Gift knitting

Two Baktuses, that I knitted for bigger girls for Joulu presents. I figured that at the age of 6 and 4 they are finally old enough to wear scarves. (and they make very cool cat-tails for their plays as well - as we have discovered today...)

Pattern: Baktus by Strikkelise

Yarn: solid version (below) 1.5 balls of Louisa Harding Kimono Angora in pink-peach-light yellow-mix, stripy version (above) less than 1 ball of Kimono Angora in Pink and same amount in brown - pink-orange -mix. (lovely angora blend - btw:-)

Needles: 4,5mm

A very simple scarf pattern that has been seen in various knitting blogs. I liked knitting Baktus - it is Very Fast to knit - and the result is just lovely. Will probably make one for myself as well...

I also knitted a Gail for my mom - but no photos of it, because I didn't manage to take any before giving it to her ...

Surface

As promised - some photos of FO's. Let's begin with Surface. It took me a couple of months to knit this - and approx. 1 month of that went into that weird wrap - that can be wrapped around shoulders. I'm happy that I decided to knit everything (wrap included) before seaming pieces together - as if I had finished the jacket first I still would be knitting the wrap...

And then it would look like this:

No wrap. Nice - but nothing really special.

So I'm really glad I persevered and finished (what seemed like endles rows of blister stitch) and now I can wear my jacket with the wrap, because for me - it is the wrap that 'makes' this garment special. (+ it keeps me so warm...) Pattern: Surface by Norah Gaughan from Knitty Winter 2008

Yarn: Jaeger Extra fine merino Dk in Badger (#977)

Needles: 4mm(? as far as I can remember..)

And as I realised - the wrap can be worn as a scarf as well:-) Not bad!

The design is - once again- by unbelievably talented Norah Gaughan - whose patterns have a siren-like qualities when it comes to me - they sort of whisper "knit me"... and then I find myself knitting yet another one of Norah's designs. And I always end up really happy with the outcome.

too busy

Life's been hectic recently . So much so that I have almost forgotten this blog. Being a working mum is very different from being a mum at home. Everything is scheduled to the minute. There is really no time for me anymore. At work dead lines are getting closer and closer and I have to admit that I really look forward to xmas break. Not that I wouldn't like my job - I still like it very much - it is just that too much is exactly that - Too Much.


It's been over 1,5 months since my last blog text - and lots has happen. In November we spent a long weekend in Barcelona with my DH. Just the two of us!! (first time in over 6years - that kids were not with us) and it was wonderful! It was also great to see my brother - who lives in Barcelona but never visits Finland.

While wondering the streets of Barcelona we accidentally run into this cool yarn shop on Placa de la llana - where I bought this funny looking skein of local spanish wool. It is a very long skein (leek next to it is to give some perspective....) in amazing vermilion red. Absolutely fabulous!



After the Barcelona trip I've basically been working my ass off... but I have managed to knit as well. Not too much but something. I'm very glad that I have completed all 3 xmas projects (to be given as xmas presents) already. So no stress this year about finishing knitted gifts in time:-)


I've also finished Surface jacket and v-neck pullover in RYC Cashmere tweed - but it has been so dark there's been no chance to take photos of them. Today the sun is suddenly shining and it is freezing cold (-22 Celsius as I write this...) . So pretty outside - like a picture postcard - but so cold that it freezes your cheeks in no time. Which is why I'm writing this blog now... I'll promise proper posts with enough photos of all knits I've finished later this year.

Puro hat & cookies

Yet another knit made with Novita Puro... October has truly been a Puro month for me -all my FOs are made with Puro. And it is only, because I managed to overestimate the amount of yarn I needed for girls' sweaters - so I ended up with several extra skeins of Puro after finishing those.

I knitted a hat for Amanda from the same shade as her sweater. It turned out ok. Very much improvised knit with no plan except that in the end it should fit my daughters head. With some twists added to stockinette.

So here it is. (in a very bad, a bit blurry & over-exposed photo - yet again... must start using our other camera)
Pattern: Improvised:-) (just got this idea to make cable- twists every 4th row. They are totally random...)
Yarn: Novita Puro in #806 less than 50g.
Needles: 5mm

It covers ears -> mission accomplished.

