Big Savings on Debbie Bliss and MillaMia

We have marked down the prices of some of our most popular lines for our New Year Sale from now until midnight (AEST) 4 January 2012.

Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino

$9.95(RRP$11.50)

Debbie Bliss Cotton DK

$6.95 (RRP $7.95)

MillaMia Naturally Soft Merino

$8.95 (RRP $11.95).

PLUS, as always, Free Shipping on all Australian orders.

Two families

One of the curiousities of our neighbourhood is the pevy, group, ostentation, pride or whatever you like to call a bunch of peacocks and peahens. Local legend has it that they escaped from a now defunct zoo a few kilometres away. Well wherever they came form they are certainly here to stay.

We usually encounter these beasts crossing the road or loitering on some unsuspecting neighbours front porch...but this morning there they were on our next-door neighbours roof. One mama peahen and her three chicks eyeing off this mama human and her two squidgets (scientific term!).

Snap Sale on MillaMia 25% off

Jump for joy!

A superquick post to say yes I'm still here and secondly that from today until midnight Sunday 11th December (3 days only) I've taken 25% off all MillaMia yarn, books and single patterns.

That brings yarn down from $11.95 to $8.95 each and books are $29.95 which is $10 off.

You still get FREE Shipping in Australia and a further 10% off if you spend $60 or more.

All I want for Christmas

Hands up who wants one of these for Christmas? I see that maxi-dresses are all the rage this summer.

Believe it or not...pattern for sale over here.

Edit - this place is a veritable gold mine of vintage patterns!

Scandinavian Christmas Bazaar on TOMORROW

(Free Christmas stocking pattern from MillaMia )

If you are in or around Canberra tomorrow then please come and say hi at the:

Scandinavian Christmas Bazaar

1-5 pm

ACT ATSI Cultural Centre

245 Lady Denman Drive

Yarramundi.

I'm packing all my Scandi yarn - BC Garn, Holst Garn, MillaMia...as well as pattern books including "55 Christmas Balls to Knit'...hope to see you then and say hi over a Danish pastry or two!

suzy xoxo

My creative space

Last night kuka and I met up for a late night crafty session to work on our Posie Christmas felt decorations. If the truth be known we were in part crafting and in part purging ourselves of the guilt of having bought these patterns before last Christmas.

I'm rather chuffed with my tree, I just have to finish stitching the edge and stuff it a little. The wee-children were delighted with it this morning and I've already had a request for another.

More creative types are sharing over here .

suzy xoxo

PS: Mid-crafting last night I received an email confirming that I have a table for my yarn at the Scandinavian Christmas Bazaar this Sunday in Canberra...woohoo!

{This moment} - a bit belated

{this moment} - A ritual with Soule Mama. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember.

My creative Space

A few weeks absence from sharing My Creative Space folks, sorry about that.

Today I'm sticking with the sticks and casting on Ball #3 from Norwegian knitwear designers, Arne & Carlos' and their fantastic book - Julekuler - 55 Christmas Balls to Knit.

Maybe I'm biased but I LOVE LOVE LOVE this book, perfect mix of retro, modern and Scandinavian design which is my greatest influence. In keeping with the Scandinavian theme I'm using MillaMia's merino 5-ply...in red and white of course.

More creative spaces shared over here.

suzy xoxo

New! Christmas gift Vouchers

I've just loaded some Christmas gift vouchers to the store. Perfect for giving to a fellow yarn tragic, or giving a little hint to family and friends.

suzy xoxo

{This moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savour and remember. I'm playing along with Soule Mama

A pure crafty stuff up!

Can we see a problem with this picture crafty peeps?

You might think it's all crafty goodness in these parts morning, noon and night - well this picture tells a different story...

The bottom piece is the back of the Debbie Bliss Moss Stitch jacket - endless and now completed rows of stocking stitch. I was curious about what I felt to be a rather inadequate moss stitch border whilst completing said back - but rationalised it as a pattern that extends from 6 months to 3 years, I'm doing the 3 years so it's going to look smaller on mine - bla bla.

Last weekend I cast on the left front, completed the moss stitch border - and YUP I've made a mistake on the back, two rows short!

