Honeycomb tissue paper

Hello dear old craft blog. Here's a rapid fly-by just to mention my recent discovery of honeycomb paper...



I presume this is the stuff that paper xmas decorations are made of, but I hadn't realised you could buy it in sheets for crafty shenanigans.  Good old Pinterest enlightened me and the microbe and I have had a go at using it today for a trio of children's 'pop-up' birthday cards.

If you're in the UK and fancy giving it a try, you can get honeycomb paper on Amazon and Ebay.  (Mine came from a seller called Lyndie's Craft).

The sheets are a bit smaller than A4 and it seems as though you can cut out pretty much any shape in cross-section in order to get a 3d effect.  I expect you could use it to make a garland of paper spheres too.

Well... that's it.  A fly-by as promised.  Toodle pip.

Adventures with ProMarker Pens

This post is dedicated to my discovery of some great little pens that are a joy to draw with and can be layered almost like watercolour paint.

These Letraset Promarkers come in 1001 colours and are really marketed at graphic and comic-book artists, but a local painter named Stephanie Wilkinson showed me how you can use them with high grade watercolour paper to get quite a different result.

It was in her workshop that I did this sample piece, using a style that she refers to as ‘pattern painting’.

Unlike graphic paper, which gives you a flat, comic finish, the watercolour paper sucks the ink straight out of the nib, giving a deeply saturated and almost painterly effect. Admittedly you get through twice as many pens this way, but I guess that's the price for such a vivid finish.

You can also layer them and, because they flow so well, I've found them very enjoyable to draw with. It's also a much more casual affair than getting out my paints and easel and so on, meaning that time-poor people like me can enjoy doing impromptu little sketches far more often than before.

After my session with Stephanie I had fun banging out this series of informal little sketches at home, mainly to amuse my animal-mad son. I'm sure I'll be playing with these pens some more, when the urge next hits...

Customised Toddler T-shirts

Last weekend I had the idea of making customised t-shirts for my son, which started with a brief flurry of activity using special printer paper that you iron onto fabric such as t-shirts and tote bags, and ended with applique.

For transfers, there are two types of paper available - one is designed for ironing onto white fabric and the other for dark fabric. The white version works by printing in mirror-mode. You have to prepare and print your image as a mirror version of your end result - then you simply place your printed image face down on the t-shirt and iron over it.

This worked pretty well, and I made three animal-themed shirts, all of which went down very well with the microbe...

The dark paper works differently. You print in regular (non-mirror) mode and then peel off an (almost impossible-to discern) backing sheet before ironing the image onto the shirt through a layer of silicone paper.

I'm afraid to say that this stuff was a total flop for me. It seemed like I had to hold the iron over it for a decade before the image would think about adhering to the t-shirt and, even then, it transferred so thinly that the colour of the t-shirt showed through. I don't know what I did wrong. I was sure I'd followed the instructions - but perhaps my iron is just not suitable.

After this failure, I had a much better idea - applique! I'd never done this before but decided to have a go using some of my Liberty scraps.

I used an approach that gives you nice neat shapes with no raw edges. As a first step, you draw your desired shape freehand onto a piece of interfacing. Then you sew it together with a fabric scrap, with the right side facing inwards, stitching all the way around your drawn outline.

As a last step, you cut a slit in the interfacing and turn the while thing inside-out and iron it flat, leaving a lovely applique shape with no raw edges, ready to sew onto the t-shirt. (I attached mine simply by zig-zagging all the way around the edges on my sewing machine)

I love the results of these applique experiments and I'd like to do more.  Next time I might see whether it makes a difference to use iron-on interfacing, to get the applique fully adhered before sewing around the edges.

Gretel beret - knitted at last!

It's hard to believe but I actually knat something to completion last week.

We shall not talk about the HEINOUS number of UFOs that continue to languish in every cranny of my flat. It turns out that, if I want to actually complete something, hats are where it's at.

So - here be Gretel...  only 3 years later than intended.

Made using Rowan Silky Tweed in 'Bolero', purchased on a whim thanks to the highly-enabling post-Xmas sale at Black Sheep Wools.  As always, full details are on Ravelry.

