Rip it up and start again!

Hello everyone,

In my last post I mentioned I had been knitting again. well I did but it was months ago.

I started on this pattern. An absolutely lovely twin set with delightful ribbing pattern around the neck with matching ribbing at the lower part of the cardigan.

Taken from this book. Which is filled with fantasic period inspired designs. Mine was such a bargain. The book can be found on Amazon here although it does have a different cover it is the same book.

Well I got so far on the back of the jumper before putting the knitting down, when I eventually came back to it, two things had happened.

Happy the puppy had made a tasty treat of my needle and chewed off the end. Luckly all the knitting was still on the needle. As for the other well I am now a bit bigger than I was when I had started this jumper and there is now no way it is going to fit me.
So decission time, do I pull it all off and start again. Nope, because by now I was a little bored with this pattern and the idea of making two items, I also know being the very slow knitter I am it would not be ready until next summer (hence my love of chunky knits).
I had bought lots of wool enought to make both parts of the twin set. Off I went on a pattern hunt and have decided life should be brought to this little beauty instead.

Sirdar 9522. What is really cute about this pattern, is that the flower is part of the button hole, How sweet is that.

I checked the wool amounts and I have plenty to make the long sleave version in the pink colour shown above. And enough to make the short sleave in the contrast colour I had chosen and can you believe I can not remember what colour that was. I think it was a paler pink to tone with the dark pink rather than contrast against it, but there is a 50/50 chance that I am very wrong.



I am not going to give myself a time limit on this. Because I have a waiting list of items to be made up for other people. Some are presents and two are comissions, (yeah me. two people have asked me to make for them, how cool is that!)  As long as I do not put more weight on, it should fit. It will be less forgiving the the tight fitted twinset.

It will be a very long time before there is an update on this piece but I wanted to share with you what has kept me away from my little blog for so long.

Has anyone else had a change of heart during a project, or even come to the conclusion that they are growing faster than the project they are working on (pregancy excluded, of course) ?

Love to you all Vala x

By the way I love my new size, I now actually have a figure known as curvy and it is great.

Finally some makes,

A day after the wedding myaself and S.H. both came down with a viral chest infection. Not nice.

After a few days rest the boardom was bugging me more than the illness so what to do.
A found a cardigan I had started was was at the point where it only needed sewing together and the colar knitting so I picked up the needles and carried on.

Here is the finished cardie

It is hanging weirdly on Betsy (the lady has become very static and clingy, any advice on how to sort this would be greatly appreachiated)But the cardie is level when I tried it on.

I used this pattern

Wendy 5316, with out the fake pockets and with buttons. The cardie looks just as good with a belt.

I have previously made this jacket in teal , but on this one I did large ribbing on the bottom instead of moss stitch, more of a mistake than intentional but I like it.

I hope none of you my friends get struck with this viral infection, until next time xx
Sew Vala. x

A most wonderful weekend

Last week I spent both physically and mentally spring cleaning. The weather was lovely I think that may have spured me on. Home wise was more moving furntiure and sorting, while mentally I was making lists for all sorts of things including a sewing schedual. Now anyone who knows me, knows this is most unlike me, but I have become so unproductive lately that I felt the need to.

As for the weekend I was very brave and drove myself and S.H down to Bournemouth for the only knitting machine show around this year.

I know many hold knitting machines in a low regard, but to me, does this not in turn make machine sewing a cheat compared to hand sewing.

Well we had a lovely day. After a browse around the stalls and meeting some lovely ladies, we went to the beach and had dinner overlooking the sea. And had a walk along a most windy, wave crashing shore. After travelling home the eveing was spent reviewing our purchases with beer and talk of our future, wedding and honeymoon talk. A most wonderful weekend.

Today I finally got round to some sewing (the first this year). I hope to share with you pictures of my third dress by the end of the week.

Sew Vala x  

Bargain Book Day

Well yesterday turned out to be a very good day.

My car was in the Garage for 4 hours for a service and a re-call tune up. And as I had no way to get back home, I decided to take a stroll to the outlet centre. I wasn't planning to purchase any goods, it was just to spend some time wandering and spending time with my eldest daughter.

Whilst in the bookshop there I came across these bargains that I couldn't pass up.

    £2.99, How cool is that and it is full of gorgeous designs.

Again £2.99

This was the most expensive at £4.99. It is filled with some great designs from 1920's through to 1980's. Although I don't think I will be atempting anything from the 70's or 80's.

And this was the best bargain of all it actually came up on the till as £1.99 and buy one get one free, so we could choose another book. My daughter picked a fictional book.

What a cool day and when we got back to the garage my car was ready and waiting, all valeted and washed.

Happy day all round. I hope your week is going well too.

Sew Vala x

A different kind of twinset.

Today I have organising the large amount of vintage knitting patterns I seem to have gathered, I truely didn't realise there are so many. Here is one of my favourites picked out from today. I like that it is a waistcoat and jacket, a nice change from the jumper and cardigan twin set. I don't think the shade of blue would suit me. I would love to be able to make this, alas small wool and small needles I have such a struggle with.

Sew Vala.

Chunky Teal Cardigan.

Finally here are the pictures of the cardigan I made over Christmas.

      My flash makes the colour apear blue but it is acually the same shade as shown left
(image curisty of deramores.com)

I didn't follow the pattern completely, I changed a few things. I choose to have a large ribbing at the bottom of the cardigan.

   
But stayed with the moss stitch for the cuffs and colar.

A close up detail of the twist stitch separating the border from the body.
      

 The pattern I used was Wendy Pampas 5316.








I am so pleased with how it has turned out that I have now started making another in white, unfortunally won't be able to continue until my hand is better. This time I am going to do the moss stitch, so that both cardigans are noy idenitcal, but will still not add the pocket flaps, the are just cosmetic and not actual pockets.

I love it and I hope you like it too.
Have a cool weekend friends.
Sew Vala x