I have been so ill recently

I haven't even had a chance to talk to my friends so even thinking about knitting was way in the back of my mind.  But my mum has been so kind and helped me so much to finish off all my christmas presents so that's one worry out of my mind. 
I have a new love for marble wool.  It's so nice to knit with and not know what colour combination is coming next.  I just hope that everyone likes their gifts.  I've added a hat to the bottom of this post that I made for a friend to give as a gift.  The pattern for this is already on my blog/ravelry page.  People have actually started offering to pay for items which is brilliant too!
Now I'm not sick anymore I can get back to my challenge of knitting a pair of those fingerless mittens with the fold over mitten top!  Wish me luck :)

I wrote a pattern for Gryffindor Mittens yesterday!

I must say they turned out fab!  That's another Christmas present ticked off the list!

Happy Knitting!

Difficulty

This pattern is easy, but a little tricky for beginners.

Materials

Yarn: Chunky/Bulky – 100g Burgundy, 50g Mustard

Needles: 6 and 7mm straight needles

Notions:  tapestry needle

Gauge

17 sts / 25 rows = 4” in stocking stitch

One size available – Adult

Ravelry Download
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I have been a busy bee lately getting ready for Christmas.

I've barely put my needles down to pick up my computer.  I've knitted bottle cosies, tea cosies, mittens and my latest endeavour is a lovely cable hat!  I've knitted this hat before, so it only took me a few hours to do, albeit those few hours were over the course of a few days once my work commitments took over.  I'm just glad I have my knitting to keep me warm on these cold winter days!


The pattern is available as a free download on Ravelry and is by Patons.  It is knit with chunky wool and takes about 100g altogether.  The notes for the pattern are as follows:




"No need for circular or double-pointed needles as you knit this tri-colored hat flat and seam it up the back. Seaming technique video tutorial link in PDF. (Patons Yarns)

Patons Shetland Chunky 
(100 g/3.5 oz; 136 m/148 yds) 
3 colors, 1 ball each: 
Contrast A Oxford Grey (78046) 
Contrast B Steel Blue (78105) 
Contrast C Soft Teal (78209)

Sizes 5.5 mm (U.S. 9) and 6 mm (U.S. 10) knitting needles 
Cable needle

Worked flat. Seam and add Pom-Pom to finish."

My hat (the picture at the top) is knitted with a chunky marble wool but I cannot remember the brand of this wool!  It is really easy to knit and the best part is it is knitting flat so you don't have any bother with circular needles!!  The first one I did (pictured below) is knittedin two different grey yarns, both super chunky.

Let me know how it goes for you!

I found these super cute christmas-esque wine cosies!

I am in Christmas overload at the moment because normally I'd have nearly finished my Christmas shopping and I haven't even started.  This is the first year that I've actually attempted to knit presents for a lot of people so I just hope they go down well.  I really want to knit at least a few of these.  

They are wine bottle cosies with a draw string at the top.  They would be perfect additions to presents, especially to spruce up that wine bottle gift and they are so much nicer than the general bags that toy see so often.  I know these require a little bit more effort but in my opinion they are so much better.  I'd be delighted to receive one of these for Christmas!

The pattern is available here.  It is called Winecozy and is by Jennifer Carter.

It is knit on straight needles and is a great way to use up some of those scraps of wool in your stash!  You only need 50g of wool and some extra colours for embellishments.  

I, for one, cannot wait to try this!

Radio silence for the past few days!

I have been torturing myself writing a pattern for a pair of really adorable mittens.  It's taken me so much longer than I expected because I first started off knitting fingerless mittens, then decided I wanted to knit full mittens.  I just altered my pattern slightly to make it longer and have a rounded top but then I didn't like how it was with just plain knitting, so I redid it again with moss stitch.  It looks great with the moss stitch but then the positioning of the owl wasn't centered anymore so I had to perfectly align it!  Finally, I finished the pattern for the right hand, reversed it for the left hand.  All I have to do now is knit two matching mittens and I'll be able to post the pattern online!  Hopefully I'll have that done midway through tomorrow because at the moment all I have are 3 mismatching mittens, which to be fair, I wouldn't actually mind wearing together.

