Tea-riffic Night Out

I can only apologise for title-punning, but I'm really rather excited about an upcoming event which I wanted to share with you!!

Pictures (c) Clare Devine

Last year, Clare Devine launched a 'Tea Collection' containing several yummy hats.  This autumn she plans to complete the collection with some new hats, which are created in beautiful yarn (as always) hand-dyed by Jess of Ginger Twist Studio in Edinburgh.  

The pair are hosting a Tea Party at Pekoe Tea in Edinburgh.  It'll apparently involve tea, tea cocktails(?!) and nibbles.  The owner of Pekoe tea will be telling everyone about the tea, where it comes from, interesting things etc.  Yarn wise, there'll be lots of hat samples, yarns and patterns to play with!

There are two options to attend, the 'with yarn and patterns & baggie' version, and the tea only version.  I'm tempted to tell you not to be mad and that the second isn't a real option, but in the spirit of equal chances and all that, the two tickets are as follows:

Without Yarn:

 “Tea Tasting Experience” (or a Tea Cocktail of your choice) and plenty of chance to chat to Jon about the magical world of tea.

With Yarn:

• Your choice of pattern from The Tea Collection (or another of Clares patterns if you have it already)
• A fabulous skein of yarn from Ginger’s Hand Dyed to knit your very own “Tea Hat” - you can read more about the skeins and colours available over on Clares blog.
• A Neighbourhood Sheep Society tote bag

The Tea is between 7 and 9pm on the 17th of October, and tickets are available via the Ginger Twist website.   If you'd like more details about the event you can find a lovely blog post by Clare. 

I'll need to make sure I clear the needles before the middle of October...  

Is anyone else going??

Indie Burgh Yarn Crawl & New Socks

Oh I've had such a wonderful, wooly week to remember during this stressful week!  Recently I attended the second annual Indie Burgh Yarn Crawl in Edinburgh.  This ran over Saturday & Sunday, with a party on Sunday evening which I, unfortunately, couldn't attend.

Three yarn stores in Edinburgh take part: Ginger Twist Studio, Kathys Knits & Be Inspired Fibres.  The aim of the game is to trail around the different shops, collecting stamps on your crawl card (& yarn, & needles, & notions) as you go.  It's very friendly, each of the shops stock quite different yarns so it really is a worthwhile wander, and it's a good excuse for a day out!

 

 

I arrived bright and early before the crawl for exciting yarny chat, then proceeded to buy the first skein of yarn I managed to lay my hands upon in Ginger Twist Studio!  It really couldn't be resisted, because it was a one-off yarn crawl colourway on a very smooshy sock base.

The yarn is hand dyed by Jess, proprietress of Ginger Twist Studio. It's a wonderful purple, and due to the nature of hand dyed, I picked out a more uniformly dyed skein from the pile (I'm such a fan of those semi-solids).  The base is Swell Ewe Sock, which is 80% superwash merino, 20% nylon.

Also hidden away in a corner of Jess shop was the lovely Clare Devine, who was launching her new Sock Anatomy book.  It's filled with simple yet effective socks which use a variety of construction methods, explaining the rationale behind each method, when to use it and why.  Each sock also comes sized from baby to giant so will fit everyone!  Maybe you could even knit a you and tiny size for matching sets...

This wonderful combination of ladies couldn't be passed up, and I quickly cast on some Tarsi socks from the book with my new yarn.  My poor friend Cia ended up playing at skein-winder-extraordinaire on the train home because I simply couldn't wait to cast on :D

I've been wearing these socks ever since they were finished, and am loving them.  I knit the XS size and did worry part-way through that they'd be too small but they've turned out wonderfully.  They've been keeping me very comfortable during what has otherwise been a very stressful couple of weeks.  My grandmum had been quite sick for a couple of weeks and passed away last Wednesday, so this week has mainly been attending her funeral, which was remarkably lovely, and sitting the two day exam you've probably noticed me moaning about lots.  

It feels like a strange thing to say, that a funeral for a loved one was lovely, but there really is no other way to describe it.  If there's a way to be sent off, that was it.  I couldn't have asked for more, for her or for my family, and that makes everything feel a little easier.  The strange thing about funerals is that, whilst saying goodbye to someone you won't see again, you also end up seeing lots of people you wouldn't see otherwise.  It's an odd sort of symmetry.

The evilmassivestupid exam is now over too - it was 8 hours on Wednesday & 4 hours on Thursday.  I won't find out the result for four weeks, but it's a massive weight off my shoulders.

However, I appear to have broken myself slightly!  It's very lovely and sunny outside, and my mum has offered to pick me up for a barbecue in her garden before my night-shift tonight, so I think I'll take her up on that :)  

There are quite a few work emails to reply to which have piled up over the past few days, and some wonderful knitting ones which have waited slightly longer, but I'm afraid they'll have to wait another day or so.  

