New Year

Hope everyone has had a lovely Christmas and New Year. I enjoyed mine though glad to be back to some semblance of normality.

I’ve got a few projects to share that I gave as Christmas presents.

Actually, the first one wasn't a present but I didn’t get around to blogging about it. This one was for me.

I started on a weekend away as I thought it would be one of those really easy travelling projects. It was a very simple pattern. I worked it in one colour but I’ve seen some nice multi-coloured versions about.

The yarn is Posh Yarn Martha Sock and the pattern is Dotted Rays by Stephen West. There’s something about it that bugs me a bit but you’ll have to spot it for yourself. Here’s my Ravelry Project Page.

This little one was a Christmas present for my new godson. I’ve made this one before for another friend and it went down well. I did it in about a week before I had to give them the presents so was a bit rushed. The pattern is a Sirdar one and the yarn is Rico Baby Classic DK. Here's my Ravelry Project Page.

I only managed to snap this one photo of the mitts. I’ll try and get some modelled ones but Mum got these for Christmas. The yarn was one I got two Christmases ago from my Mum and I think she picked her favourite colour, so it was only fair to make something for her and give it back!

The pattern is Tatara by Olga Buraya-Kefelian. It has short rows around the wrist section that allows the fabric to rib up. It’s very clever and interesting enough to knit. The yarn is Loft by Brooklyn Tweed which is very nice and creates quite a spongy fabric, though you have to treat it gently because the style of yarn means it does break if you give it a tug. Here's the Ravelry Project Page.

This was the big hit of Christmas. Mum absolutely loves it and has been showing it to everyone.

It’s the MKAL by Westknits and I kept seeing all these stunning photos of shawls around Instagram. I had no intention of doing it as I was a bit under pressure work wise but I was tempted in the end. I ended up stash diving and using some yarns that were intended for other projects but they went so nicely together. The green is Drops Alpaca, the beige is the original Baa Ram Ewe Titus and the lovely dark brown is Fyberspates Vivacious 4ply. Doodler by Stephen West. Here's my Ravelry Project Page. I kept a list on my project page on how much I used of each yarn in each section, which might be useful to those planning on making one (Nicki!).

The final project was for me and it’s my Christmas socks. The yarn was the limited edition Christmas one from West Yorkshire Spinners and the pattern was free with the yarn. Here's my Ravelry Project Page.

Knitmas

This is a bit slow in the writing but last week, we had a Knitmas event at A Good Yarn.

Kate and Ruth from Practical Publishing came for the evening to give a talk. There was games, food and fun.

Kate Heppell is the editor of Knit Now magazine and her talk was on the process of making a design from inception to publication in the magazine. It was very interesting and they brought lots of lovely samples to show us.

We had a prize draw and a couple of competitions – how many stitches can you cast on in a minute and how many rows can you knit blindfolded in two. Lots of hilarity ensued as you can imagine.

We’d prepared lots of knitting kits and many of them had a Christmas theme.

There’s an advent calendar in the shop for customers this month. The first customer that spends the first £10 of the day gets to open the calendar. I had a peek – the prizes are good.

The window display this year is pretty cool. Everyone contributed green strips and Carolyn and Kate have produced the most wonderful Christmas Tree.

I am knitting lots at the moment but they are all for Christmas presents, so I can’t share them with you yet. 

Review: Chiaogoo Twist Set

This is a review I’ve been meaning to do for quite some time but I’m glad that I waited as I’ve really given them a good test drive and recently discovered something new.

I bought a the full Chiaogoo Twist set over 2 years ago now.

Here are the pictures when I just bought it.

You get plenty included in the set – you get the longer length needles from 2.75mm to 10mm (3.00mm, 7mm & 7.5mm are not included), 6 cables (3 different lengths in the large and small), 2 keys, needle gauge, cable connector, stops for large and small and stitch markers.

I ended up buying the missing sizes and the case has a second layer of pockets, so you can put spare needles in there. I have also bought duplicates in 3.00mm and 4.5mm, as they seem to be sizes I use a lot.

I have never used the stitch markers as they look too bulky for my liking.

One of the main differences with the Chiaogoo compared to other interchangeable brands is the different thicknesses of the cables. Up to and including 5.00mm then you use the small cables and above that then the large cables are used. In the kit, there are 3 different lengths for both the large and small – 14”/35cm, 22”/55cm and 30”/75cm. The needle tips add about 10”/25cm to the length. They work out to be about 24”/60cm, 32”/80cm and 40”/100cm lengths. I think the difference thicknesses allow the needle to taper to the cable more gently and perhaps to allow for a greater range of needle sizes. Having a 2.75mm interchangeable is nice.

