Oliver + S sew along

So after yesterday's post about stash busting, it got me to thinking about doing some book busting. I'm sure some of you are like me, you see a gorgeous book and you HAVE to buy it. It arrives you are way beyond pleased because the projects are just as beautiful as you imagined...but then something happens, actually nothing happens. Trust me this is not for a lack of wanting to sew, but like most things it gets pushed aside. It was fortuitous then that I came across the Oliver + S Little Things Sew Along from a little gray. I think it's a well paced sew along - one wee project a month.

I have had the Little Things to Sew Book since it came out - and I love it!

So I'm in...and committed! Button on my sidebar - care to join me?

The perfect stash buster

I have been meaning to post about this for AGES! I made this garment a couple of months ago and let me tell you it was the perfect stash buster. I had both the pattern and the fabric in the stash for at least a couple of years and in a rare moment of clarity I put two and two together and voila, here is the result. It has been a great addition to Sophie's wardrobe and she just adores the little "ladybuggies" all over the fabric.

I'm not sure what the name of the fabric is, but it is a double sided heavy Japanese linen which is very durable and toddler friendly. The pattern is #17 from Ottobre 01/2009.

So much sorrow...so much spirit.

I have been filled this week with so much sorrow for the people of Norway. But I am absolutely in awe of their spirit, dignity and how they are dealing with this tragedy. I found this quote from a survivor (In my Tree via My Scandinavian Retreat) and it perfectly sums up the Norwegian spirit to me...perhaps this is one of the many reasons that I am drawn to the Scandinavian ethos

Winter vegie garden

After my wildly successful summer in the garden I was perhaps a tad overconfident about continuing the success throughout the winter. In the past I've managed broccoli and broad beans during the Canberrian winter, but not this year! The broad beans and snow peas are growing at a 'snail's pace' which is an apt description because the broccoli is forever being munched by the snails before it gets to any decent size. I've tried all sorts of barriers which work wonderfully well until you forget to put them on one night - and then in the morning...zip....all broccoli G-O-N-E! I'm grateful for the leeks though, because they appear to be indestructible.

We had a very early start to winter so the plants never managed to get ahead before day after day of minus starts and frost. One highlight in my winter vegie garden is my forever producing strawberry plants. These plants have been producing fruit for well over a year, whilst it is only one or two fruits a week now it has been a continuous supply for little helpers in the garden. I don't think a single one has made it inside!

Winner- giveaway!

First of all let me say a HUGE thank you to everyone who entered the draw for the giveaway on my little blog - I just loved receiving all of your wonderful comments and having you 'over' for a peep...please come back any time!

...and also to the fabulous Corrie from retromummy for sharing the love and linking my giveaway to her blog.

Now without further ado (drum roll sounds), the winner of the $100 suzy hausfrau voucher is comment number 22...two little ducks, 22 (I do have a bit of a soft spot for the old bingo number calling!)...Carolyn from Stamp with Me.

Now for the official bit - the winner was drawn using a random generator widget (seriously) and overseen by the panel of not so serious experts. Here is a picture of one during the draw...

My creative space.

Today I've gone back to the ol' hook and yarn and am loving it! I've started the Coco's Bobble Dress in BC Garn Silk Bloom Fino (ix20) ...and am hooked (haha) on doing puff stitches...and how quickly it is coming together.

More creative spaces are found over here...

Getting ready to spread the word!

I've been waiting for nearly two weeks for my new moo cards. But aren't they purrrty and worth the wait...just the perfect thing to spread the word around.

...and remember only three (and a little bit) days left to enter my giveaway.

Fia Hat from MillaMia Wonderland book

I have been trying to remember to take the camera out with me everyday to get a good snap of the finished Fia Hat from MillaMia's Wonderland book . As I said the other day, this was my first attempt at colourwork/fair isle and I have to say that it was sooooo much easier than expected! Almost (I say almost) easier than colour work in crochet!! Today, we headed off to the National Zoo and Aquarium for some school holiday fun and yay mummy remembered the camera.

As you can see I haven't knitted the ties from the book and have been holding off because the flaps are a fair bit longer than expected. I am actually delighted about this, because it means this hat will be getting use for a couple more years...but as she wears it every day I'm so worried about her losing it I think that I will crochet her some lovely long ties. I will post details when complete.

..and have you entered the giveaway! One lucky yarn tragic will win a $100 voucher for use in my little store. Entries close midnight (AEST) this Friday.

Giveaway!

I've had so much fun showing off the Danish yarn this week I thought it might be nice to end it with a suzy hausfrau yarn store giveaway!

So.....I'm going to giveaway a $100 voucher to one lucky yarn tragic for use in my little store. If you are interested in a chance to win please leave one comment on THIS post before midnight (AEST) next Friday 22 July 2011.

The winner will be selected by one of those random generator thingos (technical term!)

WINNER DRAWN - Carolyn from Stamp with me....

A yarn a day (4) - Holst Garn Wool/silk blend

OK...so day four of show and tell...and the last of the Danish yarns that arrived last week.

Last but not least is Holst Garn wool/silk blend. The colour that I have chosen is aubergine which is gorgeous and already on the sticks of a friend - I'll post the end result when it is done.

With all of the yarns in the Holst Garn range, once the garment is complete you need to wash it in cold water where upon it will transform into supersoft delicious delights!

Details are:

Weight: Lace/2-ply

Unit: 50g

Yardage: 287 m/314 yds

Needle Size: 3-3.25 mm for single yarn or 4-4.5 mm with double yarn

Tension: 25 stitches to 10cm/4 in for single yarn and 16 stitches to 10cm/4 in for double yarn

Fibre: 75% wool/25% silk

Texture: Plied

Don't forget to pop back to tomorrow for a very special announcement....happy happy days!

my creative space | cumquat marmalade

My creative space is in the kitchen this morning. Remember those cumquats that I got a week or so ago. Well this morning I finally finished my batch of cumquat marmalade. I let the mixture soak for 24 hours so that the peel was nice and soft.

