The start of a stashalong

And a very good start if I don't say so myself.

The reason for my stashalong is that I need to clear some of the yarns that I have, I really think 2 rather large under bed storage boxes, 8 plastic crates, 3 crisp box sized cardboard boxes and numerous carrier bags are just a little excessive! I also need to raise funds for new stock lines and yarns in my shop.

So this week, I have made many items, just for a change I seem to have my knitting mojo in full swing. It's been so refreshing the last 4-5 days or so to enjoy knitting rather than knitting for knittings sake.

So here are my finished items



I finished this item this week, but started last week, an LTK flirty skirty but made at my buyers request with a ruffle instead of the lace detail


A large pair of longies made to my own pattern, using BFL hand dyed by Chrissy at brightdyes



A pair of shorts made to my own pattern and using Chrissy's yarn



A pair of shorts again made to my own pattern and using Chrissy's yarn.






An finally 6 pairs of LTK slippers made using Chrissy's BFL in a range of sizes from newborn up to approx 4 years.

And next week I hope I can make the same amount if not a little more, this little lot has used up around 800grams of my stash. Only another 9.something kilos to go.

Since my last entry.....

I have done so much knitting my needles have been smoking. Here is my list of completed items.

2x XL shorts toock around 5 hours each
2x XL longies took around 7 hours each
1X XL flirty skirty took around 10 hours to complete
2x Small shorts taking around 3 hours each
1x two size soaker only the leg cuffs to go - taken around 5 hours so far
1x SL smocked frock and a 1 years old size on the needles at the moment.
1x Med/large flirty skirty

Some pictures below of Jessica modling some of the items, have also finally finished my may socks and started on this months pair which will probably be finished this time next month!





Heres the smocked frock and the 2 size soaker




And here is the final flirty skirty, I am so made up with this item. The wool was BFL DK and it knitted up a dream. It was almost upsetting to finish the piece. This item was made as the prize in my charity raffle which raised £23 towards christies hospital.




My May socks - Made with Brightdyes club yarn for may using the free pattern on violot green website.



And last but not least my Junes socks made with bright dyes club yarn for this month. I am using Audreys grapy socks pattern and am loving every spare second I have to work on it. Not only is the yarn wonderful to work with the pattern and the yarn compliment each other wonderfully.





Thats it for now, hopefully it won't be to long before my next visit to blog land

Knitterly type stuff

With being so busy in the shop I havn't done so much knitting, I do have some things to show.

Firstly I have finally recieved my pink denise needles, I ordered them in feb with my christmas money, a long time coming but not sure as yet if they where worth the weight. Theres no 16" option with them at all, and the smallest size looks like it might be triky to use so I don't think I will be using them on shop stuff maybe just my personal knitting and I can retire my old straights as I much prefer circ's



Also recieved this week is this months bright dyes club yarn it is beautiful but look what happened to it!




My own fault was sat winding it on my knee, then someone knocked the door so I draped it over, a few moments with the cat and this was the result. It only took me 2 hours to untaggle it.

And this is the result of an hours knitting, this months entry into the sock a month competition. I do wish that I had tried something a bit more adventurous I did think at the time a pattern may be to much but I've seen a fellow crafty threads forum member using last months yarn with a pattern and it look wonderul. I may well frog this yet!



Also knitted this, it was a wonder full quick to knit project and only a little bit fiddly. This was my keyring swap, mark 2 as the first one didn't go at all to plan so I shamelessly copied of another member. It is a fyberspates sock blocker keyring with a colinette fruit colius sock. I also sent with it a beautiful hemo and hermite necklace.



ALso finally finished a flirty skirty, it was on the needles for such a long time, but I love it. I wish I had made the bigger size so dd could have it, it sort of fits but she could do with an extra couple of inches in the rise, anyway here is my little angel modeling it for me.








And one final thing, I have been knitting summer hats, one done and one almost half done, made with peaches and cream cotton

Well its May

ANd where on earth did april go, I am shocked at how much the time is flying now, in a couple of weeks time I would have been in the shop for 3 months, I can't believe it I really can't!

Well much has happened since my last post, had some happy news my friend has had a beautiful little boy, quite early at 7 weeks prem, but he is gorgeous and doing just fine, and another friend of mine is pregnant. So happy lots of lovely babies to cuddle and knit for, provided I can find the time!

I have also had a new baby of my own - no not a real baby but a new website and I am chuffed to bits with it www.nkfn.co.uk so easy to use even for a numpty like me!

My hand knitted flirty skirties have also gone live on babykind, not my pattern but one designed by a very talented WAHM in america check out her work here www.littleturtleknits.com

In knitting news,

I have done a fair bit, but have also frogged a fair bit as well.

This hat is lovely, sort of old fashioned but ever so practical. Unfortuantly after these pictures where taken I ended up frogging it to sue the yarn to finish a sleeveless pullover I've been desiging, will list pictures once done.




