Noro Silk Garden Sock Yarn Socks!

Look what arrived in the post for me today! And it's not even Christmas yet.

My mum read my blog post a week or so ago about me not having a pair of hand knitted socks and she took pity on me. She is a bit of an expert sock knitter is my mum, and after spending ages deciding what yarn, and then what colour to go for (one of the advantages about having my own yarn store is having so much to choose from!), I popped the yarn in the post and these arrived about a week later.

THANK YOU MUM! As you can see I plumped for the Noro Silk Garden Sock yarn in shade 258 - rust/pink/purple colourway. They are soo gorgeous, my only problem now is that they are too beautiful to wear! I love the way the colours change in them, and they are really comfortable. I'm definitely going to washing these carefully with my Eucalan!

Stitch Markers

I've just updated some of my lovely stitch markers, all handmade by me! I've had a few bespoke requests recently and as always, happy to help. Hope you like them.

Knitting News

If you are looking for some knitting news, we've now added a knitting news section to www.cafeknit.com , who said knowledge couldn't be fun!

Debbie Bliss Design It Knit It

I've finally had a chance to sit down with the new Debbie Bliss Design It Knit it book and it is lovely! Hardbacked and spiral bound, it is a folder style book, full of great patterns (15 in total) and also interesting insight into the whole knitting design process, something I hope one day I'll have time to get more involved in. There is a gorgeous pattern for a garter stitch coat that I am definitely going to knit for myself after Christmas. Knitted in Debbie Bliss Rialto Aran, it's reminiscent of a 'Garter Stitch Swing Coat' I knitted for Milly in Debbie Bliss Stella yarn, and I have always said I wish the pattern was for adults too...

Anyway, best get back to knitting the many pairs of gloves I have on the go....

Snowmen Stitchmarkers

I'm getting in to the Christmas spirit - these adorable little snowmen stitchmarkers have just arrived in store, with some Christmas tree ones coming soon.

Although I think Christmas present knitting is out of the window this year, if I'm being realistic - I just have too much to do....:-(

Araucania Ranco Multy - New Shades!

I've been in heaven today with new yarn deliveries left, right and centre. I only wish I had time to knit!

If Father Christmas is reading this, I would love a pair of socks in this lovely Green/Gold/Brown shade (pictured top) of Araucania Ranco Multy. Please! I've been good this year....Can you believe, I do not own a pair of hand knitted socks - so busy knitting them for other people I haven't got round to my own.

Noro Silk Garden Sock Yarn

Some gorgeous Noro Silk Garden Sock yarn has arrived. Scrummy! I love Shade 258 - lovely Rust/Pink/Purples - you can see it knitted up here:


http://www.cafeknit.com/proddetail.php?prod=Noro_Silk_Garden_Sock

Prima Magazine and Cafe Knit

Fame at last! Well, Milly and myself have appeared in the December issue of Prima (out now). The feature was about knitting (no surprises there!) and a gorgeous Kaffe Fassett coat knitted for me by my Mum when I was a teenager. Although I had been taught to knit when I was 6 years old, this beautiful gift inspired me to start knitting properly, and there began my obsession! Milly was being a cheeky monkey during the photo shoot, although you can't tell in the photos, and I have to say a big thank you to Meghan for looking after Dom, and recommending that I put some make-up on!

You can read the full article here:

http://www.cafeknit.com/prodimages/pdfs/PR_pdfs/Prima_December_2009.pdf

Halloween Knitting

Work on our Autumn/Winter 2009 photoshoot is well underway and the homepage of http://www.cafeknit.com/ will be experiencing a bit of a revamp next week - it's very exciting watching the website evolve from it's humble beginnings back in July 2008.

And here is a very timely outtake from the photoshoot. Our house model Frankie on the right (obviously!), modelling a gorgeous top knitted with Debbie Bliss Rialto DK in this season's shade of purple, and Mr Pumpkin-Head on the left. Identity to be revealed at a later date....

We have some gorgeous yarns in stock this Autumn. I'm loving Debbie Bliss Como, and Shade 13 (Orange) is particularly apt this weekend! I'm planning lots of chunky, quick to knit scarves as Christmas presents this year.....

