4.01.2007

* hop * hop * hop *


Bunny beanie is finished. Now I totally want to make one in my own size (for myself, of course) because one simply can't have too many things with animal ears on them.

I was going to try to get Isis to model it for you, but thought better of it. (Her claws really need trimming, and I'm not quite that masochistic.)

In other news, I went trawling through my favorite antique/thrift shop the other day. It's in the upstairs of the local candle shop and has a number of different vendor stalls, so there's a lot of turnover and it's fun to stop by every month or two to see what's there.

I was actually hoping this odd thing would still be around, and still be filled with random needles and crochet hooks, and indeed it was.


If the brown paint with the neon decals doesn't sufficiently scare you, the handwritten tag says it's a "German Urinal." Huh? Um, well, okay.

I figure I can either strip off the skimpy layer of paint (it's white enamel underneath) or do the goth default thing and (duh) spray paint it black.

But the main reason I wanted it was that it had all this cool stuff in it:


Like a shoe hook. And a few unmatched knitting needles (like a size 50--but only one...I figure I can beat off criminals trying to use my urinal with that one) but also several nice sets of long double-points, and other needles that actually still had their mates.

By the way, does anyone know what that thing at the bottom of the photo is? The wooden thing that sort of looks like a long clothespin? Seems like I've seen one before but I can't place it...it looks vaguely fiber-related. Any thoughts?

7 comments:

Mouse said...

Large wooden thing looks like it could be a nostepinne for winding balls of yarn.

Obsidian Kitten said...

wow. "nostepinne" is a very cool word.

Obsidian Kitten said...

Okay, Mouse, I think you're right--I have me a ball-winder! Now if i can figger out how to use it--but i found directions here:
http://www.hatchtown.com/nostdir.html
Plus this:

"Nøstepinde -- ("noste" = nest -- "pinde" = stick)...A "Scandinavian Ball-Winder" -- create a center-pull ball of yarn the low-tech, old-fashioned way. Fiber artists of every persuasion appreciate this tool's portability! Some people call them "dibbles"."

"...Also spelled as nystepinne and nostepinne...the spellings varied depending on which of the Scandinavian languages was being translated."

Shadkitty said...

Yep, I was gonna say Nostepinne too. I like your German Urinal. :D

Anonymous said...

Weird and wonderful finds! Paint the "urinal" black, I think. And wash it out thoroughly first! Just the word association...

Chris said...

Cute hat! And what a quirky, fun thing. I wouldn't have thought of it myself, but yeah, I think that thingamabop must be a noste.

pins&needles said...

Wow, I wouldn't think of nostepinne. I didn't know what that was.