Scottish Piper

Here is the masterpiece of my knitting adventures so far....

He took almost forever to knit (a few months)!

Here is his back:

I made him for my lovely work friend Debbie as she wants to send him all the way to the USA for Christmas! Amazingly, I actually managed to get him finished in time for Christmas.

Here he is from the side, where you can see the sprigs of heather in his cap:

I knit him using Stylecraft Special DK in soft peach for his skin, matador red and white for the tartan (Aberdeen FC colours), black shoes & jacket & cap, silver sporran chain & buckle, copper hair & beard and oddments of yarn for the green & purple heather.

He is based on the Macscarecrow Clan patterns by Jean Greenhowe

I can't recommend her knitting patterns enough. They are so easy to follow and have amazing detail and look wonderful. I can't wait to try more! Having said that I did adapt the piper pattern to make him more tall man than dumpy toy and designed the jacket myself (a first!). I gave him lace up shoes and made his socks ribbed with mock cable turnovers for a bit of interest.

If you look up his kilt you'll find he's a true Scotsman! There's no photos of that as he's a bit shy (unlike so many true Scotsmen) and he tells me it was a bit cold!

I am rather pleased with him and I think Debbie is too as she bought me these gorgeous flowers as a thank you! 

Thanks Debbie, it was a pleasure to knit him and I might even make some more in the future.

Sail away dishcloth

I've made a dishcloth to keep for myself instead of giving it away!

Whilst in Florida I picked up a free pattern for a sail away dishcloth and here's the one I made using Lily Sugar n Cream. 

I love how the pattern turned out and t does a fantastic job of wiping up around the house.

Jo Ann

In October I went on holiday to Orlando in Florida. It was lovely and while I was there I couldn't stop myself from visiting a craft shop. Move over Hobbycraft, they really know how to do craft shops in the USA!

I visited a shop called Jo Ann. It's for fabrics and crafts. It was massive! I loved it!

I took a few pictures just to show how spoilt for choice a I was.

Outside.

Loads of yarn to choose from!

And more!

And even more!

And more yet!

It was amazing. And cheap! 

I bought some 454g balls of Aran weight yarn for making baby blankets and some huge balls of cotton yarn in self patterning shades to make dish towels; and also some multicoloured purple, pinky, blue coloured Aran yarn just because it was gorgeous!

And the good news was that I managed to fit it all in my case to bring home!

Little Birdies

Recently I discovered that Poundland sell cheap wool just perfect for making novelty items to sell through Kintore Knit and Stitch group to make money for local charities. 

I've hardly been to knit and stitch lately as I've mostly been going to bed after working at the time that I need to be getting up and going to the group!

Anyway I thought I'd still make a small contribution for the Christmas stall and found a pattern online by Amanda Berry for festive birdies. They were red, green and white to be festive but of course I had to be different so here are the ones I made with sparkly yarn from Poundland.

They're only little but took a while to make by the time I stuffed them and sewed them together. They do look quite cute and hopefully someone will buy them to,hang as baubles on their Christmas tree.

Tiny Angel Blankie

Yesterday I did some very special and important knitting.

I knit a tiny Blankie for a poor baby girl due to be born asleep today :'-(

This is the first time I have knit anything like this and I wasn't sure where to start or what to make but I decided on this Blankie pattern from  Tigerlily Trust website and used Sirdar Baby Crofter DK. It will keep her cosy, loved and guarded by angel wings for evermore.

It's not the neatest Blankie ever but it was knit in one day into the early hours to make it in time for baby's arrival. 

I hope baby's Mummy and Daddy like it.

I know some people knit all sorts of different outfits and things for sleeping babies for charity on a regular basis. I think I'll leave it to them to continue for now as knitting this made me feel quite sad. I was glad to be able to make it though as it meant I could help a friend and hopefully it will help bring some comfort.

Iona Chihuahua!

I have knit a Chihuahua, oh yes!

Iona chihuahua, or I.Chihuahua for short, was made for my special knitting friend Mandie :-)

She longs to own her own chihuahua but alas, she has a family and her knitting habit to pay for and so she has to wait for her chihuahua.

