Red Nose Day Dolls

There has been an extremely exciting project doing the rounds in blogland lately, the Red Nose Day Dolls, being made to auction on ebay for Red Nose Day.  Not only do Maisie, Mac, Blossom and Poppy have outfits, they also have blankets, teddies, books, pets, jewellery, picnic baskets, bags, capes and of course red noses.  They truly are the toys of every child's dreams.

The project was thought up by Emma Mitchell of Silver Pebble and Ros Badger and has now grown to include bloggers from all over the globe.  It's a fantastic fundraiser but it's also a great celebration of the hand made and of craft in general.

There is more information on the Red Nose Day Dolls' blog or on facebook and you can sponsor the project here

P.S. also check out this sweet video of Mac going camping:

P/Hop - knit one, make the world a better place

P/Hop stands for "Pennies per hour of pleasure" and is a knitting initiative set up by the Yarn Yard's Natalie Fergie to raise money for Medicins sans Frontiers (Doctors without Borders). The idea is that you can download one of their patterns, then make a donation to Medicins san Frontiers according to how many hours of pleasure you reckon you received from knitting the pattern. The scheme is currently working on reaching a total of £40,000 raised to mark MSF's 40th birthday.I'm writing about this as last week I made a pair of socks for a friend's daughter using the Quick and Easy Ribbed Sock pattern from P/Hop and I thought that the scheme was worth promotion. The pattern was clear, comprehensive and everything a sock pattern should be.

However, the patterns on P/Hop cover more than just socks, there are also hats, scarves, mittens, household items, toys and crochet patterns. I would particularly recommend the Cranford Mitts, inspired by the recent BBC series.

It's a win-win situation: we get the pleasure of knitting great patterns and MSF get the funds they need to keep their valuable work going. So happy knitting!

P.S. For those interested the yarn is Regia College 6ply in shade 06503.

An exciting baby jacket

I'm still amazed how this......became this, then...
...this. I still can't get over the Baby Surprise Jacket. Such an amazing piece of knitting engineering. Onto the the matching bonnet and bootees next I think.
Truly where engineering meets knitting.

Fifth knitaversary

Today is my fifth anniversary of learning to knit. I was taught by a friend at university and have never looked back, my only real wish is that I had learned sooner. Knitting has brought me occupation, solace in hard times, fun, wonderful friends, socialising, warmth, new knowledge about myself, new skills, new confidence and a huge amount of yarn! Anyhow I thought I'd mark the occasion by posting a picture of my favourite project from each year that I've been knitting.

2007

Wavy Scarf from Stitch'n'Bitch Nation (my first ever knitting book) in random acrylics from Durham's indoor market

2008

Drop Stitch Scarf from ravelry, in Colinette Iona, colourway Jay

2009

Poppy by Ysolda Teague

2010

Fair Isle scarf I designed for a Knitting magazine competition

2011

Argyle socks from Veronik Avery's book Knitting Classic Style (these win the prize for most patience needed for all that embroidery).

Who knows what the next year will bring, though I am hoping to prise myself away from the knitting needles for long enough to learn to sew.

Homemade and Handmade

I was extremely excited this morning to receive a disproportionately huge jiffy bag containing my pre-order of Rend Collective Experiment's new album Homemade Worship by Handmade People. I have been looking forward to this album's release for weeks and had listened to the first single released over and again.

As well as excellent, inventive and interesting music and lyrics, which take them well outside the usual Christian worship music, I love Rend Collective's ethos and ideas. They are trying to do things differently, they recorded all the music on the album in their homes and they are trying to live in community and embrace the family aspects of being the church and the body of Christ here on earth. Some of these ideas link into the general craft sub-culture that interests me and the move away from the mass produced towards things made with love and skill. The album's reference to "handmade people" then reminds us that each of us was handmade by God:

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well." Psalm 139

The songs reflect this, exploring themes around surrender, the cross, redemption, forgiveness, God's kingdom coming here on earth and bringing change to us and to the world. Messages we so sorely need in this world, hope and the idea that things can be different. I love the language of God re-crafting us into redeemed people, as the first single, Second Chance, puts it:

"Countless second chances

We've been given at the cross

"Fragments of brokenness

Salvaged by the art of grace

You craft

Life from my mistakes"

The Bible says that we are made in God's image and so just as God is creative, so we are creative. So that just as our earthly love is just a shadow of God's all encompassing love, our craft, our up-cycling and reusing and creating is a shadow of God's ongoing work of recreation through Jesus and a reflection of Him in us and us in Him.

