So why knit a jumper, or make anything else yourself for that matter?

I'm not going to lie to you, the wool alone for the jumper I am knitting cost me in excess of £50! I know it's ludicrous right. Thankfully I justified this as a Christmas crafty treat to myself, but it's certainly not something which I could afford to do on a regular basis.

It's not just this project, but a lot of the wool companies out there charge quiet a bit for a ball of wool. This is usually a result of the wool content used, where you will generally find that you pay more the higher % pure wool the ball contains. You can usually get a cheaper alternative wool, something which contains a higher acrylic %, or if you are savvy you can sometimes find a bargain on discontinued colours, or the last of a certain dye lot. It is worth doing some research on alternative options if money is an issue for you. 

Then you need to take into consideration the (wo)man hours which have to be put into a knitting project, and not to mention the sweat and tears when you make a mistake and have to undo a chunk of your hard work. 

The same can be said for a lot of projects. Things which people used to make by hand because it was cheaper, has very much switched itself on the head. I think the biggest reason for this is how 'throwaway' fashion and clothing has become. You can buy clothing for next to nothing these days, and as trends are moving on so quickly it seems to be catching on as people can move from one fashion to the next at little cost. I wonder however, what the real economical and ethical cost of this is. 

Lets start with the cons of handmade, and try to end on a positive note shall we

Cons:

• Cost - often higher than the highstreet for materials (but not always)
• Time 
• Mistakes - lets face it, sometimes things don't quiet work out as planned
• Skill - not all of us are good at everything, and you might need to learn a new skill

Pros: 

• Style - usually only limited by your imagination/ability
• Self satisfaction
• Quality - usually much higher when handmade 
• Ethos - often using locally sourced materials or patterns from independent retails, and not shipped half way across the globe
• OOAK - finished result is one of a kind and completely unique to you
• Gifts - are far more personal if hand made

So I think that whilst there are some obvious and quiet significant cons, the pros are far more positive and far out way the cons. I personally don't think I will ever go off the idea of making something for myself where I can, just because I love the sense of achievement I get from it. If you are not someone who is creative yourself there is always those talented crafters out there who sell their wonderful high quality products online for your delight. 

And so knit begins...

...I'm so sorry for that!

Last week I put up some of my small, but hopefully achievable, resolutions for 2014 and one of those is to knit a jumper, and one that I will hopefully wear. Well there is no time like the present, and knowing how long it takes me to finish a knitting project I have jumped straight in.

One of my Christmas gifts was a copy of Kim Hargreaves Enchanted and the sweater I plan to knit from this is Longing. I have a slightly scary obsession with Kim Hargreaves knitting books and I own about 5 or 6 of them (see I have lost count). I have also NEVER completed a knitting project from any of them. That's quiet bad really isn't it, but I am just drawn to these books. The pictures are so enticing and the quality of the books is amazing. On top of that the patterns are all items which you could actually wear on a day to day basis. They are classic but also stylish at the same time. I also have a bit of an obsession in that I would always rather knit in Rowan than anything else. Maybe that makes me a yarn snob i'm not sure? I will tell you something though, it does make any project a very expensive one. The Kim Hargreaves patterns all use Rowan, though you can of course substitute for other yarns as long as you check your gauge.

So I purchased some wool for the project, 5 balls of Kid Classic in Rose, and 3 balls of Kidsilk Haze in Blushes. It turns out blushes was a lot darker than I expected, and as this pattern calls for you to knit two strands together I was not sure, but after knitting up a swatch I actually like the way this makes the kid classic a bit more of a deep dusky pink than a candy type pink.

So I have made a start and cast on the back, mostly knitting this in the kitchen at work during my lunch break. I really really hope that some point this year I can turn this into my first successful completed sweater from a Kim Hargreaves book. Fingers crossed, and I will keep you updated on its progress.

Finally on a couple of side notes: my Ravelry ID is Monstermagic if you would like to add me, and isn't the heart fabric gorgeous! It's a scarf that I was gifted for Christmas from my mother in law. I love the colours, so pretty. 
 

A Crafty Christmas

It's all over :( but it's not time to wallow...

It's time to start thinking about the year ahead, the things you want to achieve, the people you want to see and what to enjoy. As well as this, for those of us that are still enjoying a break from the everyday grind it's time to spend some time enjoying those lovely gifts which our kind friends and families bestowed upon us.

I have been very lucky this year and so am writing this post to you from my brand new iPad (I really do have a far to kind husband) but I couldn't be happier. I really want it as a place to write the blog from, read other blogs, collect magazines (where they won't clutter up the house!), collect recipes as well as obviously the odd game and or movie. 

But this wasn't the only awesome gift I received, I got some beautiful jewellery as well as some craft items. I got some knit pro circular needles which I just adore. They are so useful as you can just untwist the needle from the string bit, that must have a proper name?, and add a new needle size. I have also started doing a lot of my straight knitting on. Circulars as they are much easier than having big long needle hitting you, or the cat, whilst you are knitting. I also got a new Kim Hargreaves knitting pattern book as I have a real hankering to make Longing so I can't wait to head out to my local yarn shop and get this cast on. Let's see if I can finish a jumper eh. 

I also really must sew up a nicer little case for these bad bouts, the plastic is a bit icky.

So put your feet up, relax, enjoy those gifts and think about the year to come. 

I Joined the Christmas Jumper Parade

So its all gone a bit mad on the old Christmas Jumper front, and you can't turn round in the shops without seeing one either for sale, or one already on the shoulders of the person stood next to you. Now I am not saying this is a bad thing, I love a scandi jumper and wish I could knit one myself, however there are some truly tacky versions out there as well.

 

Anyway, being as Save the Children, Costa, as well as many other places have been naming 'Christmas Jumper Day', and work are almost insisting on it as a uniform as part of the last week of work, it only seemed polite to join in. Of course I was not just going to nip to primark for a cheap one was I, not when the opportunity to applique one presents itself.

So here we have my Christmas reindeer jumper styled on my own Christmas tree decoration design, complete with woolly pom pom nose. It is just machine sewn on to an old jumper using fleece fabric so anyone could give this a go.

Are you styling a Christmas jumper this year? If so, what have you gone for, traditional knitwear, large prints, or are you donning your own DIY version? I would love to know.

Quick Edit: How well timed was this post after Patrick's applique reindeer on GBSB! 

I Blinged My Jumper!

Yes that's right, look at the pretties! I thought it might feel a little more festive to have a sparkly jumper, and lets face it, this is much more fun than a plain old black one don't you think?

I originally wanted to pom pom it, but I couldn't make small enough pom poms which would be secure enough to go through the machine. That might be a job for another day if I purchase some multi coloured manufactured poms. I was also going to bling the whole jumper but decided after a small section that I really just liked the chevron pattern in it so left it there.

The jewels have a little hole in the top and bottom so they are sewn on rather than glued as I thought this would be more secure option. They key to this is to buy a cheap jumper, and mark out where you want to place the jewels before sewing them on. I used tailors chalk and a ruler and marked out a diagonal pattern before I started sewing and this made them pretty even.

I will try to get a picture of me in the jumper, but Mr Fox is not the best photographer and so it may take many attempts, especially as I won't see him in daylight now for another week.