One done, two more started

I had a need for a quick fix project at the weekend, and found the perfect solution.
I printed the free Interweave pattern for Molly’s Headband and used 18g of a 50g ball of RYC Cashsoft DK which I bought label-less for 50p from a bargain bin!The whole thing took 2 hours from start to finish, and it was an enjoyable little pattern. Great for quick gifts!

This pattern has been calling me for ages, and last week I suddenly realised that all my long-sleeved cardigans are pink! Time to remedy this.

I think (fingers crossed) that I should have enough Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran yarn in my stash for this. OK so it’s not a huge shift in colour, but it’s a start.

This pattern is interesting too – it’s another top-down seamless garment, there’s no gauge given and the instructions are for a “knit to fit” style which is really flexible and easy-going so far. I’ve just ordered some more Addi circulars as the pattern calls for 4 increasing needle sizes as you progress down. So far so good!

And - oops - I seem to have started another new project too. Well, I was waiting for the next size Addi needles to arrive, and I just felt like it!

It's the French Market Bag from Knitty which I making using the Rowan Yorkshire Tweed aran yarn I got in my LYS sale for £1.08 per ball instead of £7.25!

Must go knit a couple more rounds before I have to fetch the girls and their 2 friends from school.

Happy gifted FOs

Two recent FOs to report on this evening:

The first was a secret project as a gift for Fi's new arrival Seth. The new owner now has them in his possessions, so I can reveal them without giving the game away. Glad they fit him Fi - and thanks for being so co-operative and producing a boy for the blue bootees. ;-)

I made them using some RYC Cashsoft yarn I had in my stash, so they're deliciously soft and machine washable too. The pattern I used was the cover design on this book, which I grabbed as soon as it arrived as new stock at my local library.

I didn't send the teaspoon - that's just for a size comparison!

The second FO is the Rainbow Poncho for my youngest DD, to replace her stolen one.

She loves it, and has worn it many times already - thankfully!

S.E.X. at the N.E.C.

Yep, you read it right. I had a fantastic S.E.X. (Stash Enhancement eXperience for the uninitiated!) when I went to the Knitting and Stitching Show with my good friend Fiona at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham today.

It was amazing. There are so many incredibly talented people out there. Unfortunately photos were not allowed in the gallery area, so I can't show you the amazing work displayed in the showcases and exhibitions.

The lovely lady at the House of Hemp however was not camera shy. Thank you! Here you can see a beautiful display of her hemp yarns, which have such a wonderful sheen and feel.

She had a lot of weaving on display and was actually creating more on her stand. Fiona had a little go at it too. This was a tiny part of the gorgeous pieces hanging on the walls.



Fiona succumbed to temptation and took home a goodly sized pair of knitting needles (amongst other goodies).

So what did I take home? This little lot:

• 2 craft kits for my daughters
• 2 packs of Rowan Cotton Braid (a bargain at £10 per 500g pack)
• 1 skein of HipKnits cashmere sock yarn in a gorgeous bright pink colourway (Kerrie is lovely!)
• 1 skein of Hand Maiden Lace Silk (in a variegated green-blue colourway which is just to die for) from the GetKnitted stand (Warning - far too many truly luscious yarns in one small space - an OD zone!)
• 4 mini skeins of some kind of braiding wire stuff and some beautiful beads to try out some Peruvian Braiding as kindly demonstrated by the ladies of the Weavers, Spinners, and Dyers Guild (amongst others) - fascinating!
• 2 cones of undyed yarn for dyeing from Uppingham Yarns - 1 funky flag type and 1 hemp
• 1 wool dyeing starter kit and some more fixer for my Procion cotton dyes from the very helpful lady at the Ario stand
• Buttons from the Button Lady and a couple of funky squashed box shape beads from MoBair (which I forgot to line up for the photo shoot)

Plus I got to meet Fred from UKHandKnitters - Hi Fred! Hope you survive the rest of the weekend ok. ;-)

We were both surprised at what we had ended up buying, and had a thoroughly enjoyable day. Everyone there was very friendly and helpful, and it was like spending a day amongst friends. If you have some spare time this weekend, I'd recommend a visit - it's on until Sunday 17th September.

Time to go fondle some cashmere and silk... ;-)

10th Wedding Anniversary!

We made it to double figures - yay! Happy Anniversary to the perfect hub for me. :-)

Above is a picture of our wedding invitations, which we made ourselves.

It's a very rainy day today, but 10 years ago it was like a summer's day. If you're interested there are some photos on my other site.

We're going out to lunch at one of our favourite pubs - they do great food. Then tonight it's burgers and champagne for tea!

How do I look?

I wore my Presto top to work today. A (male) colleague noticed and commented:
"Did you make that?"
Yes I did.
"Hm. Thought so" came the reply.

So what's that about?

A done deal.. grr..

I just spent ages composing a long blog post about my latest FO and stuff. Then the bleedin' browser crashed. Aaaarrrgghhh! SO here's the alternative version.

I've been working on a top-down seamless cardigan I designed using some stash yarn (Patons Super Sport Aran).

It's finished.

Youngest DD loves it.

That's it. Thank you and goodnight.

Stash explosion

Saturday afternoon took me to my Knit Chat group at Beatties, and some cunning assistant had piled a LOT of yarn onto the 70% off clearance display, which of course I had to walk past. Oh dear. Once I’d bought half of it that is. ;-)

I ended up with 1.9 kilos(!!) of Sirdar Denim Ultra – 700g in Sea Spray for me, 600g in Blackberry Crush for youngest DD, and 600g in Blue Wave for eldest DD.

Thankfully there weren’t any more of the colourful shades on the stand, otherwise I may have been in danger of clothing the entire family in the stuff.

This huge mound of lovely yarn is destined to become 3 snuggly warm chunky cardigans – hopefully long hooded ones for the girls, and a regular one for me. The yarn is a real soft acrylic/cotton/wool blend, machine washable, and cost me £21.66 for the whole humungous bagful rather than the £72.20 that it would have cost full price. What knitter can resist a bargain like that?!

It absolutely flies off the 10mm needles – 9 stitches and 12 rows to 4inches. I know because I’m too weak-willed to resist and I’ve finished the back of mine already.. ;-)

I have a new sweater!

Yes, Phoenix is finished. Just in time for autumn – although most of August has already felt like autumn this year.

These pics were kindly taken by my 7yo daughter. That flash sure highlights the underwear! Phoenix has a crocheted front, knitted sleeves and back, and crochet edging all around.

The crochet edging shows up nicely along the back hem and sleeves.

I used 450g of Rowan Summer Tweed, and designed the pattern using my Knitware Sweaters program. It's based on an old shop-bought favourite that I wore until it literally droppped apart.

I'm quite looking forward to some weather cool enough to need to wear it now!

And so to fill the hole in the stash, here is today's parcel - my first ever Noro stash. I bought it from this ebay seller and got super-fast shipping and a great price. The project for the yarn is secret atm though!