December 2004 Archives

I get to wear my Colinette Comfy Cosy Fur Trimmed Coat.

This is knitted in Colinette Point Five and boy is it warm. The shade is Toscana. I can see why they call it the Comfy Cosy! I will try to get a photo of me outside in it so you can see the back too.

Last night David and I went to The Watermill Theatre to see

This was simply not to be missed - a Christmas jewel of a show packed with music, magic, comedy and colour, an enchanting experience for the young and the not so young!

"The nights are dark and long around the nomad camp fire. But in the loneliness of the desert, stories that come to life in front of your eyes help pass the hours!"

"Travel through 1,001 nights with the beautiful Princess Sheherazade. She reveals magical stories of such power and imagination they enchant a king and warm his cold heart - stories of hidden treasure, of tricks and strong magic and above all, of true hearts and brave deeds."

Yes - it was excellent. I have been to The Watermill before for many a show but this is the first time to see their Christmas performance - I shall be looking out for tickets to go on sale for next years Panto.

They served

Mulled Wine

and

Mince Pies

In the interval.

Afterwards we hit Newbury by Night and had dinner at ASK.

One final Christmas shot

Newbury's Christmas Tree

The building behind is where I work. My office is on the second floor. We watched the tree go up and I dare say we will watch it come down!

I came home and finished my second sailing sock.

Sailing Sock

I am going to wear them today. David says I am the only person that can get away with wearing jeans 6 inches too short. Well one has to show those socks off somehow.

I hope you are all getting ready to see in

in style this evening!

Happy Knitting.

Another scarf completed.

Ellis

Ellis is from Jane Ellison's book Simply Noro Designs. She is knitted in Noro Iro
and I used shade 9 which is lots of lovely oranges and reds. I cast on 24 stitches and knitted every row until I ran out of yarn - all 200g.

My "week-end scarf" started back in November has turned in to a Table Runner.

Table Runner

This is knitted with two strands of Rowan Kid Silk Haze. I used one strand of Jelly and one strand of Drab. Basically I continued to knit until I ran out of one of the shades.

The pattern is

row 1 - P2, yrn, P2tog repeated across the row
row 2 - k2, yfwd, sl 1, k1, psso repeated across the row

There is a border at each edge of k2.

When David's mum passed away I was fortunate to be given her yarn stash, patterns and needles. Whilst working through her belongings Davids dad came across a bag of knitted squares in all sorts of colours.

Karen, the homehelp, who visited every week said she would take the squares and get them sewn up. This is what came of them all.

Barbara's Blanket

When I saw it lying on David's dad's bed on Christmas Eve I just had to take a photo. What a lovely way for him to remember his wife of almost 50 years - seeing something she had invested time in and created.

Happy Knitting.

Well hopefully I should have another pair of socks finished by the year end.

I turned the heel on the second of the sailing socks today.

Yes the sock came to the hostelry with me. A few funny looks but I smiled back. They were much worse for wear than I was as they had been to Newbury Races.

David and I had been for a quiet lunch in the countryside with a friend and then I went on to meet another friend in Newbury Town Centre.

Moving on - what do you sat when your 5 year old Nephew asks you to teach him to knit! PARDON.... Yes apparently Bradley had been in KFC in Reading with his mum and there was a lady knitting and he turned and said to my sister Dawn, Nanna (that is what all my nephews call me - started by the eldest when he first started to talk!) does that I want to do it. So the first thing he said when he saw me was "Are you going to teach me to knit".

I have been out and bought him a pair of childrens knitting needles and a big ball of wool. I can't remember what kind of wool - it didn't cost much! Silly me gave them to my mum to give to Bradley before taking a photo. My mum did say we would have to give my sister a lesson before teaching Bradley - she has never mastered the art of knitting. Apparently my Gran and Mum both tried, they would cast her on 10 stitches and before you knew it she would have 20 on the needle.

Am off to knit - as well as my socks to finish I have a scarf to finish.

Happy Knitting.

I took this picture at Meadowhall Shopping Centre in Sheffield where we stopped for lunch on Christmas Eve to break up our journey to Yorkshire where we spent Christmas with David's Dad. We had a quiet but very enjoyable time.

We had snow on Christmas Day.

Can you spot the snow flakes falling?

