Monday, January 29, 2018
Sunday, January 28, 2018
Monday, January 22, 2018
FibreShare - fibre swap and replacement package
I realised that I had, for a few different reasons, not posted much about this swap.. Well, it is an experience made - and perhaps someone might enjoy reading about this, so here goes.
I signed up for the last run of FibreShare in the fall of 2017. It's a pretty big yarn- or fibreswap (depending om wether you knit, crochet or spin) organised by some very good people.
I was partnered up with two people - one to receive from and one to send to. And my parcel was packed and sent off to Great Britain!
I tried to include both something that I liked and something that my partner would like in my parcel, so there was a variety of yarn types (even some that I dyed myself), stitch markers, chocolates and tea. (Putting the parcels together is my favourite part of any swap! And I might have some difficulties restraining myself from time to time...)
The shipping date came and went - my parcel was sent off with the norwegian postal system, and arrived safely in it's destination after about a week and a half. And the parcel intended for me? Well... communications went down and somewhere between Texas and Norway all traces were lost.. Bummer..
Lucky for me (and the 20+ other missing parcels - this is a swap with thousands of participants, so really the numbers were not that bad) the organisers were very kind, patient and understanding - and they had a plan! So, just before Christmas, my replacement package arrived!
Everything came in a brown box, with silk paper covering the contents (even a sticher from the swap closing the paper cover) and under the silk paper was this big, full project bag!
Inside the bag were stitch- and progressmarkers. Have you ever seen such cool markers? I've tested the square ones, and they are great!
Oh, and yarn! I've tested the Rowan yarn on a previous occasion, but the others were new acquaintances to me. Vintage Berroco, Quince & Co, Cascade and Jersey Be Good - all in lovely tones of grey, black and blue. How very fitting! The Jersey Be Good has whispered a wish to become a pillow, and I think I can help with that. The others are very quiet, but they seem to enjoy being stroked and squished every now and then..
They even included two buttons made for the swaps - "Team Knit" (my usual preferance with regards to fibre) and "I signed up for Fibre Share".
***
This experience has not scared me from entering again. This was my first time, and I got unlucky. However, I was also very lucky - these girls have their organisation in order, and I think I couldn't have gotten a better package than my replacement!
The first swap of 2018 has already started, and although I did consider it quite a bit, I have not joined. But! The next round I'd really like to join. I don't think the lightning will strike twice.. *fingers crossed* And planning the packages really are the most fun part of any swap!
I signed up for the last run of FibreShare in the fall of 2017. It's a pretty big yarn- or fibreswap (depending om wether you knit, crochet or spin) organised by some very good people.
I was partnered up with two people - one to receive from and one to send to. And my parcel was packed and sent off to Great Britain!
I tried to include both something that I liked and something that my partner would like in my parcel, so there was a variety of yarn types (even some that I dyed myself), stitch markers, chocolates and tea. (Putting the parcels together is my favourite part of any swap! And I might have some difficulties restraining myself from time to time...)
The shipping date came and went - my parcel was sent off with the norwegian postal system, and arrived safely in it's destination after about a week and a half. And the parcel intended for me? Well... communications went down and somewhere between Texas and Norway all traces were lost.. Bummer..
Lucky for me (and the 20+ other missing parcels - this is a swap with thousands of participants, so really the numbers were not that bad) the organisers were very kind, patient and understanding - and they had a plan! So, just before Christmas, my replacement package arrived!
Everything came in a brown box, with silk paper covering the contents (even a sticher from the swap closing the paper cover) and under the silk paper was this big, full project bag!
Inside the bag were stitch- and progressmarkers. Have you ever seen such cool markers? I've tested the square ones, and they are great!
Oh, and yarn! I've tested the Rowan yarn on a previous occasion, but the others were new acquaintances to me. Vintage Berroco, Quince & Co, Cascade and Jersey Be Good - all in lovely tones of grey, black and blue. How very fitting! The Jersey Be Good has whispered a wish to become a pillow, and I think I can help with that. The others are very quiet, but they seem to enjoy being stroked and squished every now and then..
