Olivewood Infinity Scarf

It's been a freezing weekend in Adelaide...it was only 3 degrees Celsius when I woke up this morning, and I think the maximum temp was 13 C. Brrr...perfect weather for scarfs and knitting. I finished the infinity scarf I was knitting for myself using Manos del Uruguay merino/silk yarn in the 'olivewood' colourway. :-) I really love this yarn, it's so soft and cosy and also such beautiful colours. This colourway is a mix of blues, greys, cream and caramel, which I think will go really well with denim jeans or skirt. :-)

Despite it being cold, this weekend has actually been sunny after what seems like weeks of rain and wind. So apart from the chores and a little bit of knitting, I also managed to go for a hike in Morialta conservation park yesterday. It was gorgeous, and after so much rain the waterfalls were flowing spectacularly. In summer you can barely see a trickle of water, but yesterday it was gushing down the cliffs and it looked beautiful with rainbows forming in the pool down the bottom. 

Morialta conservation park, July 2014

Picking up the needles again

I really have neglected my crafty activities this year, including updating this blog. I have decided to pick up my knitting needles again - it's a therapeutic and productive way to combat stress, and it brings me such joy to make something handmade and special  to give to my friends, or to wear myself. Above is a little pair of booties I made using some of the Manos Del Uruguay yarn I bought earlier this year. The colour is called "abalone", and it is a merino/silk blend, very soft and beautiful to work with. I made these booties for my best friend's sister, who recently had her second child.

I have also been (very slowly) working on a garter stitch infinity scarf for myself, also using Manos Del Uruguay merino/silk' yarn, this time in a colour called "olivewood" (see below). Last year I made myself a similar scarf using "wildflowers" yarn, and it has become one of my most favourite accessories...I wear it everywhere. So I thought I might make a few more in different shades :-)

I have also been working on (and finished) two other knitting projects, but as both of them are presents and I haven't given them to the friend I made them for yet, I'd better not post any photos here yet! I hope to put pictures up soon though :-)

Beautiful Manos del Uruguay yarn

Very excited to discover an Australian company who re-sells the beautiful Manos del Uruguay silk/merino blend yarn - "Wool & Flax" (www.woolandflaxyarns.com.au). This is my favourite yarn that I have ever worked with, beautiful, soft, shiny, unique colours. And an added bonus, Manos del Uruguay is not for profit and supports artesian and rural women in South America. Previously I bought this yarn from Purl Soho in New York, but the shipping is quite expensive, and Wool & Flax are slightly cheaper per skein of yarn, and the postage is much cheaper, and you are supporting an Aussie company too.

I can't wait to start knitting with this yarn!! :-)

Winter knitting

It is definitely winter in Adelaide now...we have had lots of rain, gusty wind, storms, even hail and snow in places! It has also been very cold. Perfect weather for knitting warm things like scarves and gloves! I made some fingerless gloves to match my wildflowers infinity scarf, using a simple pattern from Tiny Happy's blog, with a bit of improvisation to make seed stitch cuffs on one edge. I still have about half of one 50g ball of this lovely merino/silk yarn, even after making the scarf and the gloves. Not sure what I will use that for yet.

The next project was made with a couple of 50g balls of very chunky warm wool (100% merino superwash; Katia Fabula, Colour 98, dye 26213A) that my friend Hannah gave me :-) I had intended to make another infinity scarf but there wasnt quite enough wool to do that so I make a kind of neck-warmer, like a mini infinity scarf instead. I cast on 14 stitches, then mainly knitted in garter stitch (on 8mm needles), with a few sections of seed stitch thrown in for fun. The wool seems to be self-striping, at least with 14 stitches per row and the tension I was using, which was quite tight. It feels nice and warm to wear, perfect size to wear poking out the top of a winter jacket.

Wildflowers infinity scarf

At last - I have completed one of my knitting projects! I love it....and I'm calling it my 'Wildflowers' infinity scarf after the name of the Manos Del Uruguay silk-merino blend yarn I used to make it. It is so soft and snuggly to wear and such lovely colours. This scarf is made with yarn I bought in New York last year from a cool shop called "Purl Soho", so now whenever I wear this scarf it will remind me of my first visit to NYC.

I knitted this infinity scarf in garter stitch using 2 skeins of Manos Del Uruguay silk-merino blend yarn, on 4.5mm straight needles. I joined the ends with a twist to create a kind of 'mobius' cowl even though I didn't knit it on circular needles like the traditional mobius patterns. The finished scarf measured 115cm without stretching before I joined the ends, and about 17cm wide (37 stitches).