Happy-ish New Year

 

This year for me has started as the old one finished, still full of cold and coughing well but now I’m getting better and taking it easy until next Monday when the normal pattern for the week/month starts.

First finish for this year has been an ATC for the TG Swap, the deadline comes up by the end of this week, The theme this month is Tea Time. I had thought of making a scone from fabric but that didn’t work out, so I came up with the idea of a custard cream biscuit instead. After a Google search with some images I came up with a couple of drawings and used the one on the lower part on the white card.  I scanned in the image to make 2 copies.

When I’ve been making the ATC’s I usually make two, one for reference and one to send.  I painted the image in ochre watercolour paint and shaded the edge lightly with ochre pencil. The pattern is highlighted by brown fineliner pen.  I mounted it onto pink card, which was the inside of the wedding anniversary card.  I've cut another small piece from this card as I that might come in useful too.

Having watched the Great British Seeing Bee just before New Year I decided to have a go at making a waistcoat, not an adult one, but a rabbit sized one!  The pattern is in the first Luna Lapin book and is for Luna’s brother Alfie, but as I don’t have Alfie, Luna has modelled it instead.

I made this from some blue denim, with blue patterned fabric lining. It only took the afternoon to make. It is a bit different to an adult one as the bottom seam remains not sewn to turn out the waistcoat.  In an adult waistcoat one of the lining seams is left not sewn.  So now I can say Ive made a waistcoat!  You never know I may make Luna a new outfit.

In my quiet time Ive taken to doing some knitting and I bought some yarn in a craft sale back in October.  It was 7 skeins of chunky yarn (long discontinued) and I wondered whether it would make a cardigan or not, so I picked a pattern that a friend passed onto me quite a while ago.  Having knitted the back and fronts I have found it won't. However this pattern is a waistcoat too (there seems to be a theme with this blog post...) so it will become that.  The pattern is King Cole 4716, which is cardigan/waistcoat with a cable edging. I have a feeling that 2 of the skeins were incomplete and also found that a sleeve would take more than the one and a half skeins left, so there was no way of extending the yarn further, but I am quite happy with how its turning out.

I'm very tempted to make the new free sock pattern by Winwick Mum, which is in mosaic colour work, which looks really effective.  I had a go a this technique before with a hat using plain lilac and a multicoloured yarns.  Lets get the waistcoat out of the way and get going with that.  I'll have to work out what I have in stash first.

Lucy of Attic 24 is doing another Crochet A Long, the Harbour Blanket, but I've resisted temptation for this one and sitting this out.  But the colours are soooo lovely and bright, especially given the gloom of this time of year.  But unless I have a home for another blanket, I won't make one.

So this has been my first week of the New Year so far, a bit of artwork, a bit of sewing, a bit of knitting and just easing myself back into the swing of things.  I hope you are too.