This morning I was on a very good mood:-) Girls behaved well for once and I felt like baking (this is very rare indeed!!) - so I made some Smarties cookies. (actually made with M&Ms, not Smarties;-)
They are absolutely delicious! Gotta bake more often...

Lokakuu on Puro-kuu. Tai ainakin näin voisi tästä blogista luulla. Kaikki valmistuneet neuleet kun on neulottu Purosta. Ei siksi että Puro olisi jotenkin ultra-ihana lanka - vaan onnistuin hienosti yliarvioimaan langanmenekin tyttöjen villapaitoihin, joten jäljelle jäi useampi kerä Puroa.

Tällä kertaa neuloin Amandalle pipon - täysin improvisoiden. Eli neulepinnassa on joka 4s kerros palmikkosysteemi - ja näitä sitten ihan summamutikassa kääntyillen suuntaan jos toiseenkin. Pipo sopii käyttäjän päähän ja peittää korvat - joten tavoite sen suhteen saavutettu.

Sitten ihmeellisempään asiaan - nimittäin leivoin (!! minä itse! ) aamulla keksejä - koska oli vain niin mukava olo ja kerrankin tytöt olivat supernätisti ja tuntui mukavalta viettää jokaviikkoista vapaapäivää kotona (= ei tullut ikävä töihin, niinkuin esmes viime viikolla...)
Ja niistä tulikin tosi herkullisia keksejä. Nam:-) Pitää varmaan yrittää leikkiä kotihengetärtä hiukan useammin jatkossa...

Riverbanks

When new Knitty was out in September, I just knew I had to knit Riverbanks. Something in it just called me "knit me - knit me". And I'm happy that I did.

Using Novita Puro (yet again) in 3 different shades and striping with them (1 row/colour) all the way through - resulted a rather nice colour combo. The only modification I made - was to knit the edges in garter stitch instead of stocking stitch. Garter stitch just looks nicer on both sides - and I like the way it helps keeping hood edges in nice shape.
Pattern: Riverbanks by Isabelle Boutin
Yarn: Novita Puro in shades #801, #804 and #807 - 50g of each
Needles: 6mm

Törmäsin Riverbanksiin kun luin läpi uutta Knittyä - jokin siinä suorastaan pakotti neulomaan sen. Harkitsin ehkä vain pari minuuttia ennen puikkojen ja sopivan langan esiinkaivamista:-) Lopputuloksena on kolmesta eri Puron väristä raidoitettu huppu, joka on ihanan keveä ja pehmeä. Ainoa muutos jonka tein tähän malliin oli reunukset - jotka sileän neuleen sijaan neuloin aina oikein - näin reuna pitää paremmin kutinsa ja näyttää mielestäni paremmalta ja ryhdikkäämmältä. Muuten oikein kiva malli !

(I don't know what has happened to my camera - it overexposes every frame... maybe a time to buy a new one?)

Sleet - Räntää

It's getting colder. Today we got some sleet.
Days are getting darker and the light is vanishing away...
I've done some functional knitting lately -
like these wool soakers for Mariella. She is actually almost day-dry but likes to wear these on top of her clothnappy - I guess they are pretty comfortable. These are new ones - with a needle felted butterfly on bum (that's what I attempted to do - but wasn't entirely succesful...)as she has grown out of the old ones. I like this colour though, a beautiful red that gradually changes from dark to lighter.Pattern: none - I've knitted several of these with slightly varying measurements along the years..
Yarn: Evilla unspun wool (w/lanolin still in it) in red-mix
needles: 4mm

Tänään vuorossa räntää. Valokin tuntuu katoavan jonnekin - taitaa olla pitkä pimeä kausi taas aluillaan..
Kylmyys vaatii lämmintä neulottavaa puikoille - tällä kertaa valmistuneena ovat nämä villavaippahousut . Vaikka nuorimmainen onkin jo lähes päiväkuiva ja pitää vaippaa lähinnä varmuuden vuoksi, silti neiti haluaa päälle villikset. On tainnut tottua niihin ja varmaan ovatkin mukavan pehmoiset ja lämpimät. Yritin neulahuovuttaa peppuun perhosen, mutta sen onnistumisesta voi sitten olla montaa mieltä. Noh - tulipa kokeiltua tätäkin.

The 3rd - Kolmas

Here's the third of stripy sweaters I knitted for my daughters. This one in autumnal shades of Novita Puro.

