The Photos Continue Some More - Crochet Edition

What a lovely reaction to yesterday's blog! It's lovely to spread a little love, isn't it? That's another thing I love about the shop - being able to spread a little love and confidence. Ahhhh. Without further ado, let's get on with it:

Don't you just love this photo? It sums up one of my favourite things about crochet - colour. Somehow people are much less afraid of colour in crochet. I think it's probably because of its reputation as a less 'serious' craft than knitting, perhaps it's because of our collective memories of granny blankets in leftovers as kids, perhaps its any other reason. But whatever the reason, I'm bloody glad. This blanket was made by Nona (I think that's Fiona... but I keep asking and not remembering...) and it is now officially finished but it's not just the blanket that I like, and I love that, it's this specific picture. POW! Yet another example of an amazing project in the cheap as chips Pricewise DK. Lovely.

 

Laura-Jo started crocheting at the beginning of this year which is just ridiculous because it feels like she's been at it forever! She did a collage of all of the things that she's made this year and it is an incredible amount of beautiful projects. Incredible. But I've chosen this one because it's Chummy and it's Miranda and you can just see that can't you? Amigurumi is deffo not my thing but I love it when it works out like this. Cute! 

 

This! This is a first project. Believe that or not, it's a bloody first project. Me and Ellie (good name that) chose the colours very carefully before she'd even picked up a hook and discussed carefully all of her different underwater creature options - dolphins, whales, crabs. But I am so pleased that she chose this little shoal of fish which is subtle and delicate and all good things out of a baby blanket - even when the background is so full on. It's big too. Bloody big. Can't wait to see what she comes up with next!

 

Ahhh. I am THRILLED with this little cowl by Dawn. One thing you can say about Dawn is that her photography is always spot on. I think her husband helps and he must have the patience of a saint, or she's got an incredible eye and a photographic body. Seriously, have a look at her Rav page. Anyway, she learned to knit from me (back in 2011 apparently) and learned to crochet here too but never really got on with the crochet in the same way as knitting. For some reason she signed up to the Ripple lesson I did in the summer even though she was nervous and absolutely smashed it. This was finished within a couple of weeks or so and don't you just love the colours. We were going for modern 60's and i think it's perfect. Crocheted in the Diploma Gold DK. 

 

Awwwww. Remember this? It's Boyf's first pattern! Isn't he a good'un. For a couple of weeks he was texting me saying he was making something brilliant and I was like uuuuuuuuuuugh, brill! Then one day, out of the blue, it was finished! Kind of. I had to help him with the leaves. He says he was trying to make me a heart but it ended up like a pentagon so then he had to make it into a flower. Just you wait to see the next thing he's making - smashing it! Anyway, if you too want to make the flower - click over here. :)

 

This one's only just finished! I think it was a Christmas present - so it's that new. It's a Cthulu which is some sort of beast created by some writer somewhere. Again, we come to the intersection of geekery and crafting and this one I don't understand even vaguely. However, he is a character that I've heard a bit about in the shop, lots of people making him and looking aghast that I don't know what he is... Anyway, this was made by the lovely Sue who has again been a massive supporter of us (and had an incredible end to the year and thoroughly cheered me up every time she came in!) and again she's a pretty new crocheter - a much better knitter - but not confident in crochet. This kind of project is perfect for that because, to be honest, those dangly bits at the front? Who's gonna know if they're a stitch out? It's knitted in the workhorse Cygnet Chunky in the Kiwi colour which is absolutely spot on and the one that most people choose when they're making this - we've even had a sparkly Cthulu in the Cygnet Chunky Gems. Well done Sue, for this and all your achievements. 

 

This is Anita's very first crochet - the bow in the middle towards the left of the photo. Isn't that amazing? Anita bought a couple of our Christmas bags and got on with it. This makes me so proud, to see that with just a few words and photos of mine somebody can take it and make something so lovely for themselves. I hope she's managed to move on and do something else with her new found skills. Crochet really is so rewarding! Perhaps a Cthulu... ;)

 

I had to include this even though I can't remember the lady's name, I should be able to but I do remember her and her daughter every time and now her husband. I'll admit that this photo isn't the best one of the cardigan, but she came in wearing it on a party day (perhaps Love Your Local Yarn Shop Day?) and looked amazing! The colour, the shape, the fit - everything looked to spectacular. I keep trying to make my version of this sweater, because we're a similar shape and size I think and I reckon I could rock it too, but I've never been able to get past the first couple of rows (it's a personal thing, lots of people have made the Chevron Lace Cardi with no problems). Also, she's the first person that was positive about the film Frozen and now it's a definite fave of mine - do you wanna build a snowmaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan?