When I added this pattern to my queue in 2010 I imagined I'd make it in grey, as with every other thing that I knit for myself.  But in the end I rather like it in pink.  And pink goes with grey...  right?

I decided to use some of the leftover yarn to make a curly scarf to go with it but the finished product isn't quite hitting the spot for me. I think it wants to belong to a small girl, really, so for now it's languishing on a wardrobe shelf.

Quick, easy and festive birdseed cakes

Do you fancy feeding the birds AND doing something fun with a small child?

This is a quick fly-by to share this brilliant and easy recipe for birdseed cakes. I followed this lady's instructions and it worked perfectly and made a gazillion of them.

All you need is bird seed, flour, water and syrup - and something like a cookie cutter to mould them in.  You can make any shape but as it's December I have made mine festive.

Now I just have to find a cat-proof place to hang them!  Hope the birds like them... 

 

 

(NB: the recipe suggests corn syrup but if you are in the UK it's easier to use golden syrup and works just as well.)


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Toddler's Own Christmas Tree

A little while ago I was inspired by this link on Pinterest for a toddler-friendly Christmas tree that little ones can decorate and un-decorate at will, so I decided to have a go.  (Essentially it's just a giant fuzzy felt tree - how hard could it be?)

I decide to make a stiff one with a cardboard skeleton, so that I could hang it on a panelled door, so I started by cutting out a tree shape from the side of a large cardboard box...

Next I went on the lookout for green felt.  After a bit of googling I discovered that there is such a thing as sticky-back felt - hooray!  You can get it at various places but I eventually ordered mine online from here and also a mixed bundle of coloured felt squares and some spotty felt from ebay.

Once the felt arrived it was just a case of sticking it on and cutting out bauble and present shapes.  I glued the presents around the base with a glue gun but the baubles and the star are all designed for maximum toddler fiddling.

I think the microbe likes it...

(The only trouble I'm having now is getting it to stay on the door using white-tac - it keeps popping off, so I'm thinking hanging it on a picture hook instead.)

Book Release - ta-daaa!

Hooray!  After an almost craft-free year of toddler-rearing, I am excited to announce some actual crafty news.

Readers with a very good memory might remember me mentioning that I took on a small job with Dorling Kindersley last year to author the soapmaking chapter of their new all-round Craft Book.

Fast-forward by 12 months... and ta-daaa!  The book has just been released in time for Christmas 2012.

As you can see, they have gone for the same 'vintage-style' cover design as the partner book entitled Dressmaking.

It was such a lovely surprise when my copy landed with a heavy thunk from the postman last week.  Now that I've had time to take a good look through it, I'd say it's looking like an ideal book for multi-crafters and anyone who likes to try their hand at different things.  The crafts include a very wide range of pursuits, including furniture-painting, wirework, sillk and glass-painting, metal-clay moulding, patchwork and lots more.

Each chapter starts with a clear step-by-step how-to guide on the craft in question, followed by a series of specific projects to make at home.

Does anyone fancy a sneak preview of my soapmaking chapter?  Here are snapshots of a few of the pages...

In case anyone out there is inspired enough to want to buy the book...

• UK readers can buy it from Amazon here 
• US readers can buy it under this slightly different name:  Craft (Dk Crafts)

Enjoy!

And now for something completely different

Well hello there!  I've been living in a crafty vacuum since Microboy was born, but I might have developed a very slight Pottery Cafe habit of late.  Today I picked up these two bowls that I painted last week.

No idea what I will do with them.  Apparently they are 'baby bowls' but - really?   Who on earth gives ceramic bowls to babies?  I suppose they might make a brief but appealing sight as they go frisbeeing past my head.  Personally I think they are more realistic as cereal bowls.  Not that I need any new bowls at all.  Oh well.  I might find a use for them somewhere.

In more exciting news, this week I received the sample layouts for my soapmaking chapter in the new craft book.  The photography looks really nice.  I'm still not sure when the book will come into the shops, but I'll be sure to post an update when it does.

News! And what I have been up to...

Yeep!  It's been ages since I updated.  But in fact I have been ludicrously busy on the craft front and I have two things to mention...

