Crafty or Crazy

Finally Some crafting

2010-10-02T21:22:00.002+01:00

Here we are...finally getting to sit in my beautiful craft room and remind myself that I am a crafter...not just a knitter and crocheter but a crafter!!!!
I just found out the other day that Bloglines is closing down, which gutted me because I have been with them for years and really liked how simple their feed reader was.....but the point is...I had a lot of patterns clipped on there and had to go through them and do something else! Well I came across this pattern from the blogger Knick Knack and Rick Rack which I have been holding on to since 2008.
It is a testament to buying things that you don't know what you are going to do with them...because I've had this rick rack for a couple of year, the felt is bits I had left over from other projects....see that is why you have stash!!! Tell my hubby that next time you see him!!!!

Anyway, the only thing different I did to her was I put card inside the two circles of felt. I decided that I need the strength because the rick rack is the large type and was very stiff. The thin rick rack was to small for this project. I bought this stuff on a trip to London, so there are lots of memories for me!

Well, this is the start of a beautiful relationship with my new room. It isn't totally finished yet. I've got some more organizing and decorating. Though that is true, I found it so good to be able to find things easier!! Looking forward to having some friends over to do some craft fun soon!!!

Writing for Historic Crafts

2010-02-03T16:34:00.007Z

My dear friend Eddie (Henriette) has asked me to contribute to a new website called Historic Crafts that her and a friend are setting up. I thought I would post my first blog post that she asked me to write. The topic is my first crafting experience that I remember. I had to be a bit broader then that, but thought that I would post it here and hope that you visit the website to see what others have to say.

Eddie is one of the wonderful people I have met though the knitting group I go to on Thursday evenings. We use to meet at Borders, may it rest in peace, but now we are meeting in Ikea. This is one of the pictures I took on my phone of my lovely friends all knitting and chatting away. I use to hate Thursdays, but because of them it has become my favorite day of the week.

I'm crocheting away thanks to Attic24. I've had these ideas for ages and she just has got me off my butt to do it! Thanks to all the bloggers out there that make me remember that I am a crafter, not just a stasher. Well off to write a review for Eddie, she is sitting next to me and keeps asking what I'm doing! Need people like her to keep me going.

Something for my new room

2010-01-20T19:49:00.002Z

So what have I been up to? Well I've been buying stuff to go into my new room....that is finished yet. But I couldn't pass up this sewing table. It is my first ebay bid that I've ever done and I won it. It was just about 3 miles away so it would have been terrible if I hadn't won it. Sorry the picture is crappy, still learning how to use my new phone.

I've not taken a picture of the room, because there isn't anything to photograph really....once we get the lights in the room it will be easier to take pictures. It has been great because my favorite blog has been doing a month of craft room posts...check them out....

New Phone

2010-01-06T18:22:00.000Z

Gradient Waves Wallpaper (iPhone) | Pixelgirl Presents - Only the Coolest Desktops, Icons & iPhone Wallpapers!

I have a new phone...I'm so excited. It was a bit of a struggle getting it up and running. Problems with our main PC and the new phone not unblocking like it should have, but a call to the supplier fixed that. So this is one of the pictures I've just downloaded to my wallpaper. One of my favorite blogs How about Orange talks about this website a lot, and I've used the pictures for my laptop wallpaper a lot. Oh well...back to playing with my new toy!

Sketch Book

2010-01-03T19:33:00.004Z

picture from Amazon.co.uk

I found my sketch books that I've been hoarding. No, not a surprise to people who know me that I hoard! A couple years ago I tried to get more arty with my craft so I went around buying different notebooks. Journaling is something that is very difficult for me. I had a bad experience in my teenage years and I find it really difficult to trust writing things down that I feel. The first devotional in my new book (see last post) is to buy a journal, so instead of taking the opportunity to buy yet another unused book, I searched out this lovely notebook that I already had. No it isn't very pretty, but I've peeked and I see where we will be decorating them in the future anyway!!!

Had a really nice last day of the holiday. Saw my great friend Erika who moved back to Sweden last year. She is now living settled in her own apartment and Hubby and I were talking to her about the trip to see her in the spring...I'm sooo excited!!!!

New blog to check out....Dutch Blue....Lovely pictures and ideas!!!

3 posts in a couple of days...this is a record!

Crafty goodness

2010-01-02T21:26:00.004Z

Well, well....new year and more crafty goodness to be done. More felt, more knitting and more sewing. My craft room is getting closer to my moving in. The walls and woodwork are done, except the doors and closets. I'm planning furniture and flooring at the moment. Hubby and I have decided we just have to throw some money and time on it. The last few days we have been cleaning up the house and organizing the chaos that happens when you are working all the time. I hope to working more with my friend Layla and Lilapod. My Mom bought me the above book for my birthday. I've been waiting until Monday to start working through it. I'm not good with this type of stuff, but I'm going to try and have a good time with it. I hope to post what I manage to do and blogs and stuff I encounter more in the future.

That being said I have been so motivated by this blog Attic24 that I have pulled out the Rowan Handknit Cotten I've had for my amigurumi (see cat duck in the photo on my profile). I'm using it to make her hexagon blanket. I've had this idea for ages, and I was glad to use her pattern to get it going. It looks so pretty and I'm just playing with the colors I have. (OK, I did have to buy a few more.....but I bought most of them on sale!!!)

Hopefully pictures in the future. Sun is hard to come by this time of year, so the first thing I'm making in my new room will be a light box!!!!

2010

2010-01-02T21:07:00.006Z

Wow a new decade is upon us!!!! The last decade was the best in my life, even though I have spent 5 years with clinical depression, left behind my animals and my country, and gained lots of weight. On the plus:

Married LOVELY husband
Moved to England

Have had lots of lovely rodent pets and now have 2 wonderful cats

Poppy after the Collared Dove incident

Have 1 crafty niece and 5 sort of crafty nephews who seem to love us visiting, even though it isn't very often (That is hubby above getting massacred by almost the lot...told you he is Lovely)

Have the largest group of friends outside of work I have EVER had, and they all seem to really LIKE me. And the kicker is....THEY CRAFT. It is amazing!!! Now don't get me wrong, I've always had friends, but they were connected with work which is different. I have my Guild that I joined, I have the National Needlework Archive that I volunteer for, and my Thursday night knitting group who are THE BEST!!!! (Wish I had a picture of them!)
I've learned so much about Europe and have made great friends from different countries who I can visit in the future!
Married the most wonderful husband IN THE WORLD....oh...did I already mention that????

Paige learns to finger knit

2009-08-17T18:32:00.000+01:00

Shrewsbury Flower Show

2009-08-17T18:31:00.002+01:00

Can you believe the look of this? There is such care taken and everything is so big. Nothing like my moth eaten tomatoes etc that I have outside!

Love these flowers so much. I'm hoping to find them...but don't know if I really get them to grow..stupid slugs

This where as big as my head...no kidding....

I like leeks...but not sure if I could eat a whole one of these!!!

2009-07-29T20:22:00.002+01:00

Sascalia makes these beautiful pictures. When I saw it on the front page of Etsy.com I knew I had to have it! It was going to go into our entrance way, but now that we have painted a wall in our kitchen yello, I think it will relaly go well in there. It is a print mounted on wood which I think is an interesting. It is nice not to have to frame it.

I went to the doctor today and found out that I've pulled a muscle around my ribs by coughing and that is why I'm having so much pain. I mean a lot of pain. She gave me an anitbiotic which I was surprised about and a cough syrup with codine. Hopefully this will help. I didn't get the sewing done I wanted to because I find it hard to move my left arm around much. But I've been wanting to post about that picture so I did do my promise of posting!!!

Making promises

2009-07-28T16:39:00.002+01:00

Hmmm...wonder if I can keep promises to myself yet. I can keep them to others no problem, but to myself? Yesterday I said I wouldn't get on facebook and play games...but I did. Spent most of last night doing it. What am I suppose to be doing online??? Maybe looking at blogs and getting inspiration to put some crafting goodness on here and some book reviews on my book blog???

Right I need someone to promise to, so I'm putting it on here and hopefully anyone that reads this will comment and kick me in the butt to get things going here. I mean really, what use are the stupid computer games when I have lovely fabrics, buttons etc to be playing with!!!!

I've got a room to decorate so that I can do lots of lovely crafts and get back to being the kind of crafty person that I love, instead of a computer game slob. So I hope to blog a bit about what I'm crafting, the decorating I'm doing (hopefully picture of my new yellow wall in the kitchen maybe!) and some great stuff that I've bought too!

So don't give up on me! I'm promising that every Wed I will blog about what is going on and lets have fun again!

Finished project

2009-06-03T18:22:00.000+01:00

Yes, this is finally finished. I actually knit it last year and even did the sewing...but then I took my time getting the ends sewed up. The yarn is great, but since it is like a tube of cotton, just weaving the ends in wasn't enough. I used sewing thread to sew up the ends and that work great. It is a bit tight, but I'm losing weight (I hope) so it should fit better soon.

Kiki Mariko rug

2009-03-25T17:08:00.000Z

I'm having a great time working on this rug...rug you say...it looks like you are doing it in the round....well I AM. How cool is that. The pattern is from "Mason-Dixon Knitting: Outside the Lines". I've had this book for awhile and I love the Fair Isle patterns. So, when my friend Kate and I went to a Fair Isle workshop I figured it was about time. Plus, the place we went (Get Knitted in Bristol) had the yarn it called for so I thought it was a sign. The workshop was great and I'm so proud...I CAN KNIT WITH BOTH HANDS!!! I never though I would master English/American knitting...but I can now and it has made this rug so much fun to knit....oh and the knitting in the round. Well it is much easier to knit the stitches with two hands then purl, so doing it in the round you don't have to...but you do have to cut your work apart. AAAHHH...I figured that since this project is to be felt first it should make it a bit safer!

