inkberryblue

Blogcation

2010-10-10T17:26:00.001+08:00

Just wanted to let you know, dear blog friends, that I won't be able to post here for quite a while. I'm busy busy busy getting ready to move out of my home so that I can get my flood damaged floors replaced and I know that work is going to be really demanding for the next ten weeks too. When I get the chance, though, I'm still planning on dropping in on you!
Blessings.
x

Sweet Spring

2010-08-30T20:41:00.005+08:00

It's still officially winter in Australia but Nature is definitely saying it's spring.
The mornings are warmer, the days are longer, the birds have begun to gather nesting material, freesias and jasmine are sweetly scenting the air...I love this time of the year. I spent the weekend in my garden,
sweeping and weeding and repotting,
clearing up the damage from the March flood,
kept company by industrious bees

and small, squabbling honeyeaters.

Amongst the debris from the storm, lots of flowers were blooming,
including a delicate native flame pea

and the coral gum I planted when I first moved here.

It was a lovely way to spend Saturday and Sunday.

I spent time crocheting a new blanket too. I'm making one with Lucy's Granny Stripe pattern. I haven't taken any progress shots yet but I have managed to take a picture of the yarn I'm using. I've chosen colours to go with my living room. It's going to be bright!

In other crafty news,

I've crocheted a One Row Lace Cowl:

which I have given to my good friend Robbo,

I've worked on a stirling silver and copper ring:

which I've since oxidised and polished

and, lastly, I have had the pleasure of seeing my What the Dickens Fingerless Mittens being made by somebody else! A lovely and busy blogger from Holland has crocheted four pairs, which you can see here. I really like the yarn she's chosen.

And you?
I'd love to hear about what's happening in your corner of the Earth.

Blessings..
x

Tah Dah!

2010-08-16T21:00:00.010+08:00

I haven't meant to be away from here for so long
but I've been busy busy busy getting my mittens pattern ready.
It's actually a very simple pattern, but it's my first and writing it has been time consuming. Since I last posted I've worked out the thumb holes and successfully crocheted the pattern in different yarn weights. I've managed to put it into a PDF format (hooray!) but have been completely stumped by computerised crochet charts (boo!);
I think I could go on tweaking it forever...
But mitten wearing weather is almost over in Oz
so,

drum roll,

click here for the What the Dickens Fingerless Mittens PDF pattern.

Please note: the PDF pattern has charts that should make the instructions (especially for the thumb holes) really clear.

Re~edited to say: You should all be able to access the PDF pattern through the link above. If you can't please let me know. The What the Dickens Fingerless Mittens pattern is now listed in Ravelry. And, if you scroll down a little bit, you'll see that the text only, no diagram version of the pattern is still in this post.

As I said in my last post, the mittens can be made out of 8 ply or 10 ply yarn (the pink mitt has been crocheted out of 10 ply wool and the black mitt has been crocheted out of 8 ply), they're hooked in the round so that you can fit them as you go, and they're super quick to make.

What the Dickens Fingerless Mittens

Yarn: 8ply (light worsted weight) or 10 ply (worsted weight) yarn.
Approximately 70 grams of yarn.

Hook Sizes: Small/Medium use 3.5mm (E) and 4.00mm (G) hook.
Large/Extra Large use 4.5mm (7) and 5.00mm (H) hook.

Skill Level: Advanced Beginner

US Terms:
sc = single crochet
sl st = slip stitch
ch = chain
dc = double crochet

Note: What the Dickens Fingerless Mittens are crocheted using US terminology. Mittens are worked in the round. Do not turn at the end of rounds.

Special Stitches:
Shell = 2dc 1ch 2dc in one stitch.
Crab Stitch = Reverse single crochet, sc from back to front of stitch.

Beginning:
Chain 28, join with sl st through back bump of first stitch to make ring, being careful not to twist chain.

Round One: (Small/Medium ~ use 3.5mm hook.) (Large/Extra Large ~ use 4mm hook.)
Ch 3 in first ch, 2dc 1ch 2dc in same chain (shell made) * skip 3 chains, 2 dc 1ch 2dc in next chain* repeat around. Skip last 3 chains and join with sl st to 3rd chain of beginning ch 3. Do not turn. Stitch count for all rounds (except rounds 10 and 14) 6 shells.

Rounds 2 - 6
Ch 3 in first stitch (on top of chain 3 below.) Skip 2 dc of shell below * 2dc 1ch 2dc in middle chain of shell below (shell made) skip 4 dc * repeat around. Join with sl st to 3rd chain of beginning three chains. Do not turn. For longer gauntlet add one or more extra rows here.

Rounds 7 – 9
Switch to larger hook. Repeat as for rounds 2 – 6.

Round 10 ~ Left Hand
Ch 3 in first stitch (on top of chain 3 below). Skip 2dc of shell below. 2dc 1ch 2dc into middle chain of shell below (shell made). Loosely chain 7, skip one shell below, 2dc 1ch 2dc into next shell (thumb hole made.) Continue in pattern for remainder of round. Do not turn. Stitch count for Round 10 Left Hand: 3ch 1 shell
7 ch 4 shells.

Round 10 ~ Right Hand
Ch 3 in first stitch (on top of chain 3 below). * Skip 2dc of shell below, 2dc 1ch 2dc into middle chain of shell below (shell made) * repeat for 3 more shells. Loosely crochet 7 chains, skip one shell below, 2dc 1ch 2dc into next shell, sl st to top of beginning 3 ch (thumb hole made and round completed.) Do not turn. Stitch count for Round 10 Right Hand: 3ch 4 shells 7ch 1 shell.

Round 11 ~ Left Hand
Ch 3 in first stitch (on top of chain 3 below) 2dc 1ch 2dc into middle chain of shell below. Skip 3 chain 2dc 1 ch 2dc into 4th chain, skip three chain, 2dc 1ch 2dc into next shell below. Continue pattern for remainder of round. Do not turn.

Round 11 ~ Right Hand
Ch 3 in first stitch (on top of chain 3 below) 2dc 1ch 2dc into middle chain of shell below, continue pattern for another 3 shells. Skip 3 chain 2dc 1 ch 2dc into 4th chain, skip three chain, 2dc 1ch 2dc into last shell below. Sl st to top of beginning 3 chain. Do not turn.

Rounds 12 ~ 13
Repeat rounds 7 – 9.

Round 14
Finishing Round. Ch 1 and crab stitch (reverse single crochet) around top. Fasten off.

© inkberryblue
You are welcome to use this pattern for personal use or charity work.

Thank you to everyone who gave me feedback on the name. Your suggestions were really helpful. I do hope you like the pattern, I would love to know if you make some mittens and I'd really appreciate any feedback if you do.

I have lots more to share.
I've made more jewellery in silver smithing classes,
crocheted a cowl,
taken photos out in the bush whilst I've been away on a beautiful retreat,
found some yummy recipes
but there's only so long that a girl can stay sitting in front of the computer in her pyjamas (don't tell anyone, but I was here almost all of yesterday) so it will have to keep for another post.

Have a wonderful week.
Blessings
x

Chilly

2010-07-19T20:03:00.005+08:00

I've written my first pattern
...for fingerless mitts!
It's winter here in the Land of Oz and it has been very, very chilly in the mornings. I have really needed something to keep my hands warm
and I've come up with these:

They are made out of 8 ply wool, although the pattern is easily adapted to 10 ply, they're crocheted in the round so that you can fit them as you go
and they're super quick to make.
I'm planning on posting the pattern in the next couple of weeks (once I've finished tweaking the construction of the right hand glove and when I can fit blogging into this crazy, busy life of mine.)
I haven't come up with a name for them yet. I'm considering something Dickensian ~ fingerless mitts always make me think of Dickens and I actually crocheted one of these while watching (and loving) the television adaption of Little Dorrit. I could call them Little Dorrits, perhaps? I've also thought of naming them Crisp Morning Mitts, which is a play on my name. My pun loving sister came up with What the Dickens. Or maybe I should go with something more sensible like Lacy Fitted Mitts?
What do you think?

I came up with my own pattern after making two sets of Shell Lace Fitted Fingerless Gloves:

This is one of the most clearly written patterns I've ever worked from and really helped me to understand how fingerless mitts are constructed.

In other crafty news,
I received this gorgeous knitted washcloth and soap in a Ravelry swap from the wonderful WendyLew, my swap partner

and Little Red Hen gave me one of her beautiful HANDbags when we met up for coffee:

It's constructed so cleverly and I love the pretty floral fabric.
As well as generously giving me some of her handiwork Little Red Hen engaged me in a really interesting conversation that covered, amongst other things, travelling, teaching and selling art which was very thought provoking. I never usually sell any of my work but after talking about how validating it can make you feel, as an artist, I'm thinking that I might exhibit some of my paintings some time in the not~too~distant future.
Thanks for the inspiration, Dette.

I've enjoyed cooking comfort food during this cold snap. I made a Bread and Butter Pudding for a family dinner that was so nice I came home and cooked another one just for me!

The recipe asks for vanilla beans, and demerara sugar that's sprinkled over the pudding to create a crunchy, caramelised top. I left the crusts on the bread and that made it even crunchier, a fantastic contrast to the egg custard beneath.
Yum. Yum. YUM.
(It was so delicious I had it for breakfast too.)

It's been too cold to do much outside
but my garden's bloomed,
regardless:

Flowers bring me so much pleasure.

I hope this finds you enjoying the comforts of home too.

Blessings.
x

Little Pockets of Joy

2010-06-27T12:01:00.012+08:00

I have sat down at the computer with the intention of posting here quite a few times over the past month but the words just haven't wanted to come. It's been very, very busy at work and I've been doing loads of reporting, interviewing, commenting, reviewing...
And I think I'm just all talked out.
(Which some members of my family will find very hard to believe, I know.)

So today I'm just going to share photos,
mainly,
of things that, in amongst all of the hard work, have brought me joy.

I've walked around Lake Monger in the soft light of dusk:

I've also spent an afternoon with my mum,
where we drank tea, talked honestly, and busied ourselves with crochet and knitting ~ Mum making bandicoot bags for the local wildlife rehabilitation centre, me working on yet another Sweet Lorraine scarf.

I have admired the little posy of marigolds that's been sitting at my sink,

finished the ring I've been working on in my silver smithing classes (hooray!)

and met the charming Little Red Hen for afternoon tea at Fremantle Arts Centre.
But more about that in my next post...

I'd love to know what's been bringing joy to you.

Blessings.
x

Cosy

2010-05-30T18:16:00.004+08:00

I'm almost done for the day ~ after I post this I'm going to curl up on the couch with my cat, some crochet and Dr Who on the television for company.
Yay!
It's been another good weekend.
There's been enough balance between paper work and play for me to feel relaxed and to have been really productive...not something that happens often and definitely something to savour...

I spent part of Saturday in my silver smithing class working on this ring:

You can probably tell from the photos that I need to finish riveting the glass bead to the silver cup, and that I also need to clean up some solder and straighten it all too but,
I hope,
I'm almost done.

I've also been sewing up the Monroe Lacy Stole that I crocheted last Winter:

and I have been admiring this gorgeous array of wool (and the little glass button) that I received in my Ewe Beaut Fibre Sampler Box:

(If you follow the link above and look at the contributors for the April 2010 box you'll be able to find out who created all of this hand made goodness.)

I've been enjoying the change in season too.
My poetic friend Jen (who writes beautifully and very very honestly)
says that Winter is a quiet, sacred, restorative time.
I do so agree.

I love wintery skies:

and late roses:

and daisies that bloom valiantly despite the rain:

I hope you, too, are enjoying the time of the year,
wherever you live on our beautiful Earth.

Blessings.
x

Textured

2010-05-16T20:16:00.009+08:00

I've had to spend most of Saturday and Sunday writing reports and I'm still nowhere close to repairing all the damage that was done when my home was flooded...but I have had a nice weekend anyway!

I've been admiring this lovely begonia as I've been working on my computer:

I have also managed to get out to a jewellery workshop at Fremantle Arts Centre where I've had fun playing with texture:

(These are little copper samples that I embossed with an onion bag, some upholstery fabric and a dried leaf.)

started to make a new silver ring:

and enjoyed the beautiful surroundings:

(This carved lino floor was installed in the Centre's main hallway as part of an exhibition which was held at the end of last year. Isn't it gorgeous?)

Importantly for me and for my sense of well being, I have been listening to Pema Chodron, a Buddhist nun, who has, I think, a fantastic perspective on life and its challenges.

It's also become cold enough in the morning to wear scarves. Hooray!

(I'm currently crocheting this Sweet Lorraine scarf. It's my second ~ I really like the pattern.)

...and I am just about to eat a large piece of delicious home~made white~chocolate cheesecake.
(Thank you Nikki!!!!)

I hope, dear readers, that your weekends have been full of simple sweetness too.

