Merry Christmas and a little update.

My blog is now in its second year and celebrating its 3rd Christmas. So its time for a little reflection and update. 

Skiing in Chamonix

My first year of blogging was full of excitement and a rush make new stuff and post on my blog. The second year has been much slower. This year has also been a year when i have moved around a lot, first to Chamonix, then to Lyon, then to Scotland and Shropshire and finally to London. 

I started off the year living i Chamonix, France and with no access to a sewing machine, so i had turned to knitting. I designed my first pattern the Chamonix Head - Headband (Raverly link) and knitted my first pair of socks. In February i started a travel blog, which i had fun keeping for the first part of the year, until i went to Scotland and could not get regular internet.  

In the spring i knitted the Lyon Cowl, which i have virtually lived in. 

Being Blown in the Wind, Scotland

In Scotland all blogging and crafty stuff ended, as i was working ridiculous hours. Despite lugging my sewing machine all the way up to Scotland on the buses and trains. 

Then in October i left Scotland and visited Shropshire for one month. This was a crafty month. I knitted three hats (here and here), nearly finished a jumper, sewed a Sureau dress and made a ton of lace jewelry (most of which i did not blog). 

Then i moved to London.

The future

Not my picture. Link

The future for my blog looks a little slow for the next 6 months, because i have a new project i am working on. I have decided to go self-employed. I have spent the last 2 months, doing planning and research, and even taking a self-employment course. My plan for now is to open a market stall, in a London market. Selling? Err Probably jewelry and accessories for now. I would love to sell handmade jewelry but i don't believe my skills are up to making it. 

The stall is going to take a few more month to sort out. I believe that January is a bad month to start in retail. Also i am a perfectionist, so i would like to scour every part of London and the UK for the best stock. So, if anybody knows where i can pick up any cool accessories at reasonable wholesale prices or can offer me advice, i am all ears. 

So i have big and exciting plans, but experience tells me that life happens when we make big plans. So, well see what happens, maybe something better!

Tayberry Hat

This is the Tayberry Hat by Cirilia Rose, such a crazy hat! I love it. This is the last of my finished projects from October. I have a couple that i have not quite finished yet, namely a second Arleen.

The main part of the Tayberry Hat is a two colour start stitch pattern. Despite looking complicated its an easy pattern to remember, but a pain to rip back. The hat looks great but i found it best to scrunch up the end a little, or it looks a little two boxy. I might run some stitches on the inside to make the scrunching more permanent.

My ravelry notes.

Sewing Post!!! The Sureau Dress

Well this was my main project for my October break. The Sureau dress by Deer&Doe.

As soon as I first saw this dress, about a year ago, I knew that this was the dress I was looking for. Only, I also knew that I was not going to have time to make it before I went the France. I dreamed of sewing this whist in France, but soon realised that finding a working sewing machine was going to be too difficult in Chamonix.

When I went to work in Scotland, I dragged my sewing machine all the way up there, along with my luggage on the bus. I ordered the pattern and fabric but, realised that I was not going to have time to make this and do a good job between shifts. But I took the month of October off work and went to stay at my parents, where I finally completed my first Sureau.

It was not the most ideal situation to try to sew in. There is very little space and I had to complete it in small chunks, whilst my parents were out. So one sewing session went something like this:-

• collect my sewing stuff from the spare room,
• unpacked all on the living room table,
• sew for 15 mins,
• pack it all back up again and restore in the spare room.

It took me nearly 3 week working like this to produce two toils of the bodice and the final dress.

The final dress is very wearable, unlike most of the dresses which have come before. I decided not to make any hacks on the pattern, and went online to order a dark blue chambray (one of the recommended fabric). I had not done any sewing in such a long time and my projects usually fail due to poor fabric choices, so following the pattern seemed like the sensible thing to do.

The only alterations I made was to grade the pattern from a size 40 on the bust to a 44 (and a bit) on the waist, and added 2 cm to the bodice. If I was to make this again I would not lengthen to the bodice. The pattern is actually good as it is, it took me two toils trying to guest where alterations would be needed to realise that I just needed to expand the waist.

These photos are very over exposed, the dress is actually dark blue. I took them in a hurry as I was getting ready to leave for London. I tried darkening the photos as much as I could, but any more the colours get really strange.

