Late again!

Hi,late again for the yop post.  I have been busy in the garden, getting it to rights as I did not do any autumn gardening due to health problems.  But health is improving and we have some lovely winter days – a cold nippy frost but then blue skies and sunshine. So my poor overgrown garden is getting some TLC!  This means that my crochet and knitting is languishing in my work baskets.

However, I have managed a bit in the evenings.

First, I have blocked and joint the hexis for the bag and am in the process of making the handles, I have cut out the lining just need to get my sewing machine out……

I find that knitting is much easier to do in front of the TV when I am tired  I suppose you don’t look at it so much!

My sock is coming on well and I have just the toe bit to do and then I will have my first pair.  (will share a photo of them next week.)

Already I am thinking ahead and when I was in our local wool shop looking for buttons I espied an extravagant sock wool, $37 for 100 grams.  Its from Peru and consists of 50% Alpaca, 30% Merino, 10% silk, and 10% nylon, beautifully soft.  I had a $20 voucher so I succumbed!  Think will will have to wear my trousers pulled up to display them , lol.

Just need to find a pattern to do the yarn justice.  I have heard talk of vanilla socks and looked them up on the Ravelry pattern data base, there are lot of vanilla socks, so, are they a type or was there an original vanilla sock?

I have had a finish over the last week, a little dress I am doing for the charity pile. I started off following a pattern but did not like it so I made up my own pattern and I have to say I am very pleased with it.  I used double knit and circular needles.  The wool is a local wool so I think I will do one in stylecraft and write up the pattern using that as the wool would be impossible to get outside of NZ.

I need to find a couple of buttons for it.  I am thinking that the next one I might do the yoke in one piece and add some more stitches under the yoke so that it has more room for the waist and hips.

Last night I started a crochet jacket for a 1 year old, the yarn is lovely thick and soft  It is an Australian yarn by Panda.

Well that all I have for today, I want to get out into the garden again lots more roses to prune!

Here is a picture of some daphne from the garden  that is creating a lovely scent in my house!

If you want to see what other yop people have been crafting please go here.

Bye for now

 Sharon

A Great week!

Hi all, hope you all had a great week.  I haven't done much yarny stuff as I would like, but it was  productive. 
First of all a woo hoo!  I managed to finish my first sock, even if the toes was a bit mangled, at least I know what I did wrong, lol. And I have started the second sock so it will have a partner in crime.

An almost finished is a hoodie I am crocheting for a local charity.  It is my own design as I didn't see any patterns online for extra chunky wool.  I just need to add buttons and itdy the ends etc.  I am going to make another one to iron out the little bits that could be improved, and I will try and write up the pattern and post it here .

It is very thick and really is more of a jacket.  But it should keep some little one warm and toastie.

This week inspired by the other yopers I decided to really look at my wip pile and sort out some order in which to complete them,  First of all I decided to be honest with myself and weed out the projects that I know I would neever complete, There were  quite a few!  Then it was atime for a decision do I unravel and use the wool for other projects or give to a group of knitters that do charity work and love donated used wool, or do I try and make something from what I have already done.

The first project to hit my beady eye was a bag of hexagons from a throw that I was making 2 years ago, it was using a spiral/hexagon  pattern by Julie Yeager.  I now know that I am no good at doing repeats, I get bored. The problem for me was I didnt want to donate the wool as it was expensive and I still loved it.  I just choose the wrong project.  Do you ever buy wool with no project in mind  because it sucks you in and then spend ages trying to find a project for it?
I was looking at the hexagons and suddenly ws inspired - a bag.  A group on ravelry I belong to is having a bag Cal for July.  So I played with the hexis and came up with this.

Now I just need to block them and sew together, do a strap and perhaps line it and voila a bag and only 1 hexi not used. Yay.
However I still had a lot of skeins to use up.  Umm a a scarf so on Thursday this appeared.

 I used just a simple V Stitch, quite effective I think.
Next I thought I could try and knit something with the 5 skeins I had left,  Umma boys sweater I thought.  So  winging it I started the back last night, and finished it off before breakfast

I think that I will have one skein left and I am thinking perhaps I will add a fringe to the scarf.

So that is one wip sorted, lol.. 
The next bag to tackle is the abandoned Dance in the Rain afghan, I lost interest in that because it was frustrating to get all the squares sized up right. Already I have a few ideas on how to use them up.  
Also I have been working on my Sinnestriel wrap and will show pictures of that next week.

So for now have a happy week crafting and if you want to see what the other yoppers have been up to  go here.

