Thursday 25 November 2010

What is it about counting up to seven that I'm finding so difficult?

There were only three of us at knitting group this afternoon so I thought I'd be safe attempting part of the aran jumper I'm knitting a friend. I like aran, but what with conversations to keep up with and the dark grey wool camouflaging the pattern, I made a couple of daft mistakes and decided it'd be better kept for when I'm in the shop alone and would find concentrating easier.

So then I moved on to a simple little cardigan for another friend's granddaughter. I have higher standards for knitting I do for other people than for knitting I do for myself, so I wanted it right. But can I count completed rows in garter stitch? - nope! So I was counting as I went along. In retrospect, I should've written each row down as I completed it, but they were just knit rows - surely I could remember how many of those I'd done...

I pulled it back towards the end of knitting group as I couldn't be sure whether I'd done seven, six, five or, indeed, four rows. Then I started again, on my own, concentrating and counting ALOUD. I got up to...ooh, was it six or seven? can't remember, but Mike and Maddie came in to give me a lift home, started talking and once again, I was lost...

I'm going to find a Very Quiet Place, preferably with a lockable door, and I'm going to start again. I may just do one row a day. I may even use an abacus. Because I'm going to get it right if it kills me.

Wednesday 24 November 2010

Bad taste jumpers

At Three Bags Full we responded to a plea by two local women for bad taste jumpers and other items to send to soldiers in Afghanistan for Christmas. (Well, I did anyway - Mike's not hot on the knitting front.) In the three or four weeks available, I managed a less than spectacular jumper and an elegant posing pouch:





I think the posing pouch in particular amply satisfies the bad taste critera...

Sunday 14 November 2010

Open All Hours


(Photo courtesy telegraph.co.uk)

Okay, a little note to say that in a couple of weeks time, Three Bags Full be open Sundays till Christmas. That's from the 28th Nov onwards; hours will be 11am till 3pm. We'll be opening Thursday evenings too, along with several of the other Piece Hall traders, till 7.30pm throughout December.

And don't forget you can get loads of lovely stuff in the various shops. Why not see how many of your presents you can buy from the Piece Hall traders this year? If it snows, you'll be under cover on the colonnades, you can take time out for a coffee and cake, and the Piece Hall has a much better variety of individual shops than your average town centre or mall. Quirky and quality are what we specialise in!

Remember to get all your knitting needs provided for tho' before Christmas Eve as Three Bags Full will then be shut for the whole of Christmas week. I know, I'm sorry.

Will you be entering the competition? Just guess or count the number of lines we have on sale for a fiver or under and you could win two hanks of Noro Yuzen. I think I'll extend the duration of this so we encompass some of the new opening times. So, we'll make the new closing date mid-December - the 15th - then the prize will be like an early Christmas present for the lucky winner...

Wednesday 10 November 2010

It's only November...

...and yet the icy temperatures of the Piece Hall are making my toes tingle even tho' I'm wearing three layers and I've had two heaters on at full this morning. Wonder what it'll be like in January?? Will have to knit lots of heavy duty fingerless gloves - might look a bit Bob Cratchetty but probably preferable to frostbite.(I know, do I never stop bleating about the cold??)

So, the luceting workshop - it's dawning on me that I really should've waited till after Christmas, but of course I wanted to do it NOW. Not that I'm usually all about instant gratification... Are you sure you don't want to come along? It'll be fun, honest!

BOOKS FOR LOAN! When TBF started up I bought a fair few knitting books and brought a selection down to the shop. These are for loan. The problem is that there's no sign up and I've never told anyone. This demonstrates perfectly the level of my marketing skills. Anyway, if you can't otherwise find a pattern you like and would like to borrow a book, just say.