Suspension of Disbelief

"Willing suspension of disbelief" is a term left over from my days as a theatre major. It's when you let go of reality just a bit so you can believe the story being told in the play. It works sometimes in real life too. If you practice this in politics, you would be known to others as a NeoCon. Oops, I'm showing my blue side! Back to the project. This is a piece that's going to be featured in the August issue of Symmetry magazine, a science publication from Fermilab. LHC stands for some sort of particle crusher that's being built in Switzerland. I've been told what the letters stand for, then immediately forget. The photos were to document the process of knitting the sweater, a process that had nothing to do with how this sweater would be constructed in the real knitting world. The back and sleeves were knit on my machine, a great tool for meeting deadlines. The sweater is assembled before the front is finished! To show the letters taking shape while the observer would surmise that this item is a sweater, I had to do the intarsia upside down. So I started with a provisional cast on, worked part of the upside down intarsia, and did the neck and shoulder shaping in the reverse direction. When I got to the point that's in the photo, the client thought that there was too much yarn on the needles. Don't try to explain that this is the widest point of the piece, and therefore, would have the most live stitches. They just want what they want. I ended up casting on a few stitches for a blue dot that will be at the bottom of the circle, picking them up through the sweater, and running a piece of yarn to hold the live stitches. I have no idea how they dealt with the curling that was going to happen with most of the stitches off the needle. My brain was bleeding! The real work, when finished, will have the final dot done in duplicate stitch. The yarn used for the sweater was Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran, which is lovely stuff. Get some. The colors were more Silkroad Aran, Cascade 220, and some green wool that happened to appear in my stash at just the right time, so I can return the ball I purchased for just the few yards of green that the L needed. This sweater will be on the cover, and featured on the inside of the magazine, like the table of contents, etc. I'm getting a photo credit, too. This should be out around the same time that Playboy hits the stands. How did I get this job? Thanks to my friends Kathy and Sharon at Arcadia Knitting. They told the client that they knew the knitter that just did the cover of Playboy. Speaking of Arcadia, they're hosting a blogger meet up next Monday, 7/31, and they want me to feature some of my work. So, there may be a little preview of what can be expected next fall. Sort of like a book signing without the book. It starts at 7 pm, and there's going to be treats and surprises and lovely new yarns to fondle and sniff, and dog mannequins.