Budding Leaves

June 3, 2010 at 8:07 pm | Posted in General ( day to day stuff), Knitting | Leave a comment
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As you know I started growing some lovely herbs that unfortunately didn’t make it and i’m struggling to keep my parsley going which is disappointing. Although parsley is still going just not so strong, I had to get rid of the others some didn’t even appear through the soil. Since it been such nice weather these past fews days to help the growth of my new buds they have been having fun outside our upstairs flat.

Thats right on the window sill, It seems a little dangerous to place them there but it’s needed they just aren’t growing otherwise. So they spent most of the day soaking up the sun, I just have to make sure there bought inside if the wind picks up. Don’t want them falling on anyone, that wouldn’t be good. While tending to my new herbs, I’ve also been taking interest in a design idea I had a while ago for a shawl, Which I have started it’s been a week of hard work and i’m still writing up the chart but while i’m doing that I figured i’d cast on and start the beginning shaping then the easier bit is done and ready for me to the charts.

It seemed to take forever to find the perfect green yarn, although it looks more blue in the sunlight. It’s a soft emerald green but it’s gorgeous. Most lace yarns seem to come in mushy pea greens or darker shades or just washed out and dull. So I went on a major search to find a nice colour and came across Hipknits 100% Cashmere laceweight. The cashmere is beautifully soft when knitted and comes in a 750yds skein/ 686mtrs.

I’m hoping to have the shawl ready with the next month or so, And it will be apart of my Ebook -Eclectic Knits. Price wise i’m think Five pounds for the individual pattern, but if your holding on for the book that will be priced around twelve pounds. Although if your not waiting for the ebook then eat your heart out cos it’s going to be lovely. I promise.

And just to gush a little more about hipknits I purchased this lovely silk aran which luxurious and soft and the prices are very reasonable i’d say they were a bloody Bargin.

And before I set off on more shawl designing here’s Ysolda Teagues Ishbel which I still haven’t Blocked but I wanted to post it too much. So I couldn’t wait and took some lovely photo’s for you to gander at.

So delicate and pretty she’s put some hard work into the pattern and deserves the support she gets. You can purchase her patterns on ravelry and even download her books you can also get a paper copy if you prefer.

The Ishbel is a gorgeous 4ply shawl which used a yarn a friend had purchased me for a christmas gift last year from Posh yarn online store which is only open for custom from 7pm on sundays and you have to be fast to buy.

I hope you enjoyed my post Keep up on the comments I love feedback and it’s also helpful for improvements. Remember I have a new pattern store go check it out it’s super organized and also has go to links at the top of each pattern page to make navigation easier for you all (not too much scrolling to do).

Love to hear from you all soon nessa x

Mayhem!

March 10, 2010 at 5:51 pm | Posted in General ( day to day stuff), Knitting | Leave a comment
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The last few weeks have been crazy for me. I’d been thrown back into full time hours at work while someone took there holidays, I visited Baa Ram Ewe for a yarn spring/summer season launch and spent lots of cash. There have been quite a few meetings with my knitting group and family visiting and getting Charlotte’s Octopus finished. In between all of that a lot of knitting and designing.

I have nearly completed the roger socks (my birthday sock) You last saw them looking like this!

Yes thats right not much done and now they look like this!

Yes i know! Their not completely finished but i only have a little left to do. I have a few pattern repeats and then onto the toe, They maybe finished in the next few hours or at latest tomorrow. I really do love them and I’m hoping to wear them with my Pink Doc Martens

I’ve been Designing a lace scarf using Rowan’s 4 ply cash-soft which is lovely and soft, knits up great and is nice for the fingers. This yarn also has a good yardage of 197 Yards which means only two balls is perfect for a scarf or small shawl. I’m not posting any photo’s of the lace scarf as i believe some patterns in my book should be a surprise.

As I’ve mentioned i went to a  spring/ summer season yarn launch at Baa Ram Ewe where i picked up some lovely new yarns for myself.

I got some Cygnet 4 ply again in a green heathery colour, Orkney angora 4 ply lace weight in a soft blue, two different coloured balls of Zauberball sock yarn ,some Rowan cash-soft in a rich red and some fyberspates Scrumptious Dk in a beautiful dark purple.

While we are talking of purchases i found a lot of Rowan books in a charity shop and i whipped them up for only £4.70. In my bargain i got Kim Hargreaves – Nectar, Rowan – Bigger picture, Rowan – Ribbon twist collection, Rowan- Big it up, Rowan- The next big thing. Which is a super awesome buy, I’m chuffed.

Me and the rest of my knitting group had a lengthly chat about Dpns and what are a good size for socks. The choice of Dpns for socks is entirely up to the knitter it’s a personal choice based on comfort. Different sized needles suit different people. My chosen size would have to be 2.75mm and 15 cm in length they are more comfy to hold but thats just me. Everybody has their own preference though trial and error. To me Dpns are very fiddly for beginners and i would recommend two circulars first and get a feel for the creation of a sock and then use dpns.  As if you are not careful with tension you may find ladders where your Dpns join. Also as you knit on Dpns the more to knit the more stable they will be as the knitting helps them not to wobble about. But remember it’s all practice and trial and error someone may give different advice than other but i recommend playing with your choices first so you can figure out what suits you.

