Pendlestitches, Author at Purl and Seam

Something Lacy Shrug – FO 16/2011

August 17, 2011

Whilst I had planned to use the last of the green Artesano aran to knit Fairhope, it quickly became apparent that I hadn’t nearly enough yarn left for it.

A hastily organised Plan B yielded this little lovely:

Something Lacy Shrug is designed by Vera Sanon (of SunFunLivingKnits) and is published by Cascade Yarns. You can download it for free from their website.

Despite needing to cast this on about 20 times, that was definitely user error as this is a nice simple pattern that is very easy to follow.You just knit a rectangle, sew up the sides a little to create tiny sleeves, then pick up and knit the ribs.

A quick and satisfying project that is great for using leftover yarn.

Although I still have enough of this left for a hat and mittens (it feels like the neverending stash of green yarn).

Guess what’s on the needles at the moment?

Holden Shawlette – Made by Ma!

August 15, 2011

Another skein of stash yarn has been knitted up by my ~~long suffering~~ very kind mother.

This little beauty is the Holden Shawlette by Mindy Wilkes, which is available as a free download from Ravelry. It never ceases to amaze me how generous designers are with their creativity.

The yarn is unknown sock yarn from my ever diminishing stash.

This is a lovely shawl…I adore this shape as it wraps into a cosy but not too bulky scarf which has me looking forward to crisp autumn days when I’ll have the opportunity to put all of Ma’s hard work to very good use.

How to be a cool Mummy…

August 10, 2011

Know that Peppa Pig will be making a guest appearance at your local garden centre open day.Even if it is a crappy photo!

Don’t be fooled by the suspicious look on her face…I’ve not heard about anything else since we met Ms Pig this morning. She thinks I’m fabulous for knowing Peppa!

Needless to say The Boy wasn’t remotely interested in our celebrity porcine pal…the same couldn’t be said of the boa constrictor we met. Pity we couldn’t get a photo of that.

Piecing

August 8, 2011

This is my first “school” holiday and even the housework isn’t getting done!

But today, whilst the Chaos Monsters had a little nap I decided to go into the sewing loft and see what took my fancy.

With the black trousers done and awaiting photos, I have the fabric for two Sorbetto tops, a dress and a Burda shirt washed and ready to go. But I didn’t feel in the right place for fitting and the like, so I pulled out the Gardener’s Journal quilt fabric.

I’ve just checked and I haven’t laid hands on this since the 15th June!

Shameful.

Especially as I’m off to the Festival of Quilts on Saturday.

So I set too and by the time Button had woken up and drawn several pictures, block A was finished, albeit somewhat wonkily. (Is that a real word? I suspect not!) I sewed slowly but I think straight and accurate piecing is a skill that needs practice.

That said, it was just the palate cleanser I needed.

I think I’m going to dig out the dress pattern and start tracing it off ready for fitting.

Knitting

August 5, 2011

This week I received a comment from Clio where she asked:

“I’m thinking about picking up knitting this Autumn – it would be nice to have a hobby I could do on the couch! Do you have any suggestions for beginner books or DVD’s or websites that might be a good resource for a beginner who is a bit intimidated? Thanks for any suggestions!”

I couldn’t agree more with Clio. I love crisp autumn evenings spent on the sofa with a babes asleep upstairs, husband ensconced next to me, a fire, a glass of something warming and the perfect knitting project. It’s one of the most lovely ways to spend time. So I thought I’d share my favourite resources here with you all.

First up has to be Ravelry. This is always my first stop for patterns as there is an enormous selection, many of which you can download for free. And if, for example, you want to knit a ladies lace cardigan in 4 ply, then you can narrow the search parameters to find just what you’re looking for. The advance search facility has been invaluable for me in knitting up my stash as you can also search for patterns for the 700m of aran yarn you have in your stash! Brilliant.

Ravelry also has a great community and as well as patterns you can find yarn and groups of likeminded people…either locally or globally.

AND you can track your projects and stash and share them with the world.

Whilst we’re on the topic of community…for new knitters I can’t recommend enough searching out your local knitting group. You can search on Ravelry, at your local library, your local yarn shop or at Stitch ‘n’ Bitch. Knitters are fabulous people and are always happy to welcome newcomers, however inexperienced. They are also always happy to share their expertise.

So now you have a pattern and some knitting friends, obviously you need some yarn. When I started knitting about 30 years ago the selection was limited to what your local yarn shop stocked, and my local yarn shop stocked acrylic or scratchy wool.

We’ve come a long way baby!

Now you can get yarn in everything from alpaca to steel, and a myriad of fibers inbetween. It’s all down to personal taste and, of course, budget as to what you buy. My rule of thumb is to buy the best I can afford as I’m putting a lot of time, effort and love into each project.

My absolutely favourite yarn shop is Brownberry Yarns. I’ve mentioned Sarah’s shop here many times before and with good reason. She stocks lovely yarns and is just delightful. I know her from my knitting group and can’t recommend her highly enough.

I also use MCA who stock more mainstream yarns and provide a fabulous service. The Black Sheep was recommended to me by my knitting group and I’ve just placed an order with them saving 50% on the cost of the yarn. Bargain!

I must also mention a couple of ladies I know who are independent yarn producers. Krafty Koala dyed the yarn for my wedding shrugs and Laal Bear produced the alpaca/silk blend for my Gingko Shoulderette Shawl.

Now you have your yarn and pattern, should you need to find out how to cast on, or shape an armhole, or knit an icord, I invariably turn to either YouTube or Vogue Knitting:

There are, of course, so many other resources out there….Vogue Knitting Magazine, The Knitter Magazine, Twist Collective, Interweave Knits….the list goes on. But you’ve got to start somewhere, so I hope this collection of my “go-to” knitting spots will have you happily tucked up on the sofa with the rest of us.