On the whole the music is "louder" and less intimate than some of the songs on their first album, the Organic Family Hymnal. Walking to knitting group today the music was making me tap my toe while waiting at the pedestrian crossings, however, I did manage not to sing along out loud in public! Anyhow I am going to go back to listening to my new CD and get on with my creating (my Peaks Island Hood at present), while I sing along and pray for God's kingdom here on earth.

Rowan and Ravelry

I am frequently frustrated, when browsing Ravelry's immense database of knitting patterns, either while in search of something to knit for myself or while helping someone out on the forums, by the lack of Rowan patterns in the database. It frequently means that I simply do not knit the designs myself and do not have the opportunity to recommend the designs to others, a pity, since they have some extremely good ones. Rowan do have their own website on which some of their designs are pictured, but since the new site was launched it is no longer possible to view them closely enough to see the details, for example is it a dropped or set in shoulder? I have been lamenting this absence for a while now, but some interviews with Rowan designers, in their latest magazine (kindly lent me by a friend for me to read) have made me consider the subject again.

From what the designers were saying it was clear that Rowan are currently wrestling with how to approach the new realities of the digital age, where knitters from all over the world can communicate with one another instantly and self publishing has never been easier. Some of this phenomenon is not all that new - Elizabeth Zimmermann blazed a trail self-publishing through her Schoolhouse Press and her Wool Gatherings news letters as early as the 1950s. However, the realities of publishing, involving as it used to, the costs of printing and distribution, did mean that until the rise of the internet self publishing was not easy to accomplish. Now it can be done at the press of a button and yes, as Sarah Hatton cites "people like Ysolde Teague [sic] and Jared Flood... have just created themselves" and worked hard to create excellent professional brands and beautiful, stylish designs. These independent designers have used the internet to communicate directly with their customers and build up their brand, there is no reason why Rowan cannot do the same.

Indeed knitting always has been a very grass roots movement, passing from person to person and finding new ways to create. Knitters have always improvised, changed patterns to suit their circumstances and come up with innovative new designs - Kate Davies' excellent article on Shetland lace knitting a few pages earlier in the same Rowan magazine makes this point superbly. However, now instead of only being able to share their ideas with knitters in their immediate vicinity, or by post, we can share our ideas, our designs and put them out there. In terms of design there is little difference between the Shetland women's lace innovations of the early 19th century and a knitter today coming up with a design and sharing it for free or selling it via her blog or Ravelry. It is all part of the same creativity.

I can see how a more traditional company like Rowan could feel quite threatened by the internet, but actually it offers a great opportunity to interact with customers in a new way and to get your designs out there cheaply and effectively. And of course it is worth bearing in mind that important though Ravelry is to many of us, it is not the entirety of the knitting world. But at one and a half million members strong, it does represent a huge market for yarn and knitting companies and I feel it is a pity that Rowan has not yet made the most of this opportunity. Rowan yarns already have quite a profile on Ravelry, there are more than 15,000 projects listed using Kid Silk Haze for example. I have used the yarns far more than the designs and love their quality, a jumper I made in Rowan pure wool aran is still going strong after more than two years hard wear.

If more Rowan patterns were listed on Ravelry, together with pictures and tags to identify the techniques, used then more knitters would buy Rowan booklets and knit Rowan designs, very probably buying more Rowan yarn in the process. As Rowan is ultimately a company that exists to make money, this surely makes sense?

Personally I would also love to see at least some of the amazing Rowan back catalogue on sale as individual patterns, as Interweave Knits and Vogue Knitting both do. Back copies of Rowan magazines and booklets often sell on ebay for eye-wateringly high prices, yet Rowan itself gets none of that money, why not put the back catalogue to work?

