There isn't much in knitting that scares me. I can k3togtbl, I can cut a steek whilst stone-cold sober, and I laugh in the face of complex colourwork (unless it's intarsia, in which case I sigh and then untangle all 76 bobbins for the eleventy millionth time). But today, I'm anxious. You see, I've finished the book-blanket that I designed and made for my dear friend Mary, and yesterday I wrapped it up and took it to the Post Office. Quick summary in case you missed the original post: Mary has Continue Reading
Psst! Want to see something secret?
<<whispers>> I'm taking a risk writing this post, because it's about a gift that I'm knitting for a friend. I don't think Mary reads here - yarn is not her thing - but occasionally the most unexpected people fess up to following my blog, so you never know. So for reasons of secrecy, I'll keep my voice down. And if I suddenly change the subject AND START TALKING LOUDLY ABOUT HOW ISN'T IT A LOVELY DAY TODAY, AND OOOOH LOOK, A SQUIRREL! then that's because I've spotted Mary looking Continue Reading
A Finished Thing
This week, I finished a thing. Is it just me, or does everyone have a Guilt Project languishing in a basket somewhere? I'm talking about the mega-project that seemed like a r-e-a-l-l-y good idea several years ago when you bought/inherited/spun-from-raw-antelope-fibre the 80 balls of yarn that it requires. The Guilt Project is always three quarters complete - you've come too far to frog it - and it nudges you into a flicker of shame every time you trip over it on your way to the wine-rack Continue Reading
Um, it’s done.
whispers The rainbow stained glass window afghan is finally finished... whispers more quietly ...Apart from weaving in most of the ends. But what are four thousand flippy-floppy slippery unravelly cottony ends between friends? And won't someone think of the children! Unpicking this beast could keep the toddler twinnage cheerfully occupied for hours. You want to see a picture? (Please don't say no. I'd have to cry, and that might embarrass us both.) A couple of caveats, though, before the Continue Reading
Weaving in ends (or possibly obliterating the hairy blighters with napalm).
Yesterday, I promised a crochet post. Predictably, it's about the rainbow stained glass window afghan. It's going to be a few weeks until it's finished I think, given that it'll end up more than two metres across - that's a lot of stitches. Someone on Ravelry posted that they'd finished the same design in more conventional colours within "about two weeks". Even allowing for this meaning "almost three weeks", and even supposing they spent that fortnight-and-a-bit omitting Continue Reading
Crochet therapy
The end of a stressful day of tantrumming toddler twinnage. The rainbow stained glass window is progressing well, assisted by a two-hour bout of insomnia last night. Can you see the little popcorn stitches? I've reached about 60cm diameter (24 inches), and the final thing will be about 2 metres (>2 yards) across. I love this pattern! It's by Julene Watson, and the increases and pattern are perfectly calculated so that it remains beautifully flat as it grows. And it's cheaper than Continue Reading