Here are the options available to me:

a) pull out the entire back

b) complete garment with the teeny moss stitch border

c) try to unpick the cast on of the back and add two extra rows

d) cut the back moss stitch, throw in a lifeline somewhere and redo the border.

What say you?

Vogue Knitting and Lantern Moon

Unless my eyes deceive me the cover of the new Vogue Knitting Stichionary books feature Lantern Moon needles, which I recently began to stock. I knew these needles were gorgeous and worthy of a Vogue cover!

The books look pretty good too - will do some investigating and keep you posted...

Happy hausfrau

Something fantastic planned for this week... involving this fabric, a bit of baking, knitting/crochet and loads of fun.... I can't wait!

Wish list

I had a lovely conversation with a customer this morning about what brands I have arriving at suzy hausfrau, and others brands that I'm currently stalking. It was great to hear the feedback that Australian knitters/crochet folk want to be able to buy gorgeous yarn from a store right here in Australia! Just the right tonic for me to know that I'm on the right track.

But I would love to hear what's on your wishlist? What brands of yarn would you like me to stock? There is a thread in my Ravelry group for this very thing. Click here. Ask your friends, other crafty types - I wanna hear it all! I promise, I don't bite.

Have a great weekend,

suzy xoxo

PS Guess where I found my sad little sad dandelion for the photo? In the vegie patch, beside the leeks. Guess I'll be weeding this weekend!

My creative space

If the truth be known I barely have enough energy for anything vaguely creative today. Sophie and I spent a good three and a half hours at Emergency last night (for asthma) and left without getting seen. It started to get a bit embarrassing when she began to perform a (wheezing) dancing concert for me at 3am! I bailed at this point as it was probably a fair enough reason for why we kept being put to the bottom of the pile. That said, I'm stuffed today!

But I have found some mojo to play with my macro lens and these new additions to the hausfrau fold....will load to shop in next day or so.

People with more mojo than me are creating over here...
suzy xoxo

I love my blankie!

Remember this? It's still being used and loved by the same little person! Always a gratifying thing for the maker.

Have a great day,

suzy xoxo

BC Garn Baby Alpaca GIVEAWAY WINNER!

This morning we drew the winner of the BC Garn Baby Alpaca giveaway.....

"Kitten with a Whiplash"

Please email me at admin@suzyhausfrau.com.au to organise the drop!

....thanks everybody for entering!

***PINK!!!***

Yesterday, Sophie was with me with the new colours of Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino arrived! I grabbed the camera hoping for a cute shot of her helping me unpack....cute I got yes, but I never expected this reaction.

Mama "Let's see what new colours of wool mama has for her shop."

Soph "Are they rainbow colours?"

Mama "Let's see"....mama furiously rips open box of yarn "Let's see...there's green, blue..."

Soph "PINK! PINK! I love PINK! Let me cuddle it!"

Mama Laughing..."You want to cuddle the wool?"

Soph "PINK! PINK! Aaahhh!"

Well I've tried to be fairly balanced in my approach to what colours I dress her in. I'm not opposed to pink in the slightest, but with her fair skin and hair she rocks navy blue and clear red...but I must "listen to the customer" and start a pink project I think.

Disclaimer - no yarn was hurt in the taking of these photos...these lovely skeins quickly went straight to my ever-expanding stash!

Happy knitting,

suzy xoxo

My creative space

It's school holidays here and a lovely grey and overcast day! Perfect for working on a new spring 'dreamcatcher' with the squidgets to replace the autumn ones that we made months ago. I use these instructions from the Artful Parent

Also perfect for mummy to grab some sewing time and whip up a quick denim pinafore using these notions. I'm going to use the pattern in The Crafty Kid.

All in all I'm planning a big creative day in my space today...what about you? Need some inspiration - head over here.

suzy xoxo

More queue jumping!

Yeah, yeah I know that I posted last week that I had a looming deadline, but I just can't seem to stop myself from choosing, dreaming about or even starting new projects! This deadline involves making this same scarf again...and perhaps my attention span just isn't up to doing the same pattern for about 4 metres! Can't think why?

