It must be Winter.....

because I have journalists asking to borrow things for their Christmas shoots!!! So far there are blankets, socks and cosies winging their way to photographic locations everywhere- amazingly it seems mug cosies are going to be widely featured again this year!

I've been making these in collaboration with my lovely potter friend Linda Bloomfield for years and the novelty just doesn't seem to be wearing off!!! Click here for Lindas website!
If you don't know her work then have a good look- she does wonderful ceramic tableware........

You can buy your very own mug cosies from our online shop - the perfect present for those awkward to buy for people- if you want Lindas ceramics too then you can also buy online from her website ! Happy tea and toast to you all..

If only.....

.....knitting were quite this glamorous!

Last Word Written - YIPPEEE!!!

I think (fingers crossed, touch wood) that I have finally finished everything for my upcoming book! 'The Knitted Home' (published by Jacqui Small Feb 2013) is looking totally lovely (thankyou amazing photographer Ben Anders and lovely designer Sarah Rock) and hopefully will prove a best seller...... I'm now onto PR stuff, answering zillions of questions about everything under the sun!

I'm not allowed to show any sneaky peeks at this point so I thought I'd do a quick Bertie update whose obsession with birds (closely following carrots and fishfingers) has taken a new turn since he worked out how to stick a feather to his nose.

He is clearly leading a stressful life in the studio.......

Finally finished the worlds most complicated capes.....

Basically what I've been thinking since last Tuesday is what on earth was I thinking when I designed this!

Yes it's gorgeous and yes it has surprisingly satisfying magnetic fastenings (which you can't see so it's super chic when undone) and yes it has secret cosy hidden pockets and yummy organic bamboo silk lining but my God it is ridiculously complicated to put together!!!

Let's hope the good people of Santa Fe and Aspen appreciate all the hard work- although if they can see it I guess I haven't done my job properly......... Here are a few pics of the finished thing (on our lovely model Becky- who just got married Congratulations!)

Jumper update.....8 days to go!

It is 8 days to go until my self imposed deadline for the never ending jumper project and following a cold (thankyou wonderful husband) I have had a bit of a spurt! I have now finished the back and done half the sleeves.... however I may be rushing headlong into a yarn crisis- namely that I don't think I have enough!

All I have left is shown in this picture next to my sleeves and there's another 30 rows of increasing then I can start to decrease quickly- so please all keep your fingers and needles crossed. It may be that I have to do a slightly different colour neckband (intentionally on purpose of course!).........

New day, new stitch...

Today I have been starting to think about developing some new stitches that I can use for my second book (especially weird since the first isn't even published yet!) but it's high time I got some new ideas on the go. I've long had a fascination for knits that look like weaves or that cleverly alter from one fabric to another and how they behave together. Recently though I've been intrigued by waffles, honeycombs and anything else geometric with a 3D look. Some of the most recent hat and scarf designs use my first waffle (http://www.ruthcross.com/acatalog/index.html) but here's another I came up with today!

Another Reason I Am Not An Accountant

Today I have realised another reason why I am not an accountant. Today I have been checking the patterns for my new book 'The Knitted Home'. This basically involves going through every detail of every one with a calculator and is so deathly dull that I have now run out of diversion tactics (washing up, peanut butter on toast, hoovering, tidying, facebook, more peanut butter on toast......) in an effort not to face up to this- my most hated of tasks (shortly after anything involving accounts or forms). This explains why I am not an accountant / anything else requiring mega precision- I love working out how to knit new things I'm not so good at the pedantics of explaining them to someone else- why don't they just know what I mean?! Anyway I have just finished and thought this summed up my love of pattern checking.............now, what else can I eat....?