tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26556475076391148102024-03-13T08:18:09.346+00:00Master of a Thousand Thingssupertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.comBlogger501125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-59028621202584716802015-04-10T03:00:00.000+01:002015-04-10T03:00:04.378+01:00FO: Vineyard Lace Gloves<div style="text-align: justify;">
I had a bit of a sad moment last week. We had our first LRP event of the year, and it was a particularly wet and muddy weekend. Naturally, this meant my kit was also incredibly wet and muddy when I got home. This isn't usually a problem, as I have been relatively sensible in buying and making costume for the events which is machine washable. Including the handknits.</div>
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About three years ago, I made a gorgeous pair of gloves to wear at events, which were suitably elven in design to fit with my character, but modern and warm enough to keep my hands properly warm in the sometimes sub-zero temperatures.</div>
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They were the <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/leafy-fingerless-gloves">leafy fingerless gloves</a> and I made them from Knit Picks Palette in a lovely deep green shade called Ivy. I have worn these gloves at every event I've attended since (even the ones in midsummer, as it still gets cold in the evenings). I had no qualms about throwing them in the washing machine; they survived every time when I washed them in the machine in our old house. So when we came back from the last event, I didn't even really think about it when I chucked them in the brand new washing machine in our new house.</div>
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Which was a mistake. My beautiful gloves, that have served me so faithfully, are a shrunken felted mess.</div>
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After moping about for a bit about this self made disaster (this is the first time I've ever ruined anything I've made!) I decided that the only thing for it would be to knit a replacement pair. I've not got long until the next event, and while I've got speedier with my knitting since I made these, they took me four months last time and I only have a few weeks. So I went on the hunt for a new pattern, one that would knit up quickly.</div>
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That meant heavier yarn, and losing the fingers. But I wanted to keep the green, and the leaves. And of course, for the new gloves to be made from definitely machine washable yarn!</div>
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These fit the bill perfectly. The pattern is a free pattern, found <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/vineyard-lace-fingerless-gloves">here</a>. The yarn I have used is Cascade 220 Superwash, in the Lichen colourway. So quick and easy to knit up, I made these gloves in two days over the Easter weekend. They are warm and comfortable, and most importantly, should be machine washable!</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-78291868863760932902015-04-05T11:52:00.002+01:002015-04-05T11:52:58.845+01:00Year of Projects 4: 5th April update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The house move is almost over! Having a large crossover in occupancy between our two houses has been quite useful, but I think a month was too long, as we still haven't handed the keys back on the old place. Almost feels like we can't get started on living here properly until we've given the old house back! We've got the cleaners in today (on Easter Sunday! We were amazed) and one more trip to the tip to get rid of the last few bits and pieces. But then we are done.</div>
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Some of you may have seen this before, if you follow me on Instagram (@supertinks). But I wanted to share it again because quite frankly, I think it's gorgeous. Check out my front door!</div>
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It's just as lovely from the inside as well, when the light hits it in the mornings.</div>
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It makes me smile every time I come home, which has to be a good thing. Even if I've had a terrible day at work, or if I've been soaked by rain walking home from the station, I get to my front door and it cheers me up.</div>
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My new craft/sitting room is coming on nicely. It is finally clear of all the random stuff that doesn't belong in it, so I can share some pictures at last.</div>
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I have deliberately left the wall above the sofa bare of pictures for now, as I intend to finish my Doctor Who cross stitch patterns and get them framed, and then they will hang along that wall in lovely matching frames.</div>
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It is so nice to finally have all of my crafting things in the same place. I've sort of arranged everything on the shelves for now, but need to go through each shelf one by one and work out a proper way to store everything on it, so that I can see what is there and access it easily.</div>
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We are planning a trip to Ikea next week, so will hopefully be able to pick up a variety of useful boxes and baskets then. I may also look at getting a sewing table to put in the bay window, but that is not a priority necessarily as the dining table is in the room next door.</div>
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I doubt I'll get much done to progress my list over the next few weeks, as I will be focusing on making things to improve the storage and aesthetic of my room. I am also already casting my mind forward and thinking about a different way to approach the fifth year of projects, which is now only three months away!</div>
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supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-19704583006008548342015-03-15T11:55:00.001+00:002015-03-15T11:55:43.604+00:00Year of Projects 4: 15th March update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Not much of an update from me at the moment as we are in full on house moving mode and everything has been packed away! We are moving on Thursday this week, so every spare second I have is being used to pack and tidy and throw things away.</div>
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I have kept one of my projects unpacked, however, as on Wednesday evening we will be taking the cat over to the new house, and will have an evening without TV, Internet or packing to keep us entertained. I figured Pogona was portable enough that I could keep it out and entertain myself with it once the cat is settled in for the night.</div>
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One thing I have noticed while sorting the house for the move is that my craft supplies have expanded somewhat since we moved in two years ago. They're taking up a lot more boxes than last time! Luckily, in the new house I get to have a whole room all to myself, for keeping all of my craft supplies in one place. It will have a sofa, and has a working fireplace, so will be nice and cosy. Will share pics once I am moved in and unpacked!</div>
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supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-10378308232834666612015-02-24T03:00:00.000+00:002015-02-24T03:00:00.760+00:00Year of Projects 4: 24 February update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I wasn't sure I was going to be able to rustle up another FO for this week's update, especially after the success of a pair of socks in a week last week. With the socks off the needles, the only YoP projects I had on the go were all long term affairs. <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/pogona">Pogona</a> is progressing well, but hasn't changed enough to be worthy of having more photos taken. My test knit of my <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/star-trek-cushion---command">Star Trek charts</a> for my nerdy sofa cushions hasn't got to an interesting stage yet, consisting mostly of a large rectangle of black stocking stitch, so there's no pictures of that either. And <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/chunari">Chunari</a> is still hibernating, although I did briefly get it out and look at it the other day. I really do need to be in the right mood for laceweight knitting!</div>
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The other night, however, I decided to cast on something else from my queue, something which would hopefully be a nice quick knit. The <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/jayne-cobb-hat---knitting-ninja-edition">Jayne Cobb hat</a>. Unfortunately, I didn't have a circular needle of the right length, so I had to cast on with DPNs, which made for a very awkward knitting process and rather slow progress.</div>
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However, I went to <a href="http://craft.farnhammaltings.com/portfolio/unravel-festival/">Unravel</a> at the weekend (where I spent a lovely couple of hours wandering about the place with Sarah from <a href="http://www.craftsfromthecwtch.co.uk/">Crafts from the Cwtch</a> and Wink of <a href="http://winkieflash.nl/">A Creative Being</a>). I only made a few purchases (which completely blew my budget out of the water).</div>
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Among all the yarn pretties, you will have noticed a new cable for my interchangeable needles. I now have a 16" cable, which means knitting hats of any size just became a whole lot easier! As soon as I got home, I fixed up the cable with my 7mm needles, and transferred the stitches across. Needless to say, the hat got knit a whole lot quicker after that!</div>
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More on the hat in a moment while I digress slightly to talk about the yarns I purchased. Despite not having yet knit a single stitch on the three Easyknits skeins I already own, I picked up two more. The first was definitely on my list of things to buy, a <a href="http://www.easyknits.co.uk/sushi-rolls/">sushi sock roll</a> to knit Jon's <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/orbit-2">Orbit</a> shawl with. I bought the pattern at Unravel last year, and have been holding off knitting it until I had the perfect gradiated skein of yarn to use. I spent a long time debating colours, but settled on Killer Queen, which is a gorgeous combination of electric blue, purple and pink. Of course, I spent so long at Jon's stand that I couldn't help myself, and another skein of Deeply Wicked sort of fell into my hands as well. Another electric blue, as I've grown fond of the colour since knitting my Arctic socks last week!</div>