 And finally:

 

 I couldn't not mention the lovely Toni even though I don't have many pictures of her finished objects. This one isn't finished but isn't it stunning?!?!?!? It's the ubiquitous Skull Shawl, a free pattern from rav, and it takes a little time to get your head around, mainly because the lady wrote the pattern in..... Swedish... maybe originally so it's a little disjointed. I'd say you want to have worked with a few patterns before getting into this one because it's not necessarily straight forward so you have to use your intuition, but isn't it great?! And doesn't it look good in the Riot DK??? Earlier this year I made one for my sister and sent it as a birthday gift and it's one of the few things I think she's actually enjoyed from me (that aren't socks she stole from the husbeast). Anyway, lovely Toni turned up at the end of the summer this year having taught herself to crochet from scratch - something about her meant that I didn't know that she was a beginner so I sold her a load of yarn for difficult patterns and she just did it. Bloody overachievers. You'll often see her in the shop filling shelves whilst I knit just because. Good lass.

And that, again, is your lot. I do feel like I'm summing up the year here. I take an awful lot of photos and get shown so much throughout the year that I've definitely missed some out and I'm sorry if that's yours! You'll just have to shout louder at me. But I love how well this has gone down so maybe I'll carry on throughout the year, what do you think?

Love Eleanor. xxxxx

The Photos Continue (Knitting Edition)

I think I've sorted through my favourite projects from this year. It's certainly not all of them but I like (and can remember...) the little stories attached to these ones which is my favourite part of the shop probably. I always say I don't remember names but I do remember what people bought and the stories behind the purchase. Fascinating people.

I've had to split this between knitting and crocheting because there's just so many and I only have so much time and there's a lot to do now I'm back at the shop (and the phone and e-mail haven't been working properly so I'm dealing with a backlog... oh me oh my...). Anyway. Knitting. Let's see where the computer takes us shall we because there's no order to this at all:

 

Ahhhhhh, lovely Asha. I chose this photo because I like how simple she's kept it. The scarf's a rib, one by one, plain and simple and it allows the yarn to shine. I adore how it matches her coat and I always adored her but she moved away. Luckily, her equally adorable sister has started coming in to take up the mantel. Good family. :)

 

Meet Jan's dog. CUTE! This was Jan's attempt at a hat on her second Learn To Knit Course. Jan's one of those people who just picks knitting up and 'gets it'. Second thing she ever made was an amazing cabled jumper that radiated out from the centre in a series of panels making a hexagon and then you had to knit around the outside doing some tricksy shaping to fill in the gaps. Not only did she smash that but she converted the pattern into the round. Boom. Some people make you sick don't they? You'll be pleased to know that she never finishes anything though. :)

 

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh Jazz! Jazz and her lovely Owls jumper in Grousemoor Chunky. I already did a whole blog about her and this jumper so I won't go mad about it but I still love it and I still love her facial expression here, can you feel the joy?!?

 

I guess this is knitting but it's not a project as such. Our friend Zoe Halstead finished and published her second Christmas Book for King Cole after the success of the first. It's another bloody great book, full of excellent inspiration, beautifully photographed and laid out. There are some fun and funky bits aswell as more traditional stuff like the gingerbread man which is my favourite. I'm dead pleased for her. :)

EEEEEEEEEEEEEE! How cute is this!? Knitted, from her head, by the gorgeous Frances for her Boyf I am just astounded at the talent. I think Frances is relatively new to knitting, at least she was when she first came to the shop and yet her imagination and flair is just amazing. I love how well this fits him - size wise and personality wise and the finishing looks spot on too. What a project! And, to top it all off, it's knitting in Pricewise DK which goes to show with a little imagination and effort even the cheapest of yarns can be made to look spectacular. Good job!

 

Talking about flair and imagination - look at this! This had Chris literally salivating at the thought. Sadly for him, I'm in charge of his wardrobe now and this doesn't fit in with his 'look' (... ;)...). In case you're wondering, this is a remake of the seventh Doctor's jumper - Sylvester Mccoy. Gemma again made this up, kinda. The chart was somewhere on the internet but she had to work out the shaping and the pockets (love pockets!) and how it was all going to work together. The colours are spot on, chosen from the Diploma Gold range and doesn't he look absolutely thrilled?! I love that he came into the shop to show me. :)

 

Ahhhhhh. More beautiful colourwork. This was made by Debbie for her father who's modelling it rather beautifully in the photo. It's lots of colours of the Truly Wool Rich 4ply and a very complicated pattern. Debbie assures me that there are mistakes in there but I can't see any - just an amazing bunch of colours knitted together with skill and love. So clever. 

 

Ahhhh. Where would be be without Steph ey? Steph's one of our regulars and has been so supportive of us for the last couple of years. I love having her around and love seeing what she's up to. These are just two of her versions of Sailing Pi both in combinations of King Cole Bamboo 4ply and Bamboo DK. She's made at least another one since and doesn't she look great in them?

