New Year, New Project

Happy New Year! I'm having a slow start to 2010, but have been making the most of sofa time in the warm cosiness of home while enjoying the snow through the windows. I have some knitting projects outstanding from before the festive season, but I decided to join in with something new, as well. Gourmet Crochet is running a CAL which suits my needs as I have cut my thumb and it's easier to crochet than knit (or do housework)! I've just realised I crochet right-handed even though I'm left-handed - weird. Anyway, it's called the Variations on a Theme Mystery Afghan CAL, and another snuggly blanket is very appealing just now. Also, I can use all sorts of odds and ends of yarn left over from other projects. I decided to work it in four ply sock yarn, and my first squares are in an opal sock yarn I dyed a few years book before knitting Broad Street Mittens and a pair of Jaywalker Socks for myself.

This is square no: 1, made yesterday evening along with square no:2, below. It would be interesting to make no:1 in two colours to emphasize the look of rows of flowers, so I might do this in the future.

No: 2 is a simpler two-row pattern which was easily memorised and made good evening-in-front-of-the-tv work. I'm torn between making multiples of these two patterns and patiently waiting for pattern no:3 to appear on Cathryn's blog.

Other projects in mind are Dijanne Cevaal's KISS quilt project, a Slow Cloth and something for the Festival of Quilts, not to mention the roman blind for my living room and other curtains long overdue to be completed. However, this weather plus low energy levels make me reluctant to get off the sofa and so something more strenuous. And then there's the knitting. No excuse for boredom, is there?!

A Small and Feisty Sweater

A little bit of knitted blue - a 12month size sweater knit to Stefanie Japel's pattern, Feisty. I had some trouble getting going with this, I think because I haven't been too well so my concentration was poor and I must have cast on four times! However, once I really got going, it was quite a quick project to complete. Just need to find some buttons to go with it now.

Colours for Knitting

I want to knit a cardigan/jacket - and couldn't find a yarn which combined appeal with affordability (I take after my great-grandmother in having expensive tastes) and availability in the quantity required. So, what's a girl to do? I bought some undyed bluefaced leicester yarn from Violet Green which arrived by return of post - wonderful service - and straight into a soaking bath it went, while I dug out my small collection of acid dyes and stockpot (which is reserved for dyeing adventures rather than culinary ones) and got mixing the pigments.

After a steamy period in the kitchen, all seven skeins were dyed, washed and dripping on the washing line, suspended from coat hangers. Here's a photo of the finished product, in today's strong autumn sunshine.

I used a kettle-dyeing technique, which produced a very subtle variation of colour: teal, petrol and peacock, using lilac, spruce and blues (brilliant and sapphire) from the Jacquard Acid Dyes selection. Whereas a handpainted and steamed treatment previously gave quite specific areas of colour (when last I dyed wool yarn), there are elusive changes in shade which are clearer in reality than in the photo above, but still very gradual changes, as one might expect.

It will be interesting to see how this works out as a knitted garment and it won't be long until I cast on and start finding out.

Mirth in the Garden

Better colours in the daylight, as promised. The shawl looks great after blocking and feels light but warm and cosy on my shoulders.

It even goes quite well with one of the t-shirts I made and dyed earlier in the summer, and the indigo-overdyed linen trousers I made over last weekend (just visible below).

My son took these photos, which is why the back point isn't too centrally positioned above. But - a very satisfying and useful project this has proved.

Doing A Stretch Inside

I finished my latest knitting project last night, and today I am blocking it to show the lacy pattern to best advantage and for maximum shoulder coverage.

This shawl is from Stefanie Japel's new pattern, Mirth, which I worked in a sock weight/4ply yarn (Regia hand dye effect in shade 6552) on a 3.75mm circular needle. It wasn't worked in the round, but back and forth. This clever design is effectively a lace square which is divided to the centre point along one of the diagonal lines, and the shaping allows a graceful moulding to the lines of the body.

It looked like nothing until it was stretched out: the first opportunity to enjoy the three lace patterns I had worked to follow the instructions, and I'm very pleased with this shawl now.

The colours are not true as I took these photos in artificial light, so I'll snap it again in daylight tomorrow, when the sun should shine upon it and show the jewel-like blues and greens in their true glory. We may be enjoying an Indian summer at the moment, but I am sure I will be reaching for this shawl in the chillier evenings as soon as it is dry.

Time to choose another project!

New Knitting - Mirthful Blues

Glampyre's Mirth, a raglan shaped shawl, in Regia Hand Dye Effect Sock Yarn. Yep, blue again!

Annie teaches Sue to Cable without a Cable Needle

I am so lucky to have met a cyberpal today: Annie Modesitt has shown me (and some other really lovely ladies) how to do the twist without extra equipment. She is such a fun and effective teacher that we all acquired some very useful skills and in an extremely friendly atmosphere. Thanks so much, Annie, for sharing so much with us.