This is the only true hitchhiker I’ve made. The other two I stopped before I got to 42. Mostly because of time constraints, but also because I’m pretty selfish and wanted mine to be the only true 42 hitchhikers.
Plus neither of the recipients of the other hitchikers would care about the reference.
So here it is. You have photos of work-Bek today because I finished it only minutes before I was due at my friends place to watch Eurovision.
Time restraints = terrible selfies.
A while ago now I made some bed socks for my most favourite girl in the world.
Since then they have been well loved. As they were so well loved I had no issues with making another pair.
Only problem was I don’t quite know where that pattern book is. Maybe under the couch somewhere, but it’s lost at the moment.
So I did a bit of research and found nothing I really liked.
I did find a really cute mitten pattern which is only in Swedish but I thought I could figure it out and make it into some socks.
Using size 7 needles and Moda Vera Jet bulky yarn I cast on 8 stitches using Judy’s magic cast on
Then increased every second row until it fit my foot.
Then I switched colours and did a few rows of purling, switched colours and did a few rows of knitting.
There was no heel so I just kept trying it on until they were long enough.
Alternating the colours whilst doing two at a time is something I like doing a) because it creates odd socks that match and b) because it means you don’t have to wind the yarn into two balls. You just start with each colour and then swap. You do end up with a lot of ends though.
I’m hoping that with use the heel will magically appear and they’ll look less like woolen condoms.
Please make a cup of tea, and find a cozy place because today I thought I’d show you around my blog and point you to my favourite posts which you’d probably never see otherwise.
My blog is very dear to me. I consider everyone who follows and comments as a friend.
I treat my blog as a diary, where I keep track of what I’ve made, where I’ve been, and what I do. I find that if it’s public then I’m more accountable and I’m more likely to document events, take photos, and take the time to look back at what I’ve done.
Its proven itself quite useful over time, as a reason to get me out of my comfort zone, but also as a record of what I’ve done. I quite often search my own blog to look at the details of a knitting pattern or what recipe I used (most often it’s to find my mum’s zucchini slice recipe).
About 2 years ago I sat down with two pointy sticks, a ball of cheap acrylic, and the Lord Of The Rings boxset and taught myself to knit. I don’t think it would be a understatement to say it changed my life.
It’s been a steadying influence and is now a constant companion.
Since then I’ve made socks, scarves, hats, minions, cats, and a blanket.
About a month ago I decided it was time to learn crochet and am slowly but surely getting used to the hook.
Apart from crafty pursuits I watch a lot of football. My team is Port Adelaide Power and their colours are teal, black, and silver. My best friend is a Hawthorn Hawks supporter and their colours are Brown and Gold. I think I have a better deal. My Partner is an Adelaide Crows supporter and his colours are red, blue, and yellow. So those colours pop up in my knitting for no other reason but football. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the most important people in my life are also football mad.
I love to read, and have made a concerted effort to read more this year. More than just my favourite books which I re-read all the time.
I also love live music and spend a fair chunk of time and money going to gigs and buying cds.
Every Wednesday I pick a song to represent the week. Sometimes it’s a band I’ve just seen or about to see, others it’ a new song which I can’t stop listening to.
At the end of the year I have a nostalgic playlist.
I’m also working towards 13 in 2013.
At the beginning of the year I made 13 goals, some internet based, some project based, some just for fun.
And so I’ve been working towards them and having a lot of fun along the way.
I hope you’ll stick around. And please introduce yourself to me, I’d love to make your acquaintance.
To make it easier for you, I’d like to know the answer to the following question.
What is the first thing that pops into your head when you read the word “Sparkles”?
(hint: there are no wrong answers)
I have a thing for flow charts and process mapping.
It’s something that I really enjoy and I’ve always think I’ve been good at finding ways to make things more efficient and (I’m trying not to say cutting out non-value adding tasks but I think I’ve outed myself as a bit of a geek anyway so hell) removing non-value adding tasks.
I like to say laziness is the mother of all invention.
So putting together a flowchart to illustrate my knitting project decision making process seemed like a no brainier.
And I’ve now rambled on which probably defeats the purpose of creating an Infographic.
It’s a wonder I get anything done at all!!!
If I was doing a process analysis on that one I think there’s a lot of non-value added activity there.
But that’s half the fun.
For my lovely blog readers who are not from Australia, you may be wondering what on earth that video I posted yesterday was all about. Or what are the events leading up to a group of burly gentlemen standing in a circle singing (I use that term loosely) an old show tune and throwing around powerade.
Allow me to explain a few things about a sport I love, Australian Rules Football.
Apart from being one of the greatest sporting codes in the world (cricket is a close second, nearly equal first), it has it’s own set of quirks which I think make it pretty special, which aren’t found in a lot of other sports.
The Banner
Slogans are chosen and thought up, and each week the cheer squad will craft together a banner from sticky tape and crepe paper.
Then all of that hard work is promptly destroyed by the players running through it before the game.
Last year I was part of the crew to hold up the banner which was really awesome, but it’s a pretty strange tradition.
Here’s a video celebrating a players 100 games achievement.
The Crowd
With the record crowd numbers up at the 100 thousand marks, the crowds can be deafening.
But we don’t have set cheers, or songs to chant.
The only thing close to a coherent cheer is when the crowd come together to yell “ball!!” in an attempt to convince the umpire to pay a ‘holding the ball’ free kick.
This phenomenon even happens in pubs where yelling is very unlikely to influence an umpires decision, but we like to think we can try.
