WIP Wednesday

It’s Wednesday and, as promised, here is the WIP Wednesday post for this week!

My first work in progress is a secret project. It is a birthday present for my wonderful son (will you excuse me if I call him my son? Step-son sounds so formal and I honestly couldn’t love those kids more if they were my own!) For obvious reasons, I can’t share photos at the moment, but as soon as he has opened this present on February 2nd, I will be straight on the pc and uploading photos left, right and centre!

Tiny Yarn Animals by Tamie Snow

I am also working my way through this wonderful book. These little creatures are so cute – and I am making them even tinier by using DK weight yarn and a 3mm hook. I might work my way through the book again, this time using an even smaller hook, but that will have to wait until I have finished working my way through the other amigurumi books waiting for their projects to be crocheted. To see photos of the projects I have already completed from the book, head on over to Flickr, Picasa or Ravelry.

I’m still working on the baby blanket for my sister, and carefully choosing toys for the baby that I can make. I don’t seem to be getting on very well with knitting baby clothes, so I think I’ll stick to blankets and soft toys. Vicky has already said that she wants her baby to have toys handmade by their Auntie Shelly

Other than that, it’s just cross stitch projects on the go, and as I haven’t done any cross stitch for over a week, there’s nothing to share. I really do have to get back into it though. I just keep getting distracted by the beautiful crochet projects on my to-do list!

TUSAL 2012

Her is my jar for today:

TUSAL jar on 23 January 2012

To read more about the Totally Useless Stitch A-Long or to join up, hop on over to Daffycat

Gleeful Things » And The Winner Is..

Gleeful Things » And The Winner Is...

hey that’s me!!  I’m so excited! I never win anything! la la la la la (that’s me singing!)

Resolved to Sew 2012

Firstly, I apologise profusely for not having posted since the 6th. We are having are bathroom done – at long last! -  and it has been more than stressful. The plumbers are back today, hopefully for the last time (especially since it is them that have made this such a stressful ordeal), and we are hopeful that everything will go according to plan. I have been so stressed out by the whole predicament that not only have I not been posting, I haven’t been getting on with things around the house, dinner has been phenomenally late and I have been so incredibly tired that I have been going to sleep when they leave for the day (which is probably why dinner has been so ridiculously late!). However, since today should be their last day, I can hopefully get back on track with my regular WIP Wednesday posts and other such things. I haven’t even picked up my cross stitch, so I have over a week’s worth of work to catch up on. That will not be easy.

However, as you can probably guess from my title, belly-aching is not the reason for this post today. No no no, today I want to talk about sewing, and my resolve to do more of it this year. As you may know, my Mum gave me a wonderful book for my birthday called Sewing In No Time by Emma Hardy, and they my darling husband gave me another equally wonderful book (but possibly a little more wonderful) for Christmas called Get The Most From Your Sewing Machine by Marion Elliott. Both books have inspired me tremendously, and I have actually made a project from the first book with a few alterations. I fully intend to make more projects from these books and other sewing books I have in my collection. I would definitely like to make the cutlery roll as a cutlery roll (as opposed to a crochet hook roll/case) and some sort of case for my knitting DPNs. I have decided to make some sort of wall hanging/tidy for Jay’s shed so he can put things away within easy reach and I want to make some new cushions for the living room, since ours are looking rather tired and old and don’t really do much in the way of support any more. I have a couple of appliqué projects I would like to have a go at, and of course the projects from Stitch! magazine that I have fallen in love with. I would like to have a go at machine embroidery as well, but I suspect I have enough to be getting on with for 2012, so maybe next year… I also have a few hand embroidery projects up my sleeve, which have been milling around for a while and I think it’s high time they made an appearance.

I have so many ideas and planned projects whirling around in my head that it’s hard to express here just how many or how wonderful they all are! If I was to win something in the Very Berry Handmade Resolved to Sew 2012 giveaway, I would probably make a quilt with the fat quarters, or a pincushion using the crushed walnut shells. All those prizes look wonderful, don’t they? I don’t think I could use all the fat quarters in a quilt though; I would have so save one or two to make a doll of some description, as is my passion at the moment. And let’s not forget the cross stitch WIPocalypse I’m involved with at the moment. Surely that’s a resolve to sew?

