Yarn Mistrys

I think there may be a few posts like this and I’m hoping that some of my lovely readers will be interested.

First up, I have an Ashford Drum Carder that I need to sell. I’ve only ever used it once to card some Alpaca Fleece. It’s a great tool, but at the moment, my spinning has become so minimal that it seems a waste to have this sitting here gathering dust. I would rather it went to a good home.

The blurb:

Two ratios for more flexibility when carding and blending.
4:1 – For creative blending of slivers
6:1 – For smooth, controlled carding of fleeces
Adjustable drums to suit all fibres
Card 50g (2oz) batts
Fine 72 point
Clamps and awl included
Assembled and lacquered.

Shipping to Germany would be 7 euros max and to the UK, 20 euros max.

Next up is my first spinning wheel. It’s a German make and I love it to bits. My only issue is that it’s a single treadle and I can’t spin for long on it due to back issues.

It has 2 ratios and 3 bobbins. The yarns that I have spun on it all vary in weight from chunky all the way through to laceweight. It’s pretty versatile and I haven’t spent a day wishing that it was a double treadle.

I paid 360 euros and am selling it for 220 euros.

Here is the Henkys website which contains the price list and some more information on their wheels. (If only they had done a double treadle when I got my wheel!!)

These prices are negotiable and I would really appreciate it if you could help me spread the word. It would be nice to see them go to good homes. Also, I will ship anywhere, just let me know where it needs to go and I’ll come back with courier prices for you.

I take paypal and if you’re in Germany, then a money transfer is fine as well.

Please, please, please let me know if you’re interested. Thanks!

Hello my lovelies! I know it’s been a while, but I do have reasons, honestly.

Some of you may already know that my sister got married in June.. we’re waiting for the official wedding photos, but I do have one of the whole family at one of the many functions leading up to the wedding.

As you’ve probably guessed, there really hasn’t been that much time for knitting or crafting. So I stuck to some simple socks and some more crochet squares for the afghan I started before the wedding.

First up, The Socktopods:

Yarn: Enchanted Knoll Farm Superwash Sock Yarn in Emerald Lake
Pattern:Socktopod Socks by Cookie A
Needles:2.25mm KnitPro Harmony Circ
Modifications/Notes: I didn’t change anything really. Made them as instructed.

If I remember correctly, these were actually finished before I left for the UK for the wedding, but I hadn’t got around to blocking and photographing them, so here they are now. They were a fun knit, and I liked the fact that I had a little bit of thinking to do with them. They’re part of the Socktopus Sock Club.

Next up are another pair for Ollie:

Yarn: Rellana Flotte Socke 4 Fach in 926 Denim Blue
Pattern:My own. 3×1 ribbing throughout. More details can be found by following the link above.
Needles:2.25mm KnitPro Harmony Circ

Just a standard pair of everyday socks for Ollie. I think the ribbing just makes them that bit more interesting to knit.

And finally, on the sock front, my new favourite pattern for stripey socks:

Yarn: Rellana Flotte Socke 4 Fach Fun in 5010 Multi
Pattern:Jaywalker Socks by Grumperina
Needles: 2.25mm KnitPro Harmony Circ
Modifications/Notes: I made the legs shorter than instructed in pattern and I knit the toes my way instead. Used a lace cast off for a stretchy cuff as I have BIG legs.

I love this pattern now that I have finally got around to making it. I can see plenty more in my future for the stripey sock yarns in my stash! Great way of showing off those lovely colours.

My crochet afghan is coming along nicely.. I have a few squares crochet’ed as you can see and it’s a lovely go to project when I’m inbetween things. Knocking up a square is really quick. I’ve been dividing them into two piles as I go, one with all the pinks/reds/purples/yellows/oranges and the other for browns/blues/greens/greys/blacks etc and that seems to be working out good. Hopefully the end product will look as good as I think it will!

Next post, things that I need to sell…

About a week ago Raina posted about her lovely new crochet bag and as soon as I saw it, I was completely enamoured. I desperately wanted one for myself.

One that I can put all my essential bits and pieces in and spend lovely summer days in the park, knitting, browsing, taking pictures and maybe even do a little reading.

Yarn: Mainly Rowan Handknit Cotton, some Debbie Bliss Cotton Angora & some Coats Lyric 8/8
Pattern: Crochet Bag by Lucy of Attic24
Hook: 4mm Grafton Fibre
Modifications/Notes: I did 12 increase rounds and then 28 normal rounds for the bag and then chained 105 sts for the handles and did 8 rows, 2 in each colour.

This definitely assuaged my need to crochet for a little while, and it also reminded me why I like crochet so much. I can see some more projects in the near future.

This reminds me of Summer and I’m hoping that the sun will take a hint and keep on shining for a good long time.

We’re having chicken salad wraps with potato wedges tonight, with some homemade mayonnaise. What are you all up to this weekend…?

