waiting to dry

My hair, that is.

I got up early (well, not early for me. In the summer, even without an alarm, I usually wake between 6 and 6:15) and once the sun was up and the dew was mostly evaporated, I went out to mow the lawn. (I have an old-fashioned reel-type mower that is quieter than the average car motor, before you excoriate me for waking my neighbors).

Yeah. It's already humid. Not that hot but dewpoints up around 70 so I was pretty tired and sweating like a racehorse* and had to shower (and wash my hair) because of allergens and also being hot and sweaty. So now I have to decide: do I go over and finish my grading as soon as my hair is acceptably dry enough, or do I watch re-runs of Ponies and go over after lunch?

(*except, do racehorses actually sweat? Most furred mammals don't, except through their paw pads....that's why dogs and cats pant. Okay, wait, reliable sources on the internet (Practical Horseman magazine) says they do)

I was thinking as I finished mowing about how when I was a kid, I used to mow my parents' lawn to earn money to buy toys (and later on, albums). Now I mow my own lawn so the city doesn't fine me.

But I will say there's more to it than that. There is a certain satisfaction at looking out over my lawn when it's done and seeing all the neat, clean, equal-height grass. (And it's looking especially good now; the rain we had this spring led to the thin patches growing in thicker).

(My neighbors to the south.....well, I've now mown my lawn FOUR times since they last mowed theirs. I'm looking with mild irritation at their 10" high (in spots) grass, all the pollen it's discharging, and remembering the "nasty gram" I got last summer. Oh well. Maybe they'll deflect scrutiny from me this year, I hope.)

****

The new issue of KnitScene is out (Fall 2015). They have a "style icons" section - sweaters inspired by "a few of our favorite fashion icons." And I guess this is how far out of the loop I am, I looked at several of them and couldn't possibly guess who.

Like Maduri: a rather plain turtleneck pullover with some kind of knit-purl pattern.

I'm guessing Hyannis Port is inspired by Jackie O, simply based on the name (it is a chunky turtleneck with a cable.)

(The models they use are multi-culti and don't apparently look like the "style icon" that inspired the sweater. That would have helped Moondancer types like me who don't really know fashion....)

The one I immediately liked was Couturier: a structured cardigan obviously inspired by Chanel. (And, joy: I have some "uncommitted" Berroco Vintage in my stash - a sweater's worth bought on a good sale at the local quilt/yarn shop - and I have ENOUGH of it for my size, and it is the RIGHT WEIGHT. I think it's going to become this sweater eventually).

The Oddity Scarf MIGHT be David Bowie, in his Ziggy Stardust incarnation? I'm guessing this because they say something about "your inner rockstar*" and there is a zig-zag of red worked onto the scarf.

(And anyway. No magazine ever would have the poor taste to imply a scarf pattern was inspired by Isadora Duncan....)

There's the Brigitte headband, which has kind of a sixties vibe, so I'm saying that one is Brigitte Bardot. (And actually, they SAY it was inspired by her headbands. So I guess their target audience would know what "Maduri" referred to but not who Brigitte Bardot is?)


And then there's Virginie: a simple, slouchy sweater that could be worn slightly off the shoulder (and they suggest wearing it with slim pants) so I'm wondering if that one could be Marilyn Monroe. I actually kind of like this one, as simple as it is, but I know I'd never shell out for the recommended yarn. Hm. I wonder if the fuzzy KnitPicks yarn (their version of Rowan's Kidsilk Haze) would be the right weight....I have some of that in-stash too.

(It would have been more clever, I think, if they could have posed the models in poses that more typically mirrored the "icon" or with shots that were in the style of the era: all of these are just very simple on a blank background)

(*And again: the whole "rockstar" thing. It bugs me.)