Knotty Knitting

NaNoWriMo!

2011-11-05T06:26:00.004Z

So now I've taken on another challenge. What is it about me and challenges? NaNoWriMo; write a novel in a month. Yeah right. A. I don't have the time, and B. I probably don't have the skill. Well I don't know about the latter, I'll never know if I don't have a go. The feedback I've had from the Arvon courses I've been on are that I do have writing ability and that I learn quickly. What I probably lack is application. And that's largely because I get distracted by all the other things I've got on. But I say quite often to staff and students "You find time to do the things that are important to you". So if my writing is important to me I need to find time to do. NaNoWriMo feels manageable. Writing 50,000 words is imaginable. I wrote 80,000 for my thesis, many more if you include the pre-edited versions. So 50,000 is not impossible. And the brilliant thing about NaNoWriMo is that you go for quantity not quality. Yes that's right, quantity not quality. It's all about writing with self-edit turned off. It doesn't matter what you are writing, what matter is that you are writing. It's day 5 and I'm a bit behind with my daily allocation - the 50,000 words works out to 1667 words a day, every day, for the whole of November. I've still got 537 words to do today to get back on target but that feels doable. Especially as it's only 6.30 in the morning and it's a Saturday. I'm sure I can bang out another few hundred words today, even get ahead of myself again and bank a few more hundred against days when I am struggling. After all I am writing this aren't I? I clearly haven't run out of words yet. NaNoWriMo is getting me out of bed early in the morning. I feel the urge to get up and get cracking. I need to get at least a chunk of my word count under my belt by the time I set off for work and then with this notebook I can carry on typing on the train which is brilliant. And it is so liberating just typing without going back to check anything. Just type, and type and type. So here's to NaNoWriMo and the long days ahead. Roll on end of November and those 50,000 words.

Allotment!

2011-08-26T15:25:00.004+01:00

Now this might be a bit daft considering all the other stuff I've got going on at the moment - new business to set up (Glorious Gluten Free Foods), a full time job, lots of WIPs in the wool department (including 400 balls of locally produced Aran wool to knit), Twitter (which has become alarmingly time consuming due to my fixation with not missing anything), a Kindle full of books to read (including War & Peace of course) - but I've just agreed to take on an allotment. About 3 months ago I put my name down on what the local allotment society website said was a 12 year waiting list. That 12 years just became 12 weeks and OH and I went over last night to have a look at our potential new project. Yes there were lots of reasons why we shouldn't be taking this on but it was just too tempting. So I am about to phone to accept a half plot (only a half, but it's still a lot of digging). It is currently very overgrown but I am assured that those are just very easily pull uppable weeds and that the person who used to have the plot (before the people who let the weeds grow) had a very productive piece of ground. I have already harvested a few broad beans from amongst the weeds and they were scrummy. So tomorrow we're off to Liverpool to meet up with some Norwegian friends of ours who are over at a Beatles experience weekend, and then Sunday will be allotment day! How very exciting. I think. I think this is a good time to take it on as we can do some digging and weeding now, harvest whatever we can from the plot and then do lots of planning over the winter, armchair gardening is so appealing. One day I'd like to set up a farmers' market in the village and encourage everyone to shop locally; maybe this allotment is the first step. Any tips anyone?

What a lot to do!

2011-08-19T15:32:00.005+01:00

I am still knitting, some successful projects, some not so successful. Most annoying thing was finishing a jumper for my daughter and taking care for once to finish it off properly. And it was a disaster! She tried to pretend it wasn't but it was too small (me having worried most of the time about it being too big) and my picking up for the neckband was very messy. So it's back in my bag awaiting unraveling and re-knitting. You may get it for Christmas Jo! I have also taken the plunge and launched a new venture - baking gluten free foods. I have a friend who is coeliac and have discovered just how difficult it is for her to find good quality delicious baked goods. I have baked for her for a while and have now done some market testing. There is definitely a gap in the market big enough for me to wriggle into. I've started a separate blog to post about my new venture and market my delicious cakes and biscuits. Exciting times and busy ones too as I've just taken on an allotment. There was a 12 year waiting list according to our village website so I thought a few months ago I had better get my name down. 12 years seemed long enough away not to have to worry and I could always decide nearer the time if I really wanted one. Then I got a phone call to say I was at the top of the list and one had become free. A bit of a shock but I thought it too good an opportunity to miss. It's all about organisation and time management..... So I sing, I ring, I read, I swim, I knit, I bake and now I have an allotment. I need to go and lie down now.

