Knitting in 2014: May

Another month, another FO.

This one is a surprise for my sister and her husband, who are expecting a baby later this year. I doubt they will come across this so hopefully the surprise will not be spoilt. They'll be getting it when I see them in a few weeks.

This was my first time using yarn from Bendigo Woollen Mills and I was hugely impressed.  It was lovely to knit with and so economical. I bought nine balls of Luxury 10 ply (200g each!) and have almost 2/3 of each left. The colour range is more limited in 10 ply (Luxury also comes in 4 ply, 8 ply and there may be a couple of colours available in 3 ply) e.g. there is no purple and no orange.  Nevertheless, I am happy with the way it turned out and I hope that the Mum and Dad to be will love it too.

Knitting in 2014: April

Just one FO in April:

This is a long scarf/shawl that I did as a test knit. The pattern is called Sixty Bushels Shawlette and is designed by Susan Elizabeth. The pattern is available through Ravelry.  I used thinner yarn than recommended but I like the way it came out. The scarf is very long though!  The pattern is simple and easy to memorise. I wanted something fairly simple to show off the long colour runs in the yarn and I think this worked out well.

The yarn is called Color Me Happy. It is 100% wool, laceweight, approx 700m in 100g and it smells sheepy! I love it. It is a little coarse and reminds me of the Jaimeson and Smith yarn that I used to make the Sheep Carousel tea cosy. I bought the yarn from Prudence Mapstone's stall at the craft fair at Rosehill at the beginning of March. I helped out at the NSW Knitters Guild stand one morning and th had some time to wander around in the afternoon. I was very restrained and came home with just this yarn.

Knitting in 2014: March

I had just one FO in March. I knit Cladonia Shawl in Fyberspates sock (in Rose) and a complementary variegated yarn by One Fat Slug.  I bought that one in a destash and I am not sure of the name of the colourway. 

And a close up to show some detail:

This FO is also called Plan A. I am taking part in a swap with some Ravelry friends.  Some people are knitting shawls and others are knitting socks. I love hand knit socks but don't enjoy making them and I guess some people like shawls but don't enjoy making them.  

My plan has been to knit two shawls and when they are done, I will decide which one to send.  The second pattern (Aase's Shawl) is not going so well but if I don't get it done, I will be happy to send this one.  It's a shame about Plan B.  The yarn is nicer (well, softer) than this yarn but I have issues with the pattern. 

Evening sky

We were walking home this evening as the weather was turning and saw this lovely sky. We'd had clear blue skies earlier in the day. I'm hoping for a bit of rain for the neglected garden.

Knitting in 2014: February

The first FO of the month was Crown Tee, designed by Jenise Reid. This was my first time using the famous Wollmeise (Lace-Garn in Maus Jung).  I'm still undecided about whether this yarn is up to the hype.  It is certainly very nice and the stitch definition is great but there is a lot of hype about it. I found it to be quite splitty so I am rethinking my plans for the second skein I have.

Back to the FO. I received this pattern in a Christmas pattern swap. I've admired it for some time but will admit to being a little dubious when I got the pattern. The waist shaping is unusual and I fall midway between two sizes with no easy way to adapt the pattern due to the lace pattern on the yoke. Anyway, I needn't have worried. I ploughed ahead with the larger size and it worked out pretty well.

Next up was a quick little project that I did as part of the Ravellenic Games on Ravelry.  The pattern is called Frigid  and is a headband/ear warmer that was designed by Kristina Proctor.  This pattern is also available through Ravelry. I have absolutely no need for an ear warmer in Sydney but I thought it was cute and I still hope that one day we will go somewhere snowy!  I used some leftover Lambs Pride Bulky

After that quick project, I wanted to knit something big. When we were still in England, I bought enough Rowan Felted Tweed Aran (colourway pebble) to knit Kittiwake cardigan, designed by Amy Herzog and published at knitty.com). There were almost two weeks left in the Ravellenic Games, so it seemed like a challenge.  I managed to get all the knitting and seaming done by the end of the Winter Olympics but it took three more weeks for me to sew on the buttons.  I got the buttons from SkullButtonry on etsy. They were a bargain!

Knitting in 2014: January

Now that I am up to date with knitting projects, I will try to do a monthly round up.

I have just one FO this month.

It is Song of the Sea cowl by Louise by Louise Zazz Bangham. I used a skein of Tosh Pashmina in the colourway Forestry. In reality, it is a bit darker than the photo suggests but just as lovely.  The yarn is a merino, silk cashmere blend and although it didn't seem particularly special when I was knitting with it, it softens up beautifully and the fabric has a lovely drape.  Rich brought this yarn back from a work trip to Philadelphia last year. Lucky me!

I left out a repeat of the tiny waves due to concerns about not having enough yarn but I had 10g left over so would have had enough. Pashmina is listed as sport weight but my skein seems to be quite light. The pattern is written for 4-ply and I went down two needle sizes from the suggested size and my gauge was pretty much spot on.

2013 in knits (November and December)

November

Holden

Another Holden.  I knit this as a present for a friend who was very good to us when we first moved to Sydney.  The yarn is Ella Rae Lace Merino and I cannot wait to get my hands on more of it.  It is just lovely.  I made this Holden the same as before but blocked it differently. The first one was blocked with straight edges but this one has points. I prefer the look of this version.

Rock Island

This is a Jared Flood/Brooklyn Tweed pattern that I have wanted to knit for some time. Rich brought back this beautiful yarn (Madeline Tosh prairie in Spectrum) from his trip to Philadelphia last summer and I knew I needed to make something special with it.  

It is probably the most complicated thing that I have made so far but I really love it and I am please with the way it turned out. I will wear it as a scarf when winter comes.

December

Most of December's knitting was done on a pair of socks (ok, just one sock) that looks great but doesn't fit.  It'll have to be ripped back and reknit a some point in the future.

Balls Up!

My new knitting group has a tradition of going for a pre-Christmas afternoon tea and doing a Christmas ornament gift swap. Even though I was a newbie in the group, i jumped at the chance to jon in.  I had a hard time deciding what to make.  I have a little book of mini Christmas knits but wanted to make use of yarn I already had and so decided to knit a bauble instead.  Balls Up! is a super pattern and is freely available through Ravelry. It's knit around a polystyrene ball to give it a perfect shape but you could also stuff it or knit it around a regular bauble.