The new and the old

Although I have been a bit of a bad blogger lately, there has been plenty of knitting and crochet going on. I finally finished the Hug Me Tight shrug from Knit 2 Together. This was a simple knit - just a big ribbed rectangle and a long strip of simple lace edging. It had been waiting to get sewn up for months but for some reason got forgotten. I love the finished shrug - it is both comfortable and stylish. I like a lot of the projects in this book and will certainly be making more. The felted slippers are calling to me !

Encouraged by the success of the Hug Me Tight I dug out Esme, the beautiful crochet halter top from Rowan. I have nearly finished since I took these pictures and hope to reveal the finished item in my next post.

Of course, I had to start some new things too. The sun hat from the latest Interweave Crochet looked like a great way to use up those odd balls of Debbie Bliss dk cotton that I picked up in the John Lewis sale a few months ago. This is such a great hat - I will so be wearing it if the sun ever comes out again ! I whipped up two at work and have almost finished a plain green one.

I am also making good progress on Interweave Crochet's Seafoam Vest. It's a very simple pattern and good for working on whilst watching telly. Pictures soon !

Lots of totally wearable knits !

I have made a real effort to try and get some things finished lately and am pretty pleased with the results. My Indigo Ripples Skirt has turned out beautifully and I have to say that this is a great pattern. All the finished versions of this skirt that I've seen look fabulous and it suits almost any figure. Mine took almost exactly 10 balls of Rowan Denim yarn. I knitted the stocking stitch section about 6 inches longer than the pattern suggested. I was never a fan of knitted skirts before this but now I'm keen to try another.

Next item to get finished is Interweave's Summertime Tunic. My version is made from Rowan Damask. On reflection this may not have been the ideal choice of yarn. I had been wanting to try it for some time as I love the colours and texture. It knits up into quite a soft floppy fabric which doesn't look so flattering in this simple design. I do like it and will probably wear it but if I knit this again it will be in a crisper cotton tht holds it's shape better. I used exactly 6 balls of Damask.Whilst working on the larger garments I can never resist casting on for some small quick projects that don't require much concentration. I made 2 of these little neckwarmers in next to no time. The purple one is Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk Aran and the cream on is Rowan Baby Soft. Both yarns are very soft against the skin. My favourite model, Clare the Bear , posed for a few pictures before flying off to Australia this evening for a six week adventure. Lucky her !

A gorgeous skein of Colinette Giotto , which was give to me by the very generous Roo of Rooknits , proved to be the perfect yarn for this crochet hat from Candi Jensen's "Crochet Hats". The ribbon yarn works very well and the colour is wonderful. I love Colinette yarns - all of them !

Nearly a denim skirt -quick update

I am now well into the lace panel of the Denim Ripple Skirt and am really pleased with the way it is turning out. I'm hoping that this will be a really wearable knit. I've seen so many lovely examples of this skirt on the net.I treated myself to these two amazing books this week. There are loads of projects that I want to make from Fitted Knits. I'm hoping to use quite a lot of my stash on these.

Back to blogging

Despite the fact that there hasn't been much blogging over the last few weeks, there has been plenty of knitting, crochet and even some sewing. These crochet Mary Janes worked up in a couple of hours using some Lopi wool from my stash. The pattern was from a book that I borrowed from the library. They are quite nice and warm but nothing particularly special. I gave them to Clare the Bear, who rather liked them.

Three balls of Debbie Bliss Denim Aran crocheted up into this shopping bag. A free pattern downloaded from the Berroco site, which has loads of good patterns. It's not a bad little bag.
While I was in the mood for making bags, I whipped up this little cotton bag using a basic pattern from the same book that I got the slippers pattern from. It is in a 100% cotton dk used doubled up . I think it needs a flower or something to jazz it up a bit.