Long time no blogging!

2011-05-23T17:24:00.002+01:00

Haven't blogged on here for a while - a long while! But have been busy knitting. Have also joined Ravelry and am in process of putting photos of my projects on there. Have been doing lots of knitting, mainly for Gracie my adorable granddaughter born August 15th 2010. Have also set up another blog to post about my experiences of being a grandmother. Am going to try to blog more frequently and advertise the fact. Have got a period of change coming up so will write about that as well as posting pictures of some of my knitting projects. Have written a short story today - An Old Woman Falling - and am looking for a suitable competition to enter it for, or a magazine that might be interested in publishing. Have finally understood that the reason I am not published is because I don't submit! Am following Writers Mistakes which is very supportive and sensible. My plans for the future include writing, writing, writing. As well as the knitting and baking. All three are creative so hopefully will feed one another, as well as me.

Back with a bump and a spinning wheel!

2009-09-03T12:01:00.003+01:00

We had a lovely two weeks in Norway mainly staying with our friends Kari and Peter in Uvdal and then Oslo. I had a look for some Norwegian wool but didn't really come across much. I did buy some in Uvdal but now find it's made in Italy! Not quite what I wanted to bring back but still lovely wool for felting. Shetland was a different experience. Wool and knitting is still highly valued there. I found a beautiful cobweb lace knitted shawl on the island of Yell and went to visit the lady who knitted it. A real heirloom piece to be treasured for many years to come. I am very inspired to knit one but need to get some other pieces finished first. The jumper for my husband is coming along nicely and once that's finished I'll start on socks again and get a few pairs in hand for Christmas. Back to my Shetland purchases - I didn't come back with much wool, just a couple of balls hidden away in the bottom of my rucksack. What I couldn't hide was the spinning wheel and fleece! The spinning wheel is handmade by Hamish, again on the island of Yell and the fleece is from the woolbrokers in Lerwick. One slight problem is that I can't actually spin, but hey nothing ventured, nothing gained. The fleece cost £4 and weighs just under a kilo. As long as I don't take my hours of labour into account then I could end up knitting a lovely throw or knobbly wrap with my first lot of spun wool for just £4 (plus the cost of the wheel plus the carders I've just ordered, but who's counting?). I just need to learn to work the wheel! The fleece has now been washed in my bath and dried. It looks fabulous piled into a wicker basket on the floor beside the wheel. Very evocative. I have to keep imagining it turning into wool as I sit by the fire and spin! I'm off to the Lakes this weekend, swimming! Hope the weather brightens up but then we'll be getting wet anyway. We're doing Buttermere, Crummock Water, Grasmere and Easdale Tarn. I'm going with a company called Swimtrek (http://www.swimtrek.com/). This will be my third trip with them and they are great. Really looking forward to it. Happy knitting and happy swimming!

