What a weird week!

Yes it has been a completely weird week, absolutely freezing cold one day with fires lit and woollies dug out from drawers that haven't been used for months.  Then within a day or so it has been super hot and we're all in need of sunscreen again!!  So on those cold nights it has been so nice to add a few more squares to my blanket as it can keep me warm while I work.  For this pic, I had draped it over the sofa and it looked fantastic in a very retro kind of way.  But it's still a long way off being finished.  I think I've calculated that I need a total of 48 squares to cover a queen size bed.  Eeek - I hope I've bought enough wool to do the job!

I just about went nuts this week trying to make some wristwarmers from a pattern I've had for ages.  I spent last Sunday afternoon having a go at this pattern, then unravelling and doing it again.  Over and over - I think I wasted 3 hours before I gave up completely.  I just couldn't get it to work, I still don't know what the heck I was doing wrong.  So I decided to make something up myself and it worked first time!!  Thank goodness I had decided to scribble down what I was doing so I could remember when it came to making the second one!

They fit really well and will be a snuggly addition to my winter wardrobe.  I had loads of this deep navy coloured wool so a matching cowl was made too.  So if by chance you are as blonde as me and want a nice easy wristwarmer pattern - here's one to try.  It's in US terms and I used a 4.25mm hook with 8ply wool.  This fits a smallish sized hand, so just use a larger hook for larger sizes.

Ch27 and join with slip stitch to form circle.  Or if you're like me and always get this twisted, then don't join it up until the end of Round 1, then stitch in the tail when you're finished (soooo much easier!!).

Rd 1:  Ch2 then 1HDC in each stitch around.  Join with slip stitch.

Rd 2:  From this round onwards you will work into the spaces rather than the stitches.
Ch2 then 1HDC in each space around.  Join with sl st.  Repeat Rd 2 until required length from arm to wrist, then join with sl st.

Next round: Ch3 then in the same space 1DC, Ch1, 2DC.  *Skip 3 chain spaces then in the next space 2DC, Ch1, 2DC*.  Repeat from * to * around then join with sl st.

Next round:  Slip Stitch into next stitch then Ch3, 1DC into Ch1 space from previous round, Ch1, 2DC into same space.  From here on you will be making your stitches into the Ch1 space from the previous round,  *2DC, Ch1, 2DC*, repeat *to* to end of round, joining with a sl st.  repeat this round until you reach your desired length and fasten off.

For my smallish hand I made a total of 12 rows of HDC and then 5 rounds of the fan pattern.  I wanted the wrist part to be nice and snug.  The fan pattern gives it a bit of stretch so you're hand won't feel restricted.

10 more pairs of earrings almost ready to add to my little shop!  I love every single pair, so it's difficult not to keep them all.  The sooner I get them listed the better really!  Otherwise they might find their way into my jewellery box. 

Miss 4 and I had fun on Friday decorating hair clips with ribbon and sparkly bits and pieces.  She gave me a lesson on how to use a glue gun properly as they have them on their craft table at kindy.  How cute are these??  I think she did a fabulous job attaching all the sparkles.  My favourites are the red ones with the big purple glittery discs.  We might have to make some more of these, they'll make brilliant gifts for her little friends.

A few op shop treasures were found this week also.  My favourite being a black merino wrap dress (which just wouldn't co-operate for a picture!).  But these fabulous books were also a lovely find.  My brother used to read Beano when he was little so even though this is from 1989, my wee guy is loving it.  The Rupert book is gorgeous - it looks brand new and my small folk are loving having it read to them.

Caterpillar update .... this wee guy had us worried all afternoon on Thursday because we couldn't find him on the swan plant.  We came to the conclusion that a hungry bird must have spotted him and grabbed him for a meal.  But a few hours later we spotted him, a very long way from his original spot.  He had crawled all along my vege garden then found his way to our solar powered fairy lights.  Yes that's a light right beside him.  So before he disappeared into his little cocoon, he was just dangling there uncovered.  He must have got a heck of fright when the lights came on that evening!!  He seems happy enough thank goodness.  We have to wait patiently now and hopefully we won't miss him on his grand exit.  We missed him turning into this little beauty - it happened so quickly!