 

Progress of a sort!

HI all,
It has been a strange week here, the weather is all over the place, freezing one day and really mild the next. Also my crafting has been al love r the place   It seems I cant settle to one project, real fidgety I am, lol. Shouldn't worry though I have made progress in some projects.
I have turned the heel on my socks, yay!

 Also managed to do it without the help of the Friday group, so now it is just the toes section.

Managed to do some work on my Sophies Universe, halfway through part 6.

 I am really liking doing this, even though I should be finishing off Lilliana, although I did do 1 round of the final part.Here is an up to date picture of the beast!

 I also only did one round on Atlanticus. He is already about 20 inches I am using aran cotton.

Also I am getting cracking on with a wrap I started a month or so back. It is the Sinnestral Wrap, just what we need for our wintry days.

I am using Batik Swirl by Stylecraft and it is lovely to use and really shows up the texture. I am about halfway through and would like to finish i within the next few weeks.

So all in all, I am happy with what I have done over the last week, and it does really help when you do a weekly blog post to feel progress has been made, especially when you are doing bits and pieces.
So head on over to the other Yopers and see what they have been up to.

See you all next week.

A New Start

Hello!  It has been a long time since I have posted here.  I have to admit that I have been lured by Instagram, Lol.  But I have to admit there is a need within me to write about what I am crocheting and knitting - yes, shock of all shocks I have picked up knitting needles! I find small projects suit me more than the sweaters I used to try and knit.

To keep me on the straight and narrow of blogging I have found a group on Ravelry of fellow craft bloggers (A Year of Projects) and we all visit each other  once a week.
So here goes......

Crochet I am still plodding away on my Lilliana, but have only 5 rounds to do, the only problem is that a round is more than one can do in a sitting.  Being in cotton she is a heavy lady.

This was taken a short while ago, I have done a further 10 rounds, but lighting is rubbish today.

I have started her companion Alanticus - also in cotton but aran.  He is going to be a rug and I will only go as far as the size I want. I will post a picture next week.

In the summer I started Sophies Universe but only got as far as the Garden bit, I will carry on with that when I finish Lilliana!.

I have lots of other projects salted away and will pull them out as I finish  project. I thought of listing them but I thought it would be rather depressing to see how scatterbrained i am.  I have a great desire to use up my stash and finish all those partly done UFOs. I need to, I plan to downsize next year.

Knitting  I have surprised myself by taking up knitting, I was encouraged to join a group of knitters at the local library who are knitting vests for a project by plunket that sees all babies that are born at the our locl hospital go home with a nice beanie and vest, I think quilters are making small quilts as well.  I was told there was one lady doing crochet.  So along I went, well, the vests are so cute that I decided to give it a go, I enjoyed it! (Sorry no picture yet as I just gave my first one to the charity,  however I have been seduced and have started a hat and some socks!

Here is the progress on my first ever pair of socks. I am struggling with the heel on the socks, but hopefully the ladies at the group on Friday can tell me where I am going wrong. 

The hat was  because I fell in love with some new yarn that has opossum down in it, it is so beautifully soft.I have never used circular needles before and I have to admit it makes knitting so much easier for my odd way of knitting!  I warn you I am very slow so don't expect to see speedy finishes.

So this is for this weeks Year of projects update. Go here and visit some of the crafters taking part. Isnt the graphic cool, it was by Marsha (leftycrafter) one of the YOP members.

Happy Holidays

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and a happy New Year, and that all your dreams and hopes for 2018 come true.

Blessings to you all. 

Ambrose helping

Peggy Sue getting ready for Christmas

Catch Up

Hi, it has been a long time since I was last here.  In October I spilled coffee over my laptop keyboard and yes my computer died.  So I have only been able to access the internet on my phone.  However last week I got a new laptop and I am a happy person.  I missed it. Moral of the story is not to drink coffee while at the computer, LOL.

However, I was still able to crochet and I have lots to show but will do it bit by bit over the next few weeks.

I succumbed and have doing afghans again, but this time I am doing them in cotton, I have fallen I love with cotton,especially the Paintbox range so many colours.

 I am following a Cal - Lilliana by Hooked on Sunshine blog. I am managing to keep up to date too!  Here is some eye candy, I am not following the colours or the sequences of colours and just being random about my choice.

Part 4 done

 

part 5 completed

Nearly finished part 5 but Ambrose was having such a good sleep, I decided I will work on it tonight.

Here are some toys I have done for charity.

 

Have a good weekend see you all soon.