Alice Jean

There are many possibilities to get rid of scrap yarn. Like making toys or other small things. Some people are using it to knit the Fishy Blanket or the Lizard Ridge . Morgan is working on a 'I must be crazy' project and is making a Sock Yarn Blanket It took me a while to decide what to do with all that scrap yarn in my stash. With sock yarn I knit baby booties or socks for Dory or I send it to Morgan. However, I could not part with the DK and Aran. Many of it is hand dyed, most of the yarn is used to knit baby and toddler clothing. All the yarn has some kind of its own history. So I was looking for a project. I like the fishes, I like the Lizard blanket. But they have one drawback in common: there is a lot to knit and does not have a lot of variation. I was looking for something more variable and, if possible, not to much to assemble afterwards. A few months ago I received a lovely swap package of Christien . In there was a book full of knitting patterns, in fact all blocks

A pair of socks for Dory, made with the leftover of the Stansfield Pennants and a bit of the second ball of that yarn. I must confess not to be entirely pleased with them, they don't fit very well. Instead of the short row heel I did the heel-flap heel and that part turned out too high. Next time I'll make the heel-flap shorter. The gusset will be less then as well, but that won't be a problem.

It is not a habit of me to point to blog contests, but I'm pleased to make an exception for my friend Darcy. She managed to ramble 200 posts together (I'm far far behind) and celebrates this with a great contest . Please check it out, there are some fabulous prices to win!

When I saw the postman near the village hall today (well, actually yesterday since it is past midnight right now) and he told me he'd left a parcel at the front door, I hurried home. Not easy when having a daughter with a head full of other plans like 'I want to go to the playground, I want to buy some sweets at the Coop, let's go to Chester...' Anyway, the parcel was from Darcy . Filled with yummy yarn, a ribbon pin and some delicious tea. The postcard is just gorgeous! For Dorrit there were tiger stickers and, oh lucky day, she got herself also a sweet! You are looking at Noro, Noro silk garden, Malabrigo Melilla and Silky Malabrigo party pink. And of course the Starbucks tea, the ribbon pin and the cute postcard. Can you spot the three differences? :-) Darcy, I had to take this photo especially for you. The young lady was convinced you'd like that very much, LOL! Thanks so much! I feel truly spoiled!

The wool I used to try this out was the veggie O'Wool from an earlier post. This wool is absolute not suitable for children's clothing, but it will be useful for scarves or bags. I'm not sure what to knit with it yet, I'm leaning towards that popular Clapotis right now, especially because it is said to be a no-brainer to knit. The oranges are both dyed with Madder root, the darker is fixed with citric acid, for the lighter one I used alum. The blues were not meant to be all blue. One of them was dyed with Logwood, dipped in Indigo. It was supposed to come out more purple, but it did not. Another one was originally green, dyed with Weld, dipped in Indigo. It really was green, until I decided to fix the Indigo with citric acid - it turned into blue. Bad decision, never too old to learn. :-) The other three are blue as they were supposed to be. Well, I am pretty content anyway.

Blue Kiwi Tango Aran BFL, size 2-3 years. 'Sorbet' Aran BFL, size Small Aran BFL purchased from Jimmy Riddles . size Small

The yarn came from me, Darcy did a wonderful dye job and returned the dyed yarn. I knitted a pair of socks and they are now on their way to California. The idea for this pattern is from More Sensational Knitted Socks I got in the Caffeine Addicts swap . It is barely visible due to the colourful yarn, but the leg part is done in the Stansfield-16 stitch. These are the completed socks. The upper foot is the Pennant stitch pattern. Again not very clear. :-) Nevertheless, it was fun to knit them. I hope they'll find a good home.