STALLED PLANT POT HOLDER.

After knitting 12 rows in raffia, Katy realized it would be easier to make a plant pot holder in crochet. She's got a point. This piece could have many other uses though. Exfoliating glove? Vegetable scrubber? 

WAITING FOR SUMMER.

Katy was of fertile mind when she started knitting a wearable cottage garden, but then the school holidays came and she didn't have time to get down with the flowers and the bees like she really wanted to. This piece could be a necklace, or belt or strap or anything. It is nearly there, it just needs more work.

Katy's flowers took Zarah on a wonderful journey to a place that was so cool she could hang out in glasses like this! They've got a bee and everything!

HORIZON PIECE.

Cecilia Hewitt from the Woolclip in Cumbria has donated this beautiful purple skyline piece. It was knitted by Caralyn Rawlinson, the co-founder of Woolfest - a festival dedicated to British Wool. Caralyn passed away two years ago after a long battle with cancer. Cecilia tells how when she went to clear out her studio, she found a wool lined studio with all the colours of the rainbow sorted in order. Cecilia is not sure what Caralyn intended with this piece, but she says it was designed as a stash buster, using up all the little odds and ends, which included some of her handspun yarns.

We passed this piece on to Miss Sonja Todd who is usually up for a creative challenge.

Here is her update letter, which I love.

"I am LOVING knitting my ufo! It's all I've done for the past week or two - get home, eat, put tele on, knit.

Here are some pics of it, sorry they're a bit blurry.

I'm hoping to have it finished before your show opens or during the show, see how it goes... perhaps I'll pop down for some wool one day soon, I have ribbing plans....

I've learnt and re-learnt so much from Caralyn in the past two weeks! She has taught me how to knit 'properly' (because I always used to do it a bit differently from everyone else, but I thought I'd better re-learn it in order not to screw Caralyn's knitting up!). I've also learnt how to do stocking stitch properly and change colours and add new colours in, and how to pick up dropped stitches and how to thread knitting back onto needles. It's really nice that even though Caralyn isn't alive anymore her knitting expertise is still being passed along. Having lost my own crafty mum to cancer I hope that knitting on this piece will give somebody else some comfort. I don't know if Caralyn has any daughters but I know if my mum had left any unfinished crafts I'd love it if somebody else carried on working on them. I'm turning Caralyn's knitting into a dress (hopefully - if my plans work!).

Thanks for doing this project Ms Matthews.

xxx

P.S. The white line in the knitting is the 'lifeline' you put in, it's helping me see how much I've done and it also really is a true lifeline. x"

FEATHERY AND FLUFFY.

Freda started this fluffy feather lace pattern. It was meant to be a jumper. She started on the sleeves, but this was as far as she got because the pattern started to bug her. She couldn't get into the number sequence and went onto knit something more simple with a lace panel down the front.  No yarn, no needles, no pattern, nice feel, lovely piece of knitting.

Gabrielle has taken this piece to another level. It is lined in blue silk with her own label and she has accentuated the pattern with some multi coloured thread. Not only that but she has done it in under a week!

FALSE STARTS IN TURQOISE.

We don't know what is going on here. No pattern, no clues, and the pieces are all different and unfinished. It's hard to see in the photo but the yarn has a special radio active quality.

This piece has come to us from LMB recycling.

These are the most unidentifiable objects we have come across so far, and Miss Celia Pym took them on.

She really struggled with her UFO. Should it be made into a garment? A memorial blanket? Should she unravel? Re knit? Preserve? Destroy? Cut up? and what to do about the colour which was so strong?

She looked at it a lot. She imagined herself being a police crime scene investigator, discovering the history of these strange objects. Celia pinned them on graph paper traced around them and pinned them on the wall. She lived with them for a while. Celia tried to get to know them but they were foreign to her. Celia thought these pieces would never be practical. They were not cast off properly, there was no extra yarn and it was impossible to unravel.

The strongest aspect was the colour. She had lots of blue and green yarns around her and they all seemed to match.

Celia started to knit the shadows of these pieces. The shadows were going to be smaller than the pieces. They reflect all the stitches of the original pieces, and like real shadows, they were a different size to the origional object.

It made her think of Peter Pan and Wendy. When Peter looses his shadow he tries to stick it back on with soap but it doesn’t work so Wendy helps him sew it back on.

DISNEY-MARALYN-MANSON-CLASH.

Comiserations to Mrs. Sandra Potter, who's daughter Sarah seems to be growing up faster than Sandra can  knit.  Sarah loved to laze around on the weekend watching the Disney channel in her pyjamas. Sandra thought it best to knit her a hooded top to match her pyjamas and keep her really cosy, but before she'd got to the decrease for the arm holes, Sarah had switched her attentions to Maralyn Manson, and was no longer interested in Sandra's choice of pink, purple and grey glace cotton. 

