Finishings

Hello there.  

I have been making an effort to get bits and bobs finished.  You know how it is, that last little bit of finishing never gets done.

These houses were free with a Christmas magazine last year?  maybe the year before.  I stitched the cross stitch straight away but hadn't got round to the final joining and stuffing.

As always with a kit on a magazine, the supplies were at a bare minimum and there wasn't enough felt to back all three houses, so I found some in my stash.  

Finishing No 2.  A pair of Joes Toes slippers for Baby Needles.  I bought the felt bottoms Wonderwool this year.  Knitting the uppers was a very quick job in a chunky yarn I found in my stash.

They have been sitting around on the side for several months waiting for me to sew them up.  The soles have holes punched in to enable you to join.

All finished now.

Arm warmers.  I started these about a year ago, finished one arm and hadn't bothered to make the other.  These (should've) been a really quick make in Aran wool but........

Will I wear these?  When I am a bit chilly and having a Highlander moment, maybe.

A cardi for Baby Needles.  This should've been another quick project using up some double knit, it's not large.  It sat around for a long time as I procrastinated and didn't move anywhere, mainly I think, because I was running out of yarn and knitting both sleeves at the same time so as not to end up with one sleeve longer than the other.

Anyhoo, I found some mismatched buttons yesterday and sewed them on.

My last thing to show you today is my advent tea light calendar.  I like an advent candle but more often than not, it burns down several days at a time because I forget to blow it out.  Advent tea lights therefore are an excellent solution.  They seem to be disappearing a bit too fast for my liking though.  

Master Clicky and me picked up our Christmas Tree on Saturday but it is in a bucket of water outside still and I still have presents buy/wrap/make.  Mr Clicky comes home on the 21st and I'm not sure whether he will be a help or hinderance.

See you soon.................Clicky Needles.

December!

Hello All.

December seems to have crept up on me, this morning we woke to a frost.   Not that I'm complaining, anything is better than rain.

I have a few things to show you today.  The first is a cross stitch sampler that I made whilst I was away, for my lovely little granddaughter Willow.  She delights me every time I see her, and is growing fast.  She now has two, very sharp, teeth.


I looked on Pinterest for samplers with Willow trees in and came across this pattern which was on sale on Etsy from AnnieBeezFolkArt.   Bizarrely, she lives about five miles from our apartment.   It is from a set of four; Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, called Sheltering Tree, with the tree in various colours and different animals underneath.  I took the season name out added Willow's, and took the whole thing down to add the birth date.  

I found a box frame in The Range and used a piece of Foamboard also from The Range to stretch it over.  It went in and out of the frame several times because I managed to trap some glitter in with it from something else I bought.  It is now in Willow's nursery.

I took it into my head about a week ago to make an Advent Calendar for my (grown up) children.  I had a peruse of Pinterest and thought that paper stars looked good.  This was an easy job.  Cut out stars from brown paper and sew round the outside whilst popping a sweet or chocolate inside.  Easy but time consuming.  Cutting out 100 stars took quite some time even with several layers at once.   I found some red metallic thread in my sewing box which I bought years ago because Shiny Thing! but had never used because I thought it would be difficult to sew.  

Actually it was a doddle, no different from ordinary thread.  Sewing the stars ~ with a needle I keep for paper sewing ~ was again easy, but time consuming.  It is actually my sort of sewing, no need for accuracy and fun to whizz along.  You'll notice I am using my modern 'plastic' machine.  Master Clicky is currently working on a motor of a vintage machine I may have acquired, more on that another time.

Anyhoo, the end result.  The Advent Calendar that is for Master Clicky tied up in our kitchen between the lighting conduit.  I didn't put any sweets in for me, I have cut down a lot in my chocolate consumption since returning from my travels and I don't seem to crave it anymore.

For Miss Clicky and her husband (husband, that still sounds weird!) I cut a piece of contorted willow from the garden and they assembled theirs hanging from a door.  I love how this one looks.

I have been sorting things at home, going through old paper work and shelves, the vast majority of which need chucking out.  Not a nice job but so worth doing.  I also need to reclaim the spare bedroom from Master Clicky's 'stuff' which he lobbed in there whilst, 'Sorting out my room.'  I am trying to persuade him to part with electronic Battleships, numerous old cricket bats and a selection of toy guns, 'Do you really need them?'  

Right, that's me for now, I have a not very nice dental appointment this afternoon, so wish me luck.  

See you soon.........Clicky Needles.