I dont really have much to blog/show off this week but here goes. I got both my books and they are truly fantastic, I love them both they have some quirky ideas in them. I especially like the alternative festive hat and the two headed crocheted rat! but there are some other lovely bits in there like lacy crocheted gloves, over the knee socks and some wonderful sweaters/hoddies and coats for when I feel I have more time and the nights start getting a little darker.

I have knitted a lacy black choker for our night out last night where I drank far too much but did enjoy getting very dressed up, and of course looked fabulous. A good friend won free Bloodstock tickets again so I got to get one of them for free! So very exciting, I just hope the band get the opportunity to play.

I only wish I had a bit more inspiration to get making more monsters for my business idea! I am having trouble getting jumpers to felt and as this was the new idea behind making them i kind of feel I cant get anywhere. I will have to start making more of an effort to traul the charity shops next week.

Bring on the darkside!

Im so excited that I had to blog today! I have ordered two books today, Anticraft and Domiknitrix, i cant wait to get crafty along with my darker side, i’m especially excited by the idea of a duct tape corset!!!! Eeek

                   

I also have had my Ravelry invite so come and find me say hello etc though im still finding my way around, username is monstermagic of course.

Hip Hip Hip Horray!

What a gorgeous weekend it has been and a perfect opportunity to get a bit of sunburn! No seriously it has been so nice weather wise and has been a lovely change to be able to sit outdoors and relax. I have finally finished the Mrs Darcy Cardigan and here is it for all too see I dont think its the most flattering of pictures but you at least get to see the cardigan in all its finished glory! I just love the colour and its really soft, its just a shame its too warm to be wearing it.

This weekend however in the sun I have been making some stuffed birds, the idea of these birds it that they will either be stuffed catnip toys for kitty’s or will be hung with ribbon for little children to play with. These are made with recycled felt and some fleece I had lying around though I would like to be able to get more recycled felt to make ones for selling with. These birds were just some prototypes to decide which was the best way of making them for the different purposes. Here they are hiding out in their natural habitat.

Finally I just have a quick picture of another couple of the felted cupcakes I made the other week as we went to see my mum today so I could sneak them away for a sec My personal fave of them all is the blue green and pink one.

Geek or Chic?

I love Bank Holidays, an extra long weekend its such a shame it always rains!

As usual like every weekend, I have been crafting away, although this weekend has been a little different as I have been able to see! Yes, thats right, I have picked up my new glasses! What do you think? Geek or Chic? Ill leave that to you to decide though I do rather like them!

So what have I been crafting? Well I have finally finished the ‘Mrs Darcy Cardigan’!!! YIPPEE and it is sat next to me Blocking. It looks rather odd at the minute but I am hoping it will turn out just fine and I will be able to do an FO ASAP. This has been much to Chris’s delight as I think he was getting a bit fed up of the amount of time it has taken me to complete this! I so hope I am pleased with the finished result.

I have decided that the next knitted project (apart from some swatches of Rialto Aran for felting) will be to knit some socks and I have found a lovely sock wool pictured below which has some gorgeous colour changes in it! I cant wait to see what they will look like once completed. The pattern is from lets knit issue 3, which reminds me I have signed up to Ravelry! can’t wait to get on there, it looks rather exciting! Anyway, here is the sock yarn, it somehow reminds me of the sea!

Anyway thats about it from me for now, Go get some dinner and go for a bit of gaming to relax for the rest of the Bank Holiday, got DDO yesterday for next to nothing so me and Chris will be giving it a go this afternoon.

Party, a woolly head and a little progress

Me, Chris and the family all went to Loch Fyne on sat night (after a heavy friday night and a sat spend having many hair of the dogs!) to celebrate the many many birthdays there are in the month of April and May for us. I managed to make four felted cakes in time for the occasion (although didnt manage to find a camera to take a pic of them in time, it all got rather rushed at the end). They went down very well though and I didnt have one left spare to keep for myself looks like I will have to make me a new one. I will try and get a pic of the two my mum stole in the week as they are different from the one below.

Apart from that I have just been getting on with felting some shocking pink merino wool to be my Download festival hair. This is just done by cutting it to the desired lenghts, putting them in some hot soapy water and hand rolling them on a towel. As you can see they are very bright, and they are going to be so comfy and snuggly when they are in my hair!

And finally, now I have managed to sort out the cakes and that fiasco is over I have finally managed to get back onto making some more progress on the Mrs Darcy Cardigan. As you can see from the pic, im still only half way up the sleeve from the post prior to this, but at least I will have time to finish it now.

 

 

 

Birdie hair clip

Today whilst sewing up my Betz White cupcake pin cushion I came up with an idea and a pattern for making little birdie hair clips from recycled, felted charity shop sweaters. Obviously I had some scraps left, so this evening having a lack of anything else to do I have drawn up a pattern and made up this cute little birdie hair clip. I hope you love it as much as I do, he is so cute. I might post a birdie hair clip tutorial up soon as he was so fast and easy to make it seems silly not too.

New ideas and a new face

For weeks I have been trying to make cakes for the family birthday meal out - woolen ones of course but all the patterns I have tried so far just haven’t come out looking anything as good as I would have hoped. In my search I came across Betz White’s cupcakes in a recent issue of lets knit magazine and so decided I best get knitting up a few swatches ready for when I get my copy of Betz’s book to find out how to make the wonderful thing! I have also been scouring a few charity shops for sweaters too felt, I have found some great ones, and shall definitely be moving into recycled felting for my monsters in future due to its eco friendly-ness.

Here is my first venture into the world of felting. I put it through the machine twice on 60 degrees and it has come out in this lovely fabric, im so pleased that it works - Bonus!

You can also see my first finished cupcake! About time, I found one which I love, and i know the women in my family will also love.

And lastly, but not leastly, I have ordered some new glasses today (yep its been one busy day and i’ve not had any tea yet!). I have put a picture of them on here, but not one of me in them, the picture that Chris took I dont like so you will all just have to wait to see me in them :). They are fab, and i cant believe there were such a funky plasticy pair that were small enough for my face! Just got to wait to pick them up now so I can fully embrace my inner geek!

Anyway, off for some eats now and then to watch Beowolf!

Mrs Darcy Cardigan

I am currently making thw lovely ‘Mrs Darcy Cardigan’ in teal, the pattern of which can be found here.

This is only my fourth or fifth knit so its a little adventurous and i keep making the odd mistake but it is so beautiful it should all be worth it in the end.

Here you can see the colour that i am knitting it in, its Debbie Bliss Rialto Aran and its lovely to the touch.

 

I am knitting them on a pair of 6.5mm needles which i made myself from some wooden dowling, sandpaper, a pencil sharpener and some fimo. I Love them.

 

 

 

I am also trying to knit some cakes for the familys birthdays but im not sure how successful this will be and whether i will actually finish it or not.

Pure as the driven snow

Hi, its April and it snowed! although by the time I got up there was not a lot of it left. Obviously as this was probably the last and only time it is going to snow where I i this year what more could i do than ask my other half to drive me somewhere high so I could play in the lovely white stuff, of course, he did :).

He drove us up to Hartington in Derbyshire and we spent a lovely hour freezing while I built a snowman as the sheep baaaard at us from the neighbouring field. I had a lovely time.

Welcome

Hi,

Well I have started my blog again, why you may ask, simply because the old one had a rather unsavoury address! If you want to check out my old blog of crafty little things that I have created you can see them here although it hasn’t been updated for a long time. I have also created my etsy shop which can be found at monstermagic.etsy.com where you can purchase my lovely plush monsters <3.

Anyway, enough from me, I hope you enjoy my blog.

Helen xxx