Saturday 31 October 2009

I WANT ONE TOO....

The cowl l'm making for Phil....anyone who has a Noo Noo will know the drafts that are part of the fun of the 70's campers and the essential scarves boots and knee blankets needed to travel in one in the colder months hehe...still love ya Noo Noo

Using the new Merino 3 blended strands in Lime, purple,turq and yellow Phil's own choice a 6mm hook 70 chain to start and 2 rows of SC then rows of trebles...8 at the mo but will do about 10 maye 12 more to make it scrunchy and snuggly then finish with 2 rows of SC
Sorry for the bad pic but in a rush this morning....forgot to pick up the dried cat food yesterday when l went to town so got to go pick it up 1st thing then a hair appointment....why as soon as you decide to go do you feel the hair looks better!! hehehe

SORRY Kathryn..really sorry hope you will forgive me for cancelling yesterday hugs x

Friday 30 October 2009

A PERFECT HOME FOR MY PRESSIE...

Love pale grey so l bought some pale grey cotton from ColourMart last week especially to make myself a cowl only took me about 3 hours to make too and it's a perfect home for the gorgeous pressie l got from Kaz....what do you think Kaz?
I can change the flower as its a broach if l want the cotton cowl to co-ordinate with different outfits...think it goes very nicely with my PJ's though......was sooo chuffed with it l couldn't wait to take the pics!! lol

Phil wants one for Noo Noo a scarf is a must in the camper when it gets colder so making him a simpler chunkier one in stripes

Thursday 29 October 2009

YUMMY STRIPY CARPET TILES!!..YES I LIKE

ooh!!!...... l like these floor tiles from a company in Ireland!!
FOOTFALL...gorgeous stripes...yummy yummy l like

LOVELY SMELL OF NEW WOOD

The on going saga of the bathroom leak....to start the day a loo on the landing and yucky water on the landing carpet..good job its being changed hey!!!
l'm afraid the leak from the shower is still there after all this work too...really at a loss new sealer strip from www so fingers crossed yet again!!
so many cables and stuff under the old floor boards!!!
a working box from the old emersion heater was still live and under the floor boards!! help
Why do builders sweep all the rubbish under the floor boards?.....cleared it all out as we went
Proof...l did my bit too !
yards of cable had been left too...glad we did all this and we now know its all tidy and cleared....we really wish we'd done the bathroom ourselves in the 1st place would at least have been done properly...cowboy plumber!!!
hey presto a new wooden floor...well as much as we could replace anyway and the smell of new wood is gorgeous when you walk in the bathroom now
A couple of broken tiles to replace a loo that won't flush unless you tape the side hehehe.....something sticking Phil says!!!!
A good clean every where a coat of paint on the ceiling and lay a floor covering....
But what do we cover it with?....as we haven't removed the bath the floor is still tiled under it so now have to find something to do the new bit!!

Phil wants carpet and l like the idea of soft and fluffy but CARPET!!! in a bathroom not so sure
watch this space

Wednesday 28 October 2009

TAPESTRY CROCHET

Gave it a go this morning learnt a lot in the 1st few rows like the single crochet stitch used can be in both colours!....to give a sharper line

Loved this bag done in the TAPESTRY CROCHET METHOD....

Gone from the chunky to the fine...not so easy to start with...eyesight going and the light wasn't so good in bed this morning hehe

But l've had to stop playing 'cos the bathroom floor is calling...new boards delivered late yesterday so we need to remove the loo and get the floor down

FINGERS CROSSED....the leak seems to have been stopped!

Poor James has a £550 excess on his car to pay.....but he will get a hire car while it's poorly
just what he could have done without 1st month of full pay ans he's got a huge bill!

Tuesday 27 October 2009

CUSHIONS CATS AND CAR CRASH!!

Finished the ripple cushion added it to the already part made cushions and Brupbrup my best cushions tester gave them the OK watched the last 2 episodes of James' favourite TV programme he left me...another 2 hours was a mini series and we had to download DivX onto the laptop so we could watch it 1st......

Then the phone call about 10pm to ruin a great weekend....
'We're all ok'.....said the voice!...'Oh no what's happened said l?'.....

An accident on the motorway so they had to take a detour and James hit a slippery corner had no control over the car he said it was just like hitting an ice patch and ended up in a 4' ditch!!!!!!

4x4 was passing and pulled them out and said he'd pulled a few of his friends out of this ditch
so they limped back to camp with a very sick car!!

Cars can be fixed you are all OK...was the only thing in my mind
So today will be insurance companies and sorting out how when and where for his car!!!!!!

Monday 26 October 2009

DAY WITH JAMES AND 5 HOURS OF HIS FAVOURITE TV PROGRAMME

Can't believe we sat and chatted and watched his fav TV programme on his laptop yesterday so not a lot of crochet done at all but a fabulous day could have no or very little contact with him for about 4 months very soon...sad and miserable l'll be!!


