happy halloween

I saw a photo of a crocheted spider web recently on facebook and wanted to have a go making one. After having a hunt on Ravelry found a great pattern Spider Web Snowflake by Deborah Atkinson. Its a good well written pattern and free at that. After I got over the confusion between UK and US crochet terms, I got on OK. My spider's legs could have done with a bit more glue though. A fun Halloween project!
Here's how I got on..

My own bit of yarn bombing in the hall.......

 

Dont eat too  much apple tart!

bye, Ali.

 

petite pets

I have just written up a pattern for a wee penguin - see below. He is just about 9 cms (3.5ins) tall. His body and hat are knitted in the round while other parts of him are knitted flat. I-cording is also used. If a loop was attached to the top of his head the penguin is small enough to be used for a hanging Christmas tree ornament. I'm hoping to write up a few more Petite Pet patterns  soon as they are such a fun size. Hope someone can make use of this pattern.
Bye for now, ali.

perceval penguin

 

 

PERCEVAL PENGUIN

THIS PATTERN IS COPYRIGHT PROTECTED.
 DO NOT REPRODUCE PATTERN.
 DO NOT SELL ITEMS KNITTED FROM THIS PATTERN FOR PROFIT - ONLY FOR PERSONAL OR CHARITABLE USE

 

NOT SUITABLE FOR SMALL CHILDREN

height - 9cms (3.5ins) tall

 

ABBREVIATIONS

k : knit                                             st(s) : stitch(es)

rd : round                                         tog : together

kfb : increase – knit into the front and back of the same stitch

rpt : repeat                                        M : make

psso : pass slip st over                                                                           

pwt : pull wool through (break off yarn and thread through sts)                  

MATERIALS

4 dpns size 3mm (US 2.5)

double knit yarn in black, white, orange and coloured

small amount of polyfill stuffing

sewing thread and sewing needle

two small buttons or beads 
 

BODY

Knitted in the round.

Cast on 18 sts with black yarn, leaving a long yarn tail.

Divide sts between 3 needles and join in the rd.

Rds 1 & 2 : k.

Rd 3 : p.

Rd 4 : k.

Rd 5 : (k1, kfb) rpt to end of rd (27 sts).

Rds 6 & 7 : k.

Rd 8 : (k1, kfb) rpt to last st– k1 (40 sts).

Rds 9 & 10 : k.

Next two rds form the tail.

Rd 11 : k2, (k2tog) twice, k to last 6 sts, (sl1, k1, psso) twice, k2 (36 sts). 

Rd 12 : k2, (k2tog) twice, k to last 6 sts, (sl1, k1, psso) twice, k2 (32 sts).
 

Rds 13 – 16 : k.

Rd 17 : k1, k2tog, (k2, k2tog) rpt to last st – k1 (24 sts).

Rds 18 – 19 : k.

Rd 20 : k1, k2tog, (k2, k2tog) rpt to last st – k1 (18 sts).

Rds 21 –22 : k.

Rd 23 : k2, k2tog, (k4, K2tog), rpt to last 2 sts – k2 (15 sts).

Continue with k for 15 rds.

pwt.

WINGS (make 2)

Cast on 5 sts with black yarn.

Continue with i-cord until work measures 5cms (2ins).

pwt.

FRONT

Knitted flat.

Cast on 5 sts with white yarn.

ROW 1 : k.

ROW 2 : p.

ROW 3 : k1, M1, k3, M1, k1 (7 sts).

ROW 4 : p.

ROW 5 : k1, M1, k5, M1, k1 (9 sts).

ROW 6 : p.

ROW 7 : k1, M1, k7, M1, k1 (11 sts).

ROW 8 : p.

ROW 9 : sl1, k1, psso, k to last 2 sts, k2tog (9 sts).

ROW 10 : p.

ROW 11 : k.

ROW 12 : p.

ROW 13 : sl1, k1, psso, k to last 2 sts, k2tog (7 sts).

ROW 14 : p.

ROW 15 : sl1, k1, psso, k to last 2 sts, k2tog  (5 sts).

ROW 16 : p.

ROW 17 : sl1, k1, psso, k1, k2tog (3 sts).

ROW 18 : sl1 purlwise, p2tog, psso.

Fasten off. 

BEAK

Knitted flat.

Cast on 4 sts with orange yarn.

ROW 1 : k.

ROW 2 : p.

ROW 3 : sl1, k1, psso, k2tog  (2 sts).

ROW 4 : sl1 purlwise, p1, psso.

Fasten off. 