Whatever I get up to sewing-wise this year, and whether or not I am lucky enough to win one of the lovely prizes on Very Berry Handmade, I am resolved to have fun most of all.

Have you entered the giveaway? What prizes would you like to win? What would you do with them? Don’t forget, the giveaway will close at midnight on Thursday 26th January UK time, so if you haven’t already entered get writing your blog post now!

Freebie Friday

It’s the first Friday of the month, so it must be time for a free pattern! This month it’s a crocheted hat with ear flaps and cat ears. It was a request from my step-daughter and she was delighted to open hers on Christmas day! I hope you enjoy the pattern!

To download the pattern, either click over to my free crochet patterns page above, or click here. Please respect my copyright as stated within the pattern.

I have another scarf pattern to share next month, and then I hope to be able to share some very special patterns with you. I’m not going to give you a sneaky peek, but I will give you a hint: I made this as a Christmas present and the photo is on Picasa and Flickr. Comment below to make a guess or a request for a future pattern!

A case for the crochet hooks (at last!) and a New Year’s resolution

We had three hours in town yesterday between appointments, and so we ran some errands that I have been putting on hold for a while. One of which is the crochet hook case. So I dragged hubby to Fabric Land (not his favourite shop) and then asked his opinion on some fabrics before making a final decision and asking him to get his wallet out. Here is what we bough:

Chinese Brocade and Faux Silk

Sparkly off-cuts

Want a closer look at that Chinese Brocade?

Chinese Brocade

It’s gorgeous isn’t it? I went to pick up a bag of toy stuffing once we had sorted out the Brocade and the faux silk and chosen the thread, and some sparkly remnants fell out of the bin as I walked past it. I took this as a sign and bought them too. One is red, the other green, and both have glittery stars on them. I think they are organza-type fabrics, and they will come in handy for next Christmas!

Anyway, I have been eyeing up the cutlery roll pattern in Emma Hardy’s book, “Sewing In No Time” since Mum gave it to me for my birthday. Last night I did some working out and made some adjustments to the measurements given in the book and they today I cut the fabric and sewed the pieces together to make myself a brand new crochet hook case! I am very pleased with the end result, even though it’s not perfect stitching, but it took me about three hours to make this afternoon and it’s so pretty!

I just love that Brocade…

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I also wanted to share my resolutions for 2012 with you. Only the craft ones, mind! Aside from the WIPocalypse on the cross stitch, I would like to get a bit further with teaching myself stumpwork. I have started making a corsage and I would like to finish that this year, if I find time around the cross stitch that is! However, I would also like to learn tatting this year. It is a type of lace-making, in case you’re not familiar with the term, and since I make the friendship bracelets with the knot used for tatting, theoretically I just need to teach myself to work the knot the other way round. Once this is mastered I would like to move on to crotat, but I am happy to just learn the tatting to begin with!

I think my main objective for 2012 is to be more adventurous, try to think outside the box a bit more. I have enjoyed adapting crochet designs to make my own things, but I would like to get more into the whole designing game, as in design something from scratch rather than adapting someone else’s patterns for my own purposes. I hope I will find this to be the natural next step, but we’ll see won’t we?!

Have you made any craft-related resolutions for this year? Leave us a link to your blog so we can read it!

WIP Wednesday

It has taken me nearly all day to edit the photos from the Christmas presents I made and the other photos that I want to share with you, so although I must apologise for this being later than planned, at least it is still Wednesday! As I am blogging about the WIPocalypse over on Blogger, I will not be including my cross stitch WIPs here this year. I hope that’s ok with you all; if not, it’s just tough I’m afraid! So, on with the fun!

1. Cellular Baby Blanket, 2. Cellular Baby Blanket, 3. Little Turtles, Eggs and their Mamma, 4. Elm Grain Stitch Scarf

The top two photos are of the cellular baby blanket I’m crocheting for my sister, whose baby is due in May. You can expect to see a lot of baby things here as I am allowed to make stuff for this baby! Also on the hook at the moment is Ana Paula Rimoli’s Little Turtles, Eggs and their Mommy from her book, Amigurumi Two! I can’t wait to finish this one – it’s so much fun!

