It’s been a productive few weeks on the needles, with several finished objects and some new cast ons. In this episode of the podcast I’m talking about socks, small scarves, my Olga Sweater, a new cardigan cast on and some crochet granny squares. I also reflect on my time at The Big Flock yarn festival and there’s a bit of news about the direction my shop will be taking in the coming months.
Notes on all the patterns and yarns mentioned in the episode are below.
You can also watch the full episode here ⬇️
Finished Objects
Rose City Rollers
Pattern: Rose City Rollers by Mara Catherine Brymer (Ravelry link)
Yarn: The Yarn Badger, colourway Toasted
Yarn used: 47g
This must be about the tenth pair of these socks I’ve knit over the years. That’s a testament of how well the socks fit, wear and look. They are my favourite summer sock knitting pattern. They key feature of this sock is the rolled cuff - a simple but effective change to a traditional ribbed cuff. They look great with a pair of trainers.
Wigget socks
Pattern: Wigget socks by Nancy Wheeler
Yarn: Wigget yarn by Eldenwood Craft
Yarn used: 48g
Nancy and I collaborated about a year ago on this pattern / yarn combo and it’s taken too long for me to finally knit my own pair. Nancy’s patterns are a step above your average sock knitting pattern. She provides helpful tips, links to video tutorials where needed and a good detailed sock pattern.
This pattern is inspired by a National Trust building, The Vyne, owned by the Wigget family many moons ago. And the Wigget yarn is inspired by the group of friends who met at The Vyne (also feels like many moons ago now!).
Sophie Scarf
Pattern: Sophie Scarf by Petite Knit
Yarn: Birdstreet Yarn in the Grey Alpaca, Silk, Cashmere base, colourway Mallard
Yarn used: 64g
We all (pretty much) know the Sophie Scarf and I’ve knit a few in my time. This one is undoubtedly my favourite and I’m looking forward to autumn to be able to pull it out of my wardrobe. Two things stand out for me with this version. First the yarn is exceptional; the feel and colour are both beautiful. Second, I changed the rate of increase / decrease to give slightly less tapered ends and I think it’s worked well.
I knit this on 3.75mm needles and held the yarn double. This gives a beautiful squish to the yarn which will be a joy to have around my neck later in the year. The final scarf measures 100cm x 17cm which is my sweet spot for this type of small scarf.
Røllike
Pattern: Røllike by Fiber Tales (Ravelry link)
Yarn: Knitting for Olive Compatible Cashmere (lace weight) - colour Oatmeal
Yarn used: 26g
This project was less of a success. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a beautiful little neckerchief, with the little floral motif and the gorgeous yarn. However I had a few issues with knitting of the pattern, most significant of which is that I almost ran out of yarn - I had just 5cm left after binding off and that was with taking the decision to miss out a row of the garter stitch border along the side edges for fear of losing a game of yarn chicken.
I also feel that the scarf is probably a little too small for me to want to wear (it measures 75cm x 24cm), but I’ll reserve judgement until the autumn and see if I actually pull it out of the wardrobe.
On the positive side, I learnt a new bind off technique, the Icelandic Bind Off, using a video from Jared Flood. It gives a slightly stretchy finish and is easy and rhythmic to execute.
Olga Sweater
Pattern: Olga Sweater by PetiteKnit
Yarn: Peer Gynt by Sandnes Garn in the colours Almond Tweed (5 balls) and Night Sky (6 balls)
Yarn used: 550g
This was a labour of love! The sweater is for my daughter and I wanted to get it just right so she’ll ask for more in the future. I cast this on in the autumn of 2025 and it’s been one of those projects that took far longer than it should have done.
The pattern is well written, absolutely no issues with it whatsoever. The yarn is perfect sweater yarn: plump, warm and blocks beautifully - definitely a yarn I’ll use again. But I didn’t really enjoy knitting a drop shoulder construction, and while I love a striped sweater for some reason this one I found fiddly (despite keeping the yarn attached throughout the process). In addition, there were multiple times I ripped back and reknit, to ensure the perfect fit, so the whole process lasted longer than it might ordinarily have done.
However what has been produced is a sweater that hopefully will last season after season. It feels like a classic and I hope it becomes a much loved wardrobe staple.
Works in progress
Columns
Pattern: Collection of Columns Volume 2 by Nancy Wheeler
Yarn: West Yorkshire Spinners Signature 4 ply - Rum Paradise
Another Nancy Wheeler sock pattern for my newest sock cast on. Early days but it’s a really enjoyable knit. The yarn and the pattern work well together.
The pattern is a recipe where Nancy provides the basic sock recipe and then a number of different options for columns of stitches that run down the leg and foot. The knitter decides where to place the columns - I’ve chosen to put the double eyelet pattern down either side of the leg front.
Le Bandana
Pattern: Le Bandana by Aimee Gille
Yarn: Drops Alpaca - colurs 36 (dark brown) and 40 (copper)
This is a pattern I have knit a few times now. For me it gives a good, classic, decent sized small scarf that I can work on without having to put too much thought into the process.
For this scarf I’m striping two yarns to give a subtle strip and I love how the fabric is looking.
The only thing really to be aware of with patterns like this is to ensure you leave enough yarn to complete the second half of the project.
Crochet Granny Squares
No pattern
Yarn: fingering weight minis and left overs
3.5mm hook
I have a large collection of yarn minis and left overs from older projects and I’ve decided to put some into a large blanket, big enough to comfortably cover my king sized bed. My goal with this project is to use up a lot of this stash and to use principally solids / tonals and the odd speckled or very lightly variegated yarns. I’ll join all the granny squares with a light brown yarn.
I’m not using a specific blanket pattern. I know how to crochet a granny square and there are lots of free tutorials online if you need one. I’m crocheting 8 rounds altogether, flipping the square between each round to give a clean, straight sided square (if you don’t flip between rounds the square becomes a bit skewiff!).
This will be a very long term project. I’m not in any hurry to finish it and I’m enjoying having a project I can dip in and out of when I need a quick ten minute break from work.
Evendoon
Pattern: Evendoon Cardigan by Kate Davies
Yarn: WoolyKnit cone of British Wool - colourway Mallard
Size knitting: 5
This is my next ‘big’ garment project which I intend to work on through the summer and hopefully have ready for the cooler autumn days.
I was inspired to knit this having seen a version made by Becky, who has the Back to Blighty podcast. She knit hers from a cone of Woolyknit British Wool and it’s beautiful. As I also had a cone of this in stash I thought this would be the perfect project to use it on and I was able to swatch straight away.
The yarn is held double as the pattern calls for DK weight yarn and the Woolyknit cones are a fine fingering weight.
The swatch has come out beautifully, I met gauge on the recommended needles, and so I’ve made a start by casting on for the back and shoulders. It’s a raglan construction and I’ve knit probably a couple of inches so far.
It’s the first time I’ve knit a Kate Davies pattern. As expected, the pattern is very well written with detail in all the right places.
I can’t wait to make some solid progress on this over the next few months.
Incoming
Weaving kit from Twisted Felter
Yarn from Loom Wool, Buttoned Up and Pinned Down, Nellie and Eve
Candle from Alex Collins Designs
Lavender bundles from Butternut Handmade
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