WIP Update!

Happy Friday! Well done for making it to the end of the week. We have had beautifully sunny weather here in the UK with only a hint of coolness today which is unusual for this time of year. Not that I mind. The pure blue skies are a joy to wake up to although I've never been affected by grey skies. You can still tell the year is moving on as the sunset is getting steadily earlier and the cosiness of the indoors beckons. The floor of the local forest is covered in conkers and beautiful autumn leaves. I heard somewhere that moths don't like conkers so I put a few in my yarn stash just in case!

It's also the time of year for coughs and colds which has led to a few days off work. I headed home to my mums for chicken soup and TLC and am feeling much better. I always love the journey home, not just for the welcome waiting for me but also for the views along the way. The first train journey passes directly next to the sea with nothing to block the view.

So, onto knitting. First - a long awaited finished object! For some reason the photos outside made the yarn look more of a washed out grey than the actual navy blue of the scarf. Looking at my Ravelry photos, this scarf is a different colour in every single one. Started in December 2016, this scarf has languished at the bottom pf my project pile, guiltily pulled out every so often. With my drive to actually finish things, it's been stuffed in my bag and taken everywhere.

Ta da!

The pattern is from Interweave Winter 2016 and is available on their website. It's easy to follow and makes a squishy, warm scarf. I have started wearing it, oops.... It will make it's way to Will by Christmas I promise...

I have added another stripe to my knit version of the Moorland blanket.

I'm using a free pattern on Ravelry using a feather and fan motif. For the original crochet pattern and the knit one, I have attached both to my project page here.

I've made a lot of progress on Mum's Jaycee cardigan in Donegal Studio Darnie. (project page). I have started adding progress markers as they really help to highlight how much has been knit that week. This helps when doing endless knit and purl rows of the main body.

And finally a teeny tiny bit more on my Flax Light. Christmas presents are getting priority now though with two months to go!

That's it for this week. What have you been working on?

Have a lovely weekend, Charlotte and Harvey x

Mad Squishy Bear Hat

A finished object! And it almost knit itself, it appeared so quickly!

This is Mad's Hat by Jodi Brown from the Grocery Girls podcast. The gorgeous yarn is from Bear in Sheep's Clothing which I bought at Woollinn this year (post here).

The pattern called for two strands of 4 ply held together with one strand of mohair and I knit it in the Romance colourway. It has a cream/ rose underlying colour with speckles of deeper pink and green. The snippets of green on the hat really give it depth and makes it look like a hat from an expensive brand! The mohair is so squishy and soft and I have found myself automatically grabbing this hat every time I head out the door.

The pattern is really effective. It looks complicated but really isn't and it highlights the speckling of the yarn  well. I know some people don't like mohair as it's fluffy and can moult, however I haven't had that issue yet with this particular skein.

Pattern rating: 5/5 easy to read and understand, produces a nice finished piece. Rav link here.
Yarn rating: 5/5 lovely to work with, very silky, good price, big fan of the colourway and will definitely buy more from Bear in Sheep's clothing in the future. They are currently on a pause in their shop but the link for them is here.

Seaside Knitting

It's nearly the weekend! Admittedly I've had my weekend in the middle of the week and yet there's always something happy about Friday afternoon. Thursday was my day off this week and I don't return to work until this evening so I'm counting it as my weekend! After my post yesterday I headed outside and towards the sea front for lunch. It was deliciously warm, especially for this time of year in the UK. I had lunch right by the sea at The Terrace with a few little visitors sitting on my table.

They were close

And closer

And closer

Oh hi there! Right next to my plate. This little bird was very polite and ate bits of bread from my hand. I know it's not good for them but it tried to drag the whole slice with it so at least this way the bread was a manageable size. Puts a whole new meaning to eyes bigger than your head!

With my new friends happily munching away, I got my knitting out.

This is the ongoing Jaycee cardigan for my Mum made with 4 ply Darnie by Studio Donegal. Although this is a plain knit mostly, the yarn holds pattern details really well.

Then I sat a bit closer to the shoreline.

It is truly amazing to be sat in the sun at the end of September. Every open space was covered in people trying to get the last bit of sun before winter sets in. It's just as warm today and I think it might be time for another explore outdoors.

