Skip to main content

Some knitting and some crochet !!!

Even if you are not hearing from me very often (internet service is quite a nightmare here!), this doesn't mean I stay with my hands on my belly all day long !!!!

I craft every day !!!!! Some days like a crazy, some days more quietly !!!!!

In the last two weeks I started a couple of projects with my straight knitting needles …..

I'm following a pattern from one of Fiona Goble's knitting books SCARVES and COWLS 36 quick and stylish knits : it's on page 14, the Long striped scarf and I love it !!!



I'm using different yarns ( Sirdar Sublime cashmere merino silk dk ….. discontinued !!!! sorry!) that I bought when still in Indonesia, while the pattern requires other yarns, but still from Sirdar !!! ;oD
Another different thing from the original pattern is the size of my needles : I'm working with a 3,5 mm pair, while the pattern suggests 4mm needles!

My scarf will be thinner and shorter than the original, but I'm already in love with it …




… when working with the garter stitch I always prefer the wrong side of my work, mostly when stripes are involved !!!! I like to look at the rows where I change the colours …





My "little" sister Varinia asked me to knit her socks …. scary, really scary !!!! I've never tried to use circular needles or dpns … so : what to do ?????
Well, I started to browse on Pinterest (where else ???) and I found an easy sock pattern to knit with a pair of straight needles, just to have an idea …..






I did it !!!!! At least one !!!! ;oD
The pattern I followed is HERE !!!!
I admit that I need to refresh my seam technique (!!!!), but I enjoyed this easy pattern that gave me the idea of the parts of a sock and I'm really less scared after this try!
One thing I'm sure right now : I need to understand and practise with DPNS, because they allow you to knit better socks!!!! We'll see !!!!

In the meantime, two Birtdays have been celebrated here in Maputo, so I knitted (again!!!!) two softies,
one for a little girl (3 years old!) …









I call her "piccolotta" (a sweet way to say little in Italian!) and I love it as it's a very quick knit, so simple and satisfying, as you can add small touches to make it great !!! See the bow on her head? And the buttons?? You know what I mean, right???? ;oD

The other softie, was bigger because for a bigger girl (15 years old !!!!) ….






…. ah, the little heart, embroidered using the duplicate stitch method ….





I did some crochet, too !!!!
I'm preparing a couple of photo tutorials and I hope Internet will allow me a serene photo editing in the meantime to show you very soon my new projects!!!
The Big Girl (who received the big softies) kindly asked me to crochet her some little baskets (do you remember THESE????) as party favours : she needs them to put some little cacti in! Nice idea, right?





These baskets are a little bit bigger than the original ones, as I added a couple of stitches in the first round (so they are larger) and two more rows of DCs (so they are higher, too!) !!!

See you soon ( I hope!), xxxx Alessandra

Comments

  1. Helloooooo..... great to see you handling also the knitting needles :) Your scarf is going to be lovely, often I also love the "wrong" side, haha. And your softies............. so cute!! byebye

    ReplyDelete
  2. thank you Francien!!!! I just paid a visit to Pinterest, where I saw you pinned one of my softies!!! ;oD
    You are great!!!
    xxxxx ale

    ReplyDelete
  3. Haha, I also prefer the wrong side of knitted stripes! :-) Finally someone who thinks of this the same way!
    The scarf is going to be just perfect, and your softies are too cute!!
    Have a nice day, Sigrid

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Sigrid!!!! :oD
      Stripes on wrong side = just perfect!!!!
      xxxxxx Ale

      Delete
  4. I've never tried socks too, although I would love to make some in the future. Yours look great! And I mustn't forget the scarf - it's lovely!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Those baskets will be cute with cacti in them! And that embroidered heart is a great touch!
    Kate :}

    ReplyDelete
  6. Quanti progetti, Ale!!! sei molto laboriosa!
    Amate la nuova sciarpa!
    buona giornata e baci dalla Catalogna!

