Life is chaotic and overwhelming at the moment. Seeing and knitting help me escape but having too many things on makes me anxious. I’m trying to make an effort at least one day a week to concentrate on “goodbye” rather than “hello”
For no reason other than i like the alliteration ive chosen Wednesday. I guess “finish it Friday” would have worked just as well but i can’t see me having the time on Friday as I have taxi commitments since my teenager hasn’t past his driving test yet.
This is something i finished last Wednesday. Its either late from last Christmas or making a very early start on next !
This week Im working on a cardigan which just needs its ends sewn in, soaking and blocking. Photo to follow if i can get to grips with how to add them to WordPress. I’m a bit out of practice
June was spent not knitting mainly due to badly bruised left hand. 
I finished this quite promptly, it’s just been sitting here for almost a month as I need to find the courage to mount it properly and stick it in a frame. The recipient’s birthday was in June…but he’s used to me and my time keeping.
Pattern :Banksy Change
I must admit I was getting a bit fed up by the end…but it looks quite effective.
Now I fancy a change…
I have always loved valentine’s day but in other ways I loathe it.
When I was younger I hated it because of the way it made those who didn’t get a valentine feel…absolutely wretched. I felt that way earlier in the week on someone else’s behalf…actually it was more guilt.
The handing out of invitations to Spider and Flapjack Princess’ joint birthday party fell on valentines day. Whilst Spider and FJP ran around trying to locate the correct person to give an envelope too, I was stood in the class line next to this slightly older child (they are in a mixed year class) with a mop of yellow hair and the most startling blue eyes. And I saw those eyes turn from hopeful to disappointed in the space of 5 minutes…and I felt awful and it reminded me of how I felt year after year on valentine’s day.
I told myself that you can’t invite everyone. There is a health and safety limit of 20 children and for that matter why should I feel guilty, Spider’s only been to 1 party since this time last year…but I was still haunted by those eyes because I knew how he felt.
Later I asked Spider who he was, “him, oh he’s new. He only joined our class afer christmas”. Made me feel a little better, but mainly because it excused me from the fact I didn’t know his name.
So Valentines Day. How can I like it when I know how miserable it can make people ? Well I don’t like the commercialism of it, the plastic tackyness. What I like is all the different ways people find to express how they feel. Growing up I waited all year for the valentines in the Guardian, read every single small print one and tried to imagine what happened next.
Always been a bit disappointed in the valentines I did get…very predictable. Apart from the time we celebrated with egg and chips and champagne. Oh and there was the man who bought me a frying pan…but then I ended up marrying him !
Husband, after the first time made it clear that he didn’t celebrate this day. Why should he express his love on just one day a year ? I can go with that. I still celebrated…had to, I got roped it to making a card for Spider to send to FJP and of course Spider had to have something from me
and it’s different for me…it’s not knitted…but it’s not my idea (Handmade)
Had I had more time I would have liked to have tried some of this guerilla valentines
On tuesday Husband and Spider bought me red tulips
I am supposed to be finishing off some small projects, promises I’ve made and not yet kept ( a bag for Ms Z, mittens for E and a hat for Tom the Cabin boy who has joined the merchant navy as an officer and leaves us in January)but I can’t concentrate, there is a siren voice calling me from under the bed…It’s my Brother…My Brother PS31…
To Be Frank…I can’t sew. Oh I know the basics. Did you see Kirstie’s Handmade Christmas where she boasted about having been one of the girls who learnt textiles at school and her patchwork tutor pointed out that quite a lot of us were girls who were taught textiles at school…what she didn’t say was that, this doesn’t necessarily mean we know how to sew.
The basics for me, as I’ve mentioned before include 2 cushions, a ball gown, a roman blind and a pair of curtains – oh and several skirts but none of them really fit – and that’s the point really. If you are going to sew your own clothes then they need to be better than what you buy in the shops in that they actually FIT your shape.
