The socks!

Well, the holiday is now over, and so is the sock knitting... yes!  I finally finished that second sock!

Being the first pair of socks that I have knitted, they are not perfect.  There are some small flaws and I have made a few mental notes of how to do things better next time.  But they are totally wearable, and boyfriend, bless him, thinks they're great.

I knitted these socks in Morris Yarns Empire Merino in 4 ply (I bought three 50g balls, but only used 1.5).  I used size 3.75mm circular needles, but if I was to use the same yarn again I would go with a smaller gauge.

You might remember that I decided to give 'the magic loop' a go.  If you're not familiar with the magic loop, you can see a demonstration of it here.  Basically it allows you to use circular needles for knitting small circumference items (like socks) instead of using double pointed needles.  And the verdict?

It took me a few rounds of knitting and watching the above video over and over to make sure I was on track.  After three rounds I was on a roll and it was easy to follow from there.  Some people say that the magic loop is easier than using double pointed needles, but I've never had a problem with them.  In fact, I do think that I like using them better.  The problem with the magic loop is that you are always knitting in a circle, and even though it's split into two rows most of the time, it's easy to lose track of which row you're up to.  I find the motion of changing from one double pointed needle to the next clearly marks the end of each row or section for me.  I also often l tell myself "I'll just knit to the end of this row", which doesn't really work for the magic loop.  On the plus side, the magic loop is quite good for travelling with, as you can't drop stitches off the ends of the needles as easily as what you can with dpns.  But at the end of the day, I find dpns more methodical and easy to follow, so I'll stick to them.

Has anyone else used the magic loop?  If so, what did you think?

The magic loop

See that? That is the start of a pair of socks, knitted using the magic loop. I only learned of this technique recently - knitting something with a small circumference (like socks) on a set of bigger circular needles - but since I've started researching it, everyone has been singing it's praises. I'm not completely convinced yet as I usually quite like using double pointed needles, but I am giving it a fair go and learning a new technique while I'm at it. If you're curious about the magic loop, have a look at this.

The socks are actually for boyfriend. Last time I tried to knit socks it was a bit of a disaster, but I'm a more experienced knitter now, so I thought I would give it another go. It's also something I can do as we travel on trains throughout Europe - yes - we are leaving today for a trip through the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium! Oui Oui! So it might be a bit quiet around the Stitchybritt blog for the next month, but if I make some cool crafty discoveries I will be sure to let you know. You can also follow me on Twitter (I'm @stitchybritt) as I intend to tweet updates of my sock knitting escapades.

Until then, auf wiedersehn!

Warm, warm legs on these cool, cool nights

During these cool winter nights I've been sitting in front of the heater knitting up some legwarmers. The pattern is a spiral rib knit (from The Purl Bee) which is basically just a knit 2 purl 2 pattern, starting on a different stitch every 3rd row. Looks tricky but it really isn't!


I picked up the yarn at A Coffee and A Yarn's yarn swap night, it had come from the bottom of another knitter's stash and I gladly exchanged some yarn that I wasn't going to use for this blue and brown twist.


I'm almost all done with my winter knitting, just one more thing that I'm going to try my hand at... more on that next post!

The shrug is finally finished!

You may recall that I started knitting a cardigan/shrug... oh I don't know, a gazillion years ago? Well, amazingly, I have finally finished it.




Thankfully, I'm really happy with how it turned out (because you're never sure until you get it off the circular needles). I love the ruffley collar. And the stripes!



This was made from angora bunny wool that I bought in Scotland. It is so soft. Our cat loves to curl up on it (no Snorky! that's not what it's for!).



In other news, the egg cozies that I made for the ABCD meet-up were such a hit that I have decided to make some for the Stitchybritt store. They make great Easter gifts and are available right now... but only until Easter! After 24 April they will be gone!

Crafty Power Hour

Well, I have finally emerged from the chaos of moving house, and I am pleased to say that I am slowly getting myself back into the crafty community. I missed a whole bunch of cool Sydney crafty events recently (boo!) but managed to catch the last lunchtime Crafty Power Hour put on by Knitty Gritty & Loopy. Crafty Power Hour had been part of the We Craft This City event which was put together by a whole bunch of cool crafty peeps.


At Crafty Power Hour I was taught the very important skills of making plarn (plastic yarn, or yarn made out of used plastic bags) and weaving it into baskets and other cute vessels.


This is the very beginning of my kawaii-sized plarn basket. It is basically made by spiralling the plarn around and holding it in place with blanket-stitched twine.


And here is the finished piece. It's quite small (about the size of an egg cup) but would you believe this is a whole plastic bag worth of plarn? What a great example of recycling, not to mention a super fun way to spend a lunch hour in the city.

Oh, and just a post note: it occured to me recently that many lovely people follow my blog (some through RSS feed) and I don't always get to know about you and your own blogs! So if you read this, please leave a comment with a link to your blog or site, so that I can get to know you too! Thanks xx

Incoming!

As Bianca from Goodnight Little Spoon would say - incoming!

I have received my second parcel of amazing goodies in a week. Can you believe it? I entered a competition run by Monica at the Creative Beast, and lo and behold - I won!