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The third skein I picked up is something I've been wanting to get my hands on for a while. <a href="http://www.indigodragonfly.ca/">Indigodragonfly</a> yarns have been on my want list for many years, and it's all <a href="https://whendidibecomeaknitter.wordpress.com/">Keri</a>'s fault. I've been reading about all the indigodragonfly yarns she uses for years, and long lamented its lack of availability in this country. But at Unravel last year I discovered that <a href="http://www.aragonyarns.co.uk/yarns/indigodragonfly/">Aragon Yarns</a> are the only UK stockist of this gorgeous yarn, so when I saw their name on the exhibitor list again this year I decided I was definitely going to walk away from the show with something. Not only is the yarn gorgeously soft (it's merino/cashmere/nylon - way too nice for socks if you ask me, I shall be using it for a shawl) and dyed in fantastic colours, it's the names of the colourways which really makes this yarn stand out. Each colour is named after a fabulously geeky quote. The colour I chose is <i>My name is Indigo Montoya</i>, which is a play on words on a quote from The Princess Bride. I'm not adding any of these yarns to my list this year, but I guarantee you that when July rolls around this year, this skein will be top of my list!</div>
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Anyhoo, back to my FO for the week. Once I'd switched to the circulars, I flew through the rest of the hat and finished it on Sunday morning.</div>
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I made a few modifications to the pattern as written, because I was working with a chunkier yarn and Jamie has a big head. I cast on 64 stitches, did 2x2 rib instead of 1x1 (mainly because I hate doing 1x1), and made the whole thing longer. It's got about 4 inches of orange after the inch of rib, and then 4 inches of yellow before the very sharp decreases. I also added a couple of rows of icord on the ear flaps before casting off.</div>
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Jamie claimed it didn't need a pom pom, but I wanted to stay true to the original hat as seen in Firefly. So he got a red and orange pom pom, but it's not particularly bulky. I'm pleased with the finished hat, and he loves it too. And more importantly, I can cross another FO off my list!</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-16892485588532510592015-02-20T03:00:00.000+00:002015-02-20T03:00:00.173+00:00Project bags<div style="text-align: justify;">
As mentioned previously I have been doing a lot of sewing lately. One of the things I have been making is project bags for my knitting and crochet projects. I usually have so many WIPs on the go, and they tend to be chucked in baskets or left lying around on the sofa, to become comfy beds for the cat. So making sure each one has a home when I'm not working on it is important.</div>
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It started out rather innocently, to be fair. I found a pattern, bought a couple of fat quarters on eBay because I liked the patterns, and chose lining fabric from my leftovers of coloured cotton from the <a href="http://masterofathousandthings.blogspot.co.uk/2015/02/summer-of-sewing.html">shield banner</a> I'd made earlier in the year.</div>
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The pattern is the <a href="http://www.craftsy.com/pattern/sewing/accessory/no-guts-boxie-pouch/13424">No Guts Boxie Pouch</a> and it is so simple and quick to make. I didn't use interfacing in my first attempt, as the fabric is a fairly sturdy cotton to begin with. I just love the cats and yarn print!</div>
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The second fat quarter was owls. I think, on reflection, these owls are a little too big for this size of project, but what I love about this one is the bright blue fabric I used for the lining. Sadly, I don't appear to have taken a picture of it! But it matches the very bright blue you can see in the owls.</div>
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It kind of set me off on a road, though, as I found myself buying fat quarter bundles in Fabric Land and Hobbycraft, and a selection of contrasting zips from eBay...</div>
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I now have nine more bags I can make! I am going to experiment with some other patterns, and not make 9 more identical bags. But most of them will be of a similar style I think. I found a set of fat quarters featuring slightly smaller owls so hopefully they will look more sensible on a small project like these bags.</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-60404236961777105662015-02-18T02:30:00.000+00:002015-02-18T02:30:01.319+00:00Great Ideas, Cunning Plans<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's no secret that I love stationery. My husband knows this well, and so every Christmas I get something interesting in my stocking. This year was no exception, as I got the Happy Jackson notebook you see above, as well as quite possibly the coolest gadget I have ever owned - an electric pencil sharpener! I spent a good portion of Christmas Day/Boxing Day sat cross legged on my living room floor, merrily sharpening all of my coloured pencils.</div>
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I decided straight away that I would indeed use this notebook to keep track of my ideas and plans, so it has become my place for noting down ideas for patterns, new ways to organise my craft spaces etc. I've been going a bit crazy on Pinterest of late, particularly my <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/supertinks/sewing/">Sewing</a> board. I was looking for a pattern for a DPN roll, and an interchangeable needle roll, and nothing I found was quite right. So, I picked tutorials which were roughly what I was after, and got out my notebook and pencil to sketch out my cunning plans.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CCMdvotFb8Y/VNXiZFUD7BI/AAAAAAAAB6c/w_66Qs0kb3M/s1600/DSC04114.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CCMdvotFb8Y/VNXiZFUD7BI/AAAAAAAAB6c/w_66Qs0kb3M/s1600/DSC04114.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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I started with the DPN roll, as that seemed the more straightforward of the two. I had picked up a gorgeous set of fat quarters while shopping for fabric for costumes, and decided straight away that this was the project to use it in.</div>
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I have three different height pockets, so there is space for the longest, shortest and inbetweenist needles in my collection.</div>
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The only thing I forgot to do was add the ribbon to tie it shut before I did my side seam! I'm not too bothered, as the weight of the needles inside holds it shut when it's rolled up and sitting on the shelf with the rest of my needles. This roll has more space in it than the one I was using previously, which had been a free gift in a magazine, and is now being used to house my straight needles.</div>
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The interchangeable needle case was a little trickier. I looked at tutorial after tutorial, and in the end decided I would just have to decide exactly what I needed my roll to be, and figure it out myself. And that is exactly what I did.</div>
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The new and exciting technique used for this project was piping. I'd never done piping before, but happened to have a load of left over black bias binding and some old string kicking about from previous projects. I found a tutorial on Pinterest and just cracked on with it. The end result is, I am pleased to say, not that bad. The bit where the piping crosses over itself and dives into the seam is hidden by the ribbon when the roll is done up.</div>
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Inside, there are pockets for each pair of needles I got with my set of Knit Pro interchangeable needles, three pockets for the three different lengths of cable and a closeable pocked which houses the tightening keys and cable ends. So much nicer than the clear plastic case that came with the set!</div>
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I have to say, now that I have the space to sew, I am remembering how much I love doing it! And all of the non-clothing projects I have done so far have been so quick and easy, with brilliant results. I am also already developing something of a fat quarter habit, which is dangerous!</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-6179422422023508402015-02-16T18:15:00.003+00:002015-02-16T18:15:47.887+00:00Year of Projects 4: 16th February update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q5cxxEXY_Vg/Udf3_SWNL0I/AAAAAAAABh0/mib6iapl89U/s1600/crochetbyconroy1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q5cxxEXY_Vg/Udf3_SWNL0I/AAAAAAAABh0/mib6iapl89U/s1600/crochetbyconroy1.jpg" height="160" width="640" /></a></div>
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A day late with an update this week, but I couldn't not stop by and share my sock progress! <a href="http://masterofathousandthings.blogspot.co.uk/2015/02/year-of-projects-4-8th-february-update.html">Last week</a> I shared a photo of my red and white stripey socks, and I am pleased to report that I actually finished them later on that day.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wDa2UAZwcJY/VOIqxKBl0gI/AAAAAAAAB8w/xr_2dE1rlPg/s1600/DSC04127.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wDa2UAZwcJY/VOIqxKBl0gI/AAAAAAAAB8w/xr_2dE1rlPg/s1600/DSC04127.JPG" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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Buoyed by my socky success, I immediately wound another skein of sock yarn and cast on another pair of socks. This time using a skein of <a href="http://www.candyskein.com/">Candy Skein</a> yarn I bought back in January 2012. It's the sock club colourway from that month, Arctic Mint. If memory serves, this was one of the earliest sock club colours that Tami did.</div>
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I took the above picture yesterday morning, in preparation for writing a post then about how amazed I was that I'd knit a sock and a half in a week. However, the rugby kicked off before I managed to get the photos onto the computer, and by the time the game was over...</div>
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I knit a pair of socks in a week! I'm so pleased with myself. The pattern is <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/bandwagon-socks">Bandwagon Socks</a> by Phreadde Davis, which is more of a recipe for the socks than a pattern per se, as most of the elements for the pattern come from other patterns. So I didn't feel so bad about making my own modifications.</div>
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First up, I have tried and failed on numerous occasions to get to grips with Judy's magic cast on, and therefore replaced the toe with my now standard short row toe. Second, I looked at the instructions in the pattern for the toe up gusseted heel, but didn't feel confident enough about them to try to follow them. So I stuck with what I know, and substituted a short row heel as well.</div>
