Me, myself and mine.

After spending the past 5 or 6 months knitting for gifts, it is nice to cast on something for myself....just because I feel like it. I love knitting for others, it really gives me a lot of pleasure but apart from the Westknits mystery in September and the very quick beaded necklace, I haven't made anything for myself for ages. 

Now I feel like casting on all the things! And spinning all the fibre! I have been spinning a little bit every day and am motoring through this beautiful hot orange fibre........

It will be plied with this.........

I'm not sure what I will knit with it yet but I'm thinking a Haruni. Or maybe a Summit stole. Or perhaps a Holden shawlette....who knows?!

I cast on a Spectra in two different Noro yarns. The first and only Spectra I made was a shop sample and wasn't in colours I loved. I really liked the idea of two different coloured self striping yarns with long colour repeats. It is an easy mindless knit and doesn't require much concentration or the following of a pattern as you just repeat the wedge over and over......over 80 times! So far I like how it's turning out.

I have also cast on for my first Citron. I can't believe I haven't made one of these yet...after all, it was the pattern that led me to Ravelry! I bought a bag of merino 2ply cone ends from Anna Gratton about 4 years ago at Dunkleys craft fair and I love the colours. I joined and wound them all with the wool winder and now have one huge ball. I will just knit until I either run out of yarn or it is big enough.....or until I can't handle hundreds of stitches of yarn that is as thin as thread! 

It's amazing the difference lighting makes, the true colours are somewhere in between both photos. I'm using 2.75mm needles and I could still spit through the fabric lol, but it will be beautifully soft and light. I want this to be large!

As you can see I am making up for lost time! I have also been making some fabric items but i forgot to photograph them before I wrapped them up! I will take photos when they have been gifted. 

I have had quite a bit of work flowing in and so will be spending quite a lot of time in my sewing room over summer. If you are interested in following my progress then search for Kilt'd on Facebook and look for a picture of a brown tartan below (weathered  Henderson for those of you who would like to know). For some strange reason that only Facebook knows, other pages show up first that aren't called Kilt'd....no idea how they prioritise their search engine!

Finally, just to show you how the view from my craft cave has changed since the last photo in the spring.

Until next time, I hope you all have a great Christmas and get to spend some quality time with your family and friends.

P.S. I have stuck to my stash challenge and haven't bought any yarn but I was delighted to receive this gorgeous skein in the post the other day from a fellow Raveller who I sent some fibre and a spindle to earlier in the year. The colours are perfect for me and I am looking forward to knitting it up.

Gifts, gardens and gowns.

Phew, my needles have been busy! I've finished my gift knitting that needs to be posted and now it just needs to be wrapped and sent off to the various destinations (which will cost an arm and a leg!) to be there in time for going under the tree.  I don't want to give too much away but here is my pile! I must admit I love gift knitting, especially as I only knit for those I know will appreciate it.

I still have a few more gifts to knit for friends and family here in NZ so my needles are still hot. Like most knitters I also have a queue a mile long so I will never run out of things to knit.

When I decided to start my year long challenge at the end of August I remembered that I had signed up for Sweet Georgia's fibre club - after consultation with a few of those who had encouraged (almost dared!) me to start my challenge, they decided that as I had paid for it well before the idea of the challenge was formed that I was safe and wouldn't have to feel I had broken any of my own rules. Phew!

So I thought I would share the first two months. Bearing in mind I love brights and peacock colours I have to confess to being a little disappointed in the first colour way. Autumn colours, while lovely, are not really my thing. The fibre itself is a beautiful soft merino/nylon (85/15) and it is beautifully dyed, I'm sure it will have someone's name on it. If not, I take part in a few fibre swaps over the course of a year and having a stash of fibre that isn't only in my favourite colours makes it a lot easier.

The November fibre arrived today and it is much more 'me'. The teal in it is intense and I think the rust will spin out to be a lovely soft orange - although I am a fairly new spinner so, it may not! It's also a gorgeous mix of BFL and Tussah silk.

It's really interesting to see and feel the difference between different fibres. It fascinates me that the different breeds of sheep and the addition, or not, of other fibres can have such different properties. I have decided that I am far too impatient to wait 20 years to gain the experience of working with different fibres and finding out how and why they are suitable for different projects, so I am going to take the Creative Fibre spinning course next year. A couple of friends have also decided to take part so we will have our own little support group to bounce ideas off.