I like the colors, though I was really limited to what they had. I think my color sense is getting better!

Wednesday is craft day!

2009-02-11T21:00:00.001Z

I'm very happy with myself today. I actually crafted! I saw some work by some ladies where they took bluejeans and cut them up and made material out of it. I liked the idea, because I've been wanting to recycle and jeans can look a bit....well....naff in some projects. I've been wanting to make a bag that I could carry my embroidery around with me. I had a freebie that worked really well, but I needed to replace it. So here is what I've been doing. All material is from the same pair of jeans, just one side. I wanted the checkerboard effect more then the stripe, but though both sides don't have to look the same! I've zigzaged around the outside and then used a thiner zigzag on the horizontal lines. I don't want it to be perfect and so I've left the vertical so it can fray. My idea now is to use a fabric for the top and use another piece of jean to sew the bottom together. I want it to have a bit of a box like bottom to it. My scary part will be the zipper, but I found a good tutorial I've been saving here.

So Hurray for Crafting Wednesday!!!!!

Snow 2009

2009-02-03T20:47:00.002Z

How cool is this??? Was so surprised when Rich said there was lots of snow on Monday morning. Just walked out and was amazed by how beautiful it was....of course I'm bored of it now! Now that I've had to walk to the train station in it!

Right....it is about time I get on the stick....

2009-01-18T15:18:00.005Z

I'm starting to sort myself out. Since I'm feeling so much better, the house is getting a bit on my wick....but we are getting there. I can't believe that I've lived in this house for so long with out redecorating more then just the bathroom!!! And that took about 4 years......

I'm going to try and get back to crafting again. I've actually went through my room and cleaned it out, I was so impressed by how little time it actually took. I got rid of just a few things. Now I'm starting to think of how I'm going to arrange the room when I move it to the big room...so watch this space. Wednesdays are the days. I've had a lot of stupid appointments on Wednesdays and with the boiler not working...seemed like I never stayed home long enough to actually craft.

I have been knitting like crazy for Christmas, but no pics....

Few things to tell you about though.....

Met this Layla in Much Wenlock and fell in love with her stuff. We hit to off and I can't wait to work with her a bit. I bought the above print for one of my nephews. They are so lovely.

Well, off to try and get some more embroidery done!

World unraveled.....

2008-11-28T16:52:00.002Z

This is awesome...you must see it......

Franklin Habit

2008-11-14T18:40:00.002Z

Last night was the best. Went to London and had a bit of shopping and then to I Knit London tot to meet Franklin and Tom and have my book signed. It was wonderful. Here is a pic taken by the guys at I Knit to prove it....

It is a small world as always, turns out Tom has family that live around Mattoon where my Grandfather has owned a cabin on the lake there for ages. So it was really good for me to get a little of Illinois for a very homesick girl!

I bought stuff of course....couldn't resist. I'm going to make this hat for one of my sis's....(scan down a bit and see the red hat.) I also bought some orange yarn to make me some gloves. We saw some really nice ones at Liberty's....but I just couldn't buy them when I can make them......especially at that price!!!!

Sorry no real pictures. I'm going to get myself a more compact camera so that I can actually carry it around with me more.

Websites to check out

2008-11-04T15:05:00.002Z

While sitting here all covered up in upteen blankets and clothes I've been trying to catch up on some web goodness. I've found a couple things I want to pass on....

Yarndex Yarn Directory is a website where you can look up yarns and see patterns that go with them, reviews and also substitutions. It looks like a great help. I need to do a bit more scouting around but found out about it through Cast On.

The other cool site is the Knitting Scholar. This has reviews of knitting books and should be a really good source for those of us (yes me!!!) that should go on a bit of a book and yarn diet......I found out about this through Franklin Habit's blog Panopticon. I can't wait until next week. I'm going to go to the store I Knit in London and meet him!!! He has a new book out called "It Itches" which feature his cartoons. I love his work...and well....he is from Chicago...so is a bit of home.

Oh I'm so stressed about the election. I hope that everything turns out ok....nail biting stuff.....

Sick of being sick

2008-11-04T14:54:00.002Z

Yep, here I am....bedridden with a nasty cold....messing around with the internet trying to get caught up and maybe...just maybe a bit organized. If any of you visit me on Rav...you will see that I've stashed a bunch of sock yarn I bought this weekend. I couldn't resist...I told hubby it was the virus that made me do it. I went several times to visit The Web of Wool stand, and by stitching their pattern for Mitt-Glove-en pattern in a bright pink/green/orange/blue Regia yarn....I sent many people their way. I love enabling (as many of you know.)

So where was I that I was buying all this yarn? At the Creative Stitches show in Cardiff helping at the NNA at booth for Poetry in Stitches 2. The pictures they have are gorgeous. The idea is that you take a poem and then interpret it through fibre. Sorry I don't have any pictures...but if you look on here....you can see some of them. The Otter if my favorite though during the weekend I kept changing my mind.

Anyway, I bought some jewelry supplies too. I keep hoping that I'll sort out my room soon and be able to get somethings done.

Last Secret Pal package

2008-09-24T18:35:00.002+01:00

How great is this package. The yellow skein I think she died herself. How great is that. It has been a good secret pal, but I don't think I'll do it again for a bit.

Ra'Net has changed

2008-09-24T18:29:00.003+01:00

I decided that I didn't like the pattern I was using for the scarf...so I've started over. Believe it or not I wanted something smaller......am I nuts.....well this blog isn't called crazy for nothing! I like it though, and it is going well. I can do a motif while I'm on train between home and work, so that is good. Should get a few done that way anyway.

I gave up on Henry, the yarn I was using (alpaca) split very badly and I couldn't get my count right. I hurt my back terribly doing it. It was so tight and stressful since there were so many slipped stitches. Hopefully, I find another pattern to do for my Dad.....really wanted a scarf for him!

I'm excited about teaching a crochet workshop. I hope that it goes well and I can do more. I'm going to teach a Granny patch that uses all of the crochet stitches that are most commonly used. Hopefully it will be great fun! I have several friends that have signed up....so that will be great.
'

Secret Pal

2008-09-14T18:45:00.004+01:00

Here is the last package I got from my secret pal. Sorry the picture is too dark. The yarn is all purple and lush. It will be really nice knitted or crocheted up. Might need to start another blanket!

Projects - Scarves

2008-09-14T18:21:00.003+01:00

I'm having fun working on scarves for Christmas. Above is the start of Henry which is a Knitty pattern. This one should actually go to my Dad, MOM KEEP YOUR MITTS OFF! I should have checked out Ravelry before I bought the yarn....most people said it was hard and took a lot of time. Oh well....never like me to back down from Alpaca, which is tearing up my fingers. Didn't know I was allergic to it. I like the alpaca though, it is Artesano 4ply.

Below is the start of a scarf for one of my sister's. I made up the motif and thought I would use some of the fab yarn I got from I Knit show.

I Knit

2008-09-14T17:50:00.002+01:00

I had a great time with the girls at I Knit. Above is a few things I picked up. I also picked up an
Elizabeth Zimmerman book, which is something I've always wanted. I decided to make scarves for my sisters and that is what most of the yarn will go for, see if I get them done now.

Secret Pal question

2008-08-31T14:17:00.002+01:00

I’m sure most of us have a proudest moment when it comes to knitting. A project or technique that you’ve tackled and completed beautifully. What is your proudest knitting moment??

And on the flip side? What is the one thing that you can’t get right? What is that one project that you’ve never been able to complete? Or that you did complete but then hid away instantly because it was too embarrassing?

Well, this is an interesting one. I have to say that my proudest knitting moment was my first sweater. I had never made a sweater for myself because of my big arms. But I was able to get it to fit and it is nice and bright and a wonderful sweater to wear.

On the flip side are socks. I've tried several times to make me socks, but they are always too small. The last ones were given to a friend because they ended up being a 4 (6 US) instead of a 8 (10 US)....so.....I keep trying!

Thanks Secret Pal

2008-08-26T18:39:00.002+01:00

I thought I had already posted about these....aren't they beautiful? I've got another package to post about when I get a chance to take a pic.

Been busy reorganizing and hanging new curtains in the living room. I'll have a pic of that soon too!

Secret Pal Question....

2008-08-07T18:20:00.002+01:00

Have you ever entered your knitting (or anything else) in the fair? NO!!!
Would you ever consider it? Not on your life. They do have what they call "Shows" here per county. But you have to be so perfect that there is no way I would put myself through that! Long ago, in a time far away, I was in 4-H and my grandmother helped me make a skirt and headkerchef.....hmmmm...that was the 70's ya know! I one blue ribbon, though I didn't think I sewed it up very well, but my cookies that everyone loved got a second......go figure!!!! Put me off!

What have I been up to?

2008-08-05T18:48:00.003+01:00

I picked up a couple rug kits while we were on vacation. This is locker hooking, which I'm enjoying very much. I hope you don't mind the YouTube link, but it really shows you how to do it. I'm using some green fabric that I had tried to make a rug from before and some shirts that I've "grown out of". Actually, I need some more...might have to do some charity shopping tomorrow!

Secret Pal Question #8

2008-08-04T18:15:00.003+01:00

What is your favorite supper for a hot summer evening?

Hmmmm....I would have to say BBQ. I miss that actually, because we don't have one. Corn on the cob...with chicken or a burger with BBQ sauce....making my mouth water....sigh...another thing I miss the US for...yes I know I could have a BBQ here...but it wouldn't be the same, especially with all the rain we are having!

