A festive dinner party!

Hi,

 

Last night we had some family friends over for a festive dinner party :) I worked hard on the table runner I mentioned that me and my family were making in my last post and managed to get that all together ready for the occasion and I also managed to finish making the 8 mini Christmas yule log (on my free patterns page :D) place settings that I wanted to give to everyone too.

 

It all looked nice on the table I think, I was really pleased with the pattern I made for the table runner, It was perfect size (I took measurements :) for our table and the pointed edges hung over the ends of the table nicely:

 

 

Now I will show you a close up of each of the rectangles that me and my family decorated individually.....

 

This is my brothers:

 

He wanted to go for a rustic look and I think he did a really good job :-)

 

 

This is my mums:

 

It really makes me smile when I look at it because it is so much my mums style- it reminds me of her and Christmas- two things I love! :P

 

My dads rectangle now:

 

This one is very much my dads style so I really like it :) The house underneath the big star is meant to be our house and the little car coming towards it is the 'Amazon' van delivering all our prezzies we ordered online :P Hehehe :)

 

And last (but hopefully not least :0P) is my rectangle:

 

 

I did some decorated baulbaules, which I stuffed to make them rounded and stand away from the fabric like real baulbaules :) I didn't even realise it but when I looked at my finished rectangle again I realised I had basically done a baulbaule style for each of my family members, lol! The pink beaded one for my mum, the green one for my dad, the yellow chain stitch star one for my brother and the pink girly heart gem one for me! Hehe, it shows I am always thinking about them- even subconsciously :P

 

I really enjoyed making the table runner with my parents and brothers designs included, I love sewing (can you tell? :)- seen as it is what I am studying at uni :P) so it was really lovely to have them join in and share my passion with them. I am hoping maybe next year we can do another family project, maybe something out of my comfort zone even- like some woodwork, then my dad can share the tips and tricks instead of me :)

 

My little yule logs were received really well so that made me super happy as I did work hard when making the pattern to make them as cool and realistic as possible. I added little labels for each person and of course popped a choccy inside:

 

 

I am actually going to try and make a real, edible, version of my winter wonderland mini knitted yule log! I don't think the recipe for it actually exists- it just looked nice in knitted version :P

I got a big vanilla and strawberry Swiss roll, which I am then going to coat in white chocolate and after that add a final coating of vanilla buttercream, before decorating with a bit of holly and a dusting of icing sugar (rather than glitter, lol!).

 

I am hoping it will be delicious, my nan and mum and granddad don't really like chocolate cake so when I looked at my winter wonderland mini roll I thought why not make it in real life- it will hopefully be a non-chocolate cake lovers perfect Christmas yule log :-D

 

I will put up pictures and let you know what it tastes like- just in case any of you decide you may want to whip up my random creation :oP

 

I am off now to get ready to go out to the Olympia horse show which my parents booked for us all for some Christmas family fun. I am excited!

 

I hope you are all well :)

 

See you soon,

 

Bye XxXxXxXxXxX

A non-chocolatey chocolate challenge!

Hi everyone,

About a week ago me and my family went into London for the day. We picked up lunch in Marks and Spencers where we found some walnut whips which we also got. I hadn't tried them before but they were actually very tasty. They are basically chocolate with a fluffy vanilla/marshmallowy type filling and a little walnut on top. A few days later I made some similar things of my own and they were quite tasty too.

 

I was talking to my friend Springmusician over at My life, my thoughts, my hobbies and she said she had been meaning to make a knitted version of the tasty treat for her mum. I thought a crafty version of the walnut whip was a super great idea so we decided to turn it into a non-chocolatey chocolate challenge and both create our own different versions and post them on our blogs today!

