Beatnik Sweater - WIP Wednesday

One of my current WIPs is the Beatnik sweater from Knitty. I started it a while ago (maybe six months?) but stopped to work on various other projects. It's looking like we may be having a white Christmas though, so I am inspired to pick up my knitting needles and power on. It's a fun cabling pattern, but is pretty time consuming as it's a bit too complex to memorise, so I have to keep flicking pages to check the chart.

To see other WIP on WIP Wednesday, check out Tami's blog here.

Change of direction

This blog has always been my 'craft' blog. I started it as a way to record my knitting progress and projects, and expanded into other crafts as I have learnt new skills. In fact, my first blog was called 'Just a Little Knit', and I created this new blog to incorporate sewing and other crafting.

There have been large gaps in my blogging. Not because my interest in craft has waned, but because either
a) I haven't been crafting or
b) I've been crafting, but not taking pictures and/or blogging

And of course I either feel guilty that I'm not actually creating things, or that I am creating things, but not keeping an accurate record of them. And in both cases, that I am neglecting my blog. No matter what, I think about craft every day, and am constantly planning projects in my mind, and reading all the other amazing blogs out there.

But...I've decided to include my other love - reading - in this blog. This means that I can keep up my blogging however I spend my time, as I can always fit in some reading. When blogging about books, I don't have to worry so much about progress shots, which I always stress about with my knitting!

These photos were taken between Bondi and Turramurra Beach, at the Sculpture by the Sea exhibition. I try to go every year, there is always something amazing!

Skill + 1UP - 2KCBWDAY2

On day 2 of the Knitting and Crochet Blog week, we are talking about what skills we have learnt in the past year. This is a difficult post for me, because I don't think I have gained any new skills. In my first year of knitting I was pretty fearless, and tried cables, entrelac, lace, felting, using charts and working in the round. The following year I learnt to use the Magic Loop and knit socks,with all the skills that they entail (short rows, turning the heel, kitchener stitch and working on teeny tiny needles).

There is still a lot for me to learn but I have got to a level where I can do most things, so haven't taken the next step to keep challenging myself with new skills. This happpened when I was studying Japanese. I got to level where I could understand basic conversation and day-to-day topics, and make myself understood, so I lost motivation to keep going. I was nowhere near able to have a proper conversation with people, and had a lot to learn, but since I could get by, I stopped studying.

The skill I would most like to aquire is the ability to complete a project, especially a pair of socks. I have to date completed two pairs of socks.



These are the unfinished socks I found after diving in my stash bin for a couple of minutes. I'm pretty sure there is one or two more somewhere! I think the next pair I start will be two at a time, which would be a new skill, and hopefully result in a finished pair. You can see that I often get to the toe decreases and give up. Why? Because I see a new project, life gets busy, I forget where I'm up to in the pattern, hundreds of reasons, no, excuses.

Now that I've got these out and all together, I'm going to throw them in a basket, and try and work on some of them.

To see other blogs with posts about learning new skills, check out this link.

A Tale of Two Yarns

My absolute favourite yarn is Noro. Noro Kureyon, Noro Silk Garden, Noro Sock... any Noro at all! I love the colours and colour changes in each skein, you never know what you are going to get!


Some people think that the yarn is rough. Well, it certainly isn't soft. And it can break easily. Sometimes there is a knot tying together two completely random colours. And sometimes there is just one ugly or weird colour among other gorgeous colours. But all of these faults is part of Noro's charm!

I've used it in quite a few different projects: socks, the booga bag, Rosedale sweater (99% completed, just need to put in the zipper, doh!) and a scarf. I just love knitting with it!

There hasn't really been a yarn that I've hated. Most yarn has a purpose, or a use somewhere, and it is up to us to find out how it would best be used. Sometimes the project we have in mind isn't right for the yarn, but there is something out there that is. Even cheapy acrylic looks good in afghans!

The only yarn I have sad feelings toward is this Rowan Summer Tweed:


I received it in a swap and absolutely loved it. Loved the colours, loved the feel and texture (it is a silk/cotton mix) but could just not find a project for it. I did a few swatches, but nothing was quite right. This was in the days before Ravelry, maybe now I would find something (actually I daren't look!). Anyway, in the end, after holding onto it for a few years, I moved from England to Australia, and I gave it to one of the girls in my knitting group (I gave away a lot of my small stash, just couldn't justify sending across to the other side of the world).  I hope she made something beautiful with it.

Back into knitting

I have done so little knitting since I came back to Australia ( now over three years ago!). But recently I've ben getting the itch again. I have a pretty big stash of sock yarn, but find it difficult to finish a pair. I decided to knit a scarf instead and I tried the Lace Ribbon Scarf by Veronik Avery on Knitty.

It's an easy lace pattern that's fun to knit, and I loved seeing which colour would make each stitch. I used Trekking XXL, which is a lovely sock yarn.

This is a close up of the pattern:



Here is the scarf in all its glory, I used the whole skein.



Now I just have to block it!

Spring! Well, actually, Autumn

Here is my Bobble Blue, unblocked:




I bought these buttons on Saturday at Spotlight, I wasn't sure if they were too much, but I think they are absolutely gorgeous. I asked the Boy and my mum, they both thought they looked good on the Bobble Blue, so I'll sew them on, and see what it looks like. They were only $1 each. I also bought some plain grey buttons, in case I needed them ,and tried different combinations, such as using one bird button as a feature, or alternating them with plain buttons.




I made this tote bag on Saturday, it is lined with a pink fabic, it is so bright and cheery! All the American blogs and websites seem excited by Spring, so even though we are heading into Autumn, with this bag, I can pretend.

I'm actually looking forward to Autumn this year, hoping to spend more time knitting and sewing. Last year I read a lot of books, but I get to read an hour every day on the train, so I would like to spend my home time more creatively.

Nearing completion

Had a pretty busy weekend, but managed to complete all the knitting of Bobble Blue from Interweave Knits. Now all there is to do is seaming, buttons and blocking. And darning a hole from a silverfish. That's right, as I picked it up, a silverfish came scuttling out (which I immediately killed), and I soon after discovered a hole. But I don't think it's too bad, just in one place, the ribbing of the collar. I've never seen a silverfish in our apartment before, but I'm going to have a big search now!



This photo is of a waterlily, one of my favourite flowers, it was taken in Vietnam. I love looking at waterlilies, or lotuses, rising out of the water. They often have a gorgeous coloured dragonly buzzing around. And it is always after a hot day of walking around temples that I come across a cool pool of water, with the waterlily flowering.

Camera Cozy

Today I finished the camera cozy I started a couple of weeks ago. I used this tutorial from Sew Mad. Although it wasn't too difficult, there were a few bits that I didnt understand, and took a while to work out. But finally, it is finished!





I used some quilting cotton that I bought from Spotlight for the outside, and the good ol' apron fabric for the lining.

Overall, I'm fairly pleased, I think this was a step up in my sewing skills. A few things I would change for next time:

1. Use thinner batting if possible
2. Make the closing flap longer (mine isn't long enough, and you can see the velcro)



I've also been working on Bobble Blue, the sweater I'm knitting. I was happily knitting away, thinking about how I should get back to knitting more, especially as I'm now at the stage where I can usually follow the pattern without having to stop and check how to do things all the time. And then, of course, I had to do buttonholes, which I've never done before. I tried to follow the instructions in the Interweave glossary, but it looks wrong the way I'm doing it, so I might look in my other books tomorrow.