Kelly Connor Designs Knitting Bag

When I opened my presents on Christmas morning I discovered that my friend had sent me a Kelly Connor knitting bag.

 

You can tell that she knows me well!  I had already opened another present which consisted of something to put in it.

 

I plan to use this new yarn to knit another version of my striped scarf pattern.  I may get on to that in January.

Mauve Knitted Baby’s Coat

I have just sewn the buttons on the coat that I have been making for about 3 weeks.  It is a Stella Smith design that I cut out of Simply Knitting magazine a few years ago.  I have just looked more closely at the pattern and have noticed the date of July 2006!

The original design is knitted in pink with light coloured buttons.  I was asked to knit something in mauve and I tried light buttons but decided that the darker buttons looked better.  They are mauve too, but look black from a distance.  I am crossing my fingers that the coat fits the baby.  I have never seen her in the flesh, but hope I will soon be seeing a photo of her wearing a little mauve coat!

Just a few more days of Christmas preparations and overwork, and then I can get back to serious knitting.

No Time for Knitting

This is not quite true – I have knitted the back of the baby’s coat and I have thought about knitting a lot of other things!

 

This is a photo of a tea cosy that I knitted last year.  If you would like to make one the pattern is available from All the Fun of the Fair’s web-site.  

On Saturday I went to London and visited John Lewis’s haberdashery department on the 4^th Floor.  It used to be better in the past - but I rarely leave without buying anything.  I had been given some money to buy myself a Christmas present so I bought some expensive yarn to make another version of my striped scarf and a couple of balls of red aran to add to a pile of yarn that I am collecting to make a cardigan.  Whilst in London, I did also buy some Christmas presents for friends and family!

Postage Stamp Inspired Bag

As it is winter now I decided that the summery bag I knitted earlier in the year was not appropriate and so I have found another one to use which I knitted a few years ago.

 

It is very bright and cheerful looking.  Both sides are made up from small mitred squares.  I got the idea from Kaffe Fassett’s various postage stamp inspired designs.  I have just counted the squares and there are 7 rows of 10 – so 70 on each side.  It sounds a lot but I don’t think it took very long to knit.  I was just using up odd bits of Colinette Fandango which has a very short colour change – so every small square is quite interesting.

I have done very little knitting this week – I have been too busy – I have knitted half a sleeve!  I have a few things I want to get done before Christmas, but at the moment preparations for Christmas are taking precedence.

I often knit Christmas presents, but this year I am only knitting one – a small baby’s coat which I intend to start soon.  I wanted to leave it until the last minute so that the baby would not have grown out of it before she gets it and it might actually fit her!

Sonoran Throw – Tic Toc  Rock Colour-way

I have finished knitting the Sonoran throw for Colinette.  I prefer this one to the previous one that I did because the colours are more subtle.

 

This colour-way contains 2 of my favourite shades of Colinette yarn – Castagna and Copperbeech – both could be described as brown but the first one has green and grey in it and the second one red and blue!

Another Colinette Arizona Dreams – Sonoran Design

Colinette have sent me another kit to knit up for them.  I asked if I could do another Sonoran design.  This time it is in a colour-way called Tic Toc Rock and consists of much more muted colours than the previous throw I made.

 

 

I have photographed the first diamond shape – just as I did on 22 October when I knitted the first diamond of the previous throw.  They look very different.   I had thought I would be able to knit this throw more quickly as I ought to know what I am doing but I have been distracted by domestic problems.

Irregular Striped Scarf Pattern

 

I unravelled the scarf again!  I knitted part of 3 strips and plaited them together and I didn’t like the effect – it was too thick and too narrow.

I decided to stop trying to be too clever and to go back to an old favourite – a striped scarf.  I didn’t do this originally because I was worried about the fact that the aran yarn was thinner than the other 2  but I found that if I only knitted a few rows at a time – it is not that obvious.

If you would like to knit a similar scarf – the pattern is given below.  I fancy knitting it again in 3 shades of Noro but that will have to be next year!

Colour A 1 ball x 100g ball Rowan Cocoon chunky yarn Saturn Shade 837 (115m/126yds)

Colour B 1 ball x 100g ball Rowan Cocoon chunky yarn Umber Shade 835 (115m/126yds)
Colour C 1 skein x Rowan Fine Art Aran yarn Shade 548 (170m/186yds)
9mm needles

Rib Pattern

Row 1: *K3, P1; repeat from* to end.
Row 2: *K2, P1, K1; repeat from * to end.
This pattern forms an open rib.

Using yarn A, cast on 28sts and work in pattern for 6 rows.

Continue in the rib pattern throughout following the colour sequence as given below.
Rows 7-12: yarn C. (6 rows)
Rows 13-18: yarn B. (6 rows)
Rows 19-24: yarn C. (6 rows)
Rows 25-74: yarn A. (50 rows)
Rows 75-80: yarn C. (6 rows)
Rows 81-86: yarn B. (6 rows)
Rows 87- 92: yarn A. (6 rows)
Rows 93-98: yarn C (6 rows)
Rows 99-100: yarn B (2 rows)
Rows 101-102: yarn C (2 rows)
Repeat the last 4 rows until 50 x 2 rows stripes have been completed (96 more rows)
Rows 199-204: yarn B (6 rows)
Rows 205- 210: yarn C (6 rows)
Rows 211-216: yarn B (6 rows)
Rows 217-244: yarn A (28 rows)
Rows 245-250: yarn C (6 rows)
Rows 251-256: yarn B (6 rows)
Rows 257-262: yarn C (6 rows)
Rows 263-268: yarn A (6 rows)
Rows 269-270: yarn C (2 rows)
Rows 271-272: yarn A (2 rows)
Repeat the last 4 rows until 10 x 2 rows stripes have been completed (16 more rows).
Cast off in pattern using yarn A.
Sew in ends.