Bunnies, Spinning and Hats

Hi there,

Hope your week has been filled with fun and creativity...I am really excited, just like a kid in the proverbial candy store.  Why is that you ask....wellll I have actually completed both bunnies today by putting all their features on.  They probably look a bit wild with their big, bright eyes but they are happy bunnies as you can see by their smiles, so here they are as promised...

Ta dah!

I think they are quite sweet and look better in the flesh (as it were) than on photo... The blue one is named Bunny Bee and the red one is Bunny Roo, male and female respectively. Lol  I will be sorry to see them go as they have become a part of my knitting life.  Am I going a little nuts over a couple of stuffed buns...oh well...put it down to age :) :)  They were fun to make but I am glad that they are completed and I can send them to the little recipients.  I thought they may be a little chilly so I made them each a scarf.  I think what I love about them are their bobtails - so cute and squishy.

I have actually done a little spinning, as well, and I think I am getting a better of hang of it.  I am going to practice a little every day until I am the spinning queen of  - I don't know - my high road lol. Seriously though, it is such a meditative activity and to think it is a craft thousands of years old that still exists.  I can't wait to spin a complete ball of yarn that I will be able to knit or crochet with - how satisfying is that?

My spun yarn wound on to a hairband - couldn't find anything else at the time :)

I know the spinning is way below perfect but it is a start and I think not bad for a beginner - the only way is up so I am giving myself a pat on the back...Yaay for me :)

I also finished a hat I was working on but think it has come out far too big.  However, at the moment I have big hair :) so it will fit my big head for the time being.  I am doing another one in the same colour to give to someone else - hopefully she'll pay me, who knows - but I make it with love as I do with anything I create.

First of all I apologise for the quality of the photos with the shadowing and everything but I must confess that I am anxious to go downstairs to see the final ever episode of Downton Abbey.

The hat is made from acrylic yarn with a mock cable brim - no cable needle was required.  Quick and easy pattern to knit and very good 'go to' recipe hat.  This patten has been used countless times in a variety of colourways.  

Earlier this week I went to  Southwark College to take an exam as part of my AMSPAR course which is for those working in the health services.  The one thing I was most looking forward to was paying a visit to I Knit near Waterloo, afterwards.  So of course, after finishing said exam I took myself  off and bought some buttons as I couldn't see any yarn I wanted and, to be honest, the budget was a little tight but my buttons are fab.

Wooden floral hearts

(I Knit)

Aren't they sweet - good yarn store I Knit.  Do pay a visit if you haven't already.  I then decided to go to John Lewis where I did  buy some wool.  John Lewis' own brand which is quite good.

John Lewis' brand

It's a merino blend - 50% merino and 50% acrylic - not sure what I'm going to use it for but I'll think of something.

Finally, on Saturday I just happened to go on a charity shop crawl.  I do love a charity shop there are always treasures to be found.  Anyway, I found a whole bag of this but just took four balls...

Charity shop treasure

It's only double crepe - nothing fancy but I really like the colour which have flecks of different colours and is actually quite soft.  A lacy scarf I think would suit this....we shall see.

Well I think that's all for now folks.  I can't wait to go to my two knitting groups this week.  One is at Wild and Woolly, a delightful shop in Lower Clapton run by Anna.  Lovely shop which always carries a good window.  She sells really gorgeous yarn and is always ready to help.  Lots of cake and drink at her lockin for a donation of a fiver or just bring cake.  Simples...lol

I also get to see my friends and knitting/craft buddies at Kenley...what's not to love.   

So until we meet again, have a great week and keep it creative.

Bunny Galore and more...

Hello one and all,

Hope you are all faring well and enjoying the beautiful colours that this October has to offer.  I have been admiring the trees and how majestic they look in their amazing autumnal golds and greens.  Wonderful...

Nature can truly give inspiration when it comes to colour.  Anyway....knitting is what I am here for so let me get on.  Do you remember the bunny that I was knitting?   Well here is the almost finished article...

 As you can see (no pun intended as he is without eyes at this stage) he has no eyes or other facial features so I decided to make them out of felt.  I wanted a happy bunny although I am still not sure of those eyes and mouth.  I may change his face and embroider his features, instead, but he is very happy and cosy...

