It has been more than a month .....

.... since my last post. There's no excuse for not posting .... just plain laziness ! In the morning, I usually check my emails, read the news, browse through ravelry & other fav blogs - this takes up more than 1 hour & by then, I will be too tired to do anything else.

I would rather spend the time knitting & I have been knitting lots - a couple of secret projects & a couple of Christmas presents. They are all done but I can post any pictures. But I do have a project that I can post .....

Lydia (my musician daughter) is going on a Europe Music Tour in April 2011 & it will cost us $9000 for the 18 days tour. So the Music Support Group is organising a major fund raiser event, Auction of Promises . So I made a promise , picture of shawl is just a sample, this is the actual shawl ......

..... Swallowtail .... this is my 2nd as I knitted the 1st Swallowtail 2 years ago & had a terrible time with the nupps. So this time, I had replaced the nupps with beads & it has came out so gorgeous but I wish I had use bigger beads.

The shawl is knitted in Mini Maiden & I don't the know the color as this skein has been sitting in my stash for the past 2 years. I love the colors & the yarn is so lovely although the silk does not really block very well.

I feel so sad to give this away but a promise is a promise .......

Perth Royal Show

"The Smoke Free Perth Royal Show is Perth's biggest community event attracting 400,000 visitors from the city and the country every year. With a rich history spanning 170 years, the Show is an iconic social and cultural event which showcases WA agriculture, small business and entertainment."

This annual show just ended last weekend & in my last 8 years living in Perth, I had only been twice. But this year is an exception as I had to go to the Show & check out the Creative Crafts section. I had entered 2 of my hand knitted items in the show.

To my great surprise, both items won prizes. The Alpine Shawl which I knitted for Helen won 2nd prize in the Lace Section......

.... next to my shawl is the 3rd prize winner which is the Swallowtail Shawl (sorry for the poor picture because of the light in the showcase).

.... the white round lace is the 1st prize winner which is knitted by a senior (over 70). The piece is knitted in such a fine yarn & the work is so intricate. This peice definitely deserves the prize.

My other item is a pair of socks which I entered in the Original Design section. I created this design sometime ago & had made many changes to the design. This is the only design that I have not written the pattern but anyway, here they are .....

.... the socks won 3rd prize & the sweater next to my sock won the 1st prize. In my excitement, I forgot to look out for the 2nd prize.

I am so happy with the results as this is the 1st time that I have entered a competition. I went a couple of days ago, to collect the items & the certificates .........

While I was there, I met the Chief Steward & volunteered to demonstrate sock knitting at the show next year. She even confirmed that they have decided to have a category just for SOCKS ! I have to start thinking of designs for my entries next year .....

Gretel Is Done !

In my last post, I mentioned the problem that I had with the Slanting Gretel Tee. I finally decided to follow the pattern & knit the sleeves as instructed. I am glad that I did as I am happy with the finished product ......

It looks great (Lydia is the model) & fits perfectly. I love the color & the feel of the yarn - it's Handmaiden Casbah (Salt Spray) which is gorgeous to knit with & I use only 2 skeins !

I am also glad that I followed the instructions for the cap sleeves which turned out perfect. As the sleeves were not knitted in the round, there is less bulk on the underarm & feels so much more comfortable .......

This pattern is really well written & clever as the shaping is done at the back. The only change I made is to have the same cables on both the front & the back of the raglan yoke which I think looks more balanced .....

I am so glad that I picked this project up again & finished it. It just perfect for the spring weather & I have already worn it a couple of times.

I have also cast off another project which is a Christmas present for Lydia's piano teacher. This is the only knitted Christmas gift for this year as I don't have much time from now to Christmas for more knitting (as I am working on a couple of secret projects).

This is the 2nd Ishbel that I have knitted & I still love the pattern - it's a quick & easy lace shawl ......

.... all done in less than a week. This Ishbel is knitted in Zen Yarn Garden Sea Wool in a Passion Pink colorway. The yarn is from stash & one of the many skeins that I had when I was in the Sock Club.

This time, I did something different - I added beads on the edging & it looked great .....

The beads do add a nice touch to the shawl but it slowed down the knitting - pick up the crochet hook, pick up the bead with the hook, pull the stitch thro' the bead, put the stitch back on the needle & then knit the stitch! I don't think I can go on doing this for a long time & I am glad that the edging is only 8 rows & I had beads on 3 rows!

I do love this shawl ......

I Am Still A Knitter But .....

...... I also crochet ! Yes, I have just learnt crochet. I tried learning many years ago but was not so successful. But recently, I was tempted again when I saw all the lovely projects that my friend, Lisa is making.

Lisa is so creative & all her crochet projects are gorgeous. Every time she shows me one of her crochet project, I feel so inspired & so with Lisa's encouragement, I pick up the hook. Lisa is a great teacher & she makes crochet so easy.

With Lisa's help, I started with the Winkle Bag & it turned out so well. I really enjoy crocheting the bag & it was fun ......

I used 2 balls of Patons Regal 4ply cotton from my stash. I am using this bag for my crochet project. I just love the look of the stitch & the base with it's pretty edging .....

I never knew that a simple crochet stitch can make such a great looking bag & it's all done in the round. I am so inspired that I also crochet this .....

... this scarf was done in a day with leftover sock yarn. I am so proud of myself as I read the instructions on my own (but I think I made a few mistakes) without Lisa's help. Isn't it lovely on my grape vine against the jasmine flowers in bloom .......

I love the pattern ! It's so easy & looks so pretty - like flowers in a row ......

Thank you Lisa for the inspiration & all the guidance!

Damson & Gretel

I am not referring to the fairy tale but to two of my projects. Damson is off the needles .....

This had been a fast knit & I would have finished it earlier if I did not frogged twice. As Damson is not a triangular shawl, there are 6 points of increases. It took me a while to get use to the pattern. Anyway, I did enjoyed all the garter stitch knitting & the plain lace pattern.

It's knitted with Swiss Mountain Sea Sock, a mix of 51% silk, 29% merino & 20% seacell. This is my 1st time knitting with this yarn & I love it. It's so soft & silky & I think it's the perfect yarn for this shawl. Look at the drape ......

If anyone of you is thinking of knitting Damson, just be warned ..... I ran out of yarn after the last row & only had 50cm of yarn left & I had to cast off more than 500 stitches! The pattern asked for 440 yds/402m & I had 400m. Even if I had the extra 2m, I would still run out of yarn. Thank goodness, I found some leftover merino in almost the same color & just cast off ......

..... can you tell the difference?

The other project that I should have finished weeks ago ......

...... but it's still on the needles. This is Slanting Gretel Tee which I started off quite well until I came to the armholes. It's quite an unusual construction where I had to do a provisional cast-on on waste yarn to hold the stitches for the sleeves & then cast them off later. So the sleeve is just a cap. I was not so sure if I would like the sleeve & was thinking of just knitting a sleeve separately & then attaching it when I start knitting the yoke. I just could not decide & so put it aside for a while.

Yesterday, I decided to pick it up & just carry on knitting & follow the instructions. I hope I am doing the right thing .....