I Stitched my Finger

Pause fra strikkinga

2011-06-15T03:31:00.001-07:00

Det er som regel slik at så fort jeg får en ide, så baller det fryktelig på seg, og jeg starter på flere prosjekter som har en viss sammenheng med denne ene ideen. I dette tilfellet gjelder det soverom. Jeg har to stk, et lite stappfullt av leker - og et stort som ikke inneholder annet enn ei dobbelseng og et gammelt sminkebord fra 50-tallet da møbler skulle være små. Derfor fant jeg ut at frøkna og jeg rett og slett skal bytte soverom. Så får hun litt mer plass til lekene sine, og jeg får et mindre rom som er litt enklere å innrede penere.

Nytt soverom = nytt pledd. I den anledning fant jeg frem 16 nøster Eskimo som en gang skulle bli et vognteppe og noe annet jeg helt har glemt hva er. Jeg kjøpte noen flere nøster (ingen unnskyldning er for liten til å stikke innom Husfliden) og fant et mønster på noen særdeles storvokste oldemorruter på Garnstudio sine nettsider.

Jeg heklet mye mer før enn nå, men det var koselig å gjøre det igjen, selv om krok størrelse 10 er litt mer tull og ball enn en tynnere og mer håndterlig. Men det går unna! Etter under et døgns ivrig hekling er allerede 9 av 24 ruter ferdige. Dette er altså det første av veldig, veldig mange påbegynte teppeprosjekter jeg ser enden på. Hurra for store kroker!

Lue med jåleri

2011-06-07T22:55:00.001-07:00

Det beste som finnes må være å gå i garnbutikker og bare tafse.
Se på farger, kjenne på nøster og fantasere om hva de hadde blitt fine som hvis man laget noe. Det skjedde også denne gangen, og jeg greide ikke å dy meg, men måtte kjøpe to nøster, selv om prisen var særdeles stiv. Og det var bare 68 meter på hvert nøste. Jeg klarte rett og slett ikke motstå en blanding av baby alpakka og hele 16% kasjmir, selv om to fattige nøster skulle koste meg 150 kroner!

De to nøstene passet bra til et prosjekt jeg hadde i kø på Ravelry, Mario Beret. Ei veldig enkel, litt posete lue som har blitt litt mer interessant ved å hekle på en rosett med litt filtet jåleri. Jeg følte meg ikke så bevandret i nålefilting, så løsningen for meg ble å sy på en blekksprut jeg virkelig håper ikke ruster, samt noen perler.
Så fant jeg ut at Kasjmir Alpakka egentlig ikke er så godt egnet til luer, med mindre de sitter litt strammere enn denne gjør. Garnet er altfor glatt, så jeg er redd den kommer til å skli ned i øynene både titt og ofte.
Jeg er veldig fristet til å kjøpe mer av garnet, men med den prisen blir det neppe akuelt. Hadde Sandnes derimot laget en tynnere versjon, kanskje noe i samme tykkelse som Sisu og Mini Alpakka, så hadde jeg virkelig ikke klart å la dem bli værende i butikken.

Hjemmespunnede småsaker

2011-06-07T02:25:00.000-07:00

Av og til får jeg ideer, og ikke alle er like gode. I lang tid har jeg kikket litt på Folktale sitt Patchwork Handspun garn på Ravelry, og likt vottene folk har strikket av det. Uten noe nærmere analyse slet jeg løs små biter av fiber jeg mente kunne passe, og spant dette opp på et par timer. Ca 100 gram holdt akkurat til et par votter, og jeg klippet bort enkelte partier som ble for mørke eller rett og slett stygge. Nå kan mangt og meget sies om sluttresultatet, men jeg liker dem på et vis.
36 masker improvisert mønster på pinne 6 ble akkurat passe stort til mine hender.

Men i ettertid ser jeg at jeg burde holdt meg til ene enden av skalaen, ikke bare spunnet opp alt jeg fant for godt. Hadde jeg f.eks holdt meg til brun, rosa, hvit, gul og lilla hadde resultatet blitt ganske så annerledes. Kanskje noe som kan forsøkes senere. Men på den annen side; hvor mange par votter trenger man egentlig?

Et annet spinneprosjekt endte i denne lua, Gretel. Jeg er helt forelska i dette mønsteret! Ysolda er utrolig flink til å lage mønstre og presentere dem på en enkel måte, dette mønsteret forklarer enkelt hva du skal gjøre hver eneste omgang,og gjør det superenkelt å holde oversikt.Lua ser innviklet ut, men er det overhodet ikke. Det er helt klart mye fletting, og omgangene er temmelig drøye midtveis, men synes det gikk rimelig kjapt likevel.
Denne lua har jeg forsøkt meg på to ganger før, og begge gangene har det blitt mislykket. Grunnen til det er at jeg har valgt for tykt eller for stivt garn, og har endt opp med en stor ball på hodet som har fått meg til å se ut som en sopp!

Løsningen for meg for å få denne lua vellykket ble å bruke tynnere garn enn jeg har gjort før, ikke å gå opp på pinnestørrelse. Med 212 masker (tror jeg) på det meste blir denne ganske så romslig.

Garnet til denne er også hjemmelaget. Det er en silke/merino-blanding jeg kjøpte hos Spinnulla den gang da. Butikken ser ut til å være lagt ned nå, desverre. Dette er den fineste fiberen jeg noensinne har spunnet, pent behandlet og lett å dele i lange, tynne "garnpølser" som gjør at spinninga går betydelig fortere enn hvis man sitter og drar ut av fibertops av full bredde, slitt av i kortere stykker (som jeg har gjort før)

Goble goble?

2011-04-05T04:53:00.000-07:00

Det nærmer seg høysesong for pastellfargede fugler, og i den anledning passet det så klart perfekt å strikke rosa flamingoer! Fant dette mønsteret helt tilfeldig på Ravelry og ble helt forelska, så gikk i gang med å lage dem før jeg egentlig fikk anledning til å kjøpe det garnet jeg skulle bruke på dem. Egentlig skulle grunnfargen vært lilla og fuglene ikke av hjemmespunnet garn som reiser seg etter vask, men ka farsken. Fornøyd!
Mønster fra SpillyJane
Garn: ganske nøyaktig ett nøste brun Finull, og en ukjent mengde hjemmefarget og spunnet garn av alpakka, merino og bluefaced leichester.
Dette var et litt snodig mønster, hvis du sammenligner med typiske norske. Vrangborden er kort, og mønsterdelen er mye lengre enn det vi er vant til. Kjempeartig å strikke.. så synd det plutselig ble vår så de må ligge i skapet!

Hvor svimmel og klønete er det mulig å bli?

2011-04-03T05:06:00.000-07:00

See, jeg har strikket en jakke! For første gang i mitt liv har jeg laget et stort plagg til meg selv (som ikke har vært et sjal) og for å feire det hele brukte jeg nesten 150 kr på knapper og målte nøye opp med knappenåler og det hele før jeg satte meg for å sy i knappene. Og så glemte jeg å følge med på mønsteret...
Det er altså forskyvet med halvannen cm, og det greide jeg ikke å oppdage før jeg hadde tatt bildene..

Mønsteret er fra Garnstudio, og kan finnes her.(etter at jeg skulle finne linken så jeg på bildet at Drops har gjort akkurat det samme som meg på sin jakke, mønsteret er skjevt også der) Denne var litt tungvint å strikke fordi det var umulig å forutse hvor stramt jeg måtte holde garnet på begynnelsen og starten av mønsteret, når jeg har brukt den litt får jeg se om jeg må klippe opp og stramme noen av trådene på mønsterfargen.
Jeg har hatt lyst å strikke denne kjempelenge, og i denne spesielle fargen fordi det får jakken til å se litt retro ut. Jeg har brukt tynn alpakka fra Du store alpakka, spent på hvordan den nupper sammenlignet med Drops sin. Men først må altså knappene sprettes av og sys i på nytt. Sukk.

Effektiv daffesøndag

2011-03-27T05:04:00.001-07:00

Egentlig er ikke søndager så verst. Jeg får gjort ting jeg ellers ikke prioriterer, som å rydde i garnet mitt. To stappfulle bæreposer med tjukt sokkegarn, bomull og et slags merkelig effektgarn med nylon, glitter og mohair (nei, jeg var ikke ved mine fulle fem da jeg kjøpte det) har blitt fylt, og det jeg vil beholde er pent sortert i 6 30-liters plastbokser. Og en skittentøykurv som sikkert tar 100 liter. Altså har lageret minket litt, og det er jo alltid bra?

Strikkepinnene går som aldri før, jeg har mistet fullføringskomplekset mitt, og den ene tingen etter den andre blir faktisk ferdig! Først ut er denne vesten, Autumn Leaves fra Pickles. Jeg har strikket den en gang før, da i Smart. Det var ingen behagelig opplevelse, man må slite litt i garnet når man strikker stjernene. I allefall trodde jeg det. Alt gikk så mye bedre med et mykere garn, extra fine merino (også fra Pickles) var bedre for mine ømfintlige puselanker.

Selv om jeg er kvitt fullføringsvegringen min, så er ikke alle problemer vekk; jeg har fortsatt en hang til å starte på en hel haug prosjekter samtidig. Så nå strikker jeg kimonojakke fra Sweaterbabe, estiske votter, hekler pynt på lue og fant nettopp disse fantastiske flamingovottene jeg MÅ lage!

Snadder!

2011-02-28T03:33:00.001-08:00

Frokostblanding er jeg veldig glad i. Men det er alltid noe feil med dem man kjøper! Enten er den for søt, eller så er det steinhard tørket frukt, eller så inneholder den noe jeg ikke synes er så godt, som f.eks tørket banan. Jeg har kun en eneste gang funnet en perfekt frokostblanding, og det var i Sverige. Så hvorfor ikke lage sin egen? Det er på ingen måte noen heksekunst!
For noen år siden så jeg Nigella Lawson lage frokostblanding på TV, og ble inspirert av denne. Jeg husker hun hadde i kakaopulver, olje og "apple sauce", som jeg byttet ut med eplesyltetøy.
Det hele er veldig enkelt. Jeg har blandet store havregryn, 4-korn, hasselnøtter, pistasjnøtter, solsikkekjerner, linfrø og svarte sesamfrø sammen med litt honning, eplesyltetøy og olje. Så har jeg hatt i Valrhona kakaopulver (skikkelig god kvalitet, smaker og lukter himmelsk sammenlignet med Freia). Deretter har dette blitt blandet godt og ristet i ovnen, ca 30 min på 150 grader. Etterpå har jeg hatt i noen never knust cornflakes siden det også fantes i skapet. Nam!
Noen forslag til hva jeg kan putte i frokostblandinga neste gang?

nytt sjal, persiennesolstriper og vårfølelse!

2011-02-18T05:27:00.001-08:00

Her ble det mange bilder på en gang! For ei lita uke siden ble jeg ferdig med dette strikke foran TV-prosjektet, et sjal i rillestrikk.

Dette er strikket i 2 forskjellige typer garn, vanlig lysegrå alpakka og et garn i grått og lilla jeg har spunnet selv som hadde ca samme tykkelse som alpakkaen. Garnet fikk litt pynt i form av perler i forskjellige hvite/grå/sølvfargede nyanser som ble tredd på en rayontråd før det ble spunnet sammen med to tråder av det hjemmespunnede garnet.

Dette prosjektet ble startet helt spontant i sofaen en kveld, så det er ikke strikket etter noe mønster, selv om det er veldig inspirert av et sjal jeg har strikket før. Fremgangsmåten er enkel: Legg opp sånn omtrent 7 masker, øk en maske i hver side, samt en maske på hver side av midten annenhver omgang. Siden det er strikket med en rille i hver farge er det lett å holde oversikten. Perfekt foran TVen!

Kanten ble en enkel volang hvor det er økt en maske med kast mellom hver maske etter at stripene er ferdigstrikket. Kastene har blitt strikket vridd for å unngå hull.

