Busy With Bags

 

Anne, the silversmith, has ordered 50 bags this month, instead of the usual 30, so that will keep me busy for a while. 

In The Mood For Knitting

 Saturday's market wasn't a great success for me. I sold enough to pay for my table, but no more. I decided that if I couldn't sell, I'd better buy - I came home with a basket full of foodstuffs, from double  cream to pecan nuts. 

I'm in the mood to knit. I thought I might tackle the half finished pullover I was asked (a long time ago!) to complete.

First step was to untangle the yarns at the back of the work:

Then it took some time to work out what size was being knitted and where it was on the chart. I had to undo a few rows because there was a mistake, which wasn't altogether a bad thing because it helped me figure out where I'm at. I think I've got it now:

This is not a good take-along project, of course, so I might need to have something smaller on the go too. 

Ladybird

 

Or Ladybug. I've made a ladybird hooded towel for Saturday's morning market table.  She's not easy to photograph or display, but hopefully she will be eye catching. 

I wasn't sure if ladybird spots are symmetrical, so I looked it up and apparently they are. My ladybird duly has spots arranged symmetrically. 

Key Rings

 

With Winter disappearing so suddenly, it seems a good idea to make things other than woolens for Saturday's market. I've whizzed up some key rings with beaded crochet rope, which are usually popular. The spinning wheel has been put to one side for the moment. 

Flowers And Butterflies

 

I've been making another food cover - tatted motifs on net - for the next market. I don't mind if it doesn't sell because it's useful to have on hand in case I need a quick gift. But Summer arrived very suddenly, so it may well sell at the market. 

The 12 butterflies don't show up much in  the photo. I used them to empty shuttles. The lady I was tatting lavender bunches for has moved away, so there's no point in having shuttles filled with lavender colours. 

Alterations

 Normally on a Friday morning I'm at a retirement home with a craft group, but yesterday I received a message that there's an event on at the home and we can't use the gazebo. It feels like bonus time! So I thought I'd use the time to do a job I've been 'meaning' to do  - make alterations to a couple of garments I like but don't wear because they're too long. The first is this skirt, which I made a couple of years ago 

The fabric is rather stiff and doesn't drape well, so the long skirt just doesn't look right. I thought perhaps it would work better as a pencil skirt. Of course, I don't want to lose the tatting ( pattern number 80 on page 63 of the Tatted Artistry of Teiko Fujito) or redo the hem, so I decided to cut the top of the skirt off. I used a skirt that I like to determine how much to cut off:

 Snip

 It looks skew here, but is actually fine. I didn't bother to retrieve the elastic, I just redid the casing from scratch:

It looks more A-line than pencil, but I still think it'll be more wearable than the long version.

Then I moved on to this blouse, which I made in 2022:

I've used the pattern several times since, so as with the skirt, I laid a blouse I do like over the top to give me a clue about where to cut:

I cut, turned the edge up, and neatened it. It may not be quite as neat as the lined original, but I will hopefully feel more inclined to wear it. Neat inside but hanging in the closet is not very useful! Here's a before and after pic of the hem:

At Last

 

At last I've finished the Spring 2025 doily. Thanks very much to Renata for the pattern, given as a tatalong on her blog. It measures 70cm across, in size 40 thread. Actually, it's Spring here now, in the Southern Hemisphere. The weather has warmed up and the trees are coming into flower. So it's an appropriate time to finish. 

Diversion

 

I put the Spring doily on hold this week while I made a food net as a birthday gift for a friend. The simple flower pattern I made up, the butterflies are Jane Eborall's. 

We've been making cards and gift bags in the craft group I run in a retirement home. They're perfect to go with the net

Working On The Final Round

 

I've made a start on round 18 of the Spring 2025 doily. I've made a slight adaptation, leaving out the rings on chains, because I want a smoother outline. It enables me to work with shuttle and ball too, though I realised after I'd started that I only have one ball of thread, so I'll be stuck when I have to refill the shuttle. I'll wind a second shuttle then. 

