I'm taking part in 2021's Indie Gift-A-Long on Ravelry!
Find out more here.
Tuesday, 16 November 2021
Thursday, 27 December 2018
(Almost) Every Strictly Come Dancing Showdance - Ranked! (Part 1 47-23)
Despairing of the TV on Christmas day and finding I had had slightly too much champagne to knit, I watched (almost) every Strictly Come Dancing showdance and, for your delectation and discussion, have ranked them from 1 - 48.
Why almost? Series 1 don't seem to be available on YouTube. And I don't count Lisa Snowden as she was allowed to do it, but had already been eliminated from the competition by that point. Also it was wafty leotard stuff so, as you will see, unlikely to do well in this list.
Some general points - a good showdance, according to me, needs great music, outfits, style and wow factor. The character of the dancers should be written all over it. It needs to be memorable (having watched them all in one go, some may have scored more than they might otherwise simply on the grounds they were different). Watching them altogether also makes you appreciate how much the series has changed - props and sets (even basic ones) aren't really used until series 6, and lifts which are same-old, same-old now were revolutionary in series 3. *I've tried to judge them by the standards of the time. The best dancing doesn't always make the best showdance - indeed many have failed due to choreography that is too frantic, complicated or clever-clever. As you'll swiftly gather, I'm not too keen on ballads or histrionic contemporary dance. I accept this is entirely subjective. The very top showdances will be ones that, in my opinion, settled at one stroke the destination of the Glitterball.
She's wearing a mint blindfold, presumably to avoid seeing Giovanni's a) teeth & b) vest. He flings her about for a bit then - hey presto! - it seems he can, indeed, "fix her" as he removes her blindfold just in time for her to enjoy him pirouetting around the place and seeming a bit more interested in doing that than dancing with her. Presumably meant to be tender & moving. Actually a bit creepy and verging on offensive.
I've tried to find a redeeming feature as I like both Julian & Erin, but I can't. Teejus, even by the standards of the time.
Possibly a controversial ranking for a popular couple. Peak histrionic waft, IMHO.
Mark did well to get to the final but looks out of his depth here. He does seem to be enjoying himself though.
Caroline was at her best when being fun, cheeky and entertaining. This appalling mush, accompanied by a particularly tortuous version of Robbie Williams' least bearable number, was none of those things. Yes, she won, but I maintain that a) that was down to her prior performance in the series, and in particular her Charleston and b) had there been a second referendum (or had voting only started after all the dances had finished) Simon Webbe would've beaten her. So there.
An attractive contender who peaked too early. This was lacklustre & didn't play to her elegant strengths. Plus the song's a bit of a cliche.
Lots of running around and flinging Chelsee in the air. One Night Only is a secret dirge of a song dressed up as a party track. Pasha in a dodgy white suit. And she was much better in their Shrek dance.
There's a reason why, why you google Pamela Stephenson Showdance, what you mainly get are links to her splendid Viennese Waltz. This song has been done to a slow and painful death-by-repetition on Strictly (to be fair, many of the iterations post-date this) and this isn't the best of them. It's not the worst, either.
Ricky Whittle is, of course, one of the Great Lost Strictly Winners. The highest average scorer of the series (admittedly not a vintage set of competitors), popular legend has it that he missed out due to Tabloid Controversy and Lack of Journey. But another reason is this showdance. Just too many lifts, not enough character (and two very attractive people dressed like refugees from a thankfully forgotten dodgy sub-Saturday Night Fever 70s disco movie).
So he's being lowered to the stage upside down on a string. So he's wearing a vest. This might be Peak Vest. A classic example of a dancer who won on overall series performance in a year when nobody quite pulled it out of the bag, showdance-wise, and maybe just out of gratitude that neither was claiming to be able to cure disability by the power of contemporary dance (ante, entry 47).
Honestly, I think Stacey nearly lost the final on this. It's just trying too hard, like Kevin was throwing the kitchen sink and most of his white goods at it. The frenzied speed of the whole thing just didn't give her real strength - her personality - enough of chance to shine.
This one scored an own goal from the start, thanks to this a) ropey and b) necessarily peculiarly truncated, version of Bohemian Rhapsody produced by Dave Arch and His Wonderful Orchestra. The dance never does enough to get over that, and the Big Surprise isn't really much of one as it's perfectly obvious she's not going to carry on wearing that sheet the whole way through.
The original "best dancer in series throws it away due to overthought yet underwhelming/deeply peculiar showdance"gate. Is it time for a reappraisal? No.
Yes, she's a professional dancer. Yes, that means she's very good. No, that doesn't mean the Great British Public were going to vote for what was basically her Couple's Choice performed on a Lazy Susan.
First outing for this perennial Strictly standard. Disappointing, partly because neither the dance nor the music lives up to her rather spectacular disco flapper outfit.
Giovanni's amazing magical powers are on display again, this time he is able to bring the ballerina from a music box to life! Stand back in amazement! Ranks higher than many similar numbers due to the undoubtedly exquisite ballet dancing, as you would expect from a former member of the Iranian National Ballet.
I feel bad for putting this so low, I really do, because he was great and I adore Oti but... There's a door. They're sort of running around through it. Why? Who knows.
The song is another Strictly repeat offender, but this dance is one of the better versions of it. Yes, there's too many lifts, but they're fairly spectacular. Also, I'm slightly scared of James Jordan.
I'm now officially onto showdances I really quite liked! This is flawed, but sort-of genius, and an unusual one in terms of style and music, plus it's very much about making Gemma centre-stage and playing to her strengths.
A memorable Strictly classic that doesn't quite stand the test of time. Yes, he looks great in a pair of tights and it's all very impressive but it rather goes to my standard complaint - it's a dancing competition, not a holding-women-in-the-air competition.
Just about the best version of this perennial favourite, also my husband says he likes her (searches for acceptable term) outfit.
Good, but not as good as it should have been.
Scores for an unusual song and a touch of raunch which feels (not surprisingly in the circs, let's face it) more genuine than many.
Series 4 feels like something of a gamechanger. It was the first one I really got in to. The final was fought between two total beginners who we'd watched develop over the weeks - the winner (of whom more later) had the advantage of being a natural dancer, something that could never be said about Matt Dawson, yet Lilia somehow produced this spectacular (By The Standards Of Its Time) and enjoyable number, helped by being danced to a genuinely great and moving song.
Comfortably the best showdance in this final from comfortably the best dancer in the series, danced to an absolute banger of a track. What went wrong? Slightly over-frantic choreography from Pasha (Pasha, Pasha, just because she CAN, it doesn't mean she MUST), Louis Smith's Charleston and the quick dopamine hit of his gymastic showdance.
So, we're halfway there. Tune in soon for 22-1...!
Saturday, 23 September 2017
I've joined the 100 Club!
It's a remarkable thing to be able to say, but as of this month, I have 100 patterns in my Ravelry portfolio!
Back in February 2012, I made myself a phone cover (as a way of learning Judy's Magic Cast-On) and thought I'd write up the pattern and post it up on Ravelry (as Pandora), I had no idea of becoming a "proper" designer, let alone a published one. I was stuck at home with an illness and basically started writing patterns as a way to combat boredom, and shared them on Ravelry really to just see what others thought. I knew absolutely nothing about how independent pattern designing worked - I didn't even come across the Ravelry designers groups at first - and submitted my first idea to a magazine (Cecily) basically just to see what would happen, and was rather surprised when it was accepted. It turned out there may have been all sorts of strange reasons why it was, but this isn't the place to go into the history of that particular publication; from my point of view it did give me a bit of confidence, and this time I actually did a bit of research as to how to put a proposal together. The encouragement and support I got as an inexperienced designer from Kate and the team at Knit Now absolutely key to my learning to be something like a competent designer. My first batch of submissions didn't make it, but Kate took the time to say some nice things about them, and in the next submissions call I not only got a pattern into the magazine, but Talboys Wrap was the main design on the front cover!
