Miaou

WIP being Works In Progress! I seem to have a lot of things on the go but nothing much finished at the moment.

First up is a lovely wrap cardigan, designed by Stephanie Japel. I was given the yarn as a gift and it is coming together nicely; I just have the final tie to do. However, that final tie is about 12″ wide and 45″ long! The ties go right around the body and tie at the front. It is going to need some serious blocking I think but I am pleased with how it is going.

Second up is a fab little toy elephant. The yarn was another gift in fabulous rainbow colours - I can’t wait to see how he turns out! And he is miiiiiiiine, all mine - my kids can keep their hands off! In this pic I have only made one and a half legs (!); it’s a bit further on now but I’m still only about half way through.

Next is something I am toying with; it may or may not become something I follow through! But I would like a blanket for my very own and found a lovely simple but effective crochet pattern:

And yes, I know I said I wouldn’t do any more crochet projects for a while … but I’m a sucker for punishment And just in case you are wondering how they will tesselate, I need to add a border to each one to make them into hexagons!

And finally, since starting this post and coming back to it, I have an FP (finished project) to show you! A little knitted kimono as a gift for a work colleague of my husband’s.  The colours are a bit wishy-washy but it’s all I had to hand in girl shades! It was fun to make and I hope she likes it.

I had two balls of slightly differing peach coloured yarn, and not enough of either to make the kimono, so I alternated the two shades, which gives the pale colour a little depth:

The crocheted bows were in the pattern but I used a contrasting colour and added a crocheted edging to tie it all in.

Hopefully my next post will contain some more finished items!

At last! My rainbow fish blanket is complete. I started it at the beginning of January and finished it a few days ago, so not bad going really. Here it is in all its glory:

I knitted an equal number of fish in each colour, half in a dark shade and half in lighter colours. I knew how I wanted to lay them out and spent quite a bit of time laying them out on the floor until I was happy with the arrangement. I then labelled them all (and didn’t have any sticky labels so this entailed 196 little bits of paper and 196 little bits of sellotape!!) with a column and row number, then bundled them in rows. It took me about an hour to sew a row of fish together and attach it to the row below, and there are 25 rows, so that’s quite a bit of time! However I was so excited about the finished project that I was very motivated to finish.

I then set to with a 6mm crochet hook (yes, I know what I said about crochet in my last post, but this kind of crochet I can handle!) and created a wavy edging with some turquoise yarn to suggest the sea. Four rounds of crochet later I was satisfied and handed over the finished blanket to my delighted daughter Eilish. (I have hopes that her bed might look as neat as this a little more more often, but they are not high )!

I think I am done with fish for now (there was a LOT of sewing up to do!) but it was a really enjoyable project and I can see myself making another one in the future.

The knitting has ended - 196 fish later …

Let the sewing up begin!!

A friend of mine asked if I would make her a beanie hat out of some “funky yarn” to keep out the winter winds. “But I have to tell you,” she said, “I have a very large head.” So I went up a needle size and made the The London Beanie for her using Sirdar Peru, which has a high wool content for warmth. She assures me it fits her much better than it fits my 10 year old daughter!

I have made a couple of pairs of socks now, and just love the way they feel on my feet. I had only made plain ones so I thought it was time to branch out and make something a little more ambitious! I found this gorgeous pattern, Nutkin, and set out. I was a little nervous about following a chart but it worked out fine. Look:

Very pleased with the result. Lovely socks. Nice pattern. Easy to knit. Just one problem.

I ran out of yarn. Gah.

Never mind, I don’t usually wear them with sandals, so no one will know ;-). Well, except you lot.

Whilst I have been under the weather these last couple of months, I haven’t really felt much like doing anything. However occasionally I felt like doing a bit of simple knitting, so I picked the Fish Afghan as a project. Each fish takes about 30-40 minutes to make and the pattern was easy to memorise, so it was easy to do in little bitesize chunks. I find knitting is a great way to “zone out” and relax, so it seemed like the ideal pastime. I decided to make it in cheerful rainbow colours to lift my spirits. Here’s my first few:

Apologies for the blurry photo!

I soon discovered that, although quick and easy to make, these fish were actually quite small. Therefore I would need quite a lot in order to make a blanket big enough to cover a bed (Eilish having begged for the finished blanket). 198 of them in fact. Here’s me about two-thirds of the way through:

I have still got about 40 to make, and am just starting to get a little tired of making fish. Then of course I have to sew them all together. Argh. What have I started?? I think the end result will be worth it though.

Thank you all for your lovely kind words, it helps enormously to have support from friends. I have been working on my pocket friends a little more, and added hair to this one, and gave her a bigger smile:

I think she looks like she would cheer anyone up!

I’ve had lots of requests for the pattern, so I will publish it here. I have tested the pattern a few times now, but if you spot any errata please contact me and I can edit the pattern. Feel free to make them for yourselves and your friends - they are small enough to slip in an envelope and you can complete one in an evening (this one above took me about three hours altogether). You could also make them to raise money for charity - all that I ask is that you do not make them to sell for profit, and that if anyone asks you for the pattern, you point them in this direction! Thank you

Friend in My Pocket

Materials:

2.5mm dpns (at least 3)

4-ply or sock yarn in cream for the body

4-ply or sock yarn in any colour for the hat and dress

Small scrap of stuffing

Embroidery thread for features and hair

Legs:

Using the i-cord method, cast on 4 stitches and knit 11 rows. (for an explanation of how to make i-cord, see here ). Break yarn, put sts on a spare needle, and rpt for second leg.

