Sockings and lace

Hello again!  I'm back on track and posting once a week, which is awesome as I'm finishing so many things!  As promised, this week we'll be taking a look at some cute Christmas decorations I've been making, as well as another square on my throw.

As you may guess from the title of this post, I've been making some Christmas stockings this week.  The pattern is by Amanda Berry, and is available for free online here.

So far, I've made two - both with the moss stitch top in white.  One is red, the other red and green stripes:

Its a lovely little pattern, and very easy to adapt to what odd bits of wool you have.  I used Stylecraft Special DK, which I got in a pack of five (two red, two green and a white - aimed at Christmas knitting!) for around £8.  This was nice to knit with, and has a very Christmassy feel to the colours.  Plus there is great stitch definition.

Each stocking took just over an hour to make - great if you want an on the go project (and great for me and my short attention span).  I'm thinking of putting some small chocolates in them for the tree, so visitors will be able to help themselves to one, or stringing 24 of them together to make an advent calendar....  The ideas are endless, unlike time!  I'm definitely going to be making more before Christmas, maybe playing around with the basic pattern...  Watch this blog and we'll see if I get round to it!!

So the lace part of this blog post is the latest square I've made for my throw.  I'm not exactly much of a lace knitter - it goes wrong far too many times! - but I thought I'd have a go with a simple diamond pattern I found online.  Here's the finished square:

It did take a couple of attempts (on my first, something went wrong early on and it just didn't line up).  Lace knitting is something that I always thinks looks so complicated (and if it goes wrong, working out what went wrong and unpicking can both be!) however this was actually fairly straightforward.  It probably helps that its not in lace weight yarn, but double knitting.

Anyway, next time I'll hopefully have finished some rather unusual baubles I'm working on, and maybe a square or two for my throw.  Until next time, have a good week!

Finally back... Just in time for Christmas!

So, anyone who has read this blog regularly will have noticed that I've not posted for a while - in fact its now nearly two months since my last post!  Now, I won't bore you with too many details, but the reason for the lack of posts is I've been ill (I ended up in hospital after a severe allergic reaction, which then coupled with exams in September has meant a bit more time off work now to recover) and also I was packing up my craft stuff as we were hoping to move house...  That also fell through in mid September (brilliant timing all round really!).  So its been rather stressful eight weeks or so.

Thankfully I'm now feeling much better, if still a little tired, and I'm looking forward to returning to work tomorrow (albeit on reduced hours for a few weeks to build up slowly).  I think getting back into a better routine will help!

The advantage of needing to take it easy is that craft projects are the perfect thing to do (though in my tiredest days a few went a bit wrong...) and it is now only 11 weeks and two days to Christmas!  Seems a long way off, but I've lots of crafty plans (as usual) so to have any chance of doing a third of them I need to start now.  (if you're interested, one of the silly errors was trying to knit using the short cast on end, not the actual ball of wool...  I only realised when it ran out most of the way across the row!)

However, I think I'll save Christmas for next week...  I'm sure many of you have been into shops and thought "it gets earlier every year!" - I know I was surprised when Christmas stuff appeared early September...  This week, I've finished a jumper and bootees set that I was making for my godson.  Unfortunately, my godson has grown quicker than I knit, so it is far too small for him!  So it will probably be a gift for the next of my close friends / family that find out they're expecting a boy!  (I couldn't even pass it on to my in-laws side of the family, as in recent months the two babies born have both been girls!)

Anyway, this is the finished jumper:

 



 

The whole thing is knitted in one piece in simple stocking stitch.  It didn't actually take that long to knit really, I just got distracted by other projects, especially once my godson was born and I knew it wouldn't be done in time.

 

The advantage of it being knit in one piece (see the picture below) is that it reduces the amount of sewing up that needs to be done (something else I'm very good at putting off - I still haven't finished the bags I mentioned in my last blog post on 12 August!).  This also helps speed up how long it takes, and given how many times I put down the project made it easier to keep track of!

