Baby shower gift

 One of J's kindy teachers has just gone on Maternity Leave with a (very unexpected) baby.  She is an amazing teacher and the entire community will miss her while she is away.  J's kindy - and our neighbourhood  - is in a very rough area, and she manages to be well respected, and well connected across the community here, which is no mean feat.

So as a little gift for her, I made a little baby doll.  The pattern is from Rhythm and Rhyme, and I've made it several times before.  They are such soft, squishy dolls, and really easy to make up.

Artistic shot from P - in which you can see my terrible sewing up of the bottom of the doll.  We were out at an appointment and I didn't have any red thread.

Christmas crafting

 This year Father Christmas is going with a tried and tested winner.  Felt food.

Some chocolate chip cookies.  For time and effort, these are definitely a winner.  Quick to make and large enough to seem like some proper presents.

And some blueberries (unfortunately garishly blue since I didn't have any really dark blue felt in my stash).  I'm still pretty happy with them.

Admittedly I would be much happier about my Christmas efforts if this wasn't the only thing I had made and its already November, but its a start.

What Christmas gifts are you making this year? And have you started?

Flower Press giveaway winner!

Is Amy from Amy's Crafty Shenanigans.

Congratulations and the parcel will be winging its way to you soon.

Sorry for the delay in finishing this up - real life got away on me a bit.

Flower Press Giveaway

This giveaway is now closed.

Sharp eyed readers of my blog will have noticed that I made two flower presses last week.  And I'm giving one away!

They are covered in pictures of flowers, and are sealed with PVA glue.  The prize is for the covered placemats - which you can use as placemats rather than a flower press if you want, but I'm not including the bull clips to join it all together.

How to enter:

• Leave a comment on this post, telling me your favourite flower
• If you're a follower, please leave a second comment letting me know.
• The winner will be chosen using my trusty 'scrolling up and down the list of comments with my eyes closed' random method.
• I'm happy to ship internationally
• This giveaway is open until 18 October 2013, and a winner will be emailed by 21 October - so please make sure I have some way to contact you if your comment wins!

Flower Press

P and J spent last week with my parents as it was school holidays here.  And it was the perfect time to make J's flower press for her birthday.

I cut up the rose pictures from the book I bought, and then glued them onto the placemats with PVA glue.  I then covered them with another layer of PVA to seal them.  The original tutorial called for modge podge, but PVA is what I had, so that is what I used.

I am pretty happy with how they turned out.

However, you can see that there is a little bit of bubbling under the paper.  I suspect its because I didn't put enough glue on the bottom.  I'm still really happy with them, and I really hope that J will like them.

Hop over to Blackbird has spoken to find more Op Shop finds.

Serendipity and the Hospice Shop

 After my epiphany about J's birthday presents I decided to hit the Hospice Shop for some bits and pieces.  Unfortunately it was a Saturday, so I had to let P and J come with me.  Well, I didn't have to, but when they get so excited to buy 50c worth of pencils and a pencil case to go with them, I don't mind indulging them.  While we were shopping for childrens books, pencils and a strange plastic rose originally from the Body Shop, I found some things to use for J's birthday presents.

A treasure tin

 Complete with floral motif! J did ask what the tin was for, and I just said for some stuff.  She'll still be very excited to see it on her birthday.

And some placemats to make into a flower press.  The original tutorial uses coasters, but I thought they might be a bit small for the flowers J likes to collect.  So I was on the look out for something a bit bigger, and there they were.  Its hard to tell from the picture, but they aren't full size placemats, more like something in between a coaster and a placemat.  In fact exactly the size I was looking for.  So I snapped them up as well.

 And finally a book about roses.  Since I'm going with the floral theme I thought these pictures would look fabulous pasted onto the top of the placemats.

 So $3 well spent on my birthday present bits, and once again when I have needed something, the Hospice Shop has come through for me.

Joining up with the Op Shop show off with Blackbird has spoken today.

