'Flaming June'

 -lovely warm sunshine but with the added misery of hay fever!!

-difficult to knit with streaming eyes!!

 

What a busy few weeks !!

Spring is when the Fashion students are getting their

Final Collections ready and there are always very tight deadlines!

This year I did 2 men's chunky jumpers for Rina -

one with a huge , loose cowl neck

and one with laddeer stitch so that it looked ripped!

I had a frantic last minute e mail from Emma

wanting a face embroidered onto a jumper ....

-with only 4 days to do it

and get it back for the Final Presentation,

I only managed a few hours sleep but got it there in time

 which was just as well as Emma's Collection was picked

 to go forward for Graduate Fashion Week in London!!

WELL DONE EMMA!!!!!

BUT the tutors decided that the face needed to cover

the front of the jumper so again with only a few days

to get it done, I had to knit up the design and swiss embroider

so that   Emma could then applique the finished picture 

to the front of the jumper -but we did it!!

 

And the photos for the Graduate Fashion Show can be seen here-

 http://www.catwalking.com/GRADUATES/Grad_10/BA_shows/shows/Birmingham/gradba.html

 Hopefully I will soon be able to post more photos of

Rina's and Emma's work, with their contact details.

 

 In the meantime I have knitted 3 pieces for Rowan -

a beautiful fitted jacket witha peplum, a cotton baby blanket

 and a t shirt top in their new recycled cotton yarn -

currently on the needles is a Martin Storey design

 for a cabled man's jacket.

Exciting news on the home front, as now that the blackbirds

 have fledged, the car port could be demolished and

base put down (thanks to the Mister!)

ready for Mr Darcey's Wool Shed.

Shed duly arrived last week and JP is busy

adding more insulation and lining as I write

to keep my balls of yarn safe and dry!

(Although if this morning's disaster is anything to go by....

JP cheerfully sawed the table in half while cutting the MDF!!!!)

... in all seriousness he is doing

a grand job!

When the painting is finished (thanks to the Mister and Lol!!)

 it will be a quick trip to IKEA to get the shelves and

 then I can begin a massive stock take, before decanting

boxes and boxes of yarn to their new home -

hopefully all labelled and priced!

And then the family can have the house back,

without mountains of yarn falling on them

and a divorce will have been averted!!

Once the pattern folders, knitting magazines and

knitting books have been moved over, all that is left

is to add a rug, chair and table and I

will have a lovely space for everyone to come and browse

patterns and yarn to their heart's content!!

 

Ragley Hall

Thanks to all my customers at Ragley Hall -

 a grey day on the Sunday meant there were less visitors

but Bank Holiday Monday was frantic and

it was my best show ever!

Burford

What a wet day ! which also kept the visitors away but thanks

 again to my customers who braved the torrential downpours!

Bay Tree Cottage Open Day

 Lots of visitors to Bay tree Cottage's Open Day -

no doubt drawn by Jenny and Annie's wonderful cup cakes!

Mr Darcey's Knitting Circle

 The Knitting Circle continues to grow, with some people

coming in the morning, some in the evening and

 some coming to every session!!

- projects vary from cardigans and jackets,

 to waistcoats and childrenswear, scarves and shawls -

but whatever the project there is always

plenty of advice and encouragement available !

We only have to sit looking out over the fields

as the sun is setting, to realise how lucky we are

 to have such an inspirational place to meet.

And the sheep in the field next to the studio, keep a close eye

 over the fence - curious to see what we are all getting up to!

 

Wednesday May 12th saw a packed studio as the

 Knitting Circle invited Byfield Craft Group and

Boddington Knit and Natter Group to a coffee, cake

 (thanks to everyone who baked or brought along cakes!)

and 'knit a necklace' morning.

  It was amazing to see

the different interpretations of the pattern

 in all colours and shapes ......

(well done Clare for inventing the oblong bead!)

 

 

We also had an e mail from Sophie requesting premature

baby clothes as her friend's baby decided to arrive

at 29 weeks while they were on holiday in Portugal -

so some of us took a break from our usual knitting

 to make tiny tiny clothes!

I am pleased to report

that the little chap is doing well!

We are hoping to meet again next month for a

Charity Knit morning -details and dates to be confirmed.

Details of the Knitting Circle and dates

can be found on the side menu

Mystery Blanket Evenings

60 squares and still going!

Cecilia is the first of the group to complete a blanket

-in lovely neutral shades.... isn't it beautiful???

 

and she has been so busy that she nearly has enough

squares for a second blanket.

Chris laid out her blanket last week and is now busily

knitting up squares to fill in the gaps.

 Everyone else is at varying stages

(get those squares blocked, Joan!!)

but before long there should be

lots more creations to show you.

Details of the evenings can be found in the side menu.

Mr Darcey's Workshops

Last Saturday was sunny and warm so we flung open

the studio doors while we were busy knitting away.

 This was another chance to have a go at

 Freeform Knitting and Crochet

and as soon as everyone

was settled with coffee, they couldn't wait to dive

into the mountains of yarn and begin creating!

Some people worked on a bag

and others were making a hat

..yay, Nicki is crocheting!!!!

but it was difficult getting them away

from their creations, to stop for lunch ....

- as always it was worth it, as Heather had once again

 provided a wonderful farmhouse lunch-

a delicious fish dish with salad and bread

followed by rhubarb fool

with the added bonus of the first of the strawberries

 from the garden (thanks to Jazzy for picking them!)

There have already been requests to run this workshop again

 so if you missed out this time then keep an eye out

for the next one.(Date to be confirmed)

There are also plans to run a peg loom workshop, how to knit,

 and an art day for anyone who would love to create but

doesn't think they can!

 If you are interested in finding out more about any

 of these courses then please e mail me -

mrdarceyscottage@btinternet.com

 Events

No more for this month but in July:

Saturday 17th July Summertown Oxford

August:

Saturday 7th August Canwell Show (in the Wire marquee)