 

 

The matching bootees are also rather cute - each was knitted in less than an hour:

The whole set is made to fit a three month old, and was completed in less than 100g of Sirdar Snuggly DK.  The wool was nice and soft to work with (and so will be soft for baby) and given it only used two 50g balls it was a relatively cheap make.  The patterns for both the jumper and bootees can be found in "Simple knits for cherished babies" by Erika Knight.

So, as I''ve already mentioned next week will feature a few of my Christmas makes that I'm working on, as well as hopefully another square or two of my throw (for those that consider it too early to be thinking of Christmas!).  I'll see you next week (and I mean it this time!) - have a good one.

Strawberries and moss stitch

So, it's been an interesting, if long, week.  Firstly, I had a wonderful weekend - on Saturday I went to the Festival of Quilts at the NEC with my best friend and godson (plus her mother-in-law and sister-in-law!), then Sunday was the Great British Craft Festival (which I dragged my husband to!).  The former was huge, and my legs were so tired, but my purse a lot lighter.  There were so many lovely things!  I'm hoping a couple of items that were out of stock are available again soon, but we'll have to wait and see...  The latter was smaller, and more about card making, though I still got some lovely things.  My husband and I even had a tutorial on how to make a sliding card!  The picture below shows all the lovely things I bought, which will be future blog posts:

The other reason it's been long is that the last two days I've been at the office past 9pm, which when I start before 9am isn't ideal!  I'm supposed to finish at 5.30, but it's been really busy.  Looking forward to the weekend!

Anyway, enough of that, lets get onto the interesting part of the week: the makes.

As the title suggests, I've been working on moss stitch as part of the throw I'm making.  Specifically, I decided to make three moss stitch squares: one classic moss stitch, one double moss stitch and a third in broken moss stitch. 

Lets start with moss stitch.  This is a classic pattern that I've seen used quite a lot.  For an odd number of stitches, you simply K1, P1, to the last stitch, K1.  Then repeat that row until it's the desired length (if you have an even number of stitches, you need to swap knit and purl for even rows).  Here's how it looks:

The second square I tried was double moss stitch.  I did this one on the way home from a day at the horse racing (a work social event) earlier this week.  For this one, on an odd number of stitches, the pattern is:
Row 1: (K1, P1) to the last stitch, K1
Row 2: (P1, K1) to the last stitch, P1
Row 3: repeat row 2
Row 4: repeat row 1
You continue these four rows until it's the desired length.  This is a picture of the finished square:

The final square of the week is broken moss stitch, worked as follows (over an odd number of stitches):
Row 1: (K1, P1) to the last stitch, K1
Row 2: K
This, unlike the other two moss stitch patterns, is different on the back and front.  This is the side I've decided is the front (looks most comparable to moss stitch):

I think I might knit two, and use one each way round...  But then there are so many other lovely stitch patterns to try!  Next week, I'll hopefully have finished a squares one I'm working on...

Now, you may be wondering where strawberries come into all this...  That's because of the knitting related sewing project I mentioned last week:

It was rather simple to sew - you start with one rectangle of each fabric (the lining and outside - I've used co-ordinating strawberry pattern cotton for mine, from Dunelm Mill) and sew together.  Then, fold up one edge to form a pocket (worth making sure you've enough fabric for this before you start - I didn't for my first attempt so it was too short for my knitting needles!). I then sewed the sides, and regularly to form vertical lines that will help keep the knitting needles in place.  I even added a little flap on the top.  The only problem I have is that it's now full...

Anyway, that's it for this week - next time I'll be posting about two bags that I've made (one crochet, one knitted) as well as another square for the throw.  Until then, have a great week!

Cute cabled owl

So last time I told you I had a new project.  I've decided to make myself a blanket / throw.  Now, I'm not the quickest knitter and not good at keeping my attention on long projects, so I thought it could be a good opportunity to try out some new stitches and techniques if I made it a patchwork design out of different squares. 

