Hexagon-covered IKEA footstool

This project was to become the prototype for my Hexagon Blanket pattern – knitting a flat hexagon being a tricky thing to perfect!

It has been an elaborate project – knitted at a tighter gauge than usual then lightly felted in order to create a dense fabric, suitable for upholstery. Earlier pieces were misshapen after felting and had to be aggressively blocked. I machine-sewed the pieces together with raw edges exposed, but I wasn’t happy with how it looked and I decided to blanket-stitch over the edges with black yarn. I added a black garter-stitch band around the bottom to balance the uneven edges and complement the black stitching.

The project took quite a lot of yarn, as you’d expect – mainly used Noro Silk Garden in shade 204 and Kureyon in shade 124, as well as numerous left-overs. I discovered quite early on that switching yarns mid hexagon looks much better at the start of a segment.

I thought I’d chosen relatively muted colours and was taken aback by how characteristically bold the piece is. It seems that I just can’t help myself! It also demonstrates that combining brights with neutrals makes them pop even more.

Full details of the yarns used are on the Ravelry project page.

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When I recently commented on Eskimimi’s blog asking about knitting from both ends of the same ball simultaneously, I did not expect a thoughtful, informative, illustrated blog post explaining the technique.

“Yes, Suzie, it is most definitely possible – very easy in fact, and a technique which I have used for many projects and designs including my Simple City Shawl.”

Read Eskimimi’s full post

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Cerys Hexagon Blanket in 4ply/sock weight yarn

My newest pattern – Cerys Hexagon Blanket – is finished!

This modular blanket is made up of (you’ve guessed it) knitted hexagons. It can either be worked in sock/4ply yarn for a baby blanket, or aran/worsted weight  yarn for a ‘grown up’ blanket.

Two design charts are included; one for a traditional daisy patchwork design, and a blank chart for your own design. Full details are on the pattern page, and on Ravelry: Baby blanket | Grown-up blanket, or you can add it to your Ravelry queue.

Get a special early bird discount! Blog readers can save $1 on the usual price until midnight GMT on Friday 5 April 2013, with promo code: h3x4g0n

PDF download, $4.50 $3.50 with promo code Add to basket Show basket

You might notice that I have switched the currency for patterns to US dollars. Brits – I hope you’re not disappointed! We have an easier time, I think, understanding dollars than our American cousins do with pounds. It was a surprise to me that most of my pattern sales are outside the UK, so I think this makes the most sense.

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Meredith Sweater

The sweater is from the book Thrown Together by Kim Hargreaves; my favourite of all Kim’s books and now sadly out-of-print.

What made this project drag on was it’s lack of portability. The number of colours involved, the non-repeating pattern, and the complex shaping all kept it house-bound. It wasn’t particularly difficult – just lots of do x while doing y … and AT THE SAME TIME do z style instructions.

I’ve got no reason to believe it wont be worth the effort. Kim Hargreaves patterns always fit well, it is soft merino (a mixture of Debbie Bliss Rialto 4 Ply and Rowan 4 Ply Soft), and the colours look great. I have been saving some vintage mother of pearl buttons to finish it off.

In a few weeks, hopefully I’ll have some photos of it in wearable form.

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I have long been frustrated with how hard it is to sketch out colour-work ideas. I like to work with a rectangular grid that matches the working tension, ensuring that the knitted pattern is the same shape as the design. Until now I have used either pencil and PDF grid generator (with lots of rubbings-out) or drawing software suited to creating finished charts for publishing, but laborious for trying out a motif. There are, of course, specialist charting software packages, but none of them are free and they are also more geared to publishing.

And so the idea was born for a browser-based tool that would do simple click-and-fill on a rectangular grid.

It turned out to be a straight-forward thing to build, I had a working prototype in a few hours. It took a little bit longer to debug, polish and drop into the website template. But here it is, ready just in time to draw some Valentine’s hearts!

It’s already come in handy on my own projects – I used it for the patterns on the tiny man suit.

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Large corduroy patchwork cushion

I used to do a lot of machine patchwork – I like rectangles and thicker fabrics. Here I’ve used different weights of corduroy in four colours. I was inspired by the abstract look of CRT screens close up. I have two cushions on my sofa from the same era, made up of brightly coloured corduroy squares in a regular sequence, but there’s something really eye-catching about the random pattern of long rectangles and the unusual colour combination.

