How not to finish a jumper (Yarn Along March 2019)

Last month I wrote excitedly about my Edinburgh Yarn Festival jumper - Bright Above Me. After I posted, I sat down and knitted a few more rounds, and with each stitch I fell more and more out of love with the project. I found the combination of increases and long floats really tiring, so I wasn’t picking the project up enough to make any significant progress. There was also the small issue that while I can knit colourwork with a baby on my knee, this colourwork was just too complicated. So I unravelled it, with precisely no regrets.

Once I had unravelled the star jumper, I looked through my Ravelry queue to choose something new to cast on. I knew I wanted to knit a colourwork sweater, ideally from the top-down (I have issues getting the length right when knitting from the bottom up). I had quite a lot of jumpers by Jennifer Steingass in my queue, but my favourite was Starfall, which has a beautiful colourwork yoke that makes me think of jewels. The pattern is written from the bottom-up, and I did briefly consider knitting the jumper as written, before having a revelation: I could cast on the yoke provisionally, then knit the whole yoke before picking up the held stitches and knitting the rest of the jumper from the top down.

A bit of knitting later, I have a completed yoke. It is glorious! I enjoyed the colourwork so much more than the stars, even with the three-colour rounds (those rounds had to wait for uninterrupted knitting time - I couldn’t do them while feeding the baby). I’ve also realised that I much prefer working decreases when knitting colourwork than increases - if I’m working increases I find my floats end up a little tight.

While I won’t be wearing my jumper at Edinburgh this weekend,* I hope to have the yoke back on the needles by then, ready to work the body and sleeves. If I’m really organised I might be on the body, ready for some mindless stocking stitch rounds on the train journey.

I’ve dedicated more time than usual to reading this month. Partly for a rest, and partly because I’ve really enjoyed the book I’ve just finished: Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton. This is a beautifully written autobiography, written by a self-confessed party girl, covering her years of partying, then her years recovering (she’s only 30 now), all within the framework of ‘love’. I don’t have a lot in common with Dolly (we’re both tall, and some aspects of her struggle with being seen as different as a child and teenager resonated), but I loved her writing style, and her depictions of non-romantic love were very emotive at times. Definitely worth a read.

Linking up with Ginny for Yarn Along, a monthly crafting and reading link-up.

*I’ll be there on Saturday. Say hello if you see me.

Fashionably late (Yarn Along February 2019)

Last weekend I went to visit my sister, and for a 60 hour weekend away, with a baby, I packed one sock project, a jumper project, a spare 150 g of yarn for the jumper and an extra 100 g of sock yarn *just in case*. I’m pretty sure that makes me an optimist, even if only about the amount I can knit while (1) driving, (2) feeding a baby, (3) sleeping, and (4) entertaining three babies and a preschooler. Perhaps predictably, I didn’t get that much knitting done. I did however, spend a lovely couple of evenings sat feeding my baby in a hotel room and getting into a good book, which was such a treat - I feel like it’s been ages since I last sat down with the specific intention of reading for an evening. With all that in mind, here’s this month’s Yarn Along post, better late than never!

So, what's on my needles? This month I've been joining in with the Lots of Socks KAL in aid of Down Syndrome International (full details can be found here,* but the prize list is amazing and you only have to knit one sock to enter) so have two pairs of socks on the needles. The first pair are three-quarters done and are fabulously pink! The yarn is King Cole Zig Zag, in the colourway Pinks. The colour is not one I would typically go for, but is so marvellously cheery that it's perfect for February.  I'm using a pattern from Kate Atherley's Custom Socks - Basic Ribbed Socks - and am planning on knitting several pairs of socks to this pattern over the next few months for a project I'll talk about once I have the first few pairs off the needles.

The second pair of socks is a bit slower as the pattern (Galiano Socks by Tracie Millar) is a tiny bit more complicated (though not that complicated in the scheme of things - there is some texture and a cable or lace round for two rounds out of eight). I'm knitting the socks in a sparkly brown sock yarn from a Knit Crate from November. Again, not my usual colour, but the shades and tones are so rich that I'm enjoying every stitch.

