Spinning a Yarn

Hello 2012

2012-02-03T09:20:00.000+13:00

Um, who changed my calender to February?

Wedding Quilt

2011-11-21T19:24:00.000+13:00

I had it in mind to make my friend Penny and her new husband Sam a 'wedding quilt', back before they got engaged, when she thought they wouldn't get married. So had been collecting green fabric for some time, and had a design all worked out in my head.

The wedding snuck up on me rather quickly though, and I had to work like crazy to get it finished.

It's quite a simple design- nine by nine 9 patches, starting at all green and ending at all white, save one green square. I machine quilted around the 9 patches, and hand quilted in the middle of each one- some I stitched around the middle square, some I stitched a heart, and some I stitched on a button. I like to sit a while with a quilt and love on it a bit, hence the hand stitching.

I also embroidered an inscription for the back, but I didn't get a photo of that.

It's to go on top of a queen sized bed, but is shown here on a double bed.

I have lots of notes for it, so if you were wanting more information, just let me know and maybe I could scan a copy to send through to you.

(Selected) photos from my (mostly) tidy studio

2011-11-19T19:21:00.003+13:00

I have some people coming out for a studio visit tomorrow- a good motivation for me to have a tidy up. I took some photos of some of the wee nooks I created.

Tile-issues

2011-11-15T18:47:00.002+13:00

I picked my little brother up off the plane this morning, he has been in Canada and the US for almost exactly a year. It was so nice to see him!

He's staying with us for a week and renovating our bathroom. Little brothers are great!

We've run into a floor related issue- namely that the last time the bathroom was renovated, they stuck cork tile to the existing plastic tile. Probably because the existing plastic tile is stuck to the beautiful wooden floors with what might as well be cement.

We've (and by we, I mean Michael and Sam who are doing all the hard work while I cook pies) decided to abandon the wooden floor ship and jump onto the tile lifeboat.

Pinterest to the rescue.

Source: decorpad.com via Bronwen on Pinterest

While this is a tile monstrosity, it shows the relationship between different sized tiles. We will probably choose bigger tiles for the floor and littler mosaic ones for the bath.

Source: apartmenttherapy.com via Lauren on Pinterest

The inverse relationship, with the littler tiles on the floor.

Source: digsdigs.com via Eva on Pinterest

Just so awesome!

Source: re-nest.com via Hannah on Pinterest

Love the eclectic mix of tiles.

Source: houzz.com via Tiffany on Pinterest

Again with the big/little.

Source: ths.gardenweb.com via MaryCC on Pinterest

Tile placement visual.

Hmmm... what do you think?

Rainbow Crochet 2

2011-11-03T19:00:00.000+13:00

I talked about my yarn and pattern yesterday- I should probably clarify that I made this as part of a wedding gift for my very dear friend who gets married on Saturday.

So much rainbowy goodness!

I think this may be my favourite thing I have made this year, and I definitely have plans to make another afghan using this yarn!

Rainbow Crochet

2011-11-02T18:46:00.000+13:00

I bought 3 balls of this yarn from Polly at Little Country Wools at Knit August Nights, in Napier, in, well, August. Let's not talk about all the other unessecary things I bought there- I'm officially on a fibre diet now. Hmmm.

I started in the middle with one ball, loosely modelled on what Polly has going on here.

O.k. let's be honest, I bought one ball, and my friends were horrified I would want to make a baby blanket out of something so scratchy. Then I went back and bought two more balls and this thing grew firmly outside baby blanket dimensions. (It's too scratchy to be super cuddly round your neck, but perfectly acceptable to have across your lap over clothes.)

So I started in the middle with one ball and a loop and 4 granny chains with Michelle's 4.0mm hook. I haven't forgotten I need to get the hook back to you Michelle! And then I just grannied my way around, with two grannies in each corner, and joining each round so it didn't spiral.

As the blanket grew the colour rings got thinner, so I just joined in my extra balls at approx the right colour spot. I divided some of the balls up to get more colour transitions out of them. By the time I was finished I was crocheting 5 balls around, just joining them up as they butted up to each granny. This way I was able to keep the colour transitions approximately equal in size- it's not perfect but pretty close!

Then I used the bits of purple I had left to head around the edge, just to finish things off. (Also, I'm a purple bridesmaid.)

Finished photos tomorrow....

Absence and tomatoes.

2011-10-31T18:29:00.004+13:00

Gosh, I've been away from this space for quite a while. It seems blogging is always the first thing to drop off my to do list when times get busy.

We have another busy week ahead of us, with a trip away and a wedding- I'm the bridesmaid for my very good friend on Saturday. There a little bit of handmade goodness winging it's way to her, and because I'm sure in between finishing the hem on her dress and making her bouquets she won't have time for checking in with my little corner of the internet, I'll queue up a post or two to show you what I've been working on.

But before that, here's my tomatoes, planted on Labour day. I plan on taking fornightly photos to document their progress this year- I also plan to delateral and feed them fortnightly too, so we'll just see how my plans stick.

I planted 3 varieties- from left to right they are some heirloom Italian version starting with C, Mortgage Lifter and Sweet 100. In the front there is some basil.

Back tomorrow with a colourful project.

Self Portrait in China Cabinet

2011-08-25T21:03:00.000+12:00

I looked over and saw some red things in my kitchen so I took a photo to put on my blog.

2011-08-23T21:02:00.002+12:00

I like red.

Bedroom Reveal

2011-08-09T17:32:00.002+12:00

This is the best photo I took of the bedroom when we bought the house. I know, shame on me.

And this is when I last updated you.

And this is now.

Yeah, we're really pleased.

There are my painting projects again, along with a wonky rag rug I made a month or two ago. I made and blogged about the quilt way back here.

The lamp was a wedding gift, you can find them here. It throws off plenty of light to read by.

I bought one of those really heavy mirrors with the bevelled edges from the Salvation Army, and we hung it in a stud. If this was a little girls room I would string some fairy lights, maybe flower ones, around the mirror.

We chose to put up a blind in this room and I bought another one for the other room. I think the roman blind helps the room to feel larger than curtains would. You can also see out the window that we have had the hedge chopped back, it lets a lot more sun and light into the room now.

I hung hooks on the back of the door, so Michael can hang up his work clothes, ready for the next day. Because we often both leave for work when the other is sleeping this wardrobe has Michael's uniform in it and my coats and scarves.

And it is so nice to put up these images, that I took so many moons ago. I still love these photos!

We are so pleased with how this room turned out, we've started stripping the wallpaper in the next bedroom!

Power Gardening 2

2011-08-05T18:34:00.000+12:00

I'd like to thank my friend Michelle for lending us her chainsaw and my Father-in-law for wielding it for hours over the weekend.

And really I don't think these images need many words. (You can see where we've come from here and here.)

Thanks Dave!

Two Pieces of Painted Furniture

2011-08-04T18:14:00.000+12:00

I've painted two pieces of furniture for the spare bedroom. I just need to hang a couple of pictures and find a mirror, then I can give you the 'tour'.

One is a wee bedside cabinet I bought for $65, and the chest of drawers was a hand me down from our early flatting days.

I used the colour 'Fort Dorset' from the Dulux colours of NZ range. It's more blue en masse that the wee swatch looked- I was hoping for a rather pale industrial grey, but this actually suits the room and the direction I've taken the decorating in better. (Or maybe it's leading the direction the decorating is going in....)

