OMG I am so slack!

I can't believe it has been well over a month since I last posted. I'm so sorry about that. I guess all the late pregnancy stuff just got too much for me and I haven't really had the energy to do much. Things got really hectic around here when our little girl turned breech which meant I couldn't birth on the government funded homebirth program. It turned out to be a bit of a blessing though, as I really didn't like my midwife and I am so much happier with the lovely independent midwife that I have chosen instead. Of course as soon as I found a midwife I was happy with our little one went head down so there are no issues with that any more. Cheeky little thing!

We've also gone through the wringer a bit with the house. We gave up on the first builders as they were twats but luckily found someone else who could do what we wanted for a much more reasonable price. We spent a while tweaking that plan and discussing various bits and bobs and finally signed up with them a few weeks ago (at Easter in fact). So they are now working on our plans and we should have something happening fairly soon. Luckily we won't have to move until after the baby arrives.

On the knitting front I have been fairly unproductive. I just can't seem to find the time or energy to knit. I have a heap of projects on the go or in my ravelry queue but I can't see when they'll ever get done. I would love to finish Dan and Euan's jumpers before winter so I'd better pull my finger out on those. Luckily I have at least one knitting project to show you. It's a little set that I made for the bub. I don't really know what the yarn is. Some Spotlight rubbish that I picked up ages ago because it was worsted weight and that stuff is like hen's teeth in Oz.

The top is a free Debbie Bliss pattern and the pants are just my usual made up pattern. I think I put a few extra short rows in the back for the bulky newborn nappies. They're not 100% wool so I'm not sure how they'll go as a cover but I think they'll be ok. I think the top will look cuter on than flat. It's hard to make that ribbing sit well.

In the last week I've found my sewing machine and had a burst of energy. This was mainly spurred on by the fact that I didn't have any newborn nappies and lots of fabric lying around. So using Shar's Newborn fitted pattern I made up a bunch. Aren't they the cutest.

It's been years since I made nappies and I actually found these quick, easy and enjoyable to make. My wonderful friend Pip has also lent me some little nappies so now we have a decent stash for when this one finally arrives.

While I had the machine out I made up a few things for me for the days and weeks after the birth. I know these aren't everyone's cup of tea but they are so comfortable and I'll be doing loads of nappy washing so they aren't any more work.

I've been meaning to make these for years, and once again they were so quick and easy to make. I'm thrilled with how these have turned out. They look just like ones I've bought in the past. I feel so clever :-)

So here's a nice little picture of all the baby things I have made so far.

Not a huge collection but I'm happy with it. I just can't wait to have some pictures with a baby in the clothes. 39 weeks now so it won't be long but it will always be longer than I want!

The big one!

This is the FO I've been wanting to show you for ages. It has only been finished a few days but it has been a lot of work and I'm really proud of it. This little labour of love is a present for my Nan's 90th birthday, which isn't until March but I didn't want to rush it. It took me a month to complete which is slightly quicker than I expected although I wanted to have time to resize it if need be.

Anyway, without further a do, may I present my Swallowtail shawl:

Isn't she pretty? Not a huge shawl but a good size for a little grandmother.

Here's the blocking shot:

This made me realise that I really need blocking wires so I'm saving up for a splurge at The Knittery asap, especially as I already have more lace on my needles.

Not sure what to say about the swallowtail. It is a fairly simple pattern to follow if you don't have a 2yo helping out. I used Knittery 2ply merino on 3.25mm addi lace needles.

Oh, and it has really whetted my appetite for lace. So I joined a Secret Stole thingy (for all my free time!). They send me a clue every week for 9 weeks and I knit them up and see what happens. Unfortunately I needed my only lace needles so I had to wait until the Swallowtail was finished, which meant I was 3 clues behind. Luckily it is fairly easy knitting so I got the first clue done in 2 days and have made good progress on clue 2. I'm really hoping to be up to date by the time clue 3 comes out on Friday night.

Here is a little progress shot of the stole:

Terrible pictures, but it looks pretty good in real life. I've done a fair bit more since this picture but I'm only going to take pictures at the end on each clue.

Unfortunately due to the lace bug that I've caught everything else has gone on the back burner. I hope I can get a few more things finished off in the coming weeks as I hate having lots of WIPs bugging me.