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The rest then became second nature, as I know exactly how many rows I need to knit for the foot to fit me, when I've got fingering weight yarn, 2.5mm needles and have cast on for 64 stitches! The only other modification I made was to adjust where in the chart I started when I got to the second sock, as I wanted them to be matching. So I started the chart halfway through on foot 2, so that when I wore the socks the zig zag of the yarn overs would be mirror opposites.</div>
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I'm incredibly pleased with these socks, and the surprising realisation that it was actually quicker to knit patterned socks than it was to knit plain ones! I plan to wear them to Unravel on Saturday, if I make it.</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-40238749439850940962015-02-11T03:00:00.000+00:002015-02-11T03:00:00.227+00:00Summer of Sewing<div style="text-align: justify;">
Earlier on in the year, I rediscovered my love of sewing. I hadn't really got my machine out at all since moving into this house almost two years ago, but over the summer I have been churning out all manner of things for LARP.</div>
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It started with the <a href="http://masterofathousandthings.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/adventures-in-screen-printing.html">sashes I made</a>, although the sewing was really a necessity there for me to have something to experiment with screen printing on. Once I was done with those, I started thinking about other things I could make ahead of the main LARP event on August bank holiday weekend. I don't have photos of all of the things I made, which is a shame as I did spend a week almost production lining pantaloons (more of the same as I <a href="http://masterofathousandthings.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/further-adventures-in-sewing.html">made before</a>), in various bright colours. My character now has eight pairs of pantaloons, which is almost enough to wear a different pair every day across all of the events I go to in a year!</div>
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What I can show you, however, is everything else I made.</div>
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I made a lot of bunting. More bunting than I think we will ever need! I could have been lazy, and used pinking shears to cut out triangles, but as I don't have any pinking shears and I wanted my triangles to be different colours on each side, I actually cut out twice as many triangles as needed and spent three days sewing them together, trimming seams, turning them around and ironing them. Three days! Then, it took me and a friend a whole afternoon to sit and pin the triangles to the bias binding. There were a lot of pins. Worth it though, as the finished bunting looked amazing strung across the back of the pavilion we built for our tourney ground.</div>
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As part of the tourney, we also decided that the Ladies of Court would hand out favours to our chosen knights. To supply the group with favours, I picked up a cheap pack of handkerchiefs on eBay and hand embroidered the initials of each of the ladies' character names into the corner. All perfectly colour matched to our groups, of course! The opposite corner of the hankie had a butterfly embellishment already included so they looked really sweet once the embroidery was done, and it had the desired effect in character when we all stood and handed them out (even if none of our chosen knights ended up winning anything).</div>
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Finally, I decided to make a banner to hang in the main command tent. As the fictional land of Albion is split into ten kingdoms, each of the kingdoms has its own heraldic shield. However, they aren't used all that widely in the game by the current group of players, so I decided to try and raise their profiles by making a banner of them.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Apologies for the terrible photo, but it's the only one I have!</td></tr>
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I left off the heraldic devices as I was in no mood to try and sew animals and so forth. It actually made for quite a fun guessing game in character, trying to see who knew which shields were which. Each shield was cut out and sewn individually with colour matched thread (those curved hems were a nightmare!) and then sewn in place onto the banner (made from an old tablecloth I found) with black thread to highlight the outlines. The gap in the middle was filled with a tribal lion, which I screen printed onto a separate piece of fabric before sewing on.</div>
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I had to cut the stencil into 8 parts because the fabric rectangle I was using is roughly the size of an A3 sheet of paper. Which meant it took a while to print as I had to wait for each section to dry before moving on to the next. I'm quite sad that I don't have a photo of the complete finished article, but I forgot to take one before I packed up for the event and now the banner lives in the box with the rest of the faction banners. I'll try and get one at the next event in March.</div>
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The last thing I made for LARP this year is the thing I am most proud of. The most complicated sewing pattern I have used to date. A medieval doublet for my husband to wear to our winter banquet. As the NPC (non player character) he plays for us is a King, he needed a suitably posh outfit. Again, apologies for the poor quality iPhone photos, but my camera went walkies so I couldn't take decent ones at the time.</div>
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I learned so much about making things from patterns doing this outfit. It is the first thing I have made that really needed to fit properly, and since the pattern sizing doesn't exactly match my husband's measurements, I had to improvise a bit to get the waist to fit. It actually turned out rather well, so I am very pleased. I also learned a lot about things my sewing machine can do, as I needed to make buttonholes in the shirt cuffs, so had to dig out the buttonhole foot and learn how the buttonhole settings worked.</div>
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All together, the shirt, doublet and sash took about two weeks from opening the pattern and cutting the pieces out, to having a finished outfit. It was finished on the morning of the banquet, so I was really working right up to the deadline.</div>
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My next major clothing sewing challenge is going to be making a new coat for my character. I've found a pattern I love, I just need to find a fabric I want to use for it and then I can get cracking.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'll be making the coat on the right</td></tr>
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supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-47187296188529524762015-02-08T02:30:00.000+00:002015-02-08T02:30:00.392+00:00Year of Projects 4: 8th February update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q5cxxEXY_Vg/Udf3_SWNL0I/AAAAAAAABh0/mib6iapl89U/s1600/crochetbyconroy1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q5cxxEXY_Vg/Udf3_SWNL0I/AAAAAAAABh0/mib6iapl89U/s1600/crochetbyconroy1.jpg" height="160" width="640" /></a></div>
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Another month has passed, and I have singularly failed to update on my progress. There has been progress, but I've also been fairly busy and haven't had time to do things like take decent photos, or sit down and write a post. I'm hopeful this will change going forward, as I have a new laptop which will make writing posts a lot less of a hassle, and I've just found <a href="http://simplycooked.blogspot.co.uk/2010/03/light-box-for-staging-food-photography.html">this tutorial</a> on Pinterest for making a light box, which will make taking photos in the dark winter evenings a lot easier. I even have a cardboard box lying around in my kitchen which will be perfect for it!</div>
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There is one thing which may interrupt a regular posting schedule again, though, as we were told last week that our landlords want to sell the house, so we are being forced to move house again. We have to be out by 8th April, so I may be a little distracted over the next few months. Luckily, the two main projects I have on the go right now don't require a lot of concentration, and can easily be picked up and put down again after only having worked a few stitches here and there.</div>
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My stripey socks are coming along well. While it has taken me longer than my target ten days to finish, that's mostly down to the fact that I put them away and then ignored them for a couple of weeks! Since taking this photo yesterday I have finished the foot, turned the heel and made a solid start on the ankle. I'm about 40 rows away from the cuff, which means about 50 rows from completion. There's probably enough yarn left in the ball to make a second pair, but I have other plans for it. Plans which involve food colouring!</div>
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Last time I updated I said <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/pogona">Pogona</a> would probably be the next shawl I cast on, and it turns out I was right. I started this earlier this week, as a way of soothing myself following the bad news about the house. I'm using Wollmeise Twin in Mouseballet, but it's a We're Different skein so the colours aren't perfect. The colours are striping and pooling in odd ways, as the colour changes are so short, and I'm interested to see how it looks once the shawl gets bigger. So far, I'm enjoying this pattern as it's so simple. Now I've done my final set of marker placements, all I have to do is knit the same two rows over and over again until it's big enough. And since I have a whole 150g of yarn to play with, it might end up a bit bigger than it's supposed to!</div>
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As I'm likely to finish the socks this week, I've already thought about what I want to cast on next - the <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/bandwagon-socks">Bandwagon Socks</a> that have been sat at the top of my Ravelry queue for quite a while now. If I get through those as quickly as the plain socks then I think I'll be on track for finishing at least 4 pairs of socks in this Year of Projects.</div>
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supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-7818524809188505002015-01-11T17:13:00.001+00:002015-02-07T21:40:15.868+00:00Year of Projects 4: 11 January update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's been a while since I updated on my progress of my fourth Year of Projects (in fact, I haven't updated at all since I posted my list and first post back in July... ooops!). While I've been pretty busy over the summer/autumn, and haven't had much time to blog, I have been working on things and making some progress towards my goals.</div>