Blessings.
x

Potpourri

2010-04-25T21:00:00.012+08:00

Those of you who follow this blog will know that my home was completely flooded in a storm last month. I've been fixing up flood damage ever since and it's a big job. All of the flooring has to be replaced, so yesterday my dad and I scraped old underlay off the floor in one bedroom and tomorrow we're going to tackle the other bedroom. The underlay is dusty, a little mouldy, makes me wheeze ever so slightly and I can't wait to see it go.
But today I am taking a break!
I thought I'd treat myself to some blogging. I've got some crochet to show you (surprise!), some musings and some long forgotten pen illustrations to share as well.

Here are the drawings:

(The picture above is a stylization of a nocturnal gecko that's native to Perth. I currently have one of these dear little guys living in my garden shed and another one living under the bird bath.
They're very shy and very sweet.)

I rediscovered the drawings when, after the storm, I was salvaging belongings I'd stored in my spare room. They are part of a set of posters that I made waaaaayyyyy back in the 1980s when I was studying Education. These pictures are pretty modest little efforts but I'm fond of them, and I am very happy that I didn't lose them to the flood. Actually, I'm amazed that they survived without any water damage. They were packed in a big box that got wet but, miraculously, the box's cardboard absorbed all of the moisture.

I think that one of the reasons these old pictures are precious to me is because I do so little drawing these days. I'm always making resolutions to get back into drawing...but never getting around to it. Next year, though, I'm going to apply to work part time and, if I get an extra day to myself and all of my creative dreams, I hope I'll be able to summon up the energy and focus and commitment that I need to draw. In the meantime, I love the inspiration I can gain from people like Paul Heaston and Kelli Nina Perkins, who's been interviewed at Janeville (thanks to Judy for this link). Do you know of any other inspiring artists?

Crochet, on the other hand, is a very well developed habit.
Since my last post, I've finished felting my Marvellous Mini Tote:

I've also started crocheting squares for the Save The Children Fund's Knit One Save One campaign:

(The pattern's called the 6-7-8 Square and I'm sure it will look much prettier after it's been blocked. )

I've crocheted a necklace too, which I really like:

I used a slightly modified version of this tutorial. I worked with tigertail instead of craft wire ~ tigertail is much easier to crochet with than craft wire because it's more flexible. Unlike craft wire though, tigertail doesn't hold it's shape so I had to finish off the necklace with cord tips rather than the wire wrapping that's suggested in the tutorial. You can see the cord tips (they're little clamps) in the photo below:

This worked up really fast ~ it only took a few hours to create and I'm sure I'll be quicker next time.

I don't feel that I can finish this post without marking that today is Anzac Day, the national day of rememberance for Australians and New Zealanders when we honour those who died and served in military campaigns. Anzac Day is always a day of reflection. This year I've thought of some of the places I saw in Vietnam, which made the horror of war very real, and I've thought of some of the people I met in Vietnam who touched me with their capacity for forgiveness. Anzac Day has personal signifance for me too: my grandfather and great grandfather lost their lives in World War 2. They were both very brave men and their loss, of course, has had a huge impact on my family.
Lest we forget.

Blessings.
x

Wet

2010-04-12T10:30:00.007+08:00

So much has happened since I last wrote here:
there's been some creativity
(which I'll get to eventually if you can bear with me)
but last month my home was flooded in a freak, incredibly intense, autumn storm. It hit at about 5:00 pm, meaning I had to drive into it on the way back from work...under ink black clouds and forked lightning, through rain so heavy I often couldn't see out of the windscreen and flash flooding on the roads...and arrived home (safely, to my amazement) to discover that instead of a parking bay I now had a small lake, and that the water had poured off the street, down the driveway, gushed into my back garden and streamed under the laundry door covering everything inside with at least a centimetre of muddy water. After a few moments of open~mouthed disbelief and some frantic phone calls I started the very, very big job of cleaning it all up.

Luckily for me my neighbours and my family were, and have continued to be, terrific. On the night of the storm, my sister and brother~in~law drove for an hour and a half, through chaotic traffic, to come and help. My dad, too, spent much of the next week at my place doing the most horrible jobs while I was at work. Thanks to everyone's assistance, and despite a few near misses, I haven't lost anything irreplaceable. My family have mopped, moved heavy furniture, cleaned out muddy electrical points, repaired brick paving that collapsed (with me on top of it), ripped out all of my sodden, smelly carpet and patiently listened to a few slightly hysterical stinking~carpet~induced rants from me. Theoretically, my insurance company should have helped me with most of this but they were so overwhelmed by claims I couldn't get anybody to come out...so I took photos for them instead:

Mopping Up, Midnight

My Back Garden, Morning After

There's lots more to do: my no longer beautiful bamboo floor is going to have to be replaced, my bedroom's too dusty and mouldy to safely sleep in, the back yard's still full of debris...but I'm getting there.
Molly's quite happy to keep the bed warm for me, for however long it's going to take:

(By the way, the windows are always wide open when she's in there.)

I've tucked cheerful little pots of flowers in amongst the mess out the back, which makes such a difference:

I'm planning on getting bamboo laid in the bedrooms too ~ hooray!!!!!

and,
of course,
I've been crafting.
Nothing too taxing,
sorting out the storm damage's challenging enough,
but I've taken some more jewellery~making classes:

Copper Pendant and Bangle

I've started knitting another Fascinate wrap:

(I love the Noro yarn's subtle colours ~ they remind me of looking out over the sea and the sky on an early, wintery morning.)

and I've crocheted a little project bag which I'm just about to felt:

The pattern's called the Marvelous Mini Tote Bag
and the flower's another five petalled rose made with directions from Crochet Bouquet. I've crocheted with stash yarn, in much duller colours than I usually use, but I really like it regardless.

Anyway,
I'd best get back to it as there are phone calls to make and quotes to organise.
I hope, dear readers, that you're all well and happy
....and that Nature's being a little kinder to you than she's recently been to me.
x

Peace

2010-03-16T15:49:00.002+08:00

Simple offerings from me this week.

When my life is complex,
as it is right now,
I cherish the peacefulness and quietness of my garden:

mementos that remind me of joyful times:

(This necklace of freshwater pearls and turquoise beads was made especially for me by a lovely and incredibly hard working jeweller in Hoi An, Vietnam)

...and I love the way that working with my hands gives me space for simplicity and solitude after a day full of noise and demands:

(The pattern's called Dot's Little Ditty Bag. I made it out of cotton and adorned it with a five petalled rose from Crochet Bouquet.)

What's bringing peace into your world?

Bejewelled

2010-02-28T22:00:00.002+11:00

It will come as no surprise, I am sure, for me to tell you that I adore things that have been handmade. Time, effort, creativity and love go into individually crafted work. I get so much pleasure from surrounding myself with handmade homewares and I really enjoy wearing unique pieces of clothing and jewellery...so I've been doing a little shopping over at Etsy and I thought I'd show you what I've bought, along with some of the things I've been making.

I purchased some lovely earrings from Renee at cocoapod botanical jewellery :

They are bright yet delicate. I'm so happy with them!

I had a ring custom made by Teri Lee Jewelry too:

I was thrilled when it arrived (and relieved that it fitted.)
I love the symbolism of the lotus:
the idea that, just as the lotus plant can produce exquisite flowers when growing in the dirtiest water, I can transform the most negative of thoughts and feelings into wisdom and beauty.
The ring's a gentle reminder for me to be positive.

And, as for the things that I've been making things myself,
I've been wearing a bezel set ring that I constructed last year at Fremantle Arts Centre:

I used sterling silver and a beach pebble from Tweed Heads that my wonderful tutor, Claire Townsend, supplied. (One of the little boys I work with thinks that the stone might be magic ~ inspired by the Deltora Quest books he's been reading~ which tickles my imagination too.)

I also made a set of wine glass charms for my dad's birthday
so that we don't get our wine glasses mixed up at big family dinners anymore.
Here are some of them:

If you'd like to make some there's a good tutorial here.

I've been working on my sunburst granny blanket too:

and I've started to make a cardigan from a pattern in September 2009's edition of Yarn Magazine:

I don't know if I like the way it's working up, the pattern uses a really soft, squishy bamboo and I'm crocheting with cotton, but I'm going to perservere with it for a little while longer...and, if it doesn't work out, I'm going to use the yarn for another Chevron Lace Cardigan.

I'd love to know what you're making!

Blessings.
x

Making the Most of It.

2010-02-07T21:59:00.005+11:00

I'm working full time again.
After six months of leave
filled with art lessons,
time with family and friends,
resting,
cooking,
travelling
and general fabulousness
I'm back to dead lines, routines and responsibility.
Truthfully, I could happily take another six months off right now
...but really it's not so bad. I'm refreshed and it's lovely to be working with small children again. I've missed the sweetness of little kids!
I have some lovely memories too.
Looking at this drawing has brought back some of the feelings of peace and well being I experienced when I was out in the bush:

I drew this from a photograph I took when I went walking in my beautiful childhood home, the Darling Ranges. It reminds me of all the drawing classes I took too and how I love being in a studio. (Studios always make me feel close to my darling grandad, who was an artist.) I'm planning on hanging it outside my bedroom so that I can see it from my front door and from my bed.

I love looking at the photographs I took in Vietnam as well.

These were taken at a magical place called Halong Bay,
where I stayed overnight on the water in a luxurious little boat,
drank good French wine and kayaked through the rocky outcrops at dusk.
Heavenly recollections!

I'm also enjoying being relatively free of clutter. I doggedly sorted out all my resources at work and at home when I was on leave. My spare room has gone from this:

to this:

Just looking at those neat stacks of labelled boxes makes me feel happy
and when I've put up some more bookshelves up there will be even less in there.

I've consoled myself, too, by buying myself some treats from Etsy.
I haven't photographed them all yet but I can show you this gorgeous pillowslip which I purchased from Beata at rosehip, after I read about her work on Lindamade:

It arrived, all prettily packaged, from Canada:

and,
I think,
fits into my bedroom beautifully:

Beata, by the way, has a free pattern for some truly beautiful crochet flower pillows on her blog.

And,
of course,
when all my work is done for the day, I've been crocheting.
I've started to make a blanket using Priscilla Hewitt's Sunburst Granny Square.

I'm planning on edging it in an oatmeal colour or white, like Fantasy Landscape's. It's going to be a great portable project and a good way to use up left over balls of wool.

I have to get back to paperwork now and then iron clothes for work.
Ho hum
...but I'm so glad I've managed to squeeze a bit of blogging in!

I'd love to know what's bringing joy into your world, too.

Blessings.
x

A Guid New Year

2010-01-11T01:00:00.013+11:00

I'd like to wish you all a belated happy new year
or,
as some of my family on the Scottish side still say,
a guid new year tae yin an' aw!
Even though this is very belated, I'd also like to express my gratitude to everyone who has visited inkberryblue in 2009. My connection with you all genuinely inspires me. Thank you.

You may have noticed that I haven't been here much of late. It's not that I haven't wanted to be...but I've been spending most of my time valiantly clearing out my (incredibly) cluttered craft room in the hope that I'll get it organised before I go back to work in a fortnight's time.
I think I'm going to make it.

I have been knitting!!!
Inspired by a fellow Raveler Angeluna's beautiful work I've been making a Fascinate wrap using Noro silk sock yarn. I'm loving it! (By the way, you'll only be able to view Angeluna's projects if you're a member of Ravelry. I think that Ravelry is the best resource for knitting and crochet on the net and if you haven't already joined you should!)

I love the way the colours in the Noro unfold as I work
...and it's an easy pattern for a beginner knitter like me.

And now,
as promised in my last post,
here are more photographs from beautiful Vietnam:

Embroidered Screen, Dalat, Vietnam.
These flowers were stitched onto sheer material ~ the embroidery worked, painstakingly and with great skill, so that there is no wrong side to the fabric.

Man Sheltering from the Rain, Hoi An, Vietnam.

Young Woman and Little Boy, Hoi An, Vietnam.

Marble Buddha, Hoi An, Vietnam.

Mauve Waterlily, Hoi An, Vietnam.

Silk Lanterns, Lantern Street, Hoi An.

Hoi An is a magical place. The people are incredibly friendly and welcoming, the city is old and very beautiful (it's a World Heritage site) and there are many businesses which custom make clothes, shoes and jewellery ~ I had some beautiful dresses made out of Thai silk. I would looooove to go back!

Carnivorous Plant, Cuc Phuong National Park, Vietnam.
I found the Cuc Phuong jungle to be enchanting. Our night trek was especially wonderful ~ bushy tailed gliding squirrels peered down at us from impossibly tall trees, fairylight~like fireflies followed us into deep darkness...

Forest Giant, Cuc Phong National Park, Vietnam.

Cuc Phong is also home to the Endangered Primate Rescue Center which is doing much needed conservation work with lorises, macaques, langurs and gibbons.

Jungle Vines, Cu Chi, Vietnam.

Pink Waterlilies, Hoa Lu, Vietnam.

Tomb of Tu Duc, Hue, Vietnam.

White Waterlily (and wee moth), Hue, Vietnam.

