Turkey Tracks: December 13, 2010
Giovanna’s Shawl
This fall I had the great good fortune to meet Giovanna McCarthy.
Giovanna’s husband, Tom, went to high school with John in Sommerville, MA. Sometime last year, Tom and John reconnected, and Tom and Giovanna rented a house here in Camden, Maine, for the fall. They wanted to explore living here, and they bought a home the first week they arrived. They will move here for good in January 2011, and we are excited about them coming here. Giovanna has already come to two of Coastal Quilters’ monthly meetings.
Giovanna came to America from Chile as a young woman. And, Giovanna is a master knitter. Her hands are always busy with handwork.
Look what she gave me not long ago:
Here’s a close-up:
Giovanna used one of the Noro yarns from Japan. These yarns have the most beautiful colors and fibers. Noro yarns can be pure wool or blends. Noros often use a lot of silk and some of the softer animal fibers, like angora. And, the yars come in various weights. I made a scarf and matching hat from a silk and wool Noro when I started knitting again here in Maine. It’s wearing beautifully. I did a pair of socks, though, that I detest. I couldn’t match the colors from one sock to the other, and to my eye, they don’t look pretty. (Friend Amy Fischer loves them though.) Giovanna, clearly, knows how to use these yarns. She says this pattern is easy. Ha! And, that one works a hole when there is a color change so the colors are even.
I recently bought a book on knitting with Noro yarns that excites me. There’s a chunky cardigan in it that has my name on it.
This blog will have more on Noro knitting down the road, I’m sure. And I’m sure there will also be more on Giovanna and her work.
Louisa Enright's Blog 