by RoxyPosted on Posted in Knitting 2 Comments

I am loving my puns this year!

Following on from my last Christmas knits post, we have a pair of berets. These where knit for those who didn’t receive one of the helmet liners I knit.

First up we have:

This beautiful pattern is a free pattern, Béret Généreux by Isabelle Allard. The background is a blue/purple marled yarn, and the grey is actually a dark grey to white yarn, but with such a small area being knit up, you can’t really tell…

Secondly, another gorgeous free pattern, Gramma K’s Fair Isle Tam by Kathleen Taylor. Knit with a plain black wool background and a fairly quick blue to purple gradient wool.

I really enjoy knitting fair isle, especially little patterns like these where I can play with the colours, so I had a lot more fun knitting these than the helmet liners! Although if I was told to wear one, it would be the helmet liner – my ears have to be kept warm after all!

In non knitting news, it has been a decidedly less eventful week this week. Still tired, but a lot less stressed, and that’s the main thing. There’s been lots of non knitting crafting going on as well, which I will share in a few weeks once I have managed to retrieve all the bits from the kids for a few good photos!

On that note, I will bid you farewell until next post. Until then, stay safe!

Wool Count

Starting total – 880

Wool used – 1
Wool bought – 0
Wool given to me – 2
Wool gifted to others – 2 (sharing the wooly love)
Wool handspun – 0

Total – 879 (Net difference: -1)

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by RoxyPosted on Posted in Knitting 1 Comment

Who doesn’t love a good pun?

As I said last post, we will slowly work on catching up on all the Christmas knits so that I can have a fairly relaxed start to the year, knit wise at least.

The start of my year has not been relaxing. It has been one thing after another after another.

Its also why I didn’t post yesterday, if I did it would literally have gone:

Me: Bad weekend. Here. Photos.

Photos.

Me: Here, details.

Me: Done now. Take care.

Which would have been a somewhat poor post…not that this one will be much better as I am tired! Things have been fixed/improved, so the stress is easing, but I am still worn out.

Enough babble. This week we are going to look at cowls!

As a thank you for a wonderful weekend away, I decided to knit a little gift for the hosts. This first set is Duotone Cowl by Orange Flower Yarn, a free pattern, and even though it’s for the man of the house, Girl Gift Mitts by Debbie Meiklejohn knit to match.

Its a great pattern, very easy, lends well to stripes and with it being ribbed, fits everyone from my skinny wrists to manly shovel hands!

And for the lady of the house, Lizard Ridge Cowl by Janis Witkins, also a free pattern, and knit in Hufflepuff colours. Again, a pair of Girl Gift Mitts to match!

These were both cowl patterns I wanted to try, so I was more than happy to knit these as gifts.

Right, until next post, take care!

Wool Count

Starting total – 880

Wool used – 1 (Woo!)
Wool bought – 0
Wool given to me – 2 (so very pretty balls of wool too!)
Wool gifted to others – 0
Wool handspun – 0

Total – 881 (Net difference: +1)

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by RoxyPosted on Posted in Knitting 1 Comment

To begin the year I will be sharing all the Christmas knitting I was doing and having to keep secret over the next few weeks. You get to see what I’ve been up to behind the scenes, and I get a slow dawdle of a start to the year.

Win-win, right?

Speaking of slow dawdle, I am exhausted. This weekend was a blur of going up north to visit the family, potion making, my niece’s 18th birthday party (time has been warped somehow because I swear she was only nine the other month), then pancakes and home.

Oh, and Rabbie did my hair, it’s much shorter, it’s coloured like a mermaids, and it’s awesome!!!!

A much more detailed description of the chaos that was the weekend can be found on Rabbies blog, with cute bonus photos of the ever so cute Missy!

With that said, here is my first knitted Christmas project I started, and also the last one I finished…

Helmet liners! And not just any helmet liners, but ones knit following the same 1916 knitting pattern that was spotted at the ‘through the ages’ event we went to at Duncarron many months ago. (Theres actually five that I knitted up, but I had foolishly wrapped one up before finishing the last one for the group photo)

Pattern details are: Helmet by F W Woolworth, it is a free pattern as it’s a scan from a booklet from 1916. Be warned though that knitting patterns have come a long, long, long way since this was written!

The reason behind these was that whilst at the Duncarron event, Inkling got to try on a knitted helmet liner (same pattern as above) and was so cute it was unreal. I joked that given the cost of living going up and the cost of gas and oil and electricity and, well, everything, I should make everyone their own to help combat the cold.