Not much but we saw some quite big flakes fall for a while. Not enough to settle thank goodness - getting snowed in in Yorkshire was not part of my plan for the Christmas break.

Santa was kind to me - he brought me lots including 4 knitting books I had asked for - Last Minute Knitted Gifts – Joelle Hoverson, Easy Knitted Accessories – Jeanette Trotman, Scarf Style – Pam Allen and Stitch n Bitch Nation.

David was also a happy bunny - he got the Hot Water Bottle cover and also the scarf I started at the Mill in the kid silk haze and the kid classic – he loves that. Bless him he wore it all day Christmas Day! Well he was a poorly sole with an awful cold passed on to him by yours truly!

Mill Scarf

I took with me to Yorkshire my Noro Long Cardigan I am knitting – Wildfell. I have knitted the 2 fronts and back but seem to have a hiccup with the sleeves. I am wondering if there is a mistake in the pattern or whether it is me! The pattern is a garter stitch rib and the pattern says to end the first row with 6 knit stitches. You then have to increase at each end of the next and every following 4th row. I can’t see how with knit 6 at the end you will get the rib pattern correct unless I am missing something. I tried 5 times last night and eventually gave up. Have tried Designer Yarns website and Jane Ellison website in hope of “errata” section but no joy. If I can’t fathom it out this week I shall email Jane Ellison at Designer Yarns and see if she can put me on the right track.

Happy Christmas Knitting.

Marina is done!

Front

Back

Marina is from Emma King’s new book 25 Bags to Knit. I have used tennessee shade of Rowan Denim.

This bag is just the right size to fit a DVD in as a Christmas present.

Happy Knitting and Happy Christmas.

Well I thought November flew by but December is going even faster. I cannot believe it is the 16th. There are still cards to write - I have just checked the Royal Mail website and I have until Saturday to post second class and Tuesday for first class. Decision made - tomorrow evening will be card writing evening.

I am slowly wrapping my presents - one by one each day. I would like to have them all safely wrapped by Sunday evening - it can be done!

Well my knitting.

Here is the one and only

Hot Water Bottle

I shall knit her a chum over the Christmas break ready to keep my tootsies warm when the snow begins to fall!

I have to share this with you.

Christmas Pudding

I think it is fabulous. We had Christmas Drinks yesterday for Customers and Professionals in the Town and as a little fun we held a guess the weight of the Christmas Pudding competition. Results were close and it was one heavy Christmas Pudding.

My noro cardigan is all sewn up. I just have the edge to do which involves a crochet hook and I think I shall need daylight and since I don't have a daylight bulb this may have to wait until Saturday or Sunday afternoon.

I do hope you are enjoying your festivities.

Happy Christmas and Happy Knitting.

I have had a dreadful cold which turned in to other things like coughs, cold sores and chest infections but....

I am much better now so I am back.

Have done some knitting but no photo's to show you today I am afraid.

To summarise

1. Hot water bottle is finished and half sewn up.

2. York is finished and sewn up but minus the zip.

3. Scooped cardigan is all knitted but needs to be sewn up.

4. I have finished a scarf for David - one strand of kid classic and one strand of kid silk haze

OK my kocharan has been keeping me as warm as toast whilst I have been poorly.

Wildfell

I fell in love with this garment as soon as I saw a copy of Jane Ellison's book Simply Noro Designs when I went to a knit and relax at The Yarnhouse at the end of 2003. The same pattern was then printed in an issue of woman's weeklyand calls for 1000g of Noro Kocharan and at the time this was impossible to come by - several shops had a few skeins but nobody had 10 in the same shade and same dye lot.

Then luck may have it I was paying for my purchases on one of my visits to Burford Needlecarft when the owner happened to drop in to conversation that he was selling Kocharan half price and that he had 1000g which had been ordered for someone and then "unwanted". I couldn't leave it there so back to Newbury it came along with 4 other skeins which he threw in for free. So I think I got a bargain there - a jacket I love and extra yarn to do a hat and scarf. I will be as warm as toast in this as it is 50%wool, 20% silk and 30% angora.

The pattern is a garter stitch rib knitted on 6mm needles and whilst it is straight up to the armholes the length is 70cm to the shaping and 92cm for the finished garment so that will be a fair amount of knitting.

I am making good progress - 56cm of one of the front pieces and 61cm of the back.

Happy Knitting.