Crafty Desires

Spiral Cookies

2011-11-06T16:41:00.001+08:00

Thanks once again to Pinterest, I made some cute-as cookies for the kiddos. Make a cookie dough - I chose this one - and split it in two, colour one section, roll out both, place one on top of the other and roll it up in a spiral. Then the best part is to roll it all in hundreds and thousands. Slice it up, cook and viola!

A girly treat the kids love.

I think I'm getting to the point that I'm not sure if I ever did anything before Pinterest. It's enhanced my life so much.

Quick Dress Sewing Day

2011-10-13T14:27:00.000+08:00

Today we are going to play a little game of "don't look at the finer details for want of seeing the dodginess".

I whipped up this Go-To Dress for Miss J today. I have learnt a lot.

1. For the love of all that is holy, use stretch knit fabric, not stretch slinky, lycra-ish, I-won't-feed-through-the-machine, fabric.

2. If you are wanting to do a sleeveless version, as I was considering, make the ruffle bit a little longer and you could do it. Being the forward thinker that I am (snicker) I didn't measure before cutting it out, so I added some short sleeves out of the knit ribbing which I did a ruffled hem on.

It was my first attempt at using rib knit for the neckline and I learned how to keep it straight (because it isn't completely).

Also I didn't do the waistline casing for elastic, Miss J is happier with it as is.

Cute pattern, easily whipped up using just the Overlocker. I am going to cut one out of more appropriate fabric to see how it goes now.

Shan xx

Holiday Tea Party

2011-10-11T18:57:00.000+08:00

Another little school holiday treat for the kidlets was a tea party this afternoon with Miss J's friend and her little sister.

Creaming Soda Spiders and Rainbow Giant Cupcake Tea Party.

The Giant Cupcake mould was a pressie from Cherie when I visited her in Sydney last week. I did a rainbow mix through the cake (thanks again Pinterest).

And I tried out the new kikki-k alphabet stamp set I bought with some stamped name tags.

They all had a girly good time.

Holiday Herb Garden

2011-10-08T14:31:00.001+08:00

School holiday activity the kids loved. We made a herb garden. Thanks to Pinterest, I am chockers full of ideas all the time, and this is an amalgam of a few of them.

I got some terracotta pots from Bunnings, and some purdy colours and set the kids up painting them all different colours. I hammered soup spoons from a thrift store flat for the plant markers.

I mixed and matched the colours so it was a nice display. I have basil, mint, chives, dill and parsley growing now.

Makes me happy to walk up to the front door being welcomed by bright cheery pots :).

One thing which didn't work out as desired. I mixed the tile grout with the paint to create chalkboard paint as in the Martha Stewart instructions but it didn't work out well. It was lumpy and dried out. So I ended up just writing the names on in permanent marker instead. So when I undoubtedly kill the plants I'll have to redo the spoons instead of just redoing the name.

Shan xx

A little Sydney crafting

2011-10-07T14:36:00.002+08:00

This week I flew to Sydney to visit my gorgeous friend Cherie. It was a pretty quick trip, as my family pines for me when I'm away, so I cannot be gone long. Poor Miss K was waking at night to ask if I was home yet.

While there I visited the amazing Remnant Warehouse. Gosh, the fabric heaven I was in! I will have project pics of the most amazing fabric made into a delicious dress I am yet to finish because I broke Cherie's sewing machine. Well, it broke when I was using it, she says it wasn't my fault, but yeah, I believe this might fall under the same banner as 'whoever smelt it dealt it'.

But what I did get done was a reversible hat in the Make it Perfect: Lazy Day Hat pattern. I cannot say I would make this pattern again. Infact I left it in Sydney with Cherie. There were lots of swear words coming out of me during the joining of the brim to the hat step. I was not happy with the process. It turned out fine enough, but I prefer to craft with patterns which make me happy, and this wasn't one of them. For more able people (i.e.. those not known for being unco), it might be a breeze. But hand-eye co-ordination isn't my thang, so this didn't go as nice as it could.

Here are some pics of the hat though, I am happy with the result And Miss J is very happy with her new hat.

I had a lovely mini-break. I missed my family something chronic and was desperately over-tired the whole time thanks to a 3 hour time difference, but it was great to hang out with Cherie doing some crafting for a few days. And Corey had a treat for me and upgraded my flight home to Business Class which was just wonderful of him. I got to hang out in the Business lounge before the flight - which was great because my flight was delayed by over an hour. They had yummy brekkie and coffee - which was most needed at this point with a 6am Sydney time start, equating to a 3am Perth time *yawn*. Then the flight was comfy with the big chairs I could lie all 6ft of me down and have a snooze. I've informed Corey that I only want to fly Business Class from now on. I'm pretty sure I just won't be flying anywhere any more.

Shan xx

Sports Carnival

2011-09-23T12:32:00.002+08:00

This year, I decided to go a little bit extra for the girls' sports carnival, and they loved it!

I made them some pom-poms to flutter about (they thought I was the bestest Mum for this).

Miss J got some braids with ribbons braided in. This is actually easy enough to do if you can already braid. I just did a tiny pony at the top of the braid and tied in three ribbons, using one in each of the parts of the braid, then tied a ribbon on the top tiny pony to cover it.

Here she is in all her toothless glory. The sun is in her eyes, hence the gooberish facial expression.

Miss B just got a two-step small pony style, her hair has been cut short enough that it doesn't do much right now. I had also sprayed gold hairspray in for them too.

Isn't she a stunner? Also a funny face she's pulling, but geez she's pretty.

And here's Miss K. She needed to have her photo taken too (of course).

And her hair. Even though she only had a daggy messy ponytail.

Resistance is Futile

2011-06-29T11:42:00.001+08:00

No designing in 2011 Shannon. Really, truly, NO DESIGNING! But oh dear, there's an idea that won't leave me alone. It's banging about in my brain and won't disappear.

Resistance is really futile.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

And the baby has a birthday

2011-06-27T15:43:00.000+08:00

It's birthday season at our house with three of our four having birthdays within 6 weeks of each other. My wee baby, my littlest one, my last, has just turned 4 years old. She's a big girl now. What a sweetheart.

Time for a Dye-up

2011-05-23T12:06:00.000+08:00

I am trying my best to declutter, so have decided to do up some packs of yarns from my ever increasing tubs of undyed yarns.

I am going to do some mini-skein packs in a rainbow of pastel colours for striping projects. The colours will be blue - purple - pink - orange - yellow - green; however I might do a boyish pack or two with brown and grey instead of the pink and purple. I am going to be doing them in 100purewool 3ply and WOOLganics 8ply. They are going to have 50g mini skeins in the packs. Each pack will have 6 colours in it - 300g in total. The packs will be $60AUD *postage within Australia and NZ included*.

I am not doing this as a pre-order at all. There is no guarantee that life won't throw me a curve ball and have me not do any of the dyeing, or the reskeining or something.

HOWEVER, if you are interested in a pack, please let me know your preferences and I'll keep a list. If you especially have a desire for a set of colours I am not currently doing, for example a mini-skein pack of graduated light to dark within the same colourway, also let me know this. No obligation to buy when the packs are done, I'm sure they will either sell or be happy to join my stash if you don't eventually want them. shannons.knits@gmail.com is my contact email, or I'm Shannon23 on Rav.

As I mentioned, I will be doing pastel colours. This is where my current dyeing style is and I am pretty much incapable of dyeing a bright colour, especially on handwash yarns. Here is a selection of yarns I have dyed recently to show you the type of colours I am talking about.

Crazy Hair Day

2010-11-03T11:18:00.000+08:00

Don't you love it when the kids have an excuse for messy hair?

This one's for me.....

2010-11-01T09:33:00.000+08:00

Trying to perfect the "Sherbert" colourway, so I dyed up some Heirloom Bliss (think: squish) for myself. I have now worked it so that the trim colour decides the proportion of the colour in the skein. The colours took a little bit differently on this skein due to the base colour being a stone colour instead of natural.

So this one is going to become a skirt I have running around in my head for a few weeks now. Unless someone makes grabby hands at it. I'm a sucker for grabby hands lol.

Blogtober Day 31: Halloween

2010-10-31T17:59:00.001+08:00

I'm not a fan of Halloween. Never really have been, but it was made that much worse two years ago because it was on 31st Oct that Jess had her MACE procedure. So now we have been doing washouts for two years. Halloween just reminds me of this.

Blogtober Day 30: Almost there

2010-10-31T17:58:00.000+08:00

OK, so I've missed a few days, but always made up for it, but I am proud as punch that I finished off Blogtober (nearly). I'm not really into sticking to things, so this is pretty big for me.

Blogtober Day 29: Oh, and another Ivyanna

2010-10-29T08:37:00.000+08:00

Oh yeah, I did finish off this summery yellow Ivyanna the other day, despite the funk. Cute little bee buttons and all.

The pattern was pretty much done I thought - then last night I decided to grade it for baby sizes. I had a look at it and couldn't remember why I couldn't be bothered adding in 3 extra sizes, especially now that there's an aline option and not as full across the bodice in the gathered option.

Blogtober Day 28: CBB

2010-10-29T08:26:00.000+08:00

Can't Be Bothered.

Missed yesterday because I am in a funk right now.

I have two patterns in testing, and testing two other patterns for Tikki, and I can't be bothered replying to questions about any of them at the moment.

I dragged myself to playgroup yesterday only because it was Monica's birthday, and I had a pressie for her, and wanted to wish her happy birthday (because she's great). But apart from that I don't want to leave the house.

I am going to gym today for an assessment - it's taking all my strength not to cancel. Last thing I want is some taut gym junkie measuring me and setting a pathetic program for me. I know I have to do it, just don't want to today. Then I am heading to Irene's place for some yarn porn. So I'm forcing myself to go out today hoping to leave the funk behind.

Don't like my chances.

So, if you happen to be one of these pattern testing type people, bear with me, I'm just in a funk and will get back to you soon. Promise.

Blogtober Day 27: Facebook

2010-10-27T17:25:00.001+08:00

I'm not a fan of that facebook place. I've dipped my toe in over the past couple of days, and you know what, I'm pretty sure I still don't like it. Even though it seems like a good place to keep up to date with people's lives - I just get the irrits by it.

But I'm all set up there. I'll see how I go with it. It will probably remain untouched for months now lol.

Blogtober Day 26: Out of the Dyepot

2010-10-26T09:57:00.000+08:00

I dyed up some yarn yesterday for my friend Pip (yet another gorgeous soul!). These are both on Woolganics yarn - the very best handwash yarn on the planet. Seriously, the absolute best!

This blue toned colourway is named 'Kyle' and this lot is on the 8ply Woolganics.

The pink one here is named 'Kyla' funnily enough! This is on the 12ply Woolganics. Just. So. Squishy!

Blogtober Day 25: Yet Another

2010-10-25T16:05:00.000+08:00

And yet another FO of my new IvyAnna pattern off the needles. This one has an a-line shaping to the skirt, which replaces the side gathers of the blue one from the other day, I just wasn't happy with that at all.

