Author Archives: Bron

Knitting in the slow lane

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Painful wrist/hand + book deadline = very little knitting lately 🙁

I’m only knitting a bit at a time, a few rows here and there spread across several projects, so progress on all of them has been slow. However, I’m only a couple of pattern repeats from finishing the second half of the Three Sisters scarf – so hopefully in the next day or so it will be finished, grafted together, and blocked. I haven’t had a FO for over a month – longer for knitting – so I’m itching to be able to change a project status on Ravelry and upload photos! Maybe this week.

My jacket in Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran has seen a little progress – the back is finished, and I’ve started the fronts, almost finished the lower moss-stitch bands. I’m knitting both fronts at once, to make sure I get them the same.

I started a pair of socks in The Knittery’s merino/cashmere sock yarn, but the needles I had were driving me mad, so I frogged it to start again with a different pattern, on different sized needles. Around Christmas time I had started a pair of plain socks, using one of the Cherry tree Hill yarns, but the pooling was gack, so I frogged it yesterday, too.

However, I really need to get this darned book finished this week, so knitting will continue to be sporadic, and only what helps me concentrate on writing, until next week at the least.

But on the good news front, I have walked on the treadmill EVERY morning for the past 19 days, so my exer-stash fund is looking healthy. So when I finally get some real money again, I won’t feel guilty spending it 🙂

And that being said, it is time to get my walking shoes on and go and walk – and then it will be writing time, for the rest of the day (and night!)

Exer-stash 2009

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Happy New Year!

In between my sore (but getting better) left wrist, and a looming book deadline, I’m not doing much textile work at present, but I am committed to two goals for 2009:

I won’t be able to make any progress on the second one until after this book is finished, but as far as the first is concerned, I’ve walked every day this year 🙂 AND today I’ve set up an Exer-stashers group on Ravelry, to join up with others who have trouble finding motivation to exercise, but have plenty of motivation to buy yarn!

We’ve even got a group badge (feel free to steal it for your blog if you wish):

20080105exerstashbadgewhite

All are welcome to join in!

Now, I must get back to writing… time for knitting, weaving and other yarny/fibery goodness will have to wait until the manuscript is handed in!

Inkle cottons

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I was in Canberra for a few days over Christmas, and visited Lincraft on Boxing Day, where they were having a 30% off sale. I mentioned in a previous post that it’s hard getting a good range of colours in 4ply cottons for inkle weaving – well, Lincraft had a good range! I chose the less expensive yarn, and, with 30% off, was able to splurge a little on 12 different shades:

Cotton 4ply yarns

Cotton 4ply yarns

Other than that, I was restrained at the Lincraft sale – the only other purchase was a ball of plain dark brown Sullivan’s sock yarn.

However, since my wrist is still quite painful, I am doing very little knitting at the moment. Having it x-rayed tomorrow, so I hope to find out what’s wrong – and what the treatment is!

Inkle bookmarks

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I’m doing some weaving 🙂

I’ve been suffering from a lot of pain in my left wrist and arm lately, which has been getting worse instead of better. I don’t think it’s knitting that’s caused it, but I decided to take a break from the needles for a few days and see if that helps. However, I do like to have some fibre/yarn work to keep my fingers busy!

I’ve been thinking about making some more bookmarks for a little while, and the Sept/Oct issue of Handwoven had some inkle bands in it, in rich colour combinations, that I liked. Yesterday, a series of thunderstorms overhead had me turning off the computer and keeping the frightened dogs company in the living room for a while – a perfect opportunity to get out my inkle loom, my bag of cotton yarns, and the Handwoven article. Unfortunately, it’s a challenge getting a good range of colours here in 4ply cotton, so there was no way I could replicate any of the colour schemes in the article, even if I’d wanted to. But it did give me some inspiration, and the motivation to be more adventurous in colour combinations and patterns than I’ve been in the past. I’m quite happy with the results:

Inkle bookmarks in progress

Inkle bookmarks in progress

These weave up quickly, and I’ll be finished this warp this afternoon. Then it will ‘just’ be a matter of cutting them apart, and twisting the fringes – and possibly adding beads, if I can find ones that work.

