Kelly's 1st Scarf - (Maggie Sefton Challenge)

Flower Colour - Grundi

I found this yarn at the bottom of my stash, it is super chunky where as the pattern is chunky. I also changed the needles from 15mm to 8mm because on the large needles the flower pieces didn't show.

 

This is the scarf finished.

The scarf on the mannequin at Open Studios last weekend. I am now going to put it for sale on Facebook for £18. I  just have the sleeveless top to knit and I will have finished everything from "Knit One, Kill Two".

Cinnamon Rolls - (Maggie Sefton Challenge)

I have started the scarf but last week I decided to have a go at Maggie's Cinnamon Rolls. The outcome was eatable but I think they were a bit doughy and undercooked.

Dough left to prove the 1st time

Ready to be rolled out - disaster stuck as I thought mum has a rolling pin. She did not so I had to sort of push  it out and try and roll with a jar.

In the oven dishes and ready to be left to prove. 

Proved and ready to go in the oven.
I think I should have left them for longer though.

Just out of the oven.

Ready to eat, the icing was the best bit!

Yarn for the 1st two knits from Knit One, Kill Two. (Maggie Sefton Challenge)

Flower Colour - for Kelly's First Scarf

Kelly's First Scarf 

The original pattern uses chunky on really big needles, but I found this at the bottom of my stash. It is Super Bulky but I am not going to use really big needles. I am still going to knit the scarf in garter stitch exactly the same as the pattern but the needles are 8mm, so fairly big. 😙

It is 60% Acrylic, 35% Polyester, 5% Wool.

Lambspun's Whodunnit Shell

This yarn is for the sleeveless top. The pattern uses Bulky and Winter Garden is Chunky/Bulky depending where you look, so not much difference. It is 30% Llama, 30% wool, 20% silk, 20% Linen/Flax. I chose this yarn because of the colour and the fleckes in it. I think it will look right for this project.

 

Winter Garden - for Lambspun's Whodunnit Shell

Winter Garden - for Lambspun's Whodunnit Shell

Maggie Sefton Challenge

I picked up a knitting mystery book by Maggie Sefton Knit One, Purl One.  There are 14 books in the series, the latest one was publised 2017. The stories are light reading, perfect to read and knit, or when it gets too hot to knit just read. 😎  At the end of each story is knitting patterns and recipies of things which were part of the story.

In this book there are 2 patterns Kelly's First Scarf and Lambspun's Whodunnit Shell  (A shell is a short sleeveless top, which is a simple shape with a high neckline) and 1 recipe Maggie's Cinnamon Rolls. Kelly is the main character who is learning to knit so these 2 patterns are easy knits on chunky yarn.

For a bit of fun I have decided to set myself the challenge of knitting every pattern and make every recipie in the book before I move onto the next book.

10 Reasons why I knit

Why do I knit? Why do I always seem to have a pair of needles in my hand? Spend my hard earn cash on yarn? Umm well let’s start at the beginning. My mum believed you should have a go at lots of things. Sitting around doing nothing was not an option, and watching the TV was limited. I learnt to knit, crochet, sew, embroidery, French knitting the list goes on. I have continued to dip in and out of each handicraft activity depending on my mood ever since. The only one I never liked is embroidery, although I do like cross-stitch.

So why have I ended up doing knitting more than any of the other crafts? 

1.     I can't sit still doing nothing: Basically I need to be doing something but that does not answer why knitting.

2.    It is portable: Ok when you get to the end of a jumper or shawl you can't really pop it into a bag, but a sock, hat or scarf goes nicely in to a bag. I confess I always have some knitting in my bag. This really started when I was in Spain. Queues are an everyday way of life; if you need to do an official paperwork expect at least an hour wait, possible 2 hours! You can even knit standing up!

3.    Different projects: I have at least 3 projects on the go at the same time, i) bag knitting ii) watch TV knitting iii) It's hard, I have to concentrate knitting. This means I never get bored, and during the day I use my brain but also do some fun knitting.

4.    You never stop learning: In knitting there are 2 basic stitches knit and purl. What you do with them is the fun part. There is always a new skill to be learnt, books to be read and things to try and do.

5.    You handle lovely, soft, amazing yarns: Its an excuse to go and find and use unusual yarns...Yak, camel, milk fibre, tree pulp the list goes on.

6.    I enjoy teaching:  I could teach any craft it just I have gone down the road of teaching knitting. I love it when somebody is so pleased with what they have done.

7.    I need to use my brain: One of my projects is either using a complicated pattern, or one where I have to change something, and work out new measurements.