House report: who knows and not worth talking about. Hopefully we should start knowing a little more by next week but until then we're trying not to think about it.

Another FO

OMG has it really been that long since I last posted? How terribly slack of me. Sorry about that. Things have been on the busy side here and I have actually been getting quite a bit of knitting done. I started and finished another project in the last 2 weeks, actually it was in the last week! I while back I made this gorgeous little jacket for a friends baby and last week I decided to make one for my own impending bub. I thought it best to do a little bit of stash busting but only had worsted weight yarn that I wanted to use so I had to change all the calculations. Basically I took 10% off everything-ish and it worked out really well. I can't really post my number because that would give the pattern away but if anyone really wants to know I'm happy to give them a hand.

Anyway, not real point with the progress shots so here is the finished item:

It took 2 balls of Noro Silk Garden on 4mm needles. Sorry I don't post all the details on my blog. I put them all in Ravelry now and can't be bothered cross posting. Lazy aren't I :-)

I made a terrible cock up on the sleeves. You are supposed to increase a certain number of stitches across a section and when I wrote out my notes I forgot to mention this and just increased the stitches at either end. This meant my sleeves looked like this:

So I had to undo my cast on and frog down from the top. This was a PITA as the decrease stitched would not just pull out so I had to pull the yarn through everyone. It took bloody ages! But it was worth it in the end and I am really happy with it. It should be a perfect size for her first winter.

Stay tuned because I have an even more exciting FO for tomorrow!!!

Knitted baby FO

Here it is, my first knitted item for our little girl. It has been a nice knit and the yarn is just so scrummy. I just love it! Dan has reminded me, however, that it will probably fit her around her first birthday and not as a newborn, but who cares really. Knowing my luck and poor judgement it'll probably fit her around 9 months which will be the middle of summer, so not great sweater weather. Ah, who cares. Here it is:

Knitted in Knittery merino/cashmere sock yarn on 3.75mm needles. It's the February Sweater Pattern from Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitter's Almanac. Sorry, I'm sure I should add more details but my brain isn't working and I need to head out. If I can think of anything important I'll write it up later.

I managed to save my lace but haven't had the courage to do any more on it. Hopefully I'll get some child free time this weekend and I can get a few more repeats done. This one cannot be late!

Wonderful knitting

Well I have to say that the year has started really well knitting wise. I have a couple of FOs already and a few lovely new WIP on the needles. Knitting Daily is proclaiming this the year of fearless knitting and that has made me think about what things I have always wanted to knit. once I'd got the hang of the basics these are the things that I always wanted to try:

1. Cables
2. Lace
3. Socks
4. Adult clothing
5. Entrelac

So far I have done all except entrelac, but only at a very basic level. So my first projects for the new year are:

Lace

This is the Swallowtail Shawl from Interweave Knits.

As soon as I saw it I decided that it would make the perfect present for my Nan who is turning 90 in March, but I have been too terrified to start it. I have had the yarn and needles sitting here for months but kept putting it off. However, after the success of my Branching Out I felt brave enough to start. The yarn is 2ply merino from The Knittery and is like knitting with sewing thread. It is so thin that it makes me feel all thumbs. I hope it gets easier! This is a progress shot so far. not much done but it's only a day's worth of knitting with no mistakes so far.

Real Adult Clothing

The second project on my needles is the Cobblestone Sweater, also from Interweave Knits (the impossible to get Fall 2007 edition - yay for subscriptions!)

I've been wanting to make Dan something for ages and I thought this would look great on him. I decided to have a bit of a splurge and bought some really speccy organic wool from Beaverslide. I had a really hard time choosing a colour as Dan always wears blue and I didn't want him to have another blue jumper. I'm not 100% sure that I chose the right colour but I'm just going to knit it up and see how we go. The yarn has the strangest feel to it. It doesn't even feel like real wool. But I diligently knitted up a swatch (yes, that's right folks 2 swatches in as many weeks!!) and washed it and it feels just gorgeous. That was enough to convince Dan that it will be a comfortable jumper so here's the start:

And now for the things that I have finished. I've already shown you some pictures of the Branching Out but I think this one is slightly better, well at least the colour is slightly better.