Vietnamese Coffee, Hue, Vietnam.
Vietnamese coffee is drip filtered and mixed with condensed milk ~ the sweetness of the milk counters the coffee's bitterness. Actually, I don't usually drink coffee but this was delicious! I treated myself to this cup, from a roadside stall, after an exhilarating, hair~raising motorbike ride through wet countryside.

DIY spring rolls in Hue, Vietnam.
We rolled garden fresh zucchini and lettuce, piquantly dressed carrot and cabbage, fragrant baked fish, satayed pork and beef, and savoury omelette into rice paper, dunked it in a variety of mouth watering sauces and washed it all down with Saigon beer.
Absolute.
Heaven.

Vietnamese food really is sensational. In between decluttering, I've managed to make a few dishes that I learnt in the cooking classes I went to and I'd love to share them here
but,
as this post seems to be taking on epic proportions,
I'll leave that for another time!
Until then, here are links to chef Luke Nguyen's television series and gastronomy blog, which both convey the fabulousness of the cuisine.

Blessings to you.
x

Xin Chao!

2009-12-22T15:51:00.012+11:00

...which means hello in Vietnamese!
(You pronounce it sin jow.)
I came back from South East Asia three weeks ago
(it's taken me a little while to settle back in)
and I'm happy to report that I enjoyed Malaysia,
and would really like to spend more time there,
and that I looooooved Vietnam!!!
Vietnam has beautiful, welcoming people,
a picturesque countryside,
divine food and a fascinating history.
Here are some of my many, many, many photographs:
(...and I'll load more onto Flickr as I edit them.)

Batik, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Mosaic detail, Islamic Arts Museum, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

National Monument, Lake Gardens, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Exquisite needlework, Dalat, Vietnam
There was lovely embroidery for sale throughout the country. I saw a lot of women crocheting in their market stalls too.

Figurine of Quan Yin, Nguyen Nga Centre for Children with Special Needs, Quy Nhon City, Vietnam
The Nguyen Nga Center is also a sheltered workshop for adults. I met some of the young men and women who live there and they were absolutely charming! They produced really beautiful weaving and jewellery too.

Small boy from the Koho Minority, Chicken Village, Central Highlands, Vietnam
This dear, playful little fellow followed us all through the village, alternately showing us karate moves and growling like a tiger.

Bride and groom, Dalat, Vietnam
They were so happy!

Dog, on the road to Quy Nhon, Vietnam
Did someone say lunch?

Chinese temple, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
(This shot was taken by my fabulous guide Ling)

Mosquito nets and early morning light, Mekong Delta, Vietnam

Early morning, Mekong Delta
I loved the Delta and its soft light, quietness and tranquility...

Mountain waterfall, outside of Dalat, Vietnam

Sunset, Quy Nhon City, Vietnam

Lamp light, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Lunch, Saigon Cooking Class, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
This was first course ~ Mustard Leaf Rolls with Crunchy Vegetables and Shrimps.
Mmmmmmmmmm

I know that I've been really fortunate to have had this experience.
I am really glad that I chose to travel, for part of the way at least, with Intrepid Travel and I feel so lucky to have met the people who took the tour with me. Caroline, Sonia, Anne, Donald, Sue, Sharon, Hong, Loy...thank you!!!!!!!

Of course,
I took some crafty work with me.
I finished off my Sweet Lorraine scarf just before I joined the Intrepid tour:

Such a good pattern ~ Sweet Lorraine was easy to memorise, quick to make and had a border that worked up as I crocheted. It kept me lovely and warm too.

In case you're wondering, I've started to watermark my photos to try and stop people from using my pictures (and profiting from them) without my permission. Sadly, I've come across a few sites who've helped themselves to my images and haven't removed them even though I've written to them and asked them to. If anyone would like a tutorial on how to put watermarks into your shots (I have a PC and use Photoshop Elements) just let me know.

And now I am off to catch up on some long overdue blog reading and commenting.

For those of you who celebrate Christmas, I hope yours is a merry one!
Blessings.
x

Adventuring

2009-10-23T22:09:00.004+11:00

I'm dashing off this post because I am getting ready to leave for a holiday to Malaysia and Vietnam...which makes me very excited and a little scared all at the same time!
I am busy, busy, busy getting organised
but I didn't want to go without saying goodbye to all my dear blog buddies and readers
or without sharing a little something of what I've been doing since I posted last.

I've been crocheting a Sweet Lorraine scarf to keep me warm when I get up to the north of Vietnam:

It's working up really, really quickly.
The pattern calls for Foundation Single Crochet at the start, which you can see at the top of the following photograph:

I've never used the Foundation Single Crochet stitch before and it's a little tricky but it creates a very stable foundation so I'm glad I've worked it out. (I found this Ravelry thread really helpful, if you'd like to have a go too.)

I have taken some not~very~good photographs of the glass beads I made at a workshop at Fremantle Arts Centre.
Here are my favourites:

They were surprisingly simple to make. I'd love to do another workshop.

I've been gardening,
watched over by a gentle mother dove who's made a nest just by my back door:

...and I've finally got around to photoshopping the last of my wildflower shots:

Hibbertia and Leschenaultia, Chittering

Blue Tinsel Lily, Chittering

Veined Yellow Pea, Chittering

Silky Yellow Pea, Chittering

I wonder what my next post will contain?
Adventure awaits!

Blessings.
x

Reasons to be Cheerful

2009-09-28T20:36:00.004+08:00

I'm still loving being on leave.
Simply being able to get enough sleep is fabulous!
So is having time to cook, time to go to art classes, becoming relaxed enough to really enjoy being with family and friends, having small adventures ~ so many joys.
I'm just back from a holiday,
going out into the Western Australian wheatbelt to see a spectacular show of wildflowers,
and what a lovely time I've had...
but, just before I show you any travel photos, I'd like to share some creativeness.

Here's my almost finished Monroe Lacy Stole:

(I've sewn on one panel of the edging lace and I have only one row of the second edging panel to crochet.)

and here are some Burnt Butter Biscuits which I made from this recipe on Little Red Hen's cooking blog:

(yum)

and, lastly, here's a gorgeous little coin purse that I received from the ever generous 2paw:

Thank you Cindy!

So now on to my little vacation.
I went to find wildflowers with a dear neighbour and fellow flower enthusiast. We stayed at New Norcia, a monastic town (and a little oasis of Spanish culture) that's found in the middle of the wheatbelt. My friend and I also travelled out to a farming community called Dalwallinu. We were rained on a lot (it's been a wonderfully wet Spring) and got very, very muddy but we found wildflowers everywhere ~ blooming along the sides of the road and flowering in carpets out in the bush. Bliss!

Egg and Bacon, blooming just behind New Norcia Hotel.

New Norcia Hotel, where we lunched. Their pizza was delicious!

The view from our room at the Monastery Guesthouse.
Such a tranquil place to stay.
I struck up a conversation, over dinner, with two fellow guests who were translating papers from French and Spanish in the Monastery's archive. They were very European, very devout and fascinating to talk to. I am so grateful that I have the time and the opportunity to meet people who are so different to me and to the people I normally encounter (much as I love the familiar.)

Climbing Fringed Lily, New Norcia

Purple Fan Flower, New Norcia

Milkmaids, New Norcia

White Banjine, Dalwallinu

Acacia, Dalwallinu

Unfurling Everlasting, Dalwallinu

Molly's glad I'm back, although she didn't have to go to the cattery this time ~ Mum and Dad kindly offered to cat sit. She looked very relaxed on my return:

Incidentally,
she's given my Monroe Lacy Stole the seal of kitty approval:

I have so much more to share!
I'm looking forward to showing pictures of the glass beads I've made, the pastel drawings I've worked on, further progress on my stole and yet more pictures of wildflowers...

Have a wonderful week.
x

Wildflowers, Pastels and Lace

2009-09-07T21:57:00.010+08:00

I'm sorry it's been such a long time since I've posted here.
I didn't intend to take a big break from blogging but my laptop was hit by a really nasty virus. I had to wipe my computer's hard drive and reinstall all my programs ~ which was very time consuming.
But now I'm back with lots (and I do mean lots) to show.

I have continued to doggedly crochet my Monroe Lacy Stole.
Despite all my mistakes,
I have almost finished the body.
Hooray!

Now I'm working on a beaded edging:

I've done a little travelling since I posted here last, spending a weekend in an historic town called York with my oldest friend. We were so busy catching up and having fun I mostly forgot to take pictures...but I did manage to photograph the pressed tin ceiling in the town hall:

(If you care to look, there are some fabulous photographs of York here.)

I've been attending a pastels course too, which I'm loving. I didn't realise how much I'd missed being in a studio...and I'm learning a lot technically and meeting some gorgeous people.
Here are some of my works in progress:

Still life with Lemons

Still Life with Pears

Nasturtiums at the Front Door

...and I've been out in the bush again.
It's wildflower season here in Western Australia so there are some exquisitely delicate little flowers blooming in the country. (It was only a couple of years ago, when I made an internet friend who happened to be a horticulturalist, that I realised I lived in a botanical wonder.)

These tiny beauties grace my sister's home and the bush block that's close to my parents' house:

Milk Maids

Flame Peas

Hibbertia

Grevillea

Hovea

Me!

I do adore wildflower season. I used to love playing in the bush at this time of the year when I was a little girl. I was a great fan of an Australian author called May Gibbs, and I firmly believed that bush babies and fairies lived amongst the flowers...and, you know, I'm still not totally convinced otherwise.

I'm going on a tour of the wheatbelt soon, in search of more flora. This time, I'm hoping to take lots of pictures so that I can draw from them, as well as post some here. Before I go, though, I'm planning on catching up on my blog reading ~ I've missed the good folk of Blogland!

Have a wonderful week.
x

Nuno Felting, Bushwalking and Frogging (sigh)

2009-08-11T22:00:00.003+08:00

I've been to a nuno felting course at Fremantle Arts Centre. (Nuno's a technique which involves felting fibre into fabric with water, soap and agitation.) It was so much fun!
My tutor, Louise Snook, was lovely ~
enthusiastic, incredibly knowledgeable and generous with her skills,
the materials I got to use were glorious ~ richly coloured wool tops and hand~dyed silk tissue (from Treetops Colours),
I loved that there was an element of surprise to the process,
the method was very fast (I made a silk poncho in two hours flat),
and it can easily be done at home in the kitchen.
There's going to be more!!

Here's one of my samples:

The sample is made out of wool tops, scraps from an old nylon scarf and ribbon yarn. It didn't adhere together as well as it might (I should have put another fine layer of wool over the ribbon) but I like the colours and I love the possibilities!

And here's the silk poncho:
(It's the size of a scarf and, when I get the chance, I'll take some photos of what it looks like on.)

It's made out of silk georgette and fine merino tops.
I was really happy with how this turned out,
especially the colours:

its delicacy:

and the linear textures created by the felting process:

It was fun to photograph too!

And now on to my Monroe Lacy Stole.
Not such a happy story.
Here it is...

...just before I discovered that I'd made mistakes on some of the shells at the sides and had to frog it back to a fifth of its size...and I was going to wear it out to lunch this Saturday. Ho hum.

But I'm on holidays
so I haven't been staying down for long,
especially when I've been able to do things like go out bushwalking
through the beautiful Darling Ranges
with an old school friend (who didn't mind how many photos I took, bless her)
in sparkling Winter sunshine:

Nyaania Creek, Darlington

The Bee Tree. (Named so because it has a hive of native bees living in one of its branches.)

The Bee Tree close up.

Bark detail.

As well as glorious trees, my friend and I came across tiny blue wrens and a bubbling spring and jonquils...and we had a yummy vegetarian lunch at a little cafe in Glen Forest.
Days like that one make me feel glad to be alive.

And,
to close,
I wanted to share a few life affirming websites that I've found ~
the wishstudio
and, especially,
kind over matter and gratefulness.org

Wishing you all moments of glad~to~be~aliveness.
Have a wonderful week.
x

Warm

2009-07-29T14:55:00.005+08:00

Well,
after being given some gorgeous presents
which included these beautiful flowers

and lots of heartfelt goodbyes,
I've left work for six months of Long Service Leave.
(Long Service Leave, for those of you who don't know, is additional leave that is given in Australia and New Zealand if someone stays with an employer for a certain length of time. It's to do with our colonial past; it used to be a way of enticing public servants to come out to the furthest reaches of the Empire...and it's a fabulous institution!)

This is a real change of pace for me
and it's started beautifully ~ I spent my first weekend at a retreat in a lovely, secluded property on the outskirts of Perth. It was wonderful to reconnect with Nature out in the bush and in the gardens:

Proteaceae

Lichen on granite

Xanthorrea

Winter narcissus

I also felt blessed to spend time with some truly wonderful people. I caught up with old friends and made some new ones. We meditated and walked and danced and shared delicious, lovingly prepared meals. We also created mandalas. I drew one in white pencil, using the beautiful camellias and sweet alice that were growing in the gardens as inspiration:

Camellias

Mandala in progress

Molly, poor love, had to go to the cattery.

