Socktoberfest :)

I've  just joined the Socktoberfest group over on Ravelry - I think it's just a month to celebrate sock-knitting, bust your wool/yarn stash, make your Xmas gifts, etc.  No pressure to produce a heap of socks at the end of it as far as I can gather - I hope not anyway!  I did feel a 'sock coming on' with my new knitty design so it seems to be a natural progression to devote October to knitting socks - OK, I was just looking for a good excuse, hehe :)  I'm a little late starting but October hols are coming up,  so . . . .

I've ordered some yarn to knit up my Scottie dog design into some socks - very exctiting!  In the meantime I've tried another design swatch and . . .  way hay, it worked out first time :)  This design has a sea-creatures theme and I've used the image to make some of my seaside 'tweedie' softies in the past.  It was quite nice to go back to an older theme and reuse it in a completely different way :) . . . 

The squiggly things in between the seahorses are starfish, just in case you didn't know, hehe!

Scribbly drawings . . . 

The swatch turned out so well that I've decided to continue with it and make it into a sock - hopefully two!  I'm just  using acrylic DK from my stash of Patons Fab (prob equivalent to Red Heart yarn in the US) so I think they'll be fun 'bed/loafing about' socks.  That's if they work out . . . they might not!

OK, at the end of all that I've set my self a challenge to make two pairs of socks - one, a wearable (ie. boot or shoe type socks) and the other a pair of 'loafing about' socks . . . :)  

Hopefully making some tweedie-stuff too - I'll be adding to my online shops as and when I can (when I'm not knitting socks, that is!). Details as and when this happens!  October is beginning to sound like quite a busy month, hmmmm, well the nights are drawing in . . . .  :)

Later, gaters :)

Alison x

The Winners are . . . . and the experimental piece complete :)

Big drum roll . . . . . . the winners of the Giveaway are:  Gretchen and Gabriella!  Congratulations ladies  - I will be in touch by e-mail, but feel free to send me your name and address details as soon as . . . . :) :)  Thanks to all for taking part - it was fun to do a little giveaway!

As I promised, I'll show you the results of the little experimental colour-work piece from last week's doodle . . . 

I'm quite pleased at how it worked out - considering it came from a VERY quick doodle!  It's basically a tubular knitting swatch (on 4 double pointed needles) but the pattern could be used for anything really . . . I actually think I might be feeling a pair of socks coming on, hehe!  Cute little scottie dogs adorning the top of a pair of woollie socks - what do you think?  I'm still tweaking the design a little ie. shifting the little motifs between the scotties and possibly adding another motif on the bottom but it's got lots of possibilities I think :)   Oooops, a whole new area of creativity - Oh Dear!

Hope you had a relaxing or productive weekend - I think mine was definitely more relaxing than productive, so I'd better get going now - byeeeee :)

Alison x

Giveaway closed, and a little experimental project . . . I'm winging it!

OK - Giveaway time is up :)  Thank you so much for entering it! -  it's been a  fun  way to ease my way back into my blog and to say thanks for still reading, even if my posts  have been a bit sporadic this year :)  I love using my blog to mull over new creative ideas as much as anything else - it's my outlet for creative thought, so thanks for listening to my incessant drivel, hehe!  I will announce two winners (one for each purse) by Monday at the latest : )  Good Luck!

Talking of new creative ideas, here's the current one . . . . . . a little doodle of a Scottish terrier to be magically transformed into the basis of a new knitted colour-work idea . . . 

some  paw prints as an additional design feature  . . . .

. . . my first very basic original design for a  knitted colour work project - bonkers!, yes completely, but when you get a notion to try something you've got to just go with it . . . 

Do you think it will work?  I have no idea either LOL :)  I'm having a go and seeing how it will look - this is fun though!  I just traced my drawing onto the squares of the graph paper . . . no, I don't really know what I'm doing - but that's the fun part!

I'm enjoying stamping my new 'handmade' logo onto craft bags and anything else I come across - if you stand still for too long I might stamp your forehead with 'handmade by Tweed Delights' - watch out, hehe!!

