Anyhoo, I've made this one rather picture-heavy (mostly due to a heavy dose of retail therapy on Thursday at my LYS), although I actually cut 6 other images from the final selection, so think yourself lucky!
Firstly, my first (can I say that twice?) Valentine Sock. Not sure whether the pics are smaller than usual 'cos you plain can't see the textured hearts though you can on the original.
Never mind, at least you can see it's finished. Decided lack of enthusiasm to do the other one though, but I have had a busy week so I guess I'll get back to it.
This was meant to be my completed throw/long shawl thingie. I thought it must be long enough on the way home today ( for that read getting to be a bit of a pain to knit with becasue of the length); so I cast it off only to find it's still 40cm short! One more ball then! it's still the easiest pattern ever so I can knit it without having to concentrate which is a great bonus.
Remember the Inner Child I wanna? Well, I did.. One back from Inspired cable knits knitted in Marble. Love it. the colours keep playing tricks in different lights and changing the more colour repeats I do which is fun. The pattern's pretty easy and keep trackable, it'll be armhole shaping next.
You can just about see the cable movement in the close-up. As it's sitting amongst k2 p2 rib, you won't be able to see the pattern properly until it's stretched out on a human but it should fit my contours pretty well. Whether that's a good or a bad thing is yet to be seen!
Despite being pure acrylic, I find it nice to knit with and not at all plasticy, at the end of the day, providing it's soft and pretty, I will knit with anything, so I'm not that much a fibre snob.
My library's gone bonkers! I now have NINE books that they are buying in for me rather than doing interlibrary searches. Here are the latest hoard...
There's Kaffe Fassett's Pattern Library- it kinda does what it says on the tin. That's my only interlibrary book from Bury?
Then there's Cat Bordhi's Second Treasury , Love it! There's more from the wacky world of Moebius, bowls, baskets, hats, cat beds and loads more PLUS all the joys of felting your finished knitting- truly a follow-on sequel.
The back one is the Inspired Cable Knits I've been waxing lyrical about previously- that's the cover sweater peeking out. And finally, Beads, Buttons and Lace By Jennie Atkinson, a writer for Rowan. There's loads of really pretty things in here including that gorgeous Butterfly Dress ( form the cover of Romantic Knits) that uses - wait for it- 3 Balls Of Kidsilk Haze PLus one ball contrast! Four 25g balls for an entire dress! By god, that yarn really has some yardage!
There are some less-than-useful patterns too, the dressing gown that leaves a foot long trail behind ( I can just imagine breaking my neck going down the stairs 'cos one of the hounds has stood on the hem!) and the ubiqutous shrug- really pretty pattern, just needs a front! Overall, I'd recommend it though- but it does help to have a closing down LYS whose selling them cheap!
Speaking of which, Bargain of the decade, I was in there on Thursday and she was selling off balls of - wait for it- ROWAN LINEN DRAPE for 50p per ball!!!!!!!! Guess who's her best friend? She was also getting rid of Monte Cristo pure cotton so I've asked if she can find 2 packs of any of the colours for that fab Rowan Cardi on the cover of the first Knit Today. Watch this space....
She's also reduced the paper patterns, now £1 rather than 2 so I've taken the opportunity to add a few more projects to my pile. Below is a pattern for FDC Mohair Multi, the one I rave over
Generally dated eighties style patterns but I love this one. Don't you love the way it changes colour? That's one of the brightest but the range covers loads of shades. I picked up two other lacy cabley Jaeger DK patterns to knit up more of it so I'm covered on that score!
I've also three options for my two colourways of Marble Chunky, Left is a lacy arrowhead affair, centre a cable number and right a kind of combination of both, PLus whatever I don't use on this, I've loads of other chunky wool to use so I'm quids in!
And Finally, the other library book- Loop D Loop, also good but perhaps one to mull over properly at a later date showing off my Handspun silk. And, yes, the pic's fuzzy but by that time I couldn't be bothered to do more!
Ten grams in weight, 33 WPI ( roughly) and I think I worked out around 370 yards long. Haven't a clue what to do with it, but probably simple lace to make it as long as possible. Indigo dyed Silk Cap from RawFibres ( which I believe is no more). Learnt tons, the most important lesson being I HATE SPINNING SILK CAPS (and Hankies)!!!!!!!! I spun it so fine, it was forever cutting into my hands, had to change to the Kromski too 'cos I was so sick of the vibration on the Ashford. Still can't fix it and it's really getting me down. Closer to woolfest, I plan to ring Wingham's and see if they'll service it while I'm there, maybe they can cure it, who knows?