As you might be able to tell,
she's terribly timid and it was horribly cold
so she was very, very glad to get home.

Since then we've been doing a lot of snuggling on the couch,
Molly and I,
and
in~between~times
I've been making a Monroe Lacy Stole:

I can't wait to get to the edging ~ I'm going to put in some small glass beads.

I've also been keeping warm with this beautiful, hand dyed, feather and fan scarf, which I couldn't help but buy from Spacefrog's etsy store:

What's bringing warmth into your world?

Prisons, Pictures and Great Grans...

2009-07-09T10:45:00.015+08:00

....with some crochet, of course!

I thought I'd take another break from work
and all the filing, packing and shredding I have to do
to say hi.
Hello!!!!

Since I last posted, there's been a bit of crafty action here at Chez Inkberry.
I've made yet another simple dischloth:

I do like making these cloths.
I can crochet one up in an afternoon, which is satisfying,
and I use them for dry brush massages which, I've been told, are good for my immune system. (In my version, the washcloth takes the place of a brush.)

I've also been working on something for the Victorian Bushfire Appeal.
Meet Bluey:

I'm using Crochetroo's pattern, a 3mm hook and Shepherd Colour 4 Me wool.
He's lots of fun to make.
He'll probably be very hard to give away too.

...and I also thought I'd share some photographs taken at Fremantle Prison museum, which I visited recently.

Fremantle Prison used to be a maximum security gaol and, before that, housed convicts sent out from Britain. Not surprisingly, it's a pretty grim place but its history is fascinating and, unexpectedly, it has some amazing artwork. There are pictures that were painted by the last men to be imprisoned there:

and there are delicate drawings,
rendered secretly onto the walls of a cramped, dark cell
by a nineteenth century forger called James Welsh:

Beautiful, aren't they?
(Thanks to J for letting me use her fantastic prison photos.)

My paternal great grandmother's family came out to Western Australia around about the time James Welsh was drawing on the prison walls
...but I can't claim any convict heritage ~ they were all settlers.
My great gran loved to knit and crochet however and,
although I never met her,
I feel a sense of connection with her because of that shared love of yarn. I remember, when I was little, admiring a hexagon blanket that she had made, which might be why I'm so fond of the pattern now.

Here's a photo of her, knitting by the fire, with my great grandfather:

and here's a picture of my (very sombre) grandmother and great aunty, wearing her lacy socks:

(My nanna's on the right.)
I would imagine my great grandmother would have loved the internet, especially Ravelry!
Do you have any family stories to tell?

Have a wonderful week everyone.

Surfacing

2009-06-22T20:05:00.004+08:00

I'm posting this very quickly before plunging back into paperwork and packing. There's only two weeks to go before I'm on six months long service leave (hurrah!) and, as we're only half way through the academic year here in the Land of Oz, I'm preparing a handover for my replacement
so I am busy busy busy with work
but taking lots of little crafty breaks in between.

So the hexagon pillow cover has grown:

(By the way, you can find a link to a tutorial on how to crochet the hexagons here. ... and Andrea, who asked if I thought this would be good for people who aren't very experienced with crochet, my answer is yes! The second row and the joining row are a bit fiddly but the tutorial's so explicit this shouldn't be a big problem. )

I've started to make a new scarf:

which is based on the Romantic Wrap pattern (Ravelry link) from Crochet Today! magazine.

I have managed to get out into my garden and to enjoy,
if only for a little while,
the Winter sunshine and my beautiful, bright red, ivy geraniums:

and I've baked two batches of a quick yet delicious slice called Cammy's Father's Favourites.

I have also started to get ready for my wonderfully long holiday.
I'm planning lunch and dinner dates, and weekends away, with long neglected friends,
I've booked an overseas trip
and I've enrolled in (big breath)
a pastel drawing course,
a nuno felting workshop,
a glass bead making workshop
and a silversmithing workshop.

I'm so excited!

Have a wonderful week everybody.

Hexagonal Happiness

2009-06-01T20:00:00.001+08:00

I've been crocheting hexagons
and it's fun!
Like lots of people in Blogland, I've long admired moonstitches' beautiful hexagon throw.
I also really like Linda Permann's crochet hexagon pillow
and,
now that I've discovered knittingnonni's half hexagons pattern
and Lucy from Attic24's excellent tutorial,
I'm making a hexagon cushion of my own:

I can understand why so many people are making these.
I love the flowery shapes and I'm really enjoying being able to play with different colour combinations.

The pottery shard,
by the way,
is from a hand painted pot,
made by a woman called Jo
and, sadly,
broken in one of last year's Winter storms.

Here's another little painted pot that I bought from her:

My work load's becoming crazy again
(I'm seriously thinking of working part time to get a better work~life balance)
but,
along with a little crochet,
I've managed to bead (yet another) memory wire bracelet:

(I love burnt orange!)
and taken photos of the pointsettias that are blooming outside my kitchen window:

and beside the front gate.:

(I love scarlet too!)

Hopefully, I'll be able to get enough time away from report writing to be back here soon.
Have a wonderful week everybody.
x

Pinkberryblue

2009-05-17T20:33:00.019+08:00

This is another post brought to you by the colour pink!

I have almost finished my coral~coloured Chevron Lace Cardigan.
I've sewn in all the ends but I haven't blocked it yet.
I haven't come up with a way of closing it (that I like) either.
Here it is left open:

and here it is closed with an organza ribbon:

I'm thinking about making a floral pin to finish it,
something like the one from Interweave's Spiderweb Cardigan.
I'd love to hear your opinion.

...and now for some more rosiness,
in the form of close~ups of jewellery that you can see me wearing with the cardie.
One of the button necklaces:

(the other button necklace can be found here)
and my sequin and seed bead cuff:

I bought the necklace from a gorgeous, eco~friendly stall called Starfish Designs. You can, sometimes, find them at Kalamunda Markets. The necklace is made entirely from recycled buttons. The cuff is a Christmas present from my dear friend Felicity.

Tomorrow is forecast to be one of the last fine and sunny days of the season
...so I'm planning on wearing my cardigan out!
Today was a beautiful, light~filled day,
perfect weather for being in my garden.
Here, in a final burst of pinkness,
is a picture of some of the apple blossom hibiscus that I found blooming there:

Have a wonderful, joy~filled week everybody.

Buttons, bags, biscuits...back to business!

2009-05-03T15:55:00.051+08:00

I'm very happy to report that my new bamboo floor has been installed.
It's taken a bit of doing.
There's been a lot of dust swirling around,
much packing and unpacking,
a weekend spent wading about on a gritty concrete pad
but it's all over
and I love it!
It's shiny,
beautifully patterned
and it even smells nice (in a woody sort of a way.)

(The first photo best captures the real colour.)

Molly,
who's terribly timid and who's spent a lot of time hiding under the bed,
is very glad it's all over too:

Renovating has been unexpectedly time consuming but,
since the floor's been finished,
I've had more time and energy to devote to being creative
and my chevron lace cardi now boasts a sleeve:

Incidentally, here's a close up of the button necklace I'm wearing with the cardi:

I made it, stringing the buttons with fine wire, a few years ago.

I've been keeping the cardi in this gorgeous bag that I bought from the Station Street Markets out at Subiaco:

I love the applique flower, the polka dot lining and, especially, the vintage corduroy fabric ~ my mum made me a butterfly sleeved smock out of material much like it in the seventies.
When I've finished the cardigan I'm looking forward to wearing it with the bag.

I've even been baking. I made these orange and poppyseed shortbread fingers for friends who came over for morning tea:

They're moist and tasty
and my visitors left with the recipe, which is always a good thing.

Have a wonderful week everybody.
...and thanks for dropping by.
I haven't been posting a lot of late, I know, and I really appreciate that people still take the time to come and visit.
Blessings.
x

Small is Beautiful

2009-04-17T00:09:00.008+08:00

I'm sitting typing this in the middle of an empty living area. Everything but the telly, the laptop and the fridge has been put into storage so that new bamboo boards can be put down. My horrible old flooring is going to be pulled up tomorrow, and I can't wait!
...although someone around here is going to miss the carpet:

(It's OK ~ I've got a new rug at the ready so that she can roll around on that instead.)

Much of the past week has been spent packing boxes and moving furniture, but I have spent a little time out in my neglected garden which, despite having grown even wilder and more tangled, is still pretty.

The potato flowers are blooming,

the pomegranates have ripened

and I've unearthed a wire candle holder that I like, made at a Saturday workshop a few years ago, and I've hung it from my little gum tree so that I can see it from my bedroom window. The glass is very reflective and glows in the sunlight:

I haven't been doing a lot of crochet but, when the floorboards have been put in, I would like to start making some new scatter cushions. I've decided that I want to make something like the first pillow you can see here. I'm going to use motifs from a Japanese craft book I own called Crochet Motif Item. (Sadly, it's now out of print.) I particularly like Motif Number 30, which I first tried crocheting last year:

I want the cushion to be sturdy so I'm crocheting the motifs out of kitchen string and I am planning on felting the backing.

...and of course, in between all the packing and moving, I've still been gaining lots of inspiration from the internet. I've really enjoyed visiting lucy at attic24. Lucy creates colourful, joyful posts and has put together some excellent crochet tutorials. I've also been loving jek in the box for her exuberant, quirky photos...and when I've been feeling tired of renovating my cramped little unit I've been going over to Apartment Therapy and reminding myself that small really can be beautiful, as you can see here and here.

Have a fabulous week everybody.

Photography Tips...with a little crochet thrown in

2009-03-25T19:31:00.007+08:00

Sometimes, people leave lovely, complimentary comments about the photographs I take. Amybel did in my last post (thank you!) and said she'd looked in my photography tags to find out more about what I do. I checked my tags too, and realised that I haven't really written anything of substance about taking photos. So, in the hope that this information is useful, here's something about how I approach photography:

I researched my camera thoroughly before I chose it. Although it's a very modest camera, an old point~and~shoot Canon Powershot A85 which didn't cost much, it is capable of taking good photographs. I read lots of reviews on Steve's DigiCams and decided on the Canon because it handles interior light well, takes good close~ups and comes with an optional, detachable macro lens.
I bought the macro lens and use it constantly. It captures details and delicacy, adding so much to the range of images I can produce ~ I can't tell you how much I love it! I used the macro lens to take these shots of the little affirmation pebbles that I made for my mum and dad's 50th wedding anniversary:

I make the best use of natural light that I can. I take photographs in my back garden in the first few hours of sunlight in the day...and, if I want to take an interior shot, I know that my kitchen is sunniest around ten o'clock each morning and that my bedroom catches the sun in the early afternoon. The shots of the affirmation pebbles were taken in my kitchen but I like taking photographs outside, in the morning, most of all. Morning light throws lovely soft shadows, as you can see with this shot of a Paris daisy:

I avoid using the flash because it tends to flatten out objects and distort colour. Sometimes, if the light's low, I can achieve flash~free photos if I put my camera onto night mode. These pictures, shot in a shady part of my garden, have been taken this way:

(I made the little pinch pot and the base of the birdbath at Fremantle Arts Centre,
by the way. )

I usually upload photos as soon as I've taken them ~ I can't really tell how well focused a picture is until I've seen it on my computer screen...after I've viewed the shots I then decide if I need to take anymore.

Sometimes, virtually all I have to do is press the shutter button and the photograph works:

But most of the time I do lots of photoshopping, using Photoshop Elements...and, to illustrate the difference that photo~shopping makes, here are Before and After photographs of the swatch I crocheted for my chevron cardigan:

Before~

and After~

In the After photo I've played with the brightness and contrast in the image. I've also painted out shadows I didn't want. I've custom rotated the image too (I love getting right angles if I can) and I've cropped it. I think Photoshop is a really powerful tool. Incidentally, I often photograph small objects, like the swatch, on a white background (I use a shelf that was left over from my kitchen renovations) which seems to help my camera focus.

Before I bought the Photoshop Elements program I used to work on my photos with a free program, called Microsoft Photo Editor. I still use it sometimes because I like the effect of the watercolour function:

Basically,
I love the process!
There's something sublime about taking a picture that captures some sort of beauty.
So,
I wonder,
what do you do?

As for crochet,
I haven't been doing anything complicated or time consuming. I've been busy with renovations again (I'm replacing my grotty old carpet and lino with bamboo flooring which is very exciting!) so I've been working on the simplest crochet project I have ~ the border of my Easy Daisy blanket:

..but when I do have the time to focus on something more challenging, I'd love to have a go at making Doris Chan's Lacy Cardigan, especially now that it's been released as a free pattern.
Gorgeous, isn't it?

Have a wonderful week everybody.

Love Notes in Library Books

2009-03-08T19:08:00.005+08:00

I love the internet and the way it allows me to connect with and be inspired by creative people. I've just been reading a beautiful blog post on joy, written by a dear soul called Brandi. She has a wonderful, whimsical take on random kindness and senseless acts of beauty, and has had me secretly posting love notes in library books, telephone boxes and bus stops.