I've gotta say - this crafty woman is incredibly generous. Not only was she giving away vintage crafty goodies from her grandma's collection, but she went to a massive effort to package it up beautifully - and pay the not-so-cheap price to send the box all the way from the US to Australia.

First, everything came in this red carry bag, as pictured above (uber useful).


The prize I won was vintage knitting needles, some yarn and some other knitting related goodies. This wasn't even all of it!


As if that wasn't kind enough, Monica looked at my blog, discovered that I have an undying love for tea, and added a whole bunch of tea related gifts to the box.

So, considering this and my last post, I'm feeling pretty spoilt right now. If it's any consolation to you empty mailbox owners out there, it is my birthday week, so I'm just counting these as 'extra' birthday presents.

Oh, and if your mailbox is empty, consider writing to Bianca at Goodnight Little Spoon, she is bound to write back and with decorated paper and envelopes to boot.

Rock'n'roll baby

Have you entered the Stitchybritt giveaway yet? No? Well, what are you waiting for? There are two very cute, hug-able, squish-able pink piggies to be won! Hop on over here to enter (it's very easy, I promise).

Meanwhile, it's been crochet central round these parts. Why? Because two lovely friends of mine are about to become three - that's right, they are having a little baby boy, who has already been named "Jack".



When Jack's dad told me that news that there would be a baby on the way, I was so excited, I soon sent him a text message saying "I'd better start knitting!". The response I got was "skulls and switchblades, please". You see, Jack's parents are pretty rock'n'roll, and are not the types to dress their pride and joy in pastel colours. No, this is a rock'n'roll baby! So a crocheted skull blanket it shall be!



I used this knitting pattern from an old issue of Knit1 Magazine for the skull, and bought some organic Aussie wool from A Coffee and a Yarn (King St, Newtown). I wasn't sure how a knit pattern would work out crocheted - but turns out it's ok!



The main block of the blanket is done, now I just need to think about the lining, border and finishing. Don't even think about coming along early little Jack, aunty Stitchybritt ain't done yet!

Stitch 'n' bitch

Last night I had my first Stitch'n'bitch as a Sydney-sider. Clare was kind enough to host it at her house, and made some lovely dips for the occasion.


Some snacks, wool, crochet books for inspiration and a couple of vanilla vodkas with ginger ale

The mission: granny squares. I've never made granny squares before (apart from a little practice one the other night) - and I was supposed to be teaching. Luckily we just started out with some basic crochet lessons, with the aim of tackling a bigger project each week.


Clare learning to crochet. Grade A student : )

My granny square actually turned out to be more of a granny circle, but it impressed Little Cat nonetheless.


Stitchybritt and her granny circle

From now on Wednesday night is Stitch'n'bitch night!


Little Cat wearing Stitchybritt's granny circle as a hat

What's new?

So Stitchybritt, what have you been up to?

Well, stitchin-wise, two things!

One: When Sam's housemate was getting rid of his suitcase, he was also getting rid of a bunch of unworn business shirts. I snapped up a bunch of them with refashions in mind. And here's the first -



Looks good, huh? I used the super-easy tutorial from Made By Lex - here. I left it the length it was, so that I can tuck it into skirts for work.



Two: I'm finally using the wonderful angora bunny wool that I bought in Scotland (once again: the bunnies are not harmed in the process), and knitting a cardigan. It's a ruffley one that I found on Ravelry. Ok so it doesn't look much at the moment, but I'm loving the softness and the vibrant colours!



And you, my dear friends, what have you been up to?

Inspiration

When I came back from overseas I brought with me a head full of ideas of things I wanted to sew, knit, crochet, make etc. I also saw some excellent crafting on show - particularly around the Grassmarket in Edinburgh where there is some really clever vintage clothing refashioning going on.

The above pic is just some bits and pieces of inspiration that I picked up; Teatowel from the fabulous Anthropologie store in London, Angora bunny wool from the Orkney Islands that I bought at K1 Yarns in Edinburgh (oh to have my own fluffy bunny farm!), Hypotrochoid set that I got at the Tate Modern in London so that I can draw spirals in spirals in spirals in spirals...

Anyway, today's adventure is into the world of screenprinting. More on that later (hopefully a success story).

Chaos no more

Ok, so Spring Cleaning is not the satisfying, cathartic experience I expected it to be. It sucks. Honestly, have you ever tried to wipe down your back door? The damn thing is filthy! Anyway, I did succeed with taming the craft corner, as well as many other junk filled nooks of my house (that means you tupperware container cupboard!). As you can see the craft corner is looking much more streamlined...



I did encounter a few hiccups along the way though, such as this yarn monster that practically attacked me from the depths of the yarn drawer.



So I started untangling it, and then we sort of made friends, and then I got the idea that I could stitch a tiny business card holder for my Moo mini cards (look how cute they are!) and that's about where the sidetracking commenced.



In other news, Scotland trip is almost upon us (well, me) and I have created a blog especially for it. To keep up to date on Stitchybritt news for the next month check Wee Whiskey Woman. Expect there to be cuddles with hairy coos, questions as to the origin of haggis and the odd dram of whiskey too : )