So that is my aim for next year to teach myself to sew… one of the side benefits is that it will give me something I can share with my Mum. We always shared the fact we could knit, but now I feel it’s a bit of a cruel act, me talking about my knitting, when Mum, who taught me to knit can’t really participate (although she did make Spider a lovely jumper just before christmas – she can do chunky knits without too much pain)…
In the meantime a bit of stitchery (2012 I’ll try proper embroidery and possibly crochet!!) – by and large cross stitch doesn’t excite me because a lot of the patterns are a bit twee so my cross stitch excursions are few and far between – this one was for Spider’s teacher…
My son is getting married…apparently…at some point in the future…and I will be staying at home to look after his children. He and Flapjack Princess have it all worked out. They will live in the house next door, the one between Currant Bun Towers and Flapjack Heaven…don’t think they consulted Mr and Mrs W though who currently live in the house !
So thought I’d start the way I intend to continue and have knitted my future daughter in law a jumper for christmas…except I actually think this is a quite a nice jumper but then it is another Kate Davies design(like Manu) so how can it not be…
Pattern: Owlet, the child version of the owl jumper
Needles: 6mm circular
Yarn: I have no idea what this was. A work colleague donated a bag of wool to me, most of which was this pink chunky acrylic. Until I saw Owlet I had no idea what to do with 400g of thick pink wool (this house is male dominated remember). The yarn looks better as a jumper than it does as a ball and knits up very very soft.
New: Knitting for my daughter in law…oh and I’ve never mixed embroidery and knitting before but I didn’t have 28 matching buttons in the house (there are 14 owls all who need eyes) and I haven’t been out for awhile.
Last week was pretty stressful, Thursday as mentioned probably worst of all so it was all the nicer for a surprise package turning up in the post. Mrs Lacer sent me this little chap (and a bar of chocolate) to help me keep my spirits up whilst we waited to hear about the cuts.
He reminds me of a christmas card I received once from Norway, definitely a woodland sprite, and perfect for my soon to be redecorated bedroom where he will have pride of place – thank you Mrs L, he’s perfect.
Sometimes things take longer than expected…but usually its the preparing yourself to take action that takes the time and things never seem quiet so bad once you start. Take my brother’s christmas present for example, its taken me 5 months to admit to myself that I needed to start again but once started things went quiet well.
It’s a design from another book of celtic cross stitch from Leamington Spa library, which I would tell you the name of if the book wasn’t upstairs and I wasn’t collapsed on the sofa downstairs (12 days down 44 to go)…the general opinion at the weekend was that it was reminiscent of aboriginal dot paintings, which was OK cos Big Brother quite likes that, in fact probably more than he likes celtic stuff so things seem to have worked out ok in the end.
Unfortunately the same cannot be said for my photography skills. I have found the SLR unfortunately I have forgotten how to use it (too many buttons and dials) as I’ve been using the little nikon point and shoot for so long…so if my brother happens to read this in the not too distant future and fancies providing me with a better photograph it would be much appreciated !
Technology doesn’t like this family at the moment, the laptops are acting up and the car is followed by a strange smell. Its typical though the fates give you a good card (new job for Husband) with one hand and deal you a bad one before you’ve had time to celebrate the good card !
My little point and shoot digital camera has broken which is annoying as I have several things that I need photos of before they get given away tomorrow.
We are having a small family get together as one member of the family has an upcoming birthday…more amazingly though I have finally finished my brother’s christmas present. I’m feeling a bit smug because although it’s 6 months late it is actually much much better than the original present (made from a kit)…except I have 2 rough edges to sort out before I see him at lunchtime tomorrow…I need to find away of disguising that I bodged putting a back on it.
Fortunately I do have an SLR so photos can happen at some point tomorrow if I can remember where I put it when I cleaned last week
***BIG SPOILER ALERT IF YOU ARE OVER 40, MALE, RELATED TO ME AND STILL HAVEN’T RECEIVED YOUR CHRISTMAS PRESENT !!!
On my “craft table” next to the sewing machine I have an in-tray where abandoned projects come to die. 
There are several ways that something can end up in here the easiest way is to be broken, to have something that has to be done which I haven’t got around to doing yet, like say mending, sewing a button on, alternatively I may have run out of essential supplies and am waiting for the bits to finish things off (I have a bad habit of starting things before I have all the materials to hand) and the final way is for something to have gone badly and horribly wrong – this last category is mainly comprised of projects involving craft techniques that I have no previous knowledge of, experience and as quickly becomes apparent, no talent for !
