Thankyou Patty!

Wow - look what I have just got!!!!

I have received this from my SP8 - Patty!! - I love the pretty flowery jiffy bag - a great idea

Inside there was:-

• A pack of notecards 2 fab balls of Knit Picks purple fluff
• Potpourri air freshener - great for the car
• Pack of 'Mall of America' playing cards - bagged by Oliver
• Little 'Mall of America' bag- bagged by Lily to be her shopping bag - a perfect size for Puppy and Faerie
• Body Jewel - stolen by Lily to put in her bag
• Paper Aeroplane kit - fantastic - Aaron & Oliver are currently fighting over then (Aaron is 37 and Oliver is 6 - my money is on Oliver winning)

Thanks Patty - you have been a fab SP and I have enjoyed being spoilt by you.

Challenges all round

September is Make it Month, so I have laid down challenges for both the Kni-Wits and the Spinners.... So for the Coventry Knit-Wits the challenge is to declare to make something in September, blog their progress on the Knit-Wit blog and most importantly complete the item before the end of September. I first decided to make a Christmas gnome, like Fred. However it came to me in a flash (in the bath) that I really need to make another sock for Aaron, so that he can actually wear a pair. See the Coventry Knit-Wits to track the progress of these items.

The Spinners have a longer and a more co-operative challenge.

Alice & Bernard

Being a Froud Fan, I have had a burning desire to make a puppet/doll for a long while, one I can knit for and dress etc. Well I have been working on the needle felting and had some help from Cat & Adam, so here is ......

Alice - front and side views

They started off as bits of upolstry foam, roughly cut to shape. the noses were added separately held on by cocktail sticks.

Alice was started off using the wet felting method, which was fun, but wet and at one point I did not think it was going to take shape, but here she is.

The hair was added lock by lock and is hand-dyed Wenslyedale locks and the features were needle felted



Here is a side profile













This is Bernard, who has been needle felted from scratch usig Norfolk horn fleece. I did not bother to card it, so that it gave a natural 'knobbly' effect, which has worked a treat. Cat had a great idea with the eyebrows and beard. They are tufts of Hebridian fleece, just as it comes (well after I'd washed and combed out most of the straw)

The drunken nose was done by needle felting strands of red and purple, overfleted with more Norfolk Horn - we did not think he was going to be so good!

So - with heads complete its onto the bodies. I think I might give Alice a rather curvy well dressed look, with Bernard having a more Hobbit/farmer feel

Ideas please.....

Snake cirly Whirlies

found this on the Curly Whirly blog site - snake scarf

oosp - forgot this one...

How could I forget my dishcloth? This was knitted in bamboo stitch with a garter stitch boarder, using Lily cotton from the stash that Rachel sent me - it feels so soft.

This is a commissioned piece for a work colleague, who wanted a present for her Daughter to match her new kitchen.

The loop is simple I-cord sewn back so that she can hang it up. I thought about having a large press-stud instead of sewing the loop down so that it can be fasted to a rail if required.

Ok - now the photo thing is working - lets add the ones from my SP stash


Knitpicks purple to make a fab felted scarf!!







Fluffy Autumn stuff - on the needles for a bag












Great mesh bags that have found a purpose already to keep my stitch marker collection in check





& finally - cute little pot-its to brighten my day.....



Thanks again SP & looking forward to the felting

Update blog

So, where am I on my projects....thats a very good question, so here are the pictures

Bags are the new scarves for this season... so I've heard anyway, so bags it is as they are quick to do and I get the instant hit of starting and finishing


Bag 1 - Purple Mix, inspired by Emma King's new book - Fun & Funky Knitting - I went to her workshop @ Ottakar's in Coventry a couple of weeks ago. She makes bags and accessories. So this bag is two strands of different purple 4plys, knitted on 5.5mm needles, to her pattern. I particularly like the top edge, which is made by kintting what would normally be a purl row of stocking stitch then resuming the stocking stitch. This creates a need top edge. This bag needs finishing with a lining and contasting flowers/rossettes and handles, so still a little way to go. It should be good for a 'quick trip' to hold a purse, phone and ony other small necessaries (3 times to upload photos and counting.....)


Bag 2 - Fluffy Autumn Heaven - thanks to my new Secret Pal for this fuffy Red Heart Symphony, which has just been begging to become a bag. This one is a Kellie creation, so very much a make it up as I go along and will hopefully have the circular handles I got a couple of weeks ago. Its 52 stitches wide and a boarder of 8 stitches either side in garter stitich and stocking stitch between. It may gain a gusset round the edge to give it width, but not sure til we get there. (photos still loading, fingers crossed & I'll keep typing or I'll start biting my nails)

Glove(s) - Purple wonder - using the Lorna's Laces from my last Secret Pal stash - its a lone glove so far with all the ugly hanging threads, but it will be joined by a friend and I will write the pattern down as I crochet this time! (Still waiting on picures......may have to post without them and add them later - anyone else have this problem with blogger?????)

Finally the pictures made it!!! In the end I had to put them up one at a time

Not fair....

Its been a week now and I feel I can blog again - last week we found out that my Brother-in-Law suddenly died aged 35 of a stroke. It has taken us all by suprise especially as he died on the same day that Aaron & Oliver scattered Aaron's Dad's ashes in the sea outside Torquay Harbour.

Family and friends have been brilliant and we have been taken back by all the offers of support. As you can imagine my knitting has taken a sudden dip, with the wind blown out of my sails. Its been a strange few weeks actually, as I have done lots of little things and not really been able to throw myself into large projects....

I'm gonna do some photos tonight and I'll probably find that I have done more than I think

....until later