SP questions

2008-07-24T10:47:00.002+01:00

I've missed a couple while I was on vacation... but here are the new ones

What is(are) your favorite place(s) to knit? Everywhere. I love to knit at Borders with my friends, out in the garden with the cats playing around me, and in bed.

What supplies (besides yarn & needles) make the setting perfect for knitting...
Having what I need at hand, and not searching for the scissors or the tape measure. Problem is, I'm not that organized. So even though I buy lots of little organizers and buy all the supplies (and buy cute stuff to boot....) I still don't usually have what I need when I sit down!

Anyone else like this? Or is it just me!!!!

What would you consider the perfect amount of stash?

2008-06-27T20:34:00.003+01:00

Another secret pal question....this is hard really...because of course stash is SO important. I find that now that I can afford a bit more yarn, I'm buying a lot. I've decided that I'm stocking up for the time when I can't buy anymore....which has worked for a bit. But now I've decided to only buy for projects...which is a bit better...but I've got a lot of projects in the plans also!!!! So the money is still being spent!!!! Especially at my not so LYS Ippikins!

Hello Kitty fun

2008-06-27T12:09:00.005+01:00

Here are a couple of presents I've made recently. I love the top pattern book the most. But I like the way you stitch on the face on the bottom picture. My Niece Paige got the Kitty and her mom told me she took it to a sleep over the next night. I had to make something for her, when we visited last everything that was knitted in my suitcase she would ask..."Did you make this?" Her brother is getting a doggie, and possibly more from the easily found book below. It uses a type of chart for the directions which is handy.
Off on vacation now. Taking a bag and a basket full of crafting goodness. Wonder if I'll get any of it done?

What is my favorite summer drink....

2008-06-12T22:03:00.003+01:00

My hostess for SP12 has asked us to post our favorite summer drink. I have to admit that I miss Ice Tea so badly since I moved to the UK. I'm hopeless at making it. I have tried, but it just isn't the same, so I have to wait until I'm able to go to London and have a couple at the Texas Embassy...my fav restaurant over here!

So what do I drink here??? Water, water and occasionally a Fanta Lemon with lots of ice.

So what have I been working on???

2008-06-08T20:06:00.003+01:00

This.....Rowan Joy, Rowan Handknit cotton

And this.....
The first and second pictures are of a sweater I started a few months ago. The crocheting has been easy, but I had to work to make the sleeves large enough for my huge arms....no it isn't muscle. Anyway, the first picture is closer to the real color of the green then the second.

The third picture is an experiment I'm doing. I've been wanting to make some rugs...don't know why...just did. Well in July I have been asked to do a quick lesson on luceting with the gals at the guild. So I thought it would be good to actually have something sort of made for it. I love the square braid this makes and it sews together very easy. I'm making this out of Peaches and Cream cotton I bought in the States when I was home for Thanksgiving!

Secret Pal 12

2008-06-06T21:10:00.001+01:00

I took a little break, but then decided I really wanted to have another go at being a Secret Pal. I really enjoy the shopping for someone else for a change. So here is my answers....

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?
I’m kind of a yarn snob…though I do use Collinette acrylic. During the summer I really like cottons.
2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?
I have a few different ways to store my needles, the one I like the most is my wicker vase with my wood and bamboo straight needles in. I could use something to help me organize my circular needles by size.
3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?
I would consider my self an intermediate. I’ve been knitting for 10 years now, but only this year did I make myself a sweater! I use to make things for others all the time, but have become a bit selfish lately…though I still have my niece and nephews to make things for.
4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?
Yes, I have an Amazon wish list.
5. What's your favorite scent?
Lavender or vanilla
6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?
Yes!!!! Anything but licorice
7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?
I do about everything you can think of, though I’m doing a lot of beading at the moment. Well, and I’m also busy making rugs with a couple different techniques that I will talk about in future posts. I drop spin, though I need more practice.
8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)
I like new music (that isn’t to Pop).
9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?
I’m in to strong rainbow colors at the moment.
10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
Married with two cats and a guinea pig!
11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?
No ponchos….but yes to the rest
12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?
At the moment I doing a lot of sweaters, but I like knitting anything really.

13. What are you knitting right now?
Finishing a crocheted summer sweater and knitting a t-shirt type shirt.
14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?
Absolutely!!!!!!
15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?
I use more circular because I travel with my knitting a lot. No plastic though.
16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?
No, though I can see the benefit after spending a bunch of time needing to undo knots in a sock weight yarn that caught on itself all the time I was trying to hand wind!
17. How old is your oldest UFO?
Hmmm…..10 years???
18. What is your favorite holiday?
Going to the States to visit my family.
19. Is there anything that you collect?
Books
20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?
I don’t subscribe to any knitting mags at the moment, I do get Selvedge which is a wonderful textile book. I really like to learn about all kinds of textile technigues.
21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?
Rug hooking
22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?
Yes, I do…though I’m a tight knitter so I find it hard to fit my foot…I have a high arch and no ankles
23. When is your birthday?
Nov 15
24. Are you on Ravelry? If so, what's your ID?

Yes, dlad2002

Let the fun begin!!!

Wednesday craft day

2008-04-30T17:42:00.005+01:00

Hey! I did it! With some distractions.....

as this in my face as I try and make this:

I like this, but decided it wasn't long enough....and of course I didn't have enough of the tiny beads...so off for more. I used waxed linen and I've learned that using beeswax and letting the end get hard a bit makes it go through the holes much easier. Stuff like that you can't learn from a book!

Next I took apart a necklace I bought at a charity shop to make one that I've been inspired from Instyle Mag. Of course, again not enough beads. I was going to make it out of wood beads, but didn't like that they are dyed and can't be guaranteed not too bleed. Then I thought of glass beads, but that was going to be very heavy. The necklace in the mag was made of resin...so I thought it would be ok. Especially when I walk into the only charity shop I went in that day and found this necklace! So I just need to find a few more small plastic beads and I'll have that one made. I'm not sure if I'm going to keep either of these necklaces. I like them, but the colors aren't really me. I've been tempted to open an Etsy shop....but not too sure.....what do you guys think...and give me your real opinion....you won't hurt my feelings.

I started working on this box then...again don't have what I need. I used some cool double stick tape I bought that is suppose to be really good. But I still think it needs some glue to fill in the wholes and make the whole thing more stable. I've had this mix of beads for ever. I think it looks cute on here. It is just a box that I got with some jewelry I bought. Thought it would be cool to recycle some more!There...so I finally did something! Now I'm going to watch telly with hubby and maybe fool around....with my blog layout....fooled ya!

Lucinda Wilby

2008-04-30T13:59:00.006+01:00

Wow did I have fun at Wonderwools Wales. My sis-n-law went with me and we both really enjoyed the day. I bought lots of fun stuff, including these wonderful paintings done by Lucinda Wilby. I'm going to hang them in my craft room...whenever I get it redone.....hmm......well...I might have to hang them somewhere else to begin with! They are so cute though! She makes all different sizes. These are 6x6, I think. I will probably have to keep tabs on her and buy one of the bigger ones to go with these. She had four of the pictures hung on a board and it looked so cool!

I also finally got myself an inkle loom, made or Welsh wood of course. I bought a banner that I'll have to take a picture of when the light is better outside (it is raining at the moment). It is a "Hen party". I love chickens that aren't too country and this one is great.

Added later: talked to Lucinda so I got her blog. She is talking now about getting on Etsy hopefully....so if you like her stuff and would like to have one too....contact her and encourage her to do so!!!!

I'm having a bit of a crisis in craftiness. I feel a fraud sometimes, mainly because I have so many ideas...but not the time or skill to pull them off. I need to get to know people we wouldn't mind working with me on projects. So far this Wed off business has meant me sleeping all day....which is what I need....but I'm not getting the house caught up or the crafting done. I don't know if I've mentioned it here, but I have depression and it has taken a lot out of me. I've been trying to live with it for a few years now. It is slowly getting better, but I can get so frustrated with how slow. I want to create, play with my cats, have fun with my husband.....but instead I sleep and work. Ok, done blabbing....I have a wet cat walking on the desk in front of me and I'm taking that as a sign I should go play...since I can no longer see the screen!!!

Tomorrow.....

2008-04-15T21:15:00.001+01:00

anticipation. I'm off tomorrow for the first time without being sick or at a meeting...lets see if I actually get some crafty goodness done.....and POSTED!

Change in my life...

2008-04-11T21:21:00.003+01:00

I've become on of those part-time workers....and I'm so glad. I took a chance with my boss at work and we decided that I should have one day off during the week. So now Wednesday can be catchup and....wait for it.......CRAFTING DAY!!!! Well, that was the theory...until I came down with a killer cold and spent all of Wednesday moaning around the house...house...I mean BED. Anyway, next week I hope will be better and I can do some posting! I've got a really cool couple of necklaces I'm working on, and I'm really close to getting another sweater done....if I can just get the arms right.

Anyway...HAPPY CRAFTING!

Paris trip

2008-02-26T18:25:00.003Z

Here are a few pics from our trip to Paris ....

These cakes were gorgeous....but we didn't buy one....well maybe a piece of something!

On the hour the tower sparkles with flashing lights. I thought we did a pretty good job of capturing that!

I did get my sweater done on time...but forgot to get a picture...it was a bit cold really to be taking my pic with out my coat on!

Brighton Show

2008-02-10T14:19:00.001Z

She will probably kill me for this....but I had to show the work of this lovely lady I met on Saturday at the Craft show in Brighton. Sue Allan, who works under the name Sew Sister, is so enthusiastic and full of love for the work she is doing. She really helped me get some ideas going in my head of things I want to do. Her dolls are beautiful and if you have had a look at the Textile Directory, you will see they have her dolls everywhere! It is wonderful! Here is a sample of what she does. Unfortunately, you don't get a good view of the texture of these pieces. They are so wonderfully tactile and she was nice enough to let us know her secrets....this is the kind of stuff I love to do myself. Take fabric and then embellish it until it becomes something else almost.

