Notre Dame bleeds and blocks

So - here are the front and back pieces of C's Notre Dame rinsing - and bleeding!!!
- and then blocking to match a sweater of hers. I'm relieved that it has easily blocked out flatter and therefore wider and more drapily than it seemed as I knit it (as did the swatch, but we all know that Swatches can Lie, so I am relieved). I notice that the rinsing shot looks darker than it really is, and the blocking paler - there wasn't that much obvious change in colour, to be honest.


And I accidentally started swatching for the Josephine top from IK Summer 2007 - with RYC bamboo soft - a little heavier than the yarn called for, but we'll see how the gauge compares when washed and blocked. Probably shouldn't just have run on from the 'all over pattern' to the lace, but WTF! Lucky I'm swatching at all! These ebony Destiny needles, by Lantern Moon, are from Purlescence, and perfect for this rather splitty yarn (the cable is delightfully flexible, too). BTW, have you seen that Robynn's planning a surprise for the New Year? (Not sure I should be telling the buying competition, but...)

Josephine and Kipling

OK, so I have a cousin (beloved) who, with his lovely partner, is ahving a baby. Just after Chrsitmas. Need to knit something! (Did Devan for his brother's kid, but I haven't started yet, and rather busy!) I found some lovely DK superwash from Fyberspates at the UK Stitch 'n Bitch day.

I hunted for patterns - thought I might do the Baby Albert from the Knit Stitch, but that's at my Mum's. Then I found the Kipling sweater. (From Yarn Abuse). It's lovely! I've gone up some needle sizes, and have added extra stitches and a little extra length (the extra stitches are 8 under each arm, in moss stitch). The striping is lovely! I'll show you when it's done, but here's a pic (sideways, it seems!) of the yarn.


When I was with Brenda a few weeks ago I bought some Rowan bamboo soft from colourway (think I spoke about it). Colour Gypsum - I'd have called it graphite, though, like the lead in a pencil. I think I'm going to make the Josephine top from IK Summer 07. I'll have to get 2-3 more balls, and they won't be the same Lot, but I reckon I could use the different ball for the bodice and the current ones for the bottom part and the sleeves - we'll see!


I've also got the Woodland BFL from Natalie at the Yarn Yard - see how she's spun it (Scroll down)! Mine will be much more basic, but I think I'll enjoy the colours lots as they run through my hands. We'll see how I do!. Very soft and intense, anyway, which is what I was after.

UK Stitch'n Bitch

Had a great time at this day put on by Knitonthenet and the Iknit London peeps. I went with my S-i-L (her birthday treat) and we had a cool time.

Here's the marketplace (S bought a 5 skeins of scrumptious - 45% silk, 55% BFL - from Jen of Fyberspates in red/purple, and my Ps (in the guise of me) bought her another 5 in in a beautiful blue/green. I got 4 skeins of DK superwash merino in rust/teal/pink to make a jumper for a new baby due at the end of the year.

S also got a skein of sock weight yarn in a wonderful wedgwood blue from the Oxford Kitchen yarns stall - which was beautiful BTW - the top left skein just here... They're all natural dye colours, and they go together bee-yootifully, like Edinburgh rock.

Jane Waller was present with all the jumpers from her 1940s book - she was very friendly and helpful, and I was enthused to knit some of the patterns form the book (which I have).

I also really enjoyed the Missability stall in the project area - I've written before about this website and podcast - do go, download the podcasts and consider joining the competition to design and knit a walking stick cosy - either purely practical but individual, or as wacky as you like! The ones they had on the stall were fabulous and inspiring. S is going to knit a cosy for her Nan's stick so she can show off in her Residential Home, and I want to develop one too. Have a few ideas...

The entertainment was great - though sometimes hard to hear, being just at one end of the large hall form the Marketplace - we missed the poet and the start of Girl and Dean, the comedy duo, but loved the part of their show that we did hear, as well as the wonderful Shellac Sisters - a

40s-dressed glamourous group who have a series of wind up gramophones and old music on original 78s - but run them together like modern DJs. Cool and inspiring!

A Shellac Sister knits...

All in all a great day!

A wonderful parcel

So, I went to get my shoes out of the shoe stand in the porch, and - there was a parcel stuffed in there! Who did that? C denies (and why would she?) - so, maybe the postman? No idea how long it's been there, but I'd been expecting it for a while.

Barb, the friend I made through the Knitter's letter swap, sent me a Swan from Threadbear Fiber studio, a lovely drop spindle. And here it is!
Well, that's the box with the two spindles she sent (one is a practice spindle she felt she didn't want) and the skein of Jubilee by Misty Mountain Farm in colourway Virginia Creeper - isn't it beautiful? Feels lovely too (all 400yds superwash merino sockyarn of it), quite bouncey!

Here's the Swan though - Barb chose the 'Timberland' wood - a beautifully dyed composite, she sussed me out totally - colour is my metier!

Also in here - a yarn tasting booklet from Threadbear Fiber - a wonderful idea, they do evenings when people can try new yarns and see patterns made up (I think) and take away a little booklet talking about both and with yarn samples stuck inside.

Thanks very much Barb! Your box is filling up too, BTW...

Organising the knitting (and the life)

So, we're in the throws of sorting out our lives for the move to Australia (which C has just informed me is 9 1/12 weeks away. Gulp!) One thing I want to sort is my knitting - we're going to ship a bit of stuff (some books and yarn and kites and so on) and have big cases to take with us too. My needles have lived in a drawer in rather a tangled mess (due in large part to my preference for circs) , and this seemed an impractical way to transport them!

Nona talked about her Ashland Sky "Stick Sacks", and they seemed a good plan! I looked for the links to UK suppliers - and KCG Trading carry the full range - but KnitnCaboodle sell easily online - and had most of the ones I wanted with a limited edition edging hand-dyed by the Twisted Sisters - so of course I went for those! And very efficient they are too.


Here they are opened out, so you can see the 'Ocean' and 'Fire' colourways, and how much space there is in the circs pack (enough for at least 20 needles), the short dpn sack (14 sets) and the long dpn sack (also 14 sets).

And packed up neat for travel!

It's a secret

Mum and I seem to be racing at half way through clue 3 - but we're not, it just turns out we're going at about the same pace. I'm v pleased to have hers to show you too, as it shows up very much better than mine in these pics - they're both lovely!



Here's Mum's in more detail - she's mortified that I didn't give her the time to remove the dental floss security line about 1/4 through from the right (though it's almost invisible here, I think) - she hasn't needed one since, and has found that she can read her knititng and see whether all is well without too much difficulty.




... And here's mine waving in the breeze!