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Firstly, the outstanding WIPs that needed finishing. I still haven't got around to blocking <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/peerie-flooers">Peerie Flooers</a>, which is quite frankly becoming embarrassing. It has now been two years since this hat came off my needles. Two years! I simply must get round to it soon - I don't want to be carrying this forward to the fifth Year of Projects in July.</div>
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<a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/chunari">Chunari</a> is currently hibernating. With no firm due date in mind, and no real idea as to when I will ever wear it once it is finished, there really is no incentive to get it finished. Which is something of a shame, as I am sure it will be stunning once completed.</div>
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However, I do have one completed WIP from last year's list! My <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/knotty-gloves">Knotty Gloves</a> were started in February 2014, and I knit all but the thumb of the first glove before losing interest and moving on to something else. At Christmas, I was inspired to pick them back up again (the influence of one of my knitterly friends, who was staying with us over the holiday) and in less than two days I finished off the first glove, and successfully completed the second!</div>
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The yarn is Knit Picks Palette in Serrano, and I used less than one ball. If I'd been paying more attention, I would have reversed the cables on the second glove so they were a matching pair. As it was, I had to rip them back and start over due to not paying enough attention, so I think if I'd been trying to reverse the chart as well I would have made a lot more mistakes!</div>
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There were a lot of socks and shawls on my list this year, probably more than I will now have time to finish, since we are less than six months away from the end of this challenge and we are only a few months away from a new LARP season! So far, though, I have managed to complete one shawl, and a hat (which replaces one of the shawls on the list), and have started on the first pair of socks!</div>
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<a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/andalusia">Andalusia</a> is another fabulous shawl from the wonderful <a href="http://www.eskimimimakes.co.uk/">Mimi Codd</a>. After knitting <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/mrs-tumnus">Mrs Tumnus</a> in 2013 I knew I would enjoy knitting another of Mimi's horseshoe shaped shawls. I used Zauberball for this one, in a rather vibrant pink colourway. Frustratingly, I ran out of yarn about four rows from the end, and had to order another ball. So instead of using up a ball from my stash, this shawl has actually had zero impact on the amount of yarn left on the shelves!</div>
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I had originally put the Spring Leaves scarf on my list with plans to use my Madeleinetosh Tosh Merino Light. However, the colouring in this yarn really doesn't match up well with lace patterns, and is much better suited to plain stocking stitch. So out went the scarf idea, and in came the <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/sockhead-hat">Sockhead Hat</a>. I've seen several of my knitting friends make this hat before, so I knew it would be a winner. The colours look amazing and it's incredibly warm for such a light yarn. I haven't blocked it, as I don't think it needs it. It is the perfect pattern for mindless knitting. No need to count rows or stitches till you get to the decreases; just row after row of effortless stocking stitch in the round. Perfect for knitting during a James Bond film marathon!</div>
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Starting on the endless list of socks (I think there are at least five pairs on the list!), I have opted for simple vanilla socks in this striking England colourway from Regia. I have plain white which I am using for the toes and heels, so the stripes stay consistent, as this is something I didn't do with my <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/delicious-knee-socks">knee high socks</a> and I don't like the way self-striping yarn goes a bit funny over the short row heel. So far, I am making good progress, as I only cast on yesterday and am already almost at the heel. The first time I made Wendy's Generic Toe Up Socks it took me ten days, so I'm hoping to knock these out in the next couple of weeks.</div>
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I'm fairly sure that unless something drastic changes, I will focus on the things on my list where a yarn and pattern have already been assigned. So socks, and probably one other shawl. I'm leaning towards <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/pogona">Pogona</a> at the moment, as a nice excuse to knit with Wollmeise again.</div>
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With respect to the nerdy section of my list, I have made relatively good progress there too. Of the four Doctor Who themed cross stitch charts I designed, two are now completed and just waiting for frames.</div>
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I've also finished the third of the Game of Thrones charts and am now deciding which one to tackle next. Something with a less complicated chart, I think, as this lion was tricky.</div>
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Finally, I got around to designing the chart for my Star Trek cushions, and started knitting the first one the other day. There is endless black stocking stitch to go before I get to the interesting bit though, so no progress pics of this one until it gets to the good stuff!</div>
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I was worried that I would come to review my progress so far and find I had done nothing at all, but considering everything else I've been up to, I don't think my progress is too disappointing. I just need to keep up the momentum now I've regained some of my urge to knit, and hopefully will have more to update with in the coming weeks.</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-42535985595460111612014-11-09T09:00:00.001+00:002014-11-09T09:00:47.212+00:00Blood Swept Lands And Seas Of Red<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-79949043786739529742014-07-23T20:08:00.002+01:002014-07-23T20:08:45.993+01:00Adventures in screen printing<div style="text-align: justify;">
I haven't done much knitting or crocheting of late. Mainly because I have been busy working on a special, secret project which I couldn't talk about until after the most recent LARP event! At the previous event in June, I had agreed to make some sashes for my faction. They needed to look good, but be relatively simple to make as I had to make enough for fifteen people.</div>
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I decided the sewing part would be fairly simple, if I made long sashes which were tied on, rather than trying to make sashes to fit exactly. Especially considering the range of sizes in the group of people I was making them for - a huge variety of height and girth across the group. What I struggled with initially was a technique to use to get the symbols onto the sashes that I wanted - eight in total (one representing each of the in-character Gods worshipped in my faction, and one representing the faction itself). After chatting to a couple of friends, and doing some searching on the internet, I settled on screen printing as the most sensible route to take, and found <a href="http://tamarajewelry.wordpress.com/2013/06/06/diy-small-batch-screen-printing-tutorial-using-embroidery-hoops/">this tutorial</a> and <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/may/11/how-to-screen-print-tshirts-at-home">this one</a>. Initially, I thought I would try the embroidery hoop option, especially when I discovered you can now buy Modge Podge in Hobbycraft! But in the end I went for a very quick and lazy stencil only approach, with no screens at all.</div>
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Preparing the sashes themselves was a bit more involved than I thought it would be. I bought 4 metres of 100% cotton in a lovely muted cream colour (as I thought white would be a bit too stark and modern for my needs). I tore the material into strips six inches wide, and ironed them out. Then came the endless pinning. I have never spent so much time pinning hems in all my life. Even the excessively long hems on my <a href="http://masterofathousandthings.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/with-needle-and-thread.html">skirts</a> didn't get that much attention.</div>
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It took me a day and a half to pin all the strips of fabric (260 feet of hem!). It then only took me about three hours to sew them all and remove the pins again. Because I was making these for other people, I decided to be very good, and did all the ironing and seam pressing you are meant to do when you sew things. I even top stitched the seams at the shoulder, once I had pinned and sewn the front and back halves together.</div>
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For the symbols, I took inspiration from the descriptions of the Gods as listed on my faction's website (<a href="http://www.cplions.co.uk/">www.cplions.co.uk</a>). The standard symbols (things like scales of justice, swords etc) didn't seem exciting enough to me, so I was interested when I saw each God had a bird associated with it as well. I immediately went searching on Google for tribal tattoo style images of the birds in question, and made stencils of those.</div>
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The stencils are just OHP acetate sheets, with a sticker stuck on that I'd traced the image onto. This made it easier to cut it out!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Top row L-R: nightingale, lion, owl, hawk<br />Middle row L-R: Heron, dove, stork<br />Bottom: raven</td></tr>
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The dove in the middle of the above pic actually didn't make the cut, it was too big and complicated so I replaced it with a different design in the end.</div>
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When it came to the printing, I kept things as simple as possible. I set up a production line in my kitchen, and prepared my stencils by spraying the backs with removable adhesive spray. I sort of fudged my way through the screen printing itself, using the basic understanding of the technique I had learned from the tutorials linked above.</div>
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<a href="http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p226/supertinks/LRP%20stuff/imagejpg7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p226/supertinks/LRP%20stuff/imagejpg7.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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I bought proper screen printing ink in black, found a foam brush in my box of craft tools, and dug out an old blood donation card. I pretty much just blobbed ink on over the stencil with the brush, then drew the card across to even the ink out inside the stencil and scrape off the excess. It worked pretty well!</div>