I now found out what a tech editor was (no, I didn't know about them when I started!) and later that year made another Great Leap Forward when I discovered the wonderful world of pattern testing on Ravelry - the first patterns that went through the whole testing procedure were the designs in the Waters of Africa e-book. My testers are now some of the most important people in the design process, especially the people who have tested for me regularly and whom I trust to make sure my designs work for knitters. A lot of the early patterns I published have now had the benefit of the lessons I learned during my first couple of years.
Since then I've written lots more patterns for Knit Now and also started working with a great publication in the US, I Like Knitting, designed for yarn companies and published quite a few patterns myself, including some for charity (especially p-hop).
So here's a few stats about those 100 designs...
Most Popular by Number of Projects: Beaujolais Mitts
Most Popular by Number of Favourites: Myrtle Cowl (sadly no longer available on Ravelry since the demise of Artesano)
Best Seller: Santiago Cowl
Pattern I'm Most Proud of: Stefano Sweater
Design of My Own I Wear Most Often: tricky, but in the last year it's probably Lazy Eight Cowl
And what's the 100th Pattern? October Afternoons Scarf from I Like Knitting
Back in February 2012, I made myself a phone cover (as a way of learning Judy's Magic Cast-On) and thought I'd write up the pattern and post it up on Ravelry (as Pandora), I had no idea of becoming a "proper" designer, let alone a published one. I was stuck at home with an illness and basically started writing patterns as a way to combat boredom, and shared them on Ravelry really to just see what others thought. I knew absolutely nothing about how independent pattern designing worked - I didn't even come across the Ravelry designers groups at first - and submitted my first idea to a magazine (Cecily) basically just to see what would happen, and was rather surprised when it was accepted. It turned out there may have been all sorts of strange reasons why it was, but this isn't the place to go into the history of that particular publication; from my point of view it did give me a bit of confidence, and this time I actually did a bit of research as to how to put a proposal together. The encouragement and support I got as an inexperienced designer from Kate and the team at Knit Now absolutely key to my learning to be something like a competent designer. My first batch of submissions didn't make it, but Kate took the time to say some nice things about them, and in the next submissions call I not only got a pattern into the magazine, but Talboys Wrap was the main design on the front cover!
I now found out what a tech editor was (no, I didn't know about them when I started!) and later that year made another Great Leap Forward when I discovered the wonderful world of pattern testing on Ravelry - the first patterns that went through the whole testing procedure were the designs in the Waters of Africa e-book. My testers are now some of the most important people in the design process, especially the people who have tested for me regularly and whom I trust to make sure my designs work for knitters. A lot of the early patterns I published have now had the benefit of the lessons I learned during my first couple of years.
Since then I've written lots more patterns for Knit Now and also started working with a great publication in the US, I Like Knitting, designed for yarn companies and published quite a few patterns myself, including some for charity (especially p-hop).
So here's a few stats about those 100 designs...
Most Popular by Number of Projects: Beaujolais Mitts
Most Popular by Number of Favourites: Myrtle Cowl (sadly no longer available on Ravelry since the demise of Artesano)
Best Seller: Santiago Cowl
Pattern I'm Most Proud of: Stefano Sweater
Design of My Own I Wear Most Often: tricky, but in the last year it's probably Lazy Eight Cowl
And what's the 100th Pattern? October Afternoons Scarf from I Like Knitting
Friday, 18 November 2016
Gift-a-long 2016, shining like a good deed in a naughty world.
2016 - it's been a funny old year. I shall say no more.
If you're feeling a bit like the sands of certainty are shifting beneath your feet, then here's a beacon of continuity - it's November, so it's time for the good people of Ravelry to take part in the Gift-a-Long 2016. If you've never gifted along before, it's a worldwide knitting and crochet event full of KALS, CALS, discounts, prizes and the change to get to know designers, patterns and crafters from all over the place - plus get all the inspiration you'll ever need for that Christmas present knitting! Helpfully they've compressed everything you need to know in this handy graphic...
So what will I be doing? Firstly, as a participating designer, you'll be able to get 25% off selected patterns during the sale period which starts on 22nd November US Eastern time- see my Ravelry page.
I'll be posting about the patterns I have in the Sale on my Facebook page - including my new Pattern Playlists on Spotify! (Here's a sample - playlist for Endless Summer). I will also be doing some giveaways exclusively for followers of the Facebook group so why not like the page now?
On Pinterest I'll be posting my favourite patterns I discover from other designers - adding more every day during the sale period - so please come & follow.
Follow my Twitter account @hanwellknitter for a daily Pattern of the Day during the sale period.
And there'll be a bit of stuff on Instagram - @jolliemiranda
You can also join my Ravelry group - there will be a special prize giveaway for anyone who joins between now and the end of the KAL (that's the end of the KAL not the sale period) - just join the group and post in the "Introduce yourself!!!" thread to be eligible - the more people join, the more prizes I'll offer - there'll be some yarny ones and some patterny ones and maybe a wildcard or two...
If you want to get knitting before the sale starts on the 22nd, why not start with Endless Summer? It's a laceweight infinity scarf that knits from just 50g of yarn. Originally published in Knit Now magazine. it's now available to download through MSF P/hop - in exchange for a donation to the charity Medicins sans Frontieres which is doing so much to bring proper medical care to people in the most troubled places in the world.
If you're feeling a bit like the sands of certainty are shifting beneath your feet, then here's a beacon of continuity - it's November, so it's time for the good people of Ravelry to take part in the Gift-a-Long 2016. If you've never gifted along before, it's a worldwide knitting and crochet event full of KALS, CALS, discounts, prizes and the change to get to know designers, patterns and crafters from all over the place - plus get all the inspiration you'll ever need for that Christmas present knitting! Helpfully they've compressed everything you need to know in this handy graphic...
So what will I be doing? Firstly, as a participating designer, you'll be able to get 25% off selected patterns during the sale period which starts on 22nd November US Eastern time- see my Ravelry page.
I'll be posting about the patterns I have in the Sale on my Facebook page - including my new Pattern Playlists on Spotify! (Here's a sample - playlist for Endless Summer). I will also be doing some giveaways exclusively for followers of the Facebook group so why not like the page now?
On Pinterest I'll be posting my favourite patterns I discover from other designers - adding more every day during the sale period - so please come & follow.
Follow my Twitter account @hanwellknitter for a daily Pattern of the Day during the sale period.
And there'll be a bit of stuff on Instagram - @jolliemiranda
You can also join my Ravelry group - there will be a special prize giveaway for anyone who joins between now and the end of the KAL (that's the end of the KAL not the sale period) - just join the group and post in the "Introduce yourself!!!" thread to be eligible - the more people join, the more prizes I'll offer - there'll be some yarny ones and some patterny ones and maybe a wildcard or two...
If you want to get knitting before the sale starts on the 22nd, why not start with Endless Summer? It's a laceweight infinity scarf that knits from just 50g of yarn. Originally published in Knit Now magazine. it's now available to download through MSF P/hop - in exchange for a donation to the charity Medicins sans Frontieres which is doing so much to bring proper medical care to people in the most troubled places in the world.