Eucalan No Rinse Delicate Wash

A parcel arrived for me at lunchtime, and for the life of me I had no idea what it could be. I opened it up and discovered my order of Eucalan, an amazing environmentally friendly, no-rinse delicate washing liquid had arrived! Spend the next 30 mins trying to decide which of the four fragrances I preferred and I finally opted for Grapefruit. I wasn't expecting the handful of trial samples that were included in the delivery, so I've decided to give those away to the next 20 customers at http://www.cafeknit.com/. To qualify for the sample, simply type "free sample" in the additional information box at the checkout.

Artesano Alpaca Yarns and Manos del Uruguay Yarns

I'm very excited to announce that www.cafeknit.com will now be stocking the full range of Artesano and Manos del Uruguay yarns! I'm just in the process of loading up all the yarns and colours to the website, and believe me there are many (Manos Clasica, Artesano 4ply, Artesano DK, the new Artesano Silk Embrace (gorgeous and snuggly), Hummingbird 4ply, Hummingbird DK, Inca Cloud and Inca Mist) Phew! Times that by 20 shades each and I'll be here all evening!

Thumbsuckers Mittens

Now the weather has taken a turn for the worse, it really is getting chilly first thing in the morning on the way to school. So, on the needles at the moment are a pair of 'thumbsuckers' mittens for baby Dom, in Cream Debbie Bliss Cashmerino DK (something left over from another project). I figure he'd go nuts if he couldn't suck his left thumb, so I am making one glove thumbless. They'll be ideal for camping too. I'm just adapting an old fashioned simple knitting pattern and I reckon I may just have a hit on my hands

Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino

At last! Here is Dominic in his new (very old fashioned) knitted trousers! Knitted using Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino they are so soft and warm, and I think he looks really sweet in them. (maybe I shouldn't have teamed them with green socks though). The gorgeous rich blue shade is called 'Ocean' - and being machine washable , makes them practical too.

I've just been informed that Dom will hate me when he is older for making him wear all these knitted things....the way I see it I have a window of about 5 years before he refuses to wear anything i knit him, so I'm going to pack it all in now. Hats he can remove, but trousers prove a bit more tricky!

National Knitting Week 2009 - photo!

Here we all are, working on our blanket, I can't remember which night this photograph was taken, but all in all we had a fantastic turnout. Over the 3 nights we had over 20 people come and help us!

The blanket was a free knitting pattern from http://www.lionbrand.com/, knitted in Lion Brand Wool-Ease in 3 colours; Paprika, Avocado and Cocoa. each coloured square was a different stitch pattern; garter, seed and moss stitch. it is coming together and beginning to look really good now! It is to be raffled on the 18th November (next months meeting) and hopefully we will raise quite a lot of money. So now we just have to sew the blanket up now. Any volunteers?!

National Knitting Week 2009

I'm off in a minute to the Harrow Knitters Charity Knit-In in celebration of National Knitting Week. Hopefully it'll calm me down after my day from hell getting the car MOT'd (won't bore you with the details, suffice to say I left the house at 8.50am this morning with 2 small children in tow (and stupidly not many supplies as thought I'd be a couple of hours at most) and returned to the house at 4pm...in...mmm..what shall we say?...not a very good mood.)

Anyway, The Harrow Knitters (of which I'm one) are holding a Knit-In for Charity on Tuesday 13th (Today), Wednesday 14th and Thursday 15th October 2009 at the Oddfellows Arms Pub, 2 Waxwell Lane, Pinner, HA5 3EN from 8pm until 10pm on each of the three evenings.

All knitters are welcome to come along and help. We’ll be working on a blanket with yarn donated by www.cafeknit.com and the blanket will be raffled once complete, in the Oddfellows Arms to raise money for the Teenage Cancer Trust.

Hope we get a good turn out - will post pictures tomorrow!

Knitting and Stitching Show 2009 Alexandra Palace - Photos

So, here are a few photos of our PolarKnit stand. We had lots of lovely comments on how colourful it was!

I had several glamorous assistants (thank goodness!) - Julie on Friday, Mike on Saturday, and Meghan on Sunday. And two unexpected visitors on Saturday too!

The show was amazing - so many lovely yarns and accessories under 1 roof - I was very restrained and only bought one lovely skein of baby mohair!

