Fruitful days......

 

 

 It starts with Plum Chutney........

 

 

 

 

 

And will go on for a while yet......

 

Published!

Okay, so maybe not a book, but a pattern in a national magazine is an exciting event, non-the-less. This was issue 59, in April, 2013.

 

 

 

 The original cowl ,in Yarnwise, was knitted in Langs' Mia yarn. A little reminiscent of Icelandic wool, to use, but much softer. I used every bit of one ball.

 

 

I also knitted it up in two other yarns. The bright blue ( below, top) is in Coldharbour Mill Pure Wool Aran. That yarn comes in 100gram skeins. The cowl took  a bit more than half the skein. .The teal coloured one ( below, centre) is knitted in Mirasol miski. Two 50gram skeins of Baby Llama were used for that cowl, with some left over.

I hope to release this pattern in my Ravelry shop by the Autumn.

It has been a busy summer, with lots going on in the garden. We now have a paved courtyard, with flowerbeds, at the back of the house. Instead of a part-demolished building mess. It is a joy to walk out of the back door, and be greeted by the smell of roses and sweet peas, rather than picking my way through rubble. There is still a lot to be done, but progress is happening!

I also have a new job.....I answered a small notice on Ravelry, and was invited for an interview. It all happened very quickly, and I now work for Juno Fibre Arts...(  http://junofibrearts.squarespace.com/   )
This must be the dream job of all, for fibrey folk. I get to squeeze yarn, and talk about the relative merits of each, and speculate on what could be made with it, and ..and.. well, you get the gist. 'Excited' and 'pleased' do not really cover it.

I have lots of other projects to show, but need to get some pictures sorted out.....nothing new there! There are also a couple of things on the needles, and yarn just waiting in the wings to be transformed.
Onward and upward!!

Project round-up.

Hooray! The lovely man who tends our computers has sorted out some problems. So, finally, I can upload photos again.

So, a quick run through some finished projects....

This is my own design 'Holly-Go-Lightly' scarf.  The pattern is a free Ravelry download. It requires one skein of fivemoons Comet AMN4.

 This is H.J.'s Cowl. Made in Coldharbour Mill pure wool Aran weight. A simple tube , with bands of contrast purl , between main colour stocking stitch.

 This lovely crescent shawl is 'Aimatia', by Suzanna Ic. Made in Rooster 'delightful' yarn. (Alpaca/silk), for Nicky's birthday in February.

 

Another of my own, I am rethinking this design. Firedrake', made in Angora lacewight.

Socks! A plain pattern, made in yarn that I dyed myself. Called 'green, green grass of home', it was dyed at a workshop held for Close Knit members, at Alchemoonist's fivemoons studio.

FlowerDragon Tam. I wanted a Tam/Beret, and could not find what I was looking for. The idea was to use what was I my stash....and I ended up using lace weight Alpaca. This was the result. It is very warm. Again, my own design.

 

These socks are the same pattern as before, in fivemoons Khonsu 4ply. Pale amethyst. Lovely and soft.

And a final pair of socks. fivemoons again, this time Luna plus 4ply solids. Brick, Sour Apple, and Sweet Violet. They are based on memories of the 'Pippi Longstocking' books.


I have also had a Cowl pattern published in Yarnwise magazine. I am having trouble sizing the pictures, so will leave them for next time.

I am not missing in action!
 Since the last windows upgrade, I have been unable to upload photos to the blog. As the whole point of the articles is to show off knitting projects, plants, and other visual feasts, any further posts are dependant on our technical chap putting things right.
Please accept my apologies, if you keep returning, and finding nothing new. Efforts are being made to restore the status quo.

Spring?

At long last, a week without rain. Even an occasional glimpse of the sun. The wind is still making being outside a feat of endurance, though. Primroses are gamely flowering, and the Daffodils are doing their best.

Life has been full of knitting and spinning. One of my projects has been published as a pattern in a knitting Magazine, Yarnwise, (issue 59, April), so pattern writing has also been on the work list. I am waiting for photos , for the last, so I will say more about that in a couple of days. 

On the needles at the moment - a pair of socks ( yes, I really did write socks), and a Fair-Isle Tam O' Shanter. ( Although I prefer to call it a beret! ) Photos next time.                                                   

( Flowers from the garden. Hooray! )

This has been such a strange winter. A strange year altogether, really. Curious weather patterns, which have caused awful harvests. There have been native primroses flowering in the front garden since mid-November. Roses still struggling up a few blooms in the back garden, despite the petals being sodden and mildew covered.
Despite all this, human-kind does it's best to celebrate it's festivals.
Christmas / Winter Solstice / Yule, always brings with it the feast associated with Fest. Christmas cake, mince pies, Yule ( chocolate) log, Turkey, or possibly Goose, Brussels sprouts. Every family has it's own variation.
In our houshold, there are more vegetarians than carnivores. So, our Yule feast consists of Chestnut Pate en Croute ( a big, fancy pie), Roast Guinea Fowl, Roast potatoes, braised red cabbage (in the scandinavian fashion) and mashed parsnips. This year, I completely forgot the Christmas pudding, so at the last minute, made an orange and almond sponge, with a pinch of cardamom. Served with thick Jersey cream.

 The cake selection is also personalised. Christmas cake with marzipan, but no icing...none of us like it. There is a very rich, sticky ginger cake- very traditional in my side of the family. Mince pies, obviously. We also include spekulatious biscuits, gingerbread biscuits, and panforte. Many of these can be, and are, made in advance. They are then shared across the tea-times of the holiday.  If we have friends coming for tea, I will also make cheese scones, and maybe some sweet, bread-based cake.

Although it has become customary to celebrate the coming of New Year, it is not something that we have joined in with. Tonight will be a night much like any other. That does not stop me from wishing everyone

HAPPY and HEALTHY NEW YEAR

Joyful Yule

However you celebrate your Winter Festival, I wish you peace, joy, and all the blessings the season can bring.

Blessed  Be.