They even included two buttons made for the swaps - "Team Knit" (my usual preferance with regards to fibre) and "I signed up for Fibre Share".
***
This experience has not scared me from entering again. This was my first time, and I got unlucky. However, I was also very lucky - these girls have their organisation in order, and I think I couldn't have gotten a better package than my replacement!
The first swap of 2018 has already started, and although I did consider it quite a bit, I have not joined. But! The next round I'd really like to join. I don't think the lightning will strike twice.. *fingers crossed* And planning the packages really are the most fun part of any swap!
Thursday, January 18, 2018
Wednesday, January 17, 2018
Peder’s quilt - Harry Potter meets Flower Market
I've been reading Jedi Craft Girl's blog for a couple of years now, amazed by the quilts that she makes. But when I first saw the pattern Flower Market on her blog, I knew that I had to make it - some day, and perhaps not necessarily with flowers.
When Aurora was given a quilt by her grandmother, Peder made a wish that he too could get a quilt some day - and when I asked him what kind of quilt he'd like (going through quite a list of options, like Angry Birds, LEGO, Minecraft, Harry Potter, and so on) he chose Harry. And Harry it had to be!
While in Birmingham, attending The Festival of Quilts, I made it a bit of a challenge to find some fabric with Harry Potter print or colours matching the Gryffindor house (which is Harry's house, and thus Peder's favourite). Well, I managed to find some fat quarters, and some coordinating fabric - and by chance (I guess it was meant to be) when we returned from Birmingham, Fat Quarter Shop actually had a sale on some yardage! And so the cutting and sewing began..
It really didn't take that long, neither cutting or sewing, so after a couple of evenings (and one night, the kinds and hubby were away) the top was completed!
My mom was very kind and quilted it on her quilting machine - and then it was just a matter of adding the binding before wrapping it up and saving it for Christmas!
It's a big quilt - originally measured to 56x70", but I added a 6" edge on the top and bottom, resulting in a quilt measuring 56x82" - nicely covering his bed, and a great wrapping up-size for a growing boy!
There was a tiny snowfall before Christmas, tempting me to bring it outside for a quick photo shoot.
A little bit of snow has never damaged a quilt!
And a tiny bit of sunset in the background.
The backing came from Lappemakeriet, a quilt store at Bærums Verk, which Aurora and I visited while the boys attended a chess tournament.
I'm toying with the idea of making another one of these - perhaps using Halloween fabric - or shrinking it a bit, to make a baby quilt for a colleague of mine.. I have a bundle of fat quarters (or something like that) in light flowery colours that might fit perfectly.
When Aurora was given a quilt by her grandmother, Peder made a wish that he too could get a quilt some day - and when I asked him what kind of quilt he'd like (going through quite a list of options, like Angry Birds, LEGO, Minecraft, Harry Potter, and so on) he chose Harry. And Harry it had to be!
While in Birmingham, attending The Festival of Quilts, I made it a bit of a challenge to find some fabric with Harry Potter print or colours matching the Gryffindor house (which is Harry's house, and thus Peder's favourite). Well, I managed to find some fat quarters, and some coordinating fabric - and by chance (I guess it was meant to be) when we returned from Birmingham, Fat Quarter Shop actually had a sale on some yardage! And so the cutting and sewing began..
It really didn't take that long, neither cutting or sewing, so after a couple of evenings (and one night, the kinds and hubby were away) the top was completed!
My mom was very kind and quilted it on her quilting machine - and then it was just a matter of adding the binding before wrapping it up and saving it for Christmas!
It's a big quilt - originally measured to 56x70", but I added a 6" edge on the top and bottom, resulting in a quilt measuring 56x82" - nicely covering his bed, and a great wrapping up-size for a growing boy!
There was a tiny snowfall before Christmas, tempting me to bring it outside for a quick photo shoot.
A little bit of snow has never damaged a quilt!
And a tiny bit of sunset in the background.
The backing came from Lappemakeriet, a quilt store at Bærums Verk, which Aurora and I visited while the boys attended a chess tournament.
