New Pattern

My latest pattern has been published in Let's Knit, Issue 44.  It's a rectangular stole made from Fyberspates Scrumptious 4 ply and was designed with beginners in mind.  It introduces the technique of knitting an edging as you go, picking up stitches at the beginning and knitting them off at the end. The yarnover eyelets form an hourglass pattern that is repeated on the edging and in the centre of the shawl.  I didn't take any pictures of it before I sent it to the magazine apart from one when it was blocking.

I'll take far more when the shawl is returned!

The internet is a strange place

I spent a little bit too long today reading someone's blog that I possibly shouldn't have. Blogs are made for the public to read so there was no reason the writer wouldn't want me to read it but my reaction to it was difficult.  It made me think about the past, it left me feeling a little sad, a little lonely.  I was happy to find out about the writer's activities over the time we haven't been in contact.  I was really impressed with the amount of learning and embracing of life that had taken place.

What do I do with my time?

I knit.  I write patterns.  I spend time with family.  I now learn Japanese.  I watch tv but mostly I knit at the same time so that isn't a waste of time.  I work.  I'm slightly smug to say I enjoy my work and it doesn't bother me to go in every day, which definitely wasn't true of previous jobs.  I keep plodding onward. I've started to run but that is more like plodding onward for most of the time I'm in my trainers.

So really, I've nothing to feel bad about. I'm still moving forward and moving on and getting over it and growing and all those things that take time.  I'm content. 

When I was uploading the pattern for the Christening Gown I was pleased to see I'm building up a library of designs. I'd forgotten how much I'd worked on. It's a nice reminder of that last couple of years that were difficult in some ways but also challenging and productive.


I made these dresses for my goddaughter and I'm very hopeful that next week I'll have a photo of her modelling one of them.  The cream dress is made using Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino which is very easy to use.

Hannah

The picture actually shows the back of the dress but that is where the interest lies I suppose. I used several different stitch patterns and gave myself a real headache writing up the different sizes.  In future, I must plan better.  I'll also try to avoid patterns that need sizing every so often to give me a break. This was published in Let's Knit, Magazine 40.

My tv recorder has just surprised me by waking itself up.  I think this means it's going to record something but I've no idea what.  I'm normally at my Japanese lesson at this time of the week so I don't see it happen.  Another example of things moving around me without revolving around me.

I bought some yarn

The pink and green are Dazzling (sock)and the yellow is an older yarn base that I thought I would add to the photo but bought ages ago, all from The Natural Dye Studio.  I planning to make my goddaughter a stripey cardigan. Well, I was planning for it to be one colour and lacey but then I made a bodge on the yarn ordering and accidentally bought two different colours rather than two hanks of pink.  I remember wanting all the colours so I can see how this happened.  Perhaps I'll buy some blue or purple when I've finished the first stripey one and make another.

In the meantime, I had some more patterns published.  The first was a trio of stripey items using up lots of leftovers of Biggan DK that I had from some previous projects.

 Peekaboo

 Buddy

Cutie

These were all published in Let's Knit, Magazine 38 

Next was a little shawlette in Fyberspates Sheila's Sparkle Sock.

Mae

It was published in Let's Knit, Magazine 39 .

And then there was the Christening Gown which I haven't even added to Ravelry so I will sort that out.

Let's Knit Issue 35

Here I am modelling my new pattern. It's a cricket style low fronted v neck sweater made in local wool from Aragon Yarns. It can be found in the latest issue of Let's Knit.

I have internet at home again. I switched provider and after a slight hiccup with the modem being delivered to the wrong address, it was all smoothly installed last night. It has a nice blue light to let me know I'm connected to the internet and not hallucinating. Now I'm seriously considering upgrading my laptop to one with a bigger screen and a bigger memory and faster processor. Bigger and faster. I've almost decided which one I want and can even get a trade in on my (really) old one. I'm just being put off slightly by the thought of having to back everything up. I have an extra hard drive to back up to and I should do that anyway as I'm trying be grown up and get organised so it's just laziness really. That's always holding me back. I'm sure I could run the world if I wasn't so lazy - or at least have a new laptop. I was also quite impressed at how well my old little laptop is working , now that I've threatened it with being replaced, when its specs are soooooo far below those of the one I want to buy. I think it might have been quite expensive when I first bought it. It's even got a touch screen - you see, I was ahead of my time.

