Not socks

Contrary to popular belief, I have been making more than just socks this year (mainly socks, yes. But not ONLY socks). One of my best friends had a baby last month so there was a lot of teeny tiny knitting and crochet going on. First up was a love heart blanket with a matching hat, in the colours of my friend’s nursery.

Right now I’m working on a matching hat and mitten set with some self-striping yarn that my mum sent me. I’m using the Barley hat pattern from Tin Can Knits, but I’m really not sure about the sizing. The smallest size, labelled “baby size”, seems way too small, so I tried the next size up and the difference between them is ridiculous. I might have to see if I can fudge the pattern to land somewhere between the two.

Mum also sent me two crochet kits to make this hedgehog.

I struggled with this one. First of all the pattern is in UK terms, and yes I did get more than halfway through before realising this and had to frog it all. Grr. The yarn is quite stiff and hard to work with so that’s not fun. Plus I just don’t like the construction – there are gaps at the edge of the bobble stitches, I had to fudge the spacing of the bobbles on the head so they didn’t end up lopsided, and I just don’t think it looks as cute as it could.

Next up is the beginning of a jumper, using a ball of Melange that I got from Jinty & Baa, the yarn shop in Dunoon. The idea was to use the one ball to make a top for myself, but I was quite a bit smaller when I bought it so there’s a distinct possibility that it will end up as a cropped, short-sleeved jumper. I just stuck the sleeve stitches on waste yarn, so I can do a few body rounds and see how it’s fitting. I am prepared to frog the lot and start again if I can get away with a smaller size, but we’ll see what happens.

I also got a commission for some personalised robin baubles this month. Instead of taking the easy route and finding a pattern to follow, I decided to just make it up as I went along. Mistake. I also left it to the last minute, big mistake. I put everything together, sewed their little hats on…and realised that I absolutely hated them. They were nothing like the happy little robins I’d planned in my head, but I was already running 5 minutes late for choir rehearsal (where I was supposed to hand them over) so there was no chance for a re-do.

During the rehearsal I decided to give my robins a beak, as it couldn’t possibly make them look any worse. And you know what? They somehow changed everything. Suddenly I didn’t hate the robins. In fact they were pretty darn cute. It makes no sense to me, but thank goodness I took the ten minutes to add that finishing touch.

I mean they’re still not perfect; if I were to make them again I would give them smaller bodies, and do a ribbed brim to the hats rather than a rolled brim. But considering how disappointed I was with them before, I’m counting this as a solid win!

So there you go, I do still know how to make things other than socks 😀

Hannah

xXx

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2019 review

Well look at that, another whole year gone by. Once again I’m so glad I have my blog to remind me of all I’ve achieved over the last 365 days.

For a start, there were a lot more FOs than I thought.

Baby poncho x2

Kalinda shawl

Caron cupcake hat x2

Caron cake folded bag (I’ve still got this lying around. I really must give it away)

The teeny tiny llama, and a somewhat creepy amigurumi tooth

There were a few bits and pieces for myself

Flax Light for me

A scrappy neck warmer

Changing Staircases

But I think I’m most pleased with my blanket output this year.

Not one, but two full-sized Lego blankets!

Changing Tides, my first ever CAL

A baby Lego blanket with spare bricks

The super chunky green and purple baby blanket

A more traditionally coloured baby blanket

There was also a Mothers day card with crochet elements, which I know I can do better this year.

Outside of knitting and crochet, I tried my hand at both needle felting and beading.

Then for christmas I whipped up my Dad’s hat and a final headband.

That’s 24 total FOs, which I’m pretty darn pleased with.

With all these projects I also learned a thing or two:

Continental knitting

Foundation crochet stitches

Magic loop for knitting

Stretchy bind off

Needle felting

Crochet loop stitch

So I’ve had a great year and I’m hoping to make 2020 just as good, if not better!

I’m determined that this will be the year I finally jump in to sock knitting. I’m also planning to make a big dent in my stash and make a bit of a difference in the world by focussing on some charity yarnery.

I hope everyone had a lovely new years eve, and that 2020 is so much better to you than 2019 was (whatever kind of year you had).

Hannah

xXx

September Review

My plan for September was to finally get some WIPs off my list so I could knock it down from eight WIPs to four.

I managed one of those things.

After what felt like forever with nothing, I managed four fairly big finishes:

There was my boyfriend’s Lego blanket.

A baby blanket made with the leftover bricks.

My Changing Tides blanket (nope, I still haven’t sewn the ends in).

And FINALLY my beautiful Flax Light

The baby blanket was a new addition so that got my WIP list down to five, but…then I got a bit of start-itis after being inspired by BonnyKnits, and cast on something new.