As the designers said again and again in the interviews this situation is exciting, things have been changing and bringing us all new opportunities and creative possibilities, so Rowan, please make the most of it!

Inspiration

Found this awesome picture directory of blogs today and thought I'd share it, I've been clicking randomly on links and found some amazing blogs and lots of beautiful things people have made. Hope it inspires you to get making too.

Random photo of nasturtiums and geraniums with bee, because.

Today was better than yesterday.

Day five - And now for something completely different

Only I'm afraid there's nothing that different happening here folks. I lack the energy to work out something vastly different and imaginative. Instead I'm going to say thank you.

Thank you to Jess and Casey Forbes, the imaginative geniuses behind ravelry.com, a website I believe I mention very occasionally on here. Their site has enriched my life in so many ways, in bringing me friends, knowledge, support, inspiration, joy and even laughter. Anybody who thinks up giving everyone's avatar a little hat (or other piece of headgear) for April Fools' Day richly deserves the title of genius. Today ravelry has been peppered with shining toppers, William Tellesque apples, witches, wizards, crowns, cowboy hats, halos and many more, even some penguins.

I myself had a bright parrot perching upon my head for the day, which cheered me up no end, the whole thing did. Thank you Casey and Jess for helping me to laugh on a day when I woke up feeling awful and thought it was just another of those days, thank you for turning it around. Thank you for your creativity, hard work and humour.

2KCBWDAY5

Day three - Tidy mind, tidy stitches

Anyone who knows me very well, certainly my family, would laugh uproariously at the idea of my knitting being organised. Indeed were it not for ravelry my knitting would be in a state of unworkable anarchy. It is bad enough that my yarn is stored all over the place, from individual skeins in among books on the bookshelves, to piles of knitting books in unsteady piles on the floor, taking in bags and boxes of yarn stored all over the place, myriad pieces of paper and a needle roll that has *never* been closed.

I make some attempts to be organised - my projects page on ravelry is organised carefully, because I enjoy organising it and it requires no more physical energy than that of manipulating a mouse and doing a little light typing. Where I fall down is on needing to put things away or find them places to live in the first place. I was never good at it in the first place; now I'm just too tired to have any energy to expend in tidying and sorting. Some attempts have been made: broadly speaking my knitting needles reside either in the top drawer to my right in my desk, in the aforementioned needle roll (kindly made for me by a friend) and double pointed needles (mostly) in a mug. Likewise some of my yarn is organised into clear resealable bags, a few of which are even labelled with what should be in them.

My rough and ready system, if it can be graced with such a term, does work most of the time - I have an idea of where most things are. However, there has been the odd incident, such as selling someone a ball of yarn via destash, then realising I didn't have a *clue* where it was (fear not gentle listener, it was recovered after an exhausting search), which has made me wish I were more organised.

It would be good, if potentially scary, to have all my stash on ravelry, so that I know what I have and so that I can use more of it instead of buying more yarn. I would like the physical storage of the yarn to improve too, such as it all making it into bags and once catalogued finding a place in my big cupboard. It would be fairly pointless to wish that the books could get their own places to live, I suspect that my books:bookshelf ratio is never going to be quite balanced: I'm just one of those people.

Another problem I face is that my living arrangements are far from ideal; my belongings have to try to squeeze into one room, which by your mid-20s can be tricky. This room is not endowed with very good storage, my mother came up with the design of the cupboard and it is unworkable, hard to access, too deep and only really designed to hold those large unlovely plastic crates. I find it impossible to find anything in large plastic crates and too hard to get things in and out of them when I'm exhausted and sore. If I ever (please dear Lord, please!) get my own place I would design the storage with far more care and ingenuity, to enable everything to have its place, with the things I use most often easily accessible. Then all I'd need is some will power to put things back where they belong. Hmm only one small flaw in that cunning plan then.

Anyhow, my thoughts on organisation, not the cheeriest I'm afraid. But thank you Casey and Jess for ravelry - without you my knitting would be lost!