 

Here is a picture of the original walnut whip:

Image from: here

 

mmmm..... I really fancy one now :P

 

 

And here is my crocheted/knitted (I used a bit of both) version- my entry for our challenge :D:

 

 

It was super fun to create, I can't wait to  see Springmusician's creation

  

If anyone else would like to join in on our non- chocolately walnut whip chocolate challenge, just for fun, feel free- the more the merrier. Knitted, crocheted, sewn or even paper craft, all are welcome! Just leave a comment below with a link to your post or send a picture to me at iitki@hotmail.co.uk and I will share them on my blog :)

 

Funny enough I am going on a chocolate tasting tour around London today, hehehe, I wonder if any walnut whips will be included in that :0P

 

See you all soon,

 

Bye Bye XXOOXXOO

 

Yes, I do know it's not Easter... :-P

Helllooo,

I hope everyones week is going OK so far :)

 

About two weeks ago some friends of my family were meant to be coming round for picnic for the bank holiday and I decided to make some little chick/duck/birdie sweeties holders as little presents (based on the chick Easter egg holder my mum got me as a gift at Easter :) I was pleased with how the pattern worked out as I thought they came out pretty sweet. Sadly though one of the family friends was ill so couldn't make it. In the end we rescheduled and so they came round the Sunday just gone. I put the little chicks away safely until the came and used them as little place settings:

 

 

I think they looked quite nice on the plates and they were well received :-)

 

Without thinking though the day before they came I made some chocolate crispy nests to go with the cakes my dad made for dessert, when I thought afterwards I had to laugh though... chicks.... crispy nests, hahaha, I thought people would think I was confused thinking Easter was coming up! :P

 

(They may have made me look a bit crazy but they did come out pretty tasty! :0)

 

We all had a really good day in the end, all my dads food was delicious as usual, mmm... I'm getting hungry just thinking about it, we finished off the last of the leftover cake today!

 

See you all super soon,

 

Bye xxxx

Sunday style

Hello,

 

Today I thought I would show you my latest outfit I have finished- I haven't had a chance to wear but I got a bit excited to show you all so I displayed it on the mannequin :):

 

 

I didn't sew the hoodie from scratch, I just created this patchwork style heart and then sewed on some ribbon I pleated and some diamonds too, to add a bit of sparkle to go with the fairy/magic theme!

 

This is the knitted hair bow I made...

 

... and here is a close up of my playmobil unicorn necklace, hehehe it was very fun to make! :P

 

I will probably put up a quick picture when I do get a chance to actually wear it all :)

 

Some may say it is all a bit of a pink overload- true- but seen as it is my favourite colour I am happy with the look! :D

 

I can't wait to wear it all, I will probably put up a quick picture when I do get actually get a chance :-)

 

See you soon,

 

I hope you all have a lovely week,

 

Bye Bye xxx

 

Holiday (and Olympic!) snaps :)

Hi guys!

I am back now and as promised I bring you pictures, lol :P Hehehe, I will try not to bore you all! (I have only chosen my best snaps :)

Here is the view from the back of the glass bottom boat, the water was very blue in Malta and it was ALWAYS hot and sunny:

Interestingly there is no tide in Malta... I don't know why, there just isn't! :-P

This is the best picture I could get of the fish through the windows at the bottom of the boat:

It was cool to the see the 'underwater world' though I did feel a little bit sea sick!

Hehehe, here is the infamous 'Maxibon cookie', soooooo tasty :0)

It got a bit battered on the way home from the shop but It was still very yummy!

If only it was possible I would have got one for a giveaway, lol!

Another thing that was super tasty was the ice cream filled croissants me and my family had by the sea front, I very much recommend giving it a try at home:

I had cookie and banana ice cream......mmmmmm.... I wish I had one now :)

In the main set of shops near our parade they had lots of handmade Maltese lace and my mum and dad treated me to this beautiful umbrella, I absolutely love it. I can't wait too use it in the park on a sunny day or at  the next family barbecue!

Last of my holiday snaps are the pictures of some of my makes :-):

Hehehe, I hope you all had a nice couple of weeks while I was away too (and I hope my pics didn't bore you too much :P) xxx

In other news as I'm sure all of you will already know London is hosting the 2012 Olympics! Me and my family luckily managed to get some tickets, we got to go and watch the handball today. I had watched quite a few events on TV whilst on holiday so I was quite excited to go and see the Olympic park in real life. (I'm also lucky I only live 10 mins from Stratford so we didn't have a long journey to get there either!)

