Birthday Celebrations

My birthday was last Sunday and I had a lovely day. I didn't get much in the way of yarn this year - can you believe all I wanted was the Buttercup Kim Hargreaves kit? Very different from last year when I'm sure I got quite a bit more. Is it just me or are others cutting down on their yarn purchases? The kit is lovely though as you can see.

I did get a couple of other knitting bits including some Colintte Zanzibar, probably for bag making. Another ball of Regia Stretch yarn and some 15cm Inxo bamboo needles as you can never have enough needles can you, and finally the Holiday Knits book which I'm rather pleased with as it has a few patterns I'd like to make.



My main pressie though this year was Dr Hauschka products. Boy aren't there a few of them? They are totally divine and once tried you become addicted. For a top quality holistic range there really is nothing better. They believe we shouldn't use night creams which is kind of strange if you've used them for years but it all makes total sense, even though I only used my own blend of essential oils. And yes my skin does look and feel wonderful using these products. Lucky me eh?

Coincidentally I attended a focus group on organic issues in the week one evening which was rather interesting and the money I got paid came in very handy indeed, with the holiday looming ever closer. If only my DH would actually get the suitcases out instead of promising to, maybe I could tackle a bit of packing. Looks like it will be last minute, as per usual then.

Finishing projects has been bad this week again due to birthday celebrations and also due to my DH trying to poison me. Yes, my dear husband painted the loft hatch with an oil based paint and surprise surprise, I reacted really badly to it with awful asthma and incredibly painful eyes which took days to settle down. Thankfully its all recovered now - you'd think he'd know by now though wouldn't you? He is of course suitably contrite and promises never to use anything similar again. Bad husband.

A recent comment about socks shrinking in the washing machine made me think about my cotton Regia surf socks which are really a few rows too short and so are my least favourite socks to wear. And it dawned on me that all I had to do was undo the toe shaping, add a few more rows, and redo the toes. So I did. Well one of them anyway. The 2nd is due to be done. So hopefully I'll be able to test them out shortly and see if that does the trick. Funny I didn't think of that earlier......

On the subject of socks, my lovely pink Lana Grossa socks are really the most comfortable of all my socks. Maybe its the higher than usual wool content. Whatever the reason they are just so comfy to wear all day. Perfect travelling socks me thinks.

Doesn't Time Fly

The annual craft fair at Shepton Mallet was on last weekend so on a gloriously sunny Saturday off we went. We had to take the very scenic route due to roadworks but had a fabulous drive enjoying all the lovely scenery. We really are lucky to have so much beauty all around us. I have to admit I wasn't greatly looking forward to the fair as it is a very average fair, and if it wasn't for Web Of Wool I probably wouldn't bother. But to my surprise there were some new exhibitors including Taj Yarns so I was quite happy. Shopping was restrained as expected, but I'm really pleased with the bits I got. The 3 balls of bargain Rowan Big Wool Tuft will be for a scarf that I wanted to make last year and finally I had a chance to fondle some Regia Silk and it is indeed lovely and very soft and silky. So of course I got 2 balls - and some more Clover accesories as you can never have enough of those can you ;)

On the drive home we stopped off at the new garden Centre in Cheddar which was very nice and managed to find another food bowl for Thunder. He has more than one but hates the ceramic one and chucks it over as soon as it goes in his cage. Finnicky thing he is. So now he has a plastic rounded one that is exactly the same as the bowl that came with the cage and peace is restored at feeding time as he most definitely approves of this one.



My recent post mentioning Custard made me realise that many readers might not have seen him before, as I've not posted a pic of him for ages. Bad hamster mum that I am! So here he is. He's getting on a bit these days but is still as much a houdini as he's always been. Just getting thinner now!

I also forgot to mention last post that my copy of FCEK & Crochet arrived from the US and luckily it was as good as before and I was pleased. It certainly was much better than Knit Simple. I expect when the next issue is due I'll get it again as it only seems to be printed twice a year.



After my recent slowness with sock knitting I've played catch up and have another sock for you. I have so much enjoyed knitting this sock. Partly due to the muted pastel colours - so very different to my normal brights - but also due to the yarn itself. Its Socka with Polycon and is a really bouncy yarn, if that makes any sense. I just love the way it feels and looks. Sock no. 2 has been started and is currently waiting a heel flap. I love this yarn so much I got another colour at the fair - must be in my pastel phase.....

Finishing has been very poor this week I'm afraid as I just haven't been in the mood. It seems the closer to holiday I get the less finishing I'm doing. Strange isn't it. There will be a sudden mad rush to get it all done no doubt as I won't want to leave anything unfinished before I go.

