Review: Little Women

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Why oh why have I never read this book before now?
I was enthralled from the off with the lives of the March's.
The sisters may appear to be a bit too goody-goody for some folks tastes but I read it in the spirit of what it was, a book aimed at young girls and of their time. There were parts that made me smile and parts that made me sad but overall it took me to a time and place so far removed from life today that it was most relaxing and a joy to hear the next chapter.


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When Madness Ensues

What happens when you are just over 48 hours away from a local yarn festival and you spy a wonderful pattern which would be ideal to wear to said festival? Why you cast on of course!
Watch this space........

Guddled

With my work season fast approaching it brings the knowledge that my knitting time shall be severely curtailed. With this in mind I got myself into a fair guddle over the last couple of weeks. I was trying so hard to get to so many things that my head went into a spin and it was all I could do to knit a few stitches here and there. In the end I decided to just pick up one item and get on with it.
The project I chose was one which had been languishing in hibernation for almost a year.

Unblocked Wild Violet Flowers

I dug out the beads, picked it up and got stuck in. It only took me a few days to get the knitting finished and it is now in the blocking queue.
The pattern is the beautiful Wild Flowers by Kitman Figueroa, and is the same one as I knitted for my best friend's wedding shawl last year. The yarn and beads were ones that I had bought as a kit for another project but the pattern did not speak to me so I had put them aside until something better came along.

The Sunday socks fell behind a little during my lost time but you will be glad to know that I am caught up again and ready to start pair 6 today.
Here is pair 4

I knitted these toe up as a plain stockinette foot with a 2x2 rib cuff.
The yarn is an absolute delight to work with. It is Suilven by Ripples Crafts and is a mix of Merino, Yak and Silk. It beautifully soft to the touch and it reminded me of a very fine cord when knitting with it.
Pair 5

Once again I chose one of my favourite patterns for this pair. I did toy with two other patterns but frogged both and went back to Socks on a Plane a free pattern by Laura Linneman. This is a very popular pattern in the Ravelry community with over 2000 pairs knitted and it is also the pattern I shall turn to today when I cast on pair 6. The yarn this time is Drops Fabel  a great go to sock yarn at a fantastic price.

Time for me to take my leave and get the Sunday Sock on the needles.

Gripped

Sometimes I can be browsing patterns on Ravelry and along comes one which takes my breath away. This happened in the early hours of this morning when I could not sleep.
I had been feeling that my knitting mojo had gone for a wee holiday when suddenly I saw the beautiful Muirs shawl pattern. It was love at first sight. I just had to purchase it.
The shawl is essentially knit in two parts, first the edging is done then stitches are picked up along this edging and the body is knitted from the bottom up.
I grabbed the first yarn I had to hand, which was Ripples Crafts merino/silk, (now sadly discontinued), in the gloriously soft Violet Whispers colour and cast on.

7 edging repeats done 

I am finding rhythm in the knitting of the edging and it is progressing at a good pace for me. I hope that I can get this done quickly as I would dearly love to wear this shawl to the Edinburgh Yarn Festival to show off this beautiful pattern.

Review: Notes from a Small Island

Notes from a Small Island by Bill Bryson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book. Yes it may be a bit dated but hey, it mentions Prestonpans, what's not to love?
The author and in this case narrator takes us on an hilarious journey through England, Wales and finally Scotland visiting places of interest and none and regaling us with his take on what he finds. I found myself laughing out loud at his descriptions of some of the establishments he stayed in and some of the people he met. At times I could clearly see his bedraggled self lugging his rucksack around and just wishing the rain would stop for even half an hour to give respite.
This type of journey is one I would gladly undertake myself if I had the means but I will make do with listening and following along with the aid of Google Maps.

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WIP Wednesday

Wednesday is nearly always a WIP (work in progress) day.
Today I am working on the beautiful Wild Flowers shawl by Kitman Figueroa. I knitted this shawl last year for my best friend for her wedding and decided I also wanted on for my cruise next year. The pattern is a stunning mix of lace, nupps and beads.

The Wedding Shawl

It is a pleasure to knit if you have the time to concentrate and results in a stunning addition to a wardrobe. Just right for adding a bit of bling.
My shawl is a beautiful shade of Violet and is growing very slowly.

Beads and Yarn

The yarn is one I bought to knit something else but it lends itself so much better to this pattern.

A Finish and Two Starts

Why is it that when I finish something I get an acute case of startitis? This happens all the time and it just adds to the amount of projects I have on the go at any one time.
It has happened again this week.
I finished the jumper I was knitting for my Mum,

then immediately started Flax. I have now gone even further and added French Cancan into my projects.
But back to Mum's jumper. The pattern I used was Firenze by Drops. I have knitted this pattern three times now and it makes for a lovely cosy, comfy jumper. Although it is essentially a male pattern it looks just as good on a female and I wear mine all the time. The jumper is knitted totally in the round from the bottom up with just 8 underarm stitches to sew up on each side, a total bonus to someone like me who detests seaming. Drops patterns are free but some folk are put off as they seem very hard to follow. I can assure you though that they are not so don't be daunted. Just having a good read through of them first and breaking them down into bite size pieces makes them much easier to understand.
I used the yarn stated in the pattern which is Drops Alpaca, I used red, and Drops Fabel, I used Sunset. The two yarns are held together throughout and with the alpaca they feel gorgeous while slipping through the fingers. Using them together makes for a very quick knit as they form somewhat of an Aran or Worsted weight.
Now all I have to do is take the jumper off Brenda and get it parcelled up to post to Mum.