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<a href="http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p226/supertinks/LRP%20stuff/imagejpg8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p226/supertinks/LRP%20stuff/imagejpg8.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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The only real pain was the time it took for the ink to dry. I had to do each bird separately, as otherwise the stencils overlapped with the still wet image above. So I did 13 ravens, then waited a bit. Then 13 hawks. And so on until they were all done.</div>
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<a href="http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p226/supertinks/LRP%20stuff/imagejpg9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p226/supertinks/LRP%20stuff/imagejpg9.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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Just to give you an idea of the finished article, I got my husband to try one on. All I did to them after this point was paint the legs of the storks on (as they were very thin on the image and I wasn't sure I could cut the stencil delicately enough). The Lion is on the back, over the shoulder blade.</div>
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They turned out so much better than I was expecting, and once we had them out at the event and people were wearing them, I was even happier. No photos, sorry, I was far too busy! They generated some lovely roleplay as well, as people debated over which bird symbolised which God and why.</div>
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I have another one to make before the event in August, which gives me only 4 weeks. This one will be posher, made of thicker material (probably white cotton drill, I am going shopping on Saturday to find some), and will have black bias binding around the edge. I'll probably space the symbols out so half are on the front and half are on the back. Will share progress once I get started on it!</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-23614478392067721292014-07-18T01:00:00.000+01:002014-07-18T01:00:01.007+01:00FO Friday: My Little Leo<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R_BN489oxgg/U6xoAEVmcVI/AAAAAAAAB0U/XH-79BqUHKY/s1600/FOfriday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R_BN489oxgg/U6xoAEVmcVI/AAAAAAAAB0U/XH-79BqUHKY/s1600/FOfriday.jpg" /></a></div>
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I'm reaching back a few months with today's FO Friday, to a small project I completed just after Christmas. It was a birthday present for a good friend of mine.</div>
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<a href="http://images4-d.ravelrycache.com/uploads/supertinks/205311168/image_medium2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://images4-d.ravelrycache.com/uploads/supertinks/205311168/image_medium2.jpg" height="362" width="400" /></a></div>
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My friend Kate has a very special horse. His name is Leo. He's almost 20, and has had a very checkered history, suffering from several injuries through his career and being almost written off more than once. When Kate met him, he was in very bad shape. Together, they have brought him back to good health, to the point where she has been able to ride him in various competitions. You can read more about them on their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/SemperFidelisParaEndurance/info">Facebook page</a>.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo copyright Kate Lee</td></tr>
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Isn't he beautiful? He's wearing a disabled badge in his coat because both Leo and Kate are a little wonky. She jokes that between them, they have four working legs.</div>
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I got it into my head that I wanted to make her a miniature version of Leo for her birthday. I hunted round Ravelry until I found a pattern that was perfect. It's a free pattern called <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/my-little-pony-friendship-is-magic-school-age-ponies">My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic School Age Ponies</a> by Knit One Awe Some. I thought I had enough yarn in my stash for it, but ended up buying more as I didn't quite have as much as I thought.</div>
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<a href="http://images4.ravelrycache.com/uploads/supertinks/205311162/image_medium2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://images4.ravelrycache.com/uploads/supertinks/205311162/image_medium2.jpg" height="400" width="275" /></a></div>
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I customised the pattern a little bit, to match as closely as I could to Leo's colouring. It's Hobbycraft's own brand value DK black yarn, and Sirdar Country Style DK for the brown, which makes him an interesting mix of acrylic and wool. I had a lot of fun with the mane and tail, but my favourite part has to be the felt pieces I attached afterwards. The eyes are cute enough, but in order to make My Little Leo as close to the original as possible, I cut out a felt disabled sign to sew to his bum.</div>
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<a href="http://images4.ravelrycache.com/uploads/supertinks/205311169/image_medium2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://images4.ravelrycache.com/uploads/supertinks/205311169/image_medium2.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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Not pictured is the little red felt saddle I made, with the name Leo embroidered (probably quite badly) across the top. By the time I finished that I was in quite a rush to get the horse into the parcel and send it off to Kate! But you can kind of see it in the photo below, when My Little Leo met his namesake for the first time.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mWD7uCvOgNw/U8bKInJWHAI/AAAAAAAAB2M/pRHhUztItCk/s1600/my+little+leo+and+leo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mWD7uCvOgNw/U8bKInJWHAI/AAAAAAAAB2M/pRHhUztItCk/s1600/my+little+leo+and+leo.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo copyright Kate Lee</td></tr>
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Before you dash off to <a href="http://tamisamis.blogspot.com/">Tami's</a> to read another few FO Friday posts, I do wonder if I can ask you a quick favour. Kate is currently in the middle of a fundraising attempt, which will either get her enough cash to sort out her new saddle, or at the very least help fund training and transport costs as she and Leo pursue a new para-equestrian career in endurance riding. I'm not asking you for money, but just a couple of minutes of your time. You see, Kate is a contender for this month's Mars Milk Sports Fund, and if she wins the public vote she will be awarded a prize of £1,000! All it takes is to click on <a href="http://www.marsmilk.com/fund2014/clubs/kate-lee-para-equestrian">THIS LINK</a>, read Kate's story in her own words, then click the big blue vote button and enter your email address. In order for your vote to count, you do then have to open the email Mars will send you and click on the link in it to verify your vote. If you don't do that, your vote won't count. Sadly, only one vote per email address (otherwise I'd have been sat here for days repeatedly voting for her).</div>
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Kate would love you all forever if you did her this teeny tiny favour! You can follow her and Leo's journey by liking their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/SemperFidelisParaEndurance?fref=ts">Facebook page</a>, or by following them on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/fourgoodlegs">@FourGoodLegs</a>.</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-68949494209347510512014-07-11T01:30:00.000+01:002014-07-11T01:30:00.321+01:00FO: Shawls for LARP<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R_BN489oxgg/U6xoAEVmcVI/AAAAAAAAB0U/XH-79BqUHKY/s1600/FOfriday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R_BN489oxgg/U6xoAEVmcVI/AAAAAAAAB0U/XH-79BqUHKY/s1600/FOfriday.jpg" /></a></div>
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I seem to have the worst luck when it comes to making shawls to wear to LARP. I made <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/crochet-lacy-wrap">one</a> back in 2011, which I wore for a season before I lost it at an event. So I made a <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/crochet-lacy-wrap-2">replacement</a>, but that has also now disappeared!</div>
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After going to the first event this year back in May without a shawl, I discovered very quickly that I don't like the evenings without something warm to wrap around my neck! So when I came back from that event, I decided to raid my stash and make myself a new shawl.</div>
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<a href="http://images4.ravelrycache.com/uploads/supertinks/233259333/image_medium2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://images4.ravelrycache.com/uploads/supertinks/233259333/image_medium2.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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The pattern I chose is called <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/cheche-a-la-sauce">Cheche a la sauce</a>. I always choose crochet patterns for my LARP shawls because they work up so quickly. The yarn is Sirdar Supersoft Aran which I had left over from a couple of older projects. The red and green were used for the <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/berry-baby-hat">tomato hat</a> I made for my friend's daughter, and the blue is from the Wycombe Wanderers <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/easy-sideways-hat">hat</a> and <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/jennas-football-gloves">gloves</a> I made for one of my colleagues. I made it bigger than the pattern, working the first section till I ran out of red. I did run out of the blue before finishing the border section, but you can't really tell.</div>
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I took this one to the last event, and it came in extremely handy as it rained very heavily on the Saturday evening (the biggest storm ever, according to the news reports!). However, the shawl is perhaps going to be too warm for the event this weekend, as the July event is traditionally the hottest of the year. So I ordered another ball of James C Brett Marble Chunky, and crocheted a <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/lacy-wrap">third version</a> of the original!</div>
