The hare and the tortoise

This is the hare.......well actually it's a knitted bunny - the first little toy for our lovely little girl:

Actually she's not so small, she loves her mama milk, which explains why it took me 6 weeks to knit this one thing. So the tortoise? Well that's me and my crafting of course :) Remember when I blogged the one Helen knitted up for Heather's birthday? Well that one took her 2 days. TWO days for a relative knitting novice. I thought this would take me roughly the same when fitted round cuddles and feeds and general other stuff. I never thought I would take six WEEKS to knit a toy bunny!!

Little bunny knitted in soft and cuddly Sirdar baby crofter on 4mm needles, using just under 50g for the whole thing.

Want to see the whole shot?

Aaaawwwwww! I know you're thinking it :)

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Oooh, that's Zingy.

I'm sure you've all seen the ad, and know someone who's fallen for this little guy. Owen definitely had, especially when a flyer came through the letterbox in the shape of the mascot. He really, really, really wanted his own Zingy to cuddle. So mama set to work - scrap yarn from the "oh my - why did  ever buy this colour? Oh yeah - knitted carrots!" bag, a pattern found free on Ravelry (not that it isn't easy enough to make up on the hoof), a few scraps of felt, and a spare hour whilst the littlies park themselves in front of a Tom and Jerry DVD.

So here he is - Zingy:

Owen loves him, Cain wants one too. Whoever thought that a little orange blob on an energy suppliers advert would be such a big hit?

Mind you if you would have seen the price these knitted mascots were selling for when they first hit EBay I' sure you would have knitted up a few yourself. They were originally selling for up to £10+!! For barely 10g of acrylic DK and a scrap of felt. And not even an hours work. That power company certainly missed out on a moneyspinner. Makes a change for one of those companies ;)

Editing - Just realised when adding the link that the pattern is no longer free as some unscrupulous people have been taking advantage of the designer by selling the pattern on EBay.

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Mice? Owl sort it!

The natural way to solve the mice problem - call in an expert mousecatcher:

No fee necessary, just a good meal will do.

Hang on a minute - they're not what I expected:

Aaargh I'm off, sort your own rodent problems.

Ok so I promised a knitty post, but I'm not happy with the knitty thing just yet. If it improves with blocking I'll share later ;-)

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Catching up.

Ooh, it's been a long time hasn't it? Shall I give a multitude of reasons, or shall I just get straight on with showing some of the things that have been keeping me busy? Well aside from family, work, and general life that is!

Plannig lot's of projects using vintage fabric and bargain yarns:

Rowan Purelife organically grown 100% wool natural plant dyed only £1.50 per skein here but very limited now

Ebay bargain - over 2m of pretty barkcloth fabric

  Sirdar Click aran £1.39 per skein from the same place - love this shop, and it's not too far away for a personal visit either.

Crafting gifts for lovely mama's:

Knitted bamboo facecloth, soapbag, cross stitch trimmed scented sachet, and a trim for the carryall.

Starting on the christmas gifting:

Knitted dolly for Heather with removable clothes, just a couple more outfits to make.

Knitted cardi for Sophie with yet more of the bargain Sirdar Click

Sewing pretty cushions:

Enjoying patchwork and getting to grips with zips too.

Preparing for winter:

Granny stripe blanket 200cms wide, 110 treble clusters, 50cms high, another 130cms to go. And the edging.

Oh yes, I've been a busy crafting mama lately, with lot's more makes all jostling to show themselves off.

Sorry it's only a flying visit but maybe the changing weather will mean more time snuggling inside with the hooks and needles, and lot's more idea's to share.

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New year, new burst of craftiness!

Less Internet = time to craft. (I would love to have said MORE time to craft but crafting time was pretty non-existent up until the past few days with all the other stuff that goes on around here).

New leggings for Heather. 

The first time I have ever sewed with a proper pattern rather than making it up as I went along. Pretty pleased with them and now I know why the pattern says to do it as it did. Definitely going to make a few more of these for under her dresses, might even have a go at the dress that came in the pattern pack, but first I need to get my head round interfacing......... now I've worked out what it is!

A sleep easy heart sachet for Jen, filled with Lavender to ease her into sweet dreams:

A nappy for Heather's dolly:

A camera case from the sleeve of a jumper I knitted (and later felted) for Cain:

And that's about all for now.
Knitting on the needles, crochet on the hooks, more sewing plans in mind.
Back soon with more I hope.
Happy crafting everyone.