So I am now in London, staying in a 15 bed dorm whilst I try to find a new job and somewhere to live. I am really hoping I can land my self a good job quickly. I have been pretty lucky with jobs over the last year. I think my best policy is not to except a job which I know I am going to hate, I don't want to go back to factory hell, any time soon.

Grace Lace Beret and Lattice Hat

Having this last month just to chillax, has been so good for me. I was feeling so incredibly tired, just being able to sit and knit, crochet and sew for a month. I have started ticking off my sewing and ravelry queue's, it's been so good. I am at last starting to feel like myself once more. Its not going to last long though, i have to find a job and somewhere to live. I can't stay here forever. I don't think the parent/daughter relationship could survive me becoming a permanent unemployed lump, knitting on my parents sofa.  So i am off to London tomorrow (still, we see if i can put that off for a few days) and then start the mammoth task of finding employment and accommodation in a new town. Its exciting starting again, but i do wonder how many more starts i can do it. 

Grace Lace Beret

This is the Grace Lace Beret by Elizabeth Eisenstein. I first tried this pattern last year, which frustrated me so much as i could not get the cast on right and always ended up with the wrong amount of stitches. Eventually the hat was frogged and forgotten. But browsing ravelry, i was still attracted to this pattern, so i decided to give it a second try. 

This time around i had absolutely no problems, i abandoned the crazy cast on in favor of a double banded rim and the rest of the hat just few off my needles in one evening. 

Lattice Hat

This is my favorite of the two hats, Its the kind of winter/sporty beanie that i usually wear. Though it does look abit like a Turkish Fez in my photos. It's the Lattice Hat by Sarah Arnold, the pattern worked out well, once i figured out what i was doing. I had never done Front Post Double Crochet (fpdc), Back Post Double Crochet (bpdc) or Lattice Treble Cluster (LTC) before, and i found the pattern quite complicated to follow. However once i got the hang of the stitches it all came together nicely. 

For both of these hats i used up one of the many balls of cheap acrylic that i had in my stash. I am really starting to hate the feel of acrylic, but i have so much!!!

Lace and Pearl Bracelets

So with being back at my parents for a few weeks, i have been knitting and crocheting like mad. Most of what i have been crocheting has been 'experimental' and will probably never see the light of day on this blog. But i did make these bracelets, which i love. They are made from leftover cotton from the victorian collar, i made last year. I am thinking that i might put some of these up for sale in my Etsy shop. My last attempt at selling on Etsy failed after i had limited internet access over the summer and could not maintain it.  But before i can even think about that i need a job and somewhere to live. 

So i am heading to London next week, with the hope i can cash in on the so called economic recovery and get a job. I have not given up on the thought of going back to the Alps, but after a summer of extremely hard work, my back has nearly broken and i don't think i can recover in time for a winter of making beds and scrubbing floors. So i am looking for less back breaking work than hotels for the time being. 

Resurrecting Old Ethel

Last year before i quit my job and moved away. I rode my bicycle to work everyday. A 14 mile journey each day.  I did this for 18 months, no matter what the weather, down some of the worst roads possible. So i was relieved to stop, and throw poor old Ethel (i named my bike) in the skip. However my mum stopped me and stored the rusty Ethel in her garage. Now i am staying with them for a few weeks, it makes me so happy to be able to ride my bike with nowhere to go. 

Lyon Cowl - My Most Useful Item Yet!

When i decided that it was freezing cold so i should knit myself a cowl, i felt that i was wasting my time. It was late April and the weather in Lyon, France had unexpectedly turned to snow, and student services had turned off the central heating, because you don't need heating in April and May, do you? Only the week before we had been basking in 25 degree heat and i had thought it appropriate that i hack off the legs off my jeans. Oh i am so regretting that decision now. It's been far too cold for cut off jeans, and i have just had a pair of jeans stolen from the dryer, which means i am now down to one pair of ill fitting jeans and a holey pair of leggings. 

