What the f*** is that in your freezer??!?

In my freezer you'll find the basic essentials of life (bear in mind this is just my little fridge freezer; I also have a pretty serious industrial freezer big enough to hide a pair of bodies that I found on the side of the road that is host to a many more exciting frozen goods... no bodies though):

Fish fingers. Obviously.

Lots of ice-cream. Of both the Italian and dairy-free varieties.

Black Cow vodka. Seriously good stuff. Made by a friend of mine in Dorset, this is the world's first vodka made from pure milk. Seriously good stuff.

A sandwich bag full of crochet granny squares. Whaaaaaat?! 

Truth is, I got moths.

I started crocheting these squares in the Summer, using my many, many random balls of DK yarn with which I don't yet have the patience to knit something real, but always seem to buy from sale bins or discontinued stock. A technicolour granny square blanket along these lines seemed the obvious fate for those poor lonesome yarns. 

After a slowish start, I really got into the swing of things as Autumn turned to Winter when I was given a beautiful yarn basket from a beautiful friend for my birthday. I knew immediately that that would be the official granny square blanket basket. So things were going great... and then I went away after Christmas for a couple of weeks... the moths saw their opportunity, moved in and got busy.

Anyone who knits/sews/owns cashmere will know that it's not the fully grown moths that chomp away on your best woollens, but in fact their larvae. Their pesky, greedy, good for nothing offspring. Killing moths as and when you see them is obviously a good preventative (extreme moth contraception), but what you really want to do is actually stop them f***ing in your stash. This time I was too late. When you find those white wispy strands of moth larvae the only thing for it is to get that shit in the freezer. That's the only way to kill them.

I have not been put off by this little hurdle however, and I am full steam ahead with operation Technicolour Granny Blanket Stash-Bust and hope to have all 432 - yes, four hundred and thirty-two - squares done and joined for next Winter. In the meantime, as a precautionary measure, each square I complete is immediately relocated to a sandwich bag in the freezer until further notice.

So Little To Show For So Much Going On

I guess it's only to be expected at this time of year.  I feel like I'm doing so much, being so productive: Christmas presents, home improvement, personal stuff, commissions... You name it, I'm working on it.  But why then, when a day like today presents itself, golden sunshine illuminating the fallen leaves, the perfect window to photograph some blog-worthy projects, I realise that nothing is actually in a finished state ready to be photographed.  I feel like I'm treading water in an ocean of WIPs (Works In Progress).  No land in sight.

OK, this one is actually finished.  But I'm in the process of making a second in a plaid brushed cotton (see sewing table shot), and planning a third, so until the trio is complete it still feels like a WIP.  The pattern is Butterick 8949 and I hope to have all three done by tomorrow evening.

Above: my sewing table right now.  A bit of a nightmare, but sort of an inspired nightmare as I'm deeply enjoying everything on there - the second in my Butterick Top Trio, and possibly the most outrageously elegant dress I've ever made: Vogue 8820.  I'm doing View A with the scoopier neckline, but the longer sleeves of View B.  I love a good slinky long sleeve.  I had planned to make this in wool crepe or a heavy, drapey silk, but found nothing I liked.  Then, and I'm really quite ashamed to admit this... I saw the perfect thing: fire engine red, crepey, drapey... But on closer inspection it revealed itself to be Polyester Crepe.  Not something I would ever buy, especially not new.  But... it was only £3 a metre, it was the last 5 metres on the roll, and it was exactly what I was looking for.  So I'm considering this first attempt at Vogue 8820 a glorified toile, and am still on the lookout for a fabric more deserving of this delectable dress.

Below: a pile of crocheted snowflakes which will eventually be strung and hung to make my home all festive-like.

And finally (but actually not finally at all, because I still have plenty of other stuff on the go...), something which I'm still not allowed to talk about, but lets just say that it's coming along beautifully, and working on it is proving to be a moving and humbling experience.

Fighting Crowds of Grannies...

...stocking up on supplies and overdosing on inspiration, this weekend at London's Knitting & Stitching Show at Alexandra Palace.

