Pet

A photo of our Lab. It's very difficult taking photos of a dark/black subject but I think this photo of BAUER turned out very nice (yes, he is named after Jack Bauer from 24 and our cat is named ALMEIDA are Tony Almeida from 24).

Victorian Bushfires

Thank you to all my overseas friends who have been concerned for my safety during the devastating bushfires here in Victoria, Australia.

I am very safe, probably around 2 hours drive from the nearest fires. To date, there are over 180 women, men and even children who have lost their lives in this disaster, hundreds and hundreds of homes have been gutted and contents destroyed, and countless domestic pets and wildlife has been lost. These communities have to rebuild from scratch.

Please spare a moment to think of these people and what turmoil they will be going through.

Knitted bathmat - recycled fabric

I did this project as part of a KAL/challenge - it was fun finding the material (cotton sheets), ripping them into strips and then joining them to knit the cabled bathmat.

I used gigantic needles (15mm) and knitted the bathmat in 40+ degree temperature (I thought this would be a cooler option than knitting with wool).

Crochet of the Month - January

I started a CAL on Ravelry, crocheting two squares per month. Here is January's attempt which also shows my colourway (i.e. three colours).

EL and Merino

I cannot believe I am spinning in this heatwave. I need another hobby that I can do in summer!












Moseley Park's EL "Rainbow"














Minihaha's spun purple merino
Moseley Park's spun EL

Both spun together.

Cabled spinning

Here is my attempt at cabled spinning - I just loved doing this but I imagine it takes a lot more fleece compared to two ply. I find the yarn is smoother and thicker (which is great for me because I spin so finely).

Merino-Angora handspun

Purchased top from Ixchel

Single ply

Plied on itself. It now looks like mud. In future I will ply with a solid colour so as not to distort the beautiful dying.

Feathers and Fan Shawl

A recently completed Feathers and Fan Shawl, by Jane Thornley. Unfortunately not all the yarn shines through in this photo but I used some magnificant arty yarn (some homespun) including one with sequins and another with glitter.

New camera

Woo hoo - I have a new digital SLR and I'm in love with it. I had a choice between a new spinning wheel (I already have three) or a DSLR (I have three other cameras as well).

Here is a photo I took at St Kilda's Luna Park of one of their amusements. I have such a lot of experimenting to do now with my new camera.

Summer Shawl

This is a shawl I just completed by Ilga Leja (one of my favourite designers), called Open Waters. It's very lightweight and just perfect for summer days when a jumper is too heavy.

Handspun Merino and Glitz

Here is some handspun wool I recently completed. I spun it with some Glitz using Navajo plying.

Madder dyeing

I dyed some yarn today with Madder Root extract - I used alumn for the mordant and Madder Root for the colour. Whilst simmering, the yarn turned brown but the longer in the pan the redder it became.

Christmas Decorations

I just love Christmas and making Christmas decorations, so much so that I am going to share a few here.

Here is a new Christmas decoration I just finished making - a set of three Christmas stockings. Better IRL.

And some I made in the last year or so....

Woodland Santa with Mohair beard (mohair ends up everywhere). Santa's sack is full of soft toys

Santa, just hanging around (a door knob)

Advent Calendar

Christmas Candle (crochet)

Fishnet Stocking

I fell in love with this design when I saw it. Quick and easy, yet a little "unusual". I mounted it on crushed velvet to make it a little more "raunchy". It is now framed, ready to be put on a wall.

I wasn't going to make Christmas cards this year (and break a tradition) because it didn't really feel Christmassy to me, I just didn't have the "spirit" in me this year. However, I changed my mind at the last minute so had to do a very quick and basic design - voila....

I did participate in an overseas lace Christmas card exchange and here is my effort...

Textured Necklace

I spun some coloured merino using differing techniques including coiling, thick and thin, and other textures. Because I only spun a small amount (although coiling uses up a lot of fibre), I decided to make it into a necklace.

BFL/Angora handspun

This fibre is not from my usual colourways but I am growing to like it. The fibre was from EGMTK (one of the best fibre suppliers and from Australia as well).

Bobbin lace

I received a lovely surprise in the mail the other day from a dear and very, very talented lady Alison Dews. Alison , from the United Kingdom, is an expert bobbin lacer and she made this gorgeous red mat for me, which I will always treasure.

Bamboo fibre spun

Soul Collage cards

Two recent transpersonal Soul Collage cards I completed - Witness and Humour.....

Magic loop knitting

I am knitting socks using the magic loop technique - this involves knitting two socks on the one circular needle (albeit a larger needle in length). It is much easier than it looks and certainly avoids the "one sock" syndrome.

Today is a public holiday so I took the opportunity to dye some fleece - EL and EF.

Bamboo fibre

I just LOOOOVE getting mail. Here is yummy bamboo fibre I received today from EGMTK - can't wait to spin it and I know exactly what I'm going to ply it with.

Chrysanthemum Lace

Here is my first attempt at a Chrysanthemum lace lappet - the spider ground is riddle with mistakes but towards the end of the sample I knew what I was doing wrong. If I ever choose to make another piece of this type of lace I think I will have a better understanding next time.

Inga crochet bag

I finished this bag today - yeah. It's called Inga and it has many crochet squares from a gorgeous discontinued cotton yarn. I might even use this as my normal handbag.

Metallic ply handspun art yarn

Here is some art yarn I recently completed. Firstly I hand dyed the fleece (? merino) purple, then spun the fleece and plied it with commercial charcoal metallic yarn. I like the thin/thick texture of the yarn as well as the shiny effect.

Handspun yarns

Here is some recently completed handspun yarn. I am really enjoying the "freeness" of art yarns. -

Plain Polwarth

Polwarth, spun with sequins

Art yarn - purple texture

Isabeau Purse

This is a picture of a knitted purse I recently completed as part of a monthly bag challenge. Got to love those bag challenges.

Knitted Bangle

Here is a nice quick and easy project I completed in one night, while watching my boys MELBOURNE STORM win their way to the grand final next week.

This is basically a bangle with a knitted cover.

Castella Spinning Wheel

Here is my new pride and joy - my Castella spinning wheel. It was made by Jim de Castella from Victoria. He made around 1500 and sold some to Japan and America. His wheels are made from either pine or locally sourced blackwood and all are uprights. The flyer has three whorls on the whorl, and the ratio depends on the band. Jim recognised the need to reduce friction on a wheel and included ball bearings everywhere on the wheel, even where they can’t be seen and there is no need to oil his wheels due to this. Towards the end of his career Jim made the wheels more portable. In his heyday, Jim used to show his wheels at the Royal Melbourne show. A Japanese lady bought one (she was related to the Emperor) and word of mouth in Japan resulted in many more sales there.

Merino/Soy/Bamboo

My finished crochet scarf from handspun. It's so soft.

Handspun Merino/Soy/Bamboo

Here is some recently spun Merino/Soy/Bamboo. Whilst I didn't dye the fleece, I spun it. It is lovely and soft, with gorgeous variegated colours. I plan to make a scarf with this yarn.

Knitted Socks

I have just finished knitting my first pair of socks! Now, it did take me a long time to do this, with a couple of hiccoughs along the way however I now know why they are so addictive. It was fun knitting them, and they are just so warm!

Handspun texture

I attempted to replicate some yarn I fell in love with at a shop, but refused to pay $18 per skein to buy. To get this effect I spun fleece onto a core (cotton). I'm very pleased with the textured look.