Bits and pieces.

It is half term week this week so I have my boys home and a break from my City and Guilds course to catch up with some of the homework!  The tutors weren't joking when they said that the day on the course would be matched with a days work at home.  It is certainly that and more if you include the assignments.

For the last 5 weeks we have been shape and pattern as part of the design component and blocked pieces for the stitched bit.  I have a new camera which is fantastic, a proper SLR as I have been disappointed in the photos I have taken on my bridge camera - they haven't been as sharp as I would have hoped and it has been bugging me.  I have given the new one a bit of an airing by taking some photos of what I have been doing.  I have tried the manual settings and although the photos are OK I need to work on the technique and learn some theory.  The photos taken on auto are fab though!  I really like them.

We started off with some hand piecing which, if I am honest, I think I prefer to machine piecing.  It is so much easier to tease and shape the pieces into place and certainly a lot less hassle and kinder to the fabric when you have to unpick as I seem to have to do all too often.  This is a simple four patch.

Not the best composed picture in the world but you can just about see how all the seams line up and the edges are square which is always a bit of 'yes!' moment when you open it out and realise it is spot on!

After that we had to machine some simple blocks which is much more tricky in my opinion.  Probably I haven't had as much practice.  If it works it is very quick but if it doesn't, well, lets just say you might well have been quicker doing it by hand the time it takes to unpick!

This is a simple nine patch.

Again not the best photography (I did say I had a lot to learn) but the seams are lining up so I was quite pleased.  The next one, whose name escapes me for the minute, was better both in terms of the machining and the photo!

Having said it was better, now it is uploaded I can see all the creases in the fabric and the fact it isn't straight. <<sign>>  I can't win - either the sewing is great and not the photo or the photo is great and not the block!

I have a few more complicated blocks that aren't finished.  A union star handpieced block which is looking a bit wonky on the bias seams and machine block square with inset triangles and squares where the two halves don't meet in the middle properly.  I will hopefully do those this week and more if I can.

Did anybody go to the Knitting and Stitching show  at Ally Pally?  Great wasn't it.  So much to see and so many fabulous knitty stitchy things to try.  I could have spent a fortune but since I had just bought my camera I resisted.  I am making this scarf from one of the lovely balls of yarn I  bought there. It is great because it ruffles all by itself!

It is simply 7 knit stitches across and it grows quite quickly.  I feel a bit guilty doing anything else when I have so much sewing to do but at least with this you make a lot of progress with very little time and effort so I have a little go every now and then, when it isn't worth getting my sewing needles out.  I am not sure how long it is going to be but I shall keep going until there is no more yarn left!  I reckon it will be long enough.

That's it for now.  Got to do some proper work.  Please feel free to comment - I would really appreciate knowing that somebody is reading some of this.  It gets a bit lonely when you don't know who, if anybody you are writing for. 

Thanks for reading. xx

Getting back into the swing.

I've not posted for a while which is a bad thing. I wanted to do a blog and fell at the first hurdle - making sure I post regularly!

Never mind, I am back again now and intend to get into a bit more of a routine!  The problem is that I have been collecting photos and things to mention on here and now there is a whooping great big back log of things to show.  So what have I been doing?

Well, back in February I went to Unravel in Farnham - a lovely knitting and crochet show where there are some gorgeous displays and loads of stalls selling beautiful yarns - lots of spun or dyed by the individual. 

I bought a 4 ply sock yarn from the Skein Queen in a shade of turquiose-green (Not entirely sure how I managed to photograph that and have an entirely black background but it makes the yarn look good so I am not complaining).  I don't have any plans about what I am going to do with it yet.  It is 70% baby alpaca, 20% silk and 10% cashmere so if I did summon up the courage to make socks, they probably would be the softest, comfiest socks imaginable but would probably have holes in within the week!  I shall probably save it for some sort of shawl or scarf.

I also bought these two lovelies from Skeins.co.uk in a chunky yarn called Lushush.  They are very soft and squidy too.

The yarn band suggests 9mm needles, just to give you some idea how chunky it is.  I think I might do a buttoned cowl with this one.  I don't have a lot of it because it is dyed in small batches and these were the last two skeins from that batch but it is not cheap and I have enough for what I want so it is OK.  It would have made a great jumper if I had enough of it though. 

