Knitting addicts - a new generation

Yow, has it been that long since I last posted??

After a really, really hard few months, things are beginning to change. Helen and I have left Playcentre and will be spending the time between now and February together, doing stuff we want to do. She starts school at the beginning of the new year, so we're going to be making the most of having time on our hands, together.
Plans so far:
• growing vegetables • swimming • story time at the library • cooking more • reading more • having more fun and less worry.

It's holiday time here again, so we've been doing a bit of crafty stuff. Big news for Jen this week, she's learned to knit!

After she'd done about 20 rows she announced: "I just wanna stay up and knit all night". Spoken like a true knitting addict!

Also knitting related, I finally received my invite to Ravelry the other day. What a lot of fun! I love the way you can browse through patterns using the tags. I was inspired to get the needles out, and whipped up a little shrug for Helen.

Holiday time!

At last it's the school holidays again. We've been having a quiet time, staying in bed late, doing lots of reading. Lovely.

I found some wool that I'd dyed with food colouring about a year ago, Helen asked me to make wool that looked like lava. This weekend I turned it into a pair of slippers for her, which she's been dancing around in. Oh, how that girl loves to dance!

I made the pattern up as I went along, and for once I seem to have been able to make two the same! I know I really should write things down as I go, but where's the fun in that?

Today I've sent off my application email for the next Craft 2.0 to be held at the Dowse in August. Fingers crossed they let me in! I'm hoping that if I *do* get accepted, I might meet some of the very talented ladies whose blogs I frequent, selling their wares there too.

On Wednesday the girls and I take off to Christchurch for a few days with my sister and her family. So far the only plans we have are for the girls to attend a class at the bead shop in the Arts Centre on Friday. I shall be hunting out some special beads for ring making, I think. Can't wait!

I'm back, at last

I don't know why I can't seem to keep this blog very current. Goodness knows, I spend plenty of time sitting here at the computer, you'd think it would be easy to write a quick post more often than, say, once a month! wouldn't you? Well apparently not.

Things have been somewhat busy around here. Ian's almost finished his thesis (due June 15th) and I've been clocking up some hours talking with him about that, and editing the document, doing charts etc.

And I've knitted something! No, I haven't finished the 1 skein wonder I started back when my knee popped out (just the bands to go, though). But I did start *and finish* a little capelet for the lovely Chloe's 8th birthday, which turned out quite nicely. Now Jen and Helen want one the same, of course.

I've made some more vintage button rings, one with sterling silver wire which looks terrific.




I've been busy with Playcentre, as usual.

But the best of all this busy-ness is that I've had some absolutely lovely times with my gorgeous girls lately.

Jen will be turning 7 very soon, and she wants to have a paper doll themed party. So we'll be making life-size paper doll dresses with the friend's she's invited. Not sure how that'll go, I guess it'll involve lots of scissors, glue sticks, glitter, felt pens, and maybe staples, or sellotape... Hmmm. I think we'll need a trial run this weekend!

Ouch!

I had to cancel my button-buying trip to the Hospice shop today. Late yesterday afternoon, while just finishing up some cleaning at Playcentre, I stretched up on tiptoe to pull down some old artwork off the wall and overextended myself, and my left knee dislocated. The patella shot out to the side of my leg. The huge bump in my jeans and the excruciating pain told me exactly what had happened and I managed to push it straight back into the right place.

After a very very long wait at the hospital, I had an x-ray done, then another long wait. Finally a nurse came to say I wouldn't be seen before midnight and very likely later than that so I went home.

Today I can hobble about with the use of a stick, not a good look. My niece, bless her heart, suggested this would be the perfect time to "do a House, fill up a medicine bottle with TicTacs, pop those all day and hobble around being sarcastic". Don't tempt me.

But instead, I've been sat on the couch most of the day, actually knitting!

I tried to knit a few weeks back, after the knife+finger thing. But turns out that injury actually did some nerve damage and even now I have a numb area on that finger. A few weeks ago it was uncomfortable to knit like that.
But now! Not too bad! So I've started work on a version of Glampyre's 1 Skein Wonder, in an as-yet undetermined size. I've added a few stitches, substituted 2 strands of Rowan Botany 4ply, and I'm about 1/3 done. Maybe it'll fit me? Stay tuned!

Happy mail, I've got that happy mail

Wow, Jo's parcel for the Vintage Button Swap arrived on Thursday. Don't believe a word she says, everything in it is fabulous!

I took pictures, but it was a grey day, and I realised today that the resolution on the camera was on it's lowest setting. So I apologise for the quality of these photos, but I'm sure you can appreciate the loveliness of the buttons + extras anyway!
First, cute packaging, I have ribbon now! yay!:

Fabric+button bracelets for two very lucky little girls:


Wee sewn things for me, a pouch and a new tissue holder which I just adore:

And of course, the buttons themselves:

What cracks me up is how the little red buttons are the exact same pattern as one of the white buttons I sent Jo. I love them all, thank you Jo!

I've been playing some more with buttons and wire, and have a couple of rings available in my Etsy store now. These things are so much fun to make. Next week the holidays are over and I'll have a few more hours without girls. One of the things I'm planning is a trip to the Hospice shop (they have the best selection) in search of some really special ring-making buttons. Can't wait!

Rings and things

Oooh! I got cool stuff in the mail today, a mandrel! Not "surprise" cool stuff, since it's something I bought on TradeMe, but still, I'm really happy!

I've been wanting to have a go at making rings for ages, since I have loads of wire, beads and buttons stashed around the place. So as soon as the package arrived, I had to give it a try. They are lots of fun, and surprisingly easy, to make (that is, to my <cough> exacting standards). Not so easy to photograph, however.

Now I need to get my act together with some other button "work", so I can get my package for the Shim + Sons Vintage Button Swap in the post later today.

Paper people

Thanks to Applehead, Jen has spent a lovely afternoon making her own Small People. Here are Maddy and Tom:


I love the library card generator, too. Here's one for all of us who spend way too much time glued to the computer: