As a crafter I get really inspired looking at what other people are doing. I love looking at Pinterest for this very reason. There are so many gifted people out there doing amazing things. One craft blog I really like is Cornflower Blue. Reading through some of her posts I noticed this one on a coffee sleeve. It looked simple enough so I thought I’d give it a go. But this meant learning some new knitting skills: Using a circular needle & using the Magic Loop technique.
I bought my circular needle on a trip to Loop earlier on in the year. They recommended that I use the Magic Loop technique for smaller projects. When I looked at them blankly, they suggested I watch the help videos on www.knittinghelp.com. I’m so glad they did. I couldn’t have made the cosy without their help.
It took me ages, and I mean ages, to get it. I tried to use double pointed needles but I soon realised that I am far too cift to use these. I was really slow to start with & made silly obvious mistakes. My first few attempts lie, unpicked, in a pile of wool. My first successful attempt still had a few errors in it but it worked. The best one is pictured below. It seems so easy now I’ve done it a few times, despite the pattern being relatively simple. It was the first time I’ve ever done double rib stitch, as well as the first time I’d used straight needles.
Now I need to knit a few that are completely perfect. I’m going to add them to my Folksy shop once I’ve got a small stockpile as well as sell a few in my local coffee shop, Throwing Buns. Then I’d like to experiment a bit – add buttons, use a different stitch, mix up the colours & maybe knit some for china mugs. I love a good knitting challenge!
I’d like to thank Rachel of Cornflower Blue for giving me permission to use her pattern & sell the ones that are good enough to be sold. x
