Friday, July 22, 2011

lots of making and finishing

Well the holidays are coming to an end but i think i have done well and have done lots of stuff.
Little Ma and I have been cleaning out cupboards and giving lots of stuff to our local Salvos. We have de-cluttered and rearranged things so now have a bigger pantry for all the important yummi things like the preserved peaches i did last summer.
Have also cleared the old chicken coop and am in the progress of building a new and improved one for the girls so hopefully will have that done soon still in the designing stage. Funny how long that stage takes. Little Ma keeps changing her mind but think we are on to an idea for a cosy coop. We were inspired by a you tube video where a woman converted an old school desk into a coop. Will try to find the link and post that soon is so forth a look.

During the colder parts of the day have been sitting in front of our sunny window and been knitting.
These are my twin sister hats which i loved doing. I hand spun the wool ages ago and used to different colours of wool while spinning it which produced the variation. I had previously made a shawl with it but recently decided beanies are what needs to be made with that type of wool. Was fun knitting them as the colours on top came up differently on top like a ying and yang. lol




I have also been finishing some of my unfinished projects. This is a bag i felted ages ago so have added a lining and a handle to finish it. Have named it my monster bag.



This is a skirt i knitted ages ago and have been at a loss as to how to finish it to make it fit better. I had crochet the band but was not tight enough and kept slipping down. Last holidays tried using some ribbon but became complicated and put it back on the pile of unfinished. Until recently when Little Ma suggested using a technique which cages a piece of elastic in but still allows stretch. Was really quick and am so happy with how it looks and fits now.





Its back to uni on Monday so am going to us every free minute of my weekend to do crafty stuff because don't think i'll have much time for it when it all starts again.
Happy crafting!

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Holidays are finally here!

Well exams are over and results are out and i am very happy.
Actually I lie holidays started as of the 3rd of July but in true geology style there was a field trip to Fowlers Gap from the 4th to the 9th. This was a weird thing as it was for a semester 2 course which we have not even started. But it is the only time it could be squeezed in to the schedule and field trips are an invaluable resource to a students learning. I must say it was a good trip despite the freezing cold temperatures and the mice in our tent. However I did survive the ten hour bus trip up and back and am now currently sitting in a comfy warm bed with knitting needles close by and a cup of tea in hand. This was one of the many stunning view we had while trekking though the Australian landscape.



Know while studying for my exams i did have a slight laps in concentration from the books when my sis complained of cold fingers in the morning on her walk to the bus. So I took a short break from my desk and relocated to the couch with knitting needles and some wool. This was the product of a couple of days work involving continued fittings and some imagination and maybe a few rows of undoing. But that is the true test of a good knitter, the ability to still smile while undoing a few hours of work. lol She is much warmer now and i am pleased to have gotten a bit of productive knitting in which eased the stress of study. I ran a simple cable through the top which I think just adds the finishing touch.




This was something that awaited me in my garden when i returned from my trip and i must same it is amazing the colours one can find with such cold weather.



These are also a quick knit up Little Ma did while I was away. A friend brought the wool over and asked if she would do her some gloves to also fight of the cold chill that Adelaide has been experiencing.



At the moment I, as always have lots of projects on the go, but am working on a pair of gloves for my brother. He saw the creation above, the black ones not he fluffy pink ones lol, and decided he too needed some homemade gloves. I am enjoying doing them because as usual i am making up the pattern as i go and it is actually looking very good. I must say i really like winter as gloves are such a great thing to knit.
I hope to do lots of finishing of projects this week so hopefully will have more things to blog.
Happy crafting