Where is the bear?

Back in November I had a try at illusion knitting.  I had thought it was going to be very complex, but was much easier that I thought.  That is thanks to the excellent tutorial from Woolly Thoughts and some stitch markets (stitch markers are your friend in illusion knitting).  I chose a teddy bear pattern from Woolly Thoughts for a friends baby, some Sirdar Snuggly, and got to work.

The blanket took about 3 weeks, including the border.  Full details on how I did the border my ravelry project page.  The blanket is very cute, who would have thought that knit and purl could create such a great illusion.  And the bear will be perfectly seen from a baby's-eye-view.  I had a little yarn spare, so added a simple baby hat by Allison Williams, with added teddy bear ears (obviously!).

And also some cute booties.  These are Seamless Baby Booties by Laura Yarnthrower.

These were all good fun to knit, and I would certainly like to try more illusion knits.  Ps) Apologies for the dull lighting in the photographs, roll on Spring!

Feeling Festive...

The tree is up.
Complete with silver crochet stars, fabric acorns and felt guinea pigs! My knitting of late has been some cute booties and hat, using these ever reliable patterns. To top them off I used some super cute teddy bear buttons.
Currently on the needles is another Op Art baby blanket. In hindsight I had forgotten just how many stitches goes in to one of these (99,012), and decided it would be perfect from my friend expecting in the middle of January. Currently I am only just over 21,000 stitches, on the plus side, knitting a blanket is a great way to keep warm in the winter!

Orkney holiday knits...

So I said I would share my gift knitting that I did in Orkney...
Two sets of Saartje's booties and two simple baby hats. One set in newborn, and one set in baby size, using Debbie Bliss baby cashmerino. Soft & very cute!
Now with autumn here, time to knit another hat for me!

Bonfire solubles & cutie booties

This week under all the junk in the spare room I found my sewing machine - hurrah! This prompted me to experiment with some Maderia Avalon Ultra water soluble film that I brought a while ago from Rainbow Silks. This sample is inspired by a bonfire, and is just under A4 size. Firstly I created a grid using black thread in straight stitch. On to the grid I added red and orange zigzag stitches and white, black & grey straight stitches. Once I had finished stitching, I held the piece under running water and the film disappeared. The film is quite thick, so you do not need an embroidery hoop; it does have a slightly odd smell however - or maybe that's just me! The sample is surprisingly sturdy, and I like the small holes where there are no stitches.


I have also been finishing off these cute booties for a friends baby girl. I used a pattern from Saartje Knits with Debbie Bliss cashmerino. They were quick and easy to make, and I added the cute buttons from my stash. I am so tempted to make some my size!