Last Day @ Ali Pali

Today's the last day at the Knitting and Stitching Show Ali Pali London. Its been really busy on my stand. Thanks to everyone who's made it along so far to say Hi and look at our PolarKnit Yarns and funky accessories. If you plan on coming down today - parking will be busy, but so far everyone has found a space & remember that the show closes at 5pm. Oh by the way I'm on stand D16

Come and say Hi

Vic

Knitting and Stitching Show 2009 Alexandra Palace

Absolutely knackered today as we've (dragged helpful husband along) been setting up our stand today at the Knitting and Stitching Show 2009 for the four day extravaganza that starts tomorrow....

I'll post pictures of our stand tomorrow (D16 if you are passing!) - I think its looking pretty good. Maybe a bit minimalist, but cool and funky all the same. I had no idea the show was so huge! I got completely lost trying to find the exhibitors desk. Oh help me tomorrow when I search for the toilets!

Postal strike problems

Not everyones favourite topic, but we seem to be weathering the storm with large and small packages getting through the postal service. In fact I've received some lovely feedback regarding our mail order yarns getting though in record time!!

Knitting for Babies | Knitting for Children

I'm just in the process of renaming our 'Kids Corner' to Knitting for Babies Knitting for Children so it is more self explanatory. I don't know about you but I love knitting for babies and children - projects are quick and easy and (usually) the recipient is very grateful!

Yarn Sale

Yarn Sale - if you haven't already done so, check out the Yarn sale at www.cafeknit.com. Great savings to be had on selected ranges including Debbie Bliss Prima, Debbie Bliss Eco, and Louisa Harding Hulda to name but a few

Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino

Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino stock - just updated www.cafeknit.com to include some gorgeous new shades for Autumn Winter 2009 knitting

StitchDots and KeyDots

Funky StitchDots (stitchmarkers) and KeyDots (key covers) from PolarKnit are all new at Cafe Knit. As soon as they arrived, I just had to unwrap a KeyDot and pop it onto my housekey, and investigate the cute StitchDot packaging. Even though Milly wasn't sure what it was, she really wanted one!

Debbie Bliss Luxury Tweed Aran

Gorgeous Sunday morning, hubbie taken kids to Halfords to buy new cycling helmet for Milly, roast beef is in the oven, and I am taking this rare moment of peace to update http://www.cafeknit.com/ with yet more scrummy yarns. On today's agenda is Debbie Bliss Donegal Luxury Tweed Aran, Debbie Bliss Donegal Chunky Tweed, some new shades of Debbie Bliss Como yarn and Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk. Phew, busy day ahead!

Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Chunky

Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Chunky There are four gorgeous new shades this season; silver, eggplant, magenta and royal blue. I'm adding the 'gilet' from the new Debbie Bliss book; 9 to 5 to my knitting list - I think Milly will look great in it this winter, perfect for my little tomboy to wear over long-sleeved t-shirts with jeans

Artesano Aran Yarn

I've got Artesano Aran Yarn in new shades ! As featured in the Artesano Stockist Guide in the October 09 issue of Let's Knit magazine.

I love this yarn! So soft for knitting and warm to wear. Anyone who didn't get a scarf/hat/pair of gloves knitted in this from me last Christmas is sure to get one this year....hope you're not reading!

New! Debbie Bliss Luxury Tweed Chunky

It's arrived and it's divine! Debbie Bliss Luxury Tweed Chunky - a perfect blend of wool and angora, I can't wait to get stuck in and maybe knit myself a jacket or a jumper. Just have to decide which of the lovely 16 shades to go for.

I love Autumn/Winter and getting all these deliveries of scrummy yarn. It sure beats Christmas!

I've just cast on my first item in Fez - a lovely cowl from the new 'Fez' book. So far, so good - teh yarn is lovely and soft to knit with as promised. It's a friends birthday on the 30th September, and I'm hoping to get it finished by then. Fingers crossed shouldn't be too challenging as it only takes two balls.

New Debbie Bliss Magazine Autumn Winter 2009

The waiting is over. It's finally here. The new Debbie Bliss Magazine Autumn Winter 2009. It arrived at lunchtime and I spent a frantic two hours packaging it up for customers who had preordered their copy, and rushing to the post office to catch the last post.