 

Oooooooh, I chose this because it's by another newbie knitter - Natalie. Now, Natalie's got a tiny little baby to think about so what else would you do but start a whole new hobby??? Actually, I think it's a great time to start, especially with an easy child who sleeps because generally they need feeding, changing and more sleep and everybody else will know that you need 'you-time' when kiddliwink's sleeping and what better use of the 'you-time' than knitting? Perfect! Sadly, she'll be back at work now so less time to do all of the things that she wants, but that's the way of it, isn't it? I chose this particular version, not because I don't love everybody's, but because it's in the Ultimate Super Chunky rather than the Seriously Chunky that the pattern was made for (it's the Unapologetic Hat that I gave away for free just before Christmas) so it's something a bit different. I love the two colours together, don't you? I could do with one today....

 

Another Sailing Pi and again in the Bamboo Cotton DK and 4ply. This is Anita's version and it's straight out of the box. The reason I wanted to show this again is because I can tell, even from the back of her head, that she's wearing a cheeky little grin. Families of knitters are so lucky aren't they? Lavished in lovely wool. But also, we're so lucky to have our supporters - even those that steal newly finished projects - because it proves just how brill we are. :)

 

And finally, for today anyway, lovely Heather in her King Cole Galaxy bolero. I just has to include this because it looks so good on her. Perfect size, perfect shape, perfect symmetry of stripes. It's really a masterclass in how to make hand knitting look like perfect. I should get her in to teach us lot a few lessons shouldn't I?! :)

And that's it. I'm sorry I couldn't fit more people in - a lot of it is about my organisation to be honest - finding photos in the maelstrom that is my life is difficult. But I do think that this is a good snapshot of what's going on at Knit Nottingham. Beginners and old hats smashing it out, making amazing, wearable stuff with a sense on humour and incredible skill. I am privileged to be part of it - here's to the next year! :)

Love Eleanor. xxxxxxx

The photos begin

Well, I talked yesterday about bringing together photos of FO's from my customers but not being able to choose which ones I wanted to share. Well, I've got a plan! I wanted to share all the photos I've got of the last two lessons that I taught in 2014 - the Fantasm Shawl and the Spread Your Legs Cowl first and then do the others in another blog. Over Christmas people have slowly been showing my photos of their finished bits and each one gave me a little thrill even if I couldn't pluck up the energy to write a comment of like or whatever... It's been a long couple of weeks...

Anyway, every year, just before Christmas I try and put on what I think of as my 'Christmas Lessons'. Most years they have been actual Christmas projects like snowflakes, baubles, Christmas decs - all sorts of things but this year I knew I'd be a bit Christmassed out if I went ahead with my plan to make the bags and I was right. So what I did instead was two project based workshops - one of my own design (the cowl) and one of a design that I've made many many times before (the shawl) and they both went down brilliantly. I had a BLAST teaching both of them and I must admit, it sometimes takes brilliantly successful lessons like that to get me back on the excitement about lessons jag. It definitely helps when I get photos of finished objects, I love seeing what you lot make with our yarn but more so when it's our pattern or from a workshop.

Thing about the workshops is that you form a little bond with each person there, it works nicely for us because you're more likely to come back but it works nicely for you because you're more likely to want to come and get help. I am super proud of all of my students and it's like a little bubble of satisfaction popping when I see somebody taking it to the next level. Ahhh. Anyway. Shut up. Let's look at these super talented knitters and crocheters and what they've been up to. Starting with the Fantasm because that's the first one I taught.

The first one I want to talk about is Sue's:

Isn't that just absolutely perfect? Well, of course it is, it's Sue. Sue won't mind me saying that we're at absolute opposite ends of the scale in terms of crafting - she's very much a perfectionist, likes to know what she's doing every moment, will rip things out if they're not working and I think that's not very 'crochet'. I think, and if you crochet you'll know what I mean, like, there is a right way and a wrong way of course but it's also very much just 'stick it in and hope for the best'. Or is that just me? So, I must admit it can be a struggle teaching Sue, more for my own confidence, because I need to know that I'm telling her the right thing not just what I'd do which is, as we said before, stick it in and hope for the best. Sue had her own crisis of confidence just before the lesson. She'd done the beginners lessons earlier this year but not much since and whilst trying to get up to speed before the lesson she'd been struggling with gauge mainly but luckily, I knew that that didn't matter for this project. I'm a big believer in just getting things done as a way of confidence boosting and I'm grateful that Sue trusted me enough to just dive straight in and I dare say that she's thrilled because look at what she's come up with! What an amazing finished piece, so wearable, so subtle, so intricate, so beautiful and I know what this colour and size and drape is going to suit Sue down to the absolute ground. PROUD! 

And I ought to say, because this is still a shop blog and I have yarn to sell, that this was made in the Patons Cotton 100% Cotton 4ply with, I think a 4mm hook. :)

And now on to Claire's piece: 

Isn't this beautiful? Now, Claire is allergic to wool, poor woman. But this doesn't hold her back. She has fun with acrylics and cottons and luckily, she had lots of choices. I love how the shawl has worked out in this self striper - so often shawls, because the stitch count gets higher and higher as it goes along, look a bit 'wrong' in self striping yarn. The stripes start out as big blocks and end up really thin at the end - you can see that a little on this shawl but I think the stripes work out beautifully here because at the beginning they follow full repeats of the pattern towards the end they follow only rows and because of the way that the fans work you can see the full wiggly detail. I love it. Oh, and the yarn is Shine DK in Volcano on probably a 5mm hook I think.