More creative spaces can be found here

A yarn a day (3) - BC Garn Baby Alpaca

Day three of my Danish yarns...and the delicious BC Garn Baby Alpaca. Every time I pick up a skein of this yarn I get reminded of fairy floss. It is super, super soft and it makes you want to give it a cuddle (in fact I have done that!) I'm going to make Mr Hausfrau a wintry hat out of it, and a lacy scarf for moi!

There is a monstrous 500m yardage on each hank, which would be enough for a scarf or shawl depending upon the pattern.

I will point out that it was very hard to take photos that would do this yarn justice, and one colourway in particular the red (au08) is much more burgundy/ruby red in real life.

Don't forget to pop back on Friday when I'll be announcing a bit of a treat for my readers.

So, as before - details are:

Weight: Light fingering/3-ply

Unit: 100g

Yardage: 500m/547 yds

Needle Size: 2-3 mm

Tension 31 stitches to 10cm/4 in

Fibre: Baby alpaca

Texture: Plied

A yarn a day (2) - Holst Garn Supersoft Wool

Day two of my Danish yarn expozay! This yarn is Holst Garn Supersoft Wool. Holst Garn is run by the delightful Helle Holst who was an absolute pleasure to deal with during our oh so many email exchanges...and then when I finally placed my order I received to my delight an email response something like, thanks for your order now please give me two or three days to skein it up for you! Now if that's not a boutique yarn I don't know what is!!!

I found Holst Garn through Ravelry and one of my favourite designers, Sanne Bjerregaard. The first project that I'm going to cast on is Mari's dress.
Now, Ravelry has this yarn listed as a 4-ply, but Helle Holst describes it as a 2-ply which it most definitely is. I think Rav is a bit confused as most people knit this with two strands.

So, details of the yarn are:

Weight: Lace/2-ply

Unit: 50g

Yardage: 287 m/314 yards

Needle Size: 3-3.25mm for single yarn or 4-4.5 mm with double yarn

Tension: 25 stitches to 10cm/4 in for single yarn and 16 stitches to 10cm/4 in for double yarn

Fibre: 100% wool

Texture: Plied

A yarn a day - BC Garn Silkbloom Fino!

As promised over the weekend I am going to post about each of the new yarns this week - one each day...leaving room for a special announcement on Friday!

First up is the absolutely beautiful BC Garn Silkbloom Fino, suzy hausfrau is excited to be the first to bring this yarn to Australia.

BC Garn is a family run business in Denmark that was established in 1972. Their yarns are made from natural fibres and are considered to be a specialist in silk yarns in Europe. I knew that suzy hausfrau needed this yarn as soon as I saw it - but picking what colours was really, really hard. There are 25 colours in the full range, but I have just started with 9, and hope to grow the range as people become just as in love with it as I am.

Photos just don't do it justice, it has a shine and shimmer that is incredible!

So details are:

Weight: Fingering/4-ply

Unit: 50g

Yardage: 199 m/ 218 yds

Needle Size: 3-3.5 mm

Tension: 28 stitches to 10cm/4 in

Fibre: 55% merino wool/45% silk

Texture: Plied

MillaMia Rand Cushion - done!

This was a really quick knit, made from one of the MillaMia kits. I'll be stocking these kits closer to Christmas time. They are just beautiful, and the colour combinations are the perfect pop of colour for someone like me who only ever uses white bedding.

This morning's impromptu photo shoot was styled by Sophie...

Behind the scenes at suzy hausfrau

It's a busy Saturday behind the scenes here at suzy hausfrau! We loaded the NEW Danish stock into the store yesterday, but weren't really happy with the images provided. So we have spent a goodly portion of today re-shooting the yarn so that the colours on the site are more indicative of how they appear in real life....gawgeous of course. We are in the middle of uploading the new images now.

Lucky we had Mr Hausfrau's light box at the ready. Here is a behind the scenes look at our humble set up, which yields big results! Stay tuned for next week - when I'll do a yarn a day and show you how beautiful they really are!

My creative space.

I got up early this morning to block my latest project the Fia Hat from MillaMia's Wonderland book. This required making a toddler head out of a towel, which kind of seems to work...but I'd be glad for any tips on how to do this?

This is my first attempt at colour work, and I've got to say I'm loving myself sick over it!

More creative spaces over here...

Look look look!

Look what has arrived in the last hour! My first shipment of yarn from Denmark. I'm sooooo excited to be bringing these yarns to Australia for the first time! They are just beautiful, and the colours!!! I'll be working hard over the next couple of days to upload them to the shop.

This shipment includes BC Garn Silkbloom Fino (55% silk/45% merino 4ply), BC Garn Baby alpaca (100% alpaca 3 ply), Holst Garn Supersoft Wool (100% wool 4ply) and Holst Garn (75% wool/25% silk 4ply). There is some 8ply and 10 ply still on the way....yippee!

Orange jam!!?!

Home-made jam in our house is referred to by colour. Red jam - strawberry, Blue jam - blueberry, Green jam - kiwi fruit, Purple jam - blackberry (I know this one doesn't quite fit)...so when a friend gave me a bunch of her beautiful cumquats over the weekend I began to wonder whether I could 'sell' cumquat marmalade to the two widgets as 'orange jam'?

I'll let you know how I get on!

Logo

You may have noticed a wee change to the blog over the weekend. My logo - ta da!!!

We are still trying to load it on to the website for the store, and it should be live tomorrow.

My first thought is how much I love it, and then how 'grown up' I look. What do you think?