2KCBWDAY3

Day two - skills

It seems almost incredible to reflect that I've been knitting for over four years now; it seems both like forever and an astonishingly short time. Looking through my projects on ravelry I can see how my skills have improved year on year and this ongoing learning process, refining and increasing my skills and knowledge that makes knitting and other crafts so satisfying.

Crochet has been the biggest skill breakthrough of the last year, thanks in part to my good friend Fran who kindly spent most of a knitting group session teaching me to make a granny square, which gave my flailing crochet skills enough of a boost to get going properly. I have not taken to crochet in quite the same way as I took to knitting, it was not quite as easy to get my head around and has not come as naturally. It took me a long time to be able to rows of double or treble crochet without it becoming narrower and narrower; and my first attempt at a crocheted dishcloth resulted in a most odd, tight fabric, unintentionally made of slip stitches throughout! Likewise my first attempt at Lucy from Attic24's hexagon pattern resulted in a shape with six and a half sides (due to my own incompetence, no reflection on the quality of the pattern).

While knitting will always be my first love there are some things for which crochet cannot be beaten, first among these the classic granny square. They are versatile, quick, fun, practical and can be wonderful vehicles for playing with colour, as well as being a fashion trend for the coming year, according to the knitting magazines (which of course means it must be true). Last month I honed my granny square skills making a square a day for Sarah London's Knit a Rainbow project, which was a good challenge and has improved both my crochet stamina (I can find it hurts my hands quite quickly so need to do small amounts often) and speed.

My crocheting beyond the granny square has resulted in various motifs, flowers, snowflakes and a star. The second "thank you" owed for help with getting into crochet must go to Lucy of Attic24 for her clear photo tutorials, which enabled me to make various small projects before I had got the hang of following a normal crochet pattern.

Now I have moved on to my first major crochet project, a scarf made along essentially granny square principles in the most stunning Natural Dye Studio yarn. After one false start which resulted in one stitch too few attempt two is going along slowly but well and will hopefully be perfect for all this gorgeous spring weather we've been enjoying.

Looking into the future I am hoping to get better at increasing and decreasing in crochet and to make myself a full sized crochet blanket. Here is to the next year's skills.

2KCBWDAY2

Second Annual Knitting and Crochet Blog Week - day one

I have somewhat belatedly decided to join in with the 2nd Annual Knitting and Crochet blog week, organised by Eskimimi, which started today so without further ado I shall crack on with day one.

Day one - "A tale of two yarns"

When I first started knitting, just over four years ago, I paid little or no attention to what my "wool" was made of; so far as I knew "wool" was "wool", be it acrylic, wool, whatever. There was very little range available in Durham, most of it originating from petroleum. It took the discovery of ravelry and the subsequent widening of my knitting horizons to introduce me to fibres which were more natural in origin. Since then a gradual transformation has taken place in the yarn I knit with, starting with wool or cotton blends and gradually getting further and further into what is sometimes called "the good stuff". My bank account has not enjoyed this process as much as I have.

However, with the help of people at knitting group I have discovered that sheepy goodness does not have to break the bank. Britain abounds in traditional companies making inexpensive super-wash wools, mostly in DK, that provide excellent value for money. A jumper's worth of these yarns, even for one who, like me, takes a somewhat larger size, can be bought for no more than the cost of a pure wool jumper in a high street store such as Marks and Spencer's. They are very versatile, so far I have made cardigans, baby clothes, a tea cosy, letters for knitted poems, hats, toys and fingerless gloves. Brands I like include Cygnet Superwash DK, King Cole Merino Blend DK and Drops Karisma Superwash and one of my plans for this year is to make a crocheted blanket big enough for my bed out of various greens and blues from this range of yarns.