Saturday, 3 September 2016
Thank you for the freebies...
Today you're going to get the benefit of some of my thoughts of one of Ravelry's hottest topics - free patterns. This isn't however going to be a discussion of the pros and cons of independent designers posting free patterns - there have been plenty of arguments about that - it's more aimed at free pattern users, who presumably want designers to keep offering free patterns, just to explain a bit more about how you can say thank you and make sure (without it costing you a penny!) that offering free patterns stays worth our while?
First question, I guess, is why is it important to say thank you? Well, here's how much work goes into writing the pattern. First, you write the pattern. You don't of course just sit down and start writing - a designer will swatch, maybe do some maths, check standard sizes, spend some time thinking of a pattern name. The yarn then needs to be sourced - either the designer has paid for the yarn herself, or she has spent some time and effort getting yarn support. The designer then knits the sample (or pays a sample knitter to do it for her). There's then a photo session, involving either getting somebody to model it or somebody to photograph it, spending some time taking different shots and thinking about how to present the pattern - I usually try & find an attractive or appropriate location as well. And spend a bit of time rowing about it with my photographer aka husband ("Take more. I look fat. No, now I look weird.") Then you choose your photos, lay out the pattern and proof read. Next the pattern will get tech-edited (for which the designer pays a tech editor) or tested (a process of several weeks even for the simplest pattern) or both, and corrections made.
I hope I've persuaded you that, if you're then able to get the results of this work (for instance, my Beaujolais Mitts, above) for free, it's worth taking some time to say thank you.
When you're thinking of ways to say thank you, take a minute to think about why the designer (and I'm talking about professional (full-time) and semi-professional (design & have a day job) designers here, not people who just do it as a hobby) might post the pattern for free. Patterns which are posted for free permanently are usually to allow people to test out whether or not they like the designers work, and also help to keep up the designer's profile on Ravelry by getting more people to look through her shop. Patterns posted as a short-term promotion essentially are aimed at the same thing (although I will confess to having offered one after a rubbish week because I basically needed to bring a bit more love into the world - even if it's only love for a knitting pattern...). However, there's not much point for her in doing this if all that happens is lots of people download the pattern to their Ravelry libraries and do nothing else.
So, if you like free patterns and want them to keep being offered, here's some things you could think of doing when you download a free pattern, whether it's permanently free or on special promotion:
First question, I guess, is why is it important to say thank you? Well, here's how much work goes into writing the pattern. First, you write the pattern. You don't of course just sit down and start writing - a designer will swatch, maybe do some maths, check standard sizes, spend some time thinking of a pattern name. The yarn then needs to be sourced - either the designer has paid for the yarn herself, or she has spent some time and effort getting yarn support. The designer then knits the sample (or pays a sample knitter to do it for her). There's then a photo session, involving either getting somebody to model it or somebody to photograph it, spending some time taking different shots and thinking about how to present the pattern - I usually try & find an attractive or appropriate location as well. And spend a bit of time rowing about it with my photographer aka husband ("Take more. I look fat. No, now I look weird.") Then you choose your photos, lay out the pattern and proof read. Next the pattern will get tech-edited (for which the designer pays a tech editor) or tested (a process of several weeks even for the simplest pattern) or both, and corrections made.
I hope I've persuaded you that, if you're then able to get the results of this work (for instance, my Beaujolais Mitts, above) for free, it's worth taking some time to say thank you.
When you're thinking of ways to say thank you, take a minute to think about why the designer (and I'm talking about professional (full-time) and semi-professional (design & have a day job) designers here, not people who just do it as a hobby) might post the pattern for free. Patterns which are posted for free permanently are usually to allow people to test out whether or not they like the designers work, and also help to keep up the designer's profile on Ravelry by getting more people to look through her shop. Patterns posted as a short-term promotion essentially are aimed at the same thing (although I will confess to having offered one after a rubbish week because I basically needed to bring a bit more love into the world - even if it's only love for a knitting pattern...). However, there's not much point for her in doing this if all that happens is lots of people download the pattern to their Ravelry libraries and do nothing else.
So, if you like free patterns and want them to keep being offered, here's some things you could think of doing when you download a free pattern, whether it's permanently free or on special promotion:
- Favourite and queue the pattern as well as downloading it;
- Make a comment to say thank you, and if you like the pattern, say so;
- Take a look through the designer's shop. If there are other patterns you like, why not share the love and favourite them as well?;
- Post in the groups you're in on Ravelry about the pattern you have downloaded;
- Best of all, make the design and post your project onto Ravelry. Many knitters just have no idea how much we love seeing that people are making and enjoying our designs!
If you want to look at my free patterns, you can find them all here. Don't forget to say thank you!
Tuesday, 15 March 2016
Gourmet wool on the menu!
We all love the coming of spring - longer evenings, warmer weather (hopefully!), bobbing daffodils and the first lambs gambolling in the fields. I saw my first of the year a couple of weeks ago near Pentlow in North Essex - some little Jacob's sheep, so shy I am afraid they hid behind their mums when I tried to take a picture! So it's an appropriate time of year for one of my favourite British yarn companies, Blacker Yarns, have launched a gorgeous new all-British wool blend in both DK & 4-ply Tamar Lustre Blend. They send me a little bit to try, coincidentally in pretty much my favourite colour.
The list of ingredients - Teesdale, Wensleydale, Leicester Longwool & Cotswold - is really a gourmet menu of British wool. (Think of it as the woolly version of a dish from great Cornwall's famous chefs Rick Stein or Nathan Outlaw). It's very versatile, making a lovely smooth stocking stitch and very well defined lace.
It would work well for both garments and accessories, though some might find the woolly texture a little uncomfortable to wear for a long time right next to the skin. I think the 4-ply, for instance, would work really well in a simple garter-stitch triangular shawl. The DK would be the ideal substitution for Blacker's limited-edition Cornish Tin yarn (now sadly no more!) which I designed my Cornish-pasty-themed Croust Mitts for.
so far I've only made a swatch or two as an amuse bouche - but it's already inspired me to start thinking up a few full-scale new design feasts!
The list of ingredients - Teesdale, Wensleydale, Leicester Longwool & Cotswold - is really a gourmet menu of British wool. (Think of it as the woolly version of a dish from great Cornwall's famous chefs Rick Stein or Nathan Outlaw). It's very versatile, making a lovely smooth stocking stitch and very well defined lace.
It would work well for both garments and accessories, though some might find the woolly texture a little uncomfortable to wear for a long time right next to the skin. I think the 4-ply, for instance, would work really well in a simple garter-stitch triangular shawl. The DK would be the ideal substitution for Blacker's limited-edition Cornish Tin yarn (now sadly no more!) which I designed my Cornish-pasty-themed Croust Mitts for.
so far I've only made a swatch or two as an amuse bouche - but it's already inspired me to start thinking up a few full-scale new design feasts!
Tuesday, 2 February 2016
Wist, lads, it's the waaarm...
When you're submitting designs to a publication, most will start with a "mood board" - pictures of colours, people, images that set the sort of theme they'd like the designs to fit with. Sometimes it's a bit vague and "woolly", e.g. "modern vintage pastels" or something; other times it's very specific. Sometimes you gaze in consternation at said mood board, wondering how on earth anyone could ever translate this concept into a knitting pattern. For these ones, I find the best way is to file the board at the back of your subconscious, as many times the perfect concept will turn up when you're not looking at it - I've got a design due out in a couple of months that arose in exactly that way, so watch this space for the story of that one.
