Happy Birthday Dear Blog.....

Well, there it went....... the first year of GWI blogging! What a brilliant first year it's been too. It's fantastic to see each other's creatively inclined finds on and off the internet and, of course, looking at the back catalogue of our own work is a great reminder of achievements as individuals and as a group. It has also been lovely to start receiving feedback from our blog readers - what a treat.


I've loved pretty much every post on our wee blog but if I had to choose... my personal favourites, in no particular order, would be.........

Pam's crocheted scarf for her Mum ~ Ali's post about Ron Mueck's exhibition at Aberdeen Art Gallery (which inspired an unforgettably brilliant day out for me and mine in the Granite City) ~ Fiona's post about her brilliant lampshade ~ the simplicity of Elaine's fabric printed tablecloth and the 'Nothing is original' Jim Jarmusch quote post, because I love the positive, creative and honest sentiments of his words.

And then I think of all the things we did and haven't blogged about yet... our mosaic frames, lino cutting, all those crocheted heart garlands that the hookers among us rattled up for Christmas time... our hilarious attempts to clean sheep fleece in readiness for adventures in felting... The metres of bunting for kiddy birthdays and cakes, biscuits and bakes galore. Sweet.

Happy Birthday Blog!

Lacy Crochet

I have been messing about with some new crochet techniques lately and thought I'd try my hand at a bit of lacy crochet. I bought the book 'KYUUTO! Japanese Crafts - Lacy Crochet' last year and have been trying to get my head around following a diagram instead of a written pattern. Once mastered, I'm sure this will open up a whole new world of fabulous Japanese crochet patterns.

So, as you can see above, each stitch is represented by a symbol on the diagram, fairly straight forward? hmm, I'm not too sure...I didn't progress further than the 3rd round when I tried out this lacy doily (see top photo). This is what the finished item should look like(photo taken from afore mentioned book):-

It was an enjoyable challenge to work with the fine crochet threads I've had in my stash for a year or so now, picked up for pennies from my local Charity shop. I also used a 2mm hook from my new set of hooks my Mum gave me for my birthday last year - fiddly, but I love the delicate results - must try harder next time, I'd really like a hand crocheted doily for my dresser!!

January Cheer

All my Christmas decorations are down and tidied away for next year, and the house is looking plain and a bit drab to me now. I'm particulary missing our colourful bauble wreath that has been hanging on the front door for almost a month now. Luckily for me I have a replacement to cheer me up through the long wintery days of january:-

This beautiful wreath was a gift from my sister Jill at Christmas time. Jill uses natural materials, gathered in her local area of Northumberland to make her wreaths and other crafts. Her blog Pixiepegs gives details of inspiration and material choice.

This particular wreath is made from Hazel twigs which still have their tiny catkins attached. The bright red gingham ribbon is a lovely contrast to my blue door and the little robin an interesting detail. Thank you Jill - I love it, January isn't going to be quite so gloomy for me this year!!

Happy Hogmanay!!

Happy Hogmanay and a brilliant 2010 !!!- thank you everyone who has stopped by to read our blog over the past year - heres to another year of crafting adventures xx

Amineko, the sleeping cat

Hot off the hook - meet Amineko, the sleeping cat. He's a bit of a character, who as you can see has exactly the right idea at this time of year when it's cold and dark, and that is to sleep.

I found this pattern here via a link on ravelry, which was very well written and easy to follow. the nice thing about this amigurumi cat is he is very easy to place in different posing positions. The pattern suggested weighting the body, arms and legs with plastic pellets, so after a bit of thought I filled them with hama beads, and indeed it has added just the right amount of weight to the limbs for perfect sleeping positions.

Cosy Snood to Keep out the Chill

It can get pretty cold up here in the North of Scotland in Winter, particularly during the school run, that playground can feel pretty nippy. This winter has been problematic for me so far, being plagued with ear infections etc, which has meant I have been needing a cosy hat/scarf to bundle up my face and ears. The other day a parcel arrived in the post address to me from my mum.

My mum, Margaret is a seasoned knitting addict and in the blink of an eye she has knocked out a cosy winter snood to keep me warm - it's perfect, and as the snow begins to fall for the first time this winter, I am enjoying pulling on my snood and snuggling it around my face.

I asked my Mum for the pattern she used, and experienced knitter that she is, she didn't use one, but she helpfully passed on instructions for us novices (I still can't give up the hook for the needles I'm afraid!!)

" cast on 100 stitches and knit in rib until 100g ball of wool is used up. You can knit on 2 pins and sew seam or knit on circular needles, which is what i did for this one. "

So there you go, snoods all round this season I reckon, could be the next big thing.......

Ruby's Monkey

I like to sail close to the wind when it comes to finishing projects with a deadline, and this monkey has been finished right in the nick of time. You may recognise the pattern as a female version of this monkey, and is an order for a friends little girl as a Christmas gift.

The pattern is available free online here, and is a relatively easy amigurumi project for beginners. I hand embroidered the face and added a button to the top of the legs to make them slightly hinged and moveable. It' s always a bit nerve racking when you crochet an item to order, so I hope it meets all expectations...

WooWork

I'm excited,- you know when you see something that just really inspires and gets your creative juices flowing? Well, thats where I am right now, just look at this wonderful crocheting maddess....

The crocheting genius responsible for these crazy creations is Howie Woo, and I don't want to make a big deal about this, but as you've seen from the name - Howie is a MAN!! I find this so fantastic, and my 7 year old son who is currently learning to crochet couldn't be more excited by the prospect of crocheted granades and guns!!

Howies' blog (WooWork) is packed with witty photos, cartoons and story board videos based around said crocheted item. I could go on and on, so please check it out. Forget cheap plastic toy guns!! not in this house, my boys are very soon going to be the proud owners of their first hand crocheted laser blaster gun...watch this space!!

Gingerbread House

Here is the Gingerbread house I made with the kids last weekend. I did cheat, its a kit from Aldi (around £4.00) which included all the little sweeties and little sugar people. Not really a thing of great beauty, but it was fun to make - everyday one child will ask me when they can eat it - anyone know the etiquette for eating Gingerbread houses?

Salt Dough Christmas Ornaments

Ooooowww, this has got me excited!! Katy Elliot (a new blog to me, but love her style) has some instructions. look relatively simple to do, might be tricky without a snowflake biscuit cutter...