Revitalised Jeans Socks

 I've been going through some piles in various places round the house and decided to get rid of some project bags.
Some projects have ended up dum dum dum in the bin, yes, the actual bin.
I'll be in town tomorrow so I'll be dropping off some yarn to the charity shop.
So, I decided to tackle a project which has been sitting in the living room basket for ages.
When I first knitted these Jeans Socks in 2005 I didn't know much about yarn and knitted the cuffs, heels and toes in a soft Sirdar yarn which was unsuitable in the long run and showed signs of wear and tear much sooner than the proper Opal sock yarn.

I took them apart a couple of years ago and left them sitting, but I've finally refreshed them with the original yarn. Sock one came apart when I took the dodgy heel out so when I had redone the heel I had to graft the whole top to the whole bottom. I managed to avoid that with sock two and only had to to graft the top half.
Quite chuffed I managed to get reasonable pattern-matching with the yarn I had left.
By the way, I'm blogging again, as you can see! x K

An Unseasonal Finished Object

So, yeah, daisies in the middle of autumn!

I did most of the crochet for this last spring, when the daisy colours were very apt.
I did the assembly of the parts (ingenious) and the sewing in of most of the ends last summer, and then I started acting up at work and all things crafty took a backseat.
Back in my normal position at work now so I have a bit more free time at my disposal.

One thing I wanted to do was thicken the straps to make them stronger, and that seems to have worked well.

Here is my Daisy Bag then, my version of Inga's Hakelbeutel, which you can look up on Ravelry if you are so inclined.
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/ingas-hakelbeutel-2

It's made from Rowan Cotton Glace, 1 1/2 balls of the blue, less than one ball of white, yellow and green.

Don't let the time it took me to finish this trick into thinking that I didn't enjoy making it. On the contrary, I thought it was great, and I would gladly make another.

Why, yes, that *is* ladies and gentlemen playing croquet in the background of the middle shot!

I have included a closer shot of the daisy squares as the bright sunshine (believe it or not) is kind of bleaching out the colour in the main shots.
There are more shots of this in progress, such as how it it constructed, in this post from last year.
Daisy bag post last year

I'll use this as a wee project bag I think, certainly until next spring.

And lastly a shout goes out to karie bookish who first brought this pattern to my attention in 2010. x K

Holey moley

A shawlette made from Noro Kureyon Sock Colour S250.

That's all very jolly, but it's got a whopping great hole in it!!!

 I knitted this last summer and it has sat unblocked for ages.
I started with three stitches and increased from there.
I don't know really know why I left it untouched for so long, but after I had soaked it for a short spell and went to rinse it, I saw it had a blinkin' hole in it!

Can you see Toby's face keeking out? (I am Scottish, I say keeking, not peeking. I also say sook not suck, but that's a whole other discussion for a tea shop in Granada at 3am.)

 I don't know what has happened here.
When I was knitting it I was very, VERY conscious of the whole thick> thin going on with the yarn.
Have I just been unlucky that a lot of thin areas have aligned and caused a weak spot?
Is it a splice which has gone wrong (I don't actually remember splicing it TBH.)
Or, worst case scenario, have critters got to it?

 Is this the kind of thing moths would do to a knitted object?
I feel a bit sick of it at the moment and don't imagine myself doing anything at all with it.
If it were feltable I'd blanket-stitch round the hole and make it the centre of a flower or a sunshine or something, but it's superwash, so no joy there.
I may secure it and then put a fancy button or knitted flower or even butterfly over it.
Covering it with a button may also be an option.

 I do remember thinking while I was knitting it, "I'm glad I'm not actually making socks here, the yarn doesn't seem all that durable, but then again my other knitted socks are made from Regia and my
Jaywalkers, for instance, are six years old.

There are some other very weak spots too, likes of near the point.
I may just cut it up and make it into embellishments of some kind.
What do you think?
And what would you do?   x K

Granada shawlette

Without any preamble I'm going to launch into posting to my blog again.

