Tag Archives: Unraveled Wednesday

I call them..‘me do its’

All things craft,

It’s Wednesday again – that middle of the week day.
Some days have been and gone – some have yet to arrive
I don’t know why but this year seems to be galloping along at quite a pace, this is the last Wednesday in March…..one month of autumn gone already – and to make matters worse the clocks go back this weekend 🙁🙁😕…..

A while ago in amongst their requests the charity was asking for children’s woolies.
Jumpers/Sweaters were included – unlike 2019 when they were frowned on
When a friend sent me the message she had reworded it this way
2/3yr olds need functional – added colour optional.

Functional to me means serves its purpose
works well with no stress
So I dug around in ‘the pile’ and came up with an old Totem booklet

And what could be less stressful (and oh so quick & easy to knit) than these little
*left hand blue* ones that I call ‘ me do its’
Easy to put on, no recognised front or back, no problem with getting it right.
No stress on child trying to be independent…..or supervising adult😊

Usual run of the mill

These four are now sitting in the charity box ready for delivery soon. I had fun doing the little cars, one row on the chest and the other near the hem added a bit of interest…..not as much as the frequent tangled threads situation. Three different colours plus the main in use on every row was interesting. I really enjoy intarsia….but prefer fair isle where I have no problem whatsoever.

A little bit different
Lots of fun

(I was working on the royal blue/yellow one during that ‘interesting’ craft morning)

My reading has come to a standstill
As much as I wanted I just couldn’t get into A Sand Archive……the March selection at what I call my ‘real book club’.
It’s all well and good the library encouraging readers to open their minds to different authors and supplying the books but sometimes those choices sound ‘good/interesting’, start off great then turn out to be strange – and very disappointing
So we’ll say no more about this month’s offering!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Today I’m sharing my post at Denyse’s weekly link up called Wednesday’s Words & Pics
~ ~ ~ ~
Wednesday is also the day Kat hosts ‘Unraveled Wednesday ‘.so I’m sharing my post – and if you’d like to see what others are knitting, reading and talking about just click on the link


There are websites and there are deep rabbit holes……

All things books, All things craft

You know your friends know and understand you when they send you things like this


One also sent me a link to a section at Trove containing ‘very old’ knitting patterns – https://trove.nla.gov.au/about –

Trove is an Australian online library database owned by the National Library of Australia in which it holds partnerships with source providers National and State Libraries Australia, source

Vintage knitting patterns from newspapers & magazines : https://bit.ly/3NsUt1p

And….if you love old magazines, here’s a copy of The Australian Women’s Mirror dated 26 August 1953 to read
📷: https://bit.ly/3mhFyLL

And….as a treat perhaps this might interest you

Cosy knitted brassiere – using ‘silver sheen’ 2ply with UK size 11/3.00mm

The pattern can be found here – https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/22174651

This is one rabbit hole I’m not going to want to come out of 😊
~ ~ ~

And talking of rabbits – we grabbed a quick photo
before my friend took these off to her house for safekeeping

I do have some other things on the go….
A bit of craft for those in need – back to the little ones….must use up some odds and ends before they breed 😊

And the new book club read – A Sand Archive – very Australian…not too far from here

Seeking stories of Australia’s Great Ocean Road, a young writer stumbles across a manual from a minor player in the road’s history, FB Herschell. It is a volume unremarkable in every way, save for the surprising portrait of its author that can be read between its lines: a vision of a man who writes with uncanny poetry about sand.

in the mean time, now my eyes are ‘under control’ again, I’m changing my name to Alice (which just happened to be my mum’s name😊) and am going back down, down down deeper than down….’you know where’

I’m sharing this post with ‘Unraveled Wednesday ‘ hosted by Kat


But wait, there’s more….

All things books, All things craft, All things family, ,

The 2nd of the ‘big boy’ jumpers is finished.
And the 3rd in the trio is begun.
Another Sirdar pattern from the same era so I’ve just used the same measurements and adjusted the side panel stitches.
They should (hopefully) all be very similar in size


As simple as it looks
it took a little while to get the cable sequences right
and there were a few choice words spoken
and rows unpicked at one stage
so I might just chicken out
and do a plain back as well as plain sleeves


When all three are finished and finally on their way to Knit one Give one aka KOGO the time will have come to concentrate on something different- something close to my heart – something I’ve been thinking about for a while.

It’s two years to the day since Patsy my blond curly haired little sister died
Tribute – Sleep well my little one.

Next sister – Me – Little sister Patsy – Baby brother 1998

Take a look at this delightful photo (which I might have shown before) of Patsy (aged about 3)…….maybe just maybe, there might be some woolies coming up featuring little bunny rabbits. And as an aside it’ll be 20yrs on Saturday since my mum (she who knit Patsy’s rabbit jumper) died. These anniversaries are so hard on the heart.


I’m thinking my ‘2023 word to work with’ is going to be consider so I’ll have to think carefully about this one.
Cardigan or Jumpers (sweaters).
Size….can’t be too small or it will be dwarfed by the motif.
Colour……practical for children in unknown circumstances or ‘soft and pretty’ because that’s what she was.
I know there are graphs somewhere in amongst my patterns so guess what I’ll be doing today……if I don’t get sidetracked by my latest read .

Mrs Palfrey at the Claremont is a very short book to begin a shorter than usual month. Hopefully this will rekindle enthusiasm after my short reading lull during the last month.

