Tutorial: {Making Peg Doll Angels}

Knitting for Littles - Yarn Along

It has been hard to find time to sit down and write of late. Somehow there is always something else to do, which is good in a way as it means life is full. We have also all been down with various viruses, coughs and colds which isn't such a good kind of busy. I'm hoping at least we'll all have rock solid immunity by Christmas.

 I find that whenever I take a break from blogging, it feels hard to get back into it again. I wonder if I really have anything to say worth sharing. Yet blogging does inspire me. It tunes my mind to a positive dial. Maybe it's the sense of community and the interaction, or the way it makes me focus on the beautiful, easy to miss details of the day, in order to take a photo or record a wayward thought that would otherwise simply fall back into the great ocean of reflection that make up the moments, hours, days of life.

I like this quote from writer Noah Ben Shea: 

“The details make life holy. If you want a little happiness in life don’t forget to look at the little things. It is a poet’s work to see the incidental, pluck it, place an appropriate silence around both sides and see the profound in what passes for a passing moment. It is an artist’s job to as much discover art as create it. Prayer is a way of making the common profound by pausing, tying knots around a moment, turning our life into a string of pearls."

Little time for writing means more time for knitting though doesn't it? I have been spending lots of quite evenings with needles in hand, breaking every now and then for another cup of tea and some  Pinsperation. It amazes me how much you can accomplish during a few quiet evenings. Poor Nola lamby, has had a couple of ear infections recently. I found a  free slouch hat pattern on Ravelry and knit the child size up in one evening. It was a lovely simple knit. I love the way it fits cozily over her ears. I even learnt a new cast on method to make that cute rolled hem. I will be using the long tailed cast on method a lot more in the future. It is so fast and although sturdy allows a lot of flexibility. Click here for a You Tube tutorial.

To make the fingerless mitts I used the long tail cast on method and cast on 28 stitches onto size 4.5 mm needles using Aran weight wool mix yarn. I simply knitted in K2, P2" ribbing until I reached the desired length before casting off in rib and stitching up the side seam leaving adequate space for a little thumb.

I am making lots of bootees in different sizes for Emmy's baby. We still don't know if it will be a boy or a girl but if takes after it's Mama it will love any shade of green.

Above is the first leg of a pair of leggings. The cable cuff is a fun alternative to Knit2, Purl2 ribbing.

Below is a little top I kind of made up as I went along loosely following the dimensions of a couple of different patterns.

I haven't been reading too much but I have been enjoying the new series of Great Canal Journeys. Wouldn't it be magical to live on one of these?

Joining Small Things and Frontier Dreams

Soulfood Friday

Slow stitching with four little girls on a rainy afternoon.

Every Friday I'll be pausing to notice something from the week that has nourished my soul. 
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A special, sacred-everyday moment captured on camera, or perhaps a snippet from a book, a recipe still warm from the kitchen or something whimsical that simply made me smile.
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Here are a few simple things that have fed my soul this week. 

What has inspired/fed/nourished your soul this week friends? 
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 Feel free to link up to your own soulful spaces either at the bottom of this post or in the comments.

 
   

    An InLinkz Link-up

   

{Baby Knits}

Learning that you are going to be an Omie* ...at 36 is quite something.

And you know it is going to be a wonderful, magical, joyful, beautiful something.

I am sure having a baby during her first year of college will be challenging at times but this surprise wee one and it's dear Mama will be loved beyond measure by so many. I know all will be well, as it usually always is. And aren't some of the greatest wonders of life often unplanned?

So Emmy is starting college this September and the baby will be due in March so I've started to get a baby knits hamper made up for her.

I can't believe how much I've knitted for my babies over the years! Clearly this little one won't get chilly.

The satin lined blanket with the rabbit applique was actually knitted by my own grandfather for me.

His Scottish mother made sure he and his three older brothers learnt to knit when they were boys.

I made up this little baby bunting doll pattern on our way to and from the seaside a couple of weeks ago.

I had a rough idea of the shapes I wanted to create and by some magic/luck they kind of worked. 

Bit slap dash I know but I sometimes like the feeling of not knowing exactly what you're going to get.

Muddling along is my speciality it seems. Besides, I had only found out the exciting news a few days earlier and my hands were itchy for baby knits.

Watching this little being unfold from the nest of my own hands, my heart filled with love for the little hands that will hold was very special.
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I knitted this little bunting doll using a mix of natural brown Alpaca Aran and some beautiful, plant dyed worsted by the wonderful Oxford Kitchen Yarns on Etsy.

While the face and hands were knitted with some BFL that I tea dyed some months ago.

*(German for Granny and after my own Omie)

 Don't forget to enter my giveaway if you haven't already!

