Finished project - Abby in Foxgloves

Fibre is from picperfic's fluff & stuff, a luxury mix of merino, cashmere and silk.

This was my first go at fractal spinning. The technique helps to distribute the colours in 2-ply yarn. You split the fibre down the middle, spin one bobbin full from one half and then split the second half again so that the colour changes are faster on the second bobbin.

I was worried that I'd lose the greens (which I love in this fibre) in the mix, but I'm surprised at how distinct they still are and how strong the stripes are. I couldn't be happier.

The pattern is Abby from Knitty. I'd bought two patterns for this yarn but both were knit around rather than top-to-bottom. That wouldn't have looked right with these colour changes, and I eventually found Abby. It was easy enough to pick up and put down over Christmas, is very effective and is free!

More photos here
Ravelry project here

Woolly Wednesday for January 2014

I finished Jane GreenHowe's Christmas Crib just before Woolly Wednesday last month. It ate up so much time, it has been really good to get back to some of my other projects.

I had nearly finished these wonderful socks last Woolly Wednesday. With a bit of commitment they joined the finished projects pile and I've really enjoyed wearing them over Christmas.

The fibre was from Picperfic's luxury fibre club - a mix of yak, merino, silk which seems perfect for socks. Pattern is Piccole Onde. It's a painstaking pattern (those are real cable crossovers) but the resulting air pockets make the socks very cosy. More pics here.

I've made a little progress on my Glacial cardy. The fleece was from a woolly pet of a family friend, washed, dyed and spun before Christmas.

I didn't intend for this next project to be as addictive as it has, but I needed a 'pick-up-and-put-down' project to carry with me over Christmas so I cast it on just before the holiday and have touched very little else.

Once again the fibre is from Picperfic's club, this time merino, cashmere and silk. It's going to feel lovely against my neck and I'm so pleased with the way that the colours have worked out. It's my first go at fractal spinning. I'm surprised at the strength of the stripes, but this is a good thing. I loved the small amount of green in this particular fibre and didn't want it to be lost

Finally, something I've just started but has really absorbed me over the last few days. Since I first saw the 'Town and Country' skirt in the Ashford Book of Projects years ago I've wanted to make one. The houndstooth pattern is surprisingly easy to weave - I've already made a purse a while ago. The skirt I have in mind is a 4-panel straight design and so the fabric can be made on a 12" knitters or rigid heddle loom. I've not spun for this one - yarn is Ashford Tekapo wool - which means I've been able to get straight on with the warping and weaving which have been very fast and I'm pleased with the neatness of my fabric.

I'm less confident in my sewing skills and so have asked a friend to do the dressmaking bit for me!

Yarn bowls in the making

Helen has taken some pictures during the making of this batch of bowls, giving us a step-by-step view of the process.

 After throwing each bowl on her wheel, they're left to harden.

 She cuts the holes and slots with a small scalpel:

 The bowls are fired twice, once to fire the clay, and a second, lower firing for the glaze

I receive small batches from Helen and they sell well. The yarn bowl designs that I have in stock are available here

The knitted Christmas tree at the Forum, Norwich

Thanks to my friend David and to snoopydog for letting me know about the wonderful Christmas tree in The Forum, Norwich. The tree, the decorations and the gifts below are all knitted.

 Everything was knitted by hundreds of ladies across Norfolk and beyond, some as far away as the USA. To date £10,000 has been raised to fund new lifts in John Grooms Court where physically disabled young adults are cared for. Some were recently stranded on upper floors by a broken lift.

For more information there's a Youtube video which has a link to a paypal donate button.

Finished project - Be Mine socks

Three finished projects within a month? I'm on a roll!

Pattern is Piccole Onde, a free pattern published on Knitty. The small needles and real cable crossovers make for slow work but well worth it. The pattern makes little pockets of warmth!

The fibre is Picperfic's Wylie blend (yak, merino, silk) in 'be mine' colourway - a special Valentine colour mix for February's luxury fibre club.

The yarn is very fine. The leg a good length but I've used only 60g of the original 100g of spun fibre.

Larger pictures on Flickr

Finished project, Knitted Nativity

The knitted nativity is now finished, complete with wooden stable and straw. I made this for a friend with help from another knitting friend. The pattern is Jane Greenhowe's Christmas Crib

They actually do move around at night. I left the camera on one night and this is what happened:

Ravelry Project

Woolly Wednesday for December 2013

I spent most of my knitting time last month making the knitted nativity for a friend. When finally finished I wondered whether they moved around when no-one was looking and I couldn't help making this. "You're all drunk!"

After that I was free to catch up with some works in progress, I quickly finished the boyfriend scarf. More details are here and when finished we couldn't resist recreating the silly version of the Ways to Wear a Scarf (original cartoon here):

This one goes on and on. The tiny stitches and crossover cables make for very slow progress, but well worth it - the result is beautiful. The free pattern is Piccole Onde toe-up socks that I featured in February's Purl Two Together and the fibre I spun from a wool / silk / yak mix which was from Picperfic's Fibre Club.

Finally a new project that I shouldn't have started until other things were done, but I couldn't resist. I bought the pattern from the lovely Ruth of Rock n Purl back at Wonderwool. The wool is from the sheep of a family friend, very bouncy. I washed, dyed and carded it earlier in the year and I'm spinning as I go.