Here it is:

Another pattern published

My pattern for a lacy bedcover and bolster is published today in Dolls House and Miniature Scene. Nice to see I got a mention on the front cover! This is one of my most popular patterns, and is easy to knit on 2mm needles with crochet cotton.

Webpage back to normal I hope

My webpage ordering system seems to be functioning as it should again, thanks webmaster Anna.

Ow my toe hurts

So on Friday I did what everyone does all the time and stubbed my toe on a table leg. No way was I going to brave the nearest A&E over a weekend (15 miles away) so left it to get better but byMonday decided to go to the local Minor Injuries Unit. Yes I have fractured it. Now find myself in the hospital system with it all strapped up and an appointment at the fracture clinic. And a good excuse to sit with my feet up (keep off it for at least 4 weeks they told me!). Good job it's not a finger, at least I can knit. OK, let's have the sympathy vote now.....

Problem with webpage orders

Having a bit of a frustrating weekend because there is a problem with my webpage. I am getting payments for orders through from Paypal but the actual order itself is not coming through to my mailbox. This is very difficult for me and must be very annoying for my customers when I email them to ask what they ordered. I can only apologise if it has happened to you! It seems to be a problem with the people who host my webpage and we are doing all we can to sort it out. Not a happy bunny at the moment :(

Why does the same grade of yarn sometimes vary in thickness?

You may have noticed that bizarrely sometimes the same grade of yarn can seem thinner or thicker according to the colour. Now 2 ply should be 2 ply if it is the same composition from the same manufacturer, but I always find that the big cones I buy can be quite a different size for the same weight, for example a white cone is quite small but a dark pink one can be half as big again. Some colours will wind into quite a small skein, but the same weight in a different colour may give a much more bulky skein. The answer to this conundrum is that the dyes used can affect the yarn, making it more or less bulky, by causing the fibres to swell. The same effect is often seen with embroidery silks; some users will swear that the darker colours are thinner. The good news is that for miniature knitting it does not really affect the tension, and hence the finished size of the item. So if you have noticed this, yes, you have not imagined it, but you don't need to worry about it!

Another pattern published

Pleased to say another of my patterns has now been published: see the online magazine Dolls House Artisan. I hope to have more up there soon!

Even more busy, busy, busy

And now a hippy outfit too!

Busy, busy, busy....

Had a big influx of orders this week for ready knitted items! So in the next few days I will be knitting an heirloom bedspread and cushions, two decorated moses baskets with bedding, an aran jumper, and a little girls dress with underclothes (lessons learned this week: our US friends don't know what knickers are) and hat. With predicted temperatures in the mid 30sC, I will just have to find a cool corner, put the fan on, and hope my fingers don't get too hot. And the pattern I am currently working on for a man's pullover, turn-up trousers and flat cap will go on hold for a few days.
Does everyone else find that knitting takes a back seat when the weather gets hot? The fingers just don't want to be handling tiny woolly stitches.
The bitstobuy family are similarly fully occupied at present: beepone is busy organising her wedding for next year, beeptwo is working very hard on her IT consultancy business www.beeptwo.com and beepthree has just finished uni and moved back home to start his first job as an IT technician next Monday (so more washing for Mum). 'Im outdoors is keeping the kitchen well supplied with lovely fresh veg and fruit from the allotment, and still burning up the bridleways of the South Downs on his mountain bike.
Back to the knitting needles!

OK, have just found out how to add pictures. I am learning all the time!

Thanks to all the new customers who have contacted me after my profile was published in the August edition of Dolls House and Miniature Scene. I was thrilled that they published photographs of my work over FOUR pages! I seem to have filled a gap in the market, by publishing patterns which are easy to knit, using slightly larger needles and yarn than those already on the market. I am working on new patterns all the time, and am always open to suggestions! Hope to hear from you.

Welcome to my blog

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog.
This is where I hope to post news about bitstobuy, notes about what I have been knitting and what patterns I am working on next, and other snippets about miniature knitting that may be of interest.
I would love to hear about what you are knitting and what you think about my patterns. If you have any photographs of items you have knit from my patterns please send them to me and I will put them up here. And of course if you have any questions, or if you need any help with miniature knitting, I will be very pleased to help.
Thanks to all my customers, many of whom feel like good friends, and I look forward to hearing from you!