And what self-respecting bunny doesn't have a bobtail?  Knitted using two strands of yarn to give a textured appearance.  Someone asked if it was a bunny crossed with a bumble bee that would make him a Bunnybee I suppose :)   Hope the young recipient of Bunnybee enjoys him as much as I enjoyed constructing him.

Bunnybee also has a cousin as shown below.  She is not quite finished but will be by the end of the week...

As you can see, she still needs some work done to her but all will be completed and shown very soon. This one is done in stocking stitch for the head and back and moss stitch for the inner ear and front body to give more texture and her bobtail, not photographed yet, is crocheted.  Cannot wait to add her features to give life and character....such fun.

Yesterday I went to Loop , the lovely yarn shop in Islington, just to get a set of circular needles but of course one cannot just go into Loop (or any yarn store  for that matter) and depart empty handed - it's just not going to happen.  I spotted some Erika Knight Vintage Wool for sale and, of course, had to purchase 3 skeins, they were going for a song at £3.50 each!

And to finish off my Loop purchases I bought a ball of Natura DK - really because I love the colour.

I then went into Tiger (a Danish gift shop) where there is always something to buy and came across some yarn.  It may not be pure wool but I have bought loads of yarn from them before and it is not half bad.  So I bought six balls - not meaning to, you understand :)

Not entirely sure what I will make with them but a couple of cowls spring to mind or I could do some mittens.  The boucle (the three middle balls)  would look pretty around the neck so I think I will do a nice cowl with that one.  I love the muted colours giving a vintagey appearance I think.  The other three are a grey with tiny flecks of pink and green.  They would make a nice pair of mittens or a scarf...decisions, decisions :)

On my travels I also visited the The Handweavers Studio & Gallery based in Finsbury Park.  I have been meaning to pay them a visit for some time now and finally made it.  A fantastic studio with all things for weavers and spinners and such an array of colour and yarn - awesome.  Great to see looms and spindles for sale and lots of other customers who were just as enthusiastic in performing the crafts of spinning and weaving.  I bought some roving with which I will use to practice and met a lovely member of staff who was really helpful and encouraging, so I am going to persevere and take up some of the tips she gave me.

I'm not sure what this is (can't remember) - I think it is Blue Leicester which was recommended as being best for beginners.  I love sheep!  

Leader Yarn

I also bought a spool of leader yarn in this deep rich red and not expensive either. In total I spent just over  £5.00 so spinning your own yarn need not be financially prohibitive. 

I am also halfway through knitting a commissioned slouchy hat.  This is my' go to' pattern from an old 'Knitting' magazine.

Shown above is the brim of the hat - I love this slip stitch which looks like cable - its so effective.  I'm doing it in a DK yarn but this would look good as a scarf or cowl and the pattern is so easy, just four rows and easy to memorise.

So all in all a good Saturday's 'work' and now I will leave you to finish off the bunnies.  So whatever you're doing this week have a good one and happy knitting....

Continuing to Show and Tell...

Hello again,

Soooo because I felt I left you all a little abruptly yesterday, I am going to continue to show and tell with my small haul.  However small my purchases are I do like to show it off.  I wanted to buy some quilting equipment but that will have to wait until another time.  In the meantime,  do I really need more yarn?  Probs not but do I want more yarn, hell yes!  What knitter (or crocheter for that matter) of substance can resist the call of the ply...honestly, I mean come on people...lol

Actually before I show my small amount of treasure I purchased at the knitting show, I am going to show you one of the two rabbits I'm knitting - a request from my friend and teacher.  I am really not sure how it will turn out, as I haven't put the pieces together yet but here is what it looks like so far....don't laugh... I have never knitted a rabbit before now, so this is something of a debut and adventure.

Rabbit in pieces

Coming together

To my mind this rabbit looks a little evil - hope it doesn't come alive at night.  We do have Hallowe'en coming soon.  I love Hallowe'en.  Anyway, this rabbit may have to be deconstructed as I am not happy with his front.  It seems a bit lopsided so I will have to alter and fix...it's bugging me.  I know it hasn't been sewn up or stuffed but, even so, it just doesn't seem right to me.  So when you next see it, hopefull,y it will have a more graceful alignment than it presently holds.

So, on to my stash...as I mentioned before I was a little disappointed with the show but of course there was still some good yarn to be had.

