Knit, Crochet and Natter 7: the School of Stitchcraft and Wizardry

[lazylinguist]

A thread for woolly crafters of all kinds, from beginner level to advanced sorcery!

Previous thread here

Thanks @MerylSqueak (sorry I just didn't have the energy to scroll back and see who'd posted what ). They are lovely gloves, but as I can't knit I won't make any. And I'm not sure I could cope with gloves with 'room' in them. not that I have weird sensory issues or anything

@CrochetBug I've made a few wrist warmers but not gloves - I'm with you on the need for gloves to fit snugly but my fingers are hideously knobbly from arthritis and my favourite ancient leather gloves no longer fit. I may have to go into mittens.

I am trying to have only one thing on the go so have unravelled the hat (for me) I started with some baby wool that's too thick for me to manage.

@lucysmam sounds like your first day wasn't too bad then? ☺️ also thank you for asking about the jumper scarf and thank you @CrochetBug for linking those different ones, I love them and haven't found a decent crochet pattern until now! Also sorry to feel you haven't been feeling well, hope you're on the mend soon!

@Hookalong I've made wrist warmers and wrote my own pattern for gloves I was just curious about those mittens as my insta is full of them. And they are beautiful!

@lucysmam glad the new job went well on day 1. Long may that continue.

Thanks @sophs29. I've got muscle pain from being sick so much and a headache today but have been awake nearly all day which is an improvement.

I was just curious about those mittens as my insta is full of them. And they are beautiful!

My Insta is too. I only really use Instagram to follow knitting and crochet accounts and journalling acounts plus a couple of other random things. There are gazillions of those Nordic-style mittens like the ones I'm making.

I prefer them fairly snug-fitting and I dithered over whether to make them in XS or S/M. I went for the Xs, so I hope they're not too small. I have pretty small, fairly slim hands though!

Day two went well, too! It's ace thanks for asking @sophs29.

I have adopted the outdoor paint area so am busily mentally planning 6 different types of "brushes" to use out there, on rotation, so it's more interesting for the children; it's very uninspiring atm. My fellow guiders have been told this evening that they're to collect interesting textured things for me to turn into brushes 🤣

I've had two requests for crochet makes today too - one for a jumper for a sausage dog; they look fun! And one from one of my best friends for dino's for her boys' Christmas eve boxes (so plenty of time for those ones!).

& I had it in my head to make a jumper for myself too 🙄 until dd2 wanted something else, at least!

@CrochetBug thank you for those links, I've saved them all for a proper look over the weekend, when I have more time (haha!) I do really like them...maybe one of those in the deramores green tea 🤔

Hope todays a better day @CrochetBug

@lucysmam so glad it's going well! At my DCs nursery they have a couple of transparent shower curtains hanging up on the fence which the children paint, and then they wash it off later ready for next time! My DS absolutely loves it! He'd love the idea of different brushes too, it's something we do in our garden, we also paint leaves and imprint them, sounds like you're having fun ☺️

Aww - so glad it's going well @lucysmam!

I've had a good few days of supply teaching. I feel like I've got my mojo and confidence back after years of not being in secondary schools that much. You get rusty at dealing with the kids' behaviour! Supply isn't like teaching your own subject, but even so I'm kind 9f enjoying it some of the time! Dh has finally got his postponed interview for the Headship in Surrey on Monday, so that should be interesting...

I'm still getting on well with my mitten - but it's making me neglect ds' socks! I'm really bad with having multiple WIPs on the go - I always end up neglecting one!

I've lost the next colour I need for my blanket - I expect i've confiscated it off ddog and hidden it out of her reach but no idea where!

Just popping along here to say that I'm all of a dither.
The Junior Engineer, who's 12 and a goth (blonde, tall, solid, male, but prone to unrelieved black) wants me to knit this -
www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/the-witching-hour

(He loves crows, ravens and all sorts of dark birds!)

He wants this dark red but www.theknittingnetwork.co.uk/stylecraft-batik-dk-cherry-1904?gclid=Cj0KCQiAip-PBhDVARIsAPP2xc2SuggFy6oZPhvxr1E8NBvGHa0gej7QtmgWt_lL0GXUAMuIpmqS2poaAq6SEALw_wcB
Do you think this will be enough contrast, or would it be better to knit the main motif in a solid colour?

Oh wow @MrsRussell that's cool! Does he want it with black as the other color? I think it will be fine. I'm making a jumper with the more purpley/Berry colour from that range. The white is just flecks really. So although it's not a solid colour, it almost works up as if it is.
I'll take a photo of it and show what I mean in a min when I can be bothered to move.

@MrsRussell. I think it'll look like he's murdered someone! So probably exactly what he wants, I imagine with the contrast in black it would look quite stunning. I'd get one ball and knit some up to see if he likes it before ordering too much!

I love how it looks SO different on different people, in different lengths & colours!!

@lucysmam. I'm glad the job seems to be going well, if knackering!! I ❤️ That 'scarf' -tempted to buy it in the light grey, but I think it might would be too small on me, if I knit it myself I can, at least, make it bigger!!

Life sucks, in my 20's I had to buy childrens clothes as ladies clothes in the smallest size were too big, now I have the opposite problem!!

@CrochetBug. Hope you're feeling better day on day!!

Ooo crazy I hope you have another thread title ready… I’d help you out but I’m so rubbish at wordplay. Fingers crossed for your DH’s interview on Monday.

