Happy New Year

I've been a bit lazy with posting over the festive period hence the quick, slightly fussy pictures uploaded from my iphone!  Christmas was lovely but very busy.  Just before the Big Day I posted a picture of some of my festive knitting projects so thought I should perhaps elaborate a little.

I've been a Mollie Makes subscriber for a wee while now, I can't claim I've made a lot of the projects featured each month, but the pre-Christmas issue captured my imagination.  The featured knitting pattern was 'Catching Snowflakes' - fingerless gloves/wrist warmers designed by Tiny Owl Knits.

So I made a pair for my friend Helen using some Jamieson and Smith Jumper Weight yarn I had left over from my Hansel baby blanket project.

They were a lovely, quick knit and I loved the snowflake stitch pattern.  I did, however, decide to omit the fine crocheted snowflakes though.

I then made a pair in plain old stockinette using Rowan Fine Felted Tweed.  I'd never used this version of the yarn before and it was not only perfect for the project but was also very cost effective - £3.50 for a 25g ball which made a pair!

As you can see I didn't add the ribbed border to the top of the gloves this time - I added a few extra rows of stocking stitch before casting off with a flexible bind off.

Finally I made two pairs of 'Toast':

This is a free pattern by Leslie Friend which is very popular on Ravelry - I am not surprised as it is a fabulous pattern with quick results.  The original pattern uses an aran weight wool but I decided to do some stash busting and use the Rowan Felted Tweed DK I was hoarding so downsized my needle size to a 3.5mm accordingly and cast on 40 stitches rather than the 34 in the original pattern.

You may have noticed that I don't post pictures of my children very often but I can't resist sharing this one (which is an appalling quality phone pic) of my Busy Boy wearing his Christmas Pudding jumper - made by myself using a pattern from the 2012 Simply Knitting Christmas Supplement:

Happy Christmas

Festive Knitting

Some of my festive knitting projects




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A Baby Quilt

 Dear me, I haven't written a word for weeks!  It's a busy time of year - I still can't quite believe that we are in December and the year is very nearly over.  Next week marks the start of 'crazy season' in our house - a fortnight of school concerts, parties and church event.  All of these events are well loved but it will be an exhausting fortnight.

I've made the odd Christmas gift - largely knitted - over the last few weeks.  The above picture, I appreciate, is extremely unseasonal but I found the pictures on the computer the other day and realised it was a project I hadn't shared!  It's a baby quilt made for my friend Emma's little girl.  It was a simple make - the pattern can be found on the Moda Bakeshop Website - and consists of a couple of mini charm packs from the Posy line by Aneela Hoey and corresponding Moda yardage.  The 2.5" squares are sometime challenging to sew together accurately but I'm happy with the result!  This is the last thing I sewed would you believe and that was back in September!

Hopefully, I won't leave blogging so long next time and I can share some festive projects - a Summer themed quilt really seems a bit out of place as the wind blows outside!

Hansel

I completed Hansel AKA the giant bucket about 3 weeks ago.  It was very odd knitting a square blanket in the round but it worked and I love the finished result.  I had originally planned it as a baby blanket for my surprise third baby but it ended up as a gift for my friend Helen's surprise third baby instead.  Although I'd decided on a relatively neutral colour scheme involving grey, purple, green and blue it dawned on me that it was far more appropriate for Helen's little boy baby than my own expected pink offspring.

I would have liked to have added the triangular border edging included in the pattern to finish it off but it became obvious that I was running out of time and yarn - Helen was booked for an elective c-section so I was working to a definite deadline!!

I absolutely loved knitting this and I am so tempted to make another for myself.

The Wedding of the Year!

My best friend got married on Saturday!  It was absolutely lovely and such a privilege to be part of such a special day :-).  My friend Mel and I were bridesmaids together with Bev's sister and niece - between us we cried buckets!

The photographer was a certain 8 year old who lives in my house ;-)

Birthday Crafting

It's officially the birthday season.  There are so many Autumn birthdays - I blame those Winter conceptions!  I've managed to get a couple of birthday gifts made over the last few weeks especially for those who appreciate a handmade pressie!

First up is this moss stitch dishcloth with contrasting red striping:

This was so quick to make and a good use of stash yarn - the cream organic cotton I used is just so lovely and soft.  I love the contrasting stripes and I hope the moss stitch will make it practical and absorbent!

I also made this candle holder:

 

I followed Lucy of Attic 24 fame's jar cover tutorial and used some leftover yarn for some more thrifty, stash busting crafting :-).  My crocheting tension is a bit looser so after making a massive first attempt I used a shorter starting chain and the jar cover was a much tighter and better fit.

I have also finished a baby quilt which is waiting to be photographed.  It is a very dull morning here, and although I am loving the start of Autumn, my favourite season, it is not particularly conducive to photography!