And following on with that, Claire was one of the special ladies that came on both courses, so let's have a look at what she made the next week:

LOOK AT THAT! LOOK AT THAT! LOOK AT THAT! I can't compel you enough to just bloody LOOK AT THAT! Now, the way that I teach this lesson, and it's the second time that I've done it, is basically we choose our yarn, cast on our stitches, do a row in continental knitting so that we can work with both hands when we get into the fairisle and then we dive straight in. I provide all of the charts from the original pattern and this time I sourced a few Christmas ones and even some Dr Who ones because they caught my eye. After that, they're on their own, so as you'll see each and every one is different and they're all fascinating. I particularly like Claire's colours here - I'd totes choose them myself and I'm excited by the fact that this is in cotton too. Most of the colours were King Cole Cottonsoft DK and the black was the Bamboo Cotton DK. I've done colourwork in both before and they work surprisingly well but particularly the Cottonsoft because of it's slightly woolly texture. I have asked about the pattern at the top in grey and black - are they sheep do you think? Do they look so angry because they've been knitted in cotton? Perhaps she should have knitted a cotton plant. Haha. 

Moving on, let's have a look at Allison's: 

THIS ISN'T A COWL! And that's why I love it. Allison knew that she wouldn't use a cowl so she's made it into a bag with handles from a charity shop bag. Don't they work perfectly? I love Allison's design here, she's spread the colours out really well hasn't she? I also like that, compared to the other ones that you'll see, she's used much more organic shapes. Can you see the orange donuts and yellow spots on a green background at the bottom? Well, she was particularly naughty then - using more than two colours on a row but hasn't she tackled it beautifully? I love that she chose these three colours from the combo, they stand out really well don't they? But not too much, like using the black or the cream would have done. Good choice! And the ribbing at the top really brings it all together. Ahhh. Perfect. Almost persuades me to knit a bag - but not quite. 

Allison was introduced to Knit Nottingham by the lovely Lindsey: 

Now, Lindsey is a crocheter through and through (and a lover of ponchos... tsssssssk), but her friend Beccy persuaded her to come on a sock knitting lesson a couple of months ago (they're like a gruesome twosome and they bring alcohol. I like it!). She absolutely took to knitting socks and I think it might have something to do with the fact that both this project and the socks are in the round - the needles tend to be shorter and there's a lot more knitting which is more like crocheting than purling is. By the by, she's absolutely SMASHED this hasn't she? What a colour combo. If I remember rightly she was actually one of the ones that took the longest time to choose her colours which is absolutely incredible because she has a definite colourscheme and I would describe it as - mermaid. Blues, teals, pinks, purples and a hint of sparkle. It's lovely to see every time. My favourite bit of this cowl is the motif just underneath the skulls (which I love), it looks so complicated doesn't it? But look a little closer, it's simply purple triangles on a striped background. What makes it look fantastic is the beautiful tension and the colour transition from dark to light - perfectly chosen. I may steal this at some point...

The next photo on the list in Stevie's - our token gentleman for the day: 

I love it when Stevie comes on a lesson - it's been a while but he's booked on some in the new year if I remember rightly. He's a quiet man because he has to concentrate but I know he enjoys the banter going on around his head. Stevie's good with his hands - a hairdresser by trade - and that shows in his work. He takes his time and produces top quality stuff just like this. I loved his colour choices - very bold. I love that bright yellow and mixed with that purple and the jewel-y teal. Mmmm delicious. On the top photo, see the little birds on the grey (I think) background? That's gorgeous isn't it! Imagine that motif carried on, perhaps with  plain colour and then the Riot DK as the birdies. Wouldn't that look lovely on a cowl or a perhaps the yoke of a cardi or a jumper? Lovely. 

And our final piece for the day is from the lurvely Samantha: 

Not blocked yet but LOOK! Remember I said that I gave the students some Dr Who motifs? Well, Sam took that and smashed it dooooooown! I think these are weeping angels (??? a year and a half and Chris has still only made me watch three episodes so I'm still in a state of blissful ignorance) and I love them! They don't have to be Dr Who related do they? But they are and for that I am eternally grateful. There's a definite crossover between knitting and geekery and even though I don't follow this particular geekery I love that it's there. People's little quirks, ey? Somebody might be looking at this on a bus and to somebody that's not a geek, it just looks like angels, but to somebody that is they'll be wondering 'Is it really weeping angels? Where did she get it from? Can I have one? Shall I ask her?' and all the while Sam will be sitting on that bus knowing that her little fingers made her something so admired and so clever and so. AHHHHHH KNITTING! I BLOODY LOVE IT! And separately from that I'm looking at the motif underneath and wondering what she's done there and how I can steal it. Inspiration time!