And speaking of colours, Cornish beaches are amazing any time of year…

January north Cornwall sunset

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Mark Darcy wears _that_ sweater

It my seem like a strange time to be thinking about it, but these things take planning. I’ve had an orange cashmere Argyll sweater that I’ve been using for this purpose, which it’s actually quite stylish and therefore doesn’t fit the bill. I’ve found a couple of possibles:

The Tuva Pullover from KnitPicks (Ravelry link) is both beautiful and garish. One could easily be ‘festive-it-up’ with a bit of metallic yarn and a seasonal colours. It looks to be a thoroughly well fitting, fun and challenging knit.

Tuva Pullover by KnitPicks

This Reindeer Sweater by Drops Design (Ravelry link) also has a lot of potential. It needs some colour injecting into it – these Ravelry users have made the best of it – and maybe a bit of fitting.

Reindeer Yoke Sweater by Drops Design

Seen or own a brilliant Christmas sweater? Please share!

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First of all, I seem incapable to skinning two skeins of the same fibre to the same weight, despite spinning them within 24 hours of each other. The first came out 134 m/50 g (sport-ish weight), while the second is 185 m /50 g (a standard 4ply). It’s not such a problem, they look pretty similar, and I plan to use the yarn for socks so the thicker of the two will be used for the leg. Inexplicable as it is, I accept responsibility.

What I’m less happy about it the distribution of colour. I tend to buy Fyberspates fibre whenever they have some in stock; the fibre quality is second to none and the colours are subtle and unusual. When it arrives, it’s every bit as pretty, soft and squishy as I’d hoped.

It’s only when I come to spin it I start to feel disappointed. In this batch there are vast lengths of dull, grey fluff and a few small, unevenly distributed, pink and purple splodges. I had similar problems with other pieces, spun last year.

In the photo below, you can see a single strand of dark pink –  this is going to come out as a lone, very noticeable stripe in an otherwise uniform pair of socks. I did my best to spread it out. With hindsight, I should have split the entire piece lengthways into into many narrow sections and spun them in turn. That would given me a more even, repeated effect. That’s more ‘editing’ than I’d expect to have to do with fibre that cost as much as this.

Another complaint is that on soaking, the colour bled a lot, I mean A LOT – it dyed the scrap yarn I used to tie the skeins. I suppose it’s better to find it out now, rather than when the socks get their first wash.

I’m still a big fan of Fyberspates, I have no complaints about their yarn! But I’m a little disappointed with this batch.

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This was my first pattern for the more inexpedience knitter and I’m really delighted it’s been so successful. I’ve also had great fun knitting the pattern in different colour combinations, and after reading Exploring Colour in Knitting I thought it would be interesting to share these.

My latest creation is my favourite so far! I think the neutral, low-contrast palette makes the traditional design feel really contemporary. This one is available to buy.

My latest Nordic Ski Sweater Hot Water Bottle Cover

…in black, white and grey

This one was knitted for a gift, again a monochrome palette. This time I’ve used the lighter colour for the middle section, I don’t like it quite as much as the other way around.

…in grey, red and white

I knitted this version for myself and also featured it in the pattern photography. Shortly after I made it I was commissioned to knit another in the same colours – clearly a popular combination! I still use the hot water bottle cover and love it.

…in grey, red and black

This version was also knitted for the pattern photography. It strays completely from the traditional Nordic colour scheme, with the contrast colour being darker than the main colours. I wanted to encourage knitters to experiment and show the design with a completely different effect. The finished item was sold to a buyer online.

…in red, black and white

Another commission knit with colours faithful to tradition. At this point I was still developing the chart for the pattern. I made the central part of the design wider in the final pattern as it felt more balanced. This one was purchased by a friend.

…in red and blue

I wasn’t lying when I said I liked bold colours. With this version I was experimenting with a two-coloured design, refining the chart and of course, seeing how the traditional motifs would fare with a radical colour scheme. I love the effect but I wasn’t sure whether anyone else would feel the same. I was over the moon when I friend asked if they could buy it. I offered to knit a new one in the colours of their choice but was re-assured “no, I like this one”.

…in red, blue and white

I still have a lot of affection for the original colours inspired by traditional Marius sweaters. I expect that the next one I knit will refer back to this. This is the original proof of concept, knitted over Christmas 2011. I knitted a small swatch of the middle section but improvised the rest. The final chart is very similar to this first version. Most of the subsequent pattern development was the refinement of finishing elements – the button band, ‘shoulder’ seams and ‘collar’.

