New Cable Knit Wrist Warmers Knitting Pattern

I finally got around to writing out my Cable knit wrist warmers pattern today, it took me over an hour to write it out, and then another hour to work out how to create a pdf!
I couldn't do it from works word processor, as every site I tried to use told me it didn't convert this type of document, I'm sure that's how I did it on my old pc! I had to use office word 2007 which is new to me and I didn't have a clue how to use it, I'm out of practice with word, I ended up copying and pasting the whole document from one to the other.
Anyway I managed to do it, but I don't know how I did it......!!!!!!!!!!!

I have neglected my blog

so sorry but it's been forever since I had the time to visit my blog, poor neglacted blog......

Looks like it's going to be the pink ones!

After a few more comments on my fan page, it's looks like it's going to be the pink wrist warmers!
So who wants to win them?

post your comments to enter!

So I've been thinking.......Blog Giveaway pt 1

I was just wondering... what will get me back to my blog? which has been long forgotten since I moved house..... So I've been thinking of doing another giveaway, only this time I want you to tell me what the prize will be......... got it so far........now don't be getting all greedy and wanting the most expensive item in my shop......that just wouldn't be playing the game now would it? but you can pick something from my shop and whatever item gets the most requests will be the prize.


Are you all with me so far?

So this is going to run in two parts, the first part will be to pick one item from my shop which you would like to win, and post a comment with the link to the item at the end of this post, or on my facebook fan page

you don't have to post on both places, just one will do. One comment is one entry to my blog giveaway.
Then in about a week I will announce which item was the most popular choice, and that will be the giveaway, to win it you will have to post a comment on this post, my fan page, or part 2 of this blog giveaway.

I hope that is explained well enough. I will explain it again on the 2nd post, so watch out for my Blog Giveaway pt 2.

Let me just clarify a little, any comment on any post of this giveaway, or on my fan page will get your name in the hat, so to speak, if you comment once on this post, and once on my fan page and then again on the 2nd blog post, then you will have entered 3 times. Is that clear? If in doubt just ask me, because I've confused myself Ha Ha!
Have fun and good luck to everyone who enters.

moving house and moving on

I've been abandoning my blog just lately as a lot has been going on in my life.
I am moving to a new house in a week and I have a ton of packing to do! Can you even guess how much yarn I have?
So I will be busy packing and moving, I will also be without an internet connection for a while, as here in France they don't rush anything, I'm hoping I will be connected again within a week of moving, but I'm not holding my breath.
When I return I will be back in full force, with lots of new goodies to list in my etsy shop, so look out for my return.
I will also be tweeting and catching up with all my friends on facebook.
I'll still be around for a week, but I won't have much time to be very active.
I'm gonna miss you all, so don't forget me.

I won a blog giveaway

I still can't believe it!!! Kristina from Wash When Dirty just sent me an e-mail to tell me I just won 2 scrabble tile pendants in her blog giveaway!!! they are from the lovely jessejanes Etsy shop
I am so thrilled, I want to thank Kristina for running the giveaway, and I also want to thank Jesse for giving away 2 scrabble tile pendants:0)

This is my favorite item in her shop

....and the winner is.....

Thank you to everyone who entered my first blog giveaway, it has been fun reading all your comments, it's also been a great help to me, to see which items in my shop are everyones favorites, although the choices were so different, but that's a good thing.

Ok so now to the winner, congratulations Allie you have won a pair of my ribbed wrist warmers, just pick a colour out of the list on the post, don't worry if they are not in my shop as I've sold some since this giveaway was posted. They are also available in cream, but not pictured on my blog.
you can find Allie's etsy shop here and her blog here

I will be running another giveaway in a few weeks time, so please enter that too, just keep watching out for me to flood Twitter and FaceBook with the link, or keep a check on my blog.

cropped photographs

Ok so these are finished pictures, and I will use some of them in my new listings, I'm quite happy how they turned out, but there is still room for improvement.
Not quite sure what to do about the pink ones, maybe I won't list them and I'll keep them for myself.

are they any better?

I have taken a load more pictures of the washcloths and scrubbies, I think they are better, but are they good enough?
Now I know the pink one's are horrible and I still can't get them to look right, they seem to glare the camera, so I am going to try and take some more on a grey background as advised by an etsy friend who is helping me out, she is photographer and you can find her here she also suggested I read the instruction manual for the camera and it really helped, I had no clue what the camera could do let alone how to do it, so after reading the instructions for it I found loads of useful advice and instructions.
These are untouched images, I have yet to take them to Picasa3 and play around with them, and crop them, which I will do now and show you the difference.The brown and cream are quite good I think, I don't think they will take much tweeking, but the blue and purple might need a bit of work. Although I'm really pleased with this first one and I will probably leave that one alone

wash cloths, scrubbies and getting the pictures right!

