CAN´T STOP KNITTING

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 I can´t stop knitting! The weather is not at all summery so what else can I do?

This top is made out of cotton and I am knitting the same model in a winter version out of Alpaca right now.

 Then I knitted a merino and silk scarf as a present. It is so soft and light.

 I can slip the whole thing in my finger ring!

 This is another project which lasted a while!

 Bea´s BOM. I wonder wether I should add another border  or leave it like that.

I think I will put that project aside for a time and see if inspiration hits!

With all the rain here, the plants in the garden are growing like in the jungle so that I have to spend a lot of time with the pruners.

I wish you all a nice summer with your families and friends.

STILL THERE

Yes, really, I am still there! After some relaxing sommer holidays, some gardening ( it felt like a lot!) and some renovating I am back to my hobbies:


I knitted some socks with left-over yarn. That´s why they are not very long.

But they are still nice enough to walk around the house and the garden and that´s less yarn in the basket.
I also got new glasses. And that was not funny at all. They are with progressive- addition lenses which are just a bother! After more than one week, I still have to move my head a lot to see clearly. It is getting slowly better though I think.

We are having a wonderful weather here at the moment. That means some more work in the garden but great walks and runs too.
Have a nice time!

SEWING MACHINE HERE I COME!

Gosh, it has been a long time! I am at the computer every day and still it takes me so long to post something. Just because of all the other interesting websites, blogs, videos,...
But as I am teaching a course on machine quilting soon, I spent some time with my sewing machine too. I tried new motives and I like them, especially the top left; it looks like coffee beans!

I knitted a small jacket for a sweet baby girl. Baby things get knitted so fast. It lasted me a bit longer to spin the wool first and dye it. The mother liked it and was glad the jacket was not pink!


As I said before I am trying to learn drawing and I started an art journal which is quite addictive. I will show more of that next time. Til then Happy Easter!

SUNNY TIME

It is still very cold over here but the sun is shining a bit longer every day. Time to grab some tools and put some order in the garden.

Till then some pictures of my new projects.

First a top which did not cost me a cent: I had a shop bought jumper whose wool was too nice to throw away but which shape shout too much "I was made in the 90s and I am proud of it" (wide shoulders, too long,..). So I undid it and then plied the wool as it was very fine (machine knit). Then I made a pattern as I went along, being inspired by some other patterns from magazines.
I am very happy with the result and it is a piece very easy to wear.
I worked some more in my sketchbook:

Trying new things like acrylic paint, coloured pencils,...


I am having fun! I hope you too!

IF ONLY I DID NOT HAVE TO GO TO WORK

Don´t get it wrong, I love my job! Teaching adults is a very rewarding activity I think.
BUT it takes time which I could spend sewing, spinning, knitting, drawing, painting,...
All of which I NEED to do it seems...
Anyway, I finished knitting this nice wrap. Said wrap will stay in my possession ( that´s for my dear sis!)



It is 100% merino and very soft, quite warm too.
Just the right thing for the coming winter.

I wish you a nice cosy warm time.

HALF-TERM ALREADY

Still gorgeous weather, a perfect indian summer over here.

It is already half-term for my DS. We went to the library yesterday to get enough books to last 2 weeks (that means 2 backpacks full! One for him and one for me).

In the meanwhile I finished the top for my mum.
(modeled by me). I hope she likes it.



I will know next week-end as I will see my whole family then.
I have finished a lace wrap too but it needs blocking, so pictures will be only next time.

I wish you a nice week-end.

NOTHING NEW!

Work, hot weather and more work, that´s all there is here at the moment. Only 2 weeks til summer break and 4 weeks holiday!

On the commuter train I can do some knitting and I finished this Lady Kina quite quickly. The pattern is great and easy. The yarn I had chosen was a pain in the a*** though. It is a cotton/ bamboo blend not at all elastic and very difficult to unknit or to sew.


Still, I like the result!

At home I added a stitchery border to my confetti top.


I will start the quilting after the holidays. I am tending towards a machine quilting. But we will see.

I wish you a nice week-end with nice temperatures.

GREEN SPRING

I can smell it. Spring is here! Although cold in the morning, the weather is getting sunnier and the garden is back to life after the dreadful long winter.
To make the garden look even more green, I hung the last shawl I knit!

I had dyed the wool some time ago, but a pattern still wanted to be found.
That´s done now. Apart from looking cheerful in my sewing room I don´t have any use for this piece at all. Maybe my mother would like it? Green looks great on her.
Although I have to prepare 2 quilt courses for may, I could not help starting another top. My excuse is that it is a very simple and fast pattern and fat quarter friendly.
I am using some of the dyed fabric I showed last time too. I don´t plan to buy any fabric for this quilt. Let see how big it will get!

I will spend the week-end in my garden looking the daisies, clover and moss taking over the lawn!
Have a nice week-end too!

BACK TO QUILTING

Remember that top?! Well, I decided to finish the quilt which it was supposed to become sooner or later. As the top was an attempt to reduce my 80´s /90´s fabrics, I chose to piece the back too:


Then I added some prairie points (that uses up some fabric too!)

And now I am quilting it. I hope to finish it soon.


The problem is that I still have yards of that kind of fabrics. But I tried some experiment with some of it. More of that next time!

On my commuter train I can´t quilt so I knitted some more socks. These are made of my own spun yarn with that pattern.
They fit really well which is just perfect as it is freezing cold over here.

I wish you a nice time in early spring.

STILL SNOWING

A long week-end was put to good use. Because of the snow, we can´t do much apart from sewing and knitting!

I finished the confetti top. The frame looks a bit boring right now, but I intend to do some machine quilting with variegated thread to bring more colour into it.


Then with the yarn I had spun and showed last time, I knitted a jacket and a hat for a friend of mine who is expecting. Actually the clothes are for her baby! They are the baby surprise jacket and the ganomy hat from Elisabeth Zimmermann. Fun patterns.





I even found the perfect vintage buttons in my stash:
I did some dyeing as well so that I can have something to spin for the next days.
More of that next time.

I wish you a warmer and nicer weather than we are having here!

WISHES

I wish you all a very happy new year 2010. May it bring you health, inspiration and joy!

For my part, my family and I had a very nice Christmas with my parents.
My DM brought her latest quilts for me to see and of course I show them here too.
The first one is a present for my aunt.

And the second one was a quilt along project in my DM´s quilt group.
My mum hand-appliquéed the border. I especially like the use of the purple/white fabric for the binding. It is just like another frame.

As it was freezing cold here lately, I decided to knit a cloche for myself ( after having knitted hundreds of hats for my sis!).

I like it so much, I knitted another one for my mum which she took away so sorry no picture!




P.S.: I bet my sis will make a comment and beg for another hat!