There are shorter tips available in this range too. Used with the shortest cable, then they work great for hats.

The case is zipped around the outside and I’ve worked out the hard way to always zip it up; or you get needles everywhere! There’s also a pocket on the outside to keep the cables in. I end up putting bits inside the case too – there’s plenty of room. As you can see from this photo, the effect of 2 years of use.

My first impression was I liked the stiffer cables as they didn’t kink and the stiffness makes the needle tips feel a little longer, which was something I noticed the first time I used interchangeables. The needles are hollow, so in the larger sizes particularly,  they feel quite light which is better than trying to battle with big and heavy tips. They don’t have a super smoother texture, there’s a very, very fine anodised texture to it. I think this makes the stitches hold a little more to the needle. It makes a swishy noise and you can feel it a little when you knit with it. Initially, I really didn’t like this and thought I might have made a mistake with the needles, but I quickly came about to like the sensation of knitting with them.

They have lovely points to them and they are quick and pleasant to work with.

One big benefit is the sizing labels on the needles and cables. The sizing is written clearly on both the needles and the cables, with a lot of brands the numbers rub off very quickly. After 2 years of constant use, all the sizing labels are unchanged – they look the same as the day I bought the kit. The needle sizer that is included in the kit has never been used – it’s a bit of a pointless extra!

They quickly became the only kind of needles I loved to work with. The only downside to them was magic loop. Some people say they are impossible to use. They’re not. You just have to have a longer cable than perhaps you’d normally use. Saying that I haven’t been thrilled with the effect, the red wires have such a strong memory, they push on the join between the knitting. I would overcompensate and pull it tighter as I passed the join making a column of tighter stitches. If you really concentrate on your knitting tension at the join, then you can get it so it doesn’t show.  

Here comes my recent discovery though. At Yarndale, my friend bought some Spin cables – these are the cables that belong to the bamboo version of the Chiaogoo needles. They are completely interchangeable with the Twist.  I wasn’t paying attention at the time and didn’t realise the significance and didn’t buy any.

Afterwards, she showed me why she bought them. They are clear plastic cables and very supple. They do not have the strong memory the twist cables have and the cables also “spin” around in the seat of the needle, which is another huge plus.

I quickly bought a full set of the cables and have worked a couple of magic loop projects with them. They work perfectly - no runs or tight stitches. They are just the job for magic loop.

So the only downside I had with the needles has a solution.

They are on the pricey side but I’ve had them 2 years and they don’t show any wear. They work great for lace knitting as the texture holds the fine yarn to the needle and equally great for all other types of knitting.

They do come in half sets too, so if you tend to work with fine yarn a lot then it might be wise to just get the small set or if you’re a chunky yarn fan, then get the large set.

I must say I have always had a preference to metal needles, so I might be biased towards them. Why not buy a pair and see if you like them too? Give them time though because they took a little while to grow on me.

Parcel

Very good friends of mine have just had a second child. Mr and I are going to be godparents.

I’ve been knitting away all year on and off little baby things. The first baby had a big parcel of knitted clothes, so I’ve been trying to match it this time.

There isn’t quite as many things as last time but I have been enjoying making them.

I didn’t know until quite late on, whether it was a boy or girl, so I do have quite a few girls knits squirreled away. Luckily I know someone who is expecting a girl in the new year, so she’ll get quite a few too.

I love the colour combination of them all together. The colour of the peach one in Mr’s opinion isn’t masculine enough but well I thought it was fine, so it’s gone in the parcel.

There are two wee envelopes by Ysolda in the parcel. One of them I blogged about here.

Yarn: Malabrigo Arroyo

Wee Envelope #1 Ravelry project page.

The other I made recently.

Yarn: Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino

Wee envelope #3 Ravelry project page.

The green one is Hygge from Loop, London and I was playing a bit of yarn chicken with this one. I only had one ball and it was only just enough.

Yarn: Rowan Pure Wool Worsted in grasshopper

Hygge Ravelry project page.

This one was my favourite. I just love the yarn with this pattern. It’s a Bergere de France pattern. I bought it in the Creations 2013/14 book but you can get it as a single pattern.