A month later, my family kindly reminded me of this ‘promise’ when I enquired if anyone needed any household knits (tribbles, wash cloths etc) topping up for Christmas…

I took a break between each one to work a different project, but my oh my was that a lot of garter stitch…

And with that, I shall leave you to next week.

No wool count as it’s neither gone up nor down!

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by RoxyPosted on Posted in Knitting 2 Comments

I think it’s safe to say for all of us that it’s been a year. As was last year. And the year before.

The past two years I have gone ‘it can’t be worse’, ‘we’ll make up for the previous year’, ‘lets start fresh and make a go of it’. But we live in interesting times. War. Disease. Pandemics. Health scares and ongoing issues. Burn out. So much burn out.

Theres been lots of good too, and many amazing memories and experiences, but this year?

I’m entering this year with a whisper, not a roar. I am taking it slow, and careful. I’m making no grand plans or promises. My one aim is to get through it as quietly, and gently, as possible.

So, in a hushed tone, I wish you all a happy and uneventful 2023.

All that said, you’re here for the knitting, not the ramble, and I shall show you my last knitted item of 2022:

Cthuhlu in a Santa hat. He’s definitely more bah humbug about the whole affair, what with everyone worshipping other creatures beside him, but he is commemorating the start of a new Cthuhlu group, and many campaigns to come.

Fresh blood, got to love it.

There are a whole load of Christmas knits that I will share in the coming weeks, but that’ll be after I have given them to everyone!

And last but not least, my wool count. Most years I have a target of using 100 balls of wool in a year (I did manage that in 2022), and to have a net negative of no less than 50 of what I started with (negatives 19, I did badly in 2022, I blame my COVID comfort purchases). This year, I’m not putting any targets on it. So long as by year end I have at least one less than I started with, I don’t actually care.

Wool Count

Starting total – 880

Wool used – 0
Wool bought – 0
Wool given to me – 0
Wool gifted to others – 0
Wool handspun – 0

Total – 880 (Net difference: nill)

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by RoxyPosted on Posted in Knitting 1 Comment

Not even a…well…mouse?

Two mice? No, more!

Eleven in all!

Turns out, the department I now work in has an annual ‘cheese day’ at this time of year. Essentially everyone brings in cheese, or crackers, or charcuterie…and I had intended on bringing in little polar bears from the great polar bear army I knit at the start of the year but…

Its cheese day, it had to mice!

I used the medium sized pattern of mice by Sue Stratford from her book ‘knitted cats and kittens’, and managed to knock out eleven in two evenings. So cute! And they went down a treat.

Now, I must dash, there’s a lot to do at this time of year and not a lot of time to do it.

Have a good festive season and I will see you all next year!

Stay safe!

Wool Count

Starting total – 843

Wool used – 100 (3 this week)
Wool bought – 51
Wool given to me – 32
Wool gifted to others – 5
Wool handspun – 3

Total – 824 (Net difference: -19)

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by RoxyPosted on Posted in Knitting 2 Comments

There is a long standing tradition that when a new gamer has their birthday they receive a knitted dice bag.

And there have been many…

Binary bags. 40K bags. Cthuhlu bags. Cat bags. Fish bone bags. Ork bags…

But what to knit this time? For a gamer I haven’t known all that long, apart from the fact that they have even more geeky interests than I do…?

Rather than an interest, how about a nod to their one wardrobe staple?

And that would be, his plaid shirt. He has red ones, blue ones…fleece lined ones, thin ones…

I couldn’t find what I wanted, so this bag is of my own design. If I get round to it, I might put the chart together and post it as free pattern – no promises though as life has been pretty manic lately, and with the festive season upon us…

Lets hope I get my much needed nap at some point in 2023…

Till next week, stay safe!

(No wool count btw, as no changes – well, I was given a few bags of wool from a friend’s now deceased aunt, but I need to actually process these and work out what to keep for myself and what to give to others…which is also scheduled, along with my nap, in 2023)

by RoxyPosted on Posted in Knitting 1 Comment

Or in this case, blanket!

The final Harry Potter inspired baby knit was actually the first I made – a baby blanket. It did however…grow…into more of a lap blanket or small sofa throw sized item, but the baby will grow into it eventually!

