Sounds From Another City

As I mentioned on my last post Rachael Elwell (Artyarn) with Roger Newton, Marie Pattison and a few others spent yesterday pinning the flowers and things that the Kings Arms Knitters had made to posts around the Islington Mill in Salford and around the Kings Arms, also in Salford, where we hold the Knit Club every Monday evening. The Islington Mill was having a Sounds from another City festival, You can read more about that on Artyarn blog.

I  wasn't able to help out as all of that walking would have been too much for me but I have put a link to Artyarn blog and I do hope that you will take a look at it by clicking on my blog post title. For those of you with Facebook there are even more photos to be seen on there. There are some lovely flowers and fun things to be seen on her blog. I really must learn how to link things properly. You would think that after a few years of blogging that I would have sorted it out by now but it has taken me two years to fathom out how to post a link to my blog title. I am not very PC literate.

Pinning the flowers to the posts with  tags (beautifully made by Rachael) saying the flowers could be picked seems to have been a huge success as at the festival people could be seen with flowers pinned to them. I have put the photo of my worm/ caterpillar on the blog as apparently a guy took a fancy to it and was walking about with it pinned to him. That is what this project is about really. Sharing knit and crochet things with people who will appreciate wearing them and not just leaving them pinned to a post getting dirty and wet.

Lots of people made the flowers but Roger had the daunting task of making all the i cords in green to fasten around all the posts so that the brooches could be pinned to something. I believe he went around and measured each post and then made every cord to fit. That shows dedication.

Yesterday I was knitting some more on the super chunky jacket for me. I just have the collar to knit and to stitch it up. I did some washing and it was so windy that I had to really peg it on the line for fear that it would take off into next door's garden. The sun was shining but the wind kept the warmth away.

Last night as I was carrying the clean washing back upstairs I managed to trip up over a step and fall. Luckily I fell upwards onto the landing but I managed to give myself a carpet burn up my arm, banged my bad knee and cracked my head on the wall. I am so clumsy these days. I am always saving myself from falling. Luckily I have quite a bit of furniture in my small rooms so there is always something to grab hold of to break my fall. This morning I have a bruise on the left side of my forehead. Last time it was the right. I have never had a carpet burn before and boy does it hurt. It has taken a fine layer of skin off my arm but today it is drying up so not quite as painful. I have a stiff neck this morning. I must have fallen with my neck at a funny angle but didn't realize that until today. I will have to start wearing a cycling helmet around the house soon along with some skateboarding arm and knee pads!

I hope that the wind will die down and that I can knit in the garden. I want to finish off my jacket and re start my niece's jacket. I have a horrible feeling that I will need yet another ball to finish off her jacket. Fingers crossed that I have enough wool.  Hopefully I will have some photos of my finished jacket to post tomorrow.

All is quiet on my street as it is Bank Holiday Monday and most people are not working. I don't know if all of the shops are open so I am waiting until tomorrow to do some shopping. Thank goodness for freezers. I had some spare bread in there plus some pork chops. I always keep a full freezer as it comes in handy for days when I can't get to the shops.

Oh Baby! Crochet part two

Today I went up to Accrington with Rachael (Artyarn) as she is still teaching people how to crochet. As the stall that we sit on is right opposite Habiknit I was in there again buying a couple of balls of wool. I swear that I cannot pass a wool shop without buying something! I will show you a photo of what I bought and a couple more roses that I crocheted towards the Accrington project tomorrow but for today I will just show you some more of the photos from the Oh Baby! Crochet book. There are still a few projects that I haven't photographed so it is a book full of ideas.

The Pig Security blanket by Helen Heaverin is a sweet little toy with a little blankie fastened to the body. I know that some babies gain great comfort from snuggling next to one of these.

The Little Lamb set by Dorothy Worrell has a lot of embroidered detail on the pram blanket and the pillow. I do love the little sheep toy although I am not a toy crocheter in general.

The Baby Blocks afghan and pillow set by Glenda Winkelman is very sweet but is also similar to a pattern that I have in another book. Very delicately coloured granny squares do make a pretty afghan.

