October “Cute & Quirky” Swap – Part 2

As promised, here are some more photos of the things that I made for the Halloween swap (this also gave me a chance to kidnap and test Mr G’s new toy – a DSLR camera J). 

The first item is some Halloween “bunting” with feltie bats and knitted pumpkins.   I have become obsessed with bunting lately and an interested to develop it beyond its traditional triangular form.  

The second item is a pumpkin-head zombie.   I have to confess that this is not my own design; it is from a book called Zombie Felties by Nicola Tedman and Sarah Skeate.   I really love these designs they are full of humorous, quirky gruesomeness and are deceptively simple to make.

I had forgotten how much I enjoy sewing and using fabrics in my work and I really liked the mix of media used in the Halloween bunting.  I think this is something I am going to develop in future projects so I’m now trying to think of projects that will combine more of my crafting talents – watch this space!!

October “Cute & Quirky” Swap – Part 1

As mentioned in my previous swap this month I took part in a swap through a Ravelry group.   The subject of the swap was either Happy Halloween or Amazing Autumn.   I chose to receive a parcel containing items under the theme of Amazing Autumn as I just love this time of year with the wonderful colours from the changing of the seasons and cosy feeling you get when the nights start drawing in.

I would like to say a big thank you to Katie (Odds0cks) who sent me this:

Everything is so cute!   I love the ribbon and the sparkly thread (everything I make for the next few weeks is going to be covered in it!!) and, of course, chocolate is always warmly received.   But the piece de resistance was ‘Bernie’ the Conker which Katie made herself.

I have really enjoyed this swap and am looking forward to doing another one soon.   And if you’d like to see what was in the parcel I put together then follow this link to inittoknitit’s blog – I’ll post a bit more about my Halloween makes later this week.  J

A new lease of life….

I’ve done something a little different this month and it’s proving to be rather inspirational.  

A couple of weeks ago I logged onto Ravelry for the first time in ages and I had a couple of emails.   One of them was asking if I would be interested in joining a “swap”.   For those that don’t know a swap is pretty much what it says – you are assigned a partner and then you send them a little package of crafty and/or handmade items up to a certain value and in return you receive a package back from them.   I had read about swaps before but not really taken much notice but for some reason this really caught my attention and so I decided to be brave and have a go.

And I am very glad I did!   The theme of the swap is "Happy Halloween / Amazing Autumn” and I can’t believe how inspirational it has been.   I am making things that I would not necessarily have thought about making if it weren’t for this “brief” and it is really sparking my imagination for future makes.   I am using different mediums and techniques from my usual work which is stretching my skills and encouraging me not to give up on my dreams of being a full-time crafter.   One of my shortcomings is that I get excited about things very easily but then loose interest just as easily when they don’t work out or start getting too repetitive.  Maybe I need to start setting myself briefs or themes each month to stretch my ideas and keep designing/ creating different items?  (any ideas very welcome!)  

I would love to post photos but that would spoil the surprise if my swap partner were to see this post but as soon as I know it’s been received I will share some pictures.   So, to conclude, I would just like to say a big “THANK YOU” to Jordan (inittoknitit94) for enticing me to get involved.    I will definitely sign up for more swaps in the future and encourage everyone to hunt one out as I have had a lot of fun putting my little package together – I can’t wait to see what I get in return.  J

Why so long????

I just can't believe it's been so long since my last post -  there are just not enough hours in the day to keep up-to-date with twitter, facebook and this blog as well as all the normal day-to-day stuff that goes on!!   Really, i should do little and often rather than building it up in my head as this thing that is going to take ages to write, has to be perfect and no-one is ever going to read  or be interested in anyway!

So what have I been up to over the past couple of months?   My partner and I have had a couple of trips away; we went to Cornwall at the beginning of the summer and then the week before last we had a week away in the Yorkshire Dales.   The weather wasn't amazing but it was really nice to be somewhere different and out in the open air for a few days.  There are some very beautiful places around that part of the country - as well as a lot of cows and sheep.

And as an ode to that I have been working on a new sheep design! - no pictures yet i'm afraid as it is in the very early stages of production.   But before work started on that a couple of cats have made an appearance (well done Jess you guessed correctly - gold star on it's way):

(photos to follow - computer playing up!)

So, i had better get back to the practical stuff or the sheep will never take shape!   I have had a couple of good ideas about how to progress with my work, as a whole, so i just need to do some research and get some of my motivation back - any ideas on motivation greatfully received.  :-)

Cow and Chickens

Wow, I can't believe it's been 2 months since my last post!  And, it appears i have some new followers - hello and welcome.  

