More knitting...

Look! Jasper's jumper is all done! I finally sewed up the last underarm hole this afternoon, while having a cuppa with my Mum. He's actually already worn it, despite the holey pits - but it felt good to finish it off totally, even though I wasn't super happy with how I did so. Those final seams don't look as good as they could, but hey, who's going to see?! Better just to be done, cos my attention and motivation had already moved on to other things...

I think he looks pretty good - I'm still loving the colours...

Last week, seeing as Jasper's jumper was almost (but not quite!) finished, I had the urge to start something bigger, with plenty of mindless knitting. What I really want to make is this Jo Sharp cardigan from her Knit 6 book (see the third piece along, with the two buttons?), but instead I'm knitting the one in the photo (above), from her Knit 1 book, cos I bought the yarn for it years ago and have never gotten around to knitting it up. Feels good to use what I have, but I still want to knit the other one, so I think I will, once I finish this one, and then I'll have two handknit cardigans, right when I'll need all the cardigans I can get, breastfeeding through autumn and winter!

Incidentally, Jo Sharp just put out another book, Knit 7, but I really can't see myself making anything from it! Bit too frou frou for my current stage of life - what would a posset look like on one of those pieces, I wonder? Or bits of dinner from when one of my kids has grabbed me?? =)

Advent x 3

I thought I had a day up my sleeve, when it came to Advent, so I was caught by surprise, this morning, when I realised that today was actually the 1st of December. Only last night I'd been online looking for ideas of things to put in our Advent calendar. Kids Craft Weekly always has cool stuff, so after paying a bit more attention (as opposed to ignoring the fortnightly emails - life's too busy to deal with all the stuff in my inbox!), I decided to buy the Christmas Craft pdf. Lots of fun ideas in there - you could get it too!

Now, what I'm wondering is whether three Advent calendars is too many?! The kids have one from my parents last year, where each day you get to velcro on one more character in the nativity. And I really liked this idea...

...sticking a star onto the night sky each day until Christmas Day. So in a bit of unexpected free space today, I cleaned up the loungeroom and created a space for our Peruvian candle-lit nativity scene.

Piper can stick a star on tonight.

I found the idea in this book, Crafts Through the Year by Thomas and Petra Berger, which I found at Brunswick Bound. (Man, that is a fantastic bookshop, if you get a chance to wander round in there! Be warned, you will probably leave with less cash, but some beautiful books and ideas!). Lovely book, but suited more to the Northern Hemisphere. Still, I didn't want to pass it up.

Anyway, that's only two advent calendars! The third is one I sewed from a panel years ago, but it has pockets, and I like the idea of putting little things in there, like occasional chocolate but also fun things to do together as a family. Lots of idea out there, once you look a little - I might post the list I threw together here once I format it a little. So I think it would be fun, but still, three calendars - is that overkill??

Creative weekend

I've been working away on bits and pieces for Christmas. Skirts for presents and tree ornaments for some friends and family. I brought this green fabric and white buttons back from Canada (good old Tanells and the MCC thrift store!) and had the idea of making little trees for ages. Then I rediscovered this tutorial, which simplified things a lot - always helpful when one is making more than a few. I do have a tendency to complicate things!

So this mess...

...becomes this...

...becomes this! I was eyeing up the bottlebrush when I took this - it's such a christmassy flower, but I don't think it will last til the 25th. I'll have to wait and see.

So, little trees, still under production, but I've got enough to send to Canada now (shhh, don't tell those people). I'll hang them in a window in the front of our family newsletter, which I have also managed to pull together this weekend. Bummer the printer has run out of ink!

Managed to make some girly skirts for a few of Piper's friends. Squeezed the sewing in amidst breakfasts and dinner prep and colouring in. Little bits of time are more on offer round here than large chunks. I really really love the simplicity of this pattern - it really facilitates giving a handmade gift which hasn't taken too much out of you! Thankyou, Liesl.

Last but not least, we were creative in the kitchen, with Piper making her first ever batch of pikelets and cooking them too, until the idea of a wrestle with Dad became more interesting. She did really well - good to be reminded that her capacity to do stuff increases without me realising, and new possibilities emerge...