Woohoo!! I’ve been waiting practically all week to make this post, but the Tunic was blocking and was taking an age and I really wanted to get the Jaywalkers off the needles, which happened last night…

Yarn: Rowan Calmer in 461 Beige x 5 skeins
Pattern: Sleeveless Tuxedo Shirt by Theresa Schabes from Interweave Knits Summer 2007
Needles: Knit Picks Harmony 3.75mm and Brittany Birch 4mm crochet hook.
Modifications/Notes: I added an extra inch to the length and that was the only mod I made.

First up is the Sleeveless Tunic. I loved this pattern. It was plain st st for a long time and made for very good TV knitting. The yarn is a joy to work with and is pretty stretchy. One thing I did find was that measuring the piece required all kinds of gadgets. I ended up pinning it out before measuring, which became a bit of a chore and I also found that I was stretching it as well… oops. The final product is actually a little longer than I wanted, and I really shouldn’t have added the extra inch. One thing I noticed when blocking is that the front actually has a colour disparity. I obviously used one skein which didn’t match the rest, even though they’re all from the same dyelot… grrr. I’m not changing it. I don’t actually think you can see it, but if you can, do let me know… Other than that, it’s comfortable and light and I’m wearing it to the rock festival tonight!

Next we have some socks! Only my second pair of the year, surprisingly.

Yarn:ONline Supersocke 100 Highland Color in 839 multi
Pattern: Jaywalker Socks by Grumperina
Needles: Knit Picks Harmony 2.5mm Circ
Modifications/Notes: I followed the pattern as is until I got to the toe and did my own toe.

These socks are great. I’ve had the yarn in my stash for a while but have never quite found the right pattern for it. Mainly due to the whole multi-coloured-ness of it. I think this pattern has definitely brought out the yarns great colours and the two work really well together. These I think I’ll keep for me. I’m not being greedy, honestly. In the last couple of weeks I’ve found 3 pairs of my socks have holes in them…. This is the reason why I’m adding these lovelies to my stash

As an aside, here is a piccie of our homegrown chillies that we harvested yesterday…

yummy, no?

I’m off to a rock festival tonight, so I bid you all adieu and hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

This post has been lingering in my mind for a while.. There have been moments where it may even have made it to the writing stage, but then was discarded. I can’t begin to tell you why this may have been, but blogging seems to have been evading me lately.

Actually, I seem to be have been having blogging issues since the beginning of the year. Hopefully though, this will change now that Spring is here and I’ll have an opportunity to get out and about a bit more etc.

On to the post now, which I hope you all find interesting. There’s a bit of knitting, a bit of cooking and a little bit of the other.

A few weeks ago, Ollie and I ran out of mayonnaise and I kept forgetting to add it to our shopping list, so everytime we needed it, there was none. I rashly promised one evening that I’d give homemade mayonnaise a go and having said that, there was no way I couldn’t at least try… so I gathered up the ingredients one afternoon, subbed dijon mustard with normal mustard as that was all I had and set forth on my ‘mayonnaise’ quest.
I failed. It was a complete disaster and tasted way too much of the mustard, I then tried to be clever and added more egg, but not within the process. In total it was a waste of 6 eggs. Bad, bad Kai. I slinked off in defeat and thought that I would definitely remember to BUY mayonnaise the next time we went shopping.
Standing in front of the condiments in the supermarket, I couldn’t make myself reach for the mayo, so we went home and I tried again. This was also a disaster, but that was due to using Olive Oil, instead of some normal sunflower oil, my bad. Chucked that and had one last try and I have to say, I have never tasted mayonnaise so good. It had a great consistency and was slightly yellow and tasted fabulous… nice. Admire my bottled mayonnaise.

As well as that there has been lots more new endeavours in our cooking, involving bread (made by Ollie), cheesecake (made by me), cornbread, homemade pasta, homemade pizza, a new chinese dish with basil, garlic and chilli’s. There’s also been some of of normal dishes, but we’ll talk about that another time.

On the knitting front, I’ve finished the Travelling Woman stole, but unfortunately, it hasn’t been blocked yet, so I’ll give that one a post of it’s own.

Socks for Ollie:

Yarn: Lana Grossa Meilenweit 100g Uni/Solid in 1328 BrownPattern: My Own just a 3×1 rib throughout and it’s toe up
Needles 2.5mm Knit Picks Harmony Circ

On the WIPs front, there has been a lot of pondering about what big project I needed on the needles after Starsky, but I couldn’t decide on anything. I’ve been really into cardigans lately, but having just suffered a misfortune with Audrey, where I put it in a 40 degree wash, because my 4 ply soft label says that I can but it felted slightly, I’ve kinda gone off making them for the moment. Not really their fault, but I can’t get it out of my head.

