Scarves 'r' us

I finished all my neighbour's scarves - imagine if you will a fanfare at the least, I am soo pleased with myself. I now only have 3 more scarves to do, all in different yarn and all in slightly different patterns which is a relief. The only other scarf under consideration is the Colinette Isis if I find a pattern I like. The picture includes 2 scarves that aren't my neighbour's, the purple one is mine and the second peacock one is for my physio.

I've also nearly finished the first sleeve of my funky chunky sweater, made some progress on the shawl for my mum to give at Christmas and found the pattern for the baby hoodie that I want to get done by a week on Tuesday. I've been doing more reorganising today, some progress has been made but the flat still looks to me like the aftermath of an explosion.

In a spirit of adventure I cast on the baby hoodie, it's the one I have started in pink so I know it's quite a quick pattern and I just may manage to get it done as I have Friday off work this week as well as the weekend, I'll see how I get on, I haven't promised this garment so if it isn't done no one will be any the wiser.

Tomorrow I have an appointment with my physio, she wants to see what progress I've made in a month, I'm pretty down about this, my Dr left me very disheartened and I've found it hard to motivate although I have got to the gym at least 2 or 3 times most weeks.

Chaos reigns but the scarves multiply

I'm having a grand clear out, in part to make room to stack away some of my yarn stash, this has entailed emptying a large walk in cupboard on the landing of my flat and trying to repack it more efficiently. This means that I now have a fairly neat cupboard, 3 shelves need sorting out but the rest is tidy, unfortunately what I've taken out doesn't appear to have gone back and I'm looking at a landing that is stil half full of assorted boxes and bags and piles of material, this is un nerving to say the least. I'm now contemplating getting my other half to put the rest into the loft, but I just know that as soon as I do that I will either a) instantly need whatever goes up there or b) instantly forget what went up there and waste weeks looking for it. As a result of this trauma I have abandoned the wreckage of the flat and spent the evening starting a batch of chicken soup as I'm convinced that I'm developing a cold just in time for our 5th anniversary.

In knitting related news I have completed another scarf - 2 this week and the last one for my neighbour is about 8 inches from completion. The front of my funky chunky sweater is done, as a rest from scarf knitting it's great, it grows so ludicrously quickly! I cast on the first sleeve in celebration and am half way through the increases. I have 3 scarves to make for relatives and one for a friend's mother and they are all started, one of them indeed is half done already, I'm in danger of over confidence here and thinking that I may complete all my Christmas knitting relatively comfortably! I've even done one more pattern on each of my 2 clapotis this week. Several of my WIP's are in serious danger of becoming UFO's but I've been really focussing on scarves to get them out of the way, I then look forward to spending my time doing things that have patterns in!

I'm looking for a suitable pattern for making a scarf out of Colinette's Isis, I have 4 skeins in velvet plum that are crying out to be a more interesting scarf than the ones I've been making but I can't find anything that catches my imagination, I'm not sure how well it will show any stitch pattern as it's quite fluffy, any ideas anyone?

No pictures of my FO's, when you've seen one scarf you've pretty much seen them all and I'll take a picture of the whole scarf mountain when I've sewn in all the ends!

Now I'm off to have a nice strong drink and to bed, to bury my head under my pillows and try and blank out the noise from fireworks - how I wish that they could leave the pretty lights in them and remove the noise!

Happy dance

Yet again without pictures, posting in my lunch break at work means I'm camera less and I currently can't email myself in the office as the emails vanish I know not where - technology is a glorious mystery to me!

I've been hunting for a pattern to make gloves for my brother for Christmas, specifically a pattern I can adapt to give him fingerless bits where neccessary for him to use his digital camera, I finally found a pattern that I can adapt and some suitably masculine sock wool - blue/grey, he doesn't 'do' colours. For myself I have some Cashoft 4ply in a soft rose to make a pair for myself, yet more things to add to my 'to do' list. Also arrived yesterday soem more DPN's for sock and glove knitting and some pretty mohair that may become a scarf for my mother.

I have now got 3 scarves at the 2/3rds done stage, at least 2 should be finshed this week and 2 more are at the 1/3rd done stage, I'm beginning to feel some hope that I may get the boring stocking stitch scarves done soon, that will leave me time to do more interesting things and experiment with the gloves as well!