Here is the main Olympic stadium, what you  see as you walk in:

It is a very pretty stadium. As you can see from the picture the park was relatively crowded but not jam-packed which was good as it was quite hot today. The queue for the mega store was huge but it did move quickly and only took about 10 mins to get into the shop for a look.

I also saw the velodrome quite clearly too:

I got to go into the basketball stadium though as that was where the handball was

The basketball stadium:

Here are some pictures inside I took from my seat:

It was the mens quarter final, Spain V France. It was quite exciting at the end as it was 22, 22 with two seconds to go and then France scored to win the match. They told you all the rules at the start so that was good as then I knew what was going on :-P

I promise there will be less pictures in the next post, I will give all your eyes a rest! I just wanted to share with you all my adventures :)

See you all soon my lovely lovely friends!

Bye XxXxX

P.S. In the next couple of days I will be celebrating my Second Blogaversairy (well belated one as it was a few days ago now) as I mentioned before I went away so make sure to check back soon :D

Byyyyyyyyeeeee

Driving teacher gift and the K-factor!

Hi,

A few posts ago I mentioned I wanted to make my driving teacher a little thank you gift. I thought about loads of different things and looked at patterns on ravelry but when I was out I saw a cute teddy with 'Best teacher ever!' written on its little shirt and thought instead of making I might do some customising, to turn it into a best driving teacher teddy! I did some stitching on the shirt and added a little felt learner sign, here is the finished product! :):



Me and my mum wrapped him up in some cellophane with a bottle of wine too as an extra gift :-) I see my driving teacher tommorow as I am doing an extra day of driving called the Pass Plus Scheme (just some thing meaning you get to practice motorways and stuff), I hope she likes her customised teddy!

In other news....

Recently my mum bought some books and the company were doing an offer on the K-Factor knitting book (just £1!). My mum very kindly bought it for me as a little surprise present because she knew how much I enjoyed the K-factor stuff a while ago on Harry Hills program :P My dad also found it really funny so I thought I would make him something from the book for his upcoming birthday. I decided on a mini knitted character (a mini version of the main knitted item on the program :)

He came out quite sweet so I was happy, the book is really funny to read too so I had a laugh whilst making it!

Im sure my dad will like him, hehhehe :P

I'm off to get a good nights sleep now, ready for my day of driving!

See you all soon,

Bye XXXX

My first Mochi Mochi

Hello everyone,

On Sunday me and my family went round my dads friends house, for Christmas him and his wife and kids got me a copy of the Mochi Mochi knitting book. All the stuff is very cute but as of yet I hadn't got round to making anything from it. I wanted to make something to take round but couldn't think of what, then I thought why not make a decoration out of one of the mini Mochi Mochis in the book! I had a look through and decided to make on the mushrooms (I left out the little side mushroom and just made the big one part). I was quite pleased with how it came out, especially as it was my first time of using DPNs too (Yay, I learnt a new skill! :P):

He matched the blue bag we took some other favours in too :)

Mr mini mushroom was liked alot, especially by my dads friends wife :0)

I hope you are all having a fantastic week!

See you all soon,

Bye Bye xxx

Summer bolero - finished!

Hello everyone,

I finished my bolero!!! :D I was so happy that it came out how I wanted that, despite the weather not being that great today, I donned my new bolero anyway (with a long sleeved top underneath though - it was much to cold for the vest top and shorts I planned to wear it with!) and set off on the canal boat trip, which was very fun (but rainy!)

Hehehe, here is me modelling it......

I am hoping it will get lots of wear over the summer :)

In other news I made one of my crochet crisp packet coasters for my driving instructor :-) Last lesson we were having a chat about recycling and my crafting and when I was saying about bags I have seen made from recycled packets and my crocheted crisp packet coasters and my instructor was intrigued on how textiles/crochet could be mixed with food wrappers, So I made her this one:

I hope she likes it, I get to give it to her tomorrow :0)

I hope you all had a nice weekend/bank holiday!

