“touching base”

I’m sorry I haven’t posted in nearly a month.

I’ve not been well over the last month, and it’s really taken it out of me - I’ve just not done anything craft-related since then. It’s extremely frustrating for me, not feeling up to doing anything, although I have done a couple of rows on my Ripple. It was my 18th birthday on Friday, so I’ve had a rather strange (but nice) weekend.

I hate feeling like this. Feeling so helpless is horrible. Hopefully I’ll be back to my myself in a couple of weeks. I don’t want that to spill onto this blog - this is the one place that I don’t talk about that.

x

April scarves

Surprisingly necessary. We had snow over the weekend (although only a piddly bit that didn’t settle, hmph)

Mr Y’s scarf - he loves it

This was the One Row Scarf pattern from this pattern by Yarn Harlot. I actually finished this in February (because it was a Valentine’s present for Mr Y) but I’ve only just got round to taking a photo. It’s been worn lots since then, so I’m happy

Bracelet made from clay beads and wire

I made this bracelet from the clay beads I posted about last time. I varnished the beads and made wire loops (surprisingly easy). I’m not sure about it though - I’d like to list it on Etsy but I have a few problems with it. I think I need to use different materials to get better results.

x

Polymer clay fun*

I bought some Sculpey polymer clay a while back for a swap I did, and I’ve been meaning to have another go with it ever since. So at the weekend, whilst watching Top Gear repeats on Dave with Mr Y, we both had a play with some clay (d’ya like mah rimez?!). Anyway…

Mr Y’s:

Videogame geeks will understand the reference, for the rest of us, it’s a videogame reference.

Mine:

A heart and lightning bolts… Fairly self-explanatory

And today I had another go

Some beads

I’ve found clay is surprisingly tricky to work with - getting it to do just what you want it to it difficult! There’s all sorts of fingerprints and smudges on then, and I’m such a perfectionist, but I kind of like it. It’s supposed to look handmade, because it is handmade. I guess I need to let go a bit when I make things - I tend to throw things in the corner if they aren’t exactly how I pictured it.

Anyway… There may be some new additons to my Etsy shop in the near future

x

*I hate trying to think of non-crap blog titles.

Remember this?

This?

A finished Azure Allure

I FINALLY finished it This has been hanging around for SIX MONTHS. How silly is that?! It only needed to have the sleeves sewn in and the neckband knitted. I’m quite happy with this - I love the colour and the pattern, but it’s a bit short (I hate having that gap between my jeans and tshirt!) so I might try and add a few more rows to the bottom, although I think it might spoil the look of the border… It also doesn’t drape like it should, because I used a merino aran as opposed to the cotton yarn that was suggested. And it’s not very flattering.

I’m not really sure if I’ll ever wear this, which is a shame because I spent so long on it and learnt so much from knitting it. Which is a sad thought. And it’s sentimental as well, because I started it when I was on holiday with Mr Y. Well, we’ll see. Maybe after a wash and block it’ll feel different.

x

Etsy <3

OK, so I’m a bit addicted to Etsy at the moment…

More hangers

I made these last weekend, which brings my current Etsy inventory to a towering two. But you’ve got to start somewhere, hey! I really want to get cracking and make some more of these but the shop where I get the hangers from is out of stock >.<

I’ve seriously been on Etsy SO much recently; posting on the forums, in chat, even in the Virtual Labs (such a cool feature!) and it’s so much fun chatting to people and seeing some of the amazing things people make. I also saw the Gocco How-To video and now I want a Gocco! Although they are seemingly very hard to get hold of in the UK, and very expensive! Plus I just don’t get how the ink doesn’t go everywhere… Anyway, yay, Etsy

I’ve come up with a pattern for crochet string bags and I want to make some for Etsy ASAP, but finding organic cotton yarn (preferably handspun) has proved hard, although I’ve found some on… Etsy I’m going to buy that next week so I can get cracking over Easter.

Sorry I’ve been neglecting my blog a bit, things have been good and not so good and busy and lethargic and not very productive! But I’ve handed in a couple of quite big pieces of college work so I feel more positive and less stressed out - I stress because I know I have work to do but I avoid it and then I feel guilty for avoiding it and in my guilt I don’t do anything.

…Yeah.

x

Quick update…

Not much going on - the hat I was knitting was ripped out because I forgot where I was in my made-up-not-written-down-see-how-it-goes pattern. But this afternoon I made some more hangers…

Hanger set #3!

 so I’ve just put those in my Etsy shop Hopefully there’ll be another item or two in there by next weekend.

