As I mentioned in my first post, this weekly series is about how knitting (or crochet) fits into the rhythm of everyday life, even when things are busy. Just a few minutes can calm the mind and bring everything back into balance.
Week 2: A week of collars, seams and new beginnings!
This week was all about finishing one project and starting another. I’d had a Kyle Jumper waiting in a bag for a while – the original was knitted in Bluefaced Leicester Aran, but I wanted to try it in Fable Aran (a mix of Falkland Wool, British Alpaca and British Mohair). The pieces had been beautifully knitted by a test knitter, but it was my turn to sew it all together.
Here’s how the week looked:
Monday
A morning train trip to Leeds gave me time for 2 rows of the Kyle Jumper collar. In the evening, I settled in with a few episodes of Annika (still can’t believe there won’t be a third series!) and managed about 5cm more.
Tuesday
Barely a row today, just got this far – some days are like that.
Wednesday
An evening of Dexter and the collar was finished.
Thursday
Time for the seams. I’d already joined one side, so I carried on with mattress stitch. I love this technique — it feels magical, as you’re joining stitch to stitch rather than treating the pieces as fabric. I design the patterns so the seams are almost invisible. The jumper started to come together beautifully.
Friday
On to something new! A design I’ve promised to a kind and patient knitter for about a year. They’ve never rushed me, but I’ve wanted to get this moving. It’s a child’s jacket in WYS Re:Twist Chunky, which knits up quickly with only about 20 stitches on the needle.
One note – if knitting has been left on a needle for too long, the stitches can stretch. So before continuing, I took the row back (4 minutes while boiling potatoes!) and reknitted it to keep everything even.
Saturday
Started the left front of the new design while watching a film. I actually started it twice, after spotting a mistake. I didn’t notice it when I took the first photo above…only on the second photo below:
No one else would have noticed, but I didn’t mind taking it back – more knitting time for me!
Sunday
A quiet afternoon with some Silent Witness (from 2006 — which surely isn’t nearly 20 years ago?). I finished the left front and got a good way up the right front. A satisfying end to the week.
That’s Week 2 of this woolly journey! My idea is that each week I’ll share the little moments where knitting fits into my days – whether it’s a quick row on the train, or an evening’s worth in front of a favourite series. I’d love you to follow along, whether here on the blog, or over on Instagram and Facebook where I’ll share more snippets in Stories….I’m hoping to do this weekly….will I??