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by RoxyPosted on Posted in Knitting 3 Comments

Now I know I said I was gonna take root and leaf things for a bit, but I had to branch out from that plan and share this completed project!

Now I know that was a lot of acorny puns all in a row, but I am a devotree to puns!

Oak-y, before I get a sap in the face, on to the knitting!

Every year when I put up our tree, I say it needs a tree skirt, but I’ll make it later. Then I forget. And I put up the tree and go ‘I did say I was going to make a tree skirt…’, then I forget…

Ten years I have done this now and enough was enough. This Christmas I would knit the tree skirt so next Christmas it’s ready for the tree.

So I did. This is more or less knit using Christmas at Hogwarts Tree Skirt by Susanna IC from the book “Knitting Magic: More Patterns From Hogwarts & Beyond”. The original is all white, which is lovely, but I wanted colour. So coloured cables I added. And coloured trees. And fluffy owls. But I had to do this across six repeats.

Never. Again.

Was it worth it? Looking at these cute owls, definitely.

And all the additional beads and sequins for sparkle?

Yeah. It was worth it. The kids love it, and have been wearing it like a caplet, so I think for next year, it might help add that little touch to help bring forth the festive spirit.

Knitting aside, it’s been a quiet start to the year. Things are getting done that have taken years to actually get to, which is helping with a lot of the stress that’s been going on. Hopefully once all that’s behind us, we can emerge like little seedlings in the spring, and bloom into…umm…hmm.

I would definitely not describe any of us as flowers, but calling us weeds seems a tad mean… Let’s go thistles. Nice, tough, hardy thistles, with a beauty in their own right. Just be warned, we prick!

And after that tangent, I shall bid you farewell. Until the next post, stay safe, and if anyone has any better ideas about what kind of flowers can be used as a description for us, or better yet, yourselves, let me know!

Starting total – 841

Wool used – 2
Wool bought – 0
Wool given to me – 0
Wool gifted to others – 0
Wool handspun – 0

Total – 839 (Net difference: -2)

This should increase soon as 1) I need more black acrylic DK for some toy’s and 2) I’ve dusted off the wheel and started spinning again. I must remember how soothing to the soul spinning is…

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by RoxyPosted on Posted in Knitting 2 Comments

The question being, what was the Christmas knit for 2023?

A bearded axe (the best kind) to represent joining a viking reenactment group!

Ended up knitting this one up sharpish this morning as the year has officially got away from me. I’m gonna let it run and focus on 2024 when I get there. I know for many of us, it’s been a bit of a year.

But, focusing on the positive, my terrors are happily crafting away, the tree is up and festooned in hand made ornaments, indigestion from too much good food is on the horizon and we have The Nightmare Before Christmas playing away in the background.

It was the most festive I could manage…

Just a short post today, to wish everyone a good festive season no matter what you celebrate. Also keeping it light on the puns as I’m having to be sharp about how easy it is to slide into innuendos when it comes to axes.

To be blunt, or perhaps get to the point, shaft, head, rack, butt are all axe and axe throwing terms…

So, with that fun aside, have a quiet and restful end to 2023, and try and get some rest to prepare for whatever 2024 decides to throw at us next.

Starting total – 880

Wool used – 62 (+3)
Wool bought – 44 (+20)
Wool given to me – 17
Wool gifted to others – 8
Wool handspun – 2

Total – 871 (Net difference: -9)

Yeah, I really fell off the sheep this year. Going to have to keep it an a tight reign for next year, or else I’ll have to consider culling it…

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by RoxyPosted on Posted in Knitting 2 Comments

First, my apologies for not being around much again, its been a bit crazy at the moment and I’ve been juggling perhaps two or brie things more than I should…

Second, I’m going to let you in on a squeak-rat, the puns are about to get cheesy.

So, to set your mind at cheese, there is knitting in this post, promise, and its to do with Cheese Day. My workplace has a tradition where rather than a formal Christmas lunch together, we bring in cheese, crackers, meats, olives etc and, to quote, ‘Celebrate Baby Cheese-us’.

Last year I knit tiny Christmas tree decoration sized mice, this year I had the cheddar idea of knitting…

Rats! Rats! And more rats! (Free knitting pattern Flat Rat by Susan Glinert Stevens, I have converted mine to knit as one piece from the nose down).

This was un-brie-lievably fun. I got to use up loads of little scraps, as well as a few small balls of wool, and had the little squeakers running amock on actual Cheese Day.

I did try and keep my plan a squeak-rat, but ended up sharing with my Valkyries (knitting coven No2) and Rabbie requested I knit her little versions of her dairy departed pet rats Darktan and Peaches. And my friend OwlLady declared my scrap rat as Patches and hers:

It was a gouda time in all, and I am pleased to have done it. I smashed my goal of 10 rats with a whopping 17, 14 of which made it to cheese day and all of which were claimed in the name of Baby Cheesus… Next year, I think I’ll have the feta idea of aiming a bit smaller.

And with that, I bid you fair well and to stay safe!

Starting total – 880

Wool used – 59 (+6)
Wool bought – 44 (+20)
Wool given to me – 17
Wool gifted to others – 8
Wool handspun – 2

Total – 874 (Net difference: -6)

I should not be left unattended in a wool shop when there is a sale on my favourite jumper wool…

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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 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 2 Comments

Dont believe me?

And yes, that is a tiny bihorn hat he’s wearing. “What about his army?” I hear you ask…

There it is, marching one hundred strong! “But what of his enemy?” I hear you ask…

There she is! The Evil Empress Poppy!!!

Ok, I may have gone just a little, teeny tiny, bit mad, but who wouldn’t after knitting so many polar bears?!

(Pattern btw is free, it’s Polar Bear by The Knit Cafe Toronto.)

The purpose of these is to be Christmas ornaments for Christmas 2022, after I discovered 60 penguins wasn’t enough last Christmas. I was 12 short, so I planned on 80 polar bears.

Then Rabbie suggested it should be a centurion of polar bears, a polar bear garrison if you will.

And then I got brain fog with covid and there was 101. So the extra became Na-polar-eon at Engels insistence and the chaos ensued…

You have probably guessed that things have returned to normal, and I use normal very loosely here, in my household and yeah, it is, slowly. We’re all tiring out a bit too quick, and I have some issues with my lungs but other than that, yeah, getting there.

Its been a welcome break to the plague or drama or something or another.

In non knitting news, I’ve been dabbling in other fabric crafts – nothing too exciting, but it’s been fun doing some upcycling!

Will leave it here for now as I have cthulhu to prep, and I will convienently not mention that I bought six more balls of wool at the weekend – these are for a project coming up, honest!

Starting total – 843

Wool used – 32 (3 since last post)
Wool bought – 23 (Up 6)
Wool given to me – 16
Wool gifted to others – 1
Wool handspun – 3

Total – 852 (Net difference: +9 – really need to work on this!)

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