Knitting Cakes

2009-08-11T14:25:00.007+01:00

I really enjoyed knitting both the wedding cake for Jess and Niamh, and the cupcakes for a work awayday. I saw the Alan Dart pattern for the wedding cake a while ago and never thought I would knit it, however when I heard Jess and Niamh were getting married I thought I'd have a go and hoped they would like it. Apparently they do! It took about 8 hours knitting time and then an amazing 20 hours to put together. I took it over to Dublin in pieces and my daughter and I spent a whole Sunday constructing the creation. A real labour of love and this is a real one-off, it will be a long time before we do another. We did have a lot of fun doing it however and really enjoyed being so creative. The finished result speaks for itself. (http://www.alandart.co.uk/) The cupcakes were a lot easier and nearly as much fun. I got this idea from an ice-breaker I did prior to a staff awayday. I asked everyone to say what type of cake they would like to be. I chose a cupcake because they are small, perfectly formed and you can be a different one every day. I then came across a pattern for knitting cupcakes and had the idea of knitting one for all the people on the awayday. They went down really well (I think). All I have left is the photo and a desire to knit another set. At the moment I also have a jumper for my husband on the go. I'm slightly put off by his reaction which is that he doesn't like the colour (a soft muted autumnal brown in my opinion, sludge coloured in his) however I am going to finish it as fast as I can so I can move onto other things. I have also got orders for socks for Christmas from Kirsty and Corinne so need to get on with those. They have asked for bright colours so I will see what I can find in the way of wool. I am typing this up in sunny Shetland. I am up here doing some writing for a book and updating my blog as a break. We are off to Norway for a couple of weeks soon and meeting up with Norwegian friends Kari and Peter as well as doing some walking on the Hardanger plateau. I had intended to pursue my Norwegian but time has done its usual job of running away with me and I am still limited to a very few stock phrases. I will no doubt come back newly inspired and as Kari and I both use Skype maybe I can have some Norwegian lessons before I next visit. Shetland and Norway are both knitting havens and I hope to buy some wool in both countries just to add to my stash. This may have to be done secretly as my husband has still to recover from me buying 350 50g balls of locally produced Hebridean wool. I have started knitting one Arran jacket but have a lot more to knit before I get through that part of my stash! Ok, back to work and a different kind of writing. Happy knitting everyone!

New Projects!

2009-07-09T15:44:00.004+01:00

I am trying to make sure I finish at least one thing before starting on something new but it's hard! Picked up the half-done crochet baby jacket last night and have started the second side - really enjoying it but still have the urge to cast on something new. Have my eye on some cute little knitted brooches - kitsch and cool. Knitting is so therapeutic and so creative. My job lacks creativity at the moment and knitting is one way of getting some back in my life. To anyone who is feeling low or stressed I would really recommend knitting as a way of getting things in proportion. It can be a real motivator and a destressor as long as you pick something that is within your capabilities and that you can finish fairly quickly. People love being given something hand knitted so it benefits everyone. If you can't knit ask someone to teach you. There are also lots of lovely tutorials on-line, http://www.knittinghelp.com/videos/learn-to-knit or join a knitting group, you would be very welcome. Writing is my other big project and one which I just love once I get started. I've finished a couple of short stories, some flash fiction and have mapped out the ideas I have for a novel. I had a very creative day when I decided that as I was going on a novel writing course in the autumn I better have some idea of what my potential novel was going to be about. I had some vague ideas in my head and spent about half an hour getting them down on paper. I was amazed at how far my thoughts had progressed and how much of a framework I actually had. It was really useful - a bit like picking up lots of bits of knitting and sewing them all together. I'm not sure what the finished garment will look like exactly but I know the general shape now and the colour of the yarn. I'm getting on well with Scepticism Inc and hope to finish it on the way home tonight on the train so I can put some knitting in my bag for tomorrow's commute. I am so glad I don't drive in to work - I would lose so much recreational and creative time. Sorry to all the people who ever get inconvenienced by my knitting but I try to keep my needles out of your way. Here's to reading, writing and knitting.

All knitted out ....

2009-07-08T08:57:00.003+01:00

Feel all knitted out having completed the wedding gift (photos as soon as the happy couple have been given it). Read on the train this morning for the first time for weeks; very strange book -story is narrated by a supermarket trolley. Scepticism Inc by Bo Fowler. Echos of Ben Elton's books in style. Have finished The Book Thief and absolutely loved it. Read it slowly (unusual for me) as wanted to savour it. Didn't want to finish it as knew it couldn't end well - being set in Nazi Germany - but I got there and it was worth the sadness to have read it. Also recently read Devotion by Nell Leyshon which is one of the best things I have ever read. If I had to choose the book I wish I'd written this would be it. Such wonderful characterisation and amazing empathy with four completely different people. Another book I read really slowly as I just didn't want it to end. So back to the knitting; found some lovely patterns while browsing. Downloaded some from Alan Dart's site http://www.alandart.co.uk/ I never imagined I would be doing this sort of knitting but these creations are so cute! I have also found a pattern for little brooches which are also cute so will be having a go at some of those. As well as the jumper for my husband, the cardigan that my friend Viv is still waiting patiently for, the half crocheted baby coat, the nearly-finished-the-back Aran jacket .... and some other things I've started, hidden away and forgotten about. And still the wool keeps coming. I renewed my subscription to Yarn Forward and they sent me two balls of Shetland 2 ply and a pattern for a hat. Thanks Yarn Forward. Spent some time yesterday downloading photos from my camera and sorting them into folders. Felt very organised. Now I need to do something with them so they're not just sitting there. Will post some on this site as I've realised I like looking at blogs with photos on them. Happy knitting.

