Lazy days

Hi there! How are you? Me? Well, I am having happy, lazy days. Really not doing much at all, and loving it. I love having my family around me at home. Especially these days, when the house is decorated and cosy, when we have a lot of good things to eat, and the kids are in a state of joy and harmony over new toys and stuff. My body has been giving me a pretty hard time lately, so it has been perfect to be able to just cuddle up somewhere. 

In spite of hurting limbs, I have managed a little knitting and crochet. This blue mohair scarf has been lying in the basket for a while, blocked and ready for an edging. The pattern had a suggested edging, but it looked weird in the yarn I used so I went through my books and found one I liked better. I was surprised that it turned out so cuddly, I had expected it to be at least a little itchy.

I was also able to finish this owl hat. It's for a baby girl, and I was asked to do it. No pattern, so I tried to keep it simple. A square hat with ear flaps (that I picked up stitches to make when the hat was done). I hope it will fit the girl... That is the hardest part when you improvise a design, that it has to fit too... :)

Now, I have a crying daughter on the floor, who wants my help to make earrings. So I better go! :)

A merry Christmas

I don't have a fancy picture or even something special to say. I only wanted to come in here and wish you a very merry Christmas. I wish you all a happy holiday, that you have loved ones to share it with, a warm and safe place to be and something yummie to eat. I have all of the above, and I feel blessed. If you don't have all those things, if you feel lonely or sad, I truly wish that you still can find some Christmas joy and peace. Life is sometimes tough, but we can always hope for a better day. Love to you all!

Another project, and another, and...

Time is just flying by... I am constantly starting new projects. And also finish a few... :) This first one was very quickly done. My first dishcloth. I was a bit sceptic when I first heard about making your own, but my husband's cousine's wife (!) convinced me that it was something really worth trying. So here it is, and it is already in use. I made it in linen, crochet with a very simple pattern that I found suiting for the yarn. Two sc's in the same stitch, skip one stitch, repeat.

And also finished is this, my latest knit work. A pair of fingerless mitts. I think I will keep making fingerless mitts forever. They are easily made, and I love wearing them. I have very cold hands... I am not sure they will all be striped though.... I am not the best when it comes to hanling more than one color!

This last one is only started. It is a hat, and these are the earflaps. My girl wanted a sparkling hat, and when I stumbled over this yarn, it was a done deal! Yes, I have been yarn shopping. These two balls, and some alpacka yarn for making wrist warmers. Yay! :) I have also blocked my mohair scarf, but I will write more about that some other time. 'Cause someone needs to make dinner, and I think that one is me! Talk to you all later!

Mother's joy

Dear friends, I am proud to present to you a new little knitter. My sweet daughter Elsa, almost eight. She asked me the other day how one knits, and I showed hee. She then declared that we would have a knitting lesson for her the next day (as in yesterday). So we did, and it didn't take many tries for her to get it right. So proud of her!

She is really committed to it, this is her this morning before school. She usually takes her time in the morning, but today she rushed things to get time to knit. :)

She had not knitted many stitches before she declared that she needed a knitting basker. Now, where on earth could she be getting such ideas from? Luckily, she found a little basket in her room that suited her work perfectly.

This might bexome an expensive story, though. I got her the kiddy needles to start with. I think they actually belong to her brother (who is more into crochet by the way). But as soon as she had her basket, she told me she needed to ger her own needles. She just couldn't borrow someone else's all the time! :) Maybe I should bring her on my next yarn hunt. Or maybe not... Either way, she is already more interested in using circular needles than regulars. She is her mother's girl! 

Never satisfied

If you knit or crochet, this won't be news to you. No matter how much yarn I have at home, I never seem to have the right kind for the next thing I want to make. I needed to cheer myself up yesterday, and decided to start a new project or two. Or five... But I just couldn't find the right yarn!

