Stripey stripes

Good news my lovelies, my RSI which I was telling you about last year is much much better again.  Hooray!  How long it will last I'm not sure but I've been really good with my crafting and haven't been overdoing things and I won't be setting myself any unrealistic deadlines in a hurry that's for sure!

So with that in mind I've given myself plenty of time to knit up a blanket for one of my oldest friends who will be having a baby boy in March ♥

Now I don't like gender stereotypes and I'm not the kind of person that thinks girls should wear pink and boys should wear blue (although I do love pink myself).  I don't like the shelves in toy shops that categorise cars for boys and dolls for girls.  I don't mind if other people do but that's just my personal opinion.

I tried really hard to apply this ethic onto this blanket (I really did!) but it is h-a-r-d I tell you!  I have wanted to use Stylecraft because it is beautiful to work with (important), lovely and soft for a baby (essential) and I have a tonne of it (useful).  The problem I found was a lot of shades from my stash have been used up like Meadow green and I was a bit concerned that too much pink and people will just assume my friends child is a girl, which wouldn't bother me but they're not me you see.

So after playing around with loads of colour combinations, some very terrible, some very retro (which I'm sure friends husband would hate) I have admitted some defeat and am knitting a blue blanket for a boy...  Well it's got yellow, red and purple in it too.

So far so good though.  I quite like that the 'back' is even stripier than the 'front', it took me a few rows to realise that the colour changes needed to be in even rows, but once I got around that it started to work out nicely.  I even painstakingly sewed in a different colour (following the knitted stitches) and ripped out the original just because I didn't think it looked right.  Yikes!

I'mn knitting on my circular needles for extra length and it's just plain old garter stitch because I just think it looks fabulous, especially in stripes.

A nice shot of my new white goods as well.

I also have a yarny confession...  Actually does this even count as yarn?  It's recycled t-shirt yarn!  I think it might be factory left overs and I've seen it on the internet before but never in the shops.  These were from Hobbycraft on 3 for 2 so about £12 for all three.  I thought it might make a nice floppy snood but actually it goes very thick, so it might be more handbag or pouffe material.  We will see!

Hope all is well in your world!  Much DIY has occured here as well, I'm looking forward to boring you with photos soon ;-)

x x x x

Christmas 2013

Christmas is my favourite time of the year, but last year we had so much to do I really struggled to get into the Christmas spirit.  I stopped worrying about "x sleeps til Christmas" and managed to focus on what it's all about.  Eating, drinking and family!

I've always wanted a Christmas wreath.  I'd love to hang one on my front door but I'm worried it will get wet and stolen!  I made this from pieces bought in Wilkinsons.  It's quite simple (aka cheap) but I'm really pleased.  It could do with lights, but where to hide the batteries?

This year we spent Christmas day with Js family.  Our nephews were very excited about the whole thing, the biggest enjoying opening presents more than the presents themselves I think and the youngest enjoying the little things like Duplo.  It's always weird not being 'home' for Christmas but now we have our own home to make lots of memories in, although I'm not looking forward to cooking a Christmas dinner for lots of people...!

J and I agreed we wouldn't really do presents for each other because our home was a big enough present but we still got a few silly things.  I even bought a tree to replace our weedy one, £50 down to £25 and free with our Nectar points, win!

I was able to hang a very exciting decoration which arrived in November...

  

My very own Percy Pecker!!  Thank you Jooles, I love him!

I baked mince pies (jar & ready to roll puff pastry cheat)

Our enormous (slightly unsightly!) fireplace became adorned with Christmas and new home cards ♥

Loved decorations came out of their boxes

We visited the markets in town (I might have been more than once...)

 

And I got some amazing Dr Martens boots.  Swoooooon!



♥

We went down to my family after Christmas and because my brother works Christmas day we had Second Christmas on Monday which was so much fun!



My poor mum hadn't much time to decorate this year, she's spent most of December at mine!



But she did a great job and we had a lovely time



Wishing you all a very happy 2014!

x x x x

And a happy new year

It's been a while hasn't it?  Better start with Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year :-)

 I just wanted to say I'm still here but I've been a bit busy buying something rather big...

We did it! We bought a house!

This last month has been absolutely exhausting and I was so ready for the Christmas break I could have fallen asleep on my desk at work several times!  I've been very much away from blogland unfortunately but I've started to catch up (a little, over 100 posts to read in Feedly!) It's been one long journey but it feels lovely, and where I was worried that I miss my flat I haven't thought about it at all, although we did have a pretty amazing view ♥

This time last year I couldn't possibly have imagined owning our home, our circumstances made it seem like a bad idea right now, but then when we realised how much less we'd be paying (plus our landlord put up our rent by a lot) it just made sense.

Anyone reading this who had bought a house will know it's not easy. We both fell in love with a lovely Victorian terrace, which sadly wasn't meant to be and even worse for me was every other house we viewed had to live up it.  I negotiated a price on our second choice at Glastonbury Festival, which wasn't easy and then it all fell through because the seller was a complete bum hole.

