Woolfest 2010

June 29, 2010 at 10:02 pm | Posted in General ( day to day stuff), Knitting, Spinning | 1 Comment
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The Woolfest 2010 weekend started at 6am wake up call by my Pucca alarm clock, at this point i had to get up and get dressed most of my bag was packed the night before so i was pretty prepared for the weekend ahead.  I’d taken the essentials such as pj’s and undies and tooth brush and paste, I also packed my trusty camera and knitting plus my money (all of my weeks wage). My lovely partner Pete had stayed up all night after he got back from work to make sure i didn’t sleep in and he prepared my lunch so i could have a little coffee before i needed to leave the house. I’ll just added this has been the first weekend we have had fully apart for 3 years, he usually comes along to places i go apart from knitting group.

I’d set off to my meeting destination outside Charlie Browns  Car Stuff Shop. On the way i picked up a newspaper and a can of coke it was a lovely warm morning. Then Lisa and Andrew picked me up around 7:10 am when our car journey to Cumbria, Cockermouth.

(Picture-  Lisa and Andrew fighting for fudge on car journey)

On the way we discussed early mornings, the scenery, the amount of sheep and cows and excitement for Woolfest .  Unfortunately i couldn’t knit on the journey like my friend Alison but the cardigan she brought was coming along wonderfully.

We then arrived at Woolfest about 9:40 am when we parked up and then purchased tickets. Once in a 10 am we went in and had a slow look around the entire Festival. Slowly pondering the sheep and yarn.

(pictures- Sheep and Alpaca’s)

This photo is a favourite due to the Afro Alpaca

The gorgeous little lamb

So we saw a mass of breeds while there and some lovely Angora Rabbits which i purchased some of there coats 2 lots in fact to spin 275g of Angora fiber it is so soft.

After looking round once we then went for our lunch, I had sandwiches and a Victoria sponge and a apple and blackcurrant juice box. Then we went for a look round for a few hours on our own to get what we wanted to buy and so we didn’t slow each other down.  By 3 pm we left for Beverley near hull to stay with Lisa and Andrew for the evening. Where we Shared with each other what we had purchased, It was like a Show and tell session.

This is my massive selection i Bought which includes, daisy buttons, pick ‘n’ mix fiber, Angora fiber, Sock yarns, lace yarns, Sari silk, Kid mohair yarn and a Elizabeth Zimmerman book ‘ The opinionated Knitter’.

My favourite purchase and first purchase due to me doing research before i left, the gorgeous Fyberspates faery wings 4 ply in ‘ rich plum’ It’s a mix of silk and kid mohair and costs £16.  I’d been wanting a skein of this and so purchased it first so it didn’t sell out.

This is Also one of my Favorites, I’d also looked at sari silk for a while online but it can be expensive sometimes and so pretty but wasn’t sure about it’s texture but i touched some at Woolfest and needed it too much to see it pass me by.

I loved the entire time at Woolfest for my first time there i found it awesome and would go again. Later that evening at Lisa’s we had a great dinner, Andrew had made us vegetable risotto it was really tasty and would have loved a second serving. I wasn’t cheeky enough to ask, we then knitted to later on then we went to bed.

We woke up the next morning and had a lovely breakfast made up off, crisp bread and a sweet bread some lovely cheese, also peanut butter and jam, also strawberries, English breakfast tea and  orange juice it was lovely. We then spent sometime ball winding our wool and picking up on bad knitting magazine pattern choices lol! Then we traveled back to Wakefield for knitting group unfortunately we were tired and too hot so left quite early afternoon.

What a super weekend thank you Lisa and Andrew for taking us.

I hope you enjoyed the Woolfest update

Nessa xx

Started work on a new cowl

June 8, 2010 at 10:25 pm | Posted in Knitting | Leave a comment
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Thats right peeps i’ve started work on a new cowl pattern which should be ready by the end of the week, It’s worked in the round, skill level isn’t difficult which is sometimes appreciated after long harder knitting projects. I’m using DK weight yarn. There can also be buttons included in this cowl if you so choose i’m going to take photo’s of before and after buttons so you have a choice of which you’d prefer. The buttons will just be for decoration and no real other uses. I’m thinking of making two possible sizes one for adults and another for young children, many young girls would like them for winter i’m guessing it’s gonna be cute. I bet i’ve gotten you intrigued know.

Anyways better get back to work lots of knitting and pattern writing to do.

Nessa xx

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

Jitter Me Bug

February 21, 2010 at 9:53 pm | Posted in Knitting | Leave a comment
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It’s been a busy weekend for me so I’ve been feeling shattered today and i must stay awake, at least a little longer. On Saturday early hours of the morning at 4 am, I woken up by my partner and friends  coming to ours and then taking a trip to a party which since i already had been awaken i figured I’d go. It turned out to just being a little gathering of friends watching TV and chatting so i whipped out my knitting and got a good few inches of a sleeve done for my new shrug. I found the pattern in an older issue of Knitting, it’s called Bloom by Tess Dawson. It’s meant to  be knitted up in Noro Blossom which is quite a bulky weight yarn where as i wanted to us King Cole Mirage Dk. So i spent a good few hours figuring from her gauge how many inches it would be in the cast on stage. I then had to do a gauge swatch for the yarn i was using to see how many stitches per inches and figure out the casted on stitches i needed. I added and extra inch for room as i wanted it floaty and it’s turning out really nice. I’m roughly about half way up my arm on the first sleeve and it is in plain stockinette, which is a bit boring but great for mindless knitting.