Her er favorittsjalet mitt, som jeg bruker hver eneste dag. Det er flaut å si det, men dette er et prosjekt jeg begynte på mens jeg var i mammaperm.. det begynner å bli en stund siden. I høst en gang ble det ferdig, og det er godt og varmt i austavinden Bodø er så kjent for..

Mønsteret er October Nursing Shawl (PDF) Og er strikket i riller med to omganger rettstrikk mellom. Liker effekten det får! Jeg strikket 12 striper med hver farge, og forskjøv fargeskiftene slik at 6 omganger overlappet hverandre. Kanten jeg har strikket på det andre sjalet er altså hentet fra dette.

Her er det brukt kun alpakka fra Garnstudio. Det går mye i det her siden jeg er så uheldig å bo bare noen få hundre meter unna Husfliden ;)

God helg!

Rundfelt mini-Marius

2011-02-13T05:21:00.001-08:00

Frøkna har fått seg ny genser, denne gangen en Marius. Helt ny er den kanskje ikke, siden den har forsvunnet to ganger uten at vi har fått tatt den skikkelig i bruk. Jeg strikker ikke så ofte fra Sandnes-hefter, mye fordi jeg ikke er så veldig begeistret for konseptet "ingen oppskrift uten garn" som nesten alle norske produsenter kjører. Jeg finner mye jeg vil lage i heftene, men ingenting av det som presenteres er jo unikt, det er fullt mulig å finne en lignende gratis oppskrift fra nettet på noe man forelsker seg i i et hefte, med mindre det er de gamle, klassiske norske oppskriftene.
Her er altså Marius, i moderne utgave med rund sal som det så fint heter i oppskriften. Den er fra 0913 Til fjells-heftet fra Sandnes, og finnes i mange størrelser, helt fra 1 til 10 år. Jeg strikket fire år, og den ble litt romslig i skulderpartiet til frøkna som blir 4 i april. Den var derimot passe på lengden, så skal jeg strikke den igjen skal jeg være obs på det og gå en størrelse ned og heller legge på noen cm på bol og ermer.

Genseren skal strikkes i Smart, som jeg på ingen måte er noen fan av. Sandnes sin alpakka har akkurat samme fasthet, og fantes i fine "Marius-farger" så jeg byttet like så greit.
Likte dette mønsteret ganske bra, fint Marius-alternativ for oss som ikke liker å sy i ermer!

Hyl!

2011-02-06T05:05:00.000-08:00

Jeg har en ny forretningside. Museum for mislykkede votteprosjekter. Her er et lite utvalg av mine forsøk på votter som ikke gikk helt etter planen. Enten blir de for store, for stygge,for lakserosa, for tynne eller for korte.
Jeg har mange ideer jeg vil sette ut i livet, og ofte ender det som dette. Argh!
Fair Isle-votten til venstre brukte jeg hele torsdag og fredag på å strikke, men så ble fellinga for stygg, og jeg orket ikke å prøve å finne på noe annet siden det allerede var andre ting som var litt feil, og vrangborden var utrolig kjedelig å strikke. Den svarte og hvite startet jeg på i går i sinne, og det viser seg altså at den blir for stor selv på pinne 1,5.
Sukk.
At det skal være så vanskelig!
Jeg tror jeg legger bort votter for ei stund, og fokuserer på noe annet. For eksempel mine to "egentlige" prosjekter; et sjal og en jakke.

Jeg tenkte jeg skulle skrive noe lurt om selverkjennelse, men jeg tror jeg dropper det. Tipper jeg er i gang med enda et håpløst votteprosjekt i løpet av veldig få timer.

Finansfruene er tilbake

2011-02-05T05:47:00.000-08:00

Her om dagen var jeg på bokhandelen med helt andre planer, men måtte så klart innom den (altfor slunkne) strikkebokhylla. Der kom jeg over denne boka! Jeg var ikke klar over at Tine Solheim er tilbake med ny bok i år. Retromasker heter den altså, og føyer seg inn i rekken i kjent Solheim-stil med "litt" uvanlige ting, mildt sagt.

Jeg har et litt ambivalent forhold til Tine Solheims bøker av to grunner. Hun lager ting som jeg synes er helt horribelt grusomme. Det skal mye til å få et nesten helsvart plagg til å bli skrikende, men Tine Solheim klarer det med glans. Jeg har ingen spørsmål ved hennes håndarbeidstekniske ferdigheter, men noe av det hun lager ser rett og slett ut som det kommer rett fra formingssalen på Frogner barneskole. Litt snodig fasong og altfor mye dill strikket i dyrt garn og presentert i møblerte hjem/fjonge friluftsomgivelser.
Det andre jeg ikke liker er mange av bildene som prøver å fremstå som siste mote, men ender opp med å se ut som finansfruer med fritidsproblemer har funnet en ny arena for å eksponere seg selv. Ikke at jeg har noe i mot finansfruer, men noe av det som presenteres er kombinert med lårhøye YSL-støvletter, sotet øyesminke og knallrød leppestift. Helt klart nyskapende i forhold til andre strikkebøker, men for meg blir det bare unødvendig jåleri i ei bok som handler om strikk. Skikkelig overkill i mine øyne.

Dette skjørtet pekte seg ut som en av de fæleste tingene i boka, men jeg skjønner jo ideen. Grått skjørt med fletter er en god ide, frynsene er en ide veldig få vil kaste seg på, tipper jeg. Gjennom boka er det mange variasjoner over samme tema, men jeg savner en litt mer nedtonet utgave av de plaggene som har fått altfor mye dill i form av frynser. Det andre problemet er at når det ikke kler modellen en gang, hvem kler det da?

Men jeg tilgir Tine Solheim fort. Det som faktisk er litt retro i boka er en forlengelse av mønstrene på rundstrikkede gensere med perler og åttebladsroser/blomsterranker det har vært mulig å få tak i på husfliden en stund. Boka er spekket med gensere, vester, kjoler og jakker med rundfelt bol, og mange av dem er i tillegg pyntet med perler.

Noen av fargekombinasjonene er mye sprekere enn det jeg har tatt med her. Boka er stor, innholdsrik og spekket med ideer, det er umulig å ta med alt her.
Dette er ikke typiske retrofarger, faktisk er det lite av det å finne gjennom hele boka. Når jeg tenker rundfellt retrogenser ser jeg gjerne for meg noe hvitt, og så mønster av f.eks lys og mørk grønn eller to andre farger som er i "slekt". Det er det ikke her. Fargene er absolutt moderne, med et par unntak. Samme ide blir presentert i knallgul og en Holmenkollen park hotell-inspirert kombinasjon i rødt og gult. Litt som en 90-talls stue med brystpanel.

Denne jakken er min absolutte favoritt i boka. Jeg synes den er utrolig vakker, og MÅ lage den. Under er samme jakke i en annen fargekombinasjon. Begge er like nydelige, og jeg klarer ikke å bestemme meg for hvilke farger jeg skal velge for min. Jeg tror begge er strikket i det nye alpakkagarnet fra Dale, som desverre er litt tykkere enn både Drops og Du store alpakka sitt garn. Det gjør fargevalget litt mer begrenset, men jeg skal dra og faktisk se på det garnet før jeg fordømmer det helt.

Et pluss med denne boka er at det ikke bare er damene som har fått noe nytt. Menn og barn er også presentert. Det er faktisk ganske mange gensere for menn her, men temaet for menn er kraftig nedtonet i forhold til det som er laget for damer. Noen fine gensere her, men ikke noe som umiddelbart traff øyet. Barnemønstrene følger egentlig de for voksne, enkelt og greit til gutter, utstaffert til jentene.

Alt i alt synes jeg denne boka er veldig ujevn, men jeg elsker rundfelling, perler og nedtonede farger som grå, brun, svart og lilla. Jeg kommer garantert til å strikke jakken, når jeg bare har tygd meg frem til riktig kombinasjon av farger. Verdt en kikk for den som vil eksperimentere litt videre fra Sandnes-hefter!

Årene gikk..

2011-02-02T05:56:00.001-08:00

Tenk hvor lenge det er siden jeg har blogget!
Siden sist har det skjedd mye, hverdagen er helt annerledes enn sist jeg skrev et innlegg her. Dattera mi har fått flere diagnoser, og følges opp av både sykehus og forskjellige terapeuter . Jeg har blitt singel, startet på skole og trives kjempebra, selv om dagene av og til blir temmelig stressende med veldig mange ting som skal passe inn i en dag som allerede har altfor få timer.

På strikkefronten skjer det mye, 2010 var et særdeles produktivt år hvor jeg greide å fullføre mange prosjekter og strikke fornuftige ting istedet for å starte på votter på pinne 1,75 for så å legge dem bort og glemme dem før jeg dro ut pinnene og begynte på et nytt par håpløse votter på pinne 1,75... 2011 blir forhåpentligvis like bra, eneste forskjellen er at nå skal strikketøyet opp i lyset, jeg skal ta bilder og poste dem her!

Jeg er fristet til å si at det er godt å være tilbake, men tror jeg dropper det til jeg faktisk har postet et bilde av noe jeg har strikket ;)

Modelloppdrag? Nei takk!

2009-08-03T01:13:00.001-07:00

Å få en toåring til å sitte i ro for noen bilder er litt av ei utfordring. Særlig når man helst vil ha bildene uten blits, og maur i rompa-modellen må sitte musestille for at det ikke skal bli for mye støy på bildene. Etter 237 bilder fant jeg noen få som faktisk var brukbare. Ikke verst.
Denne lua er strikket sånn høvelig etter mønster fra Adrian Bizilia, og heter Top Down Bonnet with Anime Character. Jeg har da droppet den animerte karakteren, og heller heklet en blomst, som har fått litt perlepynt i midten. Garnet er fra Shi Bui og heter noe ganske så fengende som "Sock". Kjøpt og betalt på Tjorven i Oslo. Jeg har aldri prøvd dette garnet før, og likte det utrolig godt. Ikke bare liker jeg fargen og den nesten-ensfargede effekten, men også tvinningen som ser litt ut som hjemmespunnet totrådsgarn. En liten rest Fairytale fra Du store alpakka har også fått være med som variasjon i blomsten.
Jeg har prøvd å strikke denne lua ørten ganger før, men noe har alltid gått galt.
1. feil: nakkefellingen i oppskriften er ikke spesielt pen, i allefall ikke det resultatet jeg har fått. Etter tips fra Ingvild strikket jeg noen masker mellom fellingene for å unngå en stygg "tut",eller hva jeg skal kalle det
2. feil: jeg har fulgt oppskriften slavisk med økinger og fellinger og endt opp med en altfor liten lue gang på gang.
3. feil: jeg innså ikke feil 2 før jeg hadde prøvd 5 ganger
Altså har jeg tre ferdigstrikkede utgaver av denne lua, og et par eksemplarer som skal i søppeldunken. Denne gangen har jeg bare økt i hver side til jeg tippet det var nok, og strikket nakkefellinger der jeg antok det ville være passende. Der dukker også 4. feil opp, jeg begynte for sent på dem, så den fikk ikke samme fasong som den skulle ha. Men den sitter fast på hodet uansett.
At det skal være så vanskelig å strikke ei lue!

Votter i lange baner

2009-07-01T04:55:00.001-07:00

Små barn er en velsignelse, man kan strikke masse smått og søtt som blir ferdig uten altfor mye innsats, som f.eks votter. Jeg lager mange, og det hender faktisk noen av dem blir brukt. Dette votteparet er strikket etter mønster fra dronninga selv; Elizabeth Zimmermann. Du vet kanskje allerede at det er Mitered Mittens det er snakk om, et fantastisk enkelt mønster beskrevet over ni linjer i boka Knitters Almanac. I oppskriften skal man legge opp 48 masker på pinner som tilsvarer en fasthet på 18 masker pr 10 cm for en middels damevott. Jeg holdt meg til maskeantall og byttet til tynnere pinner og garn, og endte opp med et par votter jeg vil tippe passer til en fireåring. Vottene er strikket i Silk Garden Lite fra Noro, og de lange fargeskiftene i garnet er grunnen til at det på bildet ser ut som jeg er helt på jordet når det gjelder å klare å ta bilde av to votter som faktisk er et par. De er ikke veldig like, akkurat. Strikket av to forskjellige fargenummer, uvisst hvilke.