This is Changing Staircases by Dragon Hoard Designs, it’s free on Ravelry, and the yarn is Leaf Green Rainbow by Mothy and the Squid. I regret nothing.

So now my WIP list is sitting at six, which is an improvement so I’ll take it.

I think for October I’ll aim for getting it down to four again. A few of the projects are close to finished and should be easy to cross off, but I’m also going to start making for Christmas so I know there will be more added on.  I just have to resist all the Halloween crafts that are popping up everywhere!

Hannah

xXx

Leftovers

In my rush to get the Lego blanket finished on time I left out the ring of bricks around the edge that I had planned.

But that decision was made after I’d finished making all the bricks, plus a few extras because apparently I can’t count, so I had 48 Lego bricks all stacked up on the sofa with nowhere to go. What to do with them?

The stacks were actually slightly smaller than this

There was always frogging, but I couldn’t bear the thought of 1. undoing all my work and 2. adding 48 little scrap balls back into my stash. I had to use them for something. So of course I made a baby Lego blanket!

It was a bit on the small side with just a sc border so I went for an extension of the bobble stitches again, which had the added bonus of using up some of the extra Rose Red I ordered after my yarn mix-up.

Now it’s just the right size, and I have to decide what to do with it. It’s far too pretty to go to the cat charity (and I don’t know if they’d accept the bobbles), but I can’t think of any friends having a baby any time soon. Any suggestions?

Hannah

xXx

WIP Wednesday 03.07.19

Current WIP count: 7

Welcome to July, everyone!

After leaving my Flax Light in the naughty corner for a few days, I managed to tink back to my mistake without too many issues. Now I’m chugging along with it again, this time counting the purl stitches every time I hit the panel because I am NOT making the same mistake twice.

I’m also trying very hard not to think about the fact that I have to do this all over again for the other sleeve, otherwise it might turn into one of those UFOs you shove in a drawer and forget about for five years. Could I start a trend for one-armed jumpers, do you think?

Changing Tides has fallen behind again, thanks to a super busy couple of weekends. And also me dragging my feet a wee bit because I know another week of pebbles is coming up and they take aaaaaaages.

But I did particularly enjoy the last section I worked on. The shell stitches are pretty and I’m definitely using this blue/yellow colourway for another make at some point in the future.

Ooh what about a baby blanket using the same pattern? I think that would look cute.

Anyway I’d better not add another WIP to my list just yet – I really need to get some of the current ones to FOs first!

Hannah

xXx

FO Friday 29.03.19

I never posted about the second baby blanket my mum commissioned, so here we go. It’s another Irish Wave blanket, this time using Sirdar Snuggly Baby Crofter DK in the colourway Hazel. I followed the pattern right up to the end, when the amount of yarn leftover was just the wrong side of useless. I added two rows of sc and that used up every last scrap.

It came out a bit of an interesting shape, but by the time I realised it wouldn’t be the normal rectangular shape I didn’t have enough time to start again with a shorter chain. Next time I just need to remember what a yarn-muncher it is!

There probably will be a next time, as I love the shapes and it seems to work with all kinds of yarn.

Plus here’s another photo of the lego blanket, because I’m just so proud of it!

Now I’m going to enjoy a weekend of working on every single WIP I have, just because I can! What’s everyone else up to this weekend? Let me know in the comments!

Hannah

xXx

WIP Wednesday 06.03.19

Current WIP count: 6

With the baby blankets done and dusted, I can now focus on my dad’s birthday present. It’s going to be a Lego blanket, using lots and lots of these ‘bricks’ (which are really difficult to photograph!).

Crochet lego brick

 

 

Crochet lego brick close up

 

 

I figured out how to make them myself, which I’m quite proud of.

On Sunday I had a 3-hour train journey and I was hoping to spend the whole time crocheting, but I’m a total dingbat and packed the wrong hook size so I couldn’t do anything. Basically I just took my yarn on a field trip.

It did give me an excuse for a proper reading session though – silver lining!

So I’m nowhere near as far along with the blanket as I hoped to be at this point and I can’t guarantee it’ll be finished in time, which would be a shame.

But I’m not admitting defeat yet. There’s a fairly clear weekend coming up and I’m going to spend most of it crocheting.

Wish me luck!

Hannah

xXx

FO Friday 01.03.19

White rabbits!

It wasn’t on my list of things to make, but I was having so much fun with the super chunky yarn that I ended up making a quick neck warmer with some scraps.

I suppose it could also be an ear warmer if you were that way inclined.

This is how tight I prefer things that are meant to keep my neck warm. Most cowl patterns are too loose for my liking, with big gaps that let the cold air straight to my skin. Which kinda defies the point if you ask me. So I made this the perfect amount of stretchy to get over my head while still being snug against my neck when it’s on.

