The Last of 2007

Happy New Year! I hope you have all enjoyed the holidays as much as I did. I can't believe how quickly they've come and gone though.

After the successful completion of my gift knitting (yippeee!) I celebrated by casting on for what would be come my final knit of 2007. It is Ene's Scarf from Scarf Style and proved to be perfect knitting for the season.

The scarf is knit from the long edge (cast on 375 stitches) and decreases 4 stitches every second row. The advantage of this method is that it keeps your motivation up as the rows get shorter and shorter the closer you get to the end.

The disadvantage is that you have to cast on 375 stitches. And because I managed to mess up the first few rows 3 times before I FINALLY got it right - I got to cast on those 375 stitches 4 times. I was in fact convinced that there was a problem with the pattern and searched frantically for an errata to support me. Alas, there was none. I was just incapable of maintaing my focus on the scarf while David Tennant was saving the earth from destruction (in a tux) (gadzooks that man looks fine in a tux) in the Christmas episode of Dr Who. (The champagne with Christmas lunch probably didn't help either.)

But without the distraction of David Tennant the scarf is pretty straightforward, and once you are in the body of the scarf the pattern is very easy to remember. Perfect knitting to keep my mind occupied while I continued to gorge on Christmas TV. (The finale of Extras and The Old Curiousity Shop were particular favourites.) (Although I think The Old Curiousity Shop was over-abridged as the grandfather character had no redeeming qualities that I could see - but I felt I was supposed to like him. I am going to read the book now to find out what they cut out.)


I used Lucy Neatby Celestial Merino sock weight yarn which feels gorgeous. My only complaint with the yarn was that the dye came off on my hands throughout the knitting -- I had blue fingers for much of the holiday!

The finished scarf is warm and cosy and I expect it will get a lot of wear.

As it is the beginning of a new year I've been doing the usual evaluating of 2007 and planning for 2008.

2007 was a great year for me knitting-wise. Kicked off by finishing (after 18 years) the Kaffe Fasset Chinese Rose Coat. Completing the coat in itself was quite an event, but it was also the thing that led to my discovering the vast www knitting world. A simple search for Kaffe Fasett in google one day led to my discovering the UK knitting forum, Knitty board, the amazing world of knitting blogs, Ravelry and more patterns than I had ever imagined.


I went from total scepticism on the topic of socks to always having a pair of socks on the needles and am the happy owner of over 10 books on the glory of socks!! I've made 17 pairs of socks and demand for them seems to be growing.

Herbert Niebling joined Kaffe Fasset as a knitting god in my eyes. I became obsessed with lace knitting and completed 8 scarves/shawls/stoles and 2 lace table covers.

And for a bit of variety I made a few tea cozies, a couple of felted bags, a comfy throw and a lot of Innocent Smoothy hats. (Oh! and some mittens, hats and a cardigan.)

As for 2008 - well, I won't be surprised if I'm a little less prolific. Surely this mad enthusiasm has to wane at some point! Having said that I have a mountain of yarn and a list of patterns I want to make a mile long -- and every day I seem to find another must have yarn to add to the mountain or another gorgeous/challenging pattern to to add to the list.

Hope your 2008 is everything you want it to be!

Exit from Muir

I blocked Muir yesterday, and I'm really pleased with the final product.

As I mentioned in a previous post I used a needle size (4mm) that was larger than what I've generally knit laceweight on (2mm - 2.75mm). I love the effect and will try to remember that when I cast on my next lace project and the 'looseness' freaks me out.

The pattern is a 32 row repeat (even rows are all purl) and the pattern is pretty intuitive once it has been established.

I used 4mm needles and 4.5 balls of Kid Silk Night. The only modification I made to the pattern was a mistake on my part. I made the picot at the beginning of each row instead of on alternate rows as indicated on the chart. When I realised this on row 6 I decided that picots on every row was a better idea then attempting to rip back Kid Silk Night.

Pre-blocking it was 24 x 58 inches.

Post blocking it was 28 x 72 inches.

