Wishing you a peaceful day filled with joy.
As November rolls around, my usual habit is to commit myself to one or several of the infinite challenges proposed during this month. Typically I fail spectacularly. So this year, with the pressure of Semester 2 exams, and an upcoming trip East to plan, I have committed to the following:
Nothing. Zip. Nada. Zilch.
That’s not to say there won’t be knitting in the revision breaks (and even during the revision; c’mon, I need something to make Constitutional law exciting.) At the beginning of the month, Minty set up the Vestvember knitalong on Ravelry and Flickr. Seeing this as the perfect opportunity to get a whack of my Dad’s birthday present done, I’ve swatched for and cast on his Dr G’s Memory Vest. There’s no pressure with this one; even though his birthday is in early December, I’m holding onto both this and my Mum’s present from September until April next year, when they will be in Perth for a visit.
So, what about you? What are your plans for November? Are you setting yourself any challenges, or just taking it easy?
As of this morning the raffle is closed and all winners have been notified by email. If you donated, but haven’t had an email from me today, then I’m afraid you haven’t won anything this time round. Thank you to everyone who donated – thanks to your generosity, we raised the incredible amount of $4,200! That is a fantastic result, and was made possible in large part by your raffle donations.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
As promised, here are the final two raffle prizes: these are pretty darn sweet, so if you haven’t put in your donation yet, maybe these will tempt you into action.
Prize #28: from The Woolshack
When I asked Emma at the Woolshack for a donation to the raffle, I was kind of expecting a voucher, or at best a skein of something lovely. So imagin my surprise when this ginormous package of goodies landed in my mailbox! Emma went absolutely above and beyond: we have two pattern books (Purelife Cotton from Rowan and Simple Crochet from Erica Knight); two Lexie Barnes pouches; a cute little knitted purse kit; and several extra little notions. What a fabulous prize for one lucky winner!
Prize #29: from Ewe Give Me the Knits!
Not only did the lovely Mandie from Ewe Give Me the Knits! give a generous donation to the Cancer Council on our behalf, she has also donated a $50 voucher to the raffle, to be spent on the incredible fibre and spinning accesories sold through her shop.
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Make sure you get your donations in and your email to knittersforacure AT gmail DOT com by 11.59pm Perth time TONIGHT! Happy Hallowe’en!!
Despite the fact that I have so much on the needles that I needn’t start a new project for the rest of the year as I wouldn’t have a spare moment anyway, when the opportunity arose to test a new pattern from Kirsten Kapur of Through the Loops fame, I jolly well jumped at the chance. Kirsten is a designer whose work I classify as ’simple’: not because it is dull in colour or design, or because the patterns are easy, but because there is something so wonderfully pared down about her work. It is elegant, while remaining fun and vibrant. I actually have two more of Kirsten’s patterns on the needles at the moment: this year’s Mystery Socks and the Dr G’s Memory Vest I’m working up for my dad for his 65th birthday.
“Miller’s Hat” combines so many good things in one wee project: cables; herringbone; built-in earwarmer; garter stitch; and, of course slouch! You start at the back and work the earflap section of the band, increasing as you go, before casting on the remaining stitches. Once you’ve worked up to the top, you then pick up stitches for the garter stitch border, which really tidies up the bottom of the hat.
A word to the wise: I worked this on the recommended needles and was convinced that it wouldn’t be big enough for my head, which isn’t hugely bigger than the stated size. I may have doubted Kirsten’s sanity for a moment there, for which I can only apologise. If you’re getting gauge, you’ll be fine; soldier on, dear knitter.
For this version, I used the leftover skein of Cascade 220 I had from the Vine Yoke Cardigan (it’s done, just needs buttons, or something – we’re having issues.) and love the fabric this produced on 4.5mm needles. For my next one, because there will be a next one, ho yes!, I’m planning to use Mmmmmmmalabrigo and 5mm needles for the main body, to give it that extra touch of parisienne insousiance.
Just a reminder: we have a mere 29 hours until the raffle closes. Remember to check out the raffle page for all the details on how to donate and where to send your entry email. There are two more fabulous prizes to come tomorrow morning, so keep an eye out for those. Thanks to your donations, we’ve smashed through our revised goal of $4,000!
Thank you for supporting our team. We had a grand time, despite the aches and pains, and are already planning for next year…!
I completely meant to post before we left for the Relay, but I was so frantic I forgot to. We had a great time – I took a few pictures, and will do a proper post tomorrow, but for now: more prizes!
Prize #25: from Mandy
A set of beautiful glass-beaded stitchmarkers made by Mandy herself.
Prize #26: from Helen
Five sets of lovely handmade clay buttons that Helen made.
Prize #27: from me
As we’re rapidly entering the holiday gift-giving season, I thought I would ease the load for one knitter by offering, with the permission of the designer, Kate Davies, my version of Kate’s sweet & wonderfully silly ‘Dollheid‘ tam. Knit in Wensleydale Longwool 4ply, this tam has a beautiful sheen & a soft drape.
Thank you for keeping those donations coming in – I’m so happy to announce that the team has smashed through our increased goal of $4,000! This is all down to your generosity; thank you so, so much.
I shouldn’t really have been surprised. After all, knitters are a notoriously generous bunch. So when we sailed through $1,000, I shouldn’t have punched the air in joy. When we belted past $2,000, I should have known that there would be more to come.
This afternoon, your generosity and your support took us to our original goal of $3,000. All of us in the Knitters for a Cure team are more grateful than you can ever know. We couldn’t have done it without you.
But it doesn’t end there! We’ve set a new goal of $4,000, and we need your help to get there. Remember, the raffle is open until 11:59pm Perth time on 31st October, so if you haven’t donated, please do so before then. You could stand a very good chance of winning some seriously sexy loot.
Once again: thank you for supporting Knitters for a Cure. Your donation will make a huge difference to the lives of cancer patients and their families here in Western Australia.
My mate Molly is a master spinner. A Meister Spinner, in fact. So when she called me and offered to donate some of her handspun to the raffle, I jumped at the chance (after I’d finished jumping around the room like an overly-excited wallaby for ten minutes).
Prize #22:
“Songbird” :: merino/tencel plied from Ewe Give Me the Knits with white alpaca :: 209 yds
Prize #23:
“David’s Duets” :: polwarth from Southern Cross Fibre :: 218 yds
Prize #24:
Molly also donated this gorgeous 4oz of SW Merino from Ewe Give Me the Knits.
With all the yarn-and-ting going on around these parts of late, you could be forgiven for thinking I’d abandoned my spinning friends. Pas de tout, mes amis: today’s prizes are perfectly appropriate for those of us who aren’t content to simply buy yarn -
Prize #20: from Angeline
This gorgeous spindle is incredibly special: handcrafted by Angeline’s father from reclaimed timbers, it weighs 56g, so would be a fantastic prize for a beginner/advanced beginner spindler. Scratch that; it’s pretty much perfect for anyone who loves to spindle. Angeline sells these under her Shellakabookie label.
Prize #21: from Jacqui at Spinning a Yarn
Pretty much the heart and soul of the Posh Knitters group on Ravelry, Jacqui is one of the most generous and wisest souls I know. Bitten recently by the spinning bug, Jacqui recently branched out with her own etsy store, Spinning a Yarn, where she sells her handdyed yarns and fibres. Jacqui has generously donated one very lucky winner a choice between 100g of handdyed yarn or 100g of fibre, including her delicious custom batts. Here are some examples of the delicious creations Jacqui has come up with:
