2017 in knitting

It is time to look back over last year and see what I got up to with my knitting. You can read about 2015 here and 2016 here. I feel like I haven't knitted all of the things that I wanted to knit this year. There are just so many great patterns! I am very pleased with what I have made and I enjoyed making them so I have to remember that. These are more or less in the order that they were made. Things do get moved up and down the list when deadlines or other occasions mean a change in project is needed.

This 1960's cravat and tam makes a super set but the pattern required a bit of tinkering. The cravat works very well and I made it and the tam in a lovely mustard Sirdar Baby Bamboo. It is 80% bamboo and 20% wool. I love everything about wool but it does not love me back. It itches me beyond belief, even a fine merino or when blended with silk. That is why I always wear a scarf and long sleeved tops with my cardigans. I thought I would get away with this one but not round my neck, so my mum now has the cravat. The tam is lovely but has no rib and no hatband (as per the pattern) so it just does not stay on my head. I have threaded elastic through it and that kind of works now. I can cope with wool in a hat as I have a big fringe so it never touches my skin!

I wanted to crack the pattern so I had another go in this lovely red Wendy Merino. I added some rows of rib and this one does fit and stay on. I don't normally wear red so this one was going to be for sale but I was surprisingly pleased with how it looked on so I kept it! I knitted the matching cravat too but I don't seem to have a photo of it.

I knitted this Aran pattern hat for my niece in Sublime Merino. She loves yellow and I love knitting cables so it was a good match. It was great fun to knit. There was a small moment of difficulty when she found that the pompom wasn't quite the colour green that she had picked out in the shop, (well remembered by her, age 3), but we have got over that now!

Next up was the completion of this lovely 1950's lace panel cardigan which I knitted in Millamia. I knitted the back, sleeves and one front in 2015!! It then sat in the naughty corner for a good long while as I got a bit confused working out the instructions for the other front. As is the way of vintage patterns, it just said to reverse what you did on the other side and I could not make it work. Helpful with lots of yarn overs and lace. Eventually, I sat down with my mum and she read out all the possibilities that a row could be whilst I knitted them to see what looked right. That way we got the pattern and I could finish my cardigan! It is a beautiful teal, the colour isn't exactly right in any of these photos.

This Marriner's tank top was one that I put on my 2017 knitting wish list and is in fact one of two projects from that list that got started in 2017. I started it on the train on the way to Edinburgh Yarn Festival. I have knitted the front and back, in Fyberspates Scrumptious and have stalled on the armbands. It is currently languishing in the Knitting Bag of Doom from which it deserves to be rescued rather soon. I would like to wear it.

This 1940's cardigan from a Canadian pattern has such a lovely texture, nice and squishy, and has great forties shoulders. It was knitted in Drops Merino and the colour is more like the second photo then the top one. It was a great pattern to knit. This one hasn't featured on the blog before as it was a commission knit.

I knitted this baby helmet from a 1950's pattern for a lovely friend's baby. I like the look of these traditional helmets and they must keep a baby's head nice and cosy. The decoration on the top is a button that you knit a little cover for and then sew to the centre of the helmet. I first knitted one of these helmets for my niece as a Christmas present when she was four months old. It has a bit of a family tale behind it. You can read the story of here.

This was another one from my knitting wish list. The model is holding an egg timer as the pattern states that this jumper can be knitted in eight hours. If you follow me on Instagram you will already know the sad story of this jumper. In brief, no, you can't knit it in eight hours and nor can you knit it with the yarn that I used (a Sublime silk/cotton mix) without it looking like a dish cloth. An expensive dish cloth at that. So it had to be pulled back and the yarn is back in my stash waiting for a more suitable project.

This is another unfinished project, it had to be put aside for more pressing matters but I do intend to go back to it. I really like 1940's tank tops/pullovers and have a great collection of men's patterns. This one gets bonus marks as it also fits into my Men Smoking collection. I have knitted the back and done the rib of the front. It might be for sale, it might be for me, we shall see!

I was on a beret mission in the latter half of 2017 as I wanted more of these most useful hats and had plenty of patterns to try out. This 1960's one is knitted in Debbie Bliss Aran in a fabulous duck egg colour. It was lovely to knit and I like the pattern. No photos of it on yet but I plan to remedy that soon.

I recently wrote a post about this beret pattern which you can read here so I won't repeat the details.

I also made a black one as a commission:

Squeezing in as the last knit of the year on the 29th December was a cream version, in alpaca and silk, for me.

In November I started another garment for myself. It is a 1960's sleeveless jumper with a big collar for pining brooches on. It is not finished yet but I can share the beginnings of it. I have knitted most of the front and have about an inch more to go on the collar. So about halfway there.

2017 appears to have been a year of hats and unfinished things. I'm aiming for more garments and more completed projects in 2018. What about you?

A 1960's knitted beret

What an outfit! What a colour!

However, for the purpose of this post all we are interested in is the beret. I have been after a knitted beret for a good while, and am going through a phase of finding all the beret patterns that I have and knitting them up one by one to find my favourite. Berets are so versatile in their look and in their period correctness and I have a gap in my hat wardrobe.

I have knitted the Sunday Pictorial Beret from A Stitch in Time by Susan Crawford but I can't get it to look right on me, though I have seen it look fabulous on others. It has a separately knitted and stitched on bow and I think it might be the placement of that which is causing me problems. I need to remove the bow so the weight doesn't pull the beret down and then I can position it on my head more to my liking. So whilst that is on the 'to fix' pile I am trying other patterns out.