First of all, I am a lil bit excited to announce that I've been doing some handmade soap projects for another craft book that is due to come out soon.  I'll post more details once I know the release date, but for now I can say that it is going to be along the lines of a big book of mixed crafts (not dissimilar to Complete Craft)

I have to confess that there have been times in the last couple of months when I've cursed my own hubris for taking on this piece of work alongside a tiny baby.  Having to stop constantly to feed, change or entertain a baby means that things that would normally take me a day to accomplish have taken weeks... and some days have been spent in a sort of  fug of baby and soap, trying not to get bits of soap into the baby or bits of baby into the soap.  BUT - the copy is now written and last week I attended a two-day photo shoot where all of the step-by-steps were shot for the projects.  Hooray!

In other news, I am pleased to introduce Microboy's latest hat!  I knitted this months ago, but it is only now that it fits and I am entirely delighted with it.

Full details of pattern, yarn and so on are on Ravelry, here.

And now that I am done with the soap, I really must try to post here more often...

Tassel head strikes again

So... when I said that an Englishman can never have too many hats, I wasn't kidding.  This is just a fly-by to show off Microboy's latest, using the same free pattern that I published last week.  I thought he could do with some hot colours this time... and I love the fact that I can have such a thought, and a few hours later the hat is finished.  Instant gratification!  (The sharp-eyed amongst you might spot that his hat matches the cardie that was made for him by my talented knitty friend Maxine).

Anyway you might think of this as a sort of insurance policy for when he becomes a horrible teenager...  lets just say I am building up quite a library of photos. ;-)

(Full details and pattern link here on Ravelry).

New free pattern - Baby Tassels Hat

I've been meaning to publish the pattern for this simple little baby hat for ages.  Well, today is the day that I've finally got round to it!

This hat was the very first thing that I made for my little Microboy while he was still resident in my belly.  It was an improvised project to use up some leftover aran weight yarn and to exercise my yen for tassels.  But  the resulting hat turned out so cute that I decided to write up the pattern in case anybody else fancies having a go.

I used Amy Butler Belle Organic yarn, but you could use any aran/worsted weight yarn in a baby friendly fibre.  The pattern can be downloaded as a PDF file here.  (I've also added a permanent link on the right hand column of my blog)

Knitting for Microboy

The other day I woke up in a state of certainty about one thing...  this baby needs more hats!

This was fuelled largely by the tragedy of Microboy outgrowing his owl hat (boo hoo!) but also by the realisation that my new lifestyle as full time milkmaid does not leave a lot of room for large-scale hobbying.   Thus, in order to get my frustrated creativity out of my system, I predict an influx of teeny-tiny knitwear.

Anyway this little hat was knocked up in a couple of hours in front on the TV.

Iz cute, no?

I made it from Sirdar DK Crofter yarn, using a free pattern found on Ravelry, (As always, full details of the pattern and yarn, etc. are on Ravelry, here.)

9-month craft project

Well - I thought I would pop in and show off my latest FO...
 
This one took 9 months to make and is now 11 days old.  He's called James, and he is keen to model some of his knitwear, so here goes...

Minutes after being born

Three days old, in his owl hat

Five days old, in his jiffy bag

Jiffy bag for a baby

A little while ago I blogged about my love for French knitting patterns...  

This holds especially true when it comes to patterns for children and babies.  I tend to find that French childrenswear combines an element of fun with a great sense of style.  It avoids being overly twee without going to the other extreme of trying to look like miniature adult wear and often takes the form of simple blocky shapes, adorned with pom poms, stripes or tassels, in colour palettes that veer between chic neutrals and quirky brights...   or to put to another way, you don't see many French babies clad in peach acrylic matinee jackets.  

   

Anyway... now that my own little alien is 4 days days overdue, I am pleased to announce that I have finished my small homage to French babywear in the nick of time.  Behold the baby sleep sack...  (or, if you like, the glorified jiffy bag!)

This is made using a pattern called Confortable, which originated in a French magazine and has since been translated into English by a brilliant lady on Ravelry, here.