There has been the 3 accident syndrome again. First my lovely expense glass electronic scales go kapput, not helped by me dropping them first. Then I discovered my electricity meter is no longer working. And the third is I have a filling that is starting to crumble away, which is of course just what you want a few weeks before your holiday. Such is life eh!

We had a little day trip to Cornwall which was lovely though very tiring, and ended it sitting in a cafe by a beach watching the waves crashing up on some rocks. It was very beautiful though I didn't have my camera with me so no pics I'm afraid.



I'm finally well on the way to getting me a new knitted bag after the sari silk saga. This is one side of her and she is lovely and bright. The other side is almost done and I've done both sides the same rather than have a front and back. I wonder how the handle will hold up as that part won't get lined. All my other bags have had handles attached. Mind you, only shoulder bags get lined straps so maybe nothing to worry about....

I've Cracked It

At last I managed to conquer that darned crochet edging on Elspeth. In the end I did the picot row with a 2.5mm crochet hook instead of a 3.5 and still missed some DCs out. Oh boy was it hard work! I've done plenty of crochet edgings and never had any trouble with any of them. They were all simple and easy to work and looked great, even with my limited crochet skills. Phew, I'm real glad it's over with....just the arms now to do!



I really can't explain why its taken so long for the 2nd Lana Grossa sock to get done. I just seem to have totally gone off sock knitting. Yes, unbelievable but true! Maybe its been the challenge of that darned edging and the other finising thats just taken over my sock knitting time. Thats the downside of knitting summer tops and smaller items like bags. So much finishing to be done!

Talking of socks, I found one in the washing machine. Nothing unusual you think? But this one was wrapped round the drum! I just saw what looked like a bit of fluff and found it was the top of a sock (my DHs of course...). I pulled and half of it came out then jammed. So no washing could be done and it kind of explained the peculiar noise the machine had been making recently. Of course once DH was home he managed to get the whole sock out. I just wonder how many more are hidden in there. I'd heard about machines eating socks, but had never experienced it myself. Oh my, what if it eats one of my precious handknitted socks!!!!!




I kind of feel I wasted my weekend finishing time on the sari silk bag. It is done and I really do not like it. It doesn't hang straight and although blocking would help, I'm really disappointed with the bamboo handdles. They don't hang straight either and I think they look rather cheap and tacky. And to make things even worse, they are also very uncomfortable to hold. So the bag is going in the charity bag. I didn't bother to line it.....just not worth it. So a disappointment overall and no, I won't be using recycled sari silk again. The variety in quality and different thicknesses just do not do it for me I'm afraid. It wasn't helped by the skein I bought consisting of 2 very different colours and thicknesses, as you can see from the pics. I did like the colour of the side shown in the first pic though. Oh well, we live and learn eh :(

So still no new bag so of course I went back to my favourite Emma King book 25 Bags to Knit and have started another bag from there. Should do the trick lovely.



I did have some good news though. As you can see in the pic I've finished the back of Flame, and would you believe it, I managed to get away with using slightly under 2 balls which is great news as I'll have enough to finish her. She won't be able to have the tie straps but thats fine, as I wasn't too keen on those anyway.

Thunder and Custard had a close encounter the other day. The little escapee Custard ran over to where Thunder was and guess who was scared! Yep, you guessed it, Thunder who is so much bigger than wee little Custard was the scaredy rabbit! It was really quite funny. And a couple of evenings previously I had Custard on one side of the sofa and Thunder on the other, and they just totally ignored each other. Weird eh?

This evening it finally felt like a real spring evening - for the first time this year it was warm and sunny. Lets hope it continues eh....

April Showers

Well Sophie is finally complete which is good. She fits perfectly and in fact reminds me of a swimming cossie, thats how snug she is. Downside is that the colour is really too dark for me. The yarn was bought for a totally different project which didn't work out and the shade chosen by my husband. I ended up taking back the unused balls and Sophie seemed like the perfect project for the 4 remaining balls.

I will wear her but only once I have a tan and at home, rather than on holiday. Linen Print is rather heavy and not something I'd want to take away with me. So that is the end of my first and last time knitting with Linen Print. I find teeny summer tops and halternecks never quite work out as planned, especially compared to the jackets & cardigans I've made which I'm almost always absolutely delighted with. And compared with the amount of wear summer tops get anyway, it doesn't seem really worth the effort sometimes. This may explain why I haven't bought any yarn this year for summer! I think I'll stick to shrugs, boleros and cardi's as I always get so much more wear out of them.



