Knitty Things!

As I mentioned a couple of posts ago I am knitting and knitting and then knitting a little bit more! The children at school that are learning to knit are really inspiring me to constantly learn more. Not happy with 'normal' knitting they want to learn to knit on double pointed needles! No sooner said than a pile of these needles landed unexpectedly in my hands! The only draw back was that they appear to have no sizes. I then asked randomly around how on earth do you size needles? 'Oh I think I have a funny old thing for that at home that was my Grandmothers' no sooner said than it too appeared for me to have a go with. Not only was this gadget absolutely perfect for the job and all the needles are now labelled and carefully bundled in size but it was a wonderful item in itself. In fact I loved it so much I had to photograph it before returning it to its rightful home!

Don't ask me how the rest of it works, I just used the needle gauge down the right hand side.

British made too! That makes a change for as you root through my craft boxes more and more are made in the US we just don't get the same choice over here.

Another treat this week was the arrival of three of the most gorgeous balls of wool from my friend Joey. She knows my colours so well! I was straight onto the Ravelry site to discover what interesting patterns there are out there for these specific yarns. If you haven't tried Ravelry then you absolutely must. I will be adding a Ravelry button to the side of my blog that should take you right there. You can find me under PinFactory!

The following is a piece of knitting that has been felted. You need wool with a high wool content and then once knitted it needs several rounds in the washer with an old towel.

I cannot believe how it changes. I am hoping to sew this up to make a little bag for my knitting needles of course! Here are some close ups so that you can see how the texture has changed.

I think this is a ball of Noro wool that has been kicking around for quite some time. The colours are just amazing.

Whilst on the subject of felting I have to show you some photos of the work done by the children in Craft Club at our school. We are doing wet felting with them this term and they are loving it. This first photo is the fibres laid down.

Here the children added some design features.

Then much elbow grease, hot water and soap later is the finished piece. I will take some more photos of the piece totally finished this week. You must go to the Craft Club website and see what all the children all over the UK are getting upto and maybe even join in. There is nothing like childrens enthusiasm to get you creating!

I am going to give you a sneak peek at Cricket Hollow, just to prove that I haven't really been doing nothing but knit. I made the bold decision to paint the front door red and I am not disappointed in it at all. The door isn't in place yet but I thought I would show you the colour choice.

Just look at those hinges too gorgeous!

I have also finished the Betterleys Halloween Secret Book which I will blog about next time! I know it is the wrong time of year but it just called to me and I had a lovely crafting day with my friend Joey who also made one.