I used blocking wires to straighten the edges - but I didn't block it hard at all. In fact I didn't attempt to stretch it at all while blocking, and I didn't pin it. I just let the weight of the wires hold it in place.

I was worried the blocking would mean the stole lost its fluffiness - but it didn't. It's still oh so fluffy and welcoming.

This weekend I'll be working on tea cosies. I still have a couple of 'Loopy Ewe' cosy requests to fill, and I want to get one or two off to St John Ambulance this week. (As it was their tea cosy fundraising campaign that started this latest trend in my knitting!)

I'm pondering my next big project. I have a few contenders - all of which have been on my 'to do' list for ages! I'll keep pondering which one to tackle while I finish up these cosies and expect then I'll cast on for something else entirely.

Muir is Cast Off

I've cast off Muir. And it is easily the softest, fluffiest thing I've ever knit. Even now looking at the finished knitting sitting on the table waiting to be blocked I can't help but think how warm and welcoming it looks.

It's already quite big - 24 inches by 58 inches - BEFORE blocking.

I'll block it later this week when I figure out where the heck it will fit.....

Undeterred by your lukewarm (at best) reaction to the new Kaffe book today I did a bit of Kaffe surfing and discovered that he's speaking at the V&A at the end of November. Wahey! I've booked a ticket already. (I don't think I'll be able to coerce anyone into coming with me -- none of my friends knit and I think attempts to 'big up' the idea of attending a lecture by a 'famous knitter' would just open me up to ridicule!)

It's a Friday evening I think, so my current plan is to leave work early so I can do a section or two of the V&A before the lecture. If you've never been to the V&A and get the chance then I heartily recommend it. It has an amazing collection of fashion and design over the centuries. In fact it was at the V&A that I first saw a knitted Kaffe Fassett Chinese Rose Coat (it was part of a temporary exhibit of his work) that inspired the 18 year project.

Fleegle asked if I wear the coat - and the simple answer is no. In fact, even when I started it 18 years ago I never really thought I'd wear it. I just fell in love with it as an object. It was always about the beauty of the colours and the rose pattern -- never really about a coat. When I was too far into the project to do anything about it - it did occur to me that I should have adapted the pattern to a throw or blanket which might actually be used. But by that time there was no way I was ripping it back.

Heeeeeeee's Back!

Kaffe Knits Again arrived this week.

Like many other knitters who were inspired by Kaffe in the 80's I feared we had lost him FOREVER to those quilting types. But no. He's back.

Wahey!!

There are a some new patterns in this book, and many of his earlier designs re-worked in shapes more suited to today than the one size fits all oversized stuff of the 80's.

Obviously I'm a fan. (You don't spend 18 years working on something you don't love.) (Even if you don't know what the heck you're going to do with it.) But I recognise there are others who aren't so inspired by the bursts of colours. (My favourite description of Kaffe's work by the 'not so inspired camp' was from Dogged Knits who described Kaffe as a "purveyor of technicolor intarsia barf")(Still makes me laugh.)(But she loves his quilt designs -- so all is not lost.) If you fall into that camp this book won't change your mind.

But if you're a fan - go get this book. Perfect for brightening up a dull wintry day.

Two follow ups on my last post. First, Fleegle and LittleBerry wanted a close up of Muir. And being ever keen to please here it is.

Although eager to please I'm not a great photographer and the photo has somehow erased the lovely fuzzzzzz of the KSH and the little specks of silver. But they are there. Trust me.

I'm halfway through the 11th repeat and really pleased with the result. This is still perfect knitting for me as I sit in my cold house after a long day in the office!

On the boiler front -- November 8th is still the installation date (!). Thanks to everyone for their warm thoughts.

The unknown light switch looking thing in the closet was indeed an immersion heater so I have hot water. And yesterday I invested in two small heating fans, which are surprisingly efficient. I've got hot water and some heat - so all in all, I'm can't complain too much.

But I really want to.

Out of My Comfort Zone....

The past few days I've been taken out of my comfort zone -literally and kniterally (which may not be a word but certainly should be).

