Christmas Collection 2011

This year, I’m making most of my gifts. Well, I did the same thing last year.

Anyway…

The point is, I love handmade gifts and it’s Christmas, who doesn’t like gifts?

The only difference this year is, I’m using my stashed yarn, all those odd ends of yarns in my big box of yarns. So, I didn’t buy more yarn to make these gifts.

Mum’s Placemats, crochet with Drops Cotton Viscose and shinny Drops Glitter. A really quick project, made 2 placemats in the train on the way to work and on the way home. Couldn’t be happier with my crochet speed.

Hot Pink Loose Shawl, I wanted to make something for my friend that can be worn in a warm to cool climate, so I decided on this. And I had spare yarn from making my bolero. (I guess, now you can see the actual colour of the bolero…). I’m so loving the lace pattern of this shawl. Thinking to make one for myself now.

Funky Slippers from Drops Nepal yarn, I had 4 leftover balls of Nepal yarn after making the black Nepal dress and dog little black dress a few months ago. And they’re perfect for these slippers. I love the cute buttons.

Things from Drops Paris yarn, lots and lots of Paris yarns left after making my Paris blanket.

I managed to make 2 crochet pot holders:

1 knitted pot holder:

1 FAIL knitted pot holder and now turning into a mini sling bag: << wrong measurement, turned to rectangular instead of square.

A flower wrist band for my cousin, love this by the way. Maybe I can get away wearing this on my wrist, or maybe not, maybe I’m too old for this… Hmm, thinking really hard about this.

And I still have spare Paris yarns, seriously, what else could I make??

Mobile Phone Pouch, for my cousin using Drops Kid Silk yarn. This is a spare yarn from the triangle shawl I knitted a few months ago in winter. And I still have some more. I love this yarn though, so, the next project using this yarn will be for me J or for my mum.

Plastic Bag Holders, I have lots of DK knitting yarn left from making Christmas dolls 2 years ago. So, I’m turning them into these plastic bag holders.

Daffodils

Lily of the Valley

(Completed before Christmas 2011 – hurray…)

Christmas Tree Skirt Kit

I bought this kit on sale a few months ago and were planning to complete it on time for Christmas, which I did.

It was approved by Baron. And it was his sleeping spot during Christmas period :-)

The start of addiction on the plastic canvas - Christmas Tissue Box

Yet another attempt on plastic canvas. This time is a square tissue box cover.

It’s really fun to make and easy. I got better at joining them together. Eventually I read the whole instruction and realised there is a note saying ‘remove remaining plastic from the sides..’.

D’oh, no wonder I had difficulty when I made the coasters. Well, now I know.

I cleaned up the sides very neatly this time, so, they’re smooth and the yarn fall on a perfect angle on the border.

(Completed 27^th Nov 2011)

Juliet – Soft and Hazy Pink Cotton and Silk Jacket

I love knitting with cotton yarns, they’re lightweight, usually have lovely colours, easy to work with. And for this project, it was a combination of cotton and silk, which is truly amazing. I knitted this jacket for my friend’s (and fellow bloggers - ) birthday . I’m hoping I’ll see her wearing this soon.

Tried this jacket myself right after it was completed. It’s so soft!! I have no regret knitting this jacket.

The time it takes to knit it wasn’t too long either. It was completed in only 10 days.

At first I didn’t know what the actual pattern is for the main part of the jacket. It turned out to be some sort of flower; I have to say they look like lotus flowers. I really like them. They’re intricate, but not overly difficult to make.

This jacket is so perfect to hang around the country side on a lazy weekend.

(Completed 1^st Nov 2011)

Long Overdue Sweater

I can’t believe I have to hold off posting this entry for so long!! Well, it’s my fault.

This hoodie was supposed to be given to my boyfriend for his birthday present in August! (D’oh!)

But when I bought the yarn from UK, I misread the pattern, instead of buying for Medium size, I bought the Small size! Aargh… it was so annoying. On top of that, there was a delay delivering the yarn to Sydney.

So, I actually bought him another gift for his birthday and save this one for Christmas. I had to swap the gift.

We’re planning to go to New Zealand when we got a chance, so, this sweater will be a wonderful companion for the holiday. Hey! I should knit myself one too… Brilliant! I’ll start looking for a pattern now.

I chose this colour instead of the recommended colour combination in the pattern to match his brown eyes. J

Oh, I almost forgot, I had to use an interesting sewing technique to join the two sides of the hoodie. Well, the technique was invented a long time ago, but this is the first time I used it. The result was amazing. I knitted hoodies before, I should’ve joined them with this technique. It’s just perfect! They look seamless. This is magic I’m telling you! Cool!

(Completed 4^th September 2011)