Saturday, December 26, 2009

菫 Sumire

Before 2009 comes to a close, I have to introduce you to Sumire (Sue-me-ray).

菫 Sumire


Sumire was made for my Sensei who has decided to return home to Japan. Many of us were very sad to see her leave, but we were all very grateful to her kindness and patience as a teacher. So, Sumire has a sort of a little smile...

菫 Sumire


Sumire or 菫 means 'violet (the flower)' in Japanese. She was christened by a dear friend, and fellow bear-maker El. Sumire loves classical music.

菫 Sumire

Sumire
Date of Birth: 17 Dec 2009
Height: 8.5"


誕生日:2009年12月17日
身長:8.5吋


Sumire is now in Japan and lives with her new owner, my Sensei. :) I hope I will get to visit them one day!

Here's the peering photo~

菫 Sumire

Saturday, September 19, 2009

broken needles and sox box

Well I was knitting away at a new sock yesterday and guess what happened...

Clandestine

Sigh!!! I love these needles... and the thing was, it broke just like that! I didn't even pull the yarn through the stitch...

The good thing I guess is that I will now have legitimate excuse to buy new needles.

On another note, I've always dreamed of having a project box at home full of socks.

Well although instead of one big box, I have 2 small ones, I'm a happy camper.

Sox Box

I love these boxes! They are cheap and good ehehheehe... They are fun too since I can easily see what projects are inside. I initially use them only for my bears, but why keep it to just one craft? :D

I guess everyone can see I'm kinda in an mlc (red) phase... I started two new socks in red. -_-... I think that fed my startitis well and I'm going to make sure I won't start anything new before anything is finished.

Monday, September 07, 2009

Silke

my oh my... it's September and I haven't posted anything in August!

Anyway I finished something

silke

It's a one skein stole with noro silk garden sock yarn.
:)

I have to thank Lois for bringing her stole at our KO show and tell hehe... I managed to knit this thus quickly because it became something that I could do during the little bit of tv time I have.

silke

I love the gradation of the colors!! Noro never fails to amaze me. hehe. In fact, I think this yarn has a better life as a beautiful dropped stitch stole than if it were a sock!!

silke

well well well... time to get back to those other FOs...

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Flopps the Bunny

IroIro gave me this kit months ago when a few of us went to her place and she taught Ellie and I miniature bear making. I started working after that and had three bears as wip projects, this being one of them. I was no longer making bears by the week but as time passes, and as I worked on each project bit by bit, I eventually ended up with an almost finished 'bear' two weeks ago. So here is Flopps the Bunny, as dear Pat has christened, today. :)

Flopps the Bunny


Flopps is a sweet and gentle bunny, and I think he likes to read. He loves daydreaming as well. He likes drinking warm milk for tea and munching on crispy carrots.

Flopps the Bunny


I love Flopps' tail!!

Flopps the Bunny : Tail Shot


Flopps the Bunny

Flopps the Bunny

Date of Birth: 19 July 2009
Height: 7 inches
Original Pattern: Wilbur Rabbit by Kympatti Bears


I used to think that I will only make bears... but Flopps has made me reconsider that. I think I would give different animals a chance, although bears will still be remain my faves to make. :)

Saturday, June 27, 2009

Dear Ayumi....

Please knit faster... I don't think I have much space for your yarns that 'are not really stash' anymore. Didn't you just read that as long as they take up space, they are considered stash? And also, if the yarn is a gift, it will still end up as stash no?

Please knit faster... I'm holding up but I'm not sure how much longer...

Your Yarn Shelf

Sunday, June 07, 2009

Oolong

I have been working on these socks for awhile... Lois 'threatened' that she didn't want to see it again at the next KO lol.

oolong

The pattern was great and the yarn was nice to work with. I initially had a tiny misunderstanding with the pattern and wrote to the designer, Mona about it. She was very kind and replied really quickly. And when I realized how silly I was, it was fortunately nearing the end of the leg. hehehe...

