Another WIP bites the dust!

YAY! The Faberge gloves are finished. I absolutely loved knitting these (even if I did initially manage to make two right-handed gloves - DOH! Not a good thing to discover at 10pm on a Sunday night.........)

The yarn is just gorgeous - the colours are so vibrant, and yet the result is still quite subtle. Let's hope L'il Sis likes them...... AND I have enough yarn left to make a hat! She'll have to wait for that though, as I have run out of time methinks.....

2Di4 Duo yarn in Trailing Vines colourway; needles 3.75mm (dpn); size medium; Faberge Mittens (for cuff pattern) and Generic Glove pattern from Knitty; Started: 22 Feb 2009; Finished: 17 March 2009

Naughty blogger........

Yes, I have been a naughty blogger.....it's been far too long since I have posted on here. In my defence, real life has got in the way recently (as has my knitting obsession!). I will spare you the details, but it looks very likely that things will be changing dramatically soon, and I will have a lot more time on my hands - which means lots more scrapping! There is a silver lining to every cloud after all.....

As I said, I really haven't done very much scrapping so far this year. I'm involved in a circle journal on UKS, but of course, I can't show pictures of that. I managed a brief flurry of activity during the recent Cyber Crop, when I did these:



My little sis looking stunning on her wedding day in June 2007


















the uncanny resemblance between Mr A and little Miss A (both aged approx six months) - long may she keep those gorgeous curls!!!

And then, this morning, the need to scrap suddenly grabbed hold of me again - oh what bliss! I have had the idea for this layout in my head for some time, and it also seemed to work really well with the Scrap Like You Mean it topic for week eight (I'm still catching up on these, and not necessarily doing them in the precise chronological order!). Quite different from my usual style, and cutting up the photos was a bit nerve-wracking at first, but I'm very pleased with how it came out.




I'm such a lucky girl to see all these beautiful historical buildings (St Paul's, the Old Bailey, St. Bride's church) every day - Mr Wren, I salute you!

Finished!

I am on a mission to get projects finished at the moment - the 2nd of the Faberge gloves and the Express Lane socks are well underway, can't wait to see my sister's face when she gets the former. Hubby says the 1st sock fits really well and feels super snuggly, so that also looks like it will be a success!


In the meantime, I decided last week that it really was time to finish Alice's tank top (before she outgrew it!). So, a couple of evenings of dedicated ribbing (armholes and neck), plus a Sunday afternoon of seaming the sides produced this:




Phildar Oxygene in Blackberry & Lupin; Cygnet DK Superwash in Grey; Phildar Frimas in Lupin
Needles: 3mm and 3.5mm
Started: 8 January 2009
Finished: 8 March 2009 (Really shouldn't have taken this long!)

I'm really pleased with the result - and she seems quite happy with it too - she wore it to nursery on Monday, and apparently was stroking it all day long - happy Mummy! Even better, the length means she can maybe still wear it in early autumn!

A little update

Life has been a little busy recently - but that hasn't stopped me from playing with wool and needles. When I think that, back at the beginning of the year, I had never tried knitting with dpns, it feels almost like I've had an epiphany......I just love them - the work grows much quicker than on straight needles, and (icing on the cake) there's no sewing up at the end!


So, currently on the needles we have:


Express Lane socks for the dearly beloved:

Claudia Handpainted in Donna's Favourite (heel is in Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino in Mole); needles 2.75mm; co 68 stitches to account for a BIG shoe size!

Then we have the Faberge gloves for li'l sis's birthday at the end of March. The pattern calls for mittens, but I thought fingered ones would be better for her. I started these at the weekend, and I've already almost finished the first glove. I just love the beaded effect - and couldn't believe how easy the trellis stitch was to actually knit. The index finger on the first glove is a little big - might have to do something sneaky to tighten it up when it's done.

Even better, it looks like I'm going to have half of the wool left over, so I can make her a matching hat (which I have been promising for months....)

2Di4 Duo in blues / greens; needles 3.75mm; co 42 stitches

Those are the works in progress - here are the completed projects:

First, Mum's birthday present. This is bit of a hybrid - I tried several patterns and was beginning to think that I would never find something that worked.....in the end, I took the herringbone stitch, doubled up the yarn and just knit it all straight, adding in a keyhole one-third of the way up so she can loop it around her neck. Hope she likes it!!

GGH Cumba Print in Turquoise; needles 6mm; used 3 whole skeins!

Next, I'm still working on the last of my Angels & Elephants Aran - this was how I used the first skein of Tintagel (which I honestly think is the nicest of the three colourways I bought):

Stella Hat in Angels & Elephants Aran (Tintagel); needles 5mm

Apologies for the dark picture on the last one -the light has just been awful the last few days - bring on Spring!!!

I'm sure that you have all seen the recent coverage of the awful devastation caused by the Australian bush fires.

I simply can't imagine losing all my belongings, memories, precious possessions - it's just unthinkable.