COWL TO CUSHION AND BACK TO COWL AGAIN?
Really hated it as a cowl when it had a purple ripple in it removed the purple and looked at it as a cushion added the lime greens and now l like it as a cowl again...so not sure what it will be when its finished hehe....
CUSHION OR COWL?...........mmmmmmmmmmmmm

Friday 23 October 2009

THE GOOD DAY AFTER ALL

After a damp depressed start to the day.....
1. l got a call from James...always makes me happy hehehe..home for a long weekend
2. A wonderful trip to a yarn store...a feast of colour and fabulous yarns
3. Fabulous price.....wow wow wow!!...one happy bunny

THE WINTER RIPPLE
Very hard to decided on the colours l want to use for the ripple throw......did a couple of samples but love the mixed colour yarns and it was soooo hard to decide on what colours to leave out so.....

l'm going to use (l think) a mixture of 3 colours as one yarn of this gorgeous 100% Merino and an 8mm hook....
love the chunky look and with so many colours l can make up endless combinations of mixed yarn colours and the look is subtle and blended with no clashes
What a fabulous shop...COLOUR MART SHREWSBURY...sooooooooooo helpful and because l bought 38 colours and 200grms of each l got it at an unbelievable price...

Normally this 100% (super soft )Merino yarn is normally £1.50 per 50grms
comes on cones...great machine for winding the amount you want onto cones


THE GOOD THE BAD AND THE UGLY!!

Been trying a bit of organic!!...a scarf l think
THE GOOD
What with the postal strikes and wanting to have a little feel before buying decided to use a relatively local company COLOUR MART in Shrewsbury for my next yarns so off to visit this company again but to buy this time they very kindly gave me a couple of free samples last time and it's beautiful yarn on cones

THE BAD
Spoke too soon the shower is still leaking.....bum bum bum!!!!!!!!!
and..............couldn't beleve it when l walked into the spare bedroom
THE UGLY
Another dam leak from the blow off pipe from the boiler now leaving another ugly make for me to sort out!!!.......will it ever stop!!!


Thursday 22 October 2009

K's BAG MY PRESSIE A SICK BATHROOM AND A BIT OF RUBBER

Only 4 colours but l'd run out of the beige and couldn't remember where l'd got it from ooops!
Was ROBIN DK Acrylic and I found a ball in the tiny wool shop in town
so made great head way this morning so not far off finished
Added a bit of a ripple...now do l go back to straight again and do the draw string or do a strap and open top?
What do you think K?
A pressie for me! xx

Another friend gave me a beautiful recycled felted cream flower last night and l absolutely adore it...one of my favourite colours......thank you so much Kaz making something special for this little beauty...watch this space!!! lol

You can't have it Kathryn HEHEHE.......its all mine but I will make something similar for your bag because it does look lovely on your bag?


Had a couple of days of not feeling quite well myself!!....ok this morning though

Maybe l came out in sympathy with the very sick bathroom!!!.....pipe work all sorted now.....but the shower cubicle was still leaking from the one corner........gggggggrrrrrrrrrrr said Pmacs
Been a real problem for a couple of years now and we decided the tiled floor had just got to come up......and that's the 'royal we' Pmacs did it all l just pushed a couple of bits of pipe..hehe

He removed all the sealer and resealed it all last night now we have to wait and see!!
Then we're going to lay new floor boards and a new floor covering.....something we can lift easily if needs be!
Thought RUBBER maybe for the new floor covering!

Tuesday 20 October 2009

WINTER WARMERS...RIPPLE SLIPPERS

Well slippers it was yesterday....already half way through a second pair and all l did was use the same pattern as the Ripple wrist warmers but used a 7mm hook to make them big enough for my size 4 feet and sewed the one end together....really warm and cosy

Now they are really me so l can see a cupboard full on new slippers in every colour
making them bigger has made a sort of nobbly look to them and it feels like a very soft reflexology treatment when you walk...lol

Added a loopy edging to the second pair and made them in colours to go with my new red PJ's


Monday 19 October 2009

THINKING FLOWERY SLIPPERS TODAY...

Phil is digging up the bathroom floor today...trying to stop the shower in the kitchen!!! fingers crossed it works this time was so pleased with the bathroom at 1st now l hate it...boo hoo!!

More thoughts on the flowery wrist warmers....and thanks for message Lucy you were the inspiration...thanks great minds an all hehehe x..........

Really want to make a jacket with long wrist warmer sleeves but slippers will be quicker and as l've already got a rippling big blanket on the go all ready......not so sure l should ever start BIG projects l loose interest so fast and move on the new fields...hehehe

SMALL IS BEST ME THINKS!!

