Lizard Lurv

The knitted Frilled Neck Lizard / dragon toy is finished - I really lurv this guy, he is quite a character :-)


Even when he was being sewn up he was clowning about ... but some toys are like that!

Cheerio for now!

Yarn Dear - Oh Deer!

All the things you can do with yarn :-) and as Christmas is just around the corner ...
Some of the larger craft / sewing stores have cheap papier mache reindeer ... take one of those, some PVA glue, a thinish paintbrush for applying the glue and some nasty acrylic yarn + some time and some sewing pins to hold yarn in place while the glue dries ...

Gee, I'm really into the HANDicrafts ...

Those are some Lizard's Legs - front legs for the knitted Frilled Neck Lizard (see my previous post) he is now in the sewing-up stage.

And - I've been working on the mascot Dog Costume - I posted about the front paws last month. I've had a bit of help with the head - from a friend who made a quarter of the current NRL Team mascot costumes ...

First step is to mock up the head in card - this will become the pattern. I've yet to do the ears but it is looking dog-like :-)

The Dromaius novaehollandiae (or Emu)

Is this a patented polishing cloth with very long legs?

Or is it a knitted toy Emu saying,
"Could you please sew my head on now? Please..."

So I did.


I think she is quite proud of her long legs! See the previous post for details of the pattern etc.

kNovember kNitting

More of the alphabet project knitted toys ... and E is for Emu. Still in parts and awaiting a head:

Like the Wombat for W - the Emu pattern is by Barbara Lennon from the Cleckheaton booklet "Wildlife in 8 ply" (out of print unfortunately). I'm using the same 8 ply yarn as for wombat and kangaroo - with some contrast naturally brown / undyed wool for the legs & feet ... I am adapting to make this emu about 1/2 the size of the original pattern and I've made the legs as Icords.

Now this project is for me :-) and yes, I have an embarrassing number of PHDs for myself (that's Project Half Done) when a project is for someone else I usually get it finished. But this pattern was irresistible - such a cute Military / NutCracker style jacket with lots of details ... the "braid" is actually cable knitting :-) it is in the Rebecca Magazine N0: 43 - Rebecca is a German publication but it does come with an English translation (phew!) I like the styles and the slightly different approach to knitting. I waited for the Bendigo Woollen Mills sale (still on) to get the yarn - a soft bluish grey 12ply Rustic. I've finished the peplum already :-)

And here is a sneak preview of some knitting I've been commissioned to do for a theatrical production due to open in Sydney about March / April next year. Lots of knits, mostly scarves and these are some of the samples.
The designer is Julie Lynch - the way she uses and colours and textures is wonderful!
Because most of the characters in this show are really poor people; the knitting has to be tatty, "dirty", holed, poorly fitting, badly knitted ... so folks, those holes and dropped stitches are deliberate ... really !!

This red scarf has even been EATEN!

Knitting Knews brought to you by the letter K

A progress report on 2 large on-going projects.

The 'Sampler Shawl' from the wonderful book 'A Gathering of Lace' is progressing quite slowly as I've got so many other things 'on the boil' at the same time but I'm loving the way it looks.
Traditional lace shawls can look really pretty, pristine and well ... prissy. This is not prissy - it is slightly rustic and earthy. It's the yarns, I'm using 2 held together - Kaalund's lovely sheeny blue/grey silk Enchante & Dairing aka Habu's silk thread with Fern Fibre (AK20). The fern fibre has fluffy nubbly bits of tan brown which is adding that touch of earthyness.

I'm also knitting toys again for the ongoing Alphabet Project ... and K = Kangaroo


A vintage pattern which I knitted up back in the 80s for my daughter - unfortunately the moths ate holes in that roo ... this time I made a few very minor changes but this is still a fiddly pattern which relies on careful sewing-up to refine the shape.
This is it pre-sewing ...




It is a clever pattern though - the roo stands up well and she has a pouch :-) I've added a security chain so the Joey can't get lost. I could blame the mummy roo and call her a helicopter parent but really it's because I don't want to have to knit another Joey - he is a fiddly little thing.

Been busy

Lots of sewing in the last week - including some shirts for grandson. With short sleeves in a classic stripe -





and long sleeves in tartan - this is a lovely light weight cotton fabric.






As grandson is left-handed I've placed the pockets on the RHside and because he likes to do up his buttons himself - "I can DO it" - I've used biggish buttons with slightly larger than normal b-holes. Buttons on the tartan shirt look like old-fashioned records (those black vinyl things) - they have different coloured 'labels' & I had fun matching the colours of the tartan :-)

Have also finally gotten back to that mega-project I started last year - to make an alphabet for the grands with knitted toys for each letter ... T is for turtle & tortoise and so I'm knitting a Sheldon a great pattern and I love the way he 'comes out of his shell' :-) but at this stage in his progress I think my Sheldon looked rather like a tick with a full tummy ...
On Sunday we went to the Leichhardt Public School Fete - because of the Tea Cosy competition. Lots of wonderful cosies - here are the children's















and the grown up's






Wonderful creativity. My Anna Karenina got a prize and I'm inordinately proud :-) Bought all sorts of things at the fete, 2nd hand books and clothes and a really big metal colander - which with a bit of adaptation will fit perfectly inside my dying pot - and make it much easier to dye roving / sliver without it felting up. Yea!