Thanks to the huge amounts of financial donations that have been flooding in, the Australian Red Cross (and other organisations such as the Salvation Army) are able to meet the immediate needs of the victims.

However, other organisations are taking a more long-term view, whereby the victims' needs for comfort will be met - and this is where YOU come in.

Handmade Help have launched a number of 'crafty' initiatives, including:

- Re-Stash a Crafter: there will be a lot of crafters out there who have lost the means to craft, who will be starting from scratch. Knitters without needles, sewers without thread, felters without fibre. They'll need their craft more than ever while they cope with the stress of rebuilding their lives.

Most of us crafters have more stash than we really need and duplicates of things we could afford to give. We can help in the way crafters have always helped each other, by passing on the tools of our trade.

Pull together some crafting supplies and make a re-stash kit. Something like:

- yarn, knitting needles, yarn needle and little scissors
- yarn, crochet hooks, yarn needle and little scissors
- fabric, threads, needles, pins, scissors
- felt, threads, needles, pins, scissors
- rovings, drop spindle, bobbins
- canvass or linen, embroidery hoop, threads, needles and little scissors

- Handmade Donation Drive: Anything lovely that you make (or someone you know could make) would be a perfect donation for a family or person who has lost everything. We want these people to know that we were thinking of them - and making plans for their comfort and happiness - in the long term.

Handmade Help is looking for the following:

- Handmade quilts and bed linens
- Knitted and crocheted blankets
- Handmade table-cloths and napkins
- Handmade Jewellery and Accessories
- Knitted and crocheted winter clothing
- Hot Water Bottles with Covers
- Handmade Cushions
- Handmade Toys

So, if any of you are able to help out with either of these initiatives, please check out the Handmade Help website for further information, and send your donations to:

meet me at mike's
63 brunswick street
fitzroy
victoria 3065
australia

Please mark your parcels with the mention 'Handmade Help'. If you are donating craft supplies, please also mark your parcel with the mention ' Re-stash a Crafter'. Thanks in advance for all your contributions!!!

Reaching out....

I'm sure that you have all seen the recent coverage of the awful devastation caused by the Australian bush fires. I simply can't imagine losing all my belongings, memories, precious possessions - it's just unthinkable.

Thanks to the huge amounts of financial donations that have been flooding in, the Australian Red Cross (and other organisations such as the Salvation Army) are able to meet the immediate needs of the victims. However, other organisations are taking a more long-term view, whereby the victims' needs for comfort will be met - and this is where YOU come in.

Handmade Help have launched a number of 'crafty' initiatives, including:

- Re-Stash a Crafter: there will be a lot of crafters out there who have lost the means to craft, who will be starting from scratch. Knitters without needles, sewers without thread, felters without fibre. They'll need their craft more than ever while they cope with the stress of rebuilding their lives.

Most of us crafters have more stash than we really need and duplicates of things we could afford to give. We can help in the way crafters have always helped each other, by passing on the tools of our trade.

Pull together some crafting supplies and make a re-stash kit. Something like:
- yarn, knitting needles, yarn needle and little scissors
- yarn, crochet hooks, yarn needle and little scissors
- fabric, threads, needles, pins, scissors
- felt, threads, needles, pins, scissors
- rovings, drop spindle, bobbins
- canvass or linen, embroidery hoop, threads, needles and little scissors

- Handmade Donation Drive: Anything lovely that you make (or someone you know could make) would be a perfect donation for a family or person who has lost everything. We want these people to know that we were thinking of them - and making plans for their comfort and happiness - in the long term. Handmade Help is looking for the following:

- Handmade quilts and bed linens
- Knitted and crocheted blankets
- Handmade table-cloths and napkins
- Home-made Curtains
- Handmade Jewellery and Accessories
- Knitted and crocheted winter clothing
- Hot Water Bottles with Covers
- Handmade Cushions
- Handmade Toys
- Handmade Stationery
- Handmade Kitchen Linens
- Handmade Clothing

So, if any of you are able to help out with either of these initiatives, please check out the Handmade Help website for further information, and send your donations to:

meet me at mike's
63 brunswick street
fitzroy victoria 3065
australia

Please mark your parcels with the mention 'Handmade Help'. If you are donating craft supplies, please also mark your parcel with the mention ' Re-stash a Crafter'.

Thanks in advance for all your contributions!!!

London Transformed!

As you probably know from seeing / hearing the news, London is currently snowbound in the most major, fantastic, awesome way........this was the scene from my bedroom window at 6.30am this morning:

I honestly cannot remember seeing this much snow on the ground in 'central' London in all the time I've lived here - it's so beautiful!

Unsurprisingly, all buses have been withdrawn from service, there are very few Tube lines running. Our friend has been at the local train station for over an hour waiting for a train - he'll be lucky! The nursery is closed due to the staff not being able to get in - so a great excuse to build a snowman!

and little Miss A after she had a load of snow dumped on her head by her Daddy (naughty man!)

I shall leave you with some random pics of snowy beauty from the local neighbourhood: