Summer this, summer that

Are you feeling Olympian today? The first few events have kicked off in Beijing but the games don't open officially until 20.08.08 Beijing time on Friday - just after 1pm here.

11,468* top athletes are lined up to take part and with them are 4,283 Ravelers ready for the Ravelympics (not to be confused with the Knitting Olympics which run with the winter games but similar).

I am a proud member of both Team GB and Team Socktopus - it's a bit like being Devonian, English and British (and if we're being very technical and want to include NI, a citizen of the United Kingdom) all at once.

My ravelympic project is Ether from Rowan 43 with the Damask I bought to make a terribly similar top in Rowan 41. I am reliably informed that the one in Rowan 43 has better shaping so Ether it is. And I'm all lined up ready to go.

I've done my swatch - it produces the gauge I need (to my great surprise) and at 1pm on Friday I will stop what I am doing and cast on over my lunchbreak. All I have to do now is persuade H to record the opening ceremony so I can watch it later.

H by the way is following the Ravelympians' lead and is going to do an Olympic Painting - he can start at the opening ceremony and it must be finished before the closing ceremony ends. He doesn't have to have an Olympic theme though and I've said he can do his sketching as Olympic training - it'll be interesting to see what he comes up with and I promise to post photos of both our progress.

In the meantime I'm flitting between projects. I've finished the first Frenchmans Creek sock as you know and a temporary break in our 100% natural garden watering system allowed me to take a quick picture:

If you look carefully you can see the links into the story. Starting from the top we have the cream lace (which still needs blocking) which Dona wears for important dressing up events and the rubies and pearls which she wagers to her Frenchman and which he gives her back, then on the cuff we have the outline of gulls and a mock cable to represent either ropes or waves, all of which points to La Mouette. And finally, the foot is covered in a carpet of bluebell rib:

Can you see them?

I've started the second sock and worked a little of the cuff but I've also picked up the Hidcote Garden shawl which has been sadly neglected in favour of socks - it isn't much further along but a little bit here and there will soon add up.

So, if you fancy being a fellow Olympian (even if a dreaded rival), you can sign up by following the instructions on the Ravelympics Group page - I'll see you in the arena at the start of the sweater sprint!

* according to Wiki answers