Wishing all our wonderful P/Hoppers a happy, healthy and fulfilling 2014!

My fist day back in the MSF office and there’s been loads to do.  Two invites to shows were in the inbox with all the form filling that that requires to apply for a place.  The first is Woolfest in Cockermouth, Cumbria on Friday 27 and Saturday 28 June, followed by Fibre-East in Redborne, Bedford on Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 July.  Both are lovely shows.  If any of you would like to volunteer to run the P/hop stall at either of these shows, I’d love to hear from you.  Either drop me a line at p-hop@london.msf.org or contact me through Ravelry – I’m Katestwirl!

We were also lucky enough to have the final bits of information needed for our latest pattern, which has been very kindly donated by Karie Westermann.  This gorgeous shawl is called Eyre Shawl and is now ready for download on the Eyre Shawl pattern page, where you can also read all about it.

It is perfect for keeping you cosy in this stormy weather while you’re sitting indoors reading the classics!  Think of poor Jane Eyre in that drafty school and pull it a little tighter!

Here is what Karie had to say about her inspiration for the shawl:

I first read Jane Eyre when I was fourteen. I had this mad, mad notion of ‘reading all the classics’ before I turned fifteen. I did not get far, of course, because I read indiscriminately and without any real understanding of what I read. Jane Eyre was one of the books I did read and I remember thinking it was ‘okay but a bit dull’.

Then I decided to revisit Jane Eyre last year and the novel took my breath away. What an intelligent, passionate, fierce book it is. It is both a Victorian literary equivalent of a Mills & Boon novel (“Reader, I married him”) and a proudly feminist book about the importance of knowing your own mind. The many knitting references were just cherries sprinkled on top! I swooned and cheered.

There was even a lovely bit where the housekeeper, Mrs Fairfax, says something in the vein of, “Oh, hang on a sec. Must. Finish. This. Row. before you dash off with the Master” – any knitter would smile in recognition. So, how could I resist designing a shawl to match Mrs Fairfax knitting away?

Please don’t forget to donate for patterns which you download.  Evey little bit helps MSF to help those in need wherever they may be.

We have 2 new patterns for you, both with a Royal vibe!  The Diana Black Sheep Sweater and the Diamond Dot Scarf.

Firstly, and at last the Diana Black Sheep Sweater pattern from Muir and Osborne is finally available as a download from P/Hop.

Sally Muir and Joanna Osborne very kindly donated their pattern a long long time ago but we didn’t have the time to assemble it into a “proper” format for download.  The wonderful Bronagh (lapurplepenguin) helped enormously by popping the details in to a Word document and then, finally, thanks to the generosity of Clare from Yarn and Pointy Sticks who has donated her tech-editing skills, we now have a downloadable pattern.  It wasn’t easy – knitting pattern language has changed over the years… and the yarn it was designed for is no longer available!

If you fancy getting your 80s’ vibe on, then this gorgeous sheepy number is perfect for you!  Those little sheep are just soooo cute!

If knitting up whole garments is not your thing, Kate Ellis (Kate’s Twirl) has donated her Diamond Dot Scarf pattern to us too.  The pattern was designed as an homage to Her Majesty The Queen for her Diamond Jubilee year and was previously available as a Ravelry Download.  You can now download it here for a donation to MSF.

So, pour yourself a cup of Earl Grey and sit back and relax with a spot of regal knitting.

Happy knitting!

Miranda in the aran weight Martini Cowl

We have a lovely new pattern from another fabulous designer.  Miranda Jollie (aka Hanwelknitter) has donated this fabulous pattern (nay, recipe!) for a wonderfully cosy and stylish cowl.  Just like a martini cocktail you can make it anyway you choose – any yarn, any length, any size!  Images of Leonard Rossiter throwing Martini over Joan Collins are spiringing to mind – Any time, any place, anywhere… (mmm perhaps you’re not as old as me…)

Miranda gives specific instructions for both a sockweight (4ply) and an aran weight (worsted) cowl, but also provides instructions on how to adapt the pattern to any weight of yarn which you may have kicking around in your stash – clever girl!

The pattern is on Raverly and you can already see other people’s projects here and download the all important patter from our pattern page here.

Perfect last minute Christmas knit… shhh – who mentioned the C word!

Happy knitting – please don’t forget to donate for your pattern.  You can do so here.

We are honoured that Anna Fisk, aka narnie83, has donated the Dear Green Shawl to our P/Hop project.  It’s a gorgeous shawl that can be knit in a variety of sizes and will make a really cosy autumn/winter cover up.

Clare has just dashed a copy off the printer and is going to cast hers on really soon!

Here are a few pics – not only did it win a prize at the design competition at the Glasgow School of Yarn in 2012, but it has already made it’s stage debut!

The photographs of the large mustard shawl, are used with the kind permission of Antje Karl.

Hurrah!  Wimbledon starts today!  Why not enjoy some valued knitting time whilst watching Murray, Robson and Watson battle it out for Britain.

You know how stressful it can be watching our heroes – so when you’re too scared to watch, knit a few rows and de-stress…

So grab some strawberries and cream, download the fabulous Wimbledon footlets pattern and get knitting for Britain!  Come on Murray!