Glad the new job is going well lucysmam even if it’s less time to crochet.

I’m going to have less time to crochet over the next few weeks. DD wouldn’t settle today so I walked to the village library because it’s free and it was open. I couldn’t see any books that immediately interested me so I picked a mystery book wrapped in newspaper and now I feel I need to read it (it does like quite interesting to be fair). I had a look to see if they had any crochet books but it was just how to crochet books rather than pattern books. They did have a whole stand of Mills & Boon in large print though with another stand of other romance, also in large print. There’s obviously a certain demographic who use the village library… and I don’t think I’m it

@MrsRussell here's how the batic yarn looks worked up. Although knitting would look different. I think it's a 'solid' enough colour though.

And here's the socks I finished. One seems to be bigger than the other, not sure if its a tension issue, which i don't usually have, or a counting issue. I've got a couple of things I'd change if I made them again, and I won't buy the yarn again. Not even sure I want to use the other ball I've already got! The colours are beautiful but that's it.

@MrsRussell I'm not usually into things like that but I think that pattern is gorgeous!

@CrochetBug those socks are lovely too! How frustrating about the sizing! What yarn did you use and why didn't you like it?

@InTheNightWeWillWish I love the sound of a mystery wrapped book! Hope you enjoy it!

Hi all!

I love that colour in your jumper @CrochetBug. I thought it would be way more variegated from the ball... Those are cosy looking socks too!

Scrolling back a bit but your jumper looks amazing on @NiceCardigan! Great fit and lovely colours on you.

Good luck to your DH @cazyjinguist! I love your mittens btw... Another kiwi popped up on the selling group last night, I'm just here to tempt you but as my grasp of English geography is a bit dubious I should probably apologise in advance

Glad to hear the jobs going great @lucysmam

You can browse the library catalog and get books ordered in to your local library here @InTheNightWeWillWish, then once you've ordered a few they bring more in on that theme to tempt you The newspaper wrapped books sounds interesting!

Oops, I meant to tag @crazyjinglist. Hope no-one has the NN cazyjinguist

I'm constantly eagerly clicking on Kiwi posts on those selling groups, @FlaviaAlbiaWantsLangClegBack, but they are always hundreds of miles away from me, unfortunately!

@InTheNightWeWillWish - I'm still trying to think of a new thread title. Better hurry up!

@sophs29 it was from Hobbii and was called crazy sock yarn I think. The thickness is all over the place, so thin and wiry in places and almost fluffy in others. It's not very soft but I wearing them today and they aren't awful.

Those socks are gorgeous.
I found a hole in my blanket and it was a toss up whether I tried to fix it or unravelled. I unravelled 3 days worth of work :( Just caught it up again.
DS has found a flat to move into in March so I'm hoping it will be ready to give him when he moves or maybe for Christmas.

Beautiful socks, @CrochetBug! I need to get on with ds' ones. I think I'll finish one mitten and then do a bit of sock before I start on the next one. I seem to be really rubbish at juggling 2 projects atm.

I've just got the decrease rows at the end of the mitten to do, then I'll need to go back and make the thumb. It's funny - instead of casting off a section or putting some stitches on a stitch holder, the pattern gets you to knit with a 20cm but of scrap yarn the stitches where the thumb will join, then slip those stitches back onto the left needle and knit them again with the normal yarn. Then when you come back to do the thumb later, you work the needle into the stitches above and below the scrap yarn bit, then pull the scrap yarn out! I've never done that method before!

I like the idea of mystery books @InTheNightWeWillWish. I'm in a virtual book group and get to read books before they are published - they can be a bit of a random selection!

Phew - I've thought of a title for Thread 8 . Still got room for some more posts on here though!

Oh! My! Goodness! I cannot remember the last time my day started at 6:15am & I sat down at almost 9pm thanks to telephone call parents evening 🙄 and then my lunchtime supervisor rang me to talk through a proposed change before she approaches our HT about it tomorrow so she wasn't just dumping a change on me & we ended up talking through a couple of courses we need to do & a bit of a moan as well!

I haven't even washed up yet 🤯think that'll wait until after work tomorrow now though! I'm ready for bed! And my poor knees feel old tonight from all the carpet time & getting down to play with the kids 🤣

I did have an hour's peace earlier though, which I'm now thankful for, and am about 15 rows off being ready to add ribbing to the tops of dd1's socks and their laces. And wrote down a pattern for a dog coat that I think will be small enough for a miniature dachshund (I'm sure she said he's a miniature) but need to wait for measurements & yarn before I consider adjustments.

@InTheNightWeWillWish what is your mystery book? I haven't read anything much for quite a while. Nothing's jumped out at me!

I love "mystery books". We used to do a stall at the school fayre called "blind date with a book." Wrap books in brown paper and write a cryptic description on it so people know it's a genre they like.
I'm reading a book at the moment called The Tudor Bride. I'm really enjoying it. I'm also working my way through "Trans" on the kindle app on my phone.

Finished another WIP today, DS2s 'camouflage' hat. Now him and his friend have matching ones

@lucysmam sounds exhausting!

@Hookalong I hate it when I find a mistake. Once I know it's there I can't ignore it and have to frog and fix. Although Mum and I did fix some holes on an old blanket that my Great (or maybe great great) Grandma made!