Size 4 IvyAnna A-line in Dashing Dachs Sugar Treat

This is in Dashing Dachs Stallion in Sugar Treat colourway. Really hard to get yarn this one. And quite a delight to knit with. I have some other colourways coming from a co-op soon. That will be exciting.

I also did my favourite hem option again. Loving this so much! Looks like crochet without having to stoop to that.

The cute little buttons are Tessa Ann buttons which were gifted to me from another very special lady I know Fi (Pandamum on Rav and other places). She's another very gorgeous, generous soul I am fortunate enough to know. I am yet to meet her in real life, even though I was supposed to a few times, and cannot wait until the day we finally meet.

Blogtober Day 24: Pool fun!

2010-10-24T19:51:00.000+08:00

We went to some friend's place today for a BBQ and a swim. Love the coming warm weather after a cold winter......

Blogtober Day 23: Beaching it

2010-10-23T23:05:00.005+08:00

We took off to the best dog beach ever this morning. I was set up with knitting and a camp chair under an umbrella, not obliged to mingle with horrible things like sun and sand. I love swimming in a big surf like at the Gold Coast, but hate sand. So I prefer not to go to the beach.

I was born in the Gold Coast, and as a child travelled from Brisbane back down every Sunday for Junior Surf Life Savers (Nippers) - which I totally rocked at mind you! I was always first in the swim, board and iron man.......and always dead last in the run and flags! Water = good. Sand = very bad. I remember the days of old which have set me up with a fair certainty that I will suffer from skin cancer at some point in my life. These were the days we were told to put on sunscreen, so we put a line of zinc across our noses and thought we were right.

Anyway, I digress. Today we took the dogs to the beach and it was most eventful.

1. We learned that we can not take our dogs to the beach. This dog beach is awesome! It's Leighton Beach at Cottesloe/Fremantle, and there are dozens and dozens of doggies running around off lead, jumping, playing, swimming, chasing........and then our dogs not wanting to go near the water, and one of them being very vicious with every other dog.

2. For the first time ever after spending a large proportion of my life on beaches at the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and Burrum Heads, I saw a woman strip nekkid, go for a swim and get dressed again on the beach. Thing is, she honestly did it in such a non-event way that it wasn't even a spectacle. Nothing rude about it at all. The only thrill was that you really don't see that very often, so more of the curiosity of 'wow look at what she did' rather than 'wow look at the nekkid lady'.

3. For the second time I've ever experienced, there was a shark alert. The life guards drove down the beach waving everyone out of the water, there were helicopters, rubber duckies, boats, the whole shebang. About a month ago a surfer was killed by a shark in the Perth waters, so it makes it quite real. Apparently today there was a 5 meter white pointer shark circling the waters just off shore from where we were. I'm pretty sure the urban myth (or could be urban fact for all I know) is that dogs attract sharks, so we could have had a bit of a target on our heads I suppose. It was weird, because I'm so used to the Queensland Coast having shark nets to keep sharks away from the swimming areas, I didn't even think about sharks being able to get close. The only other time I have experienced a shark alert was one year as a Nipper one got through the shark net and the rubber duckie came panic stricken trying to pluck all the Nippers out of the water. That was kinda fun as a 10 year old - would scare the crappers out of me now I think.

Anyway, that was our day at the beach. We all got a little sunburnt in places - funny to see where the sunscreen missed skin in small patches. And everyone is dog tired, but sleeping fitfully after all the sun exposure. It was a lovely family day.

Blogtober Day 22: And Another

2010-10-23T15:14:00.003+08:00

whoops, missed a day.

Here is another finished project from my pattern in development, IvyAnna.

The little heart is from an embellishment chart by my very good friend Tanja from Watermellish. Tanja is yet another of those very special people I am fortunate enough to have gotten to know. Such an amazing nature and beauty of spirit. I first 'met' her on Nappycino a few years ago, but only really got more friendly with her over the past 18 months or so. I was so terribly nervous on the one occasion I have met her IRL thus far that I didn't really make the most of it, but I plan on spending more time with her at some point in the future and can be done with that nervousness next time.

And she is so very talented too. I love her art. I would get her sketches up on my walls if I could. Head over to her website and have a look at her charts, they add that little 'zing' to any knitwear I think.

Blogtober Day 21: The other yoke

2010-10-21T15:21:00.005+08:00

From the picture of my WIP for the new pattern I'm working on IvyAnna - this is what I finished off from the too small yoke in the background.

I'm not sure if this option will make it in to the final pattern however.

This is also my current favourite hem option. I will be putting the instructions into the pattern.

Blogtober Day 20: No More Yarn

2010-10-20T10:35:00.003+08:00

OK, I was talking to hubby about the weighty issues I am facing and he suggested (nicely) that perhaps one of the reasons things are getting way out of control is that I have chosen a hobby which pretty much renders me inactive for most of my time. Alrighty, I know that many people knit without being fat, or sloth-like, but I happen to be one of those over-obsessive types who does things to the limits of how they can possibly be done. I have a very addictive personality.

So we thought putting down the needles for a month - except when watching tele at night - might make a difference. But my immediate brain response to that was to think of all the pretty yarns I want to knit up because they are sitting there looking at me, expecting to be knit.

Which leads to the absolute yarn ban. I've said it before, I know. I really really have to do it this time. For my psychological wellbeing. And my health it turns out.

Of course I get to this point and wonder if perhaps I should sell the yarn babies off. But geez, that would be physically painful I think.

I wonder if I could free myself of the knitting obsession? I wonder if I should or not. I have said before that I don't think I have anything else to turn to. But maybe that's the point? Give knitting a rest so that I can cultivate other interests which don't make me so inner focused.

Maybe I could become a gym junkie. (yes I giggled out loud as I typed that)

I certainly could make a stack of money if I sold off the yarn babies. But what would I buy with it if I weren't buying yarn????

Blogtober Day 19: Fat

2010-10-19T17:42:00.002+08:00

In the beginning of 2008, my very good friend, the gorgeously amazing Lucy started her weight loss journey. I had decided to start it with her. I was breastfeeding at the time, which was my excuse of the moment as to why it did not stick. Now, over 2.5 years later, I am wondering what good excuse I could use for the time since when I was no longer breastfeeding.

Don't get me wrong, I have an excellent excuse for each and every day. Either a medical or mental one. Physical or Psychological. I can use either, any day, to excuse myself from getting on with my life.

But last night I was brushing my teeth before bed when I saw myself in the mirror as another person. Do you do that? Occasionally I see myself in a different light to the millions of times I see just what I look like to me, and see what I *really* look like.

I did not like it.

I hated it.

I am a fatty.

And that is not my true self.

Thing is, I block myself from doing anything about it. I intellectually know the right thing to do, I know all the science of it. Hell, I even know intellectually the psychological process by which I stay fat - reasons why, methods of doing so, reasons to change, methods to change.

But I'm still fat.

And I hate it.

I am now the heaviest I have ever been. And this includes when I was full term pregnant after an obese pre-pregnancy weight.

So I need to change. I need to get moving and grooving and start to live the rest of my life. I can no longer lament the fact that I haven't done what I wanted with the years gone by, but I can ensure that Future Shannon does not lament the passage of the years I have yet to come. I thank Past Shannon for giving up smoking once upon a time, I really want to be able to thank Past Shannon for getting healthy in a few years.

Blogtober Day 18: Acacia

2010-10-18T08:36:00.005+08:00

I have this week finished a couple of test knits for Tikki for her new pattern Acacia. I had last year had my hands on a very early version of the pattern and did a fully gathered top for Jessalyn.

So this week I finished a different version for Jessalyn.

And I did another for Kassidy. This one was supposed to be a size 5, but I got 3/4 of the way through before realising I was knitting the size 3, then when I started on the real size 5 I realised the yarn I knitted the size 3 in was actually 4ply. In my defence, I bought it in destash thinking it was 8ply, it was unlabelled and I've not knitted with Bendy cotton before so thought it was just really really thin. The final result is beautiful for summer anyway.

Gorgeous pattern. Easy knit. Everyone needs to knit this for the little girls in their lives!

Blogtober Day 17: Lunch by the Beach

2010-10-17T18:47:00.001+08:00

Still loving exploring our new(ish) city......

Blogtober Day 16: Yoking Around

2010-10-16T08:54:00.003+08:00

I cracked the circular yoke. I really like the top which I ended up with. A few tweaks needed with bodice shaping and fullness, but I'm pretty certain this one will go ahead into a full pattern.

The grumpy child was not co-operating for photos this morning, hopefully a trip to the park and library with Daddy will fix that one and I can get a better shot.

Blogtober Day 15: Sick Kids

2010-10-15T08:12:00.002+08:00

I have two of my three school aged children home from school today. Jessalyn has a gunky ear and Ziana is all moochy with swollen glands again so I'm going to take her to make sure it's nothing overly serious - she had glandular fever at some stage a long while ago and every couple of weeks she gets all swollen glands and lethargic. I thought I'd better get it checked to make sure I'm right in assuming that's what it still is.

*Ugh* kids!

Blogtober Day 14: Knitting with Cotton

2010-10-14T14:48:00.004+08:00

There's something quite lovely about knitting with cotton. Don't get me wrong, I am a wool-o-phile to the core, I love winter knits in wool and actually am looking to the day I can up and move my family to Canada just to get more winter. Or at least back to Melbourne.

But cotton has its own joys. It's soft and light and cool to the touch, although can be a bit rougher on hands, dries them out and can create rub marks. It has different properties to wool, doesn't have the same memory for ribbing, tends to stretch and stay stretched. However, it also is more tolerant to the rough treatment me and my family give to our knits.

I am a shocking homemaker and tend to machine wash and tumble dry almost everything. This has more than once or twice been the cause of tears when I find a teeny tiny felted item from some delicate wool. I have even managed to make many a superwash wool more than slightly felty.

Cotton is much hardier however, I find it actually benefits from a good tumble dry, it pulls the fibres back into shape much better than blocking can. I am NOT recommending anyone else treat their handknits this way - it's just playing with fire - but it makes my life easier.

I knitted this Eden's Eve (by tikki) dress for Kassidy last week:

But, being the first cotton knit of the season, I forgot Shannon's Laundry Rule #1 - always allow for shrinking in the dryer - so I now have to rip back the hem and knit on another couple of inches as it looks a little like a mid-thigh minidress now. At least cotton only really shrinks in length not width.

I don't mind, and it was a good reminder for the coming months.

Blogtober Day 13: Designing

2010-10-13T14:21:00.003+08:00

I usually love designing. But of late I've had lots and lots of ideas which incorporate different or unusual techniques, either ones which I've never used much personally, or ones which are kinda new in general. As a result all my designs are in the naughty corner after many froggings.

So I've been in a bit of a funk.

