happy new year

Thanks for all your birthday messages, I had a really nice and relaxing day. My HH got me the yarn and pattern book, and I started straight away on Haven. Heartfelt is a beautiful book, very inspiring, I thought I would just make Haven but several other patterns have jumped onto my queue.

I really like Haven so far, I think this might actually be something I've knit that I get a lot of use out of. A lot of my other projects haven't really made the leap from well-loved to well-used. It knits up quickly of course, with 8mm needles, but surprisingly feels so light, not bulky at all. I'm using Rowan Cocoon in Bilberry, which is lovely and soft. So far I've done this much....



So did anyone else get some novelty yarn from well-meaning but clueless relatives? My in-laws rather sweetly bought me this horror....Schoeller Stahl Big Ball Funny...as you can see it looks like I've skinned a soft toy : )




Luckily I knitted this swatch up while they were visiting and they saw the funny side, so won't be expecting me to make and wear the shawl pattern given on the label.

Finally, its time to make New Year resolutions, mine are all knitting/sewing related...

1. To knit things this year that improve my wardrobe, ie things I will actually wear and don't look awful
2. To knit something really nice at least once a month (haven is my january knit)
3. To design my own sweater, and then actually write a pattern and knit it
4. To learn a bit of real dressmaking, and make myself a pretty dress

Happy new year everyone!