Taadaaa!!

Hi, everyone!  Hope you are all swell =D

Well, I woke to a wonderful surprise on Wednesday.

 I am now the proud owner and one of forty winners to obtain a copy of Mollie Makes Issue 1.  I already have issue 2 & 3- I absolutely adore the magazine- but this issue is really like gold dust,  so I'm one very happy Squirrel.  I had thought of purchasing the magazine as a digital edition but, it's not really the same as having a magazine that you can thumb through at your leisure. Not very environmentally friendly, I know.

 Crocheting
I've been busy on the crocheting front.  I fell in love with Inga's Hakelbeutel back in 2010 on Ravelry.

Inga's Hakelbeutel

  Mmm.....!  My queue of items on this site is quite extensive.  I'm going to have to live until at least a hundred to get through it.  Anyway back to the bag, I loved it so much that I decided to make my own.  I've gone for crochet flower squares for mine but still followed Inga's  formula for putting the bag together.  My bag is in Neapolitan-ish ice cream colours and made with Rowan Cotton.

My variation of Inga's Hakelbeutel

I would highly recommend creating this bag it's quick to make up, just needs a little patience to put together but it's so worth it.

Made with Rowan Cotton

I was going to sew the squares together, but in the end, I just used a running crochet stitch which has given the bag a raised detailed seam.  Not only does it look more professional but it keeps the squares from stretching when the bag is in use.

The bag is fully lined with an interior zip pocket and magnetic fastener

The interior of the bag is also fully lined.  I'm not going to tell you how much of a beep-beep (excuse the language) that was to sew in place, especially around the V section at the top of the bag. However there was no way I was giving up after cutting and making the letterbox zip pocket,  so I  persevered, and it paid off.  I will soon be strutting my stuff once I've attached the woven handles I bought for it.

FO -finished object!

Button Close-up

 I have finally finished my Anais.  She has been blocked, sewn together, tried on, buttons bought, buttons attached,  tried on again, stroked, ooohed and aahed over.   Yip! She's  stunning, and I love her.

She's stunning

another button close-up

It took me a couple of days to find the right buttons,  I had 4 in my button collection- Anais needs 10-  when I saw them I had no reservations about snapping up 6 more.

Stunning

 Please don't ask me how these little guys ended up in my basket.  All I'm saying is my hand must have slipped, and they fell in at checkout. Honest! Wink, wink!

Squirrel Buttons, so cute!

Whats Next

I have a few potential new knits that I have my eye on.  Just don't know which one to start first as I love them all.

First up is Margate by Sarah Hatton.  I love this little shrug. However, some of the pictures I have seen on Ravelry it sits above the bust line,  I'm a busty girl,  so if I made this, I would have to lengthen the body, which is no problem. I love the pink colour but not sure if I have any in my stash.  So this is a maybe.

Margate by Sarah Hatton

Second up is Dapper by Marie Wallin.  I've only used bead work once or twice and loved it.  I'm not sure if this is a bit dressy for me.  I usually only wear jeans and trainers.  Then again maybe making this would put me back in touch with my feminine side. I also like the model's hair too.  I've been toying with having mine chopped into a bob for ages.  It's the same colour and thickness as the models in the picture,  then again, that could be construed as stalking,  wearing the same cardi and having the same hair do. Lol!  Think we should jump onto number three.

Dapper by Marie Wallin

Third up is another Marie Wallin design called Sedate.  It's not a very clear picture,  the bodice is plain with a lace sleeve.  I love this colour. However, I have just knitted Anais, and the colouring is very similar.

Sedate by Marie Wallin

Fourth and final design I like is Serene by Martin Storey.  I'm not keen on the colour, beige tends to wash me out. I am more of a jewel coloured person.  Ohhh!  I've just noticed someone on Rav has made this in black and red, which I like very much.  This could be the next one on the needles, peeps.  What do you think?

Friendship Blanket

The following squares are for the month of July and from Leg on the forum.

Beautifully wrapped, I was also thrifty and kept the ribbon

Dogman needs a hug 

  

My poor little boy hasn't been very well all week.  He has had a nasty tummy bug and not to go into too much detail, he's had stuff coming out either end.  He's had no energy, he's not even been moaning- which has been very strange,  as he's a hound.  He's only been able to drink water which is also odd as he's like a hoover normally.  So could everyone send him big hugs and tell him to get well soon.  He's my world, and I would be so lost without him.


My Mobile is Full of Silliness

I thought instead of talking about what's on my I Pod, I would tell you about the silliness on my phone.
I don't use my mobile very often, only for texting my mum, sister and Paul.  I don't even talk on it since developing a phobia of phones during my EMDR Therapy.  It's not just my mobile, any phone no matter who's calling I just can't face picking it up and saying hello.  Odd I know, hopefully, the CBT will sort this out.  Not being able to talk on the mobile doesn't stop me from adding silly stuff to it though.

Like wallpapers I change frequently:

Boo!!!!

Domokun

Domokun he's friendly really

Help!!

So Who Is Domokun?