So i knitted up this cowl with a ball of yarn i bought on my trip to Geneva. The yarn is Calura by Four Season Gruendl.  The cowl was very simple, i just cast on an even number of stitches, on 7mm circular needles, and knitted in seed stitch until the yarn ran out of yarn. I did not bother to count the stitches, and was convinced that the cowl was going to come out a horrible size. However once it was finished, it turned out to be exactly perfect.The colours in the yarn are a little more subtle than i would usually buy, but i actually quite like them. This is actually one of the most grown up items i own and wear. I think that this should be a hint for future yarn and fabric buys, we'll see. 

On another note its a new job and a new location for me from next week. I am heading to Scotland, somewhere close to Ben Nevis. So now i am desperately hoping for some sun before it is too late. The forecast does not look good though. 

New Hat - For Shop

A new hat for my shop. I can't see that i'll be posting much about my shop as lets face it, it is a pretty boring subject. But at the moment having my own Etsy shop is all new and exciting, so bear with me. This pattern is the same as the pink and purple stripy hat, only i did a different configuration of strips. Its 100% merino wool so its really soft and warm.

In other news i have decided to stay in Lyon for another month. I will be carrying on with my french course, in the hope that eventually French becomes a second language. Then i am going to need to move on. France becomes really expensive over the summer, so i am either going to need another live-in job, or to go back to the UK to work. I am really hoping i can find another live-in job as awesome as the one i have just come from. As i find live-in work is the best way to save up money for more travel, whilst experiencing somewhere new. I wish i had more news, but i have been studying hard as now i have to pass a test to move up to the next french class.

Reinventing for Summer - Jeans to Shorts

Refashioning clothing has never been a thing of mine, despite some really inspiring stuff on the net, see here. 

Desperate times. So now i am in Lyon and my ski season is well and truly finished, and i am left with a suitcase full of heavy winter clothes. Usually i would go, hooray  great excuse for a shopping trip, but i am really having to watch my penny's. So i have now got to turn a jumble of old warn winter clothing into fantastic summer outfits. My mind is well and truly boggled at this task, i haven't just left my sewing machine at home, but my sewing kit and probably a lot of my sanity. 

My first task in this quest has been to hack the legs off these jeans with nail scissors, cringe. I chose these jeans because i have had them for over two years and they are starting to wear at the crotch, therefore i can't see them lasting much longer anyway. I cut them just bellow the knee, so i could roll them up over the knee. In an ideal world i would probably add a couple of stitches to the roll ups to keep them in place, ill do this if i come across a needle and thread in the future.

The result: i actually really like them now, which is a bit of a relief, because i was expecting them to look a mess. I have been wearing them all day and the roll ups have stayed rolled up and in place, which i was not expecting. I also own 4 long sleeve tees, i am hoping i can do something similar to them, and hack off the sleeves, but as of yet i am holding out for a better solution.

Welcome to My Etsy Shop

So its funny how plans never go as planned. I just need to remind myself that its the journey itself that's important and not the destination. These last few weeks have really demonstrated just that. I mentioned a few weeks ago that my time in Chamonix was coming to an end, but the truth is, events conspired against me and i ended up leaving early. So i decided to go to Lyon and study French. The course i wanted did not start for two weeks, so i went to Nice, France to hibernate and recover for a few weeks first. 

Suddenly having 2 weeks unexpected down time followed by 4 weeks part time study (with no spare cash) got me thinking, What am i to do with all this spare time?

So i decided to work on one of my life goals, that is that i would one day like to work for myself. I have uummmed and aarrrred over the various businesses i could run for many years, and still don't quite know what it is that i want to do. Starting an Etsy shop selling crochet accessories was an idea i had back in 2011, but dismissed the idea, as i would have to put too many hours into it and get very little out. But i have come back to this idea now, because my circumstances and experiences have changed. This is almost the perfect little side line for me, now i am traveling/working intermittently.  In the long term i don't think that crocheting hats and gloves is some thing that i could live off forever, but its a stepping stone to my larger goals for the future. I will get experience running my own little business, and hopefully make a bit of money to keep me traveling longer.

And yes i know that i am starting a 'hats and gloves' shop in spring. I figured that by the time i am properly organised, built up an inventory, and have figured out just how to sell these hats that it will be autumn anyway.