The second yarn I will mention today is another inexpensive favourite of mine, which I believe deserves to be better known: Drops Alpaca. It is a light, lofty yarn, that works at a range of different gauges to produce fabrics with different characteristics. Knit with large needles it makes an elegantly draping shawl, knit more tightly it becomes a dense warm sock or glove. Although fuzzy, as you would expect from alpaca, it still has good enough stitch definition for lace and it comes in a dazzling array of colours. What is even better is its value for money - 50 grammes of yarn yields 200yards or 180metres for the princely sum of £3. Drops have recently introduced a "sister" yarn, Drops Baby Silk Alpaca which looks similarly lovely, although it comes in a more limited palette, and I am keen to try it. Another of my knitting ambitions is to make a jumper or cardigan in Drops alpaca.

The main stockist for Drops yarns in the UK is Scandinavian Knitting Design, a very reliable company, however, the yarns are becoming more widely stocked. My only gripe with Drops is that although they have many free patterns, the majority are simply translated straight from Norwegian, meaning that they can be extremely difficult to follow. They generally require completely re-writing into an intelligible English pattern since they follow little of the standard style in which English and American patterns are generally written. This is a tremendous pity because they are good designs and there are a lot of them, I suppose the phrase "don't look a gift horse in the mouth" comes to mind, since they are free. But it makes me sad that such a great company are not succeeding as well as they could - many people do not want even to try their patterns as they see them as too difficult to follow. In my more daring moments I have considered contacting Drops and offering to re-write some of their designs into the standard English pattern style. We shall see.

Anyhow, while I could write about yarn for a lot longer I shall leave it there for day one: tomorrow we tackle knitting skills.

2KCBWDAY1

A granny square calendar

The photos in this post show February mapped out in granny squares. I'm delighted that I managed to reach my personal goal of a granny square a day and my crochet is vastly improved for it. Hopefully they will make a difference in the lives of those affected by the floods in Australia; in the meantime I'm moving on to making squares for earthquake victims in Christchurch. It's only a small gesture of help in the face of the devastation, but lots of small actions to make the world a better place do add up: there's more information here on facebook.

In general I am not doing too badly, rubbing along, tired, I'm struggling to

sleep for some reason just lately, but enjoying all the signs of spring that are all around and the sunshine we have had this week. Amazing what difference a bit of sunshine makes, everyone seems to brighten up.

Also pictured sitting on one of the squares is a new arrival to the house, a small macaroni penguin named Samuel, sent to me by a wonderful raveller. I really am most especially thrilled by him, he's a great little companion.

Achievements

Today I had a most exciting letter - to say that I was a runner up in Knitting magazine's "design a scarf" competition and that they wanted to print my pattern in their upcoming book of scarves!!!!!! I was so excited when I had read the letter that I was dancing around the kitchen in my pjs celebrating. Good thing the neighbours were out at the time. Pictures are available here

It means so much because I finally have an identity beyond that of a sick person, or a sick person who does a bit of knitting. I know such things don't really matter and shouldn't matter, but sometimes my ego gets in the way and memories of all my dreams and plans come back and I want more. I know being God's beloved child is infinitely more important, but I do like having a tiny bit extra. Perhaps it's the first step on the road to achieving things despite having ME and fibro?

In other news I also finished knitting the hat I've been designing to go with the scarf, just got the ends to sew in and the blocking to do and I can send that off (for the "knit a hat" competition). I'm rather relieved that this month's competition was for designing a draught excluder, since I feel no urge to design such a thing and so can have a break from manic designing! Deadlines are hard work with ME, you would have thought I would have learned that at university?

I also darned socks successfully for the first time today, my monkey socks which being knit in a pure wool with no nylon, had worn through on the heels. So all in all, apart from a slight crash (note to self - just because you have a few days of feeling a bit better don't try to cram everything you've been wanting/meaning/needing to do into those few days, it doesn't end well), today has been a good day. Praise the Lord.

A new ambition

Today we visited our neighbour Jane's allotment, where they were having an open day. Jane herself was jubilant as she had won the allotments' "best newcomer" award and seeing all the beautiful plants growing on the allotments has inspired me. Next year I intend to try my hand at growing courgettes. I am fascinated by the way they emerge from the plant, with their beautiful flowers perched on the end. The colour contrasts of all the greens and the bright yellow of the flowers are quietly lovely.