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I've gone back to my original colour choice for this one, and hopefully I won't lose it almost as soon as I start wearing it!</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-82313967771506568082014-07-06T10:00:00.002+01:002014-07-06T10:00:46.424+01:00Happy New Year!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q5cxxEXY_Vg/Udf3_SWNL0I/AAAAAAAABh0/mib6iapl89U/s1600/crochetbyconroy1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q5cxxEXY_Vg/Udf3_SWNL0I/AAAAAAAABh0/mib6iapl89U/s1600/crochetbyconroy1.jpg" height="160" width="640" /></a></div>
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It's finally here! The new Year of Projects officially started on 1 July! Lists are popping up all over the place, and everyone is very excited to get started. All the details can be found on our <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/groups/a-year-of-projects">Ravelry Group</a>.</div>
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I've written and re-written my list a number of times this year, but have finally settled on a mixed approach, combining a number of different ideas into one list. Finishing WIPs, working from my Ravelry queue, using up stash and continuing work on my long term design project. My full list can be found on my <a href="http://masterofathousandthings.blogspot.co.uk/p/year-of-projects-4-2014-15.html">Year of Projects 4 page</a>. 23 different projects this year, which given I had a finishing total of 19 last year doesn't sound unreasonable. There's a nice mix of projects, from socks to shawls to household decor. Some will be fairly quick knits, while others may take a bit longer.</div>
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I'm not actually starting work on the list yet, as I am right in the middle of LARP season and busy sewing things for that, which I will share after the event (as they are sort of a surprise for people and I don't want to spoil that). Which means there probably wont be an update next Sunday as I will still be in a field!</div>
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In the mean time though, head on over to the group, and check out everyone else's lists!</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-59174116417446786612014-07-01T02:00:00.000+01:002014-07-06T10:03:16.440+01:00Life long commitments<div style="text-align: justify;">
It is hard to believe, but halfway through my most recent absence from this blog, our wedding anniversary came and went. A whole year has passed since we got married, and it really doesn't feel like it. Life hasn't really changed all that much! </div>
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We didn't really do anything to mark the occasion, as our anniversary coincides with the start of the LARP season, and so there will always be an event the weekend before! This year, there was also an event on the weekend itself, so my husband was not actually here for the day itself.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DRkFc8fZKoE/U6x3PPmBHvI/AAAAAAAAB1A/onU2la8Wvdg/s1600/IMG_4913.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DRkFc8fZKoE/U6x3PPmBHvI/AAAAAAAAB1A/onU2la8Wvdg/s1600/IMG_4913.JPG" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
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I marked the day by finally getting one of our wedding photos printed and framed for the mantlepiece. This was a real bargain, as the frame was £1.99 in a charity shop and the photo was a whole £3 from Snapfish.co.uk! I got luck with the frame, as it's A4 sized and exactly the same colour and style as the two frames I already had on the mantlepiece, plus our beautiful antique mirror we have above.</div>
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It is kind of strange having photos of myself and my husband on display in the house. It's not something we normally do. But wedding photos are different, I guess. They have their own rules!</div>
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I was also struck with inspiration for a rather long term sewing project. For the wedding, in place of a guest book, we had a "wishing tree" on which our guests could hang butterfly shaped message cards. After the wedding, the cards got packed away in a box, and I've had this ridiculous white tree hanging around my living room ever since. At Christmas we put ornaments on it and turned it into a ridiculous decoration you'd probably find on Pinterest. Now, it lives in the corner on top of the bookcases I keep all my crafting things in.</div>
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I decided it needed proper decoration, so I set about making an ornament to mark our anniversary. I dived into my fabric stash, and dug out some purple and dark pink felt, and scraps of the gorgeous pink batik fabric I bought to make LARP kit with a couple of years ago. The end result was this:</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jlIBdO3jyGo/U6x3BRXcACI/AAAAAAAAB0k/yDCMOpPqJpc/s1600/IMG_5099.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jlIBdO3jyGo/U6x3BRXcACI/AAAAAAAAB0k/yDCMOpPqJpc/s1600/IMG_5099.JPG" height="320" width="295" /></a></div>
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A little heart shaped ornament (it's about two inches across), marking our first anniversary. I embroidered the date on the back:</div>
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I will of course make one every year, although I haven't decided yet whether they will all be hearts, or whether I will explore other shapes as the years go by. At the moment, the tree still looks pretty bare, as it only has one ornament on it. I reckon by the time we reach our fifth anniversary it will start to look really pretty!</div>
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supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-42963832493364291682014-06-29T02:30:00.000+01:002014-07-06T10:03:07.108+01:00Year of Projects 3: Round up<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q5cxxEXY_Vg/Udf3_SWNL0I/AAAAAAAABh0/mib6iapl89U/s1600/crochetbyconroy1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q5cxxEXY_Vg/Udf3_SWNL0I/AAAAAAAABh0/mib6iapl89U/s1600/crochetbyconroy1.jpg" height="160" width="640" /></a></div>
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We have finally reached the end of the third Year of Projects! I don't know where the last six months have gone. I seriously fell off the wagon a few months ago, and have barely touched the list since then. The last "proper" finish was back in January! That said, I have a substantial list of finishes covering all areas of the list I wrote last year, so despite the last few months I am considering this year a success.</div>
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<b>Existing WIPs</b></div>
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Ok, so I didn't finish my beads-and-laceweight epic. <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/light-of-earendil-shrug">Starlight</a> became <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/chunari">Chunari</a>, and has languished without a further stitch knit since about April. <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/peerie-flooers">Peerie Flooers</a> remains sad and unblocked. However, I did finish my <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/delicious-knee-socks">Obnoxious Socks</a>, and have vowed to never knit another pair of knee high socks again.</div>
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<b>Carried Forward from Last Year</b></div>
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A lot more success in this category! I finally knit my <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/ishbel">Ishbel</a> shawl, and I love it. I wore it so much over the winter and early spring. Such a cheerful colour. And <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/5-in-paris">$5 in Paris</a> was a quick and easy knit once I got started. I loved knitting with the Cascade 220 I bought in San Fransisco, and I loved the pattern so much I have another on the needles already.</div>
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<b>The rest of my list</b></div>
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I successfully turned my Cascade Ultra Pima Paints into <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/odessa">a hat</a>, and knit several dishcloths from my stash of Lily Sugar'n Creme. Of the four skeins of yarn I set aside for shawls, two have been knit - <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/wingspan">Wingspan</a> and <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/dragonfly-wings">Dragonfly Wings</a>.</div>
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I did fall down on the sock front, as none of the sock yarn I had lined up made it even onto the needles, let alone into finished socks. Must do better this year!</div>
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Baby things were more of a success, with three baby blankets for various work colleagues, and a couple of adorable toys for Christmas presents for my friends' children. Including the <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/roaring-dinosaur">dinosaur</a> I'd been itching to knit for a long time.</div>
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<b>The Ridiculous Never-ending Project of Doom</b></div>
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Well, I made a decent start on the Game of Thrones blanket. Charts all done, and converted to colourful Excel spreadsheets. I've even finished designing the layout and the centre chart! As far as knitting it goes, two and a half out of ten (eleven, counting the centre) charts is not great showing, but intarsia is tricky and requires concentration!</div>
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So, 19 finished projects to show, plus two new WIPs. I think that's more than I did in Year 1 or 2! With any luck, I'll stay focused this year and manage even more finishes from my list!</div>
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I'll be posting up my new list next week, in the mean time head on over to our <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/groups/a-year-of-projects">Ravelry group</a> if you want to join in the fun with Year Four of the Year of Projects!</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-75064645517543038582014-06-27T01:30:00.000+01:002014-07-06T10:03:30.016+01:00FO: Harlequin scarf<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-R_BN489oxgg/U6xoAEVmcVI/AAAAAAAAB0Q/78zwZb__td0/s1600/FOfriday.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-R_BN489oxgg/U6xoAEVmcVI/AAAAAAAAB0Q/78zwZb__td0/s1600/FOfriday.jpg" /></a></div>
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Hey everyone! I knew that I hadn't posted in a while, but it wasn't until a friend visited last weekend and pointed out that I hadn't posted in ages that I realised it has been about two months since my last post! Unfortunately, life has got in the way of crafting, or doing particularly interesting things, so I haven't had all that much to post about. There are a few things I've made/done/worked on in these last few months that haven't made it onto the blog, however, so I'm going to try and catch up over the next few weeks. The new <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/groups/a-year-of-projects">Year of Projects</a> starts next week as well, which will be an extra kick to get me back into my good habits.</div>