I couldn't resist of course....I mean how beautiful is she! Her name is Tansy, she names them all and they definitely have great personality. Here she is with her friends....
And her she is proudly at home with me....she looks happy doesn't she......

Sue brought to my attention the Needlepunch felt that I actually own some of....typical of me really. This is what she uses to get the texture on her work. I don't know why I didn't think of using this to make rugs. We need some rugs in the house and I've been trying to think of ways I can A) recycle and B) make my own. I think I'm going to make one for the stairs by felting the needlepunch in the washing machine. Then cutting to fit, putting some of the fabric I have for woven rugs underneath for stability, and embellishing with felt flowers...or I think dots. HMMM.....watch this space........

Finally some WIPs....

2008-02-03T15:51:00.000Z

This is what I've been frantically working on at the moment. It is a Colinette pattern called Enid, out of the book Iona. I'm not using the silk yarn they asked for....well I've never made a sweater and I'm not so sure about paying that much when I'm not sure how it is going to work out. I'm doing it in Skye Magenta.....it definitely has a WOW factor as far as color. I was knitting outside in the little bit of sunlight we actually have had this week and it seemed a bit brighter then the sun!
I'm also working on a Granny Blanket. Some of the yarn was given to me and I didn't know what to do with it. I bought the bright pink, which is another yummy yarn called Marshmallow. I need to get some more...hopefully Ippikins will still have some.

If you venture into my house...don't be surprised to find a few body parts laying around.....I bought this book recently.....

and I've been trying to make one of the teddies....but the body parts keep disappearing.....the culprit is one of my kitties that has decided that anything I make is for her sole use as a toy!

LillyMoon

2008-02-01T17:22:00.000Z

The Orange Book

I decided that each month I would try to treat myself to a little something off of Etsy. This month I decided I had to buy a print from LillyMoon. So I bought the above print. It will look so nice in our bedroom...I was hoping to paint one of the walls the blue in the background. It also covered three of my favorite things as a subject...reading...sleeping...and knitting (spot the knitting needles in her hair????). Her work is stunning. I bought some of her buttons too, with images from her work, but they didn't scan very well. She sent the items in such pretty packaging along with a free 5X7 print below.

Dear Mr Rain

That is what I love about Etsy...everyone is so excited about their work and they take such care presenting their items as if they were found in a physical store....instead of just online!

Alison Willoughby

2008-01-28T19:55:00.000Z

When my friends and I went to London last fall to Origins, we met Alison. Two of us had been admiring her work in Selvedge and other magazines for awhile and were so excited to meet her and view her work in person. I was going through my new Fiberarts magazine and low and behold she has written a book about how to make her skirts!!!! I'm so excited and have put it on my wish list for sure....even though it doesn't come out for awhile! For some reason the picture and title will be different in the States:

Go figure!!!!

I also ran across this book that I want really bad when it comes out!

Came across this book....

2008-01-05T19:27:00.000Z

I couldn't resist it! That is soooooooo MEEEEEEE!!!!!!! I love RESTING!!!!!!

And I definitely plan on doing this one day!!!!

New Blog

2008-01-03T16:05:00.001Z

One of my favorite craft book (well knitting) editors has a blog now!

http://www.melaniefalickbooks.com/

It will be good to keep an eye on what she is working on. You might know her from "Knitting in America", which is the book that got me knitting 10 years ago. She is someone I trust when buying books. I've always something inspirational!

Merry Christmas to us!

2008-01-02T19:31:00.001Z

Rich and I decided (well I decided) that we should pick up a nice art piece for Christmas. We did the same thing for our anniversary. I think this could become an important part of our gift giving. We picked out this earthenware piece for my favorite art gallery in Much Wenlock. It is by Janet Creed. She had also made some other birds and a pig, but we really liked this. I love Rooks, we see them a lot on our favorite beach. The work is really striking and all of them make you smile when you look at them. That is what I'm looking for in art at the moment...for it to make me smile or go WOW!

I've promised myself to write more on here. I have so many great ideas of things I'm wanting to do and I'm working on and I just don't take the few minutes to blog. Which is a shame, because the whole reason I wanted to blog was to discuss what I'm doing and know that people reading it might actually get what I'm on about!

So I expect to be doing a bit more posting!

Oh, and my Mom and Dad bought me some really great books off of my wishlist.
I have the Loop-d-Loop crochet book and I liked it so much that I thought I would have this one too. I'm starting to get certain designers that I really like. That has made things I bit easier. Though most of these patterns are for inspiration.

I had bought the Twisted Sisters sock book and thought I'd have a go at the sweater one. I can't wait to have a go....though I've got several projects a head of this.

Pay it forward?

2007-11-09T10:55:00.000Z

Hmmmmm....so no one has taken me up on my offer. I could take this personally, but after Amanda's comment I think that the idea of getting something and then needing to pay it forward to someone else has put people off.

Actually, that wasn't part of what I was thinking with the project. I was more thinking that I would like to "pay forward" things that had been done for me. Whether you then do anything for someone else isn't an issue......so please comment whether you plan on doing the same project. I really would like to make things for people that actually appreciate them!

Pay it forward......

2007-11-05T18:59:00.000Z

a friend and I were talking the other day about "paying forward" for things that have been done for us. I have had so many "aunts" over the years. I tend to collect them a bit. If you are reading this, you might be one of them. I've loved them all and they have been in my life when I particularly needed them. I'm now of the age that I can pay forward these wonderful deeds. Whether it is taking a young friend out to eat or encouraging them in their craft, I feel such a kinship with those that have been there for me.

While reading Whipup I came across a post about Heather Smith Jones. She has posted here about a really cool project she is doing..... and I thought the idea was wonderful. So here goes....the first 3 people to write a comment to this blogpost, I will handmake you something. It won't be right away, in fact she has given herself a year and I think that I'll do that too. The reason I'm doing it is because I would like to keep an eye out on your blogs and get to know you (if I don't already). I love the friendships I've made through this medium and I would love to pay you back (or forward) for all the wonderfulness that you have given me! It is another way for me to pay forward all the love that has been done for me over the years.

I look forward to seeing who responds!

Needlepoint - anyone?

2007-10-25T14:42:00.001+01:00

Nothing like scanning a piece to realize that you STILL need to stretch it!!!! How weird. I love this piece though. This is a kit that I bought at the NEC show. The designer, Abigail Bury, was sitting amongst beautiful colors and I couldn't resist stopping and chatting. Her use of color was amazing and even though she had some more traditional kits, the use of the purple color and the bright pinky/orange in this kit just made me smile. I've never really done needlepoint, but now I'm hooked! I bought the apple tree kit for one of my sis-n-laws (don't worry she doesn't check my blog!) I haven't put the buttons on this yet, because I now have to stretch it.....ugh....but at least you can see how nice the kit is and the colors. I'm now going to use the pattern for a beading project. That is what I love about pixel type patterns, they lend themselves to so many different uses! Don't worry, I will be sending Abigail a picture of the beaded project and hopefully she will be able to show that off as another use for her patterns! I'll take a pic of what I ended up doing with it...which I think will be a pillow!

The kit came with more then enough yarn to go with it, the canvas and a needle. The directions were very clear and the chart easy to read. The canvas was unpainted, but she does have some that are painted. Being use to cross stitch I didn't really mind. It was sooo worth the cost of the kit.

Finally getting down to some Embroidery

2007-10-22T19:16:00.000+01:00

I've had this book for a while...I've probably posted about it...though I can't remember. I've been inspired by many of the patterns. I have to admit it, I'm getting really excited about free-style stitching. I'm trying to not use a pattern that is copied on to the material. I want to see if my stitching is better then my drawing. So far it isn't too bad.

This is my interpretation of the cover.....

(wool felt - cotton 6 strand)

and this is a poor scan of my edging.

(Cotton Velvet hand dyed, wool thread, cotton 6 strand, cotton one strand)

I have to admit something to you all. I'm knitting, but it isn't my first passion. I've become obsessed with fiber in all of its guises. I also like to blog about Indie craft/arts people that I come across. I will be doing more and more of that. I love buying stuff from other crafters and I love spreading the message about them. Like many of you, I've been on a bit of a hiatus from blogging.... work and life gets in the way. But I pledge to do better. I've got lots of pictures of stuff that I want to post about...lots of stuff I need to take pictures of.....so I will try and work out how I can post more often and hopefully get others excited about what I see out there too!

I can't even believe that I've not posted about Knitting and Stitching at the NEC, Origins - London craft fair, or the Knitting and Stitching at Alexandra Palace....not to mention Wingham wools at the Guild this weekend...where I swore I wasn't going to spend much...and ended up with a huge bag full of lovely fleece to spin...and other things......

Shows! Shows! Shows!

2007-09-18T18:35:00.000+01:00

I've been able to go to several shows lately. This last one was the best. I decided this year to go to both the Knitting and Stitching show at the NEC in Birmingham and Alexandra Palace in London. So last weekend I went with a group of gals from Shropshire and visited the NEC. It was a small show, but packed with good stuff. There weren't many people, no elbowing people like at the Alexandra Palace. I got to see some great stuff from up north, Yorkshire in particular that I would have missed and a great couple of girls in the graduate show that weren't going to make the trip to London.

