Some FOs and pictures from my travels

Cute crochet cactus, a birthday gift.

Single sock knitted flat, striped with two ends of sock yarn. A test knit for possible fair isle socks in the future. Yes, Second Sock Syndrome in action, it has no mate!

Belated picture - crochet and knitted hearts for Coventry hospital's palliative care unit

CSM socks made at the MKC retreat day and grafted the following weekend.

Proof that it's working, a repeating bird pattern centred on a "sleeve" sample - I'm instructing someone how to use her Passap E6000 with DesignAKnit at the weekend, and had to figure out how to use the integrated, interactive knitting feature with the Passap. Long story short, I'd downloaded a pattern to that machine with the old W10 laptop, but hadn't got it working with W11 (but it's been working with the Brother and Silver machines). It turns out that (a) my curly cord needs repairing AGAIN (repeated error 200) and (b) the Passap only wishes to communicate with the right hand USB port and not the left one. Nope, I've no idea why either! Ignore the wonky edges, I was being lazy and not fully fashioning them as I usually would. 

It appears that you first have to apply the pattern, position it, and "integrate" it into the garment piece. Then you download the stitch pattern using "integrated download" not "download" - somehow I missed that the first time. Then when you start knitting the piece, select "integrated" not "shape only". It makes perfect sense now, but my poor old brain was struggling with it last weekend. At some point in this process, the Passap will tell you if it's not happy with the design - for example, you've used a two colour double-bed technique, but selected a 3 colour single-bed technique. I've never had issues before BUT so far I've only knitted straight pieces where the pattern alignment wasn't a concern. So it was a nice learning experience for me, and as part of that I discovered there are tutorial videos on the Softbyte website that I'll be working through. 

I won't bore you with too many holiday snaps - in April, we had a short break in Hathersage, famously the last resting place of Little John (of Robin Hood's merry men), and diverted to Chesterfield on the way home. In May we did a week in Venlo, Cologne and a night in Amsterdam. As you can see, it's been a dull, damp, chilly spring! 

View from Stanage Edge. The five mile hike from Hathersage was hard work!

None of my workmates believe me when I tell them this place exists in the Peak district.

Famous twisted spire at Chesterfield, the photo doesn't do it justice. Apparently it's the weight of lead applied to a medieval wooden spire (but there are lots of legends involving the Devil as to why it's like this). 

Cologne cathedral is HUGE. Yes, the weather was as grim as it looks alas!

A visit to the Lindt chocolate museum. Worth it just for the shop (which sells other brands too! Love it!).

Current mood: impressed

Machine knitting retreat, June 2026

Post-dating this, because 6/6/26 is my blogiversary!

Well, the two day machine knitting "retreat" mentioned in the previous post went very well - hard to know whether to call it the May or the June retreat, seeing as it fell in both months. Anyway, we took over the Alexandra Arts in Rugby for two days and generated gentle, knitty chaos, fueled by lots of lovely coffee/tea and snacks. There were a few LK150s (manual machines) going through their paces, a few electronic and mechanical flatbeds being kept very busy, and at one point, four CSMs also being worked on. I managed to demonstrate DBJ after two separate attempts - day 1 producing the dreaded stripes, day 2 being much more successful. I also managed to complete a pair of tubular socks, which is 100% more than I've ever managed on previous days. 

A group shot, taken for the one lady who injured herself before the event and couldn't come. Hope to see you next year!

Beautiful hand-manipulated lace done on the LK150 - this is just a swatch!

So many ends! Intarsia on the LK150. This lady is so brave!

A hive of industry in the garden room - my CSM is in the foreground

More pictures here.

It was lovely to see old and new friends again, bond over our shared obsession for all things machine knitting, and enjoy a meal at a local restaurant on the Sunday night. I'll be running a one day event in October this year, and probably running the two day event next year with some minor tweaks. I'll drop the competition, seeing as there weren't many entries, and maybe we'll do a "show and tell" instead, because I think we'd all benefit more from that. 

Current mood:  inspired

A new obsession...

