My favourite kind of mug is one that has reached the leather hard stage. It’s the best ceramic state. A pot that was once soft and delicate has become firm and cool to the touch. Delicate curves hold their own. Handles defy gravity.
Slicing into leather hard clay is like slicing through a piece of milk chocolate or semi-hard cheese. It’s a wonderfully satisfying experience.
I’m always a little embarrassed to say “leather hard” to a non-ceramicist though. I worry they might picture something a little more saucy than I had intended.
Leather hard: A boy’s club for dudes who prefer to wear chaps and chains.
Leather hard: Thursdays is free ball gag night!
It seems hobbies have a way of generating their own insular vocabulary that sounds totally fine to those participating – and totally wacky to anyone else.
I love to knit twisted rib in fingering yarn. Both painful and dirty sounding!
And I can’t say I’ve ever managed to explain what a clitic is to a non-linguist without a “wait…. what?!”. (Ironically, your first impression will help you remember this particular linguistic object. You see, a clitic may be a small addition -phonologically speaking- but it’s still incredibly important.)
I imagine astrophysicists must feel similarly when mentioning the seventh planet to an unenlightened public.
- Pattern: Even Flow
- Size: 38/40, but with a tighter gauge of 10.5 sts per 2 inches: gauge on 5mm was way too loose
- Yarn: Wool of the Andes sport, colour: bramble heather, lot: 75889
- Needles: 4mm
- Notes: Joji Locatelli’s patterns are always clear, well written and enjoyable. The collar ribbing does roll back, but I don’t think it’s meant to stay perfectly flat anyhow: I tacked it back at the bottom to make it seem more intentional. I wish there were some sort of finishing done on the hem of the stockinette collar though.
- Modifications: I added longer sleeves and did a twisted rib + applied I-cord bind off on the cuff. I say I-cords for all long sleeves from now on! Should have done twisted rib for the hem as well, it’s a little messy as it is.
Ooh! Boning channel… just thought of that one.
