Have you ever knitted (or hooked) with Noro yarn? If not, then this unique Japanese producer should be on your fibrous bucket list. You might love Noro, you might hate it, but you're unlikely to be indifferent. A quickish guide for the uninitiated: Noro produces s-l-o-w-l-y colour-shifting self-striping yarns in various combinations of wool, silk, cotton, and alpaca. Here's a very old and dodgy photo from my little-more-sophisticated-than-a-chap-sitting-inside-my-phone-drawing-a-sketch phone Continue Reading
SereKNITy: A Review And A Giveaway
Morning, all. Shall we have another giveaway-review whilst I put the finishing touches to the cowl pattern? Yes? There’s a new book that may well be right up your street. Or it might not. Hopefully after this review, you’ll know either way.* Introducing the quirkily-monikered Sereknity, by Nikki Van De Car, published just this week by Running Press. And if you’re thinking, ‘Hang on, I definitely know that name from somewhere’, I’ll save you the brow-furrowing by reminding you that Van De Continue Reading
Painting By Numbers. Also, A Giveaway Winner!
Hello blog, my fine friend. I've been working on the crochet version of the Hiking Reindeer Cowl. No longer are the trees listing drunkenly to the right. But something in the switch from knitting to crochet appears to have translated the reindeer into a moose. I'm not sure what a moose is doing in the southern English countryside on which the scene is based: it must have been hiking for some time. But the pattern will be done fairly soon, at which point I'll publish it on this site for Continue Reading
An Over-Excited Book Review And A Splendid Giveaway
Since it's a dull Monday, shall we have an over-excited book review and a giveaway? Yes? OK, here goes:- Somewhere in Greenland, there are small birds living in more luxury than you do. See this nest? It's lined with pure qiviut - you know, that crazy-expensive luxury fibre from the tummy-fluff of the musk ox. Lucky birds. That said, after such a pampered start in life, the chicks will probably grow up completely unable to cope with the harsh realities of the world. You and I would have to Continue Reading
And The Winners Are… Also, Will You Look At This Patchwork!
Wowzers, that went quickly. A whole week has galloped past, and the Stylecraft voucher giveaway has closed. A huge thank you to everyone who entered, and to the generous folk at Stylecraft for providing the prizes. So shall we find out whether you've won? Oh, and may I just thank you for your kind comments (and name suggestions) for the sunset cowl. I've finished the knitting, and I'll be posting the finished thing with a free pattern - and a name! - within the next week or so. :-) But let's Continue Reading
Giveaway! Yarn Review! Also, Worms And Moonlit Eunuchs, All In One Post.
Buried somewhere in this blog post are a giveaway and a product review. It's been a week of minor frustrations. Nothing catastrophic or blogworthy. Nobody has been squished by a falling grand piano, and nobody accidentally clicked 'Delete Entire Database' during a meeting at work. Just lots of trivial challenges. On the bright side, I have learned how to re-programme a car key, I have ordered the reclaimed Victorian bricks for this project, and the twinnage have adopted a pair of worms - Continue Reading
So Have You Won? Take A Look!
Aaaaaaaaaaaand.......................................time's up! Put down your pen and face the front. No talking, please, because the Edie Eckman giveaway is now closed. (I should clarify that we're not actually giving away Edie Eckman - her friends and family vetoed that idea - but through this blog, Storey Publishing is giving away a hefty chunk of Edie's crochet wisdom, distilled into one marvellous new book.) Before we find out who's won, I want to say a huge THANK YOU to each and every Continue Reading
Every Which Way Crochet Borders By Edie Eckman: A Review And A Giveaway
This book review is part of a blog tour* to celebrate the publication of Edie Eckman's new book: Every Which Way Crochet Borders. Waaaaaaaay across the Atlantic in the US, is a woman who likes to live life on the edge. She's based in Virginia** (which is on the edge of the US, you'll note. Coincidence? I THINK NOT.) And this month, she's brought out her second book about ornamental crochet borders. Y'see? Life on the edge. This woman adores borders. Can you imagine living in her house? Borders. Continue Reading
So Shall We Find Out Which Lucky Folk Have Won The Giveaway?
I know. It's been a fair few days since the gong sounded, marking the end of the It's A Stitch Up giveaway. (To be fair, the gong didn't sound particularly loudly, since it's made entirely of yarn.) In meagre defence of my tardiness, we've had the inspectors in at the hospital where I work this week, and I had to pop across the Severn Bridge into south Wales, in order to go and endure the viva exam for my MPhil degree in (novel-)writing. The viva went surprisingly well. And no, the novel has Continue Reading
The Perfect YARN GIVEAWAY For A Winter’s Day
On a cold and dull* November day, what do you need to warm the cockles of your heart? Well, duh: lovely hand-dyed yarn, of course, and a pattern with which to knit it. So don't you reckon it's time for another giveaway, open worldwide? Enter from stage left, Suzie, bearing skeins of marvellously colourful wool. Twisted: Hello, Suzie. Suzie: Hello, Twisted. Twisted (shivering): Cold, isn't it? Suzie (also shivering): Gosh yes, it is cold... as one might quite reasonably expect at Continue Reading