In the meantime our self seeded tomatoes are thriving and starting to produce actual tomatoes. We thought we had two, but looking closely at the photos I've taken I think we've got three. Not a lot yet, but give it time!Apart from that it's been a quiet weekend; bit dull... not feeling great. Been playing around with the crochet still.

Edited to add: just went out for another look at our plants and there are loads more tomatoes beginning to form!

Peaceful weekends

This weekend has been lovely, peaceful, quiet, social, but not in an overwhelming way. Yesterday I spent the morning watching Time Team on More4 and knitting; they make a good combination and enable me to engage with history (my main academic love) in a way that my brain can cope with. I also like the programme's good humour, lightheartedness and the willingness of the archaeologists to enjoy a joke.

In the afternoon, after posting a birthday present to a dear friend, I went to knitting group in central Croydon. We meet on the first Saturday of the month in Cafe Nero in the Allders end of George St, near the George St tram stop and opposite 'The George' pub, from 2.30. Yesterday afternoon's meeting was lovely, sociable and relaxed and the combination of air conditioning and iced drinks made a welcome relief to the sheer heat of recent days. If anyone reading this lives in/near Croydon and feels like joining us you would be welcome, we also meet on the third Thursday of the month from 6pm, generally in Cafe Aroma in High St. Although we're called "Croydon knitting group" other portable crafts are very welcome, we have done knitting, crochet, spinning, tatting and cross stitch at meetings between us so far. Naturally some crafts are always going to be more difficult to do out and about - bit hard to heave a pottery wheel down to a coffee shop! If you want more information feel free to email croydonknittinggroup@googlemail.com

Today I haven't done anything in particular, listened to Gardener's Question Time on BBC Radio 4 and then to the Classic Serial - P.G. Wodehouse is perfect for a Sunday afternoon, particularly when it stars Martin Jarvis and Patricia Hodge. As ever with Wodehouse I struggled a little to keep up with who all everyone was, particularly among the younger set; I tend to find it works best simply to listen/read on and go with the flow of the story, it's just as enjoyable as understanding what exactly is going on and infinitely less mentally taxing! The only pity about Wodehouse dramatised is that one misses out on the sheer creativity and wit of his prose in his descriptions of people, places and what have you.

Alas despite all this I still haven't managed to finish knitting this blanket for SANDS, I'm not far off, just need to persist. I have garter stitch fatigue! So I'll get on with knitting it while hoping it starts to rain before plant watering time! (There are some promising clouds up there... anyone know a rain dance?!)

New skills

Of late I have been expanding my skills base, branching into sewing and crochet. It is important at this point to say that knitting will always be my first love and my main craft, but it is nice to be able to learn new skills and expand the range of creative possibilities, particularly as these three crafts compliment one another well.

This week I completed my first sewing project (beyond my practice straight lines!) and made a draw-string bag. The fabric is "Lucy's farm" in Liberty Tana Lawn and is utterly utterly gorgeous, so much lovely detail and a good balance between real style and good fun. Even better, I got it on sale! The lining is simply some very plain pale blue poly-cotton from our local department store's haberdashery department. It has wobbles in places, but overall I'm very pleased with it.

Super duper stripey socks

So... I had two different single balls of sock yarn and couldn't find a striped sock pattern that suited me so I came up with my own with the help of some of the technical information from Cookie.a's brilliant book Sock Innovation (to be particular the tables of numbers needed for heel turning). The alternately coloured heels, toes and cuffs appealed to my inner anarchist and I enjoyed the single row stripes that can be done when knitting in the round. I made these a while ago but hadn't got around to writing up the pattern. Hope it's clear, do get in touch if anything doesn't make sense.
Regia Uni 4ply one ball blue (Colour A), one ball green (Colour B)
Any other 4ply sock yarn in contrasting colours would work.
2.75mm needles
To fit UK size 7 (European 41)

8sts to the inch

First sock:
CO 60 sts, K2 P2 rib for 1 inch in Colour A

Knit one round in Colour A , then one in Colour B, continue in stockinette stitch striping in this manner, always picking up the new colour strand from under the old one at the end of each round/stripe (jogless stripe). Continue until leg is 6inches long or desired length ending with a stripe in the same colour as the cuff/heel/toe. Turn and purl across 30 stitches, leave the other 30 stitches on their needles or a stitch holder as preferred (these will become the instep stitches).