In the world of knitting I've taken things down a gear as the long hours at work continue. This means that when I do knit I want easy. I want progress. I want to be able to pick it up and put it down mid row. And preferably I want to do all of that while watching Ugly Betty.

The perfect pattern and yarn were sourced - the lovely Muir designed by Romi. I love the movement of the lines around the leaves. The stole is made up of 13 repeats of 32 pretty straightforward rows, particularly once the pattern is established. I am really loving knitting it. It requires just enough of my brain and not one cell more.

I'm knitting it in Kid Silk Night on 4mm (!) needles. That's the first move from the comfort zone. Until now I've done all of my lace knitting on smallish needles (relative to the pattern) preferring (while knitting) the tighter look of the fabric. But when I see the finished objects created by others with looser fabric I really really like it.

So for this project I just picked up the recommended needles, the yarn and started knitting. It was loose. Crazy loose. But I just focused on Ugly Betty being charmed by Gio the sandwich guy and carried on. Now, just about through the 5th repeat I'm loving the looseness! I'm embracing the looseness! Looseness rules!

Sadly, my other 'out of the comfort zone' tale does not (yet) end so happily. On Saturday (possibly Friday) my boiler packed up. No heat. And a dwindling supply of hot water - the last tepid drops of which I used to wash my hair on Sunday.

Yesterday I called the 'emergency installation' line for British Gas. When I said I wanted a new boiler system installed the service agent said they'd send around a sales agent to see what I need. I reiterated that I needed a new boiler system. He booked the sales agent appointment.

Today a very nice man from British Gas dropped by to 'evaluate the situation' and apparently I need a new boiler system. Wow. Didn't see that coming. He then proceeded to recommend a system, give me the (crazy crazy) price. I agreed. (I WANT HOT WATER.)

He called the service centre to book the 'emergency installation' appointment. I tell no lie when I say British Gas are delivering the equipment NEXT Monday, and the earliest actual installation (according to the computer) is - November 8. Yep the 8th of November. Yep, as in 15 days from now. There is some hope (ha) that an earlier date will come up.

Now I could call an independent plumber and get a new boiler that way. But my last experience that way was a real disaster. So I wait. The British Gas man left this folder to mock me. "All the warmth you'll need...."...sometime in 2008.

In the meantime I've found a switch in the closet where my hot water tank is. It was 'off' (as it has been for 5 years) so I've turned it 'on' in the vague hope it's an immersion heater thingy for the hot water tank. (This hope is based solely on the offhand comment from a young colleague who this morning explained she had one of these 'immersion heater' things, and you turned it on with something that looked like a light switch.)

Now turning this switch on could give me hot water. Or it could lead to some sort of electrical explosion. I'll let you know which it is in my next post.

Until then.....Brrrrrrrrrrr..........

Niebling Knit Bits News!

Great news for any Niebling addicts visiting - I've discovered another source for some of Niebling's gorgeous patterns. Glenda (aka Doilyhead)(I love that name!) - anyway Glenda has some patterns for sale -- you can check out which patterns she has at her Flickr site.

Glenda refers to herself as a 'Niebling addict enabler' and when you see the patterns you'll know why!

Happy Niebling knitting!

From Tiny Acorns...

the Niebling Oak grows.


This large doily is about 3 feet across, and I made it for my kitchen table.

The oak pattern isn't as intricate as Lyra - it's a far 'sturdier' looking piece of knitting due to the large oak leaves that make up most of the pattern. That suits my kitchen and style, and I'm pleased (with some reservations) with the result.

The pattern is from Anna Magazine, August 1985. I knit it in Jaggerspun Zephyr wool/silk (mostly because I seem to have a lot of it) on 2.5mm needles. The pattern is straightforward to knit and uses similar stitch patterns to Lyra (and I expect many other Nieblings).

My reservations about the finished piece are around the mesh background - which looks a bit sloppy in places, and my blocking.

