My knitting mojo has been absent for quite a while. I finished the yellow jumper (sewing it together because I had nothing else to knit) and then - nothing.
But yesterday was my birthday, and I decided wool would be my present and I would choose a pattern to knit, so Hagos and I went into town to John Lewis and got some lovely DK Wendy to knit the Ysolda Teague Chickadee pattern. The link actually takes you to Sewaholic's version, because she also made herself a pair of matching mittens, which I love.
The great thing about this pattern is it uses techniques I haven't used before. I've never cast on a Yoke in a oner. The cardigan construction knits the entire garment, top down, which means no sewing together at the end. It's all still fairly new to me, which is enough motivation for me to want to keep knitting just to see how it all works out. I can already imagine using this technique with different motifs for future cardigans, though I love the little birds.
I've also wanted to knit a cardigan for ages. And to knit in wool thicker than 4 ply! My TV jumper is great, but there are times when a cardigan is required. So, watch this space! The turquoise blue wool is Wendy DK, the cream wool is Rowan Pure Wool DK and the yellow-y-green is a UK alpaca DK I picked up years ago and have been waiting for a project to use it in. The burgundy birds I think is actually a Rowan Kid Classic, which is lambswool and mohair DK, which I also had in my stash from another project.
We went to Peter's Yard yesterday for coffee and cake and lunch. This cake was so delicious. Almond-y. I've been yearning for otherness recently. Things foreign and exotic. I used to travel extensively with work, but stopped to go to university in London and Norwich, and haven't really got into the habit again. I miss the friends and culture I had when I lived in London. All of my friends were actors (you know, actually on TV or in the theatre) or were in touring bands, or were writers. I miss the vibrancy of that, and the potential.
These are two pockets I knitted just to have something to knit last week. I've still to press them and sew them onto the front of the yellow TV jumper. Rowan pure wool 4 ply. I plan to sew buttons onto the rib of the pockets and those green ones are the likeliest at the moment but I'll have another look in my button collection before deciding.
I love the way my cardigan looks like a shell, or a curled-up animal when at rest.
I didn't quite appreciate, while knitting this jumper, just how YELLOW it was. I suppose all the other TV jumpers I've knitted have had some relief in them - mohair stripes, or blocks of different colours. But this is. Just. Yellow. [ Rowan, pure wool, 4-ply.]
I have since come to a dead end with knitting. I've fallen out of love with Rowan wool (and long fallen out of love with Rowan patterns). They don't have enough basic 4-ply or DK. And they are altogether too pricey. I don't want to knit a pure wool jumper for the same price as I can buy one! So I've been looking around for other wool and designers. I'm in the mood for cables or texture, and really want to try a small-scale crochet.
I really miss knitting in the evening though. I feel a restlessness when I'm watching TV and my hands are idle. It feels like wasted time when I could be producing something.
I'm on holiday from work for a week. My only agenda: to spend time at home, with my husband and cat, to read, to sew, to knit, to walk, to sleep.