I left the original hardware on the bedside cabinet, but took the handles off the drawers. Unfortunately the handles I removed were not a current standard size, being mere millimitres wider than the handles you can buy today so my plans to put a nice cup handle on it were thwarted. Being ~~too lazy and impatient~~ eager to finish the project I opted for two knobs on the drawers instead of filling, sanding and repainting 8 little holes- this came out to roughly the same price as the cup handles would have been, and I think it looks cute. Plus you can hang stuff off them.

Next up on my list? This beauty.

I'm swinging between a really dark charcoal grey and a dark grey purple. Any thoughts? Have you painted any furniture lately?

Oranges

2011-08-03T17:50:00.002+12:00

The oranges are here.

The first year we lived in this house I thought we had a dud tree, but I just started eating them too early- it turns out that oranges turn orange long before they are edible. Now I just wait for them to fall off the tree and pick them up off the grass.

This tree is amazing, the oranges are sweet, juicy and have just the right amount of tang at the back of your teeth. It's also nice that it was planted long before we bought the house so it is established (albiet in the middle of the front lawn) and needs no watering in the middle of summer- at least it seems to do just fine without any anyway.

Look at what I picked up this evening!

There's nothing quite like picking up your fruit for lunch as you head out the front door.

Tonight I'm making our yummy kumara and orange salad for tea. I'm also boiling a little brown rice to add and will sprinkle it with sunflower seeds. Yum!

Have you got any favourite orange recipes? Because by the looks of our tree I'll be needing some fresh inspiration before too long.

What's ready to be eaten at your house?

To market to market...

2011-07-17T15:11:00.000+12:00

We absolutely loved the Queen Victoria Market. Which our friend later told us is built on an old graveyard, which wikipedia corroborates! Let's not let that get in the way of a good day out.

So much yummy goodness to photograph! I won't bore you with them all, but you can click through to my photostream to see some others, if you like.

some kiwi kiwifruit

hanging meats

more hanging meats

super expensive bananas!

In which we ....

2011-07-15T15:02:00.003+12:00

Flew to Australia

Went to an AFL game

Ate a lot of seafood

Relaxed under some Palm trees

Ate A LOT of ice cream! (my record was 4 separate occasions on the same day.)

This pretty much sums up our holiday, but I'll have a few more photos to show in the next few days.

Ravelry Round Up

2011-05-19T17:37:00.003+12:00

Here are three patterns I'm planning on knitting in the near future. I've got the yarn for all three!

I'm doing this one in handspun, alpaca for the white, and alpaca/silk for the colour. I need to swatch and work out a new gauge, because it's a totally different weight. It's for entry into a competition later this year, so I need to get cracking on it.

This one's for Michael. I suspect I under estimated the yardage I need and will need another ball. I did a couple of gauge swatches, but have forgotten which needles I used, so back to the drawing board!

This one's for me. I've got the same yarn as Michael's jersey, which is the weight the pattern calls for, but is knitting up on a much larger guage, so I'll have to do some maths here too. When I work out the needle sizes!

What are you planning on knitting over the cooler winter months?

There's something living in my hot water cupboard!

2011-05-18T09:34:00.000+12:00

This week I accidently made a larger-than-normal batch of bread...luckily I caught it in time!

Clean Linen

2011-05-17T09:27:00.000+12:00

Windowsill makeover

2011-05-16T09:26:00.000+12:00

There's no need for the before photos, just enjoy the afters!

My little scene on entering the laundry.

A pretty plate to keep the soap and plug together.

A mini world- I've been wanting to make one of these for the longest time. Those wee plants might yet turn out to be weeds!

Some fresh flowers. Their crisp white petals remind me of freshly laundered sheets.

Just a little bit of happiness among the mundane.

Markets

2011-05-15T09:02:00.002+12:00

A friend informed me it's been over a month since I posted here, and I said surely not....except she is right!

I had two wonderful markets in the last month, and I feel like I'm just coming up for air. Of course it starts all over again in a few weeks.

But I wanted to say Thanks to my lovely sister Olivia (though we didn't get a photo together) and wonderful mum Michelle for all the help they gave me in Wellington and Thames.

And of course thankyou to you, lovely customers who make what I do possible. It was so nice to meet you all!

(Somewhat) regular blogging to follow this week.

Hot Cross Buns!

2011-04-18T17:05:00.002+12:00

Yum!! I've got my 3rd batch in 5 days of these rising in the hot water cupboard. It's o.k., I didn't eat them all myself! These ones are coming with me to spinning- I hope you've got your oven ready Sue!

I'll let the pictures do the talking.....

I used the recipe from here, except I changed up the spices a little, and glazed them with watered down apricot jam. I also used sultanas and raisins instead of mixed peel. This made them a little different and super delicious. (I put it down to the really good apricots I used, those almost tart ones, not the Turkish ones.)

So go on, give homemade hot cross buns a go this Easter. I promise you won't be able to stop at one batch!

Interdisciplinary Crafting

2011-04-02T16:56:00.002+13:00

I've been wanting to try spinning around a wire core for some time, the idea has been ruminating at the back of my mind.

I cut a long length of copper wire and spun some red silk around it. There is a discussion about this (with helpful notes) and some neat photos here via ravelry.

After I spun it up I logically had to make it into something.

I often get sidetracked like this (I was supposed to be test spinning some new batts.) This is how I get into a mess with multiple unfinished projects. (I still feel bad about that rag doll with wonky arms and legs hiding in Mum's fabric closet. Sorry Mum!)

Anyway, wire core yarn makes for cool photos.

And a nice necklace. My technique needs some work- see the fuzzy vs. smooth bits? I also want to try this using a space dyed silk sliver to get different colours in the necklace.

Have you tried spinning with wire?

Fibre Friday :: Going Batty!

2011-03-25T15:49:00.003+13:00

Wow we haven't had a Fibre Friday on an actual Friday for a while now.

I've been making batts! You can find 5 different colours of Silk Smoothie Batts in the shop. These are super fun to spin- you get the colour graduations of my space dyed fibre without having to think about it. With the added bonus of 10% silk! Yum!

Here's a batt I spun up.

Sitting on some fabric I have to make some little people things with.

Also, you can now find me on facebook! Come and 'like' Spinning a Yarn NZ!

Majacraft Camp

2011-03-18T17:05:00.002+13:00

Ooh Majacraft Camp 2011 was so much FUN! last weekend. I taught a workshop on different methods for spinning space dyed fibre, which was well received. One of my highlights was teaching a handful of people to navajo ply, and boy were they champs (you know who you are!), I was so proud that they got it first time!

The other big highlight was meeting so many talented and inspirational people from around the country, and Australia (and the rest of the world I should add.)

I was a slack slack blogger and didn't take nearly enough photos, but I did photographise the making of this art batt with Mandie from Ewe Give Me the Knits!

Mandie had a giant pile of colourful stuff which we fed to the drum carder...it was fun to spin something waaay out of my normal orbit. I plied it with turquoise sewing thread.

And when I got home I dusted off the drum carder I have on long term loan and aligned the two wheels. It's amazing how much smoother it runs when it's a) all lined up properly and b) clamped to the table. What an aha! moment!

And this is the first batt I made, with merino, alpaca, silk sliver and throwsters, beads, sequins and fabric. It's a bit hard to photograph something so white, but oh, it makes me want to spin!

