Yikes! I'm sorry we've been quiet for so long. It goes that way when we have our heads down focussing on getting the next big thing ready. If you follow us on Instagram, you'll know that we have had our heads buried in the proofs for the new book which will launch at Edinburgh Yarn Festival in March (the photo above is the one we shared over there). Our family situation means that we can only work while the kids are in school, and sometimes there just aren't enough work hours for everything that we would like to do, so blogging falls by the wayside.
Anyway, I'm popping in today, as I've been making great progress on my knitting projects. I've cast off a heap of things in the last few weeks, which means that I'm all set to be casting on for my Oorik tank top, bang on schedule, next week. I'm hoping that a few of you will be joining us in the final official monthly knitalong* for A Year of Techniques. Sobs. I can't believe we're there already!
A reminder of the original colourway for the Oorik Tank Top by Mary Jane Mucklestone. J&S Shetland Supreme in 2006 for the background and Jumper Weight shades FC15, 9144 and 66 for the patterning.
Hot off my needles are a pair of Dave Socks that I cast on as a post-book project when A Year of Techniques was all complete. I knitted them in a Zauberball, and they've sat in my handbag for the last few months getting a few rounds done here and there. I put a heap of knitting into them just before Christmas, and they have barely been off my feet since. I do love the colours of Zauberballs, and I dare say it won't be long before I cast on for another pair...
I completed two work projects that I can't properly reveal to you at the moment, but they have taken most of my knitting time for the last 4 or 5 months, so it was a real milestone to get them all done and photographed.
And then most recently off the needles was my Yellow Wagtail scarf, designed by Sarah Hatton for AYoT. This was such a quick knit once I picked it up and started working on it. The Shetland Aran Worsted is a joy to knit with, and it has blocked out BEAUTIFULLY in the cable pattern. I'm thrilled with how it looks, and I hope that its intended recipient will also enjoy it.
So my attention has turned to Oorik... I tipped out my stash of J&S 2ply Jumper Weight, in the hope of discovering some potential colourways...
A selection from my bag of left over J&S 2ply Jumper Weight.
I'm not a mega-confident colourway creator, so I started quite close to the original, just swapping out the pink (9144) to a heathered purple (133 mix), and switching the Shetland Supreme (2006) for Jumper Weight 203.
J&S Jumper Weight from left to right, shades 66, 133 mix, FC15 and 203
I like this combination a great deal, but I'm in a more green-blue place at the moment, so I tried moving things round a bit and came up with this...
This combination is similar to one of the kits we set up in our online shop (click on the photo and it will take you there). In this version the FC15 blue has been switched to FC34 mix (a heathered turquoise), which is one of my all-time favourite J&S shades. So from left to right the J&S Jumper Weight shades are, 28, FC34 mix, 29 mix and 203.
I think that combination is likely a winner for me, but I carried on playing to see what else I could do...
As long as I don't want to make one of the larger sizes, I could probably squeeze out an original colourway from what I have to hand.
And that was pretty much the limit of what I could knit with yarn in my bag of goodies. But I was still in the mood for looking at possibilities, so I raided the shelves of the online shop (whoops!) and came up with a pink-purple colourway which I'm quite tempted by...
From left to right these shades are, FC50 mix, 72 mix, 133 mix and 202.
I have both a niece and a nephew who would get good wear out of an Oorik, so now I need to decide who I want to knit for, and which colours they would most enjoy. You'll have to pop back next week to see which of the options won!
Are you planning to join us and try out steeks in your knitting? February would be a great month to take the plunge if you haven't tried them before. We will be chatting away in the A-C Knitwear group on Ravelry, and there will be plenty of folks around if you need some advice as you knit or cut!
*The knitalong threads will all be remaining open, and we hope that as people dip in and out of the book over the coming months that they stop by the threads and share what they are working on.