Oolong

I worked two socks at once on two sets of dpns. I know summerknit warned me about using two sets of dpns from two different brands... (they might have a slight difference thus causing some tension problems) But so far, and I hope NOT to have such a problem in future, I have been blessed by the Goddess of non-SSS.

Oolong by Mona Schmidt

Oolong

Made with Cherry Tree Hill in Green Mountain Madness


I have another 2 pairs of socks in the making... no progress on the cardigan. :( But I keep telling myself, a stitch is a stitch, so I gotta keep going. hehe.

Plum

I've been so slow at knitting and absolutely lazy at blogging. I'm now a full-time maid at home and still have to go to work. AS has gone for his surgery at the ankle and I not only have one less pair of hands to help around the house but one more to care for. BLEAH....

I finished this awhile ago, just before I started my work (and I've been here 2 months already!)

I've worn it a few times at work and never ever had a chance to take pictures.

Plum

Rib Shrug


This is the two-toned ribbed shrug from Fitted Knits. I did it with Cotton ease and actually kinda like the yarn!

I have finished my Oolong socks. Might blog it this evening. Hopefully

Monday, April 27, 2009

wednesdays and gussets

I don't like doing the gusset of socks. I don't particularly hate it so much that I can't finish a sock (as my Sock FOs will prove).

It's something like a Wednesday. Wednesdays are smack in the middle of a working week, like the gusset is somewhat in the middle of a sock.

When you're done with Wednesday, Friday will get here in a blink of an eye.

When you're done with the gusset, the toes will soon be begging for the Kitchener.

So yes, when I (eventually) finish my mum's cardigan, I hope to be making socks by the week.

Monday, April 13, 2009

oh yayy!

I have an FO!

Well ok I need to sew in the ends....

But it's an FO.

The good news is... well I should have a teeny bit more time to craft now at least for the month. I finished Intermediate Japanese and am waiting for the Pre-Advance class to start. It's probably not going to be anytime this month though.

The not so good news is... I still have my mum's cardi to go boohoo.... However, seeing that I can actually finish something is making me hope I'll have time to finish her cardi too.

On bear notes, I received the mini bear kit I got with E from Gerry's. I am supposed to be able to make mini flower fairy bears but... they only gave me green and bear colored material. :( I thought there will be nicer stuff like some red or blue. And there aren't even instructions for the 'flower' parts... I guess it's nothing for beginners! I will have to get some ribbon for the birthday bear as well as some flower things for the minis if I were to make them the next time I go to spotlight.

Wednesday, April 01, 2009

So will I craft tonight?

Specs:

Bears
1 bear to close up
1 bunny to finish sewing parts, stuff and so on.
1 birthday bear to start cutting and sewing

Knits
Ribbing part for that Two-Tone Rib Shrug (OH! finally I talk about it)
Ribbing part for that Rib-Lace Cardi
Second Heel flap for Oolong
More than Half of Absinthe to go

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Ginger

Ginger is a bear I picked out for my mum for her birthday. The first thing I looked for was a kit that would have a higher chance having the bear end up as a girl. The second thing was the size. I wanted something smaller because Mum is also getting a knitted cardigan (yes the alleged one I have not finished), and I wanted to finish ONE thing at least for her birthday. This kit was perfect!

Ginger


(Her ribbon is not the right length here because I took the photo a day earlier. I wanted her to share the same birthday as Mum.)

Ginger is a vivacious little girl who wants to grow up to be a famous pop star. She embraces her unique look (so do I!) and dreams about performing on stage someday! She will be a hit, especially with her cute peering look!

Ginger


Here's a candid shot just before she's off to Mum's. I can't help it but have to pun.

Ginger Beer
Ginger Beer.


Ginger is made with a beautiful and unique PawPaw mohair and is cotter-pin jointed. Ginger stands approximately 6.5" tall and is a wonderful bear to make! She is supposed to have shaded eye sockets and I even went to buy the appropriate markers to do that. But I am so apprehensive about it I left it out. I think she looks fine as she is.

Ginger

Ginger

Date of Birth: 21 March 2009
Height: 6.5 inches
Original Pattern: Gina by Ruth Parsons


Well as you know I have made 8 bears to date and I'm quite certain there will be more to come. They won't be greeting you every week now though but they will be here. :) Here's a group photo with the first eight.