Have a lovely weekend everyone!

Epic Fail of the Edible Kind (so it's o.k.)

2011-03-07T19:03:00.000+13:00

I've made this brownie (just the brownie, not the heart attack) with success a couple of times. Yum! So why wouldn't I try and make this super cute one to take to a birthday BBQ? (which we didn't end up going to....)

I followed the instructions about chilling the brownies and everything, the dark chocolate one just didn't want to hold together. I would highly reccomend this recipe however- especially the white chocolate one which ends up kind of caramelly, mmmmm.

The hearts are super cute anyway! (And we didn't eat them all- some went to a friend, others are going to a colleague to say thanks for some eggs, and some went into the freezer for another day....there is a container of offcuts in the fridge though!)

Next up? Gotta be these ones, sweet and salty wins always! (Oh who am I kidding, just the brownie section will keep me busy for a while!)

Shop Update

2011-03-06T15:32:00.002+13:00

Something I haven't had the time to do lately is update my shop listings- so here is a batch of silk merino lace yarn, in some old, some new colourways.

Also, over on Trade Me you can find brand spanking new wooden umbrella swifts...exciting!

Hows your face?

2011-03-06T11:11:00.001+13:00

Poor puppy, he had a lump come up on his face rather suddenly on Sunday. About an hour after I last saw him I was like 'Michael, has Pedro got a big lump on his face or is it just me?'

The vet thought he may have had a sting and prescribed some anti-histamines and a anti-inflammatory. 2 days later we were back at the vets, who though he might have a seed burrowed into his face. We decided to go the whole hog and get it cut out, but unfortunately they couldn't find a seed. The lump was made up of dead hair and hair follicles, kinda gross!

We've spent the last couple of days hunkered down with him, he's better today but on the first night he was home he would cry until we were both in the same room with him, then fall into a deep sleep. He's been a bit feeble and helpless!

So the drains get taken out today and the stitches next week. He's on antibiotics for a fortnight, and we're hoping the lump won't come back after that. And here's a slightly gruesome Frankenstein photo, poor poor puppy.

Oh Christchurch

2011-03-02T18:17:00.002+13:00

It's been hard to know what to say about Christchurch in this space. We had some worries for family and friends, obviously, who all made it through the shake o.k. M in particular couldn't get hold of his mum (who works in a big old brick building in the centre of town) for a number of hours, we were so relieved to hear from her just before dinner.

Looking through my archives, I found these photos I took way back in 2008. We've lived in Auckland for 2.5 years now (!!!), but Christchurch has a special place in my heart.

There's lots going on around the interwebs to raise money for Christchurch. It seems the best thing anyone can do to help is donate money via Red Cross. There are also charity auctions running on Trademe.

Some Love Songs for Love Day

2011-02-14T18:15:00.000+13:00

Obviously, this song is the top of the list because I walked down The Aisle to it.....

It's a version with an ad in front, but it's got the video clip which is very lovely.

Have you heard this song? Apparently it's on the TV2 ad, but I wouldn't know because we've stopped watching t.v. I can tell you it's on the radio alot though!

This one is just whimsical and lovely.....

And this one isn't strictly a love song, but it is so beautiful. So so beautiful.

Go hug someone you love.

Pasta Sauce

2011-02-12T10:44:00.002+13:00

I made a simple batch of pasta sauce using some of those tomatoes......

I cut the tomatoes in half and laid them with their skins on the pan and the cut side facing up. This helped them to roast, which intensifies the flavour, instead of stewing in their juices. I added some red onion, basil, laid rosemary on top and drizzled with olive oil. I roasted them for about an hour at 180 C.

When they cooled down I whizzed them up in my blender cup. This incorporates air which makes the sauce look kinda pink, but I think if I used my mouli the sauce would be more red.

I just poured this into 250mL jars, and froze it, ready to pull out during the winter. Simple!

Pantry Organisation Project

2011-02-11T12:07:00.002+13:00

The top and bottom parts of my pantry weren't looking too bad....

But I wanted to do something about this drawer!

I put everything in jars. I had some of the jars already. I always buy these clip jars if I find them at opshops or garage sales. I got the new jars from Arthur Holmes. They are really reasonably priced, and get delivered to your door 2 days after you order them if you live in Auckland. I bought a whole lot of jars and bottles for jam, pickle and sauce from there too, to supplement my supermarket ones. Also, did I mention the reasonable prices?! (They also sell the replacement seals.)

The big jars with the flour in are 5L. They hold about 3.5kg of flour. So all the extra packets of food go in the plastic tubs in the bottom of the pantry next to the potatoes.

Here you can see the emergency water supply (not quite enough, I know) and the emergency vodka supply. Michael and I each won a 1L bottle of spirits at a quiz night over the holidays......

And the glory moment......

And I bought 24 jars for my herbs and spices. The baking drawer has never looked better!

I'm very please with how organised this is- it's been on my to do list ever since, well, we installed the kitchen!

Also, I'm trying something new with comments. Let me know how this works for you!

A note on comments....

2011-02-10T19:12:00.000+13:00

Blogger works really well for me, except for one thing which makes me grrrr..... It's quite tricky to follow up comments.

I've had some such wonderful, lovely comments lately, and mostly how I'd like to respond is to whip off a quick email reply- I know I don't often check back where I've commented unless I've asked a specific question. Unfortunately unless you activate your email in your privacy settings on your Blogger profile, I can't see your email address.

So maybe you might like to turn this on? You never know what might come your way......

(Also investigating a switch, maybe typepad? Any thoughts on what platform you like the best?)

Mt Tomato

2011-02-09T18:05:00.000+13:00

If I don't pick the tomatoes early, the birds get them, so I've got a big pile of tomatoes in various stages of ripeness chilling out in my kitchen.

Is it a tomato...is it a pumpkin..... The pumpkins have invaded the tomatoes' personal space!

(Loving my white walls as a backdrop. And a progress report on the bedroom- Martha's is having a sale and we decided to use the same colour on the walls throughout the house- the aformentioned white. Aniwaniwa. I dare you to say it out load and not laugh. Ha!)

Holland Rd Yarn Company

2011-02-08T17:32:00.002+13:00

Yesterday I sent off a shipment of yarn to Tash, who is opening what sounds like the most amazing yarn store in Wellington! You can get all the goss here.

And when it opens on the 23rd of February, you can get my yarn there! Yay!

super bulky

silk merino lace

See you there on Saturday the 26th.......

(And thanks Tash for including my in your dream, it's a real honour)

Vegetable Cake Recipe

2011-02-03T17:42:00.001+13:00

This is a recipe I've come up with on consultation with two excellent sources- Aunty Ngaire (via Aunty Julie)'s Carrot Cake recipe and Jude Blereau's recipe.

By the way, Jude Blereau's books are excellent. I own 'Wholefood for the Family' and have the other two out from the library at the moment. They all contain alot of the same basic information, but the recipes vary. You probably don't need to own them all, but I definitely want to add 'Wholefood for Children' to my bookshelf.

ALSO, if you live in NZ, you do know about Book Depository right? Free shipping, and you pay in pounds- the exchange rate is so good right now!

Vegetable Cake Recipe

1C Wholemeal Flour

1C White Flour

2 1/2 t Baking Powder

1 C Raw Sugar (You might like to use 1 1/2 if you don't plan on having icing)

1/2 C Coconut

1/2 C Raisins

1/2 C Mixed Seeds, e.g. Linseed, Pumpkin, Sunflower...

