An ode to silliness...

On ravelry in the British Knitters group there was a thread regarding the new Astounding Knits book (see ten projects here). A few people felt that this did nothing to inspire knitters, that this kind of thing gave knitting a bad name and that they disliked knitting with no practical use. I for one, am just the opposite. Life can be pretty tough and harsh at the best of times. So I am all for a little bit of silliness or whimsy. I think these projects do inspire, they help to push the boundaries of what you can do with needles and yarn. And to the idea that they have no practical use, they do have function - they may make us laugh and think. Surely these are important? Being a little silly is very important. I for one, have spent the weekend using my knitted fishy as an air guitar or kipper tie (thanks to mr crafty for being my model).
Watched jousting and seen a little medieval craft.
And finished reading issue six of oh comely magazine. A magazine that describes itself as 'about people and their quirks and creativity, rather than money and what it can buy'. What a nice sentiment, now if only the rest of the world was like that.

Making origami bookmarks

My usual bookmark is a receipt, train ticket or flyer - nothing very special. I saw these cute origami bookmarks in issue 9 of Making magazine. They are easy to make & look super cute! I used some scrap wrapping paper and an old Cath Kidston magazine. Much nicer than a tatty old receipt!

A feel good phone story

I once had a very sad phone. Its cover was boring and black, scratched and scuffed.
The phone being very clever, and full of internets and wizardry, told me about a new magazine called Mollie Makes.
The phone knew that the magazine had a special free gift - all the things you needed to make a very pretty phone cover. The phone set to work, hinting that maybe I should make this cover.
After all even birds wearing berets made this cover.
The phone knew that I liked felt, bright colours and buttons - so it didn't take long to persuade me. So I set to work, adding purple felt and using pinking shears. Everyone knows that pinking shears are far superior in the scissor world and not just because of their rather grand name, but because of their perfect zig-zag ridges.
Now the magazine provided a button and a nice button it was.
However the phone wanted the button to be more than just nice, it wanted it to be perfect. It tried out many buttons before deciding on its favourite.
The phone then supervised the stitches, making sure they were not too long, not too short, but just right.
And then when it was all finished, the phone popped inside to try it out.
Now my phone is much happier, in its cozy cute cover. Thank you Mollie Makes!

The day gets better!

After a rubbish morning at work, I came home to stitch. Finally the embroidery on my kingfisher piece is finished! No more fiddly beads - hurrah!
It needs to be backed, so for now here is a peak of the messy back.
My jam jars are all cleaned, so my buttons can all go to their new homes. Looking very pretty indeed.
The postman brought me a CD-Rom of the 2008 editions of FiberArts. I shall enjoy looking at this later, whilst supping some hot chocolate. As it is definitely hot chocolate weather here!
Finally, there is a wonderful winter raffle in aid of Rabbit and Guinea Pig Welfare, with some fantastic crafty prizes. See here for more details. Meanwhile, I am prototyping a guinea pig scarf. It is very warm & cosy, the downsides are that it does squeak a bit, is a bit musky and occasionally poops!

Perusing & Ligging...

Flicking through shiny glossy pages is fun. The new Cath Kidston pocket guide came in the post. Who wouldn't want a big pile of fabrics like this to admire?
Or cake tins? Preferably full of cakes!
I couldn't resist the 21st anniversary issue of Elle Decoration.
Some beautiful bird patterns, to adorn your house.
And Simply Knitting, what about this jumper? Gorgeous! Who wouldn't want to wear a reindeer on your chest!
When not collecting magazines to file on the living room floor, last night was the first birthday of Trongate 103. I love the Eduardo Paolozzi work inspired by Alan Turing.
Turing is of course, the mathematical genius who was part of the Enigma code breaking team at Bletchley Park. And Bletchley just happens to be my home town. My favourite gallery at Trongate 103 is Project Ability, maybe that is my day job coming through! The current exhibition is from Robert Reddick, with the walls of the gallery were covered with his many sketches. The drawings depicted Glasgow life, books, animals & memories.
Oh, and as a special treat, Sons and Daughters played live!

Quilts 1700-2010: Hidden Histories, Untold Stories.

I spent the weekend in Milton Keynes visiting family. On Saturday me & my mum popped down to London to the V&A to see their quilt exhibition. The range of work was amazing, I am in awe of the tiny stitches, the planning & the perseverance. Each quilt told a story, from a wounded solider making a military quilt to Caren Garfen's 'how may times do I have to repeat myself' quilt looking at the role of women within the home. The show is on till the 4th of July, if you get the chance, I can certainly recommend it.

Also check out the summer edition of UK handmade, beautiful inspirations & tips!