A discerning haul

The yarn in the large basket is Stylecraft's Special double knit and the yarn at the bottom of the picture is SMC select Extra Soft Merino Cotton.  The SMC is beautifully soft and I really like the mottled shade of the Stylecraft.  I know it's only acrylic but is good quality and doesn't feel at all itchy.  I do like Stylecraft who come out with some very good, affordable, yarn for those of us who are on a bit of a budget.  Not sure what I will do with these balls of lushesness but, never fear, I'll think of something.

Although my fave button company were not exhibiting, at the show, I bought some lovely chunky wooded buttons from Belinda Harris-Reid.  Aren't they lovely!  Plain and simple but with their own true elegance.  Simplicity is often quite enough to make a statement.  No need for any further embellishment. 

Chunky Wooden Buttons

See how thick they are - again, I am not sure what I will put these on but I have some ideas, perhaps a thick country jacket, in a moss stitch, cosy warm for winter or a very chunky wrap knitted with some sort of cable stitch... I am a sucker for buttons.

Extreme knitting is such hard work and here Barley Massey from Fabrications shows how it's done with such ease.  If you haven't already, do yourself a favour and  visit her shop in Broadway Market, Hackney, you won't be disappointed.  She has the most amazing ideas of recycling, lovely yarns and lots of workshops.  Gorgeous shop.

Black Sheep Wool never disappoint with their famous bargain for all 'free for all'.  It really is a spectacle to see masses and masses of parcels of yarn, seemingly strewn on the floor, for all to choose from and at such bargain prices - you really cannot go wrong.

Of course I had to come away with some pattern books and these did not disappoint.  All going for a £1 each...can you believe it?  I love a good bargain.

Bargain Pattern Books

I also got about six magazines FREE for a donation to Help The Heroes which was not a hard choice at all.  So that's my little haul with much bedtime reading.  It really doesn't take much to make me happy.  My needles, crochet hook, yarn, a good book, like-minded pals and I'm quite happy...So until the next time when I shall have more in the series of the bunny...be safe, be happy and keep creating.

Bye for now  :)

Knitting, Stitching, Showing and Friends

Greetings one and all,

I have just returned from the Knitting and Stitching Show at the wonderful Ally Pally (Alexandra Palace as if you didn't know...) where I enjoyed a lovely day with my buddies Jenny and Maggie.  It was great, as usual, to be with like minded friends who share the same passion.

Early Sunday morning visitors to the show

However, I have to say that I was, somewhat, disappointed with the show as two of my favourite companies didn't show.   The amount of visitors to the show seemed under par, compared to last year's event, and this was borne out by one of the vendors mentioning the same, even saying that buyers seemed not to be parting with their hard earned cash as before.

I also noticed that the amount of yarn companies seemed depleted with lots of other exhibitors that  I would not have associated, necessarily, with a Knitting and Stitching show.  I missed not seeing Textile Gardens as they always have some lovely buttons and also I didn't see anyone selling the range of  Drops yarn.

However, that said I did manage to get a few things, including some freebie magazines for a donation to Help the Heroes and I did see some beautiful embroidery and knit designs by graduate students of Kingston College.  There were some outstanding vendors such as Belinda Harris-Reid who had beautiful shawl designs.  I bought some chunky wooden buttons from her which are so lovely, even just to hold.  I am a sucker for buttons.  I also loved the ceramic artist Emily Cross who had fantastic ceramic buttons and wonderful yarn bowls - I am going to treat myself to one as they are beautiful works of art.

I also visited Spin City where - forgive me but I cannot remember the lovely lady's name - there were some absolutely gorgeous spindles that she has made herself.  I am new to this art but the whorl, I think it's called, was made from acrylic in which she had embedded some with flowers, sweets or glitter..gorgeous.  Not only that she gave me some really good advice on how to use my spindle so I will be trying that out and looking at her tutorial on You Tube.

I also tried on a deliciously yummy chunky cardigan from Loopy Mango as seen below.

Feeling delicious in a Loopy Mango design.

A stunning cape by one of the graduates from Kingston College

A detailed dress by a graduate from Kingston College.

Not only were there knit designs but some stunning embroidery such as this amazing kimono  

Beautiful!

