Blue

My favourite colour is red, but there has been a lot of blue in my life recently.

I knitted a simple blue cowl from a single ball of Lang 4-ply (fingering) baby wool that I found in the sale bin. It was such a pretty colour and all on its own.

The stitch pattern forms a pretty texture.

The wrong side of the knit looks nice, which I think is important when it is likely to be visible.

The cowl pattern I used, ‘Sea Oats Serenade’, is small rather than loose and drapey, but it works perfectly to create the effect of a polo neck (or turtleneck) and keep your neck nice and toasty. It will fit most women, except those with very solid necks, and it is a good pattern to use up a single 50-gram ball in a pretty colour. I think it will work well under coats and is the right size to wear as an ear-warming headband. I have not decided whether this is for me to keep or give away.

Late last year, I finished my first embroidery project, which was started soon after I joined my local embroidery guild and took a class in Deerfield embroidery, a style that is influenced by crewel stitches but uses mostly shades of blue. I joined the guild and started working on this in 2016, so it is lovely to have it finished. I used the summer break to give it a good wash and iron.

Before this, my embroidery skills were very, very limited. I still have much to learn, but it is a good start.

The teacher drew the design for us.

This is my first embroidered piece since childhood.

Yes, I am brave enough to show you the back, which is not bad for a beginner.

The embroidered cloth coordinates nicely with the spare room curtains.

It looks nice with blue and white china.

I also knitted a baby cardigan. Yes, in blue!

The pattern is the ‘Rosebud Cardigan’ from Erika Knight’s Simple Knits for Cherished Babies. I bought the book second-hand at a library sale, and then I realised that I had to knit quickly if I was going to making anything from it for Lachlan before he grew out of it. The largest size in the book is for 6–9 months.

The cardigan looks like a classic, simple shape.

The back is plain.

Of course, because I like a challenge, instead of doing it the easy way and just following the pattern, I decided to knit it in one piece to avoid seams. The only part I sewed was under the arms, where I grafted a few stitches of the sleeves to the body. My notes about how I modified it to knit it in one are on my Ravelry page.

I also took a close look at the first pair of socks I made, which were for my grandfather back in the mists of time. (At least 20 years ago, probably more. Pop passed away in 2008.) I found them in the bottom of my grandmother’s wardrobe when she moved into the nursing home. My feet are about the same size as Pop’s. Why do I not wear them? Aha! That would be because of the many, many holes in them. Granny must have set them aside in her cupboard for repair, but I think they are beyond repair.

The big hole in the toe is only the most obvious of many, many holes.

I am also working on another blue UFO: a Liberty cushion. I just finished hand quilting the front, so I hope to have it sewn up and ready to share in the next week or two.

After that, I will need a colour change.