Happy Birthday Mandy!

So, the finished Lootus mitts have been safely delivered to their new home with Mandy.
We went to her surprise party on Saturday and had a really good night, lots of laughs and plenty of catching up with friends we haven't seen for a while.

How surprised does she look!
She had been told she was going to a friend's anniversary party and was totally gobsmacked when she walked in and saw everyone there for her. She cried lots, it was hilarious! :oD

We left a little earlier than everyone else, but still didn't get home until nearly 2am! Fortunately the joys of driving on the M25 at that time of night include very little traffic so we had a clear run through and they even let us through the tolls for free! YAY! :oD

Photos can wait...

But i just wanted to shout from the rooftops that the Lootus mitts are FINISHED! :oD

I've even sewn the ends in!

A recipient has been found for them now by the way. They are going to a friend for her birthday present rather than Chrimble and they are actually very her, even Bloke said so ;o)

So, next up... well, tomorrow i shall be either washcloth or sock knitting while i travel to and from the hospital , and wait around the hospital for goodness knows how long, i'd prefer to get the socks done as they are a must have done present and washcloths are just fillers but we shall see what tomorrow brings... hopefully it won't bring too many hours of delays!

We have flower, people!

This morning i met up with my sister-in-law for a nice gentle stroll round the local woodland, it was lovely and warm, the sun was shining and Lukey was on his very best behaviour - we managed to say hello to 6 different dogs with no nastiness, just tail wagging and bum sniffing all round - YAY!
Then i came home and collapsed with my Lootus mitt :oD
Progress so far is good, i am really pleased with how it is coming along, the colours contrast really well i think?

The palm side is just as pretty i think, although me being me i have been thinking about what i'd like to change about it... ::lol::
I wouldn't have that first pink line after the third braid, i would have done that as a section the same size as the palm section, for symmetry, like...
I would have tried a bit harder to work out how to do a thumb gusset cos i know that it would fit lovely (the one on my Cranfords does) but i'm not clever enough to work out the schematics of gussets and fairisle so i am doing an afterthought thumb - that's what the orange stripe is ;o)

But! All in all, i am very pleased with it, now... who do i give it to for Chrimble... it's GOT to be someone who will appreciate the work that has gone into it and won't just lose them after a day with an "oh, well" :o?
I'll have to think on it ;o)

Chrimble gift knitting continues

Lootus - in progress
Originally uploaded by franneyk

I'm having a break from washcloths, just because i have bought some gorgeous shades of CountryStyle from Pictish as she was having one of her bargainous destashes and i knew i wanted to knit some mitts and try some colourwork...
So, much Ravelrying later i settled on the Lootus Flower pattern as my first try, purely because it only has two colours and the motif repeat looks about the right size for fingerless mitts, which is what i want to make. I really wanted to havea colourful cuff though so rather han just casting on and knitting in one colour for the ribbing i found some explanations on how to do two colour long tail cast on, how to do a braid and how to do two colour ribbing and off i went! Several hours and after working out how to stop the tangles when i'm braiding later i had this lovely cuff! I was feeling quite proud of myself up to this point as i have only done very basic two colour fairisle before in the shape of Max's hat, which reminds me, i never did get Ben's finished! I really need to find the right weight merino to go with that merin-ohhhh... anyway, i digress!
I really did struggle with this last night, i can't work out how to purl with my left hand, so i have to remember to put the purling colour in my right hand for the rib. I have to remember to "swirl" the wool clockwise for the "over part of the braid and anti-clockwise for the "under" part so that the two strands don't get tangled and i have to remember not to pull the contrasting colour when i do a whole row of main colour or it'll wind up too tight to fit over your hand...
I have really enjoyed it so far though, i might even crack right on and cast number two on as soon as number one is finished! I'm not sure how many pairs i can make but i have a few different pairs in my queue to try out. There aren't many patterns for DK though and that's what i want.