First off I have to exclaim over the graduates. They were wonderful. One of the best was a girl who makes these lovely items for children (or just young at heart like me.) Rebecca Shreeve prints her own fabric and hand stuffs and sews her little critters. I have to say that her blankets are just what I would want if I had a little one....shoot I'm tempted to buy me one! I did buy a little mole that she was finishing up in front of me. How cool is that!!!!

There were three exhibits there that were just too stunning for words. Most of them I had seen in Selvedge magazine. Tilleke Schwarz was the first person I saw. Her work is wonderful. She makes embroideries that reflect things she hears and sees during a period of time. They are very much like graffiti, which is very cool. She signed a book for me and I'm looking forward to sitting down and reading about her inspirations.

The next people I know where in Selvedge. Their work is so inspiring. They are Primmy and Jessie Chorley and their exhibit was called "Like Mother Like Daughter" and it is so true. Looking at their work, it is difficult to tell who might have done which piece. I bought a broach that Jessie had made and I plan on buying one of her journals when I see them again at the next show. Their work was so vivid and sweet, but not so sweet that it wasn't grown up. Check out Jessie's website and see what you think. I'm trying to get a book that was written about her mother at the moment. We shall see if it comes in.

The last person I want to talk about in this post is someone else I've been longing to see her work in person. She is Julie Arkall. She doesn't have a website, but you can see some of her work here. (You can also see Primmy's work there.) The works were stunning and I've got plans on a book of hers, because she ran out of them, and something from her small collection that she sells.

I'm not sure if I'll bother buying any supplies at the next show. The exhibits are so great.

I'll try to get sometime to take pics of some of the stuff I bought. There are a few more people I would like to talk about. Sorry no pictures...but I wanted to get this posted!

Goodbye Sybil...you will be missed!

2007-08-24T18:28:00.000+01:00

This is Sybil, one of the Librarians who has decided to retire this summer. She will be sorely missed, especially by me. She has been an inspiration for some of my crafting, even though she doesn't really know it. The neck piece that she is wearing was her going away present from me. I've been wanting to make this for a while. I bought tons of beads in black...which most of you know really isn't me!...and had a good time trying to decide how do make a piece that I knew that Sybil would like. She is very creative and arty and I new that she could pull off this idea I had. I got the inspiration from a piece I saw on-line that I thought was a shade for a lamp (it ended up being a neck piece....but hey. I can't find the picture right now. )

Artist and Crafters from southern UK

2007-08-06T15:47:00.000+01:00

Recently, a friend and I went to the Art, Craft and Design show that was held at Winchester Cathedral. I bought a few things, but first I thought I would show you a few artists that inspired me the most.

First, was Rachel Jennings she is a textile artist that incorporates paper and other materials into her projects. The picture of the trees on the front page is one that we were able to see. It is spectacular in person! Amazing work.

Another, was Monica Boxley. I bought a pair of earrings from her, more for the fact that they had a great chime. They are sterling silver, and I've not been able to get a good picture of them. They are wonderful though. I loved her necklaces very much, and Victoria (my friend) was in love with her perspex.

Also, there was Ellie Gosse of Loominellie. I loved the use of color in her weaving. As most of you know, I'm a big fan of color color color!

Have a look at some of the work by these extraordinary artists! I feel so lucky to be able to see this type of work. It inspires me to continue with my projects!

(Note to self....must finish weaving project!)

Inspiration - love this!

2007-07-28T12:04:00.001+01:00

Thanks to my Secret pal

2007-07-25T19:39:00.001+01:00

Sorry I took a bit to get this posted. I did say thanks to her when I got it, but I wanted to show everyone what a great package she put together for me. There was also a little bit of food for the pets, but they have already ate them!!!!

Thanks so much! I love it all, and I'm putting the purple beads to work already!

Speaking about the pets...aren't those noses cute???

Kenner's blanket

2007-07-25T19:25:00.000+01:00

This is one of two blankets I made out of the same pattern with the same yarn (bought too much obviously!) It is really nice though and I think my nephew will enjoy it!

2007-07-10T10:27:00.000+01:00

Blogger is acting up and I can't put a title on this....oh well. Do you guys do this? You buy books, you look at them...and you still design something yourself? I bought Sasha Kagan's new book about crochet. It is very good and I've enjoyed looking at it. I bought several Japanese books on crochet motifs, and yet I still designed the motifs in the picture.

I have just finished another baby blanket, that I hadn't realized I didn't post about. (I took a pic, but the camera is now dead so I'll post about it later.) I've got lots of left over yarn, so I decided that it would be nice to put together some crocheted squares...which became circle motifs instead. I'm enjoying doing them. They are very simple and good stress relief since I'm home finishing up a paper for my MA, that is turning into a Diploma instead (long story...to long actually.) Anyway, I started this yesterday at 5 and I got all these done by 6:30.....and that is deciding what the pattern was going to look like. I have to admit, I'm loving the fact that crochet is back "in". Need to work on the sweater that I have the material for....these motifs are more fun!

Computer Wallpaper

2007-07-06T14:06:00.000+01:00

I'm always on the look out for something pretty to put on the wallpaper (desktop) of my computer. Why? I hardly ever look at it, because the internet is almost always one...but I like it anyway. I like to read the blog "How about Orange" and she posted about Pixelgirl. There are so absolutely beautiful wallpapers on this site! I love it! I've chosen "Fly Free 2" by Santiago Nicolalde. With so many to choose from though, I'll probably be changing these quite frequently! (I have to admit to having family pictures on my work computer....they make me smile!)

ATC for June

2007-06-26T16:24:00.000+01:00

This one was difficult. "On the waters edge" was the prompt. I wasn't sure what to do. I've had these markers for a bit, they are suppose to be like watercolor. I used the paper that came with it, which is a bit thin, but I like the look it gave me. I smudged a bit, as you can see...which aggravated me, but then I decided that it made it more "arty" ....well that is my story anyway. We are having all kinds of flooding over here, so I was tempted to draw sandbags! Fortunately, not around our house, but every where else. Shropshire where we are heading tomorrow has been hit pretty badly. I'll have to take some photos!

Next Swatch....

2007-06-20T19:24:00.000+01:00

Here is swatch 2. I liked this one, had to learn how to do a Tunisian Purl....very cool!

I've decided that these swatches will be washcloths since I'm using a nice cotton. They are really good for that!

On to the third, which is a bit more complicated!

Tunisian Crochet

2007-06-18T19:29:00.000+01:00

One of the items I bought at Wonderwools was this Tunisian crochet hook. As most of you know, I can't let a craft technique alone. Must try them all. So I bought this with the idea that I would look on the net and find the instructions. Well...they found me. One of the blogs I follow sent me to the Art of Crochet blog where they have started a swatch-along.

This is the first ribbing swatch...
front...................................

and back.

Now it is time to try the next swatch...anyone else interested? The website has really good video instructions, and the hooks aren't that expensive.

What is home....

2007-06-15T17:45:00.000+01:00

I've come across some very interesting creative blogs recently, too many to mention at the moment. But one of them asks you to post on your blog answers to some of the questions they ask. I really like this blog "Create a Connection". Everyday there is something to think about. Today is a discussion about what "Home" means to people. I always find my use of this word confusing for most people. As many of you know, I'm from the States but live in the UK. I have to admit, even when I lived in the States, I would say I was going "home" for the weekend....meaning going to see my family. So one definition is "home is where my Mom and Dad are....." But I also say going to the States is going home.....and going to the place I live is home....going back to the UK is home.....Rich is from Shropshire (we live in Hampshire) so we go "home" when we go see his family.

So where does that leave me. After one of our first trips back the States for Christmas, I was having the jetlag blues....I was tired...homesick...and fed up. Hubby doesn't like me to sleep when I get home from the long 24hrs of being awake (not exaggerating). He thinks that our jetlag gets better if we stay to the timezone we are in....I however have learned I need to sleep!!! Anyway, I came downstairs shuffling through piles of mail feeling sorry for myself. I sat in My chair and reached over without looking and picked up my lip balm. I stopped for a moment and realized what I had done. I knew that the lip balm was there. I had reached for it over and over many times. I was HOME.

So, "home" is where your comfortable. I'm comfortable many places, my Mom's and Dad's...even though they have moved many times. My grandparents farm, where they have lived my whole life. My sister-in-law who we stay with when we go up to Shropshire. My work place....well I do now it's ever square inch. And of course the place where I have now...for 5 years... lived with my lovely Husband. I feel that they are all valid definitions....now to contact the Oxford Dictionary!!!

Yes, today is hubby and my 5th anniversary. It has been a wonderful 5 years, and he has been soooo very patient while I've been unwell, getting adjusted to a whole different life and putting up with my pets! (All rodents). I love him very much...and I hope that even though we aren't spring chickens...we still have many many years as happy as I have been the last 5!

Brighton Knit In

2007-06-10T18:28:00.001+01:00

A few of us from my Knitting group got together and took the train to Brighton to attend the Knit In. They had a few interesting things to knit...ie the cupcake I made in the picture to the left.

And the flower I also made....

A student was putting together a blanket that is to represent the bacteria in her house. She allowed us to be part of the project, so we had a length of yarn and free form crocheted. In the middle you can see my contribution.

Here are a couple of the girls I could fit into the picture. At one time there were 8 children each knitting on one of the tentacles. It was such a great idea! Everyone could choose their own colors and pattern that they wanted to do.

Good fun had by all!

Note: you can find the websites for the different events at Knit In

ATC for May

2007-05-28T19:10:00.000+01:00

Playing with more new stuff I bought a few shows ago....trying to get the stuff put away, what better way then to use it! Not sure how "artistic" this is...but I'm doing more drawing...so that is good!