Things I've finished

2009-07-06T12:24:00.000+01:00

Have had a difficult year and so not posted much (not since August!). Had a fantastic trip down to Guildford for our son's wedding. Crocheted the shrug to wear over my dress but not sure anyone took any photos on the Sunday when I wore it. Very pleased with it. Have also finished several pairs of socks, a pair of fingerless gloves for my journalist daughter who gets cold fingers typing away in her Dublin apartment. Plus a shopping bag from plarn (which is what yarn made from plastic bags is apparently called). Haven't quite got the handles right but I love the material that is created. Have lots of ideas for other uses. This weekend I have been to Dublin to see my daughter and we spent the whole of Sunday on a secret project that took 8 hours to knit and then 20 hours between us to assemble! We are both so pleased with the finished result but as it is for a wedding that is coming up soon the details and photos will have to wait. Big projects I have finished include a blanket I started several years ago - knitted in cream arran weight, each square is a different stitch with a sea/beach motif. I'm really pleased with it but it needs a border to finish it off. I have used up all the original wool so am keeping my eyes open for something suitable. In the meantime the blanket still looks good, the border will just be the final touch. I started a cardigan for my mother at Easter and finished it a couple of weeks ago. As usual with my projects I had completed 80% of it and then abandoned it for something new. However she was really looking forward to it as it is a lovely modern pattern in a soft dusky pink. So I made the effort to get it out again, found out what I still had to do and just got on and did it. And it looks really lovely on her. She is in a care home and several of the staff and residents said they would go on a waiting list! No chance, I am off on something else already, as well as the several other projects that are still on the go - including that sweater for you Viv! I'll get there one day. Will post some photos when I get them off my camera and will keep posting, and knitting.

Shrug

2008-08-07T16:15:00.000+01:00

My son is getting married on September 6th. We are travelling down to Guildford on our narrowboat (a three week trip) so we will have a very relaxing few weeks while chaos reigns in Guildford! We will arrive very chilled and ready for a fab time. I have a lovely floaty dress which needs a shrug, I'm halfway through crocheting one - a very basic rectangle based on trebles - and am just waiting for some more wool to finish it off. It's a good project to have on the boat as it's so easy to do while I'm waiting in locks or even steering on easy stretches. The colour of the wool is just right - a fuschia pink which picks out one of the colours in the dress and I have tried on the half that I have finished and am really pleased with it. Will post a picture once it's finished. I have nearly finished the scarf I started in Shetland with 2ply shetland and lambswool laceweight yarn. I have really enjoyed knitting with something so fine and will definitely do some more with this weight or even cobweb (1ply). I'm not sure I'll tackle a shawl but you never know. There are some beautiful patterns around (see latest issue of Yarn Forward magazine www.yarnforwardmagazine.co.uk/) and I am very tempted but I am better with projects I can pick up and work with while travelling. Confession time, at the moment I have on the go:

A 4ply ribbed sweater for a friend that I've gone off (the sweater not the friend!) because I just don't think it will suit her, it's a 1940's pattern that she chose and while I love it I just can't see her wearing it - it's too much of a skinny rib. I must finish it and if she doesn't like it she can pass it on to someone really skinny.
An arran jacket which I am knitting from wool from local sheep - Hebridean, naturally black/brown which is amazing to knit with. Not sure quite why I've not carried on with this, I've almost completed the back but have moved on to other things.
A baby's hat - have knitted the hat and just need to sew it up, make two bobbles and sew them on. The baby's born now so need to finish it while it still fits!
A baby's jacket - this is for the same baby as the hat and I've done the back and both fronts. Need to do the sleeves and sew up.
Squares ad nauseum - enough to sew up into a reasonable size blanket. The main reason for not completing this is I don't like the yarn. This was one of the first things I started a few years ago and bought a stash of very cheap arran weight yarn which isn't that nice. I persevered but much prefer natural fibres now. Still, I really should complete this project and give it away to someone who will like it. All the squares are different stitches so it really is quite good. I just wish I'd used better yarn given all the time that went into the knitting.
My shrug which WILL get finished as I need it for the wedding!