Apart from the two mentioned early last month there was just one more book finished during January.
The Commandant – Jessica Anderson.
Historical Fiction about Moreton Bay Penal Colony (later to become Brisbane), involving the strange combination of its real life controversial commander Patrick Logan plus his wife’s (fictional) sister Frances.
I didn’t make it to book club because covid had come visiting so after a reasonable pause this (January’s) book was delivered to my door. It would’ve been rude of me not to start it…….actually it turned out to be a very good read

Wednesday is the day Kat hosts ‘Unraveled Wednesday ‘
Today is also the first Wednesday in February so I’m sharing my post – pop over and discover what others are knitting, reading and talking about

#loveispatient

Et voilà…

All things books, All things craft,

And there you go…..from flat to that – just like that!
Something that always amazes me
(And sometimes baffles and on one occasion definitely confused me)

Crossover Jacket link.
Tiny Trauma Teddy link
~ ~ ~

Slippers – no link. Obtained online years ago

I sometimes wonder what it is that intrigues me about these ‘all in one ‘ garments, they’re like those ‘one pot wonders’ the meals you can cook using only one pot
Take these ingredients, add your pot and see what emerges at the end.
Have needles- add yarn – a little twist here and there – no seperate pieces to mislay
And voilà – one item ready to wear.
~ ~ ~ ~
Back in November when I had a break between the back and front of the blue cable jumper this is what was keeping me amused. All in one knitted gloves – garter stitch, made on 2 needles.
Something I’ve been itching to make since coming across the pattern years ago

A group request for bright hats and gloves was all I needed
After discovering how easy they were to make I was off and running
one pair down …..and look, now there’s more!
(I used size 10/3.25 mm needles with 8ply/DK yarn)

There’s no rush ….winter’s a while away yet
It doesn’t seem that long left and I’m sure it’ll be back again😊
~ ~ ~ ~









As for the reading – over the past few weeks it’s been a bit hit and miss….more miss than hit if the truth be told!


At the moment I’m making my way through
The Dust that falls from Dreams – Louis de Bernières
******
And listening to
The Spare Room – Helen Garner.

I must say (for me) listening to a previously read book is strange….the story is familiar but it ‘reads’ differently. A little like watching an adaptation, there are scenes that just don’t seem right.
Does anyone else have thoughts on that?

**********

Being Wednesday you’ll find Kat and others over at ‘Unraveled Wednesday ‘
which is where you’ll find lots of knitting and reading and talking going on


👇Vintage glove Pattern, making instructions + other bits of interest can be found here. Three blog entries in order👇

#keeplifesimple

Unraveled Wednesday

All things books, All things craft,


It’s Wednesday again
the first Wednesday in a new month
The first Wednesday in December 2022
Which means it is the first
Wednesday in Summer in Australia.

 Also being Wednesday it’s the day Kat  hosts ‘Unraveled Wednesday ‘
which is where you’ll find lots of knitting and reading and talking going on

After finishing the Royal Blue jumper
– which turned out to be not as ‘cabled’ as I envisioned it would be –

Yes I see the ‘wrong’ stitch


I decided that knitting that larger size wasn’t so bad after all so using the same measurements have begun a similar one (patterned front and back with plain sleeves) in Fawn

The charity is closed now until February so even if I lose interest there’s plenty of time to finish it – and other bits and pieces I might fancy making along the way

~ ~ ~ ~

Reading has been really slow over the past couple of weeks
(The Golfer having Covid definitely hasn’t helped)
After finishing the book club choice I mentioned last time – Tourmaline – Randolph Stow I felt the need for something short and fairly light so
84 Charing Cross Road, (the ‘book of letters’ between Helene Hanff and Frank Doel…. a ‘buyer’ at a bookshop at that address) came home with me from the library.
Definitely what I needed!

And one just started The Dressmaker’s Secret – Rosalie Ham

It is 1953 and Melbourne society is looking forward to coronation season, the grand balls and celebrations for the young queen-to-be. Tilly Dunnage is, however, working for a pittance in a second-rate Collins Street salon. Her talents go unappreciated, and the madame is a bully and a cheat, but Tilly has a past she is desperate to escape and good reason to prefer anonymity.


However reading the first chapter and thinking about those recently unearthed photographs has brought back more forgotten memories
~ ~ ~ ~
First a little story…..
Singapore 1964
I had not long delivered a baby girl so ‘nothing fit properly’.
Feeling tired and weary, wondering how I was going to cope with two other little ones (even with the help of our live in amah) when The Golfer was away on an upcoming short detachment to service/‘fix’ some aircraft engines on Gan in the Indian Ocean
As in all Southeast Asian countries there were local dressmakers who would run you up something almost overnight but The Golfer, with all the panache of a man with his mind on other things, suggested I make one. “You’ve got a machine sitting there doing nothing, use it”.
I know I’ve mentioned before I inherited the knitting gene, not the dressmaking one, so as you can guess things didn’t go quite to plan – and The Golfer playing with his camera, thinking he was being clever, recorded my despair/misery in black and white on the afternoon I was finishing it off.

Here’s a few little quotes from The Dressmaker’s Secret, chapter 1…..

“ ….The new girl adjusted the tweed jacket over her knees. It was impossible to do really good work without her table, but every table was stacked with second rate fabrics…….”

Our table was probably covered with children’s toys same as the floor behind me.
~ ~ ~ ~.
“ ….Deftly, she pinned and draped the material around the thick form, letting it fall, shaping it around the bulky curves…..”

There was nothing deft about my movements, I’d pinned then sewn it together in a clumsy way and in my mind there was no way it was going to fit properly.
~ ~ ~ ~.
“ I know that customer………she’s forty-four, forty-five, forty-four…..”

And seeing my reflection I remember thinking how ‘large’ I looked
and wondering was I ever going to lose that ‘baby weight’

The dress did actually get worn – just not by me.
It was ‘unpicked’ by our amah who ‘turned it into’ a dress for her oldest daughter.