The Niebling Knitting group in Yahoo is currently doing a knitalong and I'm anxiously awaiting their views and verdicts on the best way to tackle the mesh. I expect some of it is the pattern itself. I knit this mesh the same as I did for Lyra - but I think this pattern flexes the mesh a bit more so it looks much less structured here.

To date my blocking has been almost entirely of pieces which are quite geometric and linear in their design. Niebling designs are more fluid. And my instinct to pull/stretch everything from the centre straight out doesn't do the Niebling justice.

In this pattern for instance you can see there is some curve to the large leaves. This curve isn't knit into the leaf (it's knit straight up) but can be introduced in blocking.

I'm not sure what the next big project will be.....but I expect it won't be long before something grabs me!

How much yarn is too much?

(I know I said I wouldn't mention the 'L' word again but I have to say thanks so much for all the lovely comments! Despite all of my best efforts, none of my friends knit so hearing what knitters think means a lot to me.)

I've spent a fair bit of time this week photographing my lace stash for Ravelry. For those of you not yet on Ravelry, it includes a stash inventory, which includes all the relevant details (colour yardage, weight) and (if you care to supply them) photos.

I learned that I have a lot of lace yarn. A whole lot. Enough to get me through any future lace yarn shortage without too much trouble. But what are the odds that sometime in the next week I'll find a pattern or yarn that calls out for a yarn I don't have?

Next week I'll tackle the sock yarn.

A bit of cast on activity this week. I'm undecided on the colour and how it is knitting up so far. I'll finish this one and check it out with the owner of the intended foot. This is a modified Monkey. The modification is simply to replace the purl stitches in the pattern with knit stitches. I like the effect and it speeds up the knitting. Wahey!

To keep the spirally pattern I'll also replace the heel with an afterthought heel.

I couldn't stay away from Niebling toooo long so I've also cast on the large 'Oak' doily in the August 1985 Anna magazine. Another really lovely pattern from the genius Niebling portfolio.

This time I used Rosemarie's circular start which I really liked. (You can find her detailed instructions here.) The start uses a provisional cast on in scrap yarn which really helps to give the first few stitches some structure when you start knitting for real.

You then thread the yarn end through the stitches, cut away the scrap yarn and heh presto a very tidy starting circle.

Farewell to Lyra

Apologies to those of you (and I expect there are few!) who are thinking 'Enough of they Lyra already!'. You'll be happy to hear that this post bids farewell to Lyra -- at least until I report back on my Mom's reaction!

Obsessive to the last, I woke up this morning, put Lyra in the sink to soak, took a shower, got dressed and then blocked it on my bed before leaving for work.

And here it is.

It's fair to say I love it as much as a finished object as I did while knitting it. I think my mom will love it. It turned out a little smaller than I had hoped, which means I'll have to rethink what table Mom will use it on - but I'm sure we'll come up with something.

It was knit on 2.5mm needles, using Helen's Lace (Lorna's Laces) Natural. I used just a smidge over one skein (one skein being 4 ounces, 1250). That skein ran out on the last row! So I was very happy that I had bought two. (phew) (I bought the yarn from http://www.modernknitting.co.uk/ who always provide incredibly helpful service -- as they did in getting me this yarn when there was none to be found in the UK.)

The pattern is from the June 1986 Anna magazine, available on eBay from time to time.

The Burda charting style is different from what I'm used to, but once I was familiar with it I really liked it. I expect trying to chart this (what is the non-Burda charting style called?) (ummm I'll call it 'Vogue style') - anyway - attempting to chart this Vogue style would make the pattern look even more complicated than it is because of the irregular increases and decreases.

A couple of people have asked 'what next?' - well nothing too taxing for a few days. I need to get serious about my Innocent Smoothie hat production, and I've got to cast on for a pair of socks or two.

When I've caught up with my friends, some reading and the laundry I've neglected over the past two weeks I'll be ready for for my next project -- for that I've got a couple of potential Nieblings in mind......

Lyra Undressed (and who IS Niebling?)

Here she is in all her glory. I'll block it on my bed which means it is toooooo late to take that on tonight. (As Lyra obsessed as I am - a girl needs her beauty sleep!)