Above all, I wanted to make mitts or wrist warmers. And I want to use them at work. For that very reason, I want them in "dull" colors, like black, grey or brown. And I want them to be neat, with cables or in a lace pattern. So I would need a pretty thin yarn. I have thin yarn. But it is either striped or in some really strong colors. I have those dull colors, but only in bulky yarn... :) So I need to go yarn shopping. Poor me! :)

At least I found one project I could get started on right away. It is a scarf from a free e-book pattern I got from Knitting Daily. It's a lace pattern, but their mohair was obviously a lot thinner than the skein I found in my stash... It looked as delicate as a spider web, and mine does not. But different doesn't have to be bad, right? So I keep knitting. Although I did almost rip it up to make wrist warmers of it instead, but I think my husband lost his patience with my inabilityto make up my mind at that point (should I make this, or that, and is it really pretty, or should I...) and simply told me to keep knitting what I started. :)  So I am about half way done already. Do you like it? Or should I make wrist warmers instead? ;) 

Slippers

I am up late tonight. Trying to get tired wnough to aleep well, in spite of the ache. There is snow in the air, and it hurts. No use to try to fall asleep then... So sincee I am getting pretty bored from lying on the couch doing nothing useful, I thought I could show you what I have been up to this week.

My daughter reealized that she had no slippers, they were all too small. She didn't seem too  keen on letting me knit her a pair, and not crochwt either. So I thought maybe I could sew her a pair or two. So I did.

The first pair (or really the second pair I made) ismade in felted wool. They used to be a cardigan that actually used to fit me a long time ago. It didn't anymore, so I threw it in the washer and felted it, and kept it for the right project. Since black and grey is not what young girls dream about, I tried to spice them up a bit by stitching them with sparkling silver yarn and adding some sequins. I think I succeeded, since she even agreed tomake them her school slippers. (As you might know,kids in swedish schools do not wear shoes inside, but it does get rather cold and wet on the floors this time of the year.)

The first pair I made was also made from clothes. A fleece sweater my daughter used to wear. And I am happy to say that I only had to use the arms, so I have most of it left. These are a lot softer than the thick, sturdy felt slippers above, but I think they are perfect for lazy days under a blanket on the couch, or after an evening shower before bedtime. 

Both pairs have leather soles, made from a bag of scrap leather I bought on a market a few years ago. The pattern is from marthastewart.com, but I will tell you more once I sit down by the computer for a while. Have some pictures from when I made the first pair.

It is getting seriously late now, so I think I better get to bed now. Hopefully to get a good nights sleep. I hope you will too, once it is your bedtime! :) Good night!

A new favourite

I have finished the red sweater, and I love it dearly allready. It is soft, cosy, fits me really good, and it is red! :)

(I know, there has been a lot of pictures of me lately. I just find it hard to show the new garments any other way. )

It was an easy pattern to follow, and I will probably use it again with a few changes. I love how open it is around the neck, with a round of crochet in a bulky yarn to keep the shape. I don't know how good you can see the colours, but it goes from dark red through red to a mix of orange and red. Warm and beautiful colours, if you ask me. Wonderful yarn!

Speaking of yarn, I did tell you I was a little worried that I didn't have enough. After all, five balls are not a lot when we are talking about knitting a sweater. When the front and back were finished, I had used up about half. I thought I was on the safe side there, but the arms ate yarn! This is all I had left after making all the stitching... Enough, but not much more! Feel like playing it safe next time. :)

Do it myself?

I have been hunting for new clothes this week. I was given some money on birthday, and thought I needed a few new things in my wardrobe. Some of my old things are literally falling apart, and some days I find it very hard to decide what to wear for work. I didn't find much, since I have almost forgot how to shop for myself. :) I haven't given up shopping, but today I thought I could glance at that pattern for a tunic that I printed a long time ago. I realized the fabric I wanted was too small for that pattern. :( Maybe I'll make something shorter, maybe I will dig through my stash to find something else. Or maybe I will tuck it all away and forget all about it for a few more years. To tired today anyway.