There are a couple more afghan patterns in the book that I haven't photographed but the blue Tiny Balloons and the pink Rosebuds afghan sets by Mary Ann Sipes
are very pretty especially with their matching hats and bootees.

The green Shell and Popcorn papoose set by Frances Hughes and the blue Shell stitch papoose by Sue Childress are very pretty but not something that I would make for a baby unless I was specially requested.

The Toy Cat and Toy Dog by Michele Wilcox are very sweet but I am not a lover of making toys as I always seem to get the stuffing wrong or the embroidery. I would rather crochet a garment any day.

There is also a Baby's First Book by Glenda Winkleman which I haven't photographed. It has crocheted pages but all the words and the pictures in the book are cross stitched on. I am hopeless at anything like that so it's not a pattern for me.

The pink Baby Cloche by Nancy Nehring is a small beanie that looks very much like knitted ribbing. I would imagine that it would look OK for a boy in a different colour.

There are three headbands in the book by Frances Hughes. I chose the white one as I thought that it would make a great christening headband. Sorry that the photo isn't very clear but I think that you can still see most of it. The other two headbands feature crochet flowers or crocheted bows.

The Slippers by Sue Childress remind me of Christmas. There is also a pair of Mary Jane Slippers by Frances Hughes and lacy sock trims for store bought socks by Norma Gale.

The Sweetie Pie baby doll is by Kathleen Stuart. Once again I can admire it but I won't be making it no matter how sweet it is. Mine would look like something from the Omen.

The Nursery Choo Choo by Donna Collinsworth is shown as ornamental with baby toiletries in it but I presume that a baby could play with it. Not something that I would make as I really do not like all of the fiddly bits that go with crocheting toys.

I am tired today after the last two days going here and there. I have thoroughly enjoyed my outings though. They help to stimulate my mind. When I came home I then went up to Tesco on Pearl to get a bit of shopping so I have had another busy day.

Crocheting in Accrington

Here I go again. I had typed out the whole blog and then pressed the wrong key on the keyboard and sent it all to oblivion. As Blogger auto saves I thought that all I had to do was retrieve it but it wasn't there. All that saved was the title! Anyway enough of my problems off I go again.

I have had a busy couple of days going to Accrington with Rachael and having a good old chit chat with everyone. As I didn't take any photographs if you click on my blog title it should take you to the page on Rachael's (Artyarn) blog where you can see lots of photos and descriptions including a photo of yours truly languishing in an armchair crocheting. On Saturday we went along to Haworth Art Gallery.

Yesterday I should have gone to Sylvia's to deliver the cardigans for the foster babies. The weather was atrocious but I would still have gone except that Sylvia and both babies are still full of colds so we didn't think that it was wise for me to go. I am thinking of posting them off today when I go out as I don't know if I can get there next weekend and if I do go into hospital who knows how long it will be before I get up to Sylvia's again. The babies need the cardigans as the weather has turned colder and they will be growing out of them if I don't get them there soon.

I managed to get another cardigan from the 400 gram balls of aran. I chose a pattern that was mostly plain as cables eat up the wool. I started Sirdar 3738 but when I started knitting I realized that the cable also had a lacy pattern running through it which I thought was rather girlish. I therefore changed it to just a plain 6 sts cable. I like the twisted ribs and collar as it brings just a touch to a plain cardigan.

I am still crocheting slowly on my longer jacket but as it is done all in one it seems to take ages to do a row. The pattern is looking very nice though it is just slower with all of the crocheting around the loops that is the pattern.

I bought two more plus sized patterns. I found them online for sale as second hand (or pre owned as they are now called) which were cheaper than if I had managed to find them to buy new. I prefer the Leisure Art booklet with the green cardigan on the front as it has more patterns in it that I will use as you can see from most of the photos. The other book is an American School of Needlework one and the designs are not as good in my opinion. There are a couple of pullovers that might be OK but they are photographed badly in my opinion.

I am stocking up on so many pattern books I think that I will have to start a catalogue of which patterns I like in which books as I spend half the day pattern browsing every time I want to find a pattern that I remember I have seen somewhere.

