New pictures

After all my moaning about the weather, we've now got lucky and enjoyed glorious sunshine and warm weather for 4 days! 

We've buried all our winter clothes into attic for good, and jumped into shorts and t-shirts. Thankfully I've had 2 days off to enjoy all of this. I've also taken my chance to snap some new pictures of my new listings, two of my friends were brave enough to help me and don't they just look beautiful!

Black cardigan is hand knitted with silk mix yarn; cardi is soft and glorious on skin.

Purple is vintage style cardigan, one of those which will make any girl look like a queen, as it's designed to enhance your figure.

Light grey is more braver style, different lace styled top for summer.

You can find all these at my shop:
www.knitkitbox.etsy.com

Rain drops

I've experienced the Great Irony of Life again. My Etsy shop has been in near stand still since our relocation. Firstly we had some great difficulties with our household goods, including my yarns, needles and felting kits. Whilst packing to come over with my son and dog I had to give in to my mother instincts and actually pack clothes for us, not just fill the suit cases with Highly Important yarns, buttons etc. This meant my hands were tied until the removal boxes were delivered with these treasured items.

Due to several reasons, including one Evil Volcano Eruption, our removal boxes were delayed. When they finally arrived, on another sunny spring day, I jumped into a chance with my Treasured Items and started creating with new force.

I knitted in full speed, enjoyed every second of it whilst sitting by the window admiring the sun and watching green grass push it's way through grey mud. I finished few items, and was ready to tackle next obsticle, which is setting my new stuff into my shop.
As I can not afford a studio with and proffesional model and photographer to do the job for me, I needed someone beautiful to help me out in a outdoor shooting session to get the best possible picture quality.

This meant I was now looking for someone to wear my creations so I could set them up into my shop listings. After careful considerations (read: picked the first friend brave enough to be available) we set the date and got on at it. We managed to plan things, get everything ready and... the heavens opened. They've been open ever since, or they've opened approx 30 minutes before our rearranged and newly scheduled shooting sessions. Grey rain, gray weather and cold winds every time, forcing me and my brave model to a stand still. Ironic, don't you think.

The only conclusion to my knitting battles is: Life can be easier in more sunny places, but not as pretty and colourfull as in others. I'll stay put, wait for sunshine and enjoy it better when it appears. And keep calm with well earned chocolate bar or two...


--The picture's featured today are by two fine artists--

The Thunder Above picture can be found at Reddish Gallery at  http://www.etsy.com/listing/15202702/the-thunder-above-8x10-fine-art-print


Sparkle and Shine picture at While Wandering's shop at http://www.etsy.com/listing/45954473/sparkle-and-shine-5x5-fine-art-print

Spring time

For such a long time I've lived in countries where the change of seasons has been more suttle, more invisible. Finland has been covered with so much snow this winter and these masses of snow are now fast melting. This spring has left me in awe- everything around me has changed by hour! The change is brutal and strong. At the moment there is plenty of mud, dirty, grey snow with muddy puddles everywhere, nature looks like it's been caught naked.

In the same time there is this strong sense and smell of new life, air is full of nest building birds and their tweets and beeps, creeks are running with new power after the pressure of ice and one can nearly hear the trees stretching their bent branches and twigs, getting ready to push the new leaves out ready for summer.

I'm starting to get itchy too, I'm ready to build my own nest! This year's relocation is forgotten, I need my own home now, and my hubby by my side. In reality, this is nearly nimpossible for us at the moment, so I've pushed my extra energy to knitting; I've several things on needles, and in more plans in my head too...new colours, styles and ideas.

This soft orange invites me to make more slippers! Yarn is my favorite felting yarn, Huopanen by Novita, and the only negative thing is, that I do not have more hands to knit few projects in same time!

My mum found this Regia silk yarn, char coal black yarn. Such a pleasure to knit with, and to wear I'd imagine! cardi is soft, but not flimsy. I knitted a basic bolero with soft ruffled neckline, as soon as I'll have a model I'll be adding it into my shop!





This is the reason I love knitting. Out of the odd chaos, mixed colours and little bit TLC, one can create some sense, something unique and individual. This item will be added into my shop soon too, as I'm nearly done with it. These are sleeves to summery cardigan. Check out my shop soon, and you'll see the finished result.

Ironic enough, due to relocation adn spring time I'm knitting more than ever- but I can not add my items to my shop without available model, someone to help me out!

Mad about knitting

Large Color Explosion Drawstring Knitting / Crafting / Gift Bag 

http://www.etsy.com/shop/Vegancraftastic

 
Depending the country I've been living in, knitting has been either casted boring, old fashioned or something anyone under 60 wouldn't consider. I do not know if this strerotype is because of our dear grand-mums and great aunts used to knit and sew all the time, passing the skills and also the odd coloured and ill fitted jumpers and other products.