Joining Frontier Dreams and Small Things

Hat and Gloves {Yarn Along}

Last night I finished my hat and sewed up the seams on my second glove.

Either my tension was a bit off or my head is unusually small because the hat is a little loose.
I think I might gather the back seam and sew it a little tighter.

Saying that, I do like the pattern very much. I like the garter stitch edge and the artisan/casual look as my daughter describes it :)

I used Sirdar Divine Yarn in Lucia for both the hat and gloves.
The hat was made using  this Ravelry pattern.
The gloves were made using a pattern from Erica Knight's Classic Collection.

 

Joining Frontier Dreams and Yarn Along

Herbal Salves, Oils, Baths and Balms {Otherwise known as Potionmaking}

 

 Over the last few weeks we have been doing what my children refer to as "potion making."

The pictures below have been gathered over the last couple of years of  herbal adventuring.

We gather and Identify herbs from our little herb patch before putting into posies to dry 
upside down in a cool, dark cupboard.

Once dry we made jars of Chamomile and Mint tea to store.

Camomile is good for soothing tummies and has naturally calming properties.

Mint is invigorating and a perfect mid morning pick me up.

We infused some olive oil with Sage, Lemon balm and Rosemary by heating it slowly with the herb before bottling. This oil can be used for cooking with or combined with other ingredients such as Beeswax, Shea butter, Coconut oil and Essential oil to make therapeutic balms, and salves.

Here is our Rosemary infused Olive Oil. 

 Rosemary is shrouded in history and folklore. From ancient Greece through the European Middle Ages, rosemary was thought to possess the power to protect against evil spirits. Sprigs were placed under pillows or burned as incense to ward off evil demons and prevent bad dreams.

Rosemary is a rich source of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds thought to help boost the immune system and improve blood circulation. 
However, it is wise to avoid if pregnant as high doses have been linked to miscarriage.

We made Lavender oil by covering our dried lavender with 80% proof white vodka and sealing it for 6 weeks in  a cool, dark drawer. It was stirred daily and after six weeks we removed the lid and covered the jar with muslin. This allowed the excess liquid to evaporate. It took about a week for the smell of alcohol to dissipate leaving the concentrated plant extract and oil. You must use alcohol that is at least 80% proof for this but not methylated spirits. Vodka works very well. 
As you can imagine this little concoction is for external use only!

Beautiful debris.

Bottling.

A few drops of this Lavender oil can be added to baths or bath salts to soothe fractious nerves and aid restful sleep.

Soon it will be time for sloes again! Last year we made sloe gin. You must pierce each and every sloe berry so that they can infuse with the liquor and large quantities of sugar. We've found that sloe gin makes a very well received Christmas gift and a welcome, warming tipple for Winter visitors.
We use the recipe from An Illustrated Country Year.

We managed to dry Rose petals as well as Lavender.

Rose petals have natural anti-inflammatory and antibacterial proprieties which make them good for acne prone skin.
If you crush rose petals between your fingers you can feel the natural, fragrant oils seep out. These oils are naturally moisturizing and slightly astringent so they work to both hydrate and tone.

The scent of Rose is deeply nostalgic. Indeed, the petals are a staple in Ayurvedic medicine to detoxify and calm.

 

The dried flowers were mixed in layers of Epsom salt, sprinklings of bicarbonate of soda and our homemade lemon balm and lavender oils for warming scented Winter baths.

We also blended some of the dried rose petals in and mixed them to a paste with a couple of tablespoons of cold pressed olive oil and some Bergamot essential oil. Mixing the paste with a couple of cups of Epsom salts makes a lovely, fragrant body scrub.

Epsom Salts are a wonderful, natural source of Magnesium and can help balance the PH. Salts can also help soothe muscular aches and pains.

To make a Winter Salve perfect for chapped hands, feet and lips, we carefully melted some Beeswax using a wax burner. We shredded our wax but will probably use pellets next time as the shredded wax took ages to melt.


We mixed in some Shea Butter and Coconut Oil until we achieved a soft consistency and the balm became a soft buttery colour.

 Then we added a couple of tablespoon of Lemon Balm infused Olive oil. And some drops of essential oil.

 Lemon Balm was dedicated to the goddess Diana, and used medicinally by the Greeks some 2,000 years ago. 

Research has shown that the plant contains polyphenols which can help to sooth cold sores. At least part of this effect is due to antiviral properties of caffeic acid and rosmarinic acid, which are contained in lemon balm. This makes it perfect for use in salves and balms. 

The bright lemony yellow foliage is also very pretty and fragrant in the garden.

This page has lots of wonderful information on the properties and uses of herbs.

And Here is a wonderful resource of Herbs and their properties.

(Discalimer) Herbs are powerful.  Please consult a local herbalist for any contraindications before making and using herbal remedies.