Klaar! My Malabrigo-serp

Hier is dit, my Malabrigo supersagte supermooie groenste groenbloue serp!

Here it is...my Malabrigo supersoft superbeautiful greenest of greenblue scarf!
(note that I got the spelling of SCARF right now :-D )

(dis eintlik al lankal klaar...ek probeer dit net hier, was nog te warm)
(it's actually been finished a while ago...just trying it out here, was to warm still)

Ek weet ek spog nou, maar ek is net so totaal in my noppies hiermee.

I know I'm bragging...but I'm just so totally chuffed with myself. 

Onthou, ek het die wol op Suzanne se blog gesien, en hier is die storie hoe ek dit in die hande gekry het.

Remember, I saw the yarn the first time on Suzanne's blog, end here's the story of how I got it.  

My sisi het help bolle rol:
My sisi help to wind the balls:

Die serpie het begin lewe kry op die klein strand by Mosselbaai Punt

I started working on the beach at Mossel Bay Point.

Deur die vakansie het dit gegroei oor lekker koffie by Baruch...

Through the holiday it grew over lovely coffee at Baruch...

...en 'n Israeli bord.
...and an Israeli platter.

En eendag was dit klaar.

And one day it was finished.

Lief dit!

Love it!

From the tag...


"Río means "river" in Spanish.
Malabrigo Ríos is named after the four major rivers in Uruguay: Río Cuareim, RíoUruguay, Río de la Plata and Río Negro.
Each river is represented by one ply. These plies twist together like winding rivers.
Ríos also signifies the yarn's washability; for millennia rivers have provided water for washing garments."

Hier's die info:

1. Wol - Malabrigo Rios
2. Patroon - www.mypicot.com Patroon 2030 onder Crochet
3. Koste - E27! (min of meer R270! Vir 2 bolle)
4. Resultaat - Prysloos

Here's the info:

1. Yarn - Malabrigo Rios
2. Pattern -  www.mypicot.com Pattern 2030 under Crochet
3. Cost - E27! (more or less R270! For 2 balls)
4. Result- Priceless

En hierdie week was dit vir die eerste keer koel genoeg om te dra.

And this week it was cool enough for the first time to step out with my scarf.

(Playing with a cleaner layout...how does this work?)

Klaar! Serpe vir die oumas.

Ek het onlangs vertel van my hekel-heldinne, waarvan twee ons oumas is.  Ouma Corrie het onlangs 90 geword, en ouma Nettie 88.

Wat om vir 'n ouma te gee op daardie ouderdom?

'n Serpie, van die Yvestown Blog-patroon:

I recently wrote about my crochet heroes, two of them being our grandma's.  Ouma Corrie recently turned 90, and Ouma Nettie 88.

What to give a grandma at that age?

A scarf, of the Yvestown Blog flower coaster pattern:

Ouma Corrie s'n is gehekel met Kismet se Anatolia, 'n Aran-dikte wol met twee-kleur draad.

Ouma Corrie's scarf was hooked with Kismet's Anatolia, an Aran weight two-coloured yarn. 

Die tweekleur het nogal gesorg vir variasie!
Lots of variation in one ball of yarn!

Maar dis lekker sag en het heel mooi uitgekom. 

The result was pretty and soft.

- - ♣ - - 

Ouma Nettie s'n het ek gedoen met Kismet Spice, die lekkerste lekker DK, sortgelyk aan Stylcraft, wat ek onlangs leer ken het.

For Ouma Nettie's, I used Kismet Spice, the nicest DK and a new favourite, similar to the Stylecraft Special DK I got to know recently.

Daar is ook 'n kleurvariasie, maar meer subtiel. Ek het ook 'n nr 6 pen gebruik, vir 'n slapper blom. 

The colour variation was much more subtle.  I also used a bigger hook, nr 6, to get a floppier flower. 

(Het hierdie idee by iemand gesteel, was dit MeMe Rose, of Cherry Heart?  