I have been working on some new items, but they are proving to be quite a problem to get an accurate picture of the colour, and I don't quite know what to do about it.
I have tried in the sunlight, out of the sunlight but still in natural light, indoors, even in the bath! The colour just never seems right, in fact it is really not like the colour at all.

The items in question are wash cloths and face scrubbies, the chocolate and cream ones are not a problem (they are not pictured here), but the more vibrant colours are, they are aubergine, bright pink and a mid blue. The aubergine comes out far too light but I did manage to get a couple that are not too far off the colour, the blue comes too dull and the pink is a bit dazzling, it is really bright, but it seems to glare. What am I doing wrong????

So over the weekend that is what I will be trying to do, get an acurate colour likeness, and hopefully I won't lose too much hair in the process.

So watch this space for some better pictures, hopefully..........

It's a lovely day today

I'm having a lovely day today!
My day started with 3 sales overnight, I love it when that happens, I sold 3 pairs of wrist warmers!!!! I wasn't going to list or re-list anymore but now I've changed my mind.

My French Lavender is looking lovely.


I decided to take my little boy for a walk because it's such a beautiful day, but my son decided to have a bit of a strop because I wouldn't let him take his racing car track with him!!!!
Kids hey, so I had to carry him outside and he proceeded to stand and scream in the middle of the street! Yikes, I just stood there smiling with a bit of a grimace on my face LOL, pretending that everything was normal. Well we had a few things to buy from the local supermarket, so I walked ahead and ignored him the best I could, why is it that people stare at me as if I should do something, my policy is that it's best to ignore behavior like that. So I just smile and say Bonjour! and carry on my way, with Sébastien the terrible walking 10 paces behind! We make it to the supermarket, him screaming me smiling all the way around, although I am beginning to lose patience by this time, but not long until we are out of there, and just the same performance coming home again.

But it hasn't spoilt my day, and I'm going to see my new house this afternoon, so I can't wait.

These are pictures of the view from my balcony overlooking the center of my town.

my 1st blog giveaway

My very first blog giveaway!
I am giving away to one lucky winner, who will be chosen at random, a pair of my $16 rib wrist warmers in any colour of your choice available in my shop.

The pictures of each are below, you will receive one pair free.

All you need to do to enter is go to my Etsy shop and choose your favorite item, then post a comment here telling me what your favorite item is in my shop, and then go to my fan page , click on the discussions tab and you will see a topic called Blog Giveaway, post your favorite item there also. You may also like to become a fan while you are there too.
The more times you enter them more chance you have of winning.

******You must post your comment here on my blog and also on my fan page to qualify entry, if you do not post in both places then you won't be entered to win.

So good luck everyone, the draw will take place on Sunday 14th June, when the winner will be notified.

Tuesday Treasures

My Tuesday Treasures, here are just a few of my favorite items from my friends at Etsy Secrets.
My first Tuesday Treasure pick number 1 is CanadianRockies and her beautiful hammered earrings called Xarida
Second up is kelly livingston with her Loop d Loop NecklaceNext we have studio618 with a lovely silver All You Need - AnkletI love this next one madmaggiedesigns and her colourful family 4 birthstone pendant,This lovely scrabble tile pendant is created by Houseof SixCats with a lovely Dandelion image.

My final pick is timothyAdamDesigns and one of his steel pendants which you can see in more detail here

I hope you like my choices.

Blocking my shawl/wrap

I have never blocked anything before...... but I have knitted a lovely shawl wrap with a feather and fan pattern and it has to be done!
I didn't know how to do it, so I did a bit of research and found out a bit about it.

My first problem was where I was going to pin it out????? I had no idea, I could pin it out on the mattress, but then where would I sleep if it wasn't dry?????
I finally found out a mat that was bought for camping, the foam sheet that you put under your sleeping bag, or that can be used as a yoga mat, you know the sort.

Well it's perfect and just the right length and width, I just hope I've done it right.
Here is a little peek to so you can see what it looks like.

Drawstring Pouch for your sunglasses

This is a brand new item for me, I just sat down with my knitting needles and some yarn and started to knit, I wanted something not too big that wouldn't take me too long to make from start to finish, and would be useful during the summer months, and this is what I came up with.

