Ta-Dah - after what feels like sewing in a million of loose ends, my x-mas shawl is done! And I am really happy with how it turned out!

The shawl was a kit from Garnmanufaktur that came with yarn and pattern. I might add tassels to the ends, but haven't yet decided.  What do you think?

And as a side note: I might even make another shawl, because I think I've got more than half of the gradient yarn  (which comes in 10 individual balls) left. That's quite a bit...

Slowly, very slowly getting back to work in this brandnew year 2021. May it be a lot better than the last one...

The first task I tackled was the rerelease of a pattern previously published in a Knitscene Accessories magazine: Ring-tailed Bandit Hat.

The hat is worked in the round from the brim to the top. The motif in stranded knitting , a nosy raccoon ravaging the trash cans at night is from the Alterknit Stitch Dictonary by Andrea Rangel. Before the motif, all stitches are bound off and then picked up again to create a distinctive chain detail; another chain detail is added with an Estonian Braid after the motif.

The knitting pattern includes three sizes to fit head circumference of approximately 46.5 (51.5, 56.5) cm 18.25 (20.25, 22.25)”.

It is now available for individual download from my Ravelry store, here.

Just realized that I never shared a picture of the complete jungle gang, that my great nephew got for x-mas.

Totally in love with these little critters and I think there'll be a lot more in my near future. :)

... without new yarn. :) Very happy Santa listened to my wishes and brought me this awesome box filled with yarn for a shawl in illusion knitting technique.

Still in my pyjamas and with bed hair, but eager to get started...

Merry Christmas, everyone!

... with the hook... crochet will never be my favourite but I had another idea for the baby and decided that crocheted fabric is the better choice.  Why, you ask? Well, the penguin isn't meant to be just a toy -

- but I added a music box to the body that plays Brahm's Lullaby and I figured that for frequent pulling the string the fabric should be somewhat sturdy. Considering that I am not a fan of crochet, I think it turned out pretty good. Can't wait to see the wee ones reaction. :)

My, as always, x-mas approaches in no time and I finally started to work on the gifts I've planned for my brand new great nephew. I discovered the cute doll patterns by Ester Braithwaite the other day and the jungle anmals make a perfect match to the play bar I got for the wee one.

I decided to work them in fingering weight yarns so that they turn out small enough for the baby to hold and I added rattles to their heads to make them even more interesting for him. Now onto the zebra...

Fancy some illusion knitting? For me it's one of the techniques I really enjoy - so easy to work, but with a stunning result. Illusion Knitting, also called Shadow knitting is worked with two contrasting colours, but always with one colour at the time. From one angle the socks look like simple hooped socks, but from another angle the hidden motif of diagonal stripes appears. The effect is created by the shadow caused from the raised purl stitches worked throughout the pattern.

The socks are knitted top down with heel flap and gusset. Cuff, heel and toe are worked in main colour only; leg and foot are worked alternating between two rounds in main colour and two rounds in contrast colour. The pattern comes with charts and also full written instructions.

The pattern includes three sizes: Women’s S, M and L to fit leg circumference 16.5 (18.75, 21.25) cm [6.6 (7.5, 8.5)”]. Leg length and foot length are adjustable.

As of today, Striped Illusion is available from my Ravelry store, here.

... to a yarny advent calendar this year. I tried to resist, but well, this has been such a rotten year, it called for a special pick-me-up. I chose the one by The Knitting Goddess and hm, maybe the fab box the yarn came in was one of the reasons... ;-)

The box holds 48 mini skeins of approximately 10 g each and the colours form a colour weel. There are also some extra goodies like decorations (shown in the foreground because the box is filled to the brim with yarn).

Hm, and since I know myself well enough to know that the yarn will only end up as an addition to my stash if I don't use it right away, I already started a project with it. A big stole, that is supposed to use up all the yarn and the aim is to use the two skeins I take out of the box each day right away. We'll see how that goes.

The pic above shows the yarn from day 1-3 all knit up and today's yarns which come next as well as today's extra gift.