Yarndale 2013

It has been many years since I last attended a yarn show and I was determined to make it along to Yarndale this year. Rounding up the Madmum household for a 6am start prior to a 4hr car journey was not fun but boy, was I determined. The boys were in the back of the car with half a croissant each before they knew what had hit them.

Unlike others who arrived later on the Saturday we had no traffic problems and parked with ease at the venue. We had more difficulty persuading DS1 and DS2 to get changed from their PJs into real clothes. For a while it looked as though I was going to be accompanied by 2 small boys in tiger onesies.

I had some doubts about how well the boys would fare but DH was adamant that we all go and enjoy a good family morning and I have to say that it was brilliant. We were all entranced by the alpaca, especially when you could hear their gentle melodic humming. DS1 fell in love with a small angora bunny and both boys had an amazing time with a drum carder. If I can ever learn to spin properly and persuade DH to buy me a drum carder I have two handy helpers who think that turning the handle and feeding in the fibre is the best fun ever.

Anyway - the serious business of stash enhancement had to take over and in short order I managed to procure some serious beauties:

From the Knitting Goddess:

Sparklynne Sock Yarn - semi solid Pearl

Sparklynne Sock Yarn - Undead

I also scored some of Joy's new Britsock - more about that later as it deserves a blog post all of it's own.

From Fivemoons:

 Diana ply sock weight yarn - As the Crow Flies

Beautiful Vintage 4ply sock yarn in the rather unattractively named 'Vermin' colourway

I also bought some Red Lace Chiao Goo sock needles and couldn't resist road testing them as soon as I got to my parents house - along with the Britsock - they deserve their own blog post.

After a lovely lunch it was time to pile back in the car and head to my parents house so they boys could chill out and get back into their PJ's.

A fabulous day was had by all. I know that some people experienced a few teething problems but it was an amazing event and I for one will be in the queue for tickets next year.

Going Steady

In my knitting life, monogamy is unusual. I am generally a bit of a magpie with lots of different projects on the go at once. At the moment though I am finding that my Icon dress continues to hold my attention, making it my 'go-to' project except for when I am out and about. I have a pair of socks on the go - well 1 sock halfway through the design process but apart from that, I am just happy to sit and work with this beautiful alpaca.

For a sportweight yarn it is growing pretty quickly - this photo was taken a couple of days ago. I'm now almost up to the armhole shaping. of course I do have to knit a back as well but so far, so good.

It isn't as though there aren't lots of other pretties trying to grab my attention though. I am very keen to cast on for a Brickless, especially since the lovely Knitmore Girls are going to be having a Martina
Behm KAL soon - with a discount code off the pattern purchase price.

I aslo want to make an Ammolite from the most recent edition of Pom Pom Quarterly.

And then there is the sweater I promised DH two winters ago - I have 15 skeins of Rowan DK British Breeds waiting to be knit up into a lovely warm sweater for him. But it is Brown, and he wants it Plain and it needs to fit a 48" chest - I bet you can guess where this item is on my to-do list :)

Under a Rose Moon

Just a flying visit today but I'm determined to post this in the midst of a crazy day.

A new FO and also a new published pattern - yay

The pattern is Under a Rose Moon and is toe-up only this time due to the slightly more complex pattern motif. I did try to go for cuff down too but it defeated me.

The yarn is the gorgeous Coniston from Solstice Yarns in the colourway - The Vanishing Lady. Simply beautiful to work with and the colours just glowed at me whilst I was working with it - a real treat.

Enthusiasm

Don't you just love that fit of enthusiasm that comes over you at the start of a new project? The yarn is fabulous, your tension is spot on, the pattern set-up is a doddle. You feel as though you are flying along and this little beauty will soon be gracing your wardrobe.

Of course, we all know that it won't last. The lure of Ravlery will seduce me away. Something brighter, shinier, newer, more popular is bound to draw my eye at some point. Easily distracted...me?

But for now, this project is enthralling me and entertaining me in equal measure.

It is the Icon Dress in the fabulous Purl Alpaca Designs alpaca (colourway Mushroom in case you were wondering).

I am knitting as part of a KAL over on the Stitched Together Designs group - the challenge being to use a hard copy pattern (book, magazine etc) from your craft library to create something you have been meaning to make for ages...but just never got around to.