And to end my week, I had some lovely news from Karen telling me that I had won her fantastic giveaway!! I couldn't believe my luck.  Thank you Karen - it really made my day.

Well that's me for now.  Have a fabulous week, see you again soon.
Leah
xxxx

A week of things to make me smile!

I apologise in advance if this post is a bit lengthy! I only do one post a week and this week, it's been pretty full on so I have lots of things to write about. This morning, I popped into town to meet a girlfriend at Moore Wilson's (a fabulous wholesale store which regularly tempts me with all its gorgeous kitchen bits and pieces). This amazing ice display has just been created outside the store as part of "Wellington on a Plate", which is a month of food based events. Isn't it fantastic? Fresh produce sealed in huge blocks of ice. Thankfully we are having fairly chilly temperatures here, so hopefully this wonderful piece will last for a while!

We treated our family to one of the events, which was a gourmet food/steam train excursion. It was brilliant!! I was so excited to go on a steam train - there is something so charming about them, the noise of the engines, the whistle and toots, the gentle rock of the carriages ... We had the most wonderful day - plenty of lovely foodie treats and gorgeous countryside to chug through. The journey was from Otaki to Feilding and back. Here are a few pics from both inside and outside the train. When we got off the train, it was continuing on its journey and we were lucky enough to find ourselves right beside it along the main road. Mr 6 and Miss 4 had a total blast - as did the grown ups!! I just wish I had taken my vintage crochet bag with me, then I could have sat there like an old nana with my hooks!

Not a lot of progress on my blanket this week as have had lots of hat orders to complete. I was having a wee play the other night, trying to work out what, if anything, I could pop onto the boys hats. The girls hats look gorgeous with flowers but the newborn boys hats looked a little plain. I ended up creating this cute wee bear and he looks adorable. I've even managed to decipher my pattern scribbles if you fancy making one. I used a 4.5mm hook and double knit for this particular one and he measures approx 4cm across his face (not including ears). Any size hook will do. And it only uses up a tiny bit of wool so great for little leftover pieces you have. This is using US stitch terms.

For the face:
Rd 1: Ch3 then join to first chain with sl st.
Rd2: Ch2, 10hdc into ring. The ring will be small so you may need to jiggle it a bit to find the centre.

Rd3: Ch2, 1hdc into same stitch, then 2hdc into every stitch. Join with sl st to top of first Ch2. Do not fasten off just yet.

Now for the ears:
Sl st into next stitch. Into the same stitch Ch1, hdc, 3dc, hdc, sl st. Fasten off.

Working towards the left now, skip 4 stitches. Insert hook into 5th stitch and draw yarn through.

Ch1, hdc, 3dc, hdc, sl st into same stitch. Fasten off. Tidy ends and now you can make his wee face.

Using contrast thread stitch eyes ...

... nose and mouth. And there you go - a cute wee bear face. Just what my little hat needed!!

We had an after school play date with some friends so Miss 4 asked if we could make cupcakes. Violet icing was especially requested and boy they looked nice. We had some fondant hearts in the pantry that we made a while ago so Miss 4 carefully popped one on each cupcake. They didn't last long once all the friends arrived!! I was quick enough to get a pic before they got eaten - they looked lovely sitting on my dear Nana's cake stand. In the past I have kept all my china treasures in a cabinet and rarely used them. But since the terrible earthquakes that ravaged Christchurch in February, I have read many stories about people losing their entire china collections and that everyone should use their special pieces on a daily basis and enjoy them. One lady had said that it was better to use something special and break it yourself than have it broken by a force of nature. So I am taking her advice!!

I recently spotted this cowl pic in a magazine and have now added it to my to-make list! I'd better get a wriggle on though or summer will be here and I'll have to wait 6 months before I can use it. It's similar to something I've already made, but different enough to make me want to give it a go!! Another thing added to my to-make list is a tiny tea cosy to go over a gorgeous little red teapot I have just picked up for a bargain - just the thing to use when I'm by myself with a quiet cuppa.

My dear friend Ange has just been away for the week and when we caught up yesterday, she gave me this gorgeous Russian doll that she found on her travels! I love, love, love it! The doll is now sitting on my kitchen shelf and she looks fabulous - such bright, cheerful colours. How lucky am I? And talking about Russian dolls ...