The First 8

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Little Sam

Here's Little Sam!!!

Little Sam


Little Sam is a baby bear and he's curious about everything. He's got a really inquisitive look! :)In a way, he kinda reminds me of Timothy but Little Sam isn't as shy. He also likes to be cradled. By pillows, by you, by yours truly.

Little Sam


Little Sam is 10 inches tall and is lock/nut jointed. I actually put everything together for Little Sam on my own, just like I did for Jazz. I picked out the mohair from my VERY modest stash, and picked out the thread for his nose. I wanted to try a slightly different color from the usual dark brown or black (I don't have black actually) but not go as crazy as Jazz's purple nose - so I picked this toffee brown. I also decided to try out a different nose shape this time.

Little Sam


Because I put everything together and used the joints I got from the local Spottie, Little Sam's birthday was very much delayed. Spots has got dumb joint sets that allow you to make 5 limbed bears with no heads. Thankfully, Alicia came to the rescue and Little Sam got his head attached. :) Little Sam's mohair fabric is also exceptionally soft. So his head was a little rounded initially and the eyes didn't pull in well enough even though we pressed them in very hard while attaching. I did some very simple needle sculpting after class the other day and it works wonders! Now I think his face is just perfect!

Little Sam

Little Sam

Date of Birth: 20 March 2009
Height: 10"
Original Pattern: Molly by Dee


And oh! Have I told you I hate sewing, and I especially dislike sewing on their ears. That's also one of the reason why he's birthday is delayed. Little Sam's ears has GOT to be the ones I'm most proud of though! Here's his peering look.

Little Sam

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Briseis

Mollie wants to introduce her friend, Briseis.

Briseis


Briseis is an 8.5 inch bear and is my first girl bear. Her fur is made of wool and is a beautiful rust color. She also has suede pawpads, just like Gordon. She's as unique as she can be! Briseis loves ribbons and flowers. So I made her a little tatted flower for her ribbon.

Briseis


As my latest bear, Briseis has the perfect nose. I really believe it all comes with practice. And I guess as with knitting, patience works. I must admit that I'm not a patient person to begin with. I'm only patient because I knit. And here, I'm only patient because I want to create nice bears. The process of making the Timothy, Gordon, Raleigh, Jazz, Franz and Briseis is so fulfilling that I have more bearwips coming up. I only have to keep reminding myself not to rush against time, and things will be fine.

So yes, Briseis made me very proud. :)

Briseis
Briseis
Date of Birth: 9 March 2009
Height: 8.5"


Sigh... Isn't she just so sweet? Here's the peering photo.

Briseis


And now there are six.

P3091610


I really need a shelf!! :P

Monday, March 16, 2009

Updates

I had bear startitis by the way. I had my class on pulled toes, needle sculpting and sleepy eyes, so I have a nice class bear in the making. I also have a small bear meant for my mum (but I like it a lot now), plus a bunny. I have a mini. And also someone is waiting to be stuffed.

Sounds like my knitting?

(To keep track, I have 2 socks going on, my mum's cardi is at the sleeves still, and I have forgotten about my own ribbed cardi -_-'')

Franz

Well... Here's my first mini-bear.

Franz


His name is Franz and is about 2.5 inches tall. Franz is supposed to be Santa's little helper and he's stressed out by the work load.

Franz


He is also a little sad that his hat is a bit too tight and his nose is a tad too big. :(

But Franz has cute beady eyes... see 'em beady eyes???

Franz - Beady Eyes!
Franz
Date of Birth: 4 March 2009
Height: Approx. 2.5"
Original Pattern: Santa's Little Helper
(Franz is reduced to 75% from original pattern)


Being my first mini, I still like Franz a lot :) I learnt a lot from making Franz and I'm sure he won't be the only mini around here. I can't wait to make more friends for him but at the moment, he's happy with his group of bear friends and his candy cane!

Franz

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

how do you give them away?