 I would really like to make clothes for myself. But I don't know if I'm good enough. Too sloppy, probably. Or I would choose ugly fabric, that I never would wear, simply because I happened to have enough of that fabric lying around. But I really wanted to sew that tunic. In brown linen, with some pretty embroidery. Ah well, maybe another time.

Oh, I almost forgot! Again... *embarrassed* I was meaning to thank all of you who have encouraged me to go on blogging. I will, and now when it is a little simpler (and that some obviously are reading it!) it is much more fun again. I keep getting new followers, but I honestly didn't think that any of you were actually coming back on a (more or less) regular basis. Sorry about that! I must admit that I haven't visited you all yet. I did, in the beginning. Then I kind of lost track of who was new and who wasn't. I should take the time one of those tired days to walk around and get to know you all better. No promises that it will happen soon, but I would really like to know who you are, each and every one of you And thanks again, for your sweet comments!

Lovely red

Oh yes, I am already knitting something new. I am using this lovely yarn again, Baya from Creation Cheval Blanc, the same brand as the cardigan. But this is red with a touch of orange. And how I love this yarn! The colours in it lifts my heart. Now, let's hope this sweater will fit me better than the cardigan. And I dearly hope I have enough yarn! :) Yes, I only have five skeins... I guess a cheap person like me always will try to make the most out of nothing... The first skein took me to the decrease for the arms. I think three skeins will beenough for front and back, but will it be enough with one skein per arm? I dearly hope so. Ormaybe it will become a t-shirt? :D I only know one thing. I am not ripping this baby up! Love her way too much!

Something old, something new

When I bought my mobile I got an extra shell. White didn't really feel like my thing, so I have used the black. Some time ago I saw a handpainted shell on Pinterest, and I really wanted to make something like that. But since my black shell doesn't have a flat surface to give a good grip, I simply couldn't. And then a few days ago I was looking for something and found my white, shiny flat shell. I could paint!

I used regular permanent markers. It looks like I had a lot of colours, but that is only half the truth. I bought markers recently. Thin ones in black, blue, green and red. At home, we had some huge markers, in the same colours (plus purple). But when I tested them today, they were much paler than the new ones. So the red looks pink... Happy me, dark blue and red flowers only would have looked dull.

I practised a little, and then took a deep breath and started decorating my shell. Permanent is a scary thing... But it turned out alright and I finished it off with a dot with my permanent silver pen in the middle of each flower. I am now seriously in love with my mobile. :) I think my daughter is too, since she keeps touching the flowers and barely could take her eyes of the back when she borrowed it to play a game. :) You really should try this, it was so much fun! Wish I had more shells...

Edit: Help, the colour is coming off! I better get some clear nail polish or something to make it stick to the shell. :-/ I guess permanent isn't always that permanent after all...

Some bad pictures

Look, there it is! My brand new cardigan, in a pretty lousy picture... My tablet is good for much, but it doesn't take the best pictures obviously. :) But I was too lazy to get the mobile or the camera. Anyway. I used the cardigan already on Wednesday, using a pin since I had no button yet. 

But it was a bit too wide, especially over the shoulders. Compare the two pictures with me, and you can see what I mean. I made a size medium, based on the given numbers in the pattern, but an extra small would have been enough this time. Not my regular size anymore! Well, since I had to finish it before I could see its actual size, remaking it does not feel like an option.

So I came up with an idea. I grabbed some of the left over yarn (yes, I had a little less than half a ball left!) Aand a hook, and made two rows of sc's around the neck. And that made a huge difference! So now I am one happy lady with a new and very snuggly cardigan!

Enough!

This is the moment. The very moment when I felt sure that I do have enough yarn. It has been a few anxious hours, since the arms needed much more yarn than I thought. After the back and front halves were finished I thought it was a safe trip, but these  arms... 