Yarn: Debbie Bliss Rialto 4ply

There a literally loads more photos of this on my Ravelry project page.

This one is the cutest.

Tiny Lion Roar Bonnet by Mimi Codd

Yarn: Sublime Baby Cashmere Merino Silk DK

Lion Roar Ravelry Project page.

I loved them all and hopefully baby will too.

Antipodes

I have a new favourite shawl. The pattern is Antipodes by Libby Jonson aka Truly Myrtle. Ravelry project page. Libby has some really lovely patterns – I really like her style and all the patterns all seem very wearable to me. Check them out

The pattern was a pleasure to knit from start to finish. It’s worked from point to point, so you just increase until just under half of your yarn has been used then decrease to the point. It’s great for getting the most out of one skein of 4 ply.

I used Titus 4 ply in Harvest Gold by Eden Cottage Yarns. Looking at my past blog posts, I bought it at Woolfest all the way back in 2012. I’d been saving it for just the right project. I’m very happy I used it for this and the colour is just so rich.

The skein I used was quite generous at 110g, so I was able to work 29 repeats of the main part of the pattern.

I really love this and have been wearing it lots.

Holly and the Wee Mouse

I bought (among many other things) a kit from Sue Stratford at Yarndale. She has many gorgeous and sweet kits. I got the Chunky Holly kit.

I quickly got started and after only a couple of nights work. I have a fabulous chunky holly.

And if you can see her hiding behind the berries, a wee little mouse.

All the materials are included in the kit. The little mouse is made from angora, so she is lovely and fluffy.

One interesting surprise was because of the sewing down the centre of the stuffed leaf, it’s mouldable. The leaves stay in the position that you put them in.

There’s a range of other Christmas based kits too. Including a chunky robin and a Christmas tree tea cosy. If you’re based around Cleethorpes, then you can get your own kit from A Good Yarn or if you are elsewhere in the world, then you can get them directly from Sue Stratford at the Knitting Hut

It has quite an interesting construction that makes them look so good with the centre and side veins. The berries are a bit glittery too. I’m planning on mine having a home centre stage above my mirror in my lounge over the Christmas period.

That’s one project I’ve finished recently. There are literally dozens of others that I haven’t shared but I hope to, so wait for the next instalment.

Yarndale 2015

I’m very sorry for the radio silence over the summer but my workload was very high and something had to give. Unfortunately for you guys, it was the blog. I’m going to try and get back into the groove of blogging. I want to try and blog weekly like I’ve done for the past few years but have a feeling that it may not happen as often as I like.

I’ve done lots of knitting and even a bit of crochet. The camera has been out lots and I’ve been sharing a few bits on Instagram. I’m @hardybarn on there and please follow me, if you’d like to.

I meant to do this blog last week but there was a bit of procastinating going on. Some friends and I hired a cottage near Skipton for Yarndale weekend. I must say it was rather fab having a knitting weekend.

Yarndale was as good as ever. The sun was shining and I’ve been saving up all year, so I had plenty of pennies to spend.

There was too much fun and chatting going on for me to remember to take photos, but here’s my haul.

I bought Coopknits Socks Volume 2 and the latest Pom Pom magazine.

I bought 2 project bags, one from Jem Weston (who does some great workshops at A Good Yarn, as well as a talented designer) and a Coopknits one.

I topped up on needles and bought some tags that were cute, to add to finished knitting gifts.

There was a ridiculous amount of buttons from Textile Garden and I’m not talking about that one!

I bought some mini skeins from Knitting Goddess and some sock yarn from easyknits to make Otis from the Coopknits sock book.

There’s a lovely cone of cobalt blue Lithuanian linen from Midwinter Yarns, which is destined for a large shawl.

The rest of the yarn was from Triskelion Yarns. The colours in this brand really appeal to my taste and I could honestly have bought the entire lot.

The grey is Dylan 4 ply which is 50% de-haired yak and 50% silk. It’s heavenly soft and is destined for a shawl of my own design that I’m working on for my City and Guilds Level 3 course.

On the Sunday, we had a trip to Clapham and Beckside Yarns to see the lovely Sandra. I might have bought more yarn….

She stocks Kauni, which is something I’ve seen a lot of but never seen it stocked in a bricks and mortar shop. So a couple of skeins of that came home with me.

Beckside Yarn is in a beautiful place and we were lucky enough to be able to sit outside in the sunshine with a coffee.