And here she is:

She is fabulous and knitted in Lily sugar n cream cotton - the pink rose petal scented one.

She was knit completely in the round (how I survived that, I'll never know) so there are no seams. I used a toy nose and toy safety eyes on a white circle of felt. If you choose to use the felt to add more character, do be careful not to cut the circles too big like I did at first or you will be knitting high-as-a-kite chihuahua and nobody wants one of those.

Here she is practising another pose to show off her tail:

And a head shot:

She is beautiful and much loved. And will likely never have any siblings. Unless I grow another hand or maybe a couple of extra fingers and a whole lot more patience......

Twiddlemuffs

At Kintore knit & stitch we've been making Twiddlemuffs to donate to people with Alzheimer's so that they have something to do with their hands and hopefully to be a comfort too.

They are a useful thing to make as any different sizes and textures of yarn can be used up in any design you fancy. You can then attach anything you like in any design using things like buttons, beads, ribbons or zips, both inside and out for people to twiddle with.

You can use chunky wool or various combinations of two strands of DK, using 6.5mm needle. Just stocking stitch 11 inches for the lining then 12 inches for the outside. Sew up the edges and the end then decorate.

Here's one I made earlier!

It's lovely, even if I do say so myself. I added beads on the inside too. 

I made the flowers by using a clever method I found online:

Cast on 3 stitches then pearl back.

KFB every stitch then pearl back.

Repeat until there are 48 stitches then pearl back before casting off.

This makes a sort of spiral shape that you can sew as tight or loose as you wish into a flower. I put a bead in the middle but you could use a button or nothing at all.

Here's another I made:

I thought it would be a bit more manly than the first one! But it does have a sort of salmons pink colour in the lining but maybe a man wouldn't mind that where you can't see it!? Again it has beads on the inside too to twiddle with.

Here is one that my son Aaron (13) made:

I think that's enough Twiddlemuffs for now. At Kintore knit & stitch we've also to make clothes for fish & chip babies and some items to sell at our Christmas stall so I had better make something long those lines next.

Sunflower

Here's a sunflower I made recently.

I made it for the Kintore knit & stitch group so that it could go along with the sunflowers that other members made. We put them together to make a display at the church sunflower festival where several community groups had made displays too.

I used Stylecraft Special DK in sunshine and walnut. The petals are made using short row shaping, a larger outer set and a smaller inner set. The centre is stuffed. I made a brown I cord and sewed it onto the back so that it can be tied to things as a decoration.

Sunshine phone jumper

Here is a phone jumper I made using Stylecraft Special DK in sunshine.

I got the pattern from Vogue Knitting

It's quite cute and cosy and has cabling on both the front and back. I've given it to Aaron to keep his phone safe, warm and cheery looking.

You may notic that I haven't put any finished items in here for ages! That's because I've started loads and loads of things and not finished any of them, whoops! It's gotten so serious that I've made a list of all the projects I need to finish. There 9 things on it, quite big things like blankets included! Then there's another 7 things that I have got yarn & pattern for and am planning to make but haven't even started yet..... 

Also, from September I need to start making Christmas items for the local knit & stitch group stall. Best crack on then!

Continental knitting

Part of the way through knitting the wavy throw I found I couldn't bend my elbow into a straight position after knitting and my elbow was killing me day and night!

Google told me I had tennis elbow requiring lots of rest and anti inflammatories. Apparently lol the wrist and finger movements repeatedly make your elbow and forearm hurt! 

Did I stop knitting? You'd think so from the lack of posts lately, but I've actually just started lots of projects and haven't finished any of them! 

No, I kept knitting but I have switched to continental style. Instead of holding the yarn in the right hand and wrapping it over the needle each stitch, I am now holding it in my left hand, wrapped around my pinky, under the next two fingers and over the top of the index finger for tension. Instead of wrapping the yarn around the needle with your hand, you use the needle to kind of pick up the yarn instead. Less movement of your arm/fingers/wrist = less pain! It's also quicker!