2t Cinnamon

1/2 C Oil (I use Almond in baking)

3 Eggs

3 C grated Fruit and/or Vege (I've used Carrot and Zucchini, and Carrot and Apple)

1 T Vanilla Essence

1/2 C Dairy e.g. milk, thin yoghurt, buttermilk etc.

Preheat the oven to 180C. Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl and make a well in the middle. Add the wet ingredients to the well then mix until combined.

Makes 12 muffins or one cake.

Bake for 60 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. Ice with Cream Cheese icing and decorate with walnuts and apricots if you have people coming for morning tea.

Enjoy!

Apricot Jam

2011-02-02T17:33:00.000+13:00

Apparently Apricot Jam is my Mum's second most favourite jam. Go figure.

I made this jam in the sticky early evening sunlight on a couple of days when it was far too hot for stirring molten sugar at the stovetop. Isn't this always the way?

The apricots were on special at Fruit World but were no means 'jam quality' - making this not super economical. We're going to hit up the market in Pukekohe next weekend to see if we can find some cheaper fruit for preserving with.

Like my new spoon? I L.O.V.E wooden spoons. They are my guilty pleasure in kitchen shops.

Question time- where you you get your preserving fruit from?

In print (2)

2011-02-01T18:40:00.002+13:00

Last week Briscoes was having a mad sale on photo frames- 60% off! I was in buying a wedding gift for some friends and couldn't help buying some for myself too. Then we had to go to another Briscoes store so I could get some more (I cleaned them both out!).

I ordered some prints of photographs I've been meaning to frame for oh, 3 years, and some more recent ones of Michael, myself and Pedro. They looked great in the frames! (Note the use of past tense here.)

I used those sticky 3M hooks, carefully followed the directions and waited the allotted time before hanging my masterpieces. About 30 seconds after this photo was taken there was an almighty crash and the frame hit the floor, splintering into pieces, glass flying everywhere. I was very mad.

I quickly took down the other frames I had hung before they could career off the wall too.

I can talk about it now (just), but don't ask me to laugh.

So if you'll excuse me, I'm off to buy some of the old fashioned hooks that make holes in your walls.

In print

2011-01-31T17:33:00.000+13:00

I published a calender using photos I took last year in my kitchen, and the snapfish service.

The paper is thick and shiny, quite good quality. I had a coupon so it was just over $20 delivered to our local chemist. They often have specials on different things (just like Briscoes!) and you can sign up for their mailing list. You can make a 12 or 18 month calender, starting with any month.

I wish there was more than one option for the calender part on the bottom half, it would be nice to have something a little 'lighter'.

I enjoyed choosing and positioning my photos. Then I went through and added captions. They've got several to choose from and I chose this one that looks a little like it's been handwritten.

It fills this gap in my kitchen quite nicely. Now I've just got to fill those holes in the other wall!

Looking for a Tomato Relish Recipe?

2011-01-30T12:38:00.001+13:00

Nana Dorothy's Tomato Relish is currently bubbling away on my stovetop....

...I'm off to sterilise some jars!

Hydrangea

2011-01-29T16:25:00.002+13:00

I picked a little posy today for the mantlepiece, I thought I'd share it with you.

I love my little white ceramic milk bottles- I got them from Iko Iko in Wellington. I might have to pick up another small one next time I'm there!

Dinner's in the oven.

2011-01-20T18:11:00.003+13:00

I totally stole Clare's dinner tonight. Except hers looks a little more professional.

Unrelated photos of the pre-Christmas strawberry jam affair, because if I don't post them, let's face it, it's likely I never will.

Eat your veges!

For a Friend.

2011-01-18T17:06:00.004+13:00

I made 3 stones for a dear friend who needed a little love to slip into her pocket. I like to think she might choose one in the morning of a Tough Day, to feel it's comforting weight, and know I'm thinking of her, throughout the day.

I was inspired by three talented ladies.

I have to admit I enjoyed photographing them too!

The Garlic is in!

2011-01-17T14:41:00.000+13:00

I know a few people around the country who didn't have a good year with garlic. My harvest isn't spectacular, plenty of the bulbs are just little, but there's enough there to see us through the year.

Next year I probably need to water them a little more in November.

I cleaned them up and plaited one bunch, then just tied the other bunch with string. Once they've dried out a little more I'll bring them into the kitchen.

Time for a little Dutch feature wall

2011-01-15T18:52:00.004+13:00

I think it's a feature wall because all those windmills would have been a bit much in such a small room!

I bet it looked awesome when it was done. So modern and cutting edge. What a risky choice.

I wonder what The Homeowner will be saying 30 years from now about our decisions?!

That mirror tile is coming down. I think when they put the mirror tile wall into the bathroom - another excellent decorating choice- they must have had a few left over, because they're stuck all over the house. I'm a bit concerned about cracking it as we pry it off the wall. Because 7 years bad luck is all anyone needs while they're renovating.

Needless to say we discovered it under the layer of orange and yellow geometric paper that is currently gracing the office/spare room. (1970, GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!)

Helper dog spent most of his time supervising. (Actually in the interests of full disclosure, I just took the photos while Mr Husband did the hard work. I was in the middle of making a batch of muffins I forgot to put the sugar in.)

Resolute

2011-01-11T16:56:00.003+13:00

We had a long and quite wonderful holiday in Golden Bay for 4 weeks over Christmas and New Years.

{The weather the morning we left Wellington on the Ferry}

We had Family, Fun and Flooding, and managed to piece our car back together in time for the drive home last Saturday morning. We got home on our one year wedding anniversary to a hugely overgrown vege patch, in particular the pumpkins which have gone for miles and are threatening the tomatoes.

{The weather the afternoon before we left Golden Bay.}

The interwebs are full of people's resolutions for the year ahead. Mine is quite simple this year, to give up my shameful 7pm habit. I'm doing quite well so far, aided by the fact I don't think the season has started yet.

This year our goals are also to eat more simply and mindfully, make a real dent on the aesthetic side of our renovation, and my last one is to have summer at home this year, in order to stay on top of the delateralling!

Merry Merry

2010-12-09T19:05:00.002+13:00

Looking through some shops last weekend I came across this bird, and immediately pictured him perched on our front door. I knew those wreaths would come in handy!

Such a simple project, which turned out just how I imagined it. I picked the ivy almost a week ago and it's holding up remarkably well with no water.

We are off on our holiday soon, packing up the car and the dog. Both of our last days at work were today, and we can't wait to hit the beach! Wishing you and your loved ones safe and happy holidays, wherever you may be.

Peace xxx.

The Sneaky Pea Thief

2010-12-06T17:56:00.002+13:00

The other day I left Pedro with a delicious juicy bone, and after about 30 minutes noticed a peculiar noise. I went to investigate, only to find our sneaky vege loving lab nom-noming on the peas!

He'd pulled a whole big part of the vine down, and had worked his way through it, pulling all the pods off the vine and leaving the foliage.

Next year I'll plant the peas in the fenced part of the vege garden!

Mini Make Over

2010-12-05T17:21:00.002+13:00

I think Mum thought I was joking the other day when I told her we haven't been able to use our lounge for almost 6 months dues to the piles of *stuff* in it. During the kitchen reno we just kept piling stuff up in there and never really got around to sorting it out.