It's fun!

...and I've also been drawing inspiration from my friend Andrea at abccreativity. Amongst other things, she facilitates creativity workshops and gives great guided meditations.

Meanwhile, I'm still painting. I've had trouble with the the feature wall in my living room and have changed the colour three times. I started off with a french wash in a butterscotch colour but couldn't get nice, clean edges so I painted it over with a matt paint called Banana Crepe:

Frustratingly, that colour came out too bright and clashed with the lime~washed pink walls in my bedroom:

so I've just painted it again with the cafe~au~lait shade I used in the kitchen
...and I really, really like it!
Phew.

Of course, I've been crocheting and currently have a chevron lace cardigan on the hook:

Although the pattern's written for wool, I'm making it out of cotton and so far it's draping well. It's a great design ~ it involves top~down construction so I can try it on as I go and it's really quick to crochet.

I've been growing silverbeet too:

It's extremely easy to cultivate and it's lovely to have fresh greens on hand. I've been putting it in salads with fresh and sun~dried tomatoes, marinated fetta and avocado, as well as trying recipes from here and here. (Edited to add: silverbeet is called Swiss chard in the USA and Britain.)

I have been working really long hours as well. I'm glad I have enough energy to spend some time on living creatively outside of it.

Wishing you all a week that's touched by kindness and beauty.

Sadness

2009-02-12T18:02:00.045+08:00

Like many, I've watched the media reports of the Victorian bushfires with horror, disbelief and intense sadness. I grew up in bushfire country in Western Australia, my dad was a volunteer fire fighter and our house used to be the muster point for the local brigade so I know something of the savagery of a big fire, but I have never seen anything as catastrophic as this.
The loss of life has moved me to tears. I am so sorry.

If you would like to help, here are some links that I have found:

I've donated money, for wildlife care, through Shula's blog poppalina.

I'm going to have a go at making marsupial pouches for orphaned baby roos, wallabies and possums. I will modify this pattern.

The toy society are helping crafters send hand~made toys to children. When I get a chance, I'd like to do this too.

I've discovered links to the Red Cross and the Salvos at the handmade help victorian bushfire appeal, along with lots of other information, including ways of donating things that have been handmade with love. There are also connections to some deeply personal recounts that have been written by bloggers who are living in the midst of the fires and their aftermath.
I'm praying for them.

Fresh

2009-02-01T13:06:00.039+08:00

I'm sitting writing this surrounded by freshly painted walls and ceilings.
Hooray!!!!!!!!!
It took double the time I expected it to
(the last lick of paint went on the day before I went back to work),
the process felt hellish at the start ~
when it became apparent just how much bigger a job it was than I had first thought,
but
I am soooooo glad I've done it now that it's over.

So, for those of you who have asked,
here's a close up of the french washed wall
(which has more ochre in it than shows up in the photo):

and a shot of the other feature wall:

which, again, doesn't really capture its cafe~au~lait colour
but does show, in the reflection, my pristine white ceiling and cornices
of which I am ridiculously proud!
I'll try and post more photographs, that give a broader picture of what I've done, soon.

Life hasn't been completely dominated by renovations.
In between painting there's been some cooking.
I've been going through a Nigella Lawson phase and have made her One Pan Sage and Onion Chicken and Sausage casserole:

This, by the way, was at it's best on the third day after I'd cooked it, when the flavours had been given lots of time to develop.

I've also made Nigella's Pomegranate Meringue Mountain
which was so quick and delicious I was inspired to go out and buy my own potted pomegranate tree:

There's been a little bit of crocheting too.
I've added a few extra rows to the border of my Easy Daisy blanket:

I'm so happy I have time to craft again!

...and yesterday, with all the painting done, I was able to wander around the garden with my camera in hand:

Despite the steamy heat, it was bliss!

I hope that life
is treating you kindly too,
wherever you are in the world.

Have a wonderful week.

Here Kitty Kitty!

2009-01-15T12:47:00.013+08:00

I've finished my little amigurumi cat:

She took forever to sew up
(my sewing skills are rusty)
but I'm happy with how she's turned out.
You can't really tell from the photograph, but she has tabby stripes on her legs and tail.
I drew inspiration from Molly:

(I love Moll's marmalade coloured tum, but, sadly, I am not allowed to touch it under any circumstances whatsoever.)

As I mentioned in my last post, the crochet pattern can be found at Mutts.

I'm still on holiday, which is lovely.
I do so enjoy going slowly and quietly, taking pleasure out of simple things.

I've been baking for my family,
making yummy Oatmeal No-Bake Cookies:

(the recipe comes from Ravelry, so you'll need to be a member to follow the link)
and Apricot and Almond Crumble:

I only have a left over apricot to show as evidence as it was so delicious it was all eaten up before I got a chance to take a photograph ~ truly! Tangy, fresh apricots, a crumble topping with almonds and coconut, and dollops of cream was a winning combination. I will definitely make this again.

I've also been beading:

I'm often seen wearing red~orange necklaces ~ they go with my lipstick!

...and I've been gardening.
I found masses of these sweet flowers, growing wild, when I was out in Fremantle:

Aren't they lovely?
Their delicate appearance belies their hardiness ~ they were blooming, in the middle of scorching heat, in bone~dry sand.
I couldn't resist scooping one small plant out and taking it home:

and, so far, it's doing well.
I wonder what type of plant they are.

Shortly, I'll be wielding a paintbrush too, as I'm getting ready to paint my kitchen and living areas. I've chosen to paint everything white, with a few, pale butterscotch, French~washed feature walls thrown in.
Wish me luck!

Handmade Gifts and a Crocheted Creature

2009-01-05T08:32:00.043+08:00

In my last post I said that I'd received some lovely, hand~made presents for Christmas. I've finally taken some photographs of them all and here they are.

I'll start off with pictures of a little colourful vase:

and a sweet terracotta dove:

These were both made by the mother of one of the little boys I worked with last year. Aren't they exquisite?

I'm very fond of the dove ... the little boy and I share a love of living things and we used to talk about the birds that came to visit our gardens. I told him about the fledgling doves that used to wait for their mother on the fence outside my kitchen window:

He chose the pottery dove especially for me.
(The thought so many children, and parents, put into the gifts that they give me, handmade or not, is really touching.)

I also received a crystal wreath from a colleague I work closely with:

The Christmas before last, she gave me this beaded angel:

It's really tiny ~ only half the height of my little finger. I love the delicacy of both the angel and the wreath.

Last, in my array of hand~made gifted goodness, is a button cuff that my dear friend Robbo bought for me:

It sits really comfortably on my wrist and I've been wearing it a lot.
I wish I knew the stories behind all of those buttons!

...and finally,
here's a picture of some crochet I've been working on,
my very first amigurumi:

Can you tell it's the beginnings of a cat?!
The pattern, and an image of a complete kitty, can be found in Mutts, over at etsy.
It's fiddly but fun to make. It crochets up quickly too; hopefully I'll have photographs of a finished feline to show the next time I post.

Have a wonderful week!

Snowflakes in the Sun

2008-12-29T17:19:00.011+08:00

I hope everybody had a wonderful holiday.
I spent a lot of time motoring around the Western Australian countryside visiting family and eating scrumptious food. I received some truly beautiful hand crafted presents (which I'll save for another post) and gave some crochet snowflakes that I made myself:

The top snowflake is made out of 4 ply metallic thread and the following two are crocheted out of 4 ply cotton:

I sprinkled lots of glitter over them too:

Of course, in a hot, summery Australian Christmas, real snow is no where to be seen but we love our northern traditions and my snowflakes were a bit of a hit. I had lots of requests from family who wanted one of their own. Luckily, the pattern for the first snowflake is really quick and easy so I managed to crochet four after lunch on Boxing Day, in between drinking white wine, eating chocolate fondue and catching up with my cousins!
(See, easy.)
For those of you who might be interested for next Christmas, I bought the patterns, called the Miniature Snowflake Set, from Crochet Memories.

I also crocheted a snowflake dishcloth as part of a Ravelry swap:

This was also a quick, easy pattern.
The recipient, my partner mooska, said lots of lovely things about the package I sent her. Thank you!

As part of the swap, I received a gorgeous collection of goodies from the talented Joeyn. She sent me a festive, knitted Santa dishcloth, some fragrant, hand~made soap (which smells like it’s been scented with cloves…mmmmmmm…), a super~cute pudding tree ornament, some delicious home~made Christmas cake and stitch markers which she made herself (with her daughter’s assistance) out of beautiful glass beads.

Here’s a close~up of the pudding and the stitch~markers. Aren’t they pretty?

I love participating in swaps! I've received some delightful work in them, felt that my handiwork has been truly appreciated and I've made some great, creative friends.

Since Christmas, and its flurry of activity, I've given myself permission to go easy.

I've been reading, reading, reading... I'm currently enjoying Alain de Botton's excellent Status Anxiety, Pema Chodron's The Places That Scare You and Emily Rodda's Deltora Quest. Drusilla Modjeska's The Orchard, Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale and Sue Monk Kidd's The Secret Life Of Bees are waiting, stacked invitingly, on my bedside table.

I've been spending early mornings in my garden. The gardenias and honeysuckle are in blossom right now. I have little nosegays of them, along with daisies and the last of the nasturtiums, throughout my home. I adore their scent.

After months of neglect, I've picked up my Easy Daisy blanket again:

and I've been napping a lot with the cat:

who's loved the company.

I hope you all have a wonderful, restful New Year
or,
as my mother would say,
a guid new year to ane an' a'
an' mony may ye see!

Blessings.
x

Finished!

2008-12-09T08:01:00.006+08:00

If you've been a regular visitor to my blog
you'll have noticed that I haven't posted for a long time
and you'll also probably know that my workload is sometimes really heavy. Last year, around this time, I tried to be superwoman and do lots of things (like blogging and getting involved in swaps and, you know, having a life)
as well as attend to work commitments
...and I ended up with a whopping migraine followed by a heavy cold.
This year I made a decision to focus on work until all my marking was over and, I'm glad to tell you,
I'm feeling really well and I only have one more report to write until I'm finished!

Life hasn't revolved completely around paperwork...I couldn't resist doing a little bit of crafting and nearly managed to finish my Spring Ripple Scarf:

The pattern,
which was easily memorised,
and the lovely colours,
which reminded me of twilight,
made this the perfect, soothing piece to crochet whilst I was marking.

...and I was given the opportunity to sing with the Collegium Symphonic Chorus
in a People's Messiah
which I just couldn't pass up.
I've loved the Messiah ever since my dad first took me, when I was ten,
I've wanted to perform in it for years
and it was magical,
just as beautiful as I'd imagined it to be.
I had to fight hard not to cry in parts because the music was sooooooo exultant.

Last weekend was my first completely paperwork~free break for ages.
Just spending time in my garden felt luxurious.
It's becoming quite overgrown out there,
a tangle of honeysuckle, passionflower and couch grass,
but I found out that a shy little dart butterfly has taken up temporary residence:

that the snails are feeling very confident:

and that there are flowers blooming, unexpectedly, in forgotten corners:

This little blue~blossomed plant is originally from my nanna's garden. I don't know how it got into mine (Nanna passed away twenty years ago) but it's a sweet reminder of her.

The upside of being stuck away for weekends on end is that, when you finally resume your social life, ordinary events become really exciting. On Friday night I went to Bazaar at Fremantle Art Centre. Sitting in the Art Centre's grounds, drinking wine and people watching with my dear friend R was a joy. Getting to do some shopping amongst all the hand~made goodness was pretty darn thrilling too. I bought beads, which you can see in the bottom right hand corner of the following photo:

They're destined to become part of another chunky, red~orange necklace.
I also purchased these wonderful polymer clay, drop earrings from oddgirlout:

I adore them! (and if you click onto the link you can see what they look like on.)

On Saturday I went out to a friend's fabulous exhibition at Accent Gallery in Dalkeith (where my new earrings were much admired) and on Sunday I did nothing but nap, read and crochet:

I felt positively decadent.
(The pattern, by the way, is from the Big Book Of Dishcloths.)

So I'm back.
I hope you're enjoying the beginnings of the festive season too.
I'm looking forward to spending some time in Blogland, catching up.
I've missed you all!
Have a wonderful week.

Busy

2008-10-26T16:52:00.028+08:00

I've been busy, busy, busy...mostly with work, although I've managed to squeeze in a few creative things in the past fortnight.

I went away to visit family down in the South~West and took lots of photographs of the wildflowers that are blooming around my sister's property.
Here's one:

These delicate little flowers (which, I think, are a type of native orchid) also grow in the Darling Ranges, where I grew up. I used to believe that fairies lived in them when I was really little, inspired by my mother's copy of A Midsummer Night's Dream.
Can't you just imagine it?

(Incidentally, I came across Little Black Knitting Crow's photography blog: little clicking crow and really enjoyed looking at her photos of Tasmanian wildflowers and such. She has a wonderful eye. I'm also the proud owner of one of her lino prints. )

I've managed to bead a few memory wire bracelets.
One, just like this, for my mum's birthday:

and another pink one for me:

I've also been working on my Spring Ripple Scarf.