It was sent off last week so I'm hoping it has arrived in France by now. Will let you know when I hear.

The other FO is the maternity shrug. The bamboo yarn was a little slippery but looked great knitted up and has made a fabulous top. I haven't actually got a photo of me wearing it. I tried in the mirror but it was so dirty that I looked like a smudge. I know I could clean the mirror but that could take weeks. But here is a pic of the finished item:

This is preblocking so there are a few ends hanging out, but post blocking it really does look great. I'll see if I can get Dan to take a decent picture of me in it, which could be rather hard considering the ginormous state of my tummy!

Wow, I can't believe I found time to write all of that! Off to watch Play School now. Bye!

First FO for 2008

Well I said I was going to try and make some headway on my Branching Out and yesterday was the day. While the boys were out playing I got 7 repeats done and then a few more in the afternoon. After 32 repeats Dan and I decided that it looked about right so I got it all ready to block overnight (it was going to be a minimum of 20 last night so I knew it would dry pretty quickly). It was all done this morning and I have to say that I'm pretty pleased with it. Here are some photos, though I warn you that I have trouble taking good pictures of scarves.

The whole thing blocking:

A close up of the repeats (the colour really isn't good in this one)

And Koshka doing a bit of modelling for me (this is probably the truest colour)

So now we just need to get it in the mail and on its way to France.

On a sad note I have decided to frog my Something Red. It just wasn't working out between us. The pattern is fine and easy to follow but I think my choce of yarn was a disaster. It was the most horrible to stuff to knit. It was Mission Falls 1824 Cotton and I really think my biggest problem with it was needle size, but I just don't feel like changing the pattern to suit a bigger gauge so it's gone. So sad.

But to fill the hole it left I have started another project. I know I said I wouldn't until my WIPs were finished but this replaces Something Red so I don't think it counts. All I really wanted was something I could wear while I was pregnant that would be wearable later. Oh, and something that may be useful during summer, which cancels out most knits. So I'm knitting a shrug. It is loosely based on the Shrug This from One Skein Wonders but I'm changing a few things around. I'm stash busting some Sidar Just Bamboo that I had laying around which should be perfect. I was a little worried about how it would drape (it's a bamboo tape and looks pretty heavy) so I actually decided to swatch, which is very unlike me. I'm so glad I did because it looks much better when it's washed and actually loses some of it's openness.

Before:

After:

I'm hoping this will be a quick project as it's on 6mm needles and just a top down raglan. Progress so far:

Another hot day here today and it'll be worse tomorrow so Euan and I will probably curl up in front of the cricket with the air con going and I can get some more knitting done.

Oh, and we have some plans from the builders. They were all wrong so I have redrawn them, given them a list of amendments and sent them back. Hopefully they hurry up and get it right so we can get it off to the council. I just hope to find out where we might be living when this little one arrives.

I jumped on the bandwagon...

and made the gorgeous little jacket that everyone in knitting land seems to be making. As women around me seem to be having babies left right and centre it seemed appropriate to give it a go. What is she talking about you all ask. Here it is:


To me this looks like a giant piece of brightly colour pasta (farfalle perhaps?) but with a simple fold and 2 seams you magically end up with:

Another Elizabeth Zimmerman Baby Surprise Jacket. Here are the details:

Pattern: Umm..what I just said.

Needles: Addis 3.5mm 60cm circs. Smaller than recommended as I was making it for a very small bub.

Yarn: Lovely 100% Aussie merino hand dyed by moi.

Duration: About 5 days.

Comments: Great pattern, easy to follow and loads of fun. My only issue was with the stitch marking. I didn't have any good markers to hook onto the stitches and safety pins were just too slow to undo and redo every row. I really need to find something more appropriate. That was what slowed the whole process, otherwise this could've been finished in about 2 days. Oh, and somehow I was 10 stitched short at the end. My counting went haywire and I have no idea where those stitches went but I don't think it looks that different.

Hopefully I can get some pictures on the recipient when she wakes up! I have also used this yarn to make soakers and longies for some babies so I will try and get some pictures of those too as they look so so so cute! I think I need to make a few more of these jackets as they are a great stash buster and so lovely. Best of all it's all garter stitch so I don't have to purl!