So i decided to activate my Etsy shop that i opened in December 2011, but never made anything for. I have called the shop KnottedRose (traveling crochet). I want to keep the shop simple, simply because i am traveling and if i get involved in long complicated projects, i run the real risk of traveling with a suitcase full of UFOs. Which is baggage just i don't need. 

The weather in Nice and Lyon has been pretty dismal (i am writing this in a thunder storm), so i have had plenty of time to design the hats and gloves i wanted to go into my shop. Its funny how much effort goes into designing items that appear to be quite simple. I wanted to get the shape and fit perfect and to also make simple easily easily repeatable products. So i can make them again and again, if i need to. So i spent the first two weeks of my business plan, just designing my first four items. Now i have the patterns, have repeatedly tested them, and feel confident that i can make them in a reasonable amount of time. 

I launched the shop. Welcome.

Crochet Terms, American or British?

I am a self taught crocheter. I learnt via YouTube and taking books out from the library. I was very aware in the beginning that British and American terminologie was very different, in that we use the same wording for different stitches, very confusing.

I can remember thinking more in terms of American terminologie in the beginning, so just thought that i would always use American as my go to language. Then last week i wrote a pattern of sorts and posted it on my blog. It has now only just occurred to me that i used British terminologie. I think this turn around in my thinking has occurred because i have read and used quite a few vintage British pattern in the last year, e.g. the blue berret, and the Victorian crochet collar. 

So now i have to discide what to do. Do i keep using British termanologie or revert back to American?

In favor of British is the fact that i am British, and any books or old patterns that i come across will nearly always be written in British.

Then there is the Beast which is the internet, which i do love. Where mostly American is used and the American to British split of my readers is about 2:1. 

Source: http://knotsewcute.blogspot.com

As a side note, there is also the issue of my spelling. Obviously i used British, but i read so much American i know that there are words that i spell the American way, but i don't even realize and spell checker often changes my Britishness to American without my permission, despite ticking all the right boxes. So that's in a hopeless Mid-Atlantic place as well. I could never convert my spelling totally to American because there i so many words that i am unaware that are spell differently.

So, should i change my crochet terms?

Ben Nevis Crochet Camera Cases

So this is the last project from the French Alps. My last few weeks in Chamonix were very stressful and there was a lot going on, most of it not good. I found nearly not enough time for knitting and crochet, or even skiing. It was really struggling to finish any knitting project i started, and was getting really frustrated at myself.

But i work in cycles, as as one cycle ends another starts. I think that this is the end of my current knitting phase, and i have moved on to a new crochet phase. My last major crochet phase had me frantically hooking up granny squares like a crazy woman. This time my mind seams to be focused on more simple solid items. I can visualize me hooking up hats, headbands and mitts, in more simple double crochet. But i am probably imagining completing more than i ever will.

My first crochet project in this phase, are these little cases, for mobile phones and cameras. The inspiration was a camera case that i made several years ago after i bought a camera on a trip to Scotland. Once i bought the camera, the sales man tried to persuade me to buy a case, but i had just learnt to crochet, so was eager to make my own. I went in search of a yarn store, i found a John Lewis with a haberdashery and bought a hook and yarn and hooked it up on the train to Ben Nevis (highest mountain in UK). This case was starting to look a bit battered, so i hooked up this new one with the chunky Phildar (Partner) yarn that i bought in Sallanches.

The pattern is really simple (slightly modified to give a better finish)

• Row 1: Chain 14, DC into second chain and then double crochet (DC) in to each chain (13 stitches), turn work.
• Row 2: Chain 2 then DC until end of work, turn work.
• Repeat row 2 until work wraps around the camera (or phone) and overlaps by 1 inch, turn work.
• Decrease row 1: DC until 2 before end of row, then decrease last 2 stitches. Turn work.
• Decrease row 2: DC to end of work. Turn work.
• Repeat these two decrease rows until there are 8 stitches remaining.
• Now decrease both ends of work.
• When there are 2 stitches remaining make a chain of 6 stitches, then slip-stitch into the next stitch.
• Sew in ends.
• Sew or crochet up sides.
• Add a button or make a crochet button.
• Pull camera strap through fabric with a crochet hook.

Once i had finished this little project ,and it only took me an hour so. I made two more with the same yarn only in sport weight, i made these for my mobile phone and work phone. This little project was the therapy i needed after a needlessly hard couple of weeks.

