The Knitterman

16/04/2024

https://fb.watch/ruvdTwx-fP/?

08/03/2022

Passed Level 1 of my Master Hand Knitter certification

18/02/2022

https://youtu.be/z8dlV-rO05g

The history of the Fish Dock, home to one of Britain's largest fishing fleets during its heyday, and the story of the community whose bravery, skill and sacr...

16/02/2022

Lately of an evening I have been relaxing by slipping into something lacey (knitting you understand 😜) Many years ago I inherited this large cone of unidentified thread. I knew it was synthetic and quite strong - so I decided to hang onto it thinking it might be handy for some adventures in lace ( I know what a wild life I lead 🤪)

In dragging it out of the back of the stash I noticed a small label inside and wondered if it might yield some clues to its dna? Turns out that it’s a thread called Diolen and has similar properties to Kevlar. It’s still made and nowadays is often woven up into a fine fabric that’s used in reinforcing fancy composites. It’s UV resistant and highly abrasive resistant.

Fisherman’s Iron - ha. The future is stab / bullet proof lace knitware.

I’m thinking I might need to do a table cloth (pic 2). Now I just need to find someone with a circular table that didn’t know they needed a piece of fine knitted lace to make their life complete.

29/12/2021

https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/19645115.rare-knitting-stick-display-dales-countryside-museum/

On until 27 March, 2022

A RARE collection of knitting sticks dating back hundreds of years has gone on display at the Dales Countryside Museum in Hawes.

24/12/2021

https://www.eastangliayarnfestival.com/

East Anglia’s new fibre festival, bringing 60 amazing exhibitors to Norwich for the first time in 2022. Dates: 26th & 27th March 2022Location: Holiday Inn, Cromer Road, Norwich NR6 6JAOpening Times: Sat 10.30-5.30, Sun 10.30- 4.30 Tickets go on sale 22/01/2022 Meet the Vendors Find out about a.....

17/09/2021

https://shipwreckedmariners.org.uk/photography-competition/2021s-ultimate-sea-views-revealed/

The Shipwrecked Mariners’ Society is delighted to announce the winner of its ninth annual photography competition, showcasing images relating to all aspects of the UK’s historic relationship with the sea. This year, the charity’s annual competition received more than 1,500 entries from amateur...

24/08/2021

It’s arrived 🤩

09/06/2021

The Shetland 3ply swatched out quite nicely although is weaker than I would like. 9.5 SPI on 2.25 needles (LH swatch) 11.5 SPI on 1.25mm needles (RH Swatch - yes this swatch is bigger than the LH one - I cast on and knitted more as I wanted to get a feel for it before I committed). Went for the 1.25. So that’s a 460 stitch cast on for a 510 final. Took 3hrs to cast on.

How to join without a twist? Two tips. 1. As you cast on avoid bunching - this causes twisting. 2. Anchor the first stich - I used a quilting clip. If the first stitch isn’t anchored it just starts spining away when your not watching it!

I think the yoke is going to be Polperro seeds and bars into a variation on the theme of Polperro laughing boy. At the moment after a double yarn cable cable cast-on it’s a 3 x 2 rib. It’s for a former Shetland resident that now occasionally sails pass me on the East Coast here.

As the cricket was on radio last week I couldn’t resist heading down to the bird hides again for some quite knitting. Fortunately the wife also likes cricket and bird watching - what a gal 😉

30/05/2021

The Felixstowe Gansey swatch is coming on nicely. The RH needle indicates where we are on the chart. It has been a little slow as life has been a bit distracting. Not least because I have been chasing a parcel of yarn for two new Ganseys since late Feb! It’s quite a lengthy story with quite an array of characters and includes the surprise discovery that PayPal consider a delivery as “successful” if it’s anywhere within 10 miles of your address! I kid you not. However it has led to some interesting conversations and the meeting of another lovely knitter. Amazingly I managed to get both the vendor and PayPal to reopen the case and as if by magic my yarn turned up first thing Saturday morning.

Now I’m distracted swatching it. One of the yarns is a Navy blue Shetland 3ply (described as super soft - 😆 - I guess that’s in comparison to a Brillo pad), and is swatching up rather nicely but worryingly on 1.25mm needles at an eye crossingly 11 SPI. Dare I?

The other yarn is a Chocolate Brown 4ply merino & silk blend. I’m not a big fan of brown but this is rather nice and has a very gentle sheen. I am a big fan of Chocolate.

More posts on these to come but I’m too busy knitting for posting.

I leave you with a quote from Wallace Simpson on Felixstowe:
“My first impression of the little house in Felixstowe was dismaying.
It was tiny, there was barely room for the three of us (two friends and herself), plus a cook and a maid, to squeeze into it.
The only sounds were the melancholy boom of the sea breaking on the deserted beach and the rustling of the wind around the shuttered cottages.
No hint of distant concern penetrated Felixstowe.
When I walked down to town for the mail and the newspapers not a head turned . . . on fair days, we used to walk alone on the beach and for all the attention ever paid to us, we could have been in Tasmania.”

I’m pleased to report that not much has changed in town since then - although we may have moved into another geological era but whose counting.

26/05/2021

Decided to hop on the bike and take the knitting down to the marshes in the lovelly spring drizzel. Not a gansey but it is fishermans rib. You cant see it in this photo but there were a pair of Marsh Harriers displaying in the centre.

27/04/2021

Full size swatching for the yoke of the FXT Gansey. It’s quite exciting - it’s like watching a really really slow fax come through. They were the days. I’m just hoping that when it’s done printing (knitting) it doesn’t say “Have you been involved in an accident......”