Creative Friday - a crazy felted hat!

A knitted, hand felted hat - made just for fun, to test out the yarn for felting. Cuddlepie seems to like it though; he is always asking to wear it. Please excuse the dirty face. I only noticed it when I was editing the photo.

It was knitted using lovely Murano yarn from Bendigo Woollen Mills, who I think, are the best yarn suppliers in Australia.

Linking to Linda at Natural Suburbia for Creative Friday.

A New Start

I have not been blogging for a while as my life has been taking a new direction. Unasked for by me, I must say, but still I have to adjust to it.

My hubby has never really been completely onboard with homeschooling; he doesn't really 'get it'. And at the beginning of this year, it all came to a head and the short story is that my boys are now attending school. I am coming to grips with it, but it will never be a decision that makes me happy. 

So now my life is moving in other directions. I spend a lot of time at the school, in the classrooms, library, veggie garden - we are now constructing a new sensory garden.

We are also moving house, into a much smaller house than our current one, which will be a challenge.

Hence the title of this post. I will admit to being a challenge junkie, you know the ones I mean. And I have all the best intentions to follow the daily/weekly schedule and transform my 'house, cooking, garden, whatever'. And I do read them, but not necessarily follow them! 

So I am issuing a challenge to myself. And I am calling it Make It Pretty, Make It Count. 

I want to be able to have somewhere pretty to display all my trios and other china, roses from the garden, embroidered linens. I want everything to have a place and actually be there - which, with three small boys, will be a challenge all on its own! I want to be able to look around my home and smile contentedly, rather than sigh and think about what needs to be done. I want to have time to go on picnics and sit with a cup of tea.

So every week I am going to introduce a new little bit of pretty somewhere, even if it just a teeny, tiny smidge of a thing. And slowly, slowly, something lovely will emerge. 

This week's little bit of pretty is the changes to my blog, thanks to the wonderful images at Free Pretty Things For You. Just through this beautiful site, you would find enough images to last a lifetime of blogging.

So let's start now!

A robot, a birthday and a gorgeous book!

My youngest, Cuddlepie, had his third birthday recently. And such an event definitely required some knitting!

A robot from the English magazine, Simply Knitting, an old back issue from I can't remember when! It is a lovely magazine, worth buying, but expensive to buy here in Australia. I tend to buy up lots on ebay when I spot them.

As you can see, he was a work in progress in these photos, although I did finish him in time for the birthday (just don't have a photo of that yet!) It is an Alan Dart toy pattern. I do enjoy making his toy patterns.

For reading, a gorgeous book, Noodle's Knitting by Sheryl Webster. I have an undisguised affection for childrens' books based on knitting. The Joanna Johnson books, Phoebe's Sweater, Phoebe's Birthday and Freddie's Blanket; Shall I Knit You A Hat?; and my favourite Australian one, The Bush Jumper.

What's not to love about a knitting koala?

Cuddlepie's happy birthday

Linking to Yarn Along with Ginny at Small Things.

Happy knitting!

Finally - a rundown on Woolly West Fest

The middle of the year was a busy time for wool crafters around Hamilton as we prepared for the inaugural Woolly West Fest, where woolcraft meets childrens' literature.

For 2014, the theme revolved around the wonderful Mem Fox book, Where Is The Green Sheep? Mem Fox and Judy Horacek, the illustrator, travelled to Hamilton for the event, which was fabulous.

The amazing Mem Fox

I now have my own signed copy of Where Is The Green Sheep? Very happy.

















Woolly West Fest was an amazing undertaking and I was so thrilled to be a part of it. There were numerous aspects to the event. The Woolcraft Walk involved decorating the main street of Hamilton with woolly goodness. The parking meters all received their own knitted cosies and the trees were dressed in crochet collars.

A bootload of parking meter cosies

Here I am, sewing on my parking meter cosy

Lots of sewing on later and the main street looked fantastic! As we were sewing on, we received many favourable comments.









Next up was the sheep show. As part of the celebration of the book, each township around Hamilton was given a colour and were tasked to come up with a woollen sheep. My township of Branxholme was given brown, not the most inspiring or lovely of colours, but a great job was done with it. And the brown sheep won Best of Show! My contribution was the knitted and felted ears and some of the I-cords.

Sir Manx Loghtan

And the children from the local school made his felted body

All the sheep were displayed at our annual sheep event, Sheepvention.

Last but not least, townships could display their colours in any way they wished. Confusingly, I live in Branxholme at the moment while we renovate our house in Tarrington. So I designed the Tarrington display, and knitted the letters and some of the flowers, along with help from some of the lovely ladies from the church.

Sign at the church

Woolly West Fest was the best and I cannot wait for next year!!