Pinterest - There goes my free time!

I recently found a new website which has definitely captured my interest! Pinterest is a clever site which allows you to "pin" photos from all over the internet and collect them into albums. A friend told me that it sounds a lot like Tumblr (which I've never really used before) but Pinterest seems to have a particularly feminine, crafty and artistic bent to it which I'm loving.

So I've spent the last couple of days looking around the site, putting together albums of my own interests (including gorgeous homes with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, which you can see here) and of course, a collection of inspirational craft ideas (which you can check out here). The site allows you to follow other people's albums as well, so you can find collections which suit your interests and have pictures from them pop up whenever you log in.

The site is currently invite only, but as a new member I have six invites to give you, so if anyone is interested, drop me an email and I'll send one over to you.

I'll give you one tip however: turn off the email alerts! Everyone is looking through everyone else's albums and repinning, and you don't need an email every single time that happens!

I get the feeling that I'm going to be spending a lot of time on this site, just seeing all the beautiful things that the world has to offer! I've already found a bunch of cute craft projects and a really clever idea for my brother's birthday this year.

And now, to drag myself away from the internet and go do some grocery shopping. *groan*

Froofy

Before my daughter was born, I went on a cross-stitching and knitting frenzy. We had been trying for a while, and I had been restraining myself from making lots and lots of baby things before we finally fell pregnant, just in case we never got there. The day I found out I was pregnant, it was on for young and old!

She's 10 months old now and she's grown out of most of her newborn clothes. It's coming up to winter here, so I thought it was time for a new hat. Here's what I put together.

Purple, of course, but I actually bought more balls of this wool (Lincraft Surprise) in pink and orange/red shades, so she might just get more hat/scarf sets! It was a lot of fun to make, and didn't take too long at all. 

My husband called it "froofy". But he's a boy, so what are you going to do??

Anyway, I thought I would post up the pattern so you can knit this too. The wool doesn't need to be variegated, but I would suggest doing the crochet flower in a contrasting colour so it stands out.

“Froofy” Hat/Scarf Combo

Size:

For a 12+ month old (my little one has a large-ish head, so I stitched it big with lots of room to grow)

Materials:

100g 8 ply wool (I used Lincraft Surprise in Aubergine Mix)

4.5mm knitting needles

4.5mm (size 7) crochet hook

Large needle for sewing in ends/attaching flower to hat

Scissors

Method – Hat:

Cast on 80 stitches.

Knit first 6 rows in Moss Stitch as follows:

Row 1 (RS): *K1, P1*, repeat * to * until end.

Row 2 (WS): *P1, K1*, repeat * to * until end.

Row 3: Repeat Row 1.

Row 4: Repeat Row 2.

Row 5: Repeat Row 1.

Row 6: Repeat Row 2.

Continue knitting in stocking stitch (knit right side (RS) rows, purl wrong side (WS) rows) until hat measures approximately 13cm from bottom.

Shape crown as follows:

Row 1: *K6, K2tog*, repeat * to * until end.

Purl all WS rows.

Row 3: *K5, K2tog*, repeat * to * until end.

Row 5: *K4, K2tog*, repeat * to * until end.

Row 7: *K3, K2tog*, repeat * to * until end.

Row 9: *K2, K2tog*, repeat * to * until end.

Row 11: *K1, K2tog*, repeat * to * until end.

Row 12: K2tog until end.

Cut yarn to leave a long tail, and thread tail onto needle. Pass threaded needle through remaining stitches on the knitting needle (there should be 10 stitches) and pull tight. Use remaining thread on needle to stitch up the back seam of the hat. Sew in all ends neatly.

Method – Crochet Flower:

Please note: instructions are in English crochet terms.

Ch8 and join with a SS.

Round 1: Ch3 (counts as 1tr), work into ring 1tr, *6ch, 3tr*, repeat * to * 4 more times, 6ch, 1tr, then join with a SS in the third chain of the 3ch at the beginning of the round.

Round 2: *1ch, then 1dc, 1htr, 7tr, 1htr, 1dc into the chain arch, 1ch, skip 1dc, SS into next dc,* repeat from * to * 5 more times.

Fasten off with a tail, and thread tail onto a needle. Use remaining tail to sew flower onto the hat in desired position. Sew in all ends neatly.

Method – Scarf:

Cast on 15 stitches.

Work every row in Moss Stitch as follows:

*K1, P1*, repeat * to * until end, K1.

Cast off once scarf is at desired length (mine was 82cms).

Method – Crochet Edge (Large Picot):

Please note: this edge should be worked in multiples of 3 plus 2.

Row 1 (WS facing): Work a row of dc along the edge of the scarf. Try to create 17 stitches.

Row 2 (RS facing): 1ch, 1dc into next dc of previous row, *ch5, SS into first ch of that 5ch, skip next dc, 2dc*, repeat * to * until end. Fasten off and sew in all ends.

Enjoy!

What's new, Pussycat?

I promised I'd show you my latest stitching project, so here it is. I am stitching up one of my newer designs from a vintage Australian magazine cover, The Rose.

And here's what it will look like when it's finished:

I've also been knitting a bit, just making a few new cosy warm beanies for my little girl. They're so quick and fun, so I think I'm going to make a few of them! More on those as I make a bit more progress.

I hope your projects are going as well as mine! Have fun.

Excuses Excuses

So, anyone who reads blogs regularly will be very much familiar with the post I’m about to make.

I’ve been slack about updating the blog. Sorry everyone. Here’s the shortlist of excuses:

1) I’ve started managing a blog for my husband’s practice, and they’ve been keeping me busy! I’m hoping I can start up a small business running blogs for people who are interested in having one but don’t know the technological know-how to do it themselves. (And yes, that was a blatant piece of self-promotion, so contact me on cynosure.linda@gmail.com if you’re interested in something like that for yourself or someone you know!)

2) Sick grandmother, check. (I wish that was a joke, but my grandmother had a couple of heart attacks and has had to be moved out of her home into a nursing home, so that resulted in a trip up north for a while.)

3) I finished my giant cross stitch, so I’ve been a little burned out on stitching for a while. It went well in the exhibition I talked about (it won third place!). But I have started a new project which I’m tentatively planning for next year’s exhibition. 

4) Most of all, my little girl is nine months old and on the verge of starting to crawl. She developed her first tooth last week! She’s a little angel, but she still runs me ragged. That said, I’ve already started planning her first birthday party, which I’m really looking forward to!

Shameless baby picture, check.

 5) And my own health went haywire this week, which is hardly an excuse for my not having updated the blog up until now, but hey, I get some sympathy, right?

I promise I'll (try to) do better in the future.

More on my latest cross stitch project later in the week.