Let's Knit Issue 33

Here's my pattern for children's beach themed cardigans, on page 41 . I'm really pleased with these patterns. They are very cute and the starfish turned out very well. The Ice Cream and Starfish are knitted separately and then sewn on.


I used Sirdar Calico which is a cotton/acrylic blend in DK weight. The colours were a bit more muted than I originally wanted but I think they capture some of the spirit of summer.

I used wooden buttons to represent drift wood or even wooden deckchairs. Really should have cropped my feet out of that photo!

Let's Knit Front Cover, Issue 32

Wow, my pattern made it to the front cover of the latest issue of Let's Knit.

It's a pleated short sleeve top with bead and texture detail.

I designed and knitted this in February with some help from my sister. I wished I could blog about it at the time because it didn't run very smoothly. I think I'll just try to put that behind me and bask in the excitement of being on the cover. This is a landmark for me and has prompted me to think more about what I want to achieve with designing. I've been working on several patterns for Let's Knit this year, most of which have been published now. Now I'm at a point where I could submit some new design ideas, which if they're accepted gives me a guaranteed income and a deadline to work to. However I sometimes find I'm not designing the patterns I really want to or using the best yarn for a project. There's limited space in a printed magazine so I can't just freely write and have to use such shorthand that I sometimes feel I'm not really getting across what I want to. I could try to publish independently, for example through Ravelry. This would give more freedom in yarn choice and style of pattern writing but at my own investment in yarn and perhaps I would never finish writing it when there's no editor waiting for me. And, eek, perhaps noone would pay for them? I suppose at the moment I'm working a low risk strategy and accepting the limits in return for the benefits. I'm not sure this is the best strategy anymore. I have a dayjob for security of income so perhaps now that I've got some more experience I should branch out and take a few more risks. I guess it all comes down to how much work I'm prepared to put in. Noone can answer that but me.

Noblin Design - Breakfast Bunny

Pattern for an egg cosy using up odds and ends of 4ply yarn originally featured in Magknits
Designed by Abi Flynn-Jones, 2006


A Noblin design for Noblin Knits

Materials:
Small amounts of 4ply (sock) yarn in cream, pink and black
1 pair of 2.5mm needles
Darning needle

Gauge: 36 sts and 44 rows in stocking stitch on 2.5mm needles
It is not essential to achieve the exact gauge for this pattern. It is written to fit a medium hen’s egg.

Abbreviations:
k knit
p purl
sl1 slip one purlwise
RS right side
WS wrong side
Stocking stitch knit right side rows, purl wrong side rows

Decreases:
k2tog knit two stitches together
SSK slip two stitches individually knitwise, return them to the left needle then knit them together through the back of the loops
Psso pass slipped stitch over

Instructions for egg cosy

Body:
Cast on 50 stitches using 2.5mm needles and pink yarn

Row 1: k1, *k1, p1* rep to last st, k1
Row 2: p1, *p1, k1* rep to last st, p1
Rows 3 and 4: Repeat rows 1 and 2

Change to cream yarn
Row 5: Knit
Row 6 and all even (WS) rows: Purl
Rows 7 – 14: Repeat rows 5 and 6 four more times

Decrease section:
Row 15: k1, (k2tog, k12, SSK) three times, k1 44 sts
Row 17: k1, (k2tog, k10, SSK) three times, k1 38 sts
Row 19: k1, (k2tog, k8, SSK) three times, k1 32 sts
Row 21: k1, (k2tog, k6, SSK) three times, k1 26 sts
Row 23: k1, (k2tog, k4, SSK) three times, k1 20 sts
Row 25: k1, (k2tog, k2, SSK) three times, k1 14 sts
Row 27: k1, (sl 1, k2tog, psso) three times, k1 8 sts
Row 29: k1, (sl1, k2tog, psso) twice, k1 4 sts

