IT'S GETTING COLDER

This time of year is only good if you don't have to go outside! I hate the cold weather, I wish I lived somewhere warmer. I spent a couple of months this year in Australia, unfortunately it was winter whilst we were there but even then it wasn't as cold as it is in the UK in winter. We had a good time whilst we were there, this time we flew via Hong Kong and it was a wonderful experience to see the city even if only from the windows of the plane as we flew in to land. Hong Kong Airport is amazing it is enormous. My husband didn't come with us this time so it was just me and my 11 year old daughter and I was a little apprehensive flying without him. But we managed to do it.

With being away and other things that have been going on I have had little spare time to give to my Etsy shop so sadly it has been neglected this year, something I hope to rectify in the new year.

I have been crocheting though, although not for the last week due to a nasty burn on my hand, which I stupidly did whilst cooking Sunday lunch last week and didn't use an oven glove when putting yorkshire puddings into a very hot oven!

A couple of months ago I decorated Amy's bedroom, she wanted rid of the pink walls and fairies. So it now has yellow walls, purple curtains and a purple, pink and yellow 'Me to You Bear' duvet cover. I decided to crochet her a matching purple, pink and yellow afghan after seeing quite a few of them at my aunt's in Australia.

I have decided to become a Registered Childminder so I am going through that process at the moment. I have just had my pre-registration visit from OFSTED and I am now waiting for my Registration Certificate so that I can start childminding. I am hoping to start taking children in the New Year.

IT'S ALREADY MARCH

It never ceases to amaze me how quickly a year can pass by. It doesn't seem 2 minutes since Christmas and we are already almost a quarter of the way through another year. I think this is probably an unfortunate side effect of getting older along with all the aches and pains I seem to be suffering with, although that might have something to do with the unfortunate incident involving me, the dog and a pavement! Anyway it is nice to be getting winter out of the way, hopefully we wont get anymore snow now. The weather seems to be getting slightly milder, the spring flowers are starting to appear and the sun is shining.

My DH has just got me a new phone, it is a Galaxy Samsung S. It is amazing what you get on a phone now, they are more like mini computers, I can even update my blog from it. I was going to have an Iphone but the cheaper deal we got with this one was too tempting.

I have been busy crocheting an afghan, it is pink green and white. I love the colour combination and it would make a lovely baby blanket.

NEW YEAR THOUGHTS AND A VALENTINE SALE

Sorry it's a bit late but Happy New Year everyone. I hope you all had a lovely Chritmas with your family and friends. Christmas here was quite busy, my eldest daughter and her family spent Christmas Day with us so it was a noisy, exciting time with the children. Amy, my youngest, got the Ipod Touch she wanted so much so she was very happy. Unfortunately my eldest son didn't put in an appearance this year. I was sad when he didn't bother to answer the phone to me when I called him before Christmas to invite him over.

I am hoping this year brings us some good news with the exchange rates and house selling. I would still love to make the move to Australia.

Prices are going up so quickly here I might have to start looking for a job. I quit my job nearly 2 years ago because I was finding it more and more difficult to balance my work and home life. Also I thought I was going to be moving to Australia within 12 months, unfortunately that didn't happen.

I have at last got round to starting the SALE in my Etsy shop. I have been thinking about it for a couple of weeks. I have also started jotting down ideas for new items to make and some new designs. I want to start writing simple knitting patterns to sell, I am excited about this. I have wanted to do it for ages but like alot of things have never got round to it.

Items from my shop have been featured in several treasuries on Etsy recently so I need to do a feature on them too.

STITCH MARKERS

When I first opened my shop on Etsy I was selling jewellery. I absolutely adore beads and I enjoy making beautiful beaded items. But my first passion was knitting and crocheting and over time I have gradually introduced more and more knitted and crocheted items into my shop until there is no more beaded jewellery. So I had to think of a way that I could combine both passions. I had always made my own stitch markers, although not quite so glamerous as those shown above. One day when I was playing around with my beads I put together some stitch markers which I thought were nice enough to sell in my shop and so now I get to satisfy both my passions. I have several friends who love knitting and I like to put together gift bags for them at Christmas and birthdays. I watch out for lovely knitting needles and yarn and now I always include a set of stitch markers. If you would like to give stitch markers to a knitty friend, you can find a selection in my Etsy shop.

Etsy Knitters Treasure Hunt

Get 10% off your winter warmers with the Etsy Knitters Team Treasure Hunt! With everything in our stores from novelty golf club covers to heavenly handspun yarns, you are sure to find great gifts for all!

