Holey cowl

Posted on April 2, 2017 by The Little Room of Rachell

….Just in time for our current lovely Springtime temperatures! Oh well blink and the weather changes here in England. I’ll take it away with me to wear during chilly evenings, or for wearing by the sea if the wind blows.

The yarn looks a different colour in every photo, it’s more red not raspberry.

The apple blossom should flower soon. It’s so pretty.

Details – as you might want to knit a holey cowl too?

I used Louisa Harding Orielle – Ruby (colour no. 12)

This is a gorgeous wool blend; with 97% baby alpaca and 3% metallic polyamide (can you see the little sparkles?) It’s as soft as a cloud and drapes beautifully.

I used 4mm needles and sewed the seam at the end. Can you spot it in the second pic? I’m not sure how I managed such a neat job of it, but I did enjoy the sewing. It would knit well on circular needles too if you prefer seamless makes.

I used 3 x 50g skeins but if you want a longer cowl or a narrower one, the amount would obviously differ.

Height: 41cm/16″ (I wear mine doubled over, I don’t have the neck of a giraffe!)

Circumference: 61cm/24″

Cast on 72 stitches

1-5 rows: Knit

6th row: K1, *yo, k2tog and repeat to the penultimate stitch, k1

And repeat until it’s the right height for you.

Easy! Good pub or cafe knitting if you have a crafty meet up ahead.

Getting knitty, again

Posted on January 9, 2014 by The Little Room of Rachell

The last week or so I’ve been whipping around my twelve huge Granny Squares in a bid to finish them and use up my leftovers of Stylecraft special DK. I’m rather bored with the same palate after a longtime using those colours and want to start afresh, which is exciting. The ironic thing is I can already see that I’m going to need to buy more to complete the blanket! My goal is to complete a square a day, they’re all at different stages and each needs to be twenty rounds. Sorry…I’m actually boring myself typing this detail! It’s more amusing to listen to the neighbour trying to coax his new (Christmas) dog out into the garden. The same dog that woke me up at 04:30 this morning barking to be let into the garden. Oh sheesh, dogs!

So last night to give my aching left thumb a crochet rest I started a new fast make from my new Christmas book, Cute and Easy Knitting (far superior to a barking present IMHO.)

This is as far as I got last night. It’s looking glove shaped which must be a good thing.

I’m using Rowan tweed which is a new yarn, though I’ve seen it many times I’ve never crocheted or knitted it. Although wool is touted as best for all sorts of reasons, which is undoubtably true in many cases, what is rarely mentioned is that, besides being expensive, it can be damned scratchy. Rowan tweed looks gorgeous, it’s the real deal in that it feels like it’s really been spun rather than composed of plastic. As you knit it goes from thin to thick which makes it an interestingly tactile experience, but I have to say that I wouldn’t want to wear it. Unless as a hat or gloves. I feel the same about Noro, but to a more extreme degree – yes it’s lovely colours but I don’t want to touch it. Do you relate?

Are you trying anything new?

Knitted cactus pin cushion

Posted on December 31, 2013 by The Little Room of Rachell

Inspired by a cactus pin cushion I spied in a craft shop in the Summer I decided to have a try at making my own version after my table got a bit scratched by my new pins the other week. They’re too long for my pin cushion which I reckon would be termed ‘vintage’ now as the material dates from the 1970s. I’m wondering if these are really millinery pins?

I glued a circle of felt to the bottom of the flowerpot so it wouldn’t scratch the table. I bought a new terracotta pot although you’d never know with all the glue marks I’ve left. At least I didn’t superglue my fingers together, though I did ruin the trousers I was wearing due to glue blobbage as it set firm in a plastic disc. Oops.

There’s a lump of polystyrene at the bottom of the flowerpot, then some toy stuffing so the cactus sits at the right height. Next time I might try using rice or similar just because of the huge mess the polystyrene made (see photo on my Facebook page…) when I tried to saw a chunk from a piece I’ve been hoarding.

How to knit a cactus

I used Stylecraft Special DK Meadow Green, with 4 mm needles.

Cast on 30 stitches for the main body of the cactus
Rows 1 & 2: Knit 2 rows of stocking stitch (that’s 1 row in knit stitch, the next row in purl stitch)
Row 3: Knit a row of garter stitch (that’s all knit stitch)
Repeat these 3 rows until you have a nice tube – check this by keeping the knitting on your needle and folding the rectangle in half until it’s the diameter you’re happy with.
Don’t cast off, just cut the thread leaving a length to thread a needle and gather up all 30 stitches tightly, fasten off securely and darn in the ends. That’s the top of your cactus.

Cast on 15 stitches for the ‘arm’ of the cactus (I probably need to look up cactus terminology?!)
Repeat the 3 row pattern, as for the body, until you’re happy with the tube you’ve made. As above, gather up the stitches and secure.

Crochet some earth!

FR: Chain 6, slip stitch into a circle.
R1: Treble 6-8 into the circle (depending on your tension)
R2: Chain 2, then DC into each treble of the previous round
R3: Chain 2, then DC into each DC of the previous round, increasing into every other stitch
R4: Chain 2, then DC into each DC of the previous round, increasing into every third stitch

Continue rows in the same way increasing into every fourth, then fifth, sixth stitch etc until the circle fits nicely into your pot.

Sew the arm onto the body of the cactus and then sew the cactus onto the earth circle (sounds New Age?!) Use superglue with care, sticking the sides of the earth circle to the pot.

Stab the cactus with an assortment of pins and darning needles until it’s suitably spiky.

Here it is in use last night as I began preparing to sew a Cath Kidson pattern – a large tote bag.

It’s an anniversary today – 2 years of The Little Room of Rachell. How time flies! When I look back I’m amazed at how much I’ve made, with lots of learning curves. I really didn’t think I’d still be blogging beyond learning to crochet, which was my goal for the New Year of 2012, but it’s been fun making crafty connections with others and sharing what I’m up to online diary style. So I carried on day by day, week by week without a plan. I just looked at my stats and this is my 305th post! Admittedly I’m rarely short of something to say, both here and in real life! Thank you for reading, especially if you’re part of the little band of followers who’ve been here since the beginning. And thank you for leaving so many great comments (2,374!) I always really appreciate it when you stop to type your thoughts, or respond positively to a post. As many of you know I often reply with an email, it’s been fab batting chatty messages back and forth.

The blog’s definitely evolved and is not solely crochet focused anymore. This year I’ve been dabbling in all sorts of crafts, although crochet is still a big part of how I spend my spare time. I joined a knitting group in the Autumn and find it far easier to crochet while I chat and get to know the group. I don’t have to look at what I’m doing all the time, and I always take something simple like the huge Granny Squares so there’s no counting or complicated pattern to follow. Several of the group are also both crocheters and knitters which is cool. I have to say that it’s nice to watch someone else also wave a hook and a glass of wine around!

Have a fun New Year’s Eve! Enjoy reflecting on the past year and looking ahead with crafty resolutions, learning goals or just anticipating lots of creative fun to come in 2014. :-D xxxx