Dis net die serp wat opgerol is :-)

I stole this idea from someone - was it MeMe Rose, or Cherry Heart?
It's just the scarve rolled up :-)

Ek lief hierdie een!

I love this one!

Klaar! Nog 'n kombers vir Hartenbos Huisie

Wat is lekker...om saam met jou sisi, op vakansie, aan 'n projek te werk.

Sy het alreeds in Ierland met hierdie mini-grannies begin, 'n klomp van haar (heerlike Stylecraft) ou wolle saamgebring, en ons het verder gewerk by Hartenbos Huisie.

What is nice...to hook with your sis, on holiday.

She started this mini-granny blanket at home in Ireland, and brought a pile of (lovely Stylecraft DK) stash with her.

Vroegoggend buite op die stoep met koffie en beskuit.

We hooked on the stoep, with early morning-coffee and rusks.

'n Eenvoudige randjie om die bont te tem:

A simple edge to tame the bright colours:

Et voilà!

'n Tweede kombers vir Hartenbos Huisie.

A second blanket for the little beach house.  

Dankie my sisi.

Klaar! Baby J Ripple

Eintlik wou ek iets heel anders doen, vir hierdie baba Joshua. Twee moontlike patrone het reggelê, ek wou Vinni's gebruik, maar eendag gooi ek al my wolle so op die bed, om bietjie te sorteer...en die klompie bloue perse groene val so langs mekaar...en toe word dit 'n Ripple.

I actually wanted to do something totally different for this baby Josua. Had two patterns ready, wanted to buy some Vinni's; but then one day when I was sorting yarn, I threw everything on the bed and the greens blues lavender fell in a pile...and it became a Ripple.

Die wol kom meestal uit my Opgehoopte Voorraad...elle Pure Gold, elle Rustica en enkele onbekende ander.  Ek het die kakie en bruin bygesit omdat dit amper begin dogtertjierig lyk het.  

The yarn is mainly from my Stash Pile...elle Pure Gold, elle Rustica, and some unknown others. I added the khaki and brown in the end because it started to look a bit girly.

Nog so drie  weke, dan ontmoet ons hom. Intussen is wag sy kombersie in sy kamer.

We'll meet him in another three weeks.  Meanwhile, his blankie will be waiting in his room.

3KCBWDAY7 - The Unbalanced Crafter

My husband likes to say that I have the attention span of a squirrel.
(it's true!)

And then I'm also a Gemini - so it's either this or that, seemingly incompatible likes/interestes.

Same with crafting. First I learnt to knit.  My first FO was a hideous purple and yellow snake that had to be done in my std 2 needlework class. Unfortunately that little piece of evidence disappeared, but I still have the green and brown clown from the  next year.

 

Mmm...might need some cosmetic surgery around the lips.

I then knitted on and off.

Every 5 yrs or so, I'd annouce with great fanfare that I Am Going To Knit something, be it a scarve or very veeeeery verrrrrry simple jersey with which my mother or somebody would have to help in the end. I loved it, because I could read while doing it...maybe that's why I also struggled a little bit.

In std 7, I learned to cross stitch.  Never touched it again until almost 15 yrs later, when I exploded into cross stitching: towel border for new babies and Christmas presents, a collage type thingy depicting my sisi's travels while doing her 2 year working holiday in London -  nothing for myself. I loved it because you could easily do it in the car, and so I finished many projects.

First attempt at cross stitch - turned out to like it, despite Miss Mitchell's best attempts to instill an intense dislike in all things domestical in our group of std 7 girls

And now I crochet. I have been doing it for a year now and it's the craft I like most (although, I realised almost immediately - no simultaneous reading & hooking :-(  But happily, it's a great travelling hobby.  When I look back at the past year, I can't believe what I have already finished, and there's an ever-changing neverending-list of things I want to hook!

(But I do want to try out knitting this cardigan, as seen at the Cozy Things blog).
(I am a total Cozy Things groupie).