I'm using Noro Kureyon Sock Yarn Number 188 and I think that the colours are delicious!

...and now it's time for me to get back to marking.

Have a wonderful week.

Butterflies

2008-10-10T10:02:00.011+08:00

I've been looking after a caterpillar farm over the holidays (as you do) and, yesterday, a butterfly emerged;
a little, female cabbage white.
Here she is, fresh out of her pupa:

(you can tell she's a female by her slightly green colour
and the two spots on each of her top wings)

...and here she is taking her first flight:

Watching her wheeling exuberantly up into the air filled me with delight.

As you can probably tell, I love butterflies,
both the real life varieties and the arty~crafty kind.
These two reside on my fridge door:

The first one was created by one of the children I worked with last year and the second was bought from an art market. By the way, the second butterfly is much, much smaller in real life. They were both made with overhead projector plastic, permanent felt tip markers, thin magnets (the kind you find on the back of junk mail calendars) and a dusting of glitter. One of these days, I'm going to make some myself (and if I had a dollar for every time I've ever said that I would be a very rich woman indeed.)

I try to encourage butterflies into my garden by growing plants that they can breed on. I have milkweed in my back garden for wanderer butterflies and nasturtiums in my front flower beds for the cabbage whites.

Nasturtiums come in such a wonderful array of colours:

As well as admiring butterflies I've been crafting, of course.
I found a sweet crochet lacy scarf and tried to track down the pattern but came to a halt when I reached this blog because it's written in Chinese (I think). So, with the help of Dot Matthew's directions for the Fancy Fans Stole, I worked out the pattern myself.
This is what I've come up with so far:

I think that it's working up prettily but, with warm weather really and truly upon us here in Perth, I won't be wearing it anytime soon.
I'm having fun anyway.

I hope your week's blessed with fun too.
Butterfly kisses to you.

Spring Break

2008-10-02T22:00:00.002+08:00

I'm on holidays again, which is lovely. I've been doing a little spring cleaning, but not too much. (I read this article in The New York Times and I like the idea of saying yes to my mess.)
I have made a point of going very slowly
... sleeping, catching up with friends, reading on the couch...
and I've spent time in my garden; such a restorative thing to do.
It's spring time, so lots of the plants are flowering.
My coral gum is in bloom right now:

(It's also hosting a bunch of sawfly larvae, which are all clustered together, tapping their tails. I haven't seen any since I was a child ~ we used to call them spitfires ~ so I'm thrilled that they've come to stay in my backyard.)

I've also made a memory wire bracelet to go with the pink necklace I showed in my last post:

...and I've received a wonderful surprise package from Cindy2paw as part of a swap I've participated in over at Ravelry:

Cindy's spoiled me rotten. As you can see, she's sent me a gorgeous leafy green washcloth, the sweetest floral project bag that she's sewn herself, pretty lavender soap, Tasmanian fudge, a purple notebook, postcards from the Apple Isle and a lovely card with a photo of her adorable dogs. Everything was beautifully wrapped in bright green paper and purple, silk ribbon...there were lots of squeals of delight as I opened it all up!

...and don't you think the project bag goes beautifully with the Spring Ripple Scarf that I’m working on right now?:

Thanks so much, Cindy.

May your week be wonderful.

Today's post is brought to you by the colour...

2008-09-24T10:28:00.004+08:00

pink!

I have an array of rose~coloured items for show and tell,
including:

Pink cotton that's in the process of being crocheted into a wash cloth for a secret swap partner over at Ravelry:

A chunky pink necklace that I've just strung together:

A pretty silk top,
found while I was op~shopping,
that has pink roses embroidered into it:

Pink geraniums, blooming at my back door:

...and more pink (and blue and green) beads:

Continuing my theme,
I've also been feeling in the pink,
ever since attending a vocal workshop led by the fabulous Tony Backhouse. I haven't been to choir for months; I'd forgotten just how joyful it is to sing and to be surrounded by beautiful harmonies.

Best of all, I'm tickled pink.
I've just had six month's leave approved for the second half of next year.
How lucky am I?

What's colouring your world?

Enough

2008-09-14T13:49:00.054+08:00

I took a little time out from my job last week and did lots of crafting,
which was fun ~ and I've made quite a lot of progress on the things that I have been creating.

The wire cuff that I've been crocheting is nearly finished.
Here's what it looks like when it's worn:

and when seen close~up:

I like its boldness and its weight; it feels good on. (Now I just have to work out how to fasten it off!) Working with wire is very more~ish. I want to make a wire crochet necklace next, and I'm planning on following this YouTube tutorial.

I've also finished the Crocus Scarf:

It's very soft against the skin and, as you can see, matches one of the affirmation stones that I've recently received from the lovely McCabe at dancing mermaid.

Here are the rest of the pebbles that McCabe's sent me:

I think that they're all delightful!
Since I've had them I've been reflecting and meditating on the idea of being enough:
I often get caught up in busyness and perpetual hurry, especially at work,
and it's good to stop and remind myself that I really am enough.
I don't have to push myself all of the time
and I'm allowed to be creative and to play.
(Robyn Posin explores this notion beautifully.)
I'm wondering, does what I'm saying resonate with anyone else?

Wishing you all a week that's graced by creativity and playfulness.

Fathers' Day and Flowers

2008-09-06T22:30:00.026+08:00

Yesterday was Fathers' Day ~ here in Australia we celebrate it on the first Sunday of September.
I spent most of yesterday morning playing around with images to put on my dad's card.
I considered these three:

and I ended up choosing the last photo of the yellow daisy on the blue tile.

Craftwise, it's been a quiet week.
I've been op~shopping (thrifting for my American friends) and found these floral sheets:

I have a vague notion that I'd like to use these in a quilt. I've never quilted anything big before but these gorgeous examples over at Bella Dia, Old Red Barn Co. and Alicia Paulson's make me want to try.

I also thought that I'd share something that I made, as a practice piece, a while ago:

It's a piece of calico that I tie dyed and then drew on with Pentel Fabric Pastels. It was a lot of fun to make ~ the Pentel pastels were very soft and oily, and blended really well. It would be good to repeat the patten on a larger piece of fabric...and I've a vague notion that I'd like to quilt with this too!

What's inspiring you this week?

Brilliante Spring

2008-08-31T10:45:00.031+08:00

As I mentioned in my last post, Andrea at Indigo Blue Designs presented me with this award. Thank you so much Andrea, I'm very happy to receive it!

Here are the rules:
1. The winner can put the logo on his/her blog.
2. Link to the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs for an award.
4. Put links to those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs for the people you've nominated.

I've chosen seven bloggers who have blogs I really love to visit but who I haven't given an award to before:
MagnusMog,
Old Red Barn Co.,
be present be here,
Moonstitches,
Resurrection Fern,
Cornflower Blue Studio and
Dancing Mermaid.

All of these bloggers take gorgeous photographs. They write and craft with sensitivity and beauty. (Also, I am really inspired by MagnusMog, Ressurection Fern and Old Red Barn Co.'s commitment to sustainability.) If you haven't visited their sites before you are in for a treat. Enjoy!

Springtime's come to my corner of the Earth.
When I go out walking I sometimes catch the scent of jasmine and freesias, which I adore.
The fruit trees are in bloom as well.
This almond tree, which grows in the laneway behind my home, is covered in flowers:

I love the delicacy of the blossoms and the softness of the colours.

The weather's warming too.
I found this tiny lizard sunbathing by my backdoor last weekend:

As you can see, it was very relaxed, and let me come up surprisingly close to take this shot.

Craftwise, I've been trying to finish off the scarves I've been making ~ in another few weeks it will be too warm to wear them. I've also been playing around with wire. I'm in the process of crocheting a beaded cuff and I am having fun!
Here's where I got to last night:

I'm using purple plastic coated 24 gauge wire, an assortment of glass beads and a 3.50 mm steel hook.
...and, for those of you who might want to have a go yourself, here's a good tutorial.
I'm hoping that I can finish it off tonight ~ I need to do some more crocheting, and I also need to "block" it and to attach fastenings. I'm looking forward to putting it on ~ it will be interesting to see how it works as a piece of jewellery when it's worn.

Have a wonderful week, everybody.

A Parade of Scarves and Wirework

2008-08-24T11:00:00.002+08:00

Hi!
Long time no blog, I know.
My job keeps on getting in the way.
I have some catching up to do!
Thank you to everyone who left lovely comments, in my last post, about my mum's drawings. She was tickled pink to receive them.
Thanks, too, to Rachel, from corn flower blue studio, and Cindy, from Chronicles of Yarnia, who tagged me for a meme. I'll respond as soon as I can.
I'd also like to blow virtual kisses to the lovely Andrea, of indigo blue designs, who presented me with an award. I'll acknowledge it properly next time I write here, I promise!

Even though work has been really time consuming, I've managed to get out and enjoy a little of the gorgeous Spring weather we've been experiencing here in Perth
...and I've been crafting, of course.

I've finished the chunky neck warmer I was working on:

...and I've completed the fan scarf I was crocheting:

I'm not totally happy with the second scarf because the weight of the wool pulls the fans out of shape but I've received enthusiastic compliments when I've worn it to work, and that's nice.

I've been gardening too,
and I thought I'd share some of the wire work that I've hung outside.

I have a mermaid reclining on the back fence:

I also have a sun catcher hanging in the garden
which, I've discovered, is hard to photograph because it's so long ~
so here's just a part of it:

I made both the sun catcher and the wire mermaid a few years ago with an artist called Regina at Fremantle Arts Centre. Sadly, Regina no longer lives in Western Australia. I wish she did, she was an excellent teacher and was lots of fun to work with.
I made this beaded ring in one of her workshops too:

I'd love to construct more of these...
Here's to a a joyful and productive week, everybody.

An Owl and an Angel

2008-08-10T14:40:00.019+08:00

My mother is an imaginative creature.
She often draws onto wood and pebbles ~ seeing images in their surfaces and bringing them to life with her pencils. She drew this little owl, quickly, yesterday and gave it to me when we met for coffee:

Mum also presented me with a belated birthday gift ~ a little kneeling angel:

I found it difficult to photograph in the frame,
but I kind of like the way the reflection of my hands works in this shot:

I love them both!
Thanks Mum.
x

I've continued to work on scarves.
(Work is really complicated and challenging right now. Creating simple things is like an antidote ~ soothing and relaxing.)
I've just about finished the scarflette I wrote about in my last post (I'm planning on uploading some pictures soon) and I've been crocheting a Crocus Scarf with some cheerful, bright red wool:

I've also bought some balls of Noro sock yarn from The Wool Shack:

which are destined to become a Spring Ripple Scarf or a Wavelength Scarf. I'm really looking forward to seeing the repeats of all that beautiful colour emerge as I crochet.

Happy creating everybody.

Chunky

2008-08-03T10:13:00.018+08:00

I have chunky beads, chunky(ish) yarn and a chunky coconut shell button to show today.
I'll start off with the beads.
In my last post I said that I wanted to make some necklaces to go with an orangey~red bracelet that I wear a lot and this is the first that I've come up with:

It's made of big glass beads from India, small foil beads and quartz chips strung onto tiger tail. I've been wearing it to work and a little boy I see often took time out from being naughty to say "Nice necklace, Miss,"
so I consider it to be a success!

I've also been playing around with neck warmers and have been crocheting this:

I've used Cleckheaton Vintage Hues wool and this pattern for a crochet scarflette.
(Be warned, although my McAfee Site Advisor says that the page the pattern's on is from a safe site some of the adverts on the page might not be suitable for young children.)
I've modified the pattern by omitting the crochet shells and by putting a button hole into one end. I found the coconut button on Saturday and it really is big ~ about 5cm by 5cm (that's about 2 inches by 2 inches for my American friends). I'm hoping to get the neck warmer finished off tonight.

In other crafty news, I've been drawing up a design for a mosaic backsplash for my kitchen. If I can get away from work (wish me luck) I'd really like to start working on it on Wednesday. There's something terribly therapeutic about smashing tiles.

Thank you, by the way, to everybody who left comments on what I could do with the vintage buttons I posted about the last time I wrote here. It's great to get your input.

Treasures

2008-07-26T14:57:00.016+08:00

I have been doing lots of beading this week ~
shopping for beads, looking through my beading magazines, sorting through my stash.
I'm in the process of making a necklace ~
something bright and cheerful,
something to counter Winter's drabness.
I made this memory wire bracelet last year:

I love the colours
and I wear it all the time
so the necklace is going to be in red too. Hopefully, I'll have some photos to show in my next post. But, today, I'd like to share pictures of some treasures I've bought recently.

