I’ve been doing some clearing out, and there are things I don’t want any more that really, are too good to be thrown out.

These are a case in point:

• 12 copies of Everyday Food (6-15 plus 18-19)
• To Do List Magazine Premiere Issue

Anyone want to do a swap? I’ll throw in some crafty bits and bobs from my stash.
Email me: oscarcat @ gmail . com - gone

(Only proviso - you don’t spend any money, except postage. Let’s swap what we have. :)

In other news, everything is growing, i’m going yarn shopping tomorrow, and we’re having a Paris-Roubaix party on sunday. I’m digging out the pompoms, and making rocky road!

I have never been a big fan of cotton yarn - or rather when making clothes I’m not a fan of wearing cotton. I tend to use cotton yarn to make bags, or cushion covers.

But Mason-Dixon Knitting has me hunting out my cotton, and planning to buy more.

(I know… I’m bad. I’m supposed to be Using What I Have. I may be about to be bad. Maybe. We shall see.)

I am making Dishrags, and I’m addicted.

This is the first one I made. It uses the pattern as written, and is using some of the really really lovely cotton yarn that came as part of my Gifty Package (Thank you Heels!)

It knitted up in no time, and was a nice interesting knit, thanks to the decreases.

But I wanted more…

This is Rowan Cotton Glace. It’s 4ply, and also lovely.  I adapted the pattern (cast on 240, with 39 stitches between each bobble), and knit like the wind. 

I’m such a sucker for 4ply.  I had just under a ball when I started, and about half/one-third of a ball left when I finished. I think you could easily get 3 dishrags out of 2 balls. (I’ll start a second one after I finish the purple one I’m working on at the moment, and have a better idea then.)

My housemate thinks they are too lovely to use. Little does he know - they are lovely enough to use, and this way we shouldn’t have a kitchen full of dead green sponges that won’t bio-degrade.

Plus the centers are ripe for experimentation and lace-practice.

What’s not to love?

So this:

became this:

became these:

:)

And while I was at it, I Used What I Had and made myself a bag for random shopping, and taking library books back.

There wasn’t enough for a full lining, but since it’s that shiny oil-cloth used for kitchen table clothes, I figured it just needed extra support around the handles.

—

Once they have dried I’ll show you my new obsession. Not that I spent every spare moment this weekend knitting or anything…

I bought Mason-Dixon Knitting from Loop on wednesday and I just haven’t stopped reading it. It is hands down the best knitting book i’ve read this year.  This year and last year. Seriously.

I love it. LOVE it.

It’s funny, and inspiring, and full of simple ideas and patterns, with enough information for you to make them as complicated as you might ever want. It makes this lace-loving knitter want to wallow it mile after mile of garterstitch, because I see there is a point to it.

Want more info? Let me pimp you some pictures:

See? I mean, I even want to knit with cotton!  But hey, a good book will do that to a girl.

—

I promised socks.

Socks!

On the left are the honeymoon socks I finished as part of my Olympic UFO blast. They are made from this sort of stringy merino yarn we bought in Venice.

On the right I’m wearing some Hip Knits Cashmere that a made into a version of the Gentleman’s Fancy Sock from Knitting Vintage Socks by Nancy Bush. (I changed the heel and toe, because I like to do that. :)

Very soon I’m going to start playing with the Camel Yarn I bought in Florence. It cost THE EARTH but is pretty much the softest yarn I’ve ever owned. Originally I was going to make arm warmers for cycling, and have four balls, but I can’t bear the idea that I might crash and ruin them. So at the moment I’m thinking more socks.

And while we’re on socks…

These are sadly no more. :(

The colours were too close, so the pattern looked fine up close, but on the foot, just blurred into each other. Also because I had to go up a couple of needle sizes to get the right overall size, the stitches ended up too big and stretched. So they have been frogged and are becoming what there were always intended to be - another pair of lovely stripey socks. 

I’m half way through the second one at the moment so I’m hoping to show them off (along with my new shopping bag) in the next few days.

But never fear - I did learn a HUGE amount about argyle while attempting them, and I’m looking forward to starting the Deep V Argyle once I’ve finished secret jumper II.

In other news I am currently even more addicted to Top Gear than usual. And for no good reason, except that it is now shown every day on one of the satellite channels (at numerous times), and I think it’s a very entertaining piece of television.  The fact I can’t drive doesn’t matter one jot.

:D