FEET (make 2)

Cast on 3 sts with orange yarn.

Continue with i-cord for 1.5cms (0.5ins).

Continue work – knitting flat.

ROW 1 : kfb, kfb, k1 (5 sts) (right side).

ROW 2 : p1, k1, p1, k1, p1.

Cast off in rib (k, p, k, p, k). 

BEANIE HAT

Cast on 16 sts in coloured yarn.

Divide sts between three needles and join in the rd.

Rd 1 : k.

Continue k for a further 5 rds.

Rd 7 : (k2tog) rpt until end of rd (8 sts).

pwt. 

SCARF

Cast on 3 sts with coloured yarn.

Continue with i- cord until work measures 18cms (7ins).

pwt.

To Assemble
1. Pull yarn tight at the top of head and with a few stitches to secure.
2. Stuff body, do not overstuff.
3. Gather cast on edge of body and pull tight, loose yarn inside body.
For smaller pieces I prefer to darn end tails away and sew with sewing thread in a matching colour.
4. Sew wings to either side aprox 4cms (1.5ins) down from top of head.
5. Sew feet to base of body, sew along the icord of feet.

 
6. Sew around the edge of the white front attaching it onto body.
7. Fold beak in half lengthways and sew the two edges together, attach to front of face.
Sew buttons or beads for eyes. Alternatively embroider French Knots for eyes.

 

COPYRIGHT ALISON HOGG 2012

lavender lace

After my first attempt at lace knitting I was keen to have another go. This time I wanted a long scarf. I knitted  the border instructions of The Maple Leaves Pattern the whole way along the scarf. I used the surprisingly stretch Bind Off method as straight cast off was too tight. Rebecca (chemknits) does a good tutorial for this method. I didn't have blocking rods for the sides of the scarf so blocking wasn't a great success - I'm always very timorous anyway about blocking in case I ruin the item.
Here's some photos of my finished project.....

 

and yes the grandad shirt did actually belong to my grandad, so I suppose that makes it vintage. This was a favourite item of clothing when I was a student which must be about thirty years ago. Those were the days when grandad shirts were very much in fashion. Just to prove it here's a photo of me wearing it....

 

That's enough reminiscing for now......I always feel sad looking back and that's enough 2 ply knitting for now as well as I'm a definite double knit type of girl.

Bye, Ali.

 

sunday at st georges

If you haven't been to St Georges Market, Belfast, for a while you'll be pleasantly surprised.

There are the fruit and veg stalls with some exotic varieties for sale.

 

and the usual fish stall....

 

These days there are many craft stalls. I took a few photos as I wandered round.

There is the cute....

 

 the quirky.....

 

and the downright yummy.....

 

 

 mmmmmmh bought a few for after tea.
bye, Ali.
 

christmas knits

Sorry to mention the C word, but I suppose it is time to start making things for Christmas. One of my patterns got a mention in Issue 45, Let's Get Crafting, Knitting and Crochet magazine. My Gingerbread and Mince Pie pattern is along with eleven other Christmas knit ideas. I haven't bought a craft magazine for a while and was shocked at the cost, but to be fair the magazine comes with six balls of yarn, knitting needles and patterns inside.
Loved the photo they took of my two items.

Bye, Ali.
 

done

In the last post I was struggling with the Annis Shawl. After what seems a lifetime I have eventually finished it. Once the outer lace edge was knit, the rest of the shawl knitted up quite quickly. I was a bit timorous about blocking it and just gently pulled it and pinned it and then sprayed it with water. So my shawl is not as large as the one in the pattern. I must say I feel a sense of achievement at finishing as I nearly gave up a few times during the early stages. Here's a few photos of the finished shawl.

 

 close up of the lace edge

 

 

 

I used beads instead of knitting the nupps which made progress quicker

 



 

 

 

On with the next project now.

Bye, Ali.

 





oh

oh what a tangled web we weave .....
This seems to be the time of year all the spiders move inside. Don't know if they are adding to or detracting from my interior design with their lacy constructions. I am in the process of knitting my own lacy construction in the form of the Annis shawl to be found on the Knitty website. It's been tangled up quite a few times.

I've found it a bit of a challenge as I usually work on small projects - its hard keeping account of the 363 stitches. This is the first time I have knitted with 2ply yarn or added beads to a project. The project pages have been invaluable on Ravelry. Progress has been slow and has had a few false starts. I'll let you know how I go.
Have a good weekend, Ali.

tea cosy day

Today was the final of the tea cosy competition. There were some amazing ones, all beautifully displayed.

