Tag: new blogger

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Songs and Carols to Light up the Bergen Christmas Tree

Posted on by Jackie B
Photo courtesy of Newcastle City Council

What a lovely evening! So proud of my fellow choir members (we are all past and present Newcastle City Council staff). Despite scheduling problems, limited rehearsal time and various coughs and croaks (we were passing round the throat lozenges like they were sweets) we totally rocked the Yorkshire version of “While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night (to the tune of (“On Ilkley Moor”). It looked like The Lord Mayor, who’d requested that particular carol really enjoyed it.

Full details of the event and more of the excellent official photos from the Newcastle City Council’s City Life News can be found here

The evening began in the Civic Centre with some wonderful Christmas music from Tyneside A Capella. (you can hear their voices on the official link above). It was lovely to see an old friend, who is part of that group. We took part in the short carol service (and sang our special request). Our Norwegian guests sang some Norwegian carols too. Several of the ladies, including Bergen’s Mayor, were wearing beautiful traditional costume.

Photo courtesy of Newcastle City Council

After the service we all went outside. We sang another carol. Both mayors addressed the crowd and after countdown, the lights went on – and it looked lovely!

We went back inside for refreshments and more entertainment from the two choirs. Tyneside A Capella performed some amazing versions of pop classics. We got to sing “Lulla Lully Lullay” (new for us this Christmas – I absolutely love it) and our reindeer herding song, “Ole le loila” – we learnt this a few years back and it’s great fun to sing. I can’t see a reindeer now without feeling the urge to sing this!) One of these days I’ll learn how to add audio to the blog and you can actually hear us!

It’s a lovely event to be part of and it really signals the start of the Christmas season.

Photo courtesy of Newcastle City CouncilNewcastle City Council Choir

Are you involved in any special Christmas events where you live or work?

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Mystery Object

Posted on by Jackie B

Do you know what this is and what it’s used for?

If you know and own one, I’d love to hear about it. If you haven’t a clue what it is, have a guess just for fun. I’ll be back to tell you about it tomorrow.

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My newest sweater. Valdres in DROPS Karisma

Posted on by Jackie B

I do love a big slouchy sweater at this time of year, with plenty of room for layers underneath when it gets cold. This was my most recent big project: the Valdres sweater from DROPS. – I took a break from it a few times to knit other things but kept going back to it. I like to start something like this early in the year, take regular breaks to do other things and work through the summer so it’s ready to wear in the winter, without having to hurry.

I found it in a magazine but the pattern is available free online on the DROPS website. I used the recommended DROPS Karisma yarn (100% wool DK) which was lovely to work with and feels quite soft against the skin compared with some pure wool yarns I’ve used. This was worked in the same main shade as the pattern illustration (Light Oak -77) but I used different contrasting colours (Dark Purple – 76, Cerise – 13, Blue turquoise – 60)

The sweater is knitted bottom up, in the round – Nordic style, and alternates colour work and texture patterns – perfect for people like me who hate sewing up. If you haven’t tried this construction before, there are three sections, knitted on circular needles: the body (large tube) and two sleeves (narrower tubes). The components are eventually combined on one large circular needle to work the yoke, decreasing to form a raglan, up to the neck (leaving out the underarm sections, which are sewn closed at the end) – love it.

I knitted it a size larger to accommodate t-shirts underneath. The only downsides were that the sleeves were quite long even though I’d shortened them to accommodate my short arms! – The pattern charts vary for the different sizes. Maybe I misread the pattern! Also the neck opening is quite large, so I usually wear a scarf with it – I have a cerise one that is perfect! You also need to make sure that the colour work sections are not worked too tight – the pattern recommends using a larger needle size to overcome this.

It was fun to make, once I got the hang of reading the the colour and texture pattern charts. It really kept me engaged as it changed from colour to texture. That also provided plenty of milestones along the way to look forward to (my heart sinks when a pattern tells you to continue straight for 40cm!). As I like to take my knitting out and about, I found the body got quite bulky to carry round as it grew, so I started a sleeve for knitting on the go – much more portable!

I’ve worn it loads, getting a lot of compliments which always feels good!

Do you have a new favourite sweater?

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I really do knit by the sea!

Posted on by Jackie B
a spot of seaside knitting today.