Sometimes, though, a mood board or theme speaks so directly to you that the pattern will leap, fully-formed, like Athene from her father's skull , and that's what happened to me for the scarf I have in this month's Knit Now, Lambton Scarf.
The theme for this issue's Collection is Myths and Legends of the British Isles and I was immediately transported back to sitting on the floor by the big mirror in my parents' bedroom, as my father and I sang the old Northeastern folk song The Lambton Worm. The story of the worm - worm in this context being more of a term for dragon, although this worm is a particularly long and wriggly one - exercised a powerful effect on my imagination as a child. It's partly down to the language the song used - sung always in the broadest Northeastern accent, it was great fun so exhort listeners to "wist" and "hide yer gobs" (which basically means shut up and pay attention), plus the gory thrill of the worm "swallying little bairns alive when they lay doon to sleep". Bairn is a northeastern/Scottish word for child and as my mum's family are all from the North East I was used to being called a bairn by my granny, so the fear felt deliciously immediate! (If you're trying to recreate the accent, go for somewhere between Lauren Laverne and Jimmy Nail.)
Now I'm not saying that I just sat down and cast on - but the essence of the scarf - the "tongue" shape echoing medieval cloisonné jewellery (the tale is set in the Crusaders' era), the worm's beady yarn-overed eye, and the twisty cables representing the worm's tail (long enough to "lap ten times round Penshaw Hill") were all pretty much there.
So this is a pattern I'm especially fond of, and as a bonus I absolutely loved the Yarn Stories Fine Merino 4-ply I got to make the sample with - it has a really gorgeous sheen which works perfectly with the medieval jewel look.
Sometimes, though, a mood board or theme speaks so directly to you that the pattern will leap, fully-formed, like Athene from her father's skull , and that's what happened to me for the scarf I have in this month's Knit Now, Lambton Scarf.
Now I'm not saying that I just sat down and cast on - but the essence of the scarf - the "tongue" shape echoing medieval cloisonné jewellery (the tale is set in the Crusaders' era), the worm's beady yarn-overed eye, and the twisty cables representing the worm's tail (long enough to "lap ten times round Penshaw Hill") were all pretty much there.
So this is a pattern I'm especially fond of, and as a bonus I absolutely loved the Yarn Stories Fine Merino 4-ply I got to make the sample with - it has a really gorgeous sheen which works perfectly with the medieval jewel look.
Saturday, 19 December 2015
Merry Christmas - and here's a quick free mitts pattern to celebrate!
Lots of us who knit love making handmade Christmas presents but sometimes as a designer it's the worse time of year to do so! I've been lucky enough to get a few commissions which have to be knit over the Christmas period, and had been thinking everyone would have to wear what they got last year again... but my sister-in-law put in a special request for sparkly fingerless mitts to match the cowl I made her last year.
Luckily for her, the perfect opportunity arose as we'd decided to take a quick trip to Heidelberg in Germany this week, and fingerless mitts are one of the things I am very confident of being able to knit on the plane, thanks to my very un-threatening bamboo Brittany DPNs. So the commissions stayed at home, and what turned out to be a very small scrap of leftover sparkly acrylic, plus a bit of Blacker Classic DK, came along instead.
We actually hadn't gone for the Christmas markets (which seems to be what most people come for), but just to spend a bit of time somewhere different. Heidelberg is a pretty little town, with plenty of history, on the river Neckar, a tributary of the Rhine, complete with ruined castle and ancient bridge. Obviously we did visit the markets, but mainly for sausages and Gluhwein. However I did do a bit of shopping, for shoes - and, you won't be surprised to hear, for yarn, from the lovely Wollke 7 in the university district of Neuenheim, where I bought some Isager and some Zitron. But how do you go shoe and yarn shopping and still get it in your hand luggage...
Anyway, my plain fingerless mitts turned out pretty well, and I only had a couple of short flights and a train journey to make them on. So here's my early Christmas present to you; the pattern for the mitts and if you're behind with your shopping, you can still have them done in time for Christmas. You can knit them from leftovers and the size goes up to mansize.
The pattern!
Size: S (M, L). Actual circumference around knuckles 14.5 (16, 18) cm / 6 (6 ½ , 7)” to fit with up to 5cm/2” negative ease
Materials: About 20-25g DK yarn in each colour A & B (or about 40-50g if working only one colour!)
3.25mm / US 3 & 4mm / US 6 DPNs; 2 st markers; st holder or waste yarn.
Tension: 22 sts x 30 rows to 10cm/4” in stocking stitch using larger needles.
Abbreviations:
2x2 rib – k2, p2
cdd – centred double decrease – slip 2 sts knitwise together, k1, pass slipped sts over.
DPN – double-pointed needle
K – knit
K2tog – knit 2 together
M1 – make one st by picking up the strand between the sts from the front onto lefthand needle and knitting it through back loop
P – purl
Pm – place marker
Rep – repeat
Rm – remove marker
Rnd - round
Sl – slip
Sm – slip marker
Ssk – sl 1, sl 1, knit 2 slipped sts together
St – stitch
Pattern Notes
To make a single coloured mitt, just omit colour changes.
I like a garter stitch effect at the top of my mitts. You’re welcome to change to smaller needles & work 2x2 rib for a few rounds if you prefer.
If you want the mitt to go further up your fingers, just keep working in 3 rnd stripes until you’re happy!
When I made mine, I used this method to knit jogless stripes: http://www.craftsy.com/blog/2013/08/knitting-jogless-stripes-in-the-round/
Backwards loop cast on: http://blog.tincanknits.com/2013/12/24/backwards-loop-cast-on/
Pattern (make 2)
Using smaller DPNs & colour A, cast on 32 (36, 40) sts. PM & join to work in the rnd, being careful not to twist.
Work 6 rnds in 2x2 rib.
Change to larger DPNs.
Knit 2 rnds.
Change to colour B & work 3 rnds.
Change to colour A, work 1 rnd.
Next rnd: K1, m1, k1, pm, k to end of rnd.
Knit 1 rnd.
*Change to other colour. Knit 1 rnd.
Next rnd: k1, m1, k to 1 st before marker, m1, k1, sm, k to end of rnd.
Knit 1 rnd.
Rep last 3 rnds (changing colours every 3 rnds) until you have 11 (13, 15) sts between markers.
Change to the other colour & knit 2 rnds.
Next rnd: k1, transfer next 9 (11, 13) sts to holder for thumb. Cast on 5 sts using backwards loop method, k1, sm, k to end of rnd.
Change colours & knit 1 rnd.
Next rnd: k1, ssk, k1, k2tog, k1, sm, knit to end of rnd.
Knit 1 rnd.
Change colours & knit 1 rnd.
Next rnd: k1, cdd, k1, rm, knit to end of rnd.
Knit 1 rnd.
Change colours and knit 3 rnds. Purl one rnd, knit one rnd, then cast off purlwise. Break both colours.
To make thumb – take up the same colour as you have on hold for the thumb, and with larger needles, knit across sts on hold, then pick up & k 7 sts across base of thumb. 16 (18, 20) sts
Change colours & knit 1 rnd. Knit 8 (10, 12), ssk, k5, k2tog (last st of current rnd with first st of next rnd), knit to end of rnd.
Purl one rnd, knit one rnd, then cast off purlwise. Break both colours.
Weave in ends and block to measurements.