Pattern: None = top down raglan with 3row stripes knitted from 2 different balls of Puro yarn, k1p1 ribbing on sleeves, hem & collar with 1 row stripes.
Yarn: Novita Puro in #804 Ruska approx 150g for size ~86cm/2yrs
Needles: 6mm & 5mm

"ok, I'm going now - enough is enough..."

Tässä se kolmas Novita Puro raitapaita - nuorimmaisen ruskainen versio. Erittäin koukuttavaa neulottavaa. Ja nopeaa. Tässä äidin lempivärit, koska neiti vajaa 2v ei vielä osannut itse valita (kaikki värit oli "jooo" :-).

More stripes - Lisää raitoja

I'm currently working in a new project and juggling with my work-family life balance, so I haven't been updating my blog as frequently as I thought I would... anyways -

Here's the second stripy Puro sweater I knitted. Amanda chose pink-blue-brown colourway of Puro for her sweater, and it looks nice on her. (although she at first complained that there was "too much blue" in it...) Pattern: none really - it is a top-down raglan with 2-row stripes knitted from two separate balls of Puro, k1p1 ribbing on hem, sleeves and collar (w/1row stripes)
Yarn: Novita Puro in Jäätynyt karpalo #806 (Frozen Cranberry) approx 200g,- size ~104cm/4yrs
Needles: 6mm & 5mm

I have to say this sweater was the hardest to photograph, as A. is always moving . She cannot seem to stay still. At all. Sometimes I think she's more like a force of nature than a little girl.

I had my doubts when knitting this sweater, but it turned out really well.

Töihin paluu ja koko arjen uudelleen opettelu aikatauluineen jne vie voimia ja enemmän aikaa kuin olisin uskonutkaan. Siksi blogin hitaanpuoleinen päivittäminen. Tässä nyt kuitenkin toinen Puro raitapaita - keskimmäiselle tyttärelle. Värinä neidin oma valinta Jäätynyt Karpalo, jota neuloessa hiukan mietitytti että tuleeko tästä mitään - mutta näin valmiina se on varsin hauska neule.
Kuvaustuokio oli taas hmmm... haastava. A. kun on jatkuvassa liikkeessä, joten kuvien ottaminen ei ole sieltä helpoimmasta päästä - nämäkin hiukan epätarkkoja, mutta saavat kelvata tällä erää:-)

Heather stripes- Kanervaisia raitoja

I run into a sweater very much like this one on Silmukkatti-blog
and wanted to knit something similar for my girls. I let them choose their own colour of Novita Puro and this is what my pre-schooler chose. Colourway (801) is called Kanervikko (Heathers). Very pretty - me-thinks.
Pattern: None (=a top-down raglan sweater, stripes 3rows each, knitted from two different balls of the same colourway. Ribbing k1,p1 with 1row stripes on sleeves, hem and collar. Size approx 120cm.)
Yarn: Novita Puro (approx. 250g) in #801 Kanervikko
Needles: 6mm and 5mm (for ribbing)
Innostuin minäkin kokeilemaan Novita Puroa - ja sysäyksen sain Silmukatin ihanasta tytön raitapaidasta. Joten päätin neuloa kaikille kolmelle tytölle omat - neidit valitsivat itse kukin oman värinsä - tässä eskarilaisen valinta - Kanervikko.

Todella addiktoivaa neulomista - aivan kuten Noroakin neuloessa - "vielä pari kerrosta, nyt on tosi hyvä väri... " . Lanka sinänsä on ihan-kiva-joo. Melko pehmeä ja hieman ehkä veltto, mutta sopii hyvin tällaiseen helppoon neuleeseen, jota tulee kuitenkin käytettyä usein. Jännä nähdä kestääkö kuinka hyvin nyppyyntymättä...

After a Great weekend... - Hienon viikonlopun jälkeen..

Had a wonderful weekend. On Saturday we went to a nearby forest to pick some wild mushroom (Cantharellus tubaeformis) and I later made a really nice pie with them... plus some smoked bacon & leek - yummy!

Later on Saturday afternoon we went to a crayfish party to our neighbourghs'. Had a blast. Crayfish is actually from the river that runs next to our garden. Local food at its best... Really delicious. And so fun with a couple of schnaps and some nice neighbourghly company.