It finally stopped raining so I joined K and the dog at Alnmouth today. I’m not good at walking on sand so decided to take a few pics for the blog. I love to sit and watch the sea (sometimes knitting at the same time). The view changes so rapidly. The carpark at Alnmouth overlooks the beach so it’s a perfect vantage point. We love it in the winter as there are fewer picnickers (Buddy the labrador is very greedy).

The sea was rough today and the tide was in. Usually there is a good view of Coquet Island from here but the weather was too murky to see it.

Tank traps from WWII

The waves have washed a lot of sand away and the old tank traps are easy to see here. These concrete cubes are found at lots of places along this coast – they were defences against enemy landing craft, left over from World War Two. Today some children were having fun climbing on them. In summer they are a great place to dry wet swimming towels, but nobody was venturing into the water today!

I’m on the next stage of the stash busting blues project, having done lots of maths last night to work out the transition from the collar to the body and the shaping increases for the next part of the pattern. It’s pretty straightforward for the rest of it if all goes to plan, so it was bliss to just be mesmerised by the waves and get on with my knitting!

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Where do you knit?

Posted on by Jackie B
Please note that the car was safely parked, ignition off, handbrake on!

One of the things I love about knitting is that it’s so portable – no bulky equipment required – you can take it almost anywhere. It’s easiest with a reasonably straightforward project, so you don’t need to follow instructions carefully. That way it’s possible to knit the odd few stitches or rows any time you find yourself with time to kill. It works pretty well for me, especially on circular needles, as long as I’m not using stitch markers, which have a nasty habit of dropping on the floor!

That’s why you’ll find me knitting in a supermarket car park on most Thursday mornings. That’s when I take my Mum to do her shopping – I sit and knit while she buys her groceries, much to the amusement of my daughter and her work colleagues. Their office is nearby and I sometimes see them on their way to buy lunch.

I’ve knitted on trains, ferries, in doctor’s waiting rooms and often in the car (always parked), sometimes in places with spectacular views, often in supermarket carparks!

Where do you knit? What is the most unusual place you have ever knitted?

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Another Kind of Yarn

Posted on by Jackie B

Not a knitting day today, but very much about yarns of a different sort: stories….. tall tales of fiction!

Had coffee with friends H & D this morning. H incredibly imaginative and writes fantasy fiction. I’m the nerdy one that helps with the editing and gets it published on Kindle. Her first book, Secrets and Guardians is full of strong characters and twisty plots set in strange lands with mystical forests

More details on Secrets and Guardians are here

She has now written two more to complete the trilogy, so I’m in reading/editing mode , prior to the next two being launched on Kindle. It’s rather good getting a preview too. I couldn’t wait to find out what would happen next.

I wonder if I could read and knit at the same time …….

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Stashbusting Blues

Posted on by Jackie B

As my stash of yarn is getting ridiculous and I need the space, I’ve embarked on a new big project – I do seem to have been knitting a lot of small items like hats, socks and baby clothes recently. That’s the way it goes – at any given time I usually have about three things on the go – a large item, usually for myself to wear; something small, which could be for me or a gift for someone else or for a charity; and something simple that I can do at knitting groups when the other stuff is too complicated for me to knit and natter at the same time!

I have a really useful cape/poncho which I wear loads in the winter if the weather is dry – it’s made of fleece fabric with fake fur trim on the collar and sleeves – not waterproof but lovely and cosy – `I’m going to try a knitted version, so I’ve measured it up and done lots of calculations (my first attempt at designing a pattern really). I originally thought about crocheting it, but I don’t think that will drape as well as a knit, so I’ve acquired extra long 5.5mm circular needles and sorted out a load of oddments of yarn in various shades of blue, grey, cream and white. For the body of the poncho I plan to use several strands at once – 2 of double knitting, more for thinner yarns. and mix the shades up to get a sort of marled, stripy effect.

I’m beginning with the collar, which will be in a single colour – I’m going with a sort of button-up polo neck style, so it can be worn buttons closed right up the neck for added warmth or left with the buttons open. I’m using a deep slaty blue 4ply with a hint of purple that’s left over from a crocheted shawl and 3.25 mm needles. It’s worked in k2p2 rib and incorporates some vertical buttonholes on one edge

Whether it works out or not remains to be seen – watch this space!