Nessa xxx

I think I broke the ice!

December 22, 2009 at 12:26 am | Posted in Knitting | 2 Comments
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Well I think it was last Friday when it started to snow and my was it beautiful, until morning hit at sub zero temperature and froze it over, and every time we’ve had a snow fall since it’s decided to freeze over again and again our street is an icy death trap as i figured out this evening coming home, Yes this is a rant of an annoyed, full of cold, Christmas lover, who wants to let it all out lol!!

Last Thursday I did some Christmas shopping i didn’t get much done due to spending money on myself i found more items i loved then others would lol!! I purchased a new t-shirt, new jeans (I’ve dropped a size Yea!!) and a new bag. I Love bags way too much. On topic i caught an evil cold i was out all day in the coldest weather known to man, And because god seems to be smithing me i had to walk an extra 20 minutes due to my bus braking down and setting fire only a few minutes after getting on it. Just my luck!!

I Awoke with a horrid cold which seems to not like any food which I’ve been eating there for non of it settled and have thrown up every morsel, until today and an evil cough which hasn’t aloud me to sleep and has pulled some muscles in my back and ribs. Then (wait for it) Today coming home i fell flat, straight on my back on some thick ice near my home and have hurt the base of my back which isn’t good, I’m now a bit worried of stepping out of our home due to the roads and paths around our street and the neighboring ones are covered in ice which the council have greatly not gritted, And i am done ranting!! Thank you for baring though i needed to vent lol!!

On knitting related topics

This is a new project which i started Friday and completed Sunday, My partners new hat which was for Christmas but it’s been so cold i let him have it early. I used the Style craft Life DK yarn which as a low wool content but is really quite nice to knit with and doesn’t squeak on the needles  i didn’t use a pattern but it’s turned out great i did find a dropped stitch which you can see i saved on a dpn to fix once I’d finished.

I also started the Veyla fingerless mitten by Ysolda Teague i tried these on when i met her at the Baa Ram Ewe knit night and they were beautiful, I’m using a Regia 4 ply which i bought from Kemps at £1.20 a ball bargain or what!!

On the Yarn front i purchased some New Lanark yarn  DK 50g balls for £1.95 an is 100% pure wool some have silk in too, they are very beautiful.

And off i go mentioning Kemps again i bought one of there Rowan Assortment bags 500g for £5 and i received my joyous surprise, I’d got some Rowan Classic yarn ‘Natural Silk Aran’ It’s so pretty and what a bargain, I’ve got project ideas flowing through my ears at the speed of light lol!!

I will most likely post through Christmas an let you know about my presents i received :) and what I’ve been up too,

Have a Great Christmas, And a Happy New Year to all, Enjoy yourselves

And let me know what you’ve been up to I’d love to hear some festive stories

See You All Soon Nessa xx

Happy Christmas Nautical Cowl

November 18, 2009 at 10:46 pm | Posted in Knitting | Leave a comment
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Happy Christmas Nautical Cowl

I started a new cowl which i today you about in my last post and today i have finished it. I’m loving it and am thinking of writing out the pattern for Ravelry. I prefer this one to my Hooded cowl.

I used King Cole Magnum Light weight Chunky just 2 100g balls each in a different colour. Mine was cream and red. I used the 2 inch buttons which i used on the hooded cowl.

I love the fact it’s higher up so if it’s cold i can cover up my nose!

Tomorrow I’m meeting up with my knitting group friend Lisa for an awesome night out at Baa Ram Ewe to meet Ysolda Teague and get a signed copy of her new book Whimsical little knits 2. Which also means I’ll be purchasing more wool.

We found out yesterday somebody got the house before us and unfortunately we are now searching again. It’s as though we may have to share a flat or house to make sure we are out for Christmas since there isn’t much in our price range and we don’t have enough time.

We are keeping our chin up.

xx

New Yarns for new book and a Cold

October 23, 2009 at 9:05 pm | Posted in Knitting | Leave a comment
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So life is now my hell hole as i have caught a horrid cold, god knows where from, Its a migraine, sinus cold. my head feels like it’s in meltdown mode lol!!. But i won’t let it stop me yet.

I’ve just put up my new free mitten pattern on ravelry, i was supposed to be having it in yarn forward but they told me they liked it but not if they where going to use it so, i got fed up of waiting and have released it anyway. Its a nice simple pattern using noro kueryon sock yarn and cygnet wool rich 4 ply, it’s a nice pattern to use up left overs.  So go check it out if you don’t have ravelry don’t worry i shall be posting it in my patterns page soon enough!

Other good news is i didn’t let my mishap with my new sock pattern get me down i altered the size and they now fit and i’ve caught up to where i was so they should be done soon hopefully *crossed fingers*.