Break off yarn and pull through remaining sts

Sew back seam and weave in ends


Ears: Make two
Cast on 16 sts using cream yarn
Row 1: Knit
Row 2: Purl
Rows 3 and 4: Repeat rows 1 and 2

Row 5: k10 in cream, k3 pink, k3 cream
Carry the colour not in use behind the work
Row 6: p3 cream, p3 pink, p10 cream
Continue working the pink stitches with pink yarn and the cream stitches with cream yarn
Rows 7 – 14: Repeat rows 5 and 6

Row 15: cream: k1, SSK, k3, k2tog, k2
pink: sl1, k2tog, psso
Cream: k3 12 sts
Break off pink yarn
Continue using cream only
Row 16: Purl
Row 17: k1, (SSK, k1, k2tog) twice, k1 8 sts
Row 19: k1, (sl1, k2tog, psso) twice, k1 4 sts

Break off yarn and pull through remaining sts

Sew seam and weave in ends

Attach ears to body

Embroider face as in the picture

Attach a pompom tail to the back seam

Noblin Design - Summer Nights

Click here to download the pdf including schematics

A shaped cardigan with flattering vertical stripes, worked in Colinette Giotto. It has shimmer and colour depth and knits up quickly. Short row shaping is used for waist and bust shaping. There is no shoulder shaping.

A Noblin design for Noblin Knits

Materials:

Colinette Giotto 5(5,6,6) 100g hanks

8mm needles

Darning needle

Brooch/Belt if desired

Gauge: 12 sts and 16 rows to 10 cm (4 inches)

Abbreviations:

k knit

p purl

sl1 slip one purlwise

yf yarn forward

yb yarn back

RS right side

WS wrong side

M1 make 1 by working into the bar between stitches

k2tog knit two stitches together

p2tog purl two stitches together

tbl through back of loop/s

st-st stocking stitch

To prevent holes forming during the working of short rows, the technique of wrapping the next unworked stitch is used. The instructions are written out in full (e.g. yf, sl1, yb, turn). On subsequent rows, the wraps will need to be worked at the same time as the stitch. To do this, slip the stitch to the right needle, insert the tip of the left needle into the wrap, slip the stitch back to the left needle. There are now two stitches on the left needle. I use k2tog on knit rows and p2togtbl on the purl rows. The nature of the yarn means that any missed wraps are not that noticeable.

Pattern

Back:

The back is created using a repeated panel. The panel begins with plain st-st section then has ten shaped rows. This panel is repeated 6(5,5,5) times. The st-st section is repeated to finish, although the number of rows is altered slightly in the larger sizes.

Panel Instructions:

Section A: St-st

Row 1: sl1, Knit to end

Row 2: sl1, Purl to end

Repeat these two rows 3(4,5,6) times.

Section B: Shaping

Row 1: sl1, k9(11,13,15), yf, sl1, yb, turn

Row 2: sl1, purl to end

Row 3: sl1, k5(7, 9, 11), yf, sl1, yb, turn

Row 4: sl1, purl to end

Row 5: sl1, knit to end

Row 6: sl1, p31(33,35,37), yb, sl1, yf, turn

Row 7: sl1, knit to end

Row 8: sl1, p27(29,31,33), yb, sl1, yf, turn

Row 9: sl1, knit to end

Row 10: sl1, purl to end

Cast on 58(62,66,70) sts

Work Panel instructions 6(5,5,5) times.

Repeat Section A Rows 1 and 2 a further 3(6,4,3) times.

Bind off.

Right Front:

The right front is created using a repeated panel, in the same manner as the back. It has extra shaping for the bust. The panel begins with plain st-st section then has twelve shaped rows. This panel is repeated 3 times. The st-st section is repeated to finish.

