Knitting « Cotton and Cloud

Category Archive: Knitting

Forest Glove Pattern

March 9th, 2012

For me, Spring is a great time to knit accessories. It’s small and portable so that I can knit alfresco which is one of my favourite things to do.

Today, I wanted to let you know that Forest Glove knitting pattern, which was featured in Knit Now issue 1, is now available as a single pattern from my shop and from Ravelry.

Forest Glove Knitting Pattern

Many years back, I was hooked on knitting gloves. I just loved working the fingers for some reason (strange I know!). Knit Now is a great magazine for accessories for all levels of knitters so I took an opportunity to create an original glove knitting patterns so that everyone will also get hooked like I was

The pattern is made for a DK yarn (4mm (UK 8/US 6). The sample glove above is made with Olympus Premio (100% wool (of which 40% Tasmanian Polwarth; 114m / 124 yds per 40g ball). It’s available in the US but not so within Europe, so we decided to stock them here in Cotton & Cloud for those who live in European countries. Instead of a single pattern, you can get a pattern and yarn set which works out better value than buying a pattern and the yarn. Do please check out because you can see the gloves in different colours!

So for a fashionable weekend to come, below is the style idea for the glove which I created using Polyvore (if you haven’t tried it, it’s so fun).

Forest Gloves Style Idea by cottonandcloud featuring leaf jewelry

Forest Gloves by cottonandcloud featuring tote handbags

Below is some styling set done by others. They are great!

Montana Casual by kjkd featuring turtleneck tops

Autumn Fashion by fashionwalfleur featuring bohemian earrings

Happy weekend!

7 comments

Speed Knitting – Knitlynpics

February 10th, 2012

When my blog posts become scarce, it means that I am patterning and knitting like mad. Eventually you will see loads of new stuff here, there and everywhere! so all will come to a good outcome (the photo below is skeins of Blue Sky Alpacas I worked on The Knitter Issue 39 – Red Willow)

Having London Olympics few months to come, I just wondered how fast I knit so I made a video about it. I must admit, for the purpose of quick video I measured over 30 sec and not 1 min. What is amazing to know is that the world fastest knitters such as Hazel Tindall and Miriam Tegels knitted 262 and 243 sts per 3 min respectively. How amazing is that!?

So just for fun, this is what I did. The video contains a friendly and non-threatening music during the interval of 30 sec so if you don’t like any music in the video, please turn off the speaker before you watch it.

Happy knitting everyone!

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Raindrop Shawlette Knitting Pattern – Behind the Scene

December 12th, 2011

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend. I have been finishing off my new shawlette knitting pattern.

There is something about knitting shawls. A smaller shawlette is so fun to knit with less amount of yarn, but still very pretty and practical.

For a long time, I wanted to update on my original Raindrop Shawl which was a large rectangular shape. So I recently updated it, but I updated it so much that it actually became a completely different pattern!! LOL. BUT, I love the result!

So let me introduce you to my new half-circular Raindrop Shawlette pattern

Raindrop Shawlette knitting pattern now available from my shop.

I used 1 skein of Fyberspates Scrumptious 4 ply Sport; water. It is definitely a shawlette-kind of yarn with 45% silk and 55% superwash merino (354m / 100g skein). I loved every stitches I knitted with this yarn!

Patterning this shawlette was truly fun. It features double-eyelets that radiates outward. The pattern then develops into an all-over diamond lace pattern with the size of the diamonds gradually increases as you knit along. The edge has a nice scallop lace motif finished by triple eyelets.

The pattern is definitely suitable for all levels of knitters. I was so amazed how easily and fast I could knit this.

Do also please have fun blocking it…

I didn't have any water spray to do the spray block. So I soaked the shawl in warm water. The yarn is a blend of superwash - so it should be OK!...

and it was perfect: the shawlette soaked up water within 10 min without any problems. After blocking, the remained as beautiful as before.

Children’s foam play mats are so useful to block the shawl. I bought 4 interlocking parts for about £13 on Amazon. To stretch out the shawl as even as possible, I used 72 pins! As you can imagine, my cats would want to walk over it, so I made sure their favourite toys are far away and they are not interested in what I was doing!

Blocking shawlette on a playmat

I put the whole thing against the wall overnight.

So how would you wear a shawlette? Anyways you can with anything!

