Hurry up...

If force of will alone were sufficient this shawl would have been finished days ago. It has reached the point where I am willing it to be finished. Willing those last 20 to 30g of yarn to form themselves into neat little garter stitches just so that I can whip the thing off my needles and wrap it around my neck.

As the end of a project approaches there are usually a variety of emotions which include, but are not limited to relief, frustration, joy or pride.  With some projects you are having so much fun knitting them that the end almost creeps up on you and catches you unawares. Some you finish with a sense of relief, a sense of duty done and you can finally set it aside and work on something more joyful. But never, I don't think have I wanted to cast off a project so badly.

Not because I'm not enjoying it - it is fabulous easy and soothing knitting. Not because I don't like the yarn or the project - both are lovely and a delight to work on. 

It's just that this shawl sums up everything about this fleeting season that I love. Bright sunny days (sometimes), beautiful cherry blossom, fresh vibrant green buds and slightly grey, misty mornings. All summed up in garter stitch goodness just waiting to be wrapped around my neck.

So, armed with strong coffee and a packet of chocolate digestive I've set myself the task of getting to the picot bind off by bedtime tonight. Wish me luck...

Strong coffee and strong stripes

After a few weeks of being missing in action I am pleased to report that my sock knitting mojo has returned. It seems like a different lifetime ago that I cast on these socks in a coffee shop in London whilst DH waited for his knee surgery. For the past few weeks I just haven't felt like knitting on socks at all but at the weekend I picked these up and with renewed joy sat down to watch the magic of these simple stripes unfolding.

I only intended to work a few rounds but before I knew it the leg of the sock whizzed by and I found myself at the cuff. This yarn comes in 2 perfectly matching 50g skeins so I know need to wind the other one before I jump in the car this morning. The yarn is one of the Star Wars series by the US dyer Must Stash Yarns and this is the Hans Solo colourway. 

It's a sure sign that my sock mojo has returned - the thought of leaving the house without a sock WIP is enough to cause consternation and distress. What if I'm stuck in traffic? So the sock WIP returns to my passenger seat and all is right with the world.

Something approaching normal

A new month is just around the corner and for me that means a new notebook and some new design projects. I've been rather taken aback over recent weeks in how much my creativity has taken a nose dive. Looking after DH after his operation, keeping the house going, being the sole parent and taxi service has really taken it out of me. Both of us have been surprised at the impact his recovery has had on us as a family. 

In the run up we were solely focussed on the operation and the logistics of it, barely giving a thought to what would happen afterwards. And the resulting adjustments meant I barely had time for anything else - and my design work was very firmly relegated to the back burner. For me, creativity requires that I am calm and peaceful and have space to myself. Chaos, stress and having other people constantly around is the kiss of death and generally means that all I'm capable of doing is knitting garter stitch  (or crocheting, it seems).

But now as we have turned a corner and DH is becoming much more mobile I feel as though for the first time in weeks I can turn my mind to sock knitting and design work. It's a good feeling and I'm excited to get back to it.

Just 1 more cup of coffee though first.

An exciting prospect

Is there anything more exciting than the feeling when you are getting ready to add a pop of new colour to a project. Or in my case, to add some calm and soothing grey to this wonderful vibrant spring green.

I have a busy day of teaching lined up but I have my evening  (and as much of tomorrow as I can manage) planned out. I have Netflix and a hot date with this shawl to look forward to. I am determined to be able to wear it whilst it is still spring.

And to give me some ideas on how to wear it I'm  going to be using a fun Instagram hashtag starting next week. Use the hashtag #springshawlstyle and let's share some inspiration for how we wear our shawls. 

More details to follow but why not use this weekend to sort through your shawls and pick a few of your favourites to show off this spring.

Under your nose.. .

Sometimes the thing you are looking for is right under your nose the whole time.

For the past week or so you may have seen that I have been enjoying working on my corner to corner crochet blanket - some may say this has bordered on obsession - but as I am powering through my sock yarn stash it has to be a good thing.

I have decreed that this blanket shall be full of light, bright colours - think spring garden flowers. Colours that make me think happy seasonal thoughts. Especially if I can eat happy, seasonal chocolate at the same time. The only problem is that my sock yarn stash contains rather a lot of grey. Now, don’t get me wrong. I am a huge fan of grey - just not in this particular blanket.

And so I have spent a rather embarrassing amount of time online this week looking for pretty, pink speckled yarns. Not my usual choice for my design work but yarn which is just the ticket for this ridiculously addictive blanket.

Imagine my surprise then, when a chance rootle through my stash drawers came up with this perfect pink speckled yarn from last years The Golden Skein. At the time I didn’t know what to do with it (other than pet it) and so it was tucked away lovingly into my stash.

And now it’s time has come. The stash has revealed it at just the right time and so within 5 minutes the yarn was wound and I was gleefully adding it into my blanket.

DH has taken to referring to me working on my blanket as my ‘feeding the monster’ - so quickly does yarn disappear into the thing. And I think he is quite heartened at the rate my sock yarn scraps are dwindling. Although he doesn’t realise that the drawers where I keep my stash are a far bigger monster and empty space within it is not to be tolerated - more yarn will need to be purchased and soon, to feed it.

The Fuss Free Festival Shawl

For this new shawl design I was lucky enough to be able to collaborate with Leona of Rusty Ferret yarns and Gem of The Little Grey Girl. Leona created an exclusive Edinburgh colourway of Rusty Ferret and Gem had her exclusive project bag to go with it.

I have created a shawl design especially to compliment this spectacular yarn and with yarn that's such fun garter stitch is the only way to go. The pattern is now available to purchase on Revelry or it is free for a limited time to my newsletter subscribers. 

The Fuss Free Festival Shawl is designed to be the perfect shawl to cast on at a knitting festival. You've snagged that perfect skein of yarn and some obliging soul has wound it into a cake for you. All you want to do is cast on, rest your aching feet and knit on a nice soothing project. Lots of garter stitch and easy to remember increases make this project for festival times. The slipped stitch border gives great structure and drape to the shawl and the finished item has a fabulous, relaxed crescent shape which is eminently wrappable and easy to wear. A picot bind off adds a touch of interest but is easily omitted if you would prefer to leave it plain.

It is easily customisable to suit the yarn you have. I am making a larger size right now by adding a contrast colour as stripes and I'm excited to see how big it can go.

I'd love to see your yarn choices for this. If you do cast it on please let me know or tag me on sick media.