Pretty Legs

Here is Danica's legwarmers completed for her 5th birthday.  Just got back from my local yarn store with the buttons for the flowers,  sewed them on and took the pictures on this very rainy day.   The colour looks like it's lavender on this picture,  but it's actually rose, not a good day for picture taking.


Once again, this is such a simple, enjoyable pattern to do.  The flowers are an added touch that makes the legwarmers girlie and fun.  I have to confess that I am spending more money on the buttons that I  believe I should, but at the end  it finishes everything off so perfectly.


This pattern is  Legwarmies by Alana Dakos  and the yarn is Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino   a perfect gift for any girl or boy  and knits up quick when you actually work on it, which was not what I had been doing lately. 


Now I can go back and work on my summer cardi "Drifting"


Alice xox

Racerback Tank Top

I knitted this  tank top last year but I don't think I ever wore it.  But since our weather has finally begun getting much warmer I  have been wearing  it  for 2 days in a row.   Now I wish I had made more !!   When I found this pattern, my local yarn store had to bring in the  yarn , Cascade fixation in, but now they also stock it, so if I really want to be very busy knitting, that is what I would make more of.   It's cotton and stretchy and it does cling to your body but it does not get hot.

I am tempted !!

Alice xox

Garden in a Barrel

On Sunday I looked at this  barrel and the  sad looking impatients and decided it needed a sprucing up    The original flowers that were planted were a light pink and corral impatients.  I did not plant them so I couldn't say anything about it, but the corral waas not my favourite in that combination  But with all the rain the last month or so, the impatients needed an uplift.  So I went to a local nursery and picked up a potato vine, bacoppa and a small fuchia plant.  These are semi-shade lovers as that was I needed for this space.  I was aiming for a cascading of plants to trail over the barrel. 

 Being that I am an admirer of flowers but not usually the Gardener, which is what my husband loves, I didn't know what I was doing.   I planted these and was so impressed with myself and how it turned out I had to share.    I did keep the original pink impatients and transferred the corral ones to elsewhere in the garden.

Now everytime I  go back the barrel I fuss around the flowers to see how they are doing.   I can see how people get attached to their flowers and gardens !!

Alice xox

Knitted Flower

I decided today to show how I make a knitted flower. This is a flower I'm making for the legwarmers that I just completed. I hope you try it out. 

I started out with some left-over yarn, use a DK weight.  I used  Malabrigo Yarn Silky Merino and a size 4 mm circular needle.  You don't need a circular needle but I just prefer to use it  instead of a straight needle.


The pattern comes in different sizes but I chose a 6 petal flower, so here is what you do:

Cast  on 74 stitches  using the  long-tail cast on method..here is a video on cast on method

Row 1:  Purl

 

Row 2: :  K2, *K1 slip this st purlwise back onto left needle, lift next 9 sts on left needle one by one over this st and off the needle, yfwd twice, then knit first st again, k2.  Repeat from * to end.

Row 3: K1, *P2tog, K1,K1tbl, P1.  Repeat from *to last st, K1.

Row 4:  Knit

Row 5: P2tog to end of row.

Break yarn and thread through remaining stitches.  Use as a single flower or stack 2 together.

Tadah...  Here is the finished flower.  So simple....so sweet.  I will put a button in the center for a  finishing touch.

I hope you enjoy it !!

Alice xox

Drifting Along




Drifting by Cecily Glowick Mackdonald

 This is the back view of my current work in progress.   I have been admiring  Cecily Glowan MacDonald  patterns lately, there so many of her designs that I enjoy.    I had seen  Drifting done by one of my friends from my knit night and decided that this was something I also wanted  for summer.    I decided to work with cotton for something different and I loved this colour, it's called baked red.     It will be a super summer top, you can wear over top of a summer dress or tank top.

Once again I am challenging my knitting skills with Drifting.  I did get stumped with one of the increase instructions, right at the beginning and  couldn't find anything online, then sent my friend an email  who had knit this before and she kindly provided me with a link to a video on it.   Here is my link to my notes .

This is where I have stopped my Drifting , it would take no time to complete it, but I have legwarmers that I need to complete for  a birthday in July.   Don't know why, but I'm just not getting to those legwarmers like I should be, they really take no time to make, but I would rather pick my cardigan.   

As summer weather seems to be shy so far, it has not been too hot to knit.   I'm glad I'm working with the cotton on my cardigan, it's a different experience than working with wool all time.  Cotton is so much cooler too.

Now that I have a proper picture of my Drifting in progress it will inspire me to complete the legwarmers and get back to it, so I can enjoy wearing it this summer.

Alice xox

Kalanchoe

This morning I saw this little plant and thought I would clip the old flowers off.  But after doing it I realized that it had still lots of new buds that had not bloomed yet...too late.    This picture was taken after the clipping was done.


The plant is called Kalanchoe.   I have 2 of them and they have been my favourite flowering  house plants.  I only have had since the beginning of the year.   The ones I have are covered with fuschia pink or red flowers.   The flowers last for a couple of months and they look so fresh.   I started to dead head the flowers and discovered that new ones came back.   I guess this time I got a little ahead of the game.   

After the initial hair cut I saved the flowers and put them in this pottered water glass.

So If you want a flowering house plant that's hardy and looks beautiful and not too much fussing..this is a great one.  I don't do anything else with it except water it.    So I am learning what they are like.  One is in the bathroom and it seems to bloom longer as it's not in direct sunlight, but this one is getting alot of direct light and sun.  I don't think it will like it through the summer months of direct sunlight.   Have to find a new home.

Enjoying them side by side.

Alice xox

Day 1

I've decided to challenge myself to post something everyday here on my blog.  I want to improve my  photography skills, which I so admire in others as well as writing. .   It will be a random post.      Here is my first day.


 This is a sunflower seedling.  I planted about 6 of them a couple of weeks ago.   I wanted to show how they grow and the size they get.  I purposely place a ruler (yes that is a ruler) just for you to get a visual on the size.     Exciting..hey. !!




 This flower or vine I should say is called Bougainvillea.   It is a tropical flower.  No, we don't live a tropical climate. More like a rainforest of lately.  This is probably the 2nd time we've had it in the garden.  I honestly can't remember what happened to the first one, so we shall see with this


So, stay tuned to Day 2 tomorrow..

Alice xox