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How I recovered from One Sock Syndrome

Posted on by Jackie B

About 4 years ago I ended up in hospital just before we were about to go on a family holiday. It didn’t seem right that they should all miss out, so when I was out of surgery, I insisted they went without me. Off they set for Wester Ross , North West Scotland while I stayed in hospital. We spoke on the phone every day and came back with loads of presents including a pattern for kilt stockings. “It looked challenging,” they said. “We know you like making complicated things.”

A few months later, much recovered, I bought some sock yarn, got the double pointed needles out and made a start. It was a two-colour design (the Gairloch pattern – read about it here http://ichscotland.org/wiki/gairloch-pattern-stockings ) It didn’t look too difficult, but oh my goodness when done on the double pointed needles it was a nightmare! I eventually got to the end of the first sock, but had absolutely no urge to continue.

Four years later my knitting friend, Carol is knitting loads of socks – trying to keep up with the demand from her family who love them. She’s using circular needles – I had to try it. What a difference! So much easier that double pointers.

There was no confusion about splitting a pattern repeat between needles, or wondering what on earth to do if I got to the last stitch on a needle and had to knit two together. It was easier to control the tension too. I tend to knit tightly to start with and have to be especially careful to keep things loose when I’m using two or more colours. Needless to say I finished the second stocking much quicker! Here they are, modelled by K

One Sock Syndrome Cured! I have one less UFO (Unfinished object)!

A few weeks later we were back in Scotland, visiting Gairloch Museum – the new museum had it’s official opening while we were there in July. It’s well worth a visit (read about it here https://www.gairlochmuseum.org). There’s actually a display of Gairloch Pattern garments in the museum (and they sell the pattern I used in the gift shop).

Gairloch Pattern knitted items at Gairloch Museum

To prove to myself that I wasn’t just finishing a project and I’m really ok with socks, I recently made these.

I picked up the yarn at Alnmouth Wool Festival because I just loved the colours – it’s Opal Safari in shade Botswana – I got a free pattern from the stall and it was a breeze, despite the tiny little 2.5mm circular sock needle – . I love them – definitely cured!

To view discussion, click on one of the recent comments on this post listed in the sidebar (on the right of this page)

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Knit and Natter 2.

Posted on by Jackie B

My local GP surgery has started running a variety of activities beneficial to health, through their social prescribing initiative. The knit and natter group are thriving – it’s a lively group with a purpose – dozens of items have been made for good causes by the group over the last few months – they meet on Friday afternoons.

One of the GPs has done voluntary work in a clinic in Zambia, where baby clothes are scarce, to the point that newborns had to be wrapped in newspaper for warmth. We started by knitting “fish and chip baby “tops, blankets, bootees, hats to go to the clinic and others nearby.

We continues with this and have also been making items for premature babies at RVI, Newcastle, hats for the homeless and twiddle muffs for dementia patients. Here is what group members have made in the last week alone

There’s more waiting to be posted off to where it’s needed.

My tiny contribution this week was a pair of bootees made with yarn left over from a pair of socks I knitted recently.

To view discussion, click on the title of this post

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Knit and Natter 1.

Posted on by Jackie B

I’m in two knitting groups: a weekly one and a monthly one, both Fridays – today was one of those Fridays!.

The Knit and Natter Group I’ve been in longest is at The Amble Pincushion https://amblepincushion.co.uk – which sells all sorts of yarn, fabric, haberdashery and craft materials – it has the most amazing range of stock for it’s size. The group meets in the upstairs training room (there is a programme of workshops and courses too) on the third Friday of every month from 10-12. It costs £4.50, including tea/coffee/biscuits and entry into the raffle, and 10% discount in the shop on the day,

A while back we reviewed some cotton yarns for a knitting magazine and our verdict appears in this month’s edition.

We nattered about our pets, our parents and of course our knitting – Anne was on hand to help with problems and queries. We were also celebrating the arrival of a new grandchild for one of the group. Here is our work in progress: two ombre shawls, a red aran cardigan and a Santa Claus tree decoration for the new baby (not in the picture) – the dark blue piece at the bottom is my current experiment – if it works out I’ll tell you more another time.