Little Knitted Bear

Oh my goodness! Who is this little fellow nestling in the pocket of my dressing gown? Isn't he rather adorable?

I have so many oddments of wool. Lots of random balls of different colours and styles. Trying to figure out how I should use them up has been an ambition of mine for a while. I've been very busy this year with my Masters so I wanted to work on easy projects that didn't involve endless counting of stitches and complicated techniques. This versatile pattern ticked all the boxes. It's for "Anything Animals". A doll, a bear or a rabbit can be made following the basic structure of this pattern. Fabulous eh? 

It's a very easy pattern. Perfect for those who like to knit while chatting to friends or indulging in a spot of internet tv. I decided not to make arms for him because I thought he looked cuter without them. I have a bit pile of "Anything Animals" at home waiting to be sewed up. I am planning on sewing a looped ribbon on the top so they can be hung from a door handle, nail or even a Christmas tree when that time of year rolls around!

Bríd x

Little Kitten Finger Puppet!

My friend Aoife, a talented animator and artist (whose work you can see here) made me this adorable little finger puppet. He is so tiny that he sleeps in a matchbox! Isn't he sweet?

Aoife didn't use a pattern to make this little fellow, but there are quite a few patterns for cat finger puppets online if you'd like to give them a try. Here's a knitted one and a crocheted one.

I'm sorry this post is so brief, I'm writing my LLM dissertation at the moment and must get back to it. No more procrasti-blogging can be tolerated!

Bríd x

Knitted Kitteh

Awww! Look at the little kitteh! It's rather adorable isn't it? I knitted this little fellow for my friend Beth. It is an incredibly easy pattern both to knit and to sew up. I made the entire thing in less than two hours. Awesome eh?  

Here's a link to the pattern if you would like to try it out! It's so very quick and easy that I would strongly recommend it. I used googley eyes and a little heart button for the nose but there are other ways of doing his face as you can see here. It's a very versatile pattern and you could quickly and easily make a whole family of kittehz. Oh yes.

This pattern is perfect for beginners. Aside from a little bit of shaping for the head, it's just straight up knitting. It's great if you're new to knitting and want to graduate beyond the scarf. Take the leap I say, knit a cat!

                                         

                                     

I hope you're all having a lovely week so far and enjoying the summer sunshine!

B x

Adventure Time Hat!

Everyone knows and loves Adventure Time. Even me although I regularly fail at popular culture... My friend Heber came to me a few Halloweens ago and told me that he wanted to dress up as Finn from Adventure Time for Halloween and was wondering if I could make the hat for his costume.

I was up for the challenge. I bought a cheap fleece hat and scarf. I used the scarf to make the ears and the chin strap. It was all very easy, I didn't use a pattern and just freestyled it. I think the best bit was that it only cost me about 3 euro to make.

Here's a photo of Heber in his full Finn regalia. Doesn't he just look fantastic? LOVELY HEBER.

Here is me wearing the hat just after I finished it! If I remember correctly, this was taken at some odd hour of the morning as I raced against the clock to get it done in time for Halloween!

If you'd like to make one yourself, here's a Youtube tutorial that'll show you how it's done:

I hope you're all having a nice weekend! I am in the library studying for my last exam. Freedom just can't come quick enough!

Bríd x

Simple Shoulder Bag

Hello!

So my friend Jenni, crochet-er extraordinaire, recently taught me how to crochet. My first project was this shoulder bag for Clare. Getting the knack of the crochet-loop business was the only hard part, because the pattern could not be easier. You go around in a circle for a while, increasing the size, and then you stop increasing and just go around in a circle....forever. Or until you've reached desired size.

It's a great one to start crocheting with, and, because the pattern is so straight-forward, it's a great one for collapsing in front of the tv/radio with after a long day. Plus the circular rhythm of crocheting is pretty damn satisfying.

God it's just such a handy bag, now Clare can carry the essentials with her when she's cycling through her non-space!

My crochet on this was quite loose, I'm just on my second project now and am working on making it tighter. Clare is planning on lining the bag with some old fabric, which will make it a bit safer for coins and pens. When it came to the strap I decided to use an old leather belt, which I picked up in a charity shop for a euro, and then just raftily (/craftily) sewed on.

So yeah, give it a go! Crocheting is definitely the new knitting. (You heard it here first.) If you haven't crocheted before, you can either ask a friend who has to sit down with you till you get the hang of it, or you can go to youtube.

This isn't the exact pattern I used for this, but it's very close (and you don't need to consult it that much anyway).

If you happen to have a helluva lot of dreadlocks this pattern will make you a really nice hat too. and when you're just having one of those days...

So versatile.

Happy Sunday!

Joan

A Wee Elephant

I've always loved elephants.  Majestic and imposing giants one moment, adorably lumbering and awkward the next.  They also happen to be a delightful little knitting project.

This little guy was very quick and simple to make, taking only a couple of lazy winter afternoons to whip up.

Unfortunately the blog on which I found the pattern for this little fellow has been lost to some great internet purge.  Thankfully, however, there will always be a demand for little woolen elephants and so here's a link for an equally lovely pattern.

Happy crafting!

Emma x

Lovely iPhone Sleeve!