Lets test the waters...

After scouring any and all wool shops around I have been left wanting more. So! I've contacted yarn manufacturers like Rowan etc to find out about stocking their yarns. I obviously need to know if there are other local knitters that have the same needs that I do however. Yes, granted, there are some locally produced natural fiber yarns available, but still.. the variety is small.  I want to be able to use gorgeous yarns like Rowan etc.

So should I start a web based "store" where you can choose yarns from catalogues and have it delivered to you directly within a day or two - and be able to pay in local currency..will you be interested? I'm thinking of becoming a stockist and ordering some stock and supply it locally. Also..which yarns?? hmmm...defenitely Rowan .... I love the Debbie Bliss range of yarns... Any other suggestions??

Anyway... its an idea being birthed here... I would LOVE your feedback and ideas!!!

Yarn Love

Lynné

And here it is as promised..the free pattern for the garter stitch mitred square blanket in my previous post. Enjoy! Please let me know should you notice any mistakes... I'm no expert at writing patterns! hahaha...
Much Love...xx

EDIT: Apologies to those who tried to download and was asked for a free trial. I am in no way trying to endorse any application on my blog. When I uploaded the pattern to Scribd it was free and many managed to download the pattern without any hassle. They must have changed that in the meantime. I am removing the link from my blog - I will re-type the pattern in my blog as soon as I can so that the download part is not necessary. Just a request though - if you do post comments please try and refrain from being nasty - the blog is intended as a friendly blog - I love knitting and crochet and will always do my best to share as much as I can. I am not a computer boffin so if I make a mistake - I apologize - learning as I go! Yarn Love - RubyRed

Mitred Square Pattern

Not much to say about this project hahah.... It started off as just something to keep me busy on a recent road trip as well as a stash reducer! As it developed however it started looking the cutest and brightest little baby blanket in the making.  The wool is all from my 4-ply stash with little odds and ends left over from larger projects.  I am knitting this on 3mm needles which makes it slightly slow in the making.. but as there was no plan involved in this project it is exciting to see it grow organically.

I am busy writing the mitred square pattern down and as soon as its done I will publish it as a free pattern here on the blog - so watch this space! :)

So!... I've moved into a blue and white phase.  After living my "everthing-has-to-be-red-or-a-shade-thereof" phase for the past 10 years, I realised it was time for a change. But when I change colour phases... EVERYTHING changes. From the wall colours to the linen to the carpets.....  Obviously this has some serious financial implications - so the changes are happening slowly! haha

The lounge walls has gone to a very dark blue... so...obviously the scatter pillows had to change too. I was scouring through my knitting books for a pattern that would fit the "look" I had in mind.  And very UNsurprisingly I found the perfect damask pattern in my Kaffe Fassett book!! He has always been one of my favourite artists and every time I page through his creations I am amazed that he came up with these gorgeous mixes of geometric designs and combined them with fantastical colour explosions! He has inspired millions of knitters around the world and NEVER fails to inspire me whenever i'm exploring a new project.  One of my best investments was buying his book:

Kaffe Fassett's Pattern Library: Over 190 Creative Knitwear Designs

.....and finnaalllyyyy this little pillow case saw the day of light. The birth of this fair isle project was my very first blog post ...as well as my very first attempt at fair isle knitting. I've always admired and drooled over the gorgeous patterns, colour play and intricate motifs created by fair isle designers - wondering how in the world someone was able to come up with those beautiful designs and managed to actually portray them in knitting.

During all my google and ravelry searches three names kept popping up as fair isle royalty, Alice and Jade Starmore as well as the colour guy himself - Kaffe Fassett.  So it was only natural that my choice of pattern for my virgin voyage into the world of "ferraling" was going to be from one of these guru's.  And after paging through their books many...many...many times...and changing my mind ...many..many times.... I finally decided on a pattern by Jade Starmore called Persian Tiles.  Loved the "tiled" look and the intricate way the tiles fit into each other.

Mind you...before this project I never even attempted knitting on circular needles...ahhahaha.... and since then I've hardly knitted with anything else. So after a LOT of counting...unravelling rows of faulty knitting.... I was done.  The project kinda grinded to a halt...or went into serious hibernation after that because I never got around to do the sewing up.  So recently I unpacked the sewing machine.... bought some material...and got the process going again.  ...and taaddaaaaaaaaa....... a pillow cover was born.

The pattern is available in the book "A Collectors Item - Jade Starmore". Unfortunately this pattern is not available for download and I had to buy the book to obtain it.  One can buy it directly from the Starmore's website: www.virtualyarns.com 

UPDATE FROM PREVIOUS POST:  

So the swatch grew into a pillow cover hahaha…. After I opened the steek it just looked ....wrong in a way....somehow it needed a border. I picked up stitches around the border on a circular needle - which turned out to be almost 500 stitches -and the result is much more “finished”. Now I just need to make it up - very happy little pillow...