Giveaway Bonanza…aka the space you’ve been watching :)

Good Morning my lovlies!

And just see, see what I have brought you!

A great crafty and knitterly magazine has recently been brough to my attention. It’s called Knitcircus, an independant quarterly magazine which has recently gone over from print to digital format.

It is a gorgeous collection of  knitting AND sewing patterns AND recipes AND interviews and it’s like picking up a favourite book (well not picking up, cos is online) as you’ll re-read and re-read.

Jaala Spiro is the editor in chief of the Wisconsin-based Knitcircus and in order to promote the new format, and bring Knitcircus to the attention of us craft lovers over the pond  she’s giving away a one year  subscription (PDF) to the full magazine and five PDF pattern collections of the summer issue, which is out on Saturday 1st May.

Jaala has sent me some pictures from the forthcoming issue, and if you need tempted further take a look at the website.

I’m sure you’ll agree that this is a fanbloomingbrilliant offer so here’s what you need to do… There are no set questions so lets have a bit of fun instead ;D

Leave a comment following on from mine below and lets write a little story! The first person to comment after me please put #1 at the begging and everyone else follow suit. I’ll then take the numbers and pick at random that way. The story is just for my amusement!

So, come on EVERYONE! Even if you don’t knit, craft, cook, read i’m sure you know someone who would!

CLOSING DATE  SUNDAY 2nd May: so comment quickly, as many times as you like (although not directly after your own comment) I’ll post the winners on Monday!

Look at my blogroll and catch up with the Knitcircus blog too! AND DON’T FORGET TO CHECK BACK TO SEE IF YOU’RE A WINNER!

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A Parliament of Owls

Hot off the pins is a cute hat to match the owl jumper i knitted for my new wee pal, baby Suilven.

I had a few problems sizing down the pattern from 9 months, think i got it down to about a roomy 6 month size (…no?…oh alright then, i think its still 9 months!)

It needed something to match it though so i adapted the cable pattern into a hat, (which is made for 3 months +, so no before you say it, he probably won’t strictly be able to wear them both at same time, but hey! its the thought lol)

and…since it’s my own pattern (and the cable pattern has been adapted from the vest pattern) I don’t see why i can’t give you the pattern. I was dead chuffed with the end result… and if anyone tries it suggestions please!

I used Paton’s Fairytale Colour 4 Me , as its baby yarn (wool from babies???!) but any DK would do….cotton would be lovely!

4mm dpns or circular needles

Size = about 3 months

Cast on 80 and join in round, place marker. begin with 2×2 rib for 6 rounds then join main yarn (if, like me, you’re using a different colour for rib) and commence with the owly cable as so….

Round 1 and 2 – P2, K8 to end
Round 3 – p2 C4B, C4F to end
Round 4-10 – repeat round 1
Round 11 – p2 C4B, C4F to end
Round 12 – P2, K8 to end
Round 13 – p2, k1, p2, k2, p2, k1 to end
Round 14 – repeat 13
Round 15-16 – repeat round 1
Round 17 – repeat round 3
Round 18 – repeat round 1

…I’ve not done much cabling, but it’s nice watching the pattern form…

after round 18 continue in stocking stitch for two more rounds before decreasing. til 6 inches. errata

Decreases:
1. K 8, K2tog to end (72 stitches)

2.  (and every other row) Knit

3.  k 7, K2tog to end (64 stitches

5.  K6, K2tog to end (56 sts)

7. k5, k2tog to end (48 stitches)

continue decreasing in pattern after k1, K2tog (16 stitches) and last round K2tog all round.

Break yarn and thread throught the remaining stitches and weave in ends.

I handwashed (although fairytale is machine washable) with a little wool detergent and dried flat.  I was glad how soft it was as the unwashed ball was a wee bit jaggy- suffice to say a wee wash was all it wanted as it is gorgeous and snuggly now.

ABBREVIATIONS

P = Purl

K = Knit

K2tog = knit two together

C4B = slip the next two stitches on to a cable needle and hold at the back of the work, knit the next two stitches and then knit two from CN.

C4F = as C4B, but hold the stitches on CN at front of work.

COPYRIGHT.: THIS PATTERN IS MY OWN. FREE TO USE, BUT DO NOT SELL THE PATTERN OR SELL ITEMS MADE FROM THIS PATTERN

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a would-be domestic goddess

Last weekend was very productive indeed!
I re-read and finished The Stornoway Way by Kevin MacNeil and started the new biography of Muriel Spark.
I finished a couple of knits, started a couple more, managed to make two quiches and finally i tackled the fleece that’s been in the shed since the summer.
Its a Zwartbles fleece and it came from a ram….and smells like it too. Boys have a slightly more pungent aroma and it reeked so much i couldn’t work with it.
I’m sure fleece lovers would kill me, but i sprayed it with Frebreeze and hung it up in the shed to dry!
It did smell slightly better so on Saturday i sorted it and picked my way through it and got it prepared for spinning.
Now its midweek and i can see another weekend of crafting ahead of me, inbetween catching up with the nieces!

