So Much For Finishing....

I was feeling a bit ropey on Friday night and Saturday, so my plan to finish my tank top sort of fell by the wayside. I could easily have done it, but I wanted something soft, and fluffy and comforting. Acrylic just didn't fit the bill.

I got out the remaining purple Alpaca Silk, that I had left over from my shrug thingy, just over a ball left. I figured it should be enough for a cowl, so got knitting. After I had finished and seamed it up, I realised that it would be the snuggest cowl ever, not quite was I was going for. It went over my head, but only just... At which point, I realised it was the perfect size for a hat ;) Quick cinching together of the top edge, and a hat it became *laughs*

Side note: it's seriously challenging to take a picture of yourself in a hat, without looking like an idiot, or only managing to get the top of your head in shot! Case in point:

As cute as it is, I was a little disappointed because I really liked the pattern (that I'd made up) and thought it would be cute as a cowl. But then I realised that I had another 2 balls of Alpaca Silk, in a short of sherbet pink, that I'd ordered from ebay. Aha!

So I made the cowl after all... I didn't seam it up, as I wasn't sure I liked it just as a loop, but crossed over at the front instead. I put some poppers along the edge, and now I can wear it 2 ways.

The (made up) pattern is essentially 6 rows of garter stitch, followed by 4 rows of stocking stitch, to make a sort of rib. It stretches out slightly on the hat, which I think also works really well. I'm pretty pleased anyway *smiles*



I realise that I look like a college student in the top picture, somewhat emphasised by my choker. I made, well assembled, it at the weekend too. It's a tiny glass vial, that I filled with sand from a very special beach. It's my favourite beach in the world, and the place where we scattered some of my dad's ashes, so it's nice to have it close.

And, in a slightly more uplifting final note, check out how awesome my t-shirt is!

Also, although this picture is completely out of focus, it makes me laugh. Ninja-speed cannot be captured by a feeble camera ;)

Oh, and just so you know, this blog will be a little quiet for the next week or so... See you soon x

Secret Projects Numeros Dos e Tres

Secret Project Numero Uno

Aha, now that my mum has received her little present, I can blog about it ;)

It's the first thing I made during MegaCraftingSaturday as it shall now be known *laughs*

I wanted something relatively easy to start with, to get back into using my sewing machine. Searching for easy sewing projects kept bringing up tutorials for making "tea wallets".

Now, mum doesn't drink tea, but she does drink coffee. Decaff specifically. And, to make sure she can always have a cup when out and about, she keeps a stash of decaff sachets in her bag. A plan was formed...

Yep, I'm sure you can see where this is going *laughs* I modified the shapes in the pattern to make a "coffee sachet wallet". Ok, not as catchy a title, but I thought it would be nice to have something to keep those loose sachets neat and tidy (especially as mum has lovely posh handbags and lovely posh purses...)

So, here it is:

I had exactly the right size of cute fabric sample for the outside, with enough left to make a binding for the top of the inner pocket. And I had the right size and colour fabric scrap to make the pocket, which was left from a gift bag I made for a present. The lining is a nicely textured heavy cotton (I think!) that I also used to line the drawstring bag and had plenty left for other things.

Coordinating ribbon and the right coloured button too... Clearly this project was meant to be *smiles and ignores the fact that I didn't have quite the right coloured thread however*

Ok, so my stitching isn't fantastic, and I still can't seem to sew in a straight line *rolls eyes* But I was really pleased with how it came out, and mum seems pretty happy with it too. 

All in all, a good project *satisfied grin*

A Little Progress

Just a quick update today... I finished the front of my tank top.

I spent bloody ages trying to match up the different colours in the variegated yarn. For someone who hates symmetry, I spent a lot of time trying to make this symmetrical... Strange.

But, I managed it (mostly... it's not perfect, but it's close enough to pass muster!) Although, it looks more wonky in this picture than in real life, which is helpful, given that I'm using this picture to illustrate my success *rolls eyes*

I decreased from the middle, at each side, to make a v-neck, then I decided to cut the v-neck short and continue the top sections straight - hopefully resulting in a sort of deep, sweetheart neckline effect... That's the plan anyway, we'll see how it looks when it's on!

Matching the two sides did involve a lot of cutting out sections of yarn and rejoining at the appropriate colour. As a result the back looks like this:

 Ugh, lots of ends to weave in!

And I have a lot of small balls of single colours. Which at first I thought I might use to help me match the back to the front - then I decided that I'm not a masochist and actually, I'm ok with different colour transitions on the back :) and no, it';s not just because I'm too lazy for all the chopping, attaching and getting tangled *laughs*

Alot of Crafts*

*disclaimer for anyone who hasn't read this blog post, I do know that "alot" is grammatically incorrect ;)

I had a very productive weekend, I was on a bit of a crafting mission.

