FO - Brambles Hat

The Brambles hat is finished, ends woven in, but not blocked yet, and not sure if I will either. Very happy with how it came out, but I probably could've knit it on 4.5mm needles instead. Fits well but I was expecting it to be slouchier. I know blocking can fix this, but I don't want it to have the beret style shaping to it.

The pattern is wonderfully eritrean, easy to follow and a very quick knit. Highly recommended . The yarn was really nice to knit with as well, soft and squishy and it feels very warm knit up.

Loving Brambles

This afternoon has been spent working on my brambles hat, and loving it. It's been a long time since I had a pattern with cables and texture in it, it has been so engrossing knitting it up and seeing the pattern develop. The yarn is working up into a lovely, thick and soft fabric and I know this hat is going to be so nice and warm. Pity the weather is warming up.

I have finished the body of the hat and am ready to start the crown decreases. I plan to try to finish it tomorrow, soak it and block it, probably with a plate. We'll see.

FO - Chunky Cabled Beret

Last week I spent an entire day knitting this:

A nice, thick and very warm beret for the days I am outside all day in the freezing cold.......which is every day at work lately. We are setting up a new store and my days are spent checking stock as it comes out of the shipping containers. The building is not finished yet either, so no office, no seats, and no heating. I have never been so grateful for my warm woollen handknits!

This hat seriously only took 1 day. 1 day of knitting it exclusively all day. But in the end so worth it. And I really loved the pattern and I knit it out of some left over 10ply I had from making my father-in-laws vest and my dad's christmas beanie and fingerless mitts, which I am very pleased to say are being worn.

I plan to knit this hat again, but there are so many in my queue, that phase 2 may be a long way away.

This weekend is about finishing for me, so hopefully I will have a few more FO's to post about, and if I can actually get on rav, then hopefully i can update my project pages. For some reason unknown to me, my laptop will not let me on rav, which is very frustrating!

FO - Hermione's Cable Eyelet Hat (AKA My Half Blood Prince Hat)

Either way, this hat is a copy of the hat that Hermione wore in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.

This hat has been knitted out of a mohair, wool blend I purchased from Bendigo Woollen Mills. It is the leftovers from the Que Sera cardigan I knit for my mum. And there is still plenty left. So what must a girl do???? Make matching mitts! As you can see below, there is a close up of the hat..... 

And I must admit I love it! It is very warm, super soft and such a pretty purple. I'm not really a hat wearing person, so it is taking a bit to get used to. But I need it for work, being outside all day with it being so cold just screams for knit wear....... and the more the merrier!

I really enjoyed this pattern, however I would make a few modifications for next time. Pretty much the only problem is the length, for me it came out a bit long, so next time I will do about 4 less rows of ribbing and also do a cable twist at the very beginning. I don't like how the pattern seems to start so high on the hat.

But overall a fabulous pattern, simple and easy to follow, yet the finished producst looks fabulous and fit wonderfully. And nothing beats the combination of eyelets and cables for interest!

FO - Chloe's Posidon

So today I finished Chloe's Posidon and it fits her beautifully as you can see here:

Today I spent the morning sewing in the zipper, and I am really pleased with how it looks. The zipper and the cardigan. The zipper has been installed so that it cannot be seen while the cardigan is closed, as the fabric cover it. I really like this look. 

The cardigan fits her perfectly, plenty of room for it to be comfortable and for her to grow. As you can see the back cable pattern has not been blocked, but there was no opportunity, she barely allowed me time to tie a knot in the sewing thread before she had it on, and it hasn't come off since. So happy she loves it and so happy it fits her well.

Now I am getting hassled for little man's "button jacket". I'd better get back to work!

New Years - Casting on and weaving ends

Well, I finally finished Chloe's cardigan and she loves it. She hasn't taken it off since i gave it to her, and it doesn't even have buttons yet!!! So happy and proud of myself. I promised myself I would finish by new years, and I did with an hour and a half left! A very close call. :) I did the finishing and weaving ends yesterday, but that didn't count. I had finished knitting!

Isn't it gorgeous! The photos aren't the best, but oh well. This is my first

cabled project and it was a lot easier to cabled than I had imagined. I think I now have a cabling bug :)
I recently ordered some beautiful new handwash wool in a red tweed to make my mum a long cardigan/ jacket for mother's day. This gives me five months, so I should be done by then. I can't wait to get the wool, but I expect it to be a few days away still. I bought it from Bendigo Woolen Mills and their prices are fantastic! I bought 800 grams for $44. Couldn't get close to that at my local Spotlight.
I'm going to visit a few LYS's this week, to explore, but also to hunt down some new needles. The ones i'm using are ok, but i'm sure that there are nicer ones out there. Should be fun.
For now however, I'm going to work on a simple afghan square for some mindless knitting. I then have Nathan's jumper with a couple of stripes to finish up. Even though It's summer, it makes sense to me to make these cold weather garments now, before it's too late!
Til Next time, Danielle