~ ~ ~ ~

Our little girl (3mths) with Aho –
our amah who helped me in so many ways during the time she was with us

‘Unraveled Wednesday ‘ hosted by Kat

Done it again…

All things books, All things craft, ,

It would appear I’m still as daft as ever.
Remember that old saying – measure twice cut once. Meaning double check before you do anything.
Spotlight had wool on special.
The brand I use for charity knits has a standard range of colours so I just pick up the colours I know I can work with and am happy to knit.
Many balls of Royal Blue went into my basket

After finishing the back of the cable jumper I had the plain sleeves done in no time at all……then took a break, working on something else instead.

On to the front with a new ball…..initially thinking the yarn didn’t feel the same but it had come out of the same bag and was the same colour so carried on knitting.
After several pattern repeats (4 x 8 rows x 94 stitches!) I looked at the ball band…….oops, it was a different dye lot number.
When there are sales, supplies are topped up continuously and a few from a different dye lot must have still been in the bin
In my haste I obviously hadn’t checked each one properly before going to the cash register.

So……. I have looked and looked in various lights and can’t see any visible difference, but just in case, have decided that as the back and front are the same up up to the armholes, what I’m knitting now will be the back, where it’ll be less obvious.
The already finished ‘back’ has been unraveled down to armholes and I’ll knit it up as the front.

And ‘why don’t you leave it as it is’ remarked a friend, ‘who’s going to know’
Me, I replied!

Another ‘done it again’ moment a few weeks ago saw me agreeing to ‘make up the numbers’ and join another book club. It wasn’t until later and some info arrived I realised this wasn’t going to be as casual as my other one. No ‘tell us what you read’ chat over a cup of coffee…..this one is ‘we all read the same book the library provides then discuss it’ coffee comes afterwards. Too late to back out – this month’s book is Tourmaline by Australian author Randolph Stow published 1963.

Tourmaline is an isolated Western Australian mining town – a place of heat and dust, as allegorical as it is real. Out of the desert staggers a young diviner, Michael Random, offering salvation to this parched town. The once comatose community is indeed stirred to life, by hate as much as by love, and its people find salvation neither in water nor gold.

It’s turning out not to be a read and devour hour after hour book. It’s a bit of a slog more like. After noting all the characters and working out how they relate to each other I’m having to take it a few pages at a time to actually get the gist of the storyline…breaks/changes of scene written into the quite shortish chapters make it a bit easier …. You know, they say nothing ventured nothing gained, try something new and different- this book is certainly something new and different – surprisingly I’m actually enjoying it. Hopefully when the time comes I’ll remember what it was all about😊

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it’s Wednesday – the day Kat  hosts ‘Unraveled Wednesday ‘ …….that’s where you’ll find lots of knitting (and reading) to admire and think about.

And Wednesday is also the day to look out for Wednesday’s Words & Pics hosted by Denyse …..  you’ll find much to interest you there

It would seem….

All things books, All things craft, ,

See a book recommendation – see if the library have it in stock

Yes, it’s there – but see what they said



Previously borrowed- my first thought was…..but when?
Seems it was April last year but I don’t remember a thing about it 😯

~ ~ ~ ~
So curiosity piqued I ordered it again.
set to with the front of my latest knit.
yes, one of the ‘cabley’ ones I spoke about last time

and began the Robert Harris waiting in the wings
Front finished – a little wobbly in places but not too bad.
‘Second Sleep’ on the go

My first read by this author. ‘Oh, historical fiction’ is what I thought when I picked it off the library shelf. Then at the end of ch.1 that thought changed to ‘Oh, sci – fi or maybe even something else’. I’m up to ch.9 and to me it’s moving quite slowly but we all know that with some books that could change quickly!

Library reservations must be working overtime – my book arrived sooner than expected. Not just The Sea Gate but 5 others as well!
That’s me sorted for November I think 😊

…..  Unraveled Wednesday  hosted by Kat…….As Kat Knits……
is on again!.
Why don’t you pop over and see who’s visiting this week

Style…..

All things books, All things craft, , ,

Style – a form of appearance, design or production. source


Most of my knitting these days is for the baby & toddler programme of a local charity but recently they’ve been asking for larger sizes – so I’m looking through this pattern book and this caught my eye.

It’s one I’ve made a couple of times previously in a 2yr size – described as ‘a child’s jumper with yoke patterning front and back’

I found it a ‘relatively easy knit’, the shape reminded me of a fisherman’s Gansey. Patterned yoke, drop sleeves, straight up and down.

And the instructions are available in sizes up to 8yrs 😊


(Use of the word jumper (or other options such as “pullover” and “jersey“) is largely determined by the regional version of English used.[1] In the case of Ireland, Britain and Australia, “jumper” is the standard word, “jersey” is used in South Africa whereas “sweater” is mainly found in tourist shops and in North America. The word used in Irish is geansaí (“guernsey”). Source)

There’s just one problem – one that probably only I see – my plain stocking stitch knitting is becoming very uneven. And there’d be an awful lot of it to be seen on a four/six year old sized jumper 🙁

Sometimes I’ve used other stitches or cables to ‘cover part of the ground’ but that doesn’t always work. Remember how uneven the fronts of those little shirts were…..

I’m not sure why, it was the same brand yarn I’ve used before. Of course it’s possible my hands are losing their grip/strength and I’m getting sloppy in the way I hold the needles so that’s something I’ll have to work on.

However…..