There are a couple of cool projects that I can't yet share *tries to curb my inherent impatience* but they can be revealed later in the week. So that's something to look forward to ;)

First up, I decided to dust off my sewing machine. I hadn't used it for ages, so winding the bobbin took a few minutes of head-scratching, tongue-poking out concentration to remember what went where. But I figured it out and got going...

Initial project (very much a "breaking back in gently, don't want to ruin good fabric" kind of project) was this beach bag. It still needs handles, but I managed to line it and include a pocket *proud grin* The fabric was actually a set of tea towels from poundland! Should be good for my holiday next week - I think it's structurally sound enough to carry a book anyway *laughs*

Then I made some more progress on my knitting. I'm actually liking this marble yarn more than I expected to (although the colours look a bit muddy in this picture, they're actually much better in real life), despite some slightly strange sections where the yarn doesn't change colour for ages. I've cut a couple of sections out to try and keep the striping fairly consistent, but I haven't quite figured out which bit I need to join to do the next stage while keeping the stripes. Some calculation required I think!

In between this flurry of activity, I also did boring housework jobs, prepared tasty slow cooked food and, get this, even tidied up the mess I'd made within a mere hour after finishing! Boyfriend was amazed to get back after the weekend to find no mess, no piles of fabric scraps, bits of paper, etc ;)

Not a Lot

Not a lot of knitting, sewing or crafting progress has been made over the last few days. I've still not been feeling 100%, and inspiration has been hard to come by *sad frown*

I think the problem is that there are too many things I want to knit (in addition to the long list of this post). I want to try knitting socks - I really love the idea. I also keep feeling like I should knit something I need, like a new black cardigan (mine's falling apart). And there's a blanket I want to make, to replace the throw on my sofa that doesn't match anything else. And I still haven't finished either of my lace scarves, so I feel the need to get on with those... *deep breath*

Plus I keep seeing yarn I want (I should stop reading blogs!) but my plan is not to buy more yarn until I have used the stuff I bought in the sales *pouts* I bought some gorgeous stuff, but I seem to want to skip that and move onto something else already.

But, if I am given yarn, well then it doesn't count, and I can start playing with that instead ;) Of course, this just delays the inevitable "but I want that one" petulance when I see something pretty ;)

So, with the variegated yarn I was gifted (thanks mum *smiles*), I'm making a tank top. It's based on an amalgamation of various patterns, so I hope it works! I haven't got far:

Mum gave me the yarn because she didn't like it. I'm not sure I love it, but the colours are interesting (although not in this picture - stupid lighting!). Don't think I could make a large garment out of it, as it may get a bit much, but a tank top should be cute.

It's 100% acrylic, which I was dubious about having become a bit of a snob already (as you can tell by the posh yarn used for slippers in my last post!), but it's really quite soft and at least won't need handwashing!

It's slightly, how to describe it...? Squeaky? Strange sensation while knitting, anyway. Not quite the joy of the alpaca silk, that's for sure. Which may be why there has been so little progress. I've just got to a section with what seems like a mile of green, so I may cut out a section so that it's a little more evenly striped. But I'm not sure what that will do to the next sections, so it may be a little rash!

I Shall Name Them "Rolf"

As in, can you tell what it is yet? *laughs*

I wasn't feeling very well yesterday and I wanted something very quick to knit - instant gratification almost (I know, I've picked the wrong hobby if I want instant results *grimace*)

I also wanted comfort, and I remembered a pattern I'd seen for Pocketbook Slippers.

I made them with my green Debbie Bliss Como, after frogging the scarf/poncho/wrap/cowl I had started knitting on the train home (despite loving the fake rib I had created with a slipped stitch pattern, I realised it was never going to end up as something useful). This may make them particularly decadent slippers, being 90% merino and 10% cashmere, but they're very snuggly.

Snuggly, but not altogether attractive *laughs* The reason they look so big is because I sized them to go over my fluffy socks, like so:

Yep, even more attractive, right? *giggles* Just be glad I found the cream coloured fluffy sock - I was wearing bright red ones ;) Well, they do look a little elf-like (unfortunately in a "Santa's Little Helper" elf way, rather than the much cooler "Bow wielding, kick ass, Lord of the Rings" elf way... oh well)

What can I say, I get reeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaalllllllllllllllyyy cold feet (just ask poor, long suffering boyfriend!) I'm all about function over fashion when it comes to warmth, well, at least in my own home *grin*