Having taken advice from others, I made this a few inches longer and wider than the pattern recommends, in the hope that it will fit for longer.  (For now I've delayed blocking it, until I see how well it fits little master   newborn, when he arrives - but I reckon I could probably grow it a fair bit, if need be).  

Anyway I would happily recommend both the pattern and the yarn.  I used Rowan All Seasons Cotton in a silver grey colour.  It has a nice sproingy twist to it that gives it some loft and makes the knitted fabric feel soft and comfortable.  Hopefully boy will agree...

Full details of the pattern, yarn and needle size can be found on Ravelry, here

EDIT:  Since I wrote this post, baby has been born and he fits into the sack with room to spare... pic here:  http://susiefhandmade.blogspot.com/2011/07/9-month-craft-project.html


EDIT:  I have had a lot of requests to share the English translation of this pattern, so I have put it online here:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B3ibivZ5ex6mMVpBeTVZY1JLLVU/view?usp=sharing  (I assume this is ok, given that the  original pattern is available online for free)

Look back in angora

Dear Knitters, this is the story of a near death experience... I could well have entitled it "blockers beware!"  However I am pleased to say that it has a happy ending...

Some may recall me blogging overexcitedly back in January about this crazily luxurious Absolu Angora yarn that I had ordered from France...

Well - after a minor dither about what to use it for, I eventually cast on for the Cedar Leaf Shawlette by Alana Dakos.  Left to my own devices, I would never have thought of  this pattern, but I got the idea from someone else on Ravelry and it turned out to be very well matched indeed.  Two balls of the Absolu is *just* enough to complete the project, with the main part of the shawl taking one ball and the lace border using up almost all of the second.  

The knitting proved to be rather a delicious sensory experience.  Although the yarn did shed a little during knitting, it was not as bad as you'd normally expect from angora - (e.g. it didn't shed as much as the Sublime Angora Merino blend that I've used in the past, or waft constantly up my nose).  On the whole it is simply very very soft and as light as air as it slips through your fingers.

I finally bound off the edging a few days ago and spent an hour or so wafting around the house draped in it, pre-blocking, before declaring it to be the softest, finest and most beautiful thing I'd ever made...  and then I almost ruined everything with an act of crazy hubris.  

Here is the cautionary tale.  Because I fancied blocking the lace edging, I decided to risk putting the shawl through the handwash cycle on my washing machine.  I've used this cycle many times before on fine yarns, including cashmere, wool and angora blends - effectively it simulates the act of hand washing and has never let me down before.  In this case I even double-bagged the shawl inside a pair of lingerie bags for safety.  And then I tried to ignore the niggly voice in my head questioning whether I really wanted to press the 'start' switch...

Suffice to say, when it came out of the machine - it felt like a moment of tragedy.  I was convinced that I had felted the item to oblivion.  The main symptom was that it appeared to have shrunk, and the stitches in the main body of the scarf had melded together into a more tight fabric than before.  As for the lace edging... lets just say that it didn't look as lacey as I remembered it.  The only glimmer of hope was that the shawl seemed to have retained its softness and mobility, and hadn't become stiffened or thick.  So I went into damage limitation mode and blocked it as vigorously as I dared, stretching it as far as possible and trying to open out the lace edging again.  

After a night on the boards, I am pleased (or make that delighted) to say that it seems to have survived by the skin of its teeth.  It is a pheonix risen from the ashes!  Yes - it has shrunk a little bit and is probably now more of a scarf than a shawl.  However it still flops and drapes as softly as before - and, best of all, the lace edging is still lace!   

As a finished scarf, it remains extremely soft to wear - as light as air and not remotely itchy.  In fact I have even discovered a small bonus from the shrinkage...  thanks to the closer melding of the stitches, the scarf no longer sheds and can be worn over my black clothing!   

So here are a few pics...

More pictures and full project details can be seen on Ravelry, here

If you'd like a moral to the story - then my suggestion to anyone using this yarn is that you might want to refrain from washing it at all - either prior to blocking or afterwards.  I suspect a light spritz with cool water would be sufficient for blocking, and then perhaps resort to dry clean only.   (Unless you want to felt it, of course... in which case, um, I don't think you'll have to try very hard!)