It's Chriiiiiiiiiistmas!

Which means it is time for the CtnY Secret Santa swap!
Inside the parcel i found all these shiney gifts...

The gift tag reads - "To Lukey, to help with the Christmas flatulance"
Brilliant! I wonder if it works on Blokes? :oD

Inside all the shineyness i found:
A skein of Yarn Yard sock club yarn, a campervan mug, a pretty little heart, and the cutest piece of campsite fabric.
I feel well and truly spoilt, thankyou to my Santa who, if i have guessed the clue correctly, is Jessica :o)

OH! And Lukey's gift? Some charcoal biscuits which i am sure he will love with a bit of cheese after dinner tomorrow LOL

More Finished things!

Oh yeah baby, i'm on a rollllllll... ;o)

I worked out where i was going wrong with the Centuria hat, i was missing the K1, M1 at the beginning of the W&T row which was making the W&T be in the wrong place - at one point i had 5 wraps on the same stitch! DOH!
I worked it out though and once i got going there was no stopping me! One hat knitted in two evenings, luvvly jubbly!
Photos to follow, i need a model ;o)

Last night i knit a fingerless mitt, just a basic 2x2 rib done int he round for 3" then flat for 10 rows for the thumb hole then back int he round for another 3". The idea is that they can be worn on either hand and either way up so you can pull them on in a hurry ;o)
They'll be a suprirse pressie for someone, i'm now worrying that they are too basic and i should make her something a bit more fancy, maybe with a couple of cables at the cuff and fingers...
The problem is, once i start thinking like that i end up sitting at the computer looking for the "right" pattern for a couple of hours, then i get sucked into Ravelry even further when i go off and read notes, forum posts, blog posts... so, all that knitting time gets wasted! I think i will stick with what i've already got, i can get the second one finished today and they can go in the post tomorrow ;o)

This evening is nephews Nativity play - i've been every year to either his or his big sister's play and i am so looking forward to it. I have knitting ready to take, i have money for a photo and i have tissues ready cos something about children singing makes me cry!

I've spotted this on a few blogs so i thought i'd give it a go, i'm surprised by the result actually, i'd never have thought of myself as a blue person :o?

Your rainbow is shaded blue.

What is says about you: You are a tranquil person. You appreciate friends who get along with one another. You share hobbies with friends and like trying to fit into their routines.

Find the colors of your rainbow at spacefem.com.

I have a huge craving to knit a log cabin blanket and i think i've just found the colours to use for it :oD
I have some of the 400g balls of bonus aran in the loft, one in a lovely spring green and one in a pale denimmy blue, alli need is a ball of loganberry and i'm all set :oD

The Christmas knitting continues!

I've just finished making my stocking for the CTnY "Christmas Stocking swap" so now all i have to do is get it filled and on it's way. It has to be sent by the 15th of December to arrive before Christmas as i really want my partner to have it to open on Christmas Day. I have a few last minute touches to add and then everything can be wrapped and stuffed in and it can be posted :oD
I'm feeling fairly optimistic that i can do it before the deadline!

I've cast on for Dragon Scarf Number Two and am about a third of my way through it, i am hoping to spend all of today knitting on it so hopefully that will be done by tonight and can be crossed off the list!

Speaking of which, the list looks a little something like this now:
Ruth's socks - done!
Dragon Scarf #1 - done!
Christmas Stocking and present - done!
Dragon Scarf #2 - started
Centuria for Ruth - started but will need to frog and restart and knit with no interruptions
Centuria for Trout - DITTO!
I love the pattern, i love that it's knit sideways and i am looking forward to knitting them both (Ruth's not so much, she chose a boucle yarn!!) but they involve short rows, counting and keeping track of rows and i can't do that unless i write it all out and tick it off as i do it! Once i'm "in the groove" it should be easier going, i mean, this Dragon is definitely easier than the first Dragon so why shouldn't that relate to the hats too? The hat is worked in sections and i am hoping that by the time i have worked one section that the second will come to me a LOT easier... if it doesn't i may well have a spiral bound copy of "Going Straight" for sale :o(
So, back to Chrimble knitting... i'd like to get some more washcloths made, just a couple, so that i have some emergency presents ready to hand out should i need them. I also have two lots of gorgeous Sublime that is earmarked for cowls, one for Mum and maybe one for me! Then there's a pair of mittens, a hat and a scarf that i would have liked to have squeezed in but in all honesty i don't think i'll get them done. If i can manage to get this scarf done today though i will definitely feel more optimistic about "extra" knitted pressies!

Alls i gotta do is stay AWAY from the computer!! heheheeee

Advent has begun!

And what better way to start the "countdown to Christmas" than with an advent calendar specially for us knitterers :oD

Meret

Meret
Originally uploaded by franneyk

Finally got round to taking photos of some Finished Objects yesterday!