Heel flap:Using the stitches just purled work heel flap as follows:
Row 1: *Slip 1 purlwise, K1*, repeat across the row
Row 2: Slip 1 purlwise, P to the end of the row
Repeat these two rows 14 times (30 rows worked total)

Turn heel:
Row 1: (RS) S1, K16, SSK, K1, turn
Row 2: (WS) S1, P5, P2tog, P1, turn
Row 3: S1, K6, SSK, K1, turn
Row 4: S1, P7, P2tog, P1 turn
Repeat these last two rows, working until the last stitch before the gap each time, until there are no more stitches to be worked
Turn and knit across the heel stitches

Gussets:
Pick up and knit 18 stitches along the side of the heel flap (approximately one per row plus one or two more in the gaps between the needles and the flap, don't worry about being too exact as numbers can always be evened up during the gusset decreases). You may wish to knit the stitches through the back loop. Knit across the instep stitches then pick up and knit 18 stitches along the other side of the heel flap.

At this point rearrange 9 of the heel stitches from the first needle to the last one. There should be 27 stitches on the first needle, 30 instep stitches on the second needle¹ and 27 heel stitches on the last needle. The start of the new round would usually be between the two needles of heel stitches.

However, due to the 'seam' formed when changing colours in the striping, which would be uncomfortable to have underfoot, the round is going to start at the beginning of the instep stitches. Therefore, when the stitches have been arranged on the needles knit across the remainder of the heel stitches in the colour you used for the heel. Add in the next colour for the new round and proceed as follows, changing colour each round as before and beginning the round at the beginning of the instep stitches.

Round 1: Ndl 1¹ K, Ndl 2 K1, SSK, K to end of Ndl, Ndl 3 K to last 3 sts, K2tog, K1

Round 2: Knit all stitches

Repeat these rounds until there are 15 stitches left on each of needles 2 and 3

Continue knitting foot until it is 1.5inches shorter than the length of your foot. I am a UK size 7 and my foot is 10inches long, if that helps to give guidance. End with a round of the contrast colour, cut that thread and continue in the colour used for the ribbing and heel.

Toe
Round 1: knit
Round 2: (keeping the needle numbering used for the heel gussets) Ndl 1 K1, SSK, K to last 3 stitches, K2tog, K1; Ndl 2 K1 SSK, K to end of Ndl, Ndl 3 K to last 3 sts, K2tog, K1

Repeat these two rounds until 32 stitches remain. Repeat Round 2 twice more (24 stitches remain), slip stitches from needle 3 onto needle 2, graft remaining stitches together. Sew in ends. Try on finished sock. Immediately start on sock 2 to prevent the onset of “second sock syndrome”.

Second Sock
Begin with Colour B and use that for the cuff, heel and toe, with stripes in between as in the other sock.

1 or fifteen stitches on each of two needles, as you prefer

2If instep stitches are split over two needles renumber needles two and three accordingly

Hannah's baby hat

My friend Hannah was looking for a pattern for a baby hat knit flat on two needles the other night and even with the wonders of Ravelry neither of us could find anything suitable: a clear pattern that would be easy for a beginner knitter. So I decided to try my hand at writing one. Here it is - please get in touch if you have any questions or if anything isn't clear - be patient with me, it is my first finished written up pattern. There will be proper photos of the finished article tomorrow, as I finished knitting up the prototype quite late tonight, after the decent light had gone.
Baby hat knit flat

To fit c.3 months (c.15 inch circumference, unstretched; stretches bigger)
c.60m Patons Fairytale Colour 4 Me or any other DK (double knitting) yarn
4mm needles (or size needed for gauge)
tapestry needle