Christmas count down

Blame the Yarn Harlot for this - she just pointed out how long it is til Christmas - I now have 61 days left to knit the following:-
2 more scarves for my neighbour
1 shawl for my mum to give to a niece
1 shawl for my neighbour
1 pair of gloves for my brother
1 scarf for my friend's mum
3 more scarves for assorted relatives
1 baby cardi that isn't started and really needs doing before the 9th of Nov
something for my mum, I have no idea what yet, I do have some lace weight mohair that might make a nice scarf though, possibly the pattern that I made out of Kidsilk Haze earlier this year.

I also promised to make orange/clove pomanders for my neighbours and to teach my neighbour's granddaughter how to make peppermint creams.

In spite of all this I just ordered some lace shawl patterns from the US and offered to teach a colleague how to knit. Let's also remember that I have one second sock on the go, one second sock not started, a poncho in mind for my neighbour's youngest grand daughter and a full time job!

Now, if only the voices in my head that keep mocking me for over committing would get their knitting needles out as well I might manage it!

I confess

It wasn't a swatch, it was the back of a sweater! I know I should have been doing scarves and shawls, but I don't care! I think this will end up with a woolly hat and possibly a scarf too as it's knitted up pretty economically.No way can I knit with 10mm needles on the bus to and from work so I'll do scarves then.





I've also been playing with some ideas for pictures illustrating knitting terms for the Knitspeak contest. I give you:- WIP
and

Swatch

Chunky or what??

Newly arrived in my stash and irresistable to thos of us who have too many WIP's and not enough self control! Patons Funky Chunky soft yarn that knits up on 10mm needles this is about 2 hours of knitting and feels really soft, this one is for me - but now I've tested it (can I claim this is a swatch?) I must return to the last 2 scarves and the shawl before I return to it - I'm saving it as a reward, every time I finish a scarf I can knit for me for a day!

I've also made progress on the pink fluffy edged baby cardigan - it now has a hood, sadly the next baby to arrive at work was a boy so I'm still a baby cardi behind, next time I see the father is Nov 8th, I can't see me getting one done with everything else I'm doing. I'll have to make a second size and post it (my colleague's and I work in different places in the country, some in groups, some singly)

Herewith the first sock of pair 3, pair 1 I'm still on sock 2 , pair 2 is done and this is pair 3, sock 2 is not yet started as I'm seriously scarf obsessed, I want to make ones for friends when I've done the ones for my neighbour. I have great ambitions! I'm going to have to prioritise what I'm doing soon, make yet another list and start being methodical. I can rely on one business trip with train knitting time but that's about it.

I can't just knit at home as the loft has now been refilled and I have a lot of tidying and sorting out to do now. I think some stash may end up in the loft as I'm more than a bit cluttered at present. I'll get there, I only have a few commitments, the rest is all wishful thinking and plans on my part, things I'd like to make for family and friends but haven't promised.

Progress minus pictures

As I'm writing this in my lunch break at work there are no pictures, so please imagine items as follows
1) A second yellow/blue/green sock
2) A first dark blue/light blue/purple sock
3) A completed multicoloured scarf (only 2 more to go for my neighbour)
4) A pink baby jacket with a furry yarn edged hood, I just have to do the fur on the cuffs and front edges and finish sewing it up.

It's been a good week for knitting. my 2 clapotis grew a bit and the socks were done on a trip to Newcastle and back that I took for a colleague who was sick - that was all that was good about the week.

Travelling to Newcastle I arrived just as a powercut ended, this had caused a 30 minute queue for a taxi to the hotel. The room I was given was large and an upgrade but the mattress on the bed was so incredibly soft it hurt my back. Coming back the weather was foul and due to England playing Poland at some football match or other I was stuck on a tram full of very loud Poles followed by another long taxi queue as it was throwing it down with rain.

