Lotsa love and laughs in London

Ah, Sirdar Bubbly, 2005, a very fine wine... This was some of the spread at the knitted wedding I went to yesterday! It was a fantastic thing, a good time with a great bunch of people -- creative, thoughtful and friendly! I really wish Freddie and Ben all the best... I'd never laid eyes on these people before the wedding, but I had a great time and everyone seemed to be quite at ease with a bunch of knitters taking pictures and knitting through the ceremony and throwing pompoms around!

(I've made all the pictures small; just click to see a big version!)

Let's start at the beginning: I had to get up early-ish to catch a train. Usually when I travel I have gone by plane, which means that if you're leaving at 9:01, you have to be checking in at 7, get the cab at 6:15, so you have to be up with the sun. But in fact, if you get a train, you can run onto the platform at 8:56 and still get on and get a seat. Whatever, I got up way early, got out the door, found the bank machine and got to the bus stop about an hour before the train was to leave. Good thing, because after about 3 seconds I realised there are no buses running in Cambridge at 8 am on a Sunday! So I walked across town and actually just missed the 8:30 train! So all worked out just fine...

I met Katherine at Kings Cross, where I did find Platform 9 3/4, and a gaggle of muggles trying to get the cart through the wall. Katherine and I took a wee detour up to Loop, an amazing yarn store full of all sorts of wonders. I hemmed and hawed over this recycled cotton yarn from K1C2 but none of the colours did it for me. I finally came out with 3 hanks of Point Five in Castagna and two balls of Opal sock yarn. When in the store I overheard some people say they'd come down from Cambridge, and it turned out they were in town for the wedding, too! I wonder if I can meet up with them on one of their knitting nights, but it won't happen this week.

Barry drove us to Battersea Park, and we knew we were in the right place when we came upon this tombstone/recipe, and garlands of pompoms on the fence. The ushers had knitted bowties and pompoms in their buttonholes.
And when I got to the knitted glitter ball, I was *sure* I was in the right place. Must make one! The picture's not great, but it's knitted of silvery ribbony shiny stuff with little round mirrors stuck on. Splendid!

It was hard to get good pictures of all the decorations. The wedding was in a smallish square room, and there was a balcony around, where most of the hangers-on stood, and looked straight down on the proceedings. There were garlands of pompoms and knitted birds, there were little offerings of knitted vegetables and some mice and a hedgehog! There were three sets of rings, one of which was sitting on a little cushion that I had made and sent in. When I was thinking what to do, I saw some golden sparkly yarn and thought "I must knit shoes out of that!" but realised I couldn't do that... so I bought some nice colours of tapestry wool and made a little cushion with tiny mitered squares.
And here it is with two golden i-cord rings, along with some bouquets and another little case with very lovely silvery rings.

We all ooooh'd and aaaaah'd for a while, and knit, and chatted, and then the ceremony began. These people had been married before and were renewing their vows. I wonder if one of the toddlers in the crowd was theirs, as there was a distinct Dr Seuss element to the whole thing! "I will take her for my wife, I will love her all my life." "I will love him when we're rich, and when we're poor and in a ditch."

One of the bridesmaids continued to sew white squares to the bride's train during the ceremony.

The official photographer, I suppose, with his multiple cameras, one knitted!












And finally, outside for the pompom confetti, a quick beer in the sunshine, the cutting of the
cake and then a dance under the glitter ball! Here are the happy couple with their friendly chimneysweep, (and you can spot me and Kath in the crowd behind) and the marvellous cake, complete with knitted knife!

After all the fun and games, we did a bit of sight-seeing, crossing the Millennium Bridge and having a cuppa at the Tate Modern before heading back to the train.

This morning we realised there was no bread, so I had to go take my jar of jam to the store, buy bread and a banana, sit outside the school making a sandwich, and take it in to Elaine so she wouldn't starve at lunchtime! The troubles that happen when Mommy goes to town for a day!