Conductive thread

Make your winter gloves work with a touchscreen!

found via  grathio.com

Year of the Glitch

Glitch textile on Kickstarter: http://yearoftheglitch.tumblr.com/kickstarter

images from http://yearoftheglitch.tumblr.com/

Yes...just yes

Just found this absolute gem whilst browsing ravelry...

Yes, your eyes do not fool you. This is a wine glass holder/ neck strap - and if that was not good enough... the pattern is available for free!

http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/wine-glass-holder Thank you Claudia Olson for this fabulous design! It has made my day <3

Great sushi stationary by Mohu

Photos by Mohu Mohu via Flickr

Love this!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/mohustore

The PatternBase

Screenshots from http://patternbase.tumblr.com/

The PatternBase is a resource and place of inspiration for designers and pattern lovers. It began as a personal Tumblr created by Kristi O'Meara in 2011, and has since expanded to include a homepage website, and soon to be a book - which looks amazing.

It provides an insight into the art and industries of textile + surface design, and its designers. It is also a joy to browse through :)

http://patternbase.tumblr.com/

http://thepatternbase.com/

Mary Jane Slippers

Excuse if this patterns a little hard to understand - I am by no means particularly competent in pattern writing, but I've given it my best shot. I've put together this design by merging a few other slipper patterns together, in an attempt to make a pair of slippers that are incredibly easy to make, and that require no sewing together at the end (as that's my least favourite bit).

This pattern makes slippers that'll fit an average female foot. However, it'd be quite simple to add length if needed in the rows just after the heel has been formed.

Suggested yarn: Sirdar - Denim Ultra (mega chunky with cotton and wool)

This yarn was nice to work with and washes easily, but to be honest, any nice chunky yarn will do the job. Otherwise,3 strands of worsted weight knitted together would be just as good. For the trim I used 1 strand of worsted weight yarn.

Needles: 4mm or US size 6, a set of 4mm circular needles, and a crochet hook size G

Tension: 10x10cm square = 12 stitches x 18 rows



Shaping the heel


CO 18sts
Knit in stocking stitch for 11 rows
p11, p2tog and turn
*k5, sl1 k1 psso, turn
p5, p2tog, turn

repeat from * till 6sts left on needle

Pick up 7sts along the left selvedge and knit them
Next row: p13, pick up 7 stitches along the right selvedge and purl them

You should now have 20sts

Continue to knit in stocking stitch till the piece measures 10cm from the back f the heel (I make this 9 rows).


Adding the strap


At the beginning of RS CO 10sts

Switch to circular needles, and knit 3 rounds.

Cast off 8sts in the middle of the strap
k1, kfb, knit to last 2sts, kfb, k1

(you can now switch back to straight needles)


Knit 4cm in stocking stitch (I make this 7 rows).

At the beginning of RS CO 4sts
The rest of the pattern is knitted in the round.

Here you want to place 7sts on 4 needles. Positioning the newly cast on 4sts next to 3sts from the other side of the slipper on the first needle, so the whole and the strap are in the centre.


Shaping the toe

Knit 3cm (5 rounds)

*sl1 k1 psso at beginning of 1st needle
Knit to 2sts at end of 2nd needle, k2tog
sl1 k1 psso at beginning of 3rd needle
Knit to 2sts at end of 4th needle, k2tog
Knit 1 round

repeat from * till 4sts left of each needle

sl1 k2 psso (double decrease) at beginning of 1st needle
Knit to 3sts at end of 2nd needle, k3tog
sl1 k2 pssoat beginning of 3rd needle
Knit to 3sts at end of 4th needle, k3tog

Cut yarn, and pull through the remaining 8sts and tidy away all loose ends.

You can finish off all the edges with a line of single crochet to make a trim.



Hope you enjoy the pattern :)

Dog sweater pattern generating system :-O

Just a case of inputting your doggy's measurements, and knitting a sample for the gauge, and out pops a custom-fit doggy jumper. I've not yet tested this system, but I'm optimistic - super excited about knitting one for Lulu (my dog).


Custom Dog Sweater for Fido

Jo's birthday Pikachu

Photo taken by Jo Maybe

First attempt at making my very own 'mochimochi' :D 

Happy Birthday Jo!!! xx

Natty 90's quilting project

I've just started a new project... and I think it's going to be a good'un.

Last weekend me and boyfriend Leo were sorting through all his old stuff, from his Mum's house in Southampton. We found this little ice cream tub full of old fabric samples that he'd collected from a school trip to a textiles mill in the 90's. They're amazingly garish and tacky plastic fabrics - which is why they're so great!

Anyway, I'm now making a little experimental quilt with all these little hexagon samples. I've never made a quilt before, and I wasn't sure what the best way to sew hexagons together - so I'm using this youtube video as a mini tutorial. I'll keep you posted with my progress as I go.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVkV8JBNaIQ 

The first of my knitted Lolcats! - sofa cat

Sofa cat image via http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/brainiac/2007/09/philolsophers.html

For Science!

Science off the Sphere: Knitting Needle Experiment

Knitting Mochimochi - Anna Hrachovec

Image from http://mochimochiland.com/shop/knitting-mochimochi/

I got this book for my kindle just before Christmas. It's a really cute little book, with a load of witty little amigurumi patterns that are very quick and fun to knit. 

What's especially nice about this book though, is that it explains very simply how you can easily design your own amigurumi patterns - so you can design your own toys. I've always been a bit confused by the mathematics of shaping knitting on four needles - how much to increase/decrease etc. However this book is so clear, I totally get it know :D I highly recommend a read of this!

