So in this little journey through the four seasons via my new cowl design, I've finally alighted on spring. There's no daffodil-yellow in the Highland Heathers range as yet (hint hint, Stylecraft!) so I couldn't fully convey the blue-yellow-white palette of spring shades. Yeah, yeah, I need to weed this little patio that I built in the photo above. It'll happen soon. But still, I hope you get the hints of optimistic greenery and flowers against a background of endless grey rain and the Continue Reading
Weirdly Wintering In August
I've just completed winter. Not actual winter, since it's August and we're in the northern hemisphere, but the chilliest colourway of the four-season cowl design that I'll be publishing shortly. But as I said in my last post, this is a British winter, so discard any notions of sparkly white snow against a blue sky, and instead embrace the dank and soggy undertones of sludgy reality. They're quite pretty once you get used to them. The yarn is Stylecraft Highland Heathers DK. Next up on my Continue Reading
Free Colourful Cowl Pattern!
OK, would you like the free pattern for this fairisle cowl that I designed? You would? Well there's a link to the pattern near the bottom of this post. Enjoy! It's a fairly generous one size, that would fit an adult or teen. The version in the pictures was made using all 16 shades of Stylecraft Batik, but of course you could use fewer colours, or indeed a different DK/light-worsted yarn entirely. The cowl is worked in the round, so although you'll have a fair few ends to weave in, Continue Reading
Stylecraft Batik Yarn Review
It's about time I published a review of Batik, Stylecraft's brand new yarn. (Disclaimer: I didn't pay for the yarn, so clearly my fickle head has been turned by this freebie and not a single word of the following is to be trusted.) I wanted to thoroughly road-test the yarn before I wrote this, so I got the knitting needles out and started designing something that incorporated all sixteen shades:- You know what you need in the heat of August? A nice warm, fluffy cowl, that's what. So I Continue Reading
Quick And Easy Hack For Controlling Bobbins In Colourwork
In this post, an easy hack for how to control all those bobbins when you’re doing complex colourwork, especially intarsia. :-) Colourwork is a fantastic thing in knitting and crochet: it’s like painting with yarn – even painting in three dimensions, should you choose to engage in that level of crazy. I love most colourwork - stranded/fairisle especially, but also, slipped stitch work, and stripes. But I do not love intarsia*. Intarsia hurts my sanity. It’s a technique in which even the tiniest Continue Reading
It’s The Knitting And Stitching Show!
Wow, what a day. For those of you not in the UK, the Knitting And Stitching Show is the yarn-related event of the year in this country, held amidst the splendour of Alexandra Palace on a hill in London. It started today, and runs until Sunday. May I just at this point thank Stylecraft Yarns for my complimentary ticket - very much appreciated, you kind people. Settle in, my friends. This threatens to be a long post. With many photos. Help y'selves to some of that wine. There will be moments Continue Reading
The Carnival Bag, And The Stylecraft Giveaway!
Welcome to day five of the Stylecraft Blog Tour! Fancy a free pattern and a chance to win a whole caboodle of yarn, regardless of where in the world you are? Read on, Macduff... So, just for the benefit of anyone who is new round these 'ere parts, (hello at the back, there), a few months ago I co-judged Stylecraft yarn's competition to find a new shade for their range of Special DK. With me were the editor of Let's Knit magazine (who waited very patiently in the car park before we went in, Continue Reading
Story Of My Life
So shall we get back to discussing knitting and crochet? That said, I do have lots more 'musical' (I use that word very loosely) tales to tell you about The Purlz, if you'd like to hear them? Anyway, in other yarn-related news... A while ago, the Knitting And Crochet Guild (KCG) ran a competition with lovely Yarn Stories yarn to design knitted/crocheted squares inspired by the KCG historical collection. These squares were for a blanket. This was my entry: a crazy messy knitted hybrid of Continue Reading
Subverting The Medium Of Colourwork
Friday, my fine friend, you have been a long time coming this week. And by the way, ANYONE WHO RECEIVED AN EMAIL NOTIFYING YOU OF A BAG PATTERN POST THAT DOESN'T YET EXIST, PLEASE SEE THE END OF THIS POST! Anyway, the Knitting And Crochet Guild / Yarn Stories competition is closing. Did you enter? Best o' luck if you did. I can't wait to see everyone's entries when they're shown online. For anyone who hasn't seen it, the Knitting and Crochet Guild promotes both crafts within the UK and also Continue Reading
The Skirt Post
Ah, the skirt. (And thank you to the kind people in the comments threads who've been asking about it.) This post could probably be retitled 'How not to design a skirt, you fool!' but it will at least give you a laugh or two, I hope. Allow me to elaborate. I decided on a whim to design a knitted stranded skirt and a crocheted bag, ahead of judging the Stylecraft competition. It seemed like a good idea. And whilst the bag was done in plenty of time, I ended up restarting the skirt at the Continue Reading