Friday, June 29, 2012

how I made the edging...


lay a crochet hook on top of a knitting needle and make a

really really long tail!!!

make ten stitches on the needles 
make sure the yarn goes over both of them and doesn't get trapped between!!!


using the 
WORKING yarn
(the one that comes off the ball)
yo and pull the loop through the stitches
it will be awkward but it works

(I used 4mm needle and hook... but use what you think is right to make it how big you want it!!
and for this I used Lily cotton...the kind we make wash cloths with!!!)



take the work off the needle and put the pulled loop back on the needle
and the first loop too



voila!!





put the hook back on the needle and make 10 more cast on stitches
make sure there isn't a big gaping gap between the first set and the new one!!!
I know!!!


continue to do this until you have as many 
shells/fans/scallops as you need/want

now you need to connect them by knitting on more cast on stitches
knit the first stitch
and cast on two more stitches before working the next stitch
(I used the twisted loop method...don't know what it's actually called
 you wrap the yarn around your finger and put it on the needle )
?
so we have the stitches on the needle with two new cast ons
do this till all the sets have been done

then decide if you are going to continue just knitting on
or
if you have made a piece of lacy edging that can be added to something else
I cast off the first piece
made a second piece ... changed colour
and kept knitting
will show what when it's finished
!!!
I am useless at writing how-to's, so if you have a problem with this, ask and we'll figure it out...
:)


Thursday, June 28, 2012

colour here...







and there....
some silicone muffin liners
bright happy neon colours
nothing wrong with that
blue berry muffins
in said muffin cups
nothing wrong with that, put the kettle on
and some
vintage-y looking fabric I forgot I had
called jelly rolls
long strips all rolled up
nothing wrong with that, at all
more hex's possible
:}
and to practice my "Quilting" abilities
a new
pin cushion
nothing  more useful than that

.....................................................

:}


Wednesday, June 27, 2012

second verse...




same as the first!!

ever present

always glad to see'em...

 ^^^^^^^^^HONKER^^^^^^^........................... left of the flags.............. not the Canada goose...!!!

:}








while taking care of the bit of baking I did today
a fresh loaf and a banana bread made with some mighty ripe 'nana's

they arrived in a flotilla
and out of the water some of them got 
and 
HONKER
let us know they had arrived
they signal the time to start thinking about making something for us to eat
they like next door's lawn...they come when no one is home
and I'm not tellin'!!!

three of the hexagon "flowers" 
don't really know how to finish them so I played
wish I hadn't put them together as it's now difficult to actually do something with them
like make a "straight" mat...will have to play some more
have some boring hot pads
maybe!!??


Tuesday, June 26, 2012

late afternoon sun...







here 











lots of geese floating on the water
there are new comers and old ones and a group of the babies 
just chillin' in the sun
seems it was a lovely day today so I took a little meander outside
when the sun was getting low and the shadows were getting long and sharp
inside the shadows did their thing too
on the shells and the pine needles
on my desk with the new edging I just found and HAD to try
will show you some other time
now it's time for fabric and sun and shadows 
and black eyed susans 
and
bright bee balm
and the ever present
gooses















Saturday, June 16, 2012

a change of needles...


I absolutely know that you will understand
I feel the need to put down these



pick up these to make these



I suddenly need to make
hexagons
not yarn ones
but
fabric ones




for no particular reason other than
it takes my fancy!!!!!



I will get back to the yarn
but I need to put it away for now
COZ IT'S DRIVING ME
CRAZY!!!



and I know you understand that too!!!



so after a little play around yesterday figuring out how to do it the old fashioned way
I made some paper hex's
and this morning
as I got up nice and early


and after my coffee and an episode of 
the Vicar of Dibley !!!!!
I cut a couple of cardboard templates and
off I went




fun fun fun


and I have been collecting little stashes of fabric
one fat quarter collection
at a time
and I have a pile
as you can see
so I'll be hexing for a while


what are you doing???



