Gifts For Teacher

Hi everyone!

Sorry for the lack of posts - life got in the way. I've been busy crocheting all sorts but tonight I'm all about teacher gifts. I'm on with these apple coasters - they're quick to crochet so I'm hoping to have at least 3 sets of 4 by the end of the term. Fingers crossed. This is the tutorial I've been roughly following.

More Knitted Barbie Clothes

I've been a busy little elf knitting more barbie clothes for my girls. There's this lovely pink and peach dress.

 

This multi coloured drest which I liked so much made twice - the stripe pattern is slightly different in the second picture.

And this green hat. Plenty of time to make loads more. I just hope the kids appreciate them!!

Barbie Clothes Knitting

I'e been knitting small things lately for my girls barbie dolls. They love dressing and undressing them but don't have many clothes. There's some great resources online. Here is my favourite one I've made so far:

I'm also going to dig out the sewing machine and have a go at sewing some too! More pictures to hopefully follow.

My favourite site so far for Barbie dresses is here www.stickatillbarbie.se you can download patterns in a variety of languages and there's some lovely designs. Enjoy!

Spiderman Amigurumi

My first attempt at a superhero here's Spiderman! A present for a friend's little boy. He went down well. I think he's super cute!

One currant bun in a baker's shop

I've been crocheting currant buns for playgroup! Here's my finished product. I'm pretty happy with the result. Just 4 more to make!!

Another Baby = No Blogging

Ok the title has the blog drought excuse in it. Now here's a few things I've made lately:

Winter Is Coming

I've been back on the winter hat crocheting habit. So far I've made this on for my daughter which she loves (please excuse the potty we're training!)

I crocheted it from the bottom up, checking it fit her with the first round. After I'd finished the pink hat it needed a motif so I added a flower design!

I'm very please with the result!

Rainbow Jumper

I've been busy making this rainbow jumper for my toddler. With Autumn coming I thought I should make her something brigh, colourful and warm. Crocheted with acrylic yarn and a 5mm hook it's chunky and lovely. Every time she sees it she says "my wainbow jumper" she loves it!

Toddler skirts

Recently I've been working on making my own toddler skirt pattern. I think I've finally mastered it!

Before the dreaded end-weaving stage

Knitted in the round a thick band of K2 P2 makes up the waistband then it's knitted in stockineete with a few increases until I reach the desired length.

Then I got to teach myself how to do ruffled edging, which is tons easier than I'd expected. I was so pleased with the green one I made a rainbow one too!

Danger baby balanced precariously on a chair!

Baby (Toddler) Cardigan

Should have rotated prior to uploading!!

I'm currently knitting this cardigan for my little one, it's one of  a load of patterns my grandma gave me and is probably one I had knitted for me as a child. I've got a huge box full of patterns from the 70s and 80s so I thought I'd have a try.

The front pattern

So far I've got one front panel and the back piece knitted, the pattern is quite nice - a bit "leafy" and as you can see from the picture below it should fit - if I get my finger out and hurry up with it!!!

Check for size while the baby sleeps!!

Crocheted Milk Jug Cover

Another recent project was this crocheted milk jug cover, I've added beads round the edge to hold it in place. It's for a friend - I don't even own a milk jug so this is the best picture I can get. I love crocheting and this was lots of fun to make.

I used a book called "Two Balls Or Less" to get some inspiration for the pattern but as usual I made it up after a quick glance!!

Crazy Crazy Monster Pants

I'm currently knitting monster pants for a friend (well, her baby) pictured is the bum, the pattern has a face on the nappy-cladded bottom! I've now begun the legs. They are a challenge especially since, as a rule, I hate knitting in the round especially with DPNs. To make matters more interesting the legs are striped which means I have to do something else I hate - change colours!! So far though I'm pleased with the progress!

Still Crocheting

So, the baby took up more of the past year than I'd anticipated but I'm pleased to say, now she's almost 11 months I finally have some time to not only crochet but also blog!

This is my most recent project, made with one ball of chunky wool and a 5mm crochet hook, it's hdc in a spiral and sc across the top. Then hdc triangles attached for ear flaps and the decoration added.
It looks like all my crocheting will be baby-themed now! I intend to post about all the things I've made but have had no time to blog about. Fingers-crossed I'll now have time!

Hope you're all well, sorry for the long break!

Introducing...

Elsie Grace, born 11/03/2011.I would've posted sooner but I've been keeping up a busy schedule of breastfeeding, nappy changing and where possible, sleeping! Born 7lb 3oz she now weighs 12lb 4 oz.

Oh Yeah, I Have A Blog!