I went out to the very first Made on the Left designers' market a few weeks ago and bought this beautiful bag, made out of the sweetest vintage fabric, from stuffaduck:

and purchased this yummy woollen scarf from a craftswoman called Susanna McAuliffe:

I also won these gorgeous Art Deco buttons on ebay:

I bought them to decorate neck warmers with but they're so pretty and old and precious I think I'll save them for something really special and just admire them for now. (If anyone's got a suggestion for their use I'd be glad to read about it.)

Have a wonderful week everybody.

Breaks, Bracelets and Butterflies

2008-07-15T14:31:00.017+08:00

Tonight's the last night of the holidays for me.
I've had a wonderful break from work
...it's been a fortnight that's been pretty much free of obligation. Bliss.
I haven't crafted much. I like to think that these periods when I'm not productive are times where I'm still being creative even though it's not apparent ~
I'm just incubating ideas (if that makes sense.)

Still,
I have a few pictures to show.
Here's a memory wire bracelet I made with Indian glass beads for a friend's birthday:

and the beginnings of a pair of Maine Morning Mitts:

(This is the first time I've knitted with double pointed needles. I used a video tutorial from Knitting Help.com to get started.)

Best of all,
the Monarch butterfly, which I wrote about in my last post, emerged,
spent an afternoon flexing its wings in my backgarden before flying away
and was quite happy to pose for photographs:

It's so beautiful.
I hope it comes back to visit!

Have a fabulous week, everybody.

Holiday Happenings

2008-07-07T10:24:00.025+08:00

I'm on holidays!
...and I've been busy renovating.

I'm having air conditioning installed and I've had a blind put into my spare room. The spare room houses all of my crafting supplies which have been, um, a little disorganised (actually, one of my sisters calls my spare room "the hell hole") so I've spent a lot of time tidying it up ('cause if I hadn't the blinds installer wouldn't have been able to get to the window) and it now looks wonderfully ordered. I'm going to try really, really, really hard to keep it that way.

The air conditioning installation is turning into a drama, but I'm telling myself that it's only to be expected ~ that renovations and frustration go hand in hand, and that I'm not going to let it get in way of having a good break.

Of course, I've managed to fit some crafting in between the tidying.

My fan scarf is getting longer:

I've made a pentagon washcloth for a friend's birthday,
using a free pattern from Drew Emborsky:

and I've started crocheting a floral neck warmer from Hook and Needle Designs:

I'm using a silk wool blend, Cleckheaton Silk, which is lovely and soft.

I've been op~shopping too and adding to my button collection:

I like the texture of these small white ones:

I haven't spent time in the garden (not yet anyway) but the hibiscus is flourishing regardless:

...and I've been quietly waiting for a Wanderer butterfly to emerge, from this pupa that a friend at work gave to me:

You can't really tell from the photograph, but wings are visible from the casing now which means that the butterfly is almost ready to make its entrance into the world. I love the delicacy and the wonder of these little creatures.

Wishing all of you moments of wonder too.
Happy Thursday!

Beads, Blossoms and Vintage Treasure

2008-06-28T10:22:00.023+08:00

I've been so busy at work I've had little time to make anything
so I'm going to share some photos of a necklace that I crocheted a little while ago,
made out of ceramic beads and mercerised cotton:

I've received compliments when I've worn it, which is lovely, but I don't put it on very often because the beads chip easily. If I make another I'll use wooden beads, something like this necklace. (If you follow the link you'll find a tutorial on how to construct one yourself.)

Although there hasn't been time to do much crafting I've managed to squeeze in a bit of op~shopping, always good for my morale! I've bought a sweet little milk jug:

and a metal placard with a biblical quotation:

It's not clear in the photograph but it says He Faileth Not in gold letters on the bottom. I'd say they're both from the 1960s. I love 'em.

I still haven't registered for Green Thumb Sunday (an association of gardening bloggers) 'cause I haven't yet worked out how to add the blogroll but I'm going to post some photos from my garden anyway!

Here's one of the grevilleas:

Here,
at my backdoor,
is a pot of succulents and a little, wooden statue of a Balinese dancer
(she looks so gentle and sad):

and,
lastly,
here's a photo of one of the Marguerite Daisies,
flowering in profusion right now:

Just before I finish I'd like to say thank you to everybody who's left comments here of late.
I really appreciate your friendship.
Have a wonderful week!

Small Projects

2008-06-21T09:25:00.016+08:00

I've been busy, busy, busy with work this week
so, on the craft side, I have just been making small things:

another Victorian Lace washcloth:

(for me this time),

a washcloth for a friend's birthday:

and a scarf, crocheted out of yummy Jet wool and alpaca,
using crochetroo's fan bookmark pattern:

I also received some absolutely gorgeous hand~spun yarn from insubordiknit:

Isn't it beautiful? I couldn't believe my luck when I came across it in her shop ~ her online store usually sells out really quickly. This is destined to become some fingerless gloves or a cowl
...in the midst of all the demands that are made of me by my work,
working with my hands gives me such simple pleasure.

Although I haven't had time to sign myself up properly to Green Thumb Sunday (which I wrote about and linked in my last post) I'm going to finish with two photographs of something else that brings me joy,
my garden in Winter.

The last of the chameleon roses:

and one of my spiky strelitzias.
I love the dramatic blooms:

Wishing you all a week that's illuminated by simple pleasure too.

No Knit Saturday and Green Thumb Sunday

2008-06-14T13:47:00.045+08:00

Saturday was World Wide Knit In Public Day. (It says at the top of this entry that it's still Saturday but actually, here in The Land Down Under, it's late Sunday afternoon.) I hope all the knitters who visit here had a fun day. I couldn't make any meetups 'cause of work (but I told my mother about it and she took her knitting with her when she went out to coffee in the morning. Onya Mum.) I spent most of yesterday and today doing paperwork. I have a week to go before I have to submit reports and then I get some me~time back. I can't wait.

Someone around here got to relax over the weekend, though:

Sometimes I wish I could swap places with her.

Despite all the hard work, there have been some nice things happening here at Chez Inkberry. I received this gorgeous package from my Ravelry swap pal, tasknits:

Isn't the washcloth pretty?
And doesn't the variegated cotton work well with the pattern? (It's Anchor Magicline.)
I love it!

This is one of the washcloths I sent to my swap partner, another Victorian Lace facecloth from Jan Eaton's 200 Crochet Blocks:

I made a Simple Dishcloth too.

I also discovered that inkberryblue had been linked by a blogger called the crafty gardener which was flattering (thank you)
and which led me to some fabulous gardening sites, that are listed on the crafty gardener's blog.
I'm in the process of joining a community of bloggers who post about the happenings in their gardens in Green Thumb Sunday
...and I was inspired to go out and take some quick photographs in my little piece of the Earth.
I humbly present to you a few shots of the cyclamen that is sitting at my front door, flourishing in the cold nights we're currently experiencing:

I love its beautiful deep pink colour and its petals.
They remind me of butterfly wings:

I'm going to finish off with my own selection of links to gorgeous gardening posts. I hope you enjoy looking at:

primrose designs ~ who also has a fabulous online store that sells, amongst other things, vintage buttons,

Gayla Trail's post about a beautiful kitchen garden at You Grow Girl,

and one of the latest blog entries by the ever inspiring Alicia Paulson.

Happy week, everybody.

Finished!

2008-06-08T12:58:00.027+08:00

I've finished the Cotton Candy Shrug that I wrote about in my last post. There are just a few ends that need to be sewn in.
Here it is:

...and here's the back:

It's not really wonky ~ it just looks that way because I'm swinging my arm around to take the shot. It's really hard to take good photographs of a garment while you're wearing it! I'm really happy with it...and a bit sorry that the pattern isn't available anymore because it's such a simple, cleverly constructed design.

When I've finished writing all my reports for work I'm planning on making more clothes. I've just bought this beautiful kettle dyed wool from yarnomat to crochet a butterscotch cardigan with.

I've also got my eyes on susana's jacket from the latest Yarn magazine. (If you open up the link, it's the apricot coloured cardie.) It is designed for beginner knitters and is made out of gorgeous, and very reasonably priced, handspun wool from wool connection.

And, speaking of things handmade, I recently received a beautiful hand stitched book cover that I bought over at indigo blue designs. It was all wrapped up gorgeously:

It's so pretty:

and will be perfect for knitting and crochet notes!

Have a great week, everybody.

A Dishcloth, A Shrug And A Little Something For The Cat People

2008-06-01T11:01:00.030+08:00

I've had to spend most of this weekend doing lots of paperwork for my job
*sigh*
but there's been a bit of crafting going on.
I have almost finished the Cotton Candy shrug I've been crocheting, there's just the border to go:

(I plan on taking, and posting, more detailed shots when I've finished it.)

I've also been putting together a little swap package for a cloth and soap exchange over at Ravelry, which has been fun. I won't show anything until my partner's received my parcel but here's something similar to what I've been making:

This is a simple dishcloth, which I crocheted about a month ago. I'm using it as a skin exfoliator instead ~ it works really well and it looks pretty.

I've been keeping my stress levels down by meditating as well as crafting, practising some of the techniques I've learnt at a course I'm taking at the Perth Meditation Centre. I'm being taught by Eric Harrison, the Centre's Director. Eric, who has a background in Buddhism, is calm and articulate and learned and brilliant!

...and I've had a bit of light relief from net surfing too. I came across this animation which really tickled my funny bone. It captures what it is to live with a determined cat. Enjoy!

Now, back to the paperwork...

All Wrapped Up

2008-05-21T20:33:00.043+08:00

It's getting pretty wintry here in Australia.
I lay in bed last night listening to rain pelting onto the roof.
I think this time of the year is wonderful.
I love it because it's such a blessed relief after the intense heat of summer
...and I love it because it means I get to take out my woollens!
I unpacked my scarves recently,
they're so colourful and soft,
and I've been wearing this wrap, which I rescued from a Salvation Army Opportunity Shop:

It's difficult to see the pattern from the picture,
(black is so hard to photograph)
but it's a bit like this lacy stole
(and I should warn you that,
although this is a link to a free pattern,
it's on the Lion Brand site and you have to be registered with them to see it.)
My wrap cost $4.00 AUD
which thrills the bargain hunter in me
but also makes me a little sad.
It is beautifully knitted and its drape is fabulous ~ I think it's a shame that no~one else seemed to recognise its worth.
But it's definitely loved now ~
I wore it to work three times last week.

I've also been wearing this stole,
bought from the Lesmurdie Arts and Crafts Association a few weeks ago:

Isn't it gorgeous?
... and it's surprisingly warm.
Unfortunately,
I didn't catch the name of the craftswoman who sold it to me but I did speak at some length with her. She told me that she spun the wool out of pre~dyed New Zealand topping before knitting it up.
I love the way she's placed the colours.
It's such a simple yet striking design,
and so inspiring!
I'd love to make something similar.
Luckily, although I'm very rusty, I already know how to spin.
Here's some wool, amongst other fibres, that I spun and dyed years ago:

And,
thanks to my darling cousin
(who's mother, incidentally, made this lovely filet crochet),
I have a spinning wheel:

Hmmm, I think a trip to Bilby Yarns for spinning supplies is in order!

Have a fabulous week everybody.

A Belated Thank You

2008-05-16T19:28:00.024+08:00

Many thanks go to indigo blue designs who presented me with this award, a while ago now, for my "enviable crochet skills, lovely photography and enjoyable posts." I'm sorry I've taken so long to acknowledge it here but very flattered to receive it.

I'd like to return the compliment to indigo blue designs and re~award her for excellence. Her embroidery is beautiful (she recently posted pictures of some really pretty appliqued book covers that are for sale in her etsy store), her stories about her little girl are lovely and her industriousness is admirable. I really enjoy reading about her online business ventures.

...and then I'd like to pass the award on to some new blogs, that I don't think I've talked about here before. I'm nominating:

little black knitting crow for her fabulous drawings and prints, and her quirky soft toys. She's a very talented artist and her art blog, which is linked to little black knitting crow, is really worth looking at too;
Cheery Tomato Productions for her quietly beautiful photographs. I love the way she captures the wonder of the world around her;
2paw who writes, charmingly, about her life in Tasmania. Her gentle sense of humour makes me smile. She's a fantastic knitter too;
wooldancer who spins, dyes and sells the most delicious wool;
Greenishlady who creates lyrical, heart~felt, honest and inspiring posts;
and
Franklin at The Panopticon. Franklin is a delight. He writes and draws in a wonderfully whimsical, mischievous way...and his photography is gorgeous.

I hope you enjoy looking through these blogs as much as I do.

I'm going to finish off here with some more photographs of the new, scarlet ivy~geranium that's hanging at my backdoor. I adore its beautiful, bright flowers:

Have a wonderful week, everybody.

And The Winner Of The Give~Away Is...

2008-05-11T08:49:00.042+08:00

...balkan style bloggers.
Congratulations! Can you please email your address to me at inkberryblue AT gmail DOT com and I'll start putting together your package of goodies. Thanks to everybody who participated ~ I really enjoyed receiving your feedback.