Not sure what to start next. I think the Tree Jacket is going to be shelved until next winter as I just don't like the wool I have used. I think it is time to start some summer knitting as Winter is coming to an end. Or I could make a few more pairs of longies as I know a few babies that might want them. What to do, what to do?

One down, one to go

Well it would be nice if it was only one more WIP to go but, like most knitters and general craftsters, it is impossible to have nothing on the go. If I'm not knitting I'm planning a new knit, or sewing, or cooking or something. But I have at least knocked another project on the head and given myself a bit more time for the next one.

May I present the first sweater/jumper that I have knitted for Euan:

Pattern: My own. I just made it up as I went along. That did mean that I finished the body (knitted in the round then split) grafted the shoulders and realised that it was too short for Euan. So it got ripped out and redone.

Needles: Addi 4mm 40cm circs (do I own any other needles?)

Yarn: Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in Kelp Green with Olive green stripe.

Duration: about 5 days due to the ripping and the babysitting

Comments: I just loved working with this yarn. It is so soft and looks great knitted up. I bought a heap of it from The Sheep Studio who are really, really cheap and really, really lovely. I've got a few balls to make Green Gable and possible Rusted Root. I think I could probably squeeze another jumper or cardigan out for Euan too.

Here's the boy showing his pleasure:


As soon as the end were woven in and it was laid out to block I started my next project. I was trying to decide between the Ribby Cardi or Rogue until I saw this. Those nasty Zephyr girls have done it again and I happened to have the perfect wool lying around that I was trying to turn into a Central Park Hoodie with minimal success. I used the bits of CPH that I had already knitted as a swatch and got going immediately. After 2 days I had:

The colour isn't perfect but it's a quick knit and will be really wearable. I've almost finished the body now so hopefully I can get the sleeves wrapped up quickly and get it blocking tomorrow. Yay!

Adventures in Blocking

Like a lot of novice knitters (and probably experienced knitters) I have always had a fear of blocking. I know it's important and I know it makes things fit better but I've never really know how to do it so I tend to knit everything in the round, give it a wash and hope for the best. As I've mainly knitted baby clothes so far this approach has got me by. But now I am trying to make a few more things for myself I realised that I just have to bite the bullet and try blocking.

After reading the endless info about blocking on Interweave's Knitting Daily newsletter I thought I should really make a start. Luckily I had just finished my Argosy scarf so I chucked it in a bucket of warm water and set about finding somewhere to block. That's when I realised that I live in a 2 bedroom cottage with a 2 year old and a large cat and absolutely no where big enough and off the floor that I can lay a wet scarf and a heap of pins. So it sat in the bucket for 3 days (I guess it was thoroughly wet after that) until this morning when Euan went out with his grandfather and I got some free time to lay a scarf on the floor.

So here it is in all it's blocking glory. I think the picture is a bit average but will take a better one when I can wear it.


Pattern: Argosy scarf from Knitty

Needles: Addi 4mm 40cm

Yarn: Noro Silk Garden (colour 244 I think) 2 skeins

Duration: I think it was about 4 days. It's a really quick knit and an very easy pattern to memorise.

Comments: I think my gauge must've been really out as although I was using the same yarn and needles called for in the pattern I only got 21 pattern repeats instead of 27. It's still a pretty big scarf so I'm not worried.

I guess now that I have crossed the blocking frontier I might need to have a think about gauge swatches. They seem like such a waste of time as I always want to get started straight away and I haven't had a giant failure just yet. Hmm...off to find some good links.

Frogging Life

Do you ever wish you could rip back a few weeks, months or years and make a few minor adjustments to improve the current WIP (or life as some people call it)? I sometimes look at my son and think "if only I had added this bit or not done this, then things might be a bit easier". I wish I'd inserted a lifeline to I could rip back with impunity. That's not to say he isn't a great kid but he has a few habits that I'd love to change but they seem a little embedded now even though he's only 2. Anyway, just the rambling thoughts of someone without much sleep.