Sometimes, perhaps, it's braver to accept that you're only mortal than to plough on regardless. 

 

As an aside, it looks like this little guy is going to flower soon :D 

 

 

A Trip To Gingers

 

It should seem like a bit of a dream to nestle in amongst all of this glorious yarn, but it's a very real possibility at Ginger Twist Studio in Edinburgh.

Recently, I was very flattered to be asked if I'd like to take part in 'Designer of the Month' at Ginger Twist Studio - of course, I said yes; resulting in a wonderful day spent knitting, drinking tea, chatting to some amazing ladies who popped in for a wee visit, and a serious amount of yarn smooshing. 

As some of you know, though most of you don't, I lived in Edinburgh for 5 years whilst attending university.  Edinburgh is beautiful; it is unique, cobbled, romantic, surprising, massive yet tiny, comforting and awe-inspiring in equal measure.  And, as that train pulled into Waverly train station, a ridiculous sense of joy permeated my being.  You may think, at this point, I'm being melodramatic.  I can assure you, I was genuinely overwhelmed (+/- having some sort of location crisis). 

I love Glasgow as well, but for such very different reasons.  It's huge, filled with music venues & art exhibitions, has a character which can't quite be defined and never fails to surprise me in some way or other.  You CAN be in love with two cities at once.

Jess' store is adorable; perfectly appointed for it's purpose.  Along one wall hangs hand-dyed yarn of all types of colours & fibres.  They're hung lengthways rather than skeined to give a better appreciation of colour and texture, creating a dream-like wooly waterfall wtretching wall to wall.    Along the other rests balls of commercial yarns, ripe for picking.  Stitch markers and knitting accessories are shelved neatly above the yarns, below rows of knitted items Jess has lovingly put together herself.   The smell is one of fibre & tea - cinnamon, this morning.

Jess herself is delightful, welcoming and entertaining, and made me feel right at home.  Even little Fox was quite at home with his cup of tea.

Whilst we chatted, some of my designs were on display around the shop, including the newest addition - Braeriach socks (here on Rav), knit from Jess' own hand-dyed yarn.  Her mannequin was also very fetching in the Ashton Lane beaded circular shawlette & the Ardence Scarf. 

 

Of course, I didn't leave empty handed and now have two new sets of needles and a ball of yarn to show for my visit...

Apart from in her gorgous little shop, you'll find Jess at the Edinburgh Yarn Festival this March, too. 

Have you been yarn shopping lately?  What did you buy?  I'm desperate to get knitting with this lovely skein from GTS!

Sleepy Sunday & Braeriach Sock

After a wonderful day at Ginger Twist Studio yesterday (more on that later), today is a day for knitting, reading and reorganising my stash several times until it is lined up just right.  

I'm very excited to tell you that my new sock pattern is out.  It's called Braeriach and is inspired by one of the highest mountains in Scotland.  Scrubby mountainside plants, beaten by the howling winds. Even on days with bluebird skies, you’ll find yourself buffeted in every direction by the mountainside ‘breeze’. An icy bite is never far away when wandering a Scottish Munro like Braeriach, but you could always rely on good socks to keep you going!  Braeriach is the third highest mountain in Britain (and feels like it, when attempting your journey up).

I'm going to level with you all, I strongly dislike climbing up a mountain.  Yes, yes, it's all very pretty and theres a sense of achievement when you get to the top - but it's freezing, and windy, and I can't knit.  

Don't get me wrong, strap some wooden planks to my feet and send me down a mountain and I'm happy as the proverbial pig, but there are wee lifts there to take you up again.

These socks are made from Ginger Twist sheepish sock, and it is very yummy to knit with.  

Whilst I was in Edinburgh I bought a set of hiyahiya interchangables, mainly so that I could have the wee Panda needle toppers and that they were on the needles they were supposed to be on.  It's not excessive, it was totally necessary.  Also totally necessary was the small 9" metal sock circular - because I bought a wooden one the other day and now have to compare them.  Yes. 

I also left with another skein of Jess' lovely yarn in merino/silk Hocus Pocus colourway.  Is is beautiful and incredible and I shall spend the day smooshing it.  But first I must finish things I'm supposed to be working on.  How many projects do you currently have on the go?  I'm trying to reduce the amount of WIPs lying around so am determined to get some of these finished.  Also, I'm sure I had more cables, so perhaps I have some long-lost projects hidden somewhere, long forgotten. 

Best of all, PomPom arrived this weekend, just in time for my cozy kntting & chilling session.  There are some truly beautiful items inside this quarter, and I'd love to knit them but am unsure how patient I am!  There is a glorious laceweight top, but I might have to wait until a few exciting secret things are finished first. 

What do you have planned for this weekend?  Are you venturing outside or settling down on the couch?