Body:

Put both legs on 1 needle. i-cord all 8 sts for two rows. Divide sts between two needles and, using third needle, k1, inc in next st, k to last two sts, inc in next st, k1 (10 sts)

K 7 rows in the round.

Arms:

Next row: k3, k2tog, and continue on these four sts, leaving the rest of the sts on the other needle. Using your third needle, i-cord 11 rows for arm. Break yarn, thread through stitches and fasten off neatly. Repeat with remaining sts for second arm.

Stuff the body with a little stuffing; do not over-stuff.

Head:

Pick up and k 2 sts from back, 2 sts from arm, 2 sts from front, 2 sts from other arm (8sts). Divide btwn two needles and k 1 row.

Next row: k1, kfb round (12 sts). K 6 rows.

Next row: K1, k2tog - 8 sts. Carefully stuff head whilst rem 8 sts are still on the needles.

Next row: k2tog across row - 4 sts. Fasten off.

Embroider face: using two strands of brown thread, sew French knots for eyes, starting and finishing threads at the top of the head (which will be hidden by the hat). Use two strands of red and sew small neat backstitches for the mouth.

Dress:

Cast on 12 sts. Divide between two needles and k3 rows in the round.

Next row: K1 (Kfb, K2) to last two stitches, Kfb, K1.

K 2 rows.

Next row: K1 (Kfb, K2) to end - 21 sts.

K 6 rows.  Cast off.

Hair (optional):

Wind a length of brown embroidery thread around two fingers five or six times; cut at one side. Hold the threads over the top of the head and sew to head with small stitches to create a “parting”. Using red thread, fasten to side of neck then sew round hair to create bunches. Repeat at other side. Fasten off at top of head as before.

Hat/Headscarf:

Cast on 20 sts. Knit in stocking stitch, decreasing 1 st at each end of each k row. If you are going to make a headscarf then slip the first st of each row purlwise to help prevent the st st from curling up. Continue to dec in this manner until there are 2 sts left on the needle; fasten off.

Hat: sew up the seam and place on head. Sew firmly in place.

Headscarf: sew the corners at the cast-on edge together and place on head. Catch the cast-off end to the nape of the neck. Sew headscarf firmly in place.

As some of you may know, I have recently been diagnosed with depression and am struggling with life a bit. I have done a little bit of crafting but have mainly been looking after myself! Hence no blogging for a while.

One thing I have found is that I get very anxious and panicky when in public places (particularly if I have to speak to people I know). Although I am very open about my depression I do find it hard to hold “small talk” conversations (which of course you have to do, even if it’s just at school pick-up time or buying a pint of milk). So I created these - I call them “Friend in my Pocket”:

I wrote a poem to go with them too:

“If you’re feeling sad,

If you’re feeling blue,

Put your hand in your pocket

And I know what to do,

Wrap your fingers around me

And I’ll hold them tight

And I’ll help you to wish

Everything to come right.”

A bit twee, but that’s me being very British about it I think!

The dolls are made from i-cord knitting and it takes about three hours to make one, including stuffing and embroidery, so I’m planning on making a few for friends who are having a hard time too. I will publish the pattern in a few days if anyone would like to make their own.

In answer to the perennial question, “what do you give the teachers at Christmas?” I decided on these. Having spent time in a few staffrooms in the past, I know that they are almost always short of mugs. However to give them the personal touch I made mug cosies for them. These were really quick to knit and I like the cable pattern:

The pattern I used was originally intended for a Starbucks takeaway coffee (to stop you burning your fingers!), so I modified it slightly so it would button up through the handle:

I haven’t made many handmade gifts this year but I couldn’t resist this little hat for my friend’s little girl:

I really wanted a picture of it being worn, so stuck it on Euan. However he is not a willing model …

Tuh.

As a thank you for collating and finishing off the lovely blanket I posted about earlier this week, I received a lovely surprise package through the post from my knitter friends (you know who you are!). I was very touched and more than  little thrilled, I can tell you! In it was a box of Thorntons chocolates (mmmmmmm…), a thank you card, and this:

Isn’t it gorgeous?! What this picture can’t show you is just how soft and delightful this yarn is. I started making it into a pair of socks last night and it is a dream to knit with. I can’t wait to wear them!

I would put in a pic of the chocolates too, but … well, you know how it is …

Calum needed a Santa hat for his nursery performance at the Christmas concert - unfortunately so did every other child in town, and by the time I got round to buying one I couldn’t find one anywhere! So the good ol’ knitting needles came in handy again.

He loves it so much that here he is wearing it in his pyjamas - he puts it on as soon as he gets up in the morning and only takes it off at night with a bit of persuasion! I made hats for the girls too but ran out of yarn before I finished the last one, so it is still languishing on my 6mms. Must do something about that …

Each year rather than putting decorations in the windows we paint pictures on them - this year’s ones aren’t as good as last year’s, but never mind, here they are!

Not to be outdone, Caitlin painted a snowman on her bedroom window. I like hers far better than mine!

Grr, can’t get the pictures where I want them, but you get the idea …!