I have a feeling that first project was a commission – if so, I’m very grateful to the customer for effecting this creative journey.

I’m eagerly monitoring the Ravelry project page for the pattern to see what variations you come up with!

The original Marius®© motif was designed by Unn Søiland in Norway in 1953, and it is protected by copyright. Read about the Marius story at www.marius.no.

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I was lucky enough to receive a new addition to my knitting library from an office secret Santa; Exploring Colour in Knitting by Sarah Hazell and Emma King. Clearly this was a Santa who knows me very well!

I tend to be fairly bold with my colour choices. I don’t often spend time experimenting, I just go with my gut, and while my combinations may be too bold for some, I’m normally happy with them. However, it doesn’t always work out, and when it doesn’t it leads to frustration and failed projects.

I don’t see a failed combination as being bad or wrong, just not what I wanted to achieve in that instance, and what I like about this book is that it shares my viewpoint by focusing on examples, experimentation and inspiration rather than rules. For example, it shows how a dramatically different effect can be achieved by varying the width of stripes with the same set of colours.

It covers all types of knitting concerned with colour, from simple stripes, to intarsia, stranded work and stitch patterns. It also contains patterns, although really these are secondary to the other content.

It would be a useful resource for everyone from beginners looking to create choose their own colour schemes for patterns they follow with confidence, to experienced designers looking for inspiration.

Hell, it might even persuade me to try out pastel colours. Who’d have thought it?

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Bohus mittens

As with the hat, the colour work is based on the Red Palm chart from the marvellous book Poems of Colour: Knitting in the Bohus Tradition [my review]. I used 9 shades in total, details can be found on the Ravelry project page.

I’m looking forward to having the cast removed on 9th January when I will be able to wear them.

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One day, for reasons mainly of curiosity, it made its way onto the spinning wheel. It was chain plied and came out roughly DK weight.

This coincided with a desire to own some thick socks.

A pair of comfortable, warm socks emerged with less than a meter of yarn to spare!

Finished handspun socks

Proof that even the unlikeliest of materials can be transformed with a bit of effort.

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Today I’m rejoicing the purchase as the weather seems to have taken a turn for the worse. Yesterday I was in Portugal, wondering if I’d applied enough sun block; today I’m contemplating whether I should put gloves on in the house.

Second hand military coat

The coat came with very nice, domed, brass-effect buttons, but I couldn’t find a match and ended up replacing them all with real brass buttons from Liberty, at a cost of considerably more than the coat, but a pittance compared with the cost of a new coat.

New brass buttons from Liberty

Liberty is my shop of choice for interesting buttons – the price is fair for the quality and I can always find the right finishing touch for my project. The jacket has a certain equestrian air formed by the gathered shape on the hip, and the button motif echoes this nicely.

I think it’s a shame that someone discarded this jacket for want of 10 minutes of sewing, but selfishly, their loss is my gain. For under £20 I’m now set up for autumn.

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The first pair were made from Regia Design Line in probably my all time favourite yarn colourway; ‘landscape fire’. I have another pair of Regia socks, it’s not the softest of yarns, but it is very hard-wearing, surprisingly nice to wear and totally uniform; it’s easy to make a pair of identical socks. The construction is a very standard top-down, ribbed cuff, flap heal. My preference is to knit socks magic loop on 2.25mm Knit Pro metal circulars (they have nice, pointy tips). No pattern – I’ve worked out my own formula to fit my feet.

Simple socks in Regia Design Line 'Landscape Fire'

Even with a fever of 38.5°, these emerged without much effort. There is something very satisfying and motivating about seeing the stripes appear.

I wanted some hiking socks for the second pair, so I experimented with a ribbed leg and instep. I picked out a skein of fabled Madelinetosh Tosh Sock in a neutral shade of pale green (it might have been called ‘field’), which I received as a gift.

Ribbed hiking socks in Madelinetosh Tosh Sock

I had very high expectations of the yarn but it was not quite what I expected. It feels ‘smooshy’ in the skein, but to knit with, it’s dense and lacking stretch. It has very low yardage for a sock yarn. I made the leg of the socks shorter than I wanted out of concern for running out, but I needn’t have because they knitted to a larger gauge than regular sock yarn on 2.25mm.

I don’t know if it was the lack of colour variation, the feel of the yarn or the ribbing requiring too much of my brain-power, but I didn’t enjoy knitting these at all, although I love the socks.