I think I might have found the answer to my dilemma

Do what I’ve done before

Knit Aran style or similar

No (or very little) stocking stitch to worry about

Here’s a couple from my collection – vintage now, fashionable when I bought them!

Last week’s book was set aside when a friend loaned me this
The Night Tiger – Yangsze Choo

“A captivating and magical story set in 1930s Malaysia about a dancehall girl and an orphan boy who are brought together by a series of unexplained deaths and an old Chinese superstition about men who turn into tigers.”

Much writing about customs superstition expats life in Malaya  Brought back memories of life as expats during the 1960s when we lived in that part of the world.

Oh and I have a rather nice Royal Blue waiting in the wings
That’d be the big boxes in the garage 😊
I’ll keep you posted
~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Wednesday’s Words & Pics hosted by Denyse ….. Denyse Whelan Blogs.
is on again

…..  Unraveled Wednesday  hosted by Kat…….As Kat Knits……
is also on again!

Click/ tap or finger slide to enlarge

http://www.ganseys.com/ganseys/

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aran_jumper

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aran_knitting_patterns
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https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cable_knitting

https://blog.tincanknits.com/2022/07/28/cable-knitting-without-a-cable-needle/

I’ll get there some day…..

All things books, All things craft,

A gentle reminder from an ‘acquaintance’ (just someone I see at a group) that I’d promised – one I have no recollection of – to knit some clothes for her granddaughter’s doll had me scrabbling through the garage looking for a long forgotten Tiny Tears. One of those things left behind years ago but ‘please don’t give it away Mum’ so it lingers out there along with various other bits that really should have been given away….guess when Mum’s gone those 60yr old children will finally make that decision they should have made years ago.

The 16” dolly clothes will have to wait a bit (Christmas is a while away yet) – Mum has been making decisions of her own since she returned home and discovered an awful lot more yarn in the garage than she remembered – several of those interesting 400gm ‘sealed so you have no idea what the ply is’ mill end bags suddenly appeared (tucked away in a box below another box – no idea when they were bought) so it’s use it or lose it. ‘Mill ends’ are the surplus yardage of yarn produced by mills every time a production run ends. source

Meaning I’ve some planning to do…….decide what to make and if I’m capable of offloading/donating/giving some of it away.

This little sweater/cardigan is so easy to knit it’s become a favourite of mine ( see the very well used, bit tattered and torn pattern…..priced @ 6d! One I bought for my first born – 1962😯)

~ ~ ~ ~

And it turns out this particular ‘mystery yarn’ knits up like a dream. Soft and comfortable to work with, smooth on the needles and using 10/3.25mm with 8/4mm needles is sizing to the pattern measurements.
I’m sure it could be used in the same way as an 8ply……Watch this space 😊

My latest library book turned up a couple of days after we got home…..I definitely timed the putting on hold process just right
It’s a new to me author so I must have seen it recommended somewhere
The sea, the sea by Iris Murdoch

As they say…in for a penny, In for a pound. If I don’t get on with it, it can go back😊

Remember Violeta – I mentioned her back at the end of August and again in September.
After a few false starts I finally made it to the end of over 300 pages.
Different – Interesting – Readable – no plot as such, more a letter to her grandson.
it did seem to go on and on at times so I had to stop for a breather now and again
Having said that I enjoyed it but sometime or another I’ll try another, with a ‘storyline’, to get a better feel of the author

~ ~ ~ ~

…..  Unraveled Wednesday  hosted by Kat…….As Kat Knits……
is on again!

Others are sharing their knitting (and reading) – pop over if you’re interested.
Maybe join in – they’re very welcoming.

Click/ tap or finger slide to enlarge

I’m not just a pretty face….

All things books, All things craft,

There’s more to me than a pair of knitting needles!

That was an expression used by a friend I had in England many years ago.
I met her at a ‘mum’s and babes’ group and marvelled at the knitting she produced.
However it seemed in a previous life before she married she had been a plain clothes policewoman, now dissatisfied with her present life (…..”reduced to nursing a baby and clicking knitting needles”….) she certainly let everyone know where she’d been and what she’d done.

So to prove that I can do more than knit I’ve managed to read several books in the last couple of weeks😊
My aim for these last few weeks we’re here has been at least a book a week, meaning I had to finish the ‘backlog of 3 by the bed’ before I could start the two new library ones

David Baldacci introduces a new character in Zero Day (the first in a now 10+yr old series of 5 books) John Puller, who could be called an army special agent investigator, sent to rural Virginia to look into ‘an unusual death’ he meets up with Samantha Cole a local police detective and the story unfolds from there.  This was an impulse ‘pick off the shelf’ from the library. I enjoyed it – a pick it up – put it down – and pick it up again – to get to the end as soon as possible sort of book.  A great way to pass a couple of wet windy days.


Linda Fairstein hadn’t been on my reading list before – this was a find on the ‘drop & swap’ shelf in the laundry.   Final Jeopardy is her first novel about Alexandra Cooper, a sex crimes prosecutor (there’s about 20 in the series now) so I got in on the ground floor as the saying goes.  Friend is killed, she becomes involved and then is a target as well.  I’m not a picky reader (will read anything and everything) but to me this seemed a bit humdrum.  I might see if I can find others and try again.
Other readers love her so maybe I should have another go.