I really had had enough mid last week, and decided that I was going to get it presentable in time for my Uncle and cousin to visit us for lunch today. I also decided that as part of the process, the fireplace needed painting (of course.)

Here's where we started, way back when we bought the house, and ripped up the carpet. Thankfully the good folk who built the house had the sense to only use the multicoloured brick on the internal fireplace, and not all over the exterior like some of the houses in our street.

I started by using some wall paint and painted the fireplace white-ish. I like how this looked, and would probably have kept it white if the walls were a colour.

So I hauled myself off to the Resene and bought a pot of water-based enamel in 'Blue Lagoon'.

The enamel is quite thin and I had to do two coats to cover the white. I also painted the mantel. The glossy finish makes it look a little as though the paint is till wet. I really like the high gloss finish.

To finish it off, I hung the wedding gift from my Bridesmaid, Penny, and added a few things we had around the house. The L.O.V.E letters look great here! I plan to fill up the grate with white candles, and we will eventually strip the wallpaper and repaint, and update the curtains. I've also been planning to recover the furniture for several years! But for now, it's a nice update to our living space, and very summery. The best thing is that we can actually live in it again!

I'm thinking I might switch it up in 18 months time, painting it a deep purple perhaps?!

Photographising

2010-11-30T20:17:00.002+13:00

I met the lovely Sarah from BobbyRobin and her super sweet daughter Zoe (best advertisement for having a baby ever!) a fortnight ago and took their photos. You can see the results on her blog. Is there anyone else out there in Auckland who might like me to take some photos for them?

Volunteer Poppy

2010-11-08T18:49:00.001+13:00

In my garden

In my house

Crazy Puppy Loves his Ball

2010-11-07T18:09:00.000+13:00

And then he dug a hole in the lawn.

Fibre Friday :: Graduated Top

2010-11-05T16:06:00.002+13:00

I've restocked the shop with a few more graduated merino tops. There's 150g in each braid, and they transition slowly from one colour to the next.

Check out this amazing shawl spun and knitted from one of my graduated tops- I think it turned out just stunning! It was spun just by splitting the fibre lengthwise, because the colour transition is so slow, barber-poleing isn't really an issue.

Tea Towels as Art :: 2

2010-11-01T15:19:00.001+13:00

A while back I posted about choosing a tea towel to put on the wall in our kitchen as art. In the end I chose the 'Great British Biscuit' one.

When I went to buy a canvas to stretch it around, I couldn't find one the right size, so I took myself off to Mitre 10 to buy some wood and screws and built a simple frame to stretch the tea towel over. In the wood section I met a woman who was looking for wood to anchor the roman blinds she was sewing to her window frames. Eventually a nice young man came and helped us, we both looked pretty bewildered! (Though not as confused as the screws section made me. Why are there so many different types?!)

I used little tacks to secure the tea towel to the back of the frame, and neatly mitred the corners. I had to undo the side hems to make it fit, but I can easily sew them back up if I decide to use it for it's original purpose.

After putting several nails into the wall to try and get it to hang straight (note: spirit level is your friend) I wasn't really feeling the love. But I really do like it hanging up there on my wall!

Sewing Sunday :: 2

2010-10-31T14:53:00.002+13:00

Here is the second version I made of last weeks dress, in stripy fabric from Global Fabrics (btw, Global has their plain knit fabrics reduced to a crazy $6 pm this week!!)

This was actually the third time I'd made the pattern and completed the dress in under 2 hours! The fabric was $18 p/m, from memory, and I used pretty much the whole metre. There's probably enough scraps to make some baby leggings, but not much else. Please pay close attention to the way I matched the stripes at the side seams. This was actually kinda easy, I just made sure they matched when I cut it out, and then stretched the fabric as I sewed. This version is a bit higher in the bust and a bit scoopier, but it could probably still be more so. Maybe next summer!

Tomorrow is the day I'm most excited about happening as an outcome of the Supercity merger, the libraries merge! (I know, I'm a nerd.) So we will be able to borrow books from Auckland City Libraries, up until now we have been limited to Papakura and Pukekohe, this is most exciting, because the central Libraries subscribe to the Burda sewing magazines, yay! I love this pattern, but I think after the 3rd variation in my wardrobe, it'll become pretty obvious I'm just making the same thing over and over. Maybe I can find one with a twist across the bust?!

Fibre Friday :: Christmas Knitting

2010-10-29T09:52:00.002+13:00

I finished an Annis Scarf, and with this beautiful sunny summery weather we've been having, blocked and dried it yesterday after work.

I have to admit, I think I'm addicted to lace knitting. There's something about that moment, where your fabric goes from being crumpled and shapeless,

to taught and defined. Amazing.

I block my lace on a foam mattress we slept on in our car when we roadtripped around the bottom of the South Island. I just use normal stainless steel sewing pins for pinning out this lace, with no straight edges, but need to get some heavier t-pins for holding up my blocking wires.

And so pleased with the finished project!

You can see the lace more clearly now, and the stocking stitch portion drapes so nicely.

This (free) pattern took just over a week to knit, in stolen moments, and 100g of silk merino lace will make two scarves! Just the thing your Christmas knitting list needs, quick and economical!

And it doesn't look half bad on, either :)

(Free shipping in NZ for silk merino yarn until the end of the weekend, International customers, your prices have been adjusted to reflect this discount too!)

Sewing Sunday

2010-10-25T11:29:00.002+13:00

We've got a friend living with us at the moment while she hunts for a job in Christchurch. She's a new sewer, and on the weekends we've been busting out the sewing machines, and I've been imparting some of my 'wisdom' (and bad sewing habits!). I've really been enjoying the sewing we've been doing, I have sewn anything for so so long.

Anyway I thought I'd share some of the projects I've completed over the next few weeks.

I cut out the pattern for this dress from a Burda sewing magazine from the Library at Easter time in Golden Bay. I have no idea what issue or pattern number this is, but I can send you a lunch-paper-tracing of the size 8 (I wear a Glassons 10 most of the time) if you're a kiwi, just let me know.

I made the dress a bit shorter than the pattern is, and am really really happy with how it turned out. I also made a top version of this dress, but I think it falls better as a dress or tunic top. I've also made some alterations to the bust- for the next top I made it a wincy bit higher, and on the next iteration I plan to curve it and make it more scoop neck.

Actually, that's what I might go and do right now!

Enjoy the rest of your labour day!

Drying line

2010-10-19T16:56:00.000+13:00

An almost completed blanket

2010-10-18T16:55:00.000+13:00

Rosemary salt for the lamb chops

2010-10-17T16:54:00.000+13:00

Orange Blossom

2010-10-16T16:51:00.003+13:00

The intoxicating scent of next year's oranges greets me every time I step out the front door, including in the almost light as we head to work. The tree is simply dripping with flowers after the drastic haircut it received this time last year.

:: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Cinnamon Rolls

2010-10-15T16:50:00.000+13:00

Fibre Friday :: Silk Merino Lace

2010-10-15T14:20:00.002+13:00

This Silk Merino Lace is divine, beautifully spun with 6 (!) plies in each strand it knits up beautifully.

You can find it in the shop, in a plethora of colours, perfect for summer shawls for cooler evenings.