I think I could almost be ready for my Doris Day Gingham Dress and pearls as feel very serene sort of 1950s domesticated, although i’m not quite sure how they did it without prozac 😆

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Only 71 more knitting days til Christmas!

The weather has changed, the nights are drawing in, the clocks are soon to go back and with the number of knitting days left til christmas also drawing in you can understand how i will be spending the darkening evenings!

Somewhere herein a long time ago i said that i was going to try and knit something for everyone this christmas. The suddden realisation of those words hit me at the weekend….I seriously needed to stop faffing and get some of the bigger, or more time consuming items done and start on the rest.

Saturday was a day of knitting said hibernating items and I was really chuffed to get my lace moebius and the felted bag bound off, ends woven in and in the finished basket.

As i’ve said before, my patience wears thin often, so i need to knit small or quick projects. The bag was my firsy foray into stranded knitting and – although tight in places – i was really chuffed with it and even more so when it came out of the washing machine last night…my first felted bag!

The moebius was in an issue of Yarn Forward and i knitted it up in a delightful yarn by Colinette called Iona. This is a new wool, silk and mohair blend and its gorgeously squidgy, but a wee bit pricey and now sadly discontinued, which i found out a bit too late. I bought one hank from my local wool shop and when i realised i needed more i went on the hunt. When i found out it was discontinued i emailed every stockist in the UK, as i couldn’t bear to rip it back! Thankfully

Colinette had one hank left – thank you!

But, there was no rest for the wicked! This week I have cast on and bound off a flappy-lug hat for Jam’s wee boy’s birthday – which i am thrilled with…and toying with the idea of topping it off with a pom-pom (is that too girly?)

And i have also cast on a thin scarf using pure silk – thank God for 50% off or i wouldn’t have bothered!

So, dear reader, if you think i’m awful quiet, rest assured I’ll be busy somewhere!

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EEK! A Giant Naked Sheep

I’ve been sorting fleece! I bought a couple off ebay…can i just say…alpaca hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm :P.

The picture is from the last spinning workshop – see what i mean about how it grows once clippped?!

I

I’ve just used the last of my bluey grey shetland fleece, which has made lovely yarn.

I’m still a bit dodgy on the navajo plying technique though, so i’ve a fair few lumps, but its all texture i suppose!

I’m onto christmas present project three now. The feather and fan lacy cowl came out fantastic – lace patterns and I have eventually hit it off, I think! Shall post pictures when i’ve blocked it.

This is project three…

…a kind of semi-faux Herringbone thin scarf, that i don’t have a pattern for, I’m just trying as  I go. I’m using a lovely wool and it looks good so far, but i hope it continues looking good as I’ve gone too far to have the heart to rip. That’s the trouble with scarves!

BTW…heard a rumour Bob Dylan flew into Shetland last night, sadly though i think this was just a silly rumour. Sadly the only mildly famous person in town today is Edwina Currie who was on a saga cruise!!

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A lot of spin…or life’s a whorl!

Last Saturday and Sunday mirln and I went down to the south end of Shetland to learn how to handspin – and what a revelation!

we are both hooked!

We spun from raw “greasy” fleece and learned how to select the right wool…Ican’t wait to go to the brokers, close my eyes and feel amongst the fleece for what feels just right!

It really was quite amazing to watch the fleece become thread (or thread-like, it was quite bulky to begin with!) and with your own control you can make a really quite fine thread (but, not to begin with as i said!)

After spinning onto the spindle we then learned how to ply the wool and, wih the help of a niddy-noddy, make the yarn into a hank.

It was quite a thrill to have something to show – ususally there is only a pile of kit kat wrappers around my feet on a day off!

Once I got home I duly washed my hank (low sudding liquid – I used the niece’s 2-in-1 shampoo – perfect!) and hung it up with a weight on the end to stop it curling.

On Sunday it was more of the same, but we had a go at carding, rolling, combing etc too. The instructer also brought some different types of Shetland fleece as well as some combed tops.

I loved working with the Shetland moorit fleece, its a chocolate brown but with blondey/coppery locks which makes the lovliest effect.