Neste par er litt mindre fargerike og litt større, ment å skulle passe en fullvoksen mann. Mønsteret heter All the Water, og kommer fra Through the Loops, bloggen med verdens vakreste overskriftbilde (eller hva man enn skal kalle det)
Jeg lagde dem ganske lik orginalen, i entrådsgarn. De er strikket av tidsriktig Eco Ull fra Marks & Kattens. Pent garn, men angret med en gang jeg begynte å strikke med det.. tror det tåler veldig lite. Enkelt og greit mønster som jeg har lyst å lage flere ganger Siste par er de morsomste vottene jeg noensinne har strikket! Eller muligens de nest morsomste, siden jeg laget to par. Mønsteret heter Original Sideways Mittens, og er laget av ei dame fra USA. Disse er perfekt TV-strikking/bil-strikking/restegarn-strikking/strikkekafe-strikking/hage-strikking/strikkenårhodetikketrengeråværeheltmed-strikking..
Mine er laget av en tråd Fabel og en tråd Alpakka fra Garnstudio på pinne 3, og de passet min toåring med en gang. Men de skled av før de fikk bånd. Jeg tror jeg må lage enda et par. Eller enda fler.

Mye å rope hurra for

2009-06-30T04:48:00.000-07:00

Endelig tilbake, etter langt frafall, helt siden oktober. Jeg har verken vært på finne meg sjæl-reise til Burma eller opplevd noen kriser av ymse slag, håndarbeidslysten har bare vært ikke-eksisterende ei ganske god stund nå. Det kan det være mange grunner til, jeg velger å skylde på dataspill. Og litt latskap.

Men så fikk jeg plutselig et par bøker i posten! Så veldig plutselig var det kanskje ikke, siden jeg antar jeg var ved mine fulle fem da jeg bestilte dem, men likevel..
Material Obsession heter de, den ene er en oppfølger så tittelen innebærer også bokstavene "two".
Bøkene er ganske forskjellige, den første tar for seg ganske enkle former, og fargevalget er sprekt, men også ikke veldig oppsiktsvekkende. Oppfølgeren derimot er en eksplosjon av farger og mønstre i en miks av moderne og reproduksjoner, det er prosjekter bygd opp av buer, romber, sekskanter og fasonger du må ha spesialverktøy for å lage. Jeg liker selvsagt oppfølgeren best, siden jeg har en forkjærlighet for å gape over alt for mye.
Jeg har så lyst å bare grave frem alt jeg har av fargerikt tøy med masse mønster og sette i gang og sy! Dette er uten tvil den beste quilteboka jeg noensinne har sett. Hurra!

Det scrappes!

2008-10-21T07:07:00.000-07:00

For ganske nøyaktig ei uke siden, så var jeg på scrappekurs på Smykkestein. Timene fløy, og jeg fikk masse inspirasjon til å fortsette med denne hobbyen jeg såvidt har prøvd meg på før. Jeg har famlet og ikke funnet helt ut av det, men nå ble jeg fortalt litt om hva som ser bra ut. Og det er jo godt å ha med seg.
Dette er ikke LO'en jeg lagde på kurs, men en jeg begynte med for et par dager siden. Jeg visste hva jeg ville ha, men manglet noe utstyr. I dag var jeg innom TreL på Alstad, og fikk med meg de siste bokstavene jeg manglet for å få den ferdig.

Historien bak bildene er Elina som er bare ei uke gammel, og har på seg sokkene som er med i LO'en. Teksten er "to bittesmå sokker -men fortsatt altfor store" Bildene er ikke teknisk gode, de er altfor kornete og mørke. Men likevel har de en betydning for meg, og jeg ville scrappe dem av den grunn. Papir og teknikker er jeg overhodet ikke inne på, men jeg kan prøve å forklare hva jeg har gjort. Bildene har smale rosa rammer av håndlaget papir. Helt bortkastet, jeg kunne brukt vanlig kartong. De er etter det montert på ensfarget brun kartong, hvor et par journaling ark og noen billetter er stukket under. Sokkene henger med klesklyper på ei snor som er et satengbånd, jeg lurte litt på hvordan jeg skulle få festet dem. Med lim på rull gikk det veldig greit. Pynten er litt ymse.. en stor, brun rub-on, flere blomster som har fått en glasstein eller knapp i midten, noen klistremerker og enda flere rub-ons. Jeg kjøpte pynten etterhvert som LO'en vokste frem, så sammenhengen ble ikke så veldig fremtredende..
Alfabetene er to forskjellige. De store bokstavene er av papp, opprinnelig uten farge. Jeg har gitt dem en omgang med stempelpute for å (nesten) få den fargen jeg ville ha. De små bokstavene er hvite klistrelapper jeg har skjært opp med skalpell og strøket samme stempelpute over. Likte effekten de fikk. Det blir nok gjort igjen!

Jeg famler fortsatt, men ikke så mye at jeg har lyst å droppe hele greia. Et nytt prosjekt er allerede i gang, forhåpentligvis litt mer ryddig enn denne.

Prestekrager og pølselegger

2008-09-29T11:54:00.001-07:00

Hva gjør man ikke for at ullsokkene skal bli gjenkjent i barnehagen? Broderte blomster kan være en løsning, om enn ikke en veldig god en. Jeg har aldri brodert på ull før, så det var en artig erfaring. Særlig pene ble de ikke, så det er kanskje like greit at de skal gjemmes nedi bittesmå sko..
Til og med hælen fikk litt pynt..
Ullsokkene er et vaskeekte resteprosjekt, en rest finull og en alpakka som akkurat holdt til to små sokker. Litt store ble de, men det utjevner seg raskere enn man skulle tro. Småunger er greie sånn sett... Da jeg strikket disse brukte jeg mine helt nye Harmony Wood-pinner, og de var faktisk like fantastiske som folk skal ha det til... Minst like fantastiske! Flere er naturligvis underveis i posten ;)

Trodde du sommeren var slutt?

2008-09-29T05:35:00.000-07:00

Vi nærmer oss oktober, og i helga blåste høstens første storm ned fire trær i gata vår. I morres da jeg dro på jobb måtte jeg hente frem både hansker og lue, og gradestokken viser sjelden over 10 grader. I hagen er det fortsatt jordbær. Jeg synes det er veldig merkelig, det må være siste krampetrekning og et hyggelig minne om den nydelige sommeren som var. Det er riktignok ikke så mange bær som det var i glansdagene i slutten av juli, men tre bær er akkurat nok til en liten skvett fløte som jeg skal kose meg med før samboer kommer hjem og finner ut at jeg har slukt de siste bærene helt alene. Eller kanskje det kommer flere?

På norsk?

2008-09-23T08:15:00.001-07:00

Ville det være helt for galt om jeg begynte å skrive på norsk..?
Igjen?

poor Elina

2008-09-22T05:17:00.000-07:00

She doesn't get food, so she has to eat banana skin... And as the good mother I am, I ran to get the camera instead of taking her "food" away from her.

miss saggytights

2008-09-08T08:43:00.001-07:00

The sweater fits her perfectly. I couldn't be happier!

Stripes, stripes and more stripes

2008-09-08T02:47:00.000-07:00

Finally, I've finished something! I started this sweater while I was in Sweden on vacation more than a month ago, and it took a while to get it done.. It's a small project, so I have no idea why it took so long.

It's a Norwegian pattern, from the book "Strikk til Nøstebarn" which is pretty popular. I haven't used the original yarn, but thought it would be fun if I used Noro Kureyon Sock. I was a little inspired by scarves knit with two different colorways of Noro, so I got a couple of balls, and started knitting.
The pattern is really easy, but it's not a top down-pattern. There's also room for some improvement on the pattern, I've made a little note to myself if I am to knit it again. The owner is in Kindergarden at the moment, so I'll try it on when she gets back.

Doesn't the buttons look like rasberry candy? It reminds me of the fact that I was so eager to get this project done that I forgot to eat..

do you have something for me to knit?

2008-08-31T06:44:00.001-07:00

My mother asked me that question when she visited in January.. Sure! I always have thousands of planned project, pick anything you like!
She ended up knitting this jacket, which I've planned for ages. But I really didn't find the time to start it.. Luckily she did. All I had to do was to sew on the buttons, which are vintage metal with little cute "stitches" on to make them look like leather.
Hopefulle the jacket will fit Elina next spring and summer, it's a little to big for her now. It's rather heavy, about 200 grams and is knitted on needles 2,5 mm which makes it rather compact as well. Maybe that's a good thing in windy Bodø.
Sorry about the picture! The program I use to fix them didn't start... SO annoying!

Hihi, I put this jacket out on Ravelry before I blogged about it, and when I'd finished the blog update, I saw that 4 people had viewed the jacket, and all four of them had put it as a favourite! Fun for mom!

the balls are back in town

2008-08-12T14:38:00.001-07:00

The yarn balls, that is. I've been away for my holiday for the last 9 days, and it's been a stressful experience. We've been to Sweden and Finland (by mistake, actually) and have slept in 5 different locations. I've never had the time to really sit down and knit, so all I've produced over the last week and a half is nearly two arms and the upper part of a pant. I might have knitted about 50 grams, and I brought nearly 500 with me! I'd never planned to knit all of it, but I wanted to have something to chose from, if I was to start a new project.
The picture above is the arms I've mentioned. It's a little sweater for Elina, and it's made of Noro Kureyon Sock, in two different shades (219 and 229)
It's supposed to turn out as a raglan (some day..)

Well.. after I came home, I counted 31 balls of yarn, which I've bought during my vacation. Addicted, me?
Here's 28 of them, which are for me. The remaning 3 is a gift for someone who might "read" my blog.. ;)

I've used my camera quite a bit while we were in Sweden:

Both pictures are from Teknikens Hus in Luleå, Sweden. Recommended for the playful!

jumping around

2008-07-17T01:06:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm happy. What a day! And I just got out of bed! This is what I found in the mail today, from lovely Colourmart. A whole cone of 100% pure cashmere, in a khaki color. I love it. I can't wait to knit it. But the annoying part about luxury yarn is that I never find the perfect project. I just save it for ages, until it isn't that special to me anymore. I'm not going to do that this time. My original plan was to knit these mittens. I've ordered a fingering weight yarn, but I think it's thinner than that. It isn't twisted that hard, so it might be ok to knit it double. Oh, I can't wait!

I also ordered this little piece of paper, with tiny skeins taped to it. Why doesn't all yarn stores do this? I can really feel the different qualities, and see how thick they are. All samples are cashmere, if not other is mentioned. There's some camel, silk, merino and mohair too. I love the blue/purple heavy lace, and I want it now.

I even got a ball of merino, as a gift. It's the softest merino I've ever felt. I'm not sure what there's enough yarn for.. it's great to have kids with small heads, hands and feet, isn't it?

At last, a little cute picture I took this morning... Has she got the yarn madness as well?

disagree (4)

2008-07-15T00:39:00.000-07:00

After "my" forum, or the forum where I spend most of my online time, was shut down for a while a few days ago,as a substitute I started spending more time on Ravelry.
Wow, how many groups there are, and how many topics that are being discussed! I found myself anticipating in topics about everything! There are tons of inspiration to get, and I'm planning more and more projects. To bad I only have to hands.. How many Ravelry groups do you belong to, and what is the weirdest?

Suddenly, I found myself being a member of 72 groups, from tall people (I'm just tall enough!) to zimmermania and everything in between. It's really great to discuss patterns with other people, there's always someone who knows how to do everything.. Isn't it great that all this knowledge about knitting is avaliable in one place?
As for the topic of this post: It's ironic.