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So, as it's Friday, I'll start things off by linking up with <a href="http://tamisamis.blogspot.com/">Tami</a> and sharing a <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/sulka-scarflette">finished project</a>.</div>
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I cast this on back at the end of March, when I was ill with a virus and not keen on knitting complicated lace-and-beads or intarsia. The yarn is Stylecraft Harlequin Chunky and the pattern I chose to use was the <a href="http://babettasyarnandgifts.com/NL_archive/aug+newsletter+2009.pdf">Sulka Scarflette</a>. It was incredibly quick and easy to knit up (only a couple of hours in total) but it took me almost a week because I was so ill I couldn't knit many rows before having to put it down again. It also took me a while to decide where to put the buttons!</div>
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I haven't worn it yet because the weather warmed up considerably after I made this, and I think it would be best suited to the really cold days in January and February. So for now it is resting on the shelf in the hallway, waiting for winter to roll back around.</div>
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supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-40673535063885749992014-04-21T13:15:00.000+01:002014-04-21T13:16:57.903+01:00Year of Projects 3 - 21st April update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q5cxxEXY_Vg/Udf3_SWNL0I/AAAAAAAABh0/mib6iapl89U/s1600/crochetbyconroy1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q5cxxEXY_Vg/Udf3_SWNL0I/AAAAAAAABh0/mib6iapl89U/s1600/crochetbyconroy1.jpg" height="80" width="320" /></a></div>
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Happy Easter! I hope you are all having a lovely long weekend. I have been busy, doing traditional bank holiday activities such as gardening, and cleaning the house. However, I have found time to catch up on some YoP knitting!</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OMvnZ2Ir3-w/Udf25_y9LyI/AAAAAAAABho/EeQHGWlBPS4/s1600/DSC03363.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OMvnZ2Ir3-w/Udf25_y9LyI/AAAAAAAABho/EeQHGWlBPS4/s1600/DSC03363.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Remember the charts I designed for my Game of Thrones inspired blanket? Now the show is back on the air I have been inspired to start working on this again. When I last put it down I was so close to finishing knitting up the first chart. And now I have!</div>
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<a href="http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p226/supertinks/C13B9A05-00DA-47E2-A0D3-D395826259C3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p226/supertinks/C13B9A05-00DA-47E2-A0D3-D395826259C3.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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I am now working on the chart for the name Stark, which is proving to be even more irritating than the shield motif. I am using a blend of intarsia and stranded colour work now, as to do this part wholly with intarsia would involve far too many separate bobbins of yarn and it would drive me crazy.</div>
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The other thing I have done is finalise the layout of the blanket. I have a large section in the middle which is still to be designed, and I have no idea what I am going to put in it! Originally I was thinking of having it say "Winter is Coming" but the other day my husband suggested something that involves the phrase "valar morghulis" might be cooler. We shall see. I am more inclined to make it an image rather than lots of words as I think that would be less annoying to knit. He did also suggest a picture of the iron throne, but I'm not sure that would work either.</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-6809676575173535312014-04-15T19:57:00.003+01:002014-04-15T19:57:40.599+01:00Adventures in book binding<div style="text-align: justify;">
With the new LARP season rapidly approaching (our first event is only a few weeks away!) I decided to take a break from my usual crafty pursuits and learn something new. I've been planning to make myself an in character diary for some time now, but it would involve skills that I've never tried before.</div>
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Firstly, I had to write the damn thing! I'm not usually all that interested in writing fiction, but thankfully the act of writing up my character's thoughts and experiences from the four years that I've now been playing her was easy, as I was actually recording memories of events rather than having to make it all up from scratch! I started writing it after getting back from an event, so I was still very much inside my character's head at the time. Before I knew it, I'd written over 30,000 words.</div>
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To turn my words into an actual, physical book proved to be more of a challenge. I spent a lot of time on the internet, researching bookbinding techniques and trying to decide what I wanted my finished diary to look like. I eventually settled on the long stitch technique, after seeing this <a href="http://www.tortagialla.com/2010/08/09/longstitch-bookbinding-tutorial-for-a-leather-journal/">tutorial</a> for a leather bound journal. I had in my sewing chest a suede skirt that I've been holding on to for a long time, waiting for the right project, which I decided would be perfect to use as the material for my book cover.</div>
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Printing the pages to create the signatures for my book proved to be another challenge. More research online unearthed <a href="http://voices.yahoo.com/how-print-book-microsoft-word-488190.html?cat=59">this</a> fabulous guide to printing Word documents in book format, and after a few trial and error attempts I finally had my pages printed.<br />
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I did a test of the bookbinding techniques on a set of signatures that hadn't printed out right, and then launched straight into stitching my actual pages into my actual book. It was really straightforward, although I did manage to stab myself quite a few times with the needle as the suede was quite thick, particularly where there was more than one layer.<br />
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I deliberately left the flap that will close the book quite long, as this is going to be a living document that will grow with each LRP event. I have bound in some empty pages so I can jot down notes during the event, and then afterwards I will type up the diary entry and replace the handwritten signatures with a printed version. The more events I survive, the longer my book will get, but there is room for at least twice as many pages before this one gets full.<br />
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To close the book, I have added two ribbons, and attached a gorgeous bead I picked up in my local haberdashery. I'm really really pleased with the finished article, and can't wait to show it off at the event in a couple of weeks.</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-25419120140615986902014-04-04T02:30:00.000+01:002014-04-04T02:30:00.198+01:00Planning ahead<div style="text-align: justify;">
Last weekend I went on a bit of an online spending spree. It started out fairly innocently; I'd seen a pattern in a magazine that I wanted to knit, I had the yarn in my stash but didn't have the right needle. Usually, what I do in this case is go to eBay and find myself a needle in the correct size and length. However, I didn't find anything in the right size apart from the really cheap bamboo needles with those nasty thick plastic cables. While I do have quite a few pairs of those in various sizes, since I started buying nicer needles (like the Addi turbo needle I bought to make my Christmas Stockings, and the KnitPro Novas I used for Mrs Tumnus) I don't really want to go back. But it would cost a fortune to stock up on every needle I need buying posher needles individually.</div>
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Once I came to that realisation, I spent a good hour or so browsing the web and reading reviews of the various interchangeable needle sets out there to try and help me decide. I was very tempted by the <a href="http://www.hulucrafts.co.uk/knit-pro-interchangeable-circular-needles-deluxe-set-wooden.htm">KnitPro Symfonie</a> set, particularly after reading several comparisons between them and the Addi set (I do like my Addi needles, but looking at the interchangeable set, the needles are nowhere near pointy enough for me). However, my ultimate decision came down to my preference for metal over wood for circular needles.</div>
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In the end, I bought a set of Nova interchangeable needles from <a href="http://www.hulucrafts.co.uk/knit-pro-interchangeable-circular-needles-deluxe-set-metal.htm">Hulu Crafts</a>. The set comes with needles from 3.5mm up to 8mm, and four different cables in three different lengths.</div>
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For a deluxe set, I have to say it doesn't come with a particularly nice case. It's perfectly serviceable, but having seen the gorgeous cases you get with HiyaHiya needles (see <a href="http://www.deramores.com/hiyahiya-interchangeable-case?gclid=CImWmPjDv70CFdShtAodVCsACg">here</a>, Deramores stock them separately to the needles themselves) I feel like I should have a better case for mine! I've had a look around and there's plenty of inspiration out there. Of course, I won't stop with just a case for these, I will figure something out for my fixed circulars as well!</div>
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My shopping problem really kicked off once I started wandering the rest of the Hulu Crafts website to see if there was anything else that could slip into my basket while I was there. Sadly, I couldn't quite justify buying more Lily's Sugar'n Creme so I ended up checking out with nothing but the needles in my basket. Not satisfied, I headed straight over to Deramores and started filling my basket with yarny goodies.</div>
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There's a lot of black yarn in my parcel, which is completely unintentional! There are two balls of Rico Fashion Fur, which is going to be used to knit <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/floppy-moggy">this cat</a> which is in a pattern book my husband gave me for Christmas. The ball of Red Heart Baby in brown next to them in the picture above is also for the cat, to do his nose, ears and paws. I am uncertain whether I have enough yarn, as the pattern is not specific about yardage, gauge and size, and there aren't many finished projects on Ravelry either.</div>
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The black Bamboo cotton is to supplement the remainder of a ball I already have, to be paired with the half skein of Cascade Ultra Pima Paints cotton I have left over from my trip to San Fransisco.</div>