That's not too bad is it? And here's the list of the things that I have finished in the last year:

Ten pairs of socks
One blanket
Two shrugs
Several scarves

There's a moral here I feel - I'm good at starting large projects but better at finishing small ones - especially socks! I have also learnt to spend money on good yarn as it's a better investment. So here's to narrowboating and knitting, or crochet, and here's to me finishing some of those projects while I'm cruising down to guildford.

2008-08-07T16:01:00.001+01:00

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Island knitting

2008-07-18T11:55:00.000+01:00

Since visiting Shetland last month and buying some lace weight wool I have been looking at how knitting has developed as part of island culture. There are many traditional knitting patterns from various islands available on-line and while distinctive they also have much in common. Knitting seems to be an island hobby related to the availability of wool, the need for warm clothing and as a local source of income. So far I've found traditional knitting patterns from Shetland, Iceland, Fair Isle, Guernsey, Jersey and Ireland. I've put some links on my list for anyone who's interested. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with this information but it's fascinating to see how knitting has developed in these relatively isolated communities. Although garments were first knitted for utilitarian purposes the knitters developed intricate patterns and colours which required intense work. Most of this work would have been done in winter, in relative darkness, by candle or firelight. And of course you had to spin your wool first. I watched someone spinning when I was up in Shetland. It looked very calming and restful but I was soon put off when the spinner told me how long it would take her to spin the small quantity of fleece she had with her - just a handful would keep her going for weeks. No wonder the invention of the spinning jenny was so welcome! My resolution (again!) for the rest of this year is not to buy any more wool but to get through at least some of the stash I've got. The problem is of course that I keep going to places where wool is for sale and falling in love with it. Buying wool is highly addictive but I must go back and have a look at what I've already got - I think I will be pleasantly surprised and hopefully will fall in love with some of it again and get on with knitting it. I've got four items on the go at the moment and must finish at least one of them before I start any more. A friend has asked me to knit her daughter a Christmas stocking to match the one she has. We've found a pattern on-line dated 1925 which looks exactly like the one she wants. So I need to go to a wool store and match up the yarn. There --- I've almost broken my resolution immediately, but in a good cause of course.

Knitting as Therapy

2008-07-15T10:11:00.000+01:00

It's been a particularly stressful 18 months for various reasons - both home and work related. Looking back on how I have coped two things spring to mind - chocolate and knitting! I have no hangups about the chocolate habit, whatever has got me through all this has to be good and I've got it under control (I think!). Knitting however has added benefits. Once you've eaten that bar of chocolate it's gone. Once you've finished a piece of knitting it's there for ever, either to keep and cherish or to give away to someone who will appreciate not just the article but the time and patience that went into creating it. That's the thing about knitting, it's creative as well as being calming. There is something so relaxing about the simple repetitive movement of needle in, wool round, needle through and stitch off. You repeat it time and time again and it develops a rhythm of its own. I started with squares which require very little thought, are small enough to finish quickly, and build up into something as large or as small as you wish - a cushion cover, a small blanket or a large afghan. Then I moved onto socks and these were wonderful. Again they are small enough to finish quickly, and small enough to carry around wherever you go. They require some concentration at key points but a lot of the time you can just pick them up and do a few rows. With the wonderful wool around they look fantastic and they make fabulous presents. Currently I'm knitting a scarf with 2 ply (lace) wool from Shetland and there is only 1 pattern row. That's just right for knitting on the train or at odd moments, without getting involved in a complicated pattern with lots of wool. Knitting therapy really works for me. However agitated or worked up I feel about yet another thing that has gone wrong knitting never fails to calm me down. I knit on the train on the way to work and on the way home; I sat quietly at the back of a wedding service on Saturday and got my knitting out (I wasn't a guest but one of the bell ringers waiting for the service to finish so we could start ringing again). I have knitted in lectures and at presentations, not because I wasn't concentrating on what was being said but because having my hands and one part of my brain busy helps me to focus on what is being said. I have knitted on our narrowboat and on ferries. I haven't managed to get my knitting needles past airport security so I haven't knitted on a plane but am working on that one! When I next fly to China I will take some wool and use the plastic chopsticks that they provide with the airline meal. So if you see someone knitting in an unlikely place it might be me, particularly if I am looking calm and relaxed.

