Blowtorch Crafts

I have started a crochet shawl while waiting for the courage to start Francis’ sleeves.

Too bad I didn’t really check how many of these squares I’ll need before I started. 55 and 11 half-squares. One square takes a little over half an hour to crochet – hopefully it will be faster after some practice.

It is lovely, though. Pattern from Drops, in norwegian and in english.

I don’t do this enough, but amigurumi is really fun. And fast! Found this one via the WhipUp newsletter:

It really is the game Pass the piggies, done in crochet! They come in their own little basket and all. You can even print the rules of the game directly from the pattern.

Genius!

Pattern here

Eva has made a gorgeous crochet blanket:

And of course, she made me want one too.

I’ve been at flickr gathering inspiration:

Love the patterns!

Found this sweet pillow some months ago in a store – I only saved the picture, as I thought I’d make something similar, so if anyone recognize it, please let me know so I can link to the store:

Three cowls and fingerless mittens for presents:

red cowl and mitts with roses

plum cowl and mitts with teeny roses

blue-green cowl and mitts with green silk scrunch

This is the world’s largest Calorimetry.
I learned a few things from this:

• My head is small.
• I knit very losely.
• Checking the gauge is a good idea.

I can use it, but I have to make a knot from the ends…

I am learning to knit, and lace patterns are fun! It demands concentration, and I think it would have been easier with a thicker yarn – it is really difficult to make out the pattern as I go. Fortunately, the mistakes are nearly impossible to spot as well :)

I finally finished the red mittens. Apparently, I crochet tighter now than I used to, and they became smaller than the last pair. So, I only felted them at 40 degrees, and I am rather happy with the result.

I have started making jewellery again: these are some of the latest examples.

Supernøtt made a lovely scarf, and I had to make one myself:

Mine is in off-white silk alpaca, and is wonderfully long: It wraps three times around my neck and still has long, floppy ends. And it was so fast to crochet! I made it in front of the TV last night…

I have hestitated to post about my fantasy-along, because it is not quite finished yet. However, the only thing that remains is the sholder strap, so you can imagine the rest:

On the left is the front of my bag, in the centre is a close-up of the embroidery, and on the right is the inside. It is made in black corduroy, and the lining is an old skirt that I cut up. It has a large pocket on both the front and the back. I will add a long shoulder strap and a snap closing on each of the pockets. The theme for this along was the number three. Therefore, this bag has three separate pockets, I have used three fabrics, and I have embroidered a tree (ahahahaha). This bag will probably end up as my knitting bag. It is large enough for big projects, and has in fact got room for my laptop as well.

This is the beginning of my alpaca vest from Lene Holme Samsøe’s book Feminin strikk. I am not a fast knitter (as mentioned), but I am immensely proud to have knitted all of five centimetres :) Hopefully, it will go faster by the time I’m finished with the back…

This is a half-finished hat in single crochet, made in fat cotton yarn. This is for a friend who has his birthday tomorrow – I hope he’ll like it!

I have a lot of projects at the moment – I am crocheting a bag in mustard yellow cotton yarn, knitting scarves and sewing a dress. Luckily, the easter holidays are not too far ahead! I will have to study a bit over easter – exam in just over a month! Eeeeek!

On the left is the way I transport my crocheting. Make it into a roll, and stick the needle through. Otherwise, long items, like this one, will tie itself to my headset in the bag, coil around my keys and eat my cellphone. This is a scarf I’m making for a friend’s birthday today. I will add fringes in turqouise, and hopefully manage to take a picture of the finished product. The scarf is crocheted in half double crochet and a few rows of treble crochet (mainly to keep me from fainting from boredom).

This weekend, I’m suddenly going to Kristiansand to do some pre-production work for this summer’s festival. It will be a four hour train ride each way, but that’s the only time for knitting/crochet all weekend. I’m not sure if I dare to bring any knitting – I live in fear of the whole thing unravelling by itself while I’m not looking. Crochet is more trustworthy that way :)

I am not able to finish my jacket (mentioned below) because I have apparently done something strange while cutting the pieces for the hood: it does not fit propely. I’m not sure what to do about it, except put it in the closet and forget about it until I get a bright idea.

This is what I’m doing at the moment. On the left is my scarf in Noro Kureyon. I decided to knit it in ribs(knit two, purl tw0), and I imagine it says a LOT about my marvellous knitting skills that I am actually very proud to have achieved as much. To think of the knitting projects that I have decided to try makes me shiver in fright… I have decided on a vest, and traditional Selbu mittens, and a little jacket. I am not sure how this will turn out, but stay tuned.

I have come to love the Noro yarn – just look at the amazing colours! My crappy photo does not do them justice. One skein will not do for the scarf, however. And I’m horribly broke, so the scarf will have to be a temporary UFO until payday.

On the right is one mitten, minus thumb, pre-felting. Crocheting mittens is excellent for the train ride every day, as they are comparatively small, does not require a pattern, and won’t unravel in my bag if not watched carefully throughout the day (have I tried knitting on the train? yes.)

My 2do-list is getting longer by the minute, but I am at least very inspired at the moment. Everything is taken note of for a later occasion – now I’m looking forward to starting on the fantasy-along (and hopefully finish before April 1st), the Granny Ripple baby blanket, and the knitted mittens. But first: hood and hem on my woolen jacket (tonight). And fixing the hem of my silk dress.

Thougt I’d post the finished shawl. Here, you see the difference between my digital camera (on the left) and my cellphone camera (right). I tried to lighten the picture taken with the cell phone, because it was surprisingly dark, but it did not turn out too well… At least, you can see the size of the shawl. It is rather long, so it reaches down my entire back, even if it is not very wide. The heavy alpaca yarn makes the shaw lay nicely over my shoulders, and it is AMAZINGLY soft and lovely. And warm.

I ordered a skein of Noro Kureyon lately, a multi-coloured yarn that is highly praised by many in the blogging world. Unfortunately, I got a different colour than I ordered, but I decided to take the unfamiliar colours as a challenge rather than return it. I am not converted to this yarn yet, however. I have real trouble deciding what to make, and it does not really appeal to me in the same way that alpaca does. Maybe I’m just not used to it yet?

I will be working on finishing the shawl for my grandmother this weekend, as well as sewing the hood and hem of a wool felt jacket that has been lying around for weeks. I also have an idea for one of the alongs I’m in – finally! I have been struggling with this for a while…

I am very much looking forward to try my hand at knitting again: I will try to make a vest as well as traditional knitted mittens! And then there’s the Granny Ripple baby blanket… A lot on my plate at the moment, but that’s just fun :)