Monsoon Stole Reveal

It's a lovely feeling. Finishing a project. Especially if it's a project that you've adored making and the finished item looks even better than you thought it would!
So today I'm going to show you my finished Monsoon Stole. The stole was designed by Alia Bland from The Little Bee blog and can be purchased here.
It's not very often I buy a pattern but when I saw this stole on ravelry I just knew I needed to make it! I also knew I had the perfect yarn......

Scheepjes Cotton 8 is one of my all time favourite yarns.  I have a very healthy stash of it!  Why do I like it so much? Well... it's a pure cotton that doesn't split for a kick off. Splitty yarn drives me insane! The twist in this yarn is just enough to keep it from splitting but not too much that the yarn is stiff. This yarn gets softer and softer the more you handle it. It's a 4ply weight yarn that you can throw in the washing machine without stressing (although I would recommend using a colour catcher if you have a wide range of colours in one item...just to be safe!). 50g gives you 170m of yarn at the bargain price of £1.99! (you can buy it here!) Recommended hook size is 3mm but I vary this according to the finish I want.  Oh and the colours.....46 delightful shades! And that's not including the Sunkissed collection. 
For my Monsoon Stole I chose the following colours:
722 - Ochre x 50g 720 - Fuchsia x 50g 726 - Moors x 50g 669 - Olive x 50g 671 - Rust x 50g 717 - Bordeaux x 150g
I used a 4.5mm hook to give a lacy appearance.
The pattern was very easy to follow and beautifully written. There are lots and lots of photos to follow so know exactly what the pattern should look like when finished.  Because of the mixture of stitches used in this design, blocking is essential! I used my trusty play mats and some blocking wires to pin out after I had given it a good soak. 
Ok enough talking....let's take a look!

I love how these colours work together! I made the section worked in the Bordeaux colour longer.

Check out those different stitches... *swoons*

I just adore the lacy edge!

Some close ups!

And there you have it! My version of the Monsoon Stole.  Whilst it looks like a complicated pattern, it was very quick and easy to make.  I finished it in a weekend! I may have to make another!
If you've made this stole, I'd love to see it! Leave a link in the comments ;-)
Til next time x

Monsoon Stole Delight!

Hi Folks! I know!!! Another blog post so soon....the world may end ;-) Just thought I'd quickly show you one of the things I've making over the last couple of months. Well the stuff I can share anyways as quite a bit is secret ;-) A few months back I saw a photo of the most stunning stole.  It just stole my heart (get it???!!!!!) Okay aside from the crappy jokes I really adored this stole pattern. It's designed by Alia Bland and the pattern can be bought here. Now I'm not a one for paying for patterns but I gladly parted with my cash for this one!!! I dug into my rather large stash of Scheepjes Cotton 8 and picked out some colours. 

This was my colour selection :-)

Cotton 8 is my favourite of all the yarns made by Scheepjes. I love it. The colours are fabulous and it's not splitty. The more you work with it and wear it the softer it gets. 

And at £1.99 for a 50g ball it won't break the bank either! 

UK folks can buy it here! Just go look at those gorgeous colours!!!

So off I set to work. I quickly became completely absorbed in this pattern (extremely well written I might add) and really struggled to put it down!  Don't you just love how these colours meld together to give an autumnally jewel vibe? I finished this stole in record time as I couldn't put it down! I've taken some finished item photographs and will share them soon. Have you made this stole? I'd love to see yours ;-) Til next time x