Here are some pictures of a shawlette I made up and knitted in a lovely yarn by Janet Renouf-Miller of Create with Fibre based in Dalmellington. I had bought some of her yarns from the Galloway Craft Guild Shop in Castle Douglas earlier this summer. It's described as a sock yarn, a fairly heavyweight one, I'd say, but as ever I cannot resist sea greens and blues.

I cast this shawlette on on the train between Madrid and Granada, where I was having a study visit. On that train ride I was full of anticipation and a little trepidation wondering what my two weeks in Granada would hold.Well, I had an absolutely WONDERFUL time- I learned so much, met some fantastic people and saw the really beautiful city of Granada from up-close. I knitted bits of this scarfy shawlette while I was there, while I was on the train back to Madrid, and when I got back home.

Every time I wear it I will think of my wonderful experience in Granada, and all the friends I made there.

In a future blog post I'll tell you about how inspired I was by the tile-work of the Alhambra, but for the moment- Granada Shawlette! x K

Happy Christmas!

Happy Christmas to you and yours.

With best wishes, Kathleen xxx

4 part magnificat

DH has recently started a blog, a mixture of nostalgia, present-day adventures and music. You can find it at http://4partmagnificat.blogspot.com

It's lovely, it's got loads of lovely pictures :-)

Drop by and check it out if you like, and feel free to leave a comment.

x K

Daisy Bag in progress

Well, being back at work fairly impinges on one's crafting and blogging time, but anyway, here we are, I'll show you my Daisy Bag in progress.

Daisy bag comprises squares made of yellow in the centre, several rounds of white for the petals, green for the stalks and surrounding leaves and blue for the sky. All of this is in Rowan Cotton Glace on a 3mm hook. I went for 3mm to firm up my fabric because I used UK trebles.

You make 16 squares, you sew

them together in strips of four, you arrange

the strips in a pinwheel fashion and then you sew them together in an interesting way. I like the construction and I would certainly be happy to make this bag again, perhaps in a variegated yarn to minimise ends. I didn't grudge the ends this time because of all the versions I had seen on Ravelry

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/ingas-hakelbeutel-2/people

I seemed to prefer the ones with a cohesive colour scheme.

I like my spring-like colours,

even though summer is now on its way out. Trust me, it was springy when I started it!

All I have to do now is attach the handles and go round the top a few times to strengthen and stabilise.

Hopefully won't be too long until I have it as a finished object to show you. x K

Summer crochet with added real dog goodness

I've got a wee finished object and a work-in-progress to share today.

First is another toys' blanket, this time made in Sirdar Snuggly Smiley Stripes DK in shade 257. The composition is 80% bamboo 20% wool and it has been a pleasure to work with. The stitch definition is lovely and it is easy on the hands.

It's a semi-circle made from UK trebles, then edge with scallops and a

ric-rac final

edge, to use up the yarn. I enjoyed making it and took the chance to learn and practise in the process.

While Esmerelda was modelling it, a red setter was sniffing around us and trying to figure us out. You often see this red setter unaccompanied, but its home is Our neighbours, Balcary Bay Hotel so I am not particulary afraid of it. (Did I ever mention how scared I am of dogs?)

Actually, I'm being urged to get off the lappy so I'll tell you about the WIP tomorrow. For now, I'll just link to The pattern on Ravelry.

x K

Visit to West Kilbride

A couple of Saturdays ago we made the trip down to West Kilbride for the launch party of the new studio for Old Maiden Aunt.

Glossing over my public transport problems, suffice it to say that Jonathan was the hero of the hour and gave me a run down in the car so I could join in for at least the last wee while. Even though he was in the middle of, and dressed for, moving furniture, he kindly offered to take me.

I was so glad he did because I wanted to join in the festivities and was delighted to get a chance to see some friends I hadn't seen in ages. They gave me a lovely warm welcome :-)

The new studio space is great, with room for Lilith to display her dyed yarns and kits out front, as well as more space and facilities in the back-room to make the

magic happen.