Charlotte and Harvey x

Forgiveness and other things

Good morning! Now don't worry, this post isn't going to start with an apology for not posting for five weeks. The title of this post is a reminder that there is always time to forgive yourself. Whether it's cancelling things because you're tired, or because you need time to yourself. For running out of time for hobbies. Or for anything that you feel guilty about that you don't need to feel guilty for. Or myself for trying to juggle lots of different things and dropping a ball every so often. Recently it's been the blogging and knitting that have fallen out of the balance and have been overtaken by sleeping, eating and working (and repeat). I'm working strange shifts with long-ish hours (66 last week) and while I love the job, I have been finding it tough to make time for much else. On the positive side however, I have had some great social moments in the past five weeks! This post will mainly be a catch up of what I've been up to with a hint of knitting as well.

After a month away, I went home for a weekend. Harvey didn't leave my side until I had to leave again.

I'm trying to explore more of Plymouth when I have time off. This is a reproduction of a map of Plymouth from the time of Henry VIII.

This was the first of many dinners to celebrate my lovely Mum's birthday. This was at KuKu in Plymouth which has incredible Japanese food. Best restaurant in this city, hands down.

View from dinner number two! The views were pretty, the food was... ok.

We also explored William's Yard . This area used to be a fully functioning naval fort and is now converted into housing with shops and studios. There are always events here and it looks like they are trying to set up a range of art studios here as well which is exciting.

Next was Edgcumbe Manor (we had a laugh at the name) with beautiful grounds and an interesting stately house. The original manor was bombed in the Second World War and the family nearly went bankrupt trying to restore it. The Manor is now owned by Cornwall and Devon counties - not sure if it's National Trust? Inside the manor you can dress up and have your photos taken for free. So much fun!

Then, my best friend's Hen Do. Don't worry - no crude photos! In my rush to get to the airport I forgot to pack the veil for the weekend. Disaster! So, I made my own:

Take a tiara from Claire's accessories and a child's tutu and voila:

Somehow it was more special than the original veil I bought.

Then a quick trip to London for round two of Mum's birthday with my cousin:

And finally a Full Moon celebration dinner at my house! As a quick explanation, I have moved into a large eight bedroom shared house with people I hadn't met before. And I have been so lucky - everyone is friendly and chatty and great to be around. Three of my housemates are from China and one was going back. So to say goodbye and celebrate a Chinese tradition, they made incredible food and we had a great evening together.

I was about to hit post and realised I haven't put any knitting in this post! But I think it's long enough already. Today is a precious day off so I'm going to do some knitting and try and get it posted here at some point. 

Have a lovely day, Charlotte and Harvey x

Floozy Week

Two more days and then it's the weekend! I'm heading home to see my Mum as we haven't seen each other since I moved in July. I don't think she has found it easy and it will be lovely to catch up. I'm also going back for my favourite cousin's birthday, we're going for karaoke in London - can't wait! Before that however are two hectic days at work with long hours and sitting at home waiting for me is the newly arrived yarn for the Floozy cardigan.

The yarn was technically delivered last week but I was at work so it sat in the Post Office 200m from my house. I had to walk past the closed Post Office for three days in a row knowing my yarn was inside! The picture above is pretty close to the actual colours and I am looking forward to casting on. I had to order new 3mm circular needles to match my gauge which delayed cast on for another 4 days. Those arrived today and soon I can start the Floozy Cardigan. Floozy has been designed by Libby from Truly Myrtle Designs and podcast. She is based in New Zealand and has a great range of designs. She started a knit-along for the cardigan which started on the 17th. For more information she has a podcast episode about the knit-along and advice on fit. If you want to join in, she has a Ravelry group for it here.

Sunday Sunday

Evening lovely people!

How are you? After just under a month in my new job/ city, I'm slowly getting used to the new routine and trying to fit things around work. I went for my second run which is helping me get to know the area. There is a local park with lots of sneaky hills that certainly test my lack of fitness! The sea front is only a 15 minute walk away:

It has been a mix of blue and grey skies but either is great here. If it's sunny you can walk along the front and if it's grey there are plenty of places for hot chocolate with a sea view. Last weekend, I had breakfast not far from the photo above and watched a group of swimmers head out into the sea. I'm not a confident swimmer so it amazes me when people go out into open water.

I took a trip to Dartmouth on Friday but I will leave that for another post. All I will show for now is my train knitting:

So onto knitting - I have been working on the Jaycee cardigan as you can see. And then a bit more:

The boyfriend scarf only has 4 inches to go!

