not bad for a first attempt...

Some months ago I decided to brush up the knitting/handmade clothing skills and set about knitting myself a 'simple' cardigan.

I was a little disconcerted when I showed my selected pattern to my Mum and sister, both of whom are far better knitters than me, and they both exclaimed that although a nice design, it wasn't as straight forward as I'd thought!!!! eeeekkk!!!!

  

King Cole pattern 3201 and King Cole Baby Big Value DK wool (Shade 207: jeans)

Of course, they were right...and a few times I had to ask exactly what the pattern wanted me to do, and 'how do you 'pick up stitches'???!!!  I also found that that typing some of tasks into YouTube a bit of a god send!!! Almost without exception I knew what was required, its just that over the decades I'd forgotten how to complete them!

I decided early on that this first version would be completed without making any tweaks or adjustments, and I'm very pleased with the end result.  Lots of friends have already commented on the finished garment (nice things!!) and its a very comfy weekend 'pottering around' cardigan (and dare I say, it'll get taken into work to be worn as a lovely 'take the chill off' as I sit on our front reception desk!!!).

I'd love to make it again, perhaps in an 'oatmeal'/beige colour, or perhaps a sage green....and next time I'm going to tweak the sleeves...the pattern is a little on the 'wide' side for my liking...definitely NOT a doing the washing up sleeve!!!

Me wearing the finished article (apologies for the dodgy photo...I was actually in the middle of playing with the oil paints in my 'studio'!!!)
 



 

phew!!! nearly caught up...

After some very busy weekends, this weekend was full of empty diary/no plans/48 hrs of rest and doing nothing....
However, having discovered on Bank Holiday Monday that my boiler had a fairly alarming 'drip' I'd called my trusty heating engineer and he was all booked in to pop by yesterday to see what the problem was.  So, just in case he a) switched off all the electric b) switched off all the water c) condemned the boiler or d) all of the above, I found myself getting up at the lark to get showered, hair washed n dried, washing and drying done...all before 9am....

By 7pm and still no sign of trusty heating engineer I thought I'd better send a little text to see if I'd gone the wrong weekend (this is not beyond the realms of possibility!!)...I hadn't, but he was running so behind he didn't think he'd get to me until 9pm!!! Told him not to worry, and he said he'd pop round this morning instead if that was ok :-)  

So, in anticipation of him carrying out a - d this morning, I once again was up ready with household chores done by 9am (this is unbelievably early for me...especially on a weekend...usually on a 'weekend off' I don't even start to stir out of sleep until 8.30 - 9.00am!!!

Any hoooo, he turned up at 11am....showed me exactly what the problem is, will order the part tomorrow and will fix it/fit the new part by Wednesday....and he sorted out a problem I had fitting a replacement 'diffuser' on my kitchen tap; I thought the old one had broken and fallen out...which it kinda had, but I thought it was a 'click in' one and when I ordered a replacement, it was a screw in one...which I wasn't able to fit as there was nothing to screw it onto.

Turns out, that the old one was a screw in one, just that it had broken off and left the screw in bit screwed to the sink...and quick tinker with it and out it popped!!!... as I already had the replacement, I was able to screw it into place and Bobs your Uncle...one perfectly working kitchen tap that no longer sprays water all over the place!!!

All this means that I didn't really settle into getting any lazing around stuff done...like uploading all the 'thank you cards' and other bits n pieces I'd done for my friends wedding last week...but here they are....

So, there you are....10 Thank you cards, 1 hand drawn and painted Grooms card, 1 large (and 1 small - not shown) hand drawn 'tree' for the 'Guest Book Finger ink Tree' ... with instruction board (this was also decorated but photo taken before it had been finished)... and 1 supplementary wedding cake, a 3 tier victoria sponge constructed so the different colour sponges would appear 'checkerboard' once cut...as per last photo (can't even begin to tell you how pleased I was with the cake!!! lol)

Then, just because I could, I'd bought a 1 metre 'remnant' for £9.99 the other week and this morning, run up this lovely top for the summer...I love this pattern (Butterick B4132) and this is the 4th time I've used it...you'd think I'd do it right first time by now...but no, still muck up the shoulder bit... unpick the first one and remember how to do it correctly...and re-do!!  and I've just realised that I've still packed the pattern away without writing up some additional side notes/instructions so I don't make the same mistake...AGAIN!!! fool!

So, here's a picture of my new summer top...cotton lawn (I think), its so 'light' that its like I'm not wearing anything...hence only suitable for when its very hot!!! (or I'm on holiday !)

the one thing I can't seem to 'create'.....

Happy Saturday everybody!!!

I realised the other day that I've not updated this page in a while... and its not because I've not been 'creating' any Domestic Goddess type bits n pieces, I have!

I designed and made my Mum's Mothers Day card, I designed and made my Mum a tea-cosy to go with the new tea pot my sister bought her for Mothers Day (to replace the one she broke only a week or two earlier).

I've thought about, planned, tested and made a trial run of a 'back-up' cake for my friend Rose's wedding which is next week (the final version is going to be made on Good Friday)!!! 
and in the past few weeks, I've designed and made ten individual 'thank you' cards, one Grooms card, and prepped and drawn out one large and one small 'tree', mounted and framed them, ready to become the Guest books for her wedding (sourced and bought a variety of little finger ink pads so people can sign the 'guest book' and complete the leaves of the tree)....

and this morning, I've pre-pepped a chalk board ready for writing out instructions for using the finger inks/guest book finger print tree...

AND....in some spare time, I've taken up the knitting needles again, the first time in about 20 years! I used to knit quite a bit and could do quite a variety of stitches and follow some reasonably challenging patterns - however, the basic cardigan patter I'm doing at the moment has had me stumped on more than one occasion...to the point that my sister is popping over this afternoon to show me how to continue!!!

All this, but the one thing I can't seem to 'create' - more time!!!!  there's just not enough of the stuff to get all the things done what I want to do!!! 

So I'm signing off now for a few days to catch up on boring Domestic Goddess type stuff (washing, ironing, cleaning blah blah blah) and hopefully will be posting photos of the finished cake and other bits after Easter! :-)

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a stitch in time, saves the tea pot getting cold

It was my birthday during January, and it turned out to be a very 'pink n fluffy n girly' birthday! (most unlike me!), and also quite retro.

A few days before my birthday I'd treated myself to my first Kindle - a Paperwhite - its fab! 

So my parents got me some very 21st Century book tokens (for Amazon) and a beautiful pink Kindle cover.

And a friend at work bought me a gorgeous tea-cup and saucer (I do love my cuppa tea) and some rather scrumptious macaroons (strawberry pink).

pretty n pink birthday gifts

Everything was very nearly perfect for lazy Sunday afternoons, reading crime/mystery thrillers on the Kindle, drinking tea and eating treats....

The problem was that the teapot that I'd bought (you can't make a dainty 'teacup' amount of tea!...you need a great big pot of the stuff to enjoy it properly!!) got cool very quickly.

So, remembering I had lots of shabby chic fabric left over from making aprons in the summer and wadding left from making the christmas decorations, I decided I'd have a bash at making a tea cosy!!!

Gotta say (blowing my own trumpet here!) I'm ridiculously pleased at how well this first ever made tea cosy (without a pattern) has turned out!!!!

I'm now sitting here currently enjoying a constantly hot pot of tea - perfect!!! 

handmade green & pink tea cosy