Tag Archives: merino

baby it’s cold outside

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Baby it’s cold outside Beanie.
Yarn 1 (Dark Grey) = 50% Baby Alpaca, 30% Merino Wool, 20% Bamboo.
Yarn 2 (Light Grey) = 50% Alpaca, 35% Merino Wool, 15% Silk.

Just popping in quickly to say hi…. ‘Hi!’ …. and to let you know I finished knitting my beanie. And shock of all shocks, I’ve actually popped it in my shop! I think it’s the first thing I’ve listed in my shop for months. It’s reinvigorated my determination to concentrate more on making items for the shop. I hope you’ll be seeing a refreshed shop within the next few months… or as fast my hands can knit, crochet, snap, type, repeat… etc etc etc…

Meraki

Is that not the sweetest way to describe the process of making something with love… of doing what you love… of following your creative drive to make… of quite literally putting your heart and soul into what you make…. I stumbled across this new-to-me word on instagram via Desert Wanderer. I just love it and am so pleased to have found the perfect little word to describe how a bit of my heart ends up in everything I make.

Speaking of sweet finds, I’ve got two more I wanted to share with you today… just because.

  • The Moral Bucket List isn’t a 5 second read, but it’s well worth the few minutes it’ll take you to read it if you are looking for some inspiration.
  • And this one… because love is beautiful and love that stands the test of time is pretty special.

What are you reading lately, care to share a link?

Wishing you warm Meraki beanies for when it’s cold outside baby!

Thanks to Skye for the Moral Bucket List link, and a special thanks to my beautiful daughter for the beanie modelling xx

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fans and fimo

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Mint Fans Pram Snuggle Blanket with matching Heart Garland.
100% Pure Merino Wool, Crochet.

Yep – made another blanket with this lovely Vintage Fan Ripple Stitch. I just love it – in case you haven’t noticed! I’ve done a couple of different blankets using this stitch here and here, even a scarf here. And I found the pattern via the lovely blog Meet me at Mikes.

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It’s a lovely super soft squishy little blankie that would be perfect for the pram or car seat as it’s not too big to lug around. It’s very light and has the softest drape too. And then there’s the luscious mint green colour… I do so love a delicate mint green.

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The pattern is actually pretty easy to remember, and not as tricky as it may look. I thought it might be nice to hang the little garland from the pram, or car window or something and it makes it such a sweet little gift set. I’ve popped it in the Etsy shop already so you can see some more pictures there if you like.

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I’ve also caught the Fimo craze. I love, and I mean REALLY love, making up the colours. More love creating the colours rather than the actual physical mixing of the fimo together, as I did have a little sook occasionally when my hands & fingers got tired. That stuff is SO hard to begin with.

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But the colours… oh my I just loved making different shades. Adding a bit more, taking a bit out, working in another bit of white… All in the name of the perfect shade. Or the near enough is good enough shade. No room for perfection around here, life really is too short. The beads are meant to be a little rustic and earthy in their shape and colour. You can even see my fingerprint in some of them! I kinda like that some have my fingerprint – doesn’t get anymore hand-made than that now does it?

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It’s not just about the colour though. It is also about the beads… I hope to turn these coloured sets into necklaces, plus I have a little plan for some more… Not quite sure how it will all work but will let you know if it does. (I like to ignore the crafting disasters!)

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Brights! I’m not usually a super bright colour person, maybe a pop of it here or there, I like softer tones usually. But then sometimes you just need a big punch of colour I reckon. So that’s this necklace. In your face bright colours, probably for the dull grey winter days I’m thinking.

If you follow me on Instagram you would have already seen my Mint Fan Blankie in progress and the Fimo beads. It was a Family Fimo Friday Crafternoon – that was my Good Friday. Pretty darn good really. What’s better than a Crafternoon? And one with your crafty talented lovely girly family members? My daughter, my mum, my sis and my niece. Sweet huh? There was also chocolate eggs, homemade peanut brittle (thanks sis) and homemade Ginger Syrup drinks (thanks mum). A very good Good Friday indeed.

Hope your Good Friday was good?
And the Easter Bunny hops by with some cute fluffy goodness… and chocolate! Of course. Always chocolate.

socks, a blankie and some pondering

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Serenity Socks
50% alpaca, 30% Merino Wool, 10% Silk, 10% Nylon. Knit.

I’ve finally got around to showing you my finished pair of socks. They have been finished for a while actually, I’ve even been wearing them – which feels pretty special. They are soft and light and comfy… and I have the next lot of sock yarn ready and waiting to be converted.
I used a free sock pattern I found on Raverly. A great beginners sock I think, a simple pattern – simple sock.