There's a load of really lovely free patterns on her website too - definitely worth checking out.

http://mochimochiland.com/shop/knitting-mochimochi/

I especially love the knitted bog roll.

P.S. I've found the Kindle to be incredible for reading knitting patterns on, although the Amazon store could have a slightly more exciting selection for knitting books - its really best for fiction, which is a shame, because I feel there's potential here for the knitting community. No doubt it will get better in time as the amazon library grows :)

Brownie the Cat from Acornbud

I made this insanely cute cat yesterday as a friend's birthday present - it's probably the cutest thing I've ever seen.

I found the pattern on Acornbud's Yarns blog here: http://acornbudsyarns.blogspot.com/2010/01/brownie-cat-knitted-cat-pattern.html

Very quick to knit, only took me a couple of hours altogether - the funnest thing I've knitted in ages!

Thank you Acornbud :)

Not really relevant to knitting but good food for thought none the less...

'In Some Games, It's the Pattern, Not the Plot, That Makes Them Beautiful'


From popmatters.com


http://www.popmatters.com/pm/post/148265-in-some-games-its-the-pattern-not-the-plot-that-makes-them-beautiful/

I came across this article and it got me thinking about some of the issues I've been having in my painting work. My aim is to find a relationship between my painting practice and the medium of video games, and this mini essay relates to both directly in terms of narrative and abstraction.

Mark Newport

http://www.marknewportartist.com/

Tabernacle Twins

"The newly established design label TABERNACLE TWINS explores the limits between fashion, textile and illustration. Working with imaginary sceneries visual stories are being transformed into colourful womenswear focusing on prints, shapes and knitwear."

quote and images from http://www.tabernacletwins.com/

I love the structure of these knitwear pieces! Really dramatic, confident, chunky silhouettes. I think these make for brilliant food for thought. Also, they also have some lovely print design and interesting colour schemes in their collections. 

Work in progress...Madeira Cascade Pattern

Here's a section of a full-length gold dress I've been knitting for a while now (something tells me it's going to take a long time to finish). I come back to it every now and then, but I've not got properly stuck in for a while now.


I wanted to post how to knit the type of stitch I've been using. I found it in a really old library book of all sorts of stitches, I'll probably post a load more from that book soon because there's loads of lovely ones.




MADEIRA CASCADE PATTERN
multiple of 20 plus 5
Row 1: Purl
Row 2: Knit
Row 3: K2, *K1, yon, K8, sl.1, K2tog, psso, K8, yon; repeat from * to last 3 sts, K3.
Rows 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 16, and 18: Purl
Row 5: K2, *K2, yon, K7, sl.1, K2tog, psso, K7, yon, K1; repeat from * to last 3 sts, K3.
Row 7: K2, K2tog, *yon, K1, yon, K6, sl.1, K2tog, psso; repeat from * to last 4 sts, yon, K2tog tbl, K2.
Row 9: K2, *K4, yon, K5, sl.1, K2tog, psso, K5, yon, K3; repeat from * to last 3 sts, K3
Row 11: K2, *K1, yon, sl.1, psso, yon, K1, yon, K4, sl.1, K2tog, psso, K4, yon, K1, yon, sl.1, K2tog, psso, yon; repeat from * to last 3 sts, K3.
Row 13: K2, *K6, yon, K3, sl.1, K2tog, psso, K3, yon, K5;repeat from * to last 3 sts, K3.
Row 15: K2, K2tog, *yon, K1, yon, sl.1, K2tog, psso, yon, K1, yon, K2, sl.1, K2tog, psso, K2, (yon, K1, yon, sl.1, K"tog, psso) twice; repeat from * to last 4 sts, yon, K2tog tbl, K2.
Row 17: K2, *K8, yon, K1, sl.1, K2tog, psso, K1, yon, K7; repeat from * to last 3 sts, K3
Row 19: K2, *(K1, yon,sl.1, K2tog, psso, yon) five times; repeat from * to last 3 sts, K3.
Row 20: Knit

Image from http://iandcknit.blogspot.com/2007/09/tara-stole-pattern.html

Chunky Mittens

YARN
Something nice and super chunky, perhaps Rowan Big Wool - 100gm ball
(I doubled up a not quite so chunky wool)


NEEDLES
1 pair 10mm (US 15) needles


TENSION
8 1/2 sts and 13 rows to 10cm squared. measured over stocking stitch using 10mm needles.


This doesn't have to be exact, you might want to experiment to get the perfect hand size for you.
(This pattern fits an average sized adult hand)




RIGHT MITTEN
Cast on 20 sts.
Begin with a K row, cont in st st as follows:
Work 16 rows, ending with WS row.*
Shape for thumb
Next row (RS): K 15 and turn.
**Next row: Cast on and P 5 sts, P 5 and turn
Work 6 rows in st st on these 10 sts.
Break yarn and thread throught the remaining 10 sts. Pull tight and fasten off securely. Sew together the thumb seem.
With RS facing, rejoin yarn at base of thumb, pick up and K 5 sts from base of thumb. K to end. (20 sts)
Work a further 15 rows over all sts ending with a WS row.
Next row (RS): (K2tog) 10 times.
Break yarn and thread through remaining 10 sts. Pull tight and fasten off securely. Sew thogether the side seam.


LEFT MITTEN
Work the same as for right mitten to *.
Shape for thumb
Next row (RS): K 10 and turn.
Complete as for right mitten from **.

Wind Knitting Factory

Found this also on youtube, Wind Knitting Factory at South Kensington Station.

Homemade Knitting Machine

(Saw this on youtube. Very interesting!)