Then FINALLY our home appeared on the market.  Perfectly timed because we'd viewed or ruled out everything in our price range and preferred area.  I won't say that the sale was a breeze because we ended up choosing an incompetent solicitor and our mortgage lender could never find our paperwork, but the vendors were lovely and the good news is the solicitor was so incompetent they've yet to bill us.

Check out my awesome kitchen!!  ♥ Ikea

I hope not to be too much of a stranger to blogging this year, seeing as I've a lot of DIY to write about, but more importantly lots of knitting & crochet projects!

Much love x x x x

Needle felting, it's rather good!

Don't get RSI, I wouldn't recommend it.  It will either mean you've been repetitively doing something uncomfortable like sitting at a rubbish desk at work (done!) or you just don't stop when you're in pain when knitting (done!)

I sound like a whinge bag, yes I do, but I've not really been able to do anything on my needles or hooks for a few weeks and I am restless!  There are so many projects I'm itching to start, like Christmas presents and new baby presents but I'm continuing to be good and I've not attempted it at all, not until I know I'm 100%.  So please, all you crafters out there take it from me!  If you're in any pain your hands are telling you to stop!

It's not been all doom and gloom though.  I'm not one to sit about idly and unfortunately I'm not a big reader although I've started on the Disc World series (better late than never) so instead I've started to make other things, do a bit more sewing (new skirt coming soon!) and I've rediscovered needle felting!  This has also come at a rather opportune moment as it's quite therapeutic when you imagine that the felt roving is your conveyancers head*.

*I am not usually like this!

My first project was a little toadstool.  The stem is too thin so it won't stand upright, it might have to become a broach or something.

Then I got festive and made some puds!

The berry balls are a bit tricky to do but once rounded they look fab and I want to make bigger ones and string them together to make a garland or something

I also made a slightly odd looking christmas tree but it's quite quirky so I'm sure it will find its place when the decorations come out.

Needle felting does come with its hazards though I'll warn you.  The needles are barbed.  You think it hurts when you stab yourself with a normal needle?  That's nothing!  It's really fun though and the results can be pretty quick unless you want to get fancy and so some beautiful projects like Betz White who's blog I found by complete chance and I now love :-)

x x x x

Cables & hearts

Brrrrrrrrrrr it's cold!!!  We made it to November without putting the heating on but we've had to admit defeat and it's in now.  I don't know if it just feels colder because we've been away for the weekend but I think it's safe to say that Winter has arrived...

We spent the last couple of days over in Sheffield with my family, which I always love.  My uncle lives in a big, old victorian house.  It isn't perfect and you have to be careful which floorboards you walk on because some of them are loose but I love it!  J and I procured a very nice mirror from an antique shop (I doubt the mirror really is antique) but we even haggled and got a fiver off so I'm dead pleased!   It's wrapped up at the moment so I can't show you it, but it will have it's reveal in our new home...!

♥

I've not been upto much knitting or crocheting recently because I've got the finger and hand aches again, only this time my arms hurt a bit too.  It happened earlier in the year after trying to get a few projects finished for people so I'm hoping it's just a bit of RSI and nothing serious.  I'm really itching to get my needles out and finish my owl and start making presents but I need to accept that this just isn't happening.

I've been making a list of projects that I've started, finished and haven't written about and this is one of them.  I made a cushion for my mums birthday so I couldn't share until she'd received it.  It was knitted up on size 6 needles, probably a lot smaller than I could have gone for but being Cygnet Seriously Chunky it was quite fast to work up.

I wanted to find an alternating cable pattern but I couldn't find anything (or didn't know how to search!) so after a bit of trial and error I made it up.

Cast on multiple of 5 + 1 (I did 31)

Row 1  ~ *k1, p4* repeat to end k1 (ws)

Row 2 ~ *p1, k4* repeat to end p1 (rs)

Row 3 ~ *k1, p4* repeat to end k1 (ws)

Row 4 ~ *p1, k4, p1, cb4* repeat to end p1 (rs)

Row 5 ~ *k1, p4* repeat to end k1 (ws)

Row 6 ~ *p1, k4* repeat to end p1 (rs)

Row 7 ~ *k1, p4* repeat to end k1 (ws)

Row 8 ~ *p1,cf4, p1, k4* repeat to end p1 (rs)

k = knit

p = purl

cf = cable front

cb = cable back

I didn't take very good photos while we were down at my mum and dads so these will have to do I'm afraid!

Look how well it matches!  I wish in hindsight that I'd sewn it up with a flap and maybe knitted a few extra rows...  The wooden buttons look nice though.  The inner is a small square Ikea cushion, I have bought far too many of these in the past, three live in our house, two with a friend and I think I've given my mum at least three.  I need to stop making her (anyone) cushions really.

