Knitting and sewing

The shawl is finished, and being worn. I am wearing it as I write this, and it is keeping my neck beautifully warm. My "Context scarf", to give it the correct name, is being worn by my tailor's dummy Aggie.

So what did I do? I went and started another one yesterday. The same pattern, but this one is knitted in a beautifully coloured sock yarn called Trekking XXL.

I popped in to my local wool shop yesterday and found the yarn amongst the sock yarns. I had wanted something with brown, orange and yellow in it since I wanted a small shawl to wear with a red jumper and brown skirt. It is lucky this design knits up so quickly.

Yes, I have been sewing too - quilting and adding beads, buttons and ribbon to my journal quilts. More hand sewing than machine work. Photos will have to wait until another time since I really need to get the first three finished and posted on the Yahoo site before posting the photos here.

I also have two blouses I really need to make for choir. I made one blouse some months ago, but it is deteriorating badly. The fabric I had used is the problem. It was a lining fabric which I hoped would be good enough and has now started stretching at the seams. I would have been happier had the stretching been caused by my being too big for the blouse. Sadly it is just pulling after having been washed a couple of times. So here you see the fabric I have bought to make two blouses. There is a rather pretty lilac and a brighter cerise colour. I bought these from the Fent Shop in Macclesfield. The fabric is a slubbed polyester and is much denser, whilst also being softer than my current choir blouse.

I shall be using one of these two patterns. Both were found in a charity shop. I shall probably use the McCalls pattern for the first choir blouse since the blouses are not worn tucked into a waistband. The Burda blouse will be so pretty for the Spring............ The next concert is next weekend, so I had better get on and make them.

Knitting in Whitby.

The view from the cottage windows. We could see right across the harbour. A lovely spot.



Can you see the white painted building at the foot of a larger two story house? It has a strange black symbol painted to the right of the front windows. That is Kipper Cottage. It is the bottom floor of a larger building, but is also a completely separate dwelling. The white shape to the left is also part of the cottage - the front bedroom window. Approached down a slope seen to the right of the painted shape, it is a comfy and cosy place to stay. Beautifully set out, it was a delight to be able to stay there for the weekend. Close to everything, we had a wonderful time exploring.



I just loved this delightful building tucked away in one of the streets leading off from the harbour.



There was even a small replica of the Endeavour, one of the ships taken by Captain Cook on his travels. I couldn't resist the reflection of the rigging.



Here you can see the older part of Whitby with the Abbey perched on top of the promontory. The ruins can be seen behind the church. There is a very steep set of steps up to the Abbey and the surrounding buildings. A fascinating place to visit.

All in all, a rather special weekend.



Just before we left we stumbled upon the Charity Market being held in Northwich. I found these lovely books dating from around 1946.





This is the contents list from the Home Needlecraft book. It has really good illustrations showing how to convert older clothing into new......... Fascinating how ideas come round again.

The knitting? Well, I got a lot of knitting done on Simon's jumper. I am making him a second jumper this Christmas. This one is in charcoal. So nice to sit cosily perched on a comfy settee (sofa) after a day spent exploring.

Quiet times.

Well, I really thought I wouldn't have anything to post about again this week. Then I started thinking.............. Thinking is definitely a dangerous past-time.




I've been busily knitting since I last wrote. Liz's pullover is now ready for the addition of the neck. Its taken me rather a while to get to this stage. Its been one of those projects where I have had had repeatedly to rip back and reknit sections because I have made a mistake. Usually really silly mistakes, which makes it all the more irritating. Since the jumper is being knitted for someone, I find myself unwilling to put up with even minor mistakes.

I have also completed the design work for the Band Robin. I can't show you my design just yet, since I need to show photos to the Stitching Sisters group first. Its taken me rather a while to get the design finished so I do hope that Jenny, the owner, likes it. The next stage is to get on with the stitching.

Recently, I became involved with a new Quilting Group, Hartford Quilters. This is going to be a really active group. We have already started a joint project making strips for a series of lapquilts. The strips are 6 inches deep and 42 inches wide (finished size) in pastel shades. The finished lapquilts will be given to the local Hospice, who have suggested the colour scheme we are using. I have put all my pieces together, but have not settled on a design for my strip yet. I'd better get a move on with this before I get left behind.

A second group I have become involved with recently, is the Borders Knitting group meeting at Cheshire Oaks. The group meets inside Borders, the large book shop. (Thats me on the bottom right hand side of the photo.) This is the first knitting group I have ever been a part of. Its so nice to meet people with a similar interest. Its fun to sit around and chat and to learn new ideas too. I got to hear about this group through Ravelry, one of the Internet groups I belong to.