Panel Instructions:

Section A: St-st

Row 1: sl1, Knit to end

Row 2: sl1, Purl to end

Repeat rows these two rows 3(4,5,6) times.

Section B: Shaping

Row 1: sl1, k31(33,35,37), yf, sl1, yb, turn

Row 2: sl1, purl to end

Row 3: sl1, k27(29,31,33), yf, sl1, yb, turn

Row 4: sl1, purl to end

Row 5: sl1, k21(22,23,24), yf, sl1, yb, turn

Row 6: sl1, p8(9,10,11), yb, sl1, yf, turn

Row 7: sl1, knit to end

Row 8: sl1, p9(11,13,15), yb, sl1, yf, turn

Row 9: sl1, knit to end

Row 10: sl1, p5(7,9,11), yb, sl1, yf, turn

Row 11: sl1, knit to end

Row 12: sl1, purl to end.

Cast on 58(62,66,70) sts

Work Panel instructions 3(3,3,3) times.

Repeat Section A once more.

Bind off.

Left Front:

The left front is created using a repeated panel, in the same manner as the right front but the shaping is reversed.

Cast on 58(62,66,70) sts

Panel Instructions:

Section A: St-st

Row 1: sl1, Knit to end

Row 2: sl1, Purl to end

Repeat rows these two rows 3(4,5,6) times.

Section B: Shaping

Row 1: sl1, k9(11,13,15), yf, sl1, yb, turn

Row 2: sl1, purl to end

Row 3: sl1, k5(7,9,11), yf, sl1, yb, turn

Row 4: sl1, purl to end

Row 5: sl1, k44(48,52,56), yf, sl1, yb, turn

Row 6: sl1, p8(9,10,11), yb, sl1, yf, turn

Row 7: sl1, knit to end

Row 8: sl1, p31(33,35,37), yb, sl1, yf, turn

Row 9: sl1, knit to end

Row 10: sl1, p27(29,31,33), yb, sl1, yf

Row 11: sl1, knit to end

Row 12: sl1,.purl to end

Work Panel instructions 3(3,3,3) times.

Repeat Section A once more.

Bind off.

Sleeves: Make 2

The sleeves are ultra wide and loose. If you prefer narrower sleeves, work the increases on every other repeat only, increasing to 48 stitches only.

Cast on 36 sts

Rows 1 and 3: Knit

Rows 2 and 4: Purl

Row 5: k1, m1, knit to last two stitches, m1, k1

Row 6: Purl

Work rows 1 – 6 twelve times 60 sts

Row 73: Knit

Row 74: Purl

Repeat rows 73 and 74 a further 7 times

Bind off

Finishing

Block to measurements.

Sew shoulder seams.

Attach sleeves.

Sew side and sleeve seams.

Iron the seams if you dare.

Wear with joy.

Leaf pattern

Here is the leaf pattern that Bev asked for. It features on the SWS as seen here

Cast on 3 sts

Row 1: k1, yo, k1, yo, k1 5 sts
Row 2 and all even rows: Purl
Row 3: k2, yo, k1, yo, k2 7 sts
Row 5: k3, yo, k1, yo, k3 9 sts
Row 7: k4, yo, k1, yo, k4 11 sts
Row 9: k5, yo, k1, yo, k5 13 sts
Row 11: skpo, k9, k2tog 11 sts
Row 13: skpo, k7, k2tog 9 sts
Row 15: skpo, k5, k2tog 7 sts
Row 17: skpo, k3, k2tog 5 sts
Row 19: skpo, k1, k2tog 3 sts
Row 21: sl 2 sts tog knitwise, k1, pso 1 st

Cut yarn and pull through remaining st.

I left the tails long for sewing onto the shawl and varied the size of the leaves as I fancied. For a smaller leaf, omit rows 9 - 12. For larger leaves, just keep increasing. I also experimented with a garter stitch based leaf and varied the cast on and first row.

Enjoy!

I'll be off for a few weeks so see you when I get back.

Hello Mum and Dad
;)