When 2 chickens are no longer enough

Well you see our 2 chickens are slowing down wit their laying, so many suggested that we "put them in the pot". Clearly we will never make it as any sort of farmer, we just couldn't do it, so we had to upscale. Our 'crappy corner', you know... that spot in the back corner of your garden that has the compost bin, the loose pavers etc... That area that is never going to grow grass or look pretty.... well ours is now a chook yard. they don't care about the compost bin, the pavers work great to 'dig proof' the bottom of the fence. So now our 2 old Isabrowns can retire there, we can bring in a couple of new younguns and keep the cycle going as apparently this yard can hold about 10 chooks if needed. No head chopping required.

Now the irony of this is, that once we put our old chooks who hadnt laid in months, into their new bigger yard, they were so happy they started laying again..... so we will just go with the chooky flow with that one.

It isnt quite finished in this pic. the timber on the right of the pic still had to go up and after the worst of winter is over we are going to plant some berries along the exposed side to screen it off a bit. Hopefully this will make it a little more attractive than it is at present.

The yard itself was quite easy, 3 sides were already there, we just had to build 1 (and a bit) and the gate, which id actually bits of our old fence, reclaimed (thanks to Dad and his welder)

so thats that we have a proper chook yard, finally! yay!

Harvest is done

I shared Harvest with you all here and again here and while I think the name Harvest is so fitting, it still reminds me of harvest time, it is pretty damn fitting for the winter palette too!


It was knit from A Swell Yarn Shop 'Duet' sock yarn. I just love this wool, it is lovely soft, but very durable. The colourway is just stunning, I have several other skeins from ASYS and none disappoint.

The tunic is knit on 4mm needles and I would guess is about a size 2. It is a little large for Meika, on purpose. it used a little over 200gms.

This is another of my "I can be bothered following a pattern" knits. it has a square yoke, knit in garter stitch, the arms are straight and quite wide and the body has a very gentle flair out, just to give it some shape. All knit in the round. In short very quick and very easy but with a final result that I am rather happy with.

Autumn shrug

This is another "I'm a slack blogger' catch up post. The name kind of gives away just how long aro this should have been posted. It is knit from my own design, made up as I go along! The wool is Knittery Merino, dyed by the lovely Kris over at MonsterKnits.

Lemongrass, another FO

This is my latest offering :D, it isn't even a back dated one! the last sock came of the needles last night while the recipient; my Sister in Law, waited patiently for them, and was then kind enough to pose for me for some pictures!


These socks are my own pattern, made up as I go, as I so often do! My SIL is a great person to knit socks for. See I have teeny feet, so after knitting for me, knitting for someone with a size 9 foot is horribly epic. SIL however, has tiny and considerate feet, thanks hon! The other advantage is that it is super easy to get the right size.... when it is my size too.



They are knit from Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock Heavyweight in colourway 'Lemongrass'.

Hungry Caterpillars

This is a post about an old FO but one I haven't shared before, there will be a few of those, such is the life of a slacko blogger!


Like so many others I fell in LOVE with the Hungry Caterpillar print range. Like so many others I had to have some.



This quilt was super quick to make, with the top done and quilted in about 2 hours!! Helped by the fact that mostly, I machine stipple my quilts (without a frame) and this one is stitched-in-the-ditch. I had forgetten how fast that is. Sometimes we just need that fast gratification, and this certainly did it!


It was made for Anameika, and so is cot sized, which I don't making, because even though they use them on cots for such a short period of time, they are used as kid sized lap quilts for years after. In this house it will see a good 3 years use on the cot though, as it is also used as a toddler bed.

"Threaded Gems"

Friday was mum's 50th birthday (Happy birthday mum!) and so being that all birthdays with a zero are pretty cool I thought it was quilt time. (this is the quilt mentioned in my previous post).
The last quilt I made mum was for her 40th if I remember correctly. That quilt was made as a bed topper and so while well loved does not get the "drag around" use I like to see my quilts get. This quilt is made as a lappy quilt. I like my quilts to be used continually, under them in winter and on top of them in summer. If this quilt is but a scruffy rag by the time mum's next zero birthday comes around I will be more then happy. Quilts should be used and loved and if some trashing happens in the process, such is life.

The name for the quilt came to me while I was quilting it. The very simple rows of stitching through the coloured squares looked (to me at least) like a string of beads.

This quilt was ubber fast to make. I think I have forgotten just how fast a quilt can go together when it is a simple strip peiced design and simple quilting. It also helps that this one is a smaller size, my quilts tend to grow and end up massive. As I mentioned before, mum's birthday was on friday, and on the Monday prior, I had not started, but that evening when kidlets were in bed I put rotary cutter and ruler to fabric and it was done by friday evening :D I am happy with it.

Vital Stats.
Name
-"Threaded Gems"
Finished Size
-156 X 180 cms
Pattern Name
-"Sunshine and Shadow" - I think!
Top Fabrics
-all 100% cotton
-13 X 20cm prints
-2m cream
Batting
-100% wool
-Upcycled wool felt blanket
-This blanket actually used to belong to my mums
grandmother (my great gandmother) - very fitting re use.
Backing
-100% cotton sheeting
-2m
Binding
-Remainder of backing
-Quilting
-Line quilted by machine

Fancy dress.