Also finished this week was my babykind flirty skirty

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As well as aprils socks, made from posh yarns a beautiful shade of merino yarn, I am so pleased with these and they are a dream to wear.


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Then there is stuff I have recieved this week,

THis stunning set of stitch markers curtosy or Susan of crafty threads and yarns, they are beautiful and have already been put to good use.


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And my keyring swap - Making me feel a little guilty that mine isn't anywhere near started. I have absolutly no idea who sent it I love it the key ring is filled with a sweet scented potpori I think smells divine anyway, as well as a little candle and a little felt case which I was going to put my circualr needles in but I have far to many to fit.

What a week

Definatly one to be chalked up there amoungst the worst of my life so far. Thursday seen my down fall, goodbye happy face and hello tears. And boy was it hard to keep going, by saterday I thought there is no way on earth I can keep anything up.

But here I am a few days later feeling almost on top of the world and glad that last weeks is far behind me.

My dad is still in hospital due to some infection, they think it was in his pic line, it goes from his chest and through is arm to enable to hospital to administer medication and to take blood without having to stab him all the time. He's had a new one and has now started on his second round of chemo. All being well he should be home within the week for up to 7 days. I can't wait to see him, seems like ages ago.

It's very hard to count my blessings but one I count daily is the help and support that my dad is getting, I will be indepted to the hospital forever, to them he is just another face on the ward, but to me he is my dad, and I would move heaven and earth to make him well.

I still have mixed feelings about the shop, it's a challenge I will give you that but its rather like marmite at the moment, either I love it or I hate it, theres no happy medium. One thing I do like is my un interupted knitting time. I get a good 4 hours a day mostly. Since my last post I have done this -

Firstly a flirty skirty, knitted with Chrissy's yarn and I love it, have progressed a little since the picture.



And secondly a pair of shorts, these where frogged goodness knows how many times as I playied about with my stitch count in order to get the yarn to stripe instead of pool, I think I have achieved it.


Next thing to be playied about with is short rows, I hate the way they mess up my colour flow so I have and idea, what I need is the time. I also have another flirty skirty on the go. I have recived a beautiful pink Brightdyes yarn to make flirty skirties for babykind, so have abandoned all other projects to get the item made to list a photo up on the website.

I have also recieved some rather lovely goodies.

Firstly a beautiful skien of fybrespates sock wool, I fell in love with this colour way the moment I seen it. DUe to a mix up with the order not going through I waited for 10 days for this, and I have to say it was well worth it. The picture doens't quite do it justice though.



I had the next 2 yarns from a fellow crafty threads and yarns member, the lighter of the two is Lana Grossa cotton maya and the darker is regia cotton surf colour. Both beautiful and I look forward to knitting them up, if I get the time.




And this picture shows my fyberspates yarn beautifully teamed up with a beautiful Knitz and glitz shawl pin. I had intended the yarn for socks, but when I saw how beautifully they matched up there is no way the yarn could be anything other than a shawl. The pin was my birthday pressie from Chrissy and she couldnt ahve choosen better.



I do have move pictures to show except my camera is out of juice, will load them up tomorrow. I have my flirty skirty for babykind, I hope to have that finished for tomorrow, I'm knitting the under soaker with 4mm boyes needles, I have posted about these before and how I disliked them. I have to say they have had a repreive. I'm finding the rigidness of the cords hard to get used to, but the way the yarn glides across the needles is lovely more than makes up for the cords not being to my liking.

Some works in progress

Well my previous post didn't go to plan, I was going to load my favourite video clip into an entry but it just kept coming up with a box with a red sqaure. I would still like to share this video but will have to try via this link instead, Ihope it works, it is one of my favourites and always cheers me up.

http://s152.photobucket.com/albums/s183/Cathie_album/?action=view&current=Picture042.flvurrent=Picture042.flv


Now to my works in progress, I have knitted nothing but soakers and longes for the past week so have decided to have a change



This is the start of a flirty skirty, it is knitted in the round so seamless. I have used a beautifully soft boucle style yarn, that says it's 100% merino, but it has a thread running through it which I assume to be a cotton or polyester type thread. This won't effect it's use at all as a nappy cover as the wool content is still going to be high. I'm trying to find out what this thread is.I will update when I find out for sure. To get this far into the project has taken almost 2 hours, but the result is worth it specially with blocking. The remaining work on it will take around 6 hours. This is a size medium and will be listed up on ebay once it is finished.








This is a close up of the lacy detail, sorry its a little on the dark side.






This is the start of a pattern for a dress that I am designing and my first proper go at knitting lacy patterns, it has been frogged at least 6 times before the pattern finally clicked in my mind. It has taken hours to get this far as I find it hard to sit and concentrate for a long time on it so its a half an hour here and an hour there type job.