Today I picked back up one of those naughty designs to have another go at it. The problem is that it's a circular yoke design which I am not fluent in - I've only knitted I think one or two patterns which featured a circular yoke, and I didn't actually pay attention to them, I was just knitting the pattern as written. Also, I left most of my knitting reference books back in Brisbane when we moved over so can't do much reading on the matter.

So this has been knitted and frogged so many times, even the cotton is getting frayed and yucky. Good thing it wasn't in organic merino or something lol.

But I think I've cracked it today. Not too sure if it's 'right' as far as knitting rules go, but it's working how I want it to, and rules don't generally bother me as long as the end result is right lol.

I have the shape correct, just gotta get my sizing right now. The one I did for Kassidy is too small (that's it in the background on waste yarn), so I had to rethink the sizing.

Blogtober Day 12: Cookering

2010-10-12T14:52:00.005+08:00

I've been a stay at home Mummy for 12 years now, but never been one of those cooking with the kids types. But I will continue to try to improve myself until the day I die, so nothing is out of the question.

Today, spurred on by the sheer amount of snack foods my children go through, I cooked some Anzac Biscuits with Kassidy. Wasn't as frustrating as it is with more than one child helping, I might actually do it again.

Yes, she insists on sitting on the bench to cook. Yes, the best part is licking the utensils afterward.

p.s. I had to laugh yesterday when I noticed that my 11 posts for Blogtober was exactly half of my entire posts for the year! Funny stuff.

Blogtober Day 11: Ouchies

2010-10-11T19:48:00.001+08:00

I put my back out yesterday.

It hurts.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Blogtober Day 10: tikki

2010-10-10T11:29:00.002+08:00

You know in life you come across some amazing people, this post is dedicated to one such person in my life. Tikki.

I had been mopping the floor thinking about my day 10 post and decided on a post about her, then went and read her day 9 post in which she calls me crazy and has some consipiring thoughts about making me knit ugly things......the cheek! So we shall see if I am as nice as I was going to be as I watched the dirt clean off the tiles......

This lady is amazing. I am in awe of her nature and am very grateful to have been able to make her acquaintance. Tikki patterns are quite famous the world over, totally adored by us Aussies, the Kiwi girls and the Americans are coming to love her as much as we do by the feels of things lately too. Her Rainbow Dress pattern, I personally think, started a new wave of knitwear design for children's clothing. She seemed to me to be the frontrunner of simple yet elegant designs which flatter the child and are easy for Mum to knit.

I have been very fortunate to be on the testing team for most of her designs, and have knitted many more of them - there's a few I have yet to do, but I'll get there.

She also does the most amazing sewing I've ever seen too. We own just one pair of tikki denim pants, and I have this tendency to turn them inside out and show everyone I know the workmanship of them. They are simply stunning in form and workmanship.

The designs are one thing, but the person behind the designs is an even more amazing thing! This woman is just such a treasure. I have been blessed to be able to spend time in real life with her, and I hope to do so in the future again. She is kind and generous, and one of the most thoughtfully level headed people I have come across. And fair! Such a sense of natural justice comes from her. And she's hilariously funny too, in a very smart, clever way. Of course, you gotta love that she's a nerdling too, especially when it comes to grammar.

[warning: blatant idol worship ahead]

And she's cool too! She is sooooo trendy, she lives in the cutest house in the most gorgeous suburb with the nicest things around her, lives a close to organic lifestyle and she drinks Chai Tea lol. She has the most amazing fabric and yarn stash too. Her family is just gorgeous, her kids are adorable and she's such an attentive nurturing mother to them. As a result they are gorgeously behaved. I've not met the man of the house as yet, but I just bet he's hunky and smart and funny - I can just imagine!

Anyway, one very special woman there. I hope that she's one of those people who stick around in my life for a long long time. *mwa* love you Tik!

Blogtober Day 9: Adult Time

2010-10-09T09:00:00.001+08:00

My husband and I went out together alone last night. We have some lovely friends who looked after all four girls and we went out to the casino for dinner and a flutter.

I cannot remember when or even if we've been out sans kids before this.

We were just about to bottom out the end of our flutter money - well we had $80 left of our $400 we started with - when I got lucky on my pokie machine and pulled out $380 out of it. So much fun!

So we would have come out $60 up after dinner and drinks and gambling but as I was cashing in my wins hubby decided to play a bit of poker with the remaining $80 he had.

Needless to say we walked away with my wins only. Still not bad $20 for a night out!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Blogtober Day 8: Dyeing up some pretties

2010-10-08T09:52:00.005+08:00

All three of these sets of beauties are going to a friend of mine, Karla.

Technically I only custom dyed two sets for her (the top two) - but she saw the third one and wanted it too and made grabby hands at it so she's getting it. She's a wee bit of an addict. I love her to bits! Karla makes the most amazing stitch markers and dyes a mean skein of yarn herself, I'm pretty sure one day she'll be selling knitteds too as her work there is amazing also.

Isn't it fantastic when you find friendship with somebody who lifts your spirits? I have been very blessed to find many such people in my life, mainly through online friendships, and Karla is one of these people. She makes me laugh. A lot! I can generally expect to have a smile on my face after every exchange we have. But she also understands the more serious things aswell. She is kind and generous, giving and understanding. I would love to live close to her, and am jealous of the ladies who get to call her a real life friend. *mwa* Karla, you are a rocking chick and I am thankful to have you in my life.

Blogtober Day 7: My kids

2010-10-07T11:11:00.007+08:00

I have 4 children. All girls. And it is amazing just how the same parents and homelife can create 4 individual personalities so different to each other.

Ziana: My firstborn, my big kid. She's almost 12 now, and starting highschool next year, makes me feel a wee bit old. This person is amazing. She has a brain unlike any other. She is brilliant academically with a flair for maths and science like you wouldn't believe. She is also disorganised, scatterbrained, obsessive and naive. She doesn't really get along with her peers, but can interact so well with adults, she doesn't understand the social stuff at all. She does try though, once she did a poll of her class about 'What makes someone cool and popular' - broke my heart to hear that I tell you. She writes songs, writes the most amazing stories and can draw manga like a professional artist (in Mummy's opinion).

She has gotten into this super amazing gifted program they run here in WA which hopefully will see her achieve the best of her. Unfortunately she's had a bit of a rough start to schooling. Skipping grades, dropping back to peer grade, changing schools (she's on her 5th change already), social awkwardness and a diagnosis of Aspergers all have given her a bit of a rough trot. So I am hoping this GATE program she is in will be the stabilising factor for her and she can achieve what she has the potential to do.

At the moment she has an obsession with Bunnies, and is slowly working me down to get one of her own. She's very hard to say no to.

Brielle: This gorgeous little girl just turned 10 this year. She takes an amazing photo and I am truly scared of the boys in a few years. She is athletic and does gymnastics. All of a sudden since we've moved over here to Perth, she's taken on a new strength with the gymnastics and can do walkovers, back bends, kick overs, roundoffs, and whole heap of stuff I don't know the name of. I think it's because she's not been to classes since May, she starts again next week, so she had that time off for her brain to click into a new level.

She is friendly and likeable, but does seem to have a few issues with bossiness and temper. She has a bit of a social roundabout as a result. But she is a girlie girl through and through. She isn't the most academic of people, but she tries hard now and I think she's going to do just fine because she has no problem working for what she wants.

Jessalyn: My miracle child. This little person has more strength than anyone I know. She has been through more medical treatments than most people see in their entire lives, but she always has a joyous light to her mood. Her list of conditions are as follows: Biliary Atresia, Anterior Meningocele (a form of spina bifida), Tethered Spinal Cord, Anorectal Malformation, Sacral Agenesis and Duanes' Syndrome. She had her first operation before she was 7 weeks old which was a Kasai Procedure for the Biliary Atresia to literally save her life, without it she would have died by about 1 year old or needed a liver transplant. She's been hospitalised for a week at a time over a dozen times since for liver infections and other operations, including a PSARP and a MACE procedure. Despite all these conditions working against her she is almost a perfectly normal 5 year old little girl. She does have bowel washouts through her MACE every second day, but her liver is healthy for a BA child and her spine seems to work just fine for mobility.

But she is bright and sunny which is something I never thought would happen back in the dark days of holding down my screaming infant while the doctors pierce their 40th hole in her skin for that day trying to get a vein, or seeing her cut up with tubes everywhere drugged out on morphine after her Kasai.

I love this child more than my own life. She is my light and my fire. I would do anything for her and would move the heavens if she needed it. She is brilliant and funny and I don't think I could exist without her.

Kassidy: The baby. OK, so the baby is over 3 years old now and starts kindy next year, but she will always be my baby (I assume). She is totally addicted to me, has to have her hand on me most of the time, and still sleeps in my bed most of the time. I have been putting her to bed in her own bed for the past 2 months, but she bounces into my arms by about 10:30 every night.

This child has such a strong personality she is going to be something very powerful when she grows up. I've never come across such a strong willed infant when she was a baby, and now she still manages to get her way all the time (of course her parents are pushovers....). She is very tactile, even as a wee bub she would stroke my eyebrows and eyelashes to do to sleep, and now she still rubs up and down my arm. If she can't reach she goes into a bit of a panic about it until she finds something tactile to rub.

She's started growing up now, and doing very big girl things. She has a bit of a lisp which is just about the cutest thing I've ever seen. I'll most likely regret saying that in a few years I'm sure.

So, that's my girls. I am so happy to have been blessed with each of them. Although that's not always the sentiment which comes across in times of stress ;-).

Blogtober Day 6: Term Time

2010-10-06T18:26:00.000+08:00

This week I finished a TestKnit for Kelly Herdrich for her latest pattern Term Time which has now been released and is available on Ravelry. Very cute pattern and whips up super quickly due to the super bulky weight yarn it uses.

Blogtober Day 5: Sirens Eye

2010-10-05T08:15:00.002+08:00

I have a very specific taste in music. I 'like' quite a bit if it has nice tones and harmonies to the tune, but I rarely 'love' a lot. The stuff that I have on my steady playlist has been there forever and not much comes in to it and sticks.

On my current playlist I have Muse - pretty much all of it, except most of Hullabaloo which gets a bit screachy in places. I prefer the mid-earlier stuff - Showbiz and Absolution are about the best for me, followed very closely by Black Holes and Revelations. Black Holes and Revelations was good, like awesomely good, but signalled a bit of a turn toward a bit more commercialism I feel. And I cannot stand listening to Supermassive Black Hole anymore, so that drags it down a bit. The Resistance is also awesomely good, feels like a new kind of Muse - which is still great. It's kinda like watching the first 2 seasons of Red Dwarf and seasons 5&6 - they are both great in their own right, but have completely different feels to them.

We're likely to be going to their concert in December, that will be pretty awesome.

Also on my playlist is The Living End. This is a superb Aussie band I took a liking to back in the early days of my adulthood. Any alternarockpunk rocking Aussie band who can pull off having a double bass in the lineup is fine by me! I stopped listening to music almost completely during the childrearing years (too much Wiggles and Hi-5 playing to get any airtime for my stuff), as a result had about 6 albums to catch up on with them when I rediscovered them last year. But they are pretty much all fabulous. White Noise is awesome.