This picture shows a selection of Lilith's yarns on display, although many of her products were already packaged up for the grand trip to Knit Nation, where the stall seems to have gone down a storm.

Link to L's Flickr page, showing me on the left, Elaine in the centre and DH on the right, with yummy cake

I also really loved the fabric Old Maiden Aunt bunting in those great co-ordinating fabrics.

I made two yarn selections and eyed up a few things for future purchase :-P

I came away with two skeins of 100% superwash merino 4ply, one in berry good and one in bitterbug, the same colour as my beloved Green Shoots although that was knitted in a yarn base with a different composition. (You can click the Green Shoots link there then scroll down on this page.)

The bitterbug was a special purchase because they way the ties were done during the dyeing process, little flecks of yellow have remained on the yarn in certain places- I love that about it!

I hope those of you who went to Knit Nation enjoyed yourself and have time to have a breather and recover now.

I can join with you in my own way, fondling my beautiful purchases! x K

Slinky silky

Another of last year's makes finally surfacing on the blog.

It's a scarf made from Rowan Purelife Revive, shade Ironstone, 3 skeins I think

It's just k2tog yfwd right sides, purl across wrong side rows, with a little garter stitch border.

When I was almost finished it I saw the striking resemblance between it and Interweave's Montego Bay and although I don't have that mag I was probably influenced by it on some level.

It pulls strongly on the bias and I have just let it hang naturally rather than trying to hold back the tide in the blocking process.

The reverse side is at least as nice as the front side.

I haven't used it yet, in fact it was sitting for months waiting for the ends to be sewn in and fringe finished, so it will hit the world this week.

Needless to say, it reminds me of fishing nets with the ball floats on them.

Crochet blanket for dollies

This project dates from last year when we had our niece over for several weeks of the summer holidays.

I've been prompted to mention it because as of tomorrow, she is back!!

The yarn is a soft washable acrylic which is ideal because she was only six and her dolls and teddies wouldn't take care of finest cashmere.

The yarn came from a magazine, I think it was called Let's Get Crafting Crochet Creative, Issue 23, and Madame helped me choose the ripple pattern from a stitch library and chose the colour sequence and all. Each ball was only 25g but it was plenty for the project and I had enough to go round and stabilise the vertical edges with single crochet in a couple of colours and to add three wee crocheted flowers as well.

It was really well received, and often when you drop in, even unannounced it's out with dolls, teddies or Playmobile characters on it. An all-round-hit, I think it was because she had such an input into its "design". x K

Ingredients for Monster socks

*Regia Galaxy Jupiter Blau Pastel 1553 - few yards of, from the centre of the balls. From experience there is still plenty in the two balls in the stash to make socks for me.

*Pattern Prism by Jaya Srikrishnan, as used in my Pink Boot socks in 2008 (Still going strong). Good pattern in my view because you are carrying over some stitches from one colour band into another, and gives a hint of unity to the Monstersocks or Frankensocks.

*Leftovers of Regia Galaxy Jupiter Blau Color as used in DH's Navy Galaxies. (2008)

*Leftovers of Regia Mini Ringel as used in Stripy Jaywalkers (2006)

*Leftovers of Regia Mi

ni Ringel as used in Ribbed Ankle Socks (2006)

Yes, I admit it, I'm stalling because I can't show you pictures of the actual finished socks yet. Soon, soon I tell you. x K

Jury Service Monster Sockage!

Last week I was on Jury Service at the Sheriff Court in Glasgow. It was stressful, uncomfortable, pointless and generally a right pain in the bahoochie.

However, I did manage to make some progress on my toe-up Monstersocks on the rare occasions that I got a seat, and have now finished both legs.

(The feet and heels were already done. I was doing both socks in tandem to keep track of what yarn to use next.)

All that remains now is for me to graft the heels and sew in the millions of ends.

These Monstersocks are made from remnants of Regia yarns I've been left with over the years.