Meret
Originally uploaded by franneyk

Here is Woolly Wormheads Mystery Beret knitted in the Debbie Bliss Aran Tweed that Noo sent me in the Secret Santa, and even if i say so myself it's GORGEOUS! I was worried that it would be too small - i forgot to take pre-blocking photos but it was a lot smaller before i blocked it quite severely over a biscuit tin!! It was more like a bobble-less bobble hat than an extra slouch beret to be honest and i was quite worried, especially as i struggled so hard to get the gauge right!!

Meret
Originally uploaded by franneyk

Spring Forward socks for Ruth

Spring Forward socks for Ruth
Originally uploaded by franneyk

Finally Finished!!
I cast these on in August! The first sock was finished in September and the second sock hung around for ages. It only took me one evening to knit the foot though so i don't know why i put it off for so long!

They are deliberately non-identical but i love how the cuff and toe ended up being the same colour on each sock - i have 35g left so i should get a couple of cuffs for a pair for me too - they'll just have to have contrasting feet ;o)

Spring Forward socks for Ruth
Originally uploaded by franneyk

Pattern: Spring Forward socks from by Linda Welch
I used the pattern only on the cuff, i also did a picot cuff rather than a ribbed one - i just think it looks nicer ;o)

There be Dragons!

There be Dragons!
Originally uploaded by franneyk

One blind dragon!
I just have to sort out his eyes and his "snort" - i'll do that when the second scarf is finished though ;o)

All in all the scarf came out pretty well - i had to rewrite the pattern though in a way that i could keep track of it which was a bit of a pain, especially as i had to do it twice because the first time i crossed off the rows in pen DOH!!

I love the spikes, they way they are formed is ingenious!

It came as a kit from Morehouse Merino, via a destash on CTnY ;o) but as the scarves are for small boys i wanted to knit them in a machine washable/tumble dry safe wool. I actually really struggled to find something suitable in the right colour, it has to be Welsh Dragon red you see and not many superwash wools come in such vibrant colours. I settled on Hayfield Bonus Aran but i'm still not very happy with the choice as it's a little squeaky and i wanted something soft and snuggly :o(

Still, they are boys, they won't care!! Hopefully they won't even notice that the spikes have gone wonky in several places because i kept moving the centre stitch out by one stitch! ::rolls eys::

the knitted vase...

knitted "vase"
Originally uploaded by franneyk

guarded by a dragon!

Busy busy!

What with going out drinking, finding a new knitting project to play with and deciding that my shit-hole of a house needs cleaning i've had little time for blogging! I also have sewing commitments to try and fit in and tonight is my nephews Nativity play which i am very much looking forward to - except the roads will be frozen and it'll be dark and i hate driving in those conditions!
So, new knitting project? I've sat and stared at my huge ball of Marble for months now and i finally decided it wanted to be a Lady Eleanor so i cast it on and have now ordered a second ball so i can finish the other half :oD
I am loving the way it's coming out with a patchwork effect rather than the usual stripe effect you see with Noro or Kauni (and another just because) yarns and it has really whetted my appetite for more modular knitting so once this is done i will be casting on my clamshell stole in a variety of toning sock yarns - got to use them up somehow!
I had a small count and i worked out i have roughly ENOUGH sock yarn now :oD
I can't possibly say how much as certain people read my blog occasionally and i get nagged about my stash enough as it is, but let's just say that i could knit a pair a month for at least a year, maybe even two ;o)
My CTnY and Ravelry friends obviously know differently, but shhhhhhhh - keep it under your hat :oD
As for the going out drinking, last weekend was our club Christmas do. We started off in Little Bay restaurant where i had pork medallions for starter with black pudding (never had it before, quite enjoyed it despite knowing it was made with pig's blood) and a slice of warm apple, braised beef with parsnip puree for main course and one of my favourite puddings of all time - poached pears with pannacotta. YUM! Only the pears weren't quite so yum as some bright spark thought that poaching the pears in mulled wine spices might be a good idea...NOT! Especially not when the smell of cinnamon paired with the taste of cloves is enough to make you gag :o(
Such a shame as it really spoiled my meal for me, but i washed the taste away with some Sambuca!! :oD
After the meal we all trundled back to our leader's house for some party, and it was good and there's nothing i can tell you about that as i was very drunk, i can remember laughing a LOT and drinking a LOT and staying awake until gone 6am because Bloke wanted to watch the boxing but i'm afraid the details have been vodkaad :oD
I've also been preparing for a Christmas card and stitchmaerker swap by buying lots of lovely beads, crystals and charms from eBay which of course takes quite a bit of time as there is research and comparing to do before a purchase can be made. One parcel has arrived already (sent Monday) and there are two more to come and then the fun can start! Bloke is out for his works do on Friday night so i have decided that rather than going out myself i am going to stay home and get busy as i have lots of stitchmarkers to make and i also wanted to make the cards myself too! My deadline for the cards is Wednesday so if i knuckle down to it this weekend i shall be fiiiiiiiiiiine! :oD

Famous last words - i expect to be panic buying cards on Tuesday :oD