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

Monogaknits

I've been a bit quiet on here for the past week and its for two very good reasons. Firstly, it is so hot! I know that readers in far hotter countries than the UK will be laughing at that but it reached 32 degrees centigrade today and it's just too hot to knit. This was the view on my morning runs this week (I say that like I'm a running machine, it happened twice)

In the garden

I'm not much of a gardener, I don't know flower names and I haven't grown vegetables except for a few sad looking carrots when I was a teenager. But I love wandering around my Mum's garden looking at the flowers. With the mix of rain and sun we have had over the past few months, the flowers have come out in force. So for today's post, sit back and enjoy a minute or two of flower therapy.

Ok so the last two are Harvey but he insisted he isn't getting enough air time on the blog.

And this is his 'tiger pose' apparently. He could have been a model if he didn't enjoy sleeping, eating and mousing so much. According to him anyway.

Charlotte (and most definitely) Harvey x

Finished Object - My first colourwork hat!

Afternoon everyone, just a quick post to say I finished a project! It's still really hot here, well for the UK anyway and it's been difficult to knit when you're already overheating. I have found that any small project made with 4ply yarn or lighter is manageable as you don't have a load of yarn covering your legs as you knit. You may have already seen a picture on my Instagram but I wanted to show it here too as it's my first real attempt at colourwork.

This is the Dorothy hat, which was a free kit included with a Knit Now Issue although I can't find which issue and it doesn't say on the pattern booklet. The yarn could have been used to make Dorothy and friends from the Wizard of Oz but I'm not a huge fan of knitting toys at the moment. I really appreciate being given an alternative pattern such as a hat or cowl to knit instead rather than having random small amounts of yarn sitting, gathering dust. Also that pom pom... Love it!

Here's a close up of the pattern:

It's designed by Kate Heppell, the editor of Knit Now magazine. I haven't blocked it yet but couldn't wait to take a photo! The hat came out a lot larger than expected so this might have to go to the boyfriend. He's already hinted that he likes the hat so it's lucky it came out so big!

Charlotte and Harvey x

Woollinn Stash

Where has the month gone?! I've been busy clearing more things for my move, completing my last hospital placement and getting back into exercise in this sunny weather. In amongst all this busy-ness, I realised I haven't shown you all my yarny purchases from Woollinn!

Just a note: all the yarn was photographed on an unexpectedly grey day, so apologies for slightly muted colours.

1. Bear in Sheep's Clothing 

This was actually my last purchase. I had put both these skeins back on the booth and walked away, smug in being so self controlled. And then returned twenty minutes later hoping they would still be there! Self-control.... Yeah.... I have never used mohair before and it is so soft and smooshy. This is Bear Luxury Halo, 72% mohair and 28% silk in the colourway Romance. The sock yarn is Bear Sturdy, 100% superwash Blue Faced Leicester in the same colourway. After watching a Grocery Girls episode before leaving for Dublin, I really wanted to try knitting one of Jodi's hat designs which uses doubled sock yarn held with mohair to make a really soft and warm hat. Her pattern is here. Bear in Sheep's online shop here.

2. The Fibre Co. from Emily Foulds

The photo above doesn't do justice to the vibrancy of these yarns. The left skein is a deep forest green, the right is a brighter... Hold on a second, I'll get another photo....

That's better! I think the yellow overwhelms the camera which in turn mutes the other two colours but this is a lot closer to the real skeins. These are Cumbria fingering from the Fibre Co. (from left to right) in dark green - Grizedale Forest, yellow - Buttermere and teal - Yew Tree. The colours are inspired by the lakes and valleys of Cumbria and the yarn feels soft but sturdy. I bought this yarn from the Emily Fould stall which is a yarn shop based in the north of England near Lancashire (Link here). With my purchase, I received a free pattern for the Fell Garth Tamdou shawl by Melanie Berg. There were two samples knit in very different colours which swayed me to buy the kit. The two women on the stall were very helpful and patient when I couldn't decide on three colours for the shawl. They took the time to suggest different pairings and despite having a busy stall, made no attempt to rush me. I truly appreciated that and would recommend stopping by their shop if you're ever in the area as I know you will get great customer service and also a friendly welcome.

This is the shawl pattern:

I'm looking forward to casting it on once I've reduced my WIP pile!

3. Dublin Dye

This is 4ply Swing Sock in the colourway Polar Express. Out of all my purchases, this is the only one I don't have a plan for. The colourway goes through a whole spectrum of blues and hints of purple. The subtlety of the different shades is lovely and I don't feel socks would do it justice. One to ponder on.... Link to Dublin Dye here.

4. Babbles Yarns

This yarn was a pleasure to buy for two different reasons. Firstly sock yarn with cotton is something I want to trial for hotter weather and secondly I got to meet Grace! Grace is the dyer and podcaster behind Babbles Yarns. She has a great podcast and is bubbly and full of energy. She is also so friendly and it was a pleasure to meet her in real life and not just through YouTube.

Fan pic! Can't wait for some neon yellow socks this summer. Grace's shop can be found here and her podcast here. I would definitely recommend giving it a listen.

5. Studio Donegal from This is Knit

This is Studio Donegal Darnie 4ply in the colourway 13023 or mustard as I've been calling it. This is a special purchase which you'll know if you read my original Woollinn post (here). My non-knitting Mum likes to use sample knits like a clothes shop and on this occasion, she fell in love with the sample cardigan at the This is Knit stall.

This is the Jaycee cardigan by Isabell Kraemer which can be found on Ravelry (here). This is the first project I will actually do a swatch for instead of winging it as it's for someone else and needs to match the original pattern sizes. The pattern involves a button band and a few other new to me techniques and I'm looking forward to the challenge.


Have a great week everyone x