Search Results for: kina

weekend craft

February 9, 2014 By 21 Comments

I love the excitement of picking a new project. On Friday I cast this on, took it out with me on Saturday in the car and kept knitting Saturday night and also Sunday. Thanks to one of the little ones waking me at 4.30am I made some great progress Sunday morning.

I’m using the Maile pattern which you can find on ravelry for free here or in this book. It’s super easy to knit and I’m using Bendigo Spring Cotton in white.

I just love white as a little baby knit and I’m thinking I’ll donate this to Dandelion with the next batch of quilts that we donate. I’m sure it will go to a good home and be treasured and with winter coming up with keep a little baby warm. The inspiration for this pattern is that my lovely aunty debbie made it for elodie when she was a baby and we wore it so often.

And the funny thing is that because this is a fairly quick knit I’m already thinking of my next project. Don’t laugh. I’m thinking a little something for elodie for winter and I’m trying to break away from the Kina and try something new…………I’ve got a skein of madelinetosh next to my yarn swift and think I’ll use that for a little something.

And because I’m always thinking of my next project I cut out this panel and hung it on my sewing room chair. I would absolutely love to get this started this weekend but know that if I can just keep my focus on the cardigan that I can finish that first and then make this panel.

I’ve ordered some lecien fabrics to start my little store again. I’m just keeping it small and things that I love and just waiting a week or so for my shopfront to be finished and I’ll share the link with you all. Lisa my super lovely helper on the admin side of the blog said ‘so are we having an uploading party?’…..I guess we are. Uploading and pre-cutting fabrics but I do love it…………………

hope you are having a great weekend and that there is a bit of craft in it too……

Filed Under: knitting, ravelry

looking back on 2013 – part 2

December 21, 2013 By 6 Comments

Ok what happened from August onwards? the twins turned 5…what a milestone

I fooled a couple of you that I was on the front cover of the IKEA magazine, I wasn’t really……………

I took one of my favourite photos of my little miss

I knit the cutest little cardigan

and I knit a size 7 kina for keira that tested my patience but was worth every stitch because this is one of her favourite things to wear.

I made my first very retro pineapple upside down cake

I let emerson help me make a quilt……

I did finish it eventually

we had the best holiday in noosa

I met Fast Ed and had my lunch cooked in the dishwasher

we renovated a kitchen

I knit a cute t-shirt for keira

and I made yet another baby kina

I made a doll for my littlest miss that didn’t last until Christmas

and I made ice cream sandwiches

a new rocky road

 

and a delicious vegetarian tart

 

 

I went to williams-sonoma for a cooking class

I made pumpkin pie after the class for the very first time and loved it.

and I’m still working away on a crochet blanket

and that was 2013…………..in a nutshell.

Filed Under: everything else

day 12 of our 2nd kitchen renovation

October 17, 2013 By 15 Comments

Well it might only be day 12 on the blog but it feels like a lot longer when you’re living through it. And I’ve been a bit quiet but trust me there has been plenty going on behind the scenes….we’ve done a school open day, retro daddy has been away for work then came home then flew out again (I’m exhausted!), emerson decided to swallow some apple scented shower gel this morning that required a call to the poisons information centre, I’m half way through knitting a baby kina, I keep falling asleep getting the kids to bed each night, I’ve been running up and down the stairs to the kitchen and just trying to keep on top of everything.

Thankfully there has been some action in the kitchen with today being caesarstone delivery day. Just one day out but I didn’t mind at all. Everything kind of stops and waits for the caesarstone to be installed and then everyone finishes off their jobs and the job is finished.

The colour is snow, exactly what I put in my last kitchen and I love it. It keeps the kitchen simple and classic and my only issue with snow is that you can see streaks and need a bottle of windex under your sink next to the gumption the wonder cleaner that will get anything (and I mean anything) off your caesarstone.

It makes the kitchen look perfect. The oven was worrying me last night but I know that I need to stop worrying about the oven and have faith that it will all work out and look amazing and a few of the tradespeople will hopefully be sliding that baby into place tomorrow.

Until then…………………….I hope you enjoy these latest photos. It finally is starting to feel real and that I will actually be cooking in this space. And I love this photo before I whisked her out of the room and closed the door.

