3 months of toil…… But still a pleasure!

Well! I’m back!!!!!!

And thankfully with a clear head; Rested, focussed and busier than ever after a short break en Ecosse with Mr OH and the bullies of the bus – Even though Scotland was a tad damp at times to say the least it was still a well earned bit of time out after a hectic few months…… 😉

On the old Edinburgh road in our trusty T5. There is a mountain hiding away under that low lying cloud – Honest!

So, let’s have a recap and look back at what flattened my batteries for a while…..

Firstly, there was an invitation back in early March for me to take part in an event called ‘The Handmade Alternative’ in Bradford, West Yorkshire; The brainchild of Jane Wynn of Wildheart. It was her vision to bring together a whole host of independent designers, artists and craftspeople who cater for alternative tastes and showcase their work in a fabulous pop-up shop in Bradford city centre. An idea that proved to be incredibly popular and was much welcomed by a whole host of customers eager to sample the assorted wares on offer.

I took the opportunity to debut a collection of alternative baby wear I’d been working hard on – skulls, crossbones, zombie bunnies, kitties and Game of Thrones inspired goodies.

Even the tiniest of tots can look uber cool – Appliqued baby bodysuit featuring a sugar skull and crossbones design.

Faux tie baby bodysuit with hot pink skull detail.

Zombie Kitty!

Zombie Bunny – Go on! Give him a cuddle; I dare you!

Awwwwh! So cute 🙂

I loved making this custom design over and over again using ditsy florals, vintage Seventies prints and classic polka dots.

This applique design looks great when used on covered notebooks too 😉

The Handmade Alternative was due to run for the first two weeks in April and even before it opened for business I had already begun work on another project for an event taking place on May 4th in a shop called Kyro, at Morley Market, Leeds. Talk about there being no rest for the wicked!

Now there are probably those of you out there currently reading this blog post that will instantly recognise the significance of this date; Likewise, there’ll be a fair few that would see it as just another day…….

May 4th? It’s Star Wars Day!!!!! An event I need no prompting to take part in or promote 😉 So…………… lots of Amigurumi Star Wars characters courtesy of Lucy Ravenscar’s fabulous designs , a few ideas for more appliqued goodies …….. and a chance to come face to face with the Darkside!!!!!

Possibly the cutest Jedi master you’re ever likely to meet!

Luke & Leia – Designs courtesy of Lucy Ravenscar.

Wicket the Ewok – Design courtesy of Lucy Ravenscar.

Beware – Jawa!!!!!

Ben ‘Obi Wan’ Kenobi – Design courtesy of Lucy Ravenscar.

Stormtrooper Applique design worked in my own inimitable style – For an adult t-shirt option.

Darth Vader – On baby bodysuits through to adult t-shirts and hoodies!

The little green guy was definitely a popular choice with the customers.

All in all it was a great day at Morley Market – with over £400 raised for charity 😉 Everyone entered in to the spirit of the event with opportunities to have your photo taken with Darth Vader, assorted stormtroopers, Chewie etc, children’s fancy dress, tombola and loads of other activities. Traders got dressed up too and had a whale of a time; It was brilliant!!!!

Smile for the camera!

Chewie guards my little amigurumi figures – But still folks couldn’t keep their hands off of them! Need; Want; Must Have!

That time when the paperwork needs doing – Even the Darkside has to engage in the odd bit of admin from time to time 😉

The traders really entered in to the spirit of things…..

As did the customers………

Sherridan of Hellraiser Records succumbs to Vader’s mind tricks.

Darth interrogates a likely member of the Rebellion.

The next event has been planned – Super Heroes Day!!!!!

Phew! And finally……….. on the same date that I had really bad news (blogged about in an earlier post) I had started the day on a high after a meeting with a potential new stockist of some of my goodies that confirmed I had a little spot in a prime retail space in the heart of Leeds city centre.

So……….. the last few weeks has seen me working hard to create wonderful things worthy of a place in ‘The Handpicked Hall’, with a regular weekly slot for me to ply my wares and the opportunity to come and say ‘Hello’ in person :0)

Needless to say that a lot of my current designs have focussed on a strong VW theme and notions of summer festivals and glamping trips – lots still under wraps for the big unveil but here’s a few snippets to hopefully whet the appetite…..

Stylised bay window camper applique design – for adult tees and hoodies.

Essential home accents for the budding VW enthusiast.

Teeny weeny bug applique on a baby bodysuit.

T25 Hi-Top inspired adult ladies’ tee.

VW themed faux tie baby bodysuit.

Add a little Glastonbury glamour to your wardrobe with a dippy hippy flower corsage 😉

Crikey! No wonder I needed a bit of a break………

Now that this week’s blog post has been written and can be ticked off of my usual long list of stuff to do it’s time for me to go and make something lovely for the rest of the day……….. DEFINITELY no rest for the wicked 😉  Oh well, Happy crafting folks!