Thanks to my Secret pal

2007-05-28T18:11:00.000+01:00

I received these from my secret pal the other day. They are really wonderful. The only thing I'm not crazy about the one-skein book is that the have the colored pictures in the middle and the patterns in the rest of the book. I always prefer to have the pictures with the pattern. But there is some scope for inspiration there, and that is what I wanted. The spinning book is one that I've wanted for awhile. It shows you how to spin without needing a spindle, but just a wire with a hook on the end. I thought that was cool, and how to ply.

Wide Open is great. I've been trying to do more art journaling. This is a kit more then a book. There are cards to use as prompts and a journal in it that is already colored. At first I wasn't sure if I could write on the beautifully colored pages, but when I did I understood why people do that. It really makes the writing come to life, no matter what you are writing about.

Anyone in the UK going to Brighton for the Knit In? Some of us from my Stitch 'n Bitch are going. Looks like it should be fun!

Wonderwool Wales

2007-05-27T12:13:00.001+01:00

At the moment I don't have any pictures from the trip. My hubby has the camera with him and he won't be back to this evening. True fully, I didn't take that many pictures.

We did camp, even though it rained all afternoon. We didn't put up the tent until the evening, which seemed to be a good thing. We had a good time, though we had to call it early day on Sunday.

What I will talk now is the workshops we did. They were just want I wanted, something to inspire me. The first was about using natural materials such as basket material for knitting. Ruth Lee that I bought. It is really experimental and showed us some swatches that she had knit from daylillys that she had dried and then soaked in water. it was amazing. She gave us all a chance to knit with very think reed. It was very easy really. Could make some nice art. She also had written a book about scarves and boas really interesting. Not the usual scarves patterns which is good. We also went to a workshop with Di Gilpin. She is another experimental knitter that was so inspirational. She showed us slides of some of her travels that inspire her knits. She doesn't start with a pattern, just an idea and the yarn. She then tries to duplicate the textures, colors and structure of what has inspired her. She then writes up the patterns. Below is one of her books . She has us try it ourselves, my piece is a bit of an embarrassment because I was tired and couldn't get my fingers to do with what my mind was telling it. But what was so good was how freeing it was, and how it made me think about embellishing knits. I might even take a pattern that I'm working on and add texture etc just for the fun of it.

I bought lots of equipment that I will take a picture of when I can.

This blogging is so strange for me at the moment. I have lots to post about, but never seem to get the time to do it. I also am having trouble keeping everything organized. I have to redo my bookcase by my chair in the living room and my craft room again.....sigh...I seem to be organizing more then I get to spend time actually crafting....sigh.....oh well!

Experimenting....

2007-05-26T16:09:00.000+01:00

Does this look like a heart? I feel it is good, would be better if I had pulled the center a bit more I think....don't know. What do you guys think?

Sorry for the delay in posting....

2007-05-17T13:22:00.000+01:00

I didn't realize it had been so long. I've meant to post, and I've got tons of pictures to post....but just haven't done it yet.

Anyway, I'm off to WonderWool Wales this weekend, so I promise pictures of sheep and etc. I also hope to profile some of the traders I come across.

See ya next week!

PS...if you haven't seen Elastic Waist you have been missing some fun!

Weaving Workshop

2007-04-29T19:13:00.000+01:00

So there it is....the start of a new skill. I should take a picture of the selvedge. I'm so proud of it! I finally can WEAVE! I've wanted to do this all my life. I bought the loom several months ago for really cheap at the guild. It is worth joining a guild for the cheap supplies you can get! Anyway, Mary Keer was kind enough to slip me into her course and I had the best time. Warping was ok, until you started threading the heddle. (I actually know what I'm talking about now!). But the weaving was great and Mary is so good and patient. She has been teaching for many years, and she is still so enthusiastic!

Thanks again Swap Pal!

2007-04-29T19:10:00.000+01:00

Sorry, I tried to get this last night and the stupid camera died! Thanks so much for the wonderful gifts!

Crochet goodness

2007-04-17T20:00:00.000+01:00

So this is what I've been up too! I bought these two japanese books from SaucyLouise. I love them! I picked up some tapestry yarn at a textile gallery they have in Llandiloes where my sis-in-law lives. The flowers are So much fun to make! I'm going to make the purse on the front of the book on the left. I can't get over how much I enjoy these Japanese magazines.

Easter

2007-04-17T19:39:00.000+01:00

Thought I would post a few of the pictures from the Easter weekend we spent with my sister-in-law. The Welsh countryside is so beautiful that I had to throw in a few of them. (Sorry about the dates being wrong on the pictures, we have to reset it...again!)

In the distance you can almost make out one of many controversial wind farms. I think they are beautiful, and so eco-friendly! But a lot of people thin they are unsightly. The post shows two walks in the area. All walks are well marked and are usually called so and so way. A lot of times they are pilgrimages walks that were used for years for those who were going from church too church until they reached St. Davids in Pembrokeshire (well the ones in Wales do.)

We got very close to these guys. They were in with a ruined abbey that was razed by Henry the VIII. There are a lot of these ruins around, even in Much Wenlock where my hubby is from. This one is far away from Llandiloes where my sister-in-law lives, but they still managed to move the arches from this abbey and put them in the chapel they were building in Llandiloes. We went to church there for Easter Sunday and it was amazing! You could tell how much older the arches were. This church was made 100s of years ago, can't remember exactly when....sorry Dennis (my bro-in-law).
I took this pictures because it shows very well how they "lay" hedges here. In Wales and Shropshire they use laid hedges to keep the sheep in. They let the hedge trees grow up to about 5 feet or so. Then they, and you can tell in the picture, lay the trees on their sides. They weave posts in to keep the trees on their sides. Then the branches shoot up and become impenetrable. They say that you can tell how hold a hedge is by how many different plants are growing in them. A lot of times there are black berries in them, yum!
This is New Quay on the Welsh coast. It was such a nice little village, but packed with people on the day we were there...it was warm enough for the kids to be in the water....which I found so unusual. In fact you can tell in the pictures how clear it is. Wales gets lots of rain usually, but we didn't get a single drop while we were there! I was a bit dissapointed really...it is nice to have a day in by the fire with your crochet hook or book!

I was worried about getting good pictures of the sheep....and then we came across this paddock with the little guys dying to be petted....well they thought we might have food....but aren't they CUTE!!! I have to admit a weakness for the black lambs!

Thanks to my swap pals....

2007-04-02T19:12:00.000+01:00

I received these the other day and it really made me happy! The first pictures is some lovely things from my secret pal. I couldn't wait to put my keys on the key change. The pink box has stickers in it and the box with the lamb and rabbit on it is a tin that I can put embroidery stuff in! Yeah!!!

This was a gift from Tora from the tote exhange. It is lovely, and I can't get over how well she did the roses. They are lovely. The bowl has some homemade stitch markers that a friend of hers made. It really is lovely.

Wednesday craft night

2007-03-21T21:16:00.000Z

So this is what I had to hurdle to get into my craft room...left over mess from the bathroom remodeling. Oh well, I made it in and managed to ....

to kill a die cutter.... ruin three ears and finish one rabbit! I wanted to have so many more of the flowers. I thought it would look really neat, but unfortunately I broke the cutter. Oh well...it was going so well! Now I know why they buy already cut felt flowers! It just felt good to get in there!

New Zine

2007-03-21T21:09:00.000Z

I purchased this from Elsie Sampson from Chinese Sweatshop. The yellow book with the thread and the blue behind are the drawing zines. They are wonderful. She draws and tells you stories about how she started drawing and what she likes to draw etc. The green book is a sketch book and she added the pencil, 2 crayons and other bits and pieces to draw on. It is wonderful and worth a look. She has other zines also at her webpage. I found her through Croq zine. Her zine is so original though. She cuts and pastes and handpaints color. It is a wonderful inspiration.

Toby's present.....

2007-03-18T20:17:00.000Z

I love buying things off of Etsy.com for gifts if I don't have the time to make something myself. I sent this to my nephew Toby first birthday. Maya from Maidenlove made this lovely elephant. I was so impressed, because when I told her it was a present, she took this picture and sent it to me. It was so nice to see how it looked and made it really personal as a gift. She makes these elephants and blankets from fabrics she has collected over the years. She will even make things out of your own fabric if you send it to her. She is in my Etsy favorites for sure!

ATC for March

2007-03-18T19:56:00.000Z

The them for this Creative Mom ATC was Space of ones own. I couldn't resist doing my favorite space. I didn't know how to do it quickly, so I just drew it. I've been working on my drawing anyway...so hopefully this will be alright for my swap person. Can you identify the objects in the pictures??? It is pretty well how my bed looks at the moment...or will when I go upstairs. I always think of Virgina Woolf's "A Room of One's Own" and think how important my bed is to me. I have always been a person who craves "me" time. My bedroom has been such a haven to me in the many bad and good times of my life.

This is the ATC I received from Kimberly for the Alphabet Soup exchange for February. I'm impressed how well she created the earth, without really drawing it. It is really cool. Thanks Kimberly.

Tote exchange.....

2007-03-18T19:53:00.000Z

done with the tote for this exchange. It is a shopper, so I've not lined it. It should be useful to take into a shop when my pal has only a few things to pick up....like when they go to the drug store or something. Hopefully she will get good use out of it. I'll fill it with some goodies I've bought for her too.

Easter projects

2007-03-13T20:29:00.000Z

So here is what I've been up too. I've actually...shock...horror...have been assembly lining! I've never done that before, I must admit I'm usually a one time project maker. With all the Secret pals and just plain friends I have, I thought I would make a few of these up. I'm going to embellish the heck out of them once they are sewn up. I got the pattern from a wonderful felter Betz White. One of these days I'm going to try my hand at making my own pattern. At the moment, it is easier to have a pattern and then embellish it with my own ideas. Some of this fabric is new, some I've had, and some was given to me.