I'm on the very last part now, the shoulders in garter stitch, binding it all together. I hope it will look good when it is done. It's not perfect. Home made with love. :) And I hope it will fit me! I can see that it is wide... So hard to choose the right size to make when the pattern only gives you one measurement... I hope I can tell you all about it soon. I can hardly put it down, so excited about getting it done. The pattern tells me to block, but I am not sure about that. I want to wear it soon!!!

Casting on

Sitting with lit candles, soft music, the husband nearby and a brand new knitting on the needles. Not much that beats that! And it's a historical moment too - I am starting a cardigan for myself. Biggest garment I have ever tried to make. Wish me luck! Especially since I am not sure that I have enough yarn. But then again, do I ever have enough yarn? :)

Testing, testing

Hi there! Yes, I am testing. I have been telling you about the trouble I have had, trying to blog on the mobile. The app is not so great, but since I do all other computer stuff onthe mobile, this blog has been neglected. But hopefully not anymore. 

Today is my birthday, andmy darling husband gave me anamazing gift, a surf pad. Or is it called a tablet? Either way, I am loving it already. It is easier to blog from, and way better when I search new patterns on Ravelry. I don't have to use that stupid blogger app anymore, even though itseems I will have to e-mail the pictures to the blog since I cannot get the uploader to work. But I can live with that. This will hopefully make me able and willing to post more often.

This was not my only gift. My daughter gave a lovely pair of ear rings formed like roses. And my son made me this amazing creation:

Is he creative or what? :) It says "congratulations" in Swedish, and then my age. I adore it! And I am so very happy about this day spent with friends and family, and the loving gifts I have received. I am a very happy 36-year-old in deed! 

Tomorrow is work day, so I better get myself and the kids in bed. See you!

First snow

Hi again! Felt like blogging... :) Several times a day or weeks between, it's supposed to be fun so I will do it when I feel like it!

The first snow has been seen today. Well, I never saw it as there was so little of it. I did see the hail though, but then it is noisier... :) Sadly, my body hates this weather. Snow, hail, rain, snow... It hurts everywhere. So I try to do things I enjoy, to forget the pain. And having fun actually eases the pain. I bet somebody has made research on that! :)

I have been struggling with some fingerless mitts, and finished them today. Except weaving in the ends, but that does not count as fun! Now I am making this shawl bigger. Thought it looked pretty, do you see that the hook and the blanket have the same colour? :)

A few thoughts

No pictures today, I'm afraid, just me and my thoughts. Hope you're fine with that.

I've been thinking a lot about this blog lately. I haven't been updating a lot lately, and it has a million reasons I guess. But the most obvious reason is that this has turned into a knit and crochet blog, and I don't knit and crochet that much anymore. Not that I don't want to, I am simply busy or too tired to get on with it. I don't work that much, but it makes me tired. And my spare time goes to tending to my family and the house. So I don't have much to show or talk about here, really. I've even thought about closing this down. But I don't really want to. So either you will see less of me around here, or I could go back to blogging about anything that comes across my mind. Or a mix of both. I know some of you will be fine with that, but I also think that a lot of (all of?) my newer followers are here mainly because of my African Flower Bag, hoping for more of the kind. Maybe some day, but I don't want to get your hopes up.

Another thing that I have been thinking about is... are you really reading what I write? I don't get a lot of comments, and I know that some friends and relatives are giving up because of me writing in English. If you are reading, please let me know! I get a feeling most people in the statistics simply browse by in search for nice patterns, not staying or reading much.

Anyway, I have been searching for patterns today. My mum was kind enough to buy me seven lovely skeins of yarn on a trip to a local yarn store. And I would love to make myself a cardigan, or something like that. But as always, it's hard to find a pattern that I like since most of them require soooo much yarn. But I think I have find a few alternatives now. I'll let you know.

Now, I have some laundry to take care of, a pair of fingerless gloves to finish and a shawl. to enlarge. It's made in lovers knots, so it will be dead simple to just pick up where I stopped and make it larger. Hopefully I'll remember to bring the hooks and the extra yarn upstairs this time. Too lazy (and somewhat tired) to hit the stairs again, once I'm up there and in the mood for some crochet.