Until I get around to setting up my own YouTube channel to demonstrate you will just have to go and have a look at the many excellent videos already out there :-)

Wavy throw finished at last

A few weeks ago I finally finished the wavy throw and got all the ends sewn in.

It's off to its home in my Mother-in-laws living room where it is being admired by all her friends I m told!

Red & purple dishcloths

I have just finished making these dishcloths as a housewarming gift.

Made from Sirdar Cotton DK, they will hopefully make washing up a bit more interesting!

I quite like the round ones and think I shall make some more of those in different colours for my own kitchen.

Half way there with the throw, nearly.

I've pretty much just been knitting my wavy throw recently. It's looking a lot better than I first thought now that I have got a good few repeats of the colour pattern done.

As long as my Mother-In-Law likes it or it will have to go to someone else! To give you an ide of size, that's a 100cm needle that it's on.

I think I might have a pause half way as I really ought to finish the set of dishcloths I am making as they are a gift!

Pegacorn

What on earth is a pegacorn? You might ask. Well here it is.

It's a cross between Pegasus and a unicorn of course! I found a pattern for it on Ravelry by Pheonixknits.

I thought I'd knit some to sell for charity at the local summer fair on our knit & stitch stall.

I think I'm better at knitting sheep but it's something different that girls will love. My 13yr old son loves it but that's another story....

This one will be winging its way to Mandie to go with her loopy sheep.

Pattern from Pheonixknits

Yarn in Stylecraft Special DK from Yarns With Alice

More sock yarn for me!

Finally, I am actually going to knit myself some socks. For me!

I have chosen Regia Étude yarn in harp (blue/green) and violin (the other one).

Looking forward to having cosy socks to wear around the house instead of my worn out worse for wear slippers :-)

Yarn from Yarns With Alice

Wavy Throw

My Mother-in-law has recently been eyeing up throws for her living room at a cost of around £90!!

I insisted on knitting one for less than half the price in colours to go in her room. Off I went to inspect the exact shade of red based pinky terracotta that she wants and took a photo of a beige/pink/gold/reddish terracotta cushion that she had. After spending about three hours trawling websites I realised I would never find the right shade of yarn unless I made it myself (no chance!) so I decided to pick a few colours that would match instead. I chose Lion Brand Vanna's Choice in chocolate, dusky pink, terracotta, beige and honey. They all went lovely together in the online shopping basket. 

Until they arrived in the post. Ah, the perils of online shopping. The nice dark terracotta is a pretty bright orange and the dusky pink is more baby than I would have liked.

Do they go together? I would say no. Everyone I asks says yes get on with it!

So armed with my new circular needle on I went and here are the results.

Having given my whole family (except my husband who is too indecisive) the option of carrying on, missing out the pink or missing out the orange (that's terracotta), they all said they don't really know and to carry on.

So I am carrying on with the strangest most 70's looking bit of knitting I have done, for my Mother-in-laws newly decorated best room. It's awful. But I may as well get on with it now that I have bought ten balls of yarn and can't make a decision on what colours to replace what with.

At least the pattern is lovely. A fan and feathers stitch pattern which I have admired my friend Mandie using to make baby blankets in DK (I have gone for Aran weight) in a smaller more sensible size.

Any advice greatly appreciated on what to do next!

Yarn from Deramores

Crochet!

I have decided to learn to crochet!

For a while I have been mildly irritated by crochet. Everywhere you look for knitting stuff, crochet is there. I don't do crochet. I knit. But nonetheless crochet stuff is there in amongst all the knitting patterns and supplies getting in the way.

Well, now I have decided I am going to crochet! So ñow it's all different. I am glad to get ideas for crochet projects every corner I turn. It's all very interesting and I myself am going to be putting crochet posts on my knitting blog. Even though it is for knitting, not crochet. They are both now related in my mind as I want to do them both!

So, liking a challenge as I do, I have decided to do the Stylecraft crochet along lily pond blanket by Jane Crowfoot!

I have ordered my yarn in Stylecraft Special and here it is!

I also bought myself a cheapish set of crochet hooks with comfy handles.

Watch this space to see if I actually manage to do it and watch me make the blanket bit by bit!