This week I've started on some new tweedie-work and added this matryoshka doll to my Etsy shop . . .

More to come hopefully . . . I'm still adjusting myself to my new (Linux) operating system on my laptop -  talk about a learning curve, I didn't know I had to become a computing genius to run my crafts business!  I'm sure I'll get used to it . . . . . hmmmmmmm :-/

Later, gaters - I'll be back by Monday to announce a winner - I'm off to knit up my little Scottie dog doodle, I hope to have something to show you - byeeee!

Alison xxxx

It's a Giveaway :)

At last - my promised Scandinavian 'knitty' sample pieces Giveaway!  I showed a little sneaky peak of these knits a little while back - I've now got two completed sample pieces which I used to hone my colour knitting skills (using a colour-block design from 150 Scandinavian Knitting Designs by Mary Jane Mucklestone) .  It seemed a shame not to do anything with them - so why not have a little giveaway I thought :)  . . . 

I've added a chunky little zip to the two sample knits to create a very rustic purse - don't look at the hand-sewing too closely now - ooops!  (they're not lined either - VERY rustic!)  I loved doing this pattern though and while doing it I solved a little query I had with keeping the reverse floats neat and tidy, so thankyou for that, hehe!

As you  can  see there's a red and white one . . .

. . . and a black and grey one . . .

Now you must have spotted my new 'handmade by Tweed Delights' stamp - I'm so excited by my new crafty purchase LOL!  I've been wanting one of these for a long time, and finally this week I decide to go for the plunge - I love it :)  It's made by a wood mounted rubber stamp - using a traditional ink pad.  I really like how each imprint is always going to be a little different . . . 

aren't they fun?,  *sigh * - it's the little things in life that bring so much pleasure, hehe!

Anyhow, I'm giving the two little purses up for grabs in a giveaway - just state which one you would like - red or black.  Make sure you leave a contact e-mail address if you don't have a blog so I can contact you if you win.  I'll post anywhere in the world of course!

These were fun to make while I was making preps for eldest son fleeing the roost and I was very glad to have them as a little distraction amongst all the angst and chaos (my own of course!)

I'll leave the Giveaway open until next Thursday (3rd October) 12 noon.  I'll announce the winner within a couple of days of the closing date.

A little celebration giveaway to mark my return to crafting - well, why not?, it's nice to share :) :)  I'll try and pop some other little goodies in too - I must go and have a rummage for that :D

There are no terms or conditions attached to the Giveaway - just leave a comment - perhaps saying what you would use your little purse for (plus your choice of colour) and keep your fingers crossed!  See you next Thursday - in the meantime I must make some 'tweedie' goodies to attach my new labels to - must dash, byeee :)

Alison xx

Half an Empty Nest . . . and some handmade love :)

I'm back - if a little (emotionally) ragged around the edges - after accompanying eldest son to his new student life in Glasgow University. We were met at his Halls of Residence by cheery faced and enthusiastic Student Union reps in bright pink t-shirts, who whisked us and our baggage (guitar included) to his new room.  'Have you come far today?' they enquired politely, as we made our way through a warren of corridors and fire-doors - I managed a cheery 'Oh, yes - we're from the Outer Hebrides - quite an early start, the ferry left at 7 am this morning.'  We'd been travelling all day and were thoroughly shattered - ferry, bus and train with an early morning alarm call at 5 am to get us to the ferry in time.  It was now 4.30 pm  - almost 12 hours to get to our destination.

But, we had made it - hurray!  I stayed overnight at a very cosy (if basic!) B&B round the corner from the Halls and spent the next morning having a wee wander around the lovely studenty (is that a word!) area of the West End of Glasgow.

We had a fab weekend (if a little stressful for me at times!) helping him settle into his new student digs, and spending time with my two sisters and nieces who cheered us through the whole process - taking us out on the town, feeding us, ferrying us about, and even giving their bed up for me (thanks Eubha!).  