8.    I can make things that fit me and they are the colour I want: Bought jumpers/cardigans are too long in the sleeve and too big from my shoulders. Things I knit fit me so I enjoy wearing them. Also since I have done Colour Me Beautifully I am really picky about the colours I wear so by knitting the item I can find the exact colour I want.

9.    You meet lots of interesting people: Craft fairs, knit and natters, knitters are a friendly bunch. Invariably I have my knitting out and people stop and talk.

10. Lastly I am earning money doing something I love doing: I need to do something to earn money while I take care of my mother so why not do something I love.

So that is why I  always have a pair of knitting needles in my hands.

Knitting on a cruise around Norway

Baby Shawl is Finished

I am pleased with the finished result but I defiantly don't think the rose motif is worth the effort. Maybe with some changes, the pip stitches made an interesting affect but the rose as a whole, in my opinion, was lost. I want to make another shawl but I think I will carry on the diamond patterns and the if there is room add something else in the middle. 

Rose Section in Cobweb Shawl

The shawl so far

 This is as far as I have got with the shawl. The rose section really does slow you down as there is something to do on every row. No easy purl row.  Thankfully I am half way through the rose.

Rose section

Here is the rose and the pip stitches in more detail. The truth is I am not sure if it is worth the trouble. We will see when it is finished.

I also received  A Legacy of Shetland Lace by Shetland Guild of Spinners. It looks like an interesting read. One thing I have read to dress a shawl you can rinse it with a weak solution of starch. Maybe not a good idea as it is for a baby.

Cobweb Baby Shawl

Well the edge is finished.. at last it seemed to take ages. I soon found that it was a lot easier to use DPN and I tried the Knit Pro Zing and was very pleased with them. As I can't use metal needles I did wonder if they would be cold to the touch but they are advertised as warm so I tried them and I found they great to use. There was not snaggy parts and I love the fact that the needles are colour coded.

The finished edge

 Anyway I joined the edge up (next time I will use a provisional cast on and kitchener stitch), picked up all the stitches and started going around. I did not like working from the written instructions so I have started to convert them to chart form. So far so good as it really is repetitive.

The edge and start of the body

The corner

Cobweb Lace Christening Shawl

I have been asked to knit this shawl. The kit arrived, there is no chart and the language in the pattern is different. Oh well a learning curve.

You start with the border and have to knit 96 points. Ok so the first thing is to chart this border, which was not too hard. Now to knit. As is normal with me I had to go down 2 needle sizes so I am using a 3.25 needle. The border is only 14 stitches at the point so I am finding it easier to use DPN's to knit with as you are constantly turning your work.

The Border.

Christmas knitting

I saw this cartoon on the Lion Brand Knitting Newsletter and I thought I would share it. How is your Christmas knitting going? I have 2 scarves left to knit but as I have 2 Craft Fairs this weekend and they both are all day I should get some knitting done in between talking about my knitting. I found a new website this week "A new Stitch a Day"  Full of helpful videos and new stitches.

Knitting Tips and Tricks

Knitting Tips and Tricks I saw these tips on Knitting Daily and I thought I would share them with you.  Weave in Yarns as You Go Place the needle in the next stitch and, before wrapping it, lay the yarn tail over the working yarn. Now work the next stitch; the tail is now fastened in. Repeat this for about 1 to 2 inches making sure to carry the yarn tail loosely to avoid puckering. This technique is a real lifesaver when you're knitting a striped project. This is the correct orientation for adding new yarns. Positioning the yarns this way created a continuous length of yarn and will make your joins invisible. Joining Yarns Hold the old and new yarn together so that the tail of the old one overlaps with the tail of the new one, creating a continuous yarn. Knit with both strands for about 4 to 5 stitches. Then discontinue knitting with the old strand and continue on with the new one. On the next row, treat the two yarns as one stitch, not two. This join can be used for light- to worsted-weight yarn. Tracking Your Project Needle Size Take a very long piece of contrasting scrap yarn and tie the exact number of knots to represent the size of your knitting needle. That way, if you remove your needle for use on another project, you will always know what size needle you were working with on the unfinished project. (This is one of my favorites! I hate doing gauge swatches again just to see what needle size I used.) Tracking Your Cable Rows Tie some scrap yarn with the cast-on yarn tail when working a cable. Take the scrap yarn and flip it over the needle every four rows—it looks like a running stitch up the project. You will always know what row of the cable you're on as you only have to count four rows. Why do it every four rows? Because so many cables are based on a multiple of four rows.

Busy Week & another Fair

Another fair, this week at the Cowes Yacht Haven.  It was a fantastic place to have a fair, very spacious and there was a continuous flow of people.

As for what is on my needles at the moment.