My next project is for Christmas Presents!  It's a really cute tea cosy I found on Pinterest.  It's shaped like a beehive and is a perfect way to brighten up a dull old teapot.  I'll update you on how it goes once I finally finish my mittens and buy some more wool!

I'm always uploading new patterns onto my ravelry!  Head on over and see!

Grandma's Wheaten Bread Recipe

This is one of the best wheaten breads I've ever had, it's got a doughy texture, is so dense and tastes perfect when you toast it and smother it in butter.  My grandmother used to make this for us when we stayed at her house and we could never get enough of it!  Always arguing over who gets the last piece.

The recipe my grandma used was slightly different because she used to just throw a handful or two of each in.  She had made it so often that it just became second nature to her.  We didn't get the chance to get the actual recipe from her but this is as close as we could get.  

Time: 15 minutes prep; approx. 1 hour cooking time

What you need:
2lb loaf tin
Metal tablespoon + teaspoon
Scales
Mixer
Measuring jug

Ingredients:
500g wholemeal flour
3 tablespoons plain flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 tablespoon salt
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
300ml butter milk
300ml water

Method:
Mix all ingredients together until well combined

Put into a well greased tin (I use a 9.5in(24cm) square tin and I also line with baking paper)

Bake on middle shelf of oven at 170 degrees c for approx. 1 hour

It will sound hollow when cooked if you knock the bottom when you turn it out.


Let me know how this goes for you!  I'm sure it will be super tasty!

Knit a Diamond Cable Headband!

This is  lovely little headband that you can utilise your beginners cable techniques on.  It only has 20 row of 24 stitches each so it shouldn't take you very long at all!  I knitted two of these in a few hours as a present for my mam.  This is knitted length wise so it does knit up very nicely.  It means if you want to add colour or stripes it would be easiest to do it vertically but I tend to keep it pretty plain because of the pretty cable design!

What you need:

Less than 50g of chunky or super chunky wool

10mm needles (US size 15)

Knitter's sewing needle

Pattern:

Cast on 24 stitches.

Row 1: K3, P1, K2, P4, K4, P4, K2, P1, K3
Row 2: K4, P2, K4, P4, K4, P2, K4
Row 3: K3, P1, K2, P4, Cable 4 Back, P4, K2, P1, K3
Row 4: K4, P2, K4, P4, K4, P2, K4
Row 5: K3, P1, Cable 3 Left(PKK), P2, Cable 3 Right(KKP), Cable 3 Left, P2, Cable 3 Right, P1, K3
Row 6: K5, P2, K2, P2, K2, P2, K2, P2, K5
Row 7: K3, P2, Cable 3 Left, Cable 3 Right, P2, Cable 3 Left, Cable 3 Right, P2, K3
Row 8: K6, P4, K4, P4, K6
Row 9: K3, P3, Cable 4 Back, P4, Cable 4 Back, P3, K3
Row 10: K6, P4, K4, P4, K6
Row 11: K3, P3, K4, P4, K4, P3, K3
Row 12: K6, P4, K4, P4, K6
Row 13: Repeat Row 9
Row 14: K6, P4, K4, P4, K6
Row 15: K3, P2, Cable 3 Right, Cable 3 Left , P2, Cable 3 Right, Cable 3 Left, P2, K3
Row 16: K5, P2, K2, P2, K2, P2, K2, P2,  K5
Row 17: K3, P1, Cable 3 right, P2, Cable 3 Left, Cable 3 Right, P2, Cable 3 Left, P1, K3
Row 18: K4, P2, K4, P4, K4, P2, K4
Row 19: K3, P1, K2, P4, Cable 4 Back, P4, K2, P1, K3
Row 20: K4, P2, K4, P4, K4, P2, K4

Cast off in pattern.

Now you've got another pretty piece to keep your head warm this winter!  (Sorry for the potato quality)

Happy Knitting!

Click the button below to download the PDF FOR FREE.
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Knit your own little pumpkins just in time for Hallowe'en! (or Christmas Baubles!)

