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.