Even if my blog is struggling to stay alive, I still am knitting. I've made 3 christmas presents, and recently started Gretel by Ysolda. I've wanted to do a beret for ages, and I've also wanted to do cables... This might be the perfect project then? It's knitting at it's most extreme, I'm not sure if I have enough yarn! I've bought it 4-5 years ago, and know it's Gedifra. I'm pretty sure I've only got two balls, and I'm not sure at all where to get more, or if the yarn still exsists. Fun, isn't it?

happy days

2008-07-04T12:58:00.000-07:00

Not much to blog about these days, I'm working almost full-time, and enjoying the great weather! Two things which is often hard to combine, I've realized...
Other than that, I'm making christmas presents. That is a really fun thing to do when there's so many small children in the family! I've completed one, and have started on the second one, which will be done in a day or two.
A little early to start thinking about christmas, you might think?
Not at all... Last year we bought most of the presents while we were away for the summer, and it was SO great to relax, bake and enjoy Desember, instead of stressing through stores to find presents. I'm hoping to make a couple of things every month, so far I think I'll make 6.

monogamy is cruelty

2008-06-26T12:13:00.000-07:00

Who would have guessed that headline was about shoes?
I love them both! After 2 days, I still couldn't pick a pair, and had to go with both pairs. I think they're so cute, in a comfy kind of way... Not the kind of sandals I would wear to a wedding, but perfect for everyday wear. In rainy Bodø.(Does anyone make tiny umbrellas for the feet?)
I'm hoping for a dry autumn, I think they'll look pretty cute with tights and a skirt too.
When it comes to crafts, I'm cleaning out my studio. I want to weep while I do it, mostly because of the dust,but also because I have to store most of my yarn, fabrics and fiber in plastic boxes in the basement. I will still have a studio, but a combination of a studio and a guest room. So I'll keep some fabric, the yarn I'm hoping to use in the next decade (a growing amount, for sure), the sewing machine and some other stuff, but it will be crowded in there with a queen size bed as well. Why can't my guest be very tiny and very, very in love with each other? They're so much easier to store in beds!
Anyway, it's a huge job, I regret not asking Helen to come and help me. She's a yarnaholic who would love to make a system in my stash!
I'm also knitting a little christmas present. I've knitted an A and most of a B.. after I've finished the B I'll start on a C, and then they will all be connected into a D. Which will turn into a garment. I'm afraid the reciever, or the recievers relatives are reading my blog, so I have to be a little vague. And it's fun too. To be vague, I mean.

they're small, fast and binds off easily...

2008-06-24T13:28:00.000-07:00

Yep. You guessed right. I'm talking about hats. Or caps, berets,tams, beanies or whatever. I prefer the slouchy beret-type, and I'm so extremely bored with my current project, that I want to make something small NOW.

The shawl I'm making only needs 5 more rows before I start the ruffled edging, but they're some pretty long rows... I can't decide if I should put it away until I'm bored with hats and are longing for an easy and mindless project, or if I should get it over with ASAP! Gah!
Why is knitting so hard? Why are there so many beautiful patterns I want to make right now? That's just mean!
Garnstudio have released some of their autumn/winter patterns too, and I found a couple of hats I want to make... I'm also pretty impressed with Ysoldas hat patterns, mostly Gretel. Or maybe Estella?
Again, there are to many great patterns out there!

tagged

2008-06-21T00:19:00.000-07:00

By LissM

Circle of Friends Award

The rules of the game get posted at the beginning. Each player answers the questions about themselves. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5-6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog.Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

1) 10 years ago:
I was 16, and had just finished elementary school. I'd applied for an art/craft education and got in. I got a little summer job at my fathers company. I remember getting in to the local pub, even if I were 2 years to young, and thought it was great... until someone told the owner. I tried to explain that I really was 18, but he knew better. It's also almost 10 years ago since the biggest football match ever, when Norway beat Brazil 2-1 in the world cup. Norway didn't do it to good in the rest of the their matches...

2) 5 things on today's TO DO list:
Go for a walk with child and boyfriens
Trick boyfriend into getting me a knitpicks needle
Cook a healthy soup for dinner
Knit!
Comfort poor boyfriend who has to go to knit stores, buy me things there AND eat soup

3) Snacks that I enjoy:
apples, raisins, kiwis... That's the snacks I DO enjoy, what I want to eat is a different story. (Chooocooolaaaate!)

4) Things I would do if I were a millionare:
Create places for people to work
Eat more organic food
Buy all the knitpicks needles!
Get more education
Get a haircut and some I.D Foundation

5) Places I have lived:
Bodø
Skedsmokorset
Oslo
Stamsund
Mehamn
Kabelvåg
Skjelfjord

It's Saturday morning, and I'm tired. That means I'm to lazy to tag anyone, but if you read this; please feel free copy and paste!

teal+purple

2008-06-15T07:44:00.000-07:00

The second spin I talked about, completed a few days ago. It's a BFL roving which I've painted. I love to spin this fiber, it is so easy to "fluff up" and pre-draft. I don't know if I was lucky with this particular wool, or if BFL usually is this soft. I've heard someone mentioning it's not as soft as merino. I have som pretty cheap merino, and this is ten times softer than that. It's the only BFL I've ever owned, so I don't know. I think it's a bit more shiny than merino too.

A little about the yarn:
It's a 2-ply Z-twist, about 12-14 WPI. That would make it a a fingering weight? I don't know what to make of this, maybe a hat or a neckwarmer for Elina? Or maybe I'll swap it, it's to sad to stash a lot of yarn I have no idea what to do with. That doesn't mean I don't to it..

what is that?

2008-06-13T14:12:00.001-07:00

You might wonder, if you aren't a spinner. Or maybe you're clever enough to figure anyway?

Yes, they're rovings. Bluefaced Leicester wool dyed into a badly planned color combination. I wanted to experiment with the idea of purple and orange. And to put a little more life into the yarn they eventually will become, I added some green and pink as well.

At this point it looks like a child went crazy with all her favourite colors, not thinking about the result at all. I have absolutely no idea how this will turn out as a yarn. Or even what it will look like once its dried.
Most of the times when I've dyed rovings, they've turned out better than I thought they would. Acid dyes are really that easy to use. This time I don't know.. Isn't it a bit to clown-ish?

a wooly update

2008-06-12T02:48:00.000-07:00

I've been dyeing, again. This time I painted a skein of Rauma Lamullgarn. It used to be white, now it's green, teal, olive and turquoise. I've used Jacquard Acid Dyes this time too. It didn't turn out as dark as I wanted, but ok enough. I have no idea what to make of this..
I've been spinning too! This is a BFL roving I dyed a while ago, and finally finished spinning it yesterday. I have no idea how much yarn there is, since it's still wet and can't be put on the weight for a while. It's a pretty thin and light quality, I think it turned out good. It might show up in someone's mailbox in about a week ;)
I'm already working on another project, also a BFL roving I dyed. It's a teal/purple/turquoise mix, and there's not that much of it.I hope I'll finish it pretty quickly, as I'm hoping to spin a blue/brown/grey yarn for the Feather and Fan Comfort Shawl. I quess I have a thing for shawls!

once in a lifetime?

2008-06-08T11:57:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went to a dyeing-class, where Sissel tought us how to dye yarn and fiber, using Jacquard Acid dyes. I've done this before, both with fiber and yarn, but I did learn some more. I also got really inpired, so I bought a ball of white yarn, which I threw it in some hot water as soon as I got home!
Then I mixed up some purple, blue-ish purple, green, brown and hot fuchsia, and started pouring them on the yarn. It didn't look that good when I put it in the pot, but after drying up the whole night it looked kind of different... I'm extremly pleased with it! It's the best dye I've ever done.
It's almost religious.

mmmm... strawberries!

2008-05-29T12:17:00.000-07:00

Another new and exciting taste for Elina... But it was more fun to squeeze them in the sofa than eat them!

fruity

2008-05-26T00:46:00.001-07:00

It's completed. At last. First I started knitting the biggest size on bigger needles, to get a size 2 years. It turned out more like size 8 years, so I knit the 12 months size on bigger needles, and it turned out a little big. But it will hopefully fit before I forget all about it..
Pattern: Five Fruits by Amanda Kerr. It's a free Ravelry download. Here's her blog.
Yarn: Noro Silk Garden, color 224. I used 200 grams.
Needles: 5 mm, circular and double points.
I found this pattern at Magknits, the great pattern recourse which suddenly shut down, without a warning. It's okay to shut down your site, but it's NOT ok to do it without a warning when thousands of people are using the patterns for their knitting projects. (yes, it's smart to copy it to your computer. There are several things that's smart, but it doesn't mean we do it) It really pissed me off, but the designer was luckily kind enough to share the pattern as a free download. I really, really appreciate that!
Anyway, quite happy with the result, it's an unusual pattern, many things were new to me. It's well written and easy to follow. It's a top down, for me that seems to be the easiest way to knit a sweater. I even found a top-down group at Ravelry, so there are more fans ;) The sweater has some edgings that are new to me, the neck stockinette all the way, no rib or garter to make an edge. Same thing on the sleeves. I think it's really cute!
Here's the edging. I didn't bind of, but sew it on to the back. Yey for that, it turned out good. I will probably knit this patterns again very soon, but use a yarn which is more like the one used in the pattern, so I might have a little idea how it turns out.

challenged

2008-05-25T13:13:00.000-07:00

Gurin challenged me!
It goes like this:

-Pick up the nearest book
-Open on page 123
-Find the fifth sentence
-Post the next three sentences
-Tag five people, and acknowledge who tagged you.

Ok, here is the nearest book. It's got 26 pages...
So I had to pick another one, from the shelf. With my eyes closed, to make it a little more realistic. The one I picked is Affinity by Sarah Waters. It's in Norwegian, and is called Renkesmed.

From page 123:

"Jeg sa at det var sånn han svarte for å erte meg da vi var barn; han tedde seg som en utlært advokat allerede den gangen. Jeg så at Helen holdt øye med oss. Hun hadde perler i ørene - de så ut som små voksdråper, jeg husker at hun hadde dem på en gang i gamle dager, og at jeg så for meg at de smeltet i varmen fra huden hennes. "

I pass the challenge on to Liss, Merete, Dolci, Muffin and Beate

parklife

2008-05-23T04:36:00.001-07:00

It's summer! Or at least almost. Summer to me means bringing my knitting project outdoors, in this example to the park. Nothing is better than relaxing an knitting in the grass on a sunny day!
I'm continuing the shawl I started yesterday, and I think the colors will turn out pretty good. 12 is my magic number, so I'm knitting 12 stripes in each color, but I started with only 6 rows of the garter-stripes to push the colorchanging 6 rows forward, and change the color of the garter stitches in the middle of the stockinette rows... If you understand what I'm trying to explain. I don't blame you if you have no idea what I'm talking about.
I'm also planning some beads on the ruffle edge for this shawl. Maybe a row or two with some small matching beads... don't know. It's exciting to plan a project while I'm knitting, who knows how it will turn out!
Isn't the colors just shockingly different from the last shawl I made?
"Yey, I'm so happy to be in the park!"