We also yell out players names like “Breust” and “Dew” so it sounds like we’re booing our own team.
The Point For Trying
You get six points for kicking the ball through the two big sticks, and 1 point if you hit the post or get it through the shorter sticks.
If we gave out points for difficulty, some of these would be more than 6 points.
The Human Step Ladder
When you don’t have quite enough players to go out and play a full game, it usually turns into step ladder practice or ‘king of the pack’, where one person kicks the ball to everyone else and they all try to catch it.
Kind of like the bouquet toss at a wedding.
Invariably someone will try and emulate the boys on TV and try and use a smaller kid as a step ladder.
The video explains the high flying mark, and why Mum’s everywhere don’t want their kids playing AFL.
The Song
After the burly gentlemen have run through crepe paper, had the crowd pretend to be expert umpires, been given points for trying, and used each other as step ladders, one team wins and one team loses. (Except if it’s a drawn grand final when we come back and play the following week. Seriously that happened once.)
After one team wins they all stand in a circle and sing a song. (See yesterday’s post.)
Each club has a song, and which songs are good and bad is a subject best left for Internet comment sections and arguments with strangers in pubs.
I (unsurprisingly) love my team’s song. I think it’s perfect for pub singing and fist pumping.
These are just some of the reasons I love Australia’s game. I plan social engagements around football games, will share a football opinion with anyone who listens, and I will judge you on what your football team is.
And just in case you think that this all sounds a bit namby pamby, I’ll leave you with a video which demonstrates just how tough these guys are (and without any padding, shin guards, or even cups!)
I’m ticking off 2 items in my 13 in 2013 checklist. I spent the weekend making cushions.
My previous cushions I made are looking a little worse for wear. One got lost in the great cheese fight of Superbowl 2013, the other has been used as a pillow one too many times and as the closure wasn’t exactly stable it now looks like the cushion is escaping from the cover.
I’m hoping an invisible seam will fix the design flaw in my first two. (I used the tutorial on fern and freckle which was invaluable)
Once again I used quilting flats fabric. Not only are they already roughly the right size for a cushion, but they come in so many pretty designs and you don’t need to finding someone to assist you with cutting from a roll. They are really moreish aswell.
I have a notebook that’s getting quite full of sayings/quotes/lyrics that I want to embroider , but choosing which one is still the most difficult part.
This time I chose a quote from Black Books, and a lyric from Neutral Milk Hotel.
These type of posts are dime a dozen at this time of year. Everyone is enthusiastic about what the year will bring. I’ve always set informal goals for myself.
• I have the usual goals that I set every year. Exercise more, eat more ethically, live more sustainably, thrift more/buy less, have a cleaner house.
• I have work goals, which are too boring to share on this blog but usually revolve around completion of projects and implementing process changes (told you it was boring).
• I have my eye on buying a house in the next 2 years so I’m working towards saving for that.
But I don’t want to blog about that stuff.
So here is my list of 13 fun and crafty things to do in 2013.
1. Open my little etsy shop.
2. Host a giveaway on my blog (this one should be easiest! Stay tuned)
3. Finish Start the knitting for my Pay It Forward post. (Who knew finding the right project for two of my knitting idols would be so difficult!)
4. Knit 12 pairs of socks. 1 for each month.
5. Sew some cushions. 6 to be exact. (Fortunately I have a friend who is in need of cushions.)
6. Write a knitting pattern and post it on Ravelry.
7. Post a tutorial or a how-to guide.
8. Try a new craft, or 2, or 3.
9. Create an artwork for my apartment
10. Embroider a whole song (lyrics) onto something.
11. Sew a garment from a pattern, and wear it.
12. Read a new book every month. (something I haven’t read before)
13. Crochet a granny square.
Does anyone else have a list of things to do this year?
I’d love to hear about it.
I hope everyone has a fantastic day, whatever you’re doing, whether that’s working, volunteering, spending time with friends, family, or the Internet.
I’ll be taking a break until after the new year.
But I’ll leave you with a last minute gift idea which the ladies in my family are getting this year.
Home made sugar scrubs.
Not to be TMI, but I’ve had to experiment with some organic skin products this year. And I love this.
Basically (and there are variations on this all over the Internet! But my main inspiration was this post here), the formula is 2 parts sugar to 1 part oil plus some scent.
Mix it together, spoon it into containers, and then add a pretty ribbon.
I experimented with 4 different scents.
Lemon, strawberry, coconut and vanilla & brown sugar.
I used essences as they’re easier to buy from the supermarket, but they do need longer to infuse.
And this is my bookcase. The biggest reason that I haven’t done many outfit posts is that our apartment is so tiny, it gets no natural light, and there is no neutral place to use as a back drop.
So in lieu of a neutral place, I thought I’d show a part of my apartment that I’m proud of.
The first place that springs to mind is my cd collection. But that’s right next to the only window in the place and is really awkward to stand in front of.
So the next place is my bookshelf. I love to read. And I love to watch tv. To the left you can see my tea cup collection. And on the top shelf you can see my Dalek (and other assorted Doctor Who merchandise).
It’s forever changing, and being shuffled around, but I’m thinking of doing more outfit posts here. I’d love to know what people think of the location. Too cluttered? Too distracting? Or is it me? Will you all judge me on what you see in my bookcase?
Actually, if you haven’t already figured out who I am, my bookcase will certainly confuse or enlighten you.
So enough chat, here is me, pretending to model, wearing my own knitted creation.
(My jeans are cotton on, my shoes are from rubi, and my tank is from temt)
polka-dots & sparkles 