So late yesterday afternoon, inspired by Retro mummy's choice of yarn for the new Tikki pattern, Jane , I cast on YET another new project! As each row progressed I chanted to myself that this was absolutely necessary and perfectly timed as a cotton knit for summer. Sometimes you just have to lie to yourself, and I'm comfortable with that!

On a serious note though Debbie Bliss Cotton DK is a dream to work with - and it has given me an idea for a summer top for me...stay tuned!

suzy xoxo

PS: Last day to enter my giveaway...place a comment on this post to be in it!

October's garden

After a shocker of a winter in the vegetable garden I'm so relieved to have Spring life appearing. The broad beans are in full flower which hopefully means beans on bruschetta for lunch really soon. In the background here you may just be able to spot some iceberg lettuces which the snails kindly leave for us to eat!

The leeks are still keeping on. I left them in-situ so that I could pick them as I needed them over the winter, but they won't like the warmer weather so I better get a wiggle on and use them up in the next couple of weeks.

My favourite tree in the garden, the Crab-apple is nearly in full bloom....isn't it glorious?

The granny smith apple tree is also in full bloom, and one of my favourite things to say to the squidgets is "can you go and find Bella under the apple tree?" Speaking of Bella, here she is enjoying the warmer weather and watching the world go by.

Come to think of it, this might be a blog debut for Bella. She is fairly sedentary these days at a respectable age of 16, so isn't often in photo range!

Don't forget to pop on over and enter my giveaway that closes this Wednesday.

My creative space and a GIVEAWAY!

Sometimes I think I can make some fairly rash decisions when it comes to what I can manage in my creative space/time. I decided to make another Alpine Frost Scarf as a surprise gift to a friend when there was 6 weeks or so to go before said gifting date. This is somewhat unusual for me as I'm often sewing/knitting/crafting right up until the deadline...plenty of time, mate, plenty of time!

So what I have I worked on for the first two weeks - hmmm this new cardigan! Then yesterday "said gifting date" shifted like two weeks forward and I'm back on familiar territory...panic and looming deadlines. This my friends is my creative space today! More over here...

Oh...I nearly forgot. I'd love to giveaway one hank (100g/500m yardage) of the yarn that I'm working with. The glorious baby alpaca to a reader (chosen by random) who leaves a comment here before midnight next Wednesday 5th October (AEST). One hank is enough for a scarf or small shawl usually, and the winner can choose their own colour.

Three day strawberry jam!

Yesterday afternoon I finished my first batch of three day strawberry jam! Three days you say? Well, you macerate and cook the fruit up in sugar and lemon juice over a couple of days before making it up on day three.

I read on Martha's blog that this is her preferred way of making jam, which I figured was a a damn fine endorsement. The man of the house bought me the book for my birthday. It is by Christine Ferber, a jam maker and pastry chef who lives in Alsace, France - ahhhh! That is just me sighing...

So back to the jam. It it much more delicate in flavour, still sweet but not overly so. The fruit is translucent because it is separated out from the jam setting process. I was (as always) a little impatient in pouring it into the bottle which means the fruit has risen, but that is just pure aesthetics. For I can tell you that Sebastien (who was home from school for the day) and I shared a great slathering of it on a croissant for afternoon tea...and it was yummeeee!!!

New stock at suzy hausfrau

I've got to admit this yarn store thing can be a bit exciting at times! Take today for instance, after dropping the squidgets at school I ventured out to the Australian distributor of Brittany needles/crochet hooks. I was delighted last week to find them so close to me here in Canberra...not quite in Canberra but in a small village just on the outskirts. The ladies were so lovely and showed me around the warehouse which was packed with all sort of gorgeous crafty goodness. Then they gave me a trolley and let me go! I loaded up on some Brittany knitting needles and crochet hooks , plus a few new pattern books to add to the collection. There are some other sizes of Brittany still to come, and I will add more beautiful lines from them in the next few weeks.

Just take a peep at these needles and hooks, made from birch wood which originates from strictly regulated forests or small woodland owners in the US. This wood is turned by a family of craftsmen. Birch is used because it is strong, stable, resists warping and can be given a smooth finish.

I've transferred both projects that I have on the sticks and hooks tonight, and I'm smitten!