Quilting cottons at The Eternal Maker

Romantic chevrons at Colinette

Knit-kits at Handscape Knits

Chunky, rusty ribs at Sublime

Liberty quilting bundles at Sunflower Fabrics

SSS'11: Days 10, 11 & 13

A quick run down of the weekend in Self-Stitched outfits...

day 10

Day 10: Short Sorbetto Top & Fuchsia Silk Tulip Skirt (made from a self drafted pattern in 2004ish).

day 11

Day 11 (my sister's birthday): Pleated Maxi Skirt on me (left), Cotton Shirting Sundress on my sis (made from a self drafted pattern in 2007ish).

day 13

Day 13: Cotton Shirting Layered Big Pleats Skirt (made from a self drafted pattern in 2004ish).

What happened to Day 12...?  Well... After a weekend of fabulous birthday parties and a family sleepover at my Mum's, Monday 12th was pretty much spent in PJs.  

I'll take this moment to add that, while I am doing my best to be me-made every day, my lack of homemade comfort clothes is making it hard to dress for daily life with a toddler.  But maybe that's made up for by the fact that every evening, just like any other evening, we all cosy up on the sofa in our Monster Granny Square Blanket and, more often than not, handknit socks.

Baby Snuggle Wrap - knitting pattern

Baby things are always such a pleasure to knit.  I find myself taking the rhythmical meditation that comes with rhythmical stitching to new levels... with every stitch I imagine I'm infusing my handknit with love and hope and endearment, to envelop and protect the tiny baby who wears it (so much so, that I can't knit for a baby if I'm in a bad mood).  This Snuggle Wrap was not actually knitted with anybaby in mind (wishful knitting, possiblement?)... just an idea I had and it seemed like the perfect project for the Misti Alpaca yarn that had been calling out to me from my stash basket.  A delicious yarn to knit with, and a deliciously satisfying project, and even dreamier to knit if you have a little one on the way...

Size: newborn - 6 months
Gauge: 3.5 stitches per inch

Abbreviations

k - knit
p - purl
st(s) - stitch(es)
rep - repeat
cont - continue
CO - cast on
BO - bind off
RS - right side
WS - wrong side

Materials

• 3 x 100g Misti Alpaca Chunky (100% baby Alpaca)
• 7mm needles
• 5mm crochet hook
• yarn needle to sew in tails
• little scissors

alternative folding technique

Instructions

CO 97 sts.

rows 1 - 6: work in Moss st (k1, *p1, k1 rep from * to end of row).

row 7 (RS): (k1, p1) 3 times, knit to last 6 sts, (p1, k1) to end.

row 8 (WS): (k1, p1) 3 times, purl to last 6 sts, (p1, k1) to end.

rep rows 7 & 8 until piece measures approx 20in/50cm in length.

next row (RS): (k1, p1) 15 times, k37, (p1, k1) 15 times.

next row (WS): k1, (p1, k1) 15 times, p35, (k1, p1) 15 times, k1.

rep these last 2 rows 2 more times (6 rows total of the Moss st shoulders).

next row (RS): BO 26 sts, (k1, p1) twice, k37, (p1, k1) 3 times, BO last 25 sts.

At this point you can either break off yarn and rejoin it, or using a crochet needle slip stitch over to your 46 live stitches.

Hood

cont in the same pattern of the 6 st moss st border at each end of row, stockinette st in between, until hood panel measures approx 8.5in/21cm.

You now want to slip 23 sts onto another needle (preferably a double-pointed needle, otherwise you'll have to slip them all a second time in order to get your needle points matching up when you fold the panel to close the hood seam).

Close hood seam with either a 3 needle bind-off or the kitchener stitch.

Sew in loose tails.

Fastening

Using a crochet hook, join your yarn at a shoulder corner, chain 10, rejoin with a slip stitch at the same point you started to create a loop.  Break off yarn and sew in tails.

Using the photo as a guide, join yarn at a point on the opposite shoulder, chain 40, break off yarn leaving a few inches of yarn to spare.
Make a mini pom-pom with a scrap of a contrasting yarn, or the same yarn, and attach it securely to the long chain (I like a simple reef-knot).  Now you can feed the chain through the loop and fasten it however loosely or tightly you want.

