Zakka Style: Crochet Grocery Bag

I had to wait until after Christmas to post this item, because my friend reads this blog every now and then. But now it's all unwrapped and reveiled so I can post away.


Quite pleased with the result.. hope Rig likes it!

I made the Zakka Style Crochet Grocery Bag from Frayed at the Edges again. This time I followed the pattern, but added four more increase rounds just before deceasing. I also added a round of tripples (see note below) in sc just before starting on the handles. The idea was to weave a ribbon through this so the bag would look cute. But when I tried it, it really did look cute, but wasn't something that would suit my friend. So I left it as a pretty border. The handles I made longer, 100 chain, and worked in the same manner as the finishing edge on the bag, with a row of tripples. Mmmm... maybe I shouldn't have said I followed the pattern, made a lot of changes. Although they are all additions, to the pattern so stricktly speaking I did follow it, just added to it too.
I'm really pleased with the result and wished I had finished my blue bag of in the same manner.


The blue bag in use, it can hold a lot!!

Tripple*
I've mentioned this stitch in my post, and it's not the proper term. As I was crocheting I tried several stitches and decided on this one. I've got no clue as to the offical name of it, so please let me know if you do. I'm sure it's an exsisting stitch. Anyway here is how it goes:

start:1 loop on hook
wrap yarn over hook (2 loops on hook)
through next stitch, wrap yarn over hook, pull yarn back through (3 loops on hook)
wrap yarn over hook and pull the loop through 1 (3 loops on hook)
wrap yarn over hook and pull the loop through 2 (2 loops on hook)
wrap yarn over hook and pull the loop through 2 (1 loop on hook)
Next stitch.


My friend Louisa made a smaller version

Louisa made a mini version I also wanted to show off. It's sooooo cute. Not much use for grocheries I guess, but great for carring cute small things. (<-you are right I have no examples just imagine something small and cute :P).

Normal Gretel

We have a normal Gretel!
I repeat...
We have a normal Gretel!
Hooray!
Rasta woman hat is no more. Gretel is nice and tidy and finished and looks smashing!!! (Looks up to the sky and says) I am ready for snow now. Let it come please.


Gretel is back to a normal size

As you may know I started making the Gretel Beret in the slouchy version, with giant consequences! So I ripped back and followed the directions to the normal version provided in Ysolda's pattern et voila! J'ai un beret tres jolie! (I have a nice beret).


It's no longer flopping down into my neck.

I'm quite happy with the result. I think the yarn is very nice and soft. The colour is nice on my hair colour, but sometimes I do think of mushrooms. hehe. If I make another Gretel I would try the slouchy beret version with a lighter weight yarn. One tip if you do make this version: use a smaller needle size voor the ribbing. I used half a size down (5 mm, rest of beret is knit in 5.5 mm), but would use an even smaller size next time (4 mm).

More posts about berets:
Big Gretel
Another Slouchy Beret
Zakka Style Crafts
Slouchy Beret

Knitted landscapes

Knitting is art! It really is. The masses don't get this, but then the masses didn't get Van Gogh for got sake. To prove that it is an art, have a look at this website called Knitted Landscape. Anyone can participate, what you need to do is knit something nature and place it in a landscape, then take a picture. And those I tell you are very arty.


One of the contributions to Knitted Landscapes...

If you look at this picture you can see a landscape, formed over millenia by the elements of nature: vulcano's, plate tectonics and less invasive ones like rain, snow and temperature changes. And there in the midst of all this empty landscape is a mountain rocks. Made by man.
Someone picked up a stone and placed it on top of another and then other people did the same.
And then the free thinkers came in the form of knitters. They knitted colourful rocks and placed them in the landscape. Joining human creativity with the forces of nature in a single project. They connect the human touch with the powers of the earth.

Perhaps this post is a tat bit over the top on my part, but I love this type of art. And it's open for anyone to join in. You can upload your own knitted landscape pic to the site. Talk about a happening!

Healthy Living, update 1

One of my downfalls: carrot cake...

I always thought it a chalange to start a diet and go to gym in December, but it's proven more than hard. I'm not doing too bad (read: i'm not stuffing myself on an hour to hour basis as is usual this month). But there are little chocolates and cake everywhere. Also I've been too busy to make it to the gym. And quite frankly when it is between sending of presents in time or a workout the presents win. So Instead of beating myself up about this whole issue. I'll be trying not to overdose on sugar this month and start fresh in the new year, when everyone else is too. And I will say it now: I WILL BE HEALTHY ON MY 30TH!!