Finally finished the Surprise Socks, which were actually my Dad's birthday present. I started them a few weeks ago and raced through the first sock only to run out of yarn 2 inches before the end of the second. As it was hand dyed yarn I couldn't just order more so I was lazy and ripped back to the start of the gusset and took a few stitches out (my Dad has narrow feet) but that made the yarn pool horribly so I had to face the music and rip back a few inches before the heel flap. I was so upset as I found the heel a pain (these are only my second socks) but I actually found a good mini-tute to pick up the stitches on my heel flap and so they came out better the second time around. Anyway here's one of them with my Dad modelling:


Pattern: Gentleman's Plain Winter Socks from Knitting Vintage Sock by Nancy Bush. My only mod was making them a bit shorter. Used the same amount of rib but less stockingette. I liked the longer look but just didn't have enough yarn.

Needles: Addi 2.5mm 40cm (started on dpns but just couldn't get my fingers around them and found 2 circs much easier and quicker)

Yarn: Hand dyed 100% merino fingering weight. Used the full 100g.

Duration: About 2.5 weeks due the all the problems. I didn't really read the pattern properly. It's written for men's size 8-9 but my Dad has size 12 feet so I needed a lot of extra yarn.

And just for posterity here's a picture of Dad and Euan:

Euan is wearing my first ever FO which was a beanie I made for my Dad's 40th birthday when I was 9. It was an acrylic, garter stitch monstrosity which he still treasures. I hope he likes the socks as much. He seemed a little under whelmed by them but I'm not sure he realised that I'd made them. He did ask if they were machine knitted which I am trying to take as a compliment. I guess someone in the family will let me know what he thinks of them (he's not that good at expressing himself).

And here's a little WIP. It's the argosy scarf from Knitty in Noro Silk Garden. This is after a day and a bit, so I'm hoping to finish it today.

FO - Candy Socks

I know I have a heap of other FOs to post about but they are old and these are new, so these can go first. These are the 3rd pair of socks that I have started but the first that I have actually finished. That may be because they are in DK yarn instead of sock yarn, but they are socks none the less. I did these after a bit of inspiration from this Craftster thread and also because it's the middle of winter here and it's nice to have something a little colourful in all the gloom.

Pattern: just a basic toe up sock using this great cast on tute, which I found on Grumperina's blog. Also a little help from Knitty and a reminder about short row heels.

Needles: Addi 3.5mm 60cm. My first go a the magic loop and I thought it was great although I wish I'd had 80cm needles.

Yarn: My own hand dyed 100% merino. It's superwash, takes dye beautifully and hardly pills at all. It was a large batch that I did for a few other things (see previous post) but had enough left over to make these. It only took about 60g for the pair.

Duration: A weekend. Basically one sock Saturday and one sock Sunday. I was pretty happy with that!

As you can see my short row heel needs work. I think I was just being too loose with my stitches so I will have to try a bit harder. I'm a bit disappointed actually but as I have firmly caught the sock knitting bug I will get a lot more chance to perfect this.

I'm really happy with the way this yarn turned out that I'm thinking I should get back to dyeing. I'm even thinking about opening my little shop back up. I've found a great source for merino and merino/cashmere yarn and I think it would look great in funk bold colours. What do you all think??

OMG Finished!!!

I can't believe it. For the first time in my life I had wanted to knit something for myself and actually carried the thought through to reality and then completion! Not only that, but it fits which is a bonus.

So presenting to one and all....my Sahara

Please excuse the lack of blocking, the inappropriate undergarments and the flab. These pics made me realise that I must lose some weight. I can't go to Europe looking like this!

I made a few changes, but nothing too exciting. Instead of the Tilly Thomas I used SWTC Oasis (100% SoySilk). I think the colour was Canyon but I can't remember the number. Went up to a 4.5mm for the body and 4mm for the lace, but probably could've gone to a 3.75mm if I had any. I didn't want short sleeves and didn't have enough for long sleeves so I thought I do a good mid-season 3/4 sleeve. The best bit is that it only took 2 weeks, which is lightning fast for me.

I'm really happy with the way it's turned out although the minimal seaming is terrible as I have no idea what I'm doing, and the lace is a bit bunchy. I'm hoping blocking will sort that out. I just have to learn how to block :)

Oh, and this is a small, which is right for my 34" bust and will look better when I have smaller hips and waist :)