In the Making...

Gentle Blooms is perfect for using up those special skeins of yarn. Gentle Blooms is a bandana-style cowlette, which means you get the beauty and fun of a shawl at a small scale but it’s easy to wear and will stay in position. The design came about as I had quite a lot of yarn leftover from my Vertices Unite . The yarn was a gorgeous merino and silk blend, and I didn't want to leave it languishing in my stash. Maybe you've got some gorgeous yarns in your stash that aren't enough for shawl. The quantities needed are - MC: Navy - 225m [247yds] CC1: Cream - 85m [93yds] CC2: Pink - 97m [107yds] As usual, I wanted the knitting to be enjoyable, so the vast majority is knit and purl. There is a handful of stranded knitting rows for the "Gentle Blooms". The positioning gives the biggest impact for quite a small section of stranded knitting. Or as they say "the biggest bang for your buck!". Since it's all about the details on a project like this, the neckline...

Think I've finally caught up. This one is a little stocking filler I made my Mum. It’s a beaded coaster in Rowan Cotton Glace . The pattern is my own design and is part of a placemat / coaster set. The pattern is available as part of a kit from A Good Yarn . Mum has set it to work as a coaster for a candle, which I think is a fab idea as it makes the beads sparkle. The other project finished over Christmas was a Bandana Cowl which I have been promising Mr for awhile. It was started and finished on New Years Eve. Ravelry Project Page. The yarn is Adriafil Scozia which really softened up beautifully on blocking. I managed to persuade a reluctant Mr to model for me. He's worn it every day since - might have to make him another!

Just tying up a few loose ends here. These are few projects from the last couple of months that I haven't talked about much. Remember this big Pile O' Knits , I'll show you a few that were in that pile. The first is made from Paulina Popiolek 's Orion Belt pattern, made from Katia Kiss. I really enjoyed this one. Even though it looks complicated, the majority is TV knitting, i.e. mainly knit and purl so I can watch TV at the same time. The Katia Kiss has a luster to it, so quite an interesting shawl in the end. I love the little celtic knots. Kiss Orion project page . Secondly, a Bandana Cowl - Purl Soho , made from just 1 ball of Rowan Cocoon. I loved the Cocoon, it's very soft and squidgy. Cocoon Bandana project page . Finally, the sweetest little Grampa cardigan. The pattern is Gramps  by tincanknits , made from Rowan Felted Tweed Aran. I love the little details of the pockets and the elbow patches. The blurb for the pattern is brilliant...