I'm toying with the idea of making another one of these - perhaps using Halloween fabric - or shrinking it a bit, to make a baby quilt for a colleague of mine.. I have a bundle of fat quarters (or something like that) in light flowery colours that might fit perfectly.
Tuesday, January 16, 2018
What happens when it rains - my quilt from The Festival of Quilts
I just realised that I never finished this post about my quilt shown at The Festival of Quilts in Birmingham back in August 2017. Well, here it is!
This is the same quilt that's featured in the Norwegian Quilt Association (NQF) magazine before Christmas - and you can also read a little about the background story in the article.
Long story short, the idea behind the quilt was a thought I had while putting the kids to sleep one night : what happens to the bow when it rains? The bow being the rainbow, which, when the sunlight hits the misty raindrops in just the right way, lights up the world with a wondrous display of colour. And I kept working on that thought, imagining the rainbow being hit by a massive rainstorm, and how the colours would fall to the earth, one drop at a time.. And so the idea was clear - I had to make this into a quilt! (I even tried some things I've never done before, embroidering with beads... they're far from perfect, but the effect is pretty cool!)
Quite a lovely little quilt (about 72x72 cm), using fabric from my stash (there's even a hint of Liberty in there).
Oh, and the raindrop that's turned upside-down? It's meant to be like that. Because sometimes it rains so hard, it feels like it's raining up!
Wednesday, January 10, 2018
Friday, January 05, 2018
Published!
When your quilt is shown as a huge picture in the magazine (number 4/2017) from the Norwegian Quilt Association (NQF), it really is quite cool!
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| The caption reads "My quilt in the magazine!" (and is from SnapChat) |
Thank you for choosing my quilt to show in the magazine, and I am very honoured to be featured with the little tale of the inspiration behind this quilt - and with such a big picture!
Tuesday, January 02, 2018
Frozen skirt
When your child has a deep love of anything Frozen (or glitters, pink and unicorns..... I have no idea where she gets it from) and you have a piece of Frozen fabric in your stash - well, then you really have no choice other than making a Frozen skirt.
I can honestly say that this is the first skirt I've sewn since I was in 8th grade!
But a simple pattern and a very happy recipient made it worth it. (I might even make another one, in a not so distant future - and not 22 years later....)
Monday, January 01, 2018
SSCS 2017 - to Jo from me
I've always loved Christmas, but for the past 11 years even more, as it has been more sneaking, stalking and secret crafting involved. And all that because of Chooky's SSCS - Secret Santa Christmas Swap. I was so happy to be able (allowed..?) to join this year too, as this has become quite the tradition for me, and it simply wouldn't be Christmas without it!
This year my lucky (?) receiver was Jo, and I had the joy of stalking her blog for a bit while planning my parcel.
First on my list was the ornament. I had a pretty good idea of what to make, as I learned how to dye my own yarn this summer (thanks, mom!) So I knew that I had to knit a Christmas ball (..ornament..) using some of the yarn I've dyed.
The pattern is called Kongle (Pine Cone) and is designed by Arne & Carlos. I really enjoy knitting these ornaments, and have been toying with the idea of knitting up an ornament of each of the different yarn I dye, just to see how the colours work.
Next challenge up was the main gift. I've used this pattern a few times now, and I really like it. It's simple, yet looks good, and can be adapted pretty well to fit any design or size you may wish. It is called Veskekurven and is designed by RyumQuilt. I used a mini charm pack and some yardage I had in my stash. I bought the handles in London during the Knitting and Stitching Show back in October 2016. I think the finished bag looks very cute!
As usually, I try to find something extra to add to the parcel, and this year I made a matching mug rug (I love using these to practise precision, quilting and binding), some candy and chocolate (always chocolate), a mini charm pack, and a couple of post cards from Norway (featuring the northern lights and such).
Thank you for another great swap, Chooky!
Merry Christmas to all - and a happy and creative New Year!
SSCS 2017 - To me from Anthea
This is my 11th time participating in ChookyBlue's Secret Santa Christmas Swap - and there's just no Christmas without it!
This year Anthea was my Secret Santa. Look at these adorable (and handsome) Santa ornaments she sent me!
And on Christmas Eve I got to open my main