Simple, practical and a must have accessory for the summer, now it's getting to that time of year when the temperature is beginning to rise and the sun is out, we all need our sunglasses, and we also need something to put them in.


This handy little sunglasses case is knitted in acrylic yarn so it can be thrown in the washing machine at 40 degrees, so it's easy to keep looking new.
A lovely pale baby blue yarn knitted in moss stitch, (or seed stitch) with a drawstring cord and a wooden bead for closing it up.
see more details here

Thursday Feature

I've decided to do a Thursday feature, and this week I have chosen T K Designs nature inspired handcrafted jewelery and accessories.
here is a little bit about her



I have loved nature, animals and creating with a variety of materials ever since I can remember! I grew up with many different pets, (including a pigeon!) exploring the woods around our home, and playing in my grandmother’s garden. Inspired by the nature around me, I learned to draw, oil paint, work with clay, garden, sew, and knit.

In college, I started out as a Fine Arts Student and later switched into Landscape Architecture. Summers, I worked in Cape Cod, MA, stringing beaded jewelry, tooling leather belts, and being a waitress at the Irish Pub (Fun!) I also picked up a love for floral design and photography.

Once I graduated, I started my own successful Landscape Design Company until I had my first child ten years later. I decided to temporarily give up my business to raise my family. This has been a wonderful time in my life. While my three children were small we enjoyed creating with all types of art mediums together. I had the opportunity to experiment with many crafts, but really love making jewelry.

As my children grow, my interests change, but my love of art and teaching children and adults about nature has always been a consistent theme in my life. I volunteered my time as a 4-H Leader focusing on nature found in their backyards and using natural elements to create art. I also have donated my time to design several children’s playgrounds, one being in our own town. But my favorite project I have donated my time to is the creation of a Wildlife Habitat located in the courtyard of my children’s elementary school! My birdhouses have become a passion of mine after helping my daughter with a recycling project for our Courtyard Wildlife Habitat!

I don’t know if I will ever go back to my landscape design business, I have been fighting chronic Lyme’s disease for the past 13 years. While it’s been quite a challenge to live with, I am thankful to God for blessing me with a wonderful family and talents I can share.

I will always be learning, loving and creating something!

daisy chain scarf

I absolutely love crocheting flowers and I have made many of them, so what do I do with all these flowers?
Well I came up with this lovely accessory which you can see in more detail here, it's more of a decoroation than a scarf really, it looks lovely just draped around, with the flowers trailing down, it can be wrapped around your waist, or around your neck, I think it makes a lovely accessory for spring and summer.

This is a one off item that I probably won't repeat very often as it was so time consuming, but I did love making it.
It's a real whimsy accessory that trails around your body.

There are a lot of varying colours in this scarf ranging from yellow, pale peach, to an orange, blue, brown, grey, rust.

It measures 69 inches (176cm's) long
The flowers measure 2 1/2 inches (6cm's) across
there are 11 flowers in total and 2 little circles to finish the ends off.

New Pictures

I have started to take a different approach when taking pictures, I'm trying to achieve a more natural look, and I think that I have vastly improved from when I first started. I love using picasa3 it's great for cropping and editing, and I'm pretty pleased with the outcome, I even made my Etsy shop banner using it, it was so easy.

Anyway now for a look at the pictures.This first one I love, it's been sitting in my Etsy shop for well over 6 months, so we'll see if the image change makes a difference, you can take a look at it here
This one has had the most interest you can see the full description for it here

I also listed a new pair of Long Cable knit wrist/arm warmers - fingerless gloves.
In varying shades of pink, in a self striping yarn, making them unique, if you look at the pictures hereyou will see that although they look alike, they are quite different in a subtle way.



So do you think I have made improvements to the way I take pictures? I would love some feedback as to what you think.

Baby Sloppy Joe Sweater

I thought I would show you what else I've been making besides flowers!

I fell in love with this sweater as soon as I saw it, it reminds me of the most expensive sweater that I knitted for my little boy last year, and I was thinking of doing a moss stitch version of it too.

I love this little sweater, it's so simple to make and looks so cute, it's a garter stitch sweater for a baby which is a little oversized, that's why I've called it a Sloppy Joe Sweater.

It has a roll neck large enough to fit over a baby's head easily and roll up sleeves, making it a lose fitting comfortable sweater, just like a Sloppy Joe.

