new year, more blogging?

well, I had planned to do more blogging, but that was not to be. shortly before christmas I started to write a new entry - but before I could finish and add pix - our computer was attacked by ransomware - which made me loose all pictures and files that I didn't save elsewhere - quite a lot, because I neglected moving things to other media - and got punished for this! we refused to give in and pay, which of course meant that everything that was encrypted was lost:( by now the "box" is working again, but of course all the old files remain lost. I was furious (still am, though less vocal about it:) - but decided to try and find a positive side to this: loosing all the stuff means that I don't have to sort through the whole collection to decide what to keep, what to print etc...

 

of course it also means that I lost the pictures of the stuff I made during the last few months, so what you see here is only the very recent stuff that was still in the camera.

Because I don't have a local yarn shop, I tend to buy my sock yarns in batches. this is the latest haul. the red and red/green/white is a special edition from here - I liked the free pattern provided, so decided to order some for a sock knitting friend in germany and for myself - we can share the red!  

I also bought some sock yarn with angora, two balls of sock yarn with cotton (not for socks, but for baby "dolls") and a sock yarn, where the photo on the homepage looked more purple and the name - something with grapes or wine? - sounded more purple as well:) turned out more blue than anything, but never mind, it will be used eventually... just not for myself I'd say!

 

the yarn with angora was used to knit bed socks as a gift - very cushy, soft and warm - though maybe less durable than normal sock yarn? 

before christmas I had made a seasonal wreath as a gift - but of course the photo of that one is lost. never mind, I have to admit that I like this one for spring much better anyway:) I tried to find spring flowers, daffodils, bluebells, forget-me-nots, a fat bumble bee and of course - living in ireland - a shamrock won't go amiss. the idea is to make other flowers that can be added - or exchanged depending on the seasons (sunflowers, poppies, fuchsias etc. come to mind). the flowers are only attached with pins, easy to exchange. I have quite a lot of sock yarn in storage, in colours suitable for flowers, but I think I have to dye a nice green or two myself, because I haven't found suitable greens - I don't want to pay a fortune for indie-dyed yarns, when I only need a few meters for a leaf or two!

 

 

this project took some time to finish - a denim vest for my grandnephew. it turned out to be a bit too large, but I am quite sure he will grow into it:) the yarn is real denim yarn = will change colour during washing and wearing. the problem wasn't in the knitting - I just couldn't find a suitable zipper that opens at the bottom, in the right length and colour. eventually I admitted defeat and asked a friend in germany to get one for me...  

I have made quite a few wrist warmers in similar style. for the first one I followed the pattern "elf clobber" , but with every pair I made I changed it slightly. the red is a simple k2/p2 rib, alpaca dyed with lac, the grey is a mix of silk and merino. this is the last in the series, and here I left out the crochet bit altogether to replace it with ruffles, simple increases of purl sts in between the k2 from the rib. the grey is finished with an attached i-cord, to keep the edge from rolling up.

 

may I introduce you to another adoptee in this household? before christmas, on a dreary, wet, windy and cold day DS came home late from school - carrying a little bundle in his bag, a bedraggled, wet and half-starved kitten! of course we couldn't just throw the little fellow out, so my son had to cycle back to town in the yucky weather to by cat food for kittens! that has been about 3 months ago - see the result:) after a bit of debate we named him Mr Pringles (part of it is from "the green mile" and the mouse mr jingles, the other part from my sons's favourite snack - pringles). he is quite affectionate, loves cuddles and purrs as if he had swallowed a small car:) of course he has silly ideas and is up to no good when bored - but he's so cute with it that it's hard to be annoyed at him for long! I did learn my lesson though and started to pack away beads, tools, yarn balls etc. when pausing in my work! too much temptation for a cat teenager maybe?:)

 

I also joined the online guild of weavers, spinners and dyers again. the land group, where we meet every second month, is alright, but doesn't give me much in the way of inspiration and certainly not much in learning new techniques. we seem to cater mostly for beginners of all kinds of crafts these days - and given that I dabble in most of them myself, I rarely find anything that interests me and provides a challenge. so I am looking forward to several of the courses online during the coming year - and hope that I'll find enough time to try my hand at some new things!