My Indigo Ripples Skirt is coming along nicely. I have knitted the stocking stitch section several inches longer than the pattern suggests and am just starting on the lace section this evening. I may do a few inches of extra lace too as I want a longer skirt. I have seen some fabulous finished skirts on various blogs and am looking forward to finishing it. I think it will be very wearable. The Rowan Denim yarn is nice to knit with but the dye does come of on your hands. The lace requires a little more attention than I am able to devote to knitting at work. That seemed as good a reason as any to cast on for a new project. I have been wanting to try the new Rowan Damask yarn for a while and had 6 balls in my stash just because I liked the look of it. Interweave Knit's free Summer Tunic pattern is a lovely simple knit and looks quite stylish. I'm pleased with the way the yarn looks and love the style of the top. Shouldn't take long to finish.

Miss Millie had to dress up for a Victorian Day at her school today. I managed to whip up this Victorian maid's outfit at the weekend. (OK , I know t shirts aren't exactly Victorian - you have to improvise a bit ! ) She loved it and had a great time.

More crochet

Over the last couple of weeks, I have done plenty of crochet and totally neglected the knitting. First up is two pairs of the Turkish Slippers from Simple Crochet. The second pair still needs to have the edge trim put on - I'm sure I'll get around to it eventually. The yarn is a dk cotton/acrylic mix that I picked up in the market for a bargain price. Both pairs from two balls and quite a bit left over. I love this pattern, it is quick, simple and the finished slippers are so wearable.

There seems to be a bit of a craze for crochet ripples in blogland at the moment. After looking at all the fabulous examples on the Ripple-along blog I felt inspired to start one of my own. It is a great way to use up leftover yarn - although I must confess to purchasing a few extra balls in colours that I thought would be good for it. It is great for working on when you can't be bothered to concentrate on a pattern.It is going to be a blanket for Miss Millie's bed.

A ball of Red Heart Camouflage from my stash worked up nicely into a neckwarmer. All that needs doing is casting off and threading some elastic cord through the top. I guess this one won't get worn for a few months yet.

I found this book at the library last week and liked a few of the patterns in it. This skinny scarf is great for adding a splash of colour to an outfit. One ball of Sirdar Vegas and a few hours work. I have ordered a couple more balls to make a few more of these.

I crocheted a bag from three balls of Debbie Bliss Cotton Denim Aran and it is blocking at the moment, so pictures next post. I like the bag so I'm making another from some dk cotton that I had in stash. Yes, I'm making a real effort to use some of that stash.

Lastly, meet the latest addition to our family. Nipper the rabbit.

Phoebe - you are a disappointment

Well, Phoebe has finished blocking and sadly I am not so pleased with it as it makes me look enormous. It is completely unflattering when worn - at least by me. I so loved this jacket when I saw it in the pattern book and I did really enjoy the crochet. I am just glad that I didn't fork out a fortune on yarn. I will have to find someone to give it to.

I loved this little scarf in Vogue Knitting Crocheted Scarves Two the moment I saw it. It worked up really quickly in Rowan Wool Cotton and is very cute.

I liked the finished scarf so much that I bought another ball of Wool Cotton in black and, using the green and pink left over from the cream version, have nearly finished another one .

Also almost finished is this little bunny from Lucinda Guy's " And So To Bed..." . I've never knitted toys before and enjoyed this project. All that remains is to sew up the bunny's clothes and dress it.

Another productive week

First up this week we have the Lacy Scalloped Wrap, which was a free pattern that I found online. I can't remember where, but I'll post the link when I find the pattern again. I used three strands of Cygnet Aran to make a superchunky weight and it worked up quite well - not too expensive either. I plan to make this again, it was super easy and quick.

Still enjoying the crochet, I made a couple of these cute vase/pot holders from Rowan 41. You can get at least two of them out of a 50g ball of dk cotton, so they are great for using up odds and ends.

Also from Rowan 41 is Esme, this beautiful crochet halter top. I'm using Rowan 4ply cotton in the same colour as that used in the pattern. Not very imaginative but it just looked so perfect. This project is perfect for work. I like the way you can put crochet down and pick it up again later without losing your place in the pattern.