So exactly why I've started on Flame, a vest from Rowan 31 in Linen Drape I'm not quite certain. Except that its in my stash and has to be used. Whats worse is that the pattern requires 5 balls and I only have 4. And I'd forgotten how long Linen Drape takes to knit up! It is a gorgeous yarn though and will make a pretty vest, if I have enough that is. I'll find out soon enough, as both the back and the front are the same. The pic shows 1 balls worth so we'll see. I've seen some on Ebay but not sure of the dye lot. Hopefully the seller will let me know. And if anyone has a ball of Seahorse Shade 854 Lot 23I2 they would part with, I'd be most interested ;)



Still on summer tops, I've started another Kitty halterneck top in Cotton Braid which is just so lovely to knit with. I know I've said it before, but it really is like knitting with cotton wool and knits up amazing quickly. I got 2 balls from the ever so generous Linda all the way from Australia, and managed to get 2 more of the same dye lot. Perfect! This Kitty is in Klimt colourway and is one of the very few knitted items that I will be taking away on holiday. I wore my one in Botticelli last year over my bikini several times and loved how soft it was. So this year I will have 2 with me. Of course I already have a pink Animal beach skirt that will look fab with it. So thank you very much Linda - I can't wait to wear it! Reminds me, better get on with finishing it then.....luckily the crochet edging on this one is really simple so won't take long, thank goodness!

A quick mention on Elspeth then. I've been ignoring her as I was a bit wary of doing the picot edge again.....and finding it wasn't working out right. I finally plucked up courage Wednesday to try her and as I thought, it took a few goes before I was finally happy with how it was looking and ended up using a 2.5mm crochet hook. Fingers crossed it still looks ok around the front shaping......I haven't got that far yet!!!

I'd understood that Family Circle Easy Knitting was no more and that it was replaced by Knit Simple. Well thats kind of true, the subscriptions for FCEK were indeed taken over by Knit Simple. However there's been a change of publisher all round and FCEK has now reappeared as FCEK & Crochet. I managed to order a copy from the US as its only available on newstands in the US. Lets hope its worth the price, as the postage was almost double the price of the mag!

But as I've sold some Jaeger Albany yarn on Ebay I thought I'd treat myself. Ebay can be funny at times. I'd tried selling 2 lots of Albany together with a pattern booklet, but had no takers. So I thought I'd split them up this time and only listed the yarn. And guess what, the same person buys both lots of yarn for more they were originally listed and now don't get the pattern book. So a lesson to learn, lumping stuff together doesn't always work so well!



Thunder says hello and wishes everyone a good Easter. As he's moulting the poor thing is rather fed up of his parents constantly attacking him with a brush. Aah!

Crochet Picot Edge and Insanity

Its been so sunny here at last that we had our first trip of the year to the beach on Sunday and ate chips on the pier. Only downside was the FREEZING WIND! Boy did that go right through us.....should have worn hat, scarf & gloves. We had fun though and DH won me some cuddly toys. Will I ever grow up? Nope ;)

My Sunday finishing day worked wonders to start with and I finally started to tackle the crochet edging on Elspeth. By Sunday evening I had done DC all the way round, and boy did that take a little while. I'd forgotten how much you need to concentrate on crochet when doing an edging and it made my eyes go all googly. No way was I even going to think about the crochet picot edging till another day. Enough was enough! I did actually try reading the instructions but that was enough to give me brain damage so I gave up. My poor brain was in need of a rest.

So the next day I reread the instructions and now they made perfect sense. I'd read all about peoples troubles with the edging and so made sure it lied flat. BUT, the problem is, we're not 2 dimensional and our bodies are definitely not flat. I won't bore you with the details but after numerous attemps with the picot edging worked over different stitches, missing stitches etc etc, I finally admitted defeat. It looked awful on and the edging was just stuck out looking oh so crap. So yes, I realised I had to right back to the beginning and redo all the DCs on fewer stitches.... so now I've frogged the edging, and thats it for the time being. I gotta have a break now before I totally lose what few marbles I have remaining!



To try and keep my sanity I also worked on Sophie, one of 2 WIPs I have from last year. You can read about all the fun and games I had with her back then here, here, and even here. But this time I was determined she would cause me no trouble, and after a couple of false starts, she was as good as gold. I made sure I marked both sides of the increases to make sure I didn't go wrong anywhere and it worked a treat. So she is knitted up and now waiting for finishing.