I bought this fabulously soft, beautifully coloured yarn from Temporary Measure when I saw them at Yarndale in September. It is 100% baby alpaca DK and it knits up beautifully with a lovely drape and good stitch definition. It is most lovely and warm too.

The colour is a bit lighter than this really but I can't get a good photo of it in this winter gloom! I love the radiating decreases.

This is quite a big beret; I would say it is larger than the pattern suggests. I rarely check my tension if I'm knitting an accessory for myself and the yarn is pretty drapey. I rather like the extra slouch; I can wear this like a tam which is a style I am comfy wearing. I'm going to go down a needle size for the next one for myself for comparison. The headband is just garter stitch so I probably would like that on a smaller needle for a closer fit.

This is it hot off the needles and straight on to my head, hence the bad lighting and the sofa selfie. I liked wearing it straight away.

It has continued to get lots of wear. This is me early in the morning on a freezing station platform waiting for yet another late train to work! It keeps my ears nice and cosy. This is a better idea of the colour too.

I have knitted another one as a commission knit. Here it is:

This one is knitted in black Drops Merino DK and it feels lovely.

Finishing touches - woven labels and vintage thread.

I have a beret from another pattern knitted up which just needs seaming so that should be getting tested out in a few days.

Do you have a favourite beret pattern?

2016 in knitting

Happy New Year. Wishing you a wonderful year full of many more ups than downs, health and happiness and plenty of time for crafting!

I have to admit to feeling rather disappointed about my knitting output this year. I have so many, many things that I want to knit and looking at this year's rather paltry output makes me feel like I will never get to knit all the things like I really want to do. But then I have to remember two important things. Firstly, I am proud of what I have made and have really enjoyed making it. Secondly, and significantly, my neck and shoulder problems which I discussed in last year's round up are still having a large impact on my ability to knit as much as I want to. I have seen big improvements in the problems this year; I have been having regular physio and it is really helping. I have moved on from hardly being able to knit at all and being in constant discomfort to much more regular knitting and much less pain which is a definite win. So I need to be a bit more patient and a bit less unrealistic and a bit more satisfied with what I can do rather than thinking about what I can't. But that is hard. And all the things need knitting!

I have only made one garment for myself this year and it isn't a vintage knit which is unusual for me.

It is a boxy raglan cardigan, reminiscent of a 1950's jacket which is why is appealed. It is knitted in Debbie Bliss Roma Weave which is a super chunky yarn with lovely colours in it. I mostly knit 4 ply and double knitting so it was quite a change and I did feel like I was knitting on sticks. Whilst I wish that I had knitted a size smaller I am very pleased with it as it is lovely and warm. I don't have a photo of the whole thing yet though.

This is a first size baby cardigan for my friend's little girl who was born in October. It is a dolman jacket from a 1950's pattern and is knitted in Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino. It has mother of pearl buttons. It was great fun to knit and I like the shape and the little lace panels.

These bootees are for the same baby and are knitted from a vintage pattern which I think is an early 1950's one. They were a lovely little knit, interesting and reasonably quick. They are knitted in Cygnet Superwash DK.

I did some pattern testing for Ribbon Circus. Helen designed two fabulous new hat patterns, both of which are lovely and snuggly.

This is the Love Hat, knitted in Debbie Bliss Roma Weave and it would make a great first hat project. It also has a massive pompom which is always good. I don't have a photo of me in mine yet.

This is the Stoodley Beanie and I loved choosing the colours and knitting the cables. Though I did mess some of mine up as I was knitting it when I was ill and I later found out that my brain had been too hazy to manage it! It is knitted in Sublime Extra Fine Merino Worsted which I just love, both for colours and softness.

This 1940's jumper was a commission knit for the lovely Bianca who blogs at The Closet Historian. If, by some chance, you don't know Bianca's blog I suggest you go and visit straight away. She is a fabulously talented seamstress and makes some very gorgeous outfits. You can see her in this jumper here. The jumper is knitted in Debbie Bliss Rialto 4 ply which is very nice to work with.

This 1930's tennis jumper was also a commission knit and was for the wonderful Cate who blogs at Vintage Gal. Again, if by some chance you don't know her blog you should head right over. Cate is another super talented seamstress who makes the most amazing, period accurate outfits.

It was a joy working with these two fabulous vintage wearers.

I knitted a lot of autumn leaves, way more than are seen here. I loved making them, they were so satisfying. I had hoped to make them into an autumn garland and also into a hat. I ran out of time for these as other, more urgent, projects needed attention. So I'm going to finish them off during this year so that come autumn I am all ready in my leafy splendour.

I'm sneaking these two in as they are so nearly done that most of their knitting counts as 2016! They are both scarves. The top is for my niece, she requested, repeatedly, a pink scarf with yellow spots so I am doing my best to oblige. It is knitted in Sublime Extra Fine Merino Worsted. The bottom scarf is for my husband, actually it is part of his Christmas present but it isn't quite ready. I just had to wrap a ball of wool for him to open and apologise for the delay! It is knitted in the Sublime Worsted too.

These are my completed (mostly) projects of 2016. I have knitted a few other things but they are languishing in various works in progress piles. They are mostly incomplete as they needed to be put aside for other things that had completion deadlines. However, my incomplete works pile is quite large, and a little shameful, so one aim for the start of this year is to finish some stuff before starting all the other stuff. I love a shiny new project though so this is going to be tough. I might put them together into a blog pot to spur me into action!