Fickle Steps - a new sock design

Fickle Steps by Louise Tilbrook Designs

After months of keeping it under wraps I am really pleased to let you know that I have a new sock design published - in a fabulous new magazine called Rib.

Aimed at men who knit and those who knit for them this is only the magazine's second issue but it has already built a considerable following on Ravelry and on Instagram. They have a wonderful clean and pared back aesthetic and the designs in this issue all have that immediate appeal that makes you want to grab your needles and cast on immediately.
I was so pleased to be able to work with them and also to have to chance to work with some fabulous yarn -Nomade - from Julie Asselin

Fickle Steps is a pattern for a unisex cuff down sock with a design that is fun to work and easy to remember.

There are some great sweater patterns in this issue too and I can see them appealing to both men and women. The Survey Pullover for example would make a great addition to my wardrobe!

I do hope you pop over and take a look at the magazine and I'd love to know what you think.

A new KAL you say? Oh.. go on then...

Fuss Free Festival Shawl by Louise Tilbrook Designs

And why not? Its a bank holiday in the UK and a project this simple and straightforward practically knits itself.

We all love a good excuse for a cheeky bank holiday cast on, so why not grab a skein of lovely sock weight yarn and join us. No rules, just lots of fun and garter stitch.

Join us over on the Everyday Knitter Facebook group or use the hashtag #fussfreefestivalshawl on social media so we can all see what you are working on.

The pattern is still free for another week or so if you sign up to my email newsletter so if you haven't snagged a copy yet you might want to while you have the chance.

May Sweater Challenge

May is the perfect month to concentrate on a little bit of sweater knitting. Never mind “Summer knits” and wafty linen tops. We know that the british weather is fickle at the best of times and you can be very glad of a warm woolly sweater on an August bank holiday in this country.

Even if the weather gods smile on us and we have a glorious summer, by starting a sweater now you have a great chance of having a fabulous new addition to your autumn wardrobe.

Sweater knitting also ties in very well with the #memademay challenge. Predominantly an initiative started by sewists this also extends to anyone who makes elements of their wardrobe by hand. There are some inspirational blog posts on the subject and this is a hashtag I love to follow on Instagram, along with #handmadewardrobe and #slowfashion.

If that wasn’t incentive enough there is also #milomay - an annual KAL for the super cute and very adaptable Milo vest - a pattern by Georgie Nicolson. This has been running for a few years now and there are some wonderful examples on Ravelry of knitters who have taken this fabulous pattern and really made it their own.

And just to add the cherry on top of the cake, starting a sweater gives you are great boost on your Stash Dash total. I’ll talk more about Stash Dash in the coming weeks - a lot more as it is a real favourite of mine - but for now just bear in mind that it starts towards the end of May and runs until August. Seasoned Stash Dashers will be already planning their summer knits with this in mind.

So, what are you waiting for? Just a suggestion but these are a few ideas for how you can participate in the #maysweaterchallenge.

• Dig out your unfinished sweater projects and either rip them out or finish them.

• Challenge yourself to knit your first garment - baby knit totally count.

• Cast on a brand new shiny sweater project - yes I know - this is my favourite option too.

• Organise your stash and pair up your ‘sweater quantities’ of yarn to patterns in the queue.

As ever, there are no knitting police. Set your own challenge and be sure to head over to the Everyday Knitter Facebook group to join in the fun and chat. Hope to see you there.

What is a sock yarn swap anyway?

So, what's all the fuss about a sock yarn mini swap anyway?

If you are a member of the Everyday Knitter Facebook group you may have seen that we had so much fun with our last mini swap that we are doing it again. Many of us are knitting sock yarn blankets or scrap yarn projects and as much as we love our own stashed yarn it can be a real bonus to have an injection of colour from someone else's stash.

So, the sock yarn mini swap idea was born. For minimum hassle and maximum knitting time we use an app called Elfster which is an automated gift exchange service. You register and then after the sign-up deadline has passed you will automatically matched up to a swap partner. The swap is reciprocal - ie you both exchange gifts with each other.

If your swap partner has any particular preferences it's good to take these into account when choosing which yarns to send. You can set up your preferences by using the 'wish list' function in Elfster.

You then just need to wind off your chosen yarns into 5g mini balls or skeins. It isn't necessary at all to skein them but if you would like to there is a great tutorial here on how to do it. It's also nice to label the skeins - dyer and colourway - so that your partner knows what they are. It's a great way to discover new-to-you dyers or to get your mitts on something that you haven't had a chance to try out before.

Then just write a little note, pop everything in a Jiffy bag and post it by the deadline. It's a good idea to register on Elfster that you have sent your parcel. As an admin - that makes my job so much easier.

Then, when your parcel arrives please take a little picture and let us know about it on the Facebook Group. You can also record it as received on Elfster. This shows your swappee that their parcel has arrived safely and hopefully that you are happy with the contents.

All that remains to be done is to grab your sock yarn blanket and add your new mini skeins, along with some happy memories of a new knitty friend you've made.

Progress...and a quandry

I'm sure it can't just be me who always seems to reach a sticking point partway through their project. All is going swimmingly, the yarn is fabulous, you love the way it works with the pattern and then, all of a sudden, nothing. All motivation dries up, disappears and the project descends into the the WIP basket never to be seen again.

For me, the crucial point is about 75% of the way through something. Even though my logical brain tells me that just a bit more effort and I'll be casting off, my less than rational brain is yearning to go and do something else. This is often compounded, as in the case of this shawl, when a crucial design decision is needed.

This is warm and squishy DK weight yarn and I'm keen to use as much of the yarn I had as possible - Cumbria DK from The Fibre Co. I'm now at the stage to do the border and the plan I had in my head doesn't look quite right. I find myself in a quandry and so of course I do what I normally do in this situation - cast on for something else.

But, today I am being good. It's coffee at the ready and thinking caps on. Today this shawl will have a border and I will be a happy designer - probably.

Starting on the right foot

For me, this is the perfect start to any day. Give me half an hour with some wool and some strong hot coffee and I'm ready to face the day. If I have to bypass this step and get straight into the morning chaos then nothing ever quite seems to go right and I spend the rest of the day feeling grumpy and out of sorts.

Half an hour of silence, with just the birds going nuts with the dawn chorus outside. Half an hour without being asked to find something, wash something or feed someone. Half an hour to feel the wool in my hands and the rhythmic, soothing making of stitches and all is right with the world. 

I always have my knitting with me obviously  and will happily pick it up and knit at every opportunity but somehow nothing is more important than that first half an hour. Just me and my yarn, making something.