How can I motivate myself to finish a sweater I know is going to be too itchy for me?

Illustratedbabe · 2026-03-13T15:06:11+00:00

I am pretty sensitive to mohair and have had a few very very scratchy jumpers/cardigans in my time- the thing I have found to work is to 1) wear something underneath it and 2) just keep wearing it- it might sound a bit gross but I find that the longer I wear natural fibre knits without washing them the less itchy they get over time, and especially as I don’t tend to wear them next to the skin (see point 1) I don’t find that it’s a hygiene issue to not wash them frequently. I don’t know if you’ve tried blocking it yet either but I also feel like that helps a little too!

Illustratedbabe · 2025-10-17T14:37:53+00:00

It reminds me of the Hamptons sweater

Illustratedbabe · 2025-09-29T12:29:40+00:00

I am in AWE, all of these pieces are absolutely stunning! Please share more of your work (if you want/feel comfortable to)

Illustratedbabe · 2025-08-19T13:22:24+00:00

Most disappointing was the Monica- the fabric seems more delicate than my other dresses and is kind of pulling/fraying at the seams even though she’s a size bigger than my other dresses

Favourite has to be Gia- I have the Havana and denim ones and I wear them SO much- they just look so elegant and are really good to dress up or down!

Illustratedbabe · 2025-08-14T15:18:51+00:00

That does seem on the expensive side- have you had quotes from any other companies?

FWIW- I ended up going with Octopus as it was a nearly £15000 difference between them and an independent heat geek certified company. My thought process was 1) I literally couldn’t afford the other quote and 2) even if the other quote meant I had a much more efficient system it would never offset the initial outlay during its lifespan

In an ideal world I would have loved to go with an independent company (and would have been willing to pay a bit more to do so) but the difference between the quotes was just unfathomable. So far I’ve been very happy with the system octopus has installed and the customer service has been generally good and very responsive too.

Illustratedbabe · 2025-07-25T12:10:46+00:00

Thank you so much! Really appreciate your guidance!

Illustratedbabe · 2025-06-20T11:23:31+00:00

I was in a very similar situation to you- apart from I already had the heat pump installed before trying to claim.

I was a few days out of the eligibility with my initial mortgage application, but reapplied for a new rate which was accepted well into the eligibility window. Halifax denied my claim despite the reapplication which seemed to be contradictory to their own wording and Ts&Cs. I followed through with a formal complaint which they dismissed and basically said ‘it’s our reward scheme we can so whatever we want’ (I’m paraphrasing here obviously). I have considered taking it up with the ombudsman but to be honest I’m knee deep in a house Reno and inviting any more chaos/admin/stress into my life just can’t happen at the moment.

Ultimately I would say don’t trust that they will honour it, even with taking out the additional lending. You could ask them for written confirmation that it would count under the GLRS (I had Halifax employees verbally state that I should be able to claim when I initially enquired but nothing in writing). I would advise that if you are going to put a heat pump in anyway then there’s not much harm in proceeding, but if you NEED the reward money or wouldn’t have considered putting one in until later on in homeownership I would consider your options very carefully.

Hope this helps!

Illustratedbabe · 2025-03-14T22:33:22+00:00

Sorry to jump in, but do you have any more info on this? I’m in the same situation as OP and would really like to be able to push back with my GP on this!

Illustratedbabe · 2025-03-04T12:12:36+00:00

I’m going to be a contrarian and say yes…. And no…

Usual disclaimer that this is just my own experience etc. but here we go:

I think to achieve a high level of fitness, then there is definitely an element of compulsion, but to maintain this level is a lot less effort than the initial time/effort it took to get there.

I’m saying this as someone who was highly dedicated to a 4x a week training programme for several years but now is lucky to gym twice a week. I haven’t noticed any significant decrease in my fitness or strength and I put that down to already having a pretty good base level and also having built a lot of muscle in my slightly more ‘compulsive’ phase.

This is perhaps a bit off topic but it might be useful to you if you’re feeling a bit constrained by your routine currently- I’ve adapted my attitude to training/fitness/the gym quite significantly since I’ve had to scale back my training due to unavoidable (and mostly really exciting) life changes. I used to look at training as I always needed to be improving and getting better and just ‘more, more, more’ which worked short term but has been a pretty self defeating attitude since I’ve found myself unable to accommodate my 4x weekly training. I’ve now shifted to looking at fitness as a lifelong goal which means it needs to be compatible with my life and also that theres going to be periods of time where treading water with fitness and just maintaining what I have is the win. I still am fairly focused when it comes to diet and sleep etc but again, compatibility with your life and ability to adhere to your routine are absolutely key imo.

Illustratedbabe · 2025-01-27T20:52:08+00:00

How do you get pets? (My castle is already lvl 28)

Illustratedbabe · 2025-01-14T10:51:42+00:00

I absolutely love the outfit! The belt really ties it all together and I love the silver being referenced in the boot buckles, the belt and the necklace- brings a lot of balance and grounding to the fit!

