Yesterday, seeing as it’s now September and no longer officially ‘summer’, was warm and summery and not at all like the dismalness that has prevailed since June. My friend Jamie has a new camera to play with and consequently volunteered to be take some photos of my new beret (er that would be one of my new berets). We had a lot of fun wandering around pretending to be tourists and investigated the interior of St Giles cathedral, which is very pretty and almost certainly on every list of must see sights in Edinburgh. We’re both from here but neither of us had ever been inside. We also went to the museum of childhood, an old favourite but way less creepy since they’ve turned the lights up in the doll room. It was warm enough that buying ice cream didn’t seem ridiculous and it certainly added something to our tourist pretence, but we did at least resist the urge to ask the real tourists stupid questions (eg. where’s the castle?).
My local tip is that this lovely herb garden is off the royal mile, near the bottom just past the graveyard. It doesn’t seem very well known, and doesn’t look like much from the street so it’s always quiet and peaceful. At least a little like a secret garden.
Being a tourist, even a pretend one, is hard work, especially in a city that it is impossible to go anywhere as the crow flies and in which the ground is never flat, so we spent the evening vegetating and watching Tank Girl. We may be two of the only people who love that film, although that’s not the only reason we’re friends. We also discovered, while trying to find out what else Tank Girl has been in on IMDB (umm… nothing very notable) that Jet Girl = Naomi Watts. Well that would be why she looks so familiar, huh?
Anyway, Estella, aka star stitch beret. These photos, with their pretty back drops, are maybe not the best for actually seeing the detail – don’t worry though I’ll take some boring but clearer ones for the pattern. Unless you like mystery knits? It’s basically a nice slouchy beret, although it would be very simple to make less slouchy, in a two colour star stitch pattern.
I love this yarn, baby lama from Mirasol. So very soft and not at all itchy in the way that alpaca so often is. The colours are beautiful, I spent a good twenty minutes sitting on the shop floor trying to choose, these photos really don’t show the depth of the colours. Some of the proceeds from the yarn range also goes to funding a school in Peru, although I couldn’t find much in the way of exact details about what percentage etc. My cynicism aside the yarn is gorgeous and the project certainly seems to be worth supporting. They have a bunch of different partners to distribute the yarn in different countries so I think that it’s fairly widely available. According to the shop display it’s exclusive to John Lewis here. There were 3 other yarns in the range, although they didn’t have the wool / cotton blend while I was there or I might have bought some of that too, there were also some pattern booklets but I’m not sure what they’re like. I think they’re all designed by Jane Ellison, who also seems to have been involved in designing the branding and yarn.
Pattern soon – and I really mean that this time. It shouldn’t take too long because I really am getting better at writing patterns as I go. Next mission – writing a pattern before knitting it. I’m convinced this is a skill that I’m going to need to develop in my efforts to be a professional designer. Did I just type those two words in reference to myself? Eep.
The dress is from Jigsaw, about a year ago. I’ve reached the conclusion that my special occasion clothes will never be worn if I wait for suitable occasions to turn up. That it makes me happy seems like a good enough reason to wear them just because, and photo shoots are always a good excuse.
{ 43 comments… read them below or add one }
de-lurking to say hi – i love your designs & your blog, and i utterly ADORE tank girl!!! you’re definitely not the only ones in the world with such great taste – the movie is fab & the comics are even better :) xo
Yet another Tank Girl fan delurking. I actually like the movie better than the comic book, which proves what a plebe I am.
Your beret is lovely! And you’ve made me want to visit Edinburgh. My husband lived there for six months, and he’s made several “where’s the castle” jokes. It seems that even the non natives get sick of it.
I admire your pattern writing skill prodigiously. I’m working on a few right now, and good heavens – it’s so so much harder for me to write down what I did than to actually do it. That you can make intelligible sense out of this is remarkable to me. Congratulations on yet another lovely design!
i love the idea of not waiting to wear special clothes, I’m going to adopt that policy, too. And I love the beret with that dress, most excellent!
The beret is lovely! And you, as a professional designer, not that much of a stretch. I have a skein of Cascade 220 that will become Gretel just as soon as I get a couple of my current projects finished.
And your pictures reminded me that I need to visit Edinburgh again. I went there a few years ago and had a terrible flu, so I saw the castle but spent the rest of my time there sleeping in my hotel. I should go back and really visit it.
What a lovely photoshoot! Your are so adorable and beautiful! All matching perfectly, your dress (so beautiful), the beret (great pattern coming soon) and your eye shadow!
And, i need to visit Edinburgh and Scotland! The landscapes should be gorgeous!
I’m surprised you’re not already a professional designer! ;) Before you even made this post, earlier this morning I was thinking that you should publish a book of all your patterns once you have a few more.
LOVE tank girl! It’s one of my favourites.
Thank you for mentioning the dress. Not being much of a hat person, I was far more interested in the dress. it’s lovely, and i’m glad you have decided to wear it!
I love berets! I can’t wait for the pattern. You really are a professional designer already- the only thing missing is the big paycheck. That will come in time.
Thank you for sharing such lovely photos and patterns.
Oh wow! I wish I looked that beautiful in a hat! :)
I own tank girl on dvd, and that herb garden looks lovely. :]
Love the dress, love Tank Girl, and even love Lori Petty – true she hasn’t been in much of note, but she was fantastic in Relax… it’s just sex. Which nobody’s ever heard of, but it’s really rather good.