When I was at Moore Wilson's this morning I spotted this little gem. It's an egg poacher!! And for less than $10 I had to have it. Apparently you pop your egg in the bottom half, sit the top half lightly on top and microwave for one minute. Utterly fabulous and oh so cute!!!

Only one op shop treasure to show you this week - this lovely little pale green jar. For $2.50 it makes a fab little vase. I did also get a wonderful winter jacket/coat for $7.00 brand new - how ridiculous is that! Will try and get a pic to show you next week.

And just a silly wee thing to end with, but something that totally made me smile ... my new socks, 1 pair stripey, 1 pair spotty. Talk about happy looking feet!!

Wow I have gone on a bit, so I will end now. I hope you all have a fabulous week.

Take care,
Leah
xx

Lots of crochet and my first pattern!

I made one of these lovely wee jar covers for my very first crochet project last year. I haven't made any since, but today I had a bit of free time while the rest of the family were at the local pool. I decided to make another one with some lovely wool I have been using recently. It is quite a firm wool so feels more like a cotton in some ways, and it is perfect for this little cover. When my little ones got home, they both agreed that these stripes would be really nice as a hat. So they have put in their requests for what colours and styles they want!

Lovely rainbow-y stripes!

Just a quick cushion update .... I started joining them yesterday but forgot to take a pic of it all joined. So here is one after joining the horizontal rows. I have joined these squares with a raised join as I wanted a bit more texture to this one. I love the result! I'm sure there is a perfectly good crochet term for this but I don't have a clue what the stitch would be called!!! I am still on the hunt for either some merino fabric or a jersey to use on the back. Fingers crossed I find something this week as I'm bursting to get it finished. Tomorrow my small folk are going to help choose the buttons from our big button jar. These woolly cushions are so warm to snuggle up against! I adore them.

I am loving this long Easter weekend! I have been able to grab a bit of extra time to crochet which has been fab. The weather hasn't been so great so it's a good excuse to stay inside with my hooks, oh and lots of chocolate too! I think next week I will have to have a bit of vege fest to feel healthy again.

As we head into winter, it's so lovely to find monarch butterflies still in the garden. This gorgeous butterfly sat and posed quite happily for me. They really are the most stunning creatures aren't they?

And now, here's my first pattern! It's not exactly a tricky one, but something that gets lots of compliments whenever I wear mine.

I have been meaning to pop this on my blog for a while but kept forgetting to take pictures while I was making one. So this weekend I finally did it. It's a little pattern I have done to make a fab necklace. It's a fairly simple thing to make but to people who don't crochet, it looks difficult. I have given quite a few of these to friends to 'road test' and they all really like them. They look great over a plain t-shirt. You can make it any length you like, so you can wear it doubled or tripled around your neck. The possibilities are endless - colour, length, yarn etc. I have gone for just a single strand here to show you.

I have never written a pattern before so fingers crossed this makes sense!!! I have tried to take pics of each step. I'd love to hear what you think of it. So here goes ...

I have used thin crochet cotton and a 1.3mm hook for this example - and I am using US terms.

Firstly, chain 25. Try and keep your chain fairly tight.

Insert hook into the 5th chain from hook and sl st to form a small ring.

The ring will be fairly tiny so you might need to give it a wiggle to gently find the centre.

Make 8dc into ring. At this point your original chain length will be coming out of the bottom of your work (see below).

You now need to move your chain in a clockwise direction so it is now at the top of your work (see pic below). This will ensure that you have a nice even entry/exit chain coming out of the circle/round that you have created.Make another 8dc into ring. Join with a sl st into the top of your first dc. You have now completed your first 'circle'!

Now you chain 25 again ...... and repeat the above instructions until you have reached your desired length. Join your last 'circle' to your initial chain and fasten off.And there you go, a cute wee necklace! You can go as crazy as you like with colour, or even add some small beads or buttons to the centre of the circles perhaps? And if you want the circles to be smaller, just use a smaller stitch, an hdc works well too.

I hope that all made sense!

Have a fab week.

Leah