On Sunday I did some swatching for future projects... with Rowanspun 4ply (got the gauge spot on so will immediately begin knitting this!)
just Love this stuff. Rowan classic range Cashemere tweed. So Wonderful:-)

I even managed to take photos of these colourful sweaters on girls. (that was not a walk in the park... but now it is done. Results later this week..)

Olipas mukava viikonloppu - ensin sienimetsälle, josta löysimme piirakkatarpeiksi suppilovahveroita, sitten rapujuhliin naapureille. (Ihan tuosta "omasta" joesta ! todella herkullisia!) Jokirapujen, snapsin ja hyvän seuran yhdistelmä oli aika lyömätön.
Sunnuntaina seurasi vähän mallitilkkujen neulontaa ihanasta cashmere-langasta ja Rowanspunista (joka on varmasti yksi kaikkien aikojen ihanimmista langoista - miksi senkin tuotanto piti lopettaa???)

Arbor Row Scarf

Here's something I knitted a day before going back to work. (I was feeling a bit nervous so I wanted to knit something fast - instant gratification....) I made this scarf to go with my Snowcap hat .
Pattern: Arbor Row Scarf by Wenlan Chia (ravelry)
Yarns: Wendy Pampas Mega Chunky in Petrol, Novita Polaris (black) and Rowan Big wool tuft in Frosty
Needles: 15mm
I used yarns from my stash and like the end result. Big Wool Tuft looks almost like fur in the midst of it. I made the middle part of scarf some 30 stitches shorter (or narrower, as it is knitted the long way) but it is still long enough.

Tässä pikainen neuletyö jonka tekaisin päivää ennen töihinpaluuta, kun alkoi jo hiukan jännittää ja neulominen tuntui kovin rentouttavalta. Hommaan meni pari - kolme tuntia ja tuloksena on mielestäni varsin hauska (ja paksu) huivi. Kaikki langat on kaapinpohjalta löytyneitä jämiä ja pääsivät näin hyvään käyttöön. Huivin malli on Wenlan Chian käsialaa aivan kuten aikaisemmin neulomani megamyssykin.

Bumps - Nystyröitä

This is what I have on the needles right now - lovely, salt'n'peppery bumps.
It's gonna be Surface one day...

Yksi tällähetkellä puikoilla olevista neuleista - Ihania palluroita! Tästä on muotoutumassa Surface...

Ether

Ether , or a modified version of Ether has finally got its own photo session and here it is. All sleeveless but still quite pretty. This is my second wrap-around style sweater from Damask and I still like the rayon/linen blend a lot. It has a great sheen but also a sort of rustic feel to it.
Pattern: Ether by Erika Knight from Rowan Magazine #43, (ravelry)
Yarn: Rowan Damask in Mica
Needles: 4mm & 3.5mm

The original design has short(ish) sleeves but I decided to omit them as then it would have been stricktly for summer wear.. and let's face it - summer here in Southern Finland is max.3months of the year. The rest of time you need long sleeves. Or long sleeves and a vest to wear on top of that. At least.
I tried Ether with some of my blouses & tees and noticed it can be worn up or down, depending where I want to wear it. So to work I could wear it like in the photo above- with a nice, crisp white blouse. And for the rest of time - when I'm my usual free-spirited self - I would wear it like in the first photo. With a long sleeved-tee underneath. (it looks nice on its own as well. on bare skin)
btw, I love those ties with tiny knitted leaves on them. I got slightly bored towards the end when knitting this (why does this keep happening to me? Anyone else feel like that? No matter how great the project is, by the time I'm 80% done I only count for rows when I'll be finished with it... Go figure...) and so I made every single leaf a bit different than the next. Every leaf is unique! Ha. (that kept me amused for a while;-)

All in all - I'm quite happy with my modified Ether. It has nice lines and I think it was a good call to leave it sleeveless. Maybe a bit romantic for me - but fine. I'll wear it anyways. (maybe I'm mellowing down? Where's my Downward spiral? Nothing that a good dose of NIN could not fix.)

Back to work - Takaisin töihin

It's been an exciting week. I went back to work after staying home with girls for nearly two years. And suddenly everything seems like new again.