I have been told by Amazon that another baby crochet pre ordered book is on it's way. It was due at the end of October but apparently it has arrived early. My credit card has taken quite a bashing this last month. I might be going wool browsing this week again. Do I care? Nope I will pay it off eventually so I am not worried and most of the credit card bill was for my scooter and recliner which have made my life so much easier. I will pay a sizable chunk off it when I go to the village this afternoon.

I haven't heard anything from the hospital so I am hoping that no news is good news and that I passed my pre op tests. All I have to pray now is that there is a still a bed when it is my operation day. I got cancelled the day before my op last time. Please keep everything crossed for me during this coming week.

Today The Postman Brought ---------

The postman brought me the Crochet Calendar 2011 which I was expecting and a copy of Inside Crochet that always surprises me as it is on subscription so I never remember when that is going to arrive. I haven't had time yet to properly look through then so I have just given you a taster of what is in each one. The Crochet Calendar usually has some great ideas for gifts. Scarves, shawls and mitts etc. I am not a lover of amigurumi or crochet veg so there is an awful lot in the calendar that I will not use but hey that is the norm for anything I buy that has crochet patterns in it. Each pattern is on a small sheet so they are useful for putting in my bag instead of a huge book as I often have to take with me on journeys. There seems to be a couple of baby and children's cardigans in this one that I will make. I will post more photos later but as there are many, many projects in the calendar I won't be including everything - probably just the ones that I like.

The Inside Crochet Issue 10 has a couple of things that I like and a few that I would never make. It does have some good reading in it though including an article by Robin Chachula with a couple of photos of what is in her latest baby book (which I have on pre order but it's for next year, I think, so relax Bev) as well as an article by Zoe Clements on the History of Crochet which includes a photo of Twiggy wearing a lovely suit which I remember but never had the pattern for. I do have another Twiggy suit pattern but as the name suggests it only comes in a very small size. I must have been that tiny when I made it for myself back in the 60's as I don't remember altering the pattern. How times change!! I would probably have to double the amount of starting chain these days.

Oh by the way Bev I might not be getting that baby book yet but a different one has been posted out to me so hide your eyes and your purse lol.

Last night I finished off a front of baby B's aran cardigan but my hand was starting to ache so I decided to have another go at learning Tunisian crochet. I still can't get my tension tight enough but I am working on the theory that practise will make perfect. I have made a couple of mistakes when I have split the stitch but I am hoping that the multi colours will hide those mistakes. I have lent out my learn Tunisian DVD so hopefully I will get it back at the weekend and I can progress to the 'purl' stitches. I may look up on the You Tube later but for now I am happily staying with the basic stitch until I feel more confident.

I ordered the wool through the Internet and didn't realize how much pink that there was in it. It looked more of a burgundy on my monitor. It was intended for one of the boys but as you can see there is too much pink to be manly (even though they are only small) so it will eventually go to a baby girl. It might be some time before that happens as I am still working at a very slow pace whilst learning.

Enid - you asked me why blogger makes you repeat things before it will let you post. I don't know. It does that with me when I try to post comments on friends blogs. I am sorry that I had to set up the moderation but I suddenly got bombarded with all kinds of stupid comment messages that were just pure advertisements and had nothing to do with Crochet or Knit. As I felt sure that none of my readers had the need for Viagra or a Pe*is enlargement I had to put a screen comments on the blog.

I am hoping to help my friend and founder member of the Kings Arms knitting club out at the weekend. She is going to be in Accrington teaching people how to crochet. The fact that she will be outside Habiknit wool shop has nothing to do with the fact I said I would like to go along with her. OK OK I am lying I will go anywhere for wool. Talking about wool I have put Rachael's ArtYarn blog link at the top of the page. If you click on the title of the post then it will take you there. She is a very interesting lady and the blog chronicles her projects and there is also a link to another friends pages which will update you as to when the Purl City wool shop ( and online ordering) will be open for business. She has put some photos of the progress of the premises and some of the stock that has arrived already and I just wanted to dive into the pile. Can't wait to see them in the ball and give them a squueeeeze. Happiness comes in a ball. No not those kind of balls. Behave!

Catching Up

I have had a busy couple of days hence no blogging done.