And that's it. There were plenty of other people on the lessons so perhaps the photos will trickle through and if there's enough then I'll do another blog post because I've dead enjoyed this. Isn't it amazing how one little pattern will set two people off in two completely different directions? It's all to do with people's experiences and situations and how busy they are and what colours the love (and why do they love those colours?!). I could spend all day looking at what other people make and comparing it to my own and wondering about the differences and imagining the conversations that could be started from that. Endlessly fascinating.

Love Eleanor. xxx

ALL THE GOOD STUFF

Ahhhh. As a rest from the terrible stuff that's going on we're going to have a rerun of all of the best bits of 2014 and oh what a year it's been!! On a personal level I've had an incredible year, with the Boyf and the cat and two amazing holidays. There are still some secrets going on behind the scenes that I hope will come to fruition soon (everybody cross your fingers for me!). And in terms of the shop we've won Best Yarn Shop in the Midlands for the second year running, we've run another successful trip to Yarndale, we had our best day ever at the 4th birthday party and not far behind that an amazing day at Love Your Local Yarn Shop Day. We organised and sent over 100 parcels for the Sailing Pi, Dirty Rascal and Christmas Time Out Boxes and I released my most successful pattern yet in Bobica (and there's another bubbling round in my skull). On top of that we've taught a few more hundred people how to knit and crochet, and people that already knit and crochet how to do it better or do more. Introduced plenty of new yarns and run a few specials to let you lot work with stuff that we don't necessarily want to stock but do want to try. We've had a flood and an operation and everything in between. Oh, I'll shut up - let's look at the photos - and this is in whatever order the computer wants it to be in...

Oh, so the computer wants to start with the shit stuff. Well, this was the flood! The day after Love Your Local Yarn Shop Day and just days before my holiday - argh! 

But instead of looking at how terrible everything is, there's a saying isn't there, by Fred Rogers (of course), 

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”

And isn't that true? These were my helpers this day, the guys that work at my landlords who are not that bad despite the door issue... 

WE GOT NEON SOCK YARN! And promptly sold out of it all... 

Chris helped me organise the shop. Before this all of the needles were on wonky nails straight in the walls and before that they were in glass jars with no organisation at all. It's a step forward. :)

He also learned to crochet on our Valentine's weekend away. Ahhhhh. 

And another boy that likes big balls. It's really sad to say goodbye to Mark, who'd been an excellent rep for King Cole but we're happy to say hello to the new one (whose name I don't remember yet... it's only been a few weeks... something like Damon? Damien?). 

Apparently, this was the year that we started stocking King Cole Merino DK. I say 'apparently' because it feels like it's been with us forever. It's one of our best sellers and it's a well loved part of the shop now. 

I started, and didn't finish, a mood shawl. Lots of you did finish and one day I'll collate together the photos. 

I got over my fear of textured yarns to make this cushion in Romano Chunky from King Cole that we got in a big job lot for you. It's now got a permanent place on my bed and I can't life without it for propping up a newspaper on my day off. 

Rebecka made the MOST AMAZING cake for Love Your Local Yarn Shop Day - delicious, delicious, delicious! In fact, there's been a lot of cake this year. Partly why I enjoyed it so much. 

We shoved an enormous amount of people into the shop on that day. This was one of the least full moments if I remember rightly. Such a fun day. So lovely to get everybody together again. Are you looking forward to the next one?

We got some new colours in the Riot Chunky including this gorgeous colour - Rainbow. Davina loved it from the start when she realised it matched her nail varnish. 

Despite not being a best seller I am still over the moon about the Bamboo Cotton 4ply. It's a stunner of a yarn, an amazing combo of fibre, texture and colours - I have a little something ready to be published once I do some blocking and photographing and I'm waiting for some spring blooms for that. Just you wait!

Talk about beautiful spring blossoms, here's the Bobica. What I consider to be my first 'proper' pattern. I am thrilled with it, always will be and it's still whirling round in my mind as I may have thought about a new edging to add to the pattern. Hmmm. It also represents working with my best mate Vezza who continues to be an inspiration and my biggest source of support outside of the Boyf and my mum. Three of the best. 

YARNDALE! Need I say more?! I will - but I'm waiting for the computer to put up the next photo. 

Ahhh, the Sailing Pi Boxes. It was a real strain for me this - a big step into the unknown. Lots went wrong, including losing 30 plastic crabs (and finding them again just before Christmas...) and ordering bloody massive boxes but I absolutely loved the process and went on to repeat it with the Christmas bags later - refining lots of little bits and enjoying the process even more. 

Oooh, and there is it. I guess this also shows how my confidence in photoshopping type skills has also grown. I'm by no means an expert, there's a lot that I need to learn, but I'm happy with my colourful creations and every time I do a new one I get a little thrill about showing you lot and it's something I hadn't even thought about before the beginning of 2014. (And I had no idea I was going to talk about that in this blog - blimey! This shit's getting deep!)

