nobooksandnoyarnthisxmaspleasethankyou

If you are a knitter, then you must be getting it just as much as me. A friend/ a relative or an acquaintance comes up and says "oh, my aunt/mother/whoever used to knit and I have this yarn that you surely can use for something".  Or better: they see yarn in stores where normally people do grocery shopping and think they will surely please me by buying it for me. No no no! Only a fellow knitter who knows what I knit and like is able to buy me yarn that I will like. All of the other ones, please stay away from such ideas. Unless you get clear instructions of what and where to buy. I can assure you, no yarn bought in a grocery store will fit my needs.

And now to the books... I'm a reader. I've read a lot through the years and I have a specific taste just like any of us, really. But I'm also weird in a way when it comes to books. I feel that telling which book is a favourite of mine is giving away too much information. And even my friends cannot come up with my five favourite authors. Knowing what books a person has read and liked gives so much away. This is the reason you won't see a 100-books list on this blog anytime soon ever, really. I do like hearing what you're reading, though.

If you are looking for gift-buying guides for knitters, this and this are excellent lists.

Oh, by the way, whilst looking at my stashmore picture above I realized that I have used up 14 skeins from it since the picture was taken. Were it all my stash, it'd be almost gone. Lucky me, that's not the case.

reposting Josh Scott's email

If you are a member of Craftsy, then you received this email over the weekend. If you are not, then you should really join it, there are many (also free!) classes that you would enjoy. Either way, I want to share this email with all of you because it says so well why I love making things.

FO: Yet another baktus scarf

There's nothing new to say about this pattern. Garter stitch - very easy. Some stripes add some fun whilst knitting. This one is going to be a birthday present for my mother in law.

FO: A Pixie hat; or: In the spirit of Wovember

To learn all about Wovember, head here.

And here's the Pixie hat. It's all done and finished, unblocked as that is not needed iop. I admit, not even all of the ends are woven in. I thought it was so cute, it had to be worn immediately.

The pattern does not make any sense the first time you read it, but somehow during the knitting process I got it all figured out. As gauge is not specified, I was not sure if the finished project will be wearable, but I powered through and the fit is spot on.

The shawl she's wearing is this. Last week in daycare her baktus scarf got misplaced, so one morning whilst rushing to get her ready and realizing that she does not have another shawl (a thing that has to be corrected), I gave her my Hazeline. I think it looks so cute on her. Plus, she loves it as well. And now whenever we are getting ready to go out, she brings me this shawl to put it on her. I'm sure Christine would be pleased that her gift is so well received by both of us.

FO: Fall edition

The idea for this top/dress came from Little Sister's dress. Her first one still fits her. Surely, it's not a dress anymore, a vest more likely. But it is still being used. And looks as cute as ever.

I aimed for a 2-3T size, but clearly this came out more of a 4-5T sized. It does fit her, with loads of room to grow.

In retrospect, I could have incorporated some increases in the scalloped lace bit.

The yarns that I used - Jamiesons's Spindrift and Rowan Scottish Tweed - are warmth pure. This will be well needed once the cold kicks in.

In other knitting news, I had to interrupt my lace shawl knitting to whip up a hat for my little one. Birgitte just blogged about this, so I knit the same hat in some lovely Rowanspun 4ply. The hat is done and I'm on the BO bit for the shawl.

wordless WIP Wednesday

the beginnings of a lace shawl

These are the beginnings of a shawl. Funny, my queue is full of shawls & scarfs to knit but when it came to choosing a pattern for my one Briar Rose Sea Pearl skein, I had to yet find the perfect match. The hardest thing about this pattern seems to have been the CO edge of 361 stitches. Oh how I hate counting the stitches. Putting a marker after each 100th one did help a bit. Once that and the set up row were done, it is smooth sailing. I hope to have some more knitting time next week and this looks like the right choice. It is nice to be knitting a lace shawl with rows going shorter and the pattern becoming easier towards the end for a change.

my buttons

One small box holds all of my button stash. I know my sister will have a look at this and will think of the ones that went missing whilst on mail between UK and Switzerland some two years ago. But there are still some gems in there. Some were bought with a direct project on my mind, others were a thrift find. Now and then I find my project inspirations exactly in this little box.

garter united

Remember how I was getting frustrated whilst trying to knit an Inspira cowl? Well, I am not starting another attempt just now. Instead I picked up some of the yarns and made a baktus scarf for my mother-in-law. I am not quite sure what she'll think of the raspberry colour, so this present might be in need of another recipient. But the overall result works so well. Garter stitch unites it all.

wordless WIP Wednesday