Infact I've been so busy, I haven't had a chance to look at it yet. Tonight, over a nice glass of white I think...!

Mirasol Chirapa Yarn and Manos Del Uruguay Silk Blend

I couldn't resist posting a picture of the so-gorgeous-it-should-be-criminal Dominic in his new tank top.

It was actually intended for his little friend who has just turned one, but even though it was knitted for ages 1 to 2, it was a little on the snug side for him, so Dom is having this one and I'm knitting a slightly larger one for his mate!

Not that I mind though - when I finished this one I had decided to make one for Dom anyway. Knitted using just 3 skeins of the now discontinued gorgeous Mirasol Chirapa yarn (grab the last few skeins now!), and modifying a pattern from the Mirasol Children's Collection Book it was a dream to knit, and very quick too.

Right, back to finishing off a lovely scarf (Manos Silk Blend, yum, yum....)

Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino

Schools out! 7 weeks of mayhem, and probably not much knitting ahead!

Without realising it, I've become addicted to Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino. Partly I guess because I love knitting for children, and Baby Cashmerino is without doubt one of the best baby yarns around, and partly due to the range of scrummy colours available.

I have nearly finished a gorgeous pair of (Autumn/Winter) trousers for Dominic - just got the sewing up part to do...and I have made an early start on a baby blanket for a friend who is expecting in December (don't want a repeat of my last-minute knitting of blanket earlier in the year! I know, i did say i wouldn't knit a blanket again, but it was so well recieved last time) This time the blanket is going to be in 'Celery' and will be edged in 'chocolate'. I'm awaiting delivery of the Celery, so I thought I'd crack on with the edging....

Then it's just a question of deciding what knitting to take on holiday.....

Crystal Palace Mini Mochi Sock Yarn

...is selling out fast! First delivery on Monday, and some shades sold out!! Expecting another delivery today, but then suppliers are low on stock until July.

I'll have to decide what shade I like best and put some aside for me, otherwise I'll be disappointed too! It is soooo scrummy, supersoft, machine washable, 180m per 50g ball, £5.75 per ball, free patterns, 8 lovely shades...life doesn't get much better than that!

Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton

I promised to sew a top for one of my best friends in the world, about 20 years ago. But shame on me I never did it (and I still have the pattern and material stashed away).
So, here is a knitted peace offering. Hopefully it will accomodate Jenni's baby bump, and prove useful in the next few warm months (i'm very optimistic!)

It's knitted with Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton from her Pure Cotton/Stella book, and it was fairly simple to knit. I love the waffley effect. I opted for sleeveless as a) it would be quicker to knit and therefore an outside chance Jen would get it whilst still pregnant, and b) thought it would be versatile and you could wear a long sleeve t-shirt underneath. OK, be honest Vic, it was really more a)....

Colour is more important than price....

....when deciding what yarn to buy. Well, so say visitors to Cafe Knit who have taken part in Cafe Knit first Knitting Attitudes™ Survey. The survey is running until 17th June and we have had a phenomenal response to it within the first few days. I can already see some really interesting knitting trends emerging - and I'm glad everyone else's yarn stash is out of control too!!

Sewing up night tonight! Two lots of sewing up - a gorgeous sleeveless cardigan (knitted in Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton) that I have knitted for one of my best friends in the world (I promised to sew her a top 20 years ago and never got round to it, so this is by way of compensation) , and a lightweight jumper for myself knitted in the divine Louisa Harding Hulda yarn. Yipee, I can't wait, which is why I'm finding things to do on the computer, rather than face the music and sew up.

Why do I hate sewing up so much? I can't quite figure it out. I should be excited, as I would then be able to wear the garment I have spent months knitting, but instead I just want to move on and start knitting something else. The only explanation I can come up with is that I'm not very good at sewing up and so I don't want to do it, in case I ruin all my lovely knitting....

Right I'm going to bite the bullet now, and hopefully have some pics of at least one finished item to post tomorrow...(just remembered I have a 3rd thing to sew up, but might end up frogging it after all...the cardigan I knitted for discrete feeding of Dominic - he will shortly be embarking into the world of real food, so it probably isn't required anymore!)