David Mark’s Dark Winter was also another I plucked from the libary shelf.  Some days I go there with nothing in mind and just take something for the heck of it – not sure if I should be more organised or not.  Anyway this is his first novel about Aector McAvoy (10 in total now) – a policeman living in Hull, not the most glamorous city in Yorkshire but one that had a serial killer on the loose.  I became really engrossed in the story as it unfolded just before Christmas (Christmas in the book not real life Christmas lol) – 3 deaths that seemed unrelated till right at the very end.  And yes I did guess the killer but not the way he was involved.  He had vaguely crossed my mind sometime or another and it was only when it became apparent who it was I remembered my thought about that character lol

~ ~ ~ ~

Did I knit over the past couple of weeks – well, sort of 😊

I got fed up with the fawn shirt, then remembered I brought some half finished items with me – aiming to finish at least one. These rather crumpled looking pieces of green (which when finished will be a matinee coat looking like the pink top left corner) will be going home looking very much like they did on the way up. I reworked one of the sleeves then put the pieces back on the big stitch holder…..guess who forgot the very long needles to use for the yoke 😟

A very old pattern book from my very large collection

SO…..if you aren’t just pretty face and there’s more to you than meets the eye would you like to tell me what you’ve been up to ???? 

~ ~ ~ ~

I’m linking to Wednesday’s Words & Pics hosted by Denyse – you’ll find many interesting blogs there. Perhaps you’d like to join in as well.

Oh, and why don’t you pop over to see Kat…….She’s hosting Unraveled Wednesday
a great place where you’ll find lots of knitting (and reading)

Winter Day90

All things books, All things craft, All things weather, , ,

How strange that the first day of our Winter (June 1) was a Wednesday and here we are at the last day (August 31) and it’s also a Wednesday!

Day1 at home in Victoria was the day we went for a drive in the rain (https://cranethie.com/2022/06/02/winter-day-1/) – I’m not sure how today will pan out but yesterday (Day90) here outside my little cabin in Queensland it was also wet!


Unlike Day1 when he didn’t play – on Day90 The Golfer decided maybe it wouldn’t be that bad…..it was the Veterans afternoon and ‘we can’t let the side down’ so just after lunch, waterproofs and brolly at the ready he headed out.

By early afternoon it was coming down in bucket loads

And had turned cool – well much cooler than it had been😌

But certainly nothing like it was at home!


Me – well I gathered up my blanket (to keep my toes warm) new library books
latest knitting project, parked myself on the bed and settled down
to enjoy an afternoon doing as I like on my own

He was home just after 4pm……a little wet and a bit subdued. Still doesn’t enjoy playing in the rain so didn’t stop for a drink in the club house…..something he usually enjoys
(reliving the game with all and sundry😊)

Me – well I was comfy so suggested he might like pop down and get pizza for dinner!.
Thanks for your suggestions
I’ll think about doing something with those egg plants another day !
~ ~ ~ ~

On the needles
The makings of another shirt similar to last week. I’ll do the ‘grandad neck’ on this one

Library books.
Violeta by Isabel Allende. ~ Her new release but my first read of any of hers
Cooktown by Andreas Heger. ~ A debut novel by a new to me Australian author

~ ~ ~ ~

As it is Wednesday why not visit…..  Unraveled Wednesday  hosted by Kat…….As Kat Knits.  where there’s lots more knitting (and reading) to admire and think about

Linking to Wednesdays Words & Pictures …….Hosted by Denyse

#enjoyeverymoment

Two finishes….

All things books, All things craft,

it’s Wednesday – the day Kat from As Kat Knits hosts ‘Unraveled Wednesday ‘ …….that’s where you’ll find lots of knitting (and reading) to admire and think about.

I finally finished a couple of little shirts for the charity box – actually following the pattern this time by knitting and placing a collar.
Something I’ve avoided instead preferring to work these ‘grandad necklines’
I’ll add buttons and fix the button band when we get home – and remind myself not to knit anymore rib patterns as my stitches never came even after frogging and reknitting 😟

My reading this past week has been – The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald

One of those novels I’m sure many of you have read – one I’ve said to myself ‘you should’ but never have.
Classed as a classic by the library in Bowen and that’s where I saw it (in the display I mentioned the other day).

I’m having the same ‘problem’ here as at home earlier in the year – pick a book, oh that looks interesting, two chapters – two pages in some cases, nope not for me. So I thought why not try something different- something unknown. So it came home with me.

A smallish book that had words (language, situations, ideas) I had to think about. I enjoyed it – and at the moment that’s all that matters.

I also found myself so engrossed I realised I was ‘acting out’ some of the things I was reading.

  • I looked at Miss Baker…..I enjoyed looking at her. 
    She was a slender small breasted girl with an erect carriage which she accentuated by throwing her body back at the shoulders like a young cadet

Straightening my spine and pulling my shoulders back – not recommended if you are non slender and large breasted😊

  • I glanced at ….and at Jordan who had begun to balance an invisible but absorbing object on the tip of her nose 

Lifting my chin and looking down my nose wondering what I had balanced there – not recommended….makes you go cross eyed 😊

… … … … …

A book and two woolies…..that’s me finished.
Do pop over to Kat’s to see what she and other ‘unravelers’ have been up to

Honestly….it would appear

All things books, All things craft,

The older I get – The dafter I get!

I knit the back plain, in stocking stitch …then decided to do the front in broken rib

But couldn’t fathom out why my stitches were so ragged and out of shape

Look at the needles – I’ve been using two entirely different sizes😟

(I think there might be a bit of unravelling and some new beginnings coming up )

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It’s taken a while but I’m happy to say I’ve begun reading again.

Two new to me authors plus two entirely different genres
One down and one on the go!

The Things We Keep ~ Sally Hepworth

’Realistic Fiction’ – an interesting read, full of different emotions, one I really enjoyed about Anna, a well educated young woman in her 30s diagnosed with early onset Alzheimers disease. Set in an aged care facility where she meets and strikes up a friendship with a young man with the same diagnoses.

