EN FRISK START, NÅ OGSÅ PÅ NORSK / a fresh start, now also in norwegian

Nytt år, nye muligheter!

Det er lett å la seg rive med og tenke at man skal få til all verdens, men sannelig skal jeg få strikka litt mer dette året! Etter et fint og rolig, men samtidig hektisk år i barselpermisjon er Lillesnuppa i barnehage, og jeg i jobb. Med en stillingsprosent på 60% håper jeg at det skal kunne gå an å få litt fart i prosjektene mine. Nå er også (skjelettet av) Etsy-butikken min oppe, så jeg håper det skal bli en kreativ og produktiv tid framover. Kanskje det til og med genererer noen kroner...til mer garn?

Generelt syntes jeg at nyttårsforsetter ikke er noe særlig, ettersom man som regel bryter dem likevel, men jeg liker å gå inn i et nytt år med nytt pågangsmot! Loftet er fullt av prosjekter som skal ferdiggjøres, sekkene er fortsatt fulle av restegarn, hodet er fullt av idèer, og Lillesnuppa vokser stadig. Det er ingen grunn til å ligge på latsiden!

På bildet ser du genseren jeg strikket i sommer. Den er helt klart mitt mest brukte plagg siden den var ferdig! Mer om den i neste post. 

Heidi

A new year with new opportunities!

Sometimes I might be a bit too optimistic about the amount of projects I'll be able to finish, but I really do believe I will get more done this year! After a nice, quiet, but still busy year at home with my baby Lillesnupp, she has started going to nursery, and I am working 60%. I hope I will find enough time to get some good knitting flow. I have also started up my Etsy shop, which lacks photos, logo and stuff to sell. Cross fingers for an efficient and productive time ahead. Who knows, it might generate some money....for even more yarn?

I'm not a big fan of New Year's resolutions, since they are made to fail..but I do like to start a year with some new energy and determination! My loft is full of ongoing projects, the bags are still full of leftover yarn, my head still spins with idèas, and Lillesnupp keeps growing at great speed. I have no reason to put my needles down!

On the photo above, you can see the jumper I knitted last summer. It is by far my most worn garment since I finished it! You can read more about it in my next blog post.

Heidi

RANDOM COLOURS

Hello blog! Just checking in to wipe the dust off.

Here is a photo of my summer project. A friend of mine sent me a moving box full of leftover yarn, amongst them lots of odd balls of cotton. I find cotton pretty annoying to knit with, but it works pretty well with a crochet hook! I've seen some amazing granny blanket projects on Ravelry, and decided to give it a go myself. Pretty happy with the look of it so far!

Summer has been very busy. House hounting, moving, redecorating, and spending time with baby girl! I have finished a great jumper made of blue mohair, and will come back to that later.

Have a great late summer!

WITH SCOTTISH YARN

On our trip to Scotland we took a little day trip to Edinburgh, and I managed to peek into K1 yarn shop. I bought some Scappa yarn in the colours Iona Marble and Scotch Pine. I decided to make a short sleeved jumper for my girl who is eight months old. At that age they are crawling about much on the floor, which can be a slidy affair with long sleeves.  If made slightly big it can be used as a tunic at first. As your kid grows, it can be used as a jumper. This is roughly how I made mine:

Pick a jumper or cardigan for measuring and comparing, either in a size that fits at the moment, or a bigger one to grow into. Measure the bottom edge. Find your gauge, and cast on the amount of stitches you need to achieve the right size on a round needle. Knit garter stitch in any colour combination you would like. (I made a stripy pattern by knitting two rows with colour A, and four rows with colour B, and reversed the colour scheme halfway.) Knit up to the point where you think you can start with the arms.

As you reach the armholes, mark one stitch on each side. Increase with two stitches under each arm every second row (on each side of marked stitch). Repeat two times. Total increase: 12 stitches.

Now you will start knitting back and forth, the back and front separate. Start from left armhole. Before turning your work around, cast on three stitches. Turn work, and knit to right armhole, cast on three new stitches before turning work again. 

Continue straight till you feel you have the right width for the arms. (Or knit on a bit longer for wider sleeves.)

(If you wish for the neckline to drop slightly at the front, find out the amount of stitches to keep for the collar, and keep it on the needle while knitting four extra rows on each shoulder.)

Knit the backside the same way as the front. Knit it straight up, without any neckline shaping. (The back should have the same amount of rows as the shoulders of the front.)  

Keep the same amount of neckline stitches on the back piece as on the front.

Cast off the shoulder stitches and sew front and back together, OR graft the stitches together. (If you want to button the shoulders instead, simply cast off each piece, sew on buttons and make loops. This gives you the chance to make a smaller neckline.)

Now, you should have your neckline stitches left on your needle. If you knitted extra rows to shape the neckline, pick one stitch from each row on each side. I made a roll neck by knitting sock stitch for about 8 rows. (Dependig on the width of the neckline, you might have to use 4 or 5 sock needles for this.)

Pick up the stitches around the armhole with sock needles. Knit a few rows to make a nice edge, or knit on to make a proper sleeve.

Fasten threads, do a quick soak, spin and let it dry flat, and it is ready for the lucky new owner!

Good luck!

PACKING UP FOR EASTER

Easter is here, and we're packing up for a Scotland holiday! I always bring a project, but usually don't get to do any knitting anyway. But I'm optimistic this time, as we're going away for two weeks. So I'm bringing yarn for some small projects like baby jackets and norwegian mittens. My cardigan project can stay at home and have a rest in the meantime!

Happy easter!

Heidi