Sandra apologises for using the rest of the yarn and keeping the needles.

BROWN SKIRT.

GLITTER CROCHET.

We wish Tamsin every success in finishing this glittery crochet number which sparkles much more than it does in the photo! There is no wool left and only one front and 1 1/4 arms so we wonder what she will do?!

UNCONFIRMED CONFIRMATION BAG.

Trish started to crochet a little bag for her niece to put her prayer books in for confirmation, but her niece had other ideas. It is white 100% acrylic cylinder with a strategically placed blue marker in the middle. Make of it what you will! My dad said it would make a good dishwasher filter, (sorry Trish)!

Celia Pym had a vision for this UFO. After being injected with much love, this sorry lifeless bag now stands clear and proud as an elephant's foot. Well done Celia.

TURQUOISE CABLE CARDIGAN.

This beautiful piece of turquoise cable has come to us courtesy of LMB, a brilliant family run re-cycling company in East London. LMB collect all sorts of discarded clothing from around London, and they kindly give the UFO's to us. LMB work with the great 'Noki' and you can find them at the old gun shop on Brick Lane. 

We are posting this piece to Camilla in Essex, who loves to cable, following patterns and going completely off road with her knitting. Good luck Camilla, and have fun with those pockets!

LITTLE HOOD.

Jo knitted this little cotton hood as part of her three year old daughter's cardigan, but then she decided it looked better without the hood. 

We posted the hood to Mrs. Robotham who used it for the base of a wig. Well done Mrs R, it looks fantastic!

TWO FLUFFY YELLOW THINGS.

Quite yellow, quite fluffy, Jean's  two fluffy yellow things are an interesting challenge. One has a cable and the one doesn't, then one has a smooth cuff where the other one doesn't. There is no yarn, and no pattern. Jean loved the yarn but couldn't decide on the pattern. On the third attempt she made a yellow jumper, but these are two false start sleeves. 

Two yellow fluffy things went to Nikki in Lenoir City TN USA. Nikki loves biking, home schools her 7 children, and still finds time to produced intricate lace patterns.  Her 14 year old daughter Diantha took 'Cuff Too Small' and has turned it into a fantasstic hat, made on 4 needles. Thank you for being involved!

Check out this busy family at

http://my7kids.etsy.com - High-end fiber recycled yarns 
http://heartfeltfun.etsy.com - Hand knit and recycled felted accessories
http://fluff4ewe.etsy.com - Diantha's fiber, carded batts & handspuns
http://rossoaps.etsy.com - Richard's handmade goat or soy milk soaps

LILAC RAGLANS / HEART ATTACK JUMPER.

Here is a picture of one of two lilac raglan pieces, which I presume were front and back. They are both slightly different shapes, and are the skilled work of Linda from Herefordshire.

Linda was living in Earls Court when she knitted the first piece and and Battersea for the second. She wanted to be Molly Ringwold in 'Pretty in Pink', but when she bought the yarn in Peter Jones she was sure it was more pink than that. She thought it might have been the strip lighting, but anyway, she went off it, and the pattern is lost and she's keeping the needles.

It is in a quaint 3 ply cable for a size 10. There was 32g of yarn left. Purple is a very under estimated colour. I read on the internet that it symbolizes spiritual freedom and royalty.

Hannah in Nunhead struggled with this UFO. She didn't choose it, I sent it to her. The colour and the lace pattern drove her crazy. Racking her brains over what to do, she watched 'Pretty in Pink' and was shocked to discover that they never actually got it together- the love didn't happen. As the Jerwood deadline approached, Hannah felt the stress mount up and then squeezed out the brilliant 'Heart Attack Jumper'. Hannah said she had no previous experience of heart attacks, but has learned a lot about them through the making of this piece.

ONE ARMED CLOWN FACE.

One armed clown face comes with an extra cuff which was trying to be the second arm. There is no back to the garment and there is 60g of 100% acrylic yarn left. Ellen's working drawing is coming soon, but it looks like it would fit a 2 year old, unless you can think of another use!

Sadly this piece was donated to us by St. Joseph's Hospice in Hackney. Someone didn't manage to finish it before they passed away. 

Sally from Maidenhead sorted this piece out over one weekend. She added some jewels to chear up the clown, and then turned the piece into a bag.  She unravelled the 1/4 sleeve which gave her enough yarn to knit the back piece and then added the spare sleeve as a pocket and used some of her own scraps to knit the handles. what a brilliantly jolly solution. Well done Sally!