Yarn Shopping in Sallanches, France

I am trying to make the most of my days off work and visit some of the out lying town and villages around Chamonix. Its a shame that you can't chose the weather, because my day off managed to fall on one of the worst weather days this winter. Nevermind it did not dampen my determination to get out of Chamonix for the day. So i took the train to St Gravais and then on to Sallanches. Sallanches is one of the larger towns in the Chamonix valley, and it is good for shopping, especially if you are looking for stuff other than ski wear. I had heard form locals that there is a yarn shop there, so i thought i would check it out. 

I hit the internet before i went but found out very little. I did find this little yarn store though. 

Phildar
75 rue du Mont Joly, 74700, SALLANCHES
Website: http://www.phildar.fr/magasin/phildar-sallanches.r.html

The store is very small, and mostly carries a small selection of clothing. Along the back wall of the shop, they stock yarn. They have a good selection of yarn within the Phildar brand. They also have a small selection of Phildar knitting patterns and buttons. I could not see any knitting needles or other knitting tools for sale. Before i visited this store i looked them up on the internet. The picture they have on the Sallanches page is very misleading, as the store in the picture is much larger than the one found in Sallanches. So when i was looking for the shop i was looking for more in the way of a big department store, but instead found this small shop. Overall the yarn was very reasonably priced and they stock a lot of the plain wool that i like to knit with, so it's worth a return visit.

Any way here are some more images of a very wet town in the French Alps.

New Travelling Blog - Girl must eat...

Back in December when i posted my One Year Old post. I gave myself some vague New Years resolutions. One of them was to start posting about my travelling adventures. I really wanted to do this in a new blog, as i want this blog to be purely craft based. Well it did not happen.

However, one of my new house mates is so overly over the top and passionate in talking about restaurants, spas and hotels that she has visited. She is the sort of person, that will swerve to the wrong side of a road to get a better look at a restaurant that she has never seen before. We live in a very touristy area, so this is a problem. That at first it really put me off starting another blog. As i could noway be as passionate as her. 

I think if she could write as nearly as well as she talks about these things, then she should have a really successful blog. So to encourage her in this, we have started a blogging competition. She has started a blog called  Gone, Seen, Done (she has yet to start posting) and i have started a rival blog called Girl must eat.... Who ever has the most hits when we leave wins. I've got no idea what the prize might be.

So from now on i am blogging on two fronts, my crafty self and my traveller self. I really hope that this does not get in the way of my knitting, but this should be fun. There are so many places to visit, locally that i can write about. And i find that i am more focused and enjoy these things more, when i write about them. So this should be good for me too.

I have put a new tab up top, so if you would like to read it you can, but i wont bore you with the details of my travel life otherwise. Like wise we will see if i can not mention knitting, sewing or crochet on Girl must eat... But that might just be impossible.

Yarn Bombing a Ski Lift for Valentines

Meredith form One Sheepish Girl is hosting another yarn bombing day for Valentines. This one is heart themed, called Sheepish Heart Bomb! I knew i had to take part, and i knew just what i wanted to do as before i had finished reading the post. 

As i am living the dream life, in the land of ski. I knew that i had to yarn bomb a ski lift. I yarn bombed, the Le Crozat, ski lift in Chamonix/Les Houches.

This is my first time yarn bombing, and i was very nervous  I did not tell my friend (pictured in the red jacket) what i was planning, until just before. Being a none knitter and never hearing about yarn bombing, she did not understand. It came a bit of a shock to her when i whipped out my hearts and started tying them to the cross bar of the ski lift. She had a good laugh though, mostly at my expense. 

The hearts looked so good. I as today is valentines day, i now have a image in my head of a loved up couple getting on the Heart Chair, and holding hands as they ascend the side of Mont-Blanc. I really hope its appreciated.

We did a return run down a different piste to the same ski lift and i was luckily enough to spot my yarn bombed chair for a second time. 

I made 8 crochet hearts and joined them using chain stitch. Then i added yarn top and bottom of each heart, so i could quickly attach the string of hearts to the cross bar and take photos, before i had to jump off the ski lift. I also took the yarn clippers so i could quickly neaten my work.