Entangled Vines update- hate the yarn!

Do you ever start knitting with a yarn and really liking the feel and texture of it and then change your mind? I'm using Bergere Magic+ for my Entangled Vines. I loved the slightly soft feel and the colour when I started. As I have progressed with the sleeves, which are knitted on DPNS, I have had problems with splitting and pulling of the fibres with the ends of the needles. The whole cardi is knitted top down on a long circular needle so that there is a lot of weight and the yarn is probably handled more than if it were knitted in separate pieces. The photo with the book is taken with flash and this has made the stitches look neater but if you compare it to the photo below which was taken without flash you can see how uneven and slightly felted it looks. It may help to enlarge the photo on your browser. I'm seriously falling out of love with it and only hope that trying to even the stitches out with blocking will help.

I'll have to finish it now as it has cost me too much but I hate the lack of stitch definition. On the up side; as it is knit in one piece there will be no seaming and I have been able to try it on. It fits!

My book this week was lent to me by my friend Celia. It is The Forgotten Seamstress by Liz Trenow. Celia knows all about my quilting and thought this might suit me. It is about a woman who finds a quilt in her mother's attic and sets out to discover the secrets behind it. Asylums, royalty and love. If only my quilts had such a back story!An easy read and maybe not the best written book by a long way but enjoyable all the same. 

I will be linking up with Yarn along and Wool on Sundays, the links are in the right hand side bar.

Busy week

This week is flying by so I am taking a few minutes this morning to jot a few things down that I have been doing.

On Tuesday I hosted a sewing bee for the Honey Bee group I belong to. We are all ladies "d'un certain âge" who met at a beginners quilt course. There are about 6 or 7 of us who decided to keep meeting up as we enjoy each other's company so much. We have a laugh, share ideas and generally get along. Liz was feeling not so good so could not join us this week so there were only 5 of us; Gilly, Jan, Kathy, Jane and me.

Concentrating on getting down to work

Gilly with her new fabrics

Jan starting to bind her quilt

Jane and her Bargello quilt and Kathy with her embroidery sampler

I worked on some hand stitching of another flower block for the English Country Garden BOM so that I could organize drinks and lunch. I cooked 2 soups for lunch; Nigel Slater's Smoked Haddock Chowder and Jamie Oliver's Creamy Mushroom soup. Mike made some bread to go with the soups, Gilly brought her delicious chocolate brownies and some cheese and I made an apple and cinnamon tray bake.

As well as the usual show and tell we decided to do a small fabric swap and Jane had brought a pattern for foundation paper pieced stars. We will be using the swapped fabrics and some from our own stash to make the stars. The idea had been to try to use fabrics that would not be our normal choices but that was easier said than done as we were all drawn to the colours we like the best!

Jan brought along her subscription copy of Quiltmania, a French magazine that is also published in English. One of the projects featured was a Mystery Quilt BOM called Colmar by La Fée Pirouette (Nathalie Mèance) and only available in the UK though The Running Chicken Quilting Co. We all liked the project so much we rang and booked our places there and then. We want to work on a project together, building on our fledgling quilting skills by learning the new techniques. The photo of the first block is taken from the magazine.

The kits can be ordered mainly in Europe but with one outlet in Australia and one in the USA but places are filling up very fast. The written instructions are backed up by online videos so I think we should be able to cope. I am looking forward to improving my appliqué and embroidery skills.
New skills sometimes require new kit too- I ordered a set of Apliquick tools. I had seen them being used by Lynette Anderson on Youtube and I hope they will make it easier to turn fiddly edges on small pieces of appliqué. I also ordered a book on appliqué technique; "Simple Successful Applique" by Jeanne Sullivan. It arrived yesterday and I have only had a quick flick through it but it looks comprehensive with great photos, a video and patterns for 9 projects.

My cardigan is progressing well and I hope to have more photos next week.

Mike and I are off to stay with friends near London for a few days. A theatre visit is planned so I might include a review next week too.

Whatever you are doing, stay warm, stay dry and stay well.

Catherine

All the fun of the fair.

The beautiful weather continues so Mike and I went to the Malvern Autumn Show on Sunday to see all the produce, floral displays and country crafts. There were exhibitions of giant vegetables, Shire horses, dog training events, food tastings and cookery demonstrations. The show ground was so huge that frequent stops were required for refuelling with pasties and craft beers. Children enjoyed the funfair while parents looked at vintage cars.

I had the great pleasure of catching up with a fellow blogger who had a stall in the Vintage tent. Tracey has a super crafting/family blog, A Patchwork Life, which I have been following for some time. When I saw that she was going to be exhibiting and selling some of her super stuffed toys and Christmas ornaments I knew I would love to meet her in person. She is just as nice as she is in her blog. I bought the cutest knitted mouse in 60's inspired dress. I gave this later in the day to my 4 year old granddaughter Lexie and it was a great hit.

I have knitted frantically this last two weeks and I have not one, but two finishes to show. I had knitted the Playful Stripes cardigan before which helped but the Wee Wildflower cardigan was a new pattern for me. It won't be the last time I knit it though.

I love the bobble flower pattern on the pockets and the loopy edge. Next time though I will knit it in a softer wool yarn. I used Jenny Watson Babysoft, an acrylic/polyamide blend. The feel is not quite as nice as the yarn I used for Playful Stripes but it should be hardwearing and it is machine washable. It was also very reasonably priced at less than half the price of the Debbie Bliss Rialto DK I used for Playful Stripes.
Pattern: Wee Wildflower by Alana Dakos of Never Not Knitting.
Size: 23.5" chest

This is my absolute favourite cardi to knit. It is a joy to knit with the Debbie Bliss yarn; it is so soft and luxurious and machine washable too! If only it was cheaper. I bought the spotty buttons online from Kirsty at Love Paper Fish.com
Pattern: Playful Stripes Cardigan
Size: age 2 years

I've really got the knitting bug back and have cast on another cardigan which I will show you at the end of the week. Not much progress on my Coastal Ripple crochet blanket though. Tomorrow I'm off to my
patchwork class. So much to do and so little time.

I've decided that since I am linking to Yarn along that I will start posting about the latest book I am reading. I have always loved books and still buy lots but increasingly I use my Kindle. It is so easy to travel with and download new stuff too. BUT you cannot beat the real thing, especially in hardback.
My latest read is The Miniaturist, by Jessie Burton. I'm only about 25% in and it is almost unputdownable. Set in 17th c. Amsterdam it tells of the strange marriage between a shy young woman and a merchant. The detail of the society they live in and their household makes for an extremely good read. I've linked to the review on goodreads.com as the précis is so good.

Have a wonderful week (and let me know what you are doing too)

Catherine

I'm linking up to Wool on Sundays, Anything goes Mondays and later in the week (Wednesday) to Yarn along.


I've also got more details of the knits on my Ravelry pages.