The Knitting & Stitching Show

The show was fabulous this year. I can't believe I was there a week ago today! Doesn't time fly ;) There seemed to be much more knitting related stands this year and far less cross stitch which great and most welcomed. It also seemed a little quieter too. Maybe the coaches head already gone when we arrived, but it definitely wasn't as packed as before. For once we could actually get to the Colinette stand without having to come back later when it was quieter. I'd be interested in hearing other visitors opinions - was it just Thurs pm that was quiet and the rest of the time busy as usual?

The downside of all this yarn was that I ended up totally overwhelmed by all the lovely colours everywhere and choosing what to get was quite a challenge. The variety of hand dyed sock yarns had to be seen to be believed but eventually I made my decisions and am very pleased with my purchases. The first of which was at the Cherry Tree Hill stand with Gill from the Woolly Workshop and some gorgoeous Potluck Sock Yarn in Brights. Gill managed to give me quite a fright by coming over and saying 'you're Anita aren't you?'. I was in 2 minds whether to admit I was or not, but having decided I hadn't committed any major sins recently agreed I was. Of course Gill recognised me from my blog, but it was still a surprise and quite amusing. It was lovely to meet Gill and to put a face to a name.



I also got some Fyberspates sock yarn from the Fyberspates stand in the lovely and very apt Happy colourway and an amazingly cute mini sock blocker. And of course a visit to Web of Wool is always essential where I got some more Clover goodies. And my absolute bargain of the show was some Rowan Plaid in Seagull for £20! Oh yes, now that is what I call a bargain. Its my favourite shade and though I've seen other colourways on sale before, they didn't have this one and also were more expensive. So no way could I leave without having some. Though admittedly I wasn't looking forward to the journey home armed with a full pack of yarn plus xmas pressies and the other goodies I'd bought. But hey, I managed somehow ;)


I'd fallen in love with some fingerless mittens knitted in the most amazingly soft alpaca from Catalina Yarns as we first walked round. So as part of my xmas pressie my friend Jo got me some Baby Alpaca Chunky in shade 117 and I got the pattern with it for free. This stuff is so soft, if you get a chance to try some do. You really won't be disappointed. I've never seen it before so this was my new find of the show. My friend also got me some Lana Grossa Milenweit from the lovely Sue at Get Knitted that came with a Milenweit leaflet and free glove pattern. I fell in love with the shade so of course had to have some. And finally the last part of the present, though certainly not the least, 4 skeins of Colinette's new show only test yarn Marshmallow. It's the same gauge as Point 5 and very similar, though much softer. It is glorious and I chose the shade Popsicle which will be made into felted slippers, from the Rowan Felted Collection.

So didn't I do well? I couldn't help but fondle all the glorious yarns on Hip Knits, or gasp in amazement at the Tilli Tomas yarn at £75 per skein, and be surprised at the Australian stand that had come over just for the show and also the number of US companies that were here just for the show. Wow, knitting is seriously HUGE and even I was surprised to see the number of new yarn exhibitors. It really was the Knitting Show this year....

You won't be surprised to hear I've been bogged down by paperwork again which explains the late post, but I'm trying to catch up on stuff and hopefully in a week or so things will get kinda back to normal. Knitting has been sporadic, as has cleaning and studying too.


But I did manage to finish the Andi Messenger Bag the night before the show. Yep, I was still sewing on the pocket in the evening before putting in the washing machine for felting. It turned out fabulously and after a night in the airing cupboard, happily joined me for my trip to London. Apparently I've been told this kind of behaviour is quite typical of me. Why I don't know, it makes life a little more stressful than it needs to be, but hey, at least I got the bag done and have another FO to show;)

One bad point about the Rowan Felted Collection is that no approximate sizes are given after felting. I know it varies, but a rough idea really is needed. Personally I would have made the bag a little narrower, as its just a little too big for me for normal day to day use, though of course very handy for trips etc.

So now another bag is on the needles.....more on that next post.

I've been meaning to mention this video that appeared on Cute Overload a few weeks back for the animal lovers amongst us that haven't seen it. Its a cat nursing puppies! Yep, you read right.....


I took advantage of Rowan's offer to subscribers for discounted kits and ordered 2 before we went away which arrived just before we got back so of course got forgotten about. They were such good value and to be honest, even if I never made both kits, the yarn, buttons and toggles included make it extremely worthwhile. Cheers for that Rowan ;)

Another thing waiting for me at the library was One Skein which I'd ordered a while back. Maybe cos I'd waited so long it was a bit of an anticlimax but as I looked throught it, kind of though, oh, is that it? So not for me and glad I waited for a library copy. I'm definitely getting really choosy in what books I buy and keep nowadays. Pretty much everything I rarely use or want has been sold. Which means more yarn money of course!

Though I did have to order the Knitting Pattern-a-Day Calender 2007. I enjoyed last year's one and found lots more UK retailers selling it this year so managed to get for even less than last time. I do love a good bargain. Lets hope it arrives soon;)