Gauge: (check before you start) 22sts to 4inches/10cm

Cast on 84 stitches and work 2 inches in K2P2 rib
Then work in stockinette stitch (knit one row, purl one row) until piece measures 5 ½ inches ending with a purl row (WS) from cast on edge.
*K2tog K5* to end of row (72 stitches)
Purl 1 row
*K2tog K4* to end of row (60 stitches)
Purl 1 row
*K2tog K3* to end of row (48 stitches)
Purl 1 row
*K2tog K2* to end of row (36 stitches)
Purl 1 row
*K2tog K1* to end of row (24 stitches)
Purl 1 row
*K2tog* to end of row (12 stitches)
Cut yarn off leaving a long tail to sew up the seam. Thread needle, weave through remaining stitches, pull tight and then sew the seam using mattress stitch. (Good tutorial here)

I would like to acknowledge the help that the baby size charts at Bev's Country Cottage gave me in putting together this pattern, thank you.

Bits and bobs

I've spent the past few weeks mostly recovering from the benefits appeal, which mercifully I won. But it was a huge trauma and stress, I'm only just sleeping properly after it. It is deeply invidious that the system should be so skewed against the sick.

On a brighter note I've continued pursuing the domestic arts. It makes sense really, I'm home so much, at most I'm out two hours a day; homely things like baking bread and knitting make sense as occupations. Baking bread is tiring, but rewarding and interesting, I've been reading Elizabeth David's English Bread and Yeast Cookery, a work I highly recommend if you are at all interested in baking your own bread. In it she explores the history of bread making and all the technical details, before going on to provide comprehensive recipes that work well. Although I have only really dipped in and out of it (it is an immense work) it is an entertaining read, Elizabeth David was not just passionate about food but crucially was a superb writer. She leaves one in no doubt as to her opinions. Illustrated here is my first attempt at a Coburg loaf, which is apparently just like a cob loaf, but for the cross cut on top.

With the onset of spring my annual enthusiasm for gardening has returned and this week Dad did all the hard work and I put some spinach, baby cos lettuce and tomato seeds in some pots. The cos lettuce leaves have already sprouted and together with the baby spinach leaves should provide some interesting lunchtime salads. Our pond goes from strength to strength, being currently full of tadpoles; it resembles a bustling city, the surface of the water constantly aquiver. The fish seem remarkably unconcerned by their little companions nor by the newt who we spotted in there this week.

Knitting takes up most of my time and energy, but I would like to have a go at some sewing, hopefully this coming week I'll manage to prise myself away from the knitting needles. Overall things are very quiet, lonely at times. I've managed to get to church group a few times lately, they're a lovely group of people, all my friends are lovely people, just far too busy. I suppose it's no fault of theirs, but it does leave me on my own the vast majority of the time and I can't remember when I last met up with a friend except at church group or knitting group, which is just a bit depressing.

Still got to keep my pecker up I suppose, could be worse? Or something like that! While we're on the subject of good attitude I'd recommend reading Kate Davies' blog Needled - a lecturer in 18th century fashion and social history she recently had a stroke and her account of recovery has been amazing. Every doctor ought to read it as an account of what it feels like to have a stroke (or indeed any other sudden change of circumstance and health). She writes with humour and grace and although the word 'inspiring' can be somewhat overused in this case it is in way hyperbolic. She also makes gorgeous knits such as the famous (in the knitting world!) Owls jumper and the photography is brilliant. Over and out for now, hopefully I'll update this more frequently, who knows.

mmm cake

Today, since we are still surrounded by acres of snow, I held a tea party to which our dear neighbours came and for this purpose I baked. I was really feeling the need to bake, as sometimes one simply does and in such circumstances it seems only fair to share.

I made some wonderfully nostalgic butterfly cakes and some 'chocolate crinkle cookies' (from the allergy free cook book), which went down particularly well with John-from-next-door.

Of course I had to get some pictures!
Enjoy, hope they don't make you feel too hungry. In other news my cardigan is now onto its first sleeve, I'm trying not to get too bored by plain stockingette stitch, at least it's in the round and on one 16in circular, so it's just knit knit knit away.