Paper Planes

2010-10-14T16:48:00.000+13:00

A photograph taken in my little sister's arty bedroom

:: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Swinging myself back into the saddle

2010-10-13T16:44:00.002+13:00

A photo a day for a few days, and maybe some words to go along with some of them. They'll all be black and white, with the exception of today's, for obvious reasons!

:: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

The silk/merino line up I took to Thames on Monday. In the shop (or what's left!) Friday

Oh WOW

2010-09-28T21:14:00.003+13:00

Last weekend I packed one of those tiny suitcases with the wheels and flew to Wellington for WOW.

I met up with my fabulous friend, Penny for a weekend that included LOTS of shopping, an amazing show and lots of laughs. We left each other at the airport on Sunday, and I STILL had more to say!

I took my (nearly all better) camera along for the ride, with my wee manual lens on board, and I set the camera to black and white. I'm still learning the hang of the focus, but love some of the results I got with my camera over the weekend.

I love how this sign, found in Te Papa, looks like it was shot against a city scape at night!

Thanks to my beautiful sister for taking the above two photos.

After all that shopping I needed to put my feet up!

You can click through on any of the photos if you'd like to see a few more shots from the weekend.

Same time, same place next year Penny?

Camera's back!

2010-09-21T17:58:00.002+12:00

My camera is back from the shop (again!), and I bought an extension tube in Christchurch, which turns my wee 50mm/f1.8 OM lens into a macro. Fun!

These images aren't anything spectacular- it will take a bit of getting used to using. Christchurch update coming soon!

Relocation!

2010-09-16T17:43:00.002+12:00

We are relocation tomorrow afternoon, due to a closure of the Community Centre the Spin-In was going to be in.

See you at:

Hornby Presbyterian Community Church
27 Amyes Road
Hornby
Christchurch

from 1pm!!

Wigram Spin-In (bring your knitting too!)

2010-09-14T20:17:00.003+12:00

I'm packing up the fibre and my husband this weekend, we're heading back to Christchurch for the first time (together) since we moved to Auckland almost 2 (!!!) years ago. We've got lots of catching up with friends planned- a different group for each meal just about! But first, you can find me at the Hei Hei Community Hall on Friday.

from left to right - tussah silk sliver, mulberry silk 4 ply, 50/50 merino/silk 2 ply, merino 2 ply, merino 4 ply, all in 'lagoon'

12 Wycola Ave, Hornby

17th September

1-4:30 pm

Trader Tables

Raffles and Spot Prizes

Included in my line up will be some graduated merino fibre, silk sliver, and a new favourite, 50/50 silk/merino laceweight yarn. It's as yummy and drapey as it looks!

See you there!

Spring Cheer

2010-09-12T20:15:00.002+12:00

I've been thinking a lot this week about my friends and family in Christchurch, after the ongoing earthquakes they've been experiencing. Tash is giving away some 'Cheer up Christchurch' packages, and I've offered to put together a couple as well, one for a knitter, and one for a spinner. If you know of someone in Christchurch who could stand to have their day improved by the unexpected arrival of fibre, head over to send Tash an email with all the details.

We did some drastic pruning of some stone fruit trees a few weekends back. I don't normally cut branches to bring inside, as I'd rather enjoy the flowers as fruit in the summer, but as these were just going into the skip, I thought it a shame to waste them. The plum branches are spent, but the peach are just getting going.

Smoooth

2010-09-05T17:13:00.000+12:00

::banana::frozen berries::kiwifruit::yoghurt::milk::honey::

::buzzzzzzz::

It took me all morning to get through the longest drink in this town!

(thanks to my sister for the cool reusable cups she gave us last Christmas!)

Fibre Friday :: Graduated Top

2010-09-03T11:03:00.003+12:00

3 graduated tops didn't find homes in Whangamata, and a sneaky debut of my new merino laceweight yarn. These graduated tops are a fabulous way to play with colour, and spinning methods.

Now I'm off to the dyehouse!

Whangamata Fibre Weekend

2010-09-02T17:12:00.002+12:00

Whew! I've only just caught my breath, and it's the end of the week!

I didn't take many photos in Whangamata- I was too busy enjoying myself! I took these ones of the amazing yarn/flower arrangements in the front of the hall on the way in on Saturday.....

And then had this one taken right at the end on Sunday, as people were packing up. That's me, second in from the left, with my fab-u-lous weaving instructor Esther Nitske, and Eleanor (far right), who was kind enough to lend me her loom for Sunday. Her darling husband was kind enough to run extras in to the hall when we found we didn't have any sticks (and now I know what that means!). He was a sweetie! And on the left is Kim :) She was walking past at an opportune moment!

And you can see a teeny sneak peek of my stall in that photo too. I've got things to list tomorrow!

Had a lovely weekend with amazing fibre-y people, delicious food and the best scones ever with cream and jam!

Michael and Pedro also came with us and we rented a wee bach to stay in. Whangamata is only 30% owner occupied, and a really delightful place midwinter. Not sure how I'd handle the crowds in the middle of summer, but I really did fall in love with the place. We were a short walk to the estuary, which went round to a lovely beach. At this time if year the dogs can go anywhere, which makes a lovely change for dog owners.

Whangamata, we will be back in two years, if not before.

(Oh and sorry for the crap-tacular photos. My good camera is back at the workshop, which is sad, and I hope I can have another camera back in my hands soon!)

Whangamata

2010-08-24T17:36:00.002+12:00

This weekend is the Whangamata Learning Exchange weekend. I will be there with my fibre and yarn, and have a new 'Workshop in a Bag' to make it's debut.

I'm packing up the husband, dog, fibre and wheel on Friday morning, and will be at the Whangamata Memorial Hall complex all weekend, learning and sharing new skills.

You might already be registered (leave a comment to say hi!), but if not, we'll be open to the public on Sunday between 10 and 3, it would be so lovely to see you there. Make sure you introduce yourself!

And now, off to the studio, to pack up the silk hankies!

Travelling Woman

2010-08-23T18:15:00.002+12:00

I blocked my Travelling Woman on the weekend. My my it is lovely!

The silk yarn has amazing drape.

And the sheen!

I'm so very pleased with how it turned out. And there's likely to be another in my future!

spot the difference

2010-08-22T18:15:00.001+12:00

December 2009

August 2010

Public Service Announcement :: Miracle Dandruff Cure

2010-08-21T17:39:00.002+12:00

I was washing my hair today, and realised the shampoo I've been using has totally cured my dandruff. I thought I should tell you, because you might have dandruff too, and be looking for a miracle cure. (It's one of those things you don't realise is getting better until one day you remember you used to have dandruff that crippled your social life and now you don't. O.k. it wasn't quite that bad, but some days it sure felt like it!)

So, dandruff is kinda gross, which is whey they sell products like head and shoulders to cure your flaking scalp. And you know, I probably wouldn't be telling you about my miracle cure, but my flaking scalp really was awful. And so it means this cure is even better than you might originally have thought. (And way better than H&S, which in my opinion totally DOES NOT work!)

If you have a hippy supermarket, you can probably find it in the personal care section. Takaka, you have it (it's where I got mine). Motueka, it's probably fairly safe to assume you have it too. No judgements here. Otherwise you can get it from their website. Oh look they sell it in family sized containers too! (In case everyone in your family is prone to, as their website puts it, eruptions. Heh.) And now that my scalp is not flaking away from my head, maybe I can use the Vanilla and Coconut stuff, cos that sure sound like a winning combination!

