surprise in the mail

A few days ago I had a big surprise in my mailbox.
A package from Ruth who lives in Scotland. 60 grams of the most beautiful colored knitting yarn, soft and fine. And some tea and powder to make hot chocolate.
Thank you só much dear Ruth.
I have started the knitting right away, it will become a Lavalette shawl.

fabric book pages

Here is the fabric book page I made for Mieke (NL). Mieke's theme is "being Lucky".
It was not easy to get an idea for such an abstract theme. But when I found those printed words I got an idea. I have made the background from wool with the embellisher, sewed on some organza circles and added some stitches by hand. Also a bead-swirl.
Mieke wrote to me: I love it!
Below the page Helga in Germany made for me. My theme: "cottage garden".
Isn't it beautiful? Helga didn't make only a garden, she also made the cottage!
Give a click on the photo to see the details, it is lovey.
We do a monthly book page swap in the Fibre-Fever group.
Those pages are 15x15 cm ( 6 inch)

A milestone and some knitting

This morning I had a look at my blog and was very surprised to see that I have 100 followers.

O my, now I become almost embarrassed when I write something. My English is not always as it should be and I don't have to tell much interesting news very often.

I guess it is time for a little give away to my supporting readers :-)

When you leave a little comment here I will pick 3 names next week and send a fabric paper postcard. Check next week if I may need your address.

I also like to show a Moebius scarf which I knitted from 50 gram mohair, 90 stitches.

I just had to try how this phenomena worked. I think it goes to my daughter, she gave me the yarn long time ago.

Anne's RR block

This is a Step by Step round robin block. It belongs to Anne in France, she sewed the naked block inspired by Allie. Anne wrote in the booklet that she will have the centre part as a sane quilt and will embroider flowers on the black velvet stars when the block comes home to her in April next year.
Here are the the stitches Margreet did. Photo above.
I did the second round.
The photo below shows what I added to the seams. I also added rig-rag around the centre part.
It is a large block, 40 cm ( 15,5 ") Now it goes to the next person in the RR.
I took a photo just before the sun disappears behind the mountains. The last sunny day today, tomorrow and the days which come, we get rain and grey weather.

Album Amicorum pages

Here is the AA page I made for Cobi. ( NL) Half of it is made from fabric paper, the other half is fabric. I made some stitches and sequins to reflect the stamps on the fabric paper.
The flower is made from wired silk ribbon and silk ribbon french knots in the centre.
On the back a little poem.
Those AA pages don't have a theme. The front tells something about the maker and the poem on the back is for the receiver. We swap those pages every month in the Fibre Fever group.


Time.
Whether we count the years in numbers
you cannot slow down neither accelerate your destiny.
Toon Hermans.
( free translation)

At the same time Ritva in Finland was making this beautiful page for me. Just give a click on the photo to see her lovely embroidery stitches! On the back she wrote the wise words from John Keats: A thing of beauty is a joy forever.

How true this is!

Beading a little :)

The last year I have followed a few blogs from ladies who were involved in a bead journal project.
I saw many fantastic pieces of work and all very different. The temptation was too strong to deny when I saw there is a new start in January 2010.
Yesterday I hit the JOIN button on the beads journal project 2010.
http://www.beadjournalproject.com/

A few days earlier I made a larger piece of needlefelt for an other project which I can't show you now.
From a left-over piece I made this circle, like a mandala, to try out if it works for me.
This will be my size for the bead project next year. The size of a CD.
Drawing mandala's has given me many hours of pleasure and satisfacation years ago and I hope this mandala-beads-project will do the same :)

orchids

Two years ago I got two orchids as a present. Now they bloom for the third time in my kitchen window. I guess they like it there :)
The brown/orange one is a special kind, I have no idea what the name is, but beautiful is it.
I thought you might like it too ;-)

update cardigan

It is certenly not the meaning that my blog is changing to a knitting blog but I must say I knit a lot the last weeks. My cardigan became a slow project.
A while ago I finished the second front part and began with a sleeve.
When the sleeve was ready I was not happy at all !!
I decided to unpick it and start allover again . Now I make the sleeves with the same pattern as the front parts and I think that will be nice. ( I hope so ;)

Ishbel shawl

Here is the ugly duckling.... It doesn't show much.

Blocked: became a swan :)

Made from 40 grams Fyberspates 2 ply, 50% merino 50% silk. Very thin yarn.

I used needles 3mm. The size is wide: 170 cm. 68 ". high: 77cm. 30".

I think I will knit it again one day with a bit thicker yarn and thicker needles, it will be a bit larger than, I hope.

The pattern is very nice and not too difficult. You can buy it on Raverly.