So, I'm always trying to find that perfect sound to add to my core playlist. It's not easy I tell you. Just a slightly droning voice can put me off.

Then the other day I stumbled upon another band I really like. Sirens Eye. I can't even remember the exact route I took to find them, but it had something to do with the lead singer who is also an actor. I think I played one of their songs on YouTube and was a little interested, so bought their EP and was hooked.

Unfortunately for me, they only have the one EP out - with only 5 songs. Bugger. I'm thinking they could be a little more considerate to me and release a full CD.

Because, as we all know, it's all about me.

Sucks to finally find someone else to add to the playlist and have such a limited amount of songs. I feel like chucking a tanty.

Shan xx

Blogtober Day 4: Family Time

2010-10-04T10:42:00.000+08:00

Yesterday we went for a gorgeous day trip down the coast to discover Bunbury. We stopped at this little beach at Rockingham first, which was just divine and serene.

We had a delicious Tapas lunch selection at Bunbury which was just perfect - the marinated octopus was to die for!

Oh, and I super duper love my camera! Thanks to Corey for getting it for my birthday last year!

Blogtober Day 3 (catchup): store ponderings

2010-10-04T10:28:00.000+08:00

I have been back and forth with having a WAHMummy store. I get very turned about with whether or not to keep on doing it. Which is why I start it up, then stop, start again and stop again......the show goes on and on.

I have recently decided to go in with a friend, but now I have some things for sale, and of course they aren't selling so I get disheartened a wee bit. I wonder why I keep mixing things up in my head all the time? I do get mixed messages all the time as I get told outwardly to go for it, my stuff is great, but it never sells. Like never.

So then I flip-flop on whether to continue. I am an awfully unstable type - which has been to my detriment a number of times in friendships and ventures. Probably will be again I suppose.

Don't know whether to keep going or stop again......

Anyway, ponderings ponderings.........

Blogtober Day 2 (catchup)

2010-10-04T10:22:00.000+08:00

I haven't yet shared my latest two pattern releases on this blog I don't think. A while back I released Versa [Rav link] - which is a 10ply and 12ply pattern which comes in vest, babydoll, dress and tunic versions. I'm loving it so far, but it's now come into summer weather so I won't be knitting many more of them any time soon.

And just this past week I released breezy which is a lightweight singlet top.

Late Start to Blogtober! - Day 1 post

2010-10-04T10:14:00.000+08:00

I need to catch up! I missed the start of Blogtober. I blame the children being on school holidays. My brain kinda goes to mush when that happens.

So, here's post number 1 - Let's see if there's a photo I took on the 1st.....

Ah, yes, let's see......here's some yarn I dyed on the 1st.....

The top one is on BFL and the bottom on WOOLganics 10ply.

Knitted On Provisional Cast on - aka Short Tail PCO

2010-09-09T14:06:00.001+08:00

OK, I've never liked doing Provisional Cast on. I have always found it fiddly and clunky. I like my knitting to flow smoothly and quickly. When my friend Kelly did her Looking Glass Longies pattern which I tested for her, I was horrified that it had a PCO in it, so I started to search for a method which wasn't fiddly like the cast on with waste yarn and knit as normal, unpicking the cast on stitch by stitch as you need, or the crochet cast ons - whether it be a crochet chain (which I could never get to unravel) or the one where you crochet around your knitting needle, I didn't like them.

So I set about trying to work out a PCO method which was more akin to knitting - more akin to a long tail cast on to be precise. I had a pattern which was developing in my head, but in order for it to work top down, it had to begin with a PCO, but I was at the point of using one piece of waste yarn for both forks of a long tail cast on. So I worked it bottom up and kitchener stitched it together. [As an aside I might very well redo the instructions to go top down now too]

But just recently I struck the magic method. I've never seen it before, so I'm going to blog it. My good friend Tikki told me its very similar to the Invisible Cast on, so I googled that. It is alike it, but different at the same time, so I'm still going to blog it. Plus the bonus of this method is that all the stitches are facing the right way and you don't need to knit anything through the back loops.

So, here goes. (at the moment I have cruddy pics, I am going to switch them when I get better ones with the help of hubby)

Step 1: Make a slip knot on your needle with your working yarn (shown here in dark colours) without a long tail (just leave enough to weave in when finishing).

Step 2: Take your piece of waste yarn (shown here in yellow) and hold the beginning end in your right hand along your needle - I grab the tail of the working yarn also to keep it out of the way.

Step 3: Hold your two strands of yarn as you would when you do a long tail cast on. Your waste yarn should be over your thumb and your working yarn over your finger. Keep a hold on your slip knot against the needle aswell.

Step 4: Needle under waste yarn from front to back.

Step 5: Needle over working yarn from the top. The tip of the needle goes in front of the working yarn, over the top and loops the working yarn around it.

Step 6: Needle under waste yarn from back to front, bringing your needle back to its start position. [One stitch cast on - two stitches on needle]

Step 7: Needle over working yarn from the top again as in step 5. [One stitch cast on - three stitches on needle]

Repeat Step 4 - Step 7 until you have cast on the correct number of stitches.

When you have your correct number, make sure your final stitch is held in securely by twisting it with the waste yarn once.

Turn your work and work to pattern as normal.

When time comes to pick up the stitches, it is a simple matter of picking them up off the waste yarn as you would normally (as if when you place arm stitches on waste yarn.

It's very much like going under your waste yarn and doing two wraps of your needle, the first wrap takes you under the waste yarn and the second is done in front of the waste yarn.

I hope it helps someone else who hates PCO.

Off to design something with a PCO in it lol.

Oops I did it again!

2010-09-07T22:37:00.002+08:00

Once again I have left my FO wrap up to be a long one.

This is some of the things I have completed since we moved to Perth now......

I've done a bit of testing for others:

A few things for Elena (Anadiomena on Ravelry)

That 70's Dress

First Mate Pants

A couple of things for Anne (MrsLoops on Ravelry)

Felted Laptop Bag

Mermaid Dreamz (working name)

Also a couple of things for Sheryl (Shortly on Ravelry)

Benji hat

Epicene Socks

One test for Lindsay (Camellia on Ravelry)

Every Season Sweater

And last but definitely not least a test for Tikki

Cassia

I've also done a few tests of my own patterns, but I will share them in a separate post.

Attaching a Pocket - Part 3: Knitting On the Pocket

2010-08-16T12:12:00.000+08:00

Step 4: WS rows.

Your WS (wrong side) rows should be done in pattern without attaching to the garment. For a stocking stitch pocket this will be a purl row.

Step 5: RS rows - the Right Hand Side.

Take a look at your baste line on the sides of your pocket. You will see that every second bar up the column is sitting on top of your basting yarn. These are the only bars you will be working with as you will only be attaching the pocket every second row (the RS rows).

Bars over the Baste Line

Skip the first bar over your baste line (which is in line with the base of the pocket).
With your yarn to the back of your work, with your left needle pick up the bar which is next in the baste line. Pick up the bar from the bottom - so run your needle up the baste line to pick up the stitch. Your working yarn should be coming from in between the two stitches out the back. This is very important so that you are not wrapping the bar when you knit it causing an uneven edge.
k2tog. Knit the picked up bar and the first stitch together as if they are one.

Step 6 - RS rows - the middle.

Knit across the row in pattern to the last stitch. Leave one stitch on your left needle.

One stitch on left needle

Step 7 - RS rows - the Left Hand Side.

Skip the first bar over the baste line and pick up from the bottom to top the next bar over the baste line onto your left needle.

Pick up the bar over the baste line

k2tog. Knit the picked up bar and the first stitch together as if they are one.

k2tog

REPEAT STEPS 4-7 PICKING UP THE BASTE LINE BARS IN ORDER AND KNITTING THEM WITH YOUR RS ROWS UNTIL YOUR POCKET IS THE RIGHT HEIGHT.

THE END

Attaching a Pocket - Part 2: Picking up the Base of the Pocket

2010-08-16T11:38:00.000+08:00

Step 3: Picking up the base stitches.

Working from the right hand side of your work with your garment facing upright, poke your knitting needle under the top arc of the first V stitch of your pocket (in this case an under-basted stitch). The top arc is the bar in between a V stitch which is directly above the baste line.

The top arc of the V stitch to be picked up

Wrap your yarn around your needle to knit this arc as if it were a stitch on a left hand needle.

One stitch knitted onto the needle

Pick up and knit the top arc of the next V stitch (in this case an over-basted stitch).

Knitting through the second stitch

Repeat this process along your pocket base until you have picked up and knitted the number of stitches you need for your pocket.

Note: The row just knitted is the first RS (right side) row of the pocket.

Attaching a Pocket - Part 1: Basting the Pocket

2010-08-16T11:20:00.003+08:00

Step 1: Baste for base of the pocket.

Decide upon your position for your pocket.
Take a darning needle and some waste yarn - preferably with a good contrast to your work.
With your garment facing right way up, put your darning needle under a V stitch - one which is shaped like this: \/.
Go over the next V stitch
Repeat going under and over the stitches along a straight line until you have basted through the number of stitches you want for your pocket.

Baseline for pocket

Note: if your number of stitches for your pocket is an even number, you will be going under the last stitch which won't be part of your pocket. Remember when you come to picking up the stitches to finish on an over-basted stitch.

Step 2: Baste for the edges of the pocket.

Notice that you have your V stitches basted, and in between these V stitches there are Peak stitches - ones which are shaped like this /\.
With your darning needle and another piece of waste yarn, put the needle under the bar of the Peak stitch on the outside of your last V stitch of the pocket, directly in line with the top of your waste yarn.
Running up the column of Peak stitches, go over the next bar.
Repeat going under and over the bars along a straight line until you have basted through the number of rows you want for your pocket plus a few more - you can add to this top number later on so don't stress too much about the height at this point.

Over and Under the bars of the Peak Stitches

Do both sides and it should look like this:

Pocket completely basted

ON TO PART 2: PICKING UP THE BASE OF THE POCKET

wow it's been a while

2010-06-19T16:14:00.001+08:00

Ah, slack again with the blogging. Since MARCH!!!

Big things have happened. We moved house from Brisbane to Perth. Absolutely LOVE IT here! Best place I've lived I think. We drove over here - 4500km, 6 days, 4 kids, 2 dogs, 2 cats and a packed trailer. All went well though, no hiccups at all.

Now we are all settled. Back into the swing of things.

I've been dyeing and knitting of course. I haven't been taking photos of all my dyeing though, so I can't really share much of that sorry, and what I do have will be in the next post.

But here's for a knit wrapup:

I had done some testing on Tikki's Eden patterns:

The embellishment on the dress is the genius work of Tanja from Watermellish. She designs the most amazing embellishment charts, which the best tutorials. Love her work to bits.

