Alpaca Fibre

Hi Everyone 

I have a new little project underway. I’m processing Alpaca fibre to make into a knitted garment. I’m not sure what I will produce with my fibre yet ? but it’s very exciting to produce yarn ‘from scratch’.

I’ve washed the fibre and it’s been quite a few days drying ! The fibre is dry and ready to be carded. This fibre came from a friend’s Alpacas and will be amazing when I’ve worked on it, very special.

                  

I don’t have very much fibre (in weight) and I’ve not had any previous experience of spinning this type of yarn. So, who knows how much I will get and what weight seems possible ? I like the fibre to tell me how to spin it, sounds a bit daft but the fibre definitely spins in the way it wishes. I’ve learned that it’s best to go with how it feels !

I will dye my yarn after spinning, I’m already thinking about colours. My default ‘blue’ will probably be my choice.The fibre (currently) is a pale natural colour which is great for whatever colour I fancy, perhaps a combination of blues. I’ll let you know how things progress.

Thanks for calling in today. Have a great weekend. I’ll be back on Monday with more Making news.

Christmas Cooking

Hi Everyone 

I’m sharing another kind of Making today. This is my annual Christmas cook job. I always make a traditional Christmas Cake, a Christmas Pudding and a few jars of Sweet Mincemeat. However, sometimes, I leave the cooking until a bit too late. This year, all has happened as planned and I’m feeling very smug. The only thing left to do, is to decorate the cake. My plan is a quirky Christmas scene. I have lots of little Christmas characters, some trees, reindeer and boiled sweets (ready for a little lake). I’ll share the results in a week or so. I’ll cover the fruit cake with marzipan and then add Royal Icing (for the snow !). It’s all a bit ‘see how it goes’.

Here’s a quick look at my Sweet Mincemeat in their jars, I’ve made my new labels and its ready to go.

               

The first Sweet Mincemeat job will be Mince Pies on Christmas Eve, a bit of a tradition in our house !

Thanks for calling in today.

Knitting Nuuk Sweaters

Hi Everyone 

I’m sharing my Collection of Nuuk sweaters today. I have (almost) four !

         

My Nuuks have been knitted over a period of two or three years - can’t quite remember ? They are my favourite sweaters, very easy to wear and I reach for them often. The sweaters are very simple and rather plain but great for lots of layering, which is great for me.

Sweater (1), (2) and (4) are all knitted from Baa Ram Ewe Dovestone yarn. Nuuk (3) is made for a very old yarn stash, a Merino (don’t have the label anymore) held together with a lace weight Malabrigo silk. Sadly, number (3) isn’t the best fit, so I will need to reknit the whole sweater. That’s for another day !

The story for today is number (4), my latest Nuuk. This yarn set out life as a tunic, you can read about the journey of the yarn here. I’m knitting this sweater alongside my Advent socks and a crochet cowl project, so things are going slower than I’d like. However, I’m hoping I can finish the main body this evening. The sleeves are very short and I need to add a neckband rib. I’m hoping I can finish this new Nuuk by the weekend. I’m sure at will knit more. I love the long sleeved version and I would like my next Nuuk to have long sleeves. I think, I’d like to knit up a Nuuk from leftover DK yarn in my stash, there are lots of options !! I’ll let you know what yarn I will use,  in the next few weeks.

Thanks for calling in today.

Sewing Update

Hi Everyone 

Following my chat last week about making knickers, I did decide to complete the Celeste Knickers by ohhh lulu. Read the original piece here.

I needed to add the waistband and was wondering if I should push on with the Make ? What was I thinking, although there are slight issues with the placement of the leg lace, the fit and feel of the knickers is great. I’m actually very pleased with the outcome. The fabric is beautifully soft and drapey and the fit is quite good. I will adapt the pattern slightly - I think the fit would improve with a few centimetres on the length at the centre of the back.

                         

I’m inspired to make an adapted second version of the Celeste pattern. I have lots of the dusky pink fabric left to make many more pairs of knickers but I also have some bright pink fabric, which I think will work too. I’ve got lots of different coloured stretch lace and will come up with some idea for the second design. Very exciting.

I’m hoping to cut out the new fabric pieces later today. I’m still house decorating so time is short ! however, I’m keen to keep going with this one. I’ll share the results when I have something.

Thanks for calling in today.

Advent Update

Hi Everyone 

It’s Day 9 of Advent today and my new little yarn ball is yellow. Read back over December to see the development of my Advent Knit Project which is a pair of mismatched socks this year. 

              

I’ve simply added a new section (each day) and the colours have been the ones which came out that day. I do have a choice of which sock I can knit and am excited each day to choose how to progress.

I didn’t know, exactly, how I would knit my socks ? They have turned out well, I like the pattern. The only idea I had, was to to knit a reverse rib - somewhere in the sock. 

I started the heel flat yesterday and wasn’t sure about which stitch to use for the heel ? I want the pattern to be easy to knit so have opted for a purl stitch heel, a first for me. I like the way the socks looks.

So today, I have my yellow little yarn ball. I’ve decided to knit on the smaller sock today. This will introduce the yellow into this sock and make the socks a pair, even though they are mismatched.

Thanks for calling in today.