Staff Knitting and Crochet Projects - Part Two
We all need a little bit of new inspiration from time to time with our knitting and crochet. Seeing what others are currently making or have made, can be just what is needed to get you back into the swing of things. January is a time when you can still enjoy making warmer winter garments and have the pleasure of wearing them straight away. As we head into spring, cosy knitwear can still easily be worn, just without so many layers. In fact, most months of the year you might find yourself at some point reaching for what would be deemed as a winter knit.
Black Sheep staff are here to bring you that sprinkle of inspiration. This is the second instalment of our staff projects blog posts. Take a look at the first blog post here.
Carmen doesn’t have a project lingering on her needles for long, she will soon have yarn transformed into a finished project. An expert continental knitter with expectational attention to detail. She enjoys knitting socks and is a huge fan of Addi CraSyTrio Double Point Knitting Needles. Socks aren’t the only item you will find Carmen knitting. In autumn she knitted the Adelphi jumper from Rowan magazine 68. A casual v neck sweater in Rowan Felted Tweed (Shade 190 - Stone). This is perfect for wearing over a shirt or polo neck top.
Before that she had crocheted Lilla Bjorn’s Fade to Light jacket, which I am sure I only blinked and it was complete. One minute it was being photographed for a work in progress the next thing you know she’s wearing it to work. In fact, I remember her coming into the office looking at the shades of Scheepjes Whirl Fine Art when it first arrived. A decision was soon made for the rusty, autumnal tones of ‘Dadaism’. Carmen found both of the Scheepjes yarns a pleasure to work with. The Fade to Light jacket uses the beautiful ombre effect of Scheepjes Whirl Fine Art and then a plain shade of Scheepjes Merino Soft - Dali.
Carmen worked her last day at the Black Sheep at the end of December. She’s moving back to Germany this year. She will be missed, but we wish her all the best and hope that she still shares all of her knitting and crochet projects with us.
Tracey loves her Rowan yarns. When a new Rowan pattern book arrives in stock it’s always nice to discuss which patterns have caught Tracey’s eye. Tracey will admit it herself that completing a garment isn't necessarily her strong point. After accepting the challenge of finishing a cardigan within a couple of months Tracey found herself with a beautiful cardigan to wear. Knitted in Rowan Alpaca Classic from Rowan Magazine 68. The cardigan is called Thirlestane from Rowan Magazine 68. It’s knitted top down, in the round with short row shaping to begin at the neck and shoulders. Tracey had never done short row shaping before or worked top down, two new things to tackle. After a few attempts she had cracked it with the short row shaping and was soon on her way to making a beautiful cardigan.
Tracey did adjust the length of her cardigan to make it slightly shorter, so please do bear this in mind when you see the image in the book.
Sara is often struggling with a case of ‘startitis’ - always starting something new or wanting to start something new. The temptation is even harder for Sara than any of us, as she gets to see a preview of most of the yarns and patterns before the new season. So sometimes she has plans for yarns and patterns that aren’t even available yet! Eeek!
Over the past few months Sara has started and finished many different projects. Within about a week she had knitted the ‘Haze’ cardigan / jacket in Rowan Big Wool. That bobble stitch sleeve is so fabulous. Rowan Big Wool is a super chunky yarn so all of those big stitches and big needles will help your knitting grow quickly.
Another of Sara’s projects were these super cute, striped slippers. Sara chose a pastel stripe selection of Sublime Extra Fine Merino Wool DK. These are a quick knit project that you can enjoy wearing as soon as you have cast off. Sirdar kindly gave us the pattern as a free download. This can be found on our free patterns page. The pattern is also included in Sublime book 'The Twelfth Sublime Extra Fine Merino Wool DK', along with many more knitted accessories designs. The additional pompom is a lovely finishing touch. The Clover pom pom makers are a dream to use. If you’ve never used one before and fancy making a pom pom, pop one in your shopping basket, they open up a whole world of pom pom making possibilities.
Sara has now started crocheting the Eclectic jumper by Cassie Ward (A Missing Yarn). This is a perfect stash buster crochet project for your DK yarn. Sara has chosen Yarn Stories Fine Merino and Alpaca DK. We introduced this project as a new make along in our Black Sheep Wools Make Along group. If you join our group you will be able to see some of the work in progress and finished photos from our group members. There’s something nice about making a project knowing that others are doing it at the same time too. Having a community of fellow crocheters on hand to offer advice is an absolute dream come true.
Finally a sneaky project from shop manager Jayne. We don’t often get to see something that Jayne has made, but she is a rather competent knitter, just not as prolific as the rest of us. Jayne enjoyed knitting a cowl in Rowan Big Wool and a hat to match. These projects are both from Rowan 4 Projects Big Wool Brights book. Here's Carmen showing off Jayne's fab cowl.
Jayne who works in our tea shop, kindly modelled shop manager Jayne's Rowan Big Wool hat. Finished off with a Trimmits faux fur pompom which we are hoping to have back in stock soon.
Remember to share your finished projects with us on social media including #blacksheepwools and tag us in your photo. It's always a treat to see what you have been making.