Knitted headband and rose

Dredging through all my craft projects to try and get stuff finished! I had forgotten about this headband. My husband and I tramped in winter and I needed something to keep my ears warm. I find a hat too hot tramping. So I started to knit this when I got back. Then I stopped. The knitting had finished but I found it yesterday, not sewn up. I wanted to put a rose or flower on the side but after a couple of attempts I gave up.

My sister came over for a couple of hours with her knitting. Reinspired to finish I found a Youtube video on how to crotchet a flower. Such good instruction. I made a flower in a jiffy, sewed the band and tried it on. No pattern used and am happy with it. 

A couple of notes on the side. Aaron and I took a walk up the Warfedale Track on Sunday. Four hours of very easy terrain and I was beyond jiggered. Aaron said that I was walking but getting nowhere! Goodness it takes a lot to get fitness back. The puppy is still the cutest thing in our house.

late at night all wanting to get in.

Finished - Lace weight merino scarf

Third time lucky. Having already unpicked it twice I finally finished this. I love love the colour. But am considering unpicking it again!! The pattern works the knitting is great but it curls at each side. If I did re knit it I would do five stitches of garter stitch each end. I have worn it since the day I finished it. I will press it again and give it some time. But ....

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An Alpaca Hat

Well here is another thing that has taken a long time - 8 months!! It is just a Alpaca Hat with earflaps and lovely and warm. It was meant to be done for Christmas. Now as it is an extra I am going to put this into the caravan for those cooler nights. I finished it while watching Downton Abbey with our boys. They are 10 and 13 and saw the last few episodes. They got hooked so we have started from the beginning as a bit of family TV time.

Linking to these places and Crazy Mum Quilts

Anyone else knitting in Fiji?

Suprise surprise, when we were enjoying 28 degrees in Fiji no one else was knitting!!! But I have two Alpaca wool hats to knit for Christmas. Anyone following my blog will know that I am making home made Christmas Crackers as presents this year. So everything needs to fit into that size. Of course there needs to be a hat, a joke, a toy etc. This is a mini version of a hat pattern I have made for Eli and Aaron but this is for a much smaller head.

 

See the normal adult version here.

I did laugh quite a lot making a woolly hat when we were getting sunburnt. 

I then have one question - when we came home how did the dog get into bed - Aaron Schulz!!!

On the needles at the moment

Yes, I have started yet another project. I love knitting but the boys don't wear home knitted things now that there is merino available. Aaron had too many jerseys and I don't need any more. But I had over 1kg of my mother's home spun wool and it is light and lovely. I ransacked the local library for more Biden knitting books and find a very funky pattern.

So on my needles are two stands of wool at the same time imported on 8mm chunky needles. A textured shrug. An really enjoying sitting in front of the fire knitting in the evenings.

Gorgeous Angora Rabbit wool

The Angora rabbit wool jersey which I got from the Op Shop, unpicked and re-balled three years ago has finally all been used up.

Well my finishing of things is not legendary. It is well and truely spring and I have finally finished a winter woolly hat for Jakob. He even went on a school ski trip and I could not get it done. So we are now ready for next winter.

The jersey has done well. It had enough wool to make me a cowl, Aaron a scarf , a couple of new born baby hats and now this hat for Jakob.

Linking to these places and Crazy Mum Quilts.

Just in time for winter

Well this is a first. The hat is finished just as we are heading into winter!! Normally my knitting gets finished well into spring, as I only seem to knit in the winter.

On our recent trip to Mt Cook Eli used Aaron's Alpaca hat the whole time. So on the way home we stopped at the Alpaca store at Geraldine and bought a kit. For only $16 the kit included all 100% Alpaca wool and the pattern.

I have just been to visit my Dad who is recovering from an Operation and so had time to sit and knit and finish this up. When I got home last night I gave it to Eli who immediate wore it. Great.

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A dedicated follower of fashion

Well not really. But last winter and through our summer all the crafty bloggers seem to be making cowls instead of scarves. A good idea I thought. Last night I finished it and just in time for this foul weather today. I wore it to my stitching group this morning and it looks like the trend may be passing on!!!

This is made from the recycled angora (goat) wool that I posted about unpicking etc here. I only started this when we were camping at Molesworth Station three weeks ago. I looked in my knitting stitching book and found a stitch they called twisted fisherman's. It is soooooo easy. It is just knit stitch but every second row you knit into the current stitch and the one below. So fantastic for watching TV and knitting.

Me wearing it as a hood and scarf at stitching this morning.

Aaron and Eli love this too so I have started knitting Aaron a scarf using the same stitch and the same wool. What an awesome upcycling project. One jersey and this is the fourth knitted item from it and I still have more wool.

A close up of the twisted fisherman's knit

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and

Lots on the go..

Well I am procrastinating by writing this blog post as I should be writing some Job Descriptions. In spite of that I have been very busy.

Strange photo to put on I know. But this is some beading board that I am undercoating. Yes I am painting again. I feel as though I have been painting for the last 14 months (which I have on and off). It has saved us money on our Earthquake claim (as their cost is definitely lower the actual cost) as intended but it does take time!

I have been making fondant decorations for something edible for Valentines Day. I figured that while I was not working much that I could put a bit of effort into that day. We have never observed Valentines here in our house so it will be a first. 

Over the last three nights I have put more blocks together and made two more borders for the orphan block quilt that I started here.

When I have been too tired to concentrate or have been watching the Winter Olympics then I have been knitting this. I started while camping on the Molesworth Station. This is a rabbit wool and incredibly soft and amazing, but sheds like crazy. I am going to follow the trend and make a cowl. This wool was a jersey that I bought at an Op Shop (Charity Shop) and unpicked, washed and rewound it.

Last night I knitted a bit of this. It has been on the needles for over a year. I am using my stash of homespun wool that has been spun and dyed by my mum. It is a Kaffe Fasset pattern and quite slow to knit. Major concentration is needed as each row is different, so I only knit it occasionally as I can't watch TV or anything else while doing it.

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Recycled super soft Angora into new born beanie

Well, today was sunny and spring is definitely on the way. In autumn I bought a 100% angora (rabbit) jersey. Unpicked it, washed it and reballed it. (if you click on those words you will see it was not such an easy job). Then I knitted a new born to 3 month old hat. It has been sitting in my knitting bag ever since. Not sewn up and no tassel. Finally last night I pulled it out and finished it. Why is it that when winter is on the way out that I get around to all the winter jobs?

This is a pattern that I developed years ago from an idea of the sleeve of a jersey I made (it had the ribbed look). In the last few years I can see that lots of commercial patterns are using this kind of ribbing too. Just when you think you are original!!

Anyway I now have bundles of wool, knitting needles and patterns all kitted up with this supersoft angora.
I will be listing it in my shop soon, I just want Alex to model it for me first.

Today I have been busy reclaiming more of the garden for my vege patch. Looking good but would like it to happen faster!!

Finally untangled

Lots of tv watching later the beautifully silky smooth angora is in knitable form. Thanks to a wool winder. My sewing machine was fixed faster than the untangling took but I have also been clearing out my craft area, a very t tough job.

A tangle of yarn

I spent the last week unpicking a gorgeous angora jersey. Out of date pattern wise. I used the winder my Dad made me and put them into bundles tied nicely, as taught by my mother. I have done this many times with no problem. But this time when I washed them they all tangled together. How do they do that? There were no ends to tangle together. Very bizzare. Today I took my overlocker and sewing machine to be tension fixed, blades sharpened etc and I had been wondering what I was going to do without a sewing machine. Now I know what I am going to be doing, sigh!!