my first knitted project

My favourite pattern in the Ladybird Book was this 'handy bag'



... and this was the result



Guess what? I just realised that my obsession with making bags obviously started in my childhood!

Over the years the bag has not been cared for very carefully and some felting has occurred. It's actually a very good example of how different colours of wool can felt unevenly.

Each of the colours used in this bag were the same brand and type of wool...

Each of the stripes were originally the same width...



But, as you can see... the darker colours have felted better than the lighter ones... and the white has not felted at all. Apparently the chemical process involved in lightening the colour of the wool can affect the ability of the fibres to felt. Just something to keep in mind if you are ever working on a felted project using multiple colours... it's definitely worth felting a test swatch of each colour.



I'm pleased to announce that my seaming techniques have improved from the early days...



I know that many knitters dislike seaming, but over the years I have learned to quite enjoy it. The 'finishing' of your work is so important... it really makes all the difference, so it is really worth learning to seam well. It seems a shame to put so much effort into the knitting, and then make a mess of the seaming.

kudos to my dad

There's been a lot of acknowledgment on my blog lately for the role which my mum played in developing my crafting talents. Which is understandable, given her recent passing.

But I want to take a moment to pass some kudos my dad's way... because... wait for it... HE was the one who taught me how to knit. I was eight years old at the time, and mum had her hands full with a newborn and a toddler. So dad was the one who taught me the basics. He grew up in a time and a place when EVERYONE learned how to knit.

I still remember the little rhyme I learned...

in the wee rabbit hole
... as the point of the right needle went into the first loop on the left needle

round the big tree
... as you looped your yarn around the needle point

out the wee rabbit hole
... as you pulled the loop of yarn through

and off goes she
... as you slipped the 'old' stitch off the needle

And I used that same rhyme to teach Master Eight to knit earlier this year.



I also had a wonderful book... a Ladybird Book of course, remember them??? There were Ladybird Books on every subject under the sun.

This one was 'a Ladybird Book about Knitting'. I'm not sure what became of my original copy, but Mr Goldfish recently found a replacement copy on ebay for me. It contains all the basics in easy to follow instructions for children... including such gems as the importance of washing your hands before you start your work. I love the illustrations. They take me right back to my childhood. I must have spent hours and hours absorbing every detail printed in this book. In fact, my original copy probably disintegrated from overuse!



My first 'real' project was from a pattern in this book. I remember the excitement of purchasing wool... specifically for a project... and not just using remnants. I thought I was in heaven!

I still have that project, too...

Pop back tomorrow and I will show it to you...

op shop delight

When trawling the op shops lately (thrift/charity stores) I have been on the hunt for interesting and unusual belts. They make for unique straps on a bag, such as the one I added to my plarn bag.

Sometimes the hunt is successful. Other times not. That's half the fun of op shopping, I think.



The other day I picked up this belt for only $2. It twists on itself too easily to be used as a bag strap, but I will remove the links joining the pieces, and those leather floral circles will make fabulous embellishments for... well... something!

I just know they will come in handy one day...

a girl and her 'princess wrap'

Well... I have finished the prayer shawl for the Make It Pink challenge. I was originally planning to make it for myself, but decided that Little Miss Four would get more wear out of a garment this pink than what I would! Mind you, she doesn't think of it as a prayer shawl. To her it is a Princess Wrap.

Because I was making a much smaller size, I only worked the increases until I had 69 stitches on my needles and then worked the top border. I probably could have made it a tiny bit bigger, but the stitch pattern has a surprising amount of stretch to it... much more than I was expecting.

Instead of a button, I crocheted a pink daisy to embellish the front of the wrap.

starting out - make it pink challenge

Since we are well into the month of October, I thought I better hurry up and get started on the CraftStylish Make It Pink Challenge. Mind you, I still hadn't had any further thoughts about what I should make.

So I went back to read over the challenge information. I discovered that if you submit a pink prayer shawl for the challenge, then they will make a much more substantial donation for breast cancer research. So I figured - why not? It's not like I had any better plans anyway.

Hmmm... now I need 12.75mm needles and some super bulky yarn...

As you know by now, I'm a bit of a WHATEVER girl! If I don't have what I need, I'll make use of WHATEVER I do have instead.

Which means I will be using 10mm needles and four strands of yarn worked together. Of course the yarn will need to be pink.



So here we have my selections...



Firstly a pink/white 100% wool, recycled from this jumper:



Next a purpley-pink mystery yarn... certainly feels like 100% wool, recycled from this cape:



Then a bright pink novelty ribbon yarn... recycled from this top:



The final yarn feels like an acrylic, although I haven't actually tested it. It came to me from a friend who was 'spring cleaning' and knows I love to salvage unloved yarns.

Check back tomorrow to see how the prayer shawl turns out...

oh - what a tangled web we weave...

These pieces of jewellery refuse to behave themselves! The 'fishing line' tangles far too easily, and the frustration factor is sky high. They are especially cheap pieces which my sister picked up while living in Shanghaii. I really don't think they were made to last!

But I know how to solve the problem... with a pair of scissors!



Ahhh.... that's much better. All that stress has been relieved, and I have made a nice addition to my recycled bead stash!

Now I just need to find myself some recycled wire, and I can get started on some wire beaded crochet. Or is it beaded wire crochet? I might not know what it's called.... but I'm keen to give it a go!

where to now?

To be honest with you, I'm feeling rather saddened that I have completed those projects of Mum's already... I really enjoyed working on them. It made me feel so close to her, and really warmed my heart.

So now what???

Well, I decided to give her scarf pattern a go for myself... It's a little while since I have worked on a knitted project, and I have quite enjoyed the variety - after focusing so much on crochet lately.

I'm using a pure new wool, recycled from the jumper below. Which begs the question... can I still call it pure NEW wool if it is recycled??? Anyway, it's a fabulous shade of purple, and oh so soft!



The scarf pattern calls for 4ply yarn and 3.5mm needles. I'm actually using 3.75mm, simply because that's what I have! After working for a couple of inches, I decided that the yarn was too lightweight. So I frogged and cast on again, this time using two strands held together.

I love the way it is working up now...