Luckily for her, the perfect opportunity arose as we'd decided to take a quick trip to Heidelberg in Germany this week, and fingerless mitts are one of the things I am very confident of being able to knit on the plane, thanks to my very un-threatening bamboo Brittany DPNs. So the commissions stayed at home, and what turned out to be a very small scrap of leftover sparkly acrylic, plus a bit of Blacker Classic DK, came along instead.
We actually hadn't gone for the Christmas markets (which seems to be what most people come for), but just to spend a bit of time somewhere different. Heidelberg is a pretty little town, with plenty of history, on the river Neckar, a tributary of the Rhine, complete with ruined castle and ancient bridge. Obviously we did visit the markets, but mainly for sausages and Gluhwein. However I did do a bit of shopping, for shoes - and, you won't be surprised to hear, for yarn, from the lovely Wollke 7 in the university district of Neuenheim, where I bought some Isager and some Zitron. But how do you go shoe and yarn shopping and still get it in your hand luggage...
Anyway, my plain fingerless mitts turned out pretty well, and I only had a couple of short flights and a train journey to make them on. So here's my early Christmas present to you; the pattern for the mitts and if you're behind with your shopping, you can still have them done in time for Christmas. You can knit them from leftovers and the size goes up to mansize.
The pattern!
Size: S (M, L). Actual circumference around knuckles 14.5 (16, 18) cm / 6 (6 ½ , 7)” to fit with up to 5cm/2” negative ease
Materials: About 20-25g DK yarn in each colour A & B (or about 40-50g if working only one colour!)
3.25mm / US 3 & 4mm / US 6 DPNs; 2 st markers; st holder or waste yarn.
Tension: 22 sts x 30 rows to 10cm/4” in stocking stitch using larger needles.
Abbreviations:
2x2 rib – k2, p2
cdd – centred double decrease – slip 2 sts knitwise together, k1, pass slipped sts over.
DPN – double-pointed needle
K – knit
K2tog – knit 2 together
M1 – make one st by picking up the strand between the sts from the front onto lefthand needle and knitting it through back loop
P – purl
Pm – place marker
Rep – repeat
Rm – remove marker
Rnd - round
Sl – slip
Sm – slip marker
Ssk – sl 1, sl 1, knit 2 slipped sts together
St – stitch
Pattern Notes
To make a single coloured mitt, just omit colour changes.
I like a garter stitch effect at the top of my mitts. You’re welcome to change to smaller needles & work 2x2 rib for a few rounds if you prefer.
If you want the mitt to go further up your fingers, just keep working in 3 rnd stripes until you’re happy!
When I made mine, I used this method to knit jogless stripes: http://www.craftsy.com/blog/2013/08/knitting-jogless-stripes-in-the-round/
Backwards loop cast on: http://blog.tincanknits.com/2013/12/24/backwards-loop-cast-on/
Pattern (make 2)
Using smaller DPNs & colour A, cast on 32 (36, 40) sts. PM & join to work in the rnd, being careful not to twist.
Work 6 rnds in 2x2 rib.
Change to larger DPNs.
Knit 2 rnds.
Change to colour B & work 3 rnds.
Change to colour A, work 1 rnd.
Next rnd: K1, m1, k1, pm, k to end of rnd.
Knit 1 rnd.
*Change to other colour. Knit 1 rnd.
Next rnd: k1, m1, k to 1 st before marker, m1, k1, sm, k to end of rnd.
Knit 1 rnd.
Rep last 3 rnds (changing colours every 3 rnds) until you have 11 (13, 15) sts between markers.
Change to the other colour & knit 2 rnds.
Next rnd: k1, transfer next 9 (11, 13) sts to holder for thumb. Cast on 5 sts using backwards loop method, k1, sm, k to end of rnd.
Change colours & knit 1 rnd.
Next rnd: k1, ssk, k1, k2tog, k1, sm, knit to end of rnd.
Knit 1 rnd.
Change colours & knit 1 rnd.
Next rnd: k1, cdd, k1, rm, knit to end of rnd.
Knit 1 rnd.
Change colours and knit 3 rnds. Purl one rnd, knit one rnd, then cast off purlwise. Break both colours.
To make thumb – take up the same colour as you have on hold for the thumb, and with larger needles, knit across sts on hold, then pick up & k 7 sts across base of thumb. 16 (18, 20) sts
Change colours & knit 1 rnd. Knit 8 (10, 12), ssk, k5, k2tog (last st of current rnd with first st of next rnd), knit to end of rnd.
Purl one rnd, knit one rnd, then cast off purlwise. Break both colours.
Weave in ends and block to measurements.
Wednesday, 21 October 2015
Vienna calling...
From one beautiful city viewed mostly in torrential rain to another... I spent last weekend in Vienna, the capital of Austria and former capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Today it's mostly about sitting in elegant surroundings and eating cake, as far as I can tell. I was there because my husband was at a precious metal conference, and although I was on holiday, I did attend various functions involving metals types (they do mostly know how to have a good time, if you can keep conversation off the platinum price, and on another occasion we got not only Edelweiss and the Blue Danube, but also a Falco tribute act - he had 3 songs, who knew?). And by doing to had a stroke of enormous luck, for upon arrival at the restaurant where my husband was hosting a dinner on Saturday night, what did I spot but a very Viennese-ly exquisite looking yarn shop right next door?
Next day was Sunday (which I spent very happily watching these chaps), but on returning on Monday morning (husband safely stowed at the conference, listening to metals chat) I discovered I was luckier than I thought, for Wollewien (Vienna wool) had in fact opened just a week before.
Next day was Sunday (which I spent very happily watching these chaps), but on returning on Monday morning (husband safely stowed at the conference, listening to metals chat) I discovered I was luckier than I thought, for Wollewien (Vienna wool) had in fact opened just a week before.
It's located on what's effectively the ground floor of the Greek orthodox church next door (the other side from the restaurant), hence the Romanesque arches & decorative flourishes.
The shop sells what seemed to me to be the full range of Lang yarns plus pattern books (not hugely widely available in the UK, so a real treat) plus a good number of Rowan yarns (less exciting for me, but probably more exotic if you're Viennnese). They also had a really wide range of pretty yarns in the shop's own brand, which provided me with a great opportunity to test out my understanding of German words for different fibres ("Baumwolle" - tree wool - i.e. cotton - was a favourite of mine at school).
The shop is simply but stylishy laid out, with wavy shelving echoing the herringbone floor.
The shop lettering also had a nice Viennese Secessionist/Jugendstil flavour to it, though printing it on wine bottles does not help my habit of spelling Wien (Vienna) as Wein (wine).
As well as looking beautiful, the shop had lots of nice practical touches, For instance, as well as having sample garments, each yarn had a knitted swatch hanging from the shelf next to it.
The only gaps in the display... the three colours of Lang Asia I selected as my souvenir of Vienna, hopefully enough for a Jugendstil inspired cowl and mitts design, along the lines of the Seville set in the not so distant future.
Had a lovely chat with the proprietor, who came onto my facebook page later that morning to say Gruss Gott, and off I went into the rain with my 3 balls of Asia, plus some of their own Zakynthos yarn, made from recycled jeans cotton. It was tricky to make a selection from their own wide range, all named after Greek islands (presumably in a nod to the Greeks next door - the restaurant is also the Griechenbeisl, though the food is traditionally Austrian. And where, I must add, we were treated extremely well on Saturday), but BA's luggage restrictions helped to keep my souvenir shopping in check!
Now of course I could hardly complete a post about Vienna without a picture of some cake in elegant surroundings, so here's the genuine Sachertorte being consumed (by my husband), along with some Sacher Cuvee, in the Blue Bar at the Sacher Hotel.