I had completely forgotten all about this project too!  I don't think I even mentioned it once, probably again because it was a mother's day present so I didn't want my mum seeing it here!!  I remember enjoying this a lot and it's full on my own home grown lavender.  The heart and smell has survived, sadly the lavender plant has not!  It lives on my mums bedside now, along with a variety of other random things I've made / gifted her.

Does it really have to be Monday Morning again tomorrow?  I could definitely do with another day off, or two!  Chow for now 

x x x x

Button Bracelets Tutorial

I'm not sure how many people want to make one of these but I think they're great, and with Christmas coming up I thought it might be a good present to make for kids and big kids like me :-)  I'm going to make another in red and green.

First things first then, you need some stuff.  Hopefully you have most of it in your crafty stash!  If not then what better excuse to go shopping, but as the idea of this is to recycle why not see if you've got anything around the house.  Old clothes you can cut the buttons off?

1 :: Buttons
2 :: Elastic thread

I bought mine from the Rubbish Revamped ladies because I suspected I wouldn't get out to buy any, but you can get probably it in any decent craft shop or on the tinternet

3 :: Scissors
4 :: Something to hold the end of the elastic.  I'm using little wooden pegs (because they're cute) but paperclips would be just fine

Start by cutting your elastic thread, I used about 25/30 cm because your thread needs to weave in an out of the buttons and you need to tie it off, so it's probably more than you'd think.  Secure the end with your peg/clip.

Now for the real fun...  Start choosing your buttons!!

I already made a medium sized bracelet so I'm going to pick out the smallest ones but you can choose whatever you want.  Alternating sizes look pretty cool.

Most buttons have four holes so you want to thread diagonally across these, like the dark green button on the end.  Make sure you thread from the back as well, unless (as I found) some buttons are actually prettier on the back, then thread those from the front instead.

Another tip, if you want your buttons to alternate in colour like this, you need to thread two of the same colour at a a time; red, red, green, green.  If you thread red, green, red, green you'll get all your red on one side and all your green on the other, but this is equally as lovely.

My favourite thing is picking out interesting buttons.  I love this ♥  You can also layer two buttons together like this for a centre piece (makes a great ring too).

When you're done snip both ends until they're the same length.  Another tip, if you want to keep the length but one side is longer than the other, slide some buttons off and put them on the longer side

Now for the hard bit...  Knotting!  I hate this bit, I found it quite hard, but no pain no gain?  You'll want to hold the two pieces together and do an 'overhand knot' rather than a shoelace type knot because it will probably come undone and then there'll be buttons everywhere.

But now you're done!

You can blob some clear nail varnish on the knot if you want just to hold everything together

Wear, enjoy, make yourself a brew and congratulation yourself on being a master of craft ;-)

x x x x

Rubbish, Revamped!

Yesterday I went along to a series of drop in workshops run by a group called Rubbish Revamped who were training some of our WI to make things out of pre-used, pre-loved and pre-worn stuff. Their motto is 'Reduce, Reuse, Revamp, Recycle' and they're a fabulous bunch of ladies who seem to be able to make anything out of anything!


My first workshop( and the one I was most looking forward to) was button jewellery ♥

I bought along some of my own Papermania buttons in red and green, the same I used for my upcycled skirt.


I can't rate these buttons enough! For £3 you get so many! I quite like that lots of them are patterned or have writing on them so you can end up with something quite funky.  I've not been paid to say that, but Papermania if you're listening feel free to send me more ;-)


I was quite excited by my creation! I've told J at least three times, "Look I made this!!" and he's humoured me so far. I hear though that there are people out there who have button phobias, and can't stand anything with buttons on them! I can imagine that would make life quite difficult. Jeans? Nope!

I bought some of the elastic so I could make more at home.  It probably only took 15 minutes and that included getting a cup of tea and chatting.  I like short therapeutic projects like this!


Moving on I started on making something called a Suffolk Broach. You only need a tiny scrap of fabric and a button for this project and it's pretty simple as well. I went for fabrics that clashed a lot but it seemed to work bizarrely.  You can make them into badges or hair pieces, anything really.  Smaller puffs make good necklaces and rings too.


I found that absolute perfect button to sew onto the top of mine, see how it's a bit like the fabric puffs?


There was also a do-it-yourself table with scraps of paper and punches of different shapes. Who'd have thought that the inside of envelopes could be so interesting! Next time you get a bill have a look, you might find something useful :)


I made some paper bunting out of the heart stamps in two sizes and it fits nicely on my greenhouse ♥

Now we weren't just learning how to make lovely things out of recycled materials, no! The ladies at Rubbish Revamped were also giving us tips on how to train others you see, because we're going to share these skills with the world*!

*maybe just a little part of it

We're probably going to run some sessions next year but it occurred to me this morning that I could also share it online with you! I need better light so I think I'll have to wait til next weekend so I can take photos as I go, but if anyone is interested then come back soon :)

x x x x