I have swatched for the Floozy Cardigan but I need to re-swatch to get gauge. The main body is the same colour as the Jaycee cardigan but with red and white yarn for the colourwork section.

August Goals

1. Finish the boyfriend scarf - nearly!
2. Start the Jaycee cardigan (due mid September) - started
3. Start the Floozy cardigan for the Truly Myrtle KAL (start date 17th August) - need to re-swatch

Finished Objects 2018

This year started slowly due to placements and final year exams but I have got 6 finished objects this year so far:
1. Tequila Sunrise Socks - January
2. Nepal Hat - 3rd March
3. Jodi Shawl - 22nd March
4. Flax Jumper - 17th April
5. Vanilla Stripy Socks - 30th May
6. Colourwork Hat - 15th June

Works in Progress (WIPs)

Crochet
Moorland blanket (Started December 2016)
Scrappy granny blanket - to use up scraps (June 2018)

Knitting
Bunny (July 2016)
Green socks (December 2016)
Boyfriend Scarf (December 2016)
Easy Cable Socks (February 2017)
Stephen West Speckle and Pop Shawl (October 2017)
Easy Lace Socks (January 2018)
Valentine Socks (February 2018)
Summer Flax Light (April 2018)
Nepal Hat 2 (April 2018)
Mum's Jaycee Cardigan (August 2018)
Boyfriend Socks (July 2018)
I forgot to add last week:
Cosy Memories blanket (no idea when I started it!)


What are you working on at the moment? Have you joined any knit-alongs/ make-alongs?

Charlotte and Harvey x

Stash, Mojo and Ongoing Projects

It's been a busy month or two with a new job, a move across the UK and settling into a new city. I've been at my new job for two and a half weeks now and I finally feel like I have a bit of time to sit down and chat you! While I was packing my things to move, I had to pack my yarn stash and it got me thinking how I can use all the balls, skeins and cakes I already own. I think everyone has their own idea of how a stash should look but having to move mine made me realize that I really want to start using up some of it to create lovely projects. While I was thinking about this, I came across a few blog posts that have inspired me to do just this. One blogger, Life and Yarn, is doing a weekly update on her project progress (link here). Nadia from the Cottage Notebook is doing a Frog or Finish knit-along which finishes soon on the 1st September (here). The Knit Girllls podcast is also doing a stash busting knit-along where you challenge yourself to knit however many metres by late August starting with 1000m or less to help finish projects.

As mentioned previously, the summer heat has affected my knitting mojo. That word always makes me think of Austin Powers - Oh no! I've lost my mojo! (Did you do the accent in your head? I know I did)  I started the Jaycee cardigan a few days ago as I want to finish it in time for my mum's birthday in mid-September. And it helped me re-discover my love of knitting in a big way. I have also been working on the never-ending boyfriend scarf which is nearly done! To keep this momentum going, I am going to follow Life and Yarns example and do a WIPs update post every week including goals for each month. So here it goes:

August Goals

1. Finish the boyfriend scarf
2. Start the Jaycee cardigan (due mid September)
3. Start the Floozee cardigan for the Truly Myrtle KAL (start date 17th August)

Finished Objects 2018

This year started slowly due to placements and final year exams but I have got 6 finished objects this year so far:
1. Tequila Sunrise Socks - January
2. Nepal Hat - 3rd March
3. Jodi Shawl - 22nd March
4. Flax Jumper - 17th April
5. Vanilla Stripy Socks - 30th May
6. Colourwork Hat - 15th June

Works in Progress (WIPs)

Crochet
Moorland blanket (Started December 2016)

Knitting
Bunny (July 2016)
Green socks (December 2016)
Boyfriend Scarf (December 2016)
Easy Cable Socks (February 2017)
Stephen West Speckle and Pop Shawl (October 2017)
Easy Lace Socks (January 2018)
Valentine Socks (February 2018)
Summer Flax Light (April 2018)
Nepal Hat 2 (April 2018)
Mum's Jaycee Cardigan (August 2018)
Boyfriend Socks (July 2018)

I think I need to start finishing some socks... Except for the Floozy cardigan Knit-along I'm going to try and avoid casting on anything else unless I finish a WIP. I hope I can avoid the temptation!

Have you got any languishing WIPs? How do you decide what you're going to knit next?

Charlotte and Harvey x