See you all soon,

Bye xxxXxxx

A cat and a chilli

Hey guys :)

Last week I finished another one of the Christmas cross stitch kits I have been working on, here it is:

 I said to my friends he either wants a hug or is doing Jazz hands and they all decided it was jazz hands and named him Jazz cat! Lol :0)

I like Jazz cat! <3 Next I am making a penguin one which my friends have already decided will be called Pingu!

I also finished this little knitted chilli pepper:



Hehehe, it is to go on a present for my brother for Christmas  (he likes chillies! :) I made up the pattern myself and decided to call him Mr Hot 'N' Spicy :P

I hope my brother likes him!

I am off to work on more of my Christmas crafting, so much to do so little time!

See you all soon,

Bye! :D

x

Happy, happy, happy , my lovely Blythe arrived! :D

Hello everyone!
Quite a while ago some of you may remember that I posted about Blythe dolls and how I really wanted one... well a couple of weeks ago I managed to pick one up on eBay for a really good price (about £62) and today she arrived!!!!!!!!!! :D

The parcel was soo beautifully wrapped (with string and everything!!!) which made me even more excited when I saw it when I got home from 6th form!

I carefully opened the parcel and found my lovely doll inside <3 She is a simply chocolate Blythe :P

Whilst I have been waiting for her to come I knitted her a hat using this: simple Blythe hat pattern I found on Ravelry and sewed her a little dress using this! pattern. Here she is all snuggled up wearing both!:

After the long journey she has had (all the way from Hong Kong!) we have just been relaxing and watching T.V together.

I decided to name her Catherine :) She said she liked the name a lot and she really likes Mr. Mini Circus Elephant too! :0)

I'm so excited about all the fun we are going to have together! And all the lovely outfits I can make for her :D

See you all soon,

 bye from me (and Catherine!) XxX

Dad's Birthday!!!

Hi,

Today is my dad's birthday!!!!! WOOOOOO!!!!! Happy birthday dad!!!!!!!!!!

My dad likes to bake (as many of you will know from seeing the pictures of the amazing cakes he bakes for me and my brothers birthdays!) and one of my favourite things he makes are these delicious brownies........ mmm:P:

They really are good so I designed and knitted up the MEGA BROWNIE for him as a gift :0)

 I did a slighlty lighter shade on top (like where the brownies get cooked and lighten) and sewed on the nuts to make it look as realistic as possible. The reason I called it a MEGA BROWNIE is because it's quite substantially bigger than the real thing!

I also got him some other gifts and as an extra surprise me and my brother made my dad a very special cake. My dad's favorite place is the Isle of Wight so I came up with the idea of making him an IOW cake.

 I am a perfectionist so as soon as anything went wrong I had a panic attack and my brother had to calm me down! :D But we got there in the end and I think we did really well.

Here is the IOW cake:

I had to cut round a cut out map of the IOW to get the shape just right!

The little flags show some of my dads favourite places to visit.

(I'm so jealous though as my brother wrote the flags and I think his handwriting is nicer than mine! :)

My dad really liked it and we've finished the cake now as we had it for breakfast,  it tasted good! All that icing and jam...:P

I think next we are off to visit some National Trust gardens as that's what my dad has chosen as his birthday outing,

See you all later, bye!

Where are they now? : 2011 knitting and crochet blog week! (Day 4)

Yo! :D

Today the post is about the fates of past projects, basically where all the yarny items live now, enjoy....

Rice ball!!!! and Tiny the little circus elephant live on my special shelf with my collection of brooches and other handmade bits and bobs.They like it there as they have lots of friends to talk to :)

My mum has both her kindle cases in her room and uses them regulary to keep her kindle nice and snug!

My dad keeps the little halloween pumpkin I made him on his baking shelf in the kitchen. The kitchen is where keeps lots of the little items I make him as he spends alot of his time there each day ( making cakes, breakfast and dinners etc..) so he gets to enjoy them :D

The bunting I made him ages ago is also up on the wall in the kitchen:



I regularly use the slippers I made with the Hello kitty buttons and they are on the end of my bed with my pyjamas :0)

And finally the new home of my Red Nose Day monster is tucked up nice and tightly in my bed,

Hes just so lovely to hug!

Ill see you all tommorrow for a very special experimental post as part of the 2nd K&CBW,

Cioa!