Friday, May 30, 2008

Winter woolies and quilts


A bright red scarf
Originally uploaded by redmag

Tomorrow marks the beginning of winter and its time to admit it really is cold... I delay this admission off every year - continuing to wear light weight jackets and saving the big winter coast until I can't take it anymore!

I love all the other seasons so much...summer because its bright and you can spend most of your time outside, autumn because in Canberra its so beautiful with mother nature turning on a spectacular show of reds and yellows, and spring just smells wonderful and marks the start of my three favourite seasons....in spring everything seems to have so much potential.

While winter is cold and I do seem to spend much time in doors (which I hate) I guess it does allow for wonderful crafting...scarves, socks, jumpers, hats blankets and throws....and maybe for the first time ever it might even mean a quilt.I made this scarf last night over a few beverages which did a nice job of washing away a very long, tiring and boring week.....its 10 stitches wide and about 30cms long and knitted in a bright red wool (100%) bought from Big W last winter...sadly it no longer has a label so I tell you exactly what it was....I think it might be a bit too scratchy and so am already planning a couple more in a softer cotton. The button means el escapo cant pull it off the way he does with hats and jackets....so far its worked well.....its also a good length long enough to fit down the front of a jacket but not so long it impedes crawling. Highly recommend them....took now time....very little wool and I felt a sense of achievement.

Also I've been wanting to make a quilt for a long time but have no idea how to go about it and so have always pulled out at the last minute and knitted or crocheted something for the bed instead...However after seeing so many other wonderful quilts, like this one....and this one...well there are too many to list....I've decided to do it....I don’t actually know how to do the quilting bit so I'm going to start with the pretty patchwork bit first....taking inspiration from Brian Wildsmith's wonderful counting book - "Brian Wildsmith's 123". I thought one side might look like this....or this...wish me luck and if you have any tips I'd love to hear them.

3 comments:

Nanette said...

I cannot believe you've got this book! I found a copy since I've been here in Canberra and I absolutely adore it.. and what a totally cool idea to use it as inspiration for a quilt. I'm looking forward to viewing the results.
PS Did you get my message on your mobile?

Unknown said...

I am also making my first quilt, and I think I might become hooked on them!

Thank you for joining in with my russian doll swap...there is always room for you!!!! :) I'll send out details soon.

Penelope Boyd said...

That scarf is the cutest - I wish I could knit - my mum tried to teach me when I was pregnant, but I just didn't have the knack.

Quilting is great, and it's actually really easy, especially if you're already crafty. I'd suggest starting with a basic decoration for your first try, and I cannot recommend enough getting good quality wadding! Also, don't fall for 'quilting' fabric - it's just an excuse to charge twice the price for cotton!