Gifts

My project this week is to make some gifts.  I suspect I put it in this week because it is my niece's birthday, so that works out well, but the word gifts implies that I had something broader in mind.  What was it though? I'm not really sure exactly what I thought I was going to do this week.  Maybe I'm supposed to make some gifts in the hopes that I will be more prepared next time I need to give something to someone?

Anyway, I thought I would knit my niece a headband for her birthday - something along the same lines as the one I made for C.

Mermaid Barbie

I have finished J's Barbie mermaid skirt (or is it a tail?) from Sticka Till Barbie.  Its pattern 1106 - click on the link 1101 - 1150 on the left hand side.  I really like the way it has turned out.  I think the green and blues of the yarn really work with this pattern.  I think J will love it for her birthday.

The fin parts of the tail are knitted in garter stitch, and I like the textural difference between those and body of the tail.

I haven't been consciously styling Barbie's arms and hands, they just kind of fall into that position - she looks a bit creepy if you ask me.  Of course, she may just be a bit miffed that I've photographed her with no top on.  Sorry about that Barbie.

Joining up with FO Friday, and Creative Friday today.

I have been inspired

We were walking home from playgroup this morning, when inspiration struck me about J's birthday presents.  J had just picked me some flowers and instructed me to take them to work.  J loves to pick flowers and give them to people, and it got me thinking about the flower press that my sister had as a kid.  It was awesome.  And then I realised I could make/get J one for her birthday!

And then, in that serendipitous way that things often go, I was randomly looking at Remarquable Junque and found this post about a Nature bag, that included a flower press.  I might not get all the things that the Nature kit has in it, but I will definitely be using a few ideas, especially the flower press.

My project this week

More birthday presents for J.  While the Barbie clothes are coming along really well, I'm still a little stumped by some of the other ideas.

However, I think maybe I will make her a skirt, and then try to find some ponies for her.  That just leaves one present, and I think something like a game, or puzzle, is probably in order.  I did ask her what she wanted, but she also didn't have any idea.  Maybe I should start frequenting that place that I buy things in the hopes that something jumps out and grabs me.

Barbie knitting

My project this week was to knit some clothes for J's Barbies for her birthday.  I was browsing Ravelry, and came across Stick till Barbie.  Wow! If you ever wanted to knit some Barbie clothes, this is the site for you.  There are over 1,000 patterns on here.  I think I can knit from here for as long as the girls will need clothes for their dolls.  Its a bit of a time waster, but check out some of the patterns!

 So far I have knitted dress 498 (I can't link directly to each pattern, but you can click onto the ones you want on the left hand side).

and I am most of the way through a mermaid tail (pattern 1106), which I think J will love.

I've altered the mermaid tail to knit in the round (the patterns on the site are all knitted flat), using some thick and thin hand spun yarn.  I didn't really like the striping in the yarn, so I still have heaps of it.  I can see plenty more little projects like this to use it up.

Change of plans

My project for the week coming was supposed to be photos.  See I had big plans to put together a photo book, or at least print out photos from our holiday.  We went skiing this week, the first time for the girls.  But unfortunately P was (and still is) very sick.  So there was no skiing for her at all, and not much else either, well except for sleeping on the couch.  So instead this week I need to really get moving on J's birthday presents since I have done *ahem* nothing for them yet.

So that is my project for this week.  I think I will be dyeing some wool, and making some Barbie clothes.

Dress for J

I had my wool out recently, and J demanded (I mean requested) that I knit her a dress.  I really like the Maxi Dress by Elena Nodel (ravelry link), although I am tempted by the Oriental Lily by Tikki as well.

 And she picked this yarn, surprise by PureWool.  There is only one problem.  I only have 100g of this in fingering weight which isn't enough to knit J a dress.  And its an unusual colourway, and Purewool has gone out of business, and PureWool isn't known for the consistency of colours across dye lots.

 So all in all, its a problematic situation.  Rather than casting about trying to find some more of the yarn I already have I have decided to dye some wool myself.  It obviously isn't going to look exactly the same, but at least I will get the right amount of yarn in the right ply.

I had big plans

To catch up on some blog posts.  But like all best laid plans, I have hit a snag.  We went on holiday and I can no longer find my camera.  So posts but not pictures.