The last photo is of my sixth or seventh attempt at a scarf to match my new hat. Hubby bought me five balls of Wendy Norse Chunky for Christmas and I used Tina Barrett’s Dior pattern for my slouchy hat. I then adapted the elm grain stitch pattern to make myself some wrist warmers to match and am trying to knit a scarf with the leftover 2½ balls of wool. I want the scarf to be wide but not too dense and not too short, so it’s a case of knit so much then rip it out and start again on bigger needles. I’m working with 15mm needles in the photo.

"Dior" slouchy hat featuring elm grain stitch

Elm grain stitch wrist warmers

The yarn is so soft and warm and snuggly, I almost don’t want to take off my hat and wrist warmers when I come indoors!

2012 TUSAL

Firstly I would like to wish you all a very happy New Year. I hope all your celebrations went according to plan and that you had a wonderful time last night. We had a great time, despite being so tired that we all went to bed shortly after midnight!

If you have been following my blog recently, you will know that I have signed up to Daffycat’s Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long for 2012 and Measi’s WIPocalypse. If you already know what these are, then feel free to skip the rest of this paragraph. If not, then read on my friends. the WIPocalypse is an online stitch-a-long to finish current (and/or new) WIPs. To read more or to sign up, follow the link above. I will be blogging about this here (here is today’s post). Daffycat’s Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long, or TUSAL for short, involves a jar and collecting your thread scraps for the year. If you want to know more or would like to sign up for this, then follow the link above.

Now that we have that sorted out, lets get on with it! I have my jar at the ready and will be collecting all my ORTs (Old Ratty Threads) in it for the year. I have not yet decided whether I will empty the jar at the end of each month and start afresh or keep all the ends in the jar for the whole year. I suspect I will not have room in one jar alone for all my ORTs in a whole year, but I will play it by ear. I have my jar next to my chair in the living room and will put all my ends in there from today onwards. This will probably include crochet and knitting ends as well as cross stitch.

The first post for this TUSAL is due on January 23rd, when I will post a photo of my jar. Here is a photo of the empty jar, just for fun:

2011 in review

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

The concert hall at the Syndey Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 9,700 times in 2011. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 4 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.

Christmas preparations

We put our tree up on Sunday together as a family and it was the most fun I have had in years! Seriously! Christmas has always been my favourite time of year, and decorating the tree and the house is right up there with wrapping the presents, but trimming the tree has never been so much fun for me. The four of us laughed as we pulled everything out from under the coffee table and pushed it to the side of the room, then laughed some more while we assembled the tree. Last year we had a fibre optic tree which didn’t need to be decorated, so I have been deprived of this exquisite luxury since we got married, making this year more fun than it could possibly ever have been before.

We didn’t put tinsel on the tree, but used it to decorate the DVD shelves, picture frames and doorway to the living room. We can’t really decorate any other parts of the house aside from the living room since the cats would destroy it, and they’ve had a go at trying to pull the decs off the tree, but all in all it has gone well. I have nearly finished the wrapping with only a few handmade presents left to wrap now. However, I still need to do the ribbons and stuff, which I will leave until Christmas Eve so they don’t get crushed. All that is left for me to do now is to cook up a storm. Oh yes, and finish making the last of the handmade presents and apply the finishing touches to the main handmade presents, which I am so very proud with myself over. I know pride is a sin, but I am just so pleased with how they turned out! I can’t wait to share photos!

I also have four new crochet patterns to share, but as I have made them as Christmas presents I won’t be able to share photos (or the patterns) until the new year. In the meantime, I have to extract the patterns from my memory, as I made it up as I went, and try to write it in some coherent manner so you don’t all scream “what the hell is this?!” at me when you read them. I am now so excited for Christmas that I can barely contain myself! I still have to make and post three birthday cards, but I’m too excited about Christmas to even think about birthdays – even if they are on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Day and in three days’ time. Whoops! Better get started on that one soon – and the present to go with it!