I also went and casted on the mystery shawl in yarn forward magazine, I’ve been waiting for the first installment of this project for a month and have been looking through my stash for some nice yarn and finally found some i was happy to knit it up in. I started this today at work and it’s turning out quite well although each row is 141 stitches so it’s going to take a while to be fully finished.

I also got a wonderful present from my friend Charlotte, As I’ve been helping her knit for her animation . She went out on Saturday to baa ram ewe and purchased some lovely jitterbug Colinette sock yarn for me as a gift to say Thanks which is great as i was needing more sock yarn my stash is lacking it at the moment.

Beret Beauty

January 5, 2010 at 12:59 am | Posted in Knitting | 1 Comment
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When i  Recieved my Ravelry mitten exchange parcel, And got some gorgeous yarn along with other goodies. I had been wondering which pattern to make up with this yarn, and it had to be a project that only needed one skein of stock ranch lopi yarn. And so i decided on The one day beret by Kristen Kapur And it turned out great and i did indeed get it finished with the day and it beautiful and warm.

Next A list of 2009 Project’s I’ve Knitted up And finished

There are Project that are Hibernating And are in progress from 2009 but i didn’t think it fair to include them since i hadn’t finished them. But 22 projects isn’t bad for my first year knitting away :)

Nessa xx

Ravelry mitten Exchange Christmas parcel

January 2, 2010 at 11:14 pm | Posted in Knitting | 2 Comments
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I was Jumping for joy this morning when i arrived at work to find a parcel under the desk with my name on the top of the address, I instantly new it was my Raverly Mitten Exchange package, and was so excited to open it to see my new mittens for the first time, I opened it up to find a new skein of wool, my new mittens, cocoa chocolate drink, ground coffee, Burts bee’s hand salve, wool wash, spiced chocolate, A snowman decoration ( my first ever decoration for a christmas tree) i now need one for next year , A pez candy dispenser of santa , some lotion, stitch markers and more… yes the list goes on :)

Happy times, Also managed to nearly finish the first of the pair of the cotton reel mittens today i just have abit of ribbing and the thumb and then i’m done,  And onto the second!

It’s been a rather good day today :) And i’m looking forward to the first knitting group back since christmas! can’t wait to see everyone and see what knitting stuff they got for xmas.

Anyways i must carry on knitting i may even cast on something new tonight! I’m feeling crazily happy

See you soon xx

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

Never ready for frost bite!

December 11, 2009 at 11:09 pm | Posted in Knitting | 2 Comments
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I woke this morning to a find a layer of frost had landed.

I ordered some more yarns and some new buttons for my peak island hood. The buttons are wooden with moomin’s face carved into them. I had to purchase some it needed to be done, i couldn’t live without.

I also purchased some 4 mm, 40 cm circs which i needed for one of my new designs, I started a cowl in wensleydale long wool and thought the yarn  looked too  holey for this cable cowl so I’m going for a Double knit weight approach, all i need now is my needles.

I also started a New hat design also for my new book, using the st magnus Orkney 50% wool 50% angora. I have to say this yarn is like working with heaven. I just finished the band this morning and I’m know designing the chart for this little wonder.

I’m also so very proud as i sold another one of my patterns, Happy knitting for those who have purchased, And don’t be scared to purchase i will give help and advice to those who need it.

I felt horrid this morning i was so wrapped up in getting my parents Christmas gifts that i forgot my dad’s birthday was today and had to give him his Christmas gift as a birthday present. With all the extra shifts at work and moving and worrying to get my gifts on time i forgot his birthday present ( How Poop am I )

I am completely overwhelmed by things this Christmas  that i think i may have lost my brain lol!!!

Just so you all know i have a new pattern out ( Happy Christmas Nautical Cowl) is My new pattern which is free for you all to enjoy, and it’s perfect for a beginner . Happy knitting x

Ysolda at Baa Ram Ewe

November 20, 2009 at 12:42 am | Posted in General ( day to day stuff), Knitting | 1 Comment
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OK! It as been a random day, i woke up to find my boss had rang me at

4 am to get me to work this morning. Didn’t happen i woke up at 10:15 am got to work to find the guy who works the morning shift couldn’t come in due to a family member passing away.  I managed to help out for a few hours before i had to meet Lisa for our trip to the Leeds Baa Ram Ewe knit night. I purchased way too many items but thought i may as well while i have the money.

I purchased both Ysolda Teague’s books whimsical little knits 1 & 2. Addi lace needles 2.5 mm, Addi Premium 6 mm.  2 x 100g cygnet wool rich aran weight in shade – Pine.  2 x 50g King Cole Merino Blend DK shade- 703 Red. 2 x 25g Jamiesons Shetland spin drift shade- sand. Colinette Jitterbug sock yarn 110g shade – 101. And an extra ball of King Cole baby alpaca DK so i can finish my mittens.

We met Ysolda for our book signing which was cool and also got too talk with her for a little while.

And she also bought with her a lot for her finished pieces to display so we could feel and try them on. They were beautiful, and I’m now casting on the peak island hooded cowl.

Unfortunately didn’t get a photo with Ysolda but The night was great and I also got recognized for my Patterns which was rather awesome i felt rather proud of myself.

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