TLDR: loving my new guitar and a minor crochet irritation

I treated myself to a new toy late last year - a gorgeous Ibanez bass guitar in candy apple red. I've long wanted to get back to learning to play bass. An ex-boyfriend made me one in the early 1990s but it had "tons of mistakes" (his words when I showed it to him a few years ago) - I had it assessed recently, and it either needs a longer truss rod, a completely new neck or some major repositioning of the bridge. All of these are probably expensive repairs to what is a sentimental guitar-shaped object - though I might still consult a local luthier about whether it's possible to repair it without too much cosmetic damage. I'm sure my ex would do it for me but he's up in Scotland. Currently the intonation is wrong on the lowest string (it gradually gets too sharp as you move up the frets) and the action is very high, so it's hard work to play. Nevertheless, I did get some lessons on it in the 90s but can't remember much about them, though they came to an abrupt end when I accidentally bumped into my bass teacher on the bus, on the way home from town. He stunk of weed and was possibly drunk and got a little too familiar with me so that was a red flag (luckily my stop was before his, plonker)! Not long after that, my boyfriend and I split up and we moved apart and by then I was into my final year at uni, so learning to play took a back seat. I haven't touched the poor instrument since, except to dust it (and it's now safely stored in the back of the wardrobe in a case). 

Anyroad, I finally got myself into gear late last month and signed up to an online training course with Bassbuzz - I had watched some of the tutor's free videos and liked his teaching style, and now I am obsessed / addicted to finishing the course. The music theory is a bit boring (for me) because I'm a classically trained but very out of practise violinist, but learning the bass clef is good. Alongside that, I'm already eyeing up 5 string basses, and wanting to buy myself yet more t-shirts and stuff to show off my new obsession. The course (lifetime access! Yay!) comes with 100 songs with tab / bass tracks, and there's a 50 song challenge running for those of us confident enough to having a go. I've already nailed Gnarls Barkeley's "Crazy", though it turns out that bassline is a sample from an old spaghetti western. I'm trying to learn AC/DC's "Highway to hell", though it's a little too fast for me at the moment, and this week I pretty much nailed the first song on the list which is Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall", which was a firm favourite when it went to number one many moons ago (and I later became a big Floyd fan anyway). Turns out the bass plays it in drop D tuning (lowest string down one tone) and then it's really easy. The Cog has decided he must learn the guitar solo and says it's very challenging. He's been trying to get me to learn the Beatle's "Back in the USSR" but I'm not fast enough to match Paul McCartney yet! 

So... that's what's been inspiring me to get out of bed lately (that and the job, pah!). Don't worry, normal textile crafts are still ongoing, as I'm running the annual two-day MK event next weekend. My crochet has stalled though, as I've got to the sleeve and the designer has really not done a great job of handling the shape vs pattern repeats structure, so I'll probably have to grab a calculator and pen/paper and chart it. The pattern repeat is roughly a one inch square in size, which doesn't really work with the shape a sleeve needs to be - plus there are no total stitch counts given for each row.  I don't like crocheting patterns where the pattern alignment jogs about - I'm not THAT OCD, but it won't match the body pieces which are already done. So I either re-chart it - I'll probably do plain blocks either side of the centre to keep it in pattern - or I just do it in rows of trebles and double crochets and hope the gauge stays close enough to the rest of it. Decisions, decisions... maybe I'll just put it away and get the guitar out again! 😁👌🎸

Ha, I just noticed that the guitar emoji above is a Fender Strat. Shame on you Fender, for the terrible PR mess you're currently embroiled in. I happen to own a Fender acoustic (a gift from years ago), and I'm currently using a Fender headphone amp that I bought for the Cog last Christmas, but I certainly won't be giving them any more money...

Current mood: enthralled

One foot in front of the other...

Well, I'm still here. There's not been much crafting to report, because I've rather lost my mojo of late. My FIL passed away late February after a short spell in UHCW and round-the-clock feeding by the four sons both there and when he returned home - using a dessertspoon takes forever. The funeral  was the day after my birthday, and two days after what would have been his 91st birthday, so things were very low key this year, though we did have a small family buffet on the following weekend, which was nice. Keeping the house running whilst the Cog dealt with the family stuff every single evening really took it out of me - dozing off in front of the TV became our "hobby" for a time. 

