All Fingers and Thumbs

My yarn ball arrived! I don't think it could have been more perfect if I'd wrapped it up and sent it to myself. No surprise that I wasn't the patient type that would wait and knit through the ball finding the presents on the way, goodness I didn't even have time to photograph the giant ball before I had to investigate what was in there - answer: A completely overwhelming haul of lovely, thoughtfully chosen things - Clover Chibi needles and needle holders, Burt's Bees lip balm and cuticle cream, notepad, paperclips, stamp, chocolate, magnets, a shell pendant, handmade tissue holder, a bead S and the world's cutest pincushion: And the yarn that held all these treasures? It's my holy grail of yarn - the yarn I've loved from afar - the yarn that the Pacific Northwest did not want to sell me last year . Wendy sent me a corvid in yarn form and I don't think I've stopped flapping with excitement yet. Yes it really is Socks that Rock in Thraven - oh me,...

Preserves are a new and growing obsession of mine. This weekend I managed to put down the sock of beauty just long enough to make some lime marmalade. Green tomato chutney was a regular feature of childhood and I can remember my first adult foray into preserving was some plum jam circa summer 2004. We moved in to a new house share to be greeted by plums overflowing every surface and house mates heading off on holiday shouting some hasty instructions over their shoulders. Since then I've dabbled increasingly, getting over the fear that it was all a bit complicated to bother with. No more plum jam as enjoying the finished item is the major driving force behind any preserving effort which does tarnish my 'domestic goddess using up abundant produce' image a leetle bit, but wasting ingredients and effort on turning something into a preserve I'm likely to leave on the shelf until it's finally gone rotten seems like throwing too much good after bad. We made a big batch of ...

Oh there was beauty to be found in the sparkling silver parcel that was waiting on the doorstep when I got home on Friday. A great start to my first yarn club. Here's a little spoiler shield in case any Knit Love club members who haven't had their parcel yet are reading here (and because the owls are so darned cute). . . . And now on to the socktacular beauty. . . . . Oh my the yarn! Alchemy Juniper - not something I've ever got my paws on before - a plumptious 100% merino. The colour is so warm and rich, the label says that inspiration comes from the natural world and this is so like the gold of certain lichen. Absolutely amazing. The beautiful pattern - Rumpled - designed by Alice is so clever, beautiful texture and detail but not overly complicated to knit. If all that wasn't enough the labels also have little quotes on the back, while knitting this sock I can ponder the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson "Though we travel the world to find beauty, we must carry it ...

Back in November when T suggested a yarn ball swap for the month of January I knew I wanted to be part of it . I'd never heard of the idea before - taking a skein of yarn and wrapping in little treasures to make a magic ball full of surprises. Here's a peep at the ball that should be on it's way in the post to Wendy tomorrow. Wendy's to me is already winging its way here - so much fun!

Another January weekend = time for casting on another new project. A little cardigan for one of the several babies that one of several friends are busy growing right now. It promises to be quite the year for hatching amongst my friends so I've been checking out a whole new section of patterns. It occurred to me the other day that in my three and a bit years of knitting I have never gone to a yarn shop and looked at their patterns and bought a pattern and the yarn then and there. So I did. I tell you the excitement never stops round here, if I tell you I cleaned out the food cupboard too I know you'll be blown away by my weekend :o) I checked out the yarns, decided that the Baby Bamboo was the right mix of practicality/affordability/knit desirability and looked at the folder of patterns. It was really quite soothing to have a reasonably small selection of patterns. Sometimes looking at all the patterns on the kniternet I just don't know where to begin. This little bubs hasn...

... you must be the very much loved and not at all neglected beloved of a knitter. May it keep your ears warm and your head full of memories of Seattle Public Library and our wonderful holiday. Pattern: Koolhaas Hat - Jared Flood Yarn: Malabrigo Merino Worsted - Violetas (about 2/3 of a skein) Needles: 4mm long DPNs for ribbing, 5.5mm 40cm circular for main hat Started: 3 January 2010 Finished: 14 January 2010

I loved the red quilt background to my little scarf in that last post. Winter is the one time of year when I genuinely have one favourite colour. I love the antidote red things provide to the lack of colour in nature and finding hidden patches of red berries when outside is like a surprise for the eyes. However for all the need for red I'm enjoying this month so much more than I normally do. Something about the bout of snow here has given me permission to start the year at a more Sarah-ish speed. I can't get up for January and its new this, new that-ness, I need to just hunker down and for once it feels like many people around me are doing the same. It's as if the focus has shifted to the basics of everyday life. Getting about, getting provisions, keeping warm have all required more care and attention and in spending more time on them they've become events in themselves rather than background chores to get out of the way and then move on to doing more more more. ...

new year, new lace: Promises to be a very pretty whisper of a scarf knit in Kidsilk Night. One of many very beautiful patterns from this book that hopefully will encourage me to use up some luxurious single skeins being saved for something special. Maybe it will just help me to buy single skeins of something other than sock yarn when I'm in my dazed and confused "I'm in a yarn shop" state. Win win. There are so many patterns I'm sure most people would find things they'd like to knit in here and they cover a good range of projects given the one skein limitation. I don't love the way the photos are all in one section at the front but I guess that was a way to control costs but still incorporate a full colour photo for each of the projects. I do love the grouping of the patterns according to the weight of yarn. Very handy.

One: Curl up in a fur coat. Two: Mmm mmm macaroni cheese. Three: No fur coat? Find some wool and a hot water bottle.

Ah Christmas, almost a distant memory but the fun of some of my gifts will live on and on: Exhibit A: a TOYota ball winder. (And there are two great books in the back of these shots that I'll post more about soon.) Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Makes the most delicious yarn cakes. I didn't even know I wanted one of these, thought that the swift devised and handmade two years ago was enough for me, but perhaps that's because I normally 'employ' a labourer for the ball winding. He could see the benefit of a winder! This was wound at the weekend and I should have had a Koolhaas well on the way by now but needle trouble is slowing me down - ah poor neglected labourer! Newest excitement is that Oxford finally got some of the snow that's been drifting around much of the UK for a while now. This was from our back door step at 7am. Garden photos are mine, other Oxford shots from the 1TB as he ventured out while I stayed snug and got to work from home. I love the snow so...

The last knit of 2009 and the first of 2010. First FO; surely not the last for the year? Pattern: Springtime Bandit - Kate Gagnon Osborn Yarn: Rowanspun DK - Sugar Almond - 70 grams Needles: 4.5mm circular, 5.5mm tips used for the bind off Started: 2 December 2009 Finished: 1 January 2010 First succumbing to small shawl fever, not my first knitted love and not the last I'm sure, but definitely my most favoured finished item so far. A hard gift to give! I kept gazing proudly at it as it grew. I loved photographing it and playing around with it when it was washed, blocked and dry. I need to work on my blocking technique and equipment - this little piece was quite a challenge with my towel and pin kit. The lacy elements opened up nicely but some points ended up, well, pointing , much better than others and I might have had a second go if time had permitted. It was a joy to knit, a pattern that flowed for me - except the first row of the final chart - with the pattern printed ...

From the ground to the sky I sense the potential; so much to anticipate and hope for. My only resolutions: enjoy and savour the good parts, learn from the hard parts and end the year as I did 2009, feeling like it was a year well lived. Wishing everyone much happiness and little heartache today and every day for 2010.