He is a strange creature born from an egg.  He has a sawtoothed mouth that is locked wide. His body is bulky, but his heart is pure.  He likes to daydream and often finds himself in trouble for not paying attention. He is strong but gentle.  When he's in a bad mood, nervous or upset he breaks wind. Lol!
His only form of communication is by producing a low pitched noise which sounds like his name.
I love him he's cool.

I also like to add silly tunes, so if my phone does ring it makes me smile, even though I don't answer it.

In the form of Bod!

or Roobarb and Custard

Or my all time favourite The Flumps. Yes, I'm a seventies kid and proud of it.

Shirley xoxoxo

Little bit of fame and alot of changes

Hi everyone, lovely to see you again!  Well,  it's been quite a week for little moi.

First off,  I had to make two purchases a portable light studio  and a tripod  then I had to get to grips with this big boy.
 

I paid a lot of money for the camera above when it first came out but I'm ashamed to say I've  never really grasped how to use it =(  I've always felt frustrated when I've tried to take photos with it, so the majority of the time it has lived in it's camera case.  Bad I know.

Whereas for this little guy:

Never out of my hand.  That was until  Monday of last week when I received not one but three emails about the bags and needle cases that I make. Once I'd picked myself up off the floor, panic set it.   The first email was from was from the lovely Linda who asked if it was okay to feature my bags or her blog here. The second email was from  KNIT magazine  to feature one of my project bags in a forthcoming edition. The third  email was from SEW Hip magazine  they will be featuring my Watermelon Needle Case in Issue 32 of their magazine yahoo!!  The magazines asked if I could send some High Resolution images to them-High Resolution what??????  So after panicking, Googling and sharing the news with the lovely people on the Knitting forum I'm a member of.  The lovely Christine came up with this brilliant blog Eskimimi Knits.  She has a wonderful, wonderful tutorial on how to get the best use out of your camera and of course, the all important lighting and setting up your photo shoot.

So an hour and a half later I was all set up, lighting studio in middle of front bedroom, lighting set up -two lamps from Ikea hahaha!  And my new tripod - which when I set up had one leg shorter than the other two, mmmmm!  And when I placed the camera on it, well it  was at an angle?????  I mean, I don't know much about photography but even I know the cameras meant to sit straight.  So after taking it back and exchanging it we were good to go.

  I'm soooo pleased with the results.  Took me a couple of hours, fiddling around with the settings and not cursing at the Olympus camera and this is what I produced-with the help of a little editing in Photoshop, of course.
 Taaaa-daaaa! 

Owl Pyramid Bag-Olympus Camera shot

Owl Pyramid Bag-Olympus Camera shot

Owl Pyramid Bag-Sony Camera shot

Russian Doll Bag -Olympus Camera

Russian Doll Bag -Olympus Camera

Russian Doll Bag -Sony Camera

Russian Doll Bag -Sony Camera

Russian Doll Abstract Bag-Olympus Camera

Russian Doll Abstract Bag-Sony Camera

Russian Doll Abstract Bag-Olympus Camera

 So my aim now is, to always try and take decent photos for my little blog. Lol!
 
Oh! And all the above bag designs are now available in my Folksy store =D.

Second Change:  The Tutorial-Knitting and Tutorial Crochet tabs at the top of my blog, are now active and 3 new pages are live in this, more will be added over the next couple of weeks. So be sure to check back regularly ;D

You may also have noticed another change- the appearance of my blog.  Whilst composing this post on Saturday I decided to take a step back from it and found it gave me a headache just looking at it.  Hahaha!  I deemed my blog to be too busy, trashy, with a lot of colour clashing, hence the reason I've simplified it.  I'm quite content with the look now, it's easier to manoeuvre around and less sickening to the eye. Lol!
Also, in the future if I want to change the look I plan on just substituting the background colour from blue to whatever takes my fancy-simples- hahaha!

Now for another change- I actually have some knitting to show on my  blog, yes the blog that's meant to be about knitting ;P

I currently have this on the needles:

Sunshine Cardi by Anni Howard

This design asks for 4ply yarn but I've had a pack of Rowan Calmer sitting in my stash forever and I was just itching to use it.

 
The colour I'm using isn't really a sunshine yellow in fact it reminds me of  Angel Delight pudding.  The shade is actually called Delight (489)  so I'm not far off with my description.

Now this  knit is either going to go really well or be a complete and utter disaster.  You see I hate swatching.  I hate it, hate it, hate it,  with a vengeance.  Swatching makes me want to scoop my eyes out with spoons- over the top, I know- but to be honest I've never, ever swatched a garment in my whole knitting life and I'm not about to start now and anyway I've always got away with it.  My Sunshine Cardi will probably be a complete disaster now after my rant. Lol!

Anyway!  I'm progressing along with this knit quite nicely and I'm thoroughly enjoying it.  The yarn is yummy and the pattern is interesting enough to stop me getting bored (I'm an impatient person at heart).
I have already completed the ribbing detail and advancing up the body of the cardi very fast.  I've taken it off the needles once and placed it on spare yarn to try around my body and I'm very pleased with the results so far.

Also off the needles is this:

Molly Ringwald by Michele Rose Orne

 Molly Ringwald knitted in Malabrigo yarn in coral

I love this top so much. It was fun to knit and the detail around the neck is so flattering.