I've also had a few people interested in learning how to knit, so I'm also working on a "how to" section for this blog, and I plan to use these squares to help demonstrate different techniques.  It might be a little while in the making, but hopefully in the next couple of weeks I'll add some basic techniques like a simple cast on, knit stitch, purl stitch and cast off.  Basically everything you need to know to get knitting!  Then I plan to add to it with other techniques, like the cables used below, so that anyone can use it to learn how to make the items I post about.  So watch out for that appearing over the next few weeks (if you have any particular requests, let me know).

Anyway, less of the grand plans for this blog, and back to this week's post: another owl.  This time, in the form of the first two squares of my blanket.  This is a pattern I've seen a lot online, and it's appeared in a few magazines too.  Mostly knitted in the round...  I've adapted it here to be worked flat and I experimented a bit as to how many I could fit on a square!

Here's the one owl version:

The background to the owl section is worked in reverse stocking stitch, and has five rows of stocking stitch at the start and end of the pattern.  The owl itself is fairly straightforward if you can knit and purl, the only slight complication is the cables but they're easier than you might think!

The pattern for the owl itself:

Row 1 (back of work facing): P8
Row 2 (front of work facing): K8
Row 3: P8
Row 4: C4B, C4F
Row 5 to 11: repeat rows 1 to 3 twice, then row 1 once more
Row 12: as row 4
Row 13: P8
Row 14: K1 P2 K2 P2 K1
Row 15: P1 K2 P2 K2 P1
Row 16 to 17: repeat rows 1 and 2
Row 18: as row 4
Row 19: P8

Note on the abbreviations:  I've used standard knitting abbreviations, so K2 means knit the next two stitches, and P3 means purl the next three stitches. C4B means put two stitches on a cable needle, whilst holding them at the back of the work knit the next two stitches from the main needle, then knit the two stitches on the cable needle.  C4F means the same as C4B, but you instead hold the stitches at the front of the work rather than the back.  Further details will be in the "how to" section that I'm working on, including pictures of how to do it, but for now if you get stuck there's plenty of information out there if you search it or look it up in a book.  Or ask me / an experienced knitter to help!

Now you can have any number of stitches around the owl - the one owl above has eight on either side - but you can increase or decrease that for your needs (I wanted a 10cm square, but it came out a bit narrow).  You can even create a row of owls - the below square has two owls, with three stitches between them and two either side:

They're probably a bit too cramped, but I'm sure once it's sewn into the blanket it will be fine!  Might need to stretch a little though as the cables have narrowed the work - worth keeping in mind if you're planning multiple owls in a row.

I'd be interested to see if anyone has a go at this pattern - please send me a picture if you do!  I'd love to see what else it could be used for - it's such a sweet design.  Also if there are any mistakes or you get stuck do get in touch - I've added a contact me form on the front page of the blog or you could just comment (it should be OK as it's what I used to make the above squares, but you never know!).

Next week I'll be posting about three more squares I'm making (all based around moss stitch and it's variations) and a knitting-related sewing project I've recently finished.  Have a good week!

Definitely an owl!

So, slightly later than intended due to a work day out at the races, I thought I'd share my first crochet animal.  I think this was my second ever crochet project - the first was a bag which once I've finished properly (it still needs a button loop and button adding...) hopefully it will feature.

Anyway, back to this owl.  So here's the owl in full:

The colours may seem a little familiar - that's because it's made from the same magazine kit that Noel was. The main body of the owl was made in a spiral (so less sewing up to do!) started on a magic loop.  It was a little tricky to keep track of where one full round was, but this was nothing compared to the main challenge of this project: the eyelash yarn.  Just as it was a little tricky to knit with, it was worse with crochet!  The problem was the fluff kept obscuring the view of the stitches.  It helped a bit it was used alongside the normal green yarn, but still I don't think I'd recommend it unless you were confident at crochet (saying that though, I'm pretty much a beginner!  Does require a lot of patience though).