Filed Under: 2nd kitchen renovation, kitchen, renovation, renovations

another knit off the needles

August 20, 2013 By 23 Comments

Nothing like the feeling of finishing a little knit. This one is a real cutie and worth the hour or more of seaming that is required to get it all together.

I sat outside the library yesterday afternoon sewing on the buttons and getting excited to see it finished. And let me introduce you to my buddy….Bingo. An elderly lady came by and asked if she could tie the dog onto the chair I was sitting on. I started to stand up and said of course please sit down and she said oh no I’m going into the library. So people were walking by, admiring the dog and one little girl even asked if she could pat my dog. He was very well behaved and I quite liked having him there at my feet for a little while.

So I finished the last button when I got home but had sadly missed the good light to photograph it so ducked outside this morning with a quilt I grabbed off the couch and set to photograph it.

The pattern is a bit of an oldie, raglan sleeved cardigan with full fashioned shaping from Debbie Bliss Baby Knits for Beginners but there is something sweet and special about classic knits for babies. I love it so much I’d almost cast on another one………….

The wool is Bendigo Woollen Mills Allegro and a really lovely mixture of pinks. Buttons were a couple of dollars from Spotlight and considering I have 1/3 of a ball of wool left I’d say this project cost me less than $10. Nice.

Ravelry details are here…meanwhile I’m going hell for leather on the size 6 kina and am determined to get it finished so I can cast something else on. It’s warming up so I’m about to enter my cotton knitting phase and I might even think about knitting a few things for Christmas. Think, I did say think….it’s good to aim high for a few handmade christmas presents.

Filed Under: bendigo woollen mills, knitting, ravelry

knitting progress

August 16, 2013 By 15 Comments

There hasn’t been much in the knitting department lately. I do have 2 projects on the go at the moment……………..but progress is slow. I’ve been doing the bands on this little raglan sleeve cardigan for a baby. Not my baby, you haven’t missed any news, but my favourite zumba teacher and I better get it finished soon!

Mind you I haven’t managed to fit a zumba class into my schedule lately. Retro daddy and I are hoping to add an exercise bike and rowing machine and create a little home gym here at home with the x-trainer and treadmill as that really is the best way for me to squeeze any exercise into my day….but I actually don’t think I’ve done any exercise since last summer.

The pattern is a fabulous one but makes me appreciate seamless knits and knitting in the round because each piece of this cardigan is knit separately. This had the advantage of each piece being rather quick to knit but there are lots of ends and picking up of stitches but it’s really worth it because when it is all finished it looks perfect. The raglan sleeve pattern is from one of my all time fave knitting books, Debbie Bliss Baby Knits for Beginners. The wool is Bendigo Woollen Mills (no surprises there) Allegro (sadly discontinued but see if anyone is destashing on ravelry) and it’s come up beautifully so far.

And then there is the kina for keira which will probably end up going on tillie at the rate I’m going. I’ve just lost the motivation with this one but am kind of hoping to get it done before summer. Everything is crossed…..I’m knitting this in a size 6 in Bendigo 8 ply cotton on 3.75mm needles as the cotton does tend to lose it’s shape a tad.

And that’s the knitting!

Filed Under: knitting, ravelry

I knitted a hat

August 9, 2013 By 15 Comments

Well after the blanket I decided that my next project had to be something quick. Toddler hats are perfect. This is based on the umbilical cord hat which is a great little pattern. I just used 12 ply wool (Bendigo Rustic 12ply), 5.5mm double pointed needles, cast on 66 stitches, kept knitting for about 12 cm before I started my decreasing.

I made this one for tim coulson’s gorgeous little boy roo who reminds me of emerson! And I better make one for emerson…………..but only once I finish the kina for keira. I am really dragging the chain on that kina but will not be starting any new projects until it’s finished!

Ravelry details for this little hat are here.

Filed Under: knitting, ravelry

knitting for a new baby

June 30, 2013 By 16 Comments

No, don’t worry, you haven’t missed anything. Not my baby but I’m going to be an aunty soon and I wanted to have a few little things gifted before baby arrives.

