Knit, Crochet and Natter 3: Is it really still January?!

[lazylinguist]

All welcome! Previous thread here

What a lovely baby jumper @Kate105 !

I need to get on and order some yarn for the cushion cover!

Ooo what colours are you going for @lazylinguist?

My mum asked me the other day if I needed any yarn as she has a lot she won't use (I think she's got arthritis in her hands and her fingers lock so she can't really knit or crochet anymore). I told her it depends how you define "need" but there is space in my cupboard for more if that counts
Anyway. I don't need any more cushions, but mum wants some so I told her I'll attempt to make them for her and she's going to provide the yarn and needles.

It might be coming together after all!

It's the one thing I dislike about crochet, you have to do quite a few rows before you get a feel for if you're doing it right!

Ive ordered the sirdar hayfield aran glencoe which is the creamy tweed

@tizwozliz that blanket looks great! I agree the King cole bamboo is lovely to work with. I've made a couple of Market bags with it.

Creamy tweed sounds lovely @bruffin. Mum wants cream cushions but thinks she has cream yarn somewhere. She's knitted her whole life and inherited my Grandmas stuff as well. I've told her I'm more than happy to have it all
I've actually got about 6 balls of cream aran but they are earmarked for a baby blanket so she can't have them for her cushion

I think I'm going to go for the Glencoe as well. I toyed with the idea of a brighter colour, but it won't really suit my room. It's going to go on my boring dark grey armchair at the end of the dining room by the massive fish tank!

So, hypothetically speaking, if I had some drops nepal left over ( Aran weight) what size knitting needles should I be looking at if I was going to attempt a cushion cover - 5 mm? Any other considerations? Needle length?

I'd go for 5mm, as that's what it says on the pattern and you are using Aran weight as specified. Worth doing a swatch to check gauge though maybe, if you're planning on using the size of cushion it says in the pattern. I've only just noticed there is a zip involved - I've never attached a zip to anything before!

Now I know how hard it was to choose the wool for the CAL. I am looking at these 3 possible colors for the KAL. What do you think? I am a sucker for Teal, but I have this beautiful blue chair in my home office and maybe I should go for the Whole Grain or the Pearl.

Ooo. That's gorgeous! I love the teal, but the sand would be better for a blue chair. Maybe its just because I'm skint, but that's going to be an expensive cushion cover!

Oh actually you'll only need 2 balls. For some reason I thought it needed 4

So somethng like this to start with?

www.amazon.co.uk/KNITPRO-Zing-Knitting-Single-5-00mm/dp/B010G01EBW?tag=mumsnetforu03-21

@tizwozliz I would recommend using circular needles as you can use them for knitting backwards and forwards and in the round and are less cumbersome to hold than straight needles. I would go for a circular needle that is at least 80cm so you could also use it for magic loop knitting if that appeals. I’d recommend Addi needles, although I also had amazing customer service from prym when I was using their ergonomic needles and the end broke. They send me a replacement circular needle and also one of their bamboo circular needles in case the other one was disappointing! Knit pro are also ok. I like the kardonz needles which are very smooth.

I agree with Winterrobin @tizwozliz
I dont use straight needles anymore for anything. I bought the knitpro symfonie interchangeable starter set, but thats a bit expensive if you havent knitted before

I'll try to post my latest creations. I'm getting the hang of this sock lark now - although the ankle socks were thrown across the room at one particularly frustrating point. I ran out of pink wool so finished them with some leftover mustard - who is going to see them inside my footwear? At last I felt brave enough to continue the pattern on the instep this time.

Lovely jumper Kate I'd wear it too.

Those socks are beautiful @ginghamtablecloths.

My mum was saying something about how long the needles needed to be. I glazed over and told her to provide whatever she thinks I need. I'll see what she says about circular needles. She'll probably tell me they are modern nonsense or something

I feel like I’m really getting the hang of crochet, can talk the lingo. Then I come on this thread and see a knitting post and it’s straight over my head. I think I’ve a little way to go before I’m a yarn guru.

Before lockdown we started volunteering at a care home in our village, obviously we’ve not been able to visit recently but we had a zoom call earlier. I mentioned that I’ve picked up crochet and the home asked if could make some Easter stuff. I’ve said I’ll give it a go and then told DH that means I need to buy more yarn I’ve taken tomorrow off and I was planning on trying to finish my CAL and get quite far in with my throw for my mum, with the view I might be able to join the KAL with a crochet cushion cover. But tomorrow will probably now be spent finding patterns and looking at wool! I need to shrink my list, not grow it!

Oh that's lovely @InTheNightWeWillWish I was a senior in a care home before having my DC's and they really appreciate things like that!
If you type Easter crochet in Pinterest loads of lovely things come up!
I wanted to find a baby lamb/bunny hat to make for my DS but couldn't find one I liked

gingham those socks look lovely. I do like snuggly socks (my kids think that's weird 🤷‍♀️)

I'm practising foundation double crochet - it does not look at all uniform and neat & is actually frustrating me more than dc into a starting chain 🙈

I may start the cardi twice, with two balls of yarn, and see which looks better to carry on with!

Lovely socks, @ginghamtablecloths! Even though I'm a massive sock-knitting fan and have made quite a lot of pairs, I've never branched out beyond rib and stocking stitch!

I need help please. I am knitting 1x1 rib stitch. When I get it to the desired length it states knit stocking stitch til it's x length. Do I start the the stocking stitch on the wrong side or right side please? I am assuming right side but I am not certain.

I'm practising foundation double crochet - it does not look at all uniform and neat confused & is actually frustrating me more than dc into a starting chain

That sounds like my experience, I gave up and am now much better at starting chains!

I think I prefer to start with a chain tizwoz; I'm all for saving a bit of time but not if it frustrates me & doesn't look any better!

A foundation row is much stretchier than a chain which is one of the big benefits of using it.