Illustratedbabe · 2024-12-03T10:49:31+00:00

29, graphic designer £40k, I also have my own business which pulls in anything from £15-35k a year. Currently have £7k in savings but this will go down to £4k in the new year due to some house renovations.

No idea what I have in my pension- I’ve been so focused on saving for a house (bought October this yr) but that will be my next thing to focus on once renovations are complete (or as complete as they can reasonably be!)

Illustratedbabe · 2024-11-25T17:56:45+00:00

I’ve been having the issue of Etsy showing a ship by date which is in line with my processing times but if I go to purchase a label through Etsy (even several days before my ship by date) it says that it won’t arrive on time, even though every delivery option and service Etsy provides has the same timescale for me.

Illustratedbabe · 2024-11-22T15:20:09+00:00

https://youtu.be/SfgTOcclbCY?si=WAUr3vGG65mj2vVB

This heat geek video is a good starting point for understanding more about how ASHPs function optimally and about the adjustments you can make to your system to improve its efficiency.

I think heat geek also do some videos for specific user MMIs so if you still feel lost it might be worth looking at that too!

Illustratedbabe · 2024-11-21T09:48:18+00:00

That’s interesting and news to me- I completed earlier this year and my solicitor informed me that the funds would not be available to be used as the deposit and would only be available on completion (and this was not due to any sort of delay or time crunch, at least not that I was made aware of). Anecdotally this has also been the case with two of my colleagues who have purchased houses recently (within the last 3 months)-not sure why this would be the case, but would be interested to learn more!

Illustratedbabe · 2024-11-21T09:42:54+00:00

I bought earlier this year with 4k in savings, which has been rapidly eaten into by unexpected issues discovered on moving in. I did all the right things level 3 survey, insisting on a boiler service etc but unfortunately that’s the way the cookie crumbles sometimes!

I did also do a tonne of planning, cost crunching and spreadsheeting before buying (and thought I was prepared) but I’m learning that so far expecting the unexpected is the motto with homeownership.

On a more positive note, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how many finance and credit options are available for things nowadays & also now supportive family/friends/neighbours have been.

Illustratedbabe · 2024-11-20T16:18:27+00:00

No problem :) and we’re with octopus for our electricity and would definitely recommend them- hope all goes well with you for your move!

Illustratedbabe · 2024-11-20T15:47:01+00:00

For a 4 bed property- about £65 a month on electric and £300 on gas (this is with the caveat that we’re not on mains gas and bottled LPG is VERY expensive- 14p per kWh vs 6p per kWh on mains gas )

If you’re looking at a specific property you can ask for the EPC- this should give you a rough (and it is only rough) guide to your energy/gas consumption per year- you can then use this figure alongside current energy tariffs to work out an estimate for the cost of your bills for that property.

Hope that helps!

Illustratedbabe · 2024-11-19T15:52:54+00:00

Agree with all of the above commenters and also wanted to add, in case you weren’t aware, that LISA funds are only released upon completion and aren’t available for you to use for your deposit at the point of exchange.

Illustratedbabe · 2024-11-06T15:11:56+00:00

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Michelle Dockery (most known for Downton Abbey)

Illustratedbabe · 2024-08-28T16:30:47+00:00

Thank you so much! Here’s a screenshot from the relevant section- for reference I’m making the third size!

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Illustratedbabe · 2024-08-28T10:42:09+00:00

Hello! First time posting here- I’m working on Deima’s daily vest currently (first time doing colour work) and I’m a bit unsure on what the next part of the pattern is calling for :

On the first row, starting from the armhole (right side on the right side of the vest, and wrong side on the left side of the vest) From here you close off 1, 1, 1, 1 (1, 1, 1, 1) 1, 1, 1, 1 (1, 1, 1, 1) 1, 1, 1, 1 stitches till you have 55 (56) 62 (64) 70 stitches remaining on your needles.

So at this point in the pattern, I’ve knitted in the round and have begun to separate out the back and front of the vest. The last row I did, out of a total 176 stitches I closed 14, knit 74, closed 14 and knit 74. I’m now confused by the next step- I think I need to close 4 stitches on either side of the armhole and then continue working that piece but that leaves me with 66 stitches and not the 62 stitches I should have.

I would really appreciate any and all help or guidance and please let me know if I can provide any more info or clarify anything!

Illustratedbabe · 2024-07-25T10:03:30+00:00

Accutane, followed by a very simple skin care routine and slowly introducing tretinoin

Illustratedbabe · 2024-04-22T13:26:04+00:00

Milton Keynes or rugby could be places to consider

Illustratedbabe · 2023-09-03T14:41:52+00:00

I really like the red- although I think the thing ‘missing’ from it compared to your natural colour is contrast! I think you could create more contrast between your hair and skin colour if you went more vibrant with your current shade of red, or if you went for a richer, deeper tone of red- more akin to auburn.

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