drool

I decided to just take it easy tonight instead of thinking about what I need to do and how I can cross more things off my list. So I ended up looking at crocheted lace shawls on ravelry since I have a skein of lace weight from the Sheep and Wool Show I went to last month.

Ooo, I found some nice ones. This one grabbed my attention. Something like the sort of thing I was looking for. A triangle-shaped shawl, lacy and crocheted. Interesting pattern. It's Maia Shawl by Lisa Nakrent and published in Crochet Garden.

This one I loved instantly. It's called Gathering Leaves by Lily Go. I'm a foliage girl and I'm quite fond of green so this appeals to me quite stongly. But my skein of lace weight is more like the colour above with grey as well. This one here...well, I think I'd just HAVE to do it in green.

It's all dreaming at this stage though. I've got plenty on my plate at the moment. I'm moving house next month so organising myself for that. I've been accepted into an aupair program to go to the UK. I've gotta get onto getting my passport as my old one ran out last year. I've also gotta start an online course as a part of the program. So the plan is still to take this skein to the UK and work it there.

new stock

Some for my shop. Some for some shoppers already! Some for me. It's been a delightful weekend. For about a week and a half I've been working on building my stockpile back up coz my project pouches have been quite popular amongst crafters. So I've had seven waiting to be listed. (I just remembered about those beanies too. Must list them.) On Friday I actually sold my last two from my shop so while it was raining Saturday afternoon I decided to get the others listed. I spent all afternoon doing it coz it takes a while. Check out the new variety...

But they're not all available as I've already sold two plus some other things from my store. Woohoo! I also finished up this little guy. Squidge the Jellyfish. He's cute. You can see better pics of him in my shop.

And new stock for me from my awesome sister! Knit Pro crochet hooks from Morris and Sons. You guys will appreciate these more as you're more likely to understand my delight. I had hoped to get some at the Bendigo Sheep and Wool show but I didn't see any there, nor hardly any circular needles. My sneaky sister must have decided to get me some behind my back. Not that I mind. Thanks Tam! ^^ Had to start a new jellyfish today to give them a go.

mum's scarf

She wasn't too surprised to receive this for her birthday. It was a pattern from the book she gave me for my birthday. The Knitting and Crochet Bible. When I was flicking through it on the day I got it, she pointed at the scarf and accompanied it with a "Ooo, I like that!" So of course that's what she got. She did however 'oo' and 'ah' over the yarn I used. Pretty and so soft.

I used Moda Vera Picchio Dusk which is 70% Merino Superwash and 30% Silk. I quite liked the colours and the feel when they were on special one time so I bought the last two balls. They've been sitting waiting for a special project for quite a while and this scarf was perfect. Mum colours too. And I still have most of one ball left.

Yarn Fest -- The Loot

It's the Yarn Fest finale! My loot from the Australian Sheep and Wool Show I went to a few weeks back in Bendigo. There seemed to be fibre everywhere this year; almost more than there was yarn. But maybe it's because I was simply noticing it more. Since the first shed we entered was a felting area and a lady there showed us how to do it (plus knowing I had a little fibre at home already) I decided on trying my hand at it. So I stocked up. It's all so soft and delicious looking. Lovely colours just awaiting my creativity to work its magic tranformation act on it.
I got the grey fibre from Ewe Give Me The Knits stall. It's Grey Icelandic Top 110g. It's a bit rougher than the other fibre I got but it was cheap and I think will be good to start with. It will also make a good background or mix with the purple grey I got for my birthday. The rest in the above picture is from the Garments and Gadgets stall. From the bottom of the pile we have Pure Merino black 200g. A great base to hilight with the other colours or if I want something very versatile. Black goes with almost anything. The green I just had to get! Green is a great colour but this one is Pure Merino Kelly Green 100g. How could I resist!? Besides, it's a beautiful shade. A grassy green. Next we have Pure Merino WB 07/34 50g. A rainbow mix for some fun, bright featuring detail-work. Then the lovely Pure Merino WB 07/37 50g which is a real citrusy colour. Mostly yellow with lime green. Finally, on the very top the shiney Mulberry Silk 20g for some shimmery detail-work. The bottle is some felting hair care. Felting Finish & Wool Wash. A wool wash and conditioner in one. It's no rinse, contains lanolin to inhibit piling and tea tree oil to inhibit moth damage and antifungal to prevent mould and mildew. Provides the finishing touch that leaves your work lovely and silky soft.

I did also buy some yarn. The first two skeins weren't labelled but the stall lady said they were pure wool. I liked the colours. They'll make good seacreature amigurumis. The third is fun treat. I got it from the IxCHel stall. 58g/550m of hand dyed Australian Cashmere (30%) and Merino (70%) in Whisper. Can't wait to work some kind of lacy item with it. I think I'll store it for my UK adventure. And then at the far right form another stall is 100g skein of Colinette toscana 55 which is 79% wool and 21% bamboo. I love the random mix of colour over a base of green.

I also got this little guy. He's gonna mark my stitches for me. :) I'll put him on a clip so I can hang him at the start of my row so I don't lose my place.

Now I need to get to work and turn my stash into products. I'm planning on heading overseas next year for a year or two adventure basing myself as a nanny in the UK. I can't afford storage for my stuff so I need to get rid of most of what I have. So no more buying yarn (unless it's for a specific request) or other needless things I'll just have to sort in a few months time. Besides, I need to save my dosh for airfares and the like.