Fibre 4 Fibres preview giveaway 9

Time for me to share this week's wonderful prize that you could win if you buy a virtual raffle ticket or two in this Sunday's Fibre 4 Fibres giveaway in aid of Myositis UK. 

The prize includes a gorgeous crochet kit to make a mini Mabel bunny which has been generously donated by Wool Couture, a copy of the book Mabel Bunny & Co published by Search Press which I reviewed recently on my blog here, a crochet hook with a pretty polymer handle made by my friend Cheryl and a stitch marker. The kit contains pretty much everything you need to make your very own mini Mabel and she is very cute! As are all her friends as seen in the book. If you like crochet and animals, then you are going to love this prize. 

You have the chance to win all this for a minimum donation of £2! Less than the price of a cup of coffee. Are you tempted to enter? Here's what you need to know. This giveaway will run this coming Sunday 2nd February, closing at 23:55. To enter, go to my Just Giving 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. You will need to leave your Instagram or Ravelry name, or tick the box that shares your details with me so that I can contact you if you're the winner and also put 'Bunny' in the comments so I know which raffle you've entered.  Good luck and thanks for your support. xxx

Yarnuary 2020 - days 17 - 24

Day 17 - Knitting in your family

In my family, it wasn’t just knitting - it was crochet, sewing and embroidery too. Both my grandmothers were accomplished at embroidery, knitted, crocheted and sewed. My mum knitted mainly. I’ve been fortunate enough to inherit very many things from family members. The wooden darning mushroom was my grandmother’s, the needle case my mum’s, the crochet hooks my nanny’s and the buttons, needles and cotton my aunt’s. Those red plastic knitting needles were the needles I learnt to knit with 😃  I also have their button tins and I love choosing something old to be used on a new knit. Treasures 😊 

Day 18 - Something you struggle with

I have difficulty stopping my knitting projects from spreading and taking over the living room! Just give me warning if you’re planning a visit 😂

Day 19 - Your favourite fibre

I like lots of different fibres, and am particularly partial to a touch of luxury. For example a blend of merino and cashmere or silk. The most special fibre I’ve ever knit with was this little cake of qiviut yarn that a very dear friend gave me for my birthday. It is so light and warm. I can only dream of owning a sweater in it!

Day 20 - A goal you have

Having been diagnosed with a rare and incurable muscle disease last year, my goal is to raise £10,000 for @myositisuk over the coming year to help fund research into this disease. I’ve gone from being an active gym-going runner to needing crutches to walk, unable to climb stairs, being incredibly weak and constantly tired and having difficulty swallowing. I’ve also had to give up work. I’m fundraising by holding weekly yarn-related raffles on my fundraising page @fibre4fibres and also donating £1 from each pattern that I sell. I want to do something to make a difference for other sufferers.

Day 21 - Someone you admire

I have huge admiration for my fellow Stylecraft Blogstar Emma Varnam. 😊 Not only is she a hugely talented designer and a lovely person to boot, but she also has a very high power job and is a busy mum too! I just don’t know how she manages to produce so many designs and crochet and knit so much. Unless she does it in her sleep?! What’s your secret Emma? Oh yes, she also has a very cute cat Stanley!

Day 22 - Your most unusual project

I struggled a bit with this I must admit. I guess my knitting is pretty ‘normal’. But this pair of socks was knit as a special request from a very dear friend in Germany. He has diabetes and had to have part of his foot amputated. He needed a specially shortened sock to fit his new shaped foot so I got him to draw around his foot and send it to me! He loves his socks, they are wool and silk so are soft and the fact that there’s no seams is a bonus.   It makes them comfortable to wear where there is quite sensitive scar tissue

 Day 23 - A mistake you've fixed

One of my first forays into cables was this scarf. I realised part way that I’d managed to knit one of the cables the wrong way so had to frog back to fix it. Nowadays I might be more confident to drop the stitches back where the mistake is and reknit just that part. I think you become more adventurous and prepared to take risks with experience. 