Added bonus: it took less than an hour to make.

There’s still quite a bit of blue and some green and purple scraps left so I might have to make myself a matching hat.

Now, back to the baby blanket!

Hannah

xXx

WIP Wednesday 27.02.19

Current WIP count: 7

Wasn’t yesterday just the most beautiful day? Properly warm after what feels like 300 days of winter. And I was off work too – perfect!

I feel the WIP pressure is off now I’ve finished one of my baby blankets. I’m using the same pattern for the second blanket, but with DK yarn rather than super chunky, and it’s amazing how different that looks.

This is about 2/3 done and it grows pretty quickly so it should be ready for Saturday.

I’ve been unable to completely ignore my Flax so now I’m just a few rounds from putting the sleeve stitches onto waste yarn and casting on some more for the body. I’ve never done that before so we’ll see how it goes!

What’s everyone else working on? Enjoying the unusually sunny weather? Let me know in the comments!

Hannah

xXx

Yarn review: Hayfield bonus super chunky

I bought my first skein of this yarn online, so I didn’t know just how thick it was until it arrived.

I was a bit wary (it’s so big!) until I realised how quickly you can make something when each sc stitch is a 2cm tall. It’s like magic.

Each skein is 100g of 100% acrylic, but being so chunky that only gets you 82m of yarn to play with.

It’s unbelievably soft and so squishable (technical term); every time I work with it I just have to give it a wee squeeze before I do anything else. If I’m never able to have a cat I can just make do with a skein of this for my fix of fuzzy things to cuddle.

The recommended hook size is 10mm, although I haven’t used that size for either of my makes with this yarn. I used a 6mm hook to make a pair of fingerless gloves for a charity raffle and it made nice, close stitches with no gaps to let the cold air sneak through. Then some muppet put them on bottles of wine and stretched them out of shape, but that’s another story.

I did try a 10mm for my supersized baby blanket, but it came out a bit too solid and not drapey enough for my liking so I switched to 12mm. As always, hook size really depends on what you want to make.

There are pretty limited colour options available, but the colours they do have are so rich and vibrant. Perfect for people like me who want their colour visible half a mile away! There are also a couple of pastel shades for those who prefer a more subtle effect.

I’m pretty much in love with this stuff, it’s gorgeous and soft and quick to make things with – everything I want from a yarn!

Stats

• 100% Acrylic
• Super chunky weight
• 82m
• 100g
• Suggested hook size 10mm

Has anyone else had a go with super chunky yarn? Let me know in the comments!

Hannah

xXx

FO Friday 22.02.19

Man I love chunky yarn. This baby blanket was started, finished, and on the blocking mats in about 5 hours, and it would’ve been even quicker if I had a less sticky 12mm hook!

I used the Irish Wave pattern by Elizabeth Mareno, which is free on lovecrochet.com and includes instructions for both a baby blanket and a scarf. It’s designed for a much thinner yarn so I fiddled with the starting chain numbers to make it work.

This was very nearly a continuation of my purple-and-cream phase, but then I remembered I had some of the same yarn in green. And my mum said the person she has in mind for the blanket wouldn’t be put off by non-traditional colour combos so I went with it. Personally I love it; the more colour the better.

Plus this stuff is ultra soft and squidgy so I think it’s perfect for baby things.

The blanket used 3 skeins of super chunky yarn, which cleared quite a big space in my stash so now I can rearrange the yarn drawers and it won’t be so crammed. Double win.

The other blanket is nowhere near finished so I’d better crack on. I’ve got a week left and I’m determined to finish on time.

Hannah

xXx

WIP Wednesday 20.02.19

Current WIP count: 8

It’s all gone a bit mad this week. My mum asked for 2 baby blankets to give to friends, which I thought I had in stock but didn’t. So I’m rushing those through.

12mm hook ftw!

Then my dad’s birthday is in March and he’s getting a blanket as well. It occurred to me at the weekend that a dad-sized blanket can take quite a bit of time so I’d better get on with it.

Just a sneaky peek for now

I do have a backup plan if it’s not ready in time, but I’m trying my best to hit the deadline.

And the woman at choir who requested a poncho for her granddaughter told me the parents were so pleased with it they’d like another one! There are a few adjustments I can make, which is why I’ve jumped right in to start working them out. I’m expecting much frogging.

With all these new WIPs you’d think everything else would have been neglected, but I actually have progress to show.

Roses for Grandma now has 2 more complete squares and another partly done.

Plus I’m well into the increase section of my Flax Light.

It was so lovely having a whole day at the weekend to just sit and work with yarn, and having so much to show for it feels awesome. But argh so many WIPs!!

What’s everyone else working on this week? Are you keeping your WIP pile under control? Let me know in the comments!

Hannah

xXx