Hey!  Here's a really easy pattern to knit a ball.  It's knit flat so even better, no need to fish those pesky double pointed needles out.  I'm an lover of any thing that can be knit flat.  I find DP and circular needles so difficult to work with.

I used this pattern to knit cute little pumpkin decorations to hang up and give as gifts for fall and halloween!  It also works really well for Christmas decorations or gifts too.

What you need:
3.75mm needles
DK wool - less than 50g
Stuffing
Knitter's sewing needle

Terminology:
K - Knit
KFB - knit into front and back of stitch
K2tog - knit next two stitches together
SSK - Slip next two stitches onto needle, knit next stitch and pass slipped stitches back over knit stitch.

Pattern:

Cast on 8 stitches
R1 - KFB into all stitches - 16 stitches
R2 - P to end
R3 - K1, KFB; repeat to end - 24 stitches
R4 - P to end
R5 - K2, KFB; repeat to end - 32 stitches
R6 - P to end
R7 - K3, KFB; repeat to end - 40 stitches
R8 - P to end
R9 - K4, KFB; repeat to end - 48 stitches

Now, Knit 6 rows evenly, this is the prime place to add colour!

R16 - K1, SSK, K1; repeat to last two stitches, K2tog
R17 - P to end

Repeat these two rows until you have 16 stitches

Final Row - K2tog to end

Cut wool and sew seam, leave enough room to stuff.  Once stuffed sew up remaining seam.  

I sewed a cute little face on my pumpkin after I was done with the seam and then added green wool to hang it with!

Knitting a really simple reversible hat!

I was always knitting my hats from the same pattern, so when my friends and family wanted me to knit them a hat they were always getting the same and I wanted to spice things up.  For this pattern I use 10mm needles and chunky wool but sometimes, if i want different strands throughout I use three different strands of DK wool.  I knit this on straight needles, although you can use a circular needle if you don't want to knit a seam, I just cannot work with circular needles at all!  It's also a great way to use up left over wool!
I don't knit this based on a specific amount of rows because the wool can often end up knitting differently and I rarely swatch before I begin!  Feel free to comment if you need any advice but it really is pretty simple!

Time: Short
Effort: Easy
Size: One size, but you can add/remove stitches to suit.  It's pretty flexible.

What you need:

10mm needles (US size 15)
Two different coloured balls of chunky wool - 50g for rib, 100g for main body.
Scissors
Knitter's sewing needle

Terminology:
K- Knit
P - Purl
s2togkpo - slip the next two stitches one at a time onto the needle, knit the next stitch, pass the slipped stitches together over the last stitch.  This forms a leaning double decrease.
K2tog - Knit next two stitches together.


This pattern is now available on Ravelry!  
or click on this button to buy instantly 

good old fashioned no-bake cheese cake

I thought I'd start off my blog by uploading an old family recipe that has been passed down through a few generations.  It's really simple, takes about 20 minutes to make and then you need to leave it to set for at least half an hour, so really I'd normally give myself at least an hour.

You will need:

Equipment:
23cm tin with removable base
Whisk - Hand or Electric
Blender or Rolling Pin

For the base:
250g of digestive biscuits, or alternative
100g of soft butter

For the topping:
600g of cream cheese
2 small pots of yogurt - about 100g
284ml of whipping cream (approx a small pot)

Method:

First, break up the digestive biscuits using a rolling pin or blender until there are very few lumps.  Melt the butter in a pan and then add the biscuits to the butter and mix.  Once the mixture has come together put into a cake pan with removable base.  Leave the base in the fridge or freezer to cool and set for about 10 or 15 minutes.

Then, whip the cream using an electric or hand whisk until stiff.  Add the cream cheese and yogurt and stir until entirely mixed.  

Once the base as set pour the topping into the cake pan on top of the base and evenly spread over.  Place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

When you are ready to serve add a topping of crushed maltesters, fruit pieces or anything that will compliment the flavours of your yogurt!  

Now your cheesecake is ready to eat!  

Bain sult as!