What wool or knitting treat should I ask dh for as a birthday present?

[Groveregg]

Any ideas? Dh is asking me what I want for my birthday next month and keeps rolling his eyes when I mention wool. It needs to be something really wearable, and a bit of a treat for me obviously. Dh is really put off as 2 years ago I asked for Noro yarn and I have twice knitted it into jumpers and twice unravelled it as they looked so terrible on. And then last year I asked for some Colinette and am still mulling over what to make out of it as I couldn't get it to the right tension for the original pattern without it looking really holey. So he's not convinced...

Also thinking of asking for Rowan International membership, has anyone else got this and is it worth the money?

My mum has. Its forums are her mumsnet. Now lots of her friends are my age!

There's at least one mumsnetter on there too, I think.

Message withdrawn

i got some denise interchangeable circular knitting needles for christmas!

and am member of rowan (did that myself)

have a browse through some of the rowan books and specify which colour of yarn you want. what kind of style do you think you'd like?

also big boxes on wheels to put stash in

I'm a Rowan International member and I think it is worth the money - in fact they have just reduced the cost!
If your dh baulks at buying wool, ask for a ticket to one of the Rowan/John Lewis day courses in knitting techniques and have an enjoyable day out
I'd kill for a day to myself to just hear about finishing techniques, or lace knitting or something

Hello bundy

hello marina
have you discovered ravelry yet?

oh yes, the courses.

you could always go for broke and go on one of the rowan courses up in yorkshire.

i think he, like many non-knitters, is missing the point

non-knitters see wool in terms of the final product. they say things like "oh but wouldn't it be cheaper to buy ?". So if you told a non-knitter that you had bought wool and knitted it up not once but twice-yes, they'd roll their eyes.

OTOH if you tell a knitter you've knitted up a jumper not once but twice then they nod sagely at how you have managed to sqeeze two sweaters worth of enjoyment (not just the knitting but the choosing of the pattern...) out of one birthday present.

This, I think, is why variageted yarns actually sell. They look AWFUL if made into pretty much anything, but I admit they are fun to knit with...

actually marina, HAVE you discovered ravelry? I don't think I've seen you on there...

What about a Lantern Moon case for your knitting needles, preferably chock full of LM needles?

I dropped my Rowan membership because I was finding so little in the lags that I wanted to make, but if you like the patterns then it would be worth considering.

Hello all

hello tamum

am loving ravelry

spend hours gazing at handspun/hand dipped treasures

sigh

Hello bundle I am spending hours reading the thread about Mystical Creation yarns, it's like JF all over again I do love Ravelry, I must say....

dh sees me gazing smiling at screen and looks when he realises it's knitting stuff again

See, it saves money, because all that time we could be actually knitting, and therefore using up yarn, we are just gazing at Ravelry. Talking of which, the new Knitty should be up today, hurrah.

Oh good this has taken off! Yes fillyjonk you are quite right about knitting two jumpers (and I haven't finished yet, there will be a third outing at some point for the Noro) and about the variegated yarns (apart from Colinette) that always look so beautiful in skeins and then terrible knitted.

Lots of good ideas here thank you - I am quite enjoying this. I like the idea of the Denise needles. The workshops sound great but all a bit hard for the next few months as I'm breastfeeding and can't seem to express - maybe next year. I do want some yarn as well to bulk out my stash, probably with something plain this time. Has anyone tried any alpaca, would this be a good treat?

I knitted a hat in alpaca silk yarn - it was lovely and I promptly lost it . No. 2 is still only half done...

this

www.loopshop.gb.com/index.html?pageTitle=Blue_Sky_Alpaca_Silk&pageDesc=Highsheen_luxury_a_surefire_c lassicComposition100AlpacaWeightandyardageApprox50grams110yds&action=detail&maincatID=0&ca tID=&prodID=2184&brandID=

alpaca would be lovely

dh saw some llamas in field in sussex last friday...but they were a bit fast..

groveregg, yes do something smallish it will buoy up your confidence. also with v small child you need something manageable, but beautiful

Oo I love the look of that effieperine!

Bundle I shall quote that to dh, about manageable but beautiful! I do want to do a jumper or cardigan for myself so I'm wondering about chunky wool (got a job lot of cheap Rowan Spray the other day though, and don't want to do overkill on chunky things!). If I'm being honest it probably ought to be machine washable but I might ignore that and just stash the finished article away until weaning has become a bit more civilised.

I saw some lovely looking Manos del Uruguay yarns on a website the other day, has anyone tried it?

I Suggest a Kim Hargreaves kit - they are wonderful sweaters and cardigans. I covet dozens of them. I'd be over the moon to be bought one (of my choice) as a gift!

www.kimhargreaves.co.uk

You need to look under collections and SPRING-SUMMER etc. They come gift packaged with buttons and everything you need.

these are lovely

I have a problem with needles though. I can resist yarn quite easily, but not needles...

I think the maggie cardigan on the kim hargreaves website is lovely, could really imagine wearing it over the summer

(it's in the drop down list of collections; spring/summer; new beginnings)