A Snail for My Mum.

I'm still plodding along with my 2012 IntNatCroMo freeform piece... But I wanted to share with you one of the components which I made earlier on in the challenge.

The Day 8 Instruction, was as follows:

Chose a stitch, motif or edging that symbolises each of these things to you (3 in total)

1. The bread of your life the things that may seem hum-drum, but are so important to your world
2. The roses of life, the things that enrich it and feed your soul
3. The woman in your life who you have most looked up to.

The woman in my life who I have most looked up to was My Mum…Those of you have been reading my blog for a while now might remember that I lost my Mum to leukaemia about three and a half years ago (aged 58). Yep - it's been that long already!




So what could I crochet to best represent My Mum???

I know - A SNAIL...

Yes. You heard correctly. A snail. A common, everyday, garden variety of snail.

And why would that be?

Way back when I was at Uni, Mum also attended as a Mature Age Student. Anyway, I remember that she was running an experiment which involved keeping and observing snails. I have no recollection of WHY… but I clearly remember the process of catching and keeping the little slugs… they were numbered with Liquid Paper on their shells, and she was always documenting their movements.

For years after we would tease her mercilessly about her hobby of watching snails mate!!! And how that made her an inappropriate role model for us...
 
So I had to make this little guy for my freeform in Memory of Mum…



I'm undecided on the final placement for him just yet...

I kind of like him here, but he BLENDS in a bit too much, and I would really love him to be more of a feature in the piece.

the beauty of nature

No craft for me today...

Just some quiet time to breathe... and reflect on the beauty around me...



I'm missing Mum terribly at the moment. It's only been seven short weeks since she passed away, and yet it feels like a lifetime since I last saw her.

I think that's why I am so drawn to this photograph at the moment. The butterfly is an exquisite yet delicate creature, a symbol of new life, re-birth and hope... some would say the very personification of your soul.

This particular shot was taken a couple of years ago in the Butterfly House at the Royal Melbourne Zoo. It is the Cairns Birdwing, which is the largest species of butterfly in Australia. I don't need a degree in 'sexing butterflies' to know that this one is a male... the females are not nearly so colourful!

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...

finishing mum's work #3

Mum was making this throw rug for herself to use on cool evenings, as she sat by the fire. Actually, she was more likely to be found lying by the fire. Stretched out across the floor, just like a cat... which I always found to be a little bit ironic, since she was really not a fan of felines.

Colour choices were always a big deal to Mum. Things had to match in just the right way. So when we went shopping for the yarn, she took along a cushion from the lounge room - so that the colours could be matched perfectly!

Of course, she chose alpaca. Light weight, yet incredibly warm...



The blanket is a patchwork style with very simple garter stitch squares. Mum had finished knitting all of the squares and most of them had been sewn together. There was just one row left for me to attach. I also added a crochet border around the outside, which needed a little bit of stability as the squares were a tad stretchy.

So here it is, all finished.

I have passed it on to Dad, and it now has pride of place in the lounge room it was intended for. And I know that on the cooler evenings, he will be able to snuggle under it and think of Mum.

finishing mum's work #2

Carrying on from yesterday... the second scarf is finished. This one also only needed the beads sewn on, but the ones Mum had chosen were not the best match. In fact, I'm sure I recall her mentioning at one point that she was having trouble finding beads she was happy with.

The beads which were with the scarf were beautiful recycled glass beads, but they were in the mint-green colourings... whereas the scarf is more of an olive green, and the two colours clashed terribly. So I had a fossick through my stash of reclaimed beads, most of which have come from a variety of old necklaces... and came up with this colourful combination.

Mum had not blocked this scarf, and I've decided to just leave it as is. The photograph in the magazine with the pattern shows a flat, blocked scarf... but I really love the textured appearance of this one. It really adds to the character of the scarf, and makes it sit very comfortably around the neck.

This one will be a gift for my sister-in-law, so that she also has something handcrafted to remember Mum by.

And I just have to say... Mum had impeccable taste in many, many areas... yarn was no exception! This alpaca is divine.

If you are interested in making a similar scarf, take a look at this stitch pattern

finishing mum's work #1

About six months ago, Mum stumbled across a pattern for a lovely simple lace scarf in a magazine she was flipping through. She was inspired to make one, which was a great surprise to me... since it had been at least twenty years since she had done any kind of knitting.

So she borrowed some needles from me, and we went shopping for the yarn together.

It took her a little while to pick up the lace pattern... there was quite a bit of frogging in the beginning! But she was a very determined woman, and she got there in the end. The scarf looked magnificent, and she gave it to a close friend for her birthday.

By then, Mum was addicted to the lace pattern. She went shopping for more yarn, and bought enough to make two more scarves... this time for herself!

I found them in her craft bag the other day. They were so very nearly finished. In fact, the knitting was completed and the ends were woven in. She had purchased an assortment of beads for the trimmings, and all that remained to be done was to sew them on.

So today I have completed the first one. I will give it to my sister, so that she has a precious handcrafted memory of Mum. Whenever she wears it around her neck... it will feel like a yummy warm alpaca hug!

If you are interested in making a similar scarf... take a look at this stitch pattern

celebration of a life

Today's post is in memory of my mum... who passed away yesterday after a five year battle with leukemia.

She was a dignified woman, with a great deal of patience, compassion and grace. She was faithful, and giving, and possessed the most amazing strength of spirit. A close friend and confidante. I will miss her dreadfully, in ways I cannot yet imagine.

I am going to take a little bit of breathing space from blog land.

When I return, I will share my pattern for the gorgeous creatures pictured above. Click here to read about their significance.

when I was a girl...

I loved my childhood bedroom...

Bear in mind, we are going back to the mid seventies here...

I can still picture it now... The walls are decorated with purple and white vertical striped wallpaper... There is a dresser which is painted white... and the drawers are purple... On top of the dresser is my purple alarm clock... On the polished floorboards lies a purple shaggy rug... And my bed is covered by the most magnificent knitted patchwork blanket.

I was so delighted with that blanket. Mum made it for me. I thought she was so clever. It must have taken her years to complete. Hundreds and hundreds of 'autumn leaf' motifs... individually knit and then stitched together.

Well, actually... it wasn't completed. She didn't quite get around to doing the edging.



See the zig-zag look to the edge? Mum had made a bunch of half motifs which were to be sewn along the sides to fill in those gaps and give a straight edge to the blanket. But they were never sewed on... and I can't say I blame her... after all the sewing she had already put into the afghan, the thought of doing any more would have been a nightmare!

Unfortunately, the years have taken their toll on the blanket. Quite a number of the motifs have become damaged and are needing replaced. So this is my winter goal. To replace the damaged motifs, and add an edging to the blanket. It's the perfect project for this time of year. The evenings here are getting so cold now. It will be nice to sit with that blanket on top of me, while I make the repairs.



I still have the original pattern.



It was published in the Australian Women's Weekly... August 2, 1972.



I was so inspired by mum's efforts that when I had my first child, I decided to make an 'autumn leaf' afghan for his room. I wasn't quite as committed as mum though, and I ended up with a much smaller sized throw.



Every now and then, I fancy making another one. I've been thinking that it would be quite fun to make about ten 'autumn leaves' from each jumper that I recycle... and then when I have gathered enough... join them all together into a spectacular rug. It would look magnificent, and have so much character!