I designed my own dress pattern - The Flapper Dress:

And the skirt version of The Flapper Dress:

A couple of milo for a customer:

An Arwen ruffly skirt for Kassidy:

A vest and beanie combo for Kassidy in one of my favourite colourways - McKenzie's Rainbow by Sugarbubbie:

A pair of longies for a customer - yarn dyed by me:

Another testknit for Tikki - The Olearia Cardigan:

A Paula's Scarfette by Tikki for a Ravelry Swap in my fave yarn WOOLganics Worsted:

A couple of longies and milo sets for a customer - yarns dyed by me, star embellishment chart by Tanja of Watermellish again:

An in three's cardigan for Jessalyn in Family Roots Willow Merino Marilyn colourway:

Three wee little sets for a customer:

That is all for now ;-)

And a Knit Wrapup too

2010-03-18T14:35:00.001+08:00

Kaia Babydoll in a Gradient Split

Longies and Milo set

A pair of Leafy Shrugs

iPod case which is too big and gross

A newborn size Milo for a few sets for a customer

A couple of Tropical Lilys for a customer

Black Rainbow Rainbow Dress for a customer

Spring Garden Tee

A botched dye job done in a pair of happy pants

A couple of Vanilla Soakers for a KAL on Rav

A couple of pair of longies for a customer.

A couple of dishcloths for a NC swap

There are a few others, but they are getting their own posts. Shortly.

I really need to remember to update this more often so I don't have so many projects to catch up on all at once lol.

Bit of a Dye Wrapup

2010-03-18T14:17:00.000+08:00

Gracie Love

2010-03-03T06:33:00.001+08:00

I have been doing a little bit of sewing, not much, but it's mainly focused on the Gracie Patterns from Portabellopixie. Very girly resulting garments. A little fabric thirsty on the skirts, but that's how you get a good twirl going apparently, or so I'm told by my little darlings. And the yoke on the jumper top is a pain to do, but I'm sure I'll get more proficient with it as time goes by.

I am thinking that since the designer gives permission for individual sewers to sell from the pattern, I may offer to sew these dresses and skirts if people wanted one. Just send me a message if you want a quote on pricing.

Should I Tute or Should I not??

2010-01-13T13:50:00.000+08:00

I wanted a needle holder for my dpns, so I had a little lookie at what tutes were around, but wasn't thrilled, so I just made one up.

I had a ball making it, and it turned out spiffy. So I made another, and improved on it (of course).

So now I'm wondering if I should put a tute up for it, or perhaps sell them in my store, or maybe both? Dunno. WDYT?

Late post about Christmas Craft

2010-01-11T08:15:00.000+08:00

I don't usually 'do' Christmas, but got so sick of being called The Grinch by my loving family and friends that I decided to make it Christmassy here. I didn't photograph it all, but here are some bits and pieces I did do.

These are the Christmas Cards I made up. Turns out I didn't send too many of the ones I made, I lost them lol. But the thought was there.

I had bought three fabrics for Christmas this year - copped flack from family because they weren't Christmassy enough, but I love them. So I photocopied them to make the cards. And I sewed up the envelope myself also.

I also cut the fabric up in the shapes of wooden letters I had bought, and it was proudly displayed on our front entry sideboard.

I love the fabric combo so much.

A couple more things to sell

2009-12-11T08:42:00.000+08:00

Available through my Ozebaby store or just message me.

Cabled Shorties

size small

$30

Knitted in Evoke Yarns Aran BFL in the Iceland colourway. Sized to fit about 5-8kg. Rise - 36cm; Bum - 40cm; Inseam - 6cm.

Lovely cable detailing down both legs.

And contrast garter feature with a rolled cuff.

Tropical Lily

adjustable size

$30

Knitted in Anchor Magicline in a greens and blues colouring. This is possibly the most elegant colourway of my batch of colours. Sized to fit from around 20 inches (51cm) it is adjustable with crossover straps on which you can add extra buttons, and ties.

A few things for the store

2009-12-03T06:04:00.004+08:00

If you are interested in any of these items you can purchase them through my Ozebaby store, or message me. Prices are not inclusive of postage.

Bloom size medium SOLD

Deliciously soft knitted in Bendigo Harmony cotton/wool/lycra blend. This sized bloom will fit from approximately 12 months as a dress until approximately 5 years as a top. Value for money with the lifespan of this little beauty. Sold under license from tiKKi.

Rainbow Dress size 12 months SOLD

Ultimate Shorties size medium - $37.50
Knitted in gorgeous Inner Stitch Organic Merino yarn, I love the little details on these ones. Lacework on the hems and leaf motifs on the icord drawstring. Remember that the Ultimate Longies pattern has superior fit and form over other longies patterns, snug but flexible with strategic increases and short rows in all the right places. Size medium fits approx. 8-10kg children.

Tropical Lily - SOLD

Ultimate Shorties size large - SOLD

I am a tiKKi Licensee!!!!

2009-11-30T13:34:00.003+08:00

We all know tiKKi and we all love her patterns. I am now able to offer garments knit from her patterns for sale.

This means that it's not only the lucky people who can knit who can enjoy these lovely designs on their kiddies. OR even if you are a knitter, but can't seem to fit in the time to do the garments you want, this is your opportunity to further your childs' wardrobe enhancements.

I have spots on offer in my Ozebaby Store you simply choose the item you want knitted and purchase the corresponding slots. Or you can message me.

I have an extensive yarn stash to choose from (pictures and costs will be uploaded in a gallery in the store soon), if you see yarn you love you can purchase it and have it sent to me or you can send me yarn from your stash you have wanted knitted into a garment in particular.

Included is:

Rainbow Dress - The ever popular dress, simple in design and basic in practicality. Wear on its own in summer, particularly summery in a cotton or bamboo yarn; wear over a skivvy and tights in winter. Can be made into a top or tunic length also. Sizes newborn - 10 years.

Milo - Unisex vest, great in winter for that extra layer, fantastic in mid season for a quick easy warmth option and lovely in summer in cotton as a top on its own or over a short sleeve tee. Sizes newborn - 4 years.
Bloom - Stunningly adorable dress or tunic which blooms and grows with the little girl lucky enough to have one. Seriously, you can buy one of these and you will get years of use out of it. Value at its best. Intricate details abound, ribbed bodice, capped sleeves, gathered waist and lace detail. Comes in three sizes small which fits newborn - approx 12 months; medium which fits approx 9 months - 5 years; large which fits approx 2 years - 8 years.

Oriental Lily - Gorgeous Dress with aisian flair. Can be long or short sleeved, tunic or dress length. Great over all seasons depending on fibre type used. Sizes newborn - 10 years.

Tropical Lily - Fantastic staple garment for every little girl. Summer is breezy in this crossover tie up top. Can move seasons by wearing over long or short sleeved tops also. I have an immense supply of the yarn used for this top. Sizes 1 year - 10 years.

And don't forget that I am the designer of the Ultimate Longies pattern and knit these for sale also.

And a little dyeing too!

2009-11-14T13:19:00.005+08:00

Tracey from TBCards and I did a wee little swap. She designed me a logo (it's up there at the top of the page.....isn't it gorj??), and I dyed some wool for her. Here are the results:

From top, left to right:

sunset
sunrise
landscape
muddy waters
rainbow lorikeet
starfish

And here is the groovy logo on the ballbands. Ain't it divine?

Thanks Trace!!!

Not so quick knitting update

2009-11-12T05:39:00.005+08:00

OK, so I know I'm a slack blogger and should do this when they get finished, but here goes with the knitting wrap up.......

A couple of test knits for Rachel (CraftyWeeWifey on Rav). One of her spring butterfly top. This is meant to be the size 5 but the fibre I used made it grow remarkably, so it fits my 9 year old.

Test knit of Rachel's Kaia Babydoll top pattern. This is the size 5 test knit. Great pattern, the bodice goes super quickly which makes it so speedy to whip up.

This is a pattern called the 5 hour baby sweater. I took about 3 months on this due to procrastination. This will be for Darcy next winter and will be matched with some skirted longies in the brown with a pink overskirt. I tried out my snap machine on woolwear with this. They hold okay for now but for longevity I think they need some reinforcing.

A pair of soakers for Tracey as part of a swap for some yarn she sent me.

Another Tikki Bloom. This one I was trying out the Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece with the medium pattern (so the 8ply pattern with a 10ply cotton blend), it worked so nicely. I did add 4 extra rounds on the bodice after the armholes. I love this to bits, it might be the favourite thing I've knitted for the year. Knitted in the car from Brisbane to Melbourne.

A tropical lily for Jess. Knitted in the car on the way from Melbourne to Sydney.

And a tropical Lily for Kassidy too.

An Aestlight shawl for my SIL-to-be for her wedding. This is very special to me (and I think to her too) as her mother was a knitter and would have knitted a wedding shawl for her, but she died tragically shortly after the engagement. I hope this brings her some light on her wedding day even though her mother isn't there for her.

I finally finished a clapotis I've been working on all year it seems. I hated this project and would prefer to poke my eyes out than knit it again. It was like a knitting lobotomy. I suppose it doesn't help that it was a uniform grey the whole time, but I found it intensely boring. Makes me wonder why it's so popular on Ravelry???

This lovely piece was a testknit for Kelly's Meg pattern as part of her March Sisters collection. Such an adorable pinafore. And I fell totally in love with the yarn. I was Bendigo Cameo which is a wool angora blend. I didn't buy any from the Bendigo Backroom when I went there on holidays, but they don't seem to have it on their site, so I think it may be discontinued and now am kicking myself that I didn't buy a few hundred dollars worth lol. This pretty thang went to Darcy when we visited her.

Finally a couple of discloths which I made the pattern up for. I have almost written it down, and I'm going to release it as a free pattern. I love it, it is so scrubby. It's called nubbly.

And that's it for now. I do have about 4 things waiting for weaving and blocking, but I'm determined to blog them as they finish this time.

Quick Sewing Update

2009-11-10T14:53:00.002+08:00

Portabello Pixie Gracie Dresses. The brown and pink one was too small for Kassidy so I made two sizes bigger which is too big for her, but fits Jessalyn nicely. Apparently it is supposed to be a top though, so the length is shorter than I would like. Lovely pattern.

A couple of aprons I made for the girls. I have also made the same in each of the fabrics, one went to cousin Eden and one went to Mel's little girl.

There are a couple of crossover apron tops I've yet to photograph too.

Bloomin' Brilliant!!!

2009-10-05T13:08:00.003+08:00

Ah, Bliss!!!!! This is the most divine pattern I have ever knitted. It is feminine and girly, yet can handle a tomboyish child too. Unlike most children's knitting which become outgrown far too quickly for the effort put in, this garment will grow with a child. This is a test knit for Tikki, the pattern is called BLOOM isn't too far off release I don't think.