I had Dr's appointment on Thursday to check on my blood pressure only to find it hadn't gone down, I arrived full of glee as I've been going to the gym religiously, my ankles are no longer swollen, my back is improving, I'd lost over 2lbs since she'd seen me and I was thoroughly positive. Sadly all my Dr was interested in was that my blood pressure hadn't gone down in the month and I seem to now have become her project, as a result I have an appointment for an ECG on Wednesday and then blood tests for every ailment she can think of at the beginning of November - deep joy!!

The weekend was better, I did knitting and moving boxes back into my airing cupboard, I may get the landing clear of stuff soon!

Knitting targets for the week ahead
1) Finish another scarf
2) Do the front bands and cuffs of the baby hoody
3) Do more of the second brown/cream/blue sock - which finally neareth the heel flap

Weekly progress!

As I don't seem to manage to post more than once a week at the moment I might as well make this the weekly report.
On the non knitting front I now have insulation in the loft - where I can't see it and around my hot water tank which I can - it has a nice red jacket - very Christmassy!










Here is the sock progress, the brown/cream/blue on ehas grown by an incredibly small amount, but the yellow/green/blue merino one now has a heel flap, however included in the picture is something you don't want to see - a broken needle that used to have a clapotis on it - luckily I managed to pick up all the stitches.






Now for the dreaded scarf pile - as you can see in this picture - we now have 4 in the pile, one is mine, 3 for my neighbour's daughters and granddaughters.

I have done a bit more to the two clapotis, but this week has been 'scarf week', I'm trying very hard to get the 6 finished that I need to get done, I'm aiming to finish them all this month if possible.

Clapotis addition

What I forgot to say in yesterday's post, amongst other things is the slight change I've made between clapotis 1 and 2. I read somewhere, I forgot where that instead of knitting the stich between the ktbl you should purl it, that way you can dispense with all the stitch markers. I've found that it works except at each end on the increase rows and the increase end of the straight rows. I put in a stitch marker when I increase and remove it once the pattern is clearly established, I tried the method on a dark brown wool and it doesn't work so well as I find it much harder to see the purl stitch, but on the light coloured Yarn Arts Summer it works fine and I tested it on the other variegated blue Hipknits silk and it's fine even on the darker blue areas.
Dispensing with the stitch markers makes the work look neater while I'm knitting it and I find it much quicker without them, clapotis 2 has only taken me 2 weeks to reach this stage even with all the scarf knitting. Both clapotis have one less increase pattern in the width as I wasn't sure if I'd have enough yarn for the full width and I tend to prfere long scarves rather than wide ones!

For anyone not sure about starting the pattern, I have to say that it's proved very easy to establish and easy to remember!

September progress

Firstly,non knitting progress!!
I went to the gym at least 3 times a week all month, I can now walk up a flight of stairs without getting out of breath, walk for 12 minutes on the treadmill at 2 miles per hour - up from 3 minutes at 1.5 miles per hour and have started using the cross trainer if only for 3 minutes at a time. Also I have increased the number of repetitions I do on the weights. I have a long long way to go but have seen real progress this month. I see my Dr mid October and hope that she wil be pleased.
Knitting related - I have catalogued about 1/2 to 2/3 of my stash and bagged up most of what I don't have immediate plans for - sock wool doesn't count - that will become socks! If the council actually do my loft insulation on Friday my long term yarn is in bags waiting to go up there for the next few months.

Knitting progress
Hmm - not good I had 6 things or part garments on my list of things to finish I achieved one, not impressive, but I did get sidetracked by a number of scarves and a sock! Also I am finally at a point to show the part made clapostis one and clapotis two!


I've finished the aqua jumper, my purple scarf, the first peacock scarf and the green/yellow (apple blue) merino sock. It's just a shame only the aqua jumper was on the to do list!



The second brown /cream/blue sock is almost to the heel flap, the second apple blue sock is still on the cuff.

As you can see the scarves for my neighbour are growing apace - I'm actually making 7 - a total of 21 balls of yarn to knit and so far have knitted 6 and 6 part balls.



Thia clapotis is on 4mm needles made from Yarn Art's Summer, this is less than one ball so far, it doesn't drape as well as the other clapotis though as it's much lighter but will be nice in summer I think.

This is the original clapotis - in Hip Knits silk - it feels gorgeous, the silk does pill a little but I love it to bits.