Round 17

 

 I put some time in and have finished tatting round 17 of the Renulek doily.  I haven't blocked it because I think the next round will hold the flappy parts in place, so it would be better to block it after that. One more round to go. 

Done

 

I started knitting these gloves straight after the market, but then dawdled about finishing them, as I got on with other things. I made a bit of progress on the Renulek doily, for instance, and did some reading. But I've finished them now. The pattern is Spragues by Galt House of Yarn, and the yarn is my handspun wool. 

I saw several people wearing my fingerless gloves at the market last week; good to spot them 'in the wild'!

Slowly

 

I've had a bit of time to tat, so I've made some progress on round 17 of the 2025 Spring Doily. I still have a long way to go though! 

Restocking

 

The puppets were commented on at the market on Saturday, but I didn't sell any.  I did sell socks and gloves though. The weather was chilly and windy; knitwear was attractive! I've started knitting replacement gloves, using the pattern Spragues by Galt House of Yarn. I had spun up four balls of wool for the market, but didn't sell them, so I was able to start knitting straight away. 

Green

 

I've been making puppets for Saturday's market. I was glad to be able to buy bright lime green towels last week. I buy the towels from a factory shop and they don't always have the colours I'm looking for. 

I hope the basket is now bright enough to catch the eye of passers by. 

Variegated Yarn, Plain Knitting

 

I usually knit socks with some kind of ribbed pattern, I think that makes them fit well, but I thought that stocking stitch would show this yarn off better. I dyed it when I did the orange/red dye mix. 

I'm working on jewelry bags again. I had to do an emergency batch last week, but the regular 30 at the end of the month is needed as well. 

Seeing Red

 

Or coral perhaps? I liked the colour that emerged when I overdyed orange yarn, so I thought I'd try to dye it in one move. I mixed orange and red dyes. It came out pretty well, I reckon. I finished knitting the solid colour socks yesterday evening:

Bottle Flowers

 

I think I've said before, I hate working with paint and glue! But last week's project for a craft group in a retirement home involved glue and this week's needs paint. So be it; it probably does me good to do things I'm uncomfortable with. We're making flowers out of plastic bottles. There are a lot of posts on Pinterest showing ways of doing it.  I like that we'll be able to get two flowers from each bottle. 

Spring Doily Resumed

 

I've gone back to work on the 2025 Spring Doily, done one repeat on round 17. There was a bit of thread left on the ball I've been using, but I decided it would be better to use the different thread for the whole round, rather than changing mid way. I don't think it's going to be noticeable that I'm using a different brand. 

I'm also working on the rest of the soap bag order. I hope to finish today.

Story Puppets

 

I didn't sell any puppets at the market, but I did get an order from a traiinee teacher for four puppets to illustrate the Gruffalo story. I did the mouse but put the project on hold to knit leg warmers that were needed urgently. I promised to finish the puppets over the weekend. And did. 

Overdyeing

 On Tuesday I received a message asking if I could knit a pair of leg warmers. Sure. By Saturday. Mmm, not so sure. That wasn't long to spin wool, wash it, dye it and dry it before I could begin knitting. Plan B required. Remember the orange/blue yarn I dyed last week for the market? I rewound the balls into skeins and then overdyed them with red dye. 

It worked fine. I didn't think there was enough for leg warmers, so I dyed a couple of half skeins of pink as well. The picture I was sent showed striped leg warmers, so that was fine. Once the wool was dry, I started knitting in earnest, in between other tasks that life requires. I finished at 5pm yesterday. 

They've just been collected. so that's mission accomplished. It was difficult to get the colour to look correct in photos. The top picture is more representative than the bottom one. 

Revisiting Interlocking Crochet

 

 I bought two balls of cotton yarn some time ago with the idea of revisiting interlocking crochet. At last I got around to it. I was a bit appalled at how much effort it took to relearn the technique, but after half a dozen false starts I did get going. I played yarn chicken and lost, so the top square has one more row than the bottom one. I could undo one row, but I think I'll leave it, it's not obvious that they're not the same size. And they make a fraternal pair to use as pot holders. 