Not much to show you then. It's not that I don't have any FO's but the lack of photo sessions...
Anyways - here's what I made with my BFL fibre from Wildcraft. Shade is the apptly named Sunflowers and I managed to spin it a bit finer than my first yarn. I would knit it with 3.5mm needles & is approximately DK weight.
Originally I tried to finish with just one big skein of yarn, but I have no idea how to continue plying when the spindle is already full (can you empty it somehow without breaking the yarn & continue? or how is it supposed to be done? Please let me know if you know how!)
So now I have two squishy skeins approx. 50g each.(total 236meters of yarn)

Oh btw.- my DH bought me an old Finnish spinning wheel from a flea market. I'm thrilled! It needs a bit of TLC before I can start practising with it but now I have one!!

Jännä viikko takana - palasin töihin parin vuoden äitiys-hoitovapaan jälkeen ja hiukan oudoltahan se tuntuu. Vaikkakin olen asiasta innoissani...
Valmiita töitä olisi, kun vain saisi aikaiseksi kuvattua niitä- Siksi näytillä tälläkertaa itsekehrätty villalanka. yhteensä 100g/236m ja sellaista 3.5mm puikoilla neulottavaa tuli. Väri on osuvasti nimetty Auringonkukat. Ihanan pehmeetä keltaisen, oranssin ja ruskean eri sävyissä. Voin jo kuvitella tämän jo jossain kirjoneuleessa...

Ai niin - mies meni ja osti mulle rukin! siis suomalaisen talonpoikaisrukin. (vinorukki) näyttäis olevan aikalailla kunnossa - siis mitä asiasta ymmärrän (en paljoakaan - se on myönnettävä) mutta rukki tarvitsee kyllä kunnon putsauksen ja öljyämisen ja sitten ei kun harjoittelemaan. Mulla on oma rukki!!! Jihuu!

Candyfloss - Hattaraa

Delicious - isn't it?
Herkullista! - eikö?
just kidding.
This wonderful fluff is a Merino-Tencel blend in "Barbie" (?) from The Natural Dye Studio's Fibre Club (June, ´09) Wonderful stuff. And it spins like a dream as well.

Vitsi vitsinä. Mutta hattara tästä ekana tuli mieleen. Kyseessä siis oikeasti The Natural Dye studion Fibre-clubin kesäkuun '09 kuitu - Merino-tencel ja värinä sokerinen "Barbie". Makeaa mahan täydeltä. Ja tämä tuntuu kehräytyvän värttinällä lähes itsestään.

Flea-market find - Kirpparilöytö

Look what I found!

Ihana löytö - olen tästä ihan innoissani!

Busy, busy - Kiire

It's been a busy few days - our 6yr-old started pre-school. Which for her means taxi rides every morning at 8am. 4yr-old is slowly restarting day-care and smallest one is getting used to day-care place (we visit there several times before she actually starts there next Tuesday)

On top of that I have a table at the local indoor flea-market for this week and a "few" visits to dentist etc for the girls... so much so that I haven't really knitted that much. But here's something I finished a couple of weeks ago, when it was still +23 celsius outside... A bit weird to knit something this bulky in the heat of the summer.
Pattern: Snowcap hat by Wenlan Chia from Twinkle's weekend knits (ravelry)
Yarn: almost 200g of Wendy Pampas mega chunky in petrol
Needles: 12mm

I guess I'm ready for the autumn breeze in this hat...

Finishing touches - Viimeistelyä

I'm almost finished with my Ether and have decided not to knit sleeves for it. Only those important finishing touches left to do: Crochet waist ties, knitted little leaves --and blocking. so Pretty.Ether on lähes valmis - vain viimeistelyt puuttuvat - virkkailen tässä vyötärölle kiinnitysnauhoja ja vielä on lehdykät neulomatta ja tietysti blockaus puuttuu - mutta sitten onkin jo valmista. Päätin jättää hihat kokonaan neulomatta - jotenkin koesovituksessa tuli sellainen fiilis että tämä on parempi näin -- ilman hihoja.

Noooooo! - Eiiiiii!

This is what happens when you let your lovely daughter (1year8months)to play with your 12mm addi turbos. Yep. In less than 2 minutes she managed to take it apart.

Voi syyttää vain itseään kun antaa näppärän pikkuneidin (1v8kk) leikkiä Addi Turboillaan. Alle kahdessa minuutissa toinen pää oli irti. Tuhotut 12mm Turbot.