As always you can click on the photos to enlarge.

Ishbel shawl in progress

A while ago I started 'sneaky' with my Ishbel shawl, you see it here.

Now I am at section C, the Ishbel knitters know :)

There are 341 stitches at the moment and more to come!

After that section D and one row E and finishing off. Oh, how I look forward to see it blocked!

My cardigan is still waiting, this is so much more interesting to knit!

I had to unpick a few times, Grrr.... didn't concentrate good enough. I can't listen to the TV and knitting this at the same time! Years ago I could do that but now I am very quick disordered with the counting.

Hope to be ready in a few days.

crochet shawl

Here is my crochet shawl. Made from "Lana grossa kid mohair".

60% mohair and 40% polyamide. Super light, warm and cosy.

I have used 200 grams, 800 metres. Crochet needle 5 mm.

My size is: wide 170 cm. 68". High, on my back: 77 cm. 30".

I found the "pattern" a while ago on Anne's blog. So very easy.

I made a sampler right away to remember that pattern.

When I was in the Netherlands a few weeks ago we had to drive long journeys on the highway which is very boring.

I bought this yarn in a local shop and began to crochet in the car.

But on the way home my yarn ran out.

I am so lucky to have many Internet friends in the Netherlands and one of them, Mieke, was so kind to go to the shop and bought 2 skeins more and sent it to me.

Thanks again Mieke !!

If you like it too , here is the pattern. You can enlarge the photo. You start on the top, make a simple chain as wide as you want your shawl. ( on the photo on the bottom)

atc's and a change

Two atc's made from fabric paper.
The left one is for trade , the right one has found a new home at Cobi's.
I made a large piece of fabric paper a while ago to use it for AA pages swap in the Fibre Fever group.

And yes you are right; I changed the title of my blog.
When I started my blog several years ago it was only to show my crazy quilt work.
Now I do many other things also and I thought the title has nothing to do with 'crazy' any longer.
I make needlefelt, crazy patchwork, fabric paper, knit and crochet and like to show that too, to you.
Besides that, now and than a peek in my kitchen or garden.
Hope you like it ;-)

fabric book pages

This is the fabric book page I made for Maureen ( Australia) Maureen's theme is "trees".
Because Maureen never get snow, I thought I make a Norway winter page for her.

The trees are embroidered with perle fine from Sassa lynne.

In the snow are angelina fibers for a sparkle.

This is the look I have from my front door during the time there is snow here.

I made the felt with the Janome embellisher.

The size is 6", 15 cm square.

Below the page Helinä in Finland made for me, theme "cottage garden".

I like it very much, it is lovely cq work.

sneaky start ;)

Although I am not ready knitting my cardigan ( one sleeve left) I have sneak started a Ishbel shawl. I bought a skein of the most beautiful yarn from Fyberspates (UK) and could not resist the temptation how it would look when knitted. The Ishbel shawl pattern have I seen on many blogs and it looks so nice. I never knitted a lace pattern before from a scheme, so it is a bit of an adventure to me ;)
The easiest part is ready, now I have to start with the lace. I have 221 stitches now and in the end there are 465! ( O my;)

This is very thin yarn, 2 ply, 45% silk and 55% merino wool, lace wight. I use needle 3mm.

The pattern says needle 4mm, but it became too loose for me. Maybe I have to change to a circle needle later, no idea, never knit on a circular needle either. LOL

But: I love the color!

So far, so good.

AA page received

This AA is made by Helga ( Germany). The poem on the front is from Goethe.
On the back she wrote words from Elli Richter: Zeit zu haben zum leben!
Thank you Helga, I like it very much!

in my mailbox

Look, look what I have got in my mailbox today. A super nice bracelet made by Inge in Danmark. Isn't it nice? It fits wonderful and I love the colors!

Album Amicorum

Here is the AA page I have made for Marja in the Netherlands.
The size is 15x20 cm. 6x8".
Two techniques wich I like to do at the moment, fabric paper and silk ribbon embroidery.
And a poem on the back.
Those pages don't have a theme. The front tells something about the maker and the poem is for the receiver.

received

I almost forgot to show you the atc from Anne L. ( France). very fine embroidery.

The blue page is an AA page from Ulla ( Sweden) the back with a poem and the front with patchwork.