UFO to FO

2008-05-22T00:28:00.001-07:00

Finally! God, this was boring to bind off! But I was so eager to get it done, so it didn't take more than a few hours.. It turned out bigger than I expected, and it was surpricingly easy to block. Normally I almost hate blocking shawls, as they never turn out how I want them to. Maybe it's the yarn? Here are the facts: The patterns is Flower Basket shawl by Evelyn Clark. The patterns is from the 2004 Fall issue of Interweave Knits, but it has been avaliable as a free pattern. I got it from Mauds garn when I purchased the yarn.
The yarn is Evilla artyarn 8/2, color A-70. A greasy, "natural" yarn to knit, I had to pick out some hay, but I've seen worse. Noro, that would be.
The shawl is 180 grams, knit on needles 5 mm, it's 2 meters long and 80 cm wide. A perfect size! I think I knit the pattern a few more times than suggested. Lovely and easy pattern to knit, I would do it again! But on the other hand, it was an UFO for several months, I've been to busy knitting childrens garments. I actually used nearly 6 months to get it done!
I've started a new shawl (and a cardi which I forgot to take pictures of), a pretty pattern I found on Ravelry a few days ago. I have some alpaca in nice colors, and this is the perfect project. The shawl is called October Nursing Shawl, and is a free pattern. I'm not planning any nursing the next few years, but if I knit this as fast as the last shawl, I would have to start any day now. We might actually plan another baby in 4 years or so ;)

nearly done

2008-05-20T04:22:00.001-07:00

I'm so excited! I've started the edge on the shawl I'm knitting, and I think it will turn out pretty good. I have no idea how big it is, since I haven't tried to put it on two circular needles to get an idea about the size. It's FBS, or Flower Basket Shawl, one of the most "common" shawl patterns to knit, I guess. Pretty and easy, and hopefully pierced with many needles on the guestbed tonight. I really wish I had a simpler system for blocking shawls. Wires would be great!

cute as a button

2008-05-14T02:34:00.000-07:00

I have thousands of buttons. Or maybe millions! And the collection is still growing! I will never get the chance to use half of them if I'll only use them for clothing and scrapbooking. I could sew and make more layouts, but it would be fun to try something new, wouldn't it?

Next project is a matching bracelet, which I have no idea how to make..

a trip down memory lane

2008-05-10T14:33:00.000-07:00

A thread about knitwear for newborns were started at Hobbyboden and I got to think about our little girl when she was just 2 days old. She was born 18 days earlier than she "should", so I never got the time to get scared.. or buy some of the most nessesary things for a newborn, like a car seat. So we had to borrow a big blue plastic bag at the hospital, which was fully legal to use in cars! I can't understand why this is safe travelling for a baby. Anyway, I remember being so tired after 2 days at the hospital, and sitting in the back of the car breastfeeding while my boyfriend ran around town to get all the babystuff we needed. Like diapers, babycream, some clothing and something to give her a bath in. It's only been a year, but the extreme stress is gone!
Oh, now I remember why I uploaded the pics.. The knitwear! Isn't it cute? A midwife at the hospital "begged" to put it on Elina, and afterwards she had to run around the whole floor to show them the "little doll". Proud parents? Nooo.. ;)
Again, the knitwear... It's made by my mother. It's pure wool, and we used it until the weather got to hot. It was really simple to put on and take off, as the pants have buttons all the way. I can't believe it's been this long! What a year!

two blocks and a layout

2008-05-10T02:13:00.000-07:00

Sorry for being so slow on the update about the friendship quilt blocks. I'm sick with an huge ear infection, and just want to lay down feeling sorry for myself. That is pretty much what I'm doing, when I'm not knitting or getting envious over all the great projects I discover in blogs..
My baby girl has also been hospitalized, but after running a great number of tests; there's nothing wrong with her! Now that is a reason for celebrating, we've been worried for a while now.
About the blocks then! They one in the back is made by Limola, and the one in the front is made by Hobbyvenn. I love them! I've got exactly the blocks I wished for; red and white but no christmas motif. Yey! The quilt isn't taking shape, but soon I'll have all the blocks and can start to plan it a little. Luckily I have a spare wall ;)
After beeing inspired by my good friend Liss, I've decided to to another attempt at scrapbooking, I didn't feel like getting it right the last time. I don't feel to good about this either, but it's much better! The paper is mostly Sassafras Lass, exept the letters which I've cut out from regular solid cardboard. I ADORE the cute Sassafras patterns, the owls are just too cute! Perfect for funny baby pictures.
I'm planning some more layouts, I've even sketched them! It's fun, but I feel like a beginner. If it's something I really can't handle, it has to be the feeling of making something I'm not 100% satisfied with!

hello lovvah!

2008-05-06T03:35:00.001-07:00

It's here! My baby! My little Nikon D80-baby! What should I name the baby?
My old camera is nothing but trouble, and Fuji desided I could get a new one.. But I didn't want a new Finepix, I think I might have the posibility to grow as a photographer, and I've "outgrown" my little compact. So, this is the next step. It's got tons of tiny buttons I can't wait to push! The only problem is that the store sent the wrong memory card, so I have to wait a week or so. I'm not sure if I can do that! ;)

tiny, warm and colorful

2008-05-03T01:35:00.000-07:00

This was fun! And fast, easy and mindless. I've used two strands of Rauma Finull for all 3 projects, and they've been felted in the tumbler for a half hour or so. The pair at the top is a size 3 years (I guess), the ones in the middle is 3 years, and the slippers at the bottom is about size 22-24. All perfect for kindergarden/daycare!
I made this before I went to visit my parents, as they have a tumbler I could use for felting. I made some other things as well, but they will be decorated a bit before posted here. I'm halfway through a good plan, I think I'll make some embroidery on them (it's a purple hat and a pair of dusty pink mittens)
Other than that, I'm still working on the domino blanket posted about yesterday.. If you have some sock yarn scraps you want to sell, let me know! I'm interested in the small scraps, I'll be happy to get less than a ball of each color! I'm interested in qualities like Opal, Regia, Fabel and similar.

stupidity

2008-05-02T04:43:00.000-07:00

Yes, I've started another mindless project, which is just too much work. Why do I do that? I've started more than 10 blankets, but none are completed. This time, I'm working domino squares in sock yarn. It's supposed to be a left over project, but I'm hours away from my stash and had to use the 3 balls of Opal yarn I brought to make socks. I've made one pair of socks, and then I started this thing... I love domino knitting, it's really mindless and perfect for relaxing/reading blogs. But will that alone make a whole blanket? I don't think so.
I'm not exactly the first person to do this. Here, here, and here, are some other domino blankets! Yum!

9773 Nervei

2008-04-29T08:48:00.000-07:00

Look what I came across! My mother and I (and Elina) went to a local craft-store today, where some women from Mehamn and surronding areas are selling their crafts. We admired knitwear in all shapes, quilts, jewelry (to die for!) and at the end, in the corner, I came across this beautiful yarn!
It's a 2-ply, 75% mohair and 25% merino. There's about 350 meters per 100 grams. I got two, and someday they'll be turned into a gorgeous shawl. It's really shiny, I had no idea mohair looks like this.. I guess mohair to me means 80's and the huge, brushed, fluffy sweaters in tacky colors like peach and hot pink. It's about time to stop being so prejudiced!
I've actually read about the yarn once before, when my mother gave me the link to their site.
I thought about asking them for some mohair to spin, but forgot all about it. I have to say I regret not doing it, the yarn is amazing! The mohair goat herd is grazing in arctic nature, actually there is no other flock of mohair goats living further north than this stock.
Nervei is a small place with only 30 inhabitants. In Norwegian vei means road, and funny enough, there is no road to Nervei! Commuting is done by boat, but I guess they have snowmobiles to get around in the winter as well.
I would love to go there sometime, but it's not that easy to get there.. or is it?

treasure hunting

2008-04-28T10:07:00.000-07:00

Ever since I was a little girl, I've loved the seaside. The smell, the sound, the sand..
I grew up in a fjord in Lofoten, and the seaside was always nearby, so that's where we went to play. We collected shells and polished pieces of broken glass, turned the stones looking for crabs and small fish.. I even remember once a friend of mine and I cought a herring with a cooking pot someone threw away!
Today I'm visiting my parents, who moved to Mehamn, a small town in the far north of Norway. I lived here for a couple of years, and was often down by the seaside. I even found some furniture for my apartment there! I cound some old wooden shelves from a boat (I guess), which could be used as storage for shoes and a nightstand. I really miss that now that I'm living in a larger town. I don't think my boyfriend would consider the seaside as a proper place to "shop" for furniture eiter!

The fascination is still there, and today I went down to look what I could find. It's always the same; the first minutes I can't find anything, but later I can't get to pick up everything I want before I lose the sight of it!
I could just sit here forever...
After a while I got an idea. A new idea, in fact. Why can't broken pieces of polished shell be turned into something to put on jewelry? I could make a hole in them, and maybe make a hemlock bracelet? Maybe something like this? It's made by this Etsy seller
The dog was very helpful, looking for shells as well. Or maybe just digging a hole because she got bored..

After a while I started collecting bigger pieces, maybe they'll be great buttons for knitwear? I can't wait to get home and make some holes in them!

getting older is a good thing

2008-04-26T09:25:00.000-07:00

Back in 2002, I got this amazing book from a book club I'm a member of, just because I forgot to tell them I didn't want it, and even forgot to send it back. I didn't like it that much, but the pictures were ok. Maybe the patterns was a bit over my level as a knitter (they're still), but over the last 6 years while my mother have had the book I've somehow learned the noble art of biting off more than I can chew, which is a fantastic skill to have if you ever plan to make something from this book.

I'm not exactly planning anything (I've just checked the bank to see if I have money for the yarn, picked out a color combination and almost queued it at Ravelry), but I am dreaming. This wedding cardigan, for example. It's so out of the ordinary, and I love it! I would have guessed that a book from 1997 are not that up to date on modern knitting, but this really is. Or am I lost in the 90's?

I will bring the book home with me and drool over it a couple of weeks, and then maybe get some yarn if the jacket is still as amazing as I think it is right now..

Speaking of getting older, a couple of days ago my baby girl celebrated her very first birthday! I made some cakes, a pink heartshaped cake filled with strawberries and banana (very baby friendly) and a oreo dream cake (YUM!) for the grown ups. I'm not much of a cook when it comes to cakes, but these turned out great.

I think Elina likes cake... If she only could be like this when we feed her porridge!

She did look cute in her birthday dress! The day before she's got vaccinated and wasn't feeling to good with a high temperature and stomach trouble. She got several gifts; clothes, toys and even a bicycle baby stroller

strawberry fields forever

2008-04-21T00:42:00.001-07:00

The dress for Elina's first birthday! I shouldn't have blogget before Thursday, when she's actually celebrating.. But I'm too excited about the dress and how it turned out. Childs dresses are really instant gratification, they're so easy to make!

I've used a strawberry babycord and a flowery cotton purchased at ebay for this. The buttons are vintage, I actually bought them at a tiny second hand store somewhere in Finnmark.(far north in Norway)

They wanted 1 NOK (about 20 cents) for each button.. I bought the 3 jars they had, ending up with thousands of old buttons! Got them a little cheaper ;)

The pattern is from Ottobre, they make really simple patterns even I can manage. I'm afraid Elina will be "that weird kid" who's always wearing something homemade. Or maybe it isn't weird anymore, but cool?

Mr. Trosteskjegg, I presume?

2008-04-16T00:20:00.000-07:00

What should I call this? A imagination-along, I could do whatever I wanted, as long as I got inspiration from a given fairytale.
The fairytale is about a picky princess, who thinks the bachelors wanting to marry her is to long, short or fat, and she ends up in poverty, doing tasks her fragile body can't handle. Poor thing... Don't you just hate fairytale princesses? Whining little spoilt bitches.. ;)

After she'd become poor, she saw the fat, short and tall bachelors in another light, they had money. So she wanted one of them after all, so she didn't have to work, poor thing.

I felt mostly like kicking the princess' ass, and calling her a golddigger, but after calming a little down I decided to spin.

I started by dying some BFL rovings in grey, purple and black. After they had dried, I mixed them up with some light green angelina, some grey/green merino and natural grey alpaca.

It's a 4-ply, 2 threads of wool and 2 thin metallic threads.

The idea behind this was to make something dull, but when you take a closer look, it might actually shine...

oh. my. god.

