Favourite Patterns

It was entirely a coincidence that when I went to the last Knitting and Crochet Guild meeting – where the topic was “Favourite Things” – that I was knitting one of my favourite patterns.  It is an old 1980s pattern for a baby jacket which was published by Littlewoods.

The original was a fair-isle pattern but it can be knitted in any way.  I have done stripes and checks as well as using multi-coloured yarn.  When I decided to knit a couple of baby coats for the Oxford Baby Bank – it was obvious that I would choose to use my version of this pattern.

I have knitted this one in Stylecraft Tweedy and I am now working on a second one using Stylecraft Special for Babies.

During the meeting we discussed things that could be knitted to raise money for the Guild.  Babies coats are something that are easy to knit; can be sold fairly cheaply and that people like to buy as a gift for a new baby.  Bootees were also suggested as well as little hats and gloves.  These are all popular for the same reasons.

A Few Favourites

I managed to finish the shawl that I was knitting for my mother at the end of last year.  There are several other shawls that I would like to knit.  I had Stephen West’s latest book for Christmas and some red yarn which I intend to make into a shawl.

Tomorrow is the latest meeting for the Oxford Branch of the Knitting and Crochet Guild.  This month’s topic is a discussion of favourite designers, patterns, yarns etc.  In anticipation of this I have been thinking about my favourites.

I know I have written about my favourite yarns before.  Some of them are discontinued!  My top 5 all-time are:

1                     Colinette Fandango

2                     Noro Kureyon

3                     Sirdar Highlands and Islands

4                     Rowan Felted Tweed

5                     Debbie Bliss Rialto Sock

I have a few patterns that I have knitted many times – most of these are for babies.  I am currently knitting a few little coats for Oxford Baby Bank.  My liking for shawls and multi-coloured knitting influence liking for particular designers – my current top 5 would be:

1                     Horst Schulz

2                     Kaffe Fassett

3                     Valentina Devine

4                     Brian Smith

5                     Patricia Werner

I could have also added Martin Storey – but that would have been 6!  I just had another thought – I could have added Sirdar Escape to the yarn list – so that would be 6 as well.

I would like to start knitting another shawl, but I am going to take the little baby coats to the meeting because they  are much easier to knit when you are talking.  If I take the shawl – I will have to unravel it when I get home which will be really frustrating – so I am going to stick to knitting something “boring”.

A Late Christmas Present

I know that every year I say that I won’t knit anything at the last minute, and every year I seem to end up doing it.  This year I am knitting a shawl for my mother.  I started doing this last year but didn’t like the finished result.  This year I am knitting a two-coloured shawl from a pattern that was in Issue 126 of The Knitter magazine.  It is called Ramsey by Melissa Schaschwary.  

I am using two shades of Rowan alpaca soft dk yarn which is 70% wool and 30% alpaca.  It is very soft.  I chose the colours to go with 2 cardigans that my mother wears.

The pattern was fairly easy until I got to the border and then I kept going wrong and finding that the holes did not line up. I think the problem is that there are too many instructions – I kept doing things automatically and then reading the next bit and doing them again.  It is the wrong time of the year for concentration.  However, I have almost finished the shawl now – I only need to cast off.  This could take some time as I have got to create the picot edge as I cast off which involves casting on more stitches.

It is not the New Year yet – but I have 2 New Year resolutions that I won’t stick to!  I will finish some of my partly finished projects and I will try to write this blog once a week. 

Everything I have Ever Knitted - for My Parents

For the last couple of weeks I have been working on the modular knitted jacket that I started last November.   It is not that far off being finished but I still need to do the button band and the cuffs.  I hope it will fit me – but I have got to the point that I just want to finish it.

In-between times – I have been knitting little samples for my Everything I have Ever Knitted project.  This is a V-neck.  In the 1980s I knitted my father 2 pullovers to wear under a suit for work.  He was very fussy and wanted them to look right (so did I) – and I was particularly pleased that he wore them every winter thereafter.  One was grey and the other was dark green like this sample. 

Over the years I have knitted lots of things for my mother and finished items that she started and got stuck with.  The following sample is from a cardigan that I knitted for her.  I think she may have knitted some of it.  It was knitted in this yarn which is a copper coloured Sirdar Country Style.  I remember finding the basket work pattern difficult especially when decreasing.  Although this cardigan was knitted many years ago – I saw my mother wearing it in the last few months.

I was thinking that the first things that I knitted have stayed in my memory long after the garments have gone.  Each one was precious – I had to save up for the yarn – and each one was a learning experience.  The following is a sample of reversed stocking stitch knitted in Wendy’s Chignon. 

I loved this yarn and knitted the very plain jumper to show it off.  A few years later I knitted the pattern again when I discovered a similar yarn.  I would knit it again – if I could find the yarn.  It is chunky but is very light-weight and the colours are very subtle.

Duck Feet

After months of struggling – I have finally finished the duck feet that my work colleague requested for her baby. 

When she asked me if I could knit her some duck feet – I said – “yes” – I mean - how hard can it be?!  I downloaded the pattern.  It is  a design by Jeny Staiman and has very comprehensive instructions.  The question is – what do they mean?!  I think the pattern is actually very good – the problem is that I am not a sock knitter so most of it is written in a foreign language.  If you are a sock knitter – you will think it is OK.

Having said that I found the pattern hard and the duck feet have taken me months to knit – I have managed to knit them.   I don’t think I knitted them exactly correctly – but it is close enough.

I am now back to knitting something much more to my taste – a modular knitted cardigan – which I started last December.  When I have finished that – it will have taken even longer than the duck feet – not because it is difficult – but because I have been knitting other things and haven’t touched it at all since last December.

A Selection of Hats

Recently I have been neglecting this blog again, but I have been knitting.  The Knitting and Crochet Guild want items to sell at a Christmas Fayre – so I have knitted some hats.

They are quite similar to the tea cosies that I normally knit - but I think more people wear hats than use tea cosies!  Knitting a hat is quite satisfying – it can be done quickly and does not require difficult techiques. 

100 Yarns Throw – Finished Version

I have finished this throw.  I am pleased with it and think it is a good way of using up odd bits of yarn.

I knitted a border on the throw but decided that it curled up too much – so I unravelled it and crocheted a simple edge – like one of the throws that inspired this project.

The idea for this throw was originally conceived while I was knitting the colour blocks blanket from Martin Storey’s Afghan Knits book.  The difference being that the colour blocks throw is knitted in garter stitch rather than stocking stitch, in 4 colours rather than about 100, has 63 squares rather than 42 and no border.  There are 2 main similarities.  I cast on the same number of stitches – 89 (although using 6.5mm needles instead of 4.5mm) and I knit the squares flat and then sewed up the seam on each one to make a square.

Before I knitted the colour blocks blanket – I had seen a throw in the book Knitalong by Larissa Brown and Martin John Brown.   This was a “Barn-Raising Quilt” knitted where each square had been knitted by different people.  The appearance of the quilt is similar – in that it is squares arranged in groups of similar colours and I knitted the same number of squares - 42. The differences are that the Barn-Raising Quilt was knitted in the round on four needles and using sock yarn.

So although I was inspired by 2 other knitted throws – mine is different – in terms of needle size and yarn used.  The general weight of yarn is between aran and chunky.  I have included sock yarn but in combination with something else to make it thicker. Each square was cast on using a main colour to make the squares easy to sew together.