blaugrana

I finished my hat and gloves for the Big Issue knitting event

patterns: glittens – improvised; hat – Turn a Square by Jared Flood
yarn: King Cole Fashion Aran (blue) & Patons Diploma Gold Aran (purple)

I’ve been wearing glittens myself during the winter and love how handy it is to be able keep your fingers warm most of the time but have them free when you need, eg to use a camera.   I thought the same would apply if you’re standing around outside selling the Big Issue, you’d want to have cosy hands but still be able to handle money.  The hat is the first Turn a Square I’ve made and I love it, I can see this becoming my default basic beanie pattern.

The colour scheme was accident not design.  These are two of my favourite inexpensive arans (although the Paton’s has now been discontinued, unfortunately), soft, hard wearing, machine washable.  I had part balls of each and wasn’t sure if there was enough of either for the glittens, hence the stripes.  It was only when I was half way through the first one I realised I need to hope for a Big Issue seller who is a Burnley fan.  Or West Ham, Aston Villa, Port Vale, Scunthorpe or even the bluagranas themselves, Barcelona.  Or just someone who has no interest in foopball but wants warm head and hands.

beginnings and endings (and carrying-on-ings)

beginnings

On Sunday I started another pair of glittens, this time for a homeless or vulnerably housed person, as part of the Big Issue Knit .  Which was a great fun afternoon out, too, and amazing to see so many knitters in one place.

And it being January, another Open University course is about to begin. This is (fingers crossed) my final course for my degree and is a literature-based research project. Which is scary, being left to myself to turn out 5000 words by September. I’m probably going to concentrate on physical organic chemistry, but the past year of studying physical chemistry has pushed all the organic I knew out of my brain.

most importantly: buy more knitting patterns!

I’ll be starting lots of new beginnings soon with all my new knitting patterns.   Lots of lovely designers are contributing money from their January pattern sales to the Haiti relief effort. So if there’s a pattern you were thinking of buying anyway one day, have a look if the designer is taking part in the Help for Haiti efforts and buy it sooner rather than later.

endings

finally, at long last, I have finished my potions class socks.I really don’t know why it’s taken me so long, except that they got pushed to the back of te work in progress queue. I love both the yarn and the pattern and am very happy with the finished socks.

pattern: Hallows and Horcruxes by Kate Heppell
yarn: Old Maiden Aunt Merino Superwash 4ply shade K1

I’ve also finished some glittens I promised my favourite small girl, an experimental short row slouchy hat, and (with a lot of help and advice from my mum, ravelry friends and the nice lady in Leon’s) sewed myself a bag organiser and a top.

carrying-on-ings

I’m still pushing on with my Bohus cardigan. I finally got the waist decreases to work out for me, and am just about to start the short row shaping for the bust. After that I can join in the sleeves and start on the colour work, which will be a relief from all this stocking stitch.

And the never ending crochet blanket of DOOOM is continuing in occasional fits and starts. It seemed a good idea when I started, to make son’s blanket full sized so he can use it for a long time, but I am regretting it now.

Haiti

Life for most people in Haiti was already hard enough before today’s devastating earthquake. This photo breaks my heart

All the stuff I think I ‘need’, how can I think I need it more than her and her people?  When I get paid this month, instead of spending my discretionary spends on wool and books and such, I will send it to MSF.  Please consider doing something similar.

peace at last

After much pattern browsing on ravelry and what I am choosing to call swatching rather than started and abandoned attempts, I finally worked out what to do with about the Scarf of Doom.  I’m using the Ruggles #1 Original Scarf pattern and am liking the way it’s looking so far.  I am still dithering about the width but am not starting over again so the width it is now is the width it will be (I think it will turn out about 22 cm unblocked and 27 cm blocked and if you don’t think that’s a good width for a scarf for a large  -  6 ft tall – man, please don’t tell me).

Now I have to leave my knitting and go out into the big bad cold world to buy those few presents I can’t knit or buy on Amazon.  But before I go, reading Yarn Harlot’s post reminded me I have someone else to buy for (which I can do easily online)

Imagine that your family, however big or small it is, gets another member. A baby is born, someone marries, it happens all the time. Now, naturally…as is the case when someone is added to a family, they are welcome at your winter festivities and they will be fed and receive a gift (or, in the case of many of our families, multiple gifts.) When a new family member is added, no-one declines to feed them because you can’t afford it, no-one refuses to buy them a birthday or holiday gift because the family is big enough. You spend a little less on each other person, you spread your budget around, maybe if you’re really broke you make them a card… but you make it work.

The challenge is to imagine this person has been added to the list of people you care for in some way, and to give their share to my favourite good guys, Médecins Sans Frontières/ Doctors Without Borders.

In short, and to the best of your ability, I want you to include MSF/DWB and the people they help to your family

More about Knitters without Borders

autumn leaves

Lovin’ the boteh so much I had to make another one.  This one was for my mother-out-law’s birthday and used some BFL sock yarn with lovely autumnal colours.  I decided to try stitching photos together to show the whole scarf.  This turned out not to be such a good idea, but you get the general idea.

pattern: Boteh by Kathy Merrick
yarn: Dazzle (100% BFL) by The Natural Dye Studio;
hook: 4 mm

There was an article in the paper today about the Oxfam Knitted Blanket Petition: these are the squares our knitting group sent in:

And because flattery gets you everywhere, I’m making another pair of Evenstar gloves so I can write up the pattern, because I keep getting messages on ravelry asking me to *blush*

and another reason ravelry roolz …

You don’t have to join in the groups / fora to enjoy ravelry. But it’s so much fun if you do. Amongst other things you get to take part in community projects like the ‘Who Knits’ group’s aghan project.
People make one or some squares out of left-over sock yarn, knit on the bias, and then someone’s going to sew them up into a blanket and auction on ebay for MSF (as has been mentioned before, Doctors without Borders is the obvious charity of choice for Dr Who fans was well as knitters). These are mine, posted them off today …

Could’ve made oodles more (am not lacking in left-over sock yarn) but have work and chemistry and such to do, not to mention there’s now less than 6 months left for the Christmas knitting.

crocheted bits and bobs

Haven’t been crocheting much lately, not sure why exactly. But have picked up the hooks a couple of times when I’ve needed to make something quick. Like, these gift bags for the ‘present from Scotland’ bottles of hot chilli sauce I got for Sister and BestMaleFriend

improvised in oddments of DK with 4 mm hook

… and these hearts, a little something to pop in friend’s wedding card:

Pattern: 104-46 Elegant heart by DROPS design
Yarn: Yeoman Yarns Cannele 4 Ply, shades cardinal, ruby
Hook: 3mm

I love this heart pattern, the constrution is really interesting and the finished objects yay cute. Quick and easy to make from bits of stash.

Talking of using up stash, I’ve made a square for Manchester Oxfam’s Maternal Mortality Awareness blanket. They’re making a giant baby blanket of 1,400 squares – one for each woman who dies each day in pregnancy or child birth some where in the world, due to lack of adequate health care. When I had my son, I needed an emergency caesarian. Without it, there’s a good chance one or both of us would not be around today.