I don’t mind a bit of mindless knitting but I need a bit of colour to motivate myself. My little mind was blown when I saw Eskimimi’s latest sock project. I knew I had to get me some of that yarn – identified as Schoppel Wolle Admiral Ombré (by the folks who make the magnificent Zauberball). I found some for just £6.90 for 100g from Art Yarn, who now seem to have run out

I can see this being turned into socks quite quickly!

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Nordic Ski Sweater Hot Water Bottle Cover

Stitch London’s annual Stitch Crawl takes place this Saturday, 9 June, to celebrate the Jubilee and World Wide Knit in Public Day!

Pop along, win marvellous goodies including our Nordic Ski Sweater Hot Water Bottle Cover pattern, and help raise money for MSF.

The event takes place from midday to 6pm at Jubilee Gardens, in front of the London Eye.

See you there!

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One of the big improvements we’ve made is to make blog posts and knitting patterns smart-phone friendly. The rest of the site still needs a little work to get it looking beautiful on the small screen so don’t be surprised if you see one or two broken bits. We felt that these were the most important for looking at on the move.

You can view the free patterns in a mobile-friendly format; no need to print them out on paper! You can also purchase PDF patterns from your phone.

So far we’ve optimised for iPhone and Android devices as they’re the most popular for web browsing.

We hope you like the new site. Let us know what you think!

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So overwhelming is the experience of entering the room that it takes a while to notice that the room is also filled with subversive objects and messages, including explicit text messages from the artist’s past relationships. The notion of stepping into a stranger’s intimate life and overpowering neon cause a sense of unease that slowly transforms the cosy, cushioned space into something more menacing.

If you’d like to see the room for yourself, you’ll have to be quick. The show closes on the evening of Saturday 24 March with a blacklight party!

Tony’s Gallery is open Wednesday to Sunday, 10am – 7pm at 68 Sclater Street, London, E1 6HR, near Shoreditch High Street station.

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This project took weeks of research, planning, buying of pink yarn, swatching and buying of more pink yarn; but only a few days of knitting. I just love it.

It’s based on the ‘Red Palm’ chart from the Bohus book. I simplified the chart a little. My hat is knitted in a DK weight with a folded, 1×1 rib band. I improvised the pattern over the decreases. I use this crown decrease calculator to plan the shaping to the top of the hat, but it was way off. I re-knit the crown 3 times, changing the decrease rate, to get it to lie flat. Even then, it took some aggressive blocking. I can’t say what went wrong, the maths looked sound, it should have produced a flat circle. Perhaps the purl stitches did unexpected things to the gauge. Never mind, it was all OK in the end.

It seems a little lonely on its own. Would a matching scarf, mittens and leg warmers be overkill?

Also, pompom – yea or nay?

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The original Marius® © motif was designed by Unn Søiland in Norway in 1953, and it is protected by copyright.

Since my first Norwegian hot water bottle cover was born in December, they’ve been selling as fast as I can knit them – clearly a winning formula.

Now you can knit your own! The Nordic ski sweater hot water bottle cover pattern is available as a PDF download from Ravelry for £2.50.

Nordic ski sweater hot water bottle cover knitting pattern, £2.50. The original Marius® © motif was designed by Unn Søiland in Norway in 1953, and it is protected by copyright.

Norway is one of my favourites countries to visit and I love all things Norwegian (well not everything, I’m not keen on brown cheese,  whale meat or the oil industry). This was a perfect opportunity to try out Nordic stranded patterns. Stranded work creates a more dense, structured and better insulating fabric, ideal for a hot water bottle cover. This design is inspired by ‘Marius’ sweaters, the attire of choice in Norwegian ski brochures in the 70s.

The suggested yarn, Cascade 220, is hard to find in the UK but Get Knitted stock it with free UK delivery. It’s a great choice for colour-work because it’s affordable and comes in a myriad of colours. It can be substituted any light aran yarn – I have also used Debbie Bliss Merino Aran and King Cole Merino Aran with this pattern.

If you’d rather pick up the finished article, there is one left in the shop. I don’t expect it to hang around long and this is the last one for a while. It’s time for me to move on to other projects.

The original Marius® © motif was designed by Unn Søiland in Norway in 1953, and it is protected by copyright. Read about the Marius story at www.marius.no

Hand knit hot water bottle cover, £30. The original Marius® © motif was designed by Unn Søiland in Norway in 1953, and it is protected by copyright.

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It now looks like this:

There are no words.

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