Category Archives: Knitting

Advent Calendar – Day Fourteen Christmas Jumper Day

For the Advent Calendar today I’m harking back to this post, because its Christmas Jumper Day today, in aid of Save the Children!

Debbie Bliss has designed these beautiful patterns for stunning Christmas Jumpers.

Both large and small!

But before you think I’ve completely lost it, I’m not suggesting you run up a Christmas Jumper for every family member before the Big Day (11 Sleeps! – Eeek!) but you have got time for the tiny ones. Remember these…?

They’re just perfect for your Christmas breakfast eggs, and if you anticipate being too full of chocolate coins and Brazil nuts by then, they make fabulous Christmas tree decorations…

And you can download the pattern here.

If you’re thinking, well I really don’t have time to start a knitting project just now, but would like a little jumper for your tree, how about one of these?

To raise funds for Save the Children these little Jumpers are available for auction, here..NOW!

Just leave a bid in the comments saying which Jumper you would like, and the highest bidder will receive it in time for Christmas (UK onlyI’m afraid) Once I’ve worked out who has the highest bid I will contact the winner to arrange payment via Paypal.

This is such a good cause, and it would be lovely to contribute to it so please, leave your bids. Bidding will close on Sunday at 4pm.

I look forward to hearing from you .,..

Day Two of the ‘Virtual’ Advent Calendar!

I’ve had lots of encouraging comments about my Christmas blogging marathon, a post a day for the virtual Advent Calendar until Christmas Eve, thank you all very much! (And if you’ve just discovered what I’m up to, scroll down to end of this post and find Day One’s crafty wrapping ideas…)

Today is all about my celebratory Giveaway for my 5 years living on Planet Penny, and I’ve deliberated long and hard to think of something everyone can enjoy, whether you are a maker, or someone who just appreciates what is made. So the prize is ready made, and part of it is the Advent Calendar make for today.

Having spent so much time with my Rainbow collection of yarn I thought it would be good to celebrate that with colourful tree decorations, so I have made some mini balls of yarn complete with tiny knitting needles.

These look lovely on the Christmas tree…

…but are far too pretty and colourful to hide away for the rest of the year. Can you imagine them strung on a line adorning someone’s crafting corner, or hanging round the edge of a lampshade perhaps?

They are simple to make if you want to do your own. I used a small polystyrene ball as a base and glued the yarn on to start with. Then you just wind round carefully until the base is hidden and the ball is the size you want. Glue the tail back on itself to form the hanger. The needles are made from cocktail sticks with beads on the end and pushed through the ball…simples!

But you can win your own if you enter the Give-away Prize Draw!

The next part of the prize has to be needlefelt don’t you think? It’s been so much of what I do. So this too could be yours…

..a little Christmas Mousie…

And finally, I’d like to include a book, and this time there’s a choice. It could be a copy of ‘Knitting on the Road’…

…if you are a knitter. There are some beautiful and unusual patterns from around the world…

Or if sewing’s more your thing, there’s ‘Zakka Style’…

This has some stylish and unusual designs which are very appealing…

…or if you or someone in your family would prefer to snuggle up with a good read you could choose this…

…which will be signed by the author, Thomas Taylor, just for you. I know him quite well! (You can find out more about Thomas, the book and how we know each other from this post)

So to recap, the prize is –

14 hanging ornaments – mini rainbow balls of yarn with knitting needles
a Christmas needlefelt mouse with hat and bell
And a choice of one of three books

And what do you have to do to have a chance of winning? I didn’t want to make things complicated so all you have to do is follow me in some way. You can subscribe by Email in the little box at the top of the left hand column. If you do that already there’s also the choice of Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter. And then just leave a comment on this post or any other of the Advent posts to let me know so I can add you to the list. You only have to do one thing, but if you sign up for more than that you get more chances!

If you sign up to follow me on any of the other sites, please let me know via a blog comment so I don’t miss you off the list!