I always feel that it's not easy giving away my finished items. Even if I start the project telling myself it's a gift, I might change my mind halfway through - most of the time I'm too in love with the project but there are occasions when I think it's not good enough to be gifted.

I did try to get myself started on gifting my my finished items... and I tried to use whatever I knew about crafting to try and create some nice handmade presents. After all, I know people who appreciate handmade gifts. My first gifts included my first lace shawl - Kimono, requested by my grandma, knitted for eons and eons, and presented to her almost a year later! I also finally gave AS his sweater, and now he's asking for another. I have gifted him scarves and socks and fingerless gloves, but I enjoy giving him items mostly because they are still in the house and I cans see them whenever I like.

Last year I've given away bracelets and stitchmarkers to friends. But I still managed to make a copy on my own if I can. If not, I would take pictures so that I might be able to make more for myself 'some time soon'. And who could forget my Fetching Frenzy? It's a wonderful way to try out angora, and it's a wonderful thought that they will be useful in the cold French winter last year. In fact it's quite fun to be the walking Fetching pattern heh. Even so, you might also remember I made Fetchings for myself, as a compliment to the pair of Dashing I knitted for AS.

Now my mum is asking for a cardigan (two now. and a shawl too). I like the yarn a lot (debbie bliss alpaca silk dk). I feel like getting it for myself next time. And well it's going on and on and on and it's not finishing quickly enough. So I thought I'd make her a bear to appease her. She likes bears. My whole family likes bears. And so a bear kit it is. I made its head. I can finish it soon by the end of this week. But then again, I like it so much!

So I'm currently facing another problem. Bears are also hard to give away because they have this character and face. Just like my knits have gone through ups and downs with me, these bears have been created stitch by stitch, all by myself. (ok AS helps with the bear eyes) I suppose over time, I'd get attached to the project. If it comes with a face, it's even harder to say bye. It reminds me of the time I intended Gordon to be my Dad's birthday present but I like him so much I got Dad another kit.

Sigh!!! I hope I get resolved on this soon because Mum's birthday is two Saturdays away!

PS: I changed the title two days ago. I guess it better reflects the contents hehe

Sunday, March 08, 2009

Jazz

I finished Jazz awhile ago but haven't had the chance to blog about him.

Jazz is a very unique little bear, as you can see.

Jazz


He's made of blue mohair, has a unique muzzle and also has a nice purple nose. The process of making Jazz is also a unique one. If you're a knitter, or a crafter in general for that matter, you might have instances when you just KEEP GOING. I'm talking about times when the project looks 'a little weird' or you just 'don't feel right' about the item in your hands. It's the time when you tell yourself, full of confidence, that it may seem weird now, but it will turn out alright in the end. And you wait to be surprised.

Unfortunately, the surprise may be more shocking than pleasing than you initially expected.

Jazz is one of these instances. I remember thinking that he will turn out fine if I put in his eyes, and that he will be alright if I do his nose properly. And then I told myself, he will look okay when I sew on his ears. AND I thought he would be perfect once he's all done.

Jazz turned out so different from the original pattern that I have no idea what went wrong. When he's all done, he looked like a totally different bear. And he looked very sad because of that.

Jazz


But this wrong wasn't a bad one. He is so superbly small and I like cradling him in my palm, and he's unique look grows on me too.


Jazz

Jazz

Date of Birth: 23 February 2009
Height: 5"
Original Pattern: Bottlebrush Bear by Loris Hancock



I've since stopped comparing Jazz to the original pattern. What's the point of doing that when he is who he is? I will still attempt that pattern again but for now, Jazz is Jazz and is loved by all his bear friends.


First Four
:)


In the meantime, I completed a mini last week and more bears are being made. One has just ears to sew on hehe... :) Stitches are knitted albeit a little slowly but hey, a stitch is still a stitch right?

Friday, March 06, 2009

HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have bear startitis!!!!

-_-''

Sunday, March 01, 2009

Raleigh

Here's Raleigh.

Raleigh


Raleigh is sitting on a napping Millie. And he's rather good friends with her too.