So I settled on another pair of socks. Jaywalkers. I’ve never made them before and avoided jumping on the band wagon when I first came back to knitting, but I’ve always liked the subtle zig-zag effect and I had the perfect yarn in my stash so I cast on. I’m on the second sock and it’s coming along nicely.

And for a big project, I was flicking through some of my Interweave Knits mags and I came across the Sleeveless Tuxedo Shirt, I love the design and I love the little lace panel on the front, with the little ruffles.

I swatched with the GGH Bali that’s been in my stash forever and with some Rowan Calmer that has also been in my stash forever. I settled on the Calmer in Beige because it looks like it will be cooller for those hot summer days I am waiting for.

The collage at the top of this post has some of the nature pictures that I’ve taken recently, my favourite is the Tulip pic. Here it is again, with some others for you to admire:

I think that should keep you all busy until the next post and I promise I won’t be away so long.. honestly. Hope you all have a fabulous week and that the sun is shining where you are.

I love big cardis. I’m drawn to them like a moth to light…. drawn.

When I wander through shops, most knitwear will pass me by and even though I admire, I’ll normaly say to myself ‘I can make something like that myself’. Not that I ever do, of course, but I know I can.

One type of knitwear though always gets my attention. The big wooly cardigan. I love the whole enveloping feel. It makes me feel like I’m surrounded by warmth and love and coziness. I normally have to be dragged away.

Now I know I can make big comfy cardigans myself, but for some reason I just never have. Then I saw Starsky, or in particular, someone’s version of Starsky. I saw the original pattern on Knitty.com and it was added to my to-do list, but it didn’t realy grab me. Then I saw some one else’s on Ravelry and I loved what they had done with it, and I cast on.

I love the feel of this cardi and I love the fact that I can just fling it on, tie it up and off I go.

What I do wish though is that I’d made the body longer and the fronts wider and the collar bigger. I might actually add more to the collar anyway and then block it and see how it fairs.

I do love it though and the actual knitting process was engaging enough not to lose my attention.

Yarn: Patons Aran Style in 1005 with flecks
Pattern: Starsky by Jordana Paige
Needles: KnitPro Options 5.5mm for body and sleeves, 6mm for collar
Modifications/Notes: I changed the back pattern so that the Banana Leaf pattern matched up with the ribbing. I added the Banana Leaf pattern to the sleeves as well. Other than that I made it as instructed.

I wouldn’t mind another one but just in plain stocking stitch and in a darker colour, but I’ll have to make some other things first I think!!

Now on to the next project and I think for now, I’ll stick to some small things.

When Ollie and I first moved to Germany we found a lovely Turkish shop in the centre of Osnabrueck. We visit the shop whenever we pop into town and it’s fabulous finding hidden treasures on each of our visits. One of the treasures that we actually purchased was a floor cushion.

Unfortunately, we’ve had it for a few years and it’s well used by Ollie and we’ve frayed some of the covering fabric. It’s been patched up and looks ok, but to save the poor thing from further abuse Ollie asked for a cover. Now I’m not huge of household-y projects and I remember saying Yes in one of my I’ll-do-it-at-some-point tones.

We picked out some acrylic yarn that I know will be hardwearing and can also be just thrown into the wash. It was a lovely dark green and I knew it would sit in my stash for an age before I decided I really should make it up into the cover it was supposed to be.

Thankfully it didn’t sit in my stash for that long. Just a few months and I finally started when I had a sudden urge to crochet. My crochet urge is still rampant and I’m glad to say I have finished the cover. Yippee!! The look on Ollie’s face when I covered the cushion and gave it to him was more than enough to make me grin and prance around like I’d won the lottery. blushes

Yarn: Rellana Caprice in Green x 5, Schachenmayr Nomatta Bravo in Orange x 0.75, Lana Grossa Royal Tweed Green x 0.2 & Orange x 0.7
Pattern: Made up, but it’s just granny squares.
Hook: 4mm Grafton Fibres
Modifications/Notes: I made it up, but I used 4 balls of Caprice for the top and bottom granny squares and then the last ball and some left over Bravo for the granny squares between the top and bottom, but ran out of the orange, so I nabbed some Royal Tweed that Ollie was using for some weaving and finished off the squares and sewing up with these.

All in all, this really didn’t take that long to make and I’m glad Ollie is so pleased with it.

Most of you know about Twist Collective and the wonderful patterns that they have in each issue. Some of these patterns have found themselves grasped in my grubby hands and I finally got around to knitting one of the much coveted patterns.

This is Audrey in Unst by Gudrun Johnston and I am completely in love.

I love the shape of this little cardigan, but was pretty worried it wouldn’t cover all my bumps. Thankfully it does and I love the fact that it isn’t a HUGE cardigan, pretty and sweet. Makes me feel all feminine!