How are your plans coming along for Christmas? Is everything going smoothly or are you encountering disaster after disaster (I hope not!)? We may have to prepare for family visits over; are you visiting family or are they visiting you? Whatever you do and however you celebrate your Christmas, I hope everything goes splendidly and you all have a wonderful time. For now, I must get back to those last few gifts I’m making…

BBC News – Close-up: Japan’s amazing lunchboxes

BBC News – Close-up: Japan’s amazing lunchboxes.

My husband e-mailed me this link and I just had to share it. I can’t believe the lengths people will go to to prepare a packed lunch for their kids. Making the lunch look like a cartoon character, animal or game is just beyond me so this has totally blown my mind! Do click on over and watch the short video – it’s sure to make your mind boggle!

A few Christmas giggles

This morning I have had to put my computer on. I have been trying to avoid it, knowing how much work I need to do on here, but I could not avoid it forever – or even until Christmas is over and done with. So I turned the dreaded machine on and finished a blog post for my other blog that I started at the beginning of the month. It’s about issue 74 of Stitch magazine. If you are interested in embroidery of any description or simply like pretty things, I urge you to go an buy a copy now. If you’re not convinced by this single statement, then read the blog post first, then go and buy it. I assure you; you will not be disappointed.

So, with that post out of the way, I decided to embark upon my 200+ reading list on Google Reader. I found myself wondering if you used to be able to share posts on Twitter and Facebook before they changed the look and introduced Google+, but I really don’t remember. All I know is that if I want to share a post on Twitter or Blogger, I have to open the post in a new tab and share it from there. All you can really do in Google Reader now is to +1 it, which is fine up to a point, but not everyone I know uses Google+, so only a select few would be able to read it. So when I read Stitchy Mc Floss’ letter to Santa, I decided not only to +1 it and share on Facebook, but to link to it here so that my faithful readers who don’t connect with me on either of those can also read it. And please do, because it is definitely worth a giggle and is very well written.

And while writing this post, I have decided that I am going to try to write a regular post about the blogs I read, so that when I stumble over something that makes me laugh out loud or giggle quietly in the corner, or makes me gasp with awe, admiration or outrage, you can all read it too and see what I’m chuckling or gasping about for yourselves. I think that sounds like a good plan, don’t you? I mean, we can’t all read all the same blogs, and we can’t all read all the blogs that are out there, so sharing what we do read seams like a good idea to me. Any thoughts?

Anyway, Stitchy Mc Floss was the first one I felt compelled to share this morning, and I still have at least 200 more posts to read before I can shut down this horrible machine that has decided it only likes Windows and won’t play with my beloved Linux in any flavour at all for the time being (I’ll sit down and give it a good talking to after Christmas when I have time to really get down to it).

The very next post I read was very thought provoking and since I had started this post with a giggle, I thought a little insight into gut-wrenching laughter was in order, so hop on over to Speckless to read about The Best Medicine. It is very true. And also true for my relationship with my husband; we laugh a lot more than we argue (in fact, we very rarely argue, but I think we find something to at least giggle about every day!).

Next I would like to share a photo from a blog, but you’ll have to click over to Jem Knit to see it, because it’s not mine to share… This is definitely worth a giggle! Not to mention cooing at the cuteness and awesomeness of it!

The next post I want to share isn’t particularly funny, it just made me laugh so loud that I got an irritated look from the cats. It is probably a sensitive issue, but it made me laugh because of the title; Punk’s not dead, it’s just gone to moral rehab. I couldn’t bring myself to read past the first paragraph, so if you manage it, please let me know if I should!

This next post is just too cool for words. Hard to believe it is the first completion of the stitcher! Check out MrXStitch and follow the link to Craftster if you’re a member, which I am not.

The next post is also from MrXStitch and definitely deserves a giggle: it’s also the truth!