    ReplyDelete
  7. You've been so busy Alessandra! Even socks - how fab are they :) :) Love the softies and the crochet baskets - your knitting is coming on brilliantly! Must blog soon - byeeee! Alison x

    ReplyDelete
  8. Those little baskets and your little fellows are so cute!!! The socks are fabulous!!! If (when you can get online!) you look at Winwick Mum's blog she has some sock tutorials, earlier in the year she did a sock along and taught loads of people to knit socks, so that might be worth a look. Not that I know because I cannot knit, but I do know that a lot of people took part and loved it! Happy knitting!!! xx

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wow not even crocheting but also knitting. You are doing a great job. Hope to see you soon.
    Grtz,
    Chris

    ReplyDelete
  10. Wow you have been busy making so many colourful lovely things!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Great knitting progress! That scarf will be nice and cozy when it's done!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. .... I really hope so !!!!! ;oD
      happy weekend, xxxxx Ale

      Delete
  12. Everything is so great and adorable! I imagine you can do anything you set your mind to. :)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Hi my dear reader!
I'm very happy to see you here! After your visit, feel free to leave a comment!
I love to hear from you and I like to keep in touch!
I'll answer you back asap!!
Thank you and enjoy your day,
xxxx Alessandra

Popular posts from this blog

Make it ! The Granny Yarn Chain !!!

ARE YOU READY FOR THIS ???? SURE YOU ARE !!! I now that!!!! ;oD So during this last week I was showing you via Instagram (see  my personal feed ) some colourful pictures about my new crochet w.i.p. , which I completed last night ... ... so this morning, before school/office time a couple of boys helped me with the last photos for this blog post ... TA-DAH ... The beauty of this project resides in the fact that is adaptable to any extent, any kind of yarn and any corner of your home (in or out!) !!! The inspiration and "creative kick" derives from two other projects I've seen around :  The Chain Statement Necklace  by my dear friend Miki from  Set Free My Gypsy Soul  and  Peggy's Comfy Indoors Blanket  by Pip Lincoln from  Meet Me at Mike's  !!! Thank you both, girls !!! It has been a long time since I've been wanting to crochet (or even knit !) a paper chain ... I made some long paper chains for our Christmas tree back in Indonesia but I al

Make it ! Knitted triangular scarf !!!

Last December, I saw a very simple and cute scarf knitted by Angie ( le monde de sucrette) and I thought to knit one for me, too, but then I was busy with the gifts to prepare for family and friends back in Italy .... so nothing was done for me!!! Luckily, some days ago, while browsing through my blogs list, I found a post from Ilaria ( IDA interior lifestyle) , who was proposing the same (she added a pompom!) piece of clothing .... I didn't have any excuse to wait longer for knitting my own triangular scarf!!!! ;oD So, I started .... Do you want to start one, too ??? Well, you need : some yarn ! My personal choice was : Lana Grossa Basics Calmo (59% acrylic, 24% cotton and 17% linen), shade 207. All my 4 balls of yarn (50g each) have been used for this project. Then 2 balls (50g each) from Rowan Classic Cotton Jeans Yarn (100% cotton), shade 365-Sierra, for both stripes and tassels! a pair of 4,5mm  knitting circular needles or, if you prefer, a pair of long strai

Make it ! The Granny Bunny !!!

You know, this picture from my  Instagram feed  has collected more than 900 likes ... ... and a colourful crocheter named Karin @woolfieber , made her own version just looking at my pic (you can find her work  HERE  ) !!!! My idea, since the beginning , was to prepare a photo tutorial for you, but do you really need one ? These Granny Bunnies are so easy to crochet, believe me !!!! YOU NEED : some colourful mercerised cotton a 3,5 mm hook a pair of scissors a tapestry needle beads for embellishments (optional) Please note that I follow the US crochet terminology, thank you ! Each bunny measures 13 cm in height and it can be used for different purposes : bunting, hanging decorations, appliques, brooches, on napkin rings and more !!!! The sky's the limit !!! You can use this pattern even with different yarns and, consequently, hook sizes !!! ;oD Abbreviations : DC = double crochet ch = chain SC = single crochet 2SCtog = 2 single crochet