Flower Cushion, KN Issue 60

So the latest issue of KnitNow hit the shops yesterday, do you have your copy? did you spot my Flower Cushion Pattern?

It would usually be a perfect pattern for Spring but with this crazy weather we are having maybe we should still be on winter theme knits, its crazy that a few weeks ago i was posting about our long walk and then these past few days I've woken up to snow on my car and had to dig my winter coat back out!

Anyway hopefully it wont last much longer, im ready for some nice weather, weekend walks, al fresco eating and eveining fire pits.

But if you've not had chance to pick up your copy yet, here it is, my Flower cushion pattern, this photo is one taken from the magazine and i have got to credit Dominic Crolla and Daniel Walmsley for the fantastic photo,

The cushion is knitted using Cygnet Superwash yarn, its a yarn i have used for a few patterns including my his and hers childrens pajama cases and my love a hug bear, its such a good versatile yarn. it comes in such a good range of colours too and it very resonably priced!

If you fancy giving this pattern ago then a have a few tips to help you get a good finish, the first one is the joining, there is nothing worse than spending so long knitting the piece but then rushing the joining, not done properly can really detract from the qulity of the finished piece. So with this in mind make sure you use the matress method to join the sides. Matress stitch is a very commonly used join and is perfect for joining two pieces of stockinette stitch, it is usually used on jumper seams etc.

Matress Stitch Instructions:
You need to pull the two pieces together I always use stitch markers to hold them in place

using the bar you will find inbetween the edge V, heres a photo to hopefully show you what i mean;

And here you can see the finshed effect;

Attaching the Petals:
You should have no issues following the instructions with in the Magazine for the joining ofthe petals but if you are more of a visual person you may find these help;

So once you have all 5 petals and you have threaded the yarn through the stitches you need to thread the yarn back through the first petal

Then place this over once of the flower centers and pull tight - VERY TIGHT to make sure it is secure and can't be pulled off.

If you have a go at making this i would love to see your photos, you can either link your project to this pattern in ravelry or if your on instagram, use the hashtag #owlinstitches

Thanks!

Making My Winter Warmers Was A Hoot ;)

My owl set is complete! What do you think?

 

I am so please with it, it is just what I wanted, I think the buttons I picked for the eyes suit the wool really well and they are so soft and lovely to wear! And completed just in time as apparently the weather is now going to get a lot colder. I have listed patterns for both on Craftsy.

 

I also did a quick and easy chunky knit hat but I was a little optimistic and the chunky wool has not gone as far as I had planned! I will need to get another ball to finish it off with a big bobble on top! Because it was Chunky wool it was super quick to knit up and only took me a couple of hours, it is a perfect quick knit for Christmas gifts and once the bobble is done I will get the pattern listed so keep an eye out on Craftsy.

 

As well as my winter warmers I have been working on a cross stitch!! I can’t say I am the biggest cross ‘stitcher’, to be honest this is the first one I have done in about 14 years!! But I could not resist the pattern, a friend of mine had completed it and it looked so festive! Here it is in progress you can pretty much tell what it is, my plan is to have it framed in a vintage style gold frame to hang above my fire place during Christmas! (73 days to go!)

 

After having September off we have got back in to the wedding planning too! Next on the list is flowers, centre pieces and church decorations we met a lovely lady last week to discuss what we want it was great because we didn’t actually know, she has given us lots of ideas and her work was fantastic!!

 

Oh and I must just tell you about a Pub I went to last Saturday for lunch; The Black Swan – it was a lovely county style pub and the décor was fab, very Kitsch!! Unfortunately I didn’t get any pictures when I was there . . . I was too busy talking but if you are ever near Swettenham I suggest a visit! The food was gorgeous too!!

What a whirl wind 4 weeks!

What a whirl wind 4 weeks . . . our wedding is now booked!!

 

After lots of searching we settled on our venue and luckily it was free on the date we wanted and so was the Church so its set 25^th May . .  .NEXT YEAR!!! Just under 11 months away! Now its straight in to hunting for cars, entertainment and of course the Dress!! I don’t know where to start so have decided I won’t . . . not until after my holiday anyway J

 

All this wedding planning has meant the knitting needles were swapped with scissors and a pritt-stick to make our save the date cards but I was able to design a flower pot baby hat and a cute owl egg cosy and I

have put the pattern for this on the blog for free – check out the free patterns section which I will keep adding to! Would love to hear from you if you have a go at knitting any of my patterns!

 

I still have on my to do list to write up the patterns for the various hats I have made and will hopefully get round to these soon!

 

Since putting the ring on my finger J it’s been a real hectic time and it’s not going to stop, in a couple of weeks we will be having a party for my Fiancés 40^th at our home where we plan to give out our save the dates (I am sure Ad wants to do this to take the focus of his age J ) and then the week after we are off to celebrate his birthday in style in LAS VEGAS, so excited! This will be our second trip there we just love it!  

 

I may go for a couple of Vegas inspired knits next . . . . watch this space