So without further ado:

To make this, I used the following charts from the book “Knitting Magic: More Patterns From Hogwarts & Beyond”, the House Mascot Hats by Lisa K. Ross, the Hogwarts Express Cowl by Tanis Gray and the Delivered By Owl Mittens by Kristin Ornolfsdottir. To finish off, I backed it with some Harry Potter fabric so that no little fingers would be caught in any floats…

I may be a smidge pleased with this one!

Short post this week as it was a busy weekend and I have so many chores and jobs to catch up on and things to organise now that it’s coming to that time of the year…

Honestly, I have no idea where my year has gone. If anyone finds it, please let me know!

Wool Count

Starting total – 843

Wool used – 97 (2 this week)
Wool bought – 51
Wool given to me – 32
Wool gifted to others – 5
Wool handspun – 3

Total – 827 (Net difference: -16)

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by RoxyPosted on Posted in Knitting No Comments

Quick post today as it’s been a very busy weekend and I’m about to go out for a cheeky night of board games!

I swear, in my head, that sounds much cooler than most people are going to read that as…

Anyway, back to the scheduled Hogwart inspired baby knits! This week was something I have wanted to knit the moment I spotted it in “Knitting Magic: The Official Harry Potter Knitting Pattern Book”.

Its none other than…

The Sorting Hat Hanging Display by tiny owl knits – isn’t it adorable? Your supposed to use two sticks and suspend the animals from those, but I opted to use a small metal wreath and wrap it in the appropriate colours instead.

Not going to lie, I am super pleased! Although I had to do a fair bit of tweaking to the sorting hat as the first pass at sewing the seams made it look more like Oogie Boogie than the sorting hat…

Right, must dash, here’s the wool count and until next post, stay safe!

Wool Count

Starting total – 843

Wool used – 95 (1 ball this week)
Wool bought – 51
Wool given to me – 32
Wool gifted to others – 5 (+4, these may come back as it’s for a friend who wants to knit a toy and only needs a small amount of each colour…but just in case let’s count them as out!)


Wool handspun – 3

Total – 829 (Net difference: -14)

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by RoxyPosted on Posted in Knitting 1 Comment

(The cute Hogwart inspired baby things will resume next week, promise!)

This weekend I did a mad dash up north for a sneaky craft weekend and to see Disney on Ice with my sister, Rabbie – she has a far more elegant description of the visit on her blog here.

In short, I went up to Edinburgh after work on Thursday, after pancakes and chilling, we continued to Aberdeen Friday. There was much crafting and mayhem with Disney on Ice on Saturday, and Sunday was the long, long trip home…

But what crafting did I do?

Resin pouring.

So much resin.

Unfortunately most of the bigger pieces didn’t set in time but I did manage to unmould and bring down these amazing cuties:

Pewter and copper marbled runes – didn’t quite go to plan but I love the results!
And gorgeous blood drops!

And yes, these are made specifically with my Cthuhlu campaigns in mind!

On that note, I shall leave you all be and get some rest myself – stay safe!

Wool Count

Starting total – 843

Wool used – 94
Wool bought – 51 (+3 but bought specifically for a cardigan I will cast on shortly)
Wool given to me – 32
Wool gifted to others – 1
Wool handspun – 3

Total – 834 (Net difference: -9)

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by RoxyPosted on Posted in Knitting 1 Comment

It has been a long time coming, and much, much waiting, but my friends had their baby!

-insert much squeeing here-

I started knitting for this little bundle of joy the moment the pregnancy hit 3 months, and thus, there’s quite a few things to share over the next few weeks as I busily get on with Christmas knitting.

The mum adores Harry Potter, and would love it if Hogwarts truly existed. She’s a self proclaimed Gryffindor, as is dad, and so, the first knit to share is a little Gryffindor baby set!

The jumper is knit following the pattern Pirate Sweater by Zoë Mellor from her book “Adorable Knits for Tots: 25 Stylish Designs for Babies and Toddlers”. The hat is knit following the free pattern Basic Baby Hat by Heather Tucker except I did it in helical knitting as I was running out of red at that point, so I have four similar shades going on at the same time for that hat. Lastly, the bootees are knit following the pattern Beautiful Booties by Sue Whiting from her book “Cute Knits for Baby Feet.”

Phew! That was a lot to cover in one photo! To make up for it, here’s Outbreak trying to convince me that red suits her best and she should get the jumper… She does have a red collar after all.

What do you all think?

Till next week, take care!

Wool Count

Starting total – 843

Wool used – 94 (1 since last update!)
Wool bought – 48
Wool given to me – 32
Wool gifted to others – 1
Wool handspun – 3

Total – 831 (Net difference: -12!)