My Mother's Scarf

Aquamarine Scarf

I started to knitting another Peridot Scarf. Also today Mum asked me to knit her another Peridot Scarf but with a wider lace part so I am thinking about that, which will make 2 Scarves.

Also several people commented on the aquamarine Scarf especially how the beads sparkle. However the one I have for sale is knitted out of silk and alpaca is £45 so I would like to knit another one but with a different yarn and hopefully slightly cheaper.

f

I love Wight Christmas Fair

Christmas Fair season has started. :-) The first one was last Sunday. This is the first time "I love Wight" has been run and it was a huge success. So good that they are hoping to run one for Mother's day, and in the Summer as well as next Christmas.

 It was a lovely sunny day and loads of people came to look at all the stalls. Here is a link to some photos taken by Sara of IOW Makers of some of the stalls.
Photos from the Fair

Unfortunately the lighting was quite poor where I was, but I still had several people interested in my items and organising a knitting workshop. 2 lovely children, helped by their dad, bought a lovely scarf for their mother's Christmas present.

Update on the Local yarn

I have finished the Beatrice shawl. I like the colour but I am not too sure about the feel. It will be interesting to see what comments I get at the Christmas Fairs I am going to to.

I have also started the Caplet. This wool is defiantly only suitable for an outer garment as it is quite harsh to touch, but I am very please with the stitch definition and I think it will make a lovely caplet. I just have to get some more balls. :-)

Local Yarn

A couple of weeks ago I was looking for Alpaca Farms on the IOW and came across Godshill Park Farm. 

Although she did not have any Alpaca yarn for sale until December she did have Pure Castlemilk moorit (sheep) wool (dark brown) and a blend of Alpaca, llama and Castlemilk moorit (caramel).  I bought some 4ply in the mixed yarn and some Double Knit in the Castlemilk moorit.  Neither of them would I describe as soft, but as an outer jumper or jacket would knit up well.

Kathy Kelly Cable Caplet by Renate Haeckler

I have nearly finished Beatrice in the mixed yarn and I have started Kathy Kelly Cable Caplet in the DK.

Beatrice by Goddess Knits

New Outlet

At Easter I was contacted by a shop in London, NICOLINA lifestyle boutique, saying that they were interested in featuring some of my shawls and scarves. At first I thought it was a hoax but after some emailing back and forth it seems it is for real.

I had to have high-resoultion photos taken of 3 shawls and 3 scarves and they could only be made from silk, merino, or cashmere. These are the 6 items which I used.

I sent the photos off and now I have a page. Have a look, I would love to know what you think.

Scarves and Shawl

Workshops

I have been asked to run some workshops/classes in a new wool shop (the only shop only for knitting on the Island).  Strictly Knitting :-) Hopefully we are starting off with a "Beginners Class" for Adults, and "Introduction to Knitting" for children and we will see where it goes from there.  The idea is the adults will be either morning or evenings once a week for 2 hours for three weeks. The children's classes are going to be Monday to Friday for a week in August for 2 hours in the morning.

They are going to stock an amazing range of yarn, it is going to be bliss surround by all the yarn. The shop opens this Saturday and I am going over for a couple of hours so I will have to take some photos and put them on here.

As for knitting I am trying to get Tibetan Clouds finished as I have decided my Mystic Star Shawl is just not going to be warm enough to wear to Kayte's wedding, even though it is in June. The weather here has been so cold. I have the middle finished so it is just the two sides.

May Bank Holiday

My 1st buyer has left a fantastic comment:

"A truly beautiful item, so soft and luxurious. Well wrapped with a sweet 
accompanying note. Special delivery, first class service. Thank you!"


 So that is a relief. :-)

It seems that it is going to be another wet weekend, I feel sorry for the holiday makers. They will be spending their time going from one cafe to another and looking in shops. No going down to the beach, well if they want a brisk walk to blow the cobwebs away perfect, but no swimming or sunbathing. After fantastic weather in March the weather forecasters are saying the temperature is the same as Christmas week. Oh well the plants are looking green and healthy.

I found a bag of Drops Eskimo wool which I had forgotten I had. It is classed as bulky so perfect for knitting up quick shawls. I have managed to get 2 shawls out of it. The 1st was Lightening. and the 2nd is  my attempt at designing a shawl. It is nearly finished so once they are blocked I will post pictures.

Sold a shawl!

I have finally sold something to somebody I don't know.... I have sold a shawl on Folksy!

Ok friends and family have bought things but this time somebody has clicked the buy button.  She left a lovely message when she bought the shawl.

" I love this shawl and intend to wear it to the opera with my beautiful black retro dress!"

I do hope that she likes it when it arrives.


Hope everybody has a great weekend. It looks like there are going to be heavy showers all weekend. Perfect excuse to stay inside and knit.