

Saturday, 28 February 2015
february crafting - update

Tuesday, 24 February 2015
some ideas for a new jumper
A few days ago I decided that I was going to rip out the jumper that I recently finished knitting as I just wasn't happy with it and I really want to make something that I will love to wear. I've decided not to reknit the pattern (even though I would recommend it) because I want a fresh start and here are some ideas for a new jumper!
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(c) Ram Wools Yarn Co-op from Ravelry |
Pattern - Big Cable Pullover
I spotted this pattern on Pinterest and fell in love immediately! Elise also sent me a message saying she had already knitted it which encourages me even more that I want to make this! However I don't think my gauge will match up with the yarn I will have when I rip the current jumper out and the jumper looks like it will look better as a single colour as opposed to a multicoloured one. So this is in my library as a future knit!
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(c) James C. Brett, 2013 from Ravelry |
Pattern - JB162 Sweater
I adore the simplicity of this look and the way the yarn works with that. A stockinette stitch jumper will suit my yarn much more than cabling I really think. This pattern unfortunately is knitted to DK yarn and mine is closer to Aran weight. It is also quite fitted and I think I really want to make a slouchy knit jumper which must be easier to make look good? Also I love baggier jumpers - particularly ones you can snuggle and cuddle in to!
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(c) PiPiBird from Ravelry |
Pattern - Simple Summer Tweed Top Down V-Neck
I love the relaxed way this looks on the models, and all of the project pictures on Ravelry look excellent. Plus it has 1453 projects linked to it so it seems to be a winner! My only concern is the pattern itself - there are a lot of aspects that I don't understand (I had to google 'yoke') and it isn't written row by row. However with some studying already I think I can manage it, and I plan to study the pattern and project notes VERY carefully before I start. My gauge should match up to make a slightly warmer jumper and I might knit a size too large, but that might be dangerous...
So I am pretty set on choice number 3! Which is your favourite jumper?

Sunday, 22 February 2015
pikachu phone cover - free crochet pattern
1) flatten piece to create 2 flat edges, with working yarn on the right |
2) sc through both edges of piece |
3) this will close the bottom securely |
position the ears |
with black yarn
Round 1 - 4sc in magic ring (4)
Round 2 - sc round (4)
Round 3 - *2sc in each* round (8)
Round 4 - sc round (8)
change to yellow yarn
sew just inside the back lip of the cover |
Rounds 5-10 - sc round (8)
Round 11 - *sc2tog* round (4)
Bind off leaving a tail to sew to the phone cover
Using the picture as a guide sew the ears into position just inside the back lip of the phone case
Note ensure you now have your cardboard in the cover to stretch it to the correct proportions and to prevent you from sewing through both sides. We will also be using glue in the next section so be sure to leave the cardboard in throughout!
Now for the tricky part - cutting, sticking and sewing the features!
PIKACHU'S STRIPES
Using the light brown felt cut out 2 long ovals with slightly pointed tips (using the picture to the left as a guide).
Glue the stripes into position on the back of the phone cover. Once the glue is dry sew into place with whip stitch and matching thread.
PIKACHU'S FACE
Cut two small circles from black felt for Pikachu's eyes. Using white embroidery thread sew his pupils as pictured.
Cut two small circles from red felt for Pikachu's cheeks.
Position the face features on the front of the phone cover, using the picture as a guide and leaving a gap for the nose. Glue into position. Once the glue is dry secure the features using the correct colour thread and whip stitch.
Finally embroider a small nose for Pikachu using black embroidery thread and the picture at the top of this post as a guide.
Et voilĂ you have finished your Pikachu phone cover! I really hope you have fun making it, and please be sure to share pictures with me here, on the Ravelry project page, or over on Instagram!
This
pattern is for personal use only, please do not sell items made from this
pattern. Please do not republish this pattern as your own/without permission.

