little rabbit (finally) knitted

little rabbit knitted, a photo by the little spindle on Flickr.

I finally finished the knitted rabbit for my friend HURRAH!
A baby was due and she needed some woolly gifts for the new arrival and his big sister (just in case she felt slightly left out).

I decided to use the beautiful patterns I bought from Mary Jane's TEAROOM (http://www.maryjanestearoom.com/). I am really happy with how she turned out as this was the biggest project I've undertaken so far. I just wish that after all the hard work that has gone into making her (I call her a 'her'...she's called Isabelle) I wish I could keep her [Isabelle] for myself.

Isabelle took me a couple of months from start to finish; every night after work sitting on the sofa ignoring my other half while I counted each stitch/row. I just hope the little girl appreciates this little (big) creation as much as I do. I think that the next time I decide to make anything like this it will have to be for myself because it was a bit of a wrench having to give her up!

Isabelle in her light purple and pastel green dress

I decided to go for quite light colours as it was for a little girl. And although it took me forever (I am not the quickest of knitters) I did find the pattern pretty easy to follow. I did wander slightly from the design, but only in the fact that I decided to give her little shoes instead of dancing slippers (which were taken from another of Mary-Jane's rabbit designs - *DAISY*) and I decided to leave off the frills on the ends of her sleeves and the tops of her socks - although if I'm being honest this was more to do with the fact that I was up against the clock, it didn't look to bad without these details and if I'm being even more honest, I didn't quite know what I was doing when it came to these little extras! I think this will be a case for my mum - to do a bit of teaching. I'm fine with the basics, but the extra little details and I get a bit confused and my knitting doesn't look quite right.

Isabelle and Walter lounging on the sofa

As you will notice, she has a friend (couldn't leave her by herself) - this is her younger brother Walter. I found him quite easy to knit, he must have taken at least a quarter of the time. (You can find this pattern for free on Ravelry - http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/rabbit-and-bear). I accidentally did his ears wrong, but I think he worked out alright in the end.

Like I've already said - I'm so happy with the outcome and hopefully the new arrival and his big sister will be very happy with their new wooly friends.

Rabbits, rabbits, rabbits...and some gems!

Oh dear, how I’ve been slack of late…I have been completely immersed in the world of bunny rabbit knitting. In fact it has taken over my life completely and blogging has been the last thing on my mind! But I won’t complain as it’s all invaluable knitting experience. I’m slowly getting to grips with knitting, pearling, casting on/off and everything else, although the odd dropped stitch still happens - grr.

You will have to excuse the lack of quality photo’s – I don’t have a good camera, but I also seem to suffer from ‘shaky-hand’ syndrome so the pictures aren’t really all that clear. Unfortunately I think this is something I may have inherited from my dad, I'm hoping that it's nothing more serious, and therefore all it will require is either a tripod or an investment in a new sparkly camera with an anti-shake setting...anyway, I'm going off point...I really wanted to keep a record of what I’ve been making and I’m hoping that over time I will see some sort of improvement – on both the crafting and photography side of things.

I’ve been making bunnies for friends who are having babies and friends of friends who are having babies! (Basically there seems to be a bit of a baby boom in the Midlands at the mo!) I’ve been trying out different coloured wools and even took a plunge at a bit of decorative knitting with the heart on one of the jumpers (ooh get me!)

I think they’ve turned out alright, especially as I’ve only been knitting since about March/April time.

Once I’ve gotten all these rabbits off the production line I can fully concentrate on a baby blanket that I seem to have been one third of the way through for what seems like forever. Chris and I are hoping to be going down the parenting route in the not too distant future so I wanted to be able to make something that would act as a keep sake, but also give me practice as I want to be a mum who can knock anything up at any given moment…..and I also wanted to hone my craft and start making my own creations to sell. In my mind I picture a future where I am selling my illustrations and handmade goodies…I just have to get these bloomin rabbits out of the way first!

New Finds

I have recently fallen head over heels in love with the Belle and Boo collection of art by Mandy Sutcliffe - check out the website: http://booboobelle.com and blog: http://belleandboo.blogspot.co.uk/ The illustrations are so beautiful (do I even need to tell you that?) and full of the joy that is being a child! I think I'm going to have to request a print for Christmas (unfortunately my birthday has been and gone), and I already know exactly what I'm going to be asking for.

Belle Hugs Boo

While researching and on my quest for ever more inspiration I stumbled upon the work of Sarah-Jane. I don't know how she does it, but with beautiful illustrations spanning all kinds of creative fields: books, stationery and textiles Sarah Jane's, illustrating childhood is something to be marveled. Dare I say, check out the website and blog: http://sarahjanestudios.com and http://sarahjanestudios.com/blog/.  Love, love, love! (Can I make that two requests for Christmas presents??)

Children's Wall Art Print - Oh Happy Day

If these don’t get my creative juices flowing then I don’t know what will. They are beautiful, gentle and make me want to smile - and if I could buy out the whole collection(s) then I would. Delicate illustrations full of whimsy and nostalgia. I love these childhood images, they bring back memories of myself playing as a child, with no cares in the world. Oh to be 5 again! If anything, they've given me a kick up my ever expanding backside, as I haven't done any drawing or painting of my own in yonks....damn them pesky rabbits!!

Back to basics

Well, I have discovered the perils of trying to write my own pattern.........not quite as easy as I thought! After spending a wet Bank Holiday weekend snuggled in the frontroom trying to create my own little creature - one little rabbit with gigantic legs and a tiny head later, I have come to the conclusion that I need to sit down with my needles and have a bit more of a practise. But hey ho - nothing ventured, nothing gained as they say, and you only learn by doing things and making mistakes. I'll admit, I assumed that after creating one little gorgeous bunny I thought I would be able to create anything I wanted  - NOT SO - so here's a lesson: practise makes perfect!

I also discovered, DO NOT try to write a pattern after having a glass of wine or two - when you come to read it the next day, you will find not a lot of it makes sense! (Maybe this is why my rabbit looks more like Frankenstein than anything else?)

I do think I might have to tackle some other projects soon as everything seems to be rabbit based at the mo, so I've got tons of projects on my 'to do' list (blankets, mittens, hats etc) - so there are more than enough things for me to pick and choose from. Now all I need to do is have a browse through all my gorgeous coloured wools and try to come to a decision on what colour(s) I would like to use. Hmm choices, choices. Either that or I can spend even more time at the shop buying more wool (I'm sure Chris won't mind??)

So after a day at the mill I will be looking forward to sitting down tonight with all my bits and bobs - I'll use this week to try and finish off the 3 bunnies I need to make for my friends and then I can get cracking on some new projects.