I have tested the 10ply, large size, which:

fits my 2 year old nicely as a dress:

fits my 4 year old also as a dress

and grows to fit my 9 year old rather splendidly as a tunic:

I have also knitted the 4ply, small size which looks like it will fit from around birth to about 12-18 months old (but my sizing may be off due to not having a bub around). This garment I love to bits, but isn't as nice as it could be. I tried this yarn to see how the pattern would take to a yarn like this. I think that this would have been okay without the diamond inserts on the skirt. I love this yarn. Fortunately I have enough for another dress.

Cathy's Package

2009-09-22T08:23:00.003+08:00

Cathy sent me some black wool to make her two pair of longies for her kids. The wool was divinely squishy and soft. mmmmm, a delight to knit I tell ya. So I did the longies......
And I also offered to make her a dress from a new pattern I am working on. With Cherries. So, this is what I came up with. The contrast red is WOOLganics chilli pepper.....

The dress is worked seamless and in the round. I have wanted a more traditional sleeveless shaping for a seamless knit, so I thought I would design it myself. One day I will size it up and work out my notes and make the pattern.....one day lol.

Tropical Maddi....and our hospital story

2009-09-02T11:42:00.003+08:00

I made my neice Maddi this Tropical Lily top. It's knitted in Anchor Magicline cotton and is simply superb. The colour changes of the yarn lined up almost precisely with the pattern repeats of the lacework. Even on the bodice, one colour change occurs just before the stocking stitch, with two evenly spaced stripes, followed by a colour change just at the next garter section. Talk about divinity. Totally unplanned, I just followed the pattern and the yarn did the rest!

I did pull through a colour change to line the straps up so that they match. My brain would not allow me to have unmatched straps. Thankfully it was pretty hassle free to do so.

The flower button was one which I got for my birthday from this little girl's family. There are other colours in the set also, so I'm hoping the next two Tropical Lilys I do there will be one to match also.

This little number was knitted while I was in hospital with Kassidy, who fell and cut her knee. She did not just get a scrape like any other time she's fallen, but she sliced it to the knee joint and required surgery to clean and stitch it. She is recovering nicely now, almost able to stand on it again.

The hospital staff were amazed at how calm I was sitting there knitting......little do they know that the knitting was the calming element - I cannot imagine what my days would have been like without it. We spent from 4:30pm until 7:00am the next morning in the two emergency wards, I can't even imagine that without knitting! What do people who don't knit do when they have to wait for something??? Seriously, I'd love to know.

Evoke Yarns Co-op package

2009-09-02T11:31:00.002+08:00

Just a little eye candy of the yummy yarn I got in the recent Yarn Cafe co-op. This is the bulk of it, I still have some to come on Pear Tree, a yarn base which was out of stock.

We have 300g of tannenbaum on Four Bags Full Merino, 300g of Earth Mother on Four Bags Full Merino, 200g of Sunflower on Aran BFL, 200g Polaris on Aran BFL, 100g of Sunflower on Four Bags Full Merino, 100g of Merlot swirled on Four Bags Full Merino and 200g of Iceland on Aran BFL.

A Soaker for Kane

2009-09-02T11:28:00.002+08:00

I did a swap with Joh from Nappycino, for a purse from plus1designs, which I use all the time now......and this is the night soaker I made for Kane in return. It is the extra-large size, which I was worried would be huge, but since it's over a night nappy, I think it is okay. Made from Bendigo Rustic 12ply to my Ultimate Longies Pattern.

Japanese Longies Set

2009-09-02T11:19:00.004+08:00

This is a cute little set I sold in the store. I was totally in love with it. The longies are my Ultimate Longies pattern (which I have released for sale.....blog post yet to come), and the hat I made up as I went along.....I may write this pattern up also.

NC Mumma Swap

2009-09-02T10:59:00.003+08:00

035
Originally uploaded by shannon4girls

Belated pics of my Nappycino Mumma Swap gift. It was for Amy, and I knew she loves the Jolly Jumbuck Black Rainbow, so what better gift for her than a shawl in the Black Rainbow Gradual Gradient I bought.

I also sent her a pair of longies I knitted for Jon. I had promised her a custom, but the store is not a big priority, so I sent them to her as a gift anyway.

Wanna see my new fabric storage???

2009-07-17T08:43:00.002+08:00

Inspired by Lesley's new wall of fabric (which I was lucky enough to see in person :P), I decided to do something nice with my fabric. I don't quite have as much as Lesley, so I could get away with this little number. Luckily for me, the holders were on special at Myer and I have a hubby who could put them up for me.

One day when I finish my wool storage off nicely I will take a picture of that too. Acutally, I'll wait for my co-ops to come in so that they look much much nicer (and fuller).

Done, done and done

2009-07-14T10:44:00.005+08:00

My three projects I had in line to be finished by tonight are infact finished!

BSJ (Baby Suprise Jacket) in Bella Baby Layette. LOVE the BSJ! EZ was just a genius woman with an amazing intuition for knitting. Love the way this comes together and you see it growing out and down. There's lots written about the underwritted pattern and how it needs more explaining, but I found it simple and straightforward. I have found that the neck is very skinny which I solved by omitting the top button. This little wonder will be winging it's way to Sydney for Miss Darcy sometime soon. Love having a little baby to knit for.

BSJ inspired booties in WOOLganics yarn. Also for Darcy.

I also finished the waistband casing on the black longies.

I found another project which got frogged too - a pair of slippery socks. I have decided once and for all I am NOT a sock knitter. I loathe to knit the same thing twice and that is the very fundament of sock knitting. I also cannot stand knitting a garment in 4ply! I suppose a shawl will be different due to the lacework.

Speaking of shawls - I have one lined up to go thanks to receiving my Jolly Jumbuck Gradual Gradient in the Black Rainbow colourway.......love it to bits!

AND finally, I found a little bitty pair of shorties I found. I knitted these to test my 12ply pattern on some leftovers. Turns out the pattern was out in gauge, so these are doll worthy. Cute though.

I'm starting to play two games today.......

2009-07-13T08:47:00.004+08:00

......games called "Finish or Frog" and "Sew or Throw".

First Up: Finish or Frog

My knitting WIPs feel out of control (although I know there are worse out there!), but being as much of a scatterbrain as I am, I find I cannot function well at times of an overwhelming WIP pile.

From top to bottom, left to right:

Mum's Vest - only just started - finish by end July
Moose's Argyle Vest - frog
Clapotis - in the long boring middle stretch - finish by my birthday (23rd July)
Butterfly Astronaught Vest - only just started - finish by end August
Longies - almost finished 1st leg - finish by end of this week
Booties - onto base of 2nd foot - finish by tomorrow night
Lizard Ridge - 10/30 into 2/5 strips - finish by Corey's Birthday in March
BSJ - need to sew on buttons - finish by tomorrow night
Black hat - just started - finish by end of this week
FLS - frog
Satchel - part way into strap - finish by end of this week
Longies - just need to do waist casing - finish by tomorrow night

I'm not going to do something silly like say that I have to finish these off before casting on something new - we all know that just won't happen!

Secondly: Sew or Throw

From left to right:

3 almost completed aprons - just need to finish pockets and fastenings for straps - sew
2 cut out aprons - sew
(top) 4 pair of fleece pants - just need waist casing and hems - sew
(top) 2 pair of knitted socks which I have holes in and need repairing - sew
cherry bag - cut out but I hated the first one of this I made so I will probably just put the material back into the stash - throw
butterfly bag - cut out, but I can't be bothered making it, so again, back to the stash - throw
black grab bag - almost finished - sew
twirly skirt - just needs to backing of a waist casing and elastic - sew
pj top - throw

Unlike the knitting, I am going to stick to one sewn project at a time, so I am not starting anything more until this is done. The only exception to that is that the 2 cut aprons won't get completely finished until I buy a snap press - and in order to do that I am going to sell some apron tops to fund that.

One I forgot

2009-07-07T08:02:00.002+08:00

A perfect combination - a Rainbow Dress (a favourite pattern) knitted in Jolly Jumbuck Black Rainbow (a favourite colourway). Love this to bits, so does the recipient (my niece for her birthday).

FO update in pictures

2009-07-07T07:09:00.003+08:00

A beanie I made for my niece.

Robbie Robot Set I made for Mel as part of a swap we did.

Oscar Owl set I did for Mel as part of our swap.

A bag I made for my niece the other night. Not how I imagined it, but good enough.

A milo vest I made for Kassidy. Very cute pattern, easy and quick.

A Jaques Cousteau Hat I made for Corey. Very Fisherman of him!

Longies and a Pinni I made for sale. The longies got some holes in them (thanks kids), but I have repaired them. The pinni is going to the lovely Suzanne.

A premmie Paxton Jacket I knitted as a test knit for Kath.

Super special longies I sold in my new store (yes I have a store now on Ozebaby). I love these to bits, can't get enough of the black rainbow by Jolly Jumbuck!

Another pair of longies which are for sale in my store. The Yarn Cafe/Evoke Yarns shetland 8ply yarn in Beach Sunset colourway.

Gondwana WOOLganics knitted into some simple longies.

The Yarn Cafe/Evoke Yarns shetland 10ply in Vineyard colourway knitted into some newborn longies.

This piccie shows a February Baby Sweater and a pair of The Yarn Cafe/Evoke Yarns longies on the precious little Darcy, the new little poppet of my very good friend (isn't she adorable?).

Another baby gift for Darcy, a little bitty Rainbow Dress for the princess.

I know there are some aprons around I haven't photographed, and a beret which the kids wore yesterday and lost, so I will have some more to come.

Babushka Set

2009-06-03T11:07:00.002+08:00

I sold this set on Ozebaby through Tikki's store. I was quite taken by it.

Longies: Hand dyed Polwarth Merino 12ply to my pattern.

Top: Bonds Stretchy Tee, hand appliqued with felt

Apron Top: Quilters Cotton backed by Seersucker to my pattern.

Headband: Quilters Cotton backed by Seersucker to my pattern.

Catch up in Pictures Only

2009-06-03T10:57:00.002+08:00

Steeking is Scary (but very fun)

2009-02-20T10:24:00.002+09:00

I am knitting a cardigan for Brielle. It is a Starsky Jr. cardigan which has a pretty leaf cable down the front. I don't like using a cable needle, I prefer to use travelling stitches, and I find it much much easier to do this from the right side of the work. So, I decided to knit the jacket in one piece in the round for the body. To do this I had to Steek the work.

I joined the front of the work with 4 stitches down the middle - two purl stitches down the very middle bordered by a knit through the back loop either side of them (ala EZ in Knitter's Almanac). I also cast on 4 stitches after the initial castoff on the arm holes and did likewise.

I sewed three lines of very small machine sewed stitches down each line of ktbl stitches - I was using a very slippery cotton/bamboo yarn and it was likely to pull out with a crocheted edging or a single sewed line.

Then, I put a book down the middle (so as to not cut the back piece like I would otherwise). Got the scissors out......

And started cutting........
Oh my goodness, my heart was racing cutting into perfectly good knitting like that. I was so worried about doing it wrong and stuffing it all up. But it ended up just fine.......