The wings were worked as two identical pieces, sewn together and placed either side.  I gave them a bit of a curve to make them look more like wings.  The eyes are crocheted circles with a black button in the middle, and the nose was embroidered on at the end.

All in all, he turned out to be quite cute!  He currently sits alongside Noel, though he does have a little seat in the form of a wooden pencil holder.

Anyway, that's all I have to say on the owl - the next post will be next Thursday, and I'll be talking about my latest long-term knitting project and sharing an owl related design as part of it.

Is it a penguin, duck or owl?!?

Another baby related post...  The next one won't be, I promise!  Last weekend was lovely, but long - we were celebrating the christening of my Godson (who unfortunately lives about 3.5 hours' drive away).  My Godson behaved really well all day, wasn't phased by any of it and loved all the attention!  I decided that I just had to make something for him as a present, and came across the towel set below in a magazine.  There were a few mistakes, for example in the "what you need" section several items were omitted, and after seeing it decided to buy the book it was taken from ("Made for baby" by DK) as there were many more lovely ideas.

First, I guess you might be confused by the post title.  That's because it was meant to be a penguin set (as described by the book) but his mum decided it was an owl, and another relative a duck...  I'll let you make up your own mind!  This is the toy from the set:

And this is the towel (spread fully):

These two items were all made by taking a towel and flannels and using them as you would any fabric.  It was tricker than I expected - the towelling on the flannels kept getting stuck in my sewing machine!  A lot of frustration ensued, but at least the blue towel was easier to sew - probably because it was thicker.  My advice on sewing towelling-type material: choose something of a good quality that's fairly thick - it will be far easier to sew.

To make the features, shapes were cut from the towel / flannels and then zigzag stitch was used to sew the pieces together - it made a feature of the sewing and edged it nicely so hopefully it won't fray too much.  For example, this is a close up of the eye on the toy, which was edged in bright blue contrasting thread:

Once all the pieces were sewn together using that technique, the main towel was finished by edging it with bias binding.  This was far easier to sew, being cotton, although it did require careful feeding through to ensure that it was being sewn on both sides!

This is a closer picture of the hooded towel's "face" - you can see it was constructed in a similar way to the toy:

I think the set was appreciated by my Godson - at least he tried to bury himself in the towel!  The toy got a cuddle for a while too - hopefully he'll enjoy using it.

Anyway, that's it for this post.  Next time, I'll be continuing on the bird theme but moving away from baby stuff - it will also be a different kind of crafty stitches used!  Here's a sneaky preview:

Green squares blanket

So I've had quite a crafty week!  A large chunk of this has been making my godson his christening present, which I'll post about next week once he's had it.  We also went bed shopping for the house we're trying to buy...  The one we liked will be nice and big so plenty of space under it for my craft supplies! 

So the topic of this week's post is a beautiful green baby blanket that I had a sneaky picture of in my last post.  It was a simple pattern, with alternating sections of knit and purl stitches to make a squares pattern, as you can see in this picture:

 

The yarn used is king cole comfort chunky, in shade 'Dill', if you're interested.  Its really soft, though knitting it in the warm weather possibly wasn't my best idea! It got very warm when it rested in my lap.  If I knit another, I think I'll do so in winter!

As the yarn is chunky, it was knitted on 7mm needles and so was really quick to make, despite being rather sizeable.  The yarn did split on a few occasions though, and the weight of it got to be considerable by the time I was using the third 100g ball - it's amazing how heavy it can feel when it's on the needles!

The edging was simple too - I'm not particularly practiced at picking up stitches, but luckily this didn't require it.  The edges (see the below picture) were done by slipping the first stitch then knitting the second of each row, then knitting the last two stitches on each row.

 

In total, it took a week to finish (and I don't get a lot of time to do such things during the week!) which means it would be perfect to make as a present for someone expecting a baby.  Mine, I suspect, will end up keeping me warm instead!