Yesterday on my day off I decided to clear the in-tray. This decision admittedly was mainly prompted by a friend of mine answering the phone with the words “Hello, so you are still alive !” I haven’t seen KTCupcake since Christmas, mainly because her present has been in the in-tray waiting to be finished.
First up, a spot of mending. This lovely bag was a present for Spider from his Auntie Islay. It split down the seams and simply required to be seamed on the sewing machine…I now need to find a complete one so I can work out how the handle works…
Then a needlecase from Sew: Cath Kidson for “Long Lost Cousin Cath” in Australia, made to accompany the pin cushion I’d made to remind her of a trip we made together (the hedgehog is relevant to Ross on Wye where Husband’s ancestors used to live) – Cath teaches Domestic Science for a living…I lacked confidence to finish things off
Then I went through all the bits of knitting that needed their ends weaving in, some of that is blocking now…am wondering if I should save this “last minute” christmas present for Mum until next christmas…
Last year I tried wire knitting and made a pair of red hearts, they have been sitting in the in-tray for about 9 months waiting to be turned into earrings. Yesterday they fulfilled their destiny and I discovered that jewellery making is not for me…I am far too clumsy to do things with beads to relax !
These are destined for KT Cupcake as a birthday present together with this, but my slightly less industrial version (also made yesterday)
It is my godaughter Cookie’s birthday at the end of the week, so she and her brothers (and parents) will finally get their christmas and birthday presents then – Cookie’s new bag just needs sewing up and filling with 8 year old goodies. KTcupcakes christmas present was almost finished but I’ve forgotten how to do stab stitch binding (it’s a voucher for a home cooked take away – made in small book form)
I’ve also finished off the back of the Water Aid Jumper…
Confession Time – the in-tray at the start of this post is actually the “after” photograph. The one thing that didn’t get finished is that cross stitch bookmark you can see. I’ve decided that its beyond saving, I really can do better than that (it looks really bad up close)…so I’m setting a deadline, my brother will get his present by the end of may – honest !
Now, I think I need a rest – unfortunately I think from the look of the weather this morning it may be a day for staying in and doing “make and do”…and I’ve got nothing to do now !
I get a lot of my “craft” books from the local libraries, a lot of them go back unused, just looked through and thrown aside but I’ve had a couple of books out since before Christmas on repeat renew as I’ve been working from them to provide presents.
My favourite of the two I have out is Celtic Cross Stitch: Anne Orr & Lesley Clarke unsurprising really as I’ve always had a weakness for celtic style designs, the cross stitch bit is not quite as big a surprise as it would have been this time last year as after my dabbling in it for Mum’s birthday I’ve got quite keen on it…the stupid part was thinking “ooh, I know, it’ll take too long to knit all my christmas presents so why don’t I do some cross stitch for speed”…and then being slightly too ambitious with the chosen items…as a result my brother’s present is still outstanding almost a month after christmas.
I made bookmarks mainly because most of the men in our family read, and actually use bookmarks and (from experience) men tend to prefer practical presents. I couldn’t find anywhere that sold aida band though (a pre edged band of aida so less risk of fraying) so I bought a kit with similar colours and used that (before I misplaced the silks that is) for this Eagle bookmark for my dad (Dad is into books about romans at the moment and the eagle looked “imperial-ish”)
The stitching was fine but the outlining of all the bits was a real pain in the posterior – and it is the outlining once again which is holding up my brothers present, all the stitching is done apart from the outlining. My brother’s present is actually the design of the bookmark I bought but I’ve had to improvise the aida band out of the materials I have to hand. I had planned to put a picture of it up here and do all my cross stitch presents in one go but I’ve just discovered I haven’t photographed it yet.
Neither did I photograph what in the end was probably the best bit of stitching I did last year, a small piece for my brother’s birthday card, it was a green squared design with an interlinked cross in the middle. The other card I made was for a secret santa. It was a celtic knot and is badly photographed here
The final 2 bits of stitching have still to be sent out, one of which I am working on at the moment and I’m getting a big kick out of the colour combinations on this one…so I guess there will be another cross stitch post for these and my brother’s present.
A big “thank you” to Mum who has donated all her silks and cross stitch bits and pieces, it does come with a proviso though and it is a really big proviso as she has finally found the japanese lady cross stitch kit and it is really rather big and possibly out of the competence of a beginner such as me !
Being Frank... 