Monday 28 May 2018

Knitted necklace

This necklace I knitted is based on the sev(en)circle pattern by Kirsten Johnstone. I only made 3 circles.
The yarn is Manos del Uruguay Serena (60% baby alpaca and 40% cotton).
It looks good on the photos, but on me not so much, I think. Perhaps I should have made it a bit longer...




Tuesday 15 May 2018

'Isn't it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?'

I finished my Balsam Hollow shawl, a design by Paula Emons-Fuessle
"Balsam Hollow was created for the Green Gables kit, a shawl kit from Little Skein in the Big Wool that celebrates Lucy Maud Montgomery's classic story of the optimistic, unforgettable red-haired orphan, Anne Shirley, who finds her forever home at Green Gables.
Balsam Hollow is the name of the actual forested trail on Prince Edward Island that inspired Lucy Maud Montgomery and became the fictional "Haunted Wood" of the books."
This knitting project was a real learning curve for me. One of the things I learned was reading charted directions. For a part of the pattern no written directions are provided, so I had to dig in to decipher the chart... and found out I love charts much more than the written directions! Important lesson learned!
Here, you can find more information on the pattern, on its Ravelry page.
The yarn provided in this kit is Leading Men Fiber Arts Callback, Green Gables colourway (2 100 grams skeins, sportweight, 100 % superwash merino). Lovely lovely soft yarn, so nice to work with!
The kit is sold by Little Skein in the Big Wool, a small San Francisco company with "sentimental, handmade knitting kits and original fabrics and notions". All the kits they sell are inspired by children's literature and come with tools and materials from indie fiber artists. Their customer service is, by the way, second to none.


                                     


work in progress...




and finished...







Saturday 5 May 2018

Boho bag number one

This bag is made out of knitted pieces sewn together with some recycled fabric.
The grey yarn is bulky acrylic that was a gift. The light blue yarn is something very special : a vegan yarn, from 'Darn Good Yarn'. It is made from banana fiber, a great renewable resource!  I found it very enjoyable to knit. In my imagination it felt like it was spun from a magical beast's fleece, like a unicorn or something. It's so shiny and super soft. I bought it at Bristol Wool Fair in 2015.
The strap I made from an old jeans of mine. For the "inner bag" I used old t-shirt fabric.
I also added a few lovely beads.