2008-04-15T05:39:00.000-07:00

I joined a "secret enemy" swap at Hobbyboden, an idea some mean knitters came up with at a stitch n' bitch meeting in Oslo (I think)
I loved the idea, and as soon as I got the information about my enemy, I sent a couple of acrylic skeins as fast as I could, feeling very happy!

I didn't think much about what I would get back... And to be honest; it's the ugliest yarn I've ever seen!! I had to get it out of the plastic bag to take pictures, and it actually feels worse than it looks!
I had to do something nice after touching and photographing the yarn, strange as it might sound; I didn't feel like vomit once I'd put it away...

So I made some granola muffins! Yum! It's the roustique and empty fridge-kind. They actually taste good too.

the perfect fit

2008-04-13T04:04:00.000-07:00

For the past months I've been knitting some hats, and they've always turned out to small, to big or just to.. UFO. This turned out perfect! It was really fast, I made it in 2-3 hours, watching a lame movie with lots of commercial breaks.

It's made of handspun yarn, actually the one I blogged about here

It's pure merino and as soft as little baby ducks! It smells great too, as I used a ylang-ylang soap to wash it ;)

The pattern is from the book I blogged about the last time; Strikk til nøstebarn.

afternoon sun

2008-04-08T12:11:00.001-07:00

The mailman has been sweet to me the last days. Yesterday he even brought the book I've been waiting so long (like a week....) to get, since I was so eager to start knitting some of the projects. Rumor (Ravelry) says it's some great patterns for hats and mittens in it too, which is mainly what I'm supposed to knit, besides the fantastic jumpsuit I'm planning on making, or might trick my mom into doing.. (hør du, mamma?)
Less than an hour after getting the book I started the ribbed sweater I'm currently working on, using Kauni yarn purchased at Villepinner last week.
This is what the mailman brought me today, besides a couple of skeins of Silk Garden for the Five Fruits sweater. 10 balls of Rowan Yorkshire Tweed 4-ply. Aren't they cute? Each ball is only 25 grams, they're like tiny baby skeins! The color is called Barely. Rowan give their colors the prettiest names..
I got them cheap, so I'm planning another project from the book mentioned above for this yummy yarn.

I've also got two blocks for the friendship quilt, from Krikri and EveB
Aren't they cute? Thanks so much! The quilt is beginning to take shape now, curious to see how it turns out..

everybody loves a quickie

2008-04-06T03:23:00.001-07:00

It would be a lie to say I've put a lot of work into this little quilt.. The strips are cut in an hour, and it didn't take long to stitch them up either.

I'm not completely satisfied with the photos, it's really more green than the photos show. The fabrics are mostly Amy Butler with some others to (mis)match.

The thought behind the quilt was to have something for Elina's stroller and to sit on during summer, if we're having a picnic or going to a festival or just relaxing in the park.

Because of the way we're hoping to use this quilt, I chose a heavy cotton with a messy pattern for the back. Filth won't show as easy on this as if I used a solid. Or at least I think so. I've quilted it in panels, because the batting was so stiff that it was pretty difficult to quilt on a rather small table. I would experiment more if I had a more suitable batting. But after all, I'm quite satisfied with the panels.

the dress

2008-04-05T07:51:00.001-07:00

It's completed. The little dress I started last week! This pattern is (as the blouse) from an Ottobre magazine, and was an easy project to stitch together. However, I made some modifications. A LOT, to be honest.

It's made out of 3 different fabrics, the pink/brown is by Amy Butler (the fabric goddess!), the purple is from the Echino collection by Kokka, and the green polka dots are unknown. I will get some more of the Echino collection pretty soon, even if it's pretty expensive, and maybe to heavy for childrens clothing.

I also had a couple of extra wooden apple buttons I've bought for the sweater I'm currently knitting, which I used for this dress.

The size? I don't know.. I haven't tried it on the owner yet, but I know it's to big. It's pretty wide, so it might fit her as a dress for a while, and later as a tunic with pants. We'll just have to see ;)
The birds are just too cute!

the bonnet

2008-04-04T05:49:00.000-07:00

Here it is, the Domino Baby Bonnet I mentioned last Sunday. Is this patterns impossible to get to fit? This is the second time I try to knit this, and it's still too big. Maybe it will fit during autumn? I hope so, the shape and flexibility of this hat is amazing!

It's made of Rauma Finull, one of my favourite yarns. Easy and fun to knit, on needle 3 mm.

It's almost impossible to photograph as the model had some serious problems sitting still ;)

I'm thinking about making another, using bright pink and red.. and make it even smaller.

lazy sunday - a long update

2008-03-30T09:07:00.000-07:00

Due to a baby with the cold, the Sunday is spent at home. I usually find Sundays quite boring, I spend to much time cleaning and cooking. Today the house is pretty tidy for a change, and I can use all the boring hours to do exciting things!

Late yesterday night I started knitting this sweater. I've got a letter which confirmed our application for kindergarden/day care, and we're in the system to get Elina in. A perfect excuse to start a new project! Through Ravelry I came across this pattern, called Five Fruits. I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it! I like the edgings, or perhaps the lack of edging, it's just stockinette all the way. It's a raglan knitted top down, which is new to me. And best of all; no seams.

I had some trouble with the increases, but I got a tip about a great site, KnittingHelp. It might come in handy later too. It's great to watch videoes if there's something I'm not sure how to do, and can't figure it out by reading the pattern in English. I often find English patterns easier than Norwegian as they're often more exact, but sometimes I just get stuck. Maybe KnittingHelp will prevent me from giving up a great pattern because there's a increase I just don't understand.

The yarn is Noro Silk Garden, color 224. A pretty nice colorway I originally bought to make a jacket inspired by the Noro scarf with stripes "everyone" is knitting.
I've used this yarn quite a few times before, and it doesn't stop to fascinate me. Knitting with Noro is extreme sports, it's amazing until you suddenly discover a break or 5. It's not that fun to suddenly discover a knot, which is tied together with a completely different color.

I used the Silk Garden yarn to knit a Domino Baby Bonnet, and it turned out huge. I didn't complete it, but started another one, using Rauma Finull. It's still to big, but might fit Elina during autumn. I don't think I'll dare to felt it just a bit to make it fit now, since it's garter stitch. Does garter stitch felt more than stockinette, or is only something I believe?
I would have taken a photo of it on the model, if her hair wasn't all greased up with vaseline (yes, vaseline) to get rid of that yellow stuff covering her scalp. Vaseline and hair isn't a good idea, by the way. Actually it's a very, very bad idea. And it's not even mine!
I've also been spinning today. These beauties I dyed a couple of weeks ago have been made into a thread, which will be made into a 2-ply later

It's made out of Bluefaced Leicester, a great fiber. I don't have a certain project in mind while spinning this. I want to see how it turns out first, and how much it is. I think the color would be perfect for a little jacket for a newborn, but then I have to make another baby (or beg friends to start copulating)
I will be very disappointed if the yarn doesn't turn out fantastic!

...and then I've spent some time in my studio. I've had the amazing purple Kokka fabric for ages, and I was niggardly while purchasing it, so I only got 1/2 yard.(as mostly japanese fabrics, it's quite expensive)
The original plan was to make a bag, and I got the fabric first. A few weeks later when I had gotten the pattern, I found out it required almost a whole yard of fabric. The natural thing to do would be to buy more, but I forgot all about it. After making the blouse mentioned in my last blog post, I found another pattern in the same Ottobre magazine I wanted to make, and cut the pieces today. I think I made a mistake while cutting some of the smaller pieces, and might have to redo them. Luckily not the Kokka fabric which I only have 1/2 a yard of!

And finally, my blocks for the friendship quilt is ready to be sent. Hope they'll arrive safely, and that the recievers will be happy!

Yesterday I even got a block for my own friendship quilt. It's from Hillevi and it's so cute! Thanks!

the product of a mistake

2008-03-28T02:15:00.000-07:00

The blouse I mentioned yesterday is up on the wall to dry. I usually don't dry clothes hanging on fancy ribbons on my livingroom walls, but when they're beeing photographed I do make exceptions.
I was cutting fabric for a dress, but suddenly found out that I've copied the wrong pattern! So the fabric became the back of this instead. The rest of it is mainly scraps.

It's made of an Ottobre pattern from 1/2008 and it's called "Maya blus"
I've never made anything like this before, and is happy with the result. The patterns isn't that complicated. Even I, a beginner, completed the blouse without any problems. I only had to redo one buttonhole.

The fabrics are by Amy Butler and Heather Bailey. The edging is a purple batik. I thought about using a dark brown or a hot pink fabric for the edging, but as for most projects; I ended up with the first one I thought about.

A Question

2008-03-27T15:19:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I started making a blouse for my little girl, and I kind of liked the way it turned out.. (it's in the washer now, will blog it tomorrow)
My mother also sew some clothing for me while growing up, mostly to costume parties. It was natural for all of the kids in the neighbourhood to dress up in homemade garments for costumeparties and schoolplay,but it didn't mean we liked it!
I remember once I played a munk, wearing a brown stretch sheet for a rope.. Not my proudest moment. And the play was taped!

I was also lucky enough to be dressed up as one og the Beagle Boys from Donald Duck with a flower patterned hat made from a kitchen curtain or tablecloth. I think I was about seven, and one of the older boys made fun of me!
Now that I'm grown up, it's just cute ;)

Then the question; did you wear homemade clothes while growing up, and how did you feel about it? And do you still sew clothes for your own children, or would like to?

Small knits for small people

2008-03-18T06:36:00.000-07:00

I've made another sweet baby cap/djevellue for a friend's baby. It's made of Inca alpaca by Rauma, a yummy yarn!

Quick to knit, and I'm satisfied with the flower as well. Hope it fits the new owner!

I've also started a little scarf for my girl, using yarn I've dyed and spun myself. Like how it turns out, but some parts of it is a little hard. That might dissapear after washing it, hopefully. If it turns out ok, I'll make a cap too.

Tomorrow we're off to Lofoten on holiday, and I need some easy projects to bring with me. This scarf, and the matching hat is perfect. I think I'll even bring a stitchery and some fabric and beads to make a cute little brooch-thing for the scarf.
Happy Easter!

Addicted

2008-03-17T02:07:00.000-07:00

About a month ago I made a pair of purple and white mittens for Elina, but they turned out to big, but at the same time they turned out to good to throw away.
So I had to make her another pair, also purple and white. A combination I adore.

I used 3 different pattern to make them;
The cuff is the pattern from Mermaid Socks by Lucy Neatby
At the back of the hand I've used a part of graph 39 from the book Latvian Mittens
Inside the hand I've used the Manly Mitts pattern from Knitty.com
I really do enjoy putting together different patterns to make something unique!

The mittens are 14 cm long (everything included), 7 cm wide and are made of Dale and Gjestal Babyull on needles 2.5 mm. The purple yarn is a handdyed, blogged about here

What is all this white stuff?!

Books, books, books!

2008-03-15T08:05:00.001-07:00

Finally, they have arrived! I put in my order February 6th, and I've got them "already",from Amazon.co.uk. That's not on the other side of the world! But it doesn't matter. I love them!!

1: Intertwined by Lexi Boeger. Came across this book at Bloggspinner, another Norwegian spinner who's yarn is featured in the book!
And what a book! 300 pages of pure inspiration for the novelty and artyarn spinner. She spins everything. And by that I mean EVERYTHING. One of my favourites is an old AC/DC tape spun together with a commercial yarn. This felted sushi isn't too bad either. This will lay on my nightstand for a very, very long time. I even think I have to bring it with me on vacation next week!

2:Doodle-Stitching by Aimee Ray.
The cutest and most naive stitcheries, just my cup of tea! The author's got a great blog as well

3:Creative Spinning by Alison Daykin and Jane Deane
They're inspired by nature, and have taken the colors of it, and put it into handspun yarn in various qualities. Great pictures!

4: AlternaCrafts by Jessica Vitkus. Many projects, using many different materials. I fell completely in love with the button mosaic flowerpots. A great book for the not so experienced knitter wanting to learn too.

