knitwise

Pyjamas revealed...

 

My new pyjamas are ready for bed!

The reason why I didn't use my pink fabric at the end is that I had a major argument with my overlocker! I have just bought one, never used one and, I guess, it takes time to know each other...

Overall, I am happy with the way they turned out. They are roomy and very comfortable to wear and I will definitely make some Wintery ones in a soft flanelette fabric when the chilly days return. It is pity that I didn't have enough fabric left to make the top from the pattern. I might make a vest type top instead.

Dancing in the wind

PS: The book on my bedside table is "The Enchanted April" by Elizabeth Von Arnim. Read it many times, love it!

Happy...

I was very excited by the relase of Stitch in Time vol 2, but now that I have received it and had the chance to discover all the 80 patterns featured in it, I am over the moon!...

This book was well worth the long wait. The patterns are divided in sections covering the 30's, the 40's and the 50's decades.  Here are my top favourites:

Kasha

Don't you love the lace pattern? I even love the colour which is very "in" at the moment.

One never tires of ribbing

I am not generally fond of ribbing but I love the unusual construction with the flaps at the front and the cuffs.

Quick work in thick wool

Once again a rib pattern but the details of the buttons along the raglan seam makes it interesting and knitted in Aran wool, it should grow faster.

Simple - But so attractive

Okay, ribs again, but I just love the collar!

Summery - And a new pattern

Love the sleeves, the lace pattern and even the colour. This would be a beautiful top for the summer...

Trimmed with roses

I love the colors and even so I am not confident with intarsia work, there isn't too much of it so, maybe, I will be able to tackle it.

Those patterns are my top favourites  but there are still many more  that I love in this book. If you want to see more, all the patterns are now in the process of being added to the Ravelry database here.
Winter can come now, I am looking forward to the many happy knitting hours ahead...

Afternoon tea...

A little while ago I had the opportunity to have Afternoon Tea at Fortnum & Mason. Unfortunately, I couldn't make it and my 16 year old daughter took my place to accompany my sister-in-law to London. You can imagine how envious I was!... I have been wanting for YEARS  to experience this very English tradition in beautiful surroundings and when, at last, I gave got the chance, I have to let it go because of work commitments! Such is life or, as I would say back home: c'est la vie!...

Anyway, both lucky girls had a wonderful time and told me all about the perfectly cut finger sandwiches,  the scones with clotted cream and jam, the little cakes and the tea, the delicate blue china and silver spoons, the attentive waiters, the pianist and the elegant decor. They both expected Miss Marple to make an appearance.

Nowadays, we live in a fast world and such things as Afternoon Tea belong to the past, but it would be nice sometimes to be able to just slow down and take our time over home-made cakes and fresh tea or coffee served on a crisp table cloth with the best china we own...

I bought a delightful little book entitled Tea at Fortnum & Mason in an attempt to re-create some tea-time recipes.

Maybe, one rainy Sunday afternoon, I will host my own tea party with home-made scones and cakes served on pretty plates and lacy doilies....

Things to look forward to...

This is mid-October already and in a week's time it will be half-term.  We have had a beautiful Indian Summer, but apparently this should come to an end pretty soon, probably as we are about to change our clocks to Winter time.  I have already seen Christmas cards displays in the shops and people are starting to book their Christmas office parties!...

So, what has October got left to offer us, apart from Halloween? Well, rumours say that the new Kim Hargreaves' book  Scarlet is due out at the end of the month and I am really hoping for a beautiful collection of feminine and elegant knitwear. Her last book was a bit of a disappointment for me and I didn't buy it so all my hopes rest in the forthcoming one. 

The other book I am impatient to see is  Stitch in time vol 2.

 

I am not keen on the cover as I can't imagine wearing such sleeves, but I have seen a couple of other knits that will be featured in this book and I am looking forward to seeing more!...

If these two books make me happy, then I am ready for Winter!

A week off...