Confronting for many with no experience of the disease in younger people it follows their intermingled times (good and bad) together, along with another character plus daughter trying to sort out their own lives

The Goldminer’s Sister ~ Alison Stuart

Australian Historical Fiction – set in an 1870s Victorian gold mining town.
Just begun – what I think will be an easy read about a young English woman arriving in the goldfields discovering all is not how she expected it to be. Her brother has died mysteriously…her uncle now has ownership of the brother’s mine….

(Even though it’s not marked as part of a series and can be read as a standalone seemingly it follows on from an earlier book ’The Postmistress’ set in the same small town so I might try to find that one)

Yes – sometimes it’s the little things in life on these winter days that make me happy 😊😊

As it is Wednesday why not visit…..  Unraveled Wednesday  hosted by Kat…….As Kat Knits.  where there’s lots more knitting (and reading) to admire and think about.

I feel better now….

All things books, All things craft

So for fun the idea was to ’show & tell’ a child’s garment that took less than 100gm to make. By using a budget (but perfectly serviceable) acrylic these two sleeveless vests squeezed in at 96gms each!

(The fawn neck does sit straight and the body doesn’t bunch up like that at all.)
Blame the cameraman for not adjusting it!

They’re both adaptations of the smallest size of this very old pattern from a vintage book. Maybe I’m a bit old fashioned in what I think suits boys but to me cables in all forms do have a boyish look…..and yes I know Aran – with all its cables and other stitches (think moss, blackberry, honeycomb) is worn by all – male female adult child

With just a back and a front plus neck and arm bands – after adjusting stitch numbers it’s easy to make different versions of the same vest. I’ve knit the suggested stitch several times….but you know me…if I can make something different I’ll have a go 😊

This is the stitch in the pattern book photo

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I also took along the baby jacket made back in May…the one I had terrible problems with and wasn’t happy with the result. https://cranethie.com/2022/05/06/new-ways-different-ways/ There was lots of talk about how some pattern makers expect other knitters to be as skilled as they are and sometimes more words are better than less. Ravelry link

May 2022

After writing out the pattern in some semblance of order I had managed to make another for my granddaughter’s friend but the original still sat in the charity box waiting to be packed.

And after seeing other crafters handling it, turning it inside out trying to straighten those uneven rows, I did what I should have done earlier……unpicked the blasted thing and reknit it.

Oh yes, I definitely feel better now!

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And if you’d like to find out a little more of what other people have been up to – you really must visit…..  Unraveled Wednesday  hosted by Kat…….As Kat Knits.  

There’s lots of knitting there of a far higher standard than my Nana Knits plus reading as well. This year my reading has been painfully low, no idea why – just cant get into anything . Hopefully that will change soon

A little bit of this plus a bit of that

All things books, All things craft, All things travel

It’s Wednesday again, the first Wednesday in a new month
The first Wednesday in September 2021
Which means it is the first Wednesday in Spring in Australia

Mind you when I wrote this yesterday, here in this little usually warm spot in FNQ it felt almost wintery, very wet and very cool; so much so that because I had no reason to be out and about and there was more rain making it’s way down the coast, a strong wind warning plus the temp was only 18c (feels like 14c!) I resorted to wearing my bring along just in case tracky dacks and a windcheater.
The beach certainly wasn’t calling my name😊


Tuesday 10.45 am

As far as needles and wool are concerned I seem to have done nothing more than ‘look at and think about’ anything to do with them this month. I’m beginning to think a lot of the supplies brought up to keep me occupied will be returning to take up residence in the garage again once we get home…..however there’s hope for some of it because we’ve extended our stay and won’t (at the moment) be leaving for the journey down south until early October now….mind you that could also change given the circumstances in NSW (1000 cases again yesterday) as well as changing case numbers in Victoria.

A general feeling of ‘can’t be bothered’ seems to have crept into life….not just for me but also many in the park. I don’t mean dropping standards but a slowing down, in normal (pre covid) times it would be coming towards the end of the season with many packing up and making the trek back to southern or even farther afield states but more and more like us are staying put because border closures are a problem….especially for those returning to Western Australia or Tasmania.

The baby cardigans from the other day are still at the same stage they were when I spoke about them….unfinished- and thoughts of making another of these little white lacy jackets have progressed as far as casting on plus 3 rows garter stitch!


And that’s when I was interrupted – then glanced down to notice how dry my legs were…….dry legs, moisturiser, greasy hands….no more knitting but time spent lazily watching the clouds pass by through the palms in front of the trellis right where I was sitting 😎

I may not have achieved all the crafty things I planned
BUT…..I have done a bit of reading

One turned out to be a reread – two were a bit so so – and two were definite 5*.
Which ones do you think think they were? Have you read any of them?

August 2021

Sophie Green ~ The Inaugural Meeting of the Fairvale Ladies Book Club

Sophie McKenzie ~ The Black Sheep

Christine Piper ~ After Darkness

Christopher Koch ~ Lost Voices

Emily Koch ~ If I die before I wake

Oh my….. so many words here to tell you it rained all day, I did very little knitting and read a few books last month. There was much beach sitting and very little walking.
How did ‘your’ August go? And what are you reading this Wednesday?

If you’re interested in seeing other’s knitting and reading ideas you’ll find both at Unraveled Wednesday hosted by Kat. Pop over and have a look – she’d love to see you 

I’ve used (most of) it up…

All things books, All things craft

Back at the end of May I mentioned a bag of odd balls coming up to Bowen with me
they were destined to come back home in a different form

Flat things are so much easier to pack than round balls 😊

Nine pairs of fingerless mittens – with more to come!