Thursday, 19 February 2015
minion phone cover - free knitting pattern
As promised here is my finished minion phone cover, inspired by the minions of Despicable Me and well timed for the release of The Minion Movie later this year! And with my free pattern you can make your very own for either a small or large smartphone!
I have given instructions to knit a phone cover suitable for an iPhone 4/4s or similarly sized phone. You can also knit a larger phone cover suitable for a Sony Xperia Z3 compact or similarly sized phone.
The main phone cover piece is knitted in the round which makes a seamless and safe phone cover (but please note this will NOT protect your phone if dropped!) while the eyes and mouth are crocheted. If you can't crochet you can knit circles for the eyes instead, or cut them out of felt, and a knitted i-cord would work just as well for the mouth.
Please ensure you read the pattern carefully before you begin!
Also if you aren't a knitter but would like to buy the phone cover I have 2 iPhone sized ones available to buy from my Etsy shop - just click here!
YOU WILL NEED
3 double pointed 4mm knitting needles OR 1 double pointed and 1 set of circular knitting needles (to knit using magic loop method)
4mm crochet hook
Cygnet DK I always buy this yarn from St. Anne's Hospice charity shops
Colour A - blue, 1255 Saxe
Colour B - yellow, 184 sunshine
Other colours - black, white, grey (only quite small amounts needed so check that stash- all DK weight)
Tapestry needle
A piece of cardboard cut to the dimensions of your phone
If you aren't crocheting or knitting your eyes you will also need black, white, and grey felt.
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slip stitches purl-wise, alternating a needle/stitch at a time |
TENSION
22 stitches x 28 rows = 10cm x 10cm
stocking stitch using 4mm needles
PHONE COVER
Note the phone cover is worked from the bottom up
Note instructions are giving to knit the smaller iPhone cover. To knit the larger cover please follow instructions given in ( ). Where no ( ) are given the steps are the same for both sizes.
-Using one 4mm dpn and blue yarn cast on 28 (32) stitches
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viewed from the bottom |
-So, the 1st stitch will slip to needle 1, the 2nd to needle 2, the 3rd to needle 1 - and so on
-Check the pictures to the right to make sure you are along the right track! This will create a sealed bottom at the foot of the case.
using the 3 dpns or the magic loop method
Knit 13 (15) rounds
change to yellow yarn
Knit 15 (17) rounds
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viewed from the top |
change to black yarn
Knit 3 rounds
change to yellow yarn
Knit 5 (6) rounds
Rib 1x1 (knit 1, purl 1) for 4 rounds
Cast off and sew in loose ends.
EYES (make 2)
Using black yarn and 4mm crochet hook
Round 1 - sc6 in magic circle (6)
change to white yarn
Round 2 - 2sc in each stitch round (12)
change to grey yarn
Round 3 - sc in each stitch round (12)
Fasten off
MOUTH
Using black yarn and 4mm crochet hook, chain 10 (12) stitches and fasten off
DUNGAREE POCKET
Using blue yarn and 4mm needles cast on 8 stitches, work straight 6 (8) rows of stocking stitch and cast off. Using black yarn embroider a 'G' onto the pocket
To finish insert the cardboard cut to the shape of your phone into the phone cover. This will prevent you from sewing the features through both sides of the cover and also stretches the cover to the correct proportions so that you can place the features into place.
Sew the eyes, mouth, and pocket to the front of the cover using the picture above as a guide.
I hope you enjoy your new minion phone cover! Share pictures with me if you make one here, or over on the Ravelry project page!
This
pattern is for personal use only, please do not sell items made from this
pattern. Please do not republish this pattern as your own/without permission.