See you later!

Oh I get by...

... with a little help from my friends.
I have been crocheting like a mad lately, but I couldn't tell you since it was all part of a surprise.
Some friends of ours have had a tough time, not lately but for years. Their oldest daughter isn't well, and it has been hard for the entire family. Now, also her little sister have a lot of problems with her health. Any parent knows how it wears you down when your kid is in pain or not feeling well. And this has been going on for years...
This family was going abroad for a week (last week), and an aunt to the kids wanted to surprise them by giving them a home make-over while they were away. Her husband had promised to paint two bedrooms for them, but she thougt that if we all came together we could do so much more. So we did!
All the bedrooms got new wallpapers, two new floors were put in, a bathroom painted, a fence built, the garden was tended to, and the entire house tidied up. Things that needed to be done, but that the family were too tired to do. Friends and family helped with what they could. Time, things or money. Well, so much could be said about this project, starting out as a "please help me clean my sister's home" and becoming a real makeover. If we all come together and do what we can, great things can be accomplished!
Well, I think you can guess what I did... :) I made flower garlands for the baby sister's room with jungle theme, a soccer cushion for the brother and an african flower cushion for the older sister. And labels for baskets in their kitchen, sewed in place with metal buttons. :) And a few other things. And helped out with some broken blinders (you know, in the windows... to keep the sun out... is it the right word?)
Was the family surprised? Yes they were! And very, very happy! :)
Take this story as an example, that we can do so much for someone if we come together and give what we have. It's a blessing to be able to put a smile in somebody's face! And it doesn't even have to be a big thing that you do! :)

Never ending scarf

Wow, it's been a week already? Time flies...

I wanted to show you the scarf I made for my daughter's friend. The one in the basket a few posts ago. Well, it was finished last weekend and handed over to its new owner on the school bus on Monday. Didn't get too many chances to snap a picture of it, since my girl put it in her school bag as soon as all the ends were fastened, but she did agree to pose a little for me. :)

I made it very simple. Three stripes, blue, yellow and green. First I thought I would knit it in the round, but since I don't like purling I decided to knit rows instead, but still on my circular needles. I was a good girl this time, knitting a little sample to see how many stitches I would need. I like making these scarfs about 140 cm wide (or long, you know what I mean). Since this was made in garter stitch, it didn't curl up at all. Yay! :D When it was all done, I stitched the two ends together. Done in just about three TV nights.

The new owner loved it, and when I picked my girl up in school the other day, I was met by the third friend with a shy smile on her face. :) My girl asked me kindly if I could make a scarf for her too... Lol! Of course I can, and I will as soon as I have finished a few other projects I have to get out of my hands first. Black and purple this time. I wonder if this will be the last one, or if I will end up knitting scarfs for the entire school? :-S Then this never ending scarf will be a never ending story... But I do love how my girl is so willing to share with her friends, and not just try to keep everything I make for her self. Love her!

A little too much

Yes, I did a little too much yesterday. I should have known and stopped in time. I guess I got carried away. Today, I don't do much at all. Tired and aching. Trying to save what strength I have for tonight when we have our kid activity Royal Rangers (kind of like scouting) and for work tomorrow.
Felt the need to feel that I achieved something little, so I pinched the tops from the basil in my kitchen window and put them in the window. Not much, but at least something.
I won't be here tomorrow, too tired after work. Probably next week. So have a lovely weekend, everybody!

A sunshiny day!

 A beautiful day, today. The sun has been shining, and I was not late to take advantage of that. And I just have to stop when I pass by my wild rose. I love rose-hips. Love the color, the red against the green. Lovely! There is so much to enjoy in the nature. I had a little break, sitting down on the porch. I watched a robin jumping around this very bush, showing off his beautiful colors too. And the sparrows, taking a splashing bath in a puddle. :)

But this is what I've been up to mostly. Planting my flowers in the new flower bed. I won't show you more than this, since it looks rather messy right now. :-S They are not all very green anymore, and all the leaves falling off the trees doesn't make the impression much better... Hopefully the result will be stunning (or at least green and filled with happy flowers) next year, and I'll show it then.

