Working on Tulips

Just a little teaser to show you what I am working on at the minute. My intention was to work hard on my patterns this year, and refining this tulip motif has taken me a lot of time. Devising an original design always takes much longer than you would imagine, but I think from my initial idea (in pink) to the final design you can see the improvement. (I know I should have probably run in my ends before blocking!)

I have got to a tulip version I am very happy with, and will be releasing a tulip pattern very soon. Nearly there, but still a bit of checking and photos to work on.

 

More Wee Mouse Photos and Pattern

As promised here are a few more photos of my mice, this time with what is a bit more of a wedge of cheese. Hard to find a piece of cheese that was perfect. This bit is jarlsberg and had the shape but not quite the holes. But the emmental in the shop had lovely holes, but were all cut into cubes shapes. I have spent quite a lot of time recently looking at cheese!

So at last the pattern is published. Thank you to Jennifer, who proof checks for me, and is brilliant. However careful I think I have been she finds something!

As mentioned before this pattern is knitted with 4-ply or fingering wool, and takes a small amount, about 15g. Well it is a wee mouse. I thought of this idea partly because of To a Mouse poem by Robert Burns. It is Burn's Night on 25th January so I have roughly the right date to publish the pattern. My daughter is off to visit one of her friends in Cambridge today, and is going to a formal Burn's Night Supper, followed by a ceilidh. I don't think she has experienced either before, so it will be interesting to see what she thinks

So here are links to the pattern on Etsy, ravelry and LoveKnitting, and I hope anyone who buys it enjoys making some mice, and you don't find they are overrunning your kitchen.

Union Jack Mini Cooper

So much for all my New Year resolutions to post more often. I have just finished this mini cooper with a Union Jack roof, for a customer on Etsy. I always like making this version of my car pattern, and it is off to be gifted to Harry in New Hampshire. His name is on the numberplates, which you can't really see in these photo.

I have been knitting, but have been working on a jersey for my husband. His Christmas present, which may be ready just for when the weather warms up, and he doesn't need it.
 

 

Christmas Robin Pattern for Next Year!

I mentioned before Christmas that I was selling at a few local craft fairs. Getting ready for these fairs I decided to make a few little hanging Christmas Robins, and am publishing the pattern I made up for these robins in all the usual places as a free pattern. Here it is on ravelry.

They are very little, so take just a few scraps of wool, but are great fun to make. When I first started writing knitting patterns, it was because I was really uncertain if it was alright to sell products made from other's pattern. For all my patterns I am quite happy for buyers to sell what they make in small quantities at local craft fairs, but not online or in a large volume.

It was hard to decide whether to wait until next Christmas, but as this is a very little pattern, I decided to bring it out now. I started off making red and brown, but then looking at the robins in my back garden, I also tried for some slightly more realistic orange and light brown colours.

So lots of time to make a few little birds for next Christmas, and I will republish this post next autumn as a reminder, so you can make plenty more. And I have time to try and get the perfect robin photo - but for that perhaps I need a sprinkling of snow.

Cockle Shell Pattern

I have been busy making cockle shells from my new patttern. My idea is that these will be hanging decorations, perhaps for Christmas, as shells can be a religious symbol. So expect a few more photos when I have attached ribbons. Although I also think it would be cute to make a seaside mobile, with some knitted shells and some of my other sea creatures. I may have a go at this.

A cockle shell is fairly easy to make, and another good pattern to use up any oddments of wool you have left over from other projects. I tried to be fairly realistic with the colours (except for the red which I thought would be Christmassy), but you could go wild and make all sorts. I had an idea that they might look cute with some silver bells, like the nursery rhyme "Mary Mary". 

The only technique that might be a bit unusal is making some turns midrow to make the base of the shell thicker. (I have not put in the wrap stitches which I often do, as this didn't seem necessary.) My other tip is not to over fill the shells with wadding, and to a bit of squeezing to adjust the filling, so that the shells are flatter at the edges.) I enjoyed making this striped shell above, which was just done by switching colours occasionally.

The pattern is available on ravelry, Etsy and Loveknitting.

 

Still plenty of time to to join in Ginx Woolly Linx Party for September.

Crochet and Knit Cushion

I mentioned that I was having a go at crochet for a change, and was aiming to make next a blanket or throw. Two problems came up: first that I only had so much wool, and second I am not very quick. 

I see other crafters, who seem to be able to knock off a blanket in a few weeks, and am amazed by how they manage this. When I showed my husband the pile of granny squares I had made, his first suggestion was that we just have a large set of coasters! Can you imagine me rolling my eyes? My daughter wanted me to create a jacket, but there really weren't enough for that. A cushion seemed a good answer, and then I had to send off for a cushion pad. 

For the back I only had a small selection of colours left, so decided to knit a square on the diagonal. Really pleased with how this turned out. Julie from Sum of Their Stories told me that her nan used to combine knit and crochet in one project, using which ever worked best. Have you ever made something using knit and crochet? I would love to hear about it. Or perhaps you have combined two other crafts in an unusual way.