Petite Purls FREE magazine

Design by Cheezombie as featured in Petite Purls

Canberra's annual flower festival, Floriade kicked off this week so I'm absolutely delighted to have found these gorgeous tulips to make for the little ones. They come in the most delightful FREE online magazine . Hello did you hear me...FREE, FREE patterns...FREE!!!

Sometimes I think I can be a little slow on the uptake. I'm sure I must be the last person to have heard of Petite Purls. The latest issue is here and features an article on the top ten textile toy designers on the web, some great patterns for Waldorf dolls (even a swimsuit)and more FREE stuff than even I have hope of devouring!

There are also back issues for the last two years and some basic patterns for your squidgets.

I'm absolutely smitten!

Have a great day,

suzy xoxo

My creative space

Moss stitch, I just love it! It was the stitch that I most wanted to master when I first started knitting.

The baby jacket with the loveliest moss stitch border by Debbie Bliss is what I'm working on today. The other night I suddenly realised that the largest size in the pattern is 24-36 months in the book that I have and my lil' Sophie will be 3 in December! Yikes, no time for UFOs here.

More creative spaces over here.

Have a awesome day,

suzy xoxo

New stock at suzy hausfrau

I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am to be introducing Debbie Bliss yarn to my little store. Since opening back in June I've had so many people ask me if I'm going to stock Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino. It is an obvious favourite with a lot of knitters/crochet folk out there. I have used this yarn a couple of times in the past, most notably for this cardigan for Sophie. It was a dream to work with, and this garment has kept on going through a couple of seasons and will easily make more...

I have started with the ten most popular colours, and will add to the range over the next few weeks.

I am also stocking Debbie Bliss Cotton DK for those customers who want to make up some lighter garments for spring/summer...and a couple of pattern books.

Please let me know if there are any colours or books that I don't have, I'm more than happy to do a special order.

Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino

$9.95 per ball (RRP $11.50)

Debbie Bliss Cotton DK Bliss Cotton DK

$7.95 per ball

Pattern Books , starting at $24.95

New blog crush

It's been a while since I've posted about any new blog crushes. I have lots of them, there are so many talented people out there I often feel quite inadequate. So, today I was working...ummm....away, ahem on Pinterest - seriously I was!

Anwyay, whilst I was merrily pinning away I came across this guy, followed the link back to this blog ...isn't it divine! I love the use of muted colours, this blog is so inspirational I knew that I had to share it! Share my new blog crush...

image from willewopsie

BC Garn Baby Alpaca *LOVE*!

From the moment that I touched the dear sweet baby alpaca fibre on the sample card I have been in love! When the hanks arrived in the most delicious and sweet colours, I was smitten...working with it whilst making my new scarf was just divine...and now I'm obsessed!

This yarn makes grown women go weak at the knees - I'm serious! I wore this scarf to my showcase a few weeks ago and it was easily the best seller on the day. I have all of the kinder mums at school in a frenzy, buying it up....and most of them can't even crochet! (I can feel a class or two coming on). Have I told you that I love it? I mean REALLY love it...can't you tell?

...and I love wearing my new scarf, firstly because I hardly ever make anything for me, but mainly because it is just GAWGEOUS! Crochet can sometimes create garments that are a bit rigid, but this has fluidity and grace...and dare I say it class!

Happy days,

suzy xoxo

My creative space

Today my creative space is focused my friends! I'm so close to finishing a summer dress/tunic for Sophie so I am going to push on, finish it and block it out tonight - which will mean a little photo shoot on the weekend and show and tell on Monday.

I got terribly excited this morning when I realised the end was near...so I decided to take 15% off all of my silk blends in the store until next Friday (prices as marked).

The pattern is Coco's Bobble Dress and I'm using BC Garn Silkbloom Fino ix20.

Sewing seams

Do you avoid making garments that need you to sew seams? I am usually disappointed by my efforts I have to say which is such a let down after the whole process of choosing pattern/colours/yarn, not to mention project process.

So then you can imagine my delight when Susan, a long time reader of my blog sent me this fantastic article from the Twist Collective, I'm seriously thinking about pulling out the seams on my Rand Cushion and doing them again with these tips!

Happy sewing,
suzy xoxo