Tuesday, 17 February 2015
fo: double cable pullover
Do you remember at the beginning of January I set myself the goal of knitting a jumper that would fit? I didn't quite manage this by the time February rolled round, but last week I cast off the jumper and sewed it all up!
Unfortunately I still didn't quite manage my goal...
Pattern - JB 130 - Double Cable Pullover (I used the pattern as published in issue 86 of Let's Knit magazine, November 2014)
You can also read about this jumper on my Ravelry project page.
The pattern recommends 5mm and 6mm needles but when sorting my gauge I needed 5.5mm and 6.5mm as my knitting is very tight. I usually need 0.5mm larger and sometimes I forget this, good thing I checked my gauge thoroughly as I really REALLY wanted this to be the first jumper that fitted me. I was concerened about the sizing though as I am usually a ladies 10-12 if there is a choice and the choices for me were between 8-10 and 10-12. Upon B's grandma's recommendation I chose the smaller size but added an extra stitch at either end of the front and back panels to make sure it wasn't too tight.
The good points about this project first! I absolutely adore the colours and the self-striping pattern. James C. Brett yarn is wonderful to work with and I will definitely be purchasing it again. I really like the rolled neckband and after pulling it over my head just a couple of times it relaxed to a very comfortable shape.
The pattern was very easy to follow as well, and once I had finished it everyone was very pleased with how it turned out and B even said it was the best thing I'd knitted yet.
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taking selfies before work in the morning sunshine |
And now for the niggly parts of this project. My main problem with the finished jumper is the length. It isn't long enough for a regular jumper and it might have just got away with being a 3/4 length pull over but it is a tad too long for that. So with trousers, dresses, skirts and shorts it doesn't quite sit/look right on me. I just about got away with it in the picture of me in the forest but I was very self concious wearing it. I just kept trying to pull it down.
The sleeve length is too short as well. Perhaps this is down to me as a knitter but I'm so certain that I followed the pattern and lengths suggested down to a tee. With more experience under my belt I might be able to identify when things are too short before they are finished, but I'm not at this stage yet and I'm quite disheartened. And I need to have more confidence in the patten sizes as the extra stitches were unnecessary and also affected the fit of the jumper in a negative way.
When I finished it my dad, my sister, her friends, and B were all very impressed with it and said the length wasn't an issue. I myself was also hopeful that I would get over the issues I have with it and learn to love it.
But if you need to learn to love something I think it's not meant to be. Worry about this jumper has been hanging over me over the last week and bothering me a lot more than it should do! So I cheered up a lot last night when I made the decision that I will rip this out and knit a new jumper. I though about trying this pattern again but longer but I would like a fresh start and have been scoping out some patterns on Ravelry, which I will share with you in a few days and get your opinions :)
So all in all I would certainly recommend this pattern if you would like to knit a straightforward cable jumper, but watch out for the length! And I'm feeling good - practice is practice after all, and the yarn will not go to waste :)

Sunday, 15 February 2015
what i have been up to
- I've designed the minion phone cover! Just to spend some time getting better pictures and typing the pattern now
- I've been worrying about what I want to do career wise, having found nothing much with job hunting and having had fruitless meetings with a recruitment agency
- I've been stressed about always running out of time with all the crafting and blogging I want to do but haven't managed to
- I'm trying to not fixate on that but instead enjoy what I manage to achieve
- I did finish knitting my jumper! It looks good but is very short - I will share it with you soon
- I've been playing a lot of video games and watching a load of Attack on Titan/Yu-Gi-Oh/Brooklyn 99
What have you been up to?