Big Gretel

I have Gretel issues!
Pardon me, you say.
Yes I will pardon you, but the fact remains that I got Gretel issues... I will explain. Now it's true that the name Gretel has never stricken me as very beautiful, but who cares right. Then I found this great pattern called... you guessed it Gretel. It's a beret pattern made by Ysolda!
So I happily started knitting and three skeins later I had this huge, oh no, I should say HUGE beret. I felt like rasta woman. Here wait I'll show you:


Enough space to hide a bunch of dreads and your weekly shopping...

So I'll give you some info, perhaps you know someone who always wanted to be the mushoom head on Mario.

To make the HUGE sloucy beret:

Pattern: Gretel by Ysolda
Yarn: Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran
Skeins: 3
Needles: 5 mm
Various: followed the Slouchy Beret version of the Gretel Pattern.


The cable turned out lovely!!

And the result isn't bad. I liked knitting the cable pattern a lot and it looks fantastic in white, the yarn is great it looks good, just too big. But again I'm lucky. The Gretel pattern comes with three variations: cap, beret, slouchy beret. So all it takes is a rip back and a reknit of the final decreases. Expect an update on that soon!


The last time I ever wear the huge beret

Christmas time

Sorry I've not been updating my blog this last week, but I've been really busy getting all the Christmas pressies off to The Netherlands in time. So besides buying and wrapping I had to find boxes and jiffy bags (envelopes). But they are all on their merry way and I hope will make it in time.


The tree is up and sparkling... all it lacks is presents

Also I've been decorating the Christmas Tree. We get a real one as it's a fantastic excuse to get a bit of nature in the living room. The lights are in and twinkling away. All I have to do now is find some wrapping paper and put our pressies under it. I has some baubles left over so I put them on a newly purchased tray with some candles. All very romantic... all that is lacking is snow outside!!!


Candles make everything cosy in winter

A Martha week

If she'd known about my endevours this week I'm sure I would have made Martha Stewart Proud. I've been crafting, decorating christmas threes and been a hostess to a birthday celebration. Also I went to a party in the street to meet all the new neighbours. This was absolutely great. They where all very nice to us newcommers and there is a great community feel in the street. Still if you, over the next comming weeks are invited to a party that you really do not want to go to, think of me and the Happy Living Blog. Because I spotted this great little tool for you online: The Holiday Party Excuse Generator from Enlighten. Don't tell me I don't think of you!!


The buffet area needed decoration

For the birthday party I used a Martha Stewart idea for a Festive Garland. As you can see it looks very much like the original. As you can see I decorated the corners with tissue pom poms! Please read my old blog post on Pom poms about this great decoration craft.


Cheer up an empty fire place

And then I thought that this corner of the house could use some Christmas decoration. So I Martha'd again and made these cute little Paper Stockings for the (sealed up) fire place. Don't you think they're nice?

My only dissapointment is the fact that I couldn't find the ingredients to my mothers most famous and beloved Tiramisu. It's in Dutch (my mom is Dutch my father is Italian, they live in The Netherlands) so I will translate and then will post it on my blog for you to try out.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

I'm wishing for snow! As I might have mentioned before I'm very partial to the stuff.
Perhaps not as much as Lorelai, but then who is. I've been watching rather a lot of Gilmore Girls of late. Louisa lend me the first season on dvd and it's great. I'm as big a fan of snow as I am of Lorelai. I'm not exactly sure what it is exactly, probably a combo of her goofiness, her positive attitude, the clothes and the love for snow. I remeber the episode I saw where she goes out for a walk in the snow wearing a blue scarf. Nothing I wanted more in the next weeks than a blue scarf (and snow ofcourse). This was before my knitting days and I did find a very nice blue scarf that I still wear ocassionally. And when I see it I think of... snow.


Lorelai and blue scarf...

Ofcourse there is the normal way to get inspired by snow which has nothing to do with a make up character in an American tv-series: beautiful photography. I've spotted a new site, Morris Photographics, that has some great great pictures. Some people really know how to work a camera (jelous! I'm really crap.. seriously). Anyway here is a sample of the gorgeous artwork on Morris. Be sure to drop by and see the rest.


pictures from Morris Photographics

Staying warm this winter

I removed the Innocent Big Knit counter from the menu bar at the right. This because we, us knitters, have done well this year. The goal was 400.000 hats and we managed to reach this goal. So the virtual bottle meter was filled and 200.000 pounds (US$400.000) will be raised for Age Concern. Hooray! Lots of people will stay warm this winter because of us. Not only that! The world will have less scraps of leftover yarn just hanging around in stashes. So a big thumbs up and keep those stashes save: save left overs and keep them ready for next years BIG KNIT!!!

For inspiration take a look at all these cool hats on Flickr! And see if you can spot yours!