Jim and I have embarked upon a slightly wild plan to knit a sweater before Yarndale. I have been lusting after a Telja sweater for some time. My lovely local yarn shop (Frome Yarn Collective) had a sample of another of Jennifer Steingass’s patterns in the window earlier in the year, and I walk past twice a day on the school run. Every time I saw the sweater I fell a little more in love with it.
Read moreSomething to Knit With Aran
Do you ever get so excited about yarn that you want to pile it up and roll around in it? Or is that just me? Ever since Something to Knit With Aran arrived in the office back in May (yes, we really do work a long way in advance to get things ready for you!), I’ve been resisting the temptation to tip it all out and make myself a yarn nest. This new yarn is just so delightfully and irresistibly squishy and I love it to bits.
Read moreJuxta by Woolly Wormhead
Hat knitting season is definitely here! I can smell it in the crisp morning air, and my needles are already itching to cast on all the hats!
Read moreHow I got hooked on dip stitches
I'm entirely blaming Hunter Hammersen. It's completely her fault!
We have been chatting by email for a few months – comparing notes on getting carried away with techniques and the demands of running a knitting publishing business. She's been sharing photos of her experiments with what she has called "dip stitches" over on her Instagram account (HunterHammersen) for a few months now, and earlier in the summer she sent me a preview copy of her new book, Firmament, which explores these fun stitches in detail.
Read moreWe are happily knitting along on our lace projects
It seems like every time I log in to my Ravelry account there are loads more posts in the Lace KAL thread! It's a chatty place with no end of inspiring lace projects, hints and tips. If you don't fancy wading through all of the chatter, then I highly recommend clicking the button at the top of the thread so that you can browse through just the photos in the thread, which gives you a more manageable 145 posts (rather than the 1200ish in the whole thread!).
Read moreGoldilocks and the Three* Vests
Today I'm handing over the reins of the blog to Alix Pearson. Alix is one of the moderators in our Ravelry group, and is a fount of knowledge on both stranded knitting and adjusting patterns for fit. I have long admired her beautiful stranded vests, so today she is going to share some helpful tips on making your own. Over to you, Alix!
Read moreStrickplaner 2019 has landed!
Would you like more time to knit? I most certainly would! Well this year, I've been quite successful in making more time to knit (it's still not enough, but it's definitely better than it was), and my secret weapon has been my Strickplaner.
Read moreSummertime...
…and the knitting is easy!
As promised I’ve been plodding away on the body of my Ola Yoke and my Rainbow Socks. It doesn’t make for very interesting blog posts I’m afraid! I’ve passed the halfway point on Ola’s body, and I’m so excited to reach the beautiful colourwork of the yoke. There’s still quite a bit of stocking stitch to work through before I reach that point though! My Rainbow Socks have all of the end of term concerts, services and productions knitted into them. I’m nearly at the toe of the first sock, which is quite good going seeing as I keep them in my handbag and only work on them when I’m out and about. I will always associate them with this heatwave. I’m pretty sure that’s going to make them extra cosy when they are done.
Read moreSomething New to Learn About Lace KAL Progress
We're nearly at the end of the second week of the lace knitalong and already there is plenty to admire. The brief for the KAL is simple: knit a lace project, post photos on the Ravelry forum and tag your project with SN2LAL.
Read moreKnitting in Germany
I had a great trip to Damsdorf, Germany last weekend, to visit Strickmich! Headquarters. We had great weather (not too hot!) and Martina and Peter and the family were so welcoming. One of the best things about it was that I got absolutely LOADS of knitting done. Since the hot weather started here in the south-west, the kids have been finding it really hard to get to sleep in the evenings. This means that my normal 90 minutes of knitting between their bedtime and mine has dwindled down to 45 minutes if I'm lucky, which frankly isn't enough to keep my sanity! So it was a welcome break to have travelling time and then a relaxed weekend with Martina and her family to recharge my knitting batteries somewhat.
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