Debbie Bliss Eco Cotton Yarn

I was photographing some Debbie Bliss Eco Yarn for http://www.cafeknit.com/, and Dom decided to get in on the act. My back was turned for a few seconds and he had managed to grab a bright pink ball. It was my favourite picture of the day, and I was tempted to use it to illustrate the yarn - it would certainly grab peoples attention!

Many Happy Returns....

I have just about recovered from the shock on Monday of being yet another year older, and in between a) regretting the fact that I'm no longer young enough to believe I am thin enough to hide behind lampposts (Milly on the way to school this morning) and b) recovering from too many late nights in a row celebrating, I thought I'd share with you some of my lovely gifts...

I'm the proud recipient of a new lovely pair of flowery Birkenstock's (I tend to live in them all summer), some new summery perfume, a mellow CD, a lovely mobius scarf my Mum knitted me, and some beautiful hand-dyed wool from a friend (pictured). My friend has been dying wool in her spare time, and this one is called "Bejewelled". absolutely gorgeous, I'm thinking about stocking it in www.cafeknit.com soon. Watch this space!

Sneak Preview!

Here is a sneak preview of one of the new home pages images for www.cafeknit.com . Our model, Frankie, is looking just gorgeous in a beautiful jumper knitted from the Debbie Bliss Spring/Summer 09 magazine. The jumper is the ultimate in luxury knitted in Debbie Bliss Pure Silk yarn.

The photography is by Jennifer Beech (I'm lucky to have a professional photographer in the family!)

Lavender Hat

Another glorious morning, and a productive so far. Delivered Milly to school without mishap, taken delivery of some new stock for Cafe Knit, uploaded it onto the website and now just about to pop two doors down to deliver a baby gift to my friend who had a little baby girl two weeks ago.


And here is Dominic modelling the little cotton hat I knitted as a gift! His head is a little big for the hat now, and I'm not sure that shade of lavender suits him....! I like the pattern though. Taken from Debbie Bliss Book One, and knitted in Debbie Bliss Cotton DK, a lovely soft, affordable cotton.

Strawberry Fields

Just the greenhouse to tackle now, although I might give it a rest today as I'm feeling a little jaded today having been up in the night two nights on the trot. I think it may be payback for the long morning sleeps Dom has had. So today I will wake him after a couple of hours, so cruel...:-(

I spend yesterday morning trying to get last years strawberries under control. They had taken over - I had no idea they were so invasive. And I ordered all my vegetables from http://www.vegetableplantsdirect.co.uk/ for delivery in May. Very easy to use website with fantastic choice and variety - I'll keep you posted when they arrive. I nearly ended up with 60 broccoli plants, due to not reading the descriptions carefully, but a quick phonecall sorted that out.

I took delivery of some gorgeous yarn yesterday which I'm dying to knit. Grignasco Merino Silk. I thought I'd try it out before deciding whether to stock it in www.cafeknit.com. I'd love to try some lacework, and I'm totally in awe of fellow Raveller vtknitboy's Lyra - click here to see what I mean! http://vtknitboy.blogspot.com/2009/03/meet-lyraa-two-month-project.html
But maybe that's a tad too ambitious for me at the moment! Maybe I should use it double and knit a simple vest. It is so gloriously soft....

Glorious digging

I managed to make the most of the glorious Spring weather yesterday and got my vegetable patch a bit more under control - mostly due to the fact that Dom kindly obliged by having a long morning nap :-)

The vegetable garden has been totally neglected since the picking of the last crop of tomatoes last Autumn, and what with Dominic's arrival, and www.cafeknit.com, I haven't had a chance this year to sort it out.

This year I'm going to have to cheat and buy plug plants, but hopefully I'm not too late to get a nice crop, ready for weaning Dom in the summer.

Enough chatter, I'm going to go and finish the remainder of the veggie patch and then try and tackle the greenhouse.....

Cafe Knit Web Review!

I'm very excited! Cafe Knit has had it's first review, to be published in Knitting magazine, April Issue. Once it's published I'll scan it in here.

I've also finished my secret squirrel project - image to appear tomorrow, once I have given it to the recipient! And now that's out the way, I'm well on my way to finishing a couple more small projects....