Ulla and I are in the Fibre fever groep and we swap an Album Amicorum page this year with 11 members. The size is 20x15 cm.

fabric book pages

Here is the fabric book page I made for Lise in Norway.
Lise's theme is "flowers". I made the background from woolfleece with the embellisher machine. The little crochet flowers are made by me, the white needlelace flowers I bought from Rengin's Etsy shop and the peach flowers are recylcing from a silk flowerplant ;)
Below the page Janny from the Netherlands made for me with the theme: cottage garden.
Both pages are 6", 15 cm square.

plum jam

On the little plum tree in our garden are the plums ripe now. We picked them today and I have cut up 2 kg. to make jam. It smells delicious when it is hot and it taste delicious too on a slice of bread in the winter! There are more on the tree to eat the coming days ofcourse.

vegetable harvest

Today my DH has picked the last runner beans from the kitchen garden.

After cleaning I have cut them in slices with the same knife my mother , grandmother and great-grandmother have used before me!

The knife is made in 1882 and still in good condition. The blade is not the same size as before, because of the many times it has been sharpened.

Here the result from this summer. From left to right: runner beans, green beans and garden beans.

We have had a bad summer to grow vegetables, so the result is not as much as we are used too.

step by step RR block

This block belongs to Margreet in the Netherlands. We are in a group together and do a "step by step round robin".
That means that the first person sews the block, the second ( in this case me) does the basic stitches on every seam.
The third person add more stitches to the basic stitches.
The fourth person add items, such as lace items, sre, crochet, tatting etc.
The fifth person add the beads and the sixth person the buttons and finishing touch.
In the coming half year I have to work on four more blocks from the other participants in this RR.
Above the naked block and below what I have added to it. In a few weeks it flies to the next person in the round robin.

fish or something else?

Today my DH is fishing out there some place. On a little part of the Atlantic Ocean. The last days we have nice weather without much wind, so it is safe enough to go with the little ( 15 feet) boat.
Yesterday he also fished. He fishes with a rod and got many fish, haddock, cod and this wolffish. Nine kilogram !!

Today I made Norwegain fiskekaker ( fish-burgers) of the good meat of the wolffish.

I have 39 pieces now. 36 in the freezer and 3 in the refrigerator for dinner tomorrow.

The taste is very ! good.

AA page,( friends book)

Here is the AA ( album amicorum) page which I have made for Hideko in Japan.

We are in a little group"Fibre Fever"and we do this swap once a month.

The front tells something about the maker. Lately I made fabric paper and I like silk ribbon embroidery.

On the back a little poem or wise words for the receiver.

Because English is not my first language I used some wise words from Buddha.

As always you can click on the photos to enlarge. The size is 6x8 inch, 15x20 cm.

little news....

Here are two fabric paper postcards and the right one is an atc.

I cannot show you the AA page I have made and the one I am making now because it has to be a surprise for the receiver and I know they read my blog;)

From an other part of fabric paper I made those. The postcards are in my Etsy shop and the atc is for trade on my Flickr page.

And in the evenings I am knitting........

I am amost halfway the right front part. Had to unpick about 14 cm. because of a failure in the cables. GGrrr *!!#!*:(*!!!!

fabric paper and knitting

A half our ago I was ready making a new piece of fabric paper.
It is still very wet from the glue/water.
It has to lie for a few days before I can do something else with it.
I made it with the intention as a background to make AA pages for a swap we do in a little group.
Below an update from my knitting. The left front piece is ready.
The white threads are a help to get the right piece similar but with 5 buttonholes.
I don't have a pattern or a book, I just knit.....
Size XXL. 100 stitches for a front part, needles 3.5 mm.
It needs a careful press with a damp cloth when everything is ready.

So not much stitching this week, we have had guests too and in the evenings and free minutes I knit..................

knitting update

The back from the cardigan is ready now. I have used 6 skeins for this. 50 grams each.

Now I have started with the left front part.

I planned to knit cables in the front parts.

I use Viking sportsragg; 60% wool, 20%acryl, 20%nylon. color 583, dye lot 649.

Fiber book pages

Recently I made this fabric book page for Marja M. in the Netherlands.
Marja and I belong to a little group "Fibre Fever".
We swap a fabric book page once a month. Marja's theme is 'together'.
The size of those pages are 6", 15 cm square.
Below the page Marja made for me, my theme is cottage garden.
Isn't it beautiful? Marja made the page from wool and wood.
As always you can click on the photos to see it large.

pincushion received

Today I received my pincushion from the pincushion swap. Debbie added also a sewing kit to make a dishtowel and a iron basket and lemon pudding. Thanks Debbie it looks lovey!

New block, new adventure.

In the Yahoo-group Crazy quilters around the world we do a new Step-by-Step RR.
We are supposed to send a naked block out September 1st.
This is my block for this RR. I know it will look totally different when it comes home next year.
We have 6 participants, so I have to work on five of the other blocks when they come to my house. We have a 6 weeks schedule.
The size of this block is 14", 35 cm. square.