IWD Yarn Bombing

Its been soooo long since I've done any yarn bombing but I'm pleased to say I'm back with a bang!

I'd been gradually made 5 large stripey pieces with the knitting machine over the past few months, but didn't really have anything to Yarn Bomb for.

Luckily I had Sian on hand to tell me that its International Women's Day (IWD) on the 8th March - Lets be honest, the majority of knitters out there are women afterall.  I decided to decorate some trees in the lovely Brandon Hill Park ready for IWD on the Friday.

Tuesday was the most wonderful yarn bombing experience I've had yet. I was out and about by 6.45am as the sun was rising. It was just lovely, I had a fantastic dawn chorus accompanying me, it was all very Mary Poppins- as if they were singing along  with encouragement! And then there was the sun, a perfect glowing orange ball rising over the buildings and branches, just perfect. It was so peaceful, only a few dogs and their walkers passed me by. Actually, at one point a very friendly Old English Sheepdog seemed a bit too interested. All I could do was say 'Hello doggy, please don't wee on me, pleeease don't wee on me. I was saved by his owner who eventually distracted him with a ball. 

 Thats going to look lovely when the Daffs come out

Oooh look, its Cabot Tower

I didn't manage to get all the pieces up on the sunny Tuesday so headed back there on Wednesday which was a bit wet and and even quieter.

Happy IWD everyone!

Twas the season to be knitting, fah la la la la la la la lah

This year I made all the little boyz in my in my life little crochet animals using one of the books I received as a leaving pressy from Bath.

Leo is well into Dinosaurs at the mo so he got this friendly little chap.

So  Bobby and I spent our first Crimbobs away from Bristol in 4 years. We travelled over to visit Mat, Chlo and Leo then on to Rob's parent's for the rest of the week. It was the perfect opportunity  to finish off some of those half done projects lurking down next to the sofa. I managed to finish off a tea cosy which I stopped messing with as it gave me a touch of the ol' RSI.

I also finally finished off a shawl I started with some fancy cotton yarn I treated myself to yonks ago.

I did allow myself a to start a new project too. Its ruddy freezing in the office at work so I thought I'd make myself a 'work' cardi. I used this fab little pattern from Ravelry called Graylina and it was easy peasy.

It knit up so so quick and has actually turned out a bit to nice for work!

While we were staying in Rutland, Rob's Dad revealed that he had done a bit of knitting in the past.  While at Primary school he has made a little weaved woolen bag and given it to his mum as a present. She passed away a few years and ago and Robs Dad was surprised to find it when clearing out her house -  she had kept it all those years!

Well, I thought it such a lovely knitty related story that I had to include it here in me bloggins.

So what will 2013 hold for Nanna??? Well I've vowed to cut back on the old knitting for others and concentrate on yarn bombing. Lets see if this ends up as every other resolution I've made or whether I manage to stick to it!

Hey you guuuyyyyyyyys

Well Well Well. This was a bit of a mammoth project but it was defo worth the effort. Pip and Nicky asked me to make a baby blanket for their Goonies loving chum's new arrival. I foolishly started making tit in chunky yarn with 6mm needles - it turned into a monster, more of a blanket for a single bed rather than a little bubby.

I decided to make it as one main piece with the required motif plus top and bottom sections of patchwork in different textures. This worked out quite well as I could do the patchwork part on the move. 

And here is how it grew - 

To finish it off I added a crochet border with my new skillz.

Ta da!

Autumnal Knits

Autumn arrived with a bang for me - all down to starting a new job really. Its been quite hectic but I've managed to keep up with the wooly activity.

With my new crochet skillz I made a nice little cloche hat  and lacey collar for the very 1920s Sian

And Cat got some cutie pie Owls for her Bday

Cast On, Brighton

As a little treat, in my between jobs break Bobby and I took a trip to Brighton. It was mucho fun. Saw an amazing gig from Bosnian Rainbows and a bit of comedy from Paul Merton, plus lots of walking around the cool shops and eating tons of yummy food.

On the train journey down I finished this new aran cable number. I've called it my Brighton Jumper!

Its super cosy , but I think I'm going to need to block it as the sleeves ride up a bit.

Of course while there I indulged in a little Yarn bombing.

This is on the sea front not far from where we were staying.

I was actually quite surprised that I didn't spot any knitted pieces around Brighton as I was certain it would be a popular thing round there. I can't have been looking in the right places!

Farewell my dear Bath

Today is my last day at the University of Bath, I'm a sobbing mess!

I've absolutely loved working here. My knitting has really taken off during my time here and my colleagues have been incredibly supportive and often provided much needed inspiration. On top of that, the commute has given me enforced knitting time. I will very much miss the place and more importantly the people.

As a fairwell gift I left my knitty mark at various spots around the campus.

Even Lizzie also got in on the act!

Nice work Lizzie


One of the Departments I've worked closely with is Chemistry - They are a lovely bunch. To thank them for being so nice to me over the past few years I put my new crocheting skills to good use and made them an alcohol molecule!

To top it all off, the knitting group only went and Yarn Bombed my desk! That really opened the floodgates. 

I bet you'd never thought you'd hear this- Crochet is OK

A few weeks ago I had a revelation - Lizzie and Laura at work broadened my horizons and showed me that crochet isn't all that bad afterall!

Its all down to the technique. Every time I had attempted to learn I'd been following YouTube vids where they hold the yarn in the left hand. No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't get to grips with it, literally. Then Laura showed me how to crochet with the yarn in my right hand in a similar way to how I knit and voila, it clicked.

Now there's no stopping me!

I'm loving the granny square. I'm going to make loads more of these, sew them together and make a nice blanket for when we get a nice little house.