Moving.....

.....I have decided to give wordpress a fair go for now, so the new blog is at

http://knitsamadworld.wordpress.com/

Head on over and bookmark it so you don't have to keep coming here first.

To change or not to change.......

.......that is the question!

I'm finding Blogger a bit dull at the moment, so I have signed up for a free blog at wordpress.com. Now I don't know which one to use! I know how to use Blogger, it is familiar and easy to use, but somehow wordpress feels new and exciting! New year, new computer, new blog?? I suppose I learned to use Blogger as I went along and will do so with wordpress too, but at the moment I am being all indecisive and not knowing where to blog!!!

The new blog is at Knitsamadworld if you want to pop across and have a look. Leave me a comment and let me know which you prefer.

If I do switch, I'll leave this one up for the old posts, I don't want to lose them and I can't seem to migrate them over.

Central Park Hoodie

This is my latest project. Father Christmas kindly supplied the Cascade 220 in duck egg blue from Pavi Yarns , and Interweave Press supplied the pattern - the now almost infamous Central Park Hoodie! After checking out the thousands of these on ravelry and reading the message boards about the sizing, I have gone for a larger size than I normally would as everyone was saying that this knits up small. They are right. I'm doing a 40", to get a 36" and I'm not sure it is even going to be that big. Very stretchy though so it will be fine - she says with fingers crossed! This is my first experience with Cascade 220 and I'm already considering getting more. I'll wear the hoodie for a while though to see what the pilling is like.

I am almost half way up the back.

The cables are very simple but effective, and I'm doing them without a cable needle - that's 3 stitches in mid air at a time to keep track of!!

The colour is lovely but I think I ought to keep it away from Becca when it is finished!!

Happy New Year to everyone for tomorrow. I am considering a blog revamp for the new year and may even go over to wordpress. I'll keep you informed.

Cooking

Well Father Christmas brought me a new laptop, a MacBook no less. I have been playing a bit (have only used a PC before) and managed to load a few photos of my cooking efforts on Christmas Eve. When I was still living at home I used to spend most of Christmas Eve up to my elbows in flour and sausage-meat making sausage rolls and mince pies. One year I somehow got the amount of fat wrong in the rough puff and it all poured out and over the edge of the baking tray to the bottom of the oven. We didn't realise until the next day when my mum tried to light the gas oven to put the turkey on and there was a thick layer of lard coating the floor of the oven and blocking up the jets at the back!! It took a while to scrape it all out!

I work on a smaller scale these days and here are this year's efforts, before and after cooking.

Merry Christmas!!!

Penguin at No. 17

Well, that's all the neighbourhood animals cozy and warm this Christmas. I can relax now knowing I've done my bit, hahahaha!!!

Rubber Duckies

Getting excited now, only 1 sleep to go!!! I'm such a big kid.

Well, I can show something I made now that they have been given to and opened by their recipients. Becca, Karen and I went to Stash yesterday lunchtime, to give Anne a send off on her last day working there. She is off on exotic travels. (Becca and I were slightly late as I got lost in the business park and went to the wrong building to pick her up!!) Here they all are...... top l-r Clare, Becca and Helen (shop owner), bottom l-r Karen and Anne.


I had knitted Karen, Becca and Anne a Rubber Ducky washcloth from Eskimimi's excellent pattern. I only had enough time and yarn to do the larger duck and I did all three at the same time on one long circular needle. It was fine as long as you turned the work in alternate directions between rows so the 3 different yarns didn't all twist round each other.

Then I made some stitch markers in coordinating colours, which I threaded onto matching ribbon and wrapped the cloths around some "smellies" and tied them with the ribbon. I think they went down well. I love it that other knitters appreciate that it may only be a washcloth but effort has been put into making it.

Shrug

I actually finished this shrug a couple of weeks ago but didn't get it seamed in time for the knit group Christmas meal. As I have a big new project lined up for after Christmas (Santa will hopefully be popping the yarn down the chimney on Friday) I got on and finished the seaming this weekend and got daylight photos.

Pattern: Silk Shrug from Classic by Erika Knight
Yarn: Rowan Purelife British Sheep Breeds DK
Needles: 3.25 and 3.75mm
Mods: made longer sleeves by casting on 66 sts, increasing every 10 rows to 80 sts and following pattern from there.

I think it needs something to hold it together otherwise it pings open. I am happy with the sleeves but would be happier if they were slightly narrower, but I did wing it with those!

For anyone concerned about the welfare of the penguin at no. 17, he'll be getting a little something in a couple of days!