A special set for a special lady

2009-02-20T10:10:00.003+09:00

Hayley and I did a swap for some stuff - and I made her this set for my part. I am totally in love with it and think it's the best thing I've ever made. The yarn for the longies is WOOLganics which I dyed myself on Australia Day, the brown yarn is a cotton/acrylic blend I got from spotlight.

Falling Behind......

2009-01-24T15:11:00.004+09:00

......in my blog updates.
Here's some pics of my FOs so far for 2009.

Four dishcloths for Mel

I finally finished off Ziana's top which I started months upon months ago. I put it on hold over the summer as it was too hot to knit it, let alone wear it, but a planned trip ice skating inspired me to complete it for the event.

I frogged the soaker I had previously made with this yarn as the soaker skirt wasn't being worn by Jess anymore and made a soaker with a curly purly waist for Kassidy.

I knitted a pair of Fargyle socks from Jacki from Woolaholics, she made it into knitty, so I picked them right up and did them. Great pattern.

I am doing a very special set now. It is part of a swap, but truth be known I'm going above and beyond the swap value because I have always admired the quiet beauty of this lady. I dyed the wool on Australia Day, it turned out almost presicely what I wanted and I'm almost done with the body of the longies already. I am very excited because I've never really been inspired with creativity for a project like this before.......

To finish off 2008's FOs

2009-01-19T08:29:00.003+09:00

I did this open fronted Tikki Rainbow Dress for my niece for her 4th birthday. I did all the increase stitches in reverse stocking stitch for an added feature. I think it's lovely. Here is my Jess posing and showing it off.

My first real softie

2009-01-19T08:18:00.003+09:00

My very good friend has now moved to Sydney :(. I made her this softie for her birthday/Christmas/moving. Read: I started it for her birthday and got it to her months later. She had once said that she wanted something made for her from this fabric as it was also her childhood bedsheets.

I used the Ruby Doll pattern from One Red Robin. I had to add hair though because she looked freaky without. I am really impressed with the hair actually, I used Moda Vera bamboo/cotton because it's splitty and it came out looking perfectly like hair. Lovely.

Tropical Lily

2008-12-23T15:00:00.002+09:00

The adorable Tikki has created another amazing pattern for us all - Tropical Lily. I decided to knit it for Jessalyn but since I didn't do a gauge test (as usual) it fits Kassidy nicely.

How amazing is that photo of her?

Great pattern, although any I do from now on I will do a button closure on the back, as we spent a day with an uncomfortable toddler in the pram and carseat the other day. The lace pattern is adorable, the fit of the top is just amazing. Lovely Tikki genius again.

Kiki Pi

2008-12-15T08:06:00.002+09:00

I have also finished a project I kept delaying and delaying. I have had this bulky thick/thin yarn for about three years which I bought from Melbourne when we lived there for $1 a ball from the IGA. I have finally knitted it into a kitty pi (rav link) for Kiki the Burmese cat to snuggle in. My first felted (or fulled to be a purist) project. I ran out of the bulky yarn so I did the sides in three strands of cosy wool held together. I think that perhaps that made it a little heavy because the sides cave in all the time.

Gifts for baby Toby

2008-12-15T07:47:00.004+09:00

The ever lovely tikki had her little man Toby a month ago (where does the time go?), and I had made him a couple of gifts. I actually had girly stuff on the needles for her, because I was convinced it was going to be a girl (I'm always wrong about these things) - so there had to be a quick change of tact.

Firstly a vest from the PeaPod Cardigan (rav link) pattern. It's done in bamboo/cotton and is really smooshy, although the yarn is quite splitty and slippery. I did seed stitch for the collar and picked up and did seed stitch for the arm holes. Great pattern.

I also made him a tag toy. Truth be told, I've had this one cut and sitting pinned for months and months as a UFO, but I hope the boy likes it anyways.

I had made this pebbles vest, but since baby Toby was a big boy, it would have never fitted him, so it's still sitting here. Actually it's a small pattern, would probably fit a 6lber, as such it might just go on the baby bjorn here.

Blog neglect

2008-12-02T11:57:00.005+09:00

My 3yo had an operation over a month ago, so I've been in avoidance mode. So I have a bit of catching up to do on my FOs.......

Monkey Socks - These are nice, they were a bit tight on me even though I upsized my needles, so I gave them to Mum. The picture shows the colour fade on the yarn, which I was most disappointed in. I love the bright colours, it's not that I don't like how they've ended up though, it's quite pretty too.

Lovely pattern, love the lace repeat. I would like to try the No Purl Monkeys too.

Two dishcloths for Tracee in a Nappycino pay it forward swap.
Chinese Waves:
Frankenstein from a Monthly Dishcloth KAL group:

Two pair of longies for Nelle: One pair for Silas, I did these with a curly purly waistband and put my increases on the other side of my marker, and also did a full gusset instead of a half. Probably my favourite longies I've ever knitted!
The waistband folds over to get more use from an extendable rise......
And one pair for River - I did the full gusset on this pair too and brought the short rows in each time on the bum, I think they fit much better that way (also did that on Si's pair too).

I did this cotton Tikki dress for Jessalyn, but Brielle wears it as a top now as I increased the bodice thinking the cotton would shrink on washing, but it did not. I put a little cable down along the front increases. I love this it's very darling and soft.
Being modelled by the cheeky monkey. God I love this little poppet, she's just amazing. Considering this picture was taken about a week after she had surgery to create a port in her appendix to do daily bowel washouts (called a MACE procedure), and had a foley catheter in her and all that, she's just amazing......but I digress.
Almost caught up.....gotta wait until some people get their stuff for the next pics :).

You win some you lose some

2008-10-17T07:28:00.005+08:00

OK, so the October WIP War isn't going the absolute best.

On the win side I have finished Corey's Inca socks:
Plus I frogged off Jess's purple socks (but in reality I had only done about 2 rounds lol).

Plus I finished one sock of the Monkey - but they won't fit me so they are hibernating until I figure who to gift them too, I might have to rip back a pattern repeat on the foot if I 'm going to give them to Mum.

BUT I added to my list by whipping up a Calorimetry last week - this yarn is sitting there looking at me all the time and I had to make something out of it or it would continue taunting me. And I bought a whole heap of cotton blend yarn from my spotlight's relocation sale, so had to knit some up to see what it was like, so I did a tikki Rainbow Dress. I absolutely adore this, the pattern, the colours, the yarn.....I wish I had done it in a size to fit my girls, but I did it in 3month size.

Plus I got in the main some wool that a friend has been trying to send me to knit some longies for her since she was pregnant with her second boy (who is now 6 months old), so I'm over halfway through one pair and just started the other - although I will have to frog the second pair because I somehow miscounted my caston and totally flamingoed it up.

So my list is now:

Knitting

Monkey Socks
Crossover Top/Tunic
2 Washcloths for PIF
River's Longies
Silas's Longies

Sewing

Grab Bag
Messenger Bag
Tag Toy
Lengthen PJ top
PJs
Fixings
Tassles
Felt Dog
Felt Cupcake

I have so much I want to caston - I just need to learn to knit faster I think LOL.

Apron Top, Tribble & Project Bag

2008-10-06T10:18:00.004+08:00

Ah it feels good to be battling in the WIP War I started. It feels great having direction and a clear goal to head towards.

First up, the other Apron Top I cut when I cut the one for my Upcycle Swap. I think my workmanship was better on this one. Since I either don't have or can't find my buttonhole foot, I've been doing them manually, and this one was better than the last lot. I don't exactly know who the recipient of this will be, I have three little girls who would look spectacular in it, one being Jessalyn, and the other two little friends of ours.
I also finished the project bag. This isn't anything too spesh, mainly I wanted a drawstring bag big enough to fit in a major project like a jumper or cardigan along with the notions and tools needed to complete it. I would like to have a separate bag for each of my WIPs so that I can just grab a bag and go if we are going in the car or something.
I put a big pocket on the inside so that I can store patterns, needles etc and they not get all mussed up with the yarn.
A Tribble. I am going to be giving this as part of a PIF from Nappycino. I offered three dishcloths as my end of the PIF, and this will be one of them. Unfortunately, this also means that I did infact add to my WIP list......whoopsie lol.
List update:

Knitting

Monkey Socks
Purple Jess Socks
Inca Socks
~~Lizard Ridge~~ frogged
~~Tribble~~
Crossover Top/Tunic
~~My Cardigan~~ frogged
~~Rainbow Soaker~~ frogged

Sewing

Grab Bag
Messenger Bag
~~Apron Top~~
Tag Toy
~~Project Bag~~
Lengthen PJ top
PJ's
Fix Gizmo & Matilda's Doll and Matilda's Dress
Tassles onto table runner
Ziana's felt doggie
Felt cupcake

October WIP War

2008-10-03T08:51:00.004+08:00

I am just all over the place with my WIPs and need to streamline and get them under control. I am not going to cast on or cut out anything until I have frogged or finished everything I have started.

List time *groan*:

Knitting

Monkey Socks
Purple Jess Socks
Inca socks
Lizard Ridge
Tribble
Crossover Top/Tunic
My Cardigan
Rainbow Soaker

Sewing

Grab Bag
Messenger Bag
Apron Top
Tag Toy
Project Bag
Lengthen PJ top
PJ's
Fix Gizmo & Matilda's Doll and Matilda's Dress
Tassles onto table runner
Ziana's felt doggie
Felt cupcake

D'oh, that list is longer than I thought it would be........I'm pretty sure I'm frogging the current version of Lizard Ridge and My Cardigan, and probably the rainbow soaker too.

PJs for Ziana

2008-10-02T12:34:00.004+08:00

Ziana needs pj's and I decided I'm not going to pay a mint for something which is easily made and she only wears to bed lol. She needs more still, but for some reason she said no to me making her three pair out of the same material (she's gotta be difficult doesn't she lol).

Firestarter Socks FINISHED!!!!

2008-10-01T13:26:00.005+08:00

I lost my love for sock knitting. I did so halfway through my first sock of this pair. They sat for a loooooong time unknitted. Then, I decided that I like socks, I like sock yarn and therefore I need to remember to like sock knitting. Doesn't help that this was my first pair of 'real' socks (ie. ones not from 8ply *wink*), so I was knocked sideways with the amount of time it takes to knit one......then you have to turn around and do it again for a second sock!
Anyway, I finished them. And I love them. And I'm going to knit more socks!
Firestarter socks: Lovely pattern, lotsa fun to knit. Love the gusset detail, love the travelling stitches. Very nice. Knitted in Monsoon Designs Twisty Sock in cycad.