I also wanted to mention the wool I used. This wool came from my sister-in-law, and was a kit for a fair isle jumper that she did not want to make.  I have got so much pleasure from this wool, as it is all the same ply, and has been used in so many projects, so "thank you". Here are just a few.

 

Just a reminder that there is still time join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for February. I would love to see what you have been working on.

 

My Very Own Mini Cooper

I have made my fair share of knitted mini coopers over the years. I have tried to do a count up, and think it is at least 15, but I have have missed some. But finally I have made a car for myself, and it is going to live on the back shelf of my very own mini cooper.
  

This knitted car is smaller than the usual cars I make from my Mini Cooper pattern, as I decided to knit it in Cornwall over the half-term holiday. I rather stupidly only took the needles for the wheels. The body of the car is knitted on larger needles. So I had to really adapt the wheels so they were in proportion.

It sort of upsets me that real life minis seem to be getting bigger and bigger.  Occasionally you still see an orginal mini, and they really are like a different car to the mini countryman. Little confession - I was quite keen to get a Fiat, but was over-ruled, and now we have the mini (called Neville) I really love it. It is very easy to park, but also quite nippy when needed. I am taking my daughter out in it for driving practice, and she finds it a lot more powerful than the driving instructor's car on which she is also learning.

Just a reminder that there is still plenty of time left to join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for March. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.

Yellow 2CV

I was joking about my Christmas Rush, but orders do seem to be picking up. This yellow 2CV is now on its way to Poland. Made from my Henrietta 2CV pattern. I do hope it makes someone happy. Very hard to get nice photos, as it seems to be dark when I leave the house, and when I return.
 

Just a reminder that there is still plenty of time left to join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for December. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.

Christmas Elephants - My Christmas Rush

I am being a bit ironic calling this my Christmas rush, as I have not had many orders this year. Not all bad though, as it has given me time to get on with my husband's present. All will be revealed at Christmas, if I can get him to do some modelling. But I was really pleased to get this order for some personalised Christmas elephant decorations.

I would still like the elephant to become the new fashionable decoration for Christmas. I did see some felted elephant decorations in a shop recently, so maybe the word is spreading.

These elephants are now on the way to Canada, and I was really happy to add the personalisation of names embroidered on the back. It is nice to think of another family building up their collection of Christmas decorations. I can't wait to get mine out this year.

So if you fancy making some Christmas Elephants for yourself, you can find the pattern in ravelry, Etsy or LoveKnitting. Or if you would like me to make some for you, although they aren't listed in my shop, but just send me a message.

Just a reminder that there is still plenty of time left to join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for December. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.

Red Ted

I wrote a post, which I now see was back in November called My Work Basket. How can the months have slipped by so quickly. A few people did spot that I was making a teddy bear, and was using my own pattern. This teddy is jointed, which might put a few people off, but the joints are quite easy to buy on-line (and probably in shops), and I think give a more authentic bear that hopefully will be fun to play with.

Teddy has been finished for a while, but I was waiting to see if my niece had a boy or girl before I made the scarf. I used to a combination of bright red and sock wool for the scarf to give a slightly random stripe. So this teddy is now on his way to Ireland, to meet my new great nephew.

The pattern is called Teddy Bear on ravelry. This teddy also has a small hump, which I now realise I haven't photographed. (Debating whether to unwrap him for another photo-shoot.) Have you ever found yourself saying (in your head) "work it teddy", while getting a woolly bear to pose in the back garden?

Just a reminder that there is still time join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for February. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.

"The Cupboard Was Bare ..."

I had the idea to knit a toy for our new puppy. The family scoffed. Given the rate that she is chewing through shoes, they did not think that a knitted toy would last more than a few minutes. But I was sure I knew better.

I found some wool that seemed like it will be hard-wearing, and then had a scout around ravelry to see if a bone pattern exists. Of course it does, so I downloaded Fetch! by KrisKnits and got going.

For my first bone I followed the pattern exactly. It seemed fine when I started knitting, but puppies grow very quickly (or perhaps I knit slowly), so by the time I had finished it seemed a bit small. So I had a go at a larger one, just by increasing the cast on and adding in a few more rows. And when middle bone was done I thought I might as well use the remaining wool to make a really big bone. So here are the bones hot off the needles, before being given to the dog. 

She had a huge amount of fun playing with them. She really did seem to really like them. Especially the largest one.

But annoying the family were almost right. As this picture below shows what I was left with after a day of chewing. (Don't worry I did keep a good eye on her, that she didn't eat the wool or stuffing.) Middle bone is the worse for wear, but the big bone and little bone have just about survivied. I still think it is a good idea, and might work as a more long-lasting toy if I could use string or nylon twine. So you never know I might have another go. But for the moment it is probably back to the plastic chewy toys.