Phoebe is almost finished. Just a few ends to sew in. I am disappointed. For some reason I decided to give the jacket a really good blocking. What I should have given it was a light spraying and then pinned it out. Yes, you've guessed it, it is now huge ! All that chunky wool soaked up water like a sponge then seemed reluctant to give it up. It took ages to dry out properly. It feels more like a coat than a jacket now. I will try to get some modelled shots for my next post. I'm glad that I didn't spend a fortune on the yarn for this one - but then again, maybe the recommended yarn wouldn't have behaved like this. I did enjoy the crochet very much. It looked as if it was working up into a very wearable garment.

Also finished this week was another big shawl in Patons Fizz, identical in design to the green one that I made last month. It was a birthday gift for a friend and I totally forgot to take pictures of it before wrapping it up and giving it away. I also crocheted a small bag in Rowan denim which is awaiting a few stitches to attach the handles.

I leave you with a picture of my favourite girls, Miss Millie and Clare the Bear...

Aren't they beautiful !

It's all about crochet this week...

This week I have neglected my knitting in favour of crochet. All the main pieces of the Phoebe jacket are finished and there are just a couple of metres of yarn to spare. I breathed a sigh of relief when I realised that I was just going to have enough. I then bought some Cygnet Aran to do the edging with and it looks a pretty close match. Hope to get this one finished soon. Meanwhile, a rummage through my stash revealed a few yarns that I had forgotten about. Ages ago I bought some Debbie Bliss Cotton Angora in a sale. I used 3 balls of this fabulous purple colour to make a curly wurly scarf and a matching hat. The scarf pattern is from the book First Crochet and the Cotton Angora is the very yarn used in the book. The hat is from Vogue Knitting Crochet Hats On The Go. The hat book is excellent and I plan to make several more hats from this one. I liked the set so much that I made another in pink. This one has also been gifted to a friend so there may have to be another for me. I enjoyed the crochet a lot and it inspired me to make something more colourful. This lovely scarf is the main reason that I bought Vogue Crocet Scarves Two. I need to make a few more flowers and attach them. Admittedly, the last little bit of any project always seems to be my stumbling block - but I am hopeful of a result on this one soon.I'd like to wear it before the warm weather returns.

Here comes Phoebe

Phoebe is looking good - I think that I may just be able to get the main pieces done from my charity shop purchase of black wool. There probably won't be enough for the borders or belt but I think if I can find a close enough match it won't notice too much. I just don't want to run out with half a sleeve to finish. Being quite chunky, Phoebe is crocheting up very quickly. The pattern is simple but with enough changes to keep it interesting. If this gets finished it will be the largest thing that I've ever crocheted.

I did a little more work on my Grownup Bonnet. The recent spell of good weather has eroded my enthusuasm for this project a little. It will be finished ! I am determined not to add to my pile of UFOs this year

Oh no, not more neckwarmers !

I gifted my last pair of Ladylike Lace Gloves to Clare the Bear and immediately had to make another pair for myself. I raided my stash and found some Cygnet 4 ply that was going to be for socks that never got knitted. So, here are my pink Ladylikes...

I love them - they are fun to crochet and great to wear. They took less than one ball of yarn.

I particularly like the ribbed effect on the palms.

I know that these neckwarmers have become a bit of an obsession lately but I just love them. Two more flew off my needles last week. The green one is Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk DK used double. It is so soft and a lovely shade of green - this one is for me. The second is Sirdar Denim Tweed dk doubled up and is for Clare the Bear. There is enough left to make matching wristwarmers.

I have done really well for yarn in charity shops lately. Last week I found 8 balls of Lopi in my local Oxfam for a couple of pounds the lot. I have been meaning to make the lovely felted bowls from One Skein for ages and this stuff is perfect for felting. Once I started there was no stopping me and I made two large bowls and two small bowls from just two balls of the Lopi. I am planning to try a felted bucket hat with some of the leftovers. Another charity shop yielded a huge bag of black aran weight yarn that feels like pure wool. I am hoping that there will be enough to crochet the Phoebe jacket from Rowan's Arabesque booklet. It will have to be doubled up but I really hope there will be enough yardage. This is such a great pattern but would work out quite expensive if I purchased the recommended yarn. If I can make it from my £2.75 bargain wool it will be cause for celebration. Swatching tonight !