14 Monday May 2018
Posted in Beanies, Hats, Johannesburg, Knitting, winter
Tags
beanie, Beanies, cables, Hats, Johannesburg, knitting cables, knitting hats, Pompoms, winter
Just a quick update. 🙂
I finished the cabled beanie for myself on the weekend. And just in time.
I woke this morning to a very wet and chilly Johannesburg.
Happy crafting to all, and those down south, winter is here, keep warm. 🙂
09 Wednesday May 2018
Posted in Beanies, Embroidery, Hats, Knitting, on my needles, Stitching, Work in progress
Tags
Beanies, embroidery, handknitted, handknitting, handmade, Hats, Knitting, knitting hats, Stitching
It is very noticeable just how much you start to craft and feel like crafting once the weather turns, and you are cozy and comfy in a spot of sunlight on a chilly Fall day.
That is how is feels to me at least. During summer I did craft, but I think a lot less. Now I am on a roll again.
I have cast on a quick hat, I think I want this one for myself.
Cabled Beanie
And I even stitched this little kit that I had. I had not done embroidery for a while, and loved it. I tried to keep the black lines of the design to give it a little different look. Normally I cover the design lines and wash them out. But I think this works.
Embroidery kit
The crocket “Woodpecker” blanket is coming along too, I should even be using it this winter when the really colder weather arrives.
20 Thursday Apr 2017
Posted in Beanies, Crochet, Cross Stitch, Embroidery, Johannesburg, Knitting, project bags, Road trips, Scarf, sewing, Shawls, Socks, Stitch Markers, Stitching, travelling and events, Wrap, yarns
Tags
embroidery, fabrics, Knitting, new store, out and about, quilting, shopping, stitches, stitches emporium, tapestry, yarns
Last weekend was a lovely long weekend, and I was invited along to visit a new yarn shop that has just opened.
The new shop is in Kyalami, at Kyalami Corner, and although not close to my home, a very easy drive, freeway all the way there.
The lovely Gen, the owner of the store, treated us extremely well. She has a large work table in the store, and there is coffee and tea if you are in the mood to linger and get creative. Looking at her beautiful yarns and displays I would think many a shopper would be lingering for a while.
Stitches Emporium at Kyalami Corner in SA
Stitches Emporium at Kyalami Corner in SA
I came home with a stunning haul of goodies, and I can hardly wait to get another opportunity to take a drive out to the store again, for a cup of coffee and a chat and some stash enhancements.
Goodies from Stitches Emporium @ Kyalami Corner in SA
We were wonderfully surprised with a free gift as well. Just look at this pretty bag. It is hand printed fabric, and beautifully lined.
11 Thursday Aug 2016
Posted in Beanies, cowl, Hats, Knitting, on my needles, winter, Work in progress, yarns
Tags
autumn, beanie, cowl, daughter, handmade, Handmake, Knitting, mittens, on my needles, speckled yarn, speckledyarn, winter, yarns
Knitting is definitely happening.
Finished a quick pair of speckled mittens for my daughter and another beanie for my son in law.
I dropped by my local Yarn Shop, and I just could not resist these. They are nice and soft and a bit on the bulky side.
Of course, they seemed to have already found their way onto my needles. I will probably be knitting more summery goodies soon, as the days here are already getting warmer, but for now I am quickly doing a few last warm winter goodies.
Happy crafting all.
15 Friday Jul 2016
Posted in Alpaca Yarn, Beanies, Cross Stitch, Embroidery, Handmade Bears, Hats, Knitting, on my needles, Uncategorized, winter, Work in progress, Wrap
Tags
alpaca, autumn, beanie, bear, bears, bunny, ceramic, ceramics, cross stitch, daughter, embroidery, fairies, handmade, handmade bear, Handmake, Knitting, lace, make-over, manos, miniature bear, mittens, paint, speckled yarn, speckledyarn, stellarfibreworks, tiles, winter, yarns
It has been my annual Winter Break and I have enjoyed the break so much.Getting away from the busy work and office is sometimes just what a person needs.