In the meantime a few people in the comments expressed an interest in learning a little more about the genius that is Niebling, so I've pulled together the little bit I've learned over the past few weeks into a Niebling Knit Bits.


Niebling Knit Bits

1) There is very little biographical information on Niebling. Apparently he started knitting when he was about 6, making gloves for soldiers in the war.

2) The charting of lace patterns (rather than writing out the knitting sequence) is often attributed to him.

3) The patterns can be quite complex and have a very different feel to them than the more geometric patterns found in books like Victorian Lace Today and A Gathering of Lace. (Both of which are fab by the way.)(Just different.)

4) His patterns have 'unusual' increase/decrease bursts - which give some of the fluid shapes -- but can mean the knitting pulls or strains. (If you look at pictures of Lyra you'll see that in the 3rd set of leaves.)

5) Many of his patterns appeared in Anna/Burda magazines. They don't appear in many other forms, making them sometimes quite difficult to get hold of. But don't despair - some tips on getting Niebling patterns follow!

6) Lyra appears to be the most popular Niebling pattern -- but there are many beautiful Nieblings to discover. Which is why so many of us are addicted to Niebling Knitting. Some of the links below will take you to Niebling maserpieces throughout blogland.



Niebling Patterns


Many of the patterns are out of print which is why many of us spend a bit of time each week on eBay looking for back issues of Anna/Burda magazines. A search on 'Niebling' usually uncovers some goodies. The good news is that most sellers will highlight a Niebling pattern in any issue they are selling making them easier to find. The bad news of course is that means other Niebling lovers will also be interested.

The magazine with Lyra in it is from June 1986. I'm not sure how much an English copy of the magazine sells for but I paid $38 for the German copy I have. German copies seem to come up every few weeks so don't go crazy with bidding - patience may work for you.

Other magazines with lots of Nieblings can go for more, and magazines with only one 'lesser known' Niebling can be bought for less than $10 on occasion. If you watch the auctions for a couple of weeks you'll see which patterns are 'hot' and what the going price is.

Happily the German magazines come (usually) with a supplement providing instructions for the chart symbols. And if you don't have one - there is an online resource at KnittingFools which provides chart translations for many charting styles including Burda.

A bit of Alta Vista Babel translation and help from some blogland will help with the non-chart instructions (casting on, off and any special instructions).

Lacis has 2 books of Niebling (Niebling school) patterns. (you have to scroll WAAAAAAAY down the page to find them) I haven't seen either so can't comment on them. (But they are on my Christmas list!)


Finally, DoilyHead has 2 leaflets with quite a few patterns that she managed to convince the Burda family to let her publish. I've got both of those (blame Jane) and there are some interesting bits and pieces in there.

EDITED 12 October: I've discovered another source for some of Niebling's gorgeous patterns. Glenda (aka Doilyhead)(I love that name!) - anyway Glenda has some single patterns for sale -- you can check out which patterns she has at her Flickr site.

Glenda refers to herself as a 'Niebling addict enabler' and when you see the patterns you'll know why!

Online Niebling Goldmines

There are two Niebling related Yahoo Groups (I don't belong to either!)(yet) - Niebling Lace Knitters for talking about knitting Nieblings, and Herbert Niebling Patterns whose focus is pestering Burda to publish the dang patterns!

Some Niebling knitting from the wilds of blogland (in no particular order!):

Rosemarie has knit up some beautiful Nieblings and has a great circular start tutorial.

OceanKnitter completed an award winning Lyra last year.

The Lyra Learning Group is just that - a group of knitters led by Rosemarie who tackled Lyra. Some gorgeous versions there as well as a few tips and hints.

Angelfire has quite a few pics of different Nieblings. Click on the small pictures to see the detail. It's well worth it!!

And of course there are Jane, Fleegle and Z's Momma - all welcome commenters on this blog and inspiring Niebling (and other styles of lace) knitters.

Right, that's everything I can think of about Herbie for now. Please feel free to add info/links I've missed in the comments and I'll edit the post to include them.