Doesn't she look cute! This one will be getting some embroidery on it I think. Who are the lucky recipients? Well, we shall see.....

More books and magazines.....

2007-02-21T20:14:00.000Z

This book is sooooo cool. I was drooling over it last time we went to Borders, but decided to not buy it at that moment....but of course a £10.00 off ticket was eating a hole in my wallet and I just had to get it. So off I went after work and picked it up. I have trouble with color. Not sure why. I suppose I just haven't thought about it, other then knowing what colors I like and what colors look good on people.

Anyway, this book is great. Gives lots of combinations for such categories as "Fresh" and "Alluring", so it should be good to help me with some of the projects I'm doing out of a few books for my journals.

This book was so good I couldn't pass it up. It has all kinds of logos in it. But it has such wonderful bright colors I was just so struck by it, I had to buy it! It even has an interactive companion CD with it. I'll have to see what that is like when I have more time....

I was looking through this mag, and was so stuck by all the lovely colors. As you can see this is an American mag (gotta love it).

I was flipping through the pages and came across this page...I thought...HEY I know those dogs....and sure enough the house they are featuring is one of the bloggers I follow. I remembered then that she talked about being featured, but at the time thought "oh well...another magazine I can't get here....woe is me"....but I was WRONG. She is Alicia Paulson and her blog is so wonderful and full of great ideas...just like her house!

This is an Australian magazine I hadn't seen before. So I got it to have a go. It has some traditional crafts, but there is enough of a twist to it. I thought that I could use it to give me some ideas of embroidery that I could tweak.

Creative Mom Podcast ATC Feb exchange

2007-02-20T19:07:00.000Z

Well, here is my ATC for the Feb exchange. The theme was "alphabet soup". I had this idea from the beginning of layering letters. I like the whole layering thing at the moment. I'm layering stitches, colors, etc on everything I've been doing (except the blankets of course). I think it turned out pretty good. About what I had in mind anyway. I started out with the works "Maybe No Yes" then just made sure I covered that up as I went. I hope my exchange partner likes it!

Valentines projects....

2007-02-18T19:30:00.000Z

Here is the card I made Rich. I'm testing out my new scanner, so instead of taking a picture of it, I've scanned it. It will look a bit silly because of that.

Can you guess what I love? (The last is a book, since it is more difficult to check.) The last page had a mirror under the flap...which was really small so just showed his nose!

These are the cards I made my niece and nephews. I just wanted to send them a little something.

Secret pal 10

2007-02-18T19:06:00.000Z

Well, the time is here again, another Secret Pal is starting. I enjoyed the last one very much. I had a secret pal from the States, and person to spoil was a wonderful girl from Estonia. I'm looking forward to meeting two new people!

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?
I must admit that I perfer natural fibers, though I have used blends and do like them.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?
A wicker vase my Mom bought me for Christmas one year.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?
I've been knitting since I turned 30, though I've crocheted and crafted all my life. I'm an intermediate knitter...though I tend to through caution to the wind and try new stitches and stuff. My biggest problem is, I am mathematically challenged.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?
I have an Amazon and I'm thinking about an Etsy. I just LOVE Etsy.com

5. What's your favorite scent?
Lavender

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?
This time of year I miss peeps!

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?
I've recently learned how to spin. I've always made crafts, recently I've been trying very hard to start being more artistic with crafting. I'm doing a lot of work with art journaling and trying to do more Fiber arts.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)
I like alternative (or Indie) music.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?
I'm really in to bright colors. I think because this country is so drap and dreary (and everyone tends to wear black.)

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
Married, no kids. We have two guinea pigs, two rats and four mice.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?
I don't do ponchos, but I love scarves etc.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?
I like to make anything really.

13. What are you knitting right now?
Right at the moment I'm in the middle of two blankets and a bag.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?
ABSOLUTELY

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?
All of the above.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?
I like to do this by hand, it is something I can do in the car without getting sick!

17. How old is your oldest UFO?
Very, Very old

18. What is your favorite holiday?
Thanksgiving...I'll be home for it this year!! Yeah!!!

19. Is there anything that you collect?
Craft supplies and books

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?
I've got several books on my wish list. I like One-skein wonders by Judith Durant. Subline Stitching by Jenny Hart is another one. Right at the moment I'm dying to have some more Luna Moon needles and Addi turbos. I would love any beautiful yarn. I like unusual colors and textures.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?
Weaving

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?
Yes, though I've yet to make me any that fit. I wear American size 10.

23. When is your birthday?
Nov 15

Book reviews....

2007-02-07T17:26:00.000Z

Yes, more books....but this time I didn't buy them! I was smart and got them from a library. I should promote libraries more...seeing as I'm almost a Librarian and have worked in them most of my adult life. I wanted to check out these two book before I thought about purchasing them. I'm glad I did. They are great and were worth having a good look at...but they don't include anything different then the things I've seen on the net or have in books I already own. The "House Proud" book by Danielle Proud is great and if you are in to reusing furniture and household goods, then this book has some great ideas. The thing is I've been in to this for such a long time, that I've seen most of the techniques before. I must be getting really old! Cath Kidston book is really good too, but again...nothing really new.

Anyone interested in some books?

2007-02-04T18:45:00.000Z

**I've still got the first two of these books....I managed to give the others away.......

I've decided to get rid of a few books I just don't use. If you would be interested let me know we could do a swap or something.

I just didn't find anything I wanted to do in the last three. They are very good, but just not me. The first one, was one of those that I have about three others that have the same projects!

What have I been up too?

2007-02-04T17:57:00.000Z

Well, I've not been doing much crafting. I made some valentines for my niece and nephews the other night, I'll show pictures of them when I get them finished. But mostly I've been cleaning. I can't believe how missed up the house became while I've been unwell. I made attempts but I just didn't get organized like I needed to. So I've been trying to get the living room organized at the moment and reminding myself that I can only do it one room at a time!

The picture is the bookcase I've put next to my chair. It has all most of my craft books on it. I had a different bookcase, but it wasn't deep enough or high enough to allow for my bigger books. I've put the knit and crochet up on top so they are easy to get to, and the other craft books on the bottom. I have to move my chair to get to them...but I don't look at them quite as much. My sewing books stayed upstairs in my craft room.

So here is my collection of knitting and crochet books, see any of your favorites. Being a Library type person, you crave books. I'm getting rid of a couple that I've not used. If you look closely you will see that Debbie Bliss and Erica Knight predominate.

Yeah for Borders!

2007-01-27T19:39:00.000Z

I know it is sad to be so excited about a big name bookstore. But I can now get my American magazines and drink Starbuck's, so I can't help being a bit excited!

So what did I buy? I got Mary Englibert's Home Companion magazine, which I've never seen before. It is really good. I was very surprised. I know of Mary and have seen her many books and art work. Her magazine isn't as country looking as I thought it might be. There is a lot of nice bright colors and art decorating. I really like it, and will buy more.

I have to admit to buying two books. I've not seen these before, and it is nice to actually sit with my hot chocolate having a good look through the books. I promised myself that I wouldn't buy too many books this year, but I have to admit that two books that have gone on my wishlist are the new Tracy Ullman and Mel Clark's "Knit 2 Together", which had 3 patterns I wanted to go home and start...and Erica Knight's new book "Essential Crochet", which has her characteristic home furnishings.

So what did I buy? The first book was one I had on my wishlist (I just figured out) "Fabric Leftovers" by D'Arcy-Jean Milne. This books is excellent. It has two things I have to try, the first is Lazy Crazy Patchwork. You just sew pieces in strips and do lots of cool embroidery. Then you use those pieces as fabric to make pillows etc. She also show you how to take cord and use the sewing machine to embroider over it. The effect is awesome and I can see it being used for so many different projects.

The second is a book I hadn't seen before, "New from Old" by Jayne Emerson. I've seen many of this type and after looking at the books thought they were good for insperation, but they really weren't in my style. This one is so different. She has split the book into: dying, embellishing, and actually reusing the item to make something different. She makes me wish I had a leather skirt to make into a bag, and her use of fabric flowers to embellish is really inspiring!

We will have to see how I get on with these. I've promised myself that I would make sure I actually use the books I buy....so this is a bit of a challenge! Must make valentines cards first though!

Arts and Crafts fun

2007-01-17T19:32:00.000Z

Paige and I did some art work while I was home. She got a great Arts and Crafts box that had drawers like you would use for nuts and bolts and stuff. It was SOOOOO cool! I wanted it. She had a great time doing this. I did one too, but I left it and forgot to take a picture. Who could ask for a better Christmas then playing with a collage with your niece. She decided that mine looked like a turkey. I asked her what hers looked like, and typical three yr old....nothing it is a collage! Here she is playing with her doll. I'm glad I sewed those legs and arms on good and tight! I can tell ya, that doll will not have clothes on it, unless her mom puts them on her! She just wasn't that interested! I thought it was interesting that the dress she has on is very much like one I wanted to make her! So I guess I will go ahead and try!

Here I am....

2007-01-17T19:01:00.000Z

after some technical difficulties and some more time spent trying to get things done...and not succeeding, I finally have the pictures and the time to do a quick post.

Sorry Emily, I had to go out of town this weekend and still haven't been able to do a few pictures to help you with the blanket. As with everyone, time is just flying away from me!