Knit 1, Sleep 1, Write to end

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I’m back home again after almost two weeks in Sydney. Another medical procedure down there, which went well, and this time only involved one night in hospital. I stayed down there longer, though, on GPs advice – because if complications arose afterwards, they’d likely be serious and quick, and we’re just too far from specialist medical services here. Sydney is large and busy and noisy, and the combination of noise and post-operative tiredness meant that I didn’t sleep well at nights, and had to take a nap most afternoons.

I’m on a deadline for a book, so knitting is taking second place, but some is still happening while I stare at the screen. Just before the end of November, I started two socks for the Ravelry Sock Knitters Anonymous November challenge:

Slip-stitch socks

Slip-stitch socks

I love the colours of this yarn, but in the first sock I started knitting with it, the colours pooled into definite stripes. I needed a pattern therefore that broke up the pooling to give a more mottled effect. One of the SKA challenges for November is slip-stitch, so I’ve used an improvised slip-stitch pattern – 1st round: *slip 1, k3; 2nd& 4th rounds: knit; 3rd round: k2, *slip 1, k3 (thus offsetting the slip sticth from the previous pattern round). I’m quite happy with how this pattern is muting the colour changes, and also with the lightly textured feel of the fabric produced. This was also my first ever toe-up cast on.

Peace socks

Peace socks

Another of the challenges for the SKA group is to knit a design by Wendy Johnson, of Wendy Knits. I’ve had the beautiful ‘Earth’ colourway of Cherry Tree Hills Supersock Potluck in my stash for a couple of months – it seemed appropriate, in the lead-up to Christmas, to knit a design called ‘Peace‘ with the gorgeous ‘Earth’ colours. This was my second ever toe-up cast on – which I had to do from memory, as I hadn’t taken the instructions to Sydney with me!

Crimson lace mitten

Crimson lace mitten

I knitted my niece lacy fingerless mittens earlier this year, but unfortunately stuffed up and they ended up slightly different lengths. I’d promised her another pair, and when she was in Sydney with me in June, she chose this gorgeous crimson yarn for them. I’ve now knitted the first mitten – one more to go before Christmas! The colour is actually a little richer than it shows in the photo.

In the meantime, I’m still working on the Three Sister’s Scarf, and I’ve almost finished the back of a shawl collar cardigan. Yes, I have too many wips on the go. However, I did finish my Komet socks:

Nundle Retro 4ply

Pattern: Komet socks, by Stephanie van der Linden. Yarn: Nundle Retro 4ply

I’ve been suffering a little from some carpel tunnel or similar problem in my left wrist, so I’m alternating between different projects to give my wrist some variety, and also knitting slowly and gently – and sometimes not at all. I don’t think its the knitting that’s causing it, but I’m still not going to overdo things and make it worse – because I still have a book to finish writing in the next few weeks!

Not fibre – but fun!

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I know there’s a few people who visit here who entered in my contest on my writing blog last month. The good news is that my wonderful publisher has arranged another giveaway, this time in conjunction with the Romance Writers of Australia. If you’d like to enter to win one of five copies of my romantic suspense, As Darkness Falls, head over to the RWA’s giveaway page and send in your email entry, before the end of November.

The giveaway contest is open to everyone, not just RWAustralia members, and all you’ll need to do to enter is send an email to the address given on the web page. (RWAustralia has a strict no spam policy, so your email address won’t be used for any purpose other than the contest.)