You can wrap it around yourself like a small shawl or around the neck like a scarf.

You can also tie it. I do like this look.

The pattern is available both from my shop directly or via Ravelry.

Hope you like it and happy knitty week!

6 comments

Gomitoli – Beautiful New Yarns from Italy (Yarn Eye Candy)

December 8th, 2011

I have some favourite yarns which I love so much that I can’t knit with them – I know it’s really silly but it’s true!

I was recently introduced to these gorgeous yarns from Italy called Gomitoli. They are seriously amazing stuff. There is a high likelihood that these yarns would be one of those favourite yarns. But I will force myself to knit with them because I think I can create really nice patterns with them!!!

If you visit their site, you will find free patterns. It’s called Gomitoli’s Christmas Ideas. Do please check them out!

They are so nice so I put them on my favourite cake stand I bought from Italy.

Here is a quick background of the yarn – Gomitoli yarn is a new yarn brand from Filati Biagioli, an Italian spinner who has been producing luxury yarns including cashmere, camel and angola for 100 years!:

Taking all their technical expertise, handed down from generation to generation, their passion for craftsmanship and their commitment to sustainable innovation, Filati Biagioli decided in 2011 to launch their own brand of hand knit yarns – Gomitoli’s.

Here are the yarns I got from them

This one is a camel yarn 2ply. It has a certification for: 1) no added dyes, 2) absence of toxic and dangerious textile auxilliaries and 3) the yarn is produced in Italy.

This 2 ply camel yarn has a certification for: 1) no added dyes, 2) absence of toxic and dangerious textile auxilliaries and 3) the yarn is produced in Italy. Isn’t that so great? I think it would make a gorgeous shawl yarn.

Tweed yarn (70% lamb's wool, 30% cashmere; 175m / 50g ball)

The tweed yarn is Sport weight yarn. The colour I got is 10046. It’s bright, rustic and SOFT!

This one is called Camello Bottonato (100% camel hair; 175m / 50g ball).

Camello Bottonato is a rustic tweedy yarn (Sport – DK: suggested needles 3.5-4mm). It’s just gorgeous. I don’t know what to do with it. I think it would make a beautiful small knitted accessories. I must swatch!

Angora yarn.

May be it’s just me that I haven’t really come across many angora yarns in the UK. So it was so fresh to see and feel the angora yarn. It’s dreamy and magical and also is a cute 2-ply.

Gomitoli Big Cashmere. This one is definitely cute. It's 100% cashmere but is a nice good solid yarn. (80m / 50 g ball).

What surprised me with this Big Cashmere yarn is that the fibre is such high quality and spun so well that I know that it won’t fray so easily even it is a 100% cashmere. So lux, so bouncy. I am so in love!

Oh what to do, what to do!!! See? I am pondering too much, I am not even knitting with them LOL! Happy knitty week

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What Do You Do with Your Yarn Stash & UFOs (unfinished objects)…

January 25th, 2011

My new place still needs to be tidied up. Not everything has found their “home” yet. The move has yet again made me realise how many unused yarn I have. The thing is, I know exactly when and why I bought them. It’s just at the time I didn’t take “time” into account.

Kumo is bored of my yarn... This is just after our move when I was sorting out my yarn stash... Kumo first came to play (help) me but got bored in the end as I had so many.

I also found my old UFOs. My fair isle vest – Moor by Kim Hargreaves from A Yorkshire Fable – amazing book (P.S I love all her designs. P.P.S I can’t believe it’s nearly done but not finished) from when Wesley and I started going out…

Moor by Kim Hargreaves. I love this vest and I can knit so many of this with different colours.

Another one is my fair isle tam which I was really into over 5 years ago after reading this book…

My un-finished fair isle tams...

What to do, what to do…Basically I should just use them up before I buy anymore. What do you do with your yarn stash and UFOs?

7 comments

Vintage Knitting Ideas

June 8th, 2010

Wesley and I are currently selling our place and hunting for a new house in London. It’s been quite difficult for us last week because we thought everything would go smoothly but one person within the same chain decided to pull out and everything fell apart. Although it was disappointing, this means I have more time to brew ideas for my new dream (ish) home. One thing I have to do is to organise my knitting office and I have been drooling over some vintage home decor goods for storing my knitting needles and notions as well as hunting for new vintage knitting items to add to my collection:

STORING NEEDLES

I used to collect giant pickled gherkin bottles to put my needles. They are good but not very stable. So I found these:

Workman's Industrial Tool Box by Hindsvik. You could put your needles at the bottom and notions on the top section of the tool box. It would be a lovely display too.