Ahhh thanks computer! Here we are! This is Yarndale again but I think it also depicts really well one of the most amazing aspects of this little shop - you lot. I say it all the time, and it always sounds a bit soppy, but it's literally all about you. Without you, I'm just sat all day with a massive wool stash and I look a bit mental. It's your personalities, histories, expertise and enthusiasm that make it. And, let's face it, your money. ;) But I hope you get as much out of it as I do and I hope you continue to be part of this community, letting me know what you like, don't like, want, don't want, need, love, enjoy - all of it helps me run the best yarn shop in the Midlands and sllows you to enjoy the best yarn shop in the Midlands. Long may it continue.

I think that's it. Not too soppy ey? 2014 wasn't that bad was it? In fact, whilst looking for photos for this I found a load of finished object photos from customers that I want to write a blog about. It's actually what I wanted to write and publish today but I couldn't decide which photos to use and didn't want to leave any out so you might need to give me some time for that. 

Thank you so much for your love and support this last year, it's been well needed at points and of course, puts us in the best possible position to start 2015 on a positive note looking forward to all of the capers and japes that we can get up to. You ready?

Love Eleanor. xxx

Hibernation

Ahhhhh Knit Nottinghamers! I am back! Kind of. I'm still actually in hibernation but I'm poking my little twitchy nose out here for the first time in about three weeks. Smelling the fresh air and maybe explaining myself a little - although, I know I don't have to do that really.

You know how it doesn't rain, it pours? Well, let me tell you a story. Starting a couple of weeks before Christmas:

My mum had a car accident. It wasn't her fault. At a junction, not far from her house, one that she complains is dangerous on a daily basis, some bloke in a big old lorry smashed into the side of her. It looked at the time like it wasn't that bad but when it went into the garage it turned out to be a write off as he'd smashed up the axle. So far, so what? They gave her a quote and she went internet car shopping. She found one in Birmingham (to cut a long story short), rang up my dad who was at a routine eye appointment to ask if they could go to see it the next day, 'no problems!' he said.

Only, at this routine eye appointment they found out that he had a detached retina and if he didn't have surgery before Christmas he'd go blind! It meant that he couldn't really commit to a longish car journey but luckily, Boyf came to the rescue and he drove Mum in his trusty silver Corsa all the way. Dad had the op on the Friday or so before Christmas (I think... time has kind of run into itself) and he's recovering slowly.

In the meantime, the money that the insurance company had offered wasn't enough and more than that, for some reason they couldn't get it into her bank account so they had to send a cheque. In the Christmas post. That went well. Luckily, again, I had some money saved up so I was able to lend her that until the insurance bits came and since then they've also upped the offer to cover the amount she actually needed.

Separately from all of this, the bloody cat went missing. I'd had a gorgeous lesson on the Sunday - got a bit drunk at the end of it and thought all my woes were over. She escaped past my legs through the front door and ran off into the night. We looked for her that evening but weren't too worried. I expected her to turn up the very next morning, but she didn't. Nor that night. I had kind of given up. Despite the fact that she's microchipped a nobody - no vets, no councils, no shelters - had seen her I though she was just squashed somewhere and I tried my best to carry on. Chris was a bit of a mess. BUT on Christmas Eve morning there was an unholy racket and she'd turned up! She looked worse for wear, covered in oil and Chris spent the rest of the day cleaning and brushing her to get it out. She was SO pleased to be back.

We'd decided to spend Christmas at my house to be with the nephew, taking her with us so one of the worst things was that we weren't going to be able to do that. But we did and she loved it! Formed a real bond with my dad - apparently it's not just Chris, she's actually just a man's cat. Little thing.

In the midst of all of this, I got a boil on my bum and had to be on antibiotics - brill!

And, just to pile it on, Mum, who'd be suffering from a cold all the way through this, ended up with a chest infection and an almost complete loss of hearing. She was also on antibiotics.

And THEN! The day before the cat turned up, I got the news that I was having an operation on the hole in my earhole on the 29th. Bloody hell. I said yes because actually the timing worked very well. I've had to have two weeks off work which is difficult when I have, at the very least, a load of full lessons to teach - only I never start my lessons until mid January so that I ease myself in gently. And we're always slow in the first week or so of January so June won't be overrun (although it sounds like she's not been doing too bad... thank you!). I was in and out on the same day, didn't do as much knitting as I thought I would because I was hungry and thirsty and tired and actually had a lovely view out of the window. Chris sat with me all day, bless him. When I came round I felt the worst I've ever felt in my life - you know when you're so drunk you can't close your eyes because the room's spinning. Yeah, that. And one of my lovely customers had reminded me that ears are all to do with balance so I might well have vertigo which is basically just the same feeling so I was all like 'oh my god, I'm going to feel like this for two weeks'. Cue tears, Chris panicing and a lovely and concerned nurse who had definitely seen it all before. I won't go into too much detail about the rest of the week as it involved things that disgust even me (and I love pimpletube) but I seem to be on the mend. Had some stitches out yesterday, but I've got some packing that'll be in for the next couple of weeks. I've made myself a hat to cover my ear because it's suffering with the cold and nobody needs to see this - but I'm happy to show it off if you want to see when I'm back in the shop. Haha!

