Ishbel and baby cardigan

My finished Ishbel, it looks fine until you get to the bottom rows where it all went to pot! I haven't taken close up pictures of them!! I am wearing it with pride though, mistakes and all. It's still the most complicated piece of knitting I've done so I am still pleased with myself for giving it a go. Next time I knit this pattern (there will be at least one next time as my mum has requested her own for Christmas, probably two as I want one too!) I'll be using lifelines after every pattern repeat, counting carefully and possibly using stitch markers between repeats. I did rush this one because I had initially chosen it as an olympic project and my thoughts were a bit along the lines of to hell with mistakes, I need to get this finished. Next time there will be less rush (I'm hunting for the perfect yarn for my mum when I next get paid and will be starting her Christmas gift around June to make sure it's done!!) and I can relax and enjoy the knit. I do think the pattern is fab.






Currently on my needles is a little baby cardigan. My cousin is having her third baby in September and it was unplanned and unexpected so she doesn't really have anything and didn't keep anything from her previous two children. My mum and I are rising up to the occassion, we both have a fair amount of baby yarn in our stashes bought for little gift knits and so we are on cardigan making duty. It's just fine, I cast on my current cardigan on Saturday evening and have already knit the back and two sleeves. I was amazed both by how quickly it went and rather by how tiny it is. I haven't seen a newborn in a while, people in both mine and my husband's family have had quite a few babies in the last few years but the earliest we've seen any of them was at about 6 weeks old and that was a few years ago so I'd sort of forgotten just how teeny tiny newborns are. I'm knitting 0-3 months cardigans and have been cooing a bit over the little tiny sleeves and such. I have a picture of my progress so far:



I intend to knit maybe another 3 cardigans after this one in the first size and will try to knit a couple more in the next size up as well. They're so quick and easy and it's good practice for seaming and knitting button bands and collars and such. Plus they're oh so cute!! She has her 20 week scan on Friday and is currently trying to decide whether or not she wants to find out the sex, she already has a boy and a girl so isn't really bothered what gender this baby is but it might be nice to know for yarn selection purposes though for now I have plenty of yellow, green and white with flecks of brown and blue in so it's just fine either way.

My second Monkey sock is progressing quite well, it is slowed by my new obsession with knitting for the baby and by the knitting of my own cardigan but I am working on it on the bus and whenever I get spare minutes. I have an appointment for a blood test this afternoon so hopefully that will be delayed and I can get plenty of knitting done in the waiting room!! I am 1.5 repeats from knitting the heel flap, I may finish them this week.

It is my birthday in just under 2 weeks and my wonderful husband instructed me to go on www.getknitted.com and put together an order for whatever I wanted as part of my birthday present. I am very happy with this arrangement though the yarn ban does still stand. I have ordered some more tips for my knitpro options needles so will have almost a full set apart from the very large needle sizes which I haven't bothered with as generally I don't knit on anything over 8mm and I do have some bamboo and plastic needles in large sizes should I need them. I may pick up those sizes to fill my set in future of course. I also ordered some sock blockers, more for displaying socks for photos than from an actual need to block socks and also a few patterns and some little bits and pieces. Exciting! I have been assured there will be other presents but to be honest I am completely happy with my choices anyway.