There are some lovely and inspirational projects over there - do go and take a look.

The deadline for finishing is 31st October - I have a feeling that I may not make it in time (this is a dress in sport weight yarn, let's not forget) but I think I will have fun trying.

FO, but slow

So this didn't exactly turn into the high-speed Hitchhiker that I had hoped for.

I persevered with the Continental technique, I really did but after about halfway through the shawl there was no discernable increase in speed and I was finding it pretty hard going to be honest. It isn't that I can't knit with the yarn in my left hand. I can and I can keep a fairly even tension too, but it just doesn't seem any quicker.

And yes, I was sad enough to time myself too, before you ask.

In the course of my internet reading though I did come across several links to Lever Knitting, also known as Irish Cottage Knitting. This method is espoused by The Yarn Harlot no less, so I did give it a go and found it to be a little more intuitive and natural-feeling than the Continental style. I guess I am a born thrower, and having the yarn in my right hand just feels 'right'

I did also come across several hints and tips for faster or more ergonminc knitting. Some of them I think I knew already or instinctively use but I thought I would share them with you anyway.

1. Power loading (again, a la The Yarn Harlot)- sounds scary but it just means to scrunch up your left hand stitches up as close to the needle tip as possible.
2. Live on the edge - keep the stitches on both needles as close to the needle tips as possible to minimise exessive movement.
3. Don't re-tension - once you have the yarn tensioned comfortably try to ensure you have enough yarn for your row or round, reducing the need to stop and re-tension your yarn.
4. Practice - any new technique should be practised for at least 20hrs, giving time for your brain to learn all the subtle micro movements needed and develop that muscle memory.
5. Relax - tension in your neck and shoulders can impede muscle movement and slow you down.

More details about the shawl are on my ravelry page in case you are interested.

Shawl Surprise

The surprise being that I seem to be obssessed with shawl knitting, despite the fact that I should be knitting socks.

I just finished my Herbivore by Stephen West and am really pleased with how it turned out. It has just the right amount of drape and long enough 'arms' to wrap properly around my neck. The yarn is perfect too - silky and luscious to knit with bright little pops of colour - pale green and blue amidst the teal.





I enjoyed it so much in fact that I spent a happy hour perusing more shawl patterns on Ravelry, looking for some more instant gratification. In the end though I plumped for a pattern I have knit before - a Hitchhiker - in some yarn from my Deep Stash. I think it may be from the Natural Dye Studios but don't quote me on it.

I don't normally knit the same thing twice, but this time I have a cunning plan. if I am going to Knit All the Things then I need to knit faster...much faster. So on this project I am determined to crack Continental knitting.

I found this great U-Tube clip which was really helpful. I have tried to knit this way before but until now I never grasped the significance of using the thumb/middle finger of the left hand to hold the stitches at the base of the work - providing a stable point to lever the yarn through, rather than just poking the right hand needle through the loop and fishing around for the strand of yarn coming from the left index finger. Sorry for the appalling description - it makes sense to me - but this lady explains it far better.

So wish me luck...I am going Continental.

A bit of fun

With so much of my knitting being for others or on deadlines I have found a little stress creeping into my knitting life this week. Don't get me wrong, I love my sock knitting and will never be parted from it but when all my ongoing projects are sock related I start to feel a little flat and one-dimensional.

So in the interests of fun and variety I have declared today a Non Sock Day and cast on for a shawl instead.

A  chance comment by the lovely Kerry over in the Sheep Shop group on Ravelry lead to the setting up of a summer mini KAL/CAL for folks interested in casting on for a shawl project this summer. Inspired by a shop sample I have decided to cast on a Herbivore shawl in some gorgeous Sparkleduck Galaxy yarn. Perfect as a relaxing summer knit whilst entertaining the boys at home.

Not much progress yet, but I will be working on it after 'Bath & Bed'.

It sounds almost like knitting heresy but despite being a huge admirer of his work, I have not yet made any of the Stephen West shawls. By a strange coincidence I have been trying to play around with different shawl shapes for fun, and came across his Shawlscapes class on the Craftsy website.

So now, I am knitting on my own Herbivore whilst working my way through the online tutorial. I'm not entirely sold on his presentation style, but it's early days  - I'll let you know how I get on.