This will run until after Christmas to give every one as much of a chance as possible to take part and I will make the draw via a Random Number Generator in the week between Christmas and New Year. In the meantime, do call back and find out what happens next on the Crafty Christmas Countdown Calendar!

See you soon…!

P.S. Don’t forget to call over to Handmade Monday to see what else is going on in the crafty world!

Chilling out on Planet Penny

Brrrr, it’s sooo cold! I’m ensconced in my little Planet Penny office wearing my Boneyard scarf…

wrapped several times round my neck, the pink version of the wrist warmers and with a cup of hot lemon and ginger tea to hand. Apart from the miserable weather a lot of it is to do with sitting still too much, needlefelting, crocheting and winding wool, or tapping on a keyboard does not generate enough heat! Tim’s on dog walking duty while I finalise the craft fair bits and pieces, so at least he and Higgins are getting proper exercise.

The needlefelting? Well it’s robins as usual! I think I’ve got enough now to be going on with. My latest version, and I think my favourite, is attached to a wool covered crocodile clip which means it can be clipped on the branches of a Christmas tree, or a pot plant…

…he’s got a little button heart in his beak…

The crocheting, well I’ve made some tiny bunting, it’s great for using up left over Planet Penny cotton and would look lovely strung on shelves or a dresser. For the moment I’ve just added it to my bunting and garland collection in the studio add a little colourfulness against the gloom…

The winding has been for more rainbow mouse kits (this can be done in front of the fire watching Strictly Come Dancing so I did manage to thaw out a bit!)

And the tapping away on the computer was for my first proper book review which, if you missed it, is here. It’s worth a look, it’s a fabulous book.

Finally, with Halloween around the corner, Higgins had a go at pumpkin carving yesterday. When I came in with one to turn into pumpkin soup, Higgins when wild with excitement, convinced it was a football, just for him.

When I put down for him to check it out he made a huge effort to get his teeth in it…

But the disaster came when he finally managed to get it to roll. It rumbled across the floor, hit a small table on which Tim had just placed a fresh cup of tea and knocked it flying, soaking poor Henry who was just passing. What a good thing Henry has thick fur, just his dignity was hurt!

He managed to make quite an impression on the pumpkin before being bribed away with a doggy treat so I could hide it in the pantry! (I now have a lot of soup, a lot of frozen pumpkin, and I still have half left. I wonder if I can chop it up with dog food? And this was a small one!)

So for now I’ll leave you with the usual link to Handmade Monday and get back to work. If you’re in Norfolk on Wednesday it would be lovely to see you at How Hill for the Craft Fair but if not, I’ll be back soon…x

Bexhill, Hastings…and a little bit of knitting!

After last week’s London adventure you’d think I’d retire for a rest, but no… the very next day we were packing the car to set off to the South Coast for a couple of days in the Bexhill/Hastings area staying with elder son and family. It was an eventful start. While I was away Higgins had tried out his ‘Super-Dog’ impression, leaping off the arm of the chair shouting at a passing jogger and landing painfully hard on his little stumpy legs and pulling a muscle. This involved a trip to the vet before we set out, a rigorous examination to check nothing desperate had been done, and instructions to make sure Higgins took things easy, and No Running About…

What? We were on our way to stay with his favourite little boys, who live in a house with a garden full of squirrels….

After a long day driving, Friday is not a good day to travel, Higgins had had the equivalent of 24 hours bed rest and was even less likely to do what the doctor ordered when he arrived, but a lot of effort was put into nursing care…

We had a peaceful morning on Saturday, with a spot of craftiness…

and a trip to the park in the afternoon…

but the next day it was pouring…

Not a day for the beach for anyone.

We spent the morning with a little bit of knitting…

you just see how helpful Higgins was being!

