Life LackaDaisiCal

Janine Bahus, aka Feral Knitter, recently did a post on recolouring a fair isle design - and she chose my "Hibiscus Cardi" pattern as her example. I must say, I love this new colourway! Janine goes into great detail about the process on her Feral Knitter Blog  and is offering this new colorway , as well as my original colourway ......here! It's fun to play with colour - the more shades you have on hand, the easier it is to play! Happy Knitting!

It's a good day....if you like snow.  It's been a while since Daisy and Lackie popped in to say hello. Daisy LOVES the snow...... She loves to show Lackie how to play in the snow.... See all of the snow that she has nosed through, rolled in and generally cleaned herself on? Yup, when she comes in from a snow adventure, once she's melted off, she is so nice and white. She takes her ball with her up onto the chair in the window to watch the world go by.... Eventually, they settle down for a nap, planning their next great snow adventure.... probably in about 15 minutes - I love these snow days LOL! It's a lovely winter day here.....really wet sticky snow and the potential for freezing......and I'm going to knit and maybe sort out some more stash!  Have a great dat everyone, stay safe, stay warm and happy knitting!

Going to a new home in Michigan with Kathy B!  Please get in touch with your address details Kathy to me at a.featonby at gmail.com - and I'll get a quote on postage to you. I have just set my blog to allow replies to comments......this is a new feature that blogger has implemented. So if any of you ask a question in a comment, I'll do my best to reply there.....and if someone else knows the answer to your question, well, they are more then welcome to jump right in and reply also.  By using reply, rather than another comment, it keeps the conversation intact....makes it easier to keep track of things.....so I hope that this becomes part of the conversation of this blog. Now, just so that you don't think I'm ONLY finding unfinished knitting projects in my ancient stash cupboard, well, let me tell you - I'm NOT!  I'm also finding attempts at being a beader.  I'm cracking myself up right now because the only thing I have ever finished from a bead kit that I bou...

It is interesting to me, that many accomplished knitters don't swatch, have never felt the need to swatch, and don't really know how to swatch. I meet one of these knitters on the Norway cruise....an accomplished knitter......Kaffe Fassett Tumbling Blocks throw, Kaffe cushions, Debbie Abrahams mystery blankets......all done without swatching. We discovered that we shared a great admiration for the designs of Kate Davies .  (I've mentioned her before and I'm going to mention her again because I'm sort of on a Kate Davies knit quest these days LOL!)  When discussing Boreal via e-mail since our return from Norway, my friend (name withheld to protect the innocent !) admitted that she really didn't swatch, and didn't know how to "read" her swatch. So this is for you........and anyone else who doesn't swatch and wonders why they should. Make a swatch - knit enough stitches and enough rows that you can measure over a 4" square.  Wash your swatch...

That I don't really like to rip things out.  In the past, I think this might have been what caused the stall, or complete dead stop, of a project. Last night I figured out that I'd made an error in my current project, Boreal by Kate Davies , and I had to rip back all of my lovely stranded work.......it pays to read the pattern people!  I had omitted to do the underarm increases - imagine that - I had just ASSumed that you continue straight up to the underarms.  I should have known better......... So, now that I KNOW that I don't like ripping things out....(I always knew this, I just didn't want to admit it.....) well, that's made my mind up about the Rowan California Cotton Fox Fibre - free to a good home - well not FREE, you have to pay the price of postage...... There are 4 untouched 50 gram skeins the knitted fabric and leftovers weight 422 grams - so that's equivalent to 8 more skeins....sorry but you'll have to rip this out yourself! So that you know w...

I see a pattern already.......body knit, shoulder seams done.....full stop - laughing out loud! I seem to remember this was a pattern from a magazine....not a Rowan pattern....  It was an interesting knit - needs blocking obviously. The two body pieces are done - and joined at at the shoulder. There are 4 full untouched skeins.....plus a couple of leftover partial balls and the body - what's a girl to do? I think that while I definitely don't want to figure out how to finish this - it would take ages to find the original pattern, and looking at it, nope, I don't want to finish this design.....but I must say that this yarn is lovely. Rowan California Cotton - DISCONTINUED Fox Fibre - Naturally grown cotton 50g - approx. 115 yards Shade 005 - Honey I think this can be recycled......but I need to rip it out, wash it, rewind it......and find just the right pattern for it.  At 22-24 sts to 4 inches, that's a DK weight isn't it??? Do any of you remember this stuff?  It wa...

start projects, get almost to the end, then ?!?!?!? we just abandon them to start something else. In my current mode of cleaning out my "stash"......I have found two almost complete projects. The first one is from this book. Jaeger Handknits - Six Jaeger Handknit designs using ODESSA Odessa was from my peach stage....I've always loved peach - and still have a touch of it in my decor. In this photo it looks more pink. I put it in the sunlight to catch the glimmer of the polyester "metal"  Having knit the body pieces, the two sleeves and the collar - I joined the shoulder seams and for some inexplicable reason, quit. WHY? Who knows..... It's interesting to look back at this project - one thing that I did on this project that I NEVER DO now....I joined in new balls of yarn in the middle of a row!!!! Now I always frog back to the seam edge.  In a cardigan like this where the front button bands are knit as you knit the front pieces - you would always join the new...

and the winner is........Jody in Peterborough! Jody if you could contact me via a.featonby at gmail.com and a big thanks to the Hubby for doing the draw!

Don't you just love it when someone is testing a microphone? Well this is the blogging version of that - me testing the blogger app. I think it works.