Managed to finish my swap 12 granny squares to post today...not so sure they will get there though b***** stikes!! ggggggrrrrrr

Sunday 18 October 2009

LEFT OVER FLOWERS

Got carried away with the left over flowers this morning added a few to the wrist warmers...bit of fun now got to make more to make a pair!!

SOME LEFT OVERS!!

RIPPLE WRIST WARMERS

Great way to use up all those teeny weeny balls of yarn you have left over


Made a couple of pairs of wrist warmers after taking my daily dose of Inspirational Attic24
Had thought the simple ripple pattern l was using would be a real easy pattern to convert to a wrist warmer....liked the point over the hand and palm...just added a loop to the point to go over the middle finger so the glove stays in place quick to make too

SIMPLE PATTERN:
24 CHAIN….4 TREBLE INCREASE OF 3 TREBLE IN NEXT STITCH
THEN 4 TREBLE AND A DECREASE OF 3 TREBLE IN NEXT 3 STITCHES (RETAIN THE HALF TREBLE AND PULL YARN THOUGH ALL 4 LOOPS ON THE HOOK TOGETHER)
THEN REPEAT AGAIN…..24STITCHES ALL TOGETHER

I used Double strand DK or chunky on a 6mm hook the last 4 rows done with a 5.5mm hook (HAND AREA)

FINISH with a single crochet and a 6 chain loop at the front point to go over middle finger…keeps the glove in place….looks quite Medieval too!

Saturday 17 October 2009

SINGLE ROW USE UP YARN PIPPLE

17 Rows of 17 Ripply hills and 8.5 hours later its the width of the bed with a slight overhang and about a foot short at the moment lol

Using up the yarn fast....ooops! can see me having to buy more yarn to finish it

so addictive l cant put it down!!!
Multiples of 12 stitches....start with 5 treble crochet then *3 treble (basic increase....peak of ripple) into next chain stitch then 4 trebles into next 4 chain then half treble into next 3 chain retaining loops on hook then draw last loop through all 4 loops on hook (basic decrease...hollow) then 4 trebles into next 4 chain* and repeat
basically a 3 treble increase and 3 treble decrease with 4 treble between..very basic single row pattern....with 3 chain and 4 treble (equal to 5 treble) to start and 6 treble with the last 2 done as a decrease (equal to 5 treble) to end the row.........
this will keep the edge straight instead of stepped

started with 205 stitches and double strand DK or Chunky and used an 6mm hook

Friday 16 October 2009

SIMPLE INCREASE DECREASE DESIGN RIPPLE

Always adored this page of.....

she's Dutch...and that may explain why it's
still a very contemporary book after 12years......and very me right now

Got lots of acrylic yarn l want to use up so doing a practise run of a ripple blanket
Using a simple increase decrease every 5th stitch
2strands of DK or Chunky ('cos that's what needs using up) and an 6mm hook
and a single row of each colour.........
NOTE: IF I WAS MAKING IT AGAIN I WOULD USE A 5MM HOOK OR 5.5 MAX.

 
but
I'm a speed merchant and wanted the simplest and fastest ripple to use this yarn up

trying out colour combo l have 7 colours being worked at the same time....not such a good idea though!!

Love the 1st 4 colours in the top right pic....but this is use up time and l don't really want to buy much more of this yarn if any to finish it, so it's got to be a multi colour project
 

Thursday 15 October 2009

DAY AT MANCHESTERS DISNEY!

Only just over an hour away but we've never been to the Trafford Centre in Manchester before
It's a fantastic place...entered through Debenhams and out to see this 1st view..as shopping centre's go it has the wow factor!
Palm lined malls and a huge glass roof leading to the main 'Dome'
Palm squares to sit in...
Wonderful wooly filled shops to look at....lots of favourite stripy scarves and pom-pom garlands
Knitting needles at the ready...ooops sorry Accessorize l just got to knit my version of these lovelies

Bit of a Disney style cruise..hehe l could almost feel the wind in my hair on board this Liner!!
Same wonderful feelings as my trips to Florida in this beautiful sky painted dome
Dropped in on the Pharohs in Egypt
Early dinner or was it a late lunch?.... in the Orient....from one dragon to another it was delicious

Then off to the APPOLLO for a fantastic girlie Show

THE NOLAN SISTERS
back on stage together after 25yrs
Was never a huge fan but remember them well and any woman who gets back on stage after a gap of that long need supporting!! hehe

Looking brill girls loved the sparkles
fab dancers and Colleen's sons Shane and Jake warmed us all up brilliantly to start the show off...
l bet it's brill in their house at Christmas hehe

A Fabulous Loose Woman for sure

Colleen has a really lovely voice
Well done girls for a fantastic evening

Arrived home after midnight and fell into bed happy