Monthly Makes - May: what's on my needles?

Time has certainly flown by this month. It feels like only yesterday that I was writing my last Monthly Makes post. I guess that's what happens when you don't take the time to stop and appreciate the here and now. It's been quite a productive month in terms of knitting, and I'm quite happy to have finished at least one project this May. I currently have two projects on my needles, both of which are my own designs. I've had to dive headfirst into the world of knitting mathematics to determine things like armholes, set-in sleeve caps and necklines. It's been a difficult process, but one that I've enjoyed. Nevertheless, I'm hoping that next month's knitting escapades will be a little more relaxed and mindful. 

Little Cotton Rabbits

I finished one knitting project this month, and that was a small toy rabbit pattern for my old neighbour. She gave birth to a beautiful baby girl this month, and so I thought that a cute little bunny would be the perfect gift to celebrate her new arrival. Using the Little Cotton Rabbits pattern, I made the bunny out of Scheepjes Stone Washed in the shades Boulder Opal and Moon Stone. The rabbit's outfit was made using a simple mint green, grey and white acrylic baby yarn to match the baby blanket that my mum is crocheting for the baby. 

The pattern was a fun one to make, although I had to practically dissect a ball of colour-changing yarn to make the rabbit's jacket. It didn't change colour as often as I had hoped, so I had to unravel and take out the green sections to use in the miniature cardigan. I also forgot to add the shoe straps to the shoes, but it's not the end of the world - it's a cute little bunny and that's what matters. We'll be giving the rabbit to our neighbour at the start of next month, so fingers crossed she (and the baby) like it. 

 

Victorian Rosebuds Top

I've made some progress on my Victorian Rosebuds top this month, and I am now starting to knit the sleeves. I've made the front piece and the back piece, both of which have a beautiful Victorian-era lace knitted hem. The sleeves will have the same lace edging, but I'll be using short rows to make the top of the sleeve longer and more flowy than the underside. It's my first time trying short rows, but hopefully everything will go smoothly. I may attempt a gathered sleeve at the very top, but it may be a little too complicated to calculate the maths for that. I'm taking a short break from the top at the moment, as I have 23 repeats of the lace pattern to knit for the sleeve edge. It takes a certain amount of attention to knit the lace, and I haven't had the energy as of late. I'll get back to it soon enough, but it's nice to have a lower maintenance project to work on after a long day of work.   

Vintage cable puff sleeve top

The other project on my needles at the moment is a vintage puff sleeve top with knitted cables. This is another of my own designs and will be a rather experimental project as I've not been as meticulous with my maths calculations. Nor do I know exactly how to knit puff sleeves or how to calculate armholes on a top with negative ease, but I'll tackle those challenges later. I started this project because I wanted something easy and mindful to knit when I didn't feel like knitting my Victorian Rosebuds top. I also wanted to give my circular needles a workout - I've not used them in a while, and I've missed knitting in the round. The design will be made from the bottom up, using Debbie Bliss Rialto DK. It's a 100% merino yarn in the appropriately named Vintage Pink shade. I've used the yarn once before for a hat, but it'll be good to see it in all its glory in a full-sized garment. 

This month's haul

While I try not to order yarn every month (as I have a forever growing stash that I'll probably never get through), I did order some Willow & Lark yarn to make the Fine Line Sweater by Lily Kate France. It's not really the weather to be making it right now, but I'm sure I'll cast it on soon once my current projects have been finished. I'm obsessed with the colour I chose for the top. It's a deep emerald green that I am dying to wear - my favourite colours at the moment are blue and green because they suit me so well.

The other thing I bought this month was a set of double-pointed needles and a couple of crochet hooks. They are the latest addition to my Knit Pro Zing needle collection. So far, I have the interchangeable circular needle set, the double-pointed needle set, three crochet hooks and a large selection of their straight needles too. The needles are made of aluminium and I love the way the yarn glides over them as I knit. I'm very excited to be adding the double-ended needles to my collection, and I'm hoping to use them to knit sleeves and cute knitted toys. But most importantly, they're just so pretty! Look at those gorgeous, shiny colours - how could anybody resist them?

That's more or less everything for this month. I did finish an embroidery project, but I'll post about that at a later date as I need to tweak a couple of things before I can publish the photos online. Thank you for reading this far, and feel free to share the crafting love by leaving a comment with what you're knitting or crocheting this month.