Knitted baby hats

Slightly delayed post today due to exam results - failed the one I wanted to pass, passed the one I thought I'd failed.  Not such a great day overall!  Might have to make something to cheer myself up...

I do have something to confess... I counted all my “on the go” knitting projects this week. Eighteen.  Then, I looked at the crochet ones I’ve on the go.  Three (which is much more reasonable!).  And I’ve one sewing project on the go.  Which has made me realise: I need to finish more things!

This week has actually been pretty good for finishing things.  The only problem: all were projects started this week too!  As I alluded to in my last post, I’ve been making some baby hats.  Not for anyone in particular, but more because I wanted an easy project that I could finish relatively quickly.  Plus, on a trip to a craft shop whilst staying at my in-laws, I spotted some lovely green yarn that went together really well – my first thought was of a zigzag pattern baby hat I’d seen in a magazine.  I'm sure at some point I'll find myself in need of a hand knitted baby hat...  And I'll be ready if I do!

First thing’s first though, I made a stripy one with a kit that came with the same magazine. It is a simple rib-edged hat with easy decreases for shaping. It has matching mittens and booties too, but the former still needs sewing together, and the latter I haven’t started yet.  Hopefully they’ll be a topic of a future post…

Back to this stripy hat.  Below is a picture:

 

It was remarkably quick to knit, and quite easy to sew together – just one seam along the back.  The worst bit was sewing in all the ends!  The yarn has a nice shiny look to it, but went a little thin on the pink.  I’m still pretty happy with it though – my first baby hat!

The second was quick to follow.  With this, the colourwork isn’t simple stripes, it’s a fair isle pattern.  Which sounded really scary – I’d never tried that before and it always seemed so complicated.  This pattern was a good beginner’s choice though, as there were only ever two colours at once and it was a fairly straight-forward pattern.  It also has the advantage of being quite small:

Once I got to grips with carrying the yarn loosely across the back, it wasn’t too hard at all, though to start with I think I pulled it a little tight, so my hat doesn’t really sit flat.  Hopefully once they’re on a baby’s head you won’t be able to notice!  I also managed to finish it in an afternoon, which is great for me as I usually start projects, then once they’re put down I start on something else…  Hence the eighteen on the go!  So projects I can do in one sitting are ideal for my short attention span.  The yarn itself is acrylic, and though it was all the same brand the greens were somewhat softer than the white...  Still, it was good to knit with and has a nice stitch definition - for £1.75 a ball it's great value.  There was also plenty of wool left at the end, as the three balls were 100g each, so I've started a cardigan... 

Anyway, I'll just leave you with a sneaky look at what I've been knitting this week, that I'll post about next Thursday...

 

My very first post... Meet Noel the Gnome

So, I'm pretty new to this.  I did try and blog during my wedding planning, but everything got a bit crazy so I think in over a year there were only three posts...  I plan on this being updated a lot more regularly (hopefully once a week) so we'll see how it goes.  I've a lot of projects on the go (at least 14 knitting ones I can think of!) so each time I finish one I'll let you know; I'm sure I can manage one a week!

To start it off: I'm going to cheat a bit.  This is Noel the Gnome.

I made him in October last year with a free kit on a magazine, and though he looks finished I still need to add the bell on his hat...  This is what I mean about being terrible at finishing projects!  He knitted up quite quickly, in fact I made him in an afternoon whilst my husband was out playing hockey.  It was my first project not using standard plain wool - the eyelash yarn used was a bit awkward to start with!  It was only used for his beard though, and that was sewn on separately, so it wasn't too much of a chore.

Despite Noel being made as a Christmas decoration, he still sits on my bookcase.  I've gotten quite used to having him there, it would now seem odd if he was moved!

Anyway, I've now got to get on with work, so hopefully you like Noel and I'll post at the weekend about the baby hats I've been making this week...