Raleigh


Raleigh's the third bear I completed and in order to prevent this blog from an onslaught of bears, I decided to space this entry out. Didn't work much did it?

Raleigh


I really like his old-fashioned look. He also has this particularly forlorn face that I adore. In fact I think he's the most traditional looking bear I have made to date. I actually imagined him sitting by the window when it's pouring outside so I had to take this photo (although it wasn't pouring but anyways....)

Raleigh


How can you resist that face?? I think he embodies the reason why I like sad bears too... He is awfully nice and sweet really but he's just sad about having to grow up.

Raleigh
Raleigh
Date of Birth: 20 February 2009
Height: 9 Inches
Original Patter: Tash by Jumbuck Bears


NOTE: I know the introduction to the pattern via the link says that Tash is a loosely stuffed bear. My stuff-happy bear-making self decided to stuff him otherwise. He still is cute though. hehe


Here's a group photo with Gordon and Timothy.

Raleigh, Gordon and Timothy

Monday, February 23, 2009

Vintage Infant's Silk Socks

Yup, this pattern's from Nancy Bush's Knitting Vintage Socks. I borrowed it from Lois and then I thought I should just get a copy for myself. And I did! It's on the way to my shelf now... I really love all the vintage stuff that's in it... Recently I've been in a 'traditional' craze. I guess it just grows on you especially since I'm someone who likes to learn and make things from scratch.

ANYWAY I thought I decided to give one of the patterns a try. I've heard so much about children's socks and wondered if there's any different from the normal adult socks that I make. So I decided to pick one pattern from the book, get some 4ply yarn and work on it. At the back of my head, I also thought I need a recipient for these little socks, and MLC's adorable daughter came to my mind.

I chose to work with Rowan's Cashsoft 4 ply because there was a very beautiful vintage pink. I didn't even get a chance to take a picture of the yarn since I started the project almost immediately. But here's a picture with some leftovers.

P2051560


I actually worked the sock over the CNY period - when I usually get a lot of knitting time sitting in front of the TV! The thing is these socks went slower than I thought because I was using 2mm and I started them on some Susan Bates... which are 7" ... Definitely not a length I would want to work with for kids socks anymore! (initially they were on the 1,75mm pink needles and the whole project was so pink!!! But I had to go up sizes to make slightly larger socks so they got onto the gold 2mms)

P2051561


There are a few little things about children's socks though. Firstly, longer legs are better - all the more they won't pull of the socks. Secondly, they have a short gusset!! Third, definitely a fast and satisfying knit, as with all baby and children's things... :) I'm glad to finish the pair before Isabel's birthday so I had some time to send it off to her! Yayy!

And here's our beautiful and adorable model with her knitted socks!

Infant's Fancy Silk Socks Modelled!
Infant's Silk Socks by Nancy Bush from Knitting Vintage Socks
Worked with Rowan Classic Yarns on 2mm Susan Bates DPNs


I've been hijacked by bears, if you haven't noticed. But all is not lost. I had a great KO on Saturday and seeing everyone knitting away and sharing their projects has kicked off my mojo. The weather does keep me off the needles, especially since I'm working on a cardigan. But I'm happy to say that I found stuff to watch on the History Channel last night and knitted for about 2 hours!

In the meantime, I do hope to use this time I have to craft as much as I can. I won't have the luxury in about a month's time!

Monday, February 16, 2009

Gordon

Meet Gordon!

Gordon


I was taking the intermediate bear-making class on the last two Sundays and Gordon's my class bear. He's fully jointed with nut/bolt joints and has pellets in his tum! Gordon also has a layer of nose gloss to give his cute nose a glossy finish.

Gordon


I know he's really peeking through his furry muzzle but I kinda like it that way. I could trim it actually but thought it's nicer this way. In fact, I initially wanted to make the bear for my Dad but fell so much in love with the fur and the fuzzy snout that I had to keep him for myself. :P I also love how his fur parts at his mouth hehehe

Gordon
Gordon
Date of Birth: 16 February 2009
Height: 10"


Timothy is no longer alone! :)

Gordon and Timothy


More photos here.