My Granny was typical war time warrior woman, nothing got wasted, everything was recycled way before it became fashionable to be ethical consumer. She use to crochet bath rugs etc from empty coffee bags and other durable materials. How we used to hate them, and hide them when our friends came around, they seemed so cheap and tacky then. Now-a-days they would be fashionable, and ethical items, I just saw a those rugs and shopping bags being on sale in local handycraft shop!       
                                                                                                   

                                                                                       Easter Bunny Egg Cosy,
                                                                                       http://www.etsy.com/shop/colourspace

 


The fact is knitting and crocheting are small miracles- you only need yarn, needles and some knots and loops and hey presto- a jumper is born. In it's own simplicity, knitting is easy way to create something on your own, something that has your touch, your mark from the start to finish.

This week I'm celebrating this form of art, and self-expression, by introducing you to some fellow crafters and their needle work. All of these artist can be found from Etsy.com.

 

 

 

Beautiful, crazy adorable, cocoon and hat- photography prop- http://www.etsy.com/shop/LoveThatCrochet

  

 As you can see, one can produce felt, crochet, knit, bowls, hats, shawls, socks, jumpers,egg warmers with one piece of yarn. It is pure magic!

 

 

 

 

Celtic Knot Felted Bowl, 

http://www.etsy.com/shop/iceblueberries

 

Buckthorn Jumper,
http://www.etsy.com/shop/keepandshare

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

                                                                                                  

 

Hand Knit Ecru Lace Shawl, http://www.etsy.com/shop/WrapArtist,

 

Team CAC

All these following beauties have been collected from the Team CAC's production. (You can find more info about our team also from Facebook, from our newly created pages at http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Etsy-Team-CAC/101781875105?ref=search&sid=601218211.1950546945..1)

Isn't it fairly amazing what people can create?

I'll quote words of Andre Gide, the French author and Noble Price winner:
"Art is a collaboration between God and the artist, and the less the artist does the better".

http://www.crochetedwithlove.etsy.com/

http://www.sewfaithful.etsy.com/

http://www.mysaviour.etsy.com/

http://www.delightedhands3113.etsy.com/

http://www.fallingstarlane.etsy.com/

I have an idea-join me!

Even though living our day to day life can be hard, even stressful and nerve racking at the best of times, we should come through with flying colours as long as we dress right, be polite to our neighbours, eat well but not too much, exercise regulary, remember the animal rights and global warming, our kid's collage funds and our pensions, and regular contact with family and friends. That's about it, I think.


I also know, I fail all this terribly most of the time. If I can achieve most of these tasks in one week, by Friday I will at least fall flat on my face on top of chocolate cake and complete non-educational tv-program where celebreties have to eat live bugs.


This week has been hard one, not just because I could not watch the last episode of mentioned tv-series, but because all real life plans seemed to fail on me. Again. This has sent me to dark moods, black clothes and to much cake. Even my polar bear husband has understood this, and kept his distance. Looking back, I know there should have been things I should have done differently and by concentrating only on my own problems I have selfishly shut out the outside world. This is the moment where my idea jumps in: as we are closing on Christmas, I've decided to make someone else's life easier, sort of Pay it Forward style. So hereby I challenge all of you to do the same. Let's spend the next 3 weeks quietly helping others, going the extra mile, either with concrete help, and/or prayers; just to make someone else happy! Let's just concentrate on others, the rest will follow. Leave your note of your good deeds on my comments, My 6 year old son will choose the Kindest Act (Remember child will see the truth) and I'll announce the Kindest Act on the last week of this year. The Kindest Act will win one of these mobile phone cases!



Remember treat others as you wish to be treated yourself and have a wonderful Christmas and New Year. And as my son says "it's not about winning it about taking apart" !!

Gingerbread men

I had a panic attack; Christmas is only 5 weeks away! In my mind I'm still living in October...hmm... This also means I'm only 5 weeks away from gingerbread men, cinnamon buns and chocolates...You can not eat them before, as it only spoils the Big Days! So on 24th (yes we celebrate Christmas for 3 days by Finnish tradition), on Christmas Eve, one starts to enjoy, and by 26th one can not face another gingerbread man for another year!

