Canopy Shawl

Just as I bought the wool for the Kaffe Fassett Lidiya I saw a beautiful version of the Canopy Shawl on Instagram (by the clever Emma C, my knitting sista!) and I have it in my sights now.  

image from Ravelry

After reading Heather’s post here about the totally scrumptious qualities of Debbie Bliss Rialto DK I have ordered the wool to make it in a dusky pink shade.  

This should be nice and easy on the eyes and give a welcome relief from fairisle.

It’s clear I have a problem, how many shawls and scarves does one woman need?

Back Soon

Lisa x

Lidiya Scarf - Kaffe Fassett

I can’t ever just concentrate on one project fully, there is always the next one and the next one after that in my mind.

Following completion of my Happy Street Shawl, my next project will be this beauty

Image from Ravelry

Kaffe Fassett Lidiya Scarf.  

I saw this pattern a long time ago and added it to my list of things to make, I only recently came across it again in a recent magazine (Womans Weekly Knitting and Crochet Magazine March 2015) and I decided yes, this year I will make it.  

The wool has arrived and once I finish my current Happy Street Shawl I will make a start.

Fairisle is scary territory for me but I’m determined to have a good go at it.  I’m worried about all the different wools and getting in a tangle and throwing it across the room in a tantrum, any fairisle tips will be greatly received. 

This will be a long term project, I intend to pick it up in between other makes.  I don’t think my old lady eyes will cope with working on this for weeks at a time, which is why I don’t expect to be able to wear it until this coming winter, or possibly the winter after that!

Back Soon

Lisa xx

Sunny days knitting and sewing...

Isn't it just glorious here in the UK at the minute. I've had the delight of knitting and sewing outside on the patio for the first time this year.

Today involved a boot sale, I grabbed a few more Ladybird books which make me squeal and some vintage linens and crochet delights.


This tablecloth has a rip in one corner, such a shame as it is otherwise perfect ... I see cushions.


Following my loopy scarf last week I knitted a couple of these up this weekend, Rico Can Can in the Partie colourway. Not quite sure what I'm thinking knitting scarves in Spring but they will keep until Winter I guess, they are more lightweight than a 'proper' winter scarf too so will probably come in useful through our wet and windy summer.

The colours just make me smile.

On a totally unrelated subject I found these last week in B&M Bargains and thought I would share them with you.
They are right up my street, I just love this typeface, and as they were from B&M they were very reasonable £2.99 for the placemats , £1.99 for the coasters and less than £1 for the mug!

I just love em!

You had any bargains this week?

~ ♥ TTFN ♥ ~

~ ♥ Mothers Day Makes ♥~

~ ♥ Happy Mothers Day to all you Mothers out there, especially to mine ♥~

As I took the handmade pledge last year I made most of my Mothers Day Gifts.

First up is the RICO loopy scarf I knitted, this was quite fiddly but I like the effect.
Look at the pile once it was finished, it looks like a pile of fishing nets in need of detangling!

Fat Scarf
Skinny Scarf

There was enough wool for one thick scarf (cast on 7 stitches) and one thin scarf (cast on 2 stitches).

I bought the wool at the fair last Friday but it's from www.blacksheepwools.com.

Remember the fugly fabric I made Mum's heat pad cover from; well I quilted it and made her a glasses case from the same stuff, it's an 8 inch nightmare, with freaky buttons, I know she will adore it. I just can't bear to post photos of that fabric again!

I made her a little candle too. I didn't use one of my vintage teacups due to the fact that she changes the colour scheme in her lounge like normal people change their socks, so I opted for the only neutral container I had which was this little crystal pot I got from the charity shop for 50p yesterday. The scent is Clean Linen, which smells divine!


I also bought her some flowers too as she loves them, and she's worth it!

I got breakfast in bed this morning made by my little one (assisted by my husband), bless him.


He also stole a daff from our garden fresh with dew, but I had to forgive him :)


Lunch was made for me today and this afternoon we went to the local bootsale and I hit the vintage teacup motherlode, and got some amazing fabric too, I'll show you in the week when I get them photographed.

Oh I almost forgot; here is my little 'Sleepy Ewe' finally finished from the slipwork workshop I took last Friday. Lots of little black french knots on black felt = sore eyes!
You can't really tell from the photo but he is only about 2" long.

He is sweet though.

~ ♥ TTFN ♥ ~

Another Scarf

I found some lovely grey Rowan purelife and snaffled up 3 100g balls of beautiful British Wool to make another of the chunky cable scarves.

I have had to model it for you as my little model Thomas was out playing in the snow!

I had about 3/4 of a ball left and in my madness I attempted to make an ear warmer (following a pattern here recommended by the lovely Jacey ~ thanks!). Well after about two hours of crochet it dawned on me I didn't have enough wool to complete it, so I had to rip it all back (and it was all puff stitches which took ages) *gently weeps*.

I was a bit sad and instead I decided to make a huge grey wool flower to add to the scarf in the form of a brooch. I followed the pattern for the flower from the headband tutorial and I was quite pleased with it.

I attached a kilt pin type brooch back so that it can be used with the scarf, it's quite huge, I'm wearing it below as a brooch to give you an idea of how big it is!

(eta. looking at this again it does not look that big but trust me it is, my boobage makes it seem small ~eek!)

I think I will make more of these flowers they are lovely.

