail I’ve scaled that down to having a home made item in each room. At this point I might have reached my goal but that won’t stop me because I’m addicted to making things.

Here are some non-knitted things I made for my garden in Santa Monica. I left them there for the new owner (a twinge of regret permeates these words as I type) and on visits, I walk past it and see those little bits if myself that are still there no matter who the owner is.

These pots were made following an inspirational few days in Barcelona (the plates were already broken – I just couldn’t bear to part with them). My Antonio Gaudi phase.

Pebble pattern on my bedroom patio, surrounded by gardenias. Mmmmm.

Perhaps it’s because the hot summer days disappeared all of a sudden last week, the days shortened and it’s altogether an autumn-ish feeling around here, that I embarked on making my own little bit of sunshine to cover the dull grey tiles in the bathroom.

I’ve always loved rag or hooked rugs and have had it in mind for a long time to make a knitted version. The moment arrived (funny how something that’s been brewing for years decides, for no particular reason, to slide itself onto your knitting needles) so I spent my evenings this week making this colourful  folk art-ish mat while watching episodes of Midsomer Murders, the irresistible modern day Hercule Poirot-style mystery set in an ultra picturesque English village brimming with dozens of typically eccentric characters, and this delicious documentary about Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton. Now that’s what I call living!

Please don’t hate me for owning a large stash of the scrumptious, soft Blue Sky Cotton, left over from various projects.  I just can’t stop using this yarn, as much for its softness as its gorgeous colour palette.

For extra sumptuousness I used double strands throughout.

My mat weighs 550g, so you’d need that much yarn to make one the same size. I used seven colours (700g) but you could make up your own colour scheme, perhaps using only 2 or 3 colours.

Here are some  more subdued (but no less beautiful) combinations I’m considering for my next mat.

81-sand & 604-aloe

80-bone & 81-sand

and now, to Mel’s helpful hint of the week, told to me by a Los Angeles gent who seemed to be an expert in these matters:

If you’re trying to sell your house, instead of stashing towels or keeping them in a cupboard, roll a few and put them on display. It gives the visitor (or potential buyer) a feeling that they’ll always be on vacation or at a spa if they buy your house!

P.S. I like the idea of making this mat much bigger with leftover wool and felting it. It would be beautiful in a child’s room or as a hearth rug.

The recipe  for my Folk-ish Mat is over in the free pattern menu.

While watching the dvd of Coco Before Chanel last night, I realized that I’d committed a knitting faux pas.

Don’t ask me why I was knitting while watching a movie featuring gorgeous costumes, Audrey Tatou, and subtitles. Let’s just say I have a deadline and I’d memorized the pattern.

My new cardigan, knit in one piece to the underarms, was coming along nicely.

Stopping to put the kettle on, I laid it on the coffee table to indulge in a moment of admiration and saw to my horror that I’d not centered the stitch pattern correctly. How I’d gotten almost to the armpits without seeing this is I do not know. I thought of  pretending it was deliberate, but I knew in my heart that it would turn into an “if-only-I’d-studied-for-the-chemistry-exam-my-life-would-be-different moment, so there was nothing to do but unravel it all.

It turns out that unravelling is more suitable than knitting for watching foreign movies!

So here sits the forlorn ball of cotton yarn with its crinkly memory reminding me to pay more attention in future.

A couple of readers have asked about the bag pattern from last week, so I’ve made this drawing (instructions below):

First, a disclaimer.

I’m not used to writing sewing instructions but I’ll give it a try:

1. cut two pieces of fabric to the measurements shown in the diagram, one for the lining and one for the outer. note the fold line.

2. pin the “darts” at the opening on the outer and the lining.

3. leaving a 10 cm gap at the top of each side, sew both side seams with Right Sides of the fabric facing each other on the inside. do this for the lining and outer.

4. placing the Right Side of the lining against the Right Side of the outer layer, pin along the 10cm opening on both side, and along the curve at top, leaving an 8cm opening on the curve. sew.

5. turn the bag out so that the lining lies inside the bag.

6. blind stitch the opening around the curve.

7. attach handles using cotton thread or some attractive yarn, perhaps left over from one of your crocheted squares.

There are many different shapes of handles and it’s necessary to tailor the top edge of the bag to suit your handle. if yours has a straight edge, make the top of the bag straight instead of curved.

and now to finished projects. Jenny Herd of Melbourne sent me some photos of this beautiful shawl she knit using Manos Silk Blend. The colour is 3109-woodland.

The shawl was knitted on 6mm needles and used 5 hanks of Silk Blend. The pattern you can find here at Knitty

Thank you, Jenny! It’s gorgeous!

Now, to start over with the cardi…….