wool, glorious wool

September 8, 2006November 5, 2025 Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)1 Comment

What is it about a new ball of wool that excites me? Am I a bit of a saddo, an anorak of knitting? I love buying new wool, it’s full of promise and potential, for with two long sticks and a bit of patience it can be transformed into just about anything you can imagine. I once came accross a website from New Zealand where a group of elderly people had knitted an entire spread for tea including the teapot, loaf of bread with board and bread knife, sandwiches, cakes etc. It was quite accomplished, if a wee bit redundant and just goes to show what you can do with a humble ball of wool.

I’ve enjoyed having time to myself this week and beginning to catch up with all the things I’ve not had a chance to do whilst being full-time carer to Toby. I’m really pleased with this shade card. Because I knit with a range of yarns (Rowan, Jaeger, Sirdar and Patons) I often find it difficult to imagine which different colour combinations will work together and so I decided to make a shade card incorporating all the cotton 4ply yarn that I have in stock. I think it’s almost worthy of being framed and I’m enjoying looking at
it propped in the corner. Well I’m off to enjoy the rest of the day. Funny to think I was dreading this week – wasn’t so bad afterall! Have a great weekend all.

autism

On autism & shopping

September 7, 2006November 5, 2025 Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)5 Comments

One of the most frustrating things about autism is the lack of communication. I can’t tell Toby stuff as he doesn’t comprehend language. I couldn’t tell him that he was going to school, how
long he’d be there and that I’d be missing him every second that he was gone. Toby is at distance from the world we know – this picture pretty much sums it up

Having said that he is coping very well with starting school this week. He’s been a little blotchy around the eyes on his arrival home each afternoon (a sure sign of tears during the day) and he was bitten by one of the other children but on the whole he’s pretty relaxed considering how monumentally upended his secure little world has been.

Toby & I do have an wonderful non-verbal language of our own involving touch, hugs, kisses and giggles. He gives big cuddles and fat, wet kisses as soon as he gets home and snuggles into my lap with a contentment that clearly communicates he’s pleased to see me. He can communicate his basic needs through PECS where he brings a picture of the thing he wants to me. As you can imagine though this is pretty limited (mostly to food and toys) but I hope as he grows he’ll be able to expand his vocabulary and communicate more about how he feels, maybe one day he may even learn to speak. For now I’m just happy that he’s managed the big step of starting school so well. The old chestnut ‘Live one day at a time’ is the motto in our house.

on a lighter note:

I love this time of year as it heralds the arrival of lots of fat glossy mail order catalogues. I am addicted – much to Huw’s disgust as he spends 10 mins searching through the stacks for his mail. There are so many beautiful things out there and I like to browse and pick out what I’d buy if money were no object. Sometimes I actually order stuff!! In fact I have just treated myself to a beautiful new knitting bag

(courtesy of Cath Kidston)

and a wonderful pair of gardening shoes from the fabulous Plantstuff.

Am now off to enjoying perusing the selection of catalogues that arrived today.

fairy cake T-shirt

September 5, 2006October 17, 2025 Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)2 Comments

Toby seemed to cope well yesterday and was pretty calm and happy after arriving home on the minibus. It’s so strange not having him around in the day and I’m like a butterfly – just flitting from one thing to another. As usual knitting is keeping me sane! I’ve been playing around with ideas and considering that knitted corsages are ‘all that’ right now I thought I’d vary the theme. The result is a knitted badge / T shirt decoration on my favourite theme of fairy cakes. Modeled here by the lovely Amy:

The instructions to make it are below:

Abbreviations:

K = Knit, P = Purl

PF&B: Purl into the front and back of the stitch so increasing a stitch.

K2tog: Knit 2 stitches together, so decreasing by one.

P2tog: Purl 2 stitches together, so decreasing by one.

K2togtbl: Knit 2 stitches together through their back loops, so decreasing by one.

P2togtbl: Purl2 stitches together through their back loops, so decreasing by one.

Pattern:

Using 2.75mm (US 2) needles and 4ply/DK weight cream yarn, Cast on 15 stitches for the cake case
Row 1: (K1, P1) 7 times, K1
Row 2: (P1, K1,) 7 times, P1
Row 3: as row 1
Row 4: as row 2
Row 5: as row 1
Row 6: as row 2
Row 7: as row 1
Row 8: as row 2
Row 9: K1, (PF&B, K1) 7 times (22 stitches)
Row 10: (P1, K2) 7 times, P1
Row 11: (K1, P2) 7 times, K1
Row 12: Cast off, keeping ribbing correct, cut the yarn from the work leaving a short tail for weaving in later.

Row 13: With chocolate cake coloured yarn pick up and knit 15 stitches from the back of the finished case (around 1 row down from the cast off edge) taking 1 alternately from the purl rib and 1 from the knit rib.
Row 14: Purl
Row 15: Change yarn to pink colour for the icing and knit 1 row
Row 16: Knit
Row 17: Purl
Row 18: Knit
Row 19: P2tog, P11, P2togtbl
Row 20: K2togtbl, K9, K2tog
Row 21: P2tog, P7, P2togtbl
Row 22: K2togtbl, K5, K2tog
Row 23: P2tog, P3, P2togtbl
Row 24: Cast off remaining stitches, cut the yarn from the work leaving a short tail for weaving in later.

Cherry on the top:
Cast on 4 in red yarn.
knit 1 row
(P2tog) twice, pass 1st stitch over the second and pull end through to secure.

alternatively you could use a fabric flower instead of the cherry or cut a small circle of red felt.

To Finish:
Sew cherry on to top. Sew in ends neatly on reverse. Sew on beads / sequins and attach to T-shirt / tea cosy / greeting card etc…