I hope you’ve all had a good weekend, we made sushi yesterday. We need to invest in a sharper knife though, it got a bit messy!

x

I was here all along…

… Honest!

 I don’t know where the time since my last post has gone! To be honest I just haven’t really had a lot to post about. I was in a Mighty Boosh swap and that’s about it really. Although for the swap, I made a tote bag with lightening bolts on it, and I liked it so much I decided to make myself one:

Very handy - it ended up very big so I can get loads in it

I’m pleased with this The fabric is nice and sturdy as it’s 100% cotton drill (not twill as I thought it was - didn’t know there was a difference to be honest!) and the straps are really easy to sew. I hate sewing bag straps so using proper bag strapping is nice! I originally tried to spray paint the lightening bolt on, which resulted in a horrible smudged mess, so I got some regular fabric paint and just stencilled it by hand, which came out much better. I’m toying with the idea of making bags like these for Etsy? You know, with cool stencilled designs. What do you guys think? I know Etsy is awash with tote bags, but its worth a shot isn’t it?

I’ve got lots of ideas for possible items to make for Etsy, I just never get round to it! I’m halfway through a hat but it somehow ended up at the bottom of my wardrobe! I’ve also got a really cool idea for shopping bags, but it’s sourcing the yarn that’s proving a bit tricky…

Anyway, I shall resolve to get something done! Half term next week and I’m in London most of it, so I shall have plenty of opportunity to visit lots of yarn shops and find that yarn! Until then, have a lol at this - it showed up in my “Most popular WordPress blogs” section of my dashboard, and I lol’ed.

x

Where did Christmas go?!

Well, that’s that done for another year… Isn’t it a bit disheartening that it goes so quickly! But next year, I really will start much earlier. Honest.

Christmas stocking for my honorary niece

This is a little stocking (I’d guess about 9″ tall) that I knitted in a couple of evenings using a mash up of 3 different patterns. It was really simple, and I even managed an afterthought heel Anyway, this is her first Christmas, so I hope she can hang it up next year for Santa

Now Christmas knitting is over (not that I got a lot done, but anyway…) I’m hoping to do some Etsy-related stuff done soon. And I’d like to finally get to grips with Mr Y’s Space Invader Knucks - I had major issues with them and temporarily abandoned it. I just can’t seem to make it look like a Space Invader. I have a chart that looks fine on paper, and worked fine on the swatch I tested it on, I just can’t knit in the round and do intarsia at the same time! It’s really frustrating because I know they’d look really cool and he was so excited about me making them for him

Anyway, I hope you all had a very merry Christmas

x

One Christmas present made…

Zillions more to go *sigh*

Mittens for my gal Gaenor

These were a nice, quick knit, (look on my Ravelry for details and a link to the pattern) and judging by her face when I showed her one half knitted, they’ll go down a treat. Sorry for the dodgy picture, haven’t got time to wait for decent daylight, plus I had to get them straight in the post.

Currently, there’s bits of Knucks lying around the lounge because I got fed up with undoing the intarsia I was trying to do (and failed at). I’m trying to do a Space Invader pattern on the back of the hand, but the strandsarecoming out too tight and pulling the fabric in, but if I leave it looser, there’s big gaps where the colours change. Grrr. So I’m abandoning that for the moment so I can knit a Christmas stocking for my baby (honorary) niece.

I still have SO much to do - I hate this feeling! I’m not getting anywhere either! Plus now I’m puting off filling in this job application for Subway, becausea s much as I want a job (so I can buy and run a car), I don’t think I’m good enough and calm enough to deal with it. Ergh.

Anyway, better get something DONE.

x

Aaaaaaaagh!

13 days ’til Christmas!

*runs around like a headless chicken*

I’m not getting anything done!

On a non-Christmas note (I can’t think about Christmas right now!) I’m toying with the idea of organising an indie craft fair in my area (East of England) and I’m wondering what you guys think? Any pearls of wisdom? Do you think it’s a good idea? How should I go about it and where do I start? And is there anyone out there who might be interested in helping/participating? I’m just at the very early stages ie not committing myself to anything just yet, but just getting some ideas and seeing if it’s plausible. I’d appreciate your opinions and advice as always

*runs around madly a bit more*

x