Miekie and I both enjoyed to lazy cold mornings, and spent the time having lazy, slow breakfasts before we started the day.
I got time to catch up on some reading, specially on some of my loved magazines.
The usual amount of knitting definitely took place. My Alpaca Wrap is now already half way there. I finished a Manos del Uruguay beanie for my son in law, and have another on the needles for him. And my daughter is getting matching mittens to wear with her speckled wrap.
With me being home and able to work during the sunnier parts of the day, I could also work on more delicate projects. One of these were these little fairies in cross stitch. According to the instructions of the kit, you only stitch areas you want to highlight. What a lot of fun they are. Nearly done, and then I will frame them and find a special place for them.
Wilbur the Bear is now no longer a kit sitting on the table. I cut the pattern pieces and am ready to start stitching him together. I want to add a few things, and have gotten cute silk ribbon roses and antique looking buttons as well. I suspect Wilbur will be a girl bear in the end and may need another name.
This wooden box had been around my home for a bit, being used on the odd occasion for this and that. I finally decided to put it to proper use, give it a complete makeover and keep it around. So with rather a lot of layers of paint, I was able to smooth it over, and stop it from showing up a nasty stain through each layer of paint. Finished it off with a bit of pretty lace and a cute ceramic bunny. Now I can keep it around for any little project or storage. Sometimes these little wooden boxes are all you need.
While waiting for a friend the other day to arrive for a cup of coffee and a chat, I ended up browsing in a little shop. I could not resist these cute tiles. I think I will use the smaller ones as memo magnets and the bigger one will be just perfect for a mug cozy.
Little Ceramic Tiles
17 Friday Jun 2016
Posted in Alpaca Yarn, Beanies, cowl, Hats, Johannesburg, Knitting, My home, on my needles, Rowan Kidsilk yarns, Scarf, Shawls, Uncategorized, winter, Wrap
Tags
alpaca, beanie, cowl, daughter, foggy, glitter, handmade, Handmake, Johannesburg, knitpro zing, Knitting, lace yarn, manos, manosdeluruguay, misty, rowan kidsilk, rowan yarn, sparkle, speckledyarn, winter, winterwrap, Wrap, yarns
Winter has now arrived and settled in good and properly. We have even had a few very cold and eerily foggy misty days. I loved it. This is definitely the most favourite time of the year for me.
These are just a little view of how it looked, the photos of the roads was in the afternoon going home, and the others were taken in the mornings when I arrived at my place of work. And yes, we drive on the “other side” of the road for those who may have wondered. 🙂
It did then also mean lots of knitting and crafting. I finished the dark grey cowl for my daughter. She really got cute yarn, and the speckles in this dark one is even prettier and brighter than the previous one.
Of course, new WIP’s are on the needles as well. I started another beanie for my son in law, in lovely warm Manos del Uruguay. It is knitting up so fast. And I started a wrap for myself. This is Alpaca yarn from Turkey and I am absolutely loving it.
Rare Earth Beanie
When I dropped in at my LYS during last week, they had Rowan Kidsilk available at a discounted price. How awesome. I simply could not resist getting these dark jewel colours, each with a bit of sparkle of its own. Then I also spoiled myself with some new KnitPro Zing needles, in the smaller sizes, ideal for lace and sock knitting. They were a bit extensive compared to others, however I just know they will be worth the price.
If you are using these needles already, let me know what you thought of them. 🙂
Happy crafting all.
08 Wednesday Jun 2016
Posted in Beanies, Crochet, Hats, Knitting, My home, My pets, on my needles, Scarf, sewing, Shawls, travelling and events, Work in progress
Tags
crochet, daughter, handmade, Handmake, Knitting, lace, lace knitting, lace yarn, Little black Dog, scarf, Shawl, vintage, yarns
Here I am! Back Again!