I'd Rather be Niebling Knitting

Jane asked on her blog yesterday whether it was possible to be addicted to Nieblings.

As I've continued to use almost every spare moment this week to knit on this big blobby looking thing and as my pile of German lace magazines grows I'm going to have to answer - "My name is Soo and I'm a Nieblingaholic."

I'm still loving the Lyra pattern. The rounds are quite long now. The last time I counted was on round 126 and at that point there were around 900 stitches on the needle. It is challenging enough to keep my brain engaged and the time flies by when I'm knitting.

This reminds me -- I realised at some point this week that I had entirely miscalculated the number of stitches in Lyra. By my new reckoning it is over 105,000 for the round version, and a little more than that for the square one.

This photo shows one of the corners emerging.

It also occured to me that I haven't posted a picture of the finished Kaffe Fassett socks - so I'll tick that off my to do list and post one now.

I haven't matched the stripes as the recipient of these socks has declared that matching ones are lame. This view will ensure she has hand knit socks for the rest of her life.

It's a great yarn and I have ordered some of the other stripy colourways.

Pom Poms are Happy Things

Sure Mondays can be a drag. But even the bleakest, greyest Monday starts to look pretty good when you look at a bunch of pom poms.

The Caked Crusader has outdone herself on the pom pom production for Innocent Smoothie hats. So much so that I'm afraid I'll have to insist she make some more. I can't have some hats topped with this glory and others not.

(She's got to do something while those cakes are baking.)

I've sort of stalled on the hat making -- so I'll need to give them some attention this week.

Of course I've stalled because I've been obsessed with knitting the Lyra. It's moving along more quickly than I expected -- at the cost of actually doing anything else. Like laundry, shopping or sleep.

I'm becoming a convert to the German charting style - there are definite advantages, particularly when you have long stretches of plain knitting or a set of stitches to be repeated X times.

I'm also considering abandoning my beloved Addi Lace needles for KnitPick circulars. I used the KnitPicks for the early rounds and switched to the Addi's recently when the KnitPicks were too short. The smoothness of the KnitPicks and the super sharp points are sorely missed - particularly now that I'm attacking the mini cables in the flowers.

That's right. This Niebling guy has put cables in lace.

Cables. In lace.

Egads.

Worlds colliding. Anarchy.

I can only imagine what else he has up his Lyra sleeve.

The Challenge Begins

I've cast on for Lyra. Strangely I was REALLY intimidated by the pattern. I can not remember the last time I worried about tackling some knitting. But I was. So much so that I cast on and knit about 2 rounds and then took a break (bear in mind at that stage a round was 8 or 16 stitches). Then I knit another one or two and took a break. That pattern continued until I got to round 19 and came across an abbreviation that was not on my handy dandy English translation page.

Eeeeek.

Jane and Rosemarie to the rescue (I sent out a couple of SOS's) - they confirmed the meaning of the abbreviation and I was off again.

Tonight when I picked Lyra up I realised it was of course just a series of knits and purls and YO's all of which I had tackled a million times (probably more). The panic was gone and I was loving it.

I've just finished round 40 and I resent having to put it down. Sleep. Such an inconvenience. (And don't get me started on this working for a living thing.)

I can't stretch it out on this needle for a proper photo - but this one gives the idea. I'm using Lorna's Laces, Helen's Lace yarn (natural colour) with 2.5mm needles.

Yesterday I used my very rusty mathematics skills to estimate that the 179 rounds of Lyra will require around 64,000 stitches. 32,000 of those stitches will be plain knitting. The other 32,000 will be patterned.

To put it into other terms 64,000 stitches is about 7 - 8 pairs of socks (depending on size). Or in the terms that were running through my brain last night - a whole freak load of knitting!!!

Pattern? Check. Needles? Check. Yarn? Check.

We have blast off! I arrived home from work today and found the much anticipated Lyra yarn had arrived. Eeeeeeeek!

I'll wind it up tonight and tackle casting on over the weekend. Those of you who kindly offered assistance with the pattern will no doubt be hearing from me sooooooooon.