Hereby I offer our family tradition for your service, make them and enjoy, just follow the lead of Lukas (shown on picture making them)
The Recipe for the Best Thin Gingerbread Men

You need:
200 g butter
2.35dl of sugar
1.5 dl of syrup
1 dl cream
7.5 dl of flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp of cinnamon
1 tsp of cloves
1 tsp of allspice
0.5 tsp of ground ginger

Melt the butter in the same bowl you'll mix the dough in. Mix the baking soda with small portion of flour. Add the seasoning (ginger etc), sugar, syrup and cream to the cooled down butter. Mix the ingredients well together, to make sure none of the seasonings are clamped together. Add the baking soda mixture, as well as rest of the flour by gently mixing or even rather spooning the flour in to the dough. Cover the dough and the bowl with clean towel and plastic bag and leave it in a fridge to set until following day.

Day 2: take the dough to room temperature, put oven on to 190 degrees. Start moulding the dough, portion at the time with rolling pin, to a thin flat disc, press gingerbread men out with the mould of your choice, add men on oven tray and bake for 5-10 minutes until dark golden brown. Decorate if you wish, with icing sugar mix when men have cooled down.

Hint: moulding is easier when the dough is still cool

Hint 2: once baked, lay the hot gingerbread men on flat surface, on uneven surfaces like plates etc they’ll just turn wonky...

Hint 3: Eat plenty and enjoy!

Also, some knitting pictures as attached- latest customer orders, skull mittens and pink slippers.

Living with polar bear

This week has flown by! This is because it's been the first week since our move to new house, and we are all trying to find our bearings, and the tricks there is in the older houses. Also partially because I’ve really tried to study, and concentrate to this course about accountancy, with no luck I’m afraid…It has become clear that me and mathematics do not agree with each others.
I have managed to grasp the basics, but every time I try a new exercise I get confused. Why mathematics can not be as simple as on knitting or visiting the bakery- one chocolate cake, two chocolate cakes…. If you have any ideas how to help me with basics of accountancy, please feel free to contact me!


I have also finished off a few new orders, white ones made with traditional style, with Novita pattern, and brown ones with Garnstudio pattern and Novita yarns. I have concentrated all my efforts on these knits, as my dear husband, who has been a valuable asset (read a hand model for men’s gloves) has stopped smoking. This has meant that our 1st week in new house has been as pleasant as living in a zoo with wounded polar bear. Bless him, he is trying really hard, week 2 is nearly done, but I’m ready to attack him with 10 nicotine patches while he is a sleep, just to make our life easier...So if there is anyone out there who knows tricks to accountancy and grumpy husbands, please contact me urgently!

Greek lightning!

Just when I thought my lige was settled after previous uprooting and relocation, we're hit by Greek lightning!Ou landlord gave us 5 days to move out; his brother needed a home, our home. After four sleepless nights and attempts to find a new home we finally, on last minute found one (finding a new place which would accept a family with pets, and also one that we could actually afford was not an easy task)! Praise the Lord!

Our new home is actually better what we've had before, and after all the hassle with broken heater, knackered hot water boiler and no cooking facilities, we've managed to conquered the move and settle in! I missed last weeks blogg update, as I did not have access to internet either, obviously due to the move, so please accept my apologies re this.

Anyhow, I've attached a picture of our new drive/path into our new home. Poor Charlie the Dog gets tormented by local cats- they keep appearing behind our windows just to drive him potty!!

Amongst all these manic circumstances I've unravelled my stress levels with knitting, and here are my new items for our shop, Merry Berry Christmas socks, Clever Blue mobile phone case and also latest customer order for brown gloves, made with Garn Studio pattern Z-434, and Novita Nalle yarn.

p.s:When checked into Etsy, came across this seller InspiredbyMarie and item wood burned sign: Welcome to Nuthouse! Brilliant, that's what we need!!

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=32164599

I have just finished knitting a pair of socks with Novita Nalle Marjaretki yarn. You can check the yarn and colours out in http://www.novita.fi/ and my finished product as on picire in http://www.knitkitbox.etsy.com/. This yarn has same brilliant build in stripes as Novita sock yarn had already on previous season, but there is new added feature- yarn has been treated with Aloe Vera! The idea of wearing comfy warm socks, with healing effect is just lush! The added pleasure is that again yarn is not too thick, I just hate wearing items which would give me a claustrophobic heat stroke and sweat attack in a split second.
My son has just started his new school and thankfully he seems to enjoy it. I’ve simultaneously started my business studies, and have tried to divide my time between knitting, Etsy and studies. This has been surprisingly hard, after this somewhat lazy summer my body and mind has decided to defer to a state of coma! This has of course happened without my agreement and knowledge! I’ll now have to work hard to keep up, and avoid the afternoon stare, where I’m just staring a page of my school book, with only thing moving and growing is the dribble hanging from the corner of my mouth. But beware and shake with fear and awe, I’ll conquer the study books and Etsy one day! I’ll finish my blog for today with this brave note and start my new life by conquering the chocolate cake my hubby just brought in, fresh from bakery!