I'll give more pattern details when they are totally finished, but for now I'll leave you with some pictures of them looking particularly monstrous, inside out and with all those ends to fasten off and with our grass looking like straw.

Blocked and ready for take-off!

Here's Multnomah washed, blocked and ready to face the spring breezes.

I am pleased with this and think the shades in it will complement lots of different colours and look great against good old black.

Down in Galloway for the long weekend for Spring Fling

http://www.spring-fling.co.uk/

Ready to face what the weather holds as we check out some studios, some old favourites, and no doubt some new to us. Enjoy the Bank Holiday if you're getting it. x K

Copy-cat knitting

It's not often you see me knit a garment in the recommended yarn, never mind in the same colour as the published pattern, although some people swear by it.

This case is the exception, I'm making "Feeling Good" by Sarah Hatton, published in Simply Knitting August 2010.

Thanks to Ravelry I know that there are errors in the published pattern, such as the lacy panels on the fronts are identical and not mirrored. These are the kind of helpful things that are easy enough to fix if you know in advance to look out for them, so thank-you Rav.

I'm making it in Rowan Purelife Revive in shade Quartz. I have used this yarn before in a Montego Bay-type scarf which I've yet to show you.

I've bought extra yarn because I agree with the designer when she says in the magazine article that she thinks

it would be nice with kimono sleeves.I've never had great upper arms, and now I'm forty, well... they ain't gettin' any better, so, cover-up it is.

And thank-you for your kind comments about Swoony Multnomah. It has had a nice bath and I hope to have some modelled shots to show you over the long weekend.

That is, if I get a long-weekend, curse you Jury Service. x K

Multnomah Preview

Dodging the April-style showers to take a couple of snaps of a little shawlette I've recently finished.

These are the unblocked shots of my Multnomah by Kate Elsa of HelloKnitty.net.

A lovely little knit which was a pleasure to make in the Colorimetry Swoony Sport yarn I bought at The Life Craft in Glasgow.

I made some minor

modifications- I slipped the first stitch of every row, and I introduced a half-repeat of the feather and fan pattern when I had enough stitches, rather than having fields of garter stitch at the sides and centre. This has resulted in more of a pull on central column rather than the straight as a die lines in the original, but I don't regret it. I just kept going until I ran out of yarn which resulted in a few extra repeats. I'm going to give it a wee bath and then put up some nice blocking and blocked shots.

Motoring on with the patchwork

Getting on well with the patchwork this week. Not much to show you at the moment but I can offer you an archive picture of the fabrics before they all got chopped up into hexagons!

It's nuts, isn't it? You take perfectly good fabric, cut it up into wee pieces then sew it all together again in a different order. The things we do for fun! x K

Slightly leading questions...

What do you think about this lovely pattern by Signe S. Simonsen?

What do you think about the lovely yarn it is made from?

Yes, some yarn handpainted by my friend Tigerlilith of Old Maiden Aunt Yarns fane is gracing the pages of the latest edition of Knitty.

Yes, pages plural as it features as a banner on all parts of this Winter issue.

This gives me a great thrill, especially as it such a pretty pattern, and one which I would love to make. x K

Playing with hexagons

My crafty energy has recently been going into playing with some hexagons cut from Christmassy fabrics.

I've decided on the pattern and it's going to be dubbed something like 'Poinsettias in the Snow', that is red flowers with green leaves on a creamy/gold background.

Here is a wee sketchy layout. Don't worry if you see things like identical fabrics side-by-side or other clashes, it's just to help

me visualise the basic outline. DH helped me with the physical laying out and his keen aesthetic eye too.

I've made a few refinements since then and it's shaping up nicely. The four main flowers are sewn with their leaves attached and the green lozenge in the middle is done with its light row around it.

Yes, hexagons are a bit fiddly to work with, but these babies are 5 1/2" each, so they aren't quite as tricky.

Making progress and I'm sure it will be ready for Christmas 2011. Well, when I say sure... x K

Happy New Year!

Wishing you health, wealth, happiness and craft in 2011. x K