My final purchase came from Ni Mu - a 65% cashmere, 35% silk mix.  Again I could only run to one skein but I am definitely going to be making a shawl with this.  There was a made up one on the stall at the show so I have already got the pattern.

Isn't it the most beautiful colour?  And it is so soft too.

At the moment all I am doing with these is looking at their woolly loveliness and stroking them.  I really need to get a move on although I have other projects at the moment that are taking priority.  Still, can a stash ever be too big? (Don't answer that with a yes and shatter my illusions please).  And knowing my luck I shall knit all these scarfs and shawls and we shall have the warmest winter on record next year and I won't need them, but I suppose the advantage of knitting accessories is that you can't grow too big or too small for them so I shall just have to save them until they can be worn and enjoyed.

I also have some knitting to show you, and I went on a bag making course a couple of weeks ago and made a nice little tote.  My edging stitches aren't great (I blame my machine) so I want to cover them with some ric-rac - when I have done that I will show you that too.  I could go on and on but I had better stop before this gets too long and leave the rest for another day.

Thanks for reading. x

Breaking more new ground

Well, I have worked out how to set this blog up, I have tinkered with it and tried to make it look pretty but now I think it is time for some photos.  Lets see how they work.

This blog is meant to be about my favourite crafts.  At the moment that is anything woolly - knitting or crochet.  Last Friday I finished a short sleeved cardie and was very proud of myself as it only took a week and wasn't half bad even if I do say so myself.

(Yay I uploaded a photo!)  This was made from Sirdar Squiggle which is knitted on a 10mm needle - hence the speed of creation!  It is part wool, part acrylic but lovely and thick, and I hope, warm.  The picture doesn't really show it but there is just the one button at the top.  I am pretty pleased with it although have yet to wear it on account of short sleeves.  It has been too cold for that.  However, the milder spell we are having might be the cue to wear it.  It is made up of lots of my favourite colours - red, purple, green and pink with a smattering of brown and cream too. A melange of colours!!

My next project is to finish a jumper for my elder son, the lovely C.  I am going to push the boundaries of technology and put in another photo of a UFO (unfinished object - not the spaceship kind - that really would be pushing the boundaries).

Quite a plain pattern apart from the ribbing in Sirdar Denim Chunky which is lovely and soft but inclined to split a bit.  I am using my 6mm rosewood needles which are really nice.  I have recently got into wooden needles and who would have thought that they made knitting that bit more enjoyable!?  I used to think needles were needles.  I don't know why they make a difference but they do!


I have done the back and have started doing the 2 sleeves at the same time.  It is knitting up quite quickly but I did start this in December 2009 with a view to having it done for a residential trip for C which started on 4th January 2010.  I didn't make it obviously, not by a long way, so I just put the whole thing aside and forgot about it for a bit.  I am trying to clear some UFOs before I go on another yarn buying spree otherwise the whole house may well disappear under a pile of yarn so I thought I would get on with this one before he grows out of it without ever having worn it!  Thankfully at 10 years old, the lovely C doesn't grown quite as quickly as he used to (although far to quickly for my liking - it was only yesterday he was a baby surely) and I was making it big so he might get a bit of wear out of it before having to pass it on to the gorgeous J who is 7 and catching up fast.


One more picture of the UFO, just because I can!!

And finally just for completeness sake, this is what I was working on last night.

This is my granny stripes blanket which I have been crocheting for a few months.  This photo is quite old now - I am just starting the 5th repeat and this photo was taken as I just started the 2nd.  I intend it to be at least twice as big as it is now.  It is a lovely project to pick up and put down.  Like so many people I got my inspiration from the Attic 24 blog -  a link here http://attic24.typepad.com/weblog/granny-stripe.html


I hope this is alright.  I am not entirely sure of the etiquette of linking and tagging and loads of other bloggy stuff but if somebody wants to tell me off and show me the way, feel free but be gentle with me.


Thats it for today.  New skills learnt and woolly news shared.  Have a nice day!