I loved the colour of the designers version and then remembered that I had some Rowan 4 Ply Soft in Honk and I had yarn that matched the pattern perfectly.

Yarn: Rowan 4 Ply Soft in 374 Honk x 5.5 balls
Pattern: Audrey in Unst by Gudrun Johnston
Needles: 3.25mm Addi Lace & 3.5mm, 3.75mm Knit Picks Options
Modificactions/Notes: No mods would you believe. I made this as specified. The twisted rib, I worked all stitches on both sides as twisted, that way there were no gaps in my ribbing. The new thing in this project for me was the i-cord bind off for the neck edge and I am so, so pleased

This is going to become a staple in my wardrobe this summer and I plan on definitely making more. I might change the lace panels for some variation, but there will be more Audrey’s in my future!

When the Knitty surprises went up for the Winter 09 issue, I was instantly smitten with a pair of socks.. I love knitting socks, but for a good few months now, I haven’t really worked on any. When I saw the Skew socks I was intrigued straight away by the completely different and away-from-the-norm sock patterns that it went straight into my queue and I started planning on what yarn I could use to make them.

I sat on my hands for a while, trying not to cast on and trying to finish the Urban Aran and then Audrey first and I seemed to be succeeding. Until the beginning of March. We had a lovely sunny day and it felt appropriate that with this lovely bit of weather, I should cast on another project, but still I held out a little. I’d been posting about the socks on the Phoenix Forum and the more I was reading about the KAL and thinking about the socks, the harder it became to resist the urge to cast on. It hit late evening and I couldn’t help myself anymore, so I cast on.

Yarn: Rellana Flotte Socke Bambus Panda in 3005 Pinks
Pattern: Skew by Lana Holden on Knitty.com
Needles: 2.5mm Knit Picks Harmony circ
Modifications/Notes: I used 2.5mm needles because I couldn’t find my 2.25mm circ. Keeping that in mind, the socks are a little on the roomy side. When I make these again, I’ll use the right needles or do less repeats on the foot.

I’m hoping that they might shrink a little in the wash, but other than that, I am completely in love with these socks. I can see the being made a good number of times in my future!!

Just before Christmas 2009, I was visited by the lovely Diane and we spent a few days lounging around, relaxing and flicking through some of my knitting books. One of my reasons for wanting to flick through the books was a need to find a beautiful project for the equally lovely Kate for her upcoming birthday in Feb. Diane and I both loved Nancy Bush’s latest offering ‘Knitted Lace of Estonia’ and in that I found the perfect triangular shawl for Kate:

Yarn: Fiddlesticks Zephyr Wool-Silk in Elderberry
Pattern:Miralda’s Triangular Shawl by Nancy Bush in Knitted Lace of Estonia
Needles:3.5mm Knit Picks Options
Modifications/Notes: I didn’t modify anything, just followed the charts as set. The one thing I do remember is that I spent an AGE doing the nupps section. It was pretty fiddle-y with the Zephyr, but I got it done and the rest was a complete breeze.

I love this shawl and it was pretty hard to give it up! I know Kate will enjoy it though.

I also celebrated a birthday as well, but we won’t speak about that much. I have some money to spend from Diane and some lovely patterns that Kate purchased for me and I have some lovely jewellry from Ollie and his parents. My parents are off to India this weekend, so they’re bringing back pressies for me.. I love opening presents after my birthday, kind of prolongs the birthday itself!
As a present to myself, I went off to a local craft show, my first ever in Germany. I spent the day with some of the lovely knitters who are part of the Knitting OWLS group on Ravelry and we shopped, ate and knit. Lovely.

While we were shopping, I was speaking to one of the ladies about needing to knit myself a phone cozy. I’ve been meaning to make one for an age, but being a lazy moo, I put it off. Well, I finally decided that I really didn’t have any more excuses not to get on with it.

Yarn: ONline Supersocke 100 Bambus Color in 951 Pinks
Pattern: My own
Needles: 2.5mm Knit Picks Harmony
Notes: I used Judy’s Magic Cast On and started with a total of 32 stitches. Knit one round.
Increase 2 sts each side on next round. carry on knitting in round until cozy covers phone.
Eyelet round: * (yo, k2tog). Repeat from * to end.
Knit 2 rounds.
Picot bind off: * cast on 2 sts, bind off 4 sts. Repeat from * til end.
Tie: Using crochet hook of right size, chain 47 sts. sc into third chain from hook and sc in each chain till end. Break yarn.
Thread tie through eyelet holes. Add beads to ends and place phone inside!!

My phone is now nicely protected.

On the WIPs front, I have an Audrey in Unst in progress. I love Gudrun’s patterns and this is no different. It’s a well written pattern, easy to follow and the results are fantastic. I have nearly finished the second sleeve and I just need to do the neckband and button bands. Hopefully, I should be done this weekend. I can’t wait to be wearing this!