I gave up with the Tunisian crochet (temporarily) as I could not get my tension right. If I got my width tension right by going on a much smaller hook then I had too many rows for the tension square and the fabric felt too tight. I think perhaps a bit of practise on something without a pattern or shaping will be the next thing on the agenda then it won't matter if my work is coming out too wide.

I finished off the white, blue and red crochet jacket using a simple pattern by Rindy Carpenter (free on Ravelry) but once again adapted it by using a different pattern stitch and colours. I only had one 50 gram ball of white and as anyone knows white is the worst colour to match so although I had several part balls of white none of them matched so I used the different colours to eke out the 50 grams.

I started knitting a larger size knitted baby cardigan with the James C Brett Bliss DK that I had been using for the Tunisian. The colour changes are rather large so I have finished up with a strangely marked cardigan. It will keep the baby warm in the winter.

The reason I say in the winter is that the foster baby has finally arrived at my friend's house. He is a dinky little thing weighing just over 5lbs as it turns out that he was born premature. I am now rushing through some premature sized cardigans as he will be swimming in some of the jackets that I have made so far. That is the only problem with knitting or crocheting for foster babies they can range from 5-9 lbs when they arrive so it's knowing what size to make. I am not looking after Buster this weekend so I hope to visit the baby and take along his cardigans as he needs them to wear now.

Yesterday I went up to Towneley Hall Burnley again with Rachael. Rachael had to finish photographing the tea cosies and the doilies to keep a record of her project. The sun was shining and it was a lovely day. Fortunately the fire alarm didn't sound today as it did at the weekend when she went up to photograph them so she was able to complete the task. I have put the link to her Artyarn blog (click my blog title) as the photos that she took of everyone's tea cosies came out much better than my blurry ones did. The only two of mine that came out OK were the ones of my tea cosies with a close up of the pink one that I haven't shown you before.

We came back home through Rawtenstall. A place that neither of us had been to before and Rachael bought me a sandwich in a cafe there which although was really nice had raw onions on it. Rachael had a baked potato and beans with salad which also had the same raw onions in it so we were a bit stinky on the way home. I took a photo of Rachael taking her photos.Artist at work. Towneley Hall is really interesting and I really must go back one day when I can walk the grounds and the Hall properly. I have really enjoyed my small part in the project as it has been fun and I got to meet so many nice people in Burnley that I otherwise would have never met and to see Towneley Hall which I am ashamed to admit I knew nothing about until Rachael's project. I am not sure how long the tea cosies will be on display but the rare and antique tea pots will probably be on display for a while longer. The Hall change the exhibits regularly to keep the Hall interesting.

Nice sunny day today so I might do some crochet sitting in the garden. I need to push on with my small baby jackets so the small baby has something to keep him warm by the weekend.

Oops - That Adaptation Didn't Work

As you can see my first attempt at making Jen's Blue Curacao shawl in double knit hit a snag. I have made the adaptation once before and swore never again. Basically the shawl was designed by Doris Chan for Aran weight wool. I have made it successfully (if somewhat larger) in chunky but the pattern does not adapt well to finer yarn. I thought that I had cracked the repeat pattern to continue to make it larger but as you can see crochet, pattern adaptions and watching TV don't exactly mix so I had to unravel 3 balls worth of crochet last night. Grrr I will have to take more care when I restart and lay the shawl flat after every row to make sure that the pattern is tracking and the increases are in the right place this time.

Last night I went to the Kings Arms Knit Club. We had a hilarious time as the Laughing Club meet upstairs and so far we have never heard them. Last night, however, they must have been on a roll as gales of laughter were coming from the upstairs room combined with a lot of running about and thumping. Lord only knows what they were up to but it did sound fun. I believe it is some kind of therapy group where they start off doing laughing exercises and finish up with genuine laughter.

I must congratulate Rachael (and Ben of course),one of the Knit Club founders as she has got engaged and was bringing some light into the snug by flashing her sparkler around! She is off to Germany soon for 3 months with her art. Her blog is ArtYarn and the link is on the right hand side. You should take a look as she is a very talented lady.

Today I am off to Bolton Market to meet up with Kath and Sylvia. Have a spot of lunch and a browse around the market. They have one of the best fish stalls in the North followed closely by the famous Bury Market.