And to give this post a bit of yarn content, while I’m working on book 2 to meet my deadline, I’m knitting very simple socks – the basic plain stockinette pattern I’ve knitted a lot of times before, that needs no concentration. They’ll probably be for my Dad for Christmas. I’ve actually finished sock 1 and am on to sock 2 now, but here’s a pic of #1 in progress:

Basic socks in Moda Vera self=patterning yarn

Basic socks in Moda Vera self=patterning yarn

FO: Christmas Stocking

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I’ve been part of the Ravelry Sock Knitters Anonymous monthly challenges the past couple of months. Each month, there is a technique and a designer nominated; you must cast on in that month, and finish by the end of the next month. The September Challenge included Cookie A designs, so my Hedera and Monkey socks were entered in it. The October challenge includes Stephanie van der Linden’s designs, and holiday stockings. My Komet socks are a Steffi design, and I’ve now also knitted my first ever Christmas stocking. I wasn’t really planning to knit one – they’re not so much part of our culture or my family traditions here, as Christmas is mid-summer. But an idea nagged at me, and then when I was in Sydney the other weekend at the Morris & Sons/Tapestry Craft sale, some inexpensive red and green yarn talked me into buying it.

This afternoon I finished my Christmas Elf Stockings:

Christmas Elf Stocking

Pattern: My own improvisation. Yarn: Cleckheaton Country 8ply

I’ve also finished my first Komet sock a couple of days ago:

Nundle Retro 4ply

Pattern: Komet by Stephanie van der Linden. Yarn: Nundle Retro 4ply

And I’m working on and enjoying my second attempt at the Three Sisters Scarf – this time with a finer solid colour yarn that works better for the pattern:

The Knittery silk/merino 2ply

Pattern: three Sisters Scarf #2 Yarn: The Knittery silk/merino 2ply

Pools and ponds

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I started knitting one of the Three Sisters scarves a couple of weeks back. It’s a nice and easy pattern, but I’m pretty sure I picked the wrong yarn:

Three sisters scarf #2

Three sisters scarf #2

Love the colours, don’t like the pooling, plus the yarn is too heavy for the pattern and there’s probably not going to be enough for a decent length scarf. So, I’ve almost talked myself into frogging it.

It’s just a really big step to do the deed itself – pull that needle out, rip it all, rewind the yarn.

In the meantime, I’ve been going a bit slow on the Komet sock. It’s much easier pattern-wise to knit over three needles rather than four, but a bit harder on my hands, which have been aching a bit lately. So I do a bit here and there.

Nundle Woollen Mills Retro 4ply

Pattern: Komet, by Stephanie van der Linden. Yarn: Nundle Woollen Mills Retro 4ply

My other current easy knitting is the shawl-collar jacket; I undid the 8″ of the back that I’d knitted a couple of weeks ago, and started again in a smaller size – have now done about 8″ again. After the moss-stitch hem, its plain knitting, so quite brainless.

This is not about knitting. Or Weaving.

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Some of my blog readers know that, in between knitting, I write books. I’m giving away a copy of my recently published romantic suspense novel, As Darkness Falls, over on my writing blog.

So, if you like romantic suspense (set on the edge of the Australian outback), and want to enter for a chance to win, pop on over there, download the free chapter 1, answer 3 super easy questions, and maybe it will be your name that will be drawn out on October 13th!

(And I said this post wasn’t about knitting or weaving, but I’m thinking maybe I could weave some inkle bookmarks – one to go with the book prize, and maybe a couple of consolation prizes… Hmmm… will have to see what I have in the fine cotton yarn stash… no promises, but maybe 🙂 )

FO – Monkey and Tudora

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I’ve finished the No Purl Monkey socks, and also knitted up another quick Tudora.

No Purl Monkey socks

No Purl Monkey socks


Pattern: No Purl Monkeys – and adaptation by CraftyPancakes of Cookie A’s Monkey socks, from Knitty.com . Yarn: Cherry Tree Hill Supersock potluck, in Jewels colourway.

Tudora neckwarmer

Tudora neckwarmer


Pattern: Tudora, from Knitty.com Yarn: Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran Tweed.
This will probably be a gift for a friend – it’s the third Tudora I’ve made in the past couple of months, and I’ve given two away already – they make great gifts!