I've lost the pattern!

I have lost the pattern for the Sanquhar gloves.  As you may know, I am not very good at using patterns and this one drove me mad.  I tend to mis-read them and do better making up my own.

So I struggled on with this one and even got a chart for the Midge and Fly pattern.  It was different however, and one of those patterns that creates an optical illusion that shifts before your eyes, so not much help.

Oh dear oh dear.  I bought a new copy but cannot remember what row I was on.  each row is numbered with no other description.  And given I am using 1.5mm needles and hand spun Cashmere and Yak (therefore slightly fluffy) yarn counting the rows is also a challenge. 

so the Sanquhar gloves may well end up in the bin if that pattern does not turn up.

If you want to see what they look like, see the previous entry about them in December 2012.  Then add two more rows...

are you bored with knitting?

do you ever get bored with knitting?
before I learned to spin I had stopped knitting altogether due to boredom but spinning changed everything.  even so called boring knitting is exciting when you see how your own yarn knits up.

Hand dyed yarns do the same, and now, many years later I find I am back to using commerial yarns again because there are so many more nice ones out there.

so now I have knitting or crochet with me all the time again.  the projects seem to breed in the night.  I start with one project but then it gets too big to take with me when  I go out, so I start something new.  then that gets too complicated to do whilst chatting so I start something for the knitting group.

but at the moment I am finishing projects.  In the last  month or so I have finished
twirly crocheted skirt for a 2 year old
doggy bootees
party cape for a 4 year old
Amalfi crocheted waistcoat

now I am working on the Romi shawl and loving it.  this shawl has a really good pattern and chart and there have been no mistakes in it.   it comes from a booklet called 7 small shawls to knit, which I bought on Ravelry and was worth every penny of its $12/£7.50.  I am using hand dyed lace yarn and it is fun to see the colours coming out.  they look different in the central panel to the way they look in the surrounding pattern which is fun.
spent most of yesterday working on it and only stopped when I started making mistakes.

Fiddle Faddle Sanquhar Glove

I love to fiddle with knitting.  Quite often I will knit three or four samples before deciding how to start the knitting and on what sized needles, using what stitch pattern etc.  A very laudable habit except that I am less good at finishing knitting.  Now Gloves are heaven, because they are all fiddle with no straight knitting in between.  And patterned gloves are even more so.

I got sanquhar glove patterns because my Guild of Weavers Spinners & Dyers is having a Sanquhar knitting challenge.  the usual thing is that mine is not finished in time because of all the other demands on my time, but we shall see.  That is a very good idea seeing as the village of Sanquhar is in our area, and we even have members who live there.  Sanquhar is about 20 miles from where I live, and it doesn't realise how famous it is via the Sanquhar knitting if appearances are anything to go by.

The patterns are written by the Scottish Womens Rural Institute (AKA The Rural) and are therefore very very good.  they have no errors, they explain why you are doing things and are typed in double spacing.  Listen up all you knitting designers - tell us why we should knit 2 together then it is easier to fudge if the pattern does not work.  And please do not print your books on black - I want to photocopy one pattern FOR MY OWN USE not to cheat you out of money, but so that I can fit my knitting into my handbag and scribble all over the pattern whilst I knit.  Come to think of it, those books of knitting patterns so piss me off.  Why not make individual patterns anymore?  it is all about money, but some of us just don't bother rather than pay £8.99/$15 when we only want one pattern in the book.  Or we buy one between three of us so I doubt if you really make more money out of us.  And I would happily pay a decent price - say £2-3/$3-5 for one pattern if only I could get one.

So a resounding thumbs up to The Rural.  And here is my work in progress Sanquhar Glove.