A few of you have asked me to post info on my " Sheep Heid Flock Cowl ". Well, I did a bit of modification to the original Sheep Heid motifs for my cowl.  Then when I saw the Rams and Yoes blanket......it's actually easier to give you an idea of how to do a cowl using the blanket pattern... well, it's probably best to have both patterns on hand so that you can use inspiration from both. My cowl weights 140 grams - it is HUGE - 46" bottom circumference, 32" top circumference, 13.25" in length.  I use a shawl pin to gather it all up at the neckline to make it sit better.  I may knit a smaller one some day. So, using the gauge as stated in the pattern, 7.5 sts and  8 rows to the inch....you have to figure out how small/large you want YOUR cowl to be - measure one that you like the size of and then you have to fit the motifs into your sizing.   If you don't already have a cowl - a good reference is to take a measurement of around your face - under you...

If you read my blog, you know that I am a fan of Kate Davies.....and if you haven't seen her blog entry for today, check it out before you read on please..... rams and yowes I've been waiting for this to appear - because after I'd knit my Sheep Heid.....I wanted more....and I had a design in mind.  I was so excited at how it was turning out that I e-mailed a photo to Kate....just to show her what her Sheep Heid had inspired. Well, this not so great mind was inspired by the great mind of Kate Davies - and it's not surprising that we both had the idea of a flock of sheep.......her flock was out being test knit at the time.....so I decided to keep my flock tucked away until her flock was ready to make their debut. This cowl is quite large - so I use a shawl pin to gather up the neckline a bit.  I realized this while I was wearing it on the Nordnorge in Norway.....you might have caught a glimpse of it in this photo. It is so large in fact that I think Kate, being so petite,...

THE UNRAVELING GREGOR KNITTED CALENDAR 2012 I saw this over at the Needled Blog and did a quick search - this is an intriguing idea - such an obvious way to respect that time is passing. It wouldn't work around here with two Westies that would think that the unravelled part was a great thing to play with LOL!

So I dove into the old stash cupboard today - I've sort of got an idea of what is in here..... projects of shame that are so close to being finished....but for some reason are not.... projects started.....but frankly were way over my knitting ability way back when they were bought.... yarn bought with no specific project in mind (my green phase LOL) and then there are the "What WAS I thinking" yarns. I have to make decisions about these projects, decide, take action, and move on. In the WWIT category - we have two today. Fiaba yarn by Filatura Di Crosa Made in Italy 40% Mohair, 38% Wool, 16% Acrylic and 3% Polidamide 50 gram ball, 100 meters/109 yards Recommended gauge:  16 sts and 20 rows to 10 cm on 5 mm needle Handwash per label instructions 17 balls - $50 (includes postage to the US or Canada) Liberty Boucle by Louisa Harding 60% Mohair, 25% Viscose, 15% Polyamide 50 gram ball, 76 meters/83 yards Shade 04 - brown multi Recommended Gauge: 12 sts x 18 rows per 10 mm Su...

But it is important not to totally cut yourself off of the things you love. I tried this last year too - let's see how long I can keep it up........ No store bought baked goods! When you bake it yourself, you know what is in it......can you say that about store bought baked goods with long best by dates? Last year (last week LOL) I made a Walnut Fudge Cake .....I've shown this before here on the SOS blog.  There are still a couple of pieces left. This year (laughing today) rather than pitch 4 bananas that were going a bit soft for our liking, I made a Banana Walnut Loaf. Hmmmm, DH immediately made tea and we had a slice with butter on it! My favourite go to cook book is the Bero Recipe book which uses their self-raising flour.  Unfortunately you can't get Bero Flour here in Canada - but you can get Brodie Self-Raising Flour....it works just as well! You can find these Bero Recipe books being sold on E-bay (I wonder why?)  when you can get all of the Bero Recipes on line -...

Thank you for the great feedback on my yarn "diet". When I first though about doing this, my friend Renee ( Froggiemeanie ) was right there and volunteered to join me in this great adventure - thanks Renee!  As a "Guest Contributor" Renee - I expect you to step in here every once in a while for a pep talk ok? Louise is thinking along similar lines - looking at her blog she does extraordinary needlework - check it out at NEEDLEPRINT VIERLANDE STITCH ALONG .  Poor Louise.  She is planning a trip to Wollmeise, er Munich which is near where the Wollmeise shop is and thinks that it may be hard to resist:)! Cindi ( Cynthiabrumpton ) is already on a yarn diet and hopes to continue in 2012.  I met Cindi on the Eucalan Scotland/England tour in September.  Although Cindi has not one but TWO knitting trips planned for this year - her "diet" is to knit more than she buys!  Way to go Cindi! Cindi blogs at Purl One  and also is the author of   Purl P...

Yes, you heard me - a voluntary yarn diet! I have long since had to admit that I HAVE WAY TOO MUCH YARN !!!  This is not necessarily a bad thing - but I have decided to face up to the reality (standing up and holding my knitting needles aloft) - I am a yarn addict! So here's what I'm thinking.....(moving the knitting needles to over my heart)... In 2012, I pledge to.... Buy yarn with more consciousness...by.... Doing a full inventory of my yarn stash.   This will make me fully conscious of what I actually have in my stash. Shopping my stash first.  When I want to start a new project, have a thorough search of my stash to see what I have on hand that may be suitable for the design. Swatch, Swatch, Swatch!  When I find something that I even think may work - swatch the design!  Sometimes just doing a swatch satisfies the itch.  I used to do this even when contemplating buying yarn for a design - buy one ball and swatch.  Sometimes you figure out that y...