Garden Politics

It's been a while again since I last got a chance to write on here, as usual there are many reasons. Little P was a poorly thing for a whole week, and only her Mummy would do - she did not leave my side poor thing. It was sad seeing the usually bubbly little thing so lethargic and miserable. She tried her best to be happy but it wasn't easy! It was a tiring week for us both, and I was so happy when her antibiotics kicked in and she perked up. Now she's back to bouncing around and wearing me out in a completely different way, but one I much prefer!

I'm enjoying this 'free-time' while she is out and about, to sit down in the sun in the garden. Yes, sun. Yesterday it felt like winter again, today it is beautiful. Crazy English weather! But on a nice English summer's day there's nowhere else I'd rather be (well, almost!) 

I've been quite taken by the garden and nature lately, I must be mellowing in my old age. For weeks and weeks, I've watched a pair of blackbirds (dubbed Mr and Mrs B) build a nest in a clematis in the garden. They then disappeared for a few days, and I felt sad that they weren't going to nest in our garden. But then they returned, and she laid eggs and the pair took it in turns to sit on them and guard the nest. It was lovely to see them so close up. Then there were frantic trips in and out of the nest with food, all day long. The chicks had hatched! She continued guarding her territory, dive-bombing and large birds thats entered the vicinity. Yesterday, I came downstairs and opened the blinds, to see two young fluffy blackbirds hopping along after Mrs B in the border at the back of the garden. Wow! They are super cute and  just bundles of fluff really. I then sat and crocheted by the window watching the young fledglings explore their new world. It was amazing to watch, I don't think I've ever really seen baby birds just out of the nest like that before. I did get a little bit obsessed with watching them, but I'm glad I did. Later I went into the garden and heard a bit of a commotion - and then I saw a seagull with a baby bird in it's beak. I was horrified and thought 'nooo, not my babies please?!' 

It turned out to be a baby starling - we have a lot of them nesting in the gutters here. But I was then on fierce seagull/crow patrol. I swear, if one landed near my babies I was going to scare it sooo bad! So, that took up yesterday. I'm happy to be sitting in the garden now, and I can hear them chirping away in the bush. Poor Mr and Mrs B are still working tirelessly to bring them food, and I thought I was a busy mum! In fact, as I've been sitting here typing, one baby has flown right past me on his maiden test flight and landed a couple of metres away from me. Dad was close behing telling him to get back to the nest! He was escorted back promptly, but I can hear him flapping his wings in the bush now - he's eager to be off! The other one doesn't seem quite so adventurous, he's quite happy to be perched up high in the bush and be fed.

I've tried to get photos but I haven't had much luck yet! I have been taking snapshots of the garden springing into life, albeit a bit later this year! I love playing around with my camera and will showcase a few of my faves...

An Erythronium pagoda (Dog's Tooth Violet)...

A special daffodil called 'Pheasant's Eye'...

A type of Muscari (grape hyacinth)...

And a montage of some others I took...

On the crochet front, I'm afraid I don't have too much to show. It's not that I haven't been crocheting my spare time away, it's just all the things I'm making still seem to be gifts and I can't show them yet! There's a big project, a designing project, and as usual, lot's of baby things - why so many babies all at once? 

I can show a couple of the things I've made and given as gifts, as they have been received now (gratefully I hope!) First up was a little fox, made for Little Lady's bestest friend's second birthday. I trawled the internet for something I hadn't made before and that I really wanted to, and came up with foxy - the KISS series Fox by K4TT.

I made him using Sirdar Snuggly Baby Bamboo and a 3.5mm hook, and he worked out quite well I think! He was a bit tricky around his face (constant colour changes) but I love how he turned out. The level of detail in the pattern is amazing, I love the shape of the tail, how it swishes round.

Next up, was a gift for my brother's girlfriend, an avid West Ham United fan. I put my football rivalry to the side and made her a Hammers monster in claret and blue. He is cool, I rather like him! It was the FreshStitches Mr Toothy pattern again - I just love that monster so much!

And a couple of baby gifts to finish up - the 'Chubby Teddy Rattle', a lovely free pattern I found on Ravelry - it's very quick and easy to whip up (I have in fact made 3 as I like them so much!). I used the trusty Baby Bamboo again, it's just so soft for toys and easy to work with. I also purchased a few 'rattles' to put inside. They are little plastic discs which rattle nicely, as I found the bells just don't work - the sound gets muffled and they don't sound too great (if they do sound at all).

I also made a rabbit snuggler for a little lady born in February. Another free, quick and easy pattern I found on Ravelry. It's quite sweet and I like the other choices of animal to make - the owl is very nice!

