Fibre 4 Fibres Giveaway preview 34

I am beyond excited to share this week's prizes with you. The prizes are definitely starting to get a bit festive and I have TWO amazing prizes to tell you about.

The first of this week's prizes includes a stunning DK Advent calendar from Beehive Yarns which has been donated by my friend Anji. The theme of this year's Advent is 'Festive Fairytales' and you can see some of the images that Beth has used as inspiration for her dyeing. The image with all the yarn shows last year's Advent (which of course had a different theme, so it's not a spoiler for this year's one!) and whoever wins it will be in for a real treat. To go with this, I've added a sweet little snowman notions case from ThreeBagsFull and a snowman stitch marker from Fripperies & Bibelots. Thank you so, so much Anji for your generous donation. 

The second of Sunday's prizes is equally festive! There's a Pony Advent calendar which is full of notions for knitters and crocheters, generouslyy donated by Groves Ltd. My lovely friend Gilly from Gilly Makes has sewn a sweet festive project bag especially for this prize. Search Press have donated a book of Christmas Crafts which is bursting with fun projects to make. There's a very Christmassy skein of yarn from Pixie Yarn and three Christmas stitch markers from Fripperies & Bibelots. Thank you everyone for your donations. 

I hope that you'll agree that these are two fabulous prizes up for grabs this weekend and they are waiting to be won by some very lucky people. You have a chance to win all these gorgeous prizes for a minimum donation of £2! All donations will be entered for both prizes and I will pick two winners using the random number generator from the list of all donations. (Just keep in mind that if you are entering from outside the UK, it's highly unlikely that the prize will arrive by December 1st, so you'll have to play catch up if you're a winner!) Are you tempted to try your luck? Here's everything you need to know. This giveaway will run this coming Sunday 22nd November, closing at 23:55. To enter, go to my JustGiving page here and buy your virtual raffle tickets by donating £2 or more. £2 gets you 2 tickets, £3 gets you 3 tickets, £5 gets you 5 tickets and so on. The more you donate, the greater your chance of winning. You will need to leave your Instagram or Ravelry name, or tick the box to share your details with me when you make your donation, so that I can contact you if you are the winner. This is really important as I have no way of knowing who you are otherwise. Each week, I still get donations where no name or email is left, so if that person's number comes up in the random number generator, I have no idea who it is! All your donations go the Myositis UK to help fund research into this incurable muscle disease, so thank you from the bottom of my heart for all your support. Every single donation is important. Let's see how much we can raise this weekend! We are really close to raising £8000 now so it would be fabulous to see a big injection of cash this week. There must be well over £200 of prizes for two lucky people! Thank you for supporting my fundraising! xxx

A severe case of sockitis!

I need help! I think I have a bad case of sockitis! I was going through my WIPs, trying to prioritise, and found six sock projects, as shown above. And no, I haven't miscounted, because after finding those six, I cast on a seventh. See, I told you it was bad! Let me show you the symptoms...

Symptom 1 - Halloween socks

Now these were socks I started in October using the Spooky Speckle sock set from Stripey Cat Yarns. I decided after much procrastination that I would knit the entire skein of yarn to make one mahoosive sock tube and then split it into four to make two pairs of socks - one for me and the other for my friend Julia. 

Symptom 2 - It's Seagull o'clock socks

These were the pair that I cast on yesterday evening! The main yarn is from Burrow & Soar and I'd used the exact same skein as a prize in my Fibre 4 Fibre giveaways. Jane, who was the winner, told me that she'd posted a finished photo on Ravelry of the socks she'd knitted and they were so beautiful that I had to cast on a pair of me. (You can see Jane's socks here - warning, it's a link to Ravelry.) Jane very kindly sent me the leftover yarn from the miniskeins that she'd used for the contrast cuff, heel and toe, so we will be sock twins! The pattern is my own design and you can buy it here from Ravelry if you're interested. 

Symptom 3 - Head over Heels Splash! socks

This is a pair of socks that I'm knitting for my rheumatology consultant. I gave her a pair last Christmas and she mentioned to me that she had been wearing them, so I thought I'd knit her another pair. I've finished the first sock and am not far off the heel flap on the second. The yarn is from the Head over Heels All Stars range; it's being discontinued but you can still find it at the Wool Warehouse. Your local yarn shop may well stock it too.

Symptom 4 - Opal pink stripy socks

These socks have been on my needles for some time. I always like to have a plain vanilla pair or two on the go, they are perfect for some mindless knitting. I got the yarn from Suffolk Socks. Julie always has a great selection of Opal yarn. I'm decreasing the gusset on the first sock, so still a way to go before these will be on my feet! 

Symptoms 5-7

These are all secret socks so I can't show you them right now! One is for a knitting magazine, another is using a new yarn from Stylecraft and the third is a new design I'm working on using miniskeins that I'd hoped to be able to release in time for Advent, but will now be for Advent 2021!

So there you have it - a severe case of sockitis. I think it might be contagious! I'm not sure if there's a cure, but if you have any ideas, please do let me know! xxx

Fibre 4 Fibres Giveaway preview 33

It's Friday again! I have absolutely no idea where the days go, but it's time to share another prize with you. This week's prize gives you the opportunity to try out some different fibres. The prize includes a gorgeous superwash merino, yak and nylon Litmus Cowl kit from Ducky Darlings which was donated by my friend Cyndy on Instagram. The kit contains all the yarn, a copy of the pattern and a pair of Hiya Hiya circular needles for you to knit with. A perfect cosy accessory for chilly mornings. Milli from Tribe Yarns has donated a wonderfully soft and fluffy skein of 100% llama yarn and a funky leather wrist ruler. My dear friend Michele from ThreeBagsFull has donated a sweet little sheep notions case and there is a set of pretty stitch markers from Paula who has her Etsy shop Eva Faith. To complete this week's prize there is a skein of 100% alpaca yarn from Artesano. Thank you so much to everyone who has donated a prize. It's a super collection of treats worth over £100 and somebody has to win it! It could be you!