Upcycle Apron Top

2008-09-30T09:47:00.004+08:00

For the Nappycino Upcycle Swap, I decided to make an apron top from some old sheets I had as a little girl. I felt wrong cutting the material, but felt that since I only had a flat sheet, it is okay because it wasn't being used. The day after I cut the fabric, the fitted sheet turned up however, rendering me completely guilt ridden. Whoopsie. I now have a fitted sheet and pillowcase uncut and a cut flat sheet from the set. I could team the fitted with a plain flat sheet and use it for one of the girls I suppose. Turns out one of my girlfriends had the same sheets as a little girl, and many of the women on Nappycino said likewise. Seems they were a part of many a girl's childhood in the late 70's/early 80's.

I do adore it and I have another cut ready to sew (if I can get my WIPs under control that is).

Dishcloth Day 3

2008-09-30T08:16:00.003+08:00

aka Lizard Ridge Dishcloth......

Twirly Soaker Skirt and Top Set

2008-09-26T15:24:00.005+08:00

With the Revelationary Soaker from the other day, I've sewn on a twirly circle skirt, forming the elastic casing with the skirt on one side and soaker on the other. I stitched on some of the circles from the skirt material onto a top, and this is the result.

I'm very impressed with how it's turned out, and Jess loves it, she loves to twirl and dance. I will have to get a pic of her in it, but she's so tired right now, it wouldn't be a pretty sight.

More wooly goodness

2008-09-24T06:14:00.003+08:00

I have done (or am doing because the package hasn't been sent yet), a swap with Irene from Jolly Jumbuck. So I picked out two skeins of yarn from her store as the swap - I was just gobsmacked when I saw the black rainbow just sitting pretty there waiting for me. It was the day after her latest stocking and I *know* it wasn't there in stock the day before. It's like it was meant for me!

I have been covetting this yarn since I first saw it. I had thought it was sock yarn and was thinking since I ordered it that I have sooooo much sock yarn and not enough sock mojo, and I wish it were DK yarn.....gets here and viola! it's DK yarn! I am stoked. Turns out it's labled YARNsock yarn, but had I read the description it's 8ply. I didn't spend enough time to read it because of my hurry to cart it lol. Plus it's 150g, meaning I have enough for a good project......just gotta find that perfect one! I'm thinking a tikki dress......

The other one is sock yarn on Hercules - which is on sale at the moment at Jolly Jumbuck. Oh my, it is just devine! So soft. And as usual, Irene's colours are to dye for (pun intended). I am thinking slippery socks with this, I've been waiting for the right yarn to 'pop' for that project.

Revelationary Soaker!

2008-09-22T08:43:00.005+08:00

I've knitted this soaker from the Yarncollective Soaker Club Yarn by Kelly from Dyelicious Hand Dyed Yarns. I haven't done a proper waistband because I am going to sew a twirly skirt on it and form an elastic casing that way.
Revelation #1: One of the reasons I don't knit soakers too much is because I hate doing the cuffs. I hate picking up stitches full stop. Basically anything which requires finishing I loathe. So as I was inwardly groaning at the thought of it, I was trying to work out ways to 'cheat' and leave the stitches live on the needles so I don't have to pick them up, and the thought struck me to do short rows on the decreases instead of k2tog & ssk. So I did it and it worked a treat! This was the very first soaker that I didn't leave sit for at least a fortnight before doing the cuffs. Amazing. And it sits nicely too.

I am sure people all over the place do this anyway, but to me it was an amazing find. It was a bit fiddly working out in what order to do the grafting, how to arrange the stitches on needles and waste yarn etc, and it didn't help that I knitted it in the car on a trip to the Toowoomba Flower Festival over the weekend. Next time I might have it down pat! Now that I'm not scared of soaker knitting there will be a next time soon!

Revelation #2: I cast off the cuffs in a 7mm needle, and they still were too tight on Jess's thighs, so I *finally* decided to look up the sewn cast off technique. OMG, how easy it is, I can't believe I have wasted so much time doing a normal cast off in bigger needles. Easy Peasy and works like magic, the cuffs fit Jess beautifully now, meaning I didn't have to rip back the cuffs and add more stitches in! Love it!

And......just to see if anyone actually reads my blog lol......here is a sneak peak of the material I have made my Nappycino Upcycle Swap from....... hehehe. These are my bedsheets from when I was a little girl, I adore them.

Soaker Pattern

2008-09-19T14:10:00.004+08:00

pattern is being reworked and will be available again shortly

Wooly Mail

2008-09-18T09:03:00.004+08:00

I've had a big week of wooly mail - and I have one more package to receive too. In this picture are:

Yarncollective Soaker Club yarn dyed by the gorgeous Kelly from Dyelicious. Sooooooo devinely soft and squishy, worsted weight DHDY in pinks, greens and yellows for spring. Currently being worked into a soaker for a soaker skirt for Jessalyn.
Rainbow yarn I got in a PIF from Kris on Nappycino. It's Susanne's House of Wool yarn.
Red Four Bags Full merino dyed by Kris of Monster Knits. This was part of a swap with Kris, I wanted some red 4BF for some Seven of Hearts socks.
10 balls of Eco Bamboo yarn from The Yarn Cafe. Oooooh, this is just devine. The absolute softest thing I've ever knitted with. It is becoming a Hey Teach! for me

I love wooly mail!

A Dishcloth a Day

2008-09-08T09:07:00.003+08:00

No no no no no, I am NOT going to commit to knitting a dishcloth a day LOL. I am going to commit to knitting a dishcloth for each day of the week. Here are my first two a Garterlac Dishcloth and a Chinese Waves Dishcloth.

The garterlac dishcloth is the absolute shoddiest piece of knitting I've ever done. The only reason it didn't get frogged is that its still functional as a dishcloth which washes my dishes. I only knitted this to learn the basics of entrelac, and I did, but I think it would be better in stocking stitch and with more appropriate yarn.

The Chinese Waves Dishcloth makes me happy. It's very zen. I love the pattern, I think it's become my favourite pattern now.

Swap Bag with Gradient Dyed Wool

2008-09-08T08:52:00.004+08:00

From the Gradient Dyed Wool I dyed, I made this bag for a Woolaholics Swap where we had to do a technique which was new to us. I had never done cabling before, so I knitted this bag up. I made the pattern up as I went......I could write it down and post it, but I don't know if anyone would want me to LOL. I had been planning on felting it, but I liked the stitch definition unfelted, and I was going to line it, but I really liked it slouchy and lining it would have stiffened it up a bit much I think.

Shrug for my gorgeous girl

2008-09-08T08:18:00.004+08:00

We have a wedding on this weekend, which will go from day to evening, so I knitted a 3/4 length shrug for Jessalyn for the event. It's worked with two strands of rainbow dyed treliske bio-natur yarn which was dyed by Carolyn from Nappycino as part of a swap we did. I didn't want the colour to pool, so I used the two strands. The pattern is the GG shrug by Bec, and it's a lovely quick easy pattern. I made a few mods (of course) - I added some increases across the back, a garter edge around and the flarey 3/4 sleeves.

Gradient Dyeing done my way

2008-09-04T08:03:00.007+08:00

So, I had a swap to do for Woolaholics which included doing some techniques which were new to me. I have always wanted to try gradient dyeing, but didn't have a reason to, so this seemed like a great opportunity to try it.

I tried my best to read some ways to do it on the net, but I'm just no good at following instructions (as my parents will attest to I'm sure), so I decided to just figure it out for myself and do it how it seemed logical.......so here it is.

Firstly, ball up the wool. To do this, I wound the wool around my forearm for the amount that I wanted each stripe to be. For this project I felt like having changing stripe sizes, so I did it 50 winds some times, 40 in some, 20, 30, just different lengths. If I wanted a particular stripe length, I would measure it. I suppose I would work out a way to do this, from knitting a section, frogging and measuring, to winding the yarn around the needles the number of stitches I wanted it to be, to just winging it (which is likely because I'm not that much of a precise person).

I didn't take a picture of the skein wound up, so here is one of my biggest chook with the skein in the foreground.Then, make up the dyes and test the colour on a tissue well in advance. I learnt this lesson on my first skein (I did 2), as the powdered dyes I have took a while to dissolve fully and as I dyed the colours became just so dark - I quite liked a few of the colours still, but it wasn't what I had planned.

Line up the pots of dyes and plonk each portion of skein in. If you want a semi solid colour, you could leave them a bit balled up (as I did with a couple of sections), otherwise open them up in the dye. This causes a knot risk, so loosely bound skein sections might be the best bet for next time.

Leave the sections in the dye until they have soaked up all the colour you want them to. I got distracted for my second skein (the one in the pic) and they soaked up all the dye and turned out beautifully. I must learn not to rush things, because I usually try to get the process over and done with quickly, and the results aren't nearly as good.

Pull each section out of the dye, squeeze off the excess and pop into an individual sandwich bag. Put all the baggies in the microwave, spaced nicely so they aren't clumping together, and microwave for 2 minutes, rest for 2 minutes, microwave for 2 minutes, rest again for 2 minutes, then microwave one last time for 2 minutes. Let it cool in the microwave for a wee bit, the baggies got all melty and hot for me, which is one reason to try to reduce the bunching in the microwave, because you might end up woth a melted hole, with one colour touching another and have colour runs.

Pull the wool out of the baggies when they are cooled and admire your work for a while.
Skein up your wool and rinse to remove any excess dye. Dry, returning constantly to admire the colours and impatiently check continuously to see if it's dry so you can get on to using it.

Ball it up, really great to do if you have a wool winder, as it displays the colours wonderfully.

And Viola! Done. Gradient dyeing Shannon Style!

Frog-a-friend

2008-08-28T12:26:00.004+08:00

As part of a Frog a Friend challenge on Woolaholics, I was tagged by Candice. I have actually thought long and hard about this one, and taken way longer than I ought to have (as is my way). So, I have a three-fold frog-a-friend result:

1. I decided I am not a fan of sock knitting. I put my socks on snooze until the desire picks up again. At the moment I'm not a fan of the time it takes to knit something that will ultimately end up on the second smelliest part of me, where most people won't look. Knitting 4ply does my head in too.
2. I have sold off a stack of cotton yarns which I've had for a while but keep delaying in knitting up. Of course now, I am thinking I should hold on to it all, but seriously, I will be in the exact same spot in 12 months I guarantee.
3. Even though I was convinced to keep on with the socks I have under construction right now, I did decide to frog the Monkey pair I had. They were way too small for me, wouldn't go over my heel, and it's my favourite wool and the thought of knitting them and giving them away because of size upset me. I do have another skein of the wool, but if it turns out (as I suspect it will) that a fitting pair of socks would take me into the second skein, then I'd again be upset. So it's frogged.

And I am tagging........Tania.

Thuja Socks finally finished!

2008-08-21T11:40:00.002+08:00

I took part in a Knit a long for Thuja Socks on Woolaholics. Well, I ran out of Watermelon Utiku which I was knitting it in, so put the very sad call out to tikki to help me, so she sent me some (gawsh she's lovely). Then I ran out of the pink Jet I was using to make the watermelon go further, so had to put in some of another colour Jet. So I have a hodgepodge pair of Thuja to my name.

Also, I took so bleeding long, my knitalong became a Knit Alone. LOL!