Day 24 - Your most loved project

I have several - they are the socks I knit for Mr JK. It took a while to convince him that handknit socks were something he would enjoy wearing, but after he’d tried his first pair, he was always a grateful recipient! My feet are the same size as his, so it gives me great comfort to be able to wear them now. It feels like he’s with me. xxx

Weather watch week 3

I'm very tempted to start crocheting minimum temperature squares to go alongside the maximum ones! Am I mad?! Just need to work out what kind of size blanket this would make. xxx

Fibre 4 Fibres preview giveaway 8

Time for me to share this week's wonderful prize that you could win if you buy a virtual raffle ticket or two in this Sunday's Fibre 4 Fibres giveaway in aid of Myositis UK. 

The prize includes a printed copy of the hat pattern Contoura designed by the amazingly talented hat magician Woolly Wormhead, along with a limited edition specially dyed yarn set by Babylonglegs in beautiful vibrant shades of blue in and green. The yarn is Mesmerino DK and is wonderfully soft and plump. Only a small number of these kits were made for sale at Fibre East in 2017, which is where I bought this one. It's been sat in my stash ever since so I think it's time for someone to give it a new home and knit it up! There are also two balls of Scheepjes Our Tribe 4 ply yarn which is perfect for socks, shawls and other accessories. Finally, a very sweet pair of earrings which have teeny-tiny skeins of yarn on them! 

You have the chance to win all this for a minimum donation of £2! Less than the price of a cup of coffee. Are you tempted to enter? Here's what you need to know. This giveaway will run this coming Sunday 26th January, closing at 23:55. To enter, go to my Just Giving 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. You will need to leave your Instagram or Ravelry name, or tick the box that shares your details with me so that I can contact you if you're the winner and also put 'Hat' in the comments so I know which raffle you've entered.  Good luck and thanks for your support. xxx

Yarnuary 2020 - days 9-16

Continuing to share my daily entries with you all.

Day 9 - Something you've learnt

I've learnt that mattress stitch really does improve the finish of your knitting. I would spend ages knitting garments but was never happy with them until I learnt this skill. It’s just brilliant!

Day 10 - Your biggest weakness

Buying yarn, in particular rainbow yarn, appears to be one of my biggest weaknesses. I love rainbow yarn, it never fails to put a smile on my face. And that’s good enough for me!

Day 11 - What keeps your mojo going

If I ever feel like my mojo is waning, it’s quite simple, I knit socks! That repetitive motion is soothing, the colour choices are limitless and the progress is rewarding. Perfect if my enthusiasm is floundering a little.

Day 12 - Your least favourite project

Although this little kitty is very cute, it was soooo fiddly to make. Lots of bits to knit and sew and stuff. Far too much fiddle-faddling for me! And it’s so tricky to get the face looking right isn’t it? 

Day 13 - Something you've improvised

This hot water bottle cover was one of the first things I improvised using some hand spun yarn. Provisional cast on, knitting in the round, cables, Kitchener stitch - it had them all!

Day 14 - Your favourite colourway

Well that’ll be purple then!!!!

Day 15 - Your best memory

It’s so hard to choose just one 😬 But something that will stay with me for a very long time are the two running events I took part in back in 2017. If you follow me, you’ll know that Mr JK, an avid runner, died suddenly the day after completing the Yorkshire marathon in 2016. I most definitely was NOT a runner, I didn’t even own a pair of trainers! But when I saw his race photos a few days after he died, a crazy idea came into my head that I wanted to run a race in his memory. In particular I wanted to run in his footsteps a year after his last race by completing the 10 mile race at York. This race is run at the same time as the Yorkshire marathon and shares part of the route. I completed a half marathon, the Great North Run, a month before and then the Yorkshire 10 miles. I’m incredibly proud of my achievements and know that Mr JK would have been both proud and amazed! 

Day 16 - Your first finished item

I had a break from knitting for some years in my 20’s when I was starting my teaching career. On holiday in Ireland with Mr JK, I walked past a yarn shop in Kenmare and there was a throw knit in Noro yarn. I was totally seduced by the colours, went in and bought a couple of skeins on a whim and the rest is history! xxx