Fluffy like a Teddy Blankie
100% Baby Alpaca. Knit & Crochet.

This was a delight to make. Pure baby alpaca is in my top 3 yarns for sure. I just love how delicate, light, soft and fluffy it is. The colour is called Winter Queen and I really like its earthy tones with delicate little hints of pastel colours like blue, orange and purple.

I tried out a new stitch called Pennant Stitch and I’m loving the little triangles it created. I will admit to again following a pattern ( I know… what’s happening to me?!). But I will also admit to a few unpicking sessions due to drifting off into my own little rhythm of knitting… which is all well and good except that it wasn’t the rhythm of the pattern. Oh well, the upside is that I’m getting better at unpicking knitting!

I’m also entering this blanket in the “made it” challenge on the Woolhogs blog… Check it out if you want.


I just had to share this image of my orchid plant with you today too. I am in awe of its constant beauty and pristine delicate petals. I’m new to orchids, this is my first but I have a feeling it won’t be my last.


Lastly I thought I would update the “Dove Cottage” image on my ‘about’ page. This photo was taken this morning to capture the gorgeous Jasmine in all it’s blooming glory. I adore coming and going at the moment as I get the sweetest punch of Jasmine perfume every time I pass the front steps. It’s so delicious it almost makes my mouth water! A sweet little spring treasure is Jasmine.

I’m off to start another new project… I have a scarf, socks, knit blanket, hats and another heart blanket on my short(?) list… so hard to decide… I believe this calls for a peppermint tea whilst I ponder over my yarn stash. Ahhh I do so love this part too. The pondering, imagining a particular yarn as a hat or blanket or scarf, handling the soft fluffy skeins and balls, matching and contrasting colours together, looking through patterns and different stitches…. And then bringing all these elements together. Thinking about what I’m going to make next, and then making it… I just love that whole process.

Are you pondering your next project too? What’s on your short list?

Happy pondering!

omg x 3!

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OMG – I knitted a sock!

OMG – I followed a pattern!

OMG – I used yarn with nylon in it!

I know, it’s amazing isn’t?! So amazing I couldn’t wait til I knitted the other one to blog about it.

I’ve never knitted anything in the round before, so obviously haven’t used double pointed needles before. A bit tricky to start with, then a bit annoying at times when they got in the way… but for the most part they were pretty to easy to get used to.

I’m sure most of you know by now I’m not good at following patterns (and recipes), but… prepare yourselves… I actually followed this pattern to the very last stitch! Incredible no? Just quietly, I even surprised myself.

And I had to use a yarn with nylon! So everyone kept telling me anyway. All the sock yarns had nylon in them so I figured I best go with the flow as a sock yarn maker knows best right? Especially as I’ve never knitted socks before – best to do the first one by the book. Of course I may experiment with this once I see how the first pair wear, hold their shape etc…

I love the colours in this yarn and natural stripe effect it gives the sock. The yarn is a lovely blend of 50% alpaca, 30% merino wool, 10% silk, 10% nylon and is hand painted. Luxurious hey? I figured if I’m going to spend all that time making socks then I want them to be special. My one and only sock is feather light and so fluffy soft to touch. Can’t wait to wear the pair of them!

Ok I’m off now to have a go at knitting the other one… exactly the same… I hope!

vintage fan crochet pattern

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Vintage Fan Scarf
100% superfine merino wool, crochet.

I just love this vintage crochet fan pattern. I first tried it on a little pram snuggle blanket, after discovering the pattern on a sweet blog I frequent, called Meet me at Mikes. Pip (from Meet me at Mikes) is quite the crafty legend around this part of the world, and her blog is a lovely inspiring place to visit.

Anyway after making Gelato Fans I decided I wanted to try the pattern for a scarf. I made the scarf in two halves that I joined in the middle, so the pattern is the same at each end of the scarf. I think the pattern ended up working quite well for a scarf and love the way the mustard/pumpkin colour contrasts with the rich denim blue – a good jeans scarf I’m thinking. The yarn is luxuriously soft and was a delight to work with – I never knew wool could be so soft and fluffy.

I’ve made this scarf for the “made it” challenge on ‘Woolhogs’ blog. I love the idea of supporting another newish blog, especially when the lovely Maryanne is making such admirable efforts in getting together crafty folk from blogs all over the world. Well done Woolhogs – it’s a fab idea!

Wishing you a happy crafty week ahead.