Your friend takes wonderful shots. The beret looks great.
i agree i agree!! special occasion dresses should be worn on unsuitable occasions too!! i love putting on a posh dress and making a normal day a bit more special…
besides, if you wear your special occasion clothes regularly, it’s such a good excuse to buy more of them :)
great beret, btw, and absolutely brilliant colours
Lovely, lovely beret! And it looks perfect with that dress.
What lovely photos!
I LOVE your pictures. I have always wanted to visit Scotland. Actually, I long to visit the UK. I love to travel, but overseas adventure is a bit out of my price range for a while.
Hi Estella! WOW… I have just discovered your blog after a friend sent me the link! Love all your knitting and your downloads.. will be adding your blog to my favourites, thanks for all the inspiration.
My hubby is from near Edinbugh, but I kidnapped him and made him move to York! Maybe we’ll move back there some time – it really is beautiful. Best wishes :-)
stunning photos you take. I really love the whole outfit, especially Estella.
Hola! he visitado tu blog varias veces, me encantan tus ideas… si no te molesta seguiré visitandolo y espero tu visita en mi blog
Saludos desde México
Fab beret! Another fan of the Tank Girl movie here, we watched it on TV again not long ago :-)
i looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooove your outfit.
Love the Beret and the Edinburgh shots…know those streets so well…and I’ll even get to walk them soon as I’ll be swinging through Edinburgh en route to Shetland next weekend!! Hard to believe, but seeing these pics makes it more real!
Hi, de-lurking as well to tell you how much I like that beret (I’ve been wearing hand-made ones since I was a toddler as well.) Can’t wait for the pattern. Your friend did a great job on the pictures too. The first and the last two are especially charming.
What a great hat, and you look good too, I love your style. That dress is too nice to be kept for best!
I’ve only just recovered from my excitement at you making the pattern for Gretel available, and here you go again with a beret that I could knit in two colours to match my black-and-red Rosalind scarf…Verily, thou art the Goddess of Berets. Or something like that.
Hehe, pretending that you’re a tourist in your own city can be quite fun.
I know what you mean about how difficult it is to show the depth of a yarn in a photo. Your new beret looks great–congratulations!
Being a pretend tourist is one of my favorite things to do besides knitting! That’s basically part of where my blog name is from.
That first pic of you is completely adorable. I really do need to knit a beret.
The photos turned out great! I’ve never even seen that herb garden. I must go and explore more closely. You do have a beret fixation however.
I’m thinking of making a knit and felted trilby and top hat for myself. I’ll have to see if I can get my hands on some aran weight wool.
Thanks for having me over, it was great to hang out again. I hope the tiding up went well. The yarn has a happy home currently in my hall, but it’s going to magically levitate into the loft by the power of Grim tomorrow.
I managed to get the hood ripped back and finished in the end. I really should get on and write in my blog. People can leave comments and stalk you and everything ;p
See you Wednesday and thanks again for having me!
Yeah, Tank Girl fan #347089723.
My best friend bought it for me on dvd for xmas a couple of years ago, because we both love it so much. Even though the kangaroos are the least-kangarooy roos I’ve ever seen (tip: kangaroos are sort of like big, aggressive rabbits. They definitely do not howl).
Here’s another useless TG fact: Ginger Spice and Posh Spice met each other before the Spice Girls were even formed, at the Tank Girl auditions (brrr! Imagine Posh Spice as Tank Girl!)
I love your new beret design (very stylish).
I must get on and knit Gretel. Your designs are fab!
Beautiful pictures, amazing beret and gorgeous dress!
I didn’t realise you were an Edinburgh local too….it’s been so nice in the city over the last few days with the sun.
Of course you should write those words (professional designer) in reference to yourself! I for one can’t wait to see how your professional designing career develops (because it surely will continue to develop) and all the fabulous patterns you have in store for the knitting world. Your talent is truly amazing!
Lovely photoshoot! My husband is right: Edinburgh is worth a visit! Nice beret too…:-)
your pictures are a feast for the eyes…so lovely…and the beret isn’t bad either ;)
ah…tank girl. such a great comic book and movie.
lori petty rocked.
love it! i want to wear berets every day. very pretty pictures too.
The first photo of you is almost identical to one of me my friend took when we were in Edinburgh 2 summers ago! Same place, look on our faces… Wonderful!
That hat looks great. I love your dress too.
I agree! It’s a lovely beret! but where o where is stripy…… I am poised with some scratchy wool from the hebrides…… please help!
Beautiful photos!!!!
In that first photo it looks like you are in Amsterdam – great shots!
Your designs are beautiful in a delicate and thoughtful way. I love the Mirasol yartoo , I just knit a chunky neck warmer in the round in a warm olivey green with an all-over leaf patttern. It’s rather Lothlorien, and perfect for the cold snap we’re having in Edinburgh right now! I think designing isn’t just in your future, it’s in your present! I’ve been known as the freestyle knitter of my pub knitting group, always altering or making up designs. I just finished off the Mirasol green yarn on a wedding gift of ‘two peas in a pod’, complete with cable detail and lovely wooden peas! Now I’m trying to work out a repeating design in my head for Japanese koi fish. I think I need some graph paper! Just so you know, Daintyland, an old-school knitting shop in Causewayside (I’m guessing you are from Edinburgh? And yoyu probably know the shop) is closing down, and the discounts should be pretty good. I’m very excited for my yarn excursion there today. I’m really a sensualist with yarns and who knows what I’ll come home with!
Anyway, love your site Ysolda!
Emily