Goodale – F/O 16/2011

July 18, 2011

Two posts in one day…it must be the weather.

I finally finished knitting up the cream Artesano Superwash Merino last week and on Saturday thought I’d wear it for the quilting day.

Hmmmm….that wasn’t going to work. It looks bloody awful on me. Not only is it a smidge small, it’s also too short to look good on me and the colour makes me look decidedly unwell.

The pattern itself is lovely. Clearly written and simple to knit. I would happily recommend it.

No…this is totally user error. I’m using up yarn in the stash and choosing a pattern to match what I have. This doesn’t always work for me. I’m also still weeding out shapes that don’t look good on me. This is one of them.

On Ma, however, it’s a totally different story.So, as it had stopped raining, I dragged her outside to grab a couple of snaps…hence the top doesn’t really go with this cardigan, but we can live with it for today.So, the pattern is Goodale from Cecily Glowik MacDonald.

The yarn is Artesano Superwash Merino DK from Brownberry Yarns.

The cute little buttons were in my stash too. I’ve no idea where they came from.

And it’s not a complete bust as I’ve knitted up more of my stash, Ma has a new cardi that she loves and I’ve learnt a little bit more about my personal style and what works for me.

I don’t think that’s a bad result at all!

North Country quilting…day 2

July 18, 2011

It being summer, here in Lancashire it has done nothing but rain, rain and rain some more for the past 3 days. It’s raining now as I type.

Saturday, therefore, it was raining too. A perfect day for sitting quietly with a lovely group of like-minded women and sewing a quilt.

So that’s what I did.

It was the second day of the North Country quilting course. The day where we put our layers togetherpinned it all in placeand tacked it to within an inch of its lifeAs you can see we all worked together to layer and pin each other’s quilts. The conversation turned to the women across the centuries who had gathered as we did to work on quilts together and how, had they been transported in time to our table, they would have recognised everything we were doing.

I love this connection to the past, and that there were 3 generations of my family working together on 3 quilts, leaving our mark for the future.

Once the quilts were all basted it was time to learn the specialised rocking stitch used to load the needle and create evenly spaced stitches. I can only say that it’s not as easy as it looks. Jean, our tutor, was very patient and encouraging.

But, by the end of the afternoon, having been fortified with much apple and ginger cake (from the simplest recipe ever)and strawberries supplied by HimmelbjergetI was starting to get the hang of it

My quilt is started.

July

July 6, 2011

Blimey, is it the 6th July already?

Time flies when you’re not doing anything!

Well, I have been doing stuff but not much of it has been sewing or craft related.

Except for Saturday. Ma, Niece, Himmelbjerget and me all skipped off to Patchwork Chicks for a day learning how to do North Country Quilting.

For the uninitiated NCQ is wholecloth quiltingand I’ve wanted to learn to do this, like, for For. Evah!

Saturday was the first day of a two day workshop and we spent the day learning how to design our quilt and draw the design on the cloth.

Seriously.

Drawing on the cloth.

With a pencil.

Scared me half to death!

But, by the end of day one my design was well under way

I know the pictures are a bit dark but its the only way to get the pencil to show up! Technology eh! Or could it just be my lack of skill? Who knows.

Anyway, on the 16th we’ll be back there again to learn how to do all the stitching, then its up to us.

A perfect project set up for autumn evenings on the sofa.

Another slow project.

Not one I’ll be finishing in July, but I’m thrilled to be starting it.

Also starting in July is my cushion project. One of my goals for 2011 is to finally get some cushions on the sofa, but it’s taken me ages to decide what I want them to be like. And I’ve finally decided. The first 4 will be about 18″ or 20″ with hand embroidered monograms in the centre. One for each of us. The designs come from this book that I received for my birthday (wow, my kids and husband are great)and I’ve already transferred and made a start on the first one

So far, so slow, so good.

This is where I make a pledge.

“I, PendleStitches, hereby do solemnly swear that by the end of July I shall have completed the black slim legged trousers.”*

I will. For sure.

And the cream cardigan.

And maybe a top.

But I’m not pushing it!

So watch this space.

What sewing/knitting/stitching have you got planned for July?

Note I didn’t say which year* ! LOL. Only kidding!

Burda 8/2009 121 – FO 21/2011

July 3, 2011

This skirt reminds me why I love Burda patterns and why I’m glad I’ve lost enough weight to use them again.

: Top is Phase Eight RTW – on sale at the moment

I had to make minimal alterations to this skirt…just added a little to the waist and a couple of inches to the length, and away I went.

The fabric is from my stash. I bought it from The Cloth House about 4 years ago. Hazarding a guess I’d say it’s an 11oz denim. I wish I’d bought more of it as it’s just lovely. Both to sew and to wear. After all the tricky fabrics I’ve been sewing of late, this was an absolute treat.

I love the details of this skirt:

: The first waistband I’ve ever made that actually matches up – result!

Fabulous shaped seams and fly zip

: Back pockets shaped along the yoke

: Arrowhead top-stitching at the top of the rear vent

: A flash of Tilda cotton print at the fly and also lining the pockets

Whilst this looks like a fairly complex pattern, it’s actually really quite straightforward to make. If you take your time. But I’ve already covered that topic this week!

I referred to this book for the fly zip instructions:and it’s the most professional zip I’ve ever inserted. These are just fabulous directions. I heartily recommend them.

I know both the skirt and the new top are a little snug…but I’m back on a healthy eating kick and the weight is slowly coming off again, so this was a deliberate decision to ensure that I can wear these for quite some time to come, even as I get slimmer.

So, all that’s left to say is that I’m thrilled with this outfit and really enjoyed wearing it today. It seems all that slow sewing really paid off.