((And sometimes I sew - but only straight lines - so there will be some cushions in the making :-))

And so we come to the end of blog week.  Thanks so much to Eskimimi Makes for hosting this, to all who participated and provided interesting reads and chuckles, and all who read and enjoyed with us.
Roll on 4KCBW!

3KCBWDAY6- Improving My Skillset

One year ago, I took up my mom's old 4.5 mm crochet hook, some DK I had in the house, and proceeded to learn how to crochet.

Three days later , I gained muscle control over my fingers and the crochet hook.

At one stage I sat with The Happy Hooker on my lap, You Tube open in front of me, and my sister on the line from Ireland, to try and figure out how to make a DC.

Since then, I proceeded to successfully make one square.

Hot on its heels followed various simple cowls, a baby blanket, a vintage stripe blanket -gone-wrong-gone-wrap, two mug warmers, some coasters (actually testers),  two cushions for our beach house, a giant granny for my boy, flowers to mark my new suitcase, part of my aunty's to-be African Flower blanket, a Rainbow Ripple, another baby ripple still to be revealed here, some simple Christmas decorations, two winter scarves for my sisi, a flower scarf for me, some potholders, two amigurumi, a vintage brooch, a cushion for my cousin, a cushion and hearty garland for a Curly Girl, and a monster pouch for my iPhone. And a beanie. And a superlovely MyPicot scarve for me.

On holiday in Swakopmund, Namibia, April 2011, trying to figure out this DC thing

I learnt about British and American crochet language. Now, just for fun, throw Afrikaans into the mix - the terms are totally unrelated to the English counterparts. And for more fun, try Dutch, 'cause that where Afrikaans comes from, and no one can blame you if you want to throw your hands into the air and run away.

I learnt that crochet has a back and front :-D

I started blogging about my adventure, and in the process learnt so much from great ladies around the world, who are generous with their patterns and advice, not to mention inspiration.

And with online friend and fellow South African-based-in-London, Natasja King,  I started a crochet group on Facebook, that is now 1120 members strong.  What a joy that is!  At "Ons Hekel" I have seen the most beautiful ideas, met up fellow hookers and learn more every day.

So, in the next year, I Will:

1. learn to hook from a diagram
2. complete a Japanese flower scarve adapting from an existing doilie type pattern
3. learn to hook from a diagram
4. go beyond simple amigurumi
5. learn to hook from a diagram.
6. continue meeting new hookers at Ons Hekel and meet up with them where possible.

Did I mention I want to learn to hook from a diagram?

Then I'll order One Japanese Book for myself, as reward :-)

Wave your flag! KCBWDAY5

(This is the original, there was a great video adaption for SWC 1020, but I can't find it under all the different versions on You Tube today)

Today is Freedom Day in South Africa.

Today we celebrate 18 years of democracy, 18 years since we had our first democratic elections.

I was a student then, having voted in two previous referendums, but that day stood in line for the first time with everybody who wanted to vote.

What a day it was!  People queued from early in the morning, and stood for hours, awaiting their turn. And what a joy it was, to see an 80-something, casting their vote for the first time in their life.

Now that has nothing to do with hooking or knitting, does it?

Except that that now we have such a nice flag. And I actually found some images of a knitted and crocheted one! The previous one was ok, but now we really celebrate it, we wave, wear it, paint it on our faces, cuddle under it and wrap it around our necks :-)

(Found here)

(Found here)

World's largest knitted blanket

(Found here)

My country is behaving like a true 18 yr old, think it is all grown up and adult now, but actually still have so much to learn. We've come a long way.

So happy Freedom Day to all! 

We will enjoy the

in our airspace, as we live right behind the Union Buildings, where there will be some huge form of ceremony today, the jets have been practising a few days now. 

(Ed. And would you know, one jet was painted as the flag :-) 

(Most images found on Google Images, sparkly flag T-shirt is mine)