Thursday, 15 October 2015
A walk around Edinburgh, and a new jumper pattern
Around this time last year, I took a very short trip to one of the best cities in the world, Edinburgh. The fact I put it in that category is all the more remarkable given every time I go there it rains, and when it rains in Scotland, it doesn't muck about. Visiting Edinburgh, even for a short break, I have to take in 3 things - a great meal (Tom Kitchin's restaurant, this time & last), a pint in one of Rebus's favourite pubs (only managed the Cafe Royal, this time, didn't make it to the Ox) and a dram or two at the Scotch Malt Whisky Society. All of which can fortunately be done indoors!
Anyway, the morning after our dinner at Kitchin, the rain lifted for long enough for a little pilgrimage over to Marchmont. Marchmont had 2 attractions - firstly, it is the (fictional) home of the aforementioned Inspector Rebus, and secondly, it's the home of Be Inspired Fibres which I had been assured by no less a knitting authority than Karie Westermann was very much worth the trip out of the city centre.
So we proceeded first along the Royal Mile, where even the road names make us feel at home - and it's actually spelled correctly:
My Talboys Wrap is doing a good warming job in the photo...
Turning off in the direction of Marchmont, we were then pleased to stumble across this:
Then this chap (and no, David isn't touching the nose).
The next stop, rather appropriately, was to buy some excellent sparkly Scottie dog Christmas cards in the Shelter stop, then on past the university (where Pollock Halls of Residence reminded me of long ago, when I ran a Pet Shop Boys fanzine & had readers there), across a green sward and into the austere tenements of Marchmont, where I found my way to Rebus's flat.
So, tourism over, I attended to the serious business of shopping for yarn. Be Inspired Fibres is an absolute gem, brimming with stuff I had actually never seen before, and knowledgeably and friendlily run by Mei. And oh, the fibres! Yak! Mink!! Copper!!! The shop received the ultimate accolade from David: "a knitting shop even I enjoyed" (he was especially taken with the Habu metal yarns)
Having indulged myself with the minky-coppery end of things, I had to buy some proper Scottish yarn, and so I found my way to Shilasdair. Their yarns are dyed in colours inspired by the Scottish landscape and, being a devotee of green, I couldn't resist a jumper-sized amount in a colour called Uig Sea Green.
And so, in the nearly a year since, I designed a sweater to suit the yarn, with a simple, wavy lace pattern like the green sea breaking on the shores of the Isle of Skye. Completely seamless, it comes in standard and curvy fit, to give a flattering silhouette to all kinds of figures. I've called it Marchmont Sweater
And the windswept beach it's photographed on... sorry, it's not Skye, or even Edinburgh, but the other end of the country in Whitstable, Kent (though it was doing its best to emulate Edinburgh's weather...).
Photography by David, & tech edited by Michelle Hazell.
Anyway, the morning after our dinner at Kitchin, the rain lifted for long enough for a little pilgrimage over to Marchmont. Marchmont had 2 attractions - firstly, it is the (fictional) home of the aforementioned Inspector Rebus, and secondly, it's the home of Be Inspired Fibres which I had been assured by no less a knitting authority than Karie Westermann was very much worth the trip out of the city centre.
So we proceeded first along the Royal Mile, where even the road names make us feel at home - and it's actually spelled correctly:
My Talboys Wrap is doing a good warming job in the photo...
Turning off in the direction of Marchmont, we were then pleased to stumble across this:
Then this chap (and no, David isn't touching the nose).
The next stop, rather appropriately, was to buy some excellent sparkly Scottie dog Christmas cards in the Shelter stop, then on past the university (where Pollock Halls of Residence reminded me of long ago, when I ran a Pet Shop Boys fanzine & had readers there), across a green sward and into the austere tenements of Marchmont, where I found my way to Rebus's flat.
So, tourism over, I attended to the serious business of shopping for yarn. Be Inspired Fibres is an absolute gem, brimming with stuff I had actually never seen before, and knowledgeably and friendlily run by Mei. And oh, the fibres! Yak! Mink!! Copper!!! The shop received the ultimate accolade from David: "a knitting shop even I enjoyed" (he was especially taken with the Habu metal yarns)
Having indulged myself with the minky-coppery end of things, I had to buy some proper Scottish yarn, and so I found my way to Shilasdair. Their yarns are dyed in colours inspired by the Scottish landscape and, being a devotee of green, I couldn't resist a jumper-sized amount in a colour called Uig Sea Green.
And so, in the nearly a year since, I designed a sweater to suit the yarn, with a simple, wavy lace pattern like the green sea breaking on the shores of the Isle of Skye. Completely seamless, it comes in standard and curvy fit, to give a flattering silhouette to all kinds of figures. I've called it Marchmont Sweater
And the windswept beach it's photographed on... sorry, it's not Skye, or even Edinburgh, but the other end of the country in Whitstable, Kent (though it was doing its best to emulate Edinburgh's weather...).
Photography by David, & tech edited by Michelle Hazell.
Friday, 18 September 2015
Yarn, birthdays, books and food - and a free pattern!
Anyone who's read this blog will have gathered that supporting British wool is very important to me. Our heritage as a great wool-producing nation is ingrained in our landscape, architecture and language. British wool has been in something of an intermittent crisis since the Industrial Revolution ( half sentence summary of substantial chunk of history - try Counting Sheep by Philip Walling for the full story), but in the last few years some dedicated people, with the help of the Campaign for Wool, have been working really hard, and really enthusiastically, to put Britain back on the map as a woolly nation.
Preserving rare breeds - paying a fair price for fleece - spinning British wool in Britain - all of these have for the last 10 years been key aims of Sue Blacker of Blacker Yarns and their milling arm, the Natural Fibre Company. As well as producing their own range of super gorgeous yarns, often from their own sheep, their mill in Cornwall has also been spinning for other producers. This year they're celebrating their 10th birthday and have produced a wonderful yarn, Cornish Tin, in both DK and 4-ply, to mark the occasion.
It's spun from a positive smorgasbord of interesting fibres, each one has some meaning for the company (it's all on Sue's blog about the yarn). There's a natural grey shade and some lovely dyed colourways, each named after a Cornish tin mine. What I love about the combination, which range from the soft and easily-dyeable to more textured and naturally coloured fleece, is the depth and interest it gives to the colour - the little flecks of cussed Jacob's or tough Welsh Mountain give the yarn a distinctive, and very British, character.
I was lucky enough to get sent some - photographed above, in Botallack Blue - to have a play with before the launch, and naturally my thoughts drifted along Cornish lines. Being a Northerner, it's not a county I know too well, but it exists for me in books - not Poldark as far as I'm concerned, but Susan Howatch's splendid historical potboiler Penmarric - and in food. Cornwall makes great cheese, delicious beer, and, of course, the famous Cornish pasty, which is inextricably linked with the tin mines as it was the traditional snack of the Cornish tinminer. The literally mine-proof pastry case protected the wholesome filling, to make sure the miners had enough sustenance to cope with an arduous day at work, and essential to this was the special crimped edge which sealed the sides of the pasty and which is still a sign of a genuine Cornish product today.
You can find out more about the history of this versatile and tasty product from the Cornish Pasty Association, which is also where I learned that the Cornish tinminer's lunchtime snack was called a crib or croust (which I guess must come from the crimped crust of the pasty). Being a knitter, these crimped edges then took my thoughts to cables and the obvious answer to what to do with my Cornish Tin yarn - knit my own pasty!