I almost forgot to show you my new summer dressing gown! I have quite a lot of quilt fabrics that I have collected over the years (owning a quilt shop for 7 years may have something to do with that!) and I know I don't want to make loads more quilts. I have needed a summer dressing gown for years and decided this was the perfect time to make it. I used various fabrics for each piece and I'm thrilled with the results!

The fabric on the back is the same as the sleeve bands and the belt is actually the border from the bright pink fabric which is an Amy Butler fabric reminiscent of a Sari. I popped on one of my new labels for good measure :-)

My challenge is going really well and I have only once missed not being able to buy new yarn. In reality I have used very little of my stash and will be very picky about my purchases at KAN next year now I realise how much I have and how long it would take me to knit and sew it all up!

I have also been enjoying our amazing spring weather and getting out in the garden. There is always something to do, even if it's sitting on the deck with my knitting - if you look carefully you can just see my project bag and drink on the table ;-) We have made a few changes in the few weeks since this was taken and I will share them next time.

Mittens and Mysteries.

I didn't realise it had been so long since I blogged!  Time flies.

I have been working on my Christmas gift knitting.  I love these quick and easy Owl mittens and eventually found the perfect tiny buttons for the eyes - that was the hardest part!  They knitted up very fast and I would definitely make them again, even if I substitute another pattern on the back.  The thumb shaping and increasing is easy and looks really neat, its a great shape to wear too. All in all a BIG thumbs up for these.

The yarn I used was Misti Alpaca Tonos Worsted. Lovely and soft and hopefully warm to wear.

The next pair of mittens weren't quite so quick and sadly the pattern had a mistake in the repeat sequence.  On the first mitt I thought it was me so I tinked back but could see afterwards that I still hadn't managed to put it right.  When I made the same mistake on the second mitten I read the pattern more carefully and noticed that the 4 row pattern sequence was wrong on row 13 so a row of the pattern was missed out.  Next time I will just follow the sequence myself - which is easily memorised, K 2 rows and then K2, P1 for 2 rows.  I wish I had knitted the thumbs before carrying on with the rest of the mitten as I can clearly see where it was picked up but at least both thumbs are the same.  These took much longer to knit but are sturdy and a nice subtle and textured pattern for a guy.

The yarn is Naturally Drift 10ply and is a slightly felted yarn which knits up really nicely.

I finally finished my Westknits Mystery!  I have never knitted such an unusual item nor taken part in a mystery that was mysterious right to the very end! What helped was that there were so many stitches it couldn't be opened up (without using a bazillion extra cables!) to see the shape.  The cast off was over 800 stitches!!!  Of picot!!!!  I can see me getting a lot of wear out of this but probably won't be making another one for a long time.  It took almost 3 full skeins of yarn for a start!  I think it would be nice in a 2ply or light fingering yarn to give a smaller, lighter shawl but really, one of these is enough. It's too distinctive to have more than one of.....in my opinion anyway.

I have spent a little bit of time in the garden lately, planting a hedge with a lot of help from my generous sister-in-law (she did most of the heavy digging as I've been feeling so crappy lately).  I need to go and get a few more plants as I miscalculated the amount I needed but they won't take long to plant now the trench is done.  Next on the list is planting a bay tree and getting some more herbs in.  My herb garden grows every year and I love stepping out the front door for fresh herbs when I'm cooking.

Itching to knit

I was looking back at my first post and at this photo......yum!

I am really itching to knit up some of those new yarns!  I thought I would share with you what my plans are for some of them (no, they don't all have plans....shhh!).

These three scrumptious skeins of Fyberspates are going to be a Netty Cowl Knit a Long with three of my best friends who, luckily, also happen to knit ;-)  We have decided to make this a New Year project once we have all finished knitting for others over the Festive Season.  I am really looking forward to using this yarn....it is so soft and shiny, shine always looks luxurious.

I bought these two skeins of Vintage Purls specifically to make a Summit stole. This pattern had been in my favourites for quite a while but it jumped to the top of my queue after seeing this version by StokesVegas when we bumped into her while we were checking out of the hotel after KAN. She used slightly smaller needles than the pattern suggested and it made for a stole/wrap with a bit more structure. It looks even more amazing in real life.

This gorgeous, vibrant orange - although the word 'orange' in no way describes the stunning colour of this yarn - by Fibre2go is already in use in my Westknits Mystery.  While I adore the colour I have to say the yarn is a little bit splitty.  I can live with that for the stunning colour though. By the way, your guess is as good as mine as to what shape this will end up being....one thing you can be sure of with a Westknits mystery is that you won't know until the final clue - that's the best type of mystery for me!

