What I got from Father Knitmas....

Season's Greetings!

This year, in addition to the usual non-risky presents (mainly bottles of wine and chocolate truffels), I have also been given some no-calories treats, which reflect my rediscovered passion for all things knitting and crochet:

1. A subscription to Simply Knitting magazine

2. A book on how to crochet flowers, Crochet Bouquet by Suzann Thompson

3. A Cath Kidston flower suitcase with yarn and wooden knitting needles

At my age, the excitement could only be kept under control with a few glasses of red wine and my son's persistent nagging to help him build the Lego sets he was given, which I dutifully did, so I could think about my forthcoming yarn projects whilst building pirate islands and space ships.
Anyway, the colours of the Cath Kidston set would go very nicely with our 50s style kitchen, but what can I make for the kitchen except potholders? I'd love to get your advice. Please do leave a comment with your ideas. Thank you so much.

Wishing you all lots more festive cheer and a wonderful New Year.

Yarns Worth Raving About: Colinette Point 5

If you are looking for a quick knitting/crochet project, then a scarf is always a winner and would make a lovely timeless gift.

There's lots of adorable yarn out there, but some yarns are more adorable than others!

One of them is the Colinette Point 5 pure wool chunky yarn, which comes in a large range of the most beautiful colours.

For my Indigo Rainbow Scarf shown in the image, I needed two hanks of this yarn, colour option Kingfisher no. 33.

The yarn is spun unevenly; it's quite thick in places, and you will need size 12mm needles.

Cast on 14 stitches, 2 knit/2 purl until you've used up all the yarn. Length of the scarf: 150cm x 12cm width. 

Knitted in two days. 

Quick, easy and ideal for a beginner.


UK stockist: http://www.cucumberpatch.co.uk/point_5.htm

Fairytale Flower Bag

Here's yet another bag I made from the leftover wool of my psychedelic jumper.

This bag started off as a scarf, knitted all in one piece and then crocheted together at the seams.

The flower is the first I've ever crocheted, so I learned something new. The long handle was also added later.

It's a dreamy, whimsical bag that reminds me of fairies and fairy tale princesses, hence I call it the fairytale bag. It goes rather nicely with the Whimsical Tarot deck - the images of the cards are all based on fairy tales.

My yarn stash is growing, so more bags will follow, but before that I need to knit two beanies in time for Christmas.

Toodles!


PS: If you want to learn to knit and crochet flowers, I can recommend this book:

100 Flowers to Knit and Crochet - It's fantastic!

The Jumper that had Children

Ok, it may be a daft title, but when you read on you'll find it makes sense.

This is my first jumper I knitted after a 25 year break. When I saw the choice of colours in the store, I couldn't make up my mind, which one to choose, so I got them all.

Combining all the colours makes this jumper look a little psychedelic, but I enjoy wearing it.

For the first time I added crocheted picot edging to a knitted piece, which is now my favourite type of border (see sleeve detail above).
When you use several colours for one project, you end up with quite a lot of leftover wool, and from this I produced a couple of bags and purses ("the children" of this jumper). This is one I made earlier. I will publish some lovely pics of my latest flower bag in my next post.

My Spooky Tarot Bag

What do you do with leftover wool?

Personally, I love turning it into all sorts of bags and purses. And when I recently discovered a skull pattern in a book, I decided to knit a special bag for my favourite Tarot deck, the Bohemian Gothic Tarot.

The easiest way to knit a bag is by just making a start and let the needles and your imagination guide you.

The yarn of this bag is for size 4mm needles, 35 stitches width x 30 rows.

The picot edging and handle are crocheted. I added a loop and button on the back for closure.
Here are some related links:

Cards: Bohemian Gothic Tarot Deck 

Pattern Source: Stitch ‘n’ Bitch Crochet – The Happy Hooker by Debbie Stoller

Black Obsidian Skull: Cosmic Collection

I love bags!

Meet Frank...

This is Frank. My ex boyfriend.

I knitted this spitting image of him over 25 years ago, when we were together.

Some people say that I could now use this doll for voodoo purposes, but I have no intention to do so. In fact, if Frank had a knitted image of me, I'm sure he'd use it as a voodoo doll...

When I found him recently in my son's bedroom, I remembered that I used to enjoy knitting, so I went to my nearest Hobbycraft store and bought some wool.

The result is a jumper, some purses and bags, a scarf, a shrug and lots of other stuff.

I've rediscovered my passion for making and creating things, so Frank deserves this special place on my new blog about all things creative.

Thank you, Frank!