How to Convince DH knitted things are a good idea

have the boiler conveniently pack up when you're expirencing the coldest weather so far this year!!!

My other half works from home quite a bit so this was the scene yesterday (and it's not much different today) when he had to spend his first day working from home after the boiler packed up...



I knit this Rowanspun top for him about 18 months ago, it was worn once until this week (today he has a t-shirt underneath the Rugby shirt as well). He has never worn a woolly hat or gloves in his life.. these were knit for a friend and left at our house; so now the regular John Deere cap is over the top of the beanie and he's very grateful for the fingerless gloves that go halfway up his arms.... What you can't see he has one of my shawls across is knees to keep them warm....

You might well ask what I'm wearing whilst I'm working from home in the same house - just a jumper and cardigan... says it all really doesn't it ;o ?

Anyway onto more exciting things than pictures of my DH dressed up... I finished knitting the fair isle gloves I designed and I have to say I am very well pleased with them.... They used just under 50g of Patons Diploma Gold 4ply and about 16g of Trekking Ombre sock yarn...


I still so hate knitting fingers though :o(

I've actually managed a bit of lace this week too.. quite basic but effective pattern to show my customers what can be done with one 25g ball of Rowans Kidsilk Haze - a scarf 6.5" x 45", excuse the bad photograph please...


On the spinning front I Navajo plied Sunny Side and got a very respectable (I am well chuft) 492m / 116g of sock yarn... and it stripes too ;o)


I've also finished spinning 'Rhubarb' which again will be socks when I've plied it next week... I'm working on another sock yarn at the moment 'Lime Fire' - these are all Christmas presents...


I have some secret knitting on the go at the moment to so unfortunately you won't be able to see anything of it until afer Christmas.... and I'm on the 2nd sock of both pairs of socks which are the last for Christmas...

Just to finish off some gratuitous Fibre pron :o) I'm actually thinking of insulating myself with all my fibre this weekend if the little man doesn't come to the boiler tonight... thank goodness we still have a coal fire...

From The Yarn Yard we have the first of n's 'Erica' series batts... beautifully carded several times to blend 7 different shades of green together especially aimed at Lace Knitters... theres 190g here I am so looking forward to spinning this...


From Loop we have 'Beautyberries' this is mainly Bamboo with some Mohair

and then all missalicefaye's fault from Enchanted Knoll we have 3 batts - Pumkin Juice, Fern & Chai

Busy Bee...

I have been busy :o) over the last week or so and lots of things are starting to come together...

Jane of Janes Probably Knitting and I had been discussing between ourselves about the distaste for knitting gloves, mainly due to all that itty bitty knitting of fingers.... so we decided we would have a glove along together to gee each other on into getting the gloves knit....

I started a pair of fair isle gloves for a Christmas present... the Hand Painted Gloves by Karendipity but despite having done 2 pairs of her Mitts I couldn't get on with these so as life is too short for projects your not enjoying I frogged them last Friday.

Now knowing Jane is knitter supreme and quick too... I thought I'd better come up with something quick, as otherwise she would have finished her 2nd Selbuvotter mitten (scroll past the fibre) and have completed her gloves too....

Anyway I decided (foolishly perhaps) that I would do my own simple fair isle glove; it would have plain cuff, fingers & thumb (I didn't want to be bald for Christmas & I have other things to do) and there would be no purling involved except in the rib (read that as no left handed purling with contrast colour!)

So armed with several basic glove patterns and Shelia McGregors book The Complete Book of Traditional Fair Isle Knitting... I actually came up with a fair isle glove pattern... I still can't believe I have and I keep picking up the glove and showing my husband and saying look I've done this I can't believe it! (it's wearing a bit thin now ;o) )

So here it is.... I still have the RH one to do... but I'm going to type the pattern up 1st and then follow my instructions and if successful I will put it up as freebie for people....

This leads me nicely onto something that Natalie of The Yarn Yard has set up which is called p/hop (pennies per hour of pleasure) you can read more about it here, but In a nut shell it allows you to freely make a donation (it's not compulsory & isn't attached to the patterns when you download) large or small for free patterns that you use and the money is going to Médecins Sans Frontières.

Moving on to completed objects. I want to make my friend a pair of slipper socks for Christmas, so I bought the moccasin soles (Regia) & I used some of my handpsun that was too thick for socks but were perfect for this.

I followed the pattern that came with the moccasin soles (size 40/41) but followed the pattern for 42/44 as I thought I'd got size 43 soles (don't ask me how). As you can see the upper stops a bit short and I don't like it but they are OK for me and as I've discovered they're great for spinning in... I can't spin in my stocking feet as they slip on the treadles. and am conscious that the wood on the Rose is quite soft and easily dented, so with these I don't have to worry about grit and such likes getting embedded into my treadles from my shoes and marking them and they keep my feet warm too :o)) so a happy mistake and useful too....

I've also completed another 2 pairs of Christmas socks....
Kaffe Fassett Landscape - Earth


Regia Jupiter - Camouflage

and to finish off a bit of bright colour to brighten up November.... This is Sunny Side from Spunky Eclectic... it will become sock yarn ;o)

With which I am well pleased...

Remember in my last post I showed you M*A*S*H from Spunky Eclectic a wool blend I was going to practise on to achieve a good yardage 3ply sock yarn?

Here's a couple of reminders to show you

Well I did it :o))) I managed 412m / 102g and my plying seems to have improved, however, it did take me the best part of 2 hours but I think the penny is finally dropping with the plying....

and just to brighten a dull & dark evening here in the UK (it's been dark for about 1hr now since the clocks went back) a bit of fibre porn.... all are superwash. The first two are Corriedale and the 3rd Merino... yep you guessed it sock yarn it will become.... all 3 from Spunky Eclectic

Sunny Side

Rhubarb

& Lime Fire