Baby Blanket

Yes, I know, it's all a bit "baby this" and "baby that" with me these days, but with only 5 weeks to go, it feels good to be making preparations! Last night I gave in to the pull of the wool, and after dragging my stash out of the cupboard (and dumping it all over the floor to get a better look), I found the perfect yarn for a quick project: beautifully colourful and dead thick (requiring 20mm needles!), within a couple of hours I'd managed to knit up a blanket about 2 foot by 3 foot in size. Instead of straight stockinette stitch (knit on the front and purl on the reverse), I went for a pattern of squares - knitting 4, purling 4, etc., for three rows, then swapping over.


The great thing about this yarn is that it's so soft, so baby Squiggles cannot help but love it. The days have been getting cooler and wetter, and it's starting to feel a bit autumnal (I know, strange for the middle of July!) so perhaps that's why I felt the need to make something warm and comforting for the little one.


In total, the blanket took 4 balls to make. The yarn is called Rowan Biggy Print, and I just did a quick Google search and found prices ranging from £3.50 - £7.25 per ball! Luckily I got the wool very cheaply from the dogshop in Machynlleth some months ago, so it probably cost about £2 altogether. Or less... I know it was a real bargain, anyway!

One Complete Hat

Day Thirty.

It took longer than expected, but I can now announce that the woolly hat which I started a couple of days ago has been completed! It was a really good experience following the pattern in Stich 'N Bitch - I had ambitiously set about making a hat for myself last winter, without a pattern (and being a beginner knitter too!), and the result was hilarious: I looked like a garden gnome at best.

I'm really pleased with the way the colours in the stripes turned out, I used two different wools (both Wendy Chameleon Chunky) - a blue-green mix and a red-orange mix. It might be a bit colourful for Phil, but he seemed pleased with it. The proof will be in the wearing!

I was so excited that I forced it onto his head while he was in the bath, which explains his less than impressed face... Maybe I'll get a better photo in the coming days. :)

A New Knitting Project

Day Twenty Seven.

I've been salivating over my Christmas book 'Stitch and Bitch' for a few days now, and my fingers are itching to start making something. I thought I'd start with something quick and easy, so when I found the pattern for 'Hot Head' - a lovely, ribbed hat - I knew I had found my project. My stash of wool is massive - I got pretty carried away last time I ordered from Kemps Wool Shop (a very cheap, online store, which I thoroughly recommend) as their clearance wools are so very beautiful, and so very affordable... I knew I wanted to use Wendy's Chameleon (Chunky) as it's quick to knit and holds together so well. But, I must be a very slow knitter, as this is how far I got, when the book promises it will only take two hours at the most:


So you see I have indeed started, which is something. I shall share the results with you when they are worth seeing! :)