Well, I'll leave you with yet another native orchid flowering in the garden right now - Dendrobium falcorostrum (aka Beech Orchid) and it seems this is another orchid getting reclassified and getting another name Thelychiton falcorostrus all these names make our lovely native orchids sound like hardened criminals!

And this one is such a pretty thing - love the fancy shape to the tip of the labellum, like one of these { The scent is classic native orchid - sweet and powdery.

I Scream, You Scream, We all Scream for Ice Cream

Nothing quite like a really ancient joke! I finished these at the end of January but better late than never?

Another letter in the ongoing Alphabet Project - I was stuck for something appropriate for the letter I, most of the alphabet will be animals - Ibis (too hard) Iguana (too similar to Gecko and Lizard) ... Then I came across a wonderful pattern for Ice Cream Cones or if you are on Ravelry the pattern is called Scooped.

Choc is my grandson’s favourite :-) that is a natural un-dyed wool - I modified the pattern to make melting dribbles.

The Strawberry is Bendigo Woollen Mills Alpaca Rich and the cones are Bendigo Woollen Mills "Luxury 4ply" wool held double - it was white, I dyed it with Tea.

Kissing Fish and Boots

Another letter done in the ongoing Alphabet Project for my grandchildren.

A Family of Fish for the Letter F. And as St Valentine’s Day is only a fortnight away, it is appropriate that they are Kissing Fish :-)

It is the ole’ love story - Boy fish (in self-striping sock yarn) and Glam Girl fish (cheap turquoise metallic yarn except for her lipstick) meet and fall in love … kiss kiss … … and along comes baby fish.

Both patterns are by Cheezombie "Knit Fish" and “Glubby Goldfish”. Cute huh!

And now for something completely different and I didn't make these ... some ultra cute boots for Lillian.

I will have to make her an outfit to go with them though!

Wombat Battyness

Another letter of the Alphabet project is done - W simply HAD to be a Wombat. There is something so lovable about wombats.



This wombat is from an old Cleckheaton pattern booklet - one of Barbara Lennon's patterns for Australian Wildlife. He has turned out quite adorable :-)

J is for Jellyfish & O is for Octopus

More Alphabet knitting - an ongoing project for our grandchildren.

And thanks to Hansi Singh's "Amigurumi Knits" for some great knitted toys for some of the difficult letters of the Alphabet :-) In fact, I've plotted all the alphabet now except for the letter V. V is a problem - vulture and vampire are rather scary for very young children and they are not Australian critters, same applies to viper. Vixen might be the best idea - unfortunately we have plenty of feral foxes. If you can think of a good knitted toy for the letter V - please leave me a comment ... it doesn't necessarily have to be an animal.

Meanwhile, here are J and O ...

Alphabet Knitting - B, D and G

Am slowly knitting my way through the alphabet - for my grandchildren when it's all finished. A great excuse to knit lots of little toys :-)

SO - B is for Bat ... a "Boo the Bat" from Mochimochi Land

Very sweet and quite easy to knit - I did change the ears and used slightly thinner yarn and needles than suggested which has made this Bat just the right size to fit in my hand.





here he is with wings unfurled ...
so cute!







D is for Dragon - well originally, and in keeping with the attempt to make this alphabet as Australian as possible, D was going to be a Dingo, but I couldn't find a suitable pattern then I was thinking of a Drongo which is a bird (as well as Aussie slang for a somewhat silly person) but then I rediscovered Norberta, on knitty.com a very cute baby dragon. Again I used 8ply (DK) and so this one is smaller than pattern suggests, and I used lots of different yarns including bright metallic for her "fairy wings".

Well, I'm not knitting these in alphabetical order - so skipping right along to G for Gecko - another clever and cute pattern by Cheezombie on Etsy. Self patterning sock-yarn made for some good banded effects and I just love the goggly eyes!

Brought to You by the Letter S

Well I do love to Bite off (almost) More than I can Chew ... launching into massive projects, I usually manage to finish them.

I'm planning to make an Alphabet for our Grandchildren - A set of A4 sized 'flags' (in felt I think) one for each letter with the letter appliqued on ... each 'flag' will have a pocket and inside the pockets will live small soft toys appropriate to the letter. I want to make it as Australian as possible and to knit most of the toys (I love knitted toys).

S is for Seahorses

and for Seal



Great patterns from Cheezombie on Etsy