Friday, 6 February 2015
fo: stranded sheep scarf
When I shared the pattern for the knitted owl hat a lot of people commented on how nice the scarf that my sister was wearing was in all of the pictures. This is actually what I knitted for her for Christmas 2014 and true to me trying to improve how I used Ravelry and for sharing for fastened off posts on the blog here are some more pictures and notes on the stranded sheep scarf!
Pattern - Stranded Sheep Scarf (amended)
You can also read about this scarf on my Ravelry project page.
I cast this scarf on way back in September fully intending to knit the whole length of the scarf with the stranded sheep chart as opposed to simply the ends of the scarf as you can see in the pictures. As this was to be a Christmas gift I felt pretty smug with myself thinking I had given myself such a head start!
I cast this scarf on way back in September fully intending to knit the whole length of the scarf with the stranded sheep chart as opposed to simply the ends of the scarf as you can see in the pictures. As this was to be a Christmas gift I felt pretty smug with myself thinking I had given myself such a head start!
The pattern is written in the round (stockinette stitch, so in the round ensures both sides of the scarf match) and calls for double pointed needles and at the time I didn't know how to knit with circulars, so I ordered some dpn's and got to work. As someone who is, at the best, an advanced beginner when it comes to stranded (fair isle) knitting it was a nightmare working this scarf over 5 very short needles! As a result I didn't really enjoy knitting the scarf and after a month or so it was clear that with the speed I was knitting this I wouldn't be able to knit the sheep the full finished length of the scarf (roughly 150-160cm). My sister saw my distress and said it would be fine if only the ends of the scarf had sheep - phew!
And so I decided to just knit the chart twice at each end (of course upside down at the opposite end so that when worn all the sheep were facing the same way). The original pattern also featured 2 black sheep worked within, but after having only just become used to working with 2 colours in the round on circular needles (I learnt a lot of new techniques making this) introducing a 3rd colour was the most stressful knitting experience of my life! So another change was made and I just stuck to one black sheep.
Once I had finished knitting the scarf (Christmas present, finished at 9.30 on Christmas morning I don't mind telling you! Not including blocking and tassel adding) I was really unhappy with how it looked, with all the colour work bunching up my careful knitting. However the absolute wonders of blocking relaxed the knitting and brought it all together so well I'm so relieved at how it turned out! I can't express how much I love blocking knitting - and I've written a tutorial on how you can block your knitting too!
After blocking I sewed up the ends and added the tassels to finish the scarf just as you see. I used this tutorial to add the tassels (but you can ignore the crocheted end step if like me you have already sewn up your scarf ends). And voila! At 9.55am on Christmas day I wrapped this bad boy up to be opened just a few hours later.
I am NOT in a hurry to knit another fair isle scarf like this - it took a very long time and could get very repetitive, but I am very pleased with how it turned out and K seems happy enough to wear it out and about :) What do you think? Have you made anything that took a long time, you are proud of, but vowed never to attempt again?
I am NOT in a hurry to knit another fair isle scarf like this - it took a very long time and could get very repetitive, but I am very pleased with how it turned out and K seems happy enough to wear it out and about :) What do you think? Have you made anything that took a long time, you are proud of, but vowed never to attempt again?

Sunday, 1 February 2015
crafty plans for february
Every month I aim to set myself, and complete, a ‘crafty
challenge’ – a personal goal to help improve my knitting and crochet, and to embolden
me to react to all the patterns and inspiration that is available on the
internet! By sharing this with you I feel more encouraged to branch out and do
these challenges by the end of the same month, and hopefully you will be
interested in what I am working. Perhaps it will help inspire you to try
something new as well?
Get that Moogle pattern written!
I really desperately do want to write a pattern for a full amigurumi Moogle modelled on the Christmas decoration I designed in December. This would be my first complicated crochet pattern and I'm excited to see how it will turn out - though it is of course by no means my first. You can crochet my amigurumi Spiderman doll using the free Ravelry download pattern by following the link - and a couple of other patterns over on my patterns page!
Design, and write a pattern for, a knitted minion phone cover
The popularity of my Totoro phone cover and the fun that I always have when I make it has convinced me that I really should design some more phone covers, and a minion one would look amazing! I have loads of yarn left over from the two pairs of crochet minion mittens that I made for orders before Christmas that are the perfect colour for minions. I have this vision in my mind of how a knitted minion phone cover will look and I really want to get this on the needles to I can perfect it and also write some more knitting patterns.
I want to get these two patterns written this month alongside finishing my jumper and potentially starting a cradigan as well, but these are much larger projects that I should do in my own time and mustn't rush! What are you going to knit/crochet this month?

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