My reading mojo returned with a vengeance- theres been some reading done as well
All enjoyable- Nothing outstanding (most only 3*).
A couple of ‘new to me’ authors and a Chevalier one I missed years ago.

July 2021

Anne Perry – A Christmas Escape

Tracy Chevalier – The Lady and the Unicorn 

Fiona Palmer – Sisters and Brothers 

Rachel Leary – Bridget Crack

Kate Grenville – A Room made of Leaves

Kerry McGinnis – Croc Country

Monica McInerney – The Godmothers 

If you’re interested in seeing other’s knitting and reading ideas you’ll find both at Unraveled Wednesday hosted by Kat. Pop over and have a look – she’d love to see you 

Use it up….

All things health

I’ve probably mentioned before that when my mind goes round and round in circles it’s the constancy and comfort of knitting that keeps me going. It’s there, it doesn’t change, needles and wool are all I need. And it’s not the big projects that sooth but simple easy no need to concentrate ones.

Don’t ask me why but amongst other things I’ve been contending with recently, the sudden onset of Patsy’s illness and subsequent death had me thinking about all the crafty ‘supplies’ (aka as stash of knitting wool) out in the garage…..and there was/is a lot of it. Full balls are usually easy to pass on – half used not so- and for some reason I got in a bit of a tizz and rather than just think about it knew they had to be put to use……there and then.

Continuing on from finishing off the fingerless mittens in March I ended up making a whole stack more pairs plus some basic cnr2cnr sometimes called diagonal blanket squares. Things the charity are always looking for, it welcomes each and every one that’s donated.

Another look under the table out there brought this to light. A large bin containing far more knitting cotton than I remembered being in there.

I’m an old fashioned girl who likes knitted cotton dish clothes that can be washed and reused……over and over again. I also have friends/acquaintances who do as well so at the moment that’s what I’m doing – knitting cotton dishcloths. Making the special “oh could you knit me some” requests from several poolside acquaintances plus restocking my own supply by using up thinner 4ply ( knitting two strands together = 8ply) which has helped reduce the ‘stash’.   (I found mention of the Waffle pattern on one of Rhonda’s posts way back in 2008 but you can find it here.  I’m making these ones slightly larger)


It really looks like I’ve been at it for hours on end over the past couple of months – not so, all these items have short rows of about 30/40 stitches which means quick finishes. And for most of the time it was an easy non taxing way of stilling my mind….as well as using up all – well most of – actually, more like some of – that stuff outside.



I’ve a full bag of odd balls set to one side ready to make its way up to Bowen

It’ll come back in September as fingerless gloves…..or squares
It definitely won’t be coming back as wound balls😊

There’s been no reading from me to talk about this month but you’ll find both knitting and reading at   Unraveled Wednesday hosted by Kat. Pop over and have a look – she’d love to see you

Forgotten Fingerless Fun….

All things books, All things craft

So I’m rummaging round what I thought was a ‘discarded’ (as in put to one side to be looked at another time) bag of odd balls set aside for a child’s stripy jumper and right at the bottom. .. inside another bag….found a pile of fingerless mitts that needed finishing.

Several pairs of fingerless mitts
Left unfinished and forgotten for a maybe a couple of years.
I knew they were somewhere….just couldn’t remember where 😊

I’ve been knitting these on and off for quite a while now – they’re always in demand at the charity – so when I’m low in energy they’re an alternative ‘easy knit’ for those can’t be bothered with stitches measurements and shaping times

Now I don’t know if you believe in coincidences or not but that same day looking through photo folders these popped up in amongst my 2012 finishes. I used to find that with there being no instantly visible ‘thumb hole’ at times people would look at them not knowing how they were worn – easy to explain if you’re giving in person but it was fun sometimes to make a little ‘display hand’ like this


Black 8ply and using – Rhonda Jean’s pattern – one I’ve often used since discovering it quite a while ago (2008) – these were destined to be worn by a young girl waiting for the school bus at 8am on cold wintery days.  Losing things was her speciality so it wasn’t long before there was a request for another pair!

And these in a pinky grey mix of colours in Patons Jet knitted sideways – adapted  from a pattern I found on Ravelry – made especially for an elderly friend who suffered with cold hands indoors as well as out. Very simple and easy to do – I rather like the garter stitch detail on the side after they have been sewn together
Here’s my ‘rewritten’ pattern

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Discovered Found the rest of the brown wool in another bag so have decided to make a few more pairs – easy on my brain…..means I can read at the same time 😊.


The book on the table is a fun read – The Diary of a Nobody by George Grossmith. Even though it was published back in 1892 the short humorous sometimes sad/unfortunate day to day diary entries are still recognisable as ones possibly written in somebody’s today. I wonder if JayCee had this in mind when she named her blog

Not many books read in February:-

*Mothering Sunday by Graham Swift.
Very short, think novella. Mostly takes place over one day. Very sensual….with what might been seen by some as erotic and sexual undertones. Very sad – thought provoking in places. Surprise ending

*Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear
Basically about someone who starts life in service then makes good of their life. First book in a series – has an ‘interesting’ main character who has an ‘interesting’ life. At times her ‘escapades’ reminded me of similar series – think Jackie French’s Miss Lily series and Kerry Greenwood’s Miss Fisher series …Enjoyable but I’m not sure I’ll look for others.

*A Single Thread by Tracy Chevalier
About a single woman (not by choice – termed surplus women) finding her feet after WW1 – leaving home, becoming an ‘independent’ woman, becoming involved with a group of ‘broderers’ ’ in the local cathedral also befriending a bell ringer. With one character taken from real life there was much to learn about the project to supply Winchester Cathedral with embroidered kneelers. as well as the hows wheres and whys of bell ringing woven into the story. This I definitely enjoyed – but then I’ve always enjoyed Chevalier’s historical fiction (based on real life persons/events).