I also managed to wash the second Agnes cardigan (purple merino) wrong - it turns out "delicate" means spin the bejesus out of things to my washing machine -  and the extra yarn it mysteriously needed to complete it suddenly resurfaced, leaving me with a cardigan for a giant. Yeah, as it was my second attempt at that cardigan I guess I'm cursed to never own it - I'm not entirely sure round yoked cardigans fit my frame anyway but it was such a pretty pattern! I am part way through frogging it. I think if I reuse the yarn it will be in a crochet pattern - I'm fed up of investing so much time in handknits that then have to be frogged!

However, all is not lost. I've been knitting and crocheting little hearts for UHCW's palliative care team - apparently they give them to patients and relatives - and I'm also crocheting a cactus amigurumi kit that was a birthday present. Finally we may have an unkillable plant in our NW facing living room. I've also been doing a bit of beading. Youtube is such an amazing resource, but I do wish I could find some books on the subject, because short little videos are kind of irritating to use as reference materials. I do love a reference book! Talking of which, I finally caved and bought "Structural Stitches" by Victoria Salmon, which is very inspiring - kind of the book Bill King would write, if he compiled all of his MKM articles. 

So, I'm in a bit of a weird mood - I want to be creative but I don't seem to want to finish anything already in progress. Maybe delayed start-itis? Who knows? 

Current mood: indescribable

Bling, socks and more yarn!

Well, it's been an interesting time lately. Mojo has been lacking - partly because the weather has been ick and also because of other issues which I won't go into here. I've tried to make myself available to support my partner, and when that hasn't been required, I've been distracting myself with various social events, so there's not been much crafting time. The tumble dryer started shrieking and had to be replaced - the original manufacturer conned me into practically paying for a new one over twelve months (it and the washing machine are 8). When G returned from his snowboarding trip, we cancelled it and decided to go in for a new "heat pump" one. The old one actually destroyed several shirts when we first got it, and the sensor never sensed anything, so was costing a fortune to run and doubling as heating on laundry days. Some evil git scratched and dented my car and drove off, on a week when it could have happened in quite a few places (it still being dark fairly early), so that's another bill I could have done without. The less said about trying to get rid of our old sofa before the new one arrives, the better. It's been a trying year! 

Anyway, this weekend was the annual Kegworth "Going round in circles" event. Owing to a complete oversight on my part, I'd already bought tickets for myself, Mum and sil to attend the "Sewing for Pleasure" show at the NEC on the Sunday, and they don't do refunds alas, so I could only attend Kegworth on the Saturday. It was a lot of fun to catch up with old friends and make new ones. As I was teaching a class, I didn't get time to knit anything myself, and then I packed away quite early and wished I hadn't. Anne ran a cool class on how to make mini socks, and I'm hoping I made decent enough notes to be able to make some more of these. 

Aren't they cute?! Because of the dinky size, they are knitted as flat web and then grafted and sewn up one side. She even has a method for knitting the loop for adding to a keyring. I stayed for the evening meal, which was very nice, and then hot-footed it back home to bed. Yes, I did pick up some sock yarn, and no, I'll not bore you with the pictures. 

The NEC show was also fun - this one mostly focuses on sewers (sewists?) but there are a few yarn stalls dotted about, alongside beads, printmaking, marbling, card-making / scrapbooking, and the usual oddities - a cheese stall, olives, rum, moonshine, garden furniture and clothes/handbags. Ironically I only picked up a few findings and beads, and two pairs of "harem pants" which are great for lounging around the house in. They'll also be great for holidays, should I ever be lucky enough to go on another beach holiday. 

Some bling I picked up from the Southampton Bead Shop. It was all I could do not to buy more! So much lovely stuff! 

Current mood: awake

FO: Ravellenic fingerless gloves and a beading WIP

Well, the weather continues to be rubbish - either grey and very wet, or grey and freezing. Either way, the sun has packed up and left. I felt sure we'd wake up to snow on the ground this morning, but no, it's back to blah. This is global warming, I guess - more water than we know what to do with, localised flooding, and yet the nearest carwash is kaput again. Pah!