~ ♥ Back Soon ♥ ~

More Christmas Makes

Well I have been knitting for England this last week or so, knocking up scarves and facecloths like a good un ~ they are all gifts for Christmas or Birthdays so I feel like I am making a little progress. It's rather rude of people to have birthdays in December I think (I have 8 and a Wedding Anniversary)~ although some of the best people do; mine is 1 week before Christmas (imagine how much that annoys everyone) and my best friend's is New Years Eve.

Anyhoo, here is the finished cream scarf - it's chunky and toasty and I could keep it but I don't have time to make another, my boy was quite taken with it he gets excited at my little makes and tries everything on.

Still on the subject of makes for Christmas are these beaded snowflakes.


I made these from my stash of beads, I got some lovely crackle glaze beads and mixed em up with what I had and I think they turned out quite nice, very traditional colours. Actually I just noticed looking at them in the photo they look like skewered grapes!

I added one to the middle of my rag wreath.

I got this idea from Jacqui over at Bunny Mummy, she kindly did a tutorial and she is having a rag wreath giveaway (ends 28th Nov) so pop over and have a look ~ (thanks Jacqui) it's miles better than my feeble attempt.

I used some green gingham, some Christmas fabric I picked up earlier in the year at the charity shop (I think it was supposed to be a table cloth but it was a queer size), and some red gingham ribbon from my stash. I didn't have any garden wire but I found some size 8 jewellery wire and I used that instead. If I sneeze near it, it looses it's shape so next one will have to be stronger wire, but it will do for my first attempt I think.

In the spirit of Christmas I think I will have to do a little Christmas Giveaway, I'll have a think of what to add and will post it soon.

~ ♥ Back Soon ♥ ~

Completed Scarf and Christmas Excitement

Well, I finished my scarf here it is, it's not easy to photograph a long scarf but here we go:

I am a good way through the cream one and it's lovely, there is fluff on everything I wear whilst knitting it.

I think this might make a nice pressie for my Niece who is 19, lovely Linda from Hookin' with LaaLaa pointed out that there are similar scarves to this currenly in Accessorize for about £20.

I ordered some new labels to sew into my handmade makes, I don't want all of my family to know about my blog, not sure why really, but it's my little place and many of them are not 'into' the same things I am and I am not ready to expose myself to them all yet, does that make sense or am I coming across as a bit of a paranoid nutter?

Anyhoo the labels I have are Kandipandi ones so these ones are mainly for family makes, this is them; they are from Woven Labels UK and I have spent a couple of hours this morning sewing them into my little makes that I plan to give for Christmas.

I'm getting right into the swing of Christmas now.
I have booked a day off work just to go into town to do my shopping and see Fenwicks Christmas Window Display, this is a North East thing you can see last year's photos here, they really go all out and you can hardly get near for little kids faces pressed up against the glass, magical!

Still on the subject of Christmas the fabulous Annie the Felt Fairy put me onto these little beauties in Wilkinson, I'm not a dog person as such (I'm badly allergic to em :( ) but I do love doggie bits and bobs:

80p each - you can't fall out with the price. They are rather CK esque without the CK price. They had some other nice bits in too I picked these up:

And whilst scouring the Charity Shops I got some of my Christmas Cards, I had bought a load in the Barnardos sale last January but I can't fine em anywhere, I am convinced that they will turn up now I have bought these.

I was scouring the charity shops for something bright to wear next friday at work, its a charity day for Brake - from their site 'Brake exists to stop the 6 deaths and 62 serious injuries that happen on UK roads every day and to care for families bereaved and seriously injured in road crashes. '
Unfortunatley in the business in which I work; several of our colleagues have been injured or killed so we are doing our bit. The shameful thing is when I opened my wardrobe I had nothing bright to wear so went on the hunt, I have not found anything yet, I will have to think of something by Friday.

~ ♥ Back Soon ♥ ~

Winter Nights

I had a relaxing hour on Sunday just reading my new magazines with a cuppa (one of my favourite things to do) ~ please ignore the chunky chocolate cookies they are a figment of your imagination!

There were lots of lovely things to see, I scan them quickly at first then pour over them in depth at my leisure for the next few weeks or so, they travel round the house with me.

On scanning the knitting magazine I came across a couple of bits that jumped out at me. I have been buying this magazine monthly now for a few months, I am a novice knitter but want to do more and this magazine has been a great help, there is always at least one thing every month that I need to knit.

I thought this was quite quirky a knitted wreath :
But this was something that I was drawn to immediately:

How cost and toasty and soft does that look? With the weather the way it is I wanted one of these to wear all the time until Summer comes again.

It’s quite a simple pattern, even for me, it does involve cable knitting and if you are not scared of that then it’s a doddle.

I couldn’t help it so I ordered the wool immediately and it arrived today ~ yey ~ just look how lovely and soft it is.
The thing is, I couldn’t wait until the wool arrived so I knitted this on smaller needles with the wool I used for the wrist warmers, (as one keen eyed knitter noticed it was Sirdar Crofter Chunky). It’s not quite finished so here is a sneaky peak.

I can’t wait to make my chunky cream one; I will get right to it as soon as I finish some Christmas makes (it’s 5 weeks on Saturday ~ flippin heck!).

On the subject of Christmas, this arrived yesterday

ohhh there are lots of lovelies I want from here but mostly these:

~ ♥ Back Soon ♥ ~