To qualify for the discount in participating stores, simply find FIVE listings containing the Etsy Knitters Treasure Hunt graphic (search EtsyKnitters Team) and convo EtsyKnittersTeam or JayCeeOriginals with your list. The Treasure Hunt will run from midnight November 25th to midnight November 30th.

The small print:

1. You must correctly identify 5 listings containing the image displayed above.
2. The 10% discount is good for one transaction in ANY participating store.
3. A unique discount code together with a complete list of the participating stores will be provided once your entry is verified.
4. Only one entry per person/shop please.
5. The Treasure Hunt is open to ALL.

Have a Handmade Holiday!

YOUTUBE

I love the cowl neckwarmers that are so fashionable this year and as well as wanting to knit a few for my own personal use, I decided to include them in the new range for my Etsy shop. I wanted to knit them in a continuous loop to keep them seamless. I had never attempted this kind of item so looked in a few books but found the instructions a bit complicated to understand. So I turned to the place which has helped me out so many times with different stitches and methods - Youtube. I find Youtube an invaluable place to get information on how to do things and of course it is a video site so you also get shown how to do things. I learned how to do magic loop knitting on here. I watched a video created by the theknitwitch and so of course when I again became stuck with provisional cast on and the Kitchener stitch I immediately turned to Youtube and straightaway found lucyneatby and her easy to follow instructions on provisional cast on and theknitwitch showed me how to do the Kitchener stitch.

These 2 cowls are the ones I have made to be included in my Etsy shop. The one at the top is made in a gorgeous super chunky yarn in a lovely lime green colour.

The one below is made in a super soft chunky yarn and the colours in this one are ochre, aubergine, rust and chestnut.

Both will make great accessories for your winter wardrobe and are now available for sale in my Etsy shop.

GETTING FEATURED IN TREASURIES

One of the most exciting things is to receive a message from someone informing you they have featured one of your items in a treasury on Etsy. Over the last few months no less than 5 of my items were featured in 5 separate treasuries.

This is the First Mumph. As his name implies he was the first one I made, I was going to make a whole series of these but never seemed to get round to it. I did make a Baby Mumph who never sold and who now resides in my finished drawers. Thank you to paleorama for featuring him in her lovely treasury.


My Big Button Ginger Phone Case was featured in a lovely treasury by jayceeoriginals. These cases can also be used for various other gadgets and I make them in other colours. If you don't see the colour you would like you can contact me through my Etsy store and request one in the colour of your choice. These cases have proved very popular with my daughter's Uni friends.

I love knitting items with cables and this style of fingerless glove/armwarmer is one of my favourites. This pair were featured in a lovely treasury by tootsytwo. This style of glove is very fashionable this year and although you can buy cheaper versions in some shops, nothing beats handmade items.


I was recently contacted by Look Magazine, which is the most popular glossy weekly magazine here in the UK, they were interested in one of my coffee cuffs. During the conversation I was asked if I could knit an aran style coffee cuff as aran is very in this season. I produced the one you can see above and sent off pictures to them. Unfortunately I have never heard back from them, but it was exciting to be contacted. This one is now for sale in my Etsy store and was recently featured in a lovely treasury by PinkPolishDesign.

And finally my lovely pair of cream cable fingerless gloves handknit in a gorgeous merino blend 100% wool yarn. A feature of this yarn is that it is anti-tickle and it knits beautifully. This pair were featured in a lovely treasury by palaceofdarning and whilst there they sold so that is a double thank you. I have since made another pair and they are now for sale in my Etsy store.

Thank you so much to my fellow Etsians for featuring me in their amazing treasuries. Please click on their names to discover some wonderful crafters who make gorgeous handmade items.

SUMMER HOLIDAY

I am a bit late this year writing about our summer holiday. Getting new stock ready for my Etsy shop has kept me busy and away from my computer.

This year we stayed in the UK for our holiday and took our caravan to Dorset. Last year we went to Australia and the previous 2 years we went to Cornwall. We had awful weather when we were in Cornwall so we were a little apprehensive about Dorset, which is only a short way along the coast from Cornwall. We needn't have worried, we had gorgeous weather and the site where we stayed was lovely.

We had views of the sea from our caravan and the surrounding countryside was lovely. The site was really clean and there was a pool which I couldn't keep Amy out of.