Monday, June 11, 2012

a gift...


so... there I was on a Sunday afternoon
admiring my new purchase that had come a couple of days ago
and promptly disappeared into the pile of stuff that seems to sit in a certain spot

(and just refuses to leave....get smaller...bugger orff....go away...no matter how many times I beat it down)

and looking up how to read knitting charts online and getting grumpy
again!!!
.................................................................



when I saw the
I looked for some yummy yarn
and found it on Knit Picks
if you don't know Knit Picks 
or you don't have a special "yarn provider"

they have lots and lots to choose from and the prices are good too
always a help in filling that basket!!!
anyway
I was admiring this
merino/silk blend
 Gloss Lace
Winter Night
and dreaming of making the shawl
................


husband must have heard the 
SIGH
and 
on his way past the door asked if something was wrong
you know with the
computer
of course
I said no
 just lusting
-over what now-
he asked
THIS said I
like always
-so get it and learn as you go
and get some yarn
looks like you need more-
:P
I already have the yarn
I said waving the 
merino/silk blend in the air
I already have it and the new needles too

-so what's the problem-
....
well, that broke the spell I had been under 
and 
I decided to check the e-mail
and there 
was 
gift 
for 
me
from Andi
my favourite knitter 
:)xx
all I had to do was click on it and it
showed up on 
Ravelry
all ready for me to cast on and begin what will be a journey of the knitting kind

Andi bought me 
the pattern 
(so I shut up about it and get on with it!!!!!!!!)

so I'm off

after doing what I HAVE to do

I'm sitting down and starting it












in there somewhere is the pattern... but it's a little shy

I grabbed a bit of yarn and cast on and tried the chart


it worked
!!!!

mohair is not the yarn to use ... too fluffy!!!

then, there was the mohair ball staring at me
(I bought more than one of these babies!!!)

too fluffy

and I did it again
and it worked again
so
it works.... let's see if I do!!!!!!


:) :) :) :) :)

thank you Andi 
you are just the
♥♥♥ sweetest  ♥♥♥

MWAH!!!

(knit knit yo ssk k2tog yo knit knit knit)

Friday, June 8, 2012

all things bright...and beautiful...




all I did to this was crop it
the colours are as the camera saw them
a black eyed Susan opening up in the warm and slightly humid morning



this is the one I showed you the other day
open and striking in the light


there are many many lilies this year
but this is the only one with the sun inside it




again all I did was crop a bit
the light is wonderful outside





but there is some shade 
for the ferns
this one is so old but it never stops unfurling itself




in the dappled shade of the bed



the sun drops are still blooming
and making shadows on themselves
they really do light the place up
and it's such a shame they don't last longer



there was only one bee that I saw
and these blooms should be covered in them by now
and butterflies too
but I haven't seen any yet
nor the humming birds
maybe I'm just not looking hard enough!!!
or it's still too early for them to be here in numbers
will keep watching!!



meanwhile inside
not much in the way of hooking or clicking has been happening
I'm in a bit of a lull and it's mainly because I'm at a loss as to what to do

I think Annette has figured out the stitch mystery to her satisfaction
she says it looks like a sc ch1
always the simple answers it seems

:) 

I did buy some mohair that I saw online somewhere
'coz I've never had any
it was on sale so I got it
(ever the tight wad is she)!!!!
but it made me start on this scarf/shawl that I saw on
and in other's blogs
especially may favourite knitter of all
so I just got down to it and found it to be so easy I feel completely stupid for thinking I couldn't do it
we do that sometimes
 don't we
silly us
!!!


so... I am doing it slowly and steadily
and I'm dreaming of other shawls I might make
someday
in the future
up the road
down the line some time

the one I truly
 deeply 
passionately 
want to make ...may just be beyond me
because I think it is charted and I don't do knitting charts

but maybe 
if I concentrate really really hard 
and ask for help from all of you who know how to read knitting charts
one day I may have

I'll dream a little while longer and try to figure it all out
after all
 there was a day not that long ago when we couldn't do any of the things we can do now
so 
on that positive note
I wish you all a good week end
may it be dry and warm and wonderful
and
fluffy



just like my big ball of
mohair

♥♥♥