As you probably already know, I am a fan of Anna Hrachovec of Mochimochi Land, so it’s hardly surprising that this next link is to her blog and the tiny wreath that needs a smaller door! Be sure to read the poem

Have you discovered Attic24 yet? I have and I just love reading Lucy’s posts! This one on Gingerbread made me giggle

Next a description worth a chuckle and a fantastic recipe. Hop on over to BitterSweet to read more.

These are just the cutest Christmas tree decorations I have ever seen (that I can remember, anyway!) and while it was Steph N Stuff (“Sometimes I Will Put Things Here) that I was reading that brought them to my attention, the pattern is from All About Ami. Do click on over to both!

This one is just for the cuteness – but don’t just look at the photo; read the post too!

Are any of you fans of Star Wars? I am a little bit, although we don’t have any of the films on DVD (why IS that?!), but I do like to make random characters from them, which you will know if you caught Yoda a few months ago! So with this in mind, it seemed only right and proper to share a link to two of my favourite blogs, The Smiling Robot who made R2D2 and Let’s All Get Knitfaced for the original pattern. Now, who can guess what I’ll be making when I have finished the Christmas presents and need a break from all the baby knits for my sister? R2D2 of course!

Time to hop back over to MrXStitch again. Indeed, who doesn’t want a Woozeled Horned Cyclops?

As you may or may not know, I am a bit of a fan of Stephen Fry, the highly acclaimed English comedien/actor/writer – not necessarily in that order. It is his witty remarks and his complete love of language and words that evoked me to follow his blog, The New Adventures of Stephen Fry (and an addiction to his particular style of writing, of course!). Today I would like to share with you his most recent post, which was posted on the 6th of December but which I have only just read this morning because I have not been keeping up with my reading list of blog posts recently since I haven’t had time to put the computer on. You know how it is, the longer you leave it the longer the list gets. I’m sure I’m not the only one in this situation, and I’m sure it won’t be the last time either. In his post, Stephen Fry talks about London, and I just adore the language he uses (not the cursing, but he doesn’t use that too often) and had to giggle in places, so as this is a giggle post, I thought I should share it.

I hope you have enjoyed blog-hopping with me today! Come back soon – in the new year I have some fantastic free patterns to share!

Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long

Does anyone reading this also read Daffycat’s blog: If not, then you definitely should! All this year I have been tripping over other people’s blogs posts with pictures of jars of thread clippings and wondering if everyone has gone mad. However, I now know that it was just a big of fun organised by Daffycat called the “Totally Useless Stitch A-Long” and it will be running again next year. As I have already signed up to WIPocalypse on my other blog, I thought this would be a nice bit of fun to tie in with it on this blog. So as of the 6th of January 2012 you can expect to see photos of my ORTs jar every new moon. Wanna join in the fun? Hop on over to Daffycat’s blog (click on the TUSAL link above) and comment on her post!

I recently had a birthday (Sunday past) and was lucky enough to receive some really wonderful presents! My darling Jay gave me the new Stephen King book, “22.11.63″ and ten Clover Soft Touch crochet hooks. Do you know how difficult it is to get a set of ergonomic crochet hooks that cover all the sizes you need at a reasonable price and at a good quality? Almost impossible! We looked everywhere we could think of online and the only set we could find decided not to allow PayPal for payment (even though the site said it supported it) and it was only £2 or £3 away from the cost of buying the Clover ones individually. Apparently Clover don’t offer their Soft Touch ergonomic crochet hooks as a set. In light of this, we went to our local needlecraft store and ordered ten individual crochet hooks, which my darling husband then hid away from me until we got back from my Mum’s on Sunday. He had put them all in a birthday box to wrap them up, and that is where they are going to live for the time being until I have the time to make a case for them . More on that shortly. First some photos:

1. Mike & Irene card, 2. Jan & Dave card, 3. Mum card, 4. Zoey card, 5. Mum card, 6. Mum card, 7. A-F card, 8. A-F card, 9. Margaret card, 10. Wendy card, 11. Christine card, 12. Izzy & Ollie card, 13. Jay card, 14. Jay card, 15. Jay card, 16. Mum & Zoey’s Present, 17. Wendy’s Present, 18. Wendy’s Present, 19. A-F’s Presemt, 20. Christine’s Present, 21. Jay’s Present, 22. Izzy & Ollie’s Present, 23. Jay’s Present, 24. Jay’s Present, 25. Jay’s Present