I thought the weather would be rainy and dull, so I was planning to sit in my armchair, knitting all day. I made one row, before I went outside... And do you know? I have already too few project bags... :-/ How long did I manage to keep things tidy?

This project warms my heart. My girl started using her scarf, the never-ending one. :) Her friend at school liked and wanted one. "Mum, can you knit one for her?" Yesterday she gave me a note where this little girl had written what colors she wanted. :) So I just had to start knitting. I was really planning to make a hat or mittens, but I'm not that surprised I ended up doing something else.

I got a few questions about my apples in my last post. No, they are not good for much. :) They are not the kind you just pick and eat. But as jam, in a pie or as juice they are delicious! You just have to pick them when they're ready and not wait too long (which is what I did this year). Last time I harvested (it only gives fruit every other year now for some reason) I made jam and put in the freezer. Then I gave it all to my mum, since nobody here was very keen on eating it all. I might have made just a little too much... :) And, as I did this year, I cut some into pieces ready for a pie or whatever. Wish I could have saved more apples, but it hurts so bad in my shoulders when I sit peeling and cutting them. So I am happy I got at least a few bags done. You don't see this kind very often, since they get overripe so fast the stores tend to avoid them. But when people around here were more into making jam, all the women from our little village came to this house and picked those apples. Because there was no tastier jam!

Now, my friends, I'll pull myself in the hair to get upstairs and maybe knit a few rows. Think I might have used my poor muscles a little too much today...  But I love being able to! Enjoy all the things you are able to do, and don't take life and health for granted. It's a precious gift!

What to do and what to write

Hi there, remember me? I'm the one writing here, occasionally... Wow, it really goes a long time between my posts now. Too long. I can't blame it all on the fact that I'm working now, since I mostly work only one day a week... But it is a fact that I haven't been creating much lately. I think that is changing now, I do have a lot going on. And normally when I have a "down" period on crochet and knitting during the summer, I do a lot of berry picking, making jam and that kind of thing. But I haven't at all this year. All the berries I picked was my (huge) wild strawberries from the garden, and they were never more than a handful. So I guess I've had a hard time finding something to write about. House cleaning and tidying up messy storage rooms isn't very inspiring to write about... But let's not dwell in the past. I'm here now, and I hope to show up more often.

If I didn't pick berries, I did pick our apples. Unfortunately a little late, since they were all on the ground... :/ I have done some investigation on the web today and I do believe our apple-tree to be a Transparente Blanche. Makes a delicious jam, but they get ugly as soon as you touch it (very sensitive) and they rot fast. So I guess I will have to throw most of these away. But I managed to get a few bags into the freezer, for future apple pies. 

I also picked these yesterday. The nights are getting cold now, too cold for these guys anyway. I hope at least some will turn red. If they are supposed to, I think one kind is green stripy... I got a few plants from a friend and didn't think I would get any tomatoes at all, since I don't have a greenhouse and live in a windy spot. So I'm happy either way. :) I think I'll try again next year, and try to take better care of them.

Inspiring, don't you think? It is! My neighbor has called me over twice, to get flowers that she didn't have room for anymore. Three (!!!) wheelbarrows full! So we had to dig a new flowerbed. In fact, we enlarged one that was so filled with weed that we had to do something about it anyway. My husband is amazing, not very interested in gardening himself, he dug and dug and dug... Heavy clay mud in pouring rain! That's love! Yesterday I started planting. Didn't take any pictures, since it was pretty dark when I was done. I was planning to continue today, but the weather isn't really the best...

Now, I read a comment on facebook today, about knitting mittens. Mixing wool and mohair, that really got me inspired. Have to go dig through my stash and see what I can find! Hope to be back soon (and I mean it!), probably with something containing yarn... See you all!