The jumper I mentioned is for the This One's for Me KAL* that I'm running in my Ravelry group, and is a Bright Above Me jumper in Drops Karisma. It's my first top-down colourwork-yoked jumper and I will confess to finding the pattern a challenge: the floats are looooooong, and that combined with the increases is hard work. I think that’s why I gave up at the weekend and opted for reading over knitting, but once the colourwork is done the rest of the jumper is rounds and rounds of stocking stitch, which I can do while feeding, so I’m quietly optimistic I might get this done in time to wear to the Edinburgh Yarn Festival.**

The book that grabbed my attention at the weekend was Some Kind of Wonderful by Giovanna Fletcher. Liz has been with Ian for 10 years, and is expecting him to propose while they're on holiday in Dubai. Instead he tells her the relationship is over, and she embarks on a quest to find out who she is now she is no longer 'Liz and Ian'. Yes, it's an easy read, but that seems to be what I need at the minute!

Are you favouring knitting or reading at the minute? Any recommendations for reading for tired eyes?

Linking up with Ginny for Yarn Along.

*Ravelry link. You need to be a member of Ravelry for this link to work. Membership is free.

**I’ll be there on the Saturday. I don’t have an advance ticket, so you might see me in the queue! If I’m not wearing a jumper with stars round the yoke, assume I didn’t finish it, and that sleep won over knitting...

New design: Triangulation hat and mitts set

Is summer over already? As I stare out of the window at the falling rain I'm starting to think it might be! Even if it's not, August is a good time to start thinking about winter knits, and my latest pattern: Triangulation hat and mitts might be just what you're looking for.

I've always been a fan of simple geometric patterns, and spent hours colouring books full of them when I was little. Now I like to knit them, and find their repetitive nature meditative to knit. Add a bright contrast pop and you have a real stand-out item of knitwear!

The hat is knitted in the round from the bottom up, starting with a section of ribbing that is folded back on itself (perfect for keeping your ears cosy when the cold weather arrives). The main body of the hat is knitted using stranded colourwork, and the colourwork pattern is continued right into the crown decreases. The hat pattern is written for 3 adult sizes, and is designed to fit as a beanie with 2.5 cm negative ease.

The pattern contains instructions for both the hat and mitts. The mitts are knitted in the round from the cuff up, starting with a deep ribbed section, then the main mitt is knitted in the same colourwork pattern as the hat. The thumbs are added using the afterthought method with waste yarn added during the knitting of the mitt. The mitt is finished with a ribbed cuff that can be folded back on itself or worn unfolded for extra warmth. The mitts is written for 4 adult sizes, each with 1 cm negative ease.

One of the things I enjoyed most about this project was the yarn. The hat and mitts are both knitted using Find Me Knitting Mary, a beautiful light aran alpaca/wool blend in deep saturated colours. I had originally planned to knit the set using the green for the ribbing and the pink as the second colour for the colourwork, but after a couple of swatches had changed my mind as the yarn seemed to request to be the other way round. All the items in the set can be knitted quite quickly, making them great for gift knitting (I'm planning on knitting a hat for a friend for Christmas). 

Want to get your hands on the pattern? They can be found in Issue 92 of Knit Now magazine, which is available in the UK today, or can be ordered online via the More Mags website. 

All images copyright Practical Publishing.

Yarn Along: Winter warmers

If anyone knows where the weekend went, can they let me know? I swear the bit between Friday evening and this morning just disappeared. I did do some lovely things with my family - we went for Sunday lunch at a farm shop and went to Shildon Railway Museum to see Tim Peake's space capsule - but otherwise I think we all slept quite a lot!

I do have a bit of knitting to show for my weekend though: I finished my Selbu Mittens, and they're pretty fab. They're currently blocking and will have their own FO post on a Friday, but here's a sneak peak.

I also managed to get a couple more stripes done on my Mind the Gap socks. I hadn't worked on them since New Year, and miss them a bit. The stripes are very motivational! I also cast on a hoodie for a friend's new baby, but 8 rows in I had already cast on twice and got the stripe pattern wrong, so unravelled it and put it back in the bag to look at next weekend.

