The Lamp

This really tickled my fancy and I just have to share it with you ...............

A woman enters an antique shop and finds what looks like a magic lamp.

She starts rubbing it and, surprise, surprise, a genie emerges in a puff of smoke.
The genie says he can fulfil the woman’s most profound wishes.
She looks at him and says she desperately loves her husband. Will the genie grant the following wishes:

- that he will have eyes only for me;
– that he looks at me with interest;
– that I will be the only one in his life;
– that when he gets up in the morning he takes me everywhere he goes.

Suddenly,

* * * POOF * * *

The genie turns her into an iPhone 6!

Happy New Year & Page 1

I keep seeing messages all over the internet (probably mainly Facebook) that say today is the first page of a 365 page book so I figured I'd better at least write something!! Life has been rather hectic here lately, with the arrival of my new little grandson Oliver, then all the rush and bustle of Christmas shopping, a couple of parties, the pending arrival of overseas visitors ... and the list goes on. Somehow I managed to survive and at the moment its just me, 2 dogs (one being my DD's Pug who is being puppy-sat while they're away), and one cat. Everybody will be home again on Sunday morning, and at 5pm baby Oliver Edward will be Christened, followed by a small family celebration.

Although I've had plenty of time since Boxing Day to do some crochet and/or knitting, not much has actually been achieved. I'll give you a peek at two projects I'm working on (slowly) and hope to have at least one of them finished in the next few days. Firstly, a scarf that I've been doing on and off for about a month or so - using Red Heard Boutique Unforgettable in the Tidal colourway.

As you can see, I haven't got really far with this. I also get the urge to knit occasionally and last night I started this hat which will be going to Beanies for Babies and Kids at RCH, a charity that I support.

I haven't used this pattern before and wanted to see what it was like. The hat is worked sideways, is quite stretchy, so size-wise it should be quite versatile.

And, just because I can ...........

A butterfly - complete with the hair of the cat !  Can you spot it?

Back in September when I was in Tuncurry, on the mid north coast of New South Wales, I was really impressed with some of the decorations in the apartment I was renting. So much so that I took note of the website and bought myself this little plaque that was on the bedside table.

Cute isn't it? The little owl in the corner is 3-D. I also bought a set of coasters but forgot to take a photo so I'll have to show you them another time.

It seems the rest of the universe has received their copy of Simply Crochet Issue 25, except me. I've emailed myfavouritemagazines.co.uk twice and am still waiting on a response. I've been a subscriber for well over a year now and have just paid in advance, for another 13 issues. Not impressed!!  I saw the gorgeous Cowl Poncho that Pammy Sue made from it and loved it so much I thought I'd make one for myself. In desperation I purchased a digital single issue of the magazine yesterday for .99 cents via Google Play but now have to wait till I can get to the shop to buy the yarn I want. Naturally, I just can't seem to find what I need in my room full of yarn here !!  I bet you can relate to that.

Well, I think that's about it from me for now - other than to wish you all a wonderful new year and hope that 2015 brings you much joy, good health, happiness, yarn and lots of time to do whatever makes you smile. My only resolution made this year is to finish off all the chocolate left over from Christmas and I know I won't break that one.

Bye for now.
xox

The Best Ta-Dah .. but not of the crochet kind !

After being in hospital since Tuesday, was the wait worth it?  You bet !!  Sorry about the quality of that pic but recovery room staff are no doubt better nurses than photographers. If you don't mind indulging this very proud Nanna, I'd like to share some of the pics we took today.

Mum and Dad (above) holding their darling little bundle of joy.

My two beautiful grandsons - I don't know what Ryan (my other daughter's 12yo son) was doing to deserve the screwed up face and tongue poking out. Guess we'll never know.

I usually shy away from showing my picture but I guess there's no party without punch !!

How's this for a perfect FO ?  Can't you tell he's a much loved little boy? (That's his Dad's hairy leg you can see behind him there. I took the photo over Dad's shoulder and didn't realise his leg was showing.

Bye for now ....
Dorothy
xox

Crochet Catch-Up

Although I keep in touch with most of my fellow bloggers by commenting on their posts, I'm feeling a little bit guilty for not having done a post of my own for so long. Lots of 'things' have been happening in my life but I won't bother you with details. 

The most exciting news is that my new grandson will be here in a couple of weeks, with an expected arrival date of November 19. Of course this may change if he starts to grow too quickly - DD is now being monitored twice a week. She is going to be a 'traditional' mother and keep him looking like a baby rather than a little adult. I like that as they're only babies for a short time and there's nothing nicer than to see a baby in those 'nice little things'.  I've been busy with the hooks and needles, of course. This little matinee jacket is done in Australian 4ply with a 3mm hook. The pattern is from Vicki Moodie's book "Crocheted Matinee Jackets".  

