Playing with colour

A quick update on the mitered square blanket. I must admit I'm getting a little bit bored, but I will get there :-) 50 squares down, 30 to go. I've abandoned the bedspread idea, and going for a large blanket instead. I do on the other hand lovelovelove the colours!

Check out the cute bunny hat and keyhole scarf I've made for my little niece! I haven't had time to mail them off yet, and with temperatures increasing, there probably will be little use for the set in the next few months. I've made the hat to fit a 12-18 month old so hopefully it will come to good use at the end of this year. The yarn is RYC Cashcotton, supersoft and guaranteed non-itchy!




I skipped the embroidered details on the bunny face, but I still think it looks super cute.




Some leftover projects, commisioned for a colleague's granddaugther.

I can haz new skillz

I finally got round to trying entrelac, which has been on my to-do list for over a year, and it was a lot easier than I imagined! I used some leftover alpaca and cast on following the instructions for the Danica scarf. It was only intended as a swatch, but why not make something that can actually be worn? Using a lightweight yarn, I didn't feel like making a scarf, but a headband seemed like a good idea.











It's super soft and tucks easily into a coat pocket for those days where temperatures require something to keep my ears warm. I just kept going until it was long enough to fit around my head, and I think it's turned out really cute! I'll have a look through my stash for some yarn for a scarf next. I really like the basketweave effect of knitting with two colours, the only drawback is having to weave in all those yarn ends...

















The prize yarn from Sock Wars III turned up two weeks ago and of course I had to cast on for some socks right away! So far I've made a pair of Detonators for myself, and working on a pair of Pomatomus socks. The pattern was a bit hard at first, but once I got past the first couple of rows and could see the pattern emerging, I found it quite simple to follow. I love how the twisted stitches give definition to the pattern. The gauge given is the same as for the Detonators, so I must admit I didn't bother knitting a swatch (shame on me!), so fingers crossed they'll fit...























Finally, a few pictures of the wiev from our house right now. It's an old fashioned Winter Wonderland out there. We've had to clear our veranda twice already!

Shame on me for not updating...

Hey, look! New, bright layout!

I haven't updated this blog in ages as I've been really busy at work and moving in to our new house. Finally starting to get my craft room together! So far it stores all my yarn (a whole rack of IKEA shelves...how did I get all that yarn?), my sewing machine and my sewing box. I'm planning on getting the spinning wheel that's been sitting down my mom's basement for ages restored, and I really want to take up dyeing my own yarn. Pics will come as soon as it's tidy enough, at the moment it's a mess, leftover bags from moving that I haven't had time to unpack, bags of clothes packed up to take to charity but mysteriously they're still here...

Those of you who are on Ravelry may know that I won Sock Wars III. It was a fun experience, and my first attempt at competitive knitting. I probably won't be taking part in SW IV, but who knows? I might be tempted to give it another go sometime. An article on competitive knitting in general and SW in particular will feature in the March issue of Knitting magazine.

Right now I'm working on the Mitered Square blanket as a bedspread, and already I'm dreading sewing it up... My squares measure 18X18 centimeters, and so I'll need a hundred of them to cover our bed... Hopefully it will look as good completed as it does in my mind!









Yarn for more squares









I'm not following any particular colour scheme for this blanket, and pick the colours as I go. Loosely keeping the "juicies/blahs" idea in mind when mixing, contrasting bright colours with muted.

Sharpening my tools

I'm enrolled as a Sock Warrior, and the last week has been spent frantically knitting the socks to "kill" my victim. Finished the pair yesterday. I'm using Tofutsies yarn for the first time, and although I found it prone to splitting when I first started, i've really come to like this yarn! It's thinner than the sock yarn I normally use, but it looks good, and the colours are really pretty. Here's a pic for you to see!














Apart from socks, I'm making good progress on the Shaped Triangle shawl from A Gathering of Lace. I'm using Celestial Merino from Tradewind Design.
















The yarn is variegated, so the details aren't that visible in the pics, but hopefully it will look good once the shawl is completed.

Easter fun

Finally got time for some serious knitting! I'm almost finished with the Honeycomb Lacy Baby Blanket, in good time for the baby due in May. Hopefully the recipients will like it as much as I do! The yarn is Filatura Di Crosa Wave, which I got from Sofies Garn og Bymøbler in Oslo. It's fairly expensive, so if I ever decide to knit this blanket again, I'd choose a less pricey yarn. I'll have to buy another ball to finish it, so the total cost for this blanket is close to NOK 500. But it will make a nice gift that hopefully will be appreciated.















And at last I got round to knitting a pair of socks for myself, from a pattern I've been eyeing for some time. It's the Queen of Cups from Knitty's spring 2007 issue. The first sock is now completed, and it was a real joy to knit.

















The latest yarn purchases include a selection of yarns I scored at the Guanako clearance sale. Two balls of Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino, three small hanks of Debbie Bliss Pure Silk, and three balls of Kidsilk Haze in a lovely brown colour. The KSH is going to be a shawl I think, and the Baby Cashmerino will make some nice baby socks :-)

Moths around a light bulb

My Luna Moth is done, and what a difference the blocking made! I wasn't sure it would be big enough, but it's turned out great. The measurements are approx. 170 cm by 90 cm. Slightly smaller than the original pattern, but I think it's a nice size. The 100 gram hank of yarn was plenty, with even a bit of yarn left over.

Christmas bag of yarny goodness

Been crazy busy at work lately, with lots of hours overtime, so I'm a bit behind posting to my blog! Just a short notice to let you see these pics of the X-mas goodie bag from my aunt! It's packed full of lovely yarn from PT plus a hank of unspun wool for felting. Nice bright colours too. A couple of skeins of turqouise in different shades, some orange and a lovely dark brown.

Although I have been busy, I've got some knitting done too. The Luna Moth Shawl is finished and waiting to be blocked (strange how I don't seem to find the time to do it???), and all the pieces of a baby cardie to be sewn up...still need to knit th button bands and add crochet edging to it. Bought some really cute horse-shaped buttons to go with it.





Spring is getting near, but it's still cold in the mornings, and I wanted a pair of wrist warmers. Bought some yarn off a seller at Etsy, and decided to have a go at designing a pair of my own. The yarn is multi-coloured in different shades of red, yellow and orange. Got the first one done with a bit of tweaking along the way, and started working on the second, totally forgetting that all humans have a right and a left hand...so now I have 1.5 wrist warmers, both left-handed...forgot to make the thumb-hole on the other side!