mini knits part 2

tis the season for birthdays at the moment, and although all the 'presentees' are crafty types, i always have problems choosing gifts for them. they have piles of supplies, mountains of books and oodles of notions, so what to get? while browsing over at belle cherie handmade i was inspired by Bec's year of handmade gifts (how does she do it?!).

opal slipper socks

all my sisters know how to knit, but Barb is really too busy with sewing for her family to get stuck into a project. i thought it would be nice to knit her something and found a pattern for some vintage style slipper socks. it's not too warm at night yet to wear some while snuggled on the couch reading a book, Barb's other hobby. i found some yarn in my stash that was the perfect combination of her favourite colours of blue, teal and purple and cast on straight away, and actually finished a pair of socks!

a pair!

i really like how this pattern is made like a traditional sock; with a turned heel and picked up stitches it makes for a comfortable fit that follows the foot's contours well. i had to wrestle these from Abby when i showed her, as not surprisingly they are in her favourite colours as well! guess what's on her birthday list for December?

mini knits

life has been very hectic lately and sadly it's not even self inflicted! what with study, kids and home inspections, there's very little time to do the fun things. i've recently had to move my entire enormous stash of fabric and yarns out of the workshop i was renting, and into my garage. it's definitely an incentive to create seeing it all there, but where to get extra time?? i decided to take some old fashioned advice i once read; something about baby steps, building Rome and moving mountains. i might have mixed my metaphors there, but you get the idea, it's all about little things.

first up, a present was needed in a hurry, and Abby's friend specifically asked for these furry monstery mitts. she'd seen Abby wear hers to school and begged for some in purple. now, my stash is enormous, but it's well organised (i've got the spreadsheet to prove it!), so i found the right stuff and whipped these up in a night. the little girl was most impressed so job done!

next i worked on a lovely capelet i spied in the latest issue of Mollie Makes magazine. i used some interesting tape yarn from Spotlight called "Filou" which worked out nicely. it's quite heavy so it sits beautifully on the shoulders, but is wide enough to pin with a vintage brooch if its windy. the cotton yarn is perfect for a cool evening after a sunny day when you need to water the garden.

mollie capelet

actually i felt a bit Austen-tasious in this capelet (that's Jane, not Powers), its definitely got some vintage flair. well where is Mr Darcy anyway, i;ve been waiting quite a while for him to show up and move some of these boxes for me!

waiting for Mr Darcy

afternoon tea with mollie

mmm, gluten free banana cake and a cup of tea. what could be better?

GF banana cake

how about a minty fresh copy of Mollie Makes and a summery knitting project to go with it?  aah, that's much better now! i'm off to iron my tablecloths...

its all Mollie

back to school and back to crafting!

after an enjoyable two weeks of sun and surf, the kids are back to school today and well, it's a bit of a relief. i do love the holidays for the outdoor fun we have together, but the whole time my fingers have been itching to get stuck into making something.

middleton beach

i did finish off some knitting (details on Ravelry) and swatch some new summer yarns in between all the holiday activities, but i really want to start some new stuff! i hear Christmas bells around the corner and the shops are stuffed with all manner of tinsel and sparkly decorations, so it might be an idea to trawl through my magazines and blogs for some gifty ideas? i will be begging for some wish lists soon because there are a lot of birthdays coming up as well, five family members between now and Christmas!

wintergrass cardigan

middleton pine sweater

last week Abby and i converted a corner of the "playroom" into a small studio space for us to share. it's right near some big windows so its full of light and i can look out at the garden while crafting (not a good idea when the weather is so lovely!). so far its been great because i'm right there to help her thread needles and show her how to do all those amazing things she has in her head. i crocheted a little garland to inspire us based on one that dottie angel made for her sweet liitle dog Olive. i think we are all set for back to crafting now!

crafty corner

crochet garland

a tourist at home

yesterday was a public holiday and also marked the start of the school holidays. the kids were full of energy and eager to get into the great outdoors and we had a magic weather forecast of 31 degrees, so we decided to play at tourists in our own area. the Porongurups are a beautiful mountain range about 45 kilometers from home, and are great to visit at any time of the year. we set off to climb Castle Rock which is reputed to have wonderful views from the top and takes roughly an hour to get to the summit.

tree hugger

there were plenty of photo opportunities along the way and they were good excuses to stop and catch our breath. beautiful old trees, strange mossy growths and interesting rock formations abound in this area and i got heaps of inspiring shots for future crafty works.

balancing rock

tight squeeze

rock formations

after an exhausting hour the view at the top really was worth the climb. i was a bit wobbly at this point due to my fear of heights, so i didn't dare climb the last bit up a steel ladder onto the platform on top of the rock to the left in this photo!

view from the top