HOW TIME FLIES

Once again I have been caught out by how quickly time goes by. I thought that once I finished my job I would have more time at home to do the things I loved - knitting, crocheting, blogging, I have found this not to be the case. But for the life of me I don't know what I am doing. I get up in the morning and get my daughter ready for school. After dropping her off at school, I return home and take the dog out for his walk. I love this part of the day. I take my time and if I am on my own with him I can go over things in my head, think of new designs to knit and crochet and if I have any problems going on I try to straighten them out. When I get home I have breakfast and whilst eating my bowl of porridge I go on the internet and check emails, send replies, check if I have any sales on Etsy and take a look at my Facebook page. Now I know that this is one of my problems, once I get on the internet I seem to spend ages on there. I click on links I am sent and end up on some gorgeous blogs that I just have to read. And then there are those games on Facebook. I have had to give up on Cafe World because it was starting to cut into my time too much when I had dishes that were ready to be served. I am trying to keep away from Farmville now because I always seem to have crops that need harvesting and now there is Frontierville which is another kind of farm game which requires crops planting and harvesting and trees and grass to be cut. The day is just not long enough. Anyway if I am not careful I can end up on the computer for most of the morning and before I know it, it is lunchtime and I haven't got anything done.

I have been able to fit some crocheting into my busy routine. I have been trying something new to me, something I have always wanted to have a go at. I have been crocheting granny squares and the first ones I made are waiting to be sewn together to make a small baby blanket for a pram or crib.

I love crocheting these but hate the fiddly bits, weaving in the ends and sewing the squares together so next time I am going to weave the ends in as I change the colours. I have already finished crocheting another baby afghan, this one is blue and I again I am having to sew the pieces together. I haven't taken any pictures of this one yet but will do once it is all finished. The next one I make I am going to try and crochet the pieces together as I make them.

BABY BEANIES

My granddaugters have been asking me to make them crocheted beanies for some time but I have been that busy with orders that I have had to put them off (naughty nanna). Anyway I have finally got to make them and they turned out really cute, although my first attempt was too small.


Which then gave me the idea of adding baby beanies to my shop. Here's my 'mistake' hat, what do you think?

BIG BUTTON PHONE CASES

Here are some more of my big button phone cases/cozies. They do stretch and will fit a number of gadgets.


I have already sold quite a few of these off Etsy, now I am hoping they will become as popular on Etsy! As an introductory offer I have reduced the price of them.

STITCH MARKERS

I have been making stitch markers for quite some time but it is only recently that I have listed some in my Etsy shop. The ones I use are made with some odd beads I had, but the ones I make now for my shop are so much prettier. I have also made them for presents for my knitting and crochet friends.

I have recently made these 2 sets and they are now for sale in my Etsy shop. All sets come in an organza bag for safe keeping.

NEW ITEMS

These are the latest 2 phone cozies I have added to my shop. I got the new buttons I had ordered and I have put one on the brown cozy. I think it makes it look really good. I haven't sold any in my shop yet, I seem to be having more luck selling off Etsy at the moment.

Speaking of which, my daughter came round this weekend and she bought one of my hats. I wanted to let her have it a bit cheaper but she insisted on paying the full amount. So now she has ordered one for her daughter, Chloe who is 8. I have never made beanie hats for young ones so I am trying to adapt my pattern to a smaller head. This has given me the idea of maybe making more of the children sizes for my Etsy shop.

I am hopefully going to a wool shop this week and I am going to look at yarns that will be suitable for summer and winter wear. We don't have a good wool shop near us, well what we consider near us in the UK. I usually rely on the internet for most of my yarn, but nothing beats going to a lovely wool shop where they stock a beautiful selection of yarns and being able to feel them.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

December was a good month, sales wise, on Etsy so I have spent most of January re-stocking my shop and thinking of new ideas. I have added coffee cuffs and phone cases/cozies to my shop.

I love these coffee cuffs. I have knitted them in a stitch which gives them a padded feel. They are so much better than the paper ones and they are eco-friendly as they can be used over and over. I am a coffee addict so I keep one in my pocket. I am always getting asked where I got it from, I have sold quite alot of these by keeping some with me when I am out!


I have made phone cozies before, but this time I have changed the design. I have knit these in a basketweave pattern and finished them off with a button. I have ordered some new buttons and I am hoping they are going to come today. They are big and bright and I think they will look great on my phone cozies. I had an enquiry about this one. I was asked if I made these cozies for Iphones. Unfortunately I don't own an Iphone so I asked my daughter if she knew anyone who did. Luckily she did and she took it to Uni with her yesterday so that she could try it on one. Anyway this one fits Iphones and my daughter's friend loved it that much she placed an order for one, the same colour as this but with a yellow button.