I also have some of Fibre2go's fibre to spin up although I have no idea what this will become.  Every now and then I take it out and stroke it and dream about what I will spin with it.....again, the colours are so vibrant and alive, they truly make me smile :-)

Hmmm......definitely a theme developing here - these are the colours I love but sometimes I think I should break out and try something different. Then again if I don't love the colour how can I work with it or wear it once it's finished?!

Over the weekend I finished the Gap-tastic cowl too....another gift to tick off the list. This yarn is so soft and squishy. I was a bit worried when I blocked it as it lost its definition at first but was fine once it dried.

Next onto my needles is the second 'sister shawl', Sweet Dreams. I also want to knit 3 face cloths and two pairs of mittens, plus two pairs of socks and 4 shawls...all by Christmas! A bit ambitious maybe??

I love a quickie

.....project that is. I have been working on the Westknits Mystery this past week and so my Noro striped scarf has gone on the back burner. I did manage to sneak this cowl in though.

I think it took me all of 5 hours knitting in total. The Spud & Chloe Outer is absolutely the softest, squishiest yarn I have ever knitted with and I love it! It's also the thickest yarn I've ever knitted with and it took a bit of getting used to the 10mm needles after the 4mm ones I'm using on my Westknits! Look, they are almost as thick as my index finger!

I bought this yarn at KAN from Tash and I think I might have to get some more for myself once my challenge is over...this one is a gift. This will count as my second project in stash yarn, even though it is new stash from just before I set myself my challenge.  I am looking forward to using some of the older stash. 

My eldest son (25) has requested some new socks as he has holes in most of his.....he prefers to wear them over anything else!  I think I will go down to a smaller needle size for future socks so they don't stretch so much and are harder wearing....even though using size 2,75mm needles I already have to knit 70 rows for the foot!!! I dread to think how many rows once I go down a needle size :-/  I will be sure to let you know!

Two of my knitting friends - well, they aren't just knitting friends, they are friends who knit - are also knitting the Westknits Mystery and we decided that each Tuesday we would get together somewhere sociable and compare notes...well, shawls. Mine is the orange and purple one, Claire's is the grey and denim and Debbie's the green and lime green. I can't wait to see what happens next because this is unlike any project (let alone any shawl) we have ever knitted! Maybe it won't be a shawl at all!?

I also finished some booties this week. These were a gift for friends who have just had their second baby boy. I spent about half an hour carefully sewing up the first bootee with an invisible mattress/ladder stitch only to find I had sewn it inside out! It took me almost as long to unpick it as I had hidden my ends so well. This is a great pattern and its free on Ravelry. I was also heartened to hear that the young Mum had looked out and washed the blanket I made for their first son, lovely to know they obviously liked and used it.  

Next up is to finish the striped scarf and crack on with my other Christmas gift knitting.

First Stash Project

Ok, so it's a bit of a stretch....it only used about 15 metres of yarn ;-)

But...it's a project from stash so I'm claiming it as my first in my challenge!  I felt the need for a small break from my current projects but I knew I couldn't knit anything too time consuming as most of my current wip's are for *whisper* Christmas. A few months ago my friend, Suzanne (suzanne16 on Ravelry) made a Ribband by Laura Nelkin and I just loved it.  After initially thinking I couldn't make one in my favourite peacock blue colour I had a rummage and found the leftovers from my last Boo-knits mystery. Perfect! I didn't have quite enough of the dark beads but substituted a pair of lighter ones every 7 rows. The length is perfect to wrap round my wrist........

or to wear as a necklace.......(bad photo!)

It took me about 6 hours of knitting including threading the beads. I will definitely be making more of these as gifts.

Yesterday I wound some yarn for the rest of my Xmas pressies....

I think I have most of them covered.  I also finished the Promise Me beaded shawl and it has turned out really well, I love the pops of colour from the beads.

My next big job is to have a big tidy up in my craft cave...there is a lot of 'stuff' in there that needs to find a new home. If I am going to be spending a lot of time in there over the next year using up all my stash then I want it to be a workable space that doesn't frustrate me.  It could take a while!

The C word!

That would be Christmas......tut, tut ;-)

On one hand it seems incredibly early to be talking about Christmas but in knitting terms it really isn't far away! If I want to knit things to be posted back to the UK I need to have them done by the beginning of December.......I never have them done in time for the last cheap post day so I forget about that!

I won't be able to tell you who the recipients are, just in case they read this. I like to knit for as many of my friends and family as I can. I really enjoy gift knitting and seem to power through a project much faster if it's for someone else rather than for me. I enjoy the time I spend knitting and thinking about how much (I hope) they will like it and when they will wear it. 