In the afternoon however, we donned waterproofs and headed to Hastings…

I love the area around Rock a Nore in Hastings with it’s strange black fishing huts, and despite the rain found Claire Fletcher‘s great little studio opened for the afternoon full of beautiful bits and pieces, and one I had only that morning been reading about in a copy of Coast magazine…

When the big black doors in the photo are opened, you see this!

After a little wander around in the teeth of the wind and rain…

….we reached the Jerwood Gallery which I’ve wanted to visit since it opened.

It’s an amazing exhibition space, and although it is controversially built next to the fishing area of Hastings on The Stade , the sympathetic design means it sits comfortably alongside the black sheds. Inside, the large plain windows frame the surrounding views, making the town part of the exhibition…

I now wear the badge I bought in Claire’s Studio with pride!

And I did manage a little bit of creativity of my own…You don’t think I went away without my knitting did you? Unable to find the pattern I made my fingerless mitts from a couple of years ago (if you remember, Higgins ate them!) I devised a new pattern of my own. Very simple, (and I could knit in the car too, obviously not while driving!)

but with lots of scope for embellishment…

…and so good I made them twice!

I’ve written the pattern, and it’s available for free here, if you’d like to make some too.

So I’ll leave you for now with the link to Handmade Monday over on Handmade Harbour, and I’ll be back soon…x

Reasons to be Cheerful 11

Hello! It’s very cheerful here on Planet Penny…a blue, blue sky and bright sunshine – a perfect winters day. And when Higgins and I went round the garden this morning we found these little lovelies optimistically anticipating Spring…

They are probably being a little too optimistic seeing as we’re not even in the middle of January yet, but I shall enjoy them while I can!

And I have my usual post Christmas bunch of daffodils which I have to welcome the New Year. There’s something so fresh and hopeful about the delicate lemon/yellow and green after the bright colours and rich decorations of Christmas. They’re not quite open yet…

…so I’ve got it all to look forward to!

Can you see those spools on the the top of the dresser? I bought them at the Knitting and Stitching show last year and forgot to show them to you. They were empty when I bought them, but it was an ideal way of showing of some ribbons, tapes and bindings I’ve had in my stash waiting for the right moment to star…

The top two and the far right one are some I found in France and wrote about in this post, the blue and white stripe bias binding is made from a favourite shirt of Tim’s and the seashell ribbon was tied round a birthday present. This way I can enjoy them even though I haven’t actually made anything with them yet! (I can’t remember the name of the company I bought them from at the Show, but I’ve found them for sale via Not on the High Street from Jane Means)

And the other thing which has made me happy is a little rabbit. I don’t really knit animals much as I love to needlefelt them, but yesterday I discovered a bag of sample wool…

and this Debbie Bliss book which I’ve had for years…

click image for info

As I discovered it while I was looking for my mislaid sock pattern (which I needed as I’d got to the point of turning the heel) I abandoned the search, grabbed the most bunny coloured wool and some needles and created my own version of a Debbie Bliss rabbit. (I know, what a butterfly brain!)

I’ve used vintage mother-of pearl buttons to attach the limbs and shirt buttons for the eyes so he wouldn’t be suitable for a little one, but I think he’ll be staying with me for the moment!

So that’s what making me cheerful this week, how about you? Do share your thoughts by adding your blog to the Linky below, or if you don’t have a blog, leaving a comment. I really appreciate all your comments on every post and always read them. If you are linking your blog, don’t forget to link back to Planet Penny so we can really spread a little cheerfulness!

And now I’d better get back to looking for that sock pattern….

See you soon! x

2011 – A Year in Pictures

It’s the end of the year, so I thought I’d do a recap. It’s been very interesting trawling through the archives and seeing how things have developed over the months and I thought I would share the experience…

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

It’s already giving me lots of new ideas for the next twelve months, so I hope you’ll drop in again to see how it’s going! In the meantime, I wish you all a very Happy New Year, where ever you are….see you in 2012! xxx
http://youtu.be/QEVF0fah17k