Knotting - knitting and narrowboats.

2008-07-10T13:15:00.000+01:00

Why knotty knitting? My sister and I took our narrow boat from Furness Vale on the Peak Forest Canal to Chester a couple of years ago. It took us a week and we had lots of fun and adventures on the way - some of them will never be revealed. On arrival in Chester we, metaphorically, ran into a boat with several Dutch people on board. Both my sister and I had been knitting at various stages of the journey; I was steering into moorings and my sister was standing beside me knitting. We heard a shriek from the other boat: "There's a woman over there, knotting. Look, on that boat, she's knotting!" And so knotty knitting was born, in memory of that linguistic error which seemed so apt. My interest in the women of the canals grew when I was looking for books about narrowboats and the lives of the people who lived and worked on them before they became part of the leisure industry. There are very few books written from the perspective of the women but many from an engineering or industrial view point. I wanted to know what it was like to live and work on a narrowboat, to bring your family up in one tiny cabin, to steer the boat, look after the horse, cook, clean, wash, have babies, all with a husband who was off brokering the next deal or loading cargo. At last I found a book and loved it for its tales of just this sort of life. The contrast between the lives of these women in the first half of the 20th century and my own where narrowboating is a leisure activity prized for its peaceful and gentle way of life couldn't be greater. What woman toiling away in all weathers, losing her children to the multiple accidents of a very dangerous life, and destined for an early grave, would ever have imagined that one day people would do this for fun? One occupation which ran alongside everything else they did was knitting. Women steered narrowboats with the tiller tucked under one arm, a baby swaddled or feeding under the other, and both hands occupied with needles and wool. As I struggle into a tight lock or between moored boats I realise that for these women multi-tasking was not just a way of life it was a necessity. And so in tribute to these harworking, talented and forgotten women I knit whenever I can. Yes, I have managed to do it while steering, only for a few minutes and only when there was a perfectly straight stretch of canal and no other boats in sight. But my knitting and my love of narrowboats is intertwined and knotting is shorthand for this.

2008-07-09T18:09:00.000+01:00

Shetland knitting

2008-07-09T17:41:00.000+01:00

I recently visited my sister who has just moved to Shetland. Amazing place with a long history of knitting. Wasn't going to be tempted by all the fantastic wool on sale of course as we are in the process of gutting our house and I am having to hide my stash from my long suffering partner. So I didn't really bring much back but what I did is fabulous to knit. I went for lace weight - but am going to get my sister to bring me some cobweb weight when she next comes down. I am really into knitting with this fine yarn. I don't think I'll ever get round to knitting the cobweb weight shawls which are so fine you can pull them through a wedding ring but am happy to have a go at scarves with it. I also bought some more sock wool - well you can't not buy it can you? So that's the knitting bit. The writing is coming on but just need to send some off to possible publishers. Have got a couple of short stories, some poems and three articles. The reason of course that they don't get into print is that they tend to stay on my computer rather than go anywhere else. So maybe I'll use this blog. Here's one for starters that I wrote very quickly as an exercise on a creative writing course with the Arvon Foundation. Something old, something new, Something borrowed, something blue. My love was old, old as the hills, old as the sky; My love was new, new as the dawn, new as the rain; My love was borrowed; Borrowed from the woman down the road whose bed he left to come to me; My love was blue; Blue as my heart when I shut the door behind him and picked up the post from the mat.

Beginning to Blog

2008-07-09T13:52:00.000+01:00

Years behind some and years ahead of others this is my first blogging attempt. Hopefully it won't be my last.