On the subject of blogging and give~aways, the talented Peta at createcraft is running a competition where she's giving away a knitted scarf (her work is fabulous) and asking readers to post about the inspiration behind their blog's name and then leave a comment on her site.
Here is my story, of sorts...

I don't have any really well defined reasons for calling this blog inkberryblue
but ink berry has nice associations for me.
I've played with the words before ~
I once, unexpectedly, won a copywriting competition with them

in my very first year at Uni,

which was a bright and affirming moment

in a year that was full of self doubt.
I remember that,

as a reward,
my usually grumpy and critical head lecturer

presented me with a beaming smile
and a small tube of bright pink gouache,

that he'd wrapped up with a matching ribbon.
(I treasured the moment.)

And I like to think that inkberryblue has a sort of poetry to it.
I like the cadence of the words
~ the play of berry and blue ~ ink and art and creative juiciness...

So there you have it. If you decide to join in too please tell Peta I sent you!

I hope everyone, who celebrated yesterday, had a happy Mothers' Day. I planned on giving my mother the pouch that I started making for her birthday in (ahem) October, and blogged about here, but the buttons I crocheted looked ridiculously big and I didn't get time to buy anymore.
Here's a detail of the work that's still in progress:

Instead, I gave Mum a little affirmation stone and one of the geraniums that I propagated late last year,
which is much like this one:

She loved it.

Mum, Dad, my youngest sister and I also went out to lunch, and visited the Art Gallery of Western Australia where we saw the Year 12 Perspectives Exhibition, a display of the best work that's been produced by students in their final year of school. It runs every year, I always enjoy the exhibition and this year's works are particularly good. If you're in Perth I think it's well worth a look. Work's very busy right now but, if I get time, I'd like to go back to the exhibition before it closes on May 25th.

I hope you all have a wonderful, juicily creative week.

Ouch!

2008-05-05T17:11:00.024+08:00

My computer was hit by a really nasty virus last week which culminated in me having to (nervously) wipe and then reinstall all the software on my computer. Thankfully everything's running smoothly again, I now have a much better security system and I've managed to take a few quick, sun~dappled shots of some of the things I'm working on:

Here's a dishcloth, which has become so enormous I'm going to make it into an eye pillow instead:

my crochet shopping bag:

and a shrug that I'm crocheting because it's going to take me forever to work out how to knit the cavern cardie I've got on the needles and I really want something cosy to wear now that it's Autumn here in The Land Of Oz:

The shrug's called Cotton Candy and the pattern's from the October 2006 issue of Annie's Favorite Crochet. I'm finding it really simple to make and it's going to fit, always a good thing. This is what it should look like at the back when I've finished.

Thanks to all the people who've said nice things in my last post. I really appreciate your feedback, and your sweetness...and to those people who've been visiting for a while but have only just commented ~ it's nice to "meet" you. I've enjoyed discovering your blogs too.

Blogiversary Give~Away

2008-04-23T17:28:00.029+08:00

I have been writing here for a year!
I've loved the opportunity I've been given to express myself,
to share photos, drawings, musings, crochet, my attempts at knitting...
Most of all,
I've enjoyed the connections I've made with other people.
There is so much inspiration here in Blogland!

Therefore,
to celebrate,
I'm having a give~away which includes:

a crochet washcloth with some hand~made rose geranium and pink clay soap,

an affirmation pebble,

and a small print of one of my paintings.

The washcloth is made out of Peaches'n Creme kitchen cotton using the Victorian Lace pattern from 200 Crochet Blocks:

the affirmation pebble will look something like these:

(I'll pencil on an affirmation of the winner's choice, if they like),

the print is of a pastel and watercolour painting of chrysanthemums:

Edited Christmas 2009: Please do not copy the image below. I did not give Bing permission to use this painting in their Christmas card images and I don't give you permission either! If you want to use any of my images you'll need to email me and get my OK first of all. I can be contacted at inkberryblue (at) gmail (dot) com. Thank you for your understanding.

...and in answer to someone's question,
I haven't used any scrapbooking techniques,
the painting's all my own work.

All you have to do is leave a comment telling me how you found Inkberryblue. I'll close the contest on Saturday, 10th May (which gives people a fortnight) and announce the winner on the following day.

Don't be shy!

Bags, Birthdays And Loving Kindness

2008-04-20T19:19:00.036+08:00

I've been working on a crochet shopping bag. It's the first time I've made up my own pattern and, happily, I like how it's working out.

Here are some progress shots:

I am using v stitches for the sides, and they are crocheting up sooooo quickly. I'm writing it all down as I go and I'll share the pattern when I've finished.

Now for the birthday part: I'm going to be celebrating my blog's first birthday with a give~away in my next post. Please stay tuned...

And on a very sober note, I'd like to bring people's attention to Jenni Ballantyne, who I first encountered through GreenishLady. Jen, a courageous woman, has cancer and is documenting her experience on her blog. She needs love and support, and people to witness her journey. Please consider helping out ~ you can find details about how to do that if you click on the link to GreenishLady's site. Thanks.

Speaking of loving kindness, I'd like to leave you with a photo of a Tibetan Buddhist prayer flag garland, given to me by my sister (thanks A.), that's catching the afternoon sun in my backgarden...

Kitchen Goddess

2008-04-15T15:38:00.032+08:00

Well,
maybe not...
but I am the proud owner of three, newly aquired, vintage aprons:

I found them on ebay,
inspired to look after seeing all the gorgeous retro aprons that are being shown off in blogland right now,
and I bought them for a song.
They remind me of the aprons my mum, and the other ladies of the neighbourhood, used to wear when I was little.
I love the floral prints.

...and,
seeing as there is a domestic (ahem) flavour to this post,
I'm including a biscuit recipe of mine
(which, actually, is a sort of a Goddessy thing to do, isn't it?)

Kitchen Cupboard Crunchies
So named because the ingredients are very simple ~ the sort you have on hand in the pantry. If you put them in an airtight container, they'll keep for weeks.

Ingredients:

2 heaped cups rolled oats
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 cup flour
1/3 tsp vanilla essence
1 dessertspoon cocoa (you could substitute with hot chocolate powder)
1 tablespoon boiling water

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius (350 degrees farenheit.)
Mix oats, sugar, flour and cocoa together.
Melt butter and dissolve soda in water.
Mix butter and water with flour mixture.
Add vanilla essence. (If the mixture is too dry and crumbly, add a little more boiling water.)
Put teaspoon sized heaps onto a greased oven tray.
Bake for ten minutes on the top shelf.
Makes approximately 25.

Cup of tea, anyone?

Noro Cashmere Flavor And Japanese Crochet Motifs

2008-04-11T09:52:00.038+08:00

The Noro Cashmere Flavor arrived yesterday morning.
I think it is absolutely exquisite:

The apricot skein is colourway number 5 and the purple skeins are colourway number 4.
(You can see what they look like knitted up if you look in Maschenkunst, the company that I purchased the yarn from. If you click on the American flag the site will be translated into English. Photos can be found in the Noro pages of both the Yarn section and the Gallery section.
Sorry ~ the site won't let me link the individual pages that show the photos, but they're gorgeous and well worth a look.)

Now I just have to decide which one I want to use to crochet the Garden Party Wrap. Maybe I'll make two!

I've also been playing with some patterns from the Japanese book Crochet Motif Item that I bought last year,
after getting inspiration from Kwoozy's lovely work,
with the idea that I'll make a scarf out of one of the patterns using some Anny Blatt mohair from my yarn stash.

This is motif number 30:

and this is motif number 32:

The motifs are made out of kitchen string, which is easy to work with, as are the clearly drawn diagrams in the pattern book. Hmmm...it might be fun, and good practice, to crochet all of the motifs with jute and put them together into a floor rug.

...oh and, incidentally, if I ever get to be a good enough knitter I would love to make a pair of Rivendell socks. Aren't they beautiful?

Happy weekend everyone.

Feathers, Fans And Flowers

2008-04-07T11:43:00.012+08:00

As regular readers of this blog will know,
I'm teaching myself how to knit.
I thought I'd increase my knitting skills by trying a lace project
and chose a beginner's lace scarf pattern and tutorial,
which promised to be easy,
blithely cast on
...then proceeded to wrestle with it all through the weekend.
Sigh.
I've had to start over again about ten times,
which has been very frustrating,
but,
actually,
I really need to learn how to fix up mistakes in knitting
(I find them much harder to deal with than mistakes in crochet)
so, when I think about it, it's all good ~
over the past three days I have learnt how to fix up unintentional increases,
I'm on my way to learning how to pick up dropped stitches,
I have discovered the invaluable technique of using lifelines
and I've produced this:

It's very small, it's very simple but I am so pleased with it.

...I'll leave you with a picture of an ivy geranium,
growing effortlessly and gracefully (unlike my knitting), at the back door:

Beautiful Yarn And A Sweet Dog

2008-04-02T11:06:00.034+08:00

I'm doing my tax right now (erk),
consequently there hasn't been a lot of crafting happening around here.
So, in the absence of anything recent,
I thought I'd post about this beeeeeyoooooutiful wool I bought last year:

Scrumptious, isn't it?
It's a twin yarn set of handpainted millspun wool and handpainted handspun wool which I purchased from an indie one~woman Australian business called wooldancer.
I didn't have a pattern in mind when I bought it,
I just fell in love with the colours and textures and had to have it
...you know,
and I still haven't found a pattern that I want to use
so if anyone has any ideas I'd be glad to hear them.
Meanwhile, I'm using the wool as an objet d'art and displaying it on the piano which some of my less arty friends think is a little bit odd.

...and,
in other exciting and yarn related news,
I have just ordered my first~ever skeins of Noro wool.
I'm going to use them to crochet Kim Guzmann's new pattern
The Garden Party Wrap. I've bought the Noro from a store in Germany (I couldn't get it anywhere else) and I'm having it sent by seamail rather than by airmail in an attempt to be green (surface shipping saves carbon emissions...there's a really good article about this in Issue 9 of Yarn)
so I'll have to wait a while
...but I'm excited none the less.

Lastly, I'd like to introduce you all to the lovely Rocco.

I met Rocco,
who, in real life, is even more adorable than he looks,
when I was on holiday in Margaret River last year and I promised his mistress that I'd post a photo of him on the 'net.
(Sorry it's taken me so long, Leigh.)

Crochet Shopping Bag

2008-03-28T19:15:00.014+08:00

A little while ago, I posted that I was going to crochet Inga's Bag with some Anchor Magicline I had in my stash. I was hoping to come up with something as lovely as this,
but I've realised that I need to have a multitude of colourways to achieve the look I like...and I only have one. Ho hum.

So, I've been playing with other crochet bag patterns like this and this
...and I've finally decided to have a go at designing my own.
I've started by crocheting a circular pattern for the base:

I've used the crochet circle recipe from Debbie Stoller's Happy Hooker (how I love this book.)

When the base is big enough, I'm going to crochet mesh sides using a v stitch...and I don't know how I'm going to do the handles yet, I'll wait until I get to them!

It's fun.
And, if it works out, I'll post the pattern here when I'm done.

Happy weekend, everybody!

Daisy Table

2008-03-25T14:08:00.043+08:00

Thank you to all the people who noticed, and said nice things about, the mosaic table which was in one of the last photos I posted. I originally blogged about it here but I thought I'd write about its construction in a little more detail, for those of you who might be interested.

So,
I found a sweet little wrought iron table at the local St Vincent De Paul charity shop which was just the right size and shape to mosaic.
I created a big orange daisy design,
inspired by my seventies kitchen,
and worked outside for three full days,
mosaicing late into the evening
by candlelight
in the hush of my garden.
Bliss.

I made the mosaic out of wall tiles, mirrors and broken china. You can see all three materials in this close up:

(If I was to make it again, I'd build up the mirror and the china so that the centre of the table has a more even surface.)

Unfortunately, the next stage of making the table, grouting the tiles, was less than blissful. In my inexperience, I used too much acrylic paint to colour the grout and, when I put it on to the tiles, the grout filled with air bubbles and wouldn't dry properly. Sadly, grout takes minutes to apply but it takes ages to remove. I cried (literally) when I realised the enormity of the mistake I'd made...and I've been chipping the grout out, on and off, for the last three years.

Not surprisingly, I lost my momentum and the table has sat untouched for a long time. However, after some prompting by friends, and a pep~talk by a terrific mosaic artist called Chris, I decided to have another go at finishing the table in February. I used commercially coloured grout this time, applied it successfully ~ to my relief, and ended up with this:

Here's another close up
(showing just how deliciously smooth the new grout is) :

I am very, very happy to have finally finished it
and I'm also happy to report that I've rediscovered my enthusiasm for mosaicing. I've been gaining inspiration from Helen Baird and her book The Complete Practical Guide To Mosaics, Emma Biggs and Tessa Hunkin's fabulous text Mosaic Workshop and the wonderful work of Kaffe Fassett. I have also started preparing to mosaic my kitchen splashback
...and this time I'm booking into a mosaic studio so I can get immediate advice as I'm working.
Wish me luck!