Most of my gift knitting for this year was already planned before KAN and before my challenge took shape -  I have four projects currently on the needles that are for Xmas gifts.

First of all a pair of Burning Stripes socks in Knitsch sock yarn (Zidler and Chelsea).......

Then a Noro striped scarf except mine isn't in Noro! I've used Garnstudio Drops Delight and I love the subtle way the colours are working out........

Next up is my Unwind shawl in the beautiful Mink yarn from Skeinz.......

And lastly a Boo Knits shawl called Promise Me in Dye for Yarn 100% silk in a dark, dark navy (which has photograohed purple!) called Black Mage......this is currently in my bad books because I am having to tink back the last row.  I made a stupid mistake and was one stitch out the whole row!!  What made it worse was that I made the same dumb mistake the first time I knitted it! Thank goodness I didn't cast off :-O  There's a story to this one which I will share once it is gifted.

I have more planned so really need to get my A into G and get knitting! I will be making two shawls for myself before Christmas as I'm taking part in two mystery KAL's, one a Westknits and one a Booknits so I will be a busy little knitter!

I will finish with this stunning photo of the mountain that I took on my day out the other day. We went for lunch down at the port and had a walk along the harbour.....no matter how many times I see the mountain in all it's glory it still amazes me and looks like someone has rolled a backdrop down behind the town!

Big Balls & Beads

Today was a good post day :-)  My tote bag from Kelly Connor Designs arrived and I love it! It suits my smutty sense of humour to a T and makes me smile whenever I read it!  It arrived wrapped in pink tissue paper with a hand written message on the label. Check out her etsy shop for different styles and phrases, I love her stuff.

When I was in Napier for KAN I bought some beads for a BooKnits Mystery KAL due to start in October on Ravelry. Originally I was going to knit it with slate grey lace weight yarn but after I got home I was having second thoughts and decided to overdye the yarn. Of course, that meant that the beads didn't match! Luckily, St Beads kindly allowed me to exchange them and the new ones arrived today. The purple of the yarn is more plummy than the purple beads but once the beads are spread out throughout the lace knitting then they will look fine, and I don't mind a contrast.......why do all that work if the beads don't show, right?! The designer has suggested two colours of bead so I went its a haematite bead as my second colour. 

The smaller packet of beads are Miyuki triangle beads. I am knitting a beaded lace shawl as a gift and had run out. I wasn't able to get the same colour as the rest of the shawl but luckily I am on the border anyway so I will use this purple mix instead. I think it will be one of those serendipitous moments as there are some lovely coloured beads in that little packet.

I have spinning group tonight and I know the ladies will all get a good laugh out of my new bag. I'm not sure if I will take my wheel as it's raining and I don't fancy the hassle of getting it in and out of the car, I will see what it's like when I get ready to go. It seems a little weird to go to spinning group and not spin but quite a few of the ladies often knit instead. I'm not on supper duty tonight so I can kick back and relax :-)

Easy like Monday morning.

Not quite sure where the post title came from but I assure you they won't all be song titles! I'm in my craft cave and the view out the window is gorgeous....looks like being another stunning spring day today.

During my (mad,crazy, what was I thinking?) challenge conversation, I promised to share pictures of my stash. I'm not going into great detail - it would take way too long anyway - but here are some snaps of my 'Wall of Stash'.

First an overall view....

And.......

On the left of the first photo you can see my dressmaking fabrics and a few craft fabrics, some of which will become summer skirts but mostly I am using them to make project bags for my etsy shop.

In the black and red baskets there is a mix of yarn and fibre, bottom two on the right contain fibre, the other four contain yarn.

The second picture has some fabric wip's in the left two cubbies (they are small cubbies!) and the rest contain various yarns, including my handspun.

What's not in the pictures is a 60l tub full of yarn - mostly cotton - and a 60l tub full of patchwork/craft fabric. I can barely get to that part of my stash right now and that will be a whole other part of the challenge haha.

I'm off on a small road trip today with my sister-in-law and a Dutch friend of my younger brother who is part way through a flying visit of NZ. We are taking her for a walk round Pukekura Park, which will be beautiful on a day like today, then off to Mike's Mild Ales for lunch and possibly a tour of the micro brewery. That part will be a bit of a busman's holiday for Laurien as she is an Assistant Manager in a bar in London......but she is keen to go. I will take my portable knitting project for something to do in the car.