We have put the compost through the vege garden, and staked out the rows.  Today P and J helped me to sow our first two rows of seeds.

Our garden is laid out with alternating short and long term crops in it.
A = full season plants (like cucumber and courgette)
B = half season plants (like brassicas and peas)
C =short term crops (carrots, beetroot, spring onions).

The rows are 50cm apart, and every year we move the rows by 25cm to ensure that we are getting a reasonable crop rotation.  This year the rows run B C A C B C A C and today we planted some snow peas in the first row, and carrots and radishes in the second.

J was really keen to grow some radishes, so we sowed them, but I don't really eat them so I am at a bit of a loss with what to do with them when they come through.

What are you planting out? And any tips on the radishes?

Red Day skirt

 J had a red day at kindy today, and although we had some red tops, she didn't have anything to wear on her bottom half.  So we made a skirt out of a woolen jersey in my stash.  It was super simple to make.

 I just cut the jersey off under the arms to make a rectangle open at two ends.

Then I just zigzagged two strips of elastic to the top of the rectangle.  All the other seams are already finished, and the zigzag on the elastic should stop the top of the skirt from fraying too badly.

I had to use underwear elastic because that's all I had, but J didn't seem too worried about it.

 It certainly did the job for her Red day (in honour of Red Nose Day), and she wore it all afternoon.

How does my garden grow?

Not too badly for winter.

 Most years, we just let the vege garden go over winter, and forage for whatever is still in the ground.

But my project this week is to dig over everything and stake out our rows for the spring/summer plantings.

Birthday knitting

While I did complete a birthday present this week, it wasn't one for J.  I have finished one fingerless mitten for my brother for his birthday, and I'm most of the way through the other half of the pair.  The pattern is Alice's amazing no gusset fingerless mittens (ravelry link).

So far I am enjoying it, and I am knitting at practically light speed, having completed most of the pair this week.

Now with pictures!

Birthday presents

My project this week is to start on some birthday presents for J.  I can't believe she is nearly four.  Where is all this time going, and how do I slow it down!

Anyway, enough freaking out about ageing, so far I have a few ideas for her presents:

• Barbie clothes (I can knit some really fast right?)
• Lego
• Something pony/unicorn related
• Maybe something musical?

Okay, so my ideas are still a little nascent, but they are at least a good start.  I might see what I can find on Ravelry and Pinterest.

While we are on the subject, have I confessed that I don't really like Pinterest? I get the point of it, but my mind doesn't really work the way that it is set up.  Maybe I am just getting old, and that technology is for the younger generation.  Back in my day, we just remembered where we saw the idea in the first place instead of pinning everything (insert zimmer frame shaking here).

Any other thoughts or ideas about 4 year old birthday ideas?

More projects

12/08 - Birthday presents
19/08 - Gardening
26/08 - Birthday presents
02/09 - Holiday
09/09 - Photos
16/09 - Birthday presents
23/09 - Gifts
30/09 - Montessori
07/10 - Knitting
14/10 - No project
21/10 - Christmas presents
28/10 - No project

These will take me up to the end of October and by then I should be full swing into Christmas presents (I can hear you all laughing from here).  I am trying to think of projects that are more knitting and hand sewing based, so we will see how that goes.

Losing my sewing mojo

I had completely lost my sewing mojo at the moment.  We had to pull everything out of the house to recarpet, and my sewing material has not yet returned from the bottomless pit that is our garage.  And if that wasn't enough to stop me in my tracks, the knowledge that every time I get the sewing machine out I will have to put it away immediately afterwards isn't very conducive to creativity either.  Plus I managed to organise my UFO shelf in the linen cupboard, and now I don't want to make it untidy in their either.  All of this rampant tidiness is so that we can put it on the market to sell.  So stressful and creativity killing when it comes to sewing.  However, there are still hand crafts.  So when I decide on J's birthday presents, and Christmas presents for all the girls, I suspect they will heavily feature knitted and embroidered gifts.  Unless the house sells really quickly of course, in which case I can bring out the sewing machine and sew with wild abandon.