So what I came up with isn't quite a pasty - it's a fingerless mitt, which in warm, hardwearing Cornish Tin should have the same insulating effect on my hands as the pastry case on the pasty - with a cabled i-cord cast off on both the hands and the thumbs.
You can knit a pair of Croust Fingerless Mitts from one skein of Cornish Tin DK. And, to help get the yarn and the birthday party started, you can get the pattern FREE for the first two weeks! The offer will end at midnight UK time on October 3rd. Just enter the coupon code Penzance when you buy the pattern from my Ravelry shop.
Please feel free to tell people about this offer - but please share this blog post rather than the coupon code, as I really would like people to understand the story behind the yarn and the pattern! I will change the coupon code from time to time during the offer.
And in the meantime if you like a pattern bargain, don't forget my Scarf Season special offer is still on - ten scarf patterns for a fiver - take a look at the previous post for all the details.
Preserving rare breeds - paying a fair price for fleece - spinning British wool in Britain - all of these have for the last 10 years been key aims of Sue Blacker of Blacker Yarns and their milling arm, the Natural Fibre Company. As well as producing their own range of super gorgeous yarns, often from their own sheep, their mill in Cornwall has also been spinning for other producers. This year they're celebrating their 10th birthday and have produced a wonderful yarn, Cornish Tin, in both DK and 4-ply, to mark the occasion.
It's spun from a positive smorgasbord of interesting fibres, each one has some meaning for the company (it's all on Sue's blog about the yarn). There's a natural grey shade and some lovely dyed colourways, each named after a Cornish tin mine. What I love about the combination, which range from the soft and easily-dyeable to more textured and naturally coloured fleece, is the depth and interest it gives to the colour - the little flecks of cussed Jacob's or tough Welsh Mountain give the yarn a distinctive, and very British, character.
I was lucky enough to get sent some - photographed above, in Botallack Blue - to have a play with before the launch, and naturally my thoughts drifted along Cornish lines. Being a Northerner, it's not a county I know too well, but it exists for me in books - not Poldark as far as I'm concerned, but Susan Howatch's splendid historical potboiler Penmarric - and in food. Cornwall makes great cheese, delicious beer, and, of course, the famous Cornish pasty, which is inextricably linked with the tin mines as it was the traditional snack of the Cornish tinminer. The literally mine-proof pastry case protected the wholesome filling, to make sure the miners had enough sustenance to cope with an arduous day at work, and essential to this was the special crimped edge which sealed the sides of the pasty and which is still a sign of a genuine Cornish product today.
You can find out more about the history of this versatile and tasty product from the Cornish Pasty Association, which is also where I learned that the Cornish tinminer's lunchtime snack was called a crib or croust (which I guess must come from the crimped crust of the pasty). Being a knitter, these crimped edges then took my thoughts to cables and the obvious answer to what to do with my Cornish Tin yarn - knit my own pasty!
So what I came up with isn't quite a pasty - it's a fingerless mitt, which in warm, hardwearing Cornish Tin should have the same insulating effect on my hands as the pastry case on the pasty - with a cabled i-cord cast off on both the hands and the thumbs.
You can knit a pair of Croust Fingerless Mitts from one skein of Cornish Tin DK. And, to help get the yarn and the birthday party started, you can get the pattern FREE for the first two weeks! The offer will end at midnight UK time on October 3rd. Just enter the coupon code Penzance when you buy the pattern from my Ravelry shop.
Please feel free to tell people about this offer - but please share this blog post rather than the coupon code, as I really would like people to understand the story behind the yarn and the pattern! I will change the coupon code from time to time during the offer.
And in the meantime if you like a pattern bargain, don't forget my Scarf Season special offer is still on - ten scarf patterns for a fiver - take a look at the previous post for all the details.
Saturday, 5 September 2015
Scarf Season
As Leonard Cohen said, summer's gone, and winter's tuning up...
The nights are drawing in and the heating has started coming on again in the morning. On the plus side, what better time of year to start knitting lots of lovely scarves for you and yours?
To help you, I've put together a promotion whereby you get ten scarf patterns - including my new Joni Scarf (the scarf that works from "both sides now") - for just five pounds!
I've included some of my most popular patterns - like the Cricket Sweater Cabled Scarf - so at just 50p per pattern including VAT this really is great value!.
To see all the patterns included in the offer, I've put them in a Ravelry bundle. Just add all 10 patterns to your cart on Ravelry and use the coupon code Scarf2015, or just follow this link which will automatically add all 10 patterns to your cart and add the coupon code.
WHAT'S MORE.... 50p from every Scarf Season set bought will go to Cardiac Risk in the Young in memory of a smashing bloke called James Pettifer - see this page for more information.
The promotion lasts until midnight GMT on October 4th, so get knitting!
The nights are drawing in and the heating has started coming on again in the morning. On the plus side, what better time of year to start knitting lots of lovely scarves for you and yours?
To help you, I've put together a promotion whereby you get ten scarf patterns - including my new Joni Scarf (the scarf that works from "both sides now") - for just five pounds!
I've included some of my most popular patterns - like the Cricket Sweater Cabled Scarf - so at just 50p per pattern including VAT this really is great value!.
To see all the patterns included in the offer, I've put them in a Ravelry bundle. Just add all 10 patterns to your cart on Ravelry and use the coupon code Scarf2015, or just follow this link which will automatically add all 10 patterns to your cart and add the coupon code.
WHAT'S MORE.... 50p from every Scarf Season set bought will go to Cardiac Risk in the Young in memory of a smashing bloke called James Pettifer - see this page for more information.
The promotion lasts until midnight GMT on October 4th, so get knitting!
Sunday, 23 August 2015
"He's defied the odds"
Posted a while ago to tell you about my Cat Walk Shawl pattern which I designed to raise funds for the PDSA charity when our cat, Bluey, was diagnosed with an illness (liver cancer as it happens). Anyway, just a quick update, as that was over 14 months ago now, so we took him into the vet today (much to his disgust) just to make sure all was as well as can be expected. "He's really defying the odds!" was the verdict. He's now back at home, ordeal over, sat on my lap.
Please take a look at the pattern & make a donation if you want to help other people's pets defy the odds!
Please take a look at the pattern & make a donation if you want to help other people's pets defy the odds!
Monday, 29 June 2015
The sound of summer
So, for once, here I am introducing a summer pattern on a hot summer day with blue skies outside and Wimbledon on the TV! Endless Summer is a summer infinity scarf, made from Eden Cottage Yarns Theseus Lace in a gorgeous sunsetty colour called Red Kite. It's designed to be light and warm, to carry in your handbag or beachbag and wrap closer around your neck as the evening draws in. It's out in the current issue of Knit Now magazine, and the lace patterns are inspired by sand dunes, seagulls and lapping waves.
You may recognise the model, Jade, who won Britain's Next Top Model in 2011.
Rather unusually, this is a pattern with a soundtrack - the name comes from my Beach Boys compilation album - so if you want to listen as you knit, here you go...
Groove Armada - At The River
Jan & Dean - Surf City
Beach Boys - California Girls
Lovin' Spoonful - Summer in the City
Bill Pritchard - A Trip to the Coast
Got another suggestion? Leave a comment!
While I'm at it, here's a couple of recent Knit Now patterns I haven't blogged about, from issue 47, another seasidey one - Sailors Knot Cowl.
And from issue 48, Helena Scarf.
You can buy the magazine at the Knit Now website
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| (c) Practical Publishing |
Rather unusually, this is a pattern with a soundtrack - the name comes from my Beach Boys compilation album - so if you want to listen as you knit, here you go...
