Matilda and Wovember

This weekend, I went to see Matilda the Musical at the Cambridge Theatre in London with my family. It was my choice - I had heard that it had received lots of plaudits and when asked which musical we should see as a family (my family + my uncle, aunt and cousins) then I suggested Matilda. So I approached with some trepidation - I would feel responsible if it was dull, boring or 'unsuitable'.

Thankfully, it was none of those things. I loved the book by Roald Dahl as a child and identified strongly with the clever little girl who enjoyed reading books (mercifully, I didn't identify with the unappreciated, unwanted daughter aspect of the character). The musical really captured the spirit of the books - riotous fun and just a little subversive. Having entered the theatre not knowing any of the songs, I've been happily humming 'When I Grow Up' and 'Miracle' since we left. The set design is really imaginative - full of books, rising desks, swings and things to climb up, and had plenty to look at during the interval. If you can get to London, then go to see it! It really is good - as a group of adults, we thought that any children aged 8+ would love it. There are some loud bits, sudden flashing lights, cruel parents and a scary headteacher so younger children might not cope.


It's also Wovember, so my Google Reader has been filled with lots of pictures of sheep and woolen objects over the past week. Wovember was established last year to celebrate real wool and real sheep. Personally, I knit a lot with wool but wear little of it in bought garments (the jumper I'm wearing today is 60% cotton and 40% polyester). However, wool is so much more evocative and connected to the lives of real people and animals than polyester. As a knitter and crocheter, I'm a little more keyed in than the average person to the idea that different breeds of sheep make different types of wool for different purposes, but I can't tell you the last time that I actually touched a live sheep (I was probably 8 and at a Rare Breeds Farm) or really got up close to one. What I've really enjoyed from the Wovember posts is the opportunity to get closer (via the internet) to sheep and where my wool comes from.

Alice II

A little update on how Alice is getting on. Mum came to visit a few weeks ago, and so we visited the sewing/knitting show in town and I purchased some buttons. Thus Alice no longer has scary scraps as eyes! I then made a knob of the cream wool as a nose, and used some burgundy for a mouth. I'm still not sure about the burgundy, but I tried the pink (same as hat) and that seemed to be worse, so burgundy it is!

After having the head sitting on my desk for a few weeks, I finally attached it to the body and styled the hair. I've decided, now that I can double crochet, to make the dress 

but that now seems like a long term plan. I'm fairly happy with the way that Alice is now!

Alice looking pensive:

Close up of the face, especially the button eyes. They don't quite match the clothing, but I fell in love with the colour.

Back of the hair, as an Alice I did consider putting her hair in an Alice band before settling on a double ponytail thing. Totally escapist - I always wanted a doll with whom I could fiddle with the hair in this way as a child. 

Striped Scarf

I really like this scarf. It's a little short, and thin, but the colours are quite lovely in person. The pink is a little redder than that shown here.

How it was made:

Hayfield Bonus DK - Purple

Stylecraft Ltd Life DK - 2301 Rose

5mm (H) hook

Chain 150, turn, single crochet into each of chains, turn, the same, so that there are 3 rows. Change to other colour, do three rows, and so on. I ended up 6 stripes, though more could be done easily.

150 is a little small - if want a longer scarf then I would go with 200-250. But I do love it and think it's a little more appropriate for the spring weather that is beginning to creep into England. As I expected, the rose colour Life DK was nicer to crochet with than the Hayfield, as it is 25% wool, 75% acrylic, compared with Hayfield's 100% (but that is so cheap!). I am going to make a beanie in the same stripy style once I've finished my current amigurumi project.

Also, the doll now has eyes and a face. I am trying to decide whether she needs more hair, or if I can sew it straight on the body.