All the Fun of the Fair!

Whilst my wrist and the dreaded carpal tunnel syndrome continues to be a bit of a problem I’m determined to not let it interfere any longer in my ’52 crafts in 52 weeks’ odyssey. I think a rough tally has revealed that I’m about 7 weeks and nearly two themes behind at the moment; Not good, but I’m sure I will catch up eventually……..

So – a little project tutorial to get me back on track this week which addresses the August theme of ‘Fibre’. Have you got your knitting needles at the ready? Let’s begin……

Instructions for making a simple version of my knitted fairground fish – Hurrah!

For this project you’ll need a pair of 4mm needles, some DK weight yarn, a pair of safety google eyes, BS standard toy stuffing and a large darning needle.

Start by casting on 15 stitches and knitting 4 rows of garter stitch (every row is a knit row).

Continuing in garter stitch, decrease at each end of the next and every alternate row until you are left with a total of 7 stitches.

Purl 7 stitches in the next row – from this point we will be continuing in stocking stitch for the main body of the fish (so it’s knit a line, purl a line from here).

Increase at each end of the next, and every alternate row, until you have 15 stitches.

Continue in stocking stitch without any further shaping for the next 9 rows.

Now we’re going to go back to garter stitch – so we’ll be knitting every row from here. Decrease at each end of this, and every alternate row until you have three stitches.

To finish, knit these three stitches together and fasten off. Repeat the whole process again for a second fish shape.

When both pieces are complete, position the safety eyes, sew together inside out, leaving the tail end open ready for turning and stuffing.

Turn the right way round – remember, it can be a bit of a squeeze at the tail as it’s only 7 stitches wide! Stuff lightly – the blunt end of the knitting needle is a great aid in helping to complete this task. Oversew the ends of the tail together and tie off, weaving in any loose ends.

I like to add a little bit of fishing line to the central back of my fish and display them suspended in little plastic bags – just like fairground fish. Ultra cute and very quick and easy to make!

Please feel free to use this tutorial to make your own fairground fish but remember to acknowledge the designer should you choose to do so. My fairground fish design is ACID protected with detailed paperwork and images to support each stage of production – so to avoid legal action please do not attempt to sell the pattern or design as your own 😉

Fresh cut flowers as an aid to van flu…….

The doctor says I can craft again just as long as I take things easy – no sitting for hours on end crocheting little whimsies or working my way through miles of embroidery floss to stitch assorted treasures is allowed at the moment 😦 Ho Hum! And I’ve resolved to follow his advice and work for twenty minutes at a time, little and often as a result…… I now seem to have plenty of spare time on my hands!

Frothy spires of Astilbe against Hydrangeas – Everything in the garden is PINK!

So today I spent a few hours in the garden, initially with the intention of helping Mr Other Half with some essential maintenance of his ratty bus – Billy the Bulli. He’s a splitscreen bus that left the factory in Germany on the same day that Mr OH was born – October 11th, 1963; Spookily, he also entered the UK on October 11th a few years ago when we imported him over from Seattle – coincidences like this make us think that he was obviously fated to be in our lives from the day he was first created 😉

Billy the Bulli being lovingly tended by Mr Other Half – A constant labour of love!

Today was spent pulling out the engine in order to replace the flywheel seal and gland nut in the clutch before installing a new petrol tank and filter – essential jobs that needed to be addressed sooner rather than later as he’s been suffering from van flu for a good while now.

Apparently the gold coating is a good sign – To be fair I don’t know why though 😉

Happily, he’s now sorted again for the present time and we even had a few moments spare to adjust the handbrake on Vince, my flower covered T25  – ANOTHER job on an endless list of things to do …….

Anywhoo, van flu sorted I turned my attentions to the garden which looks glorious after the incredible drenching it’s sustained over the last few months! Everything is in bloom, the bees are buzzing happily amongst the myriad flowers and there’s an awful lot of pink outside Bully Bus HQ! It looks lovely – so I decided to cut a few blooms to take inside the house too….

Fresh cut flowers from the garden – A cheery sight 🙂

Aren’t they gorgeous? Mother Nature sure does a great job of providing us with plenty of inspiration – I intend to use this colour pallette in some of my future makes to remind me of a productive day spent in the great outdoors…… albeit a few hours in a flower filled garden in one of the many leafy suburbs of Leeds!

And the results of my little and often bouts of crafting for today? Snatched moments here and there spent crocheting a cute mascot for Billy’s dashboard – from a great little ninja pattern courtesy of Christen Haden.

Amigurumi Ninja – Pattern available in ‘Creepy Cute Crochet’ ISBN: 978-1-59474-232-3

In truth, my wrist hurts like hell again – so maybe the road to recovery isn’t quite within my sights just yet…….. 😦 Never mind – a few more days spent relaxing in the garden and enjoying the sunshine might be just the ticket………. We shall see!