Three Days to Go to my Blogoversary!

I've raided my stash for a number of items to giveaway, so check back on Saturday for details!

Lack of Comments

Just to let you know - I read blogs in Google Reader, and then click through if I want to leave a comment.

This normally works okay, but at the moment, several blogs crash my browser when I do this. I know that The Twisted Stitcher is one of these, but it's not the only one. So, if I'm not commenting, it's because of this - I'm still reading!

Knitting or Stitching Book Recommendations?

I've got some Amazon vouchers to use from filling in surveys, and I wondered if anyone has any recommendations for books that they'd like to share.

With knitting books - please say if they use charts or write out instructions. Oddly, for someone who stitches, I don't really get on with knitting from charts - at least, not yet!

Knitted Poetry

I'm going to be taking part in the first ever attempt at a gigantic knitted poem, to celebrate the Poetry Society's centenary.

It's going to be fun, and I'm going to be doing it with some other of the SnB group I belong to. And what's really cute is that I'm going to be knitting the letter N!

None of the knitters know what the poem is we're working on. I hope it's not someone awful like Wordsworth or Tennyson!

Sheep in the Meadow - Shepherd's Bush

Design: Sheep in the Meadow (freebie)
Designer: Shepherd's Bush
Threads: DMC as charted
Fabric: 28 count evenweave, unknown colour

I stitched this for the Hooked on Exchanges bookmark exchange. It's a design I've stitched before - and lost, the Round Robin I did it for never returned home - and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I didn't have the called for buttons and charm, but found substitutes in my stash.

And here's a picture of the entire exchange I sent to Maria:

Bubby Rabbit

Design: Bubby (bunny variant). Pattern available here.
Designer: Vanessa Carter for Knitty
Yarn: Sirdar/Hayfield Bonus 100% acrylic, double knitting
Needles: 2.5mm

I needed a handmade gift for my niece's birthday, and I needed it quick. I'd made her a stuffy bunny last year and foolishly thought a little knitted something would be quicker. To be fair, this was done in a day, but it was rather more fiddly than I really should have chosen!

I worked it on finer needles than called for, to ensure a nice firm fabric, and that didn't realy help with the 'fiddle factor' but it did mean the stuffing was more even and the finished product firmer.

The yarn is not something I would use for myself, but as it had my niece's two favourite colours in it, it was a hit with her - and she is critical in tha way only assertive three year olds can be!

Ravelry

After being on the site for over a year, I've finally decided to make more use of Ravelry, instead of just using it as a repository for patterns. If anyone would like to friend me, I'm beebarf on there.

Speedy Cable Beret

Design: Speedy Cable Beret - Ravelry link here to free design
Designer: Paulina Chin
Yarn: Rowan Spray (60% wool, 40% acrylic) Colour 005 Mood
Needles: 8mm and 9mm

One of my local charity shops provided the yarn - I think I paid £0.50 for the ball, which is rather less than the RRP of £7.95 - but there was only one ball of this colour. So, what to make?

Well, of course a quick search of Ravelry provided the solution, and I got to work on this pattern. The pattern itself is great, but I think the yarn is really a bit too busy for it, as it doesn't really show up the cables well. And the yarn was *horrible* to work with. For something that was 60% wool, it was like working with a really bad acrylic. For such a "name" yarn, that sells for so much, I was very disappointed. And I think the project looks a bit like a sea anemone, or perhaps a jelly fish, if you take into account my hair acting as tendrils...

If I'm looking a little anxious, I was balancing my (then new) camera on the windowsill in the bathroom to use the self timer. Oh, and I don't have a vicious blemish on my nose - it's a diamond stud :o)

I have another ball of this yarn, in a green colourway. I'm not sure what to do with it - possibly a plain version of this beret, to show off the yarn better. And this beret may yet get ripped back - what do you think?

Bookmark Exchange Photos

I'm not going to apologise for the number of posts I've made today, catching up with my blogging, because this really deserves to be seen - I'm going to show you all the wonderful exchange Irmeli sent me all the way from Finland!

Although she has no blog of her own, she's obviously been reading mine, because my bookmark featured not only one of my favourite motifs - a beehive - but was stitched in my favourite colours!

Here is the whole exchange - with the bookmark, a sweet postcard, cute buttons, ribbon, fabric in my favourite colours - and a piece with sheep on!, and chocolate (very yummy!)

Here's a close up of the front - isn't it pretty?

And there's the back, personalised too. The piece is beautifully stitched and finished, and way too precious to go into a book, so it sits in a basket on one of my bookcases, where I can admire it without the risk of losing it!

Thank you so much for this gorgeous exchange!

Drawn Thread Exchange

I'm a member of a small group of people who are very talented and love to exchange some wonderful pieces - I feel very privileged to have been invited to join them. This is the piece I received from Marie - I had to use her photo to show the whole exchange as the package arrived when my camera was out of commission. Marie stitched a portion of the Brown Ranch sampler and mounted it on a photo album - which was just so perfectly co-ordinated, and the finishing and stitching is just perfect. You can see a bigger picture below - now I have a functioning camera!


I will use this album for treasured family snaps - most likely of my niece - and one day, I hope a very long time in the future, I will pass this on to her as an heirloom. She already loves crafts so would treasure this as much as I do already.

This is one of the pictures that I will print and add to the album - The Tot on her third birthday. She adores cake - especially chocolate cake - but isn't allowed it very often. I love the look of concentration on her face - she's very expressive!