So a few updates about Christmas. I had such a good time playing with my niece and nephews. My knitting is always a magnet for their attentions. Robbie always wants to try his hand at it and asks me how long it will take for me to finish......never happy with my reply "when I finish". They decided to "help" me by taking all the balls of yarn and making one big huge ball with my needles in the middle of the mess. Don't they look like they are having fun??? I asked and they said they were! It took me two evenings to reball them up and get out my needles. The circulars were stuck in there somehow! Yes, that is a bent Addi Turbo.....I got it unbent enough that it still works, and is a little reminder of how much fun they had! Everyone asked me as I was untangling the mess if I regretted letting them. But I didn't...I mean they were playing with YARN! How cool is that!!!!

Emily....

2007-01-09T04:56:00.000Z

this post is specifically for Emily who recently wrote a comment about the blanket I'm making from the "Nursery Knits" book. (See post from Nov 30). There is something you should know about this, but I can't get a reply to you personally. I hope you are checking back. I will post a tutorial tomorrow for you. Basically though you have to reverse the pattern for half the blocks. This really confused me the first time I did it and since there isn't a picture of what it looks like in the book (other then the whole blanket pic) it is hard to pick it out at first. The first block goes "///", the second block must go "\\\" so that it forms the "V" pattern. I decided to do that color pattern from right to left on the second block. Don't know if this is right or not but it works. I'll try to do that tutorial tomorrow, because I think it is hard sometimes to follow when you can't see what the person is talking about!

Other then that, I'm home. The vacation was good and I got to hold lots of babies and play with my niece and nephew lots! My sisters are all doing well, considering the babies they have all had this year! I even got my Mom knitting again. She wanted to make a bag like my sari silk one I made this year, so we picked out some Noro for her and she is going to town. She had it half done before I left! We have already booked going over in November to see everyone for my birthday and for Thanksgiving! So that makes it easier to come home.

I bought lots of craft stuff, got cool presents from Melissa and bought some cool books and mags. I promise to post them soon. I still haven't downloaded all my pictures etc to the main computer yet (Hubby has been busy playing with his new Web cam). But since we just got back on Sunday, you can't really blame me! I hope to catch up on everyones blogs and stuff soon! One of my New Year resolutions, was to post more. I really enjoy it and I don't get half the stuff posted that I want to, especially about Indie artists I buy stuff from!!!

Nephew number 5!

2006-12-24T02:35:00.000Z

I'm a bad Aunt....nothing in this picture was hand done by me! But soon I will have that blanket done...He was born on the 22nd just as Rich and I were on the plane to come over. He is healthy and so is Mom, though they both had a rough journey. I get to spend a few days with them in the new year so I'm looking forward to that.

Rich and I were lucky. The fog that was cancelling a lot of the flights out of London, didn't stop us. We flew with Aer Lingus (Irish company) and their flights were taking off, though they were an hour late. We enjoyed the fact that you can go through immigration in Ireland, and don't have the hassle when you get to the States. Chicago was warmer then London....go figure! We are holding up pretty well, though I'm still feeling the effects of a head cold I had before I came over. One December I would like to go without a cold.

I'm busily trying to make this for my niece...last minute present. I also plan on working my way through The Creative License book by Danny Gregory, and using my new moleskine to do it. I'm using real artists pens, which are making a difference. I don't want to get to where I am a master drawer. I just want to be able to interpret what I see in my head or eyes on to the page for embroidery.

I did order the book The Art of Knitting and it is wonderful. I haven't had the time to really look at it, but since I had it sent to my Mom's I will hopefully have some time soon to get to it!

Off I go to spend time with the family!

Christmas part whatever.....

2006-12-13T19:59:00.000Z

So this is what I've been up too. I've made my ATC (Artist Trading Cards) for the Creative Mom's Podcast swap. The heart is the wrong size, I thought it was postcard size but it was suppose to be 2 1/2 by 3 1/2. I like heart a lot. That is going to be my signature I've decided. The painted one is what Amy the Creative Mom sent me. I got it today, what a very nice thing for her to do. (That is how I figured out that I was doing it wrong.So here is outfit 2. It didn't work out anything like the pattern....and netting is H*!! to work with...but I got it done! She had to have a little ballet outfit!

And here is outfit 3. This worked up pretty well, and I like how it fits which I can't say for the other two outfits!

I've had a good day really. I've got my room put together so that I can actually find things. That is the best, not to have to search and search for the beads or buttons if I want to use them. I made the doll a pearl necklace too, which can used to put her hair up too. I've also started stocking up on supplies. I used to think that I only should have what I was using at the moment. But I've found that it is good to buy small quantities of different supplies so that I can play. Playing is what I'm going to do in 2007. I need to break free of the constraints of patterns I put on myself. I never felt that I was artistic, but I'm trying to expand. I bought a great book this weekend, my friend Sarah found it...fortunately she said she would order a copy so that I could have the one that we found. The Art of Embroidery: Inspirational Stitches, Textures and Surfaces (Paperback) It is by Francoise Tellier-Loumagne who is a French textile artist. The book is fabulous!!! The pictures are wonderful and she goes into just enough detail on different techniques that you can still do your own thing. It is wonderful. I've ordered her book The Art of Knitting by her also. I'll get that in the US, it was easier to have it sent there.

The only real problem is I need to get to doing my studying. I've got about a year left and am struggling because I feel that I want to be more creative. I want to work in my craft room, instead of my desk. But I just have to get it finished and then I can do what I want. That is what 2008 will be also.....study study study...then craft! We shall see how it goes!!!

But for now...back the Christmas crafting!

Update....

2006-12-05T19:18:00.000Z

sorry no pics, but hubby and I have a new computer and he hasn't totally finished playing with it. I don't want to download anything new until he has finished...techies....they just love to play!

Wanted to catch you up though....I've been very busy working on the ATC's for the Creative Mom Podcast swap. And clothes for Paige's doll, a friend's present and the baby blanket. I'm a bit upset that I don't think I'll find time to make anything for my secret pal, but she has forgiven me already. She will get something before the end of the swap!

Well, since I'm typing on my knees...I'll stop posting and will give you all the pictures another day!

Blanket number 3

2006-11-30T20:35:00.000Z

So this is what I'm up to for Kenner (my nephew-to-be) The colors looks so much better in this pattern...which is odd...really since they are all mixed up as they were with the other pattern I was doing. This pic isn't that great, I hope to get another outside this weekend, natural light is so much better. But I wanted to post so you all know I'm getting on. Biggest problem with this? All the crappy ends to weave!!!!! The pattern is from Zoe Mellor's "Nursery Knits". Since I'm using thinner thread it will have to be done with a few extra rows...but that will be ok.

Doll

2006-11-30T20:20:00.000Z

What do you think...enough bling...NO of course not...not for a little girl. It is just the beginning of the pink and purple that this doll will be covered in. Though I will make her some cords and stuff in more neutral colors. But my niece is 3 1/2....she needs more bling!!!!
So can you tell which has more hair?? I didn't like the way the pattern only called for one layer of hair. You couldn't really do anything with it without her looking bald, so she has lots of layers of hair......(the doll on the right anyway).

I think the color of her eyes looks good. Better then the light blue I have on the other doll (see previous post). It goes with the gold of her hair better...though now that I look at the pic she looks a little uneven....but we can't all be symetrical!

Curve of Pursuit....not!

2006-11-22T18:55:00.000Z

Well, there it is...the sort of disaster. The silk/cotton yarn just didn't take to the pattern that I bought at all. I decided that I could do it by crocheting it and love the pattern...I might even write it up if anyone is interested. The picture isn't very good because I have it hung from the top corner. I'll try and get a better picture outside this weekend if I get a chance. Anyway, the disaster is the colors. They aren't anything like the quilt I was basing it one...which I can't show you because I took a picture at the Internation Quilt show and I don't have permission to post it. Anyway....I have now decided to switch to another pattern that I will be able to use the same colors but it will look better. I have to buy a few more colors...and can't use all the colors I bought...so that means more yarn for my stash!!! Oh well......

Thanks Melissa!

2006-11-22T18:50:00.000Z

How cute are these??? Unfortunately, it isn't avery good picture. These stitch markers were made for me by Melissa. Her son did the toast that is smiling....how cute!

She also made me this lovely knitting bag for my birthday. I love the fabric so much and she did such a good job! I can't wait to get all must stuff inside it! Got a baby blanket to get on with!

A great day....

2006-11-16T20:06:00.000Z

yesterday was my birthday and I have to post a big thank you to all my friends who sent me well wishes! Thanks! I enjoyed the day. For the first time in years I actually took the day off. Rich decided to take time off too. I started out with a wonderful lie in (isn't that I nice phrase?? lie in.....). Then Rich brought me up my toast and tea with my cards. When I got out of the shower, the postman had stopped again and brought me two gifts from my mom and one from my sis-n-law in Wales! We went to lunch at my favorite tearoom and lingered over our tea. Then we went up to Whitchurch to the Silk Mill. It was really nice. You can watch them weaving and it was so interesting. They even have have a loom set up that you can have a go at. I want to weave sooooo badly. I will have to to something soon. Even if it is only tapestry.

Mom got me "The Crafters Companion" that everyone has been posting about. I was so excited to get it! It is really good...full of inspiration. Then my friend Alysha sent me "Wendy Knits". It was sweet of her and it looks like a really good read.

I'm of to Wales this weekend to see my sis-n-law and family. I'm so excited. Wales is gorgeous and it is going to be even better with the fall leaves on the ground! I've got tons to post, new independent artist and everything to talk about....but just don't have the time. Must go pack!

I will say though that I got some lovely silk cotton from Dragon Yarns. I'm going to use it to make the Curve of Pursuit pattern from Woolly Thoughts. I've been looking forward to this for awhile now. I got the color inspiration from a quilt I saw at the international Quilt show. It is really different, but I hope that it turns out ok. I'll let you in on the process...I promise!