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The rest of the yarn is Stylecraft Special Aran. It has the same gauge as the Cascade 220 I used for <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/5-in-paris">$5 in Paris</a>, so I should be able to replicate the project quite easily. This time, I will use three colours, black, red and silver-grey. I haven't decided on the stripe pattern yet, but I do know I want this one to be longer in the body and have longer sleeves than my first version.</div>
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Now that I have new yarn, and new needles to play with, I am going to have to try very hard to make sure I finish what I've already started before casting on something new!</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-40388857927179610742014-04-02T01:30:00.000+01:002014-04-02T01:30:00.134+01:00The art of procrastination<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-E3_C8bxCjpM/T_m6tyUXzQI/AAAAAAAABBU/ndVuK6tO1uY/s1600/tami_wip.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-E3_C8bxCjpM/T_m6tyUXzQI/AAAAAAAABBU/ndVuK6tO1uY/s1600/tami_wip.jpg" /></a></div>
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Those of you who know me well, will not be surprised to hear that instead of working on my current projects (including one with a deadline to meet!), I have in fact cast on something new. I've not been very well this week; some sort of horrible virus is doing the rounds and I have spent the last four days lying on the sofa in a cloud of misery.</div>
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With my brain in such a fog, there was no way I was going to handle <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/chunari">delicate lace</a> or <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/knotty-gloves">knitting on DPNs</a>. I didn't even think I had the brainpower for dealing with my <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/projects/supertinks/winter-is-coming---house-stark">Game of Thrones blanket square</a>, although the trickiest parts of the intarsia are over for now. I needed something simple.</div>
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<a href="http://images4-b.ravelrycache.com/uploads/supertinks/134740533/image_medium2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://images4-b.ravelrycache.com/uploads/supertinks/134740533/image_medium2.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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To me, nothing says simple and rewarding quite like working with chunky yarn. I've had this in my stash for some time now, and decided that it was time to use it. I initially planned to crochet it, using <a href="http://www.lionbrand.com/patterns/90676AD.html">this Lion Brand pattern</a> as inspiration for a stripey beanie. I've used it before, and was quite pleased with the results. However, I wasn't enjoying it in this chunky yarn, so went back to the drawing board (i.e. the Ravelry pattern search) to find new inspiration.</div>
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<a href="http://distilleryimage7.s3.amazonaws.com/1ddbd33cb78711e3900e12c05a5762ef_8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://distilleryimage7.s3.amazonaws.com/1ddbd33cb78711e3900e12c05a5762ef_8.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></div>
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This is the result. The pattern is <a href="http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/sulka-scarflette">Sulka Scarflette</a> by faerybabys and it is knitting up a treat. It's 13 inches long now and there's still plenty of yarn left. My plan is to knit until I run out, and then attach the buttons in an appropriate place after it's been blocked and I've had a chance to try it on.<a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-47343865744767764672014-04-01T13:03:00.000+01:002014-04-01T13:03:00.485+01:00FO: English Paper Piecing Pincushion<div style="text-align: justify;">
A <a href="http://masterofathousandthings.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/english-paper-piecing-experiment.html">couple of weeks ago</a> I posted about a new experiment I was undertaking, learning to do English Paper Piecing.</div>
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<a href="http://distilleryimage5.s3.amazonaws.com/2d8ebc8ca7e111e3b2570e65d17ed6f1_8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://distilleryimage5.s3.amazonaws.com/2d8ebc8ca7e111e3b2570e65d17ed6f1_8.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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I chose to make a pincushion because I thought a small project would give me a chance to see if I enjoyed the technique enough to do it again, without running the risk of starting a project that I wouldn't finish if I didn't enjoy it after all. I'm pleased to say that I did enjoy it, and the end results are fabulous.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1ZC1sJnrSPg/UzqgkgiL-dI/AAAAAAAABx8/fdQnv8oC-68/s1600/DSC03874.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1ZC1sJnrSPg/UzqgkgiL-dI/AAAAAAAABx8/fdQnv8oC-68/s1600/DSC03874.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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The only real issue I had was when I got to sewing the two halves together and then turning it right side around. But to be fair, I have issues doing that whatever I am sewing, so not a problem unique to EPP!</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e-fEUjgDeVs/UzqglpkFLVI/AAAAAAAAByE/D-Rl4P7Rhhc/s1600/DSC03875.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e-fEUjgDeVs/UzqglpkFLVI/AAAAAAAAByE/D-Rl4P7Rhhc/s1600/DSC03875.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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I love the incredibly neat edge between the hexagons. It's a relatively simple (if fiddly) technique but it produces wonderful results. I've already been nosing about on the web to see what else I could do with it. I'm not quite close to wanting to make a full quilt or anything, but I've already started pinning some great ideas to <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/supertinks/sewing/">my Sewing board</a>.</div>
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I will have to find another project that uses hexagons, though, as I still have plenty left from the selection I was given last year.</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-73237028760048807032014-03-30T18:12:00.001+01:002014-03-30T20:18:28.342+01:00Year of Projects 3: 30th March update<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
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Well, there is no progress to report on anything, really. A mixture of long days at work and being distracted by projects not on the list have meant zero time has been spent working on either Chunari or the Game of Thrones blanket. In fairness, in the last week, I haven't really spent much time on anything, craft wise.</div>
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I had hoped that a nice long weekend (I have tomorrow and Tuesday off work, a much needed break) would give me plenty of time to focus on my outstanding projects. Sadly, I woke up ridiculously early yesterday morning with a horrendous sore throat, which has led to a weekend in which I have done nothing but lie on the sofa watching House on DVD, and playing pointless games on my new iPad (I have rediscovered my love for Diner Dash!).</div>
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One thing I have done though, is reorganise my hand knits in the hallway. Now these shelves are no longer required in the study (thanks to last week's IKEA trip), I had to find them a new home. Turns out they fit perfectly at the bottom of the stairs! The boxes on the top shelf are for gloves (left) and hats, while chunkier scarves (shop bought and handmade) sit in boxes at the bottom. This leaves me three whole shelves to spread out my shawls and scarves. At the moment they are just neatly folded but I have been trying to think of other ways to store them, so it shows them off a bit more when they are not being worn.</div>
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The other thing I have been trying to do is get a handle on is my Ravelry queue. I recently went through it and matched everything I wanted to knit against yarn in my stash. Separately to this, I started working on my list for next year's YoP, as we are now only a few months away from needing a new list. I was starting to lose track of what I was planning!</div>
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Now that I'm getting it all in one place it looks rather overwhelming! Good job I am a selfish crafter, and rarely make things for other people or to deadlines!</div>
supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2655647507639114810.post-39274297336306643142014-03-25T18:43:00.001+00:002014-04-01T13:03:15.380+01:00Of random things<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href='https://picasaweb.google.com/104058148595805989654/MasterOfAThousandThings#5994799361969740002'><img src='https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-JcM3BeeYZ84/UzHOQgXx2OI/AAAAAAAABwk/5osceH4SpNo/s288/iphone_photo.jpg' border='0' width='600' height='600' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><br /><br />Spring seems to finally be showing signs of appearing! Bright blue skies are a definite improvement on wind and rain and floods (we escaped the worst of that, thankfully). The trees are starting to show signs of life and the magnolia in my front garden is flowering. I do love my magnolia, but I did get a bit of magnolia-envy at the weekend when I saw one with purple flowers outside my husband's office!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><center><a href='https://picasaweb.google.com/104058148595805989654/MasterOfAThousandThings#5994799396785087298'><img src='https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-EnbTb0drvOE/UzHOSiEZ40I/AAAAAAAABws/JhPiFkrvsIg/s288/iphone_photo.jpg' border='0' width='600' height='600' style='margin:5px'></a></center><br /><br /><br /><br />We braved the road into London on Sunday and went to IKEA in Wembley. I've only driven inside the M25 a couple of times before (both trips to Kew Gardens) so it was a bit of an adventure, especially when we realised we were dangerously close to running out of fuel on the motorway. I love going to IKEA. I always see so many things I want to buy. We had a list though, and we're very good and only bought one thing that wasn't on it (a new silicon whisk, as I broke ours recently). The shelves pictured are the reason we went; decent, solid reliable shelves for storing board games and Games Workshop modelling stuff.<br /><br />The only other really exciting thing that happened this week is that I finally got my very own iPad (a hand-me-down from my husband who has just upgraded). So I'm testing out posting using the Blogpress app. It'll take some getting used to, I think!<br /><br /><br />supertinkshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02881675751544762992noreply@blogger.com1