This is my place to chronicle the simple pleasures of my life.....I knit, crochet and sew etc. I'm a proud Mommy, a wife and above all a soul of living light. Join me on a journey to inspiration amongst craft or life.....

Sunday, April 29, 2012

Winter girly!

Just because my needles and fingers are never not busy!

sweet newborn top - 'Market Day'

Size 3 Brooklyn jacket - 'Will work for yarn' knit

And some shop in stocks.....




Purple carrot dyeing!

A short while ago I came across some 'original' purple carrots in my local supermarket, how could I resist such a cool color for a vege.

Anyway one night as a pot full of chopped carrots was boiling away I had an idea for the purple water - it was a rich purple too, not wishy washy at all......anyway I grabbed some scrap yarn and chucked it in (Yes, I removed our carrots for dinner first LOL).
I must confess I'm not a dyer - I truly had no idea what would happen but I did go for a google browse which told me to add in a few splashs of white vinegar to help set the color and boil it away for a while....after that I removed the yarn (Oh and I did also chuck in a white baby flannel wash cloth for the sake of it too) and cloth and left them to dry overnight.
Next day I rinsed them until no more dye ran and then dried them in the sunshine.

The yarn turned out fabulous and actually took up quite a lot of the dye.....I even re-washed and scrubbed the yarn to test for colorfastness and not a drop of color came out.
Woohoo! How cool is that!
The yarn I used was a merino 90%/cashmere10% blend.

The washcloth washed out quite a bit but it still came out a nice pinky purple color.



This is the yarn after I wound it into a cake - not the best pic.


So there you go.....I can now dye myself some purple yarn, hehe.......might try a cotton yarn next!

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Girly Accessories!

Awwww......a flower for your princess?
The first in a line of handmade girly accessories added to my shop.....all hand cut and sewn in felt by me each one is sure to delight! Girly Accessories


thanx for looking!


Thursday, April 19, 2012

Scrap Fashionista's

Scrap Fashionista's have arrived instore!

And you might be thinking......Just what is a scrap fashionista?
Well these lovely ladies are created solely from my yarn scraps/bits and each one is completely unique with their own style and fashion flair 'OOAK' - whether it be frills and bows, spots, flowers or make-up each fashionista is waiting to be adopted by you!

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This week we introduce "Tina, Ruby and Violet"
Three lovely ladies who'd love a new home! 




Thursday, April 12, 2012

Free crochet pattern - Sniggle Flower

Sniggle Flower

Gauge/hook size/yarn weight is all variable and up to you as changing these will only increase or decrease the size of your flower and gently vary the look.
For my flowers in the pic I used a 4ply/baby weight yarn and a size 1.75mm hook - my flowers turned out approx 4 inches across.

Standard American terms
SC = single crochet
DC = double crochet
Sl st = slip stitch
REP = repeat
CH = chain
--------------------------

Start with a magic loop and do 12 DC into ring, slip st to top of first DC.
 Chain 1, *SC in first st, 2 SC in next st*.....REP around from * and sl st to first SC.

Change color now if desired. (center of flower)

CH 3, *DC in same st, CH 3, skip a st, 2 DC in next st*.....REP around from * and sl st to first DC.

Now.......turn flower over so you are looking at the back, sl st twice down the leg of the first DC, SC into the two back loops of the two DC you just sl st down....(Doing this allows the middle part of your flower to stand out rather than attached to the bottom petals)

Arrow points to bottom of 2 DC group, shown with flower right side up
Shows flower upside down and where you will start your ch 8 loops.

*CH 8, SC into back of next 2 DC pair*.......REP around from * and sl st into first bottom SC.

Sl st into the CH 8 loop, CH 3, and then work 10 DC into loop, *CH 1, 11 DC into next loop*.....REP around from * ending with a CH 1 and a sl st in first DC.
 Fasten off and weave in ends.
 Copyright K.Matt 2012. 


Enjoy..................

If you would like to purchase premade flowers or ask about a custom order with your choice of colors please visit my shop or contact me :)

Sunday, April 8, 2012

GIRL!

And finally at 26 weeks our belly bubba decided to show which sex it was LOL
It's a girl!
We'd previously had 3 scans before this one (I have more than usual due to health and my CAD) and each time the scan tech would say - it looks like a girl BUT we just can't get a clear enough pic to make sure a lil willy isn't hiding somewhere.............well finally a clear one of 3 lines and nothing (that we could see) between the legs :)
Very excited and a bit stunned at the same time - after 4 boys it is a much wanted gift and also a connecting piece for our first child (a girl) who has been surrounded in boys for quite some time LOL
Bubba is healthy and very active too!

Here are some knits for her.....of course I couldn't resist clicking those needles straight away!!!!!!

pastel princess


Purple princess

Both of these are also being entered in the ravelry group 'Budding Designers Downunder' craftyweewifey KAL.........use any of the designers patterns to enter! And such great patterns they are too - love them for their clear, easy to read format and seamless design!

I am also proud to announce I have received my license to knit 'spring butterfly' pattern for sale and custom.
(the top photo shows the pattern....titled pastel princess)
I'll be adding some of these cute little knits to my shop and custom page soon :)

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And here is the Easter present I knitted for my husband <3
A cabled 'sea beanie' from Elena Nodel designs.

L*O*V*E
Next knit started on the needles is one for my 18mth old son Israel.....I really should get back to knitting my jacket, it's about halfway finished....just need to do the length and sleeves.

Monday, April 2, 2012

A rainy days milo.....

Finished today for my 5yr old Teddy <3
I am really pleased with how it came out and he loves it too which is always a good thing!
I freeform crocheted the hanging cloud and the raindrops are felt sewn on.
Pattern is a 'milo'. Seamless and easy.



I'm actually quite organized with my autumn/winter knit list - here's what it looks like

Angelus -
Plain raglan tee - COMPLETE
Vest - ???
Israel -
Hotshot?
Milo
Teddy
Milo - rainy skies COMPLETE
finish wip - edens adam size 5 for school
July bubba -
Felipe w matching lego hat- COMPLETE
Sweet and lo jacket w matching hat - COMPLETE
5 hour sweater
log cabin blanket - 25%
Me
Jacket - 55%
DH -
Beanie

Of course this doesn't include shop instocks :)
And speaking of my lil store here is the newest item added today:

Size 3mths + top in a merino/cashmere blend.

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Latest additions to the 'knitting Nook'

Newborn

0-6 mths


A different space....

I've a new space, new look and new name for my handmade corner of the world....Since I began selling my handmade items back in 2008 I've totaled over 547 sales worldwide. It's amazes and humbles me.
I sell my items to share the handmade love and to allow me to craft some more and now finally I have settled into a new space that I designed to reflect this and my crafts.

These Little Wagons is now open on a congocart store....http://www.theselittlewagons.congocart.com/

I freehand drew my logo image and styled it, combined different colors and named my categories - I learned a lot about CSS and Javascript LOL even though I'm still baffled by many bits of it.
I hope you come by for a visit sometime............