Hello again!

Well, Happy New Year to anyone and everyone who happens upon my blog!  I have been AWOL for over a year, due to a massive and unpredicted change in my personal circumstances which I'd rather not go into right now.  Suffice to say that Jennyanydots and I have come through it together, and knitting, crochet and sewing, together with lots of lovely crafty friends, have kept me purposefully focused.

Jennyanydots (Jenny for short) is the cat I adopted from the RSPCA in September 2017. She is a brilliant companion who keeps me company and listens intently to my conversations with her.  I have to admit, they are a bit one-sided, but a request for a head rub is a good reply to pretty much all topics of conversation.  Oh, and another plus point, she has absolutely no interest in yarn!  She is happy for me to knit and crochet while she's on my lap with no interference whatsoever.  I might get a baleful stare if I accidentally touch her back with a knitting needle, but she never attacks the wool. Cat spam follows:

Prowling her territory - the back garden!

Snoozing in the sunshine on my lap

What do you mean, you want to make the bed?  I'm comfy!

Through all the upheaval in my life I have kept on knitting and crocheting.  I have made a few blankets and clothes for refugees and others who have need of warmth and comfort.  

I have also completed my first pair of socks!  Sock knitting has been a particular bugbear for me, but I persevered and here is the result:

I'm sure I'll write more about socks in a future post.  In the meantime, I hope that 2019 is the year in which you are happy and fulfilled.

How many strands?

I've been enjoying a bit of experimentation this week.  The garments that I'm knitting and crocheting now will be passed on to charities for distribution in the autumn and winter months.  In their latest newsletter,  Knit for Peace were asking for hat and scarf sets, particularly for older children and teenagers.

Time to start combining yarns, then, to make thicker and warmer garments.  When I was sorting out the cones, I noticed some smaller ones (250g or less).  There were a couple of sparkly yarns, and also some multicoloured ones.  I chose two, and teamed them with a navy blue 4 ply.

Using my new toy (the wool winder) I wound them together to make them easier to crochet with.

Somehow I managed to produce a ball that weighed almost exactly 100g.  First I crocheted a simple beanie hat, then I used the Spring petals scarf pattern on Ravelry to crochet a scarf with the rest of the ball.  I like this pattern because it is light and lacy-looking and is a single row repeat.  Using a size 6.00mm hook I got a lovely drape to it, and as the combined yarns were more than aran thickness, the hat and scarf will be quite warm to wear.  

Flushed with success with a 3 strand combo, I went for broke.  I picked 3 strands of 2 ply and wound them together, then paired them with a 2 strand ball of 50% wool 4ply.  Effectively, aran plus dk, so overall chunky weight.

I tried my luck with knitting this time.  I used a simple broken rib pattern (knit 3, purl 1) and made a scarf and hat.  I was really pleased with the outcome, although using a rib stitch meant that the scarf was narrower than I at first planned.  I will knit a wider one that will be more suitable for a teenager.

I probably knitted a little slower than usual, and kept checking that I had all the strands in each stitch.  But using the winder meant that the multiple strands were quite easy to control.  I think it was a good investment!

Experimenting with colourwork

I don't often knit with chunky yarns, and I don't think I have ever bought any, but I found I had several part balls of chunky in my stash - I think it could be part of the breeding programme that seems to go on in my yarn cupboard if I leave it closed for a few days!

I picked out white, green and lavender, and felt there was enough for a scarf, so off I went, knitting on size 6.00 needles.  I chose a broken rib pattern because it offers stretchiness and texture as well as interest to what can be quite a boring accessory to knit.

The scarf turned at just over 4 feet long.  It's very warm and drapes well, and should be suitable for a 6-8 year old child.  Apparently the rule of thumb for scarves is that they should be as long as the child is tall.

There was still some of the yarn left, so I thought a hat would be good too.  But frankly, knitting the scarf had been a bit boring, even with the rib pattern, so I thought I would go for something a bit more challenging in the hat.  Opting for basic colourwork, I used the lavender for the brim, then started rounds of alternating coloured stitches.  The first round was one green stitch, one white stitch, then the next round was one white stitch, one blue stitch.  This is the effect it produced:

I was particularly pleased because I finally got the hang of holding one colour in each hand while knitting - a really important skill for fair isle and similar knitting.  I also got the tension reasonably right, so that the yarn behind the stitches doesn't pull, but forms a good insulating layer.  This will be one warm hat for whoever gets it via Operation Orphan.

There was just enough yarn left at the end to make a pompom!

This is the completed set.  Does it look like a set?  I'm not sure that it does, but it doesn't really matter.  Incidentally, the scarf is doubled in the photo, which is why it doesn't look very long.  So far this year I have now made 14 hats towards my target of 52 - just about right for mid-April.

The blanket that turned into a cowl

Last year, I had the bright idea of knitting an aran blanket in strips rather than squares.  Less sewing up, fewer ends to darn in, what's not to like, I thought.  4 strips, each 12 inches wide, and 6 feet long, will make a sizeable blanket.

I cast on 60 stitches on size 5.00 needles and set off using a broken rib stitch.  I did the first strip, using 3 different lots of aran yarn.  I got to about 4 feet long (I was getting bored by this point) and slipped the stitches on some spare yarn.  My reasoning by now was that I would do 6 strips each 4 feet long, and end up with the same result.  I started the second strip, and again got to about 4 feet long.  When I put the 2 strips side by side they just didn't look right.  The colours went together, but using different brands of Aran weight meant that the strips weren't uniform in width.  Also, the colour changes were totally random, which gave a really messy effect.  To frog or not to frog?

Rather than make a decision, the strips were relegated to the back of the cupboard, only coming to light when I weighed my stash at the start of January.  I laid them out again, and then realised that, instead of a blanket, I had the making of two scarves or cowls.  At 12 inches they were really too wide for scarves, but would make brilliant cowls.  I knitted another foot or so on to the first strip, made some buttonholes, sewed on some buttons, and I now have a really cosy and warm cowl which will double up and wrap twice around the neck.

This is the cowl full width.....

.....and this is it doubled over.......

and this is it wrapped twice around my neck!

Knit for Peace is a charity that sends knitted and crocheted items to people in need in the UK and abroad.  In their latest newsletter they mention that they are really short of scarves at present, so these cowls, together with some scarves, will be sent off to them shortly.  

As for the blanket, I think I'll go back to making squares!