Groove Armada - At The River
Jan & Dean - Surf City
Beach Boys - California Girls
Lovin' Spoonful - Summer in the City
Bill Pritchard - A Trip to the Coast
Got another suggestion? Leave a comment!
While I'm at it, here's a couple of recent Knit Now patterns I haven't blogged about, from issue 47, another seasidey one - Sailors Knot Cowl.
 |
| (c) Practical Publishing |
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| (c) Practical Publishing |
Tuesday, 28 April 2015
Silly Knit Off
As an England cricket fan, the Cricket World Cup, despite many excellent games not involving us, was not the most edifying of experiences. It's been a relief to get back to red ball, white kit cricket and see us doing rather better, with electrifying performances from Joe Root & James Anderson in lovely Grenada last week. And the welcome return of the "Are Alistair Cook and Jonathan Trott batting for too long?" debate.
During the World Cup I took part in a knitalong in the Ravelry Knit before Wicket group, where cricket and knitting meets, and perhaps it's prophetic that my project really took its inspiration from the longer form of the game, rather than limited-overs-coloured-kit, and specifically, the splendid traditional cricket sweater, as modelled here by the great West Indian cricketer Sir Garfield Sobers.
To a slightly racier his'n'hers version.
What all of these have in common of course is the vast amounts of yarn and knitting required to produce one, so I thought it would be fun to use the signature cables & stripes and make a more accessible version, using ribbed cables to make a reversible scarf, and with the stripes giving you a chance to add your team's colours (or just your favourite colours, come to that). Being a little quicker to knit than a jumper, it would also be feasible to kit your family out in them. As the original project was for the World Cup I chose England's colour - blue - for my stripes, and was very fortunate to get yarn support from the wonderful people at Blacker Yarns. I used their British Classic DK wool in white and navy. Blacker yarns are from British breeds of British sheep, and even spun here, so it was very appropriate for a project to support my team (albeit in a doomed cause - perhaps that's a very British thing as well...?). This wool was also great for the project, warm and hard-wearing, and the cables look fantastic.
The Navy I used is also the main colour of my county team, Middlesex, who play at Lord's,
(to prove it, and in order to have a picture of Middlesex fast bowler Steven Finn in this blog...)
...so I took my scarf along to the first match of the season, Middlesex v Notts, for some photography. Thanks to a vastly unseasonable heat wave, my husband informed me that a cabled scarf would look "weird" with the relatively summery ensemble I was wearing, so we persuaded Lord's' venerable pavilion to act as model instead!
When the usual summer chill descends later in the year, perhaps you'll see it on me, maybe at the Ashes or the traditionally Arctic New Zealand test series.
For the first month I am donating all profits from sale of the pattern to Cricket for Change, a great charity which supports various projects whereby cricket helps to transform the lives of young people - have a look at their page & learn about, for instance, the alternative Inner City World Cup!
During the World Cup I took part in a knitalong in the Ravelry Knit before Wicket group, where cricket and knitting meets, and perhaps it's prophetic that my project really took its inspiration from the longer form of the game, rather than limited-overs-coloured-kit, and specifically, the splendid traditional cricket sweater, as modelled here by the great West Indian cricketer Sir Garfield Sobers.
This design has been a staple of the knitting pattern for many years, from this one in the spirit perhaps of Jennings & Darbyshire...To a slightly racier his'n'hers version.
What all of these have in common of course is the vast amounts of yarn and knitting required to produce one, so I thought it would be fun to use the signature cables & stripes and make a more accessible version, using ribbed cables to make a reversible scarf, and with the stripes giving you a chance to add your team's colours (or just your favourite colours, come to that). Being a little quicker to knit than a jumper, it would also be feasible to kit your family out in them. As the original project was for the World Cup I chose England's colour - blue - for my stripes, and was very fortunate to get yarn support from the wonderful people at Blacker Yarns. I used their British Classic DK wool in white and navy. Blacker yarns are from British breeds of British sheep, and even spun here, so it was very appropriate for a project to support my team (albeit in a doomed cause - perhaps that's a very British thing as well...?). This wool was also great for the project, warm and hard-wearing, and the cables look fantastic.
The Navy I used is also the main colour of my county team, Middlesex, who play at Lord's,
(to prove it, and in order to have a picture of Middlesex fast bowler Steven Finn in this blog...)
...so I took my scarf along to the first match of the season, Middlesex v Notts, for some photography. Thanks to a vastly unseasonable heat wave, my husband informed me that a cabled scarf would look "weird" with the relatively summery ensemble I was wearing, so we persuaded Lord's' venerable pavilion to act as model instead!
When the usual summer chill descends later in the year, perhaps you'll see it on me, maybe at the Ashes or the traditionally Arctic New Zealand test series.
For the first month I am donating all profits from sale of the pattern to Cricket for Change, a great charity which supports various projects whereby cricket helps to transform the lives of young people - have a look at their page & learn about, for instance, the alternative Inner City World Cup!
Sunday, 15 March 2015
The rain in Spain...
Now, I've always liked having a birthday in February. Perhaps I'm biased, but it's always seemed to me to be by far the most interesting month, having a weird number of days, leap years, etc, etc. There are two problems, firstly, my birthday is very nearly Valentine's Day, which has given me a lifelong hatred for that event, and secondly, living in England, let's face it, the weather. Having moved further south as life has gone on it's not generally as bad as it was on the night I was born, when father drove through five foot snowdrifts to get my mother to hospital in Yorkshire, but I still tend to find myself craving a little vitamin D by that time of year and try to take a break somewhere a little sunnier.
Last year we settled on the southern Spanish city of Seville, famed for the Seville orange that's used to make marmalade. I pictured blue skies and trees laden with glowing fruit.
As you can see, we got one, but as to the other...
It chucked it down. It absolutely binned it. Seville is a truly stunning city, Moorish architecture and little twisty streets that would be absolutely divine if one didn't keep getting lost in them in driving rain.
Design-wise, as you can see, Seville is a pretty inspirational place.
Buildings are frosted like wedding cakes.
Walls are covered in intricate patterns.
Last year we settled on the southern Spanish city of Seville, famed for the Seville orange that's used to make marmalade. I pictured blue skies and trees laden with glowing fruit.
As you can see, we got one, but as to the other...
It chucked it down. It absolutely binned it. Seville is a truly stunning city, Moorish architecture and little twisty streets that would be absolutely divine if one didn't keep getting lost in them in driving rain.
Design-wise, as you can see, Seville is a pretty inspirational place.
Buildings are frosted like wedding cakes.
Walls are covered in intricate patterns.
But what did I find myself doing? Head down, rain pouring down my neck, I stared at the pavement. Luckily Seville's pavements happen to be quite diverting. I saw herringbone tiles, chequerboards, honeycomb patterns, all sorts. And as we sat in our lovely hotel room, I sketched them down, and came up with a way of knitting them.
That's how my Seville cowl and mitts were born, published in this month's Knit Now Magazine.
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| (c) Practical Publishing |
And finally I get to see the colour of those blue skies, thanks to making the sample in Eden Cottage Yarns Askham 4-ply in the striking Damselfly colourway.
Talking of Blue, following my last blog post, the Cat Walk Shawl is doing really well and has already raised lots from generous knitters both for PDSA and for other animal charities where some knitters have chosen to donate to a similar organisation in their own country. If you'd like to know how the cat himself is doing, here's Bluey today sat on the top of the sofa next to me:
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