Strawberry Quick Cardigan

I finished knitting a pure wool sweater right in time for the heat of summer!

Yarn: Cascade Yarns Soft Spun, Colour 2838
Needle: 5mm
Pattern: Free from DROPS found here.

More details can be found on my Ravelry page here.

Twig Spring Sign

I found this idea on a blog link party and loved everything about it.

As you can see, I had a bit of a problem keeping the twigs curved for the S, so I ended up enforcing the bottom twig together with curved wire, then wrapping with jute.

To bend your twigs, first choose new green growth, very gently bend them and submerse them, coiled, in the bottom of a glass of water or a jar for about a day.  Take them out and then wrap them around a paper towel or toilet paper roll and tape them into place. Let them dry for at least two days.

Assemble the twigs using jute or twine, gluing the loose end with hot glue.

Crocheted Jute Vase

 

I crocheted this vase using jute twine from the dollar store.  I improvised as I went along, using single crochet for the bottom and then switching to double crochet. 

I wasn't sure what sort of arrangement I was going to use it for but when I found the braided stem of a ficus plant I had killed years ago, I decided to make a topiary using silk foliage because I kill all plants other than succulents. 

I shaved a florist's oasis into a ball shape, then just inserted the stems of the leaves from three different types of plants: ivy, philodendron, and what looks like brunnera. 

 

Advertising Tins

I have a love of vintage advertising tins but not the prices so I have been collecting reproductions for years.  I've been trying to find shelving to display them and was thinking along the lines of a custom made curio but alas, I haven't learned carpentry yet.

I found a solution today, finally.  I took the door off of a chest I had bought at a flea market from a man who made it out of reclaimed the old wood.

Pin Tuck Duvet Cover

I pin tucked a duvet cover I purchased to match pillow shams I had made last spring.

I'll show you how to make pin tucks after the cut.

Jute Twine Spheres

I am always looking for cheap ways of doing things I see that stores want a lot of $$$ for and I made this small jute twine sphere yesterday.  The large one in this photo is made from a grape vine and while I love it, I paid too much for it.

Dad's Toolbox Transformed

While cleaning out the workshop yesterday I discovered this old toolbox my Dad would have made over thirty and maybe even over forty years ago.  It sat neglected behind the furnace full of rusty nails.  I hauled it out and cleaned it up thinking I could definitely find a better home for it.  I have!  I've placed cutlery in mason jars and tied up napkins with jute. This will make a handy caddy for dining outside in warm weather, and I just love how it looks sitting on my sideboard.

At some point, it looks like one of my brothers tried to saw through this box when they played carpenter, which would have earned them a whole heap of trouble from my Dad.

I found an old advertisement for grain at The Graphics Fairy and applied it using CitraSolv which I didn't realize could be used to transfer images to wood.  It totally can! 

I am placing a link to a tutorial I posted on how to transfer images using CitraSolv over here.  To transfer images to wood, you will have to rub harder than you would if you were using fabric - otherwise, the method is the same.

Kitchen Plaque

I saw this idea at a link party recently. The plaque said 'Pantry' on it but since I have an area of damaged wall in my kitchen that I've been wanting to camouflage, I decided to change it up and here she be:

I found a scrap of rough and rustic wood in my father's  workshop and all I did to it was dust it off well.

I bought my cutlery at the dollar store ($4 for 12 pieces), arranged the placement until I liked how the utensils looked, and then I glued them down with guess what?  Silicone caulking for tub and tiles, the invisible kind.   There are a bunch of better glues to use I'm sure, but this is what I found in the workbench, it was free, and it works!

Use whatever hardware you like to hang, and you're done.

SunflowerishPillow

I sewed this pillow over the weekend, you can find my tutorial here.

Instead of the rounded petals shown in the tutorial, these come to a point at the tip. The width of the petals is the same, but they are one and a half inches longer for the large petal, and one inch longer than the small petal shown in the pattern for the rounded version.  There is only one round of small petals used in this version, rather than two rounds used in the rounded petal version.

I also made the ruched larger pillow which is behind the sunflower.  I used the dimensions of a regular pillow sham and measured out the front piece two and a half times the length of the back and then gathered the upper and lower edges using a basting stitch.

Layered Petal Pillow Tutorial

I made this pillow inspired by a duvet I would love to have but will never buy from Anthropologie.

I'll be sewing its mate and doing some serious thinking about whether I want to tackle the matching duvet cover, which would be a huge but entirely doable undertaking.

I'm placing a tutorial for this pillow under the cut.

Mini Lamb Hoodie

It is safe to say that knitting miniature sweaters has become a sickness.  The hands in the pockets thing? Is killing me with cute.

Knit Baby Lamb

Baby lamb is redundant is it not?  Like baby kitten?  

Anyway, this lamb is a free knit pattern designed by Barbara Prime, and available on Ravelry.  The sweater pattern is also free, you can find it here.

I have become madly in love with knitting miniature sweaters.  I see more of this happening in my future. 

Fuzzy Spring Bunny

I am falling in love with knitting miniature sweaters.  The toys are really just becoming an excuse to knit wee sweaters.

Fishtail Lace Socks

I finished knitting these socks over the weekend.

I am definitely going to take the time to learn to knit toe-up socks because I have yarn left over which could have been used to knit longer cuffs.  At $32 a hank, I really don't like having yarn left over that can't be used to knit anything useful.

Framed Silver Heart Locket

I saw this idea somewhere around the blogosphere and put together one of my own. I would link up and give credit to the person who thought it up but I've lost track of where I tripped over it. 

Dried Rose Hearth Wreath

Instead of throwing away wilted roses, I dried them by hanging them upside down and decided to make this wreath.

I took apart a wire hanger and shaped it into a heart, then wrapped it with florist's tape.  I trimmed the rose stems to about an inch and a half, wrapped them with florist's tape, and then continued wrapping them onto the wreath on a slight angle, one by one.

Ruffled Tote

I made a ruffled tote today.

This is a gift for a friend and while it was easy to make, it was time consuming.  I might sew another for myself when I've forgotten about how fiddly ruffles are.

Lavender Sachets

Here's some simple lavender sachets I made using a big fat bee image from the Graphics Fairy.

We have one of the largest producers of lavender here in The Eastern Townships of Quebec, but it was cheaper for me to order lavender from Provence, France. 

I don't know how that makes any sense whatsoever.

Vintage Rooster Apron

A friend recently redecorated her kitchen with vintage rooster accents so I've made her a sweet lined apron using Citra-Solv transfers. 

I didn't have a pattern for this, I drew one out on wrapping paper and winged it. I found the rooster image doing a random image search and the fancy French writing came from The Graphics Fairy.



For those of you who would like to learn how to do Citra-Solv transfers, I put a tutorial here.

Gender Neutral Gift Wrapping

I needed a gift wrap idea that wasn't frilly or flowery or feminine, and in line with my love of using kraft paper and keeping it cheap, simple and rustic, I came up with this.

The long strips are cut from newspaper columns and the letter was cut from a large book page and then glued on card stock.