Another item from Hindsvik. A nice idea to put your straight needles?

Super cute vintage animal wall hanvers. Ideal to hang your circular needles.

NOTIONS

By susantique. I love this. I could put my darning needles, thread, stitch markers, fair isle bobbins in these little sections.

Loving this fishing basket. It would so allow me to knit outdoor. I don't have to worry about my ball of wool rolling out of my bag.

Spice storage set from harmoniepark. For stitch markers, cable needles and buttons...

KNITTING FINDS

So super stylish!

I am always interested in any vintage knitting agadget. This one I have never seen.

Shetland hap yarn from iggyzee. I was just reading about hap shawl and I came across this!

Last but not least... a bakelite yarn holder by katrinaswoolworld. This would prevent me from forever chasing the ball of yarn or yarn attack by Kumo.

Happy week ahead

25 comments

Being Motivated

August 11th, 2009

Me? Running? Oh yes it is true. Some of you already know that I am the last person to do any exercise. But things are different now. Thanks to Mary, who totally convinced me to run, I decided to run 5k for a charity.
I will be running for WWF (the panda charity). I want to raise money for those who work so hard to help and save animals and environment. I want to live on a planet which is beautiful and full of biodiversity. So 5km is a start. I will update on the progress in later post.

Photo taken by Mary: Claire and Me. So happy to meet her for the first time!

Last week, Mary and I visited a book launch for Easy Kids Knits by talented Claire Montgomery at Loop London. A really lovely book full of nice patterns. There are lots of patterns for up to 10 year-old which are often difficult to find. I already have an eye for one of the cable jumper for my niece. I got my book signed (yay!). She has a lovely hand-writing

If you are ever in London, Ottolenghi restaurant is a must go place to eat. If I can, I will buy 20 of these tart and eat in one go. I just love this so much.

We then went to Ottolenghi for a “light” (yeah right) meal. The above tart is my favourite (I would say all-time) dessert. It’s a passion fruit merange tart. While we were having the dinner, we got a phone call from Loop saying that both of us won a price!!!!! How lucky are we?
On the way back in the underground we couldn’t stop but smile

I should have taken this shawl the other way round. I designed it so that it looks like rain drops (i.e. line in the middle and rain droplets, then smaller droplets (not knitted yet).

Oh, yes and I have been knitting quite a bit. The above is a shawl which I recently started. Once I block it, you should be able to see the pattern well. Until then it is a little squashed. Long way to go though!

Phew, I am ready for my coffee…
Have a good week and see you on Friday

Days

June 9th, 2009

We are half way through 2009. Can you believe it? Last year I made a promise to myself that I will make a clothes for myself. Since I have been totally inspired by Ruth from Two Hippos and Jo from Today We Are for their dress making skills, I have finally copied the pattern on to a paper. This is a BIG step for me In July I am hoping to finish it.
The other thing which will be finished by July is my new crochet tote. The above photo is a sneak preview of the bag. It is not quite finished yet. This pattern will have lots of photos (as per usual) and a video tutorial. I really enjoy making the patterns and video tutorials but it’s always weird listing to your own recorded voice!
Just wanna show you this tin… (I LOVE this one). I collect vintage tins. They are going to be my new charity projects for this winter in addition to my Charity Purse Making Kits. The details will be given later on this summer.
Also, there is a new bakery in Greenwich called Rhodes. If you are ever around, do visit. Highly recommended. They are the UK’s first company to sell coffee in a 100% biodegradable cup and a lid.
Good new is that Mittens now have a pendant attachment on his collar. I believe it has his home address in it (when I tried to check it, he didn’t like it and pulled his neck away). I am so relived that he has a home. He still visits us but at least I know he has a home

Reversible Fingerless Glove Pattern – Finally Available!

