Pretty in pink

Knitting has taken a back seat lately, been busy travelling up the motorway to see number one grandaughter.

She is such a sweetie!

Been a bit busy lately

Thanks Anna!
http://beepbeepdesigns.blogspot.com

Baby knitting

So now my knitting projects are all concerned with making baby things. I have finished two pushchair blankets for expected babies 1 and 2, and the next project is a big clown doll, then some baby cardigans and jumpers. I might be brave and have a go at the famous Zimmerman 'surprise' baby jacket, hopefully with some assistance from beeptwo, who has made one with the help of copious notes along the way.

One big plug

Not the sort you put in sinks or into the electrical socket, or even in your ears.
http://www.enlightenmentthebook.co.uk

If you want a really funny read for the summer, this book will provide that and is a cracking page-turner too. Available from Amazon
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Enlightment-Cox-Thomas-P/dp/1843863081/ref=sr_1_27?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1214577893&sr=1-27

This week I have mostly been knitting.......

.....dishcloths.

They are really quick to knit and lovely to use - much better than those blue cloths which soon get yucky. These can be thrown in the washing machine and kept nice and clean. A ball of dishwash craft cotton makes about one and a half, but I found some cotton on a cone in my stash which works just as well hence the multicoloured design!

There are millions of dishcloth patterns on the web, I just liked this one as it was easy to knit and looks quite nice on the sink.

Long time no blog - sorry, have been massive disruptions in the house (it's a long story and a big insurance claim) but gradually getting back to normal.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

Just felt like adding a complete contrast to the last photo. Difficult to believe it was taken 5 weeks later!

Long time gone...

Been away for ages! Had a lovely holiday which involved Hong Kong, New Zealand and the Cook Islands. Ready to start knitting again and getting back to listing on Ebay. And now with a grandchild on the way I have a whole new lot of knitting to plan! Just need to get over the jet lag...

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to everyone and Happy Knitting.

Me and him outdoors are off to the other side of the world for a little while, so will be out of touch for a few weeks. Bitstobuy will be in capable hands though! See you in the Spring....

Woops what happened there?

I don't know why tiger got cut in half.

I have been doing some crocheting!

I have bought a lovely new book with crochet motifs in and have been having a go at some of them. I found that I could follow a pattern after all, I know the basic stitches and techniques, although I find I get on just as well by looking at the picture of the finished motif. I don't think I could write a pattern though, I will leave that to someone else!

The tiger motif is just the right size for a dolls house rug. I love the way the crochet stitches give a ragged look, just like tiger fur. There are all sorts of possibilities based on this one....

I found a lovely lacy motif which I have put together to make a dolls house bedspread. It took quite a long time to make but looks really pretty now it is finished.

Perhaps I have gone through my crochet phase for the moment; my first love is still knitting after all. I have now started a Rowan wool jumper so that will keep me busy for a while.

Feed the world!

And increase your vocabulary at the same time!

Just had a pattern accepted for the Knitting-Pattern-A-Day calendar for 2009. This publication is great, gives lots of ideas for new designs and ways of using up spare yarn.
Otherwise still knitting as usual, no big projects on the go at the moment so just filling spare time with knitting tiny bits from my patterns to go onto ebay. Have been doing a bit of crocheting too, making tiny blankets, but my crocheting skills are limited. I love doing granny squares type though where you just keep going round and round with trebles. I can keep that up for hours.
We are off for an autumn break to Amsterdam at the weekend, the weather apparently is mostly cold! Hope to see lots of Van Gogh and canals no doubt.

This week I have mostly been.........

........knitting tiny toys. Had an order for ALL my toy patterns to be knitted. This lot are off to Spain.

New 'I Love Knitting Shop'!