When all was said and done, I flew back on my ownsome on Sunday afternoon and must admit to feeling a lump in my throat as we hit the runway in Stornoway - Oh my Goodness, what have I done - I've left my child in Glasgow!  Well, I guess that means he's not a child any more :) :) 

While staying with my Sis on Saturday, she showed me this lovely pillow my niece had made for her a few years back - it just sums up everything I love about handmade - every stitch made with care . . . 

. . . what a treasure to keep :)

Well, I guess that's me back on the crafty wagon after a Summer-long absence - it was worth taking the time out though, through this important phase in our lives.  I had a little 'crafty' retail therapy this morning to cheer me up - nothing like it LOL!  I'll update you on that later - I'm quite excited about my purchase.  Also I will post about my Scandinavian knits which I promised to give away very soon - honest!  Back to 'tweedie' business once more :)

Later Gaters!

Alison xx

Weekend crafty project . . .

Slowly getting back into some regular blogging at last . . . . and even more slowly back to 'tweedie' business!  Onwards and, em . . . . sideways??!* (better than backwards, eh? LOL)

Anyway, at the weekend I continued my little Scandinavian knitting project and yesterday I finished it off - I'm only showing a little peek as I'm thinking of hatching a plan - Muaahahahah!  Here's a little piece of it . . . .

I might make another one to hone my colour-stranding technique - there are longer floats with this kind of knitting so I've been scouring YouTube videos to get to grips with 'tying them in' on the reverse.  I 'developed' my own method from reading books but a You Tube video I found has made me want to try a different way.

I think I'm becoming a knitting/Fair Isle geek, hehe :) :) 

Eldest son installed a new operating system on my laptop at the weekend and I've no idea where all my photos are going/gone half of the time - if my posts seem a little disorientated, that's why!

Another book I got over the summer was this one . . . 

I've made a few 'tweedie' versions of sea creatures myself over the years (jelly fish, seahorses, fishies, etc) -  so I was magnetically drawn to this book - I'm dying to try some of these as a relaxing weekend project.  Crochet seaweed - don't you just love it!

I would hope to start making more 'tweedie' items for sale soon - for adding to Etsy and to re-open for taking orders on my own website.  I haven't gone completely 'knitty' on you - it's just a nice distracting hobby for the time being until I can get the sewing machine out again - I'm sure it will all come together in due course, bear with me :) :)

By the way, the Scandinavian knitting project may well end up in a Giveaway if I get my act together!  Watch this space :D

Alison x

Back to 'tweedie-land' . . . and a bit of knitting too :)

Well, hellllooooo :)  Still here - honest!!  I've been lurking in the shadows of blogland all summer long, hehe :)  We did manage a lovely city break during the hols - perhaps more on that later though!

Back to the business in hand - one of the girls at work was looking for a sleeve for her lovely new mobile phone so I felt it was time to come out of tweedie-hibernation and do the decent thing.  I used  some of my nice new Kaffe Fasset fabric to line it and my current fave tweed - it's a very lovely pink/purple plaid - most delicious!

In the background is my new knitting book (acquired on my recent birthday).  It's called 150 Scandinavian Knitting Designs by Mary Jane Mucklestone.  I think it will be a life-long favourite - a whole heap of lovely Scandinavian  knitting block patterns to use - fantastic stuff!

I've started a little experimental piece just to practice with . . . 

Might just make a little purse or something . . . who knows :)  Aren't the wee figures cute though!  There are lots of great blocks to choose from - I'm really interested in trying out the figurative designs - owls, deer, birds - so many to choose from.  Really inspiring selection - I can't recommend this book enough!

I have been a little (understatement!) absent from my blog this summer hols - with teenage son heading off to Uni and 'Little S' starting secondary school within weeks of each other, I've been finding it a little difficult to settle down to any crafting, 'tweedie' or otherwise.   Hope I will be back  in the loop though, now that things are beginning to settle . . . . just a  little.

Hope you have had (or are having) good summer hols - it's all back to homework and school uniforms here!

Alison xx