 

 

Here's some which caught my eye.....
"Pansy" - loved the colours in this one.

 

 

 

"Titanic Quarter" - I liked the way the cable stitch was used to represent the water.

 

 

 



The winning entry was an amazing Mad Hatters Tea Party one. I was more than pleased to win the Funniest Tea Cosy as the standard was very high, All the cosies were auctioned off for the Help the Aged charity.
Bye, Ali.

billboard art

Art has come to my part of Belfast. As part of the Art in the Eastside project, art has been splashed over billboards making it accessible to everyone. The project celebrates the people, history, culture and social aspects of East Belfast. There are eight different participating artists in twenty six locations. Makes a nice change from the usual ads.

I took a photo of the  billboard on the Beersbridge Road - "Invasion of the Sock Monkeys" by Katie Blue.

Katie Blue is a Belfast artist who specialises in making art from recycled junk. She makes sculptures, assemblages, prints paintings and of course sock monkeys.
Bye Ali.

innocent drinks big knit

Ive been meaning to knit up some of these wee hats for the Innocent Big Knit for a while. Using Juliet Bernard's pattern as a guide I knitted a few up using dpns.

Juliet Bernard's patterns are available on Ravelry and also on the Innocent site. I'm hoping to knit a few more as the deadline is the first of October. For every bottle of Innocent drinks, wearing a woolly hat sold, 25p goes to Age UK, to help older people keep warm over the winter.
I've also written a pattern up, a hat with a brim - see the post below. It is knitted in the round and the only sewing is round the brim.
Hope someone can make use of the pattern.
Bye, Ali.

INNOCENT BIG KNIT HAT WITH BRIM

Materials

4 dpns size 3.25mm

scraps of double knit yarn

sequins, beads for decoration (optional) 

Abbreviations

k : knit

p : purl

rd(s) : round(s)

st(s) : stitch(es)

rpt : repeat

yrn : yarn round needle

tog : together

pwt : pull wool through

 

Hat

Cast on 56 sts – leave a long yarn tail.

Divide  between three needles and join in the rd.

Rd 1 : k.

Rd 2 : k.

Rd 3 : (yrn, k2tog) rpt to end of rd.

Rd 4 : k.

Rd 5 : k.

Rd 6 : k.

Rd 7 : (k2tog) rpt to end of rd  (28 sts).

Rd 8 : p.

Next 10 rds : k.

Rd 19 : (k5, k2tog) rpt to end of rd  (24 sts).

Rd 20 : k.

Rd 21 : (k4, k2tog) rpt to end of rd  (20 sts).

Rd 22 : k.
Rd 23 : (k3, k2tog) rpt to end of rd   (16 sts).

pwt.

To form brim - fold cast on edge inwards to reverse side. Using yarn tail sew along cast on edge.

 

Weave other yarn end away.

Decorate with beads, sequins etc (optional)

 

copyright Alison Hogg 2012

ulster fry

Saw a tea cosy competition at St Georges Market, Belfast, advertised and thought I would have a go.
I wanted to make something with a local interest, so took my inspiration from the good aul Ulster Fry.
The top of cosy is supposed to resemble a plate with all the fried items, including potato farl and soda bread, Northern Ireland delicacies. Entries have to be submitted by the end of the month so there is still time to enter. All the cosies will be on show on Sunday 16th September and are being sold for Help the Aged charity.

and here's the finished cosy.......

 

.

Bye for now, Ali

yarn bombing

I heard about the guerrilla knitters had hit Newcastle, County Down and had to go see for myself. I hadn't realised this craze had reached Northern Ireland.
It was a very grey morning in Newcastle today but the knits certainly brightened up the Promenade and my day........

Seemingly the artists belong to the group S.O.C.K (Secret Outside Crocheters and Knitters).

This is the second time the group have targeted Newcastle, this time it coincides with the towns Arts Festival.

Bye, Ali.

diy

All craft work has ground to a halt lately. Im channelling all available energy into painting the bedroom. I have a great pair of wooden step ladders which belonged to my grandad. I suppose they would be described as vintage and have many layers of drips and splashes on them.

Thankfully I've nearly finished. Cant wait to swap the brushes and rollers for knitting needles.
Bye, Ali.

new pattern release

I have just completed my mini doll knitting pattern. She is only 6 inches tall and comes with three outfits, which can be changed.

casual wear

evening wear

dancewear

If you want a closer look or find out more, please visit my etsy / folksy shop.
Bye Ali.