 

I'm sure that you know the score by now, but I'll tell you how to enter anyway! You have a chance to win all these gorgeous prizes for a minimum donation of £2! Are you tempted to try your luck? Here's everything you need to know. This giveaway will run this coming Sunday 15th November, closing at 23:55. To enter, go to my JustGiving page here and buy your virtual raffle tickets by donating £2 or more. £2 gets you 2 tickets, £3 gets you 3 tickets, £5 gets you 5 tickets and so on. The more you donate, the greater your chance of winning. You will need to leave your Instagram or Ravelry name, or tick the box to share your details with me when you make your donation, so that I can contact you if you are the winner. This is really important as I have no way of knowing who you are otherwise. Each week, I still get donations where no name or email is left, so if that person's number comes up in the random number generator, I have no idea who it is! All your donations go the Myositis UK to help fund research into this incurable muscle disease, so thank you from the bottom of my heart for all your support. Every single donation is important. Let's see how much we can raise this weekend! Last week, we passed the £7600 total, so £8000 is the next big milestone. I have to pinch myself sometimes that you've helped me to raise so much money. Thank you! xxx

Aria blanket ta dah!

I am a huge fan of Lucy from Attic24's blankets. They are not complicated to make but are always a thoroughly enjoyable experience from start to end. I've made a few now, and I think that the Aria blanket must be vying for top spot in my favourites. The colours are just so happy and uplifting and let's face it, we could all do with that at the moment. The kits to make this are available from the Wool Warehouse and they have done a brilliant job throughout lockdown to supply knitters and crocheters not just in the UK but also around the world this year. You could also try your local yarn shop to support them through these challenging times. UK Hand Knitting has a map to help you locate a yarn shop near to you. 

I crocheted this blanket pretty fast for me, considering that I've had a number of other projects on the go too. I haven't managed to block it yet, but as we had some gloriously crisp and sunny mornings a few days ago, I couldn't resist taking it outside for its moment of glory!

Flo has been a watchful companion throughout its making, naturally!

A 'crochet and Flo' sandwich!

I had a production line going for the last three rows! It worked really well.

I think Flo was telling me to hurry up with her blanket!

I was very good at sewing in my ends. I have learnt from my mistakes in the past!

This was right at the start when I'd just joined the first two squares. Happy smiles!

Haven't you finished yet? 

If you deal with the ends as you go along, you will definitely thank yourself!

Flo was my constant crochet companion!

I printed a copy of the chart so I could highlight each colour as I went along. 

Border progress has slowed due to chin rubs!

I wanted to see how it looked before I started the border. It's soooooo beautiful!

A final ta dah - can you spot Flo? I think she's saying it's hers!

Lucy always has a CAL in January and February and the theme for the next one is 'Meadow'. I can't wait to see the colours she has chosen and what the pattern is. It will be the perfect way to brighten those dull winter days! Will you be joining in too? xxx

 

Fibre 4 Fibres Giveaway preview 32

It's been much colder here for the past few days, but the sun is shining so that more than makes up for the cold. Besides, it's the perfect excuse to wrap up in layers of knitwear! With the start of a four week lockdown here in England, now might be the right time to learn a new knitting skill and this week's prize ticks that box nicely.

The prize includes a beautiful pair of Hamarsland handwarmers knitted and donated by the true Queen of Colourwork Knitting, Hazel Tindall. They are just perfect! There is a copy of the book Fair Isle Designs from Shetland Knitters volume 2, which I was donated via Hazel from the Shetland Guild of Spinners, Knitters, Weavers and Dyers. It's full of inspiring patterns with a range of difficulty - something for beginners as well as more experienced Fair Isle knitters. Of course, you need some yarn too, so there's 13 balls of 100% pure British wool which is perfect for colourwork knitting, and a large Jamieson & Smith tote bag to keep it all in. Julie from Wool Zone has also donated some Emma Ball sheep stitch markers and tin and some colourwork cards to help you organise your knitting. Jamieson's of Shetland has donated a kit to make a pair of gloves featured in the book. So a truly wonderful prize! Thank you so much to everyone who has donated a prize this week.

I'm sure that you know the score by now, but I'll tell you how to enter anyway! You have a chance to win all these gorgeous prizes for a minimum donation of £2! Are you tempted to try your luck? Here's everything you need to know. This giveaway will run this coming Sunday 8th November, closing at 23:55. To enter, go to my JustGiving page here and buy your virtual raffle tickets by donating £2 or more. £2 gets you 2 tickets, £3 gets you 3 tickets, £5 gets you 5 tickets and so on. The more you donate, the greater your chance of winning. You will need to leave your Instagram or Ravelry name, or tick the box to share your details with me when you make your donation, so that I can contact you if you are the winner. This is really important as I have no way of knowing who you are otherwise. Each week, I still get donations where no name or email is left, so if that person's number comes up in the random number generator, I have no idea who it is! All your donations go the Myositis UK to help fund research into this incurable muscle disease, so thank you from the bottom of my heart for all your support. Every single donation is important. Let's see how much we can raise this weekend! With luck, the total should pass £7500, which is 75% of the target. I have to pinch myself sometimes that you've helped me to raise so much money. Thank you! xxx