Apparently he was a bit short on hats (according to DD) so naturally Nanna came to the party and provided these two.  With summer days approaching quite rapidly now (today is 29C) he probably won't be needing many but the knitted one is stretchy so might come in handy for next autumn.

 I can't remember when I started this pram/car seat blankie but with not much more than the last few rows and border to go, it was easy to turn this UFO into a FO. I used Bendigo Woollen Mills "Luxury" which is a beautiful soft Aussie 8ply machine washable wool.

The pattern is called Cloud Soft Shells and is from Leisure Arts book called "Our Best Baby Afghans". (Leisure Arts #2853). There are 54 gorgeous patterns in this book so if you're planning to treat yourself to something nice for Christmas, check it out. At the time of writing this post, there are 5 copies listed on eBay and a couple are priced really low.

I have a few other UFOs lurking around in my craft room and I've decided to TRY and complete at least one a month. I think the reason I have so many UFOs is that I see something I like on other people's blogs or somewhere on the internet and am motivated to make whatever it is myself. Then, especially if its something big, I get bored with it or see something else that I just have to make ...... and so it goes. Can you relate to this? Its obviously lack of self control but I suppose when it all boils down, if you're enjoying your craft, that's all that matters.

My son-in-law has been wanting to do a bit of gardening (surprise, surprise) so we went to Bunnings the other day and bought lots of plants - a couple of Nandina shrubs, lots of marigolds and petunias and this Kangaroo Paw plant which is my favourite. Kangaroo Paw is a plant native to Western Australia with flowers that resemble kangaroo paws. It is grown in home gardens and as a houseplant. Now its just a matter of trying to keep the dogs off the gardens and hoping that son-in-law retains his gardening mojo. Fingers crossed for a colourful display at Christmas.

Thanks for visiting.
xox

Looky Looky - Lucky Me

A few weeks ago I entered a blog give-away at One Yarn After Another and was fortunate enough to be the lucky winner of this gorgeous yarn ....

It arrived today and is so soft and will be perfect for making something for a certain little man who will be entering the world in about 6 weeks time. I haven't seen this yarn before and am looking forward to searching around for a nice pattern to use. Thank's so much for this give-away Bev - it was such a thrill to win.

xox

Green Cathedral and other stuff

Thought it was about time I popped in to say hi and to let you know what I've been up to lately.  I had another trip 'up north' (about 700 kms north to be precise) and while there was able to do a little crochet, lots of house-selling repairs and re-listing, and the occasional little excursion.

As some of you know, my youngest daughter Natalie and her DH are expecting their first baby, a little boy (about the middle of November) so of course my focus these days is on baby projects. I did this My Chelle jacket in a couple of nights while watching telly ....

My friend Bev Matheson designed this lovely (and easy) pattern which you can get from either the link above to Ravelry or on Bev's blog, One Yarn after Another .

Also felt like some mindless crochet so bought some acrylic from the $2 shop and whipped up this scarf another night.

I had a few hours to spare a couple of days before leaving for home so I took myself for a short drive to the Green Cathedral which is on the shore of Wallis Lake. If you blinked while driving through the little town of Tiona, you'd miss it (both the town and the Green Cathedral). Services are held every Sunday and at other times, the odd tourist can be seen wandering down the track to this beautiful place.

down the path we go

check out those tall trees - bet they've been here awhile

looking towards the pulpit - see the pews made from trees

and from the pulpit

Turn around - what a peaceful sight

Speaking of peace, on the way back to my car I spotted this Peace Pole 

Nice sentiment in these troubled times eh ? 

Bye for now

xox

Crochet Ta-Dah !!

Yes, I know that's a dumb title for a post but its the best I can do at the moment.

Here's my latest FO which is now nestling nicely in the top drawer of my grand-son to be's tallboy.

The sleeves were meant to be long but I ran out of yarn so we ended up with short sleeves which will probably better suit the weather for when Bub's due. Also should have had three buttons but I could only find two that suited the colour (which, by the way, is more of a baby sky blue than what it looks in the pic). The pattern is called "Bruce" and is from a little book I've had for ages called "Crocheted Matinee Jackets" by Vicki Moodie. I used 1 x 100g ball of Big Baby 4ply with a 3.50mm hook.

I'm still working on getting my craft room sorted out so haven't been doing as much crochet or knitting as I normally do - just fiddling around with little things. One of my Aussie Knit4Charity friends is turning 50 next month and is having a cyber birthday party which should be fun. She has asked if everybody who is 'attending' makes a three round motif to send so she can add the last round and join them together to have a memento of the occasion. We're all doing the same pattern ... here's my 'gift' ...

Breaking news ....... Local police hunting the "knitting needle nutter" who has stabbed 6 people in the last 48 hours, believe the attacker could be following some kind of pattern.

I'm outa here ... see you next time.
xox