I love needlecases

After a period of pain, work, house tending and almost no crafting at all, I'm happy to be back again. I was meaning to share the joy over my new crochet books with you, and also the circles (becoming a bag for my kid) made from patterns in one of the books. But there was either no time or I was simply too tired... Guess you'll see less of me now, when work takes some of my time.

But now, I have something to share. I've spent the last two days organizing my (almost non-existent) needle work. Namely my beloved baskets, containing my ongoing projects.

I have made myself three more needle cases. Oh, how I love making these little things! I love choosing among my felted sheets (bought in a cheap store, no quality to speak of but sooo cheap). I love going through my box with embroidery threads, leftovers from old table cloths and tapestries. 

I start with no plan at all, letting one colour give the other, and one stitch lead the way to the next. It is ever so exiting to see the finished result. And I fall in love with them.

I love filling them up with needles of all sorts from my sewing box.

And I love forcing my family to tell which one is their favorite and why. :) Even though I can't make up my own mind. I never thought I could love a needle case more than I loved my light blue one with lilies of the valley. Now it stands between the purple and the brown. But I think I am even more in love with how different they all are. But enough bragging! ;)

I also love to organize my beautiful baskets. Each one is now supposed to have a pair of scissors, pen and note pad, needle case, measuring tape and a little jar for cut ends. Not to be removed! (Yeah right, that's just a matter of time...)

I have also made project bags. My baskets used to keep a lot of yarn from old, finished or abandoned, projects. All in a mess, entangled in each other. The plan is that I from now on don't have to carry around the entire basket when I feel like switching to another needle work, I just bring the bag to the place where I want to sit. I have placed one basket in strategic places where I usually sit. So hopefully this will be less messy, and I will always have a pair of scissors and a measuring tape at hand. Not all in one place or mysteriously missing...

I have to show you this one. The other bags were made from pillow cases, a piece of a curtain and a shirt sleeve :), but this one is more precious. I found this embroidery sample among my mother-in-laws things. I thought that I could make something of it, and so I did. I just added a back and a little canal on top for the ribbon to go through. Isn't it beautiful?

So now everything is neat and organized. All I need is some inspiration to go on with my actual projects, tucked down in my pretty baskets... Maybe my kids will help me with this. My embroidery got them inspired, so they are planning to do some of their own after school. And what could be more inspiring than to sit down and create together?

Comfy poncho

 I have been longing to show you the result of my efforts to make the yarn last for a poncho in this super bulky, chunky yarn. The original plan was to knit it in garter stitch only, but that ate up too much yarn. So I decided to try out dropped stitches, that I imagined would make the yarn last longer. (You don't really drop them, just make the stitches longer by wrapping the yarn around the needle one row, and dropping the extra wraps the next row.) And it did. But not more than enough, I used up all of my four balls of  yarn. Luckily, I had the tassel already, a left-over from a hat I made two years ago.

The poncho is knitted in one piece, a long rectangle. I haven't checked, but I think it's about 100 cm long. And 25 stitches wide... :) When it was all done, I simple stitched one of the short sides onto the long side, from the corner and in. Do you get the idea? Didn't really get a good picture of it. The stitching is right on my shoulder. The poncho is straight on my back, the only corner is this one with the tassel. Wish I had taken a picture of the back too. But I think you understand. Right? :)

I am really in love with this poncho, it's very cuddly and comfy. I was wearing it at work, and was a little worried that it would feel tight, or that the corner would get in my way as I have a desk job. But it really didn't. At all. So I've been wearing it for two days already, with joy!

True optimist

 It's not always true, but when it comes to yarn I apparently am a true optimist. I reckon any small skein or ball of yarn will take me to the moon and back. At least! :) I have four balls of this super bulky yarn, Dream from Svarta Fåret. Each ball contains 33 m (36 yards) of yarn. It's not much. I feel embarrassed when I remember that I actually thought it would last for a small poncho and a pair of simple mitts. :) Haha! After knitting up the first ball, I was afraid I would only get half a poncho... 

