KAL day 4

Is it a bottle, a crayon, a rocket ship or a castle ????

KAL day 3

Still can't work out what's in the middle. One thing I have decided is that I'm not over-fussed on the 'soft' type yarns. Don't know whether its the shine in them or what but they don't knit up as nice as ordinary 8ply.

Oh well, back to the crochet. I'm trying to get to the half-way mark on the Australian Tartan rug. There's not much point in posting any pictures at this stage as it looks just the same as before - just longer. It should look more interesting when all those vertical chains start being threaded through.

KAL day 2

Any ideas on what's going to be in the middle of this square ? I haven't a clue. We will be sending our squares to an assembler who will turn them into baby blankets.

KAL day 1

That didn't take long ! Looks like there's going to be a motif in the centre - I wonder who will be first to guess what it will be ?

Australian Tartan

There seems to be some interest in my Australian Tartan rug so I'll tell you a bit about it.

The Australian Tartan is registered in Scotland as an official tartan. A Melbourne firm makes the cloth.

The yarn that came with the kit and what each colour represents is .....

Tan (5 x 100g balls Patons Supersaver 8ply acrylic) .. Tan is for the inland soil and Ayres Rock
Yellow (9 x 50g balls Patons Brocade 8ply 60% wool 40% acrylic) .. Yellow is for the ochre used by the Aborigines (this is more of a mustard or gold colour to me)
Cream (3 x 100g balls Patons Supersaver 8ply acrylic) .. Cream is the sand of the beaches
Black (1 x 100g ball Patons Supersaver 8ply acrylic) .. Black is minerals and coal in the ground
Blue (1 x 100g Patons Supersaver 8ply acrylic) .. Blue is sky and ocean around Australia



I think my tension has changed since starting this rug many years ago but I've done a bit of a 'test run' with a few lengths of chains and when they're threaded through the holes to form the vertical stripes, they hold it all together in the right shape. I've just finished the first sequence of the horizontal stripes so I'm about a quarter of the way there. I think those 130 long chains are going to drive me crazy but at least they're at the end of the project so I'll be 'seeing the light at the end of the tunnel' so to speak !!

This is my project for Australiacrochet's UFO CAL (Unfinished Object Crochet-a-Long) so with the encouragement of my fellow participants, I hope it won't be too long before its finished. Having said that, I'm just about to start on a Knit4Charities KAL - I think we'll be making squares for a baby blanket, but not sure. I'll keep you up to date on how that's coming along each day. Today's post was for the first 14 rows.

A rug by any other name.....

Well, after lots of deliberation plus consultation with two close friends, my wool-eater has had all its getting !! I really hated that Marvel yarn (note to self NEVER to buy it again) and so have put it aside, never to be worked on again.

While yet again looking for the burgundy/pink/cream yarn to complete my other half finished wool-eater I came across a half done project which I'm going to now complete as I had the foresight to actually keep the yarn with this one. Its a travel rug done in the Australian Tartan pattern.

Many years ago, I was in Taree with my mother and the local craft shop had one of these on display in their window. I thought it was absolutely beautiful but it was only being sold as a complete kit and was rather expensive so I didn't purchase it. Back in Canberra about a week later a big parcel was delivered. It was the Australian Tartan kit. Mum had returned to the shop and bought it for me - what a lovely surprise. I started the rug but like so many things way back then, when I was still working and had a husband and growing family, it was put aside and forgotten about. The rug currently measures 140cm x 33cm - is now a WIP, soon (hopefully) to be a FO. I lost my Mum eight years ago so this rug will definitely be a keeper and will be in memory of my Mum.

Wool Eater progress - Day 2

Now that I've done a few rounds of this blanket, I'm getting used to the colours and feel that it will fit in ok with the colour of my loungeroom where it will probably drape over the back of a chair when finished. The yarn is awful to work with and I'd have to be desperate to buy Marvel again. Anyway, here's today's effort - currently at 35cm square.



I have some important CWA work to do tomorrow so my blanket probably won't grow much.