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And as usual on the first Wednesday of the month if you’d like to find out a little more of what people have been up to – you really must visit…..  Unraveled Wednesday
hosted by Kat…….you’ll find it here at As Kat Knits 
Lots of knitting and reading to see there.


A little bit of this – A little bit of that

All things books, All things craft, All things weather

Yes, that’s all I have done recently.
Hopefully the sadness of the last few days will pass and my mind will settle again.

Thank you all for the comments on my last post.….one day I will be able to relate the events and the trauma they caused over the past eight weeks but just for today all I want to say is Thank You

I did do a little bit of knitting….after the green and white cardigan was put right it was popped into the ever filling charity box to wait for the volunteers to return from their summer break. Then I took pity on a neglected wip and finally the Teddy jumper (which had only been on the go for six months) was finished ….and instantly decided to make him a friend. Same as I did in 2016. Unlike back then I found the plain back and sleeves were ‘easy knitting’ and just what was needed to take my mind off other things so Mr Lion was finished in no time at all. Just right for 2yr olds don’t you think?

2021
2016

I did a little bit of reading during January.
Just a few books….some I enjoyed….some not so much.
And some went back unfinished.

* Cover her face by P.D.James
I certainly enjoyed my first time reading an Adam Dalgliesh mystery. Will look out for more in this series.

* The House between Tides by Sarah Maine
Debut novels can be a mixed bag. Also reading ‘new to you’ authors can be an interesting experience. This is one I thoroughly enjoyed and wanted to stretch out as long as I could by reading a little each day.

* The Binding by Bridget Collins
I wasn’t so keen on another debut novel by another new to me author. Told in three parts, each relating to the same time period. I really enjoyed the first part, not so the other two.

Then I dipped into a couple of self interest books, picking at bits here and there …..have renewed them so will be doing some more ‘dipping’ during February
* The mindfulness in knitting — Rachael Matthews.
* When things fall apart — Pema Chodron

The length of the day/night elements in our days are changing a little…..yes it’s that time of the year when the ‘days’ are getting a teeny bit shorter and the ‘nights’ are beginning to get a tiddly bit longer. The lights are needed just a fraction earlier in the evening and even though it’s daylight when we wake in the morning it’s hard to judge the time. There’s been so many dull rainy starts recently you don’t know if that’s the reason or whether the light’s not appearing as early as it did the week before.
And that’s good a good thing for those in the northern hemisphere because they can now look forward to a little bit more…..if you follow what I mean.

And if you’d like to find out a little more of what people have been up to – you really must visit….. Unraveled Wednesday hosted by Kat…….you’ll find it here at As Kat Knits.
Lots of knitting and reading to see there.

Down the rabbit hole….

All things books, All things craft, All things family

I know what started it……middle of last year (2020), little internet messages between sisters. ‘Do you remember this….when we did this’ backed up by photos floating through the airwaves (or whatever you call what the internet runs on). Thoughts on what we inherited from our mum….I got the knitting gene…..middle sister got the sewing machine gene….and little sister joked and said, all she gave me was her arthritis. Which sent us into fits of ‘LOLs’ because we all inherited it in one place or another. Them in both hips, me in my spine and little brother in his knees.

Feeding the pigeons in Trafalgar Square 1954 – we ( just we three girls then plus mum….baby brother was there but not in person….yet) were on our way to Germany. Dad was there already, he’d been posted weeks before, so we made our way with lots of other service families on a very old ship across the North Sea from Harwich to Hook of Holland and then by train to RAF Wunstorf.

This photo of little sister’s beret shows mum’s love of fair isle knitting, something I enjoy as well. I’ve never attempted to knit a beret, wouldn’t it be a good project to take on I thought. Maybe even try to reproduce one like little sister’s. No pattern in my pile so off I go the source of all things knitting (preferably free if you know the right way to ask)…..yes, I changed my name to Alice…..which incidentally was my mother’s and my gt grandmother’s name, ……and made my way down the rabbit hole of the WWW.

I came up trumps with this pattern (pictured on the right) but it’s in 3ply so saved it for another day, however the site itself (Vintage Knitting Pattern Archive) is a fantastic source of free vintage patterns.

Another find was this picture of a very unhappy looking little boy wearing a really good looking fair isle style jumper/sweater similar to some I’d made for my children…….if you’re interested the pattern is here…. A Boys Jumper.

Look what came to light this past weekend when I sorted out some WsIP I’d tucked away in favour of doing something else. So enthused at the time by how easy the pattern ( as in the colour work stitches) appeared to be (and actually turned out to be) I’d started on it there and then, finishing the back and a sleeve before putting it to one side. Even though I like the distinct sharpness of the suggested red, white and blue on the cover and knowing I have no control of wherever it goes and to whom, I feel the softer colours will make it suitable for both girls and boys whatever their circumstances.



Looking at the wrong side you can see that like traditional fair isle there’s only two colours to each row, short breaks between each colour meaning short strands. And I tried to have the same colour on the top as I went along the row.


So when I get around to giving some attention to those half finished projects I think this little jumper will be the first cab off the rank.

First book for this year will be A Month of Sundays- Liz Byrski. Four women who have only seen each other on screen during their monthly online book club sessions decide to spend some time together …in person…at a property in the Blue Mountains. A soft read, with lots of tears, revelations and decisions coming up I think.



Unravelled Wednesday hosted by Kat is here at As Kat Knits. Lots of knitting and reading to see there.