Wimbledon footlets by Ros Clark for P/Hop

Crafting humanitarian work

This pattern has been generously donated to the p/hop project by MSF supporter, Ros Clark and is available for your knitting pleasure.

In return, we ask that you make a donation to p/hop based on the hours of enjoyment you will get from our patterns.

Making your donation is easy, just click here for pounds, here for US dollars or here for Euros. Thank you very much.

To download your PDF of the Wimbledon Footlets pattern please click here.

We can’t believe that December is already upon us. To celebrate the season and get in the festive spirit we have a fabulous new pattern for you. Introducing Rudolph, that Reindeer! Designer Judith Baser says:

I first came across p/hop through Ravelry and thought it a brilliant scheme – anything that involves knitting will grab my attention, and the idea of raising money for such an excellent cause and being involved in knitting as well is great. I’ve knitted some of the samples so kindly donated by generous designers, and have been lucky enough to be able to help out on the stall at several events, spreading the word! Rudolph is my first attempt at producing a pattern. He was inspired by some birds I saw at a craft fair made out of bean bags, and I thought the basic design could be knitted into a cute little animal shape. I do hope people will enjoy producing a few of their own Rudolphs, and will take a few minutes to visit the p/hop site and make a small donation to help MSF continue with their work.

To download your copy of the pattern please click here

We are delighted to add the Riviera Scarf to our online pattern collection. Visitors to the Glasgow School of Yarn will have seen it already.

Designer Rachel Atkinson says:

‘Perfect for adventurous beginners and intermediate knitters looking to build on their skills, or simply for those of you after a speedy gift project, the Riviera Scarf came from a designer challenge to create a design from 100g of chunky yarn. The main pattern is worked in garter stitch and uses increases and decreases to create the shaping and lace edge. There are a couple of other techniques in there as well which may be new to you and are useful to have in your knitting portfolio!

Having been involved with p/hop from the very early days it is a pleasure to donate this pattern in the hope that it will help to promote this incredible charity and the work of the MSF team to new knitters and to show support for all the work they are doing.’

Thanks very much Rachel! You can find more about Rachel’s delightful design and download the pattern here.

You can read more from Rachel on her blog mylifeinknitwear

If I were to pick my favourite thing to knit, I think cabled socks might win. The unusual cables on Oscillating Socks wouldn’t rest until I made them into a design and the side cables couldn’t be stopped even by the toe, continuing round in a manner similar to seamless, saddle shoulders. I call them oscillating because the cables take turns to be in front.

They are made top down with a flap and gusset heel. Two sizes are available and the purl columns makes them quite stretchy.

I first became aware of phop through The Yarn Yard and I thought it was a great way to raise money for a very worthy cause as well as doing something you enjoy. I wanted to donate this pattern as a tribute to the gorgeous yarns that she makes and the good work that MSF is doing.

The pattern page is not up yet as we are getting ready to cast on for the Ravellenic Games but you can download the PDF by clicking here.

Don’t forget the donate buttons to your right to help MSF’s fantastic work. Thank you.

Blue skies, green grass, extremely fit men running around, and the agony of Andy Murray losing again. A bowl of strawberries and cream, and perhaps a glass of barley water or Pimms would be the ideal accompaniment to the perfect summer afternoon of knitting while watching the tennis.

What better project for the tennis season than these little footlets, inspired by classic tennis socks with the little pompoms on the back?  The footlets have a neat i-cord bind off with a button fastening to ensure that they fit well over the heel. The pompoms are optional but recommended!

They are a great way of using up small balls of leftover sock yarn. The stripe pattern shows off a beautiful variegated or self-striping yarn if you choose a neutral solid as the background. For the full Wimbledon effect, you’ll want purple and green yarn, but this would also be a good choice of pattern for the Ravelympics, knitted in the colours of your home nation.

As I write this, MSF are working with refugees in Southern Sudan who are dying because there is no fresh water to drink. As the traditional English summer rain pours down outside, it’s hard to imagine that this horrific crisis is going on unremarked. I hope you have fun knitting these socks, and please give generously to p/hop for the pattern, to support MSF’s work in Sudan and elsewhere.

A few months ago I was at the Knitting show at Olympia, admiring the talent of Muir and Osborne, who you may be familar with for their brilliant Best in Show books.

I mentioned that I run p/hop, as I always do to anyone who has an air of a knitter about them, and they said “oh, we have a pattern. It’s currently on our website as a freebie but if you can use it to raise money for MSF that would be a much better home for it.”

Now I hear this quite often, and these things don’t always work out, so I gave them my email address and if something came of it, well great, and if not, it wouldn’t really matter.

Now, not only did Muir and Osborne come through, they shone.

I give you p/hop’s first sweater pattern, and its not any old sweater pattern.

Oh no dear reader, this is a sweater with Royal connections.

There is a copy of this sweater in the V&A. Even David Bowie once had one of these jumpers.

The Eighties are back, and they are back with p/hop!

I give you the Sheep Sweater!

At present the pattern is in jpeg format which you can copy and paste into word or print straight from your PC. We are working on an updated version which we are hoping to have on the website as a PDF in June.

So, if you fancy emulating a style icon of a generation, using your intarsia skills and knitting up those fab sheep here is the pattern.

There’s even a reworked version which has been spotted on the streets of hipster Hoxton in That London. Marvellous.