And i bought more new yarn for my patterns for my book, Some orkney st magnus dk 50% wool 50% angora, king cole baby alpaca, wensleydale longwool and some cygnet 4ply yarns. Just to get me started i also purchased some 3.75mm 40cm knitpro circs for my mitten knitting and i love them. The est of my yarn choices are gonna be from online stores but these i purchased from baa ram ewe in headingley.

I hope you all cross your fingers and wish my cold away xx

Loneliest day of 2009

September 14, 2009 at 9:37 pm | Posted in Knitting | Leave a comment
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Thats right I’m going to grumble a bit, not much though i’ll keep it to bare minimum. It’s felt like a very lonely day for me, i woke up and went to the coffee shop alone went to work for 6 hours and worked in the shop alone to get back to home to be alone, my partner as gone to work and will be visiting a friend after for music making, and I’m having one of those days where i need a bit of company. I shall survive through the evening of dullness.

Anyways rather than peeving you all off I’ll lighten up a little, I had my knitting group yesterday which was great i got a preview of the new knitter magazine and yarn forward which i love a friend at my group subscribes and gets it early so we get to have a long gander.  She also showed me some of her new purchases while she visited London she went to the Iknit shop and the yarn was beautiful ( hint of jealousy) lol!!

News on my cable scarf pattern as well i finally figured out twisted stitches, so the scarf is finally making progress with no problems just yet but we shall have to wait and see as there plenty more pattern to go before i can be happy. I’m still very sorry no photos can be shown just yet of my progress as i’m hoping to submit it and get it published in a magazine. once it’s accepted i’ll post a selection of progression photos for you.

I’m now going to pop on a film and knit away my boredom so you’ll hear from me soon xx

Knit Night

September 4, 2009 at 9:53 pm | Posted in Knitting, Spinning | Leave a comment
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So i Went to Headingley in Leeds to the Baa Ram Ewes store for the thursday knit night and to purchase some more yarn, yes thats right some more, it was a great night and packed to the nines with people. I managed to purchase some Colinette Point 5 yarn i bought 2 skeins and i’ve already knit it up into a scarf. Also i bought some twilleys freedom spirit 100% wool which i have no idea what to do with know i have it lol!!

I also came across i book i have been wanting for a while called ‘Intertwined’ it’s a hardback book about the art of handspun yarn, modern patterns and creative spinning which i very much like. It makes my creatives juices flow.  You may have seen the lexi boeger website.

Terrible as it may seem i am still hand winding my silk into a ball. I think a ball winder needs to be added to my Christmas  list this year.

Silkworm

September 1, 2009 at 12:36 am | Posted in Knitting | Leave a comment
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I am rather amazed, i found a website with some great bargins on yarn, i have currently just bought 3000m of 100% silk 2ply laceweight undyed yarn for £6.99. I can’t wait, i’m pretty much jumping for joy lol!! Looks like alot of shawl knitting is in the wind this month! I didn’t knit any while it was summer but now autumn is waning in i want to knit shawls! how ironic lol!!

If you may like the sound of my bargin check out violetgreen yarns, Also the postage is great price orders over £18 are free in the uk which is more of a reason to stock up lol!!

Pretty In Pink

August 27, 2009 at 8:31 pm | Posted in Knitting | Leave a comment
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Thats Right i have photo’s of my newly started shawl, i knew you wouldn’t forget so here goes

And thats all your getting for the minute lol!!

The pattern is working wonderfully and i spent ages at work today doing it, it’s getting quite big now. I’ve planned to watch A bugs life while doing some more.

I’m Rather annoyed i didn’t get to go to Baa ram ewe‘s knit night tonight as i planned i ended up having to cover at work :( , But next i’m going no matter what.

I’ve also started some socks with my purchased opal sock yarn from baa ram ewe’s and they’re looking rather carzy and eye boggling

Off now for a shower, dinner and some bugs life with knitting

Cu soon peeps

Order of Yarn

August 27, 2009 at 12:00 am | Posted in Knitting | Leave a comment
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I just made an order of wool from kemps woolshop.

patons washed haze DK, colour – misty blue, 3 balls

Patons washed haze DK, colour- coral , 3 balls

Wendy emu superwash DK, colour – kestrel, 3 balls

I truely can’t wait to start knitting them up into something fantastic.

I also this evening started my Simple yet effective shawl.

This pattern is great and my new skein of Noro Kueryon sock yarn is looking amazing as this shawl, the colour changes work well with this simple yet effective design. It cost $3.50 and is well worth it. I think i’ll be carrying this project for a few days. I’ll post some lush pictures tomorrow for you to see the progress i ownly started it this afternoon so don’t expect it to be finished lol!! i’m not that fast yet lol!!!

I also bought a sew it kit from the charity shop for £2.25 and it’s by amy butler with sewing projects which are cute. it’s a reason to get the sewning machine out :)

Cu tomorrow peeps x

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