Yarn from Yarns With Alice

Hooks from Amazon

Loopy Sheep

I finally managed to master the loop stitch (sort of) and made my first loopy sheep.

The loop stitch was a very fiddly and time consuming stitch but it does look great as a fleecy sheep!

As well as loop stitch I had to learn to do I-cords but as with a lot of knitting - they're easy when you know how! (Thank you YouTube!). I love the eyes which are made from circles of white felt and 5mm black beads.

I hope to make a few more of these to sell the knit and stitch stall at the local summer fair with the funds going to charity. 

I used Amanda Berrys Loopy Sheep pattern and Stylecraft special DK yarn in black and cream.

Cotton Yarn

My lovely Sirdar cotton DK yarn has arrived at long last after being stuck in the post over the Easter period.

I am going to be using it to make some personalised square dishcloths as new home gifts.

Look out for the photos of the red and purple set soon!

Yarn from Yarns With Alice

Saxophone socks

This is the latest pair of socks I have made in Regia Étude yarn in the saxophone shade.

They are lovely with beautiful blue, green and teal tones. They are currently on their way to Edinburgh to their new home on a special sisters feet!

Yarn from Yarns with Alice

Bed throw yarn

Here are 3 of the 15 balls of yarn I have bought to make myself a bed throw.

I chose this Aran weight Red Heart Soft Yarn in watercolours shade as I intend to knit the throw in mitred squares with a garter stitch border. I can't wait to see how the different shades will come out!

This yarn is 100% acrylic so not quite as good quality as some other Aran yarns which also contain wool but for a large bed throw which isn't going to be worn as a garment and possibly will just get clooked by my cats, this was the perfect and cheaper option. There were several colour ways to choose from which were all gorgeous but this was my favourite.

I'll post some pictures once I get started, but first I really ought to finish the pair of socks I'm making and then I have some personalised house warming gifts planned. Watch this space!

Yarn from Deramores

Going loopy

Well today was Knit & Stitch group at the library.

It was my third visit after joining a few weeks ago. I only made the second half after having to take the dog to the vets but there was still a lovely warm welcome :-)

We are knitting some animals to sell for local charities at the Kintore summer festival. It thought I'd better join in and went armed with my Loopy Sheep pattern by Amanda Berry. It was first time doing loop stitches and basically it drove me loopy! Was that the idea?! I'm sure I'll get the hang of it, but for now I've pulled it out and will start again!

Here's what it's meant to look like:

I'm knitting one in black & white and one white & black. Then maybe a few more depending how the first two go!

I'm using Stylecraft special yarn in black and cream from Yarns With Alice and got the pattern from Love Knitting

Let's hope the next attempt isn't so baaaad (sorry, I had to do that somewhere).

New sock!

Finally I finished knitting this sock in Genua yarn from the Regia Springtime range.

It's a bit brighter than I first imagined but hopefully it will make an acceptable birthday present when the other one is completed. An acceptable belated birthday present that is seeing as the birthday is today, whoops!

I guess I'll find out if it was worth waiting for!

Neck warmer

Here is the first of many neckwarmers I made using Stylecraft pattern 8758 and Stylecraft Swift Knit yarn in Pepper.

This was my first attempt at knitting anything with cabling and it was surprisingly easy to do with this pattern.

This was so popular that I had to knit a few more in different colours for other people. The pattern uses just over a ball and a half of yarn so I was left with a few different coloured leftovers.

Also included in the pattern is a headband, so my increasingly sulky teenage son (it's his age) Aaron, who has just started knitting about a month ago, decided to use some leftover yarn in carnation to knit a headband, only just to the right length to make a neck warmer for our spaniel!

He managed the cabling very well and I think you'll agree that it suits her. She enjoys being the poshest puppy when she goes for a walk wearing it over her collar.

Yarn and pattern from Yarns with Alice

Modelled by Aaron and Domino.

Mitred square

Whoever invented mitred squares is so clever!

I've been looking for a pattern for a while now to make a large bed throw. There's so much to choose from with a variety of styles, textures and chunkness. Some too plain, some too small, some too delicate to be left on my bed for more than five minutes with two cats in the house.