I can only apologise for what is surely a blogpost drought of epic proportions. However, in my defence I have a really good excuse.

I've been too busy. Too busy to blog and too busy to craft.

Why? You may be asking. Well, a few reasons. Firstly and most life-changingly the Other Half and I are expecting our first child at the end of February.

For those of you not aware of where my previous blog-posts were written from we lived in a static caravan (or mobile home) on the middle of the Yorkshire moors. Perfect for a hardy couple who can cope with fluctuating temperatures and water from a spring but no good at all with a teeny tiny baby.

We were planning a family so it shouldn't have come as a surprise but foolishly I'd taken the "6 months of trying before you get pregnant" as gospel. What then followed was a mad rush to find a suitable house and then an insane decorating rush. It's still not finished, the nursery is still a work in progress and there's baby stuff literally all over the house.

I've now finished work so expect a deluge of posts featuring stuff I've made for the baby followed, at the end of the month, by another distinct lack of posts except the odd one entitled "WHY WON'T IT STOP CRYING?!?!?"

We haven't found out the sex of the baby so there's all the pink or blue things for me to make once it's here. In the meantime here's a picture of one of the almost finished rooms in the new house. My bedroom, soon to have a moses basket in it too.

An Update

I’m busy with some works in progress at the minute they are:

Flower motif scarf
Big granny square blanket
Mohair shrug
Stripey hat

Unfortunately I’ve been too busy for taking pictures so here are some blogs of note with bright coloured pictures and interesting posts for you to have a read of instead, enjoy!

http://tearosehome.blogspot.com/
http://www.rufflesandstuff.com/
http://bevmatheson.blogspot.com/
http://greedyforcolour.blogspot.com/
http://gephart836.blogspot.com/

Knitted Baby Blanket

It's baby blanket time again and here's a project I finished a few weeks back but still need to weave the ends in (of course!!) This time it's knitted, I felt like experimenting a little. To be honest the squares were for another larger project which was just taking too long. Some of the squares became cushion covers and the leftover ones were sat staring at me. So I made them into a little baby blanket.

Can you see what's hidden in the centre square? No? How about a closer look...

Yep! A bear!

Somehow the tension isn't the same as the other squares so it looks a bit smaller. I'm hoping once blocked the shape will improve. It's the first time I've used knitting to make actual patterns and am rather pleased with the result. I found the bear pattern online somewhere - I can't remember where, I print so many off I lose track (if you recognise it let me know and I'll stick a link in) and it's also the first time I've successfully followed a knitting chart (I'm more of a pattern person!).

I then needed to come up with an edging. I wanted something fancy but easy. Unfortunately most of the edgings I found online were too complicated so I designed my own!

No doubt someone else will have done the same at some stage but I've never seen it. It's a ch3 ss into first ch, ss repeat and looks wavy and lovely!

General Election 2010

It's the General Election here in the UK where we choose our new Prime Minister. I will be voting later today and you should too. Go on, put down your crocheting and go vote!

Hatty Bank Holiday

I love Bank Holidays. If I were in charge of the country there's be a Bank Holiday Monday at least every other week. It's amazing how they cheer everyone up! This weekend was Bank Holiday Monday which means an extra day of weekend! AWESOME!

My weekend was spent knitting hats and delivering hats I had crocheted especially for my sister's boyfriend and his brother in law (confused? yep. me too!). They both have rather big heads and struggle to find hats that fit. They're also both scaffolders so need something cuddly and warm to protect their chilly little [big] heads and that's where I come in! Armed with a 4.5mm crochet hook and a selection of fairly chunky yarn I set about creating these earflap hats.

Now I'm from Yorkshire, as is my sister (obviously) and like a traitor she fell in love with a Lancastrian. I say traitor, he's actually a very nice lad (other than the fact he talks a bit funny) the truth is there's just a half-joking, half drunkard moronic rage between Yorkshire and Lancashire folk which I believe has something to do with the War of the Roses. We liked white ones, they wanted red ones, no-one was prepared to compromise and get yellow ones as they didn't match the frocks, I'm not sure.

Either way I'm proud to report two Lancashire men have on their heads today Yorkshire hats crocheted by a Yorkshire lass made from Bradford wool . That's my bit for inter-county diplomacy. Maybe my next hat should have pink roses on it?...

Adventures With Pastry

I've found out how to make pastry. As a result I've been experimenting with tarts. Tasty jam tarts!They're so easy I don't know why I haven't made them before. Luckily I always have cold hands which is apparently the key to making good pastry.

Here have a close up so you can see how tasty they are!