See, chez Annie Knits, it's not Valentine's Day. It's DH's birthday. 44 to be exact. Why or how does this relate to knitting? See, I knit my friend Amanda things and she needlepoints me things. And this one's a wowzer! Hubby 
is an architect, and he travels extensively. A few of the things he's doing require gala fundraisers, so he does actually wear his tux (yes we ended up buying him one) 6 or 8 times a year. He has a black cumberbun (and what, praytell, is the origin of that word?), a red one, a kind of jungle print one, but when we saw this in the needlepoint store, I knew I was set for his birthday...
Isn't it cool? Amanda did a fabulous job, didn't she! The background is a pewter wool, the buildings are black wool, the windows and details are pewter pearl cotton, some sheen there, and the Arch is actually a metallic silver yarn. It's fabulous. And I didn't have to sew it together either -- the shop finishes. T
he fabric is a silk taffeta. A perfect Architect cumberbun, don't you think? ETA: yes, that is the St. Louis Skyline -- the Old Capitol in the center, several distinctive buildings, the old Busch Stadium, the Arch (duh), Union station, etc...
He also wanted a sweater vest, but...not handknitted. No slight intended. He's a furnace and I don't knit men's clothing on zero's or less even. So I found these on Landsend. This vest is scrumptious -- it's deep navy and comes with a linen bag in which to store it. I got him a few pairs of pants to round out the haul. Now all that's left is the book store this afternoon and I'm set. Oh, and bake a cake and wrap and decorate and get the kids some valentinezy things because, you know, they deserve it. Geez, I'd better get to work.
And that's a good thing -- speaking of stashes, did you listen to Franklin's essay yet?
That *thing* is just AWESOME! I have not listened to the essay yet, and here, just for you from www.miriamwebster.com:
Main Entry: cum·mer·bund
Pronunciation: 'k&-m&r-"b&nd, 'k&m-b&r-
Variant(s): also cum·ber·bund /'k&m-b&r-/
Function: noun
Etymology: Hindi kamarband, from Persian, from kamar waist + band band
: a broad waistband usually worn in place of a vest with men's dress clothes and adapted in various styles of women's clothes
Posted by: Laura | February 14, 2006 at 12:46 PM