It dawned on me this week that, apart from the Endpaper Mitts, I have never knitted a single pair mittens or gloves. Of course, there were the ill-fated Winter Garden mittens which just proved that I don’t have any colour sense, but they’re the exception.

It’s certainly not due to a lack of suitable patterns. I have Knitting New Mittens and Gloves, as well as a copy of the much sought-after Mostly Mittens by Charlene Schurch. But as I’ve also been gifted some very lovely mittens in the past as well, it’s never been very high on my list of priorities.

Then, earlier in the year, I chanced a peek at Diane’s copy of Selbuvotter: Biography of a Knitting Tradition. This book follows the story of the beautiful Norwegian mittens and gloves and contains over 30 patterns adapted from original mittens and gloves. I love the simplicity of the black and white colour scheme - no chance of me messing that up! - and snaffled my own copy of the book a few months ago.

So lots of mitten patterns, but no completed mittens. And then last week, Winter came. It took everyone by surprise, I think, as we dashed out in the week to buy winter coats for the small people who are never quite small enough to fit into the previous year’s coats. I realised that fingerless mitts just weren’t going to cut it this year, and my fingers needed to be warm as well.

After a quick stash dive for some RYC Cashsoft 4ply in black and cream, I started my own pair of Selbuvotter. These are the niftily titled NHM #7 mittens (Ravelry link). This pattern was my favourite when I first looked at the book, although now I have about a dozen more.

I am not particularly happy with the job I did of picking up the stitches for the thumb (marked with a big red ring just so you can’t miss my ineptitude). It looks messy, though I’ve neatened up the looser stitches and closed the holes. But as these gloves are for me, rather than a gift, I’m not going to stress over it, but try to make the second one neater.

I’m halfway up the chart for the second mitt, so hopefully the weather won’t get any colder before I get the chance to finish the pair!

The decorating has taken a brief rest, only for the living room floor to now look like this:

which is the fallout from the three Lego sets that smallest person was given for his birthday from various people and he is now putting together. Lego Indiana Jones is apparently assisting the Lego Agents to fight some unnamed Bad Person.

In the meantime, I’m progressing nicely with the Beth scarf I’m knitting for my Grandma’s Christmas present. The pattern is only four rows and it’s easy to get into the rhythm of it and knit a few inches of an evening. For a change of pace, I unpicked the provisional cast on and knitted the first border. The scarf is looking really pretty now, and it’s an enjoyable knit.

And the yarn is really lovely. It’s not shedding, spit-splices easily and just goes on and on and on..! The lightness of the angora means that you get a lot of metres for your money. I might actually not finish the second ball right up. My Grandma is 5′1″ tall and I don’t think she needs a scarf that hangs around her knees!

Add together an army of Dalek cookies…

…a plate of caramel crispy cakes made with melted Mars bars…

…and Malteser flavour cake covered with Maltesters, and you have sixteen happy children, sent home to their parents full of sugar.

(All recipes from Feast by Nigella Lawson)

Back in the summer-that-never-was, Erssie asked me if I knew of anyone who could knit a sock sample, and somehow I ended up volunteering myself. Time constraints meant that I could only manage one, but I finished, sent it off, and have been waiting ever since to see it in all its glory.

Photo: Stevie Savage/Raid Zero

The pattern is now available here on The Anitcraft website. It’s a brilliant pattern: the stranding is only on the legs, so it’s not too tricky if you’ve never knitted stranded socks before. I’m planning on knitting a pair next time. Even if I never wear skirts to show them off to the world, secretly I’ll know that I have skeletons dancing around my legs…

Pattern: Swallowtail Shawl by Evelyn A Clark, first published in Interweave Knits Fall 2006, and now available for free from her website
Yarn: Wollmeise Sockenwolle 100% Superwash in “Vergißmeinnicht”, 108g - got to love the generous size of the Wollmeise skeins!
Needles: 4mm Prym circs

I had resisted the lure of the Swallowtail pattern for some time. I’d admired Diane’s for a while, but with plenty of other shawls to knit it wasn’t high on my list. Then Kay and Kai finished theirs in quick succession and I suddenly got a real urge for nupps.

This shawl is made extra special by the yarn I used - the one skein of Wollmeise that I bought before everyone went loopy over it and now you can’t get a skein unless you have ninja website stalking skills. Which I am too lazy to try to attempt. This skein has been sitting in my stash for a year, with the occasional petting, waiting to be used. I realise that I could have probably sold it for a stupid amount of money on eBay, but I can’t help feeling that yarn is meant to be knitted and enjoyed, rather than hoarded just so that I can say I have a skein of rare yarn. Anyway, being made into a shawl means that the yarn will be seen and have a lot longer life than if it was worn on the feet. Sadly, the colours just don’t photograph well. The yarn is a blend of blues and teals, but it looks almost solid in the photos. So you’ll just have to trust me when I say that it is shimmery and jewel-like.

The pattern was the usual Evelyn Clark masterpiece. Beautifully written and clear and not a head scratching moment to be had. And a quick knit, easily completed in four days. Like Kay, I don’t see why a new lace knitter couldn’t knit this shawl. The only really tricky manoeuvre is the p5tog for the nupps, and that’s not hard, just fiddly. I found using a 2mm needle to purl the stitches together worked best for me.

I really like the size of this shawl and think it’s very wearable, though this one is destined to be a Christmas present. Does anyone have any recommendations (other than Icarus, which I already have my eye on) for triangular shawls of a similar size? I could knit smaller versions of patterns such as Forest Canopy or Matilda or Flower Basket, but I like the different pattern elements in Swallowtail. Maybe I need to sit down and see if my designing mojo can help me with this one…

Pattern: Whitney’s 70s Ski Hat by Whitney Van Nes
Yarn: Cygnet Wool Rich Aran (75% British wool, 25% polyamide) in Dark Grey #44 and Black #2066
Needles: US8 Denise Interchangeables

Finally got Mr B to do a modelling session. The pattern is perfect, not least because the end result is a hat that he will wear once the weather gets colder.

I modified the pattern somewhat, as I mentioned in a previous post. The lining was reduced to just a hem and my tension was looser to accommodate a bigger head. The striping was reduced to just a couple of black stripes and the whole effect is a little less festive than the original design, but more suited to someone who is very picky about their headgear.

The yarn I used is brilliant. It’s only a basic wool/nylon blend, but it is incredibly soft and knits up beautifully. The nylon content means it is hardwearing and machine washable too. For the price, it’s a real find. I’m planning maybe a manly jacket in the same grey now… *plots*

No photos today. I have finished projects to share, but as every movement I make is followed by a cloud of dust, I’m not taking a risk and getting my knitting out! This time last year, we were in the middle of redecorating downstairs, and a year later it’s almost as bad all over again. Add to that water dripping through the ceiling on Sunday night due to a broken pipe, meaning that half the floorbaords are up while it gets fixed, means that Gypsy Towers is not the most relaxing place to be at the moment.

Though on the plus-side, we now have lovely smooth walls - and it’s truly amazing how much pleasure a person can get from a perfectly flat wall..! But I’ll be painting for hours on end yet again once the plaster is dry, so knitting just has to wait. Today’s excitement includes shampooing the carpet. I can’t wait…