5: The Crafter's Companion, editor Anna Torborg
Subtitle: "tips, tales and patterns from a community of creative minds"
Lots of great stuff in this. It's my Eastern reading, I love to read about designers and how they get inspired. The projects are a big bonus too.

Purple Perfect

2008-03-15T02:48:00.000-07:00

The perfect yarn, color and thickness. Why didn't I get yarn from Rowan before? It's fabulous! Sigh... yes, it's called sigh. The color.

A Dyslectic Moment.

2008-03-13T04:41:00.000-07:00

Haha, the stupidest little quilt! My first attempt to make a new heading for the blog. I made it yesterday, put on the buttons, and mixed together the "blood" (it's Jaquard acid dye).. Then I took pictures of it, and put it into my blog. And I had it as a heading for over 3 hours before I saw the missing letter!

Pink.

2008-03-13T03:01:00.000-07:00

Another yarn is completed, and it took a while to get it done. I span for ages, and thought I had a huge lot of yarn, and put it on the weight.. It's about 110 grams! I thought it would be at least twice the weight, but spinning so thin can really trick you.

It's about the same thickness as Rauma Finull. If I keep it, I'll make a shawl or a stola, and put some beads, sequins or something on. Maybe a lace and velvet ribbon would look good as an edging?

This is a mixed yarn, made out of Blue-faced Leicester (my favourite kind of fiber to spin), alpaca and shetland.

It's also handdyed, by me.

15 minutes every day

2008-03-12T02:43:00.001-07:00

Is what I'm planning on spending cleaning up this mess! It should be fun and inspiring to go in to my studio, not a struggle to climb over boxes, mess and fuzzy balls of I don't know what.

So! E-V-E-R-Y day should be used to organize and clean a little bit of it, and maybe someday...Maybe I know where all my buttons are, maybe all the thread is where it's supposed to be, and maybe the yarn is organized by type?

This is one of the things that has been laying on the shelf for ages, and I've finally realized that it will never be completed. Never! Luckily someone else wanted to adopt them.

Pretty Petite..

2008-03-11T02:15:00.000-07:00

Have you ever seen knitting needles smaller than this? I can't imagine how they're possible to knit with, but I'm pretty curious to find out.. They're 0,7 mm or US 6-0.And only 4" long!

Got some various sizes from Knittingzone, 0,7 mm, 1 mm, 1,2 mm, 1,5 mm, 1,75 mm and 2,75 mm. And every pair of DP's comes with a needle for weaving in ends, and they're all HUGE compared to the knitting needles. Funny! ;)

Åååå-ååå-ååoah! I just dyed in your arms tonight!

2008-03-08T13:31:00.000-08:00

Dyeing rovings is fun, but dying yarn is even more fun! It smells like roasting rats while it's wet, but now that they're dried the smell is gone. Puh! This blue/green skein is my second attempt, and it turned out even better than I dared to hope for. It's really that easy to use acid dyes!!

This is the first batch. Two balls of Dale/Gjestal babyull (The blue/green-ish is Gjestal) in different shades of purple. I split the balls to get smaller skeins for experimenting.
One other fun thing about acid dyes. I use a spongebrush-thing to paint the yarn, and once it has sucked in all the moist, you can squeeze out clear water! All the pigment is stuck, right a away! That's pretty weird...
I've already started knitting something. A tiny mitten using one of the purple skeins, plus white. Latvian style, of course!
And since you're wondering; no I'm not drunk. I just like weird titles and lots of exclamation marks.

Eyelet Yoke Cardigan

2008-03-07T03:09:00.000-08:00

My very first jacket, finished without handing it to my mother for her to complete what I've started. It's a size 3/4 years, and Elina is only 10 months. That's probably why it's a little too big for her ;)

I've used Drops Garnstudio Silke-Alpaca, a pretty heavy yarn. I love the sheen and look of it, but it's not the best yarn for small childrens garments. I made a shorter and wider cardigan since the yarn is so heavy, I'll get I have to wait until it fits her to see how it turned out.

The pattern is from Berroco, and it's free. You have to sign up to get it, but it's worth it, as there's more patterns, and some of them are pretty good as well! I don't know what to think about this one. I had to skip a decrease row at the end, as I ended up having 66 stitches when I was supposed to have 80. So there's probably "something fishy" about row 29 ;)
The jacket is also knitted in 5 pieces before the arms, back and fronts are beeing placed on a circular needle. It would be SO much simpler to knit it in one piece. But after all, I'm quite satisfied with it. But mostly because of the yarn.

A Little Bit of Everything

2008-03-02T11:08:00.000-08:00

Why is yarn so hard to photograph?! It's almost impossible to get the right color, and I always end up a little disappointed with the pictures.. After taking about 50 I give up, and start to look for the best.. which sometimes is difficult. Anyway, here is what I've spun. A pure merino, where I've mixed a solid hot pink/purple with a multicolor purple/orange.

The latest from the wheel. A BFL/shetland/alpaca mix I've dyed myself using acid dyes. This will be my first yarn using only handdyed, so it's pretty exciting!

I've also got my second block for the frendship quilt, this time from Madir. Thanks for the pretty block!

Ups and Downs

2008-02-25T03:29:00.000-08:00

Finally! The first mittens I've ever made using two colors and a diagram. Had some trouble shaping the edge, but now I know what to do, and what not to do next time. I've just made "something" for a cuff, and wrote down what I did. Made some easy cables, and put one some beads as well. I've also used a part of a diagram from the book "Latvian Mittens"

Quite happy with the result, I think it's okay for a first knit on 2 mm size needles.
I'm already planning more mittens, but I think they will just have to wait. These took 10 days, and they're small as well. Think they're about size 3 years. The yarn is pure alpaca, from Drops/Garnstudio, and the same colors I've used for the cap I blogged some days ago.

Floor Knit

2008-02-24T04:01:00.001-08:00

When you have small children, it's convenient to have a small project to work on while sitting on the floor rolling toys back and forth to entertain as long as possible. This has been knitting on the floor, and amazingly enough, it took two weeks! That's pretty slow knitting... But I've made some other things too!

Extremely simple pattern, I borrowed the decrease from Jaywalker (slip two stitches as to knit, knit one, pass the slipped stitches over the knit stitch) and worked 5 stitches between the yarn over/double decreases. I like how the decreases is "pushed" and makes another pattern.

I am a very lucky girl

2008-02-23T06:46:00.000-08:00

I did a swap on Ravelry, and gave away 3 balls of Noro Aurora. This is what I got back, I couldn't believe my eyes when I ripped the paper of the parcel! I've never tried bamboo needles before, but I will do very soon. They're so smooth and light and pretty and and and...! And the size is printed on each needle, that's a plus too. Really glad I've got 3.25 and 3.75 mm, as they're sizes which hard to find in regular yarn stores in Norway. Bamboo is pretty expensive here too!

I've also been spinning, using a midnight blue merino roving, plus my own dyed, also a merino. The yarn is ok, but it would look better if I plied it a bit more. Not exactly an eye-catcher, but perhaps suitable for a manly project? ;)
Will put it out for adoption/swapping on Ravelry.

Amy who...?

2008-02-22T03:05:00.001-08:00

I DO love Amy Butler fabrics. It just took a while for me to realize that they can be used for actual projects, not just beeing looked at. A quick peek around Flickr should get you enough ideas to use all her gorgeous fabrics.
I've planned some projects, a sunbonnet and dress for Elina, a couple of quilts and a little bag for my knitting project (Look at Felisis amazing knittingbags!)

I know this isn't very good fabric dieting. I go through different phases when it comes to fabric. Over the past year I've went through japanese taupes, reproductions printed with small figures, polkadots, 70's retros, secondhand and Amy Butler. I already have some of Heather Baileys Freshcut collection, but something tells me that it will grow too.. Anna Maria Horner is even making a new collection!
I also got the first block for the friendship quilt I'm attending. This cute one is from Petrine. Thanks!

Lost in Translation

2008-02-20T06:33:00.001-08:00

In Norwegian, this patterns is called Djevellue.. which means devil cap. In English, it's called Sweet Baby Cap. That's kind of fun, I think! I started this on Sunday, as an easy car knit on the way to a dog show about an hour driving from here. I like to have a simple and small project to knit while we're driving, and I like circular needles better than double pointed, as they're easier to put away in the middle of something.
I've knit this hat once before, when Elina was just a couple of months old. I think I made the 6 month size then, and could use it for just a few weeks before it got too small. Now I've made the 2 years size, and it fits now when she's only 10 months. I thought it would be big enough to fit her during spring/summer, but it seems like that won't happen. Quite happy with the result after all, I think it's cute and girly without giving anyone diabetes.

The Intoxicating Smell of Wet Sheep and Vinegar..

2008-02-19T03:19:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I finally got my Jacquard acid dyes, after waiting for nearly a month! And I had them for almost an hour before I soaked some fiber in water, and started preparing for handpainting. The process is so easy, it's difficult to get it wrong and it's extremely exciting to open the plasticwrapped fiber rolls after they're done steaming for 45 minutes. I followed this tutorial, I think she explains the process pretty well. And pictures is always a plus!
I've dyed some different fibers, The first dye didn't turn out too nice (number 3 from the left) since I used too much color and liquid, so the colors blended too much together, and turned out greyish. Merino and two kinds of silk in this batch.
After that I made the other purples, in two different rolls. Tried to dye merino, alpacka and BFL this time, and they turned out much better. I LOVE the alpacka, it's incredible soft! It didn't take the color as well as the wool, but it's okay to have a lighter shade when I start to spin as it will make the yarn more interesting. I also tried to make a lime green alpacka roving, but it turned out more yellowish. I also found it difficult to mix different shades of blue, so the last rovings is experimenting with different shades of blue (and some green/yellow)
I think I have to get some more dyes, in hot pink and turquise, as I had some trouble making these. From when I went to school I'm used to mixing cyan and magenta, not scarlet and skye blue, which could mean almost everything.
Now there's only one problem.. I'm out of white roving!

Doh! You little....!

2008-02-13T05:19:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I get some kind of "knit-kicks", and I actually make something. This time I'm making tiny Jaywalker-inspired socks, and I've used Regia sockyarn

And it looks like I'm not the only one enjoying this yarn ;)

I've had a few knit-kicks over the last few months, and they're all because of Ravelry. It's so incredible inspiring to see all the nice things everyone is making!
I think I'll stick to small things for a while, tiny socks, hats and mittens are great! And I actually get a chance to finish them before getting too bored. My knit-kicks never last more than a week or so, I'm afraid..

Gift from a Secret Friend

2008-02-12T09:30:00.000-08:00

I joined a swap/secret friend thing at Hobbyboden and here's the gift I got! Beautiful fabrics (one of them is a red metallic perfect for the art quilt I'm planning), the others beautiful red and white holiday fabrics with gold prints. I also got some cute little heart buttons, I adore them!
I already have planned a few projects for some of these things, and I think I have an idea who sent this to me as well ;)

Fleamarket Finds

2008-02-11T02:45:00.000-08:00

Fleamarkets is one of my HUGE obsessions, I always find loads of things to bring home. If there's some 70's fabric, I'm in heaven!
This is my last find, artwork and blue hyasinth-vases. I adore them! I put the art on the shelf just as a place to keep them while waiting for the frames to be painted (yes, I got some frames as well)
But now I think they look so good up there that I'll just keep them there.

Basketcase

2008-02-08T02:47:00.001-08:00

Hobbyvenn blogged her knitting basket, and I wanted to do it too. So I did. Here it is, the place where I hide bills and empty candybags. It's also being used for knitting-related projects, the two active ones at the top. Flower Basket Shawl in purple/blue/turquoise Evilla art yarn, hope I'll get to finish it during February. (Yes, I'm slow.. I started it in December)
In front it's a spool of handspun alpacka/corriedale waiting to be plied. I'm not to sure about the color, it's very nice, but it's also not very me. Maybe I'll sell it, if it turns out OK.
And all the little socks in wacky colors? That's where the insanity comes in. I thought 24 knitted socks would be great as a Christmas calendar for my little girl. Luckily it's still some time until Christmas, as I've only made 5 or 6 socks... This smells like an UFO. Or perhaps stink.