Lacy Crochet Tea-Light Jars

Like most people, I keep empty glass jars.  Never really sure what for exactly; I don't make jam (although maybe I should), or chutney, so now I am faced with a big box overflowing with empty glass jars.  At least half without matching lids.  Definitely no use for jam/chutney making.  So instead, I have been crocheting lace covers for these lidless jars, popping a little tea light inside, and the result is quite pretty.  Especially if you make a set in varying heights and hues.

Very easy to make: using cotton DK yarn and a 2.5mm crochet hook, make a flat circle just a little smaller than the base of your jar.  Find a lace pattern you like and adapt it to work in the round, continuing until the jar fits nicely inside.  For the last round, simply chain, joining with a dc (double crochet - single crochet for US stitchers) at regular intervals along the round, and keeping it tighter (ie. fewer stitches) than the main body of the cover so as to grip the neck of the jar.  Break off yarn, sew in tails, ease the jar into the cover and you're done.

Babygirl Dress - knitting pattern

So in love with the pink babygirl dress I made last week, I had to make another (just to re-test the pattern of course!).  Using just one 100g skein of chunky yarn and size 7.5mm needles, it knits up super fast.  You can see why it was hard to stop at just one...  

Materials:

• 1oog Misti Alpaca, chunky (100% baby alpaca... so delicious)
• 7.5mm circular needles
• 4 stitch markers
• 2 buttons
• yarn needle to sew in tails

Abbreviations:
k - knit
p - purl
st st - stockinette stitch
k2tog - knit 2 stitches together
ssk - slip following 2 stitches knitwise, insert left hand needle through the front of both slipped stitches and knit.  Or see tutorial here.
YO - yarn over
rnd - round
dec - decrease
sl st - slip stitch
SM - stitch marker


Babygirl Dress 
Size newborn - width: 6.3" length (not inc straps): 7.5" approx.
Gauge: 3 sts by 5 rows = 1 inch sqaure


Cast on 61 sts.  Join to work in the round, being careful not to twist your stitches.
rnds 1 - 4: work in Moss Stitch - k1, p1 continuously.
rnds 5 - 8: knit.  
On 8th rnd, place SMs like this: k13, SM, k5, SM, k25, SM, k5, SM, k13.
rnd 9 (dec rnd): k until 2 sts remain before SM, ssk, transfer SM from left to right needle, k5, transfer SM, k2tog, k until 2 sts remain before SM, ssk, transfer SM, k5, transfer SM, k2tog, k to end of rnd.
rnd 10: knit.
rnd 11: knit.


-repeat rnds 9 - 11 4 more times, until you have 41 sts remaining-


rnds 24 - 27: knit.
rnds 27 - 38: moss st (12 rnds).
rnd 39: cast off 4 sts, k4, cast off 25, k4, cast off 4.  The 2 sets of 4 sts left on your needles are the beginnings of the straps.  Now you can either use a crochet needle to sl st over to your first strap, or if you prefer, break off the yarn and rejoin at strap.
Straps: Continue in moss st for 30 rows (at this point you can adjust the length of the straps by removing or adding rows to suit your dress).
row 31 (button hole shaping): k2tog, YO, k2.
row 32: *k1, p1* twice.
row 33: *p1, k1* twice.
Cast off.


Sew buttons on the bodice (using the picture for guidance) and sew in tails.


To embellish, use a crochet needle to pick up stitches around the button holes and crochet little flowers, or whatever motif you like.  I found inspiration for mine in 201 Crochet Motifs and 100 Flowers to Knit and Crochet.

this evening...

...I am working on my Monster Granny Blanket, inspired by the Great Granny Blanket from Pickles.  

...and listening to

    

Oh yay oh yay OH YAY!

I very nearly hugged the postman this morning as he handed me what I knew was a parcel filled with a fresh batch of vintage patterns from Lanetz Living - in a cheerier financial climate I used to visit this site a lot more... These days I just trawl through it filling up my cart as I go, knowing that some day I will treat myself to hitting that Checkout button... And a couple of weeks ago I did just that.  It did take me a good few hours though to edit the then $500 list down to a respectable twelve patterns.

So where to begin?  I think I'll be putting my Granny Square Blanket on hold while I cast on for the Cavalier Capelet (above right), from a 1956 edition of Coats & Clark's Bulky Knits.