WIP’s and Stuff

I have a few FO’s today (that’s Finished Objects for the uninitiated). Yes! I’ve actually finished stuff!

Knitted Jumper

The first is my Christmas Jumper which has dragged for the last part and had to have a real push to get it done. I had thought I was buying just a basic jumper pattern and when I got it I realised that although the front was a simple stocking stitch pattern, the back was like a cardigan with buttons and everything! Who the heck wants to wear a backwards cardie?!!

The pattern was by Stylecraft Cabaret DK, I think number 9181, and the wool I used was an acrylic one called Glitz by King Cole in their Christmas colour way.

That was so weird that I thought I would do 2 fronts and make up the collar myself, which I did and it looks OK.

I have finally mastered mattress stitch and the actual sewing up looks good for once. I do have some issues with the collar though, which I may unpick and re-do at some (much later) point, namely that I think I picked up and knitted the stitches from the inside not the outside if you see what I mean, and that I may have picked up stitches on either the front or the back, and then picked up AND KNITTED stitches on the other side so it looks a bit wonky to me. I can sort of live with that though.

There are two main negatives to this jumper in that the wool, which I loved and had all the same dye lot, sometimes had a different striped pattern in the SAME BALL OF YARN! And I didn’t realise this until I came to sew it all up together, so parts look slightly different. but that’s not the end of the world, I think I notice it more because I made it and someone who hadn’t wouldn’t necessarily hone in on it straight away.

The second thing is that it only fits without any top on underneath!! (obviously still wear a bra!) I do think my tension changed slightly and I did just cast on my size, which I did wonder if I should go up a size? But maybe it’s something to slim into? (Not that that is the way to look at it…) It does fit but it’s definitely on the tighter side and I have to say I don’t usually wear fitted/ tailored garments. It is in the wardrobe until Christmas 2021- hurray it is done!

And for a first jumper, I am actually quite pleased if you ignore all the whinging above, it’s just there are a few bits I would go back and change…I guess that’s called experience! I still haven’t blocked it either.

It is done…Huzzah!

I also unpicked another jumper I had started – the same pattern in a different colour – but as I cast on the same size, I thought, you know what? I’m just going to unpick it and make something else with the yarn.

So…that means I am down to just the orange jumper and a simple shawl on my needles.

Knitted Hat and Headband

Except that’s not true… I also bought a couple of balls of a chunky yarn called King Cole Big Value Chunky in a mustard colour (shade 3486 turmeric) and made myself 2 short projects.

The first was a simple knitted 2×2 rib stitch hat and the second was a knitted knotted headband using up the remainder of the wool.

The hat pattern was from a magazine I ripped it out of years ago and the headband was a free Ravelry download. I like them both, but I haven’t worn them out yet, typical how the weather warms up when you knit something woolly!

Here is the link to the headband pattern:

https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/twisted-turban-headband-6

It is called Twisted Turban Headband by North River Knits.

I just needed something quick and different to the tiny stitches of the finished jumper and I love the colours of the hat and headband- although no matter how many times I took the above picture the colour isn’t true to life…it looks much better in reality!

Knitted Fair Isle Bag

I also cast on what I though would be a quick-ish project but I can see now will take a week or two because it is stranded colour work.

I have a book of knitted bag patterns and was flicking through it last week when I saw a Fair Isle bag pattern that I thought would look good in neon because why the heck not?! I forgot how fiddly more than one colour is though 🙂

From How To Knit Beautiful Bags by Sian Brown

The pattern is from a book called How To Knit Beautiful Bags by Sian Brown and I’m doing the bag in the top left hand corner that you can see on the back cover of the book. Just for something different and colourful.

War and Peace

I have also finally made a start on a book that has been on my shelf for YEARS – WAR AND PEACE. I am about 500 pages in and I have to say, considering I know nothing about the Russian side of life in the early 1800’s I am quite enjoying it. I have put this book of for so long thinking I needed to really concentrate, but the style of writing is actually quite easy to understand.

I think it’s like Charles Dickens for me. I’m quite well-read but had never tried Dickens until maybe 5 or 6 years ago, thinking he was too hard and the language would be too hard etc. But he was really easy to read and understand and wrote in a modern way…surprisingly so does Tolstoy. I shouldn’t be too surprised really as I’ve read Anna Karenina and enjoyed it, but it is not as…shall we say CEREBRAL as I expected it to be.

I have had to look up what the difference between a Hussar and a Cossack was though…and everyone is a prince or princess – which I now know is a title like Duke or Duchess and NOT actual royalty!! Having Youtube to watch scenes after I’ve just read it is interesting too…search for the I Challenge You scene and the duel…poor Pierre, he is such a good character!

I haven’t done anymore sewing, I feel I am on a knitting binge now.

So, current WIPS are:

1. Orange lace and cable jumper
2. Simple garter stitch sock yarn shawl
3. Neon colour work bag

To be cast on soon/ still looking for patterns:

1. Socks with new sock yarn and old orange sock yarn
2. Something with recycled aran yarn
3. Something with yarn from unravelled jumper (5 balls of Cabaret DK by Stylecraft)

Phew! That’s all I can think of for now, thanks for sticking with this essay to the end…give yourself a pat on the back if you did! You made it! 🙂

Till next time…have a crafty happy afternoon! x

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