May 31st, 2009

We had such a sunny weekend. Kumo and Wata have been enjoying sunbathing every minute of it.
Since I started to sell my reversible fingerless gloves on Etsy last winter, I’ve had so many requests for the pattern. I am so happy that you all like the gloves and want to make your own!
So here it is. It is NOW AVAILABLE ON MY SHOP (as well as at the end of this post). I have been working really hard to construct the pattern (what is hard is taking good photos, word processing, drawing diagrams and charts and taking video tutorials!). Now the whole package is here for you. Tada!!
Yes, it’s May and the cold weather is a long way away. BUT this is the time to make nice winter accessories! You can wear them and show them off as soon as you feel cold in the air.
The detailed product specs are all written in the shop but here are the reasons why I totally believe these reversible fingerless gloves are so nice!

WHY SO SPECIAL?
1. Design

I was looking for nice warm, cute and fun reversible fingerless gloves. Though, I couldn’t find any so I decided to make one!

2. Satisfying

Grafting knitted fabrics are not the easiest thing to do. My reversible fingerless gloves are mainly knitted with stockinette stitches on purpose: this makes it easier to graft at the end. The last thing you want is a complicated grafting process after spending so much time knitting up a difficult pattern.

Introduce yourself to embroidering on a knitted fabric. It provides a wonderful texture and gives such a nice 3D feature to the gloves. 100% satisfaction guaranteed!

3. Practicality

For those who already have my gloves (thanks! ) they would know this, but they are SO WARM. The gloves are made with two layers so it traps the air in between to keep your hands extra warm.

I deliberately made both the exterior and interior look very different. This means that you can wear both sides depending on what you wear and what you feel like! It’s like having two pairs of gloves.

4. The whole package

The hard work is all done for you. There are LOTS of photos, charts, diagrams AND video tutorials to help you make the gloves. All you need to do now is to sit back and enjoy knitting.

Video Tutorial
I hope my previous video tutorials for the Macaroon Purse Kit was useful. I always find it easier to learn knitting by looking at other people do. So although my English is not perfect I created more video tutorials to help you make the gloves!

Video tutorial 1: Thumb gusset increase
Video tutorial 2: Making thumb & embroidery
Video tutorial 3: Finishing & Grafting
Additional video tutorial: Crochet Provisional Cast On and Unraveling Provisional Cast On

Hope you enjoy it and let me know how you get on!

Reversible Fingerless Gloves: $5.00

Currency converter here
File size: 2.7MB

If you have any questions about this pattern, donâ€™t hesitate to contact me. I am here to help!

The pattern is sold as a PDF download. Here are the 3 easy steps to purchase the pattern:
Step 1: Once you click the â€œadd to cartâ€ button, you will be directed to Paypal window (you donâ€™t have to have the Paypal account).
Step 2: Please fill in your payment details.
Step 3: When the transaction completes, a new page with the download link will appear. The time to download will depends on your internet connection (when I tested mine, it look less than a minute).
Please note that the link will expire 72 hours after your first download (or after 3 attempt).

By purchasing this pattern, you agree that the pattern is for personal use only. All rights reserved. No part of the publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of Kyoko Nakayoshi.

Macaroon Knitted Purse Kit – Raspberry Sundae and Pistachio

May 2nd, 2009

I have been working really hard on these during April… and they are ready!
I thought it would be a great opportunity to introduce a knitted purse kit / pattern as there aren’t many available in the market at the moment.
… may be no one has tried?
… may be it looks difficult to make?
… who knows!
They are super duper unique and special. I think anyone who try this kit would totally enjoy it!
The kit can be purchased from my shop and you can read more information about it.

WHY SO SPECIAL?:

It requires combination of both and knitting and sewing skills. It would keep you totally occupied. It is just so fun to make.
You will be knitting with wonderful rustic British Shetland tweed yarn.
The purses are simply so cute!

ABOUT THIS GORGEOUS TWEED YARN:

I am a huge fan of tweed yarns.
They are visually satisfying to knit with lots of specs of colours within one colorway.
Tweed yarns have a wonderful texture when knitted.
OK, they are not the softest yarn available but they make great purses and other accessories because of its texture.

IDEAL FOR:

those who like varieties and challenges (and I know you all are! )
those who loves to knit and sew

There are also two video tutorials (here and here) to follow to help you making the purse
Hope you like these purses
Phew, I am off to enjoy my Bank Holiday weekend! Have a wonderful weekend to you.