Some amazing embroidery below of wildlife

Absolutely amazing embroidery with such vibrant colours that give a wonderful three dimensional feel to the projects.  I particularly like the crickets, shown above.

At this point I am leaving you for today as Downton is about to come on.  However, I do have more to show as I must show you my little haul that I got from the show but until then I will leave for now.

By the way, remember the rabbit?  Well it is coming along fine all will be revealed in the next post.

Ciao for now and keep creating.

X

I Knit for Macmillan Cancer Nurses and Other Musings...

Hi All

Well it's been a couple of weeks or so...can you believe that we are actually at the end of September. Whoever is messing with the time warp and calendar please stop it now... I can't keep up!  Seriously though, I know I am in my later years but time is definitely not the same and is Bolting away (see what I did there :)) Waaaay to fast - soon it will be that time again...Chri....as Day...Shhhh don't let anybody know :))

Anyway, how have you all been - creating lots I hope.  Last Saturday I took my mum to the I Knit shop in Waterloo for a knitting event that was to support and donate to the Macmillan Cancer Nurses. A lovely time was had by all with some gorgeous tasting cakes and plenty to imbibe.  Lots of knitting done, of course, with some very lucky knitters winning stunning shawls and hats on their raffle tickets.  Even some handmade stitch markers were won - a worthy event with great company and cake.  What more could one ask for? Lol

As you can see, below, a group of hands are busily knitting away at said event.  I should have taken pics of the tasty cakes but they were probably all gone by the time I got round to it:))

Busy Hands

At the present I am gearing myself up for going to the Knit and Stitch show at Ally Pally (Alexandra Palace) later in October.  Really cannot wait for this event and I and my good knitting buddies will be pulling along our trolleys, ready to part with cash for some jolly goodies, can't wait. See you all there.

 Soooo while waiting  for the above to begin, I have been putting together a little garment for another little person who recently made their appearance on this planet of ours.

Cool Red Knit White Stripe

Hope the little man's mum likes it - I just sent it off today so I am hoping for pleasing reaction very soon as it is a surprise gift.  Looks quite funky against the mint green background, I think.

I have also been busy re-fitting some other garments that I knitted for winter...the weather is stunning at the moment with quite warm temperatures for this time of the year - BUT  - we all know what's coming round the corner, now don't we.  Got to get those winter warmers out and on people...

Rustic Brown

This is done in a lovely chunky yarn - not pure wool but a good quality acrylic.  It really is quite squidgy, almost can't wait for winter.

Same cowl only worn at full length  -  simple ridge design.

Minty Cool

This minty number was knitted in two different colour strands of chunky loveliness which means that this cowl is exceptionally cosy.  Again, I have used good quality acrylic - I think I must have had such a stash of the green, lurking around, that that I had to do something with it.  I love using two strands of different colours as you're never quite sure on the resulting effect. 

Again, the same Minty Cool cowl but drawn up closer to give a cosier feel and appearance.

Creamy Tweed

This tweedy piece has not photographed very well so you can't see the detail - but it is in a chunky wool and acrylic mix and I have fastened a knitted flower in the front.  Again, unfortunately, this does not show up very well on this photograph.  Still I think it looks rather fetching against the black jumper.

Not only am I working on lots of winter items but I have been asked to make a couple of rabbits which is going to be fun - I haven't been asked to make an animal before, so am enjoying this challenge with a great sense of fun imaging the children who are going to play with them for years to come.  When I have got a bit further on, with the project,  I will post a pic to show and tell.

Can I just say a little word regarding the plight of the refugees.  Please all you knitters or crocheters out there spare a thought for the children.  I know it seems obvious but as winter is approaching and babies are still being born, they are going to need all the warmth they can get.   Knit a couple of hats or bootees and take to your local charity shop or maybe there is a local yarn store, near to you, who is collecting for them.  Below is a small selection I had in my stock that I took down to the I Knit shop in Waterloo, as they were asking for hats for everyone - not just children and babies.  Also blankets will be needed... I don't know if I Knit is still asking for these but you could always ring them up and ask.

Kiddies Hats

Hats and Bootees

Well, time for me to go but I will be back shortly to show and tell.  Oh, before I go I am ashamed to say that I have not done any spinning since the last time I posted about it.  I will, I will get round to it, I promise...until then create and be happy.