A set of blue

I like to play as you know and this is the set I made with a different doodad for the centre.

I wanted to prove to myself that it doesn't matter where you join as long as you have eight places in a doodad and that it measures 1.5 centimetres (or thereabouts).  By thereabouts a millimetre more or less shouldn't make a big difference and the doodads I've got all seem to be roughly 1.5 in places anyway.

Can you see the necklace 'thingie' (can never think of the right word for them) below?  Joanie sent me home from her house with lots of them and I really, really love them as they're adjustable and easy to put on and take off.  I use a metal split ring at the top of the pendants so that I can slip the tatting on and off just the one necklace as and when I change to another colour.  Well, that's in theory!!!!  

Pot holders again!

So the diversion continues!!!  Two more pot holders or dishcloths.

The top one is just one layer as I knew I wouldn't have enough yarn for a double one like the other day.  This is the yarn that I bought on impulse and then found was too thin.  It's a double knitting weight but it'll still be useful.

The blue is the proper 'stuff'.  Aran weight so I could knit this one!!!  There are HUNDREDS of patterns out on the internet but I found this one here.

What's in a name?

Another update on the oval doilies.

I'd really, really appreciate somebody coming up with names for these.  There are three and I feel it should be something to do with the original designer/designers - the nuns in The Netherlands.  

When they've got names I always feel that they then can be put on the web site.  I'm really hopeless at naming my own work as you've probably noticed!!  

A name is important and that's why I changed mine some thirty years ago - back to my proper name instead of a name that it was 'taken for granted' I'd use when I got married.

OWCH - something personal nearly slipped out there and you know I rarely let anything personal escape online.  I must be getting old and senile - AGAIN!!!!

Before and after

Last week I decided that I was going to 'get rid of' the clothes I no longer wear.  It sounded like a good plan!!!

When I looked in the wardrobe I realised that I hadn't got that many clothes.   I have one wardrobe - not very big and I keep all my summer and winter stuff in there.  

I spotted this skirt (top picture) and decided it 'had to go'.  I must've bought it some ten to fifteen years ago when Cotton Traders had an outlet in a local garden centre.  It was much longer than it is here.  I've worn it and worn it as you can see and shortened it too.  The reason I gave up wearing it is because it doesn't have pockets.  I LIKE POCKETS!!!!

I got it out of the wardrobe and decided on the spur of the moment that I'd make some pockets for it!!!  Over the years I've also got to hate the buttons on the skirt too so they went and I covered the ugly buttonholes with matching fabric.

I have a NEW SKIRT!!!!  The difference in the colours is because I took the first picture in the sunny conservatory and the second one in the living room!!!!  The 'real' colour is somewhere in between!!!!

A bit of a diversion!

Again!!!  

I'm still working on the Dutch patterns and still slowly blogging progress.  Tim is doing well trying to finish Beatrix and has reported that he's doing really well with the spiral chains.  

I daren't start another pattern (yes, I've found two more that I think are worth spending time with) until Beatrix and the oval doilies are up on my site.  I have got a rough translation of another round doily done, though but that's only a very small start!!!

Meantime my good friend Sandra who puts up with me when I go to Tat Days has tempted me off the 'straight and narrow' and into making pot holders/dishcloths.  It was a combination of seeing her knitting lots and a conversation with my daughter and granddaughter that caused me to buy a ball of cotton double knitting yarn.  I tried knitting it but the result was too 'floppy' so I undid the two knitted ones and started on crocheting instead!!!  The pictures below are one knitted square and one half done knitted round one.  Right at the bottom is the CROCHETED square which you can see easily from the picture is a lot, lot better.  I haven't enough of this yarn to make another like the bottom one so will make another single layer one.  The 'recipe' for the bottom pot holder can be found here and I thought it was good fun to make.