(Just a note, this is a personal endorsment, and I have been in no way compensated to write this post. I have only used the Olive and Tea Tree Shampoo and Conditioner, and cannot recommend any of the other products, although they may well be just as good.)

From the Weekend

2010-08-16T17:23:00.000+12:00

I've been making muffins a lot lately, Michael likes to take savoury ones to work for his breakfast. I make a simple recipe with cheese and corn and some herbs and spices. He likes lots of chilli!

Mum gave me a Dish magazine subscription for my birthday this year. I'm always attracted to the sweet recipes, and made a yummy pear and gingerbread pudding the other night. It was delicious, but had more butter, sugar and white flour than what seems advisable or necessary. I adapted the recipe to make muffins for work this week. (if they are a success, I'll share the recipe later.)

I wrap our muffins up and freeze them (on separate sides of the freezer!), then we pull them out on the way to work, they're thawed by morning tea. (Michael get's his out the night before. He eats them on his way to the morning meeting.) It's an effective way to prevent all the baking being eaten by mid-week.

This weekend I also repotted the tomato plants- the seeds were planted on the first new moon in June as per Louise's instructions. There's one runty one, but it should catch up by October. I also planted some seeds, spring onion, more tomatoes, tamarillo, and some flowers for the front of the house.

What did you spend the weekend doing?

Fibre Friday :: new silk in the shop

2010-08-13T16:56:00.003+12:00

I spent some of my day reskeining and photographing yarn and fibre to list in the shop. This silk really is as amazing as it looks!

I also spent some time knitting in the 4 ply silk, I'm knitting a Travelling Woman, which is a free pattern. I hope to get it finished so I can take some photos this weekend. I picked up some blocking wires today so I can get it all straightened out if I finish it in time.

I can also use the blocking wires to get started on blocking my crochet blocks, I just need to start weaving in some of those ends!

Have you got a fibre project on the go?

Second Big Reveal

2010-08-10T17:53:00.000+12:00

Spinning a Yarn has a new look and a new home!

Simone designed my new logo

and I made a rudimentary new home for myself at spinningayarn.co.nz, I'd love for you to pop over and check it out.

Kitchen Update

2010-08-09T17:28:00.002+12:00

We are a wee way from being completely finished (painting the windows, tiling, fixing that crooked blind, painting chairs, drum shade....the list goes on....) but I thought I'd share some photos to give you a sense of just how far we've come!

First, a refresher of the 'before':

And now, the big reveal!

Some of my favourite parts of the kitchen:

::double cutlery drawer (twice as much space in one drawer, why wouldn't you?!)::rubbish bins with paper recycling drawer on top (soft touch self closing drawer too!)::plate drawers (how did I ever fit all this stuff into cupboards?!)::spice drawer in the pantry (more organised version soon)::

Pantry shots:

Hot water cupboard makeover, same cabinetry, new doors, would you ever know?!

That fabulous floating shelf again:

And Louise, this picture's for you!!

Loving the chalkboard door!

Pictures from the weekend

2010-08-08T17:54:00.001+12:00

A fibre project

Cannelloni filling

Orange and Poppy Seed muffins

Roast Pumpkin Soup

Fibre Friday :: Super Bulky!

2010-08-06T19:39:00.003+12:00

Super bulky is here!

A wholesale order for Wild and Woolly in Devonport, heading off on it's merry way tomorrow morning.

And some up in the shop for you, in hydrangea (purple and blue) and forest (earthy green).

I've been wearing a simple scarf for most of winter, in a cheery orange colour

:: a simple scarf ::

With 10 / 12 / 15 mm needles cast on 3 or 4 stitches. Knit until yarn runs out, and cast off. Use tails to join the two ends of the scarf together. Wash in lukewarm water and stretch to desired length to dry. Wrap several times around your neck to create a layered look.

:: spun sliver yarn details ::

100% NZ Wool (Romney/Perendale)
super bulky/ 4 wpi
10-15 mm needles
100 g/ 30m
$15

Other ideas for projects include hats, bags, slippers, cushions, or you could make a blanket like Frances did!

In other exciting news, I've dropped a day at work, so will be spending Friday's (my first was today) pottering around the studio dyeing and winding up skeins of yarn. It feels like a step in the right direction!

Maths is not my strong point

2010-08-06T06:30:00.003+12:00

So 60 squares x 4 colours per square x 2 ends per colour = 480 ends. Let's think about that even less, ok?

Crochet Explosion

2010-08-05T18:09:00.004+12:00

60 Sunbursts, ready to turn into squares. All different (there are 60 permutations of 5 colours in which each colour is not repeated in a sunburst.)...or are they?

So 60 squares x 4 colours = 240 ends to weave in. Lets not think too hard about that!

Tea Towels as Art

2010-08-02T18:01:00.003+12:00

I'm trying to decide on a tea towel to buy, to stretch it around a canvas for my kitchen. I made an etsy treasury here (no screen shot because my screen isn't big enough to get the whole thing in the frame!)

But these are my top contenders:

source

source (and check out the kereru!)

source

I really really like some of the others in the treasury too (especially the EAT YOUR GREENS) but feel it needs to be a red print.

Which would you choose?

Cro-shet

2010-07-29T20:52:00.000+12:00

I started my crochet project.....

Can't wait to start on the grey....still crushing on grey!

PeaPod

2010-07-28T18:30:00.000+12:00

My good friend (and bridesmaid) Penny has just opened up a felt shop, selling beautiful jewellery.

I borrowed these images from her site. Isn't her work lovely?

I love these skeleton leaves.

Kitchen Diaries :: Sneak Peek

2010-07-27T18:51:00.004+12:00

On the weekend we put up the shelf. I also sewed up the blind, but have to tack the lining and top fabric together to get it to roll nicely. Also should attach it NOT using pins I guess.

A wee sneak peek for your viewing pleasure:

I've been unpacking wedding gifts (L.O.V.E) and found these glass bowls- we have camelias dotted around the house now, which is nice. More photos soon......

We have a winner!

2010-07-19T18:02:00.003+12:00

Thanks to everyone who entered the yarn giveaway- a record number of commenters! It was lovely to hear your positive feedback, and thanks too to those who left suggestions for future colourways- I enjoyed reading them, and have added them to my mental to do list!

The winner of the skein of yarn is Brenda Chawner, who said: 'My favourite is smoke and mirrors, but I'm also tempted by the hydrangea. All the colours look lovely!'

It seems this was a favourite colourway- I'll be sure to dye more next time! (Though there is a skein of silk weight left...)

Brenda, the link you left is to a hidden profile, so please get in touch using my email address on the side bar. I'll leave a note on ravelry too, but otherwise I don't know how to get in contact! (If I don't hear from you in a week, I will draw another winner.)

And until the end of the week, the yarn has free national shipping in the etsy shop- international buyers, yours is discounted by the cost of national shipping!

Fibre Friday:: Silk yarn launch...with giveaway!

2010-07-16T17:40:00.004+12:00

So, I'm a self confessed silk snob. What better way to enjoy it than as a gorgeous, soft and shiny hand dyed yarn?

So I'm super excited to launch something I've been working on for a while, silk yarn in 2 ply lace weight (left), and 4 ply fingering weight (right). Yay!