Mirln and I, by now, were getting quite adept at controlling the draw, or pull of the fleece, to achieve a thinner yarn.

Some of the fleece and parts of the fleece are easier to work with than others – we found the portion near the back legs best and refered to it as the bum stuff which raised a few giggles!

Once I got home, i signed us up for the beyond beginners class in two weeks: I’m a complete convert!

And when i was home my first hank was dry. It’s too small to knit anything of great size, but i think i’ll knit a square and frame it!

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Ripplin’ Rib Cowl/Scarf

It was whilst trying out a new rib stitch that I thought…hey! this might make an effective looking scarf….after a little bit of searching I found a scarf pattern to suit, but it was only once I began to work with the chunky wool/alpaca blend that I thought this might pattern might make a lovely soft, slouchy cowl too!

I’ve not forayed much into adapting patterns and wasn’t sure how the ripple rib would come out when knitted in the round, so I continued on the same pattern as the scarf on straight pins and gauged the length after each repetition of the rib pattern.

This is the free pattern I used, courtesy of the lovely people at lion brand wool*

Wool:  Bulky/Chunky 7 wpi (maybe…Paton’s Jet or Sirdar Peru)

Gauge:  roughly 14-15 stitches = 4″in stocking stitch

Needles: 5mm
Cast on 34 sts.

For the scarf : Knit 3 rows.

For the Cowl I just knit 1 (so there wasn’t a “seam” effect)

Rows 1 K2, *k3, p3; rep from * to last 2 sts, k2.
Row 2: K2, *k3, p3; rep from * to last 2 sts, k2.
Row 3: K2, p1, *k3, p3; rep from * to last 7 sts, k3, p2, k2.
Row 4: K4, *p3, k3; rep from * to last 6 sts, p3, k3.
Row 5: K2, p2, *k3, p3; rep from * to last 6 sts, k3, p1, k2.
Row 6: K3, *p3, k3; rep from * to last 7 sts, p3, k4.
Rows 7: K2, *p3, k3; rep from * to last 2 sts, k2.
Row 8: K2, *p3, k3; rep from * to last 2 sts, k2.
Row 9: K3, *p3, k3; rep from * to last 7 sts, p3, k4.
Row 10: K2, p2, *k3, p3; rep from * to last 6 sts, k3, p1, k2.
Row 11: K4, *p3, k3; rep from * to last 6 sts, p3, k3.
Row 12: K2, p1, *k3, p3; rep from * to last 7 sts, k3, p2, k2.
Rows13 and 14: K2, *k3, p3; rep from * to last 2 sts, k2.
Row 15: K4, *p3, k3; rep from * to last 6 sts, p3, k3.
Row: 16: K2, p1, *k3, p3; rep from * to last 7 sts, k3, p2, k2
Row 17: K3, *p3, k3; rep from * to last 7 sts, p3, k4.

Row 18: K2, p2, *k3, p3; rep from * to last 6 sts, k3, p1, k2.
Row 19: K2, *p3, k3; rep from * to last 2 sts, k2.
Row 20: K2, *p3, k3; rep from * to last 2 sts, k2.
Row 21: K2, p2, *k3, p3; rep from * to last 6 sts, k3, p1, k2

Row 22: K3, *p3, k3; rep from * to last 7 sts, p3, k4.
Row 23: K2, p1, *k3, p3; rep from * to last 7 sts, k3, p2, k2

Row 24: : K4, *p3, k3; rep from * to last 6 sts, p3, k3

Repeat Rows 1-24

For the scarf the pattern states repeat until 330 cm, but as I wanted to make a cowl I simply gauged the desired length after every few 24 row-repeats 

If you are making the scarf end with Row 2 and knit two rows before binding off.

For the Cowl I bound off in pattern rather than knitting the rows as this would give a visible seam when joined up.

I love this pattern and my new cowl and it took less than two days….a nice weekend project.

If I was making this again I’d try and adapt the ripple rib so that I could knit in the round and I would dispense with the K2 border at either side. I’d also knit it a bit deeper and a bit longer…I’ll be trying that after I’ve finished with the lacy cowl I’ve currently got on the pins. For some reason even basic lace patters and I have not made the best of friend’s but ripplin rib cowl has made me want to try different stitches and persevere with them.

On the yarn obsession front I have got a GORGEOUS undyed banana fibre yarn which is just begging to be picked up next. Its silky and slubby and I’m thinking might make a nice scarf itself!

*By the Way, if you want to  use the scarf pattern and intend on showing it or reproducing it to your friends  do say its from the very nice people at Lion Brand Yarn and give them the credit….to keep the lawyers happy

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