Sunday Sewing

 

I have an order for four puppets and I still have to finish the soap bag order, but I decided to take some time to sew for myself. I really need a new nightie or two. Jack went off to watch cricket, so I was able to sew without interruption.

I used my favourite dress pattern, but made the bodice band longer, for a looser fit. 

I sold the pink/grey gloves at the market on Saturday, and a scarf. It was a warm and sunny day, in spite of us being in the middle of Winter; lovely, but not ideal for selling knitwear. 

Soap Bags

 

I share a table at the market with a friend who makes soap. Sarah wants small bags to put soap in. She thought that my sewing pupil might like to do the job. He did 10, but that was enough for him. He's only 11 years old, so an order  for 50 bags was more than he could manage.  I said I'd have a go. This is half the order, which I'll take to the market, and then I'll do the rest next week. They take a bit longer to do than the jewelry bags and I'm still developing my rhythm, but I'm sure I'll soon have the hang of it. 

I have finished the pink/grey gloves and made a start on the blue/grey ones

I'll use the same Spragues pattern. Diane did some research and discovered that sprague is a word derived from Old English that means alert or lively. Thanks Diane! 

Colour

 

I dyed the wool in the microwave on Monday afternoon, one skein pink and grey, one blue and grey and two blue and orange. I like how they came out. I'm knitting the pink and grey, using a pattern called Spragues by the Galt House of Yarn. 

I'm doing the short wrist version, though I think the long one is rather elegant. I wonder what spragues means? 

Market Coming Up

 

The next market is on Saturday, so I need to get busy. I've finished the Nalu gloves. Last night I finished spinning a batch of four skeins of wool. I'll wash and dye them this morning. I'll see if I can manage two more pairs of fingerless gloves before Saturday. That gives me two skeins to offer as yarn. That's the plan anyway. 

Boring?

 

I've done this month's bags for Anne, the silversmith, 15 small bags and 15 tiny bags. A lot of folk say, or imply, that making the bags is a rather boring job. Granted, it's not the most exciting or creative task, but I enjoy the methodical nature of it. I put on the radio or a podcast and listen while I work.

 It's just as well I enjoy the job, because I've just agreed to make bags for someone else. Watch this space. 

Another

 

I dyed two skeins in this jade colour, used one for the half-finger gloves and am using the other skein to knit a pair of fingerless gloves for the next market. I'm using one of my favourite patterns, Nalu, by sparrowhawk/Leila Raabe. 

I'm sewing jewelry bags for the first time since we moved house. First, I had to round up my equipment. The cutting board was at the bottom of a trunk, but where is the seam gauge? I cut another one. 

A Pair

 

Right, I've finished the half-finger gloves. They'll be collected on Friday. Pattern is Tipsy by AndreSueKnits, yarn is my handspun wool. 

Back To Knitting

 

 I'm not entirely organised after moving house, but there's nothing urgent now, so I've taken time off to work on an order. The lady wants gloves with 'half fingers'. I've used this pattern before, Tipsy by AndreSueKnits.  Last time I did the ribbed version; this time I've done the stocking stitch version. I think the ribbed version fits better, but I shall continue and finish the mate of this one. Doing the fingers is much more fiddly than doing fingerless gloves, but there you go, it's probably good practice. 

MIA

 Sorry to be missing in action. We're in the process of moving house, so crafting is on hold. I did go to the market on Saturday. I finished knitting a pair of fingerless gloves while I sat at my stall, and sold them before I was done! 

Stash Buster Cardigan Is Done

 I combined two yarns from a friend's stash to make this cardigan for myself. I used Elizabeth Zimmerman's percentage method, found in Knitting Without Tears, which is more a method than a pattern. I think it would have been difficult to find a pattern to use the two yarns. The percentage system also helps create a well fitting garment:

Winter is definitely here now, so the cardigan will be put to good use.