And that's it. I think. Our horrendous few weeks. It just felt like one thing after another after another with no time to settle or recharge. Which meant that the blog suffered, Facebook suffered and therefore Twitter suffered, the competition that I was running suffered. In fact, the only thing that's not suffered is my bloody knitting and even then I could definitely have done more! So muchos apologeticos, and I've got a few ideas for some blogs over the next couple of days which will be a lovely and slow way to get back into the working mode for my victorious return on Monday.

I hope you had an AMAZING Christmas and new year, a good rest, lots of knitting, a bit too much chocolate and far too much booze (unless you don't drink, then I hope you got Schloer.... mmm delicious).

Love Eleanor. xxxx

Christmas Opening Times.

I'm having some time off!!!! But as always we aspire to be a proper shop so we will be open over the Christmas holidays as follows:

Christmas Eve: 10.30am - 3pm.

Christmas Day and Boxing day: Closed.

27th December: 10.30am - 3pm.

28th December (Sunday): Closed.

29th, 30th and 31st: 10.30am - 3pm.

1st January (Sunday): Closed.

2nd and 3rd: 10.30am - 3pm.

4th January (Sunday): Closed.

5th January and on: Open as usual.

I hope that works for you! We know how frustrating it is not to have a project when you maybe have a few days off and we have to balance that with us spending time with friends and family. Special time of year.

Have fun, eat too much and stay safe. 

Love Eleanor. xxxxx

Regia Design Line - Hubba Hubba

I think I've at least intimated - if not out right stated - that I'm going to do sock yarn a different way from now on. It was the Fluro that made me think of it - basically, socks are quick and dirty projects aren't they? Get 'em done whilst you're in a queue, waiting for the kids in the car, at the pub. Choose the brightest colour you can and knock 'em out quick. Therefore what keeps them interesting is the different colours and ways that they interact, so we're going to buy all of one lot of yarn for you, sell it through and then get another lot in. This means that even in our tiny tiny shop we can still have exciting and fresh new sock yarns for you to churn out. It does mean, of course, that you need to buy quick if you fall in love because it's not coming back (sorry 'bout that. Not sorry. *capitalist mwahaha*) but it also means if you miss something then the likelihood is that there'll be something amazing in in a few weeks time. With that in mind let me introduce you to the fahhhhhbulous and brand new (to us) Kaffe Fassett's Regia Design Line:

 

From top to bottom left to right: 

Snappy    -    Anthracite    -    Dark Night    -    Shadow Stripe

Sizzle    -    Delphinium    -    Icing Sugar    -    Plum Pudding

Heather    -    Moor    -    Misty    -    The Book

 Aren't they just divine?!?! I am so in love with Kaffe's colours (I've no idea why I use just his first name as if I know him...) but then I think everybody is aren't they? These are just perfect - unusual but with a good mix of brights, darks, neutrals, lights. Mmmmm. Something for everybody.

And on that note - we're already close to selling out of the Delphinium, the Dark Night and the Anthracite. They've only been in the shop for a day... Remember folks, once they're gone they're gone.

Once more for the google rankings - Regia Kaffe Fassett Design Line Sock. Ahhhhh.

And what's more exciting is that there's a book to go with it designed by the man himself! It's called the Regia Journal - Color Effects by Kaffe Fassett and it's available to buy through us if you just click on the link here. The star of the show, for me anyway, is the front cover piece:

 

 A stole which he's then worked into a 'loop' (I guess that's like an oversized cowl or an infinity scarf) and finally a BLOODY JACKET!

 

PHWOOOOOAR! GERRALOADATHAT! Isn't that just the cutest thing ever?! There are so many customers I can see who'd look great in it but maybe not that many who'd dare make it. I say bloody go for it ladies! Or gents! :)

Apart from that there are some cute and wearable snuggly jumpers, a couple of simple fairisle type vests, kids bits, some cushions and a couple of accessories. All in all a bloody good book and well worth the piddly £5.00. Have a good old gander here.

That's it! How exciting ey! I've been able to do it because we're finally down to the last four colours in the Mix It which is in itself and amazing yarn that I've loved having around. I've been busy making socks for Christmas and one of them is in shade number 9385 which is an uninspiring name for this beaut: 

 

 

Cool huh? SO much better knitted than in a ball. :). 

And that's your lot. I've got to work out where I can fit this stuff on the shelves and then from about 5 o'clock onwards I am knitting. my. sock. I will get Christmas done on time this year. 