I had planned to start another summer top but somehow instead finally wound up my skein of Recycled Sari Silk which had hidden herself in the lounge, together with bamboo bag handles. You know, the kind of project you don't bother putting away properly as 'it will only take 5 minutes'. But of course this is never true. Oh if only. But she kind of spoke to me and a quick look at few online patterns for an idea of gauge and style I wanted, and I was off. The cast on row and following row were most offputting. Sari silk is very rigid indeed, and it was almost like knitting with wire. But after a few rows it became much easier and quite enjoyable. And so in an evening I had one side of a bag. I weighed the skein so that I could keep checking how much I had left for the other side. Don't want to end up with one short side now do we?

What had surprised me is how firm the knitted fabric is. I expected it to be much softer. I used 5mm needles, which is really about the smallest size I could get away with, and the result is fabulously firm,, which is exactly whats need for a bag. I might, just might, even get away without a lining. I won't know till she's sewn up though and it may not be worth the risk. But she sure is pretty, and heavy! This is some seriously solid yarn.

A couple of other points I noted, this stuff sheds! All over yourself, the sofa, etc etc. No way would I want to wear it myself either. Great for a bag or make up bag, but couldn't imagine wearing it. It would also be rather heavy. It also just kind of fell apart in a couple of places while knitting with it, but this is a yarn that doesn't mind a join mid row, so not a problem. Don't let this put you off, these are just my thoughts and I'm sure I will make something else with it one day. Its just not what I'd call a day-to-day yarn, if that makes any sense.

At the beginning of the week the lovely Buttercup kit arrived from Kim Hargeaves. I got another lovely email from her regarding the unusual delay which was lovely. It is nice when someone takes the time to explain and I was most impressed, though of course it was only a week. I have to admit to peeking in the kit too. Shhhh - don't tell my DH - he doesn't know! The pattern is printed really really well and I'm so glad it doesn't have a chart. I kind of realised after ordering that it was lace and sometimes you get a chart, but thankfully its written out. I just cannot read charts. Cross stitch charts yes, knitting no. Unless its intarsia. Anything really, as long as its not lace..... it all leads to even more insanity you see :)

Frogging Along

Thunder got his own back for the lack of attention while we were poorly by biting throught the Cherry Tree Laceweight yarn I was knitting my River wrap with. So now it has a join and has been abandoned in disgust. I was not impressed. Seeing as I have such a huge ball of it there should be no need for a join at all. And its not even at the end of a row either! He chewed it before I'd reached the end.....and I am not frogging lace! As I haven't really done that much of it anyway I may start again. I'll see how I feel about it in a few days. I wasn't mad at Thunder, just surprised as he's never bothered with actual yarn, it's always been my beloved Brittany's he liked to nibble on! And cardboard boxes of course hence the photo ;) We thought we'd give him his own box to eat to try and keep him away from yarn, needles and books. Some hope.....




Due to popular request I've given in and here are a couple of god awful pics of me wearing Deep. Deep itself looks lovely, even though I wouldn't have chosen those colours together - but as I had to try the vest top on anyway seemed a good idea to kill two birds with one stone. So to speak. I knew I looked rough having been ill, but lordy lord, now there is photographic evidence to prove it. The headless photo was too ghastly for words, though Deep does look very fetching!

Unfortunately once on the mend there was quite a bit of frogging to do on my 2nd lovely pink Lana Grossa sock. It had also suffered while we were ill and I found a couple of stupid mistakes. They probably wouldn't notice but because it is such a beautiful yarn and the first sock was perfect I just wasn't happy with it, so I frogged her till almost the beginning of the gusset decreasing! Will I ever learn not to knit anything with shaping when I'm poorly?

And the halterneck top I was knitting using Lana Grossa Multicot........well she is no more. Yep, totally frogged. The tension was perfect, gauge worked out wonderfully, colours gorgeous BUT the stupid pattern did not explain half of the shaping. I only realised about 10 rows before finishing! Stupid Rebecca pattern. I will be selling the mag on Ebay - they're totally overpriced and very very short on actual instructions. I always wondered how the pattern instructions were so tiny - its cos most of it you just have to guess yourself. Not impressed at all. I thought Rowan patterns were supposed to be hard to follow if you're not used to them, but this was just ridiculous. No matter how many times you read this Rebecca pattern, the info you need just isn't there. And no, there is no errata for the pattern. Hmpf!

I do however have another halterneck pattern from Garnstudio. Perhaps that one will actually work. I'm not particularly inclined to rework the yarn yet though, I'll move on and go back when the bad memory has dimmed......