This is not the only one I've made, but it's the only one that is complete and sewn up! One is finished but needs sewing up, and I have another one on the needles.

a basket to crochet

I have been wanting to crochet some coasters for a little while now, but wanted a basket or box of some sort to put them in.... well today I found a pattern for a cute little basket..... so I have started this one http://www.sugarncream.com/pattern.php?PID=3759 I will post some pictures of the basket and coasters when I've finished.

Making use of all those crocheted flowers

I have come up with a lovely little spring and summer scarf, it's like a daisy chain, I'm just doing a test one now and I will post pictures of the finished item, hopefully modelled by my lovely daughter.
I'm quite excited about it because I so love making the flowers, just need to decide whether to keep it all one colour or to do contrast colour centres to the flowers.
I will keep it all one colour for now, but I would appreciate some input as to whether people think it would look better with a contrast colour in the centre of the flower.

Flowers, Flowers Everywhere

I have been working on some crochet flowers, I'm really pleased how they turned out, but I now have a problem.......I have made so many!
I just love making them, and don't know when to stop, you can see them all here .
I'm thinking of doing some solid colours next, but I'm going to practice joining them to a skinny scarf so it will look like flowers trailing around your neck and draping down your body, so watch this space!

IndieSpotting

I've been spotted here my blue cable knit wrist warmers. Don't know if it will bring me any more sales but it's lovely being spotted.
If you want to submit a listing to the site:
Your pictures have to be good, clear crisp pictures and the item has to fit into one of the following.

• Apparel and Shoes
• Babies and Kids
• Bath and Body
• Dogs and Cats
• Home and Garden
• Jewelry and Accessories

and you need to link the picture to where people can buy the item, and that's it.
So why not have your handmade items spotted, what are you waiting for?

Trip to the UK

I will be going to visit my parents and son in the UK in a few weeks, my son will be 18 years old on the 11th March, where did all that time go?
I can't wait to see him again, and I can't wait to see my mum and dad too, and I have a new great nephew to see named Oliver Boo.

I'm trying to limit the amount of people I see this time, as I never get time to spend time with the people I want to see.
In one week these are the people who I will be seeing,
My son
My parents
My sister and neices and great nephew and neice
my in laws
my in laws parents
my best friend Julie
my ex mother in law (this is where my son lives)
My other best friend Linda (who is also my ex sister in law)
hopefully that's it!

How on earth will I find time to go yarn shopping? As whilst I'm there I will be doing some yarn shopping of course, although I will have to post my yarn back here as I'm travelling light!
I will be looking for some cotton yarn in Spring colours, and of course any bargins that I can find.

Thinking about spring

It's come to that time when I must start thinking about creating things for Spring. I am working on some new items, and need ideas for more, the wrist warmer sales are slowing down now and I need something to replace them with for Spring.

I have been doing a little crochet and made this cute little newsboy cap, I'm really pleased with it for my first effort. Just need a better model, I have to sack that lamp!


I need to buy some cotton yarn to make some more hats for spring and summer, which means another trip to buy yarn, which luckily is my favorite thing to do.
I am also thinking about making some reusable cotton make up remover cloths, and some dish cloths, not sure if they are in demand enough though, I need to do some more research on that one.
I may even knit some more bags, but I'm trying to avoid that until I've sold the ones in my etsy shop

more wrist warmers

All I seem to do just lately is knit wrist warmers, and I never seem to get bored of knitting them. I love this cable pattern and I love making them in different colours, maybe that's why I never get bored.
If I didn't like what I was making then I wouldn't make them.....
.........unlike mens socks in dull brown! I was really unhappy the whole time I was knitting them, and I have another pair to knit in a boring beige colour too, which I'm not looking forward to, but I have promised that they will be done next week. I prefer to use self patterning yarn as you always want to see how they are going to turn out, makes it much more interesting. Maybe I won't agree to do any more mens socks in boring colours.

Etsy site is down for a while:(

I'm a little fraustrated as Etsy is down, and I wanted to list a few more things, oh well.
I have been doing pretty well selling lot's of wrist warmers like these.Grey and cream seem to be selling the best.
You can take a look at my shop to see more http://bijouxboutique.etsy.com

I only wish I could knit them faster, they take around 6 hours to knit a pair, and I have been getting sore, stiff fingers that feel like a bunch of banana's!

I had to buy some arnica cream and that seems to be doing the trick, thanks goodness.
I don't know what I would do if I couldn't knit, although I did have to take one day off to rest them, which I spent doing nothing at all, as what else is there?

I also have an order for 2 pairs of socks, I'm just waiting for the yarn to arrive so I can start them, maybe it will come today, and I can take it with me to the knitting group this afternoon.