 I really should learn from my mistakes. But also, I love the challenge of making the yarn last in some way. Like this time. I really, really wanted that poncho. Warm and cuddly. I think the color will go so well with my jeans. :) The original plan was garter stitch on big needles. That wouldn't do. So I thought I might prolong it some by making dropped stitches. And it worked! Yippee! It made the knitted piece 25% longer, which I think will be enough.


I also went up one number in needles, from 9 mm circular to 10 mm straight. I love using circulars, but all those yo's made it really hard to get the stitches back up on the needle once they had slipped down on the cable. And the yarn really calls for 10 mm anyway... I wish I had even bigger ones, need to buy me a pair. 12 mm perhaps.

Do you see the blue rubber band on the needle? I use it to remember when to start wrapping that yarn. The pattern is so simple, just knit 4 rows, then *k1, 2 yo* for one row, and knit the stitches and drop the yo's on the 6th row. But you see, 4 rows of knitting is enough to make me confused. Now I only have to think half as much. When the rubber needle is free, I can immediately see if it's time for yo's yet or not. :) That's me.

This is a quick knit. I would have finished it today, if I hadn't ripped it all up last night. I had used up two balls, and then realized the work looked all wonky on one side. The pattern said "k1, 2 yo the entire row", so I did. Even the last stitch was followed by yo's, which apparently was a mistake. Too much yarn that did not make a straight, good looking edge. So I put the needle through the stitches before the first row of dropping and ripped it up.

I also want to remind you, do you remember that post I wrote about felting ends together? It came in very handy in this project too. No ends to weave in, how lovely is that!

My blanket-cardigan :)

I have taken some pictures for you today. Not the best ones mankind has ever seen, but at least you get a decent understanding for what I'm trying to show you. I hope! ;) I find it terribly hard to take my own picture.

My blanket-cardigan (cape sounds too... fashionable?) is really one big piece of fabric, somewhat like a blanket in size. I cut it in half, only not all the way through. I stopped a little bit after the middle of it. Then I sat blanket stitching all day...

How to wear it is truly simple. Drape it over your back, with your head in the cut and the cut pieces over your arms.

Like this. Dead simple!

This is probably how I will use mine, just throw it over my shoulders before stepping outside. The fabric is wooly, which is really all I can tell you about it. No, that's not true. I can tell you it's itchy too! :) I bought it cheap in a second-hand shop years ago, and I don't know a lot about different kinds of fabrics. But it doesn't weigh a lot, and I like that. 

If I want to drape it, it's easy to just throw one of the side pieces over the shoulder. And maybe use a pin or a brooch to keep it there.

I already had a few crochet flowers hiding in a corner, so I didn't have to make something new.

Good to have options, right? To go with the mood of the day!

But I think I prefer to have it hang loose, wrapping it around me easily. I love the idea of this "cardigan", since it will fit me just as well if I wear another cardigan (or even a coat) underneath, or just a t-shirt. It won't feel tight anywhere! :) Perfect on a cloudy day like this, in late summer.

Pretty comfy, even if my girl thought it was too itchy to wear. :) But then I get to keep it for myself! I don't mind a little itching. 

I had a walk around the garden, trying to find a decent background or a good place to put the camera. Didn't find too much of either. But I did find this little one. Did you know you can it them? At least as long as they are firm and white (no yellow inside!). Slice them thin and fry them, and you'll find they taste like pancakes! My daughter doesn't usually eat mushrooms, but she loved this one.

We still have a lot of wild strawberries, big ones. I eat a bunch every day, would hate to see them rot away. Wouldn't eat this one though... Someone else beat me to it!

And finally, a glimpse of the latest project. I have some chunky knitting going on, but as usual I seem to have too little yarn for the project I planned. :( I must be overly optimistic, or why is this happening to me all the time? Hopefully I can work it out somehow, I will keep you posted.