Today has had plenty of missed knitting opportunities. I went to soft play with my daughter, but failed to take any scissors, which are pretty necessary for intarsia knitting! And I would have knitted while the kids were swimming, but there were no seats (the January effect: New Year's resolutions always make for busier swimming sessions!). I'm going to catch up this evening, assuming I can get the kids to bed before I'm ready to fall asleep - while we're well past the shortest day, the weather has been gloomy for days and it's making me tired!

As for reading, I started Sarah Millican's autobiography last week, and am enjoying it. Part autobiography, part self-help guide, I have laughed out loud while reading this so many times already and I'm only a quarter of the way through. I had requested this for Christmas, but got book tokens instead (not a bad thing, I love book tokens). At my earliest opportunity I popped into town to pick up a copy, only to find that everywhere in town had sold out (Sarah Millican is from Newcastle, which is very close to Durham), so had to wait until I headed south over the Christmas holidays.

What are you crafting on and reading at the minute?

You might have noticed a small change to the title of this post; Ginny has restarted her Yarn Along series of posts, so I'm linking up with that (her posts are now monthly).

Indie Design GAL 2017: Top 10 knits for your neck

One of the key features of the Indie Design GAL* is the knit and crochet along, which is broken up into 8 categories (head, hands, feet, baby, garments, shawls, neck and other).

Over the course of this week, I have been sharing my favourite patterns in each of the categories. So far I've covered hat patterns, knits for hands, socks, knits for babies and shawls. Today, as the sale portion of the GAL is coming to an end, I'm going to have a bumper crop of recommendations: the first was about garments, and this one, the second, will be about knits for your neck.

When I was browsing the GAL patterns, I wasn't conscious that I was looking for anything in particular, but my favourites list did seem to feature an awful lot of cowls! I'm really hoping that I have time to knit one during the GAL, but for now, here are my highlights.

1. Two dropped stitches by Marion Bulin
This is just stunning! I love the idea of knitting knitting.

Image copyright Marion Bulin

2. Celidh infinity scarf by Kelly G.
A beautiful design, perfectly executed.

Image copyright Kelly G.

3. Rain on Notre Dame by Sarah Schira
The styling of this cowl is perfect with the bright rainbow umbrella contrasting against the grey of the yarn.

Image copyright Sarah Schira

4. Charadriiformes by Sara Huntingdon Burch
I love everything about this: the motifs, the colours. Definitely one I want to knit.

Image copyright Sara Burch

5. Pravigan by Robynn Weldon
One for the brave: brioche in lace weight mohair. This was Robynn's first ever brioche project and includes a step-by-step guide for beginners.

Image copyright Robynn Weldon

6. Elephant cowl by Jenise Hope
Simply beautiful.

Image copyright Jenise Hope

7. Defrost by Sara Gresbach
I love the simplicity of this design.

Image copyright Sara Gresbach

8. Spotted cowl by Nicole Montgomery
This cowl is so much fun. It would be a great use of a yarn advent calendar too.

Image copyright Nicole Montgomery

9. Ascleit cowl by Emily K. Williams
This design is perfect for toning down a bright variegated yarn.

Image copyright Emily K. Williams

10. Color infusion by Meredith Shepherd
Everything Meredith Shepherd designs is beautiful, and this is no exception.

Image copyright Emily K. Williams

All the patterns featured in the post are included in the Indie GAL sale: use the code giftalong2017 to get 25% off. Code expires 11.59pm EST Tuesday 28th November 2017.** That's tonight! If you've missed the sale portion, have no fear, the knit and crochet-along portion of the KAL is continuing until the end of the year,* so you have plenty of time to join in (and remember that you can use any paid-for pattern by a participating designer - you could always have a look in your Ravelry library to see if you already own any patterns by a participating designer).

I've put together a bundle of my favourite GAL sale patterns. If you'd like to take a look, you can find it here.

Are you joining in the GAL? What are you planning on knitting?


*Ravelry link. You need to be logged into Ravelry for the link to work.



**I'm also taking part in the GAL as a designer. Why not take a look at my designs too?