Celia Hart's blog about what's going on in and around her studio.
Art, printmaking, inspirations, gardening, vegetables, hens, landscapes, wild flowers, East Anglia, adventure, travel.

Thursday 2 January 2014

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Here we are in day two of a new year . . . it feels a bit like the old one, but who knows what the coming months may bring?

This time last year I was keeping a secret - that there was going to be a feature about me in Country Living magazine the following December. I was busy working on my 'Garlands' Christmas card designs and waiting to hear from the photographer assigned to do the photo shoot.

This year I'm working on another secret commission (I've had to sign an NDA, so no peeping!) and I'm busy planning new designs for prints and cards . . . starting with the 2014 Valentines hares and birds.

Thank you to everyone who ordered cards from my etsy shop during November and December - especially if you found me via the Country Living article (if you missed the magazine, you can read it here). It got very busy and there were regular late evening packing sessions, after which I relaxed by sitting down and doing some knitting. But I must have been a bit tired, you would not believe how many times I un-ravelled and reknitted this shawl!

But it's done now and I blocked it at the weekend - TA-DAH!!!


The pattern is Halyard on Ravelry, I devised my own colour scheme for the stripes - those flipping stripes!!!! they look easy but take your eye off the task for a second and it's very easy to drop a stitch when you do a star-stitch! And what's more, fudging it and thinking it doesn't matter, won't work . . . believe me it won't work.


I dithered about doing the deep lace edging, thinking it may look a bit "Marie Antoinette" but I wanted to knit the lace pattern and was pleased I did . . . compared to the stripes it was a doddle.


SO . . . onward into 2014 . . . no resolutions as such, but I have got a plan to help me do regular blog posts through the year, all will be revealed in the next post.


Celia
xx


14 comments:

  1. Lovely shawl - well worth all the unravelling! I've embedded a PDF into our work blog/website, I can't remember quite how though but it wasn't that tricky from what I can remember!
    Happy New Year :-)

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    1. Thank you Su - I've uploaded the pdf, just had to drag and drop it! Aren't Macs amazing?! xx

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  2. Your shawl is a beauty, Celia! Great colour scheme! Happy, peaceful new year to you! I have a good feeling about 2014!

    Stephanie

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  3. That shawl looks wonderful and very complicated. Looking forward to your new secret project when the reveal comes!

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  4. oo..yea! Another secret project :)

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  5. Celia, I wish you and yours a very Happy New Year, and long to find out what the Secret Project might be. I very much admire your ability to keep a secret!

    I also very much admire your ability to knit that gorgeous, even extravagant, shawl as a relaxation technique. I also find knitting very relaxing, but some knitting is more relaxing that some other knitting. If you get my drift.

    The shawl is a beauty, and I do like the colors in the repeat rows of the design, and think that changing to the other color for that lace edging is a fine choice.

    You've now encouraged me to make a few more visits over to ravelry. That's a site that I find a bit scary...it is so difficult to escape once I start investigating various whims and interests.

    It's grand to know how the CL feature really did add to your 2013...may it continue to contribute to your 2014.

    xo

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  6. The shawl is beautiful Celia, I love the lacy edging.
    I finally got to read the article in CL (got the magazine in my stocking from Guy :) it was really nice. I can't wait to find out what the next secret you are keeping is!
    Carole D

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  7. gorgeous shawl celia...might pick up the needles myself again. i bought my husband one of your beautiful cards from town for christmas.....very well received.(rosbuck at sunset) happy new year and congrats on the article.

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  8. The shawl is stunning, I can quite see how easy it would be to drop stitches, well done for persevering.

    I was thrilled when my copy of CL dropped through the door and I saw your article. Good luck for the next secret project.

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  9. The shawl is stunning and I love that edging, you're obviously a great knitter!! Happy 2014!

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  10. Very beautiful. I am in the middle of a knitting phase where I keep losing it too. I think the problem may be that I am knitting for the meditative effect while doing something a little too hard!

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