The lace weight yarn has 3 plies (but is 2 ply weight!) and high twist. It's a smooth, strong and shiny yarn.

The 4 ply/fingering is made up of 2 loosely spun plies, giving a soft and lustrous yarn.

They come in hanks of 80 g +, which in the lace is over 630m, and the 4ply is 260m+.

And here's the best part: I'm giving a skein away, in the winners choice of weight and colour, I'll even do a custom dye! To enter all you need to do is visit the shop, and let me know which is your favourite....and if your favourite colour isn't there, let me know what it would be! Competition is open to international folk, and I'll draw a winner on Monday afternoon.

Comments now closed- the winner was Brenda Chawner- please contact me to claim your prize :)

Knitting Technique

2010-07-15T20:05:00.002+12:00

All my knitting 'career' I've been an English Knitter, throwing my yarn over the needles. It's how I was taught by Mum and Nana (who also taught my Mum, no doubt.)

But one of the girls in my spinning group gave me a crash course in Continental Knitting recently, and now I've switched right over. It's faster, and I have alot less tension in my hands and arms. I was finding my hand cramping up the English way!

I use this knit technique (and the second method of holding the yarn):

And after some you tubing around found this tutorial for purling, which I found the easiest to do:

I now find my hands are relaxed as I knit, and almost have that flowy crochet feeling. It was awkward to start with, but only because I had been doing it the other way for so long. I'm glad I persevered and made the switch.

I started with just the knit stitch, on an 'in the round project', or maybe a garter stitch project would be good. Then I attempted the purling on a k1p1 project, which was a little wonky and uneven, but my second k/p project had found me with more even tension. Now I don't think there's any difference, except maybe I'm a slightly looser knitter a good thing as I always used to knit too tight!

Which way do you knit?

Swap Goodies

2010-07-14T19:39:00.002+12:00

Tash from Knitsch Yarns and I did a swap this week- her parcel arrived in my letterbox today.

Sock yarn in 'Beauregarde', yummy! I plan to knit this Lace Ribbon Scarf with it. Also included were two sweet wee stitch markers that Tash is about to start selling, from SuperVery! I was so excited to see the little cow. Now I need to knit something that requires markers!

My camera is at 'the shop', it was having troubles processing every second image I took. It feels so strange to be using my point a shoot again, and I crave the creative control, manual focus and custom white balance my dSLR has. Here's hoping it will be easy (and cheap!) to fix. Otherwise I might be in the market for a new one....

Reno-brain

2010-07-01T20:22:00.003+12:00

Life is so full, and busy right now. In a good way though, the kind that makes you grateful for that moment of calm as you lay back in bed at night.

Kitchen goes in Friday week. We will spend the weekend frantically prepping the walls!

I'm hoping to get a chance to catch you up on Cambridge, but I might have to content myself with just saying it was a fab day out. I made one wee purchase which I'll photograhise and show you soon I hope. It was lovely to meet crafty people from a different part of NZ, and welcome to anyone who has found their way here since then.

Here is a couple of photos of Dad's birthday cake from last month. (It was a big one, ending with an '0')

We heard some lovely stories about the farming blood running through Dad's veins- the time he went to check on the calving cows down the paddock before anyone else was up, and came back announcing 'it's spring' because there were 3 cows and calves. He was 4!! Nana used to have to tie him to clothesline to stop him wandering off to be with the cows.

Happy Birthday Dad!

'shrooms

2010-06-28T20:02:00.000+12:00

At our local Farmer's Market (Clevedon) there is a new produce stand, selling mushrooms. They also sell a mushroom farm, a bucket of mushroom compost which will grow for 6-8 weeks.

We have a bucket growing in our hot water cupboard.

(We have picked and eaten these yummy mushrooms, and are eagerly awaiting the next flush to come through.)

Kitchen Diaries

2010-06-27T19:48:00.002+12:00

When we last left the kitchen, it looked a little like this.

Now it looks alot like this!

And this is on our back porch.

This is how we are washing the dishes for the next two weeks.

I can't wait to have my new kitchen in. Compared to the old one, it will seem very modern and out of place with the rest of the house, but that will change over the next year. I'm particularly looking forward to my pantry, dishwasher, plate drawers and the bin drawer for the rubbish and recycling.

A lovely dream

2010-06-22T18:51:00.002+12:00

I had a lovely dream last night. I was op-shopping, looking specifically for a new sewing machine?!

I got a bit distracted, I found some really neat tea cups, they were Japanese and had blue-grey swallows on them.

Then I found some great frames.

***side note: I've been thinking about thrifting some frames, and spray painting them all black to display the photobooth photos from the wedding in. Sign from the Thrift Gods much?***

And then Michael's alarm went off- I was quite disorientated and asked why it was so early!! I felt really disappointed to leave the cups and frames behind!

::Blurry photos are of the mountain of fibre I'm currently labelling for Thursday::

Frantically Dyeing

2010-06-21T18:02:00.003+12:00

I'm getting ready for a road trip to Cambridge on Thursday- packing up over 40 skeins of merino, 18 skeins of silk sliver and 20 odd stacks of silk hankies. I've also got a big lot of spun sliver.

(Photos from my stall in February, it's going to be bigger and better this time round!)

So, I hope to see you at Trinity St Paul's Union Parish of Cambridge, Corner Queen St & Bryce St from 10am onwards on the 24th of June!

Granny Love Much?

2010-06-19T19:00:00.000+12:00

Scheming in TWC. Purple, teal, orange and graphite. Or cream, avocado, sunflower and graphite. Or avacado, sky, cream and graphite. Or cream, ballet, cyclamen and raspberry. Or, or, or....... Need to get it right, because face it, I'm surely only ever going to make one.

Trying to figure out if I can pull off the granny square lampshade. Crushing on grey.

Don't tell Nana, she'll want to send the Granny Blanket I started a million years ago and she likely still has stashed away. (Thanks for the hoarder tendencies Nana.)

Should probably finish my English paper piecing hexagon cot quilt first right?

Tutorial (auf Deutsch) here.
Pattern (English) here.
Support Group here.

Fibre Friday :: Visit these folk who make time to take photos.

2010-06-18T19:13:00.002+12:00

Thanks for the concern friends. I'm still here, just super busy. You know it's bad when your Mum rings you to find out why you haven't updated your blog. Just busy.

Gill has organised a fibre fiesta in Motueka tomorrow.

Clare wrangled her baby and made silk paper. You should too!

I hope to be more present in this space in the coming weeks- maybe I need to give up my nasty 7pm habit?! (Like I have tonight :P)

Kumara out / Garlic in

2010-05-31T18:41:00.002+12:00

On the weekend, I dug the kumara. The plants had got a little ratty on top, so I thought it was time to get them up, and see what had happened underneath.

It sounds silly, I know, but can you imagine my surprise when I found plump red kumara underneath? It was like finding buried treasure- I'm not sure I really expected there to be anything there!

We didn't get a huge yield, maybe 1 big, 2-3 fist sized and a couple of weeny ones per plant, I only had half a dozen plants, but the bucketful will keep us going for a couple of weeks.

And then I broke up the seed garlic, and planted that (in a different spot, I might add. I planted some mustard seed where the garlic had been.) The garlic was really photogenic!

I also did some much needed weeding, pulled out the beans and built a teepee around some self seeded sweetpeas. It was quite productive, and the blisters on my hands are evidence I haven't done any in a while!