Love Eleanor. xxxxxx

Red Heart Red Heart

So, if you're an internet knitter you will have heard of Red Heart yarn - probably the Red Heart Supersaver (or RHSS as it's often called). I am here to tell you now that that stuff is pretty horrific. You know the people that say they don't ever knit with acrylic because it's horrendous and ugh and 'life's too short' and and and.... well they're the ones that remember acrylic as acrylic used to be - itchy, rough, thick and, in my humble opinion, that's what RHSS is. It has it's place - it's apparently very cheap and wears like iron but there's acrylic and then there's acrylic... However, that's not all Red Heart is about! And I'm absolutely thrilled to have the opportunity to show you that! It's probably not something we'll stock for the long term but I managed to get a couple of grab bags which means that you get to try world famous American yarn and the most ridiculous prices ever - everything that we're about to talk about is £1.50. You read that right ONE POUND AND FIFTY PENCE. Be ready to be amazed.

I'm going to start, because I make the rules around here, with my particular favourite:

 

The Lacie. It's a mohair type 4ply in petrol colours. Oh. Em. Gee. This is beautiful. It is a pure acrylic but isn't that just perfect for non-knitters Christmas gifts? I'm imagining something like the Fantasm Shawl: 

 

Which, once killed with blocking, would make the perfect gift for a young and funky thing. If you're worried there's not enough time - this was made in about four hours so even if you're half as fast as me, or even slower than that - there. is. still. time.

Now, onto the next yarns and I'm going to let the computer work out which photos come next. 

 

A lovely sparkly scarf yarn. Not my kind of thing but the colours are great - a bit petrol-y but bit brighter. And again a great little gift, either as a made up scarf or a ball. This stuff should retail at about £6.00 so that's a bloody bargain right?

 

THE BARGAIN OF THE CENTURY! 100g of sock yarn at £1.50. It's a slightly boring grey colour but would be great for every day socks and if you get in early enough to get more than one ball it'd make the perfect every day cardigan. oooh. 

 

Some more scarf-y type stuff. This time in a beautiful heathered purple colour and pure black. Either of these would suit a lot of people and I can also see it being used for dolls hair. Lovely. :)

 

The furry yarns. Now, these are not my thing - you'll know that if you've ever come into the shop - but I am softening to them. I think it's because there are garments made in it in every shop I go into and I can't help but touch them and now the Luxe Fur has sold out (told you it would - it will be back) it's the closest thing we've got in the shop to kittens. I am sorely tempted by the blue at the top left to make a cropped long sleeved sweater (yes, I am still on that) but I have a few Christmas gifts to make and I will finish those before starting anything for me. I will.

 

I'm calling these the leftovers. I don't have much to say about them. They're still a bloody bargain but who can get excited about lemon, red and brown acrylic? Somebody will snap them up though. :)

 

Oooooh. Another unexpected Red Heart discovery this is soft as a baby's bum. Actually. It comes in Navy and Cream and they look great together - striped oversized comfy cardi anyone???? It has 80m to 50g making it a comfortable chunky and what's better - it is 50% wool. Absolutely gorgeous. 

And finally - scarf yarns. Totes not my thing but again the colours are good - particularly the middle right hand one. It's something that will be harder and harder to get a hold of now everybody's moving on to more textured yarns so if you've not tried it yet it's probably time for a final fling or if you know somebody that loves it and can't get a hold of it now then you really ought to do them a favour if you're a good human being.

 And finally, finally:

 

I had a small but determined clearout last week when I was doing the window and I found two tiny little balls of Romano Chunky leftover from the last time I got one of these bargain packs. They're sat on top of the little pile I've made ready for their new home. Ahhhh. 

 

What a lovely little collection! And something completely different from what's in the rest of the shop. 

 In other news me and Boyf are doing the cutest thing ever. Fact. We're making a blanket together for his parental units for Christmas and then we're going to make pork pie and pickles and maybe fudge and I wonder if my marrow rum might be ready??? It's the worst photo ever but I wanted to show you:

 

Chris has been slowly but surely crocheting up a load of my chunky leftovers into five layer granny squares over the last six months or so thinking he'd make a blanket for himself. He'd made 36 when we sat down yesterday and between up we powered through so we had a total of 63 last night - now sewn up, mostly, ready for the ends to be woven in and the edging which I haven't decided on. I'm not convinced about the colours, though they do look better in real life than this photo. It's mainly pinks, purples and blues with a little grey and green now and it's pretty much all yarn from the shop. I was considering a few squares in some mohair from my extensive stash but then I was too selfish.

Right, I'm off because I have MORE exciting stuff to tell you about tomorrow and I suppose I better get on and get it on t'internet. Maybe I'll have some cake first.

Love Eleanor.

P.s. this Red Heart malarkey won't make it onto the internet before Christmas. There's only like a bag of each thing so it doesn't make any sense to do it. I'll see what's left after Christmas and make a decision then but I suspect it'll be mostly gone... If you don't live in Nottingham and want some then we take orders over the phone ((0115) 9474239) or we're happy to paypal invoice if you get in contact with us through the e-mail or facebook or whatever. We're easy going.

Love. xxxx