Celebrating all things Scottish!

Christmas Post

I think the time has come for me to announce my last order dates for Christmas 2011, now that we are well into November and there's a chill in the air!

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UK orders: Saturday 17th December

Orders for Western Europe: Saturday 10th December

Orders for Canada, USA & Eastern Europe: Wednesday 7th December

Orders for Japan, Oz, NZ & everywhere else: Saturday 3rd December

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Note: if you are interested in a custom order, please get in touch as soon as possible, preferably before Monday 21st November, to allow enough time for the item to be made and sent in time for the last posting dates. (My current lead time on commissions is 1-2 weeks.)

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Find my WildCat Designs handmade knitted goodies on Etsy, Folksy(£), DaWanda(€) & Bigcartel(£). See also my WildKittens knits for babies & kids!

We want Wool!

This is the perfect time to get back into knitting, it really does feel wintery today. Mind you, it's not as if I actually have a time of year when I'm not knitting, if I'm being honest!

Anyway, some of you may remember that earlier in the year, I donated to the Red Cross for every Space Invader sale I made in March and April to the Japan Tsumami Appeal. Almost 8 months later, many people are still trying to piece their lives back together after the 8.9 magnitude quake and resulting tsunami.

One aid project which I think is particularly wonderful is run by Imperfect Planet, and they've been asking folks to donate yarn so that they could host a wool craft party for people in Japan who have been affected by the tsunami and ensuing aftermath. It's so great that someone has thought of helping by enabling a little bit of craft.

They are still hoping for more wool donations, ideally to arrive in Japan before 15th November 2011. Details of where to send yarn to in this post.

If you fancy "crafting for a cause," there are a couple of other noteworthy projects underway:

The annual call for little knitted hats to adorn Innocent smoothies is also known as the Big Knit. Money raised this year goes to Age UK. Get in volved and download/print your Big Knit Kit here.


Now for what is possibly the cutest charity knitting project I have ever heard of...! Handmade jumpers for little New Zealand penguins affected by the recent oil spill.

_{Image via Mother Nature Network}
They have apparently had such an overwhelming response that they now have a surplus of pingu tops! Check out the Skeinz blog here for more cuteness and updates.

We have a Winner!

...aaand we have a winner!

The lucky recipient of the WildCat Designs scarf is Kristen, commenter #54:

"My favorite is the Skinny Felted Merino Lambswool Scarf in Teal and Chocolate."

Kristen, please get in touch with your contact details to I can arrange to send out your prize!

I just want to say a massive thanks to everyone who entered and thank you for all the lovely comments :)

Comfort Food

Now, I don't normally blog about food - unless it's cake, because frankly, I think cake is good for the soul (mainly because it makes you happy!) - but I wanted to share this recipe I came across.

Two reasons: 1. It looks *deee-licious* and 2. much like cosy knits, it's perfect for autumn (or winter for that matter!), when you're craving a little comfort food. I also really love Moroccan food and dream of visiting there someday.

The recipe is for Moroccan Meatballs and the accompanying sauce - found on the Cupcake Junky blog.

Images via Cupcake Junky

Enjoy!

Win a WildCat Designs scarf!

That's right - it's giveaway time! :D

I'm celebrating passing the 500 follower mark on Twitter by offering the chance to *win* yourself a gorgeous handmade WildCat Designs scarf. (If you want to follow my witterings on twitter too, find me here: @wildcatdesigns or click the 'follow me on twitter' button on my blog sidebar at the right!)

To get your mitts on this twitter-y teal blue and white striped scarf, made from beautifully soft felted Merino lambswool (perfect for keeping cosy now that autumn has started to set in), all you need to do is comment on this post and tell me your favourite WildCat Designs creation - see here!

One winner will be chosen at random, competiton closes at midnight (GMT) on Friday 28th October 2011. [EDIT: This competition has now closed.]

This prize draw is open to all, I'm happy to post it internationally! (Note that your comments will not be published instantly, as they are moderated, so please be patient.)

Gorgeous Knits

I hope you are all having a lovely weekend, dear readers. I have to say that I take particular delight around this time of year when the weather starts to turn as it means one of my favourite seasons is almost underway! I adore the beautiful autumnal colours, crisp leaves underfoot and curling up with new knitting projects (of course!). Above you can see a cable design I have recently brought out of hibernation :)
Here are some other lovely things which I think are perfect for staying cosy during autumn.



Found on the Fall Fingerless Mitts blog.

This gorgeous leafy hat pattern looks fab knitted up using variegated yarns - it's available from Ruth Sørensen's website and also ravelry.

I love this adorable (and cosy!) *hexapuff* Beekeeper's quilt 

- it looks like such a fun pattern to work on.

[Edit - coincidentally, this is National Knitting Week this week here in the UK! Happy knitting!]

Abstract Inspiration

Inspired by my friend and talented artist, Beatie, of Fox Design, I curated this list of abstract loveliness.



I hope you like it. My blog may be a little quieter than usual in the next little while as the "knitwear season" has begun, meaning I'll likely be up to the eyeballs in wool! It could be worse I suppose ;)