I had a little medical emergency that landed me in hospital for a week. And then another week at home resting up. But I am all well and healthy and on the way to recovery. I have DVT (Deep vein trombosis) and could not walk, but I’m back on my feet now and making very good progress. I had a nice window and could see a little bit of garden outside. The weather was cold and some days were cloudy. I was very well looked after and the treats and snacks were just superb.
Of course my little doggie had to go and visit with my daughter and son in law, and she absolutely love being with them, but I did get the impression she was much happier keeping my legs warm when I returned home again.
I got a lot done, I must admit. I knitted my daughter’s light grey speckled cowl, and cast on a dark grey speckled cowl as well. And I started a beanie for my son in law.
I was able to finish the little tapestry I was working on. I am thinking I want to make a project bag maybe, and have the tapestry as part of it. I also blocked my lacy leaf shawl and vintage look doily, and the doily is already in use.
Of course I also had lots and lots of time to read, and I absolutely loved these 2 books that I had time to work through from beginning to end.
These are beautiful, and I intend using some of the new ideas and techniques in them that I found very interesting. One always seem to learn something new somewhere in a day.
Happy crafting to you all.
30 Monday Nov 2015
Posted in Beanies, Blanket, Crochet, General, Hats, Knitting, on my needles, Work in progress
Tags
bamboo, bamboo crochet hooks, Barley Hat, blanket, bridger cowl, cozies, crochet, crochet hooks, Handmake, Knitting, knitting needles, Mugs, needles, straight needles
Just a quick update this morning. I have been pretty busy with smaller projects, and I am happy with my progress so far. It is so satisfying to complete things, and even so fairly quickly.
I finished the Bridger cowl, and cast on for the Barley hat, which is going just as fast.
I did a bit more crochet, and made these cozies for my mugs. I used little wooden buttons to open and close the loop for when I am washing the cups.
The blanket made a little bit of progress, as I completed another pattern on it.
And I even got around to visiting my LYS and was pleasantly surprised with all the new tools and goodies they had in stock. Just in time. I could not resist these new goodies, and got myself some crochet hooks with a light that can be switched on / off. A stunning bamboo crochet hook, a new Tunisian crochet hook, and some really pretty metallic straights.
24 Friday Jul 2015
Tags
basket, beanie, cables, crochet, hat, inside out, make-over, pimpelliese, pixel stitch, Shawl, socks, travelling cables, yarn floats
After a rather slow start, and a restart, as I found a little error on my Pimpeliese shawl, I finished it . It is a super great pattern, and knitted very quickly once I got the hang of it. The weather was not to warm, and I had to wait for a bit of sunnier days before I could block it and make sure it dried. But it is done! And turned out pretty neat.
I also finished the Travelling Cable Hat beanie I was working on. Super pattern, specially since I really love knitting cables.
I had given this old basket of mine a make-over some time ago, but could not find the right handles I was looking for. But being persistent, I found these handles, and they seem pretty okay on the basket. Now I can use it again, and carry my WIP’s around in it.
And of course, what is knitting without having a pair of socks on the needles. This is my first “big” colourwork knit, and I am enjoying it tremendously. I am knitting the socks inside out, which is pretty funny, but it is the only way I could figure out how to ensure the floats are even and not to tight. They are for my daughter and she has tried them on a few times now to ensure the fit is still good.
10 Friday Jul 2015
I love the colder winter months here. Winter has settled in. So that means a little more knitting than normally as well, or at least, I think so.
My Pimpelliese Shawl is going pretty good now, and no more little mistakes, so no frogging.
Also on my needles are goodies not for me. The one is the Travelling Cable Hat beanie for my son in law. This is knitting up so fast and lovely. I adore knitting cables, and this pattern is pure pleasure. I hope to even finish it on the weekend for him.
And once you knit socks, you always seem to have a sock or a pair of socks on the needles somewhere. This time its for my daughter. She saw the pattern on my work table, and immediately asked for pairs in various colours. I started on a blue pair first. The pattern is Pixel Stitch Socks from Purl Soho.
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