Then I discovered mitred squares! They are amazing when knit together to make any size of blanket in any pattern of squares and colours, bordered or staggered, they're all great. After spending an hour lying awake in bed at 1am this morning trying to work out how to possibly knit them, I turned to google and found a blog post on Yes! Suna Knits!. It explained everything! So I decided to knit one in some old Regia sock yarn this morning as an experiment.

Success! So now I am going to make a giant bed throw out of mitred squares. I'm adding it to the bottom of my ever growing list of things I am going to knit as soon as possible.

I plan to use a self striping Aran yarn all over. The ever increasing pile of left over sock yarn will have to be saved to make a table runner or the like. I'll go and add that to the list too....

New sock yarn!

My new sock yarn has arrived from Yarns with Alice

This is the new Regia Étude range in Saxophone (blue) and Piano (multi).

I got the Saxophone to finally knit myself a pair of socks instead of for someone else but unfortunately there is a certain teenage boy in my house who has taken a shine to it! Maybe next time for me....

A sock I made earlier...

Here's a sock I recently finished making using Regia sock yarn from the Springtime Colour range in Lisboa.

I used bamboo needles which I prefer as they are less slippery and Regia pattern number REG0504 which I got for free from a website years ago. I love this sock pattern as there are several sizes and even though there is no fancy cabling or lace the socks still look great in the self patterning yarn.

This sock, believe it or not, is going to be one of a pair when I get around to knitting the other one. Ideally before Tuesday as its a special sisters birthday! Don't tell! I've also another sock and a half to knit in a different yarn from the same range for another special sister who is also celebrating a birthday on Tuesday! Yes, they are twins. Lucky me. More about the other pair of socks later!

Yarn from Yarns With Alice

Blanket squares

Last night was blanket and beads night!

I knit the first row of 7 squares from the Stylecraft pattern 9035. I attached beads from Debbie Abrahams to the tips and centre of the snowflake motif.

As you can see it is a work in progress. I don't think I've done too badly for my first time attaching beads with a crochet hook and also my first time using the intarsia method! 

When I sew the ends in on the back I will take the opportunity to neaten up any stitches required and I'm sure a good dose of steam will work wonders when it's finished!

I chose to use Stylecraft Life DK yarn in fern and cream from as these colours will go perfectly in a certain persons conservatory. Remember to keep that a secret for now ;-)

At the same time my friend and fellow knitter Mandie reached the heel on the second of the pair of huge kilt socks that she is making. They look amazing in blue with a tweed effect and a thistle motif at the top. Hopefully when she is finished she will do a post with pictures for us to see :-)

Yarn from Yarns With Alice
Beads from Debbie Abrahams

Beads are here!

My lovely beads have arrived from Debbie Abrahams

I am very excited to get these as I haven't used beads in knitting before, having not done much knitting before until I started again recently. I am going to be using the crochet hook method to add them to my knitting and have chosen size 6 to use on DK yarn.

They are going to be added to the snowflake motif on blankets I am knitting using Stylecraft pattern 9035. They are actually top secret birthday present blankets/throws for two special ladies so don't say anything ;-)

I have some birthday socks to finish off first before I get onto the throws so keep hush, hush and there will be more to follow about them soon!

Baby Cocoon

I recently made this cocoon using Stylecraft pattern 8916.

It's a gift for baby Olivia although I didn't know if she was a boy or a girl when I started it several weeks ago and I wanted to make it a bit funky so I used Stylecraft Merry Go Round in Sunshine. I finished it off with teddy bear buttons.

As I haven't a real baby to model it, here is Bearie the bear trying it out:

I made this in the 0-9 months size. It seemed to take forever so I would think twice about making the larger size! It was well worth the effort though, especially with the beautiful cabling on the front.

I did make a Pom Pom to go on the top as the pattern suggests but I wasn't keen so swiftly took it off and gave it to my two cats to have as a toy. It went down very well. Hopefully this cocoon will be as popular with Olivia's Mummy and Daddy!

Pattern from Yarns With Alice

Yarn found on Amazon and buttons found on eBay.