Rowan Laze Knitting Pattern

Oh my god! The Rowan 'Laze' pattern is so long; even my mother groans and leaves the room when I ask her to look at it for me.

"It’s a 25 row pattern!" she cries. However, it is certainly worth persevering as I really love the dogtooth check pattern and contemporary shape of this two colour knitted cardigan. The Rowan Studio 20 booklet also contains a whole raft of other patterns for young fashionistas – the diamond patterned 'Sun' dress has a certain ikat look about it and is a firm favourite. There's also 'Shine', a chic summer shift dress with a twisted cut out back detail that is both elegant and understated. Pictured top to bottom: Laze, Sun and Shine Rowan knitting patterns.

Birdsong

Waking up to the sound of a bird's chorus is an absolute joy and for a few days I can enjoy such a pleasure, as I relax at my parents' cottage in Norfolk, south east England. The unusually mild weather means flowers are in bloom early, several weeks ahead of nature's seasonal schedule. This daffodil and rose were pictured in mum and dad's garden.

Today I plan to get back to basics by tackling a crocheted hexagon pattern which will be perfect for an afghan/blanket, or felted and used under a plant pot or as a coaster. I will be using a grey, red and white colourway which should look really smart once it's completed. Technique-wise I will also have to learn to crochet clusters, something I am yet to master. The pattern looks similar to the Meme Rose crocheted kaleidoscope throw I featured back in 2011. Check it out at:  Meme Rose kaleidoscope blanket
If I ever create anything anywhere near as stunning as that, I would be delighted.

Following a rummage in my mother's needle roll I thought I would share these snaps; she's getting on really well with her new Clover ergonomic crochet hooks as they are very comfortable to use, particularly if you have aching joints. I've also rather taken a shine to my grandma's old vintage tortoiseshell plastic knitting needles (about 50 years old). Very stylish I thought!

Watching the Clock

Check this out! Spotted in Heals this week, I simply had to pap this crochet covered wall clock in understated olive with a white face. J'adore!

After seeing this textured mini marvel, I imagined the fun I could have covering seemingly dull household items in a tightly woven amigurumi style crochet, transforming them into knitted objets d'art! Picture frames, lampshades and plant pots would all benefit from a unique crochet makeover, let's call it 'knitholstery'.

I may give something in my flat a funky crochet covering this year. Then I'll do a before and after thing and you can tell me which picture looks better!

Full of Beans

Did I tell you coffee is my only real vice? I love the stuff! A work in progress, here's a snap of the cafetière cosy I'm fashioning. As I mentioned previously, there is no pattern for this, I'm simply using the Isamo Crochet bows as decoration and adding them to a bobbly blanket square I made when I first started knitting. I'm hoping once I've applied crocheted shell edging to the two wide sides, the uneven one will appear less so. The yarn I'm using is a navy blue Rowan double knitting wool.

Night at the Museum

Yesterday I was scouring London's famous Victoria & Albert (V & A) museum looking for 'knitspiration' with my old school friend Catherine. Probably my favourite museum in London, the V & A is jam-packed with art, ceramics and jewellery from around the world and also occasionally hosts must-see fashion exhibitions.

The jewellery-through-the-ages space capsule room and neon Japanese kimonos provided some interest but, alas, there was not a stitch of knitwear in sight! Unfortunately our visit didn't coincide with a touring fashion exhibition so sadly the only crafty curiosities to catch my eye were some jumbo crochet hooks and spools of shredded T-shirt yarn for crocheting in the gift shop. These reels of candy coloured cotton loveliness presented me with pleasing visions of a chunky handmade textured top in pastel colours for the spring...

In summary, the V & A is great museum if you're an art and craft enthusiast, but to get the best out of your trip you'd be well advised to plan your visit around the programme of touring exhibitions.

Bouquet Tea Cosy

And here she is at last, my finished tea cosy. As you can see, I covered her in daffodils, a lily, roses, poppies and leaves. I'm fairly pleased with how it turned out and will definitely make another tea cosy from a different pattern in the future. Tea cosies rock!

To make it a bit more interesting I broke the rules by using different sized needles so all the flowers were different sizes, and I knitted the leaves in three shades of green.

When I get near the end of a project I always underestimate how long it will take to darn in the ends. This project was no exception, it actually took ages to sew all the foliage on and tidy up the inside but I am quite pleased with my handiwork. You just can't really buy these, only in the every-one-identical, mass produced sense anyway!

Thanks to everyone whose free patterns I used, now everything's neatly stitched down it's ready for a tea party...!

In the News: How to Knit the Knitlympics

As we're now in 2012, I'd thought I'd issue an Olympic post and mention 'Knitlympics', a quirky new book of knitting patterns about how to knit former Olympic stars. Check it out! After looking up author Carol Meldrum's website http://www.beatknit.com, I have to say, it's fab and more than worthy of a listing on my blog roll. I am full of regret that I didn’t apply for Olympic tickets, however, whipping up something from the aforementioned book is surely the most painless way to limber up and get into the spirit of the big event?!

Although I’m personally more amigurumi than mochimochi myself, all this Olympic fever is making me want to fashion something Olympic myself. When the London 2012 logo was first launched it was unpopular, critics claimed the digits looked as if Lisa from The Simpsons was doing something unmentionable. However, I found its graffiti retro feel really appealing!

Disappointingly, a quick scan on Ravelry revealed zero London 2012 knitting and crochet projects in progress. If you are making something crafty in preparation for London 2012 do let me know, I’d love to ‘have a butcher’s’, as we say in cockney London town. Perhaps we could even display them online in the style of Tony Hart's gallery from the children's art TV show, Hart Beat. Oh, that takes me back...

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