Pretty, isn’t it?! My Mum and sister gave me the boo “Sewing In No Time” by Emma Hardy. This is a wonderful book of wonderful sewing projects. One of which is a cutlery roll. I am going to adapt this slightly to make a crochet hook roll, leaving space for more sizes of Clover’s Soft Touch ergonomic crochet hooks so I can keep them all together and not have to make a new case for them. I will, of course, share photos of the finished cutlery crochet hook roll as soon as I have made it. Jay kindly offered to take me to Fabric Land to get the fabric for it this week, but I was strong and said no because if I start doing that now, I really won’t finish the Christmas presents. Or the cards. Or anything else for that matter.

I was also lucky enough to receive a picture drawn by my little Izzy of our two cats, Wilf and Suki, as an additional birthday present. I do so love her drawings:

Wilf and Suki, drawn by Izzy

Next I must apologise for my recent blogging absence. I have been so busy making Christmas cards and Christmas presents that I quite simply forgot to post! I have been rushing like a card-making lunatic to get all the cards finished so I can write them out by next weekend so that I can post them with the local Scouts. I don’t think I’m going to make that deadline since I’m not even half-way through the number of cards I need to make, but at least I will still be able to post them early in December. I am determined to!

I have been thinking about this whole WIP Wednesday and Finish Off Friday, and to be perfectly honest, I don’t think there’s an awful lot of point in me continuing to post these until after Christmas since I can’t actually share any photos! Of course, if I start or finish something that I can share photos and a more detailed description of (as opposed to “Christmas present”) then I will of course indulge in the WIP Wednesday or the Finish Off Friday. I’m not being particularly creative on the old designing front at the moment since I’m following patterns for the Christmas presents, but as soon as I can share some more Freebie Friday patterns with you, rest assured that I will make the time to do so! My plan for 2012 is to make Freebie Friday a monthly post (especially since I’m still learning the crafts that I have started to design in) and I will post to let everyone know exactly which Friday of the month you can expect to see this wonderful post as soon as I have decided.

In the meantime, I really appreciate everyone’s patience with me while I crochet and papercraft like a madwoman in preparation for Christmas and I promise to get back into a more regular routine in early 2012. I wish I could offer a give-away to reward your patience, but for one thing I have no money and for another I don’t have the time to organise something like that at the moment. I shouldn’t really have turned my computer on at all today, but I need to keep an eye on my in-box and I needed to check the photo that accompanied a pattern I’m working on – my printer is running out of colour ink so photos don’t look right. Therefore I’m trying not to print colour documents or photos. Which is annoying when you need to refer to a photo to finish a project you’re working on!

Anyway… I really must get back to what I am supposed to be doing: making Christmas presents! Maybe I’ll read another feed or two before I do…

Freebie Friday

It that time again folks! As promised, this week’s free pattern is the Melissa scarf that I posted pictures of last week. Here’s a reminder:

Melissa - cable close up

To download the free PDF, navigate to the free knitting patterns page at the top and scroll down to the scarf. Click the name of the scarf and choose whether to open or to save (and where). Alternatively, click here. I hope you enjoy the pattern!

WIP Wednesday

Yes, I know, it’s Thursday and I’m a day late, but hey – at least I’m still posting!

So, current WIPs. Firstly, let me say that, until further notice, cross stitch WIPs will remain the same as I’m not cross stitching at the moment. I have one knitting project on the go at the moment, and when that is finished I will not really be knitting until the Christmas presents are finished, so knitting can also be ignored until further notice.

That leaves us with crochet! I have decided to frog the Bananas Monkeyroo, wrist warmers and crochet hook case until all Christmas presents are finished. Therefore my current WIPs are the “Crochet Me” dolls and a number of Christmas presents that I can’t really say too much about in case I give the game away.

All in all, quite a boring post really. Sorry! I hope to be able to share more soon, especially when I start knitting/crocheting/sewing baby stuff for my sister.