Next week I won't be posting because we are going to Paris. It will be a little break between exams for the children, a chance to see my family again and catch up with all the news back home. It will not be a restful week as there will be lots of talking, visiting and walking through our favourite places but I am looking forward to our trip as it has been such a long time since we were there...

My 1953 blouse pattern has arrived! The pattern was already cut by the previous owner and it makes me quite emotional to think that at least once, sometimes in the 50's maybe, someone else used this very pattern to make the blouse.  I feel as if I am holding a precious antique piece of paper and I am nervous about damaging it. Sadly it is too late now for me to start before we go away. I want to take my time over it to make sure I do things right. The pattern states that it is an easy one  but,  glancing quickly at the instructions, I am in doubt...

Now that I am in my 50's mood, a pile of Miss Read novels is awaiting me. It has become a ritual every Summer. I love re-reading those books at this time of year and dream of simpler times....

 

Things to look forward to...

The Cricket season will start soon, I have been told by the experts at home  and this means hours watching the games on Sundays. This also means (to me!) hours of crochet time and I have already a blanket project planned in my head for those long, hopefully sunny, lazy afternoons.  I don't understand much about the rules of the game  but  my Granny stripes blanket was created essentially on "cricket" time last year and I am grateful for this great British sport...

The new Kim Hargreaves book is due out very soon and this, to me, is always a major event in my knitter's life.  As usual I can't wait to find out her new designs for this Spring/Summer collection. I am trying to race through my Vintage cardi's sleeves to free my needles just in case they are needed urgently... 

A time to read, a time to knit...

It might be old news for you, but I have just discovered that 3 books in the Penguin Classics Deluxe range are to be reprinted using covers by the artist Jillian Tamaki. The amazing thing about these covers is that they will be reproduced from embroidered work!

Now, whilst the old saying "You must not judge a book by its cover" is certainly true, I must confess  that, most often than not, I pick a book just because I like its cover. Don't you? And these embroidery works are simply stunning. You can read more about it on Jillian's sketchblog. The books are also available to pre-order on Amazon.co.uk for their release in late October.

 

 
Knitwise, my vintage cardi is growing well and I must say I am enjoying every stitch of it....

 
 
 

 

 

 

New blanket

It might be sunny, Spring might be in the air and the crocus and daffodils might start to make an appearance but there is still frost in the morning and a chill in the air.

So, whilst the washing is drying in the gentle breeze, there is time to snuggle up with my new blanket and a delightful book...

 

Out of season...

Time has passed very fast since Christmas and here we are near the end of January already! It is still cold and miserable as you would expect at this time of year and Spring is quite a long way in the future. So, why is it that, instead of knitting a warm and cosy jumper, a scarf or even a hat, I have chosen to start a Spring cardigan in a cool and fresh cotton yarn? Well, for a start, I am more likely to finish it and wear it this year if I start now. After all the pre-Christmas snow and the rain, I yearn for sunshine and warm colours and I want to be able to open all the windows to let the fresh air in. I guess I am an "out -of -season" knitter. I am sure that, at the height of the Summer, I will be thinking of the Autumn and will be dreaming of a cosy cable jacket in warm wool...

The latest on my needle comes from Misty and it is Carrie for which I am using Rowan Siena cotton. I wish I could take a picture of my progress so far but the sky at the moment is so grey that it could make a depressing photo... I leave you then with the original model and my current reading...

 
 
 

Back from the Moors

 

I am back from a week's break on Dartmoor, one of our favourite places to go when we need a change of scenery. The fog that shrouded the Moors some days gave the perfect atmosphere to re-read The Hound of the Baskervilles at night, in a comfy chair, next to a log fire with a steaming cup of hot chocolate.

I came back home to find that our copies of Kim Hargreaves Cherished had arrived!... That was the perfect end of the holiday. I can think of a few patterns I could knit to take with me on my next trip to Widecombe in the Moor...