I figure with a younger brother and sister and my cousins just starting to get married that I can keep knitting for babies for a long time to come.

The dishcloth pattern is from the new book I bought (reviewed here) and took 2 nights and is just sooooo soft. The yarn is debbie bliss cotton dk and it’s knit on 5mm needles so it’s knit a little looser and is really soft. It’s just perfect. So perfect in fact that I just cast on another one in green. Same pattern, same yarn. This one is now on ravelry here.

and the cardigan is from an old favourite pattern that I love, the easy baby cardigan from More Last Minute Knitted Gifts. This is so quick and easy, knit up in 10 ply and I think this is my 3rd from the same pattern. I do that. It’s like my kina addiction. You can see on ravelry I’ve knit it here and here. This little number is now on ravelry here. I’m just going to block it this week to stretch it out a little and pop a few little buttons on when I can go up to spotlight. Not something I really want to do with 5 kids in the school holidays but my usual trick of hot chips just before or just afterwards usually gets the job done. That and a little pep talk before we enter the store.

and while we’re talking knitting here is my new ball winder. I picked up a vintage one from eBay for $22 and I’m pretty impressed with it. I did have 2 balls of wool that got a bit tangly but a quick check of youtube and I realised I was going way too fast. So I’ve sorted out the speed and I’m all good.

One warning if you want one of these babies…………..the kids. Because I’ve set mine up on my sewing table next to my computer the kids come to ask me something or walk in and just wind it and keep winding it.

with school holidays here I hope to get a few more things off the needles……………………….

Filed Under: babies, baby, debbie bliss, knitting, ravelry

knitting tikki’s granny’s favourite

April 23, 2013 By 11 Comments

I love how I had this crazy idea that the school holidays would mean more craft time. I had visions of being in my sewing room or sitting outside knitting while the kids played each day but we’ve been doing swimvac every day and the days have flown by. Swimvac for the unititiated is a week where I drag all 5 to the pool and try to keep 2 or 4 of them entertained while we watch the other swim. It’s totally worth it in terms of the kids swimming but not so much for my personal enjoyment.

Oh and spot the tooth hanging on by a thread there! I have offered my services but she isn’t ready for me to give it a twist and get it out. Anyway back to knitting. Somehow this afternoon, dont ask me how, I managed to finish knitting this little cardigan in newborn size.

Well almost. It needs a little blocking (I just give it a little soak in some water and stretch into shape on a towel) and the buttons sewn on.

The pattern is so lovely. You can buy it here. I was reading one of the rows of the lace pattern incorrectly and pulled it out 3 times before I realised what I was doing. And so I decided to make the smallest size and since retro daddy forgot to tell me his PA had already left on maternity leave I decided I’d knit it for her.

The cardigan is knit from top to bottom and the armhole stitches are left on some spare wool. Once you’ve knit the body then you come back and knit the sleeves with small circulars or double pointed needles. That can sound a little daunting to a beginner knitter but once you’ve done a few seamless knits there is no turning back. I find it much more satisfying to do my knitting as one piece and see how it all comes together…..

And the wool……don’t hate me but it’s a Bendigo back room special called Shetland 8 ply. I can’t even find it on ravelry. Very soft and lovely to knit with and I like doing baby knits in cream as it just makes it so much more wholesome and sweet for a little baby. If you wanted to create a similar little baby knit then 8 ply Luxury in cream is perfect. And now I’m not starting a new project until I finish off a Kina for keira.

Filed Under: babies, baby, kniting

and I set up a ravelry group

March 3, 2013 By 1 Comment

One of my favourite online places to hang out is ravelry. In fact sometimes I start knitting or want to knit something and spend just a little too long on ravelry instead of knitting. Anyway I often get asked questions about kinas or a knitting question and I answer it and then it gets a bit lost in facebook or the blog.

So I’ve set up a ravelry group here where you can ask a question on a project, share what you’re knitting and we can keep track of it by having it all in the one place. It’s much easier to look back at the questions and answers. If you’ve got a question just post it as a new thread. It’s that easy. You can see what I’ve been knitting and become friends with other readers who are like minded crafty mums and grandmas. So come on over and join us.

Filed Under: knitting
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