The Funky Chicken

A few weeks back, a man approached my group at the pub during our weekly knit night. "Who is in charge here?" This was presented in a gruff tone, and thought I might be in some sort of trouble as I meekly responded that this would probably be me. He then presented me with a bulging bag of wool. He went on to explain that his wife had passed away a year ago, and this is what she left behind. As he just wanted to see it go to a good home, I accepted the bitter-sweet bag of goodies. 

After arriving home and dumping out the contents of said bag, I found what looked to be the beginnings of a jumper. She had gotten maybe 3/4 of the way through one sleeve. I wondered if this was meant to be for her husband? It was a lovely honeycomb pattern. It seemed such a shame to let her hours of work go to waste. There was no pattern included, so I couldn't just finish the jumper for her. But I thought maybe this sleeve could be useful as...a...tea cosy? I ripped it back till it was a suitable width for my pot. With the spout poking out of what would be the cuff of the sleeve, I crocheted the edges to give it a bit of finish, as well as closing up the sides to leave suitable holes for the spout and handle.

And there you have a tea cosy.

But something was missing. I thought it kind of looked like a hen?? So I did the logical thing and added buttons for eyes and wee headdress of yarn. Finishing touches can make or break a piece. Say hello to Hilda the Hen. 

I am well acquainted as to how it feels to loose someone incredibly close. It's nice to have something that serves as a reminder of that special person. And that folks, is the reason I named the mascot of The Town Mouse Knitting Club, Rachel. That way, I've got my best gal pal with me at the pub, and she's always keeping me company in the shop. Thanks Rach.

The Funky Sailor

I am the biggest procrastinator when it comes to writing up patterns. Usually I am just a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants-sort-of-knitter, and don't bother writing it down. I know, I know. For shame! Well, I like to think I'm improving. Maybe a New Year's resolution for me? Anyhoo, in preparation for Christmas, I made my Dad a man cowl. The results were fantastic! The only problem was, I liked it so much and wanted to keep it for myself. Gasp! So...I just made another one for me. Fingers crossed he is not reading this, and discovered what his present shall be! Now presenting the Funky Sailor Cowl.

Photo by Bartek Furdal

Since creating this cosy cowl, I've had a few requests for a pattern write up. Procrastination be gone! 

For this cowl I used grams of 100grams of Aran weight yarn in two contrasting colours (so 200grams in total). Brigantia Aran would suit nicely. 

Using a provisional cast on method and a 6.0mm circular needle (40cm) cast on 82 stitches with colour B, and join in the round.

You will now be following striping pattern 1:
 
Colour A: Knit 6 rounds
Colour B: Knit 2 rounds

Repeat Striping pattern 1 a total of 9 times, then work another 6 rounds of colour A.

You will now follow striping pattern 2:

Colour B: Knit 6 Rounds
Colour A: Knit 2 Rounds

Repeat striping pattern 2 a total of 9 times, then work another 4 rounds of colour B. 

 


















You will now need to put the stitches from the provisional cast on, onto another circular needle. You will now graft the stitches from either end together using kitchener stitch. This essentially connects either ends of the tube, leaving you with a cosy loop. Weave in ends, block, and wear proudly.

The Boys AKA the Button Eaters

Meet the boys: Casper and Ozzy aka 'The Button Eaters.'

Casper

Ozzy

In the spirit of Movember, I have knit them some very studious looking jumpers. These wee treats were intended for their Christmas...but they were just too excited to wait. Can you believe it? Okay, actually it was ME that could not wait. Just look at those faces!

 

 


I used the Bucalicious Sweater, a free pattern on Ravelry. And let me just say that I love this pattern. It actually stays on my pups. Other models have proved to be easy to wriggle out of. But in this case, the combination of polo neck and front leg sleeves make for a garment as secure as a chastity belt! 

With more Movember spirit, I have been going a bit mad over man cowls. I made these 2 over the past week (Mainbow and Shades of Grey), and there are more to come. A must have for all the important men in men in my life!

 

 

Mainbow

Shades of Grey

Wee Socks and Clare

GTS has a special technical workshop occurring Saturday, focussing on that bit that makes a vast majority of newbie (and experienced) sock knitters a bit anxious; the elusive heel. The gal running this workshop is a new pal of mine, Clare. She is loads of fun, and a bit kooky too (takes one to know one). She was kind enough to answer a few of my questions, so continue reading if you would like a peek into this lovely knitter/designer/teacher's thoughts.

GTS: So you have recently moved to Edinburgh. How are you finding it? Does it suit your love of knitwear?

Clare: We have been here for almost two months and I love it here. I had never been to Edinburgh before and only visited Scotland once. I was not what I expected, but Edinburgh has not disappointed me one bit. This city is magical! The city is beautiful, the people are friendly and the yarn choices are endless … what more could I ask for?

Since arriving I have been rolling out the knitwear on a grand scale! I started knitting in Australia and became even more hopelessly addicted when I moved to South Africa. Neither of these countries however is famous for their knitwear weather. I have been storing up socks, cardigans, shawls and hats … and now I finally get to wear them. Sometimes I have approached this task with a little bit too much gusto and may often be seen wandering down Easter Road dressed head to toe in knitted items.

GTS: Where do you find inspiration for your knitting and designing?

Clare: I am new to the designing world but I find inspiration everywhere. At the moment my main driver has been technique as I have been working solely on technique driven sock designs. I have a little girl so designing for her is a major inspiration too. I love clean lines and little details but not too many frills.

GTS: What are you working on now?

Clare: I am on a major hat kick at the moment. With the colder days drawing close, our heads have been feeling the chill. I have just knitted an Aviatrix hat by Justine Turner– this is my desperate attempt to make a very determined young lady keep her hat on.

Recently I cast off the Common Ground by Elizabeth Smith – it is warm and squishy and perfect for wearing in my rather chilly flat.

I also have big plans to take part in the Woolly Wormhead mystery KAL that started on the 1^st of November.

Lastly, I have plans for an Owlet by Kate Davies for the little one. We even popped in to see Jess and pick some yarn last week. I just need to find time to cast on.

Aviatrix baby hat

Common Ground

2013 Mystery KAL

Owlet 2

GTS: Tell me about the e-book!

Clare: My current project was born out of my passion for knitting socks. When I started knitting I always swore I would never ever knit socks – I couldn’t have been more wrong. Over the last year I have been devouring information about sock knitting techniques and over coffee one morning a close friend and I discussed the beginnings of this book. 
 

The e-book offers you the chance to try a wide selection of heel and toes without committing to knitting a full size sock. Each technique is featured in a baby sock that has been carefully designed to give you lots of opportunities to try new techniques on a miniature scale.

The socks are available in four sizes and are perfect for the little ones in your life. They make great gifts too and if you have no little ones who need socks, they are super cute decorations for the Christmas tree or merely a wonderful technical learning tool.

The book features nine detailed patterns with socks knitted from the top down and the toe up. Each sock features a different heel and there is a wide selection of toes.

The heels covered are:

The standard afterthought heel

The star afterthought heel

Dutch / square heel

French / round heel

Half hankerchief / V heel

Band heel

Faux heel flap / toe up heel flap

Stocking stitch short row heel

Garter stitch short row heel

The book will be launched at the start of December and then the patterns will be gradually added to the book, once a fortnight, to give you time to get to grips with one sock before the next arrives.