Is it just me or was Christmas over in a flash this year? And let’s not even mention how unprepared I was for the festive season 2015!
Luckily, when it comes to my lovely Mum I had been planning her Christmas present months in advance. Together we’d selected the Stockard Cardi by Quince & Co. as my gift to her, in the soft red wine colourway, Syrah.
It’s Christmas Eve!!!!! And after a few weeks of flying low under the radar, I’ve had some time to finish off a lot of knitting projects that were niggling at me to be completed (you know the ones, projects that keep you awake at night or torment you when you should be concentrating on life admin).
Knitted Christmas presents have been gifted, Etsy orders have been all tied up and commissions are complete. Since I started this little endeavour, I don’t think I’ve ever had a moment when I’ve not had something that I should be knitting for someone else. So now, I have all this free time over the holidays to knit for me – what a novelty! And one I’m not taking at all for granted. As much as I love knitting things for other people, I’m really looking forward to casting off on some knitwear that I’ve been working on for myself.
Just a quick note and holiday announcement from me. Sorry for the radio silence for the past couple of months. I promise to write more and show you many more exciting things that I’ve been working busily on for the last couple of months!
Remember this post?!
This gorgeous Feather Sweater by Pickles in Norway has been a long. Time. Coming.
Can we just quickly talk about the most exciting news in my knitting calendar so far this month!
Brooklyn Tweed have just released their first ever printed knitting book – Capsule. A beautiful collection of knitted pieces designed by one of my favourite knitwear designers, Olga Buraya-Kefelian.
In what looks set to be the first of many similar projects, Brooklyn Tweed have given one knitwear designer centre stage to design a range of knitwear using their wool. Olga Buraya-Kefelian is unique in her construction and use of geometry in her patterns, a perfect way to kick off BT’s new series!
Personal favourites of this Capsule collection are the Cusp geometric cabled poncho and the stunning Tatara mitts. You can check out the entire collection here.
Which pattern will you be casting on first? Let me know by commenting below.
Oh Ravelry! How I love you.
Here are a few more patterns that sit in my stash, waiting to be purchased and knitted in good time!
Google ‘knitwear designers’ and you get thousands of links directing you to mega fashion houses and large retailers. The large brands that pop into your head every day of the week. Not what I really wanted to see.
When I think of knitwear designers, names like Pam Allen, Jared Flood and Olga Buraya-Kefelian come to mind. Knitwear designers that inspire me to pick up my needles, purchase their wonderful patterns, or even get creating my own. Sadly, Google didn’t agree with me.
I’m not-so-secretly waiting for the day when slow fashion really takes over and these become household names not just for knitters. It’s slowly bubbling under the surface. Non-knitters are beginning to see the influence making-your-own is having over our generation, that even ready-to-wear companies are getting on board. Knowing where your fibres have come from, the farm where the sheep were reared, the dyer that dipped the skeins of wool…the list goes on. And whether I buy my yarn or patterns in the UK or across the pond, provenance is increasingly important for me.
The reward I get from taking time over my own clothing and homewares is entirely the reason I knit. And I’ve rounded up the list of knitwear designers who are (for me) synonymous with the slow-fashion movement.
With autumn having descended so quickly, these last couple of weeks have plunged us into cold spells. Knee high boots and wooly jumpers are the norm, and you absolutely have to carry an umbrella. At. All. Times.
So this seemed like the perfect time to indulge myself in a huge knitted throw for myself! Something that I can tuck my feet up under on these darker, colder evenings.
Stitch & Story’s Bounty Throw fit the bill perfectly. It’s a wonderfully easy pattern, but switches up the stitch patterns frequently enough to keep a seasoned knitter like myself from getting bored! I picked their lovely shade of Olive Pastel, as it’s my absolute favourite!
After starting my ‘Knitwear Faves’ series, I’ve been inspired to branch out into a new series exclusively on my ‘Ravelry Faves’. I thought I’d share my stash of ‘to knit’ projects, because let’s face it, after four years of full-on knitting I’ve developed quite the list – on an epic scale! Each month, I’ll run through a selection of both free and paid for projects I have on my Ravelry ‘Favourites’ page, starting with these five absolute beauties for this installment.
I made something for myself!!! This is a momentous occasion. Not that I don’t love making things for anyone else, but it’s lovely to make something and know I’m going to be the one wrapping up in it. So I really treated myself this time. I invested in two massive skeins of amazingly soft, super chunky Cascade Magnum in my favourite colour Camel, which I picked up online from Loveknitting.com