Well, what have I been up to since my last post?   The weather has been wonderful which hasn't been condusive to staying inside and knitting or sewing up a storm but I have been managing to sit in a park local to work in my lunch breaks to at least steal an hours knitting's a day.   Weekends have also been pretty busy; we've been to Paris, Manchester and London over the past few weeks but finally I have managed to find a little quiet moment to show you my (not quite so) new creations:  Cow and Chickens.

These were created to carry on the farmyard theme started by the loopy sheep - Eugene.   And I've got some ideas for a pig and a horse next so hopefully there will be more to show you very soon (with any luck it won't be as long as 2 months this time!)  So, I shall just leave you with some more pictures: 

 

Thank you for taking an interest in my work; see you next time. :o)

On a roll (or is that a loop?!)

Just a quick one today to give you an idea of what i've been up to this week:

Firstly, I have just posted some new and more detailed photos of Terrence the Tree Frog on my Facebook page: Terrence the Tree Frog

And inspired from how well Terrence turned out and by the sneaky knitting adventures of a yarn storming group called Knit the City (Yarnstorm the Twelth) I taught myself the loop stitch and look what evolved:

He is feeling a little upset though as I haven't given him a name yet - any ideas?

He's also a little lonely so now onto a whole farmyard......... :)

Have you met my friend Terrence?

I can't believe it's been over a month since my last post - where has the time gone?   Well, since I last posted I have been getting rather creative.   I decided that it was about time that I designed my own knitted toy from scratch.   Inspiration came in the form of a leaflet that was posted through my door and away I went!   After several attempts I am rather pleased with my efforts.

So without further ado may I introduce Terrence the Tree Frog:

The pictures I have taken so far do not do him enough justice so I shall post some more later in the week; I have just been itching to share him with you!

And I think I'm on a creative roll as have had inspiration for a couple of more toys.   It appears that creating knitting paterns is a little like learning a foreign language - I have started thinking in knitting patterns! - so hopefully there will be a few more toys in my repetoire fairly soon.  :o) 

Inspiration

Well my week isn't exactly going to plan!   It was my intention to have posted this instalment earlier in the week and  be showing you some of my own creations tonight.   But no such luck!!!   I didn't realise it would be so difficult to sort out all the web side of things; it is driving me round the bend!!   It seems like at the moment I am spending the vast majority of my life in front of a computer screen.   Enough of the venting of my frustration and onto the real reason for this post - designs that have inspired me.

Over the past few months I have been honing my knitting and sewing skills; compiling a collection of books and drawing inspiration and knowledge from them.   

Here are some examples of the knitted creations I have been experimenting with including reference to the books they are from:

Chucky the Chicken

This was the very first knitted toy that I made.   Chucky is from Rowan's "the organic cotton kids collection" pattern book.   I just love her dangly knotted-kneed legs!

Ellie 

Cedric

Ellie and Cedric are from "Knitted Toy Tales" by Laura Long.   They were very easy to knit and the texturing and appliqué adornments are lovely touches which bring these gorgeous toys to life.   They just love brightening up my desk and keeping me company at work!

Tiny Mushrooms

Teeny Tiny Snail

These two are from a fantastic book and website that I recently discovered – "Mochimochi".

This designer, Anna Hrachovec, takes inspiration from Japanese Kawaii illustration and her little figures are just adorable.   There is a lot to be learnt from these patterns and I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in knitted toys and learning to develop their own designs.

Busy Wekend.

Just a quick update:   I was hoping to have some pictures ready to post this evening but it hasn't quite worked out!   They have been taken but need a bit of tidying up before posting.   But i have been busy doing other stuff too.   Thanks to my lovely boyfriend having quite a hangover yesterday i managed to get most of the weekend for crafting.   A little sock bunny and rat are almost finished and a knitted chicken is starting to take shape.   Also this evening i have created a new facebook site dedicated to my little creatures, i think they deserve it!   Seems like i am going to spend most of my time on the computer rather than actually making!   On which note my knitting needles are calling - the chicken needs more work............

Here we go - Hopefully the first of many!!!

My mantra for the year - This is the year that things are going to change.  

For the past couple of years I have been crafting (mainly sewing and knitting) in my spare time, I even dabbled with a craft fair last Christmas which was quite successful but has not yet been repeated, so I have now decided that the time has come to really commit to my projects.   This blog is that first step.   Hopefully, over the coming weeks and months you will get a glimpse of the kind of stuff I am into and a few little lovable creatures will materialise along the way!

Here is a first little glimpse:  Some of my little friends that made it to that craft fair, lots of whom are in hopefully very loving homes now.