EYF FOMO, #festivalathome and fairisle loveliness...

The whole knitting world seems to have been abuzz with Edinburgh Yarn Festival Fever this week, whilst those of us unable to attend have been living EYF vicariously via Instagram. It looked amazing (it always does!) with the cream of purveyors of all things woolly in attendance it really is one of those events that I aspire to attend although I suspect I would do so much damage to the bank balance I would never be allowed out on my own again! One day...

That said, although I wasn't there in person, my latest design Midwinter Shawl, produced in collaboration with Eden Cottage Yarns, was there soaking up the atmos and hopefully enticing a few people. Victoria at ECY was selling bundles of yarn needed (Whitfell baby alpaca in dk and chunky) along with a digital download code for the pattern from Ravelry.
Whilst it was battling with some stunning new designs from established designers and festival favourites for attention, I noticed a little spike in activity on my Ravelry shop over the weekend which suggests that knitters' interest was piqued enough to want to see more. It's a start.



For those of us stuck at home there was the #festivalathome organised by Louise Tilbrook of  The Everyday Knitter facebook group. Some members really got into the festival spirit at home with lots of new cast ons and a few yarny purchases from the comfort of the sofa (hoorah for no queues!). I joined in by finally casting on a beautiful pair of fairisle wrist warmers that I bought as a kit as a treat for my birthday back in January. Designed by the lovely  @lucylocketland (go follow her on Instagram if you don't already!), the kit comes with a printed pattern - including a black and white chart you can colour in with your own chosen colours! - all the yarn you need to complete the project and a cute little stitch marker. There are loads of different colourways available but I fell in love with those nature inspired colours of green and gold. It's a really lovely pattern and I had forgotten how much I enjoy knitting with jumperweight Jamieson and Smith Shetland wool (The last project I knit in J&S was this fab Bonny top in laceweight). Lucy has just released another kit for a fairisle hot water bottle cover which looks just amazing and may well be going on my wish list! I do hope she continues to design more fairisle loveliness for us.

After an enforced knitting break over the past few weeks (due to a trapped nerve in my shoulder made worse by rubbish posture whilst sat in old saggy sofa, knitting) this week I was able to get my knitting mojo properly back up and running and started work on a new design that has been simmering on the back burner for sometime.  I am working with the luscious lustrous Tamar by Blacker Yarns which is just an incredibly beautiful yarn to knit with. It has a softness that feels luxurious but a bite that suggests a hard wearing yarn that will only get better with wear. And the colours make me swoon!
Not wanting to give too much away yet but this design uses three colours and there is lace, stripes and lots of lovely garter squish...

So that was my week. I hope yours was good too and as full of yarny goodness!

With love x

Summer knits...

Last week I wrote about how I was not likely to get very much knitting done during the school holidays (you can read about that here). Turns out I needn't have worried too much - last weekend saw the completion of not one but two knitty additions to my handmade wardrobe!*

First up were the Langit Socks that have been lanuishing in my sock knitting project bag since we came home from our little Lake District holiday back in early May and have since been suffering from a bad case of second sock syndrome. These socks were the second instalment of the Blue Skies Sock Club -  a bi-monthly yarn and pattern club from The Knitting Goddess that I signed up to at the beginning of the year with the best of sock knitting intentions. I chose the Britsock option so each hand dyed skein I receive is a thoroughly British product -  grown spun and dyed here in the UK. Each skein comes with a sock pattern exclusively designed by the lovely Clare Devine at KnitSharelove. Two more glorious skeins have since arrived along with their respective patterns but I have fallen so far behind I'm really not sure if these skeins will actually become socks. Mainly because I still want to knit ALL the shawls...

acres of stocking stitch...

Also finished is the lovely Bonny sleeveless top by Emily Wessel of Tin Can Knits. I treated myself to her pattern book Handmade in the UK along with five balls of Jamieson & Smith's 2ply laceweight Shetland and lambswool from BritYarn a couple of months back and thought I really should crack on so that I could actually wear it this year before summer (such as it is ) deserted us for another year...

...and a fair bit of lace!

To be honest the thought of knitting an entire garment in laceweight was a little daunting but Bonny is knitted on needles more usually associated with sportweight or dk (I used 3.75mm needles rather than the 3.5mm suggested) to give the fabric plenty of stretch and drape so it actually grows really fast. Knit in the round from the bottom up meant the first half of Bonny was an easy tv knit and once I got the lace pattern established and separated the front and back it just seemed to fly off the needles. I did make one adjustment, knitting a few rows in garter stitch for the hem rather than the roll hem in the pattern -  I find they just keep on rolling over my belly and another spare tyre is the last thing I need!

If you fancy knitting your own Bonny don't be afraid to follow the suggestions for knitting a couple of sizes smaller than you usually would. My Bonny is knit with 4" of negative ease (ie 4" less than my actual bust measurement) and fits perfectly!

Using the J&S wool made this a suprisingly budget knit, coming in at less than £15 - once again proving that knitting with homegrown yarn needn't be expensive!
I absolutely love it. In fact I love it so much I might even knit another one in something a little more luxurious...

Not one to hang about, I have already cast on my next item from Handmade in the UK, the fabulous Lush cardigan, using more British wool - Wendy Ramsdale DK in the Bedale colourway (also purchased from BritYarn). It's 3/4 length sleeves make it perfect for those cooler September days.

Yes, I am looking forward to Autumn already...





*there is a reason why I had extra knitting time. I went out on Saturday night and danced the night away with friends. On Sunday I literally could not walk... must remember that I am not 18 anymore!

 PS - for those of you who are wondering, I have also made a little progress on my other summer projects as mentioned in the last blog post and hope to have a new pattern or two to share with you very soon!