From Hell to Heaven

2008-02-07T13:40:00.000-08:00

I've been having some serious problems with my Elna for over a year, but for some reason I've never tried to open it and look inside.. Until now. And look! A huge lump of dust! I had no idea so much could pile up in there.. And now the sewing machine is a dream. It's silent, and doesn't "chew" up the fabric at all! I've got back the machine I once dreamt of, it kind of like christmas and birthday all over again ;)

I've been sewing some different things the past few days, as I've joined a frendship quilt-group. It's so much fun to "go crazy" with different patterns, foundation piecing and lots of color! I'm supposed to sew 8 blocks, 2 every month. My February-blocks are done, and hopefully they'll get in the mail tomorrow. Excited to hear what the recievers will think!

After making intricate blocks, it's always fun to do something fast and simple, like these. They're called Puss in the Corner, and I got the idea from the faboulus Norwegian book Quiltegleder. They will all be blue, beige and brown, and I'll get to use many different japanese fabrics, both prints and plaids/other heavier qualities/textures.
I've only made 4, but as mentioned before, they're quick, so I'll make some more during the weekend and will hopefully get some idea how this will turn out!

7th spin

2008-02-06T01:38:00.000-08:00

I have a thing for purple, and I have a thing for beads too. Now I think I even have a thing for silk and merino!
This is a 3-ply fingering weight yarn, 1 strand of rayon thread, with 11/0 beads, two strands of merino and silk. This is a keeper, as the quality isn't too much to brag about. I think I'll make a lace shawl or something. Some day!

Oh Joy. One Year Older

2008-02-03T15:30:00.000-08:00

I can't really remember when my birthday became just an ordinary day, perhaps when I turned 17. When I grew up, February 4th often was a stormy day. If the weather was bad enough, or if we've been out of electrisity during the night, the school often had to close. This happened 3 times while I went to elementary school, and it was great! But during the (boring) day at home I always started to miss that "something special" it is to get a year older.
Today I'm 26. I used to think 26 was the perfect age to get pregnant. But I couldn't wait longer than until I was 24 (and a half!) So what is 26 the perfect age for? What should I try to accomplish during the next 12 months? I will for sure try to make the road towards 27 as bumpy as possible, as I have a thing for that.
Maybe 26 is the perfect age to realize that cupcakes isn't dinner, and quilting should be done before midnight.

31

2008-01-25T16:01:00.000-08:00

1. Hvor er mobilen din? Uvisst
2. Skildre kjæresten din? Varm
3. Håret ditt? Samarbeidsvillig
4. Moren din? Engasjert
5. Faren din? Kakemonster!
6. Hva er favorittingen din? Senga
7. Hva drømte du om i natt? Fremmede
8. Hva drikker du helst? Cola
9. Drømmebilen? Ikke-eksisterende
10. Hvilket rom sitter du i nå? Stua
11. Eksen din? Glemt
12. Din største skrekk? Utilstrekkelighet
13. Hva vil du være om ti år? Realisert
14. Hvem var du sammen med i går kveld? Familien
15. Hva er du ikke? A4
16. Det siste du gjorde? Spant
17. Hva har du på deg? Grønt
18. Favorittboka di? Renkesmed
19. Det siste du spiste? Minestrone
20. Livet ditt? Ekspanderende
21. Humøret ditt? Uberegnelig
22. Dine beste venner? Fantastiske!
23. Hva tenker du på akkurat nå? Wollknoll-katalogen ;)
24. Bilen din? Aldri
25. Hva gjør du akkurat nå? Planlegger
26. Sommeren din? Utforskende
27. Sivilstatus? Samboer
28. Hva er på tv-en din akkurat nå? Mørke
29. Når lo du sist? 21.10
30. Når gråt du sist? Søndag
31. Skole? Planlegges

Like you Could Resist Them!

2008-01-25T11:34:00.001-08:00

The new year was a few hours old when I decided to join a fabric diet, and even wrote on the blog that I wouldn't buy any new fabric this year, unless I was on vacation, or needed fabric for frames/binding or backsides. I kept that promise for 23 days. That's not to bad is it?
I had no chance, when I came across the new naive japanese fabric club at Desiree
I'll get 5 more packets of yummy fabric, I can hardly wait!
But I'll try to do one thing right: I will not start another project using this fabric until I've finished at least one UFO!

On the Wheel Today

2008-01-25T11:20:00.000-08:00

Another project in progress,purple merino and silk with a color which can't be described other than weird. Wonder how it turns out! I'm trying to make a thinner thread, thinner than I've ever tried before. Maybe it'll be more difficult to ply.. just one way to find that out, isn't it?
I'll try another new thing this time, beads! Tiny beads on a rayon thread matching the merino. This is exciting! I hope this yarn will be enough and suitable for a shawl.

This used to be a quiltblog

2008-01-23T03:58:00.000-08:00

Somehow it's not that easy to get to spend some time alone in my playroom/studio nowadays, as I'm home alone most of the day with our baby. The solution for that is English paper piecing and scraps! I have no idea why, but the scrapbox just continue to grow, even if I don't sew anything.. How is that possible?! I'll bet it will grow during this project too, as I have a bad habit when it comes to scrap quilts... When I'm finished making about half the project I usually think the colors are dull, so I use some stash, just to make it more interesting. I will try not to do that this time, but I might use some stash for the background, since I don't have enough scraps for that.

And yes, I think it looks kind of dull. What does it need to look more exciting?
Buttons?

Still spinning

2008-01-22T12:51:00.001-08:00

4th spin. Pure Spælsau/Old Norwegian Short Tail Landrace. I've dyed it myself, and I'm satisfied with the color, at least. This was difficult to spin! I'm not that experienced when it comes to carding, I guess I still have a thing or two to learn there.. This will be a pair of socks for my girl, I think. Maybe two pairs?

5th spin. Aaah, merino! So soft, so beautiful colors! Extremely satisfied with this spin, and it's also the largest. 250 grams. 12 WPI.

6th spin, finished today! Merino, some unknown wool, angelina, silk I've dyed. Fun spin, but I got some problems with the silk while plying. 14 WPI, 110 grams. (Enough for what?!)

Cute!

2008-01-08T13:24:00.000-08:00

Favourite Garment

2008-01-08T13:12:00.000-08:00

Urkigurki at Hobbyboden started a thread, asking for peoples favourite homemade garments. Here's mine. A wool/mohair scarf in a lace/rib-pattern with pink holographic sequins. Made it about 2 years ago and I LOVE it!

3rd spin.

2008-01-08T13:07:00.000-08:00

I'm still crazy about my new spinning wheel, and finsihed my third yarn tonight. Merino again, this time in greens. Think it's about 150 grams.

My second spin

2008-01-06T02:38:00.001-08:00

My second homespun is completed, this time blue and greens. It's actually a little bit more green than the photo shows. Pure merino, and it was soooo much easier to spin than the felting-wool I've used before. It's about 80 grams, and I hope thats enough for a pair of mittens. I've used all the fibers I had for this yarn, so it's kind of exiting if there isn't much enough yarn ;)
Right now it's a competition going on at Spinners home where you can win a drop spindle or some fiber just by telling a bit about your experiences and wishes when it comes to spinning.

Brighter days

2008-01-03T10:21:00.001-08:00

The very first finished project this year. A Eastern/spring tablerunner, which was started in August.We had a lot of guests during last summer, so I got some time to stitch the hexagons by hand while chatting in the sofa. Then, in early December I came across the lilac/white rabbit fabric I've used for a frame, and knew the minute I saw it that it was perfect! Quite happy with the result.

It's about a meter long, quilted with a variegated YLI thread (grey/yellow) in a wacky diagonal-pattern. The binding is a large-scale Heather Bailey fabric. I've always used small pattern fabric or stripes for binding, so this was new.

I really, really like stitching hexagons, and believe someone once said it was addictive. So true! I'm planning a new project already, a treeskirt for next christmas. Or was it christmas 2009? I have some unfinished projects now, I'm afraid.

A goal for the new year

2008-01-02T09:56:00.001-08:00

One of my new year's resolutions is to stop buying any quilt fabric for a year, unless it's for a project I've started last year (I need two blue fabrics for a teacup applique) OR if we're on vacation.Or if it's backside fabric... Or, or, or!
This diet is perfect for me, as I don't have a system in my fabricboxes (and baskets and shelevs) anymore, they're just floating over!

Happy New Potato-year!

2007-12-31T15:23:00.000-08:00

I recently red in a local newspaper that we can look forward to 366 exciting days in 2008, one of the reasons for that is because UN desided this is the year of the potato! Yey! Wonder what Dr.Atkins would say about this enormous betrayal against "healthy" eating-habits. Coming back to my own eating-habits in a second...

CHRISTMAS 2007

It started out great. Elina looked adorable in her new, red Minnie Mouse dress, the dinner was a success,the tree was decorated, everyone was happy and looked forward to a great christmas...
Then it got even better! I haven't been som exited about a christmas gift since I was 11 (or so), and wouldn't even hope it could be a spinningwheel, even if the box was HUGE! I've been wanting a spinningwheel for quite some time now, and planned to buy a used one while we're on vacation in July. No need for that now..!
I had some trouble in the beginning, but over the next days I managed to make a little ball of yarn, my first one! The picture came out a little dark, but it's a dusty pink/brown/beige shade. The quality isn't much to brag about, but how much fun would it be to start out as an expert?
I even tried to dye som wool myself, using red and purple. I put white, beige/brown and grey wool in the pan before heating it, and got some different shades. But the sad part is that I'm not sure I'll use the wool at all, as it's better suited for felting than spinning. Maybe it can be used in a mixes yarn, with merino? I got my first merino tops today, and I have to say it was very different from the "ordinary" wool I had tried before. I'm pretty sure which quality I'll choose in the future!

I had big plans for the christmas when it came to quilting and exercise. But that was before I got hospitalized with a painful gallstone. It passed in a few days, but I didn't feel to good for days (for some odd reason, sleeping is your first priority when you're on strong painkillers)
I've started to quilt a spring/eastern/hexagon tablerunner which turns out pretty great, I think. But I'm getting even more delayed, as the sewing machine is full of batting, and needs to be cleaned. Hopefully I'll get around to that someday... Now I'm mostly into spinning, I want to learn this! Making my own yarn would be wonderful.

The greatest UFO.

2007-12-26T03:28:00.000-08:00

I once loved crazy quilting. it's the perfect way to use my creativity, I love projects where I get to do several different things, and isn't told by a pattern how things are supposed to turn out. Crazy quilting is perfect! You just make a few bocks, find some embellishment you'd like to put on.. and let it develop. I've never had any idea how things were suppposed to turn out, just that it had to be purple, and I wanted to use a lot of beads and buttons.
But it's so slooow! I love the idea of using years and years making a quilt. I just don't love doing it. I have 4 6" blocks for this, and to be honest, I don't think there will be any more.

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-24T06:32:00.001-08:00

Feel like becoming a diabetic?

2007-12-16T14:17:00.000-08:00

Come have a taste! I kind of went crazy with the frosting for this gingerbread house! But it turned out pretty cute, I think. Luckily this is an once a year-thing, as I'm feeling sick after eating the leftover decorations.

I've got my second card

2007-12-13T06:18:00.000-08:00

I've almost been running to check the mailbox as soon as I got out of bed the last days, since I was so curious about the second card I was going to recieve. And finally it came, all the way from Tiriltunge in Tromsø! Check out her blog, she makes some really nice stuff. I love the card, she's been using angelina and tulle, a technique I'm curious about, but never have tried. Maybe this was the inspiration I needed? Thank you for the beautiful card!