Finally, another FreshStitches pattern... it's that Alastair the Caterpillar. A very quick and easy project, but very cute. I used Rico Creative Cotton for this as FreshStitches uses Aran (worsted) weight yarn for most of her things, and I didn't want him to turn out tiny!

So that's that for now, I'm going to get back to the sun (it really is quite warm now) and maybe crochet a bit until my little Lady returns, so until next time...

Gifting

Well, this is a first. I'm sitting in the comforts of my sunny garden typing this. It's a beautiful day, the first one with a bit of heat in the sun. This makes me very happy, as I am such a sun-bum and outdoor person (when the weather is nice!) Sitting here makes you instantly forget the insanely long winter we have had, and it feels just like yesterday that I was sitting in this spot admiring all the life springing into action around me. Birds singing and frantically looking for long, dangly bits of plant and twigs to build their nests, a frog in the pond, disappearing when I got to close. Could this actually be Spring?
If the sun stays out, I shall sit in this very spot later and crochet. And there is nothing much nicer than sitting in the sun doing your favourite thing. I just cant wait to be able to sit out here in the summer months and do just that!
I've been making lots of amigurumi lately, from monsters, to cute animals, to re-inventing one of my own designs. I've not posted on here lately, partly due to time restrictions, and partly due to the fact that everything I am making seems to be gifts. And I don't want to run the risk of said recipient catching a glimpse of their present to come!
The Easter holidays have been rather hectic at times. First, was the Easter weekend itself. I can't really remember that now, it seems a lifetime away already! Then a few days later, was the Little Lady's 2nd birthday. Now I can remember that, I'll never forget that. We had got her a playhouse for the garden, as she absolutely loves them. At playgroup she spends so much time in and out of them, opening doors and windows and sticking her head out and asking 'cup of tea?' That will be the day, when I actually get one! So, I was dead excited about giving this to her. In stark contrast to this precise moment in time, it was bitterly cold around her birthday - snow actually fell! I had been keeping an eye on the weather forecast before the big day, and it wasn't looking too promising. On the Easter Sunday, it was freezing, but dry, so my Mum and I braved the outdoors to assemble the house. It was actually relatively straightforward - if you did it correctly. But alas, in my haste, we put the wrong sides together and the telephone ended up above the hob. Not good - health and safety would have had a field day. Putting it together was OK - just a bit of welly needed - but getting those wrong sides apart was something else. It took 3 of us and a lot of effort and stress to take it apart. Finally, we managed to, and assembled it properly, and it was easy! Sorted! We then tried to conceal it by wrapping the mahoosive box it came in, around it and left for the warmth of the house and a well deserved cup of tea.
The plan was to keep it that way until her birthday - but weather was against us, and the Little Lady also seemed a bit poorly, so needed cheering up a bit. A couple of days before the big day, we decided to let her see it. It was a sunny (yet bitterly cold) day, and she was getting restless stuck inside. We wrapped her up and took her to the garden and unwrapped the beast of a house. Needless to say, she loved it. In and out, out and in, opening and shutting windows until her heart was content. It was just too cold to be out for long though. The only part of the plan I didn't think through particularly well was that I would also be summoned to sit in the house whilst she played around me. She totally loved it though, so I spent a few hours sitting on an ice cold floor, wrapped up with a hat on and a cup of tea.
The big day soon arrived, and despite having her 'main' present, she was still laden with things to play with. It was so lovely seeing the look of excitement on that little face. We had an afternoon tea party with some relatives and one of her friends, and she absolutely loved prancing around in her 'party dress' and demanding anyone that passed through the door came bearing a gift. It was a very lovely and special day and we all thoroughly enjoyed it. Especially the Little P, who kept going on a high all day until 9pm. Her little face when her birthday cake came through - she looked like she was going to explode with excitement - she just couldn't contain herself. I'll never forget that!
So, back to the crochet front, I've been fitting it in as and when I can, and it's been a lot of gifts. Everyone seems to be having babies at the moment - so it's lots of neutral baby friendly toys and things. A couple have actually arrived now, so I can show a few pictures of what I've been making!
One such baby, a little girl, arrived yesterday. One of my creations was a little toy for her, and one for her big sister - so she doesn't feel left out! A stripy elephant for the little one and a girly monkey for her big sister. I spent a while trawling the internet for a sweet monkey pattern, and I really struggled to find one that suited my needs. I even toyed with the idea of designing my own, but as time was a bit of a constraint, I didn't want to rush one! Finally I came across one called 'Monkey Girl' by Lilleliis I found through Ravelry. I wanted the monkey to be a decent-ish size and dangly so it could be dragged around. This was perfect for the job. I instantly knew I would use RICO design creative cotton aran for the job. I am still so in love with this yarn - the colours and the softness is amazing. It is a tad splitty but I soon get used to it and it's not really a big problem. So here are the finished creations which are now with their new owners!

