More knitting.

As you can see I have been making good progress with the Elizabeth's Year project, I have now reached the underarm stage and am working on the first of the two sleeves. The second cuff is already done and ready to be knitted up to match the first sleeve. I did toy with the idea of trying out the magic loop method, but chickened out of trying it since I had already cast on both cuffs and knitted them to the right depth.

Magic Loop is something I really would like to try out, but will leave it until I have rather more time and not so many projects to concentrate on.

You may have noticed the addition of three extra colours. I found myself getting rather bored knitting the plain orange, so got the other colours this weekend. The plan is to add a broad stripe around the lower armhole area rising to the neck edge.







There has been some progress with the Notre Dame do Grace jumper. Not as much as I had intended, but then I find myself concentrating more on the Elizabeth's Year project at the moment. This one tends to get worked on when I need thinking time to sort out the instructions in the Knitter's Almanac.

Knitting and sewing.

Its been quite a busy week. The trees have all started changing colour and the hanging baskets have just about finished flowering. These amazing little flowers give a startling burst of colour to add to the visual din.

I managed to finish the machine embroidery on my jeans, though I do have a feeling that a few beads would add an interesting bit of sparkle....

During the week, I also finished the back of one jumper - the Notre Dame de Grace I started last weekend. I've now got started on the front..........

I did start my jumper for the Elizabeth's Year October project. However, I wasn't happy with the first version - I'd decided to try having a hem. It looked far too bulky, so I ripped it back. Then I started again, this time ribbing the edge. It kept getting twisted on the needles, so that got ripped back. I have started once more..... Hopefully this time it will work well.

I haven't yet started the sock yarn - I've been far too busy. On top of everything else, I was asked to help with cutting a couple of inches off the bottom of a pair of ready-made lined curtains. Rather a nice task that I've almost finished.

Last night my elder daughter asked if I could repair a pair of trousers for her....... not much, just a damaged seam and turn-ups that need a few stitches to reinforce. Oh and could I take up another pair of trousers for her? The legs are two inches too long...........

Why do I find myself saying "yes"?

Self indulgence.

I have completed this pair of socks. They are so cosy! They will be a joy to wear inside my boots this winter.



The following photos show a project which I have finally started. I grabbed this pair of jeans from some rubbish thrown out a while ago by one of my daughters. They are almost new - the only problem being that the legs have been slit from the bottom edge for a distance of roughly two inches. I have patched the cut and darned the area.



Then I have added some patterned scraps of fabric. The bits were first ironed onto Bondaweb, before being ironed onto the patched area at the bottom of each trouser leg. I shall use free-machine-embroidery to scribble a pattern over the top to secure the fabric scraps. After this I shall embroider some patterns around the fabric scraps just to decorate the area. I shall post photos when I have finished.



Yesterday, I spent a rather self-indulgent afternoon in Chester. This is a beautiful city, right on the edge of Cheshire in the UK. I was visiting to buy fabric, yarn and anything else that took my fancy.



In a Charity shop - Save the Children..... I found these pieces of furnishing fabric. There is just less than a yard of the blue and just over two yards of the cream. The blue is destined for my new recorder music bag. If there is anything left I shall be making rolled, padded, cases for my instruments.

The cream will be used to complete the task. I shall then use the remainder to make rolls to contain my collections of circular needles, double-pointed needles and straight needles. It will be so nice to be able to keep these tidy.......



Whilst in Chester I visited a favourite shop. Stash. I indulged myself, buying three different yarns for three different projects. I have already started the first of these. Its the "Notre Dame de Grace Pullover" by Veronik Avery. This is in the Summer 2007 edition of Interweave Knits. I am using Debbie Bliss' Rialto Aran. It feels so nice................

I found this lovely yarn for the October project for Elizabeth's Year, I bought some Addi bamboo circular needles for the same project.

I found this gorgeous sock yarn too. I couldn't resist..........

Socks and knitting

Sewing has had to be left for a little while since I have been rather short of time recently. Rather frustrating, but once I have got myself better organised I shall get back to stitching once more......








The nice thing about knitting is that I can pick it up when I have even just a few minutes to myself. I've been busily knitting socks lately. I finished my very first pair just a few days ago.

I used the "On-your-toes socks" pattern by Ann Budd from the Summer 2007 edition of "Interweave Knits". Rather a nice pattern, it certainly made it easy for me to grasp the basics of knitting socks from the toe up. I have now started a second pair......







You might recognise the yarn from my original abortive attempt to complete a pair of socks. I shall get back to that pattern one day and master it.

Summer School

Some photos from the Summer School I was talking about in the last post. The four day embroidery course was held near Ormskirk, Lancashire. The title was "What lies beneath" and took antique underwear as an inspiration. We all worked on designs to make a corset-style top. I designed mine to be worn with the shawl I have just completed.



The next photos shows just one of the items from the wonderful collection of underwear we were able to see.



The next photos are taken from the journal I made during the course with some of the ideas I have been playing around with for my own top. The mock-up shows just the centre panel of the princess-style shaped front.



Yes, I am intending to hand paint the fabric I shall use for this garment. Oh yes, I do intend to wear it.........



The green fabric shows a mock-up of one of the flowers from the front of the garment, as well as a completed free-machine embroidered strip of lace which is intended to edge the bottom of the completed corset-style top.



I met some wonderful people during the Summer School. It has left me with the ambition to start the City and Guild Embroidery course. I just need to work out how to fit in the full-time job................

Back again!

Well, its been quite a long time since I last wrote to this Blog. I have been away from home and on holiday.
For the first week, I went to a Summer School. This was really interesting since it introduced me to the style of working needed for the City and Guilds courses. The Summer School was run by the School of Stitched Textiles.
http://www.sofst.org/
I shall post some photos and more information next time.
The next couple of weeks saw me going away on holiday with my husband. We had a most enjoyable holiday which saw us travelling to Hong Kong, a visit into China, then flying to Singapore, moving on to Bangkok and lastly a relaxing week on Koh Samui.
I was able to indulge myself in buying some gorgeous silk. The photos will follow in the next post.
Its been a really interesting summer...........
Oh, and I managed to finish my shawl!

Knitting and bags.

Well, I completed the linings on my two bags.






Each bag now has a large side pocket which can hold at least one magazine, a zipped pocket large enough to carry a purse and other special items, and a smallish pocket for a mobile phone. I found a rather fun ladybird tag for the zip. Much easier to grab hold of than the tiny tag at the end of the zip.

The following pictures show a project bag I made for myself some time ago.











I made the strip of seminole patchwork a year or so ago for a different project. It didn't suit the project, so never got used. Now it makes rather a nice pocket for this bag. The pocket is a little shallow, but still useful for little bits and pieces which could get lost within the bag itself. At the moment it holds my sock knitting projects.



Yes, I have already bought myself some new sock yarn. I still haven't been able to progress with the current socks since I am still steadily knitting on with my shawl. I am very happy to report that I have now knitted over half the edging on my shawl - 154 repeats of the pattern! There are 288 repeats altogether.......... but I'm getting there!