Some Baby Bootees for Spike, the 4th child of some friends, who arrived a week before Dominic. Hopefully it won't be too hot for him to wear them now...! I don't like the ribbon I've used in the photos, so I'll change that, but the yarn was beautiful to knit with - the largely undiscovered Mirasol Chirapa, 100% merino wool which comes in a range of lovely hand-dyed colours, I used 'Rainbow Jade'

And I have just cast on for another pair of bootees, this time using some pink cotton from my stash, for a friend who had a baby girl two weeks ago. These are my kind of quick and easy projects!

Once those are finished I am going to knit myself an easy jumper using Louisa Harding Hulda yarn in charcoal, with an edging of blue and purple, I think. It's meant to be a fair isle jumper from her eclectic 'Wildspur' book, but at the rate I'm knitting at the moment it would be next winter before I finish, so I think I'll just knit a plain version.

Mmmm, lovely yarn

Having a bad day today. For some reason Dom is unsettled and isn't keen on napping and consequently the 101 things I needed to get done today have been put on the back burner...oh well....

However, my day has just been cheered up by the arrival of some new stock to drool over - Noro Silk Garden Lite. It is just yummy! The colours are just so gorgeous, they are impossible to describe. It makes me want to stop what I am knitting right now and knit myself a gorgeous little jacket for Spring. I particularly love this shade - Lilac, Brown and Green - all my favourite colours in one little ball...

Liliana's Last Minute Lace Scarf

Why do I do this to myself? After my mad Christmas present knitting, I said never again. But here I am, end of February in the same situation!

I found out on Tuesday that it was a friend's birthday today (she kept it very quiet), so I decided to drop my current project (very secret squirrel) and knit her a quick gift.

I decided on a romantic lacy scarf from the brilliant book "Last minute Knitted Gifts" by Joelle Hoverson, and instead of using Rowan Kidsilk Haze I substituted Crystal Palace Kid Merino Plain which comes in a range of gorgeous colours (all in stock at http://www.cafeknit.com/kid_merino_plain.php). I plumped for this rich aubergine colour as I know Liliana has just bought herself a jacket in this colour, despite mainly favouring black..

So I set to work on Tuesday morning, completing a fair bit of the scarf whilst waiting at the Dr's for Dom's appointment for his first set of immunisations, finally finishing it last night at about 11pm, when I should have been tucked up in bed.

I'm really pleased with the finished result and the bonus is that there is plenty of yarn left to make another scarf, and possibly even a third! Excellent value....

I am going to give Liliana her gift tomorrow morning. Lets hope she like it too....and for now it's back to the secret project I'm working on!

Cafe Knit Critters

Don't ask me how I have found time, but here is my first attempt at amigurumi. I came over all romantic on the 13th and decided I had to make Mike this 'Lovebird' (looks rather like an overstuffed Robin if you ask me) for a Valentine gift.

Anyway, I finished it with an hour to spare and it was then promptly commandeered by Milly, so I ended up spending the early hours of Saturday morning making Milly a pink one.

Having said that, they were great fun to make, and I can see our house becoming full of strange creatures. Next on the list is a pig and a panda....

B-Day

Today is the day little Dominic was supposed to be born, but already he is nearly three weeks old. He is doing really well, is more alert and has started to put on weight, we just need to clear the jaundice up now. Recommendation for that is plenty of sunlight, but for now we are making do with daylight...



He is already getting into the swing of knitting. Here he is clutching at the supersoft Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk Aran I am currently knitting into what will be a fabulous 'nursing' cardigan for myself (one side of the cardigan extends over the shoulder as a wrap, which I thought would be very discreet...)

I can't wait to get my hands on the new PolarKnit yarn from Canada we have just ordered. Made from 100% Polartec fleece, it'll be just the thing for making chunky hats and scarves for this cold weather...

New Beginnings

It's only 3rd Jan, and already its been a rollercoaster beginning to 2009, starting with the unexpected early arrival of our baby boy, Dominic, who chose to make his dramatic entrance to the world on Boxing Day, 4 weeks earlier than anticipated. Thankfully despite this all is well, and we are gradually settling back into a 'normal' routine, and sorting out all the baby things that we thought we'd have time to organise during the first two weeks of January!

Here is baby Dom at 1 day old, wrapped in a supersoft baby cashmerino blanket knitted for him by Nanny.