After not very good service from the supplier of my last on-line I Love Knitting shop, I have now set up a new one! Apologies that the link from the webpage has been broken for some time, but hopefully all is in order now.
Otherwise all is good, enjoying the warm weather at last even if it is not so good for knitting. One of the lovely ladies at my knitting club came up with a new idea for me which involves a completely new range of patterns to design, so I am working hard on that. Still at the thinking stage but hope to have something to show soon.
Our knitting club is known as 'Knit and Natter' and we meet on alternate Thursdays at the South Lodge Hotel, Brighton Road, Lower Beeding (near Horsham). We are a thriving club of about 30 members, with about 8 turning up on a typical evening. We enjoy sharing ideas and patterns, and have a good chat in very pleasant surroundings, overlooking the Sussex Downs. I am the only knitter who works in the mini-scale, but other members produce some very inventive knitting, with lots of colours and beautiful textures. I always find it a great inspiration. More details on request if anyone is interested in joining!
I have been quite busy selling patterns, and am finding that my latest idea of selling 1 and 2 ply yarn on Ebay seems to be taking off. It is not easy to find such thin yarn in the shops, but I am able to buy in bulk and sell in small quantities for the mini-knitter. Just need to keep that kitten well out of the way when I am winding!
No listing on Ebay for a couple of weeks though. We are away in a couple of weeks time, then I am on Jury Service for a possible couple of weeks. I am told that Jury Service can involve a lot of waiting around, will I be the first person to take along my knitting?

Lots of new jumpers

I have been busy designing new jumpers in 1:12 dolls house scale. These are kits, providing all the yarn and haberdashery required, so no need to buy lots of different colours. My favourite is the rabbit!

I have learned a valuable new lesson this week...

...kittens and wool don't mix. There should be at least two closed doors between a new kitty and any project involving knitting needles and wool.

Latest magazine article

I received my preview copy of 'Dolls House Magazine' today, with my latest article. This is a general description of miniature knitting, with lots of hints and tips to get the beginner started. They have taken some lovely photos of my work and hopefully this will inspire lots of new knitters!

What a strange find

So today (as it wasn't raining for a change) I spent the whole day in the garden. I prepared all the borders and put out the bedding plants, so now all ready for summer. I was pulling up an old plant which was spilling over the wall, when I noticed something round just sitting on top of the wall. I was going to throw it away but on closer look it turned out to be a coin.

I have looked on the internet (whatever you have got someone is selling one on ebay) and it turns out to be a French coin dating from the 1790's, minted in Paris - not a very good photo, it is much clearer in real life. On the back it says Cinq Centimes L'An .... (unfortunately the year is obliterated but it seems the number usually varies from 5 to 7 ish).

So how did it end up in my garden, and what was it doing just sitting on the wall? Presumably it was pushed up by a plant and left for me to find. I wonder who was the last person to hold it? Could it have been dropped by someone at the private school which was on this site many years ago?

How strange.

New pattern

This is the new bedspread pattern I have developed. I have done it as a kit, with all the yarn included, in both a pink and a blue version. There is enough yarn left over to make a matching rug.

It looks very effective when finished, quite an intricate pattern, but once you get in to it not too difficult.

I have been to see a commercial printer this week and my brochures are now in their system, should be available in a lovely glossy version in a couple of weeks. Will make life much easier for me, and stop me cursing at the computer printer quite so often when it misfeeds or prints one side on the wrong side of another! (Why do printers work perfectly when you are in the room but misbehave as soon as you go to make a cup of tea?).

I will be having another article printed soon, which normally provokes a rash of requests for brochures, so I will be all ready to go!

Otherwise bitstobuy has been fairly quiet the last couple of weeks. Perhaps no-one feels like knitting when the weather is so nice and warm.

I am feeling fairly patterned-out now, but still have a few ideas in the pipeline. Time to catch up on all that other knitting and refresh the brain cells.

Oh and if Mrs D Lovatt happens to read this - thanks for your order and cheque, but there was no delivery address on the order form and I can't trace you! I haven't cashed the cheque of course, just hoping that you realise and get in touch.

More wedding photos

Beeptwo is doing a sterling job on her blog in showing more wedding photos; she has now got some of the Indian ceremony up there. The official photos of the English ceremony are available on the photographers site for about another 6 weeks I believe.
I have taken the plunge and signed up for etsy.com, so have now opened a shop to see how it goes. There are loads of lovely hand made things on this site, there are some very talented people out there. Will be interesting to see if I have any sales. I am also thinking now about supplying my patterns via etsy and ebay by attachment to an email, so that customers can download them instantly. It will mean that there is no P&P to pay for the customer, and it will save me printing costs, so should be of benefit all round. I will have to change the format of the leaflets from Publisher to Word, but apart from the time it will take, it shouldn't be too difficult. Another project to keep me busy.
Otherwise I am knitting up my new bedspread pattern, more news soon.