I like my Kromski, it's got much less of a pull than the Ashford and finer ratios so you can spin fine easily, but it is noisy. I plan to get an extra leather bearing for the back or front and screw it in with the original, that'll at least stop the rattle from the flyer working back and forth as you spin. Then if I could cure the bobbin rattle too, it'd be a silent spin!
Current spinning is the most divine soft Shetland mixed with a modicum of Tussah silk. Lovely to hold, a bugger to spin! The damn stuff is so springy, it needs the lightest tension for fine spinning and then it either won't draw up or it breaks every five seconds! Most exasperating!
Maybe by next post I'll have done something with it?
There's Kaffe Fassett's Pattern Library- it kinda does what it says on the tin. That's my only interlibrary book from Bury?
Then there's Cat Bordhi's Second Treasury , Love it! There's more from the wacky world of Moebius, bowls, baskets, hats, cat beds and loads more PLUS all the joys of felting your finished knitting- truly a follow-on sequel.
The back one is the Inspired Cable Knits I've been waxing lyrical about previously- that's the cover sweater peeking out. And finally, Beads, Buttons and Lace By Jennie Atkinson, a writer for Rowan. There's loads of really pretty things in here including that gorgeous Butterfly Dress ( form the cover of Romantic Knits) that uses - wait for it- 3 Balls Of Kidsilk Haze PLus one ball contrast! Four 25g balls for an entire dress! By god, that yarn really has some yardage!
There are some less-than-useful patterns too, the dressing gown that leaves a foot long trail behind ( I can just imagine breaking my neck going down the stairs 'cos one of the hounds has stood on the hem!) and the ubiqutous shrug- really pretty pattern, just needs a front! Overall, I'd recommend it though- but it does help to have a closing down LYS whose selling them cheap!
Speaking of which, Bargain of the decade, I was in there on Thursday and she was selling off balls of - wait for it- ROWAN LINEN DRAPE for 50p per ball!!!!!!!! Guess who's her best friend? She was also getting rid of Monte Cristo pure cotton so I've asked if she can find 2 packs of any of the colours for that fab Rowan Cardi on the cover of the first Knit Today. Watch this space....
She's also reduced the paper patterns, now £1 rather than 2 so I've taken the opportunity to add a few more projects to my pile. Below is a pattern for FDC Mohair Multi, the one I rave over
Generally dated eighties style patterns but I love this one. Don't you love the way it changes colour? That's one of the brightest but the range covers loads of shades. I picked up two other lacy cabley Jaeger DK patterns to knit up more of it so I'm covered on that score!
I've also three options for my two colourways of Marble Chunky, Left is a lacy arrowhead affair, centre a cable number and right a kind of combination of both, PLus whatever I don't use on this, I've loads of other chunky wool to use so I'm quids in!
And Finally, the other library book- Loop D Loop, also good but perhaps one to mull over properly at a later date showing off my Handspun silk. And, yes, the pic's fuzzy but by that time I couldn't be bothered to do more!
Ten grams in weight, 33 WPI ( roughly) and I think I worked out around 370 yards long. Haven't a clue what to do with it, but probably simple lace to make it as long as possible. Indigo dyed Silk Cap from RawFibres ( which I believe is no more). Learnt tons, the most important lesson being I HATE SPINNING SILK CAPS (and Hankies)!!!!!!!! I spun it so fine, it was forever cutting into my hands, had to change to the Kromski too 'cos I was so sick of the vibration on the Ashford. Still can't fix it and it's really getting me down. Closer to woolfest, I plan to ring Wingham's and see if they'll service it while I'm there, maybe they can cure it, who knows?
I like my Kromski, it's got much less of a pull than the Ashford and finer ratios so you can spin fine easily, but it is noisy. I plan to get an extra leather bearing for the back or front and screw it in with the original, that'll at least stop the rattle from the flyer working back and forth as you spin. Then if I could cure the bobbin rattle too, it'd be a silent spin!
Current spinning is the most divine soft Shetland mixed with a modicum of Tussah silk. Lovely to hold, a bugger to spin! The damn stuff is so springy, it needs the lightest tension for fine spinning and then it either won't draw up or it breaks every five seconds! Most exasperating!
Maybe by next post I'll have done something with it?
1 comment:
Was it your silk spinning course this weekend then? I thought that was ages off! I've been busy with the dye pot so I've fingers of many colours again! Plus your book arrived whilst I was away so I'll bring that over on Tuesday night!
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