DECEMBER ALREADY

Watching surfers on a beach near Newcastle, NSW

Where has this year gone? I can't believe we are getting close to the end of 2009. We had hoped to be living in Australia by now, but we haven't been able to sell our house. It has been on the market since February this year, unfortunately we have picked the worse time of all to sell due to the credit crunch. And to make matters worse the value of the pound has dropped dramatically against the Australian dollar which of course reduces greatly the amount of money we would have once we get there. It just seems that at the moment nothing is going our way and it is very disappointing. We are keeping our fingers crossed that things start to pick up next year and we can start our new life in Oz.

FREE SHIPPING

I hope those of you who celebrate Thanksgiving have had a wonderful time with your families and friends. Tomorrow is Black Friday so from then until Cyber Monday any item purchased in my Etsy store will be shipped to you FREE OF CHARGE. I have some lovely knitted and crocheted items that you would make fantastic Christmas presents - prices start from $9.00.

SYDNEY

Of course we couldn't visit Australia without spending some time in Sydney, my favourite city. This time we went on the train, it was safer. Only kidding, we went on the train because we all enjoy the journey. There is some lovely scenery between Wyong, where my aunt and uncle live, and Sydney. Also it gives my DH time to sit back and enjoy the scenery too. The train was very busy but we manged to find seats. I love the Australian trains, they are on 3 levels, although if you are looking for seats it can be a bit awkward on a moving train having to go up and down stairs.

Anyway we arrived in Sydney and it was a beautiful day, blue sky and the sun was shining. We didn't have any plans as to what we were going to do, just have a wander around. Amy wanted to go to the Opera House, it is her favourite place, probably because they always show it on TV. So we decided to walk through the city and make our way there.



We got to Darling Harbour and had a look round there. The Australian National Maritime Museum is situated here. There is a submarine to look around and a large ship, a destroyer. It all looked very interesting and certainly somewhere we would visit on another occasion.



We crossed over a bridge, I think it is called the Pyrmont Bridge, and carried on through the city to the Opera House.

We had a walk around the outside of the Opera House and stood and looked at the views over the harbour, the bridge and to where we had been at Taronga Zoo a couple of days earlier. It is a beautiful spot to just stand and take in the amazing scenes. I love it!


We got one of the ferries back to Darling Harbour, Amy spotted somewhere else for us to visit, I told her we would put it on our list for next time. We got on the tram from Darling Harbour to take us back to the station. We had had another amazing day but I was glad to get back on the train and sit down.

I took this photo as we went over the Hawkesbury River, I was amazed I caught the sunset through the bridge supports.

When we were getting closer to Wyong I phoned my aunt and told her we were nearly there. She said my uncle would meet us at the station, thank goodness, I don't think my feet would have made it back to their house.

TARONGA ZOO

We did find Taronga Zoo and enjoyed a fantastic day there. I can definitely recommend it and it is a place we will certainly go back to. As well as all the amazing animals you get to see close up there are several shows you can go and watch. We just caught the end of the elephant show, but we watched the sealions and a fantastic bird show, where birds swoop around the crowd. The setting for the bird show was fantastic too, overlooking Sydney Harbour. We also saw the red panda, I had never heard of this animal before. Whilst we were there it was on the news that the red panda had given birth at Taronga Zoo. We didn't get to see the baby, but mum was gorgeous.

Taronga Zoo is well worth a visit not only to see the residents, but also to get the most amazing views of my favourite city, Sydney!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Sorry I haven't been around for a while, but I have had swine flu and didn't feel like doing much. Thankfully I am now on the mend and looking forward to things getting back to 'normal'. Thank you to everyone who kept visiting my blog and dropping their Entrecards.

Hope you all have a happy and safe Halloween.

MySpace Graphics

LOOKING FOR TARONGA ZOO

We decided to drive to Taronga Zoo using my uncle's sat nav. This was a big mistake! Before we left the house I had had a look at the map with my uncle and he had pointed to where the zoo was and also told me about various buildings we would pass and areas we would drive through, so I had a rough idea of where we were going. But then we made the big mistake, we took his sat nav instead of taking the map. My uncle's sat nav was nothing like the one we have back home, it is very confusing, to us anyway. Once we got into the outskirts of Sydney it all started to go wrong. We seemed to drive around in circles, driving on and off motorways, paying tolls. We guessed he hadn't updated it for along time. We drove around streets and even pulled up and asked a couple of men for directions, mistake number 2. They seemed more confused than us.

We kept ending up on a road which was leading to the Sydney Harbour Bridge, I knew we didn't want to be on the other side of the harbour. So I made my poor husband turn around again and tried really hard to remember the names of the roads I had seen on the map.

We eventually found a hospital I remember my uncle saying we would pass and I instructed poor husband to carry on driving. At last I spotted a road name I remembered and from then we seemed to find our way. What a journey we had had. I am surprised we both stayed so calm.