The Orange Thing Resurrected

In the meantime the orange thing is once again on the needles. This time I'm knitting it double and that is much more the effect I wanted. Knitting it double also tones down the variegation but does still let the richness of the different shades shine through. Can you tell I'm much happier with this attempt? I also decided to use the Hemlock pattern Brooklyn Tweed originally used. I do still love the Azalea pattern from Modern Lace Knitting so expect to see it crop up here again.

Ravelry. Gadzooks!

And in other news I've now been added to Ravelry. I can see why it gets rave reviews but I confess when I logged in the first time I felt a little bit like I'd walked into a huge party that was in full swing and I did't know where to go or who to speak to or what the 'done' thing was. So I logged off.

Happily when I logged back in that evening a few friendly fellow bloggers had added me as a friend and I thought -- phew - eventually I'll find my way around here. But I hope this blogging community I've just gotten into continues despite Ravelry. Blogging and visiting blogs feels more like small gatherings of a few friends in my living room. Comfortable.

Just when you thought you'd heard the last of the Mystery Stole from me......

When I posted my Swan Lake Stole/Mystery Stole 3 picture someone asked how I would keep the stole draped over my shoulder. Well, I'm happy to report that the answer arrived yesterday. This beautiful swan pin from Romi was specially designed for the stole and I love it.

Obsessive? Me?

A couple of weeks ago I hadn't heard of Herbert Niebling, and had never considered knitting a tablecloth. A few trips to eBay and Amazon later and my Herbert Niebling/Lace Tablecloth cup runneth over.....



I did manage to avoid bidding on any more Niebling patterns last weekend and I take that as a positive sign that when I die they won't find me buried in German Anna magazines (although I'll probably still waiting for that dang Lyra yarn!!!)

I realised as I flipped through these magazines that it is quite possible that I'd bought the english editions in the 80s! Anna was one of the few magazines to feature bobbin lace patterns and so I often bought it around that time. Although I was a knitter then the knitted tablecloths wouldn't have interested me or caught my attention. I was a Kaffe/Sasha Kagan big jumper with all over colour or cables type girl.

Some of the patterns I particularly like in these editions..... (If you click on the pictures you can see more detail.)













While waiting for the Lyra yarn I've decided to steal a great idea from BrooklynTweed and begin work on a small blanket based on this doily design using this very squishy Posh Yarn yarn. (Why orangey colours? I have no idea. It doesn't go with anything in my house. But I like it.)

The pattern is from Modern Lace Knitting.






And finally, I've finished (almost) the first Kaffe Fassett sock. I decided to try afterthought heels on this one - and I like them better than the short rows - despite the need to graft TWICE. (Gadzooks!) This one will need a little after grafting surgery as the stitch pick up wasn't quite as tidy as it should have been. More details when I finish the second one. (Do I know how to keep you coming back or what?)

Tapping my fingers impatiently (knitter style)....

So, I'm waiting for the yarn for the BKC (Lyra tablecloth) to arrive. Being an impatient sort I'm restless and can't seem to settle into anything knitting-wise.


I've wound some sock yarn....

....cast on for some socks....

...then decided I didn't like them.






I started making some hats for Innocent Smoothies.



For the benefit of non-UK readers I should explain that I don't normally knit for my refrigerated beverages. I'm knitting these as part of the Big Knit fundraising drive. These hats will be sent to Innocent who will start shipping the Smoothies with hats in late November. Participating retailers will donate 50p for each hat to Age Concern, specifically to support initiatives to help old age pensioners keep warm in the winter months.

I'm going to try to make 100.


I've pre-ordered Kaffe Fassett Knits Again from Amazon. (Along with some good ol' Canadian content - a documentary about Glenn Gould on DVD and a book about Terry Fox which is guaranteed to make me cry. All books about Terry do.)

I've cast on this BubbleGum sock yarn (from Cazza) and have started a modified Monkey pattern (substituting knit stitches for all purl stitches). So far so good.

But in my heart my knitting fingers are still tapping.....