I have also been making some funky, bright coloured monsters. One for a Little Chap who had his 2nd birthday a day before my little lady (although the monster arrived late due to a technical hitch of running out of stuffing!) and one for, well me. Well, for the Little P really I suppose, but I like him just as much.
I have been wanting to make monsters for a while, but have never got round to it, so it was great to finally be able to. I wanted chunky cuddly monsters, so I used the RICO creative cotton again, and a 4mm hook. There was only one place I would get a monster pattern from - FreshStitches. Her patterns for monsters are simply awesome. A friend of mine gifted me the Craftsy 'Design Your Own Monster' course for Christmas - which is great by the way - so I had a few monster patterns from that, but she also has a few free ones here.
I decided to make 'Mr Toothy' for the Little Man's birthday. I wanted him to be bright, boyish colours. And I used different sized safety eyes to add more character. I have to say I am totally in love with him, and didn't actually want to part with him! But I'm glad I did - when he finally made it to the Little Man he was well received. Poor boy had been poorly for 2 days and not been happy at all, but when he got his crazy monster he smiled and cheered up, which was lovely to hear. Job done, and maybe being late actually worked out rather well!

I then had to make one for us. using my daughter as an excuse, although really he was for my pleasure! I opted for one of the free patterns 'Mixtro Monster'. He wasn't quite as cool as 'Mr Toothy', but I didn't want to make the same thing again straight away. He is rather cool though, and Little P calls him 'funny monster' and seems to like throwing him around the lounge! I took some pictures of him in the foliage of the garden...

He also peeped out of the Little Lady's house...

I love how FreshStitches uses back loop only crochet technique for her designs - it gives a lovely striped texture effect...

Yet again, he was made in the RICO creative cotton - fuchsia and light pistachio. I love it so much, and love having a stash of it. I just 'top up' the colours as I use them up, so I always have a range of them ready to go when called into action!

Right, time to be off - lunch is calling my name! Until next time...

A Woolly Hibernation

Yes, forget the last post entitled 'Sunshine!' as I haven't seen any since! In fact, it's reverted back to the depths of winter again. Luckily, we have missed another round of the white stuff where we are on the coast, but it still has been bitter. Just realised I'm talking about the weather already... but I am English after all! The sun must have peeped out one little bit in the last 3 weeks, as I managed to get in the garden with the Little Lady and play around with my camera. I absolutely love Spring flowers, and was excited to see the first of the bulbs in full bloom. I took the opportunity whilst the sun made an appearance to admire the beautiful crocuses, and snapped a couple of pictures. After getting the focus just right, I was amazed to see the level of detail in those tiny flowers - they are so lovely! Little P was suitably impressed with them too, before kicking a football on them and trampling them a bit!

It's been a funny few weeks, with not much time for sitting down and doing, well... this, writing. Little P has been full of beans and keeping me busy - she is really coming out of her shell now and is quite the entertainer it seems. I have also been squeezing in the crochet when she has gone to bed in the evenings.
My main 'make' lately has been a kind of changing mat pouch thing to take around in my bag with me. I am now fed up of taking the old changing bag everywhere with me, as I hardly ever need to use anything inside it. But I couldn't possibly risk being without a spare nappy and wipes! I wanted to make a crochet-covered changing mat which I could roll up with all the necessary bits inside. It was also a good excuse to dip into Lily Sugar 'n' Cream stash I bought from the US a while back and never had the chance to use!
I wanted to make the cover a stripy, colourful affair, but using a nicer stitch than just rows of double crochet. I researched a bit, and found a pattern in one of my books (Basic Crochet Stitches, 250 to Crochet by Erika Knight). Then I just picked out the colours and got started. The rectangle made up in no time at all, and I really love the colours of this yarn and how they work together.
I then dismantled a travel changing mat, and stitched it on to the rectangle. I then made a couple of button loops, stitched on the buttons, and voila! My changing mat was complete!
All rolled up...

Laid out in full...

Little Lady likes it...

And a close up of the stitching and colours...

And full of nappies and wipes!

There also seems to be a baby boom at the moment, so I've been spending a lot of time making baby related goods, toys and rattles and blankets! And as they are all surprise presents I can't show any! I'm now going to go and carry on with a monkey I'm making, and stay nicely hibernated on the sofa with my crocheted blankets. Until next time...