toasty

These are a gift. One of the mums at school gave me an enormous bag of alpaca yarn in greens, browns and natural greys. I offered to knit her a little something as a thank you and she requested grey fingerless gloves (she previously bought a pair of [similar, but ribbed] green fingerless gloves of mine at the school's Twilight Market so she knew she liked them).

Alpaca yarn, roughly sport weight, held double. Just in time for midwinter - it's freezing these days.

Ravelled here.

PS. Look! The 12 year old hand model (the final photo) decided to stop biting his nails a couple of weeks ago. He went cold turkey and now his nails are lovely.

PPS. The blog, she is six! Such a big girl now.

just another random Saturday

A shipload of sock yarn all dyed up in greens and charcoals. Knit it up myself or fire up the defunct shop?



He still bites. He's still gorgeous and loving when he feels like it. His favourite snoozing spot is the pink chaise.



Son #2 went on the big 16-day farming camp that the Year 9s always go on. They work hard on the farm, and in their free time most of them make bush furniture. When Son #1 went two years ago he brought home a magnificent stool he'd made, which he uses as his guitar stool. Son #2 decided to get in touch with his inner hobbit, and made ... a staff.

I'm threatening to sew him a velvet green cloak. Note, he refused to pose with his [admittedly, rather wonderful] staff.



It's cobweb season again here in Cobweb Country. Usually they're the single thread sort which appear overnight, but this amazing web appeared in my kitchen the other morning, strung between the recipe stand on the kitchen bench and the pots 'n pans rack hanging from the ceiling and complete with miniscule spider in its centre. I couldn't bear to destroy such a work of art, but by the next day it had disappeared.



Son #3 finishing the last couple of pages of Lord of the Rings. Puffing out his cheeks in exasperation at glancing up and finding the camera on him. Oh Muuu-uuum.

midwinter

choc top

Bonnet. I think bonnet is one of the loveliest of words. Sort of bonny and wee all rolled into one. Bonnet.



I'm a tight knitter and I launched right into knitting this with no swatch or upsizing of needles so it doesn't actually fit me. (Thankfully, said the ever critical offspring).



It fits the 12 year old son rather well but I'm having a hard time convincing him of the merits of a supersoft chocolate bonnet, complete with little chin ties.

The pattern is Jejeune's rather adorable Pauline, available for free on Ravelry if you have a hankering for a wee bonnet of your own.

Mine is Ravelled here.

some more craft weekend photos

I spent a large amount of time at craft weekend exclaiming that I hadn't taken a single photo all weekend, and then all of a sudden in the last few hours I felt the need to get the camera out. I think it was the sudden appearance of dramatically angled sunbeams that did it.



Or the Barbie Yoga.



The weekend was as wonderful as these weekends always are with a gloriously harmonious tribe of women who just get it with no explanation or compromise necessary. Everyone fits, newcomers are enveloped into the fold effortlessly, and the hum hums on, punctuated by oohs of delight, cracks of laughter and endless cups of tea.



No mice this time! But a Golden Orb Weaver wove her web next to the iron lace outside the window while we wove and stitched inside. Rather fitting.



I could go on and on about it but you've heard it all before and I just sat an exam this afternoon so am a little weary. Time to knit the thumbs on a pair of fingerless gloves and have an early night. Ooh, I was just handed a cup of tea so I think I'll skip the thumbs, go directly to the early night and not pass go.



PS. Son #1 had two exams today (one 'good', one 'well, okaaay ...') and is equally weary. He has a music exam tomorrow and when I gently suggested perhaps tonight ought to be spent revising he calmly replied Oh music, no need. There's not much I don't know. Oh the confidence of youth. (In his defence, he did snort out loud when he realised what he'd actually said).

PPS. Full set of craft weekend shots here.

PPS. Thanks to Janet, Kate, Catherine, Mim, Sue and Jenny for another fab weekend.

Nighty night.

i went to craft camp

and made a red strippy quilt top



Yes, same construction as my green strippy quilt top and my pink strippy quilt top. Not terribly original, but I love playing with the different combinations of shade and pattern.

More craft camp photos later ...

heralds of winter

The first day of winter means fires



murky mists



and new cardigans.



This is my second tea leaves cardigan. I was so thrilled with my red version that I immediately cast on a charcoal one. Same yarn, different colourway.



It is, of course, Ravelled. Here.



Vital statistics
Pattern :: Tea Leaves
Yarn :: Morris & Sons Woollahra 10ply/worsted
Colour :: Peppercorn
Needles :: 4mm and 4.5mm
Started :: February 2011
Finished :: May 2011

I'm off on craft camp this weekend where there will be more mist (probably), more fires (definitely) more knitting and sewing (absolutely), and more jocularity than you can poke a stick at. See you on the other side, my friends.