However I did actually manage to do the finishing touches to Chardonnay and here she is. Isn't she pretty? The little strap will stop any fall out accidents and the flower is rather cute me thinks. And she's knitted in only 2 balls of Jaeger Trinity. Boy does that have great yardage. Pressing her before sewing up really evened her out - as I find it does with most yarns that contain cotton. I really can't get my head round wearing her, as she is totally a holiday top, only to be worn once suntanned. And I can't quite imagine that, seeing as spring has only just arrived.

An interesting thing happened though whilst knitting the now frogged Rebecca halterneck. It dawned on me that I did not like knitting garments in the round! Yes, it was quicker with no purl rows but I started to find it incredibly tedious and boring and it got to the point where I could only bear to knit 1 or 2 rounds. It felt like watching paint try......give me my Brittany's and straight knitting any day!

I ended up ordering the lovely Buttercup design from Kim Hargreaves last Thursday evening after showing it to my DH who agreed it was indeed lovely and that he would get it for my birthday. But its not arrived yet.....I know I can't have it yet anyway but I really want it to arrive. You know, just so I know its here and safe and waiting for me patiently ;) It should arrive next week, as I had a lovely email from Kim explaining there was an issue with the pattern and they were expecting it to come in Monday. So something to look forward to next week!

I'm beginning to feel like the only person in the world without the Rowan Holiday/Cotton Braid shade card. Kangaroo have been waiting for more stock for ages. If anyone knows anywhere that actually has them in stock, I'd love to know. At this rate it will be next season before I get one :(

We had some not so great news on our ever looming holiday. The direct flight to Langkawi has been changed and now we have to change planes at Kuala Lumpur. The really bad bit - there is currently a 5 hr 30 min wait till the connecting flight!!! Oh my god. We were not happy. It's only an hour on the connecting flight too. Crap isn't it?

We toyed with the idea of staying the night in Kuala Lumpur but decided having just an evening before travelling back to the airport with all our luggage the following day wouldn't be worth it, even of course if we were able to do that. It's all getting a bit close you see. We're hoping there are more flight changes which work better in our favour. Fingers crossed eh?

A Generous Husband...

Well, after last week I don't really have too much to show on the knitting front. My DH in his generosity gave me his flu and I woke up last Friday without the energy to even lift my head off the pillow to have a drink of water. Not good. We spent most of the weekend asleep and rather poorly. It's the first time my husband can remember having flu and I have never seen him as ill as he was. Thankfully its all easing off now, and I can't wait to get back to normal.



I did start a blanket though as I needed something simple and mindless to knit. Its knitted all in one piece and was most relaxing to knit as was a nice easy pattern. Now of course, I'm not sure if I want to carry on or not. I've a feeling doing squares would be better for me, as I can do them as I please and eventually, one day, they magically turn themselves into a blanket. Or something like that. Hmmmm. Currently, the project has lost my interest. But it has to be said, I don't find blankets particularly interesting anyway. Maybe I'll play with some stitch patterns and do squares. At least if I don't like a square its not the end of world is it?



Although spring has still yet to arrive properly I've started another summer top. It's a halterneck done in one piece and should be a nice simple easy pattern. I'm using some Lana Grossa Multicot Print from stash and a Rebecca pattern. I didn't do a tension swatch though, so fingers crossed I don't have to frog!



I did manage to finish the front of my Chardonnay top in Jaeger Trinity. Now its just the edging and a strap to be done plus a flower. You didn't think it had only one strap now did you? Oh yes, I can just see an accident waiting to pop out.....All will be revealed when its finally done. Its the first time I've used Trinity and am still surprised at how lovely and soft it is. I would however drop a needle size next time I use it for a slightly firmer fabric. Depending on where I check the tension it works out at either 22 or 21 sts per 10cm......it really is quite fine!

As we were asleep most of Sunday there was no sewing up done. But I'm hoping this weekend will see the crochet edge of Elspeth finally tackled.

I was getting worried as my birthday present list is shockingly small. Usually there is tons of stuff I want. But I just had a look at the latest Kim Hargreaves summer collection and spied this beauty called Buttercup. She is lovely, although in my not so favourite 4 ply, but would make a love pressie. I'm thinking Bleached colourway as she'll go with everything then.

Poor Thunder hasn't been getting as much attention as usual due to his poorly parents but has been very snuggly most of the time, with occasion naughtiness. He did make me laugh yesterday when I had to nip upstairs while he was out of his cage. He knocked down the gate to upstairs and bless his furry paws, just came up the stairs to find out where I was. How cute is that ;)