This Sunday just gone, I had a table at the Alexandra Arts spring studio stash sale day - local artisans sell off old stock and extras they don't want. I donated some bobbin lace books to the book table, and managed to sell off some socks, my old bobbin lace board (with half-completed bookmark in situ and loads of notes and extra stuff), a hand-knit cardigan and a few sewing items. I raised £46 for Dementia UK and rounded that up to £50 just because I like round numbers. I did pick up some beautiful antique glass buttons, beads and some pretty fabric. The weather wasn't great (despite a brief glimpse of the sun  on Saturday) so visitors were low. 

Anyroad, being a bit down in the dumps, I made a list of all my hobbies (I have a LOT) and whilst having a stash dive in preparation for the above sale, I rediscovered a necklace kit I must have picked up at one of the NEC shows, so that's in progress. I also knitted two pairs of fingerless gloves on the KH965i, mostly because it's currently the Ravellenic games and as a moderator, I felt I ought to contribute something. I'd forgot there's a "yarn unwinding" event, I could have waited to frog that diastrous circular cardigan and made it into an event. Ah well! 

Sales table at the Alex

Fingerless gloves for the Ravellenic games, pattern is here. These are a great stashbuster and can be made in a long strip and then seperated later. T5 for sock yarn makes them a smidge too small (supposed to be ladies size) but would be great for teens. As this is sock yarn leftovers, one has to be frugal with the yarn! 

Another pair, think I made these over Xmas but didn't blog about them. Added extra cuff in a contrasting yarn, possibly making them a little too long. 

Beading in process - it's already further on than this, but seed bead spirals require good eyesight! The big yellow bead is a safety bead which will come off later. 

Gorgeous glass button and bead eye candy!

Current mood: crappy

OT: Ugh.

Well, I guess it shouldn't have come as much as a surprise, but the depths of midwinter seem to coincide with bad news in our family the last few years. Or maybe the news is always bad lately, and the season seems to commiserate with it? 

My father-in-law K has had poor health for many years, having succumbed to ME after a nasty bout of 'flu in his late 60s. We stayed away to protect him during the pandemic, by which time he was almost completely deaf (my partner already wears hearing aids so that's hereditary). There was a waterworks infection which produced odd behaviour - but eventually it turned out to be vascular dementia. K used to smoke and presumably drink, as was more common in his era. The fact that the family have coped since his last hospital stay has extended his life by a few years, but after another kidney infection he's being released to come home to die. The only signs of life are growling, eye movement and breathing. It's horrible to watch, and I can only hope he slips away soon. As a family of engineers we feel powerless - our natural instinct is to think our way around such situations and repair them; but in this case there is no fix. The law in the UK sentences people to lingering deaths that we would not put our pets through. I was very lucky that my dad briefly rallied on my last visit - he was mentally with us 'til the end, and it turns out I was the last one to talk to him, a banal conversation about the weather I think! 

So my mood is indescribable at the moment - anger at the universe for allowing such suffering, sadness for the family, admiration and sorrow. The Cog has been out every evening for the last few weeks, to take over from the constant attempts to get food and liquids into K in hospital - the nurses do an amazing job, but nobody can spare three hours to feed someone with a dessertspoon. So our meals have been in shifts, and it's a rare thing if we eat together at all. At least K has family to take care of him, though whether prolonging his life is humane at this point is debatable. 

Amidst a rising tide of right wing rhetoric in the world, I note that many of the nurses were from exotic countries. Without immigrants, the NHS would collapse. Follow the money and use your intelligence, people, not the twisted tabloid media with their nasty agendas. Whilst the masses look the other way, the rich get richer. I was "reliably informed" by a supposedly intelligent work colleague that the reason her partner can't get a minor medical procedure done is because immigrants have swamped the NHS. It's nothing to do with years of underfunding, piecemeal privatisation by the back door, an ageing and increasing population, badly-paid staff leaving, and crumbling infrastructure. I suspect her anger at others is partially fired up by a badly-managed council HMO (House of Multiple Occupancy) starting up next door, which is forcing them to consider moving. 

Anyway, enough. You can see, my mood veers from sadness to anger and back at the moment. Lack of sleep, work stress and a sore back isn't helping! Hugs to all who find themselves in need of them at this time, and never forget to kiss your loved ones goodbye. You never know when it might be the last time. 

Current mood: indescribable