This Saturday just gone we had a fancy dress party to attend. Brynach asked to go as the joker, which, at first, seemed way too much work and tried to talk him out of it, but alas, he was determined... The Joker it had to be!

So with some thought, I set to work. I had some green fabric and whipped out a litte (rough!) tie. I had some purple fabric, so a little pair of elastic waisted pants, pressed down the centre to give the look suit pants and a simple collared shirt, made with long sleeves but no cuff and lengthened at the back and cut to shape to make a set of tails, split and all....

Add to that a white shirt from the cupboard, some green hair spray and face paint, oh and a $5 silly string gun and Taa daa!

I think he really looked the part and somehow took on the evil persona quite well after some part food consumption..

Vivi victory....

well I did it. My vivian is done, you would think that I would show you pics to prove it. but I can't. As it happens, I suck SUCK at putting zippers in, so it has been shipped off to nanna for the zipper addition, pictures when it returns... for now I have huge to do list... will list it soon..... when I am in a braver mood ;d

Hooray for Harry..

My test harry square is complete.....

I am relatively happy with it and enjoyed it enough to do a complete blanket...

I leanrt alot of things doing this... and glad I took the time to do a test square to make some mistakes on..

Needles - 4.5mm

Yarn - assortment to get correct shadings

Yardage - not sure .. about 150-180gms

finished size - 38cm square

I am not sure what I will do with this.. It wont make the cut for the blanket and I am not into cushions or framing it...

A fun knit all the same, anyone who hasnt tried colour work...WHY? its actually quite easy and fun

Birthday Outfit

Here is the final birthday outfit.....

I am suprised... he chose the planes...

Nanna made the shirt.. she can whip them up in minutes.. I will get my but in gear one day and get the pattern off her so I can make my own... I did make the shorts though ..

Front

Back

Lemons and Lady bugs..

I made this little outfit up last night for a birthday present for a special little girl in Bryns life. His Best friend, she tuns four 2 days before Bryn.

I was planning on doing a top in this style, the came across this fabric at spotlight, alread Shirred, clearly it was ment to be :D

The outfit came together quite quickly and I am really happy with the result, I hope it is like by the recipients. The birthday girls mum know very much what she does and doesnt like :D

Some things heading out today.....

I will share mrore once the recipents have these :D

7 fish..

....now have this lovely new home in my back yard.

Hubby made me this devine water feature with working pump, the pictures dont show the water flowing, but it does, please ignore the unpainted wall behind, we are yet to paint the outside of our house.

In the Dye pot today

Just a quick 12 step colourwheel to test what the quilters cotton availbale here locally is like, turns out its crap, doesnt absorb the colour good enough for my likings... will order some online tomorrow

Experimentations with chanelle

Is that how you spell it?? probably not.

Anyhow I came across this Technique and really liked it... so thought i would give it a go

I did a little sample today that sewed up in under 15mins and I love it

I used lots of colours to get a feel for how the different colours work together.

I am inlove iwth it now its done

Its sitting over the back of my dining chair and I pat it every time I walk past.. so being that it gets the tick of "irresistable patability" then I must make a full sized one.

It is alot lighter then i thought it would be when i was sewing 5 layers of cotton and one of wool together.. even Hubby spent 10 minutes with it on his lap patting it... so that says alot lol

so one chanel quilt quilt to add to the to do list

This trial is the perfect dolly quilt size.. anyone have a little girl with a cold dolly?

FO: mini lizzy

well i finished this a while ago.

I am so very completely happy with it that i plan to do a big noro buy up and do a full size noro one. after i finish my Vintage one that is

Sorry for the bad Mobi pic. will do a proper one on the camera soon..

Aarons Debut

What sort of a big sis would I be if I let my Little brother debut in the ring, looking any less then then a pro, ok even if it is just amateur (is that how its spelt?).



Hes been training on and off for years but only now that hes had lazer surgery on his eyes and can actually see across the ring is he finally getting the chance to fight, he fights this weekend at the Central Coast.



It was a great opportunity for me to master my embroidery machine, which untill now I hadn't really touched .. shame on me... so this is what he will be wearing, Looks very proffesional if I do say so myself, and he is stoked, however I beleive there is now another 5-6 guys that he trains with hoping to get a custom made pair each...

please excuse the fact they arent pressed, actually they are half wet there, from where i had to dunk them to get the blue lines off used to line up the embroidery

Shrug for Alyra

This shrug was made from the confection Baby shrug pattern, using Cleckheaton Country 8ply and hand dyed by myself.

It knitted up using less then 100gms of wool and in an evening... very happy..

It is destined to become part of a waredrobe for a friends bub due in sept.
Its knitted in the 6month size, but with longer sleeves then the pattern says

Me thinks this needs to go to its new home asap, as I think it is causing me to sprout Feathers *cluck cluck*

FO: Thujas For mum

These are the socks I knitted for my mum

I have knitted this pattern twice already for myself...

I hope shes liking them

FO: Shoyoen.

oops

I forgot that I said I would come in here and update..

So I sort of finished Shoyoen (and finished other projects, will blog about those later...)

So heres is shoyoen, Quilted and edges overlocked.
It needs its threads cut and binding, but that can be done later... its usable atm and thas good enough for now.. so its finished -ish..