Baby Birds

These are the baby ringnecks at about 3 weeks old. There are 4 blue and 1 white. Ben and I were checking them over and took the opportunity to takes some photos. They are very sweet in their own way. Guess you need to be their mother or a bird lover to see their beauty at this age. There are still 4 more eggs to hatch from another pair but they should be green and yellow babies. It is always exciting to see the first feathers come through and see what colours they will be.

Cheers,
Lynda

Kaylee's Slippers

One unfinished project now in the finished category. These have been sitting in the basket for ages mainly because when I first started them they were too big for Kaylee. It took some fiddling around with rows to get them to fit her perfectly. These slippers are of course based on the Peter Pan's slippers by Gabriela Ordenes.  I changed the size by making one side longer so they would fit a 4 year old without being too wide. It is a super quick crochet pattern based on a granny square and now Kaylee and I have a matching pair.

Cheers,
Lynda

Crafting Update

I've spent far too much of my days wasting time lately so today I dug through the unfinished projects basket with the hope of finishing off some of these lovely patterns. To my horror I found more than I expected (this isn't all of them). I am determined to knit along as fast as I can to finish them.

These little shoes by Ysolda are so sweet. I had trouble with the pattern in the first instance which put me off somewhat but after knitting one of them it was clearer what she meant with the icord at the start. I love the construction of the strap and will use this method on other things. These only need the kitchener stitch to finish off the bottoms. That is a good enough reason to leave them in the bottom of the basket, right?

Then there is the Not A Drop scarf that I started recently. I've done a lot of this one and I am very happy with the pattern. It will look so much better when it is blocked to show off the drops. This pattern knits up fairly fast.

The call to cast on new projects is always strong so here is my latest cast on to show you. It is Clockwork by Stephen West and, as is usual with all his patterns, it is absolutely beautiful. I have chosen black and grey yarn for the stripes mainly because it is difficult to get thinner yarn here and there wasn't many colours to choose from. I didn't want to wait any longer to start this pattern so black and grey it is!  I am a big black, white, grey fan so I am happy with this striking combination. As you know it is Spring here so I have heaps of time to finish off the scarves etc before the next chill sets in. Dare I cast on anything else before these are finished. Probably!

Of course there are lots more in the basket but who's counting!

Cheers,
Lynda

   

SPRINGTIME IN THE GARDEN

 "Spring makes its own statement, so loud and clear that the gardener seems to be only one of the instruments, not the composer."

Geoffrey B. Charlesworth

Cheers,

     Lynda

At the farm

"Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush"

Doug Larson

Cheers,

Lynda

A Coat for Jet

This was a silly little project to use up the leftover black felt strips from my felted cushion cover. Jet is happy enough to prance around in his new bee costume and Kaylee thinks he is funny! Now what to make?
Cheers,
Lynda

PICTURES FOR ERIN & KATIE

Note to self...

"Being happy doesn't mean everything is perfect. It means you decide to see beyond the imperfections".

Cheers,
Lynda

Having Fun Felting

I have accidentally felted a few good fine wool sweaters over the years and certainly not been happy about it but when one felts with wool roving it is a really enjoyable activity. At least those lovely wool sweater can be repurposed and put to good use so all is not lost :)  

But this roving is going to be a cusion cover. I began by felting the grey/white/black wool roving into strips that I alternated with solid black wool strips that I already had.  I sewed the seams on the outside as there is no fraying because the edges are well felted. This adds to the overall look and texture of the cushion cover.

Because I was working with such small strips I used the most basic felting technique of laying the roving between two layers of bubble wrap and wetting it with a little water and detergent and getting to work until it came together. A few dips in hot and cold water, a rub here and there and a quick dry in the tumble dryer and it was done.

Well worth a little bit of effort!

 

Cheers,
Lynda

The Spring version of Autumn

The fallen petals are nearly as pretty as Autumn leaves. 

Cheers,

Lynda

SPRING IS EVERYWHERE

Spring has been in the air for awhile now. Bulbs blooming, new growth in the garden, green shoots appearing on the deciduous trees, newborn lambs dotting the hillside and the sun is trying hard to break through the clouds and shine brightly leaving the nearby hills dappled in shades of green. 

The euphorbia wulfenii are standing tall and taking over the narrow garden bed reminding me of something out of 'The Day of the Triffids'. 

Spring is also the nesting season. The first of my son's baby birds have hatched and it will be exciting now to see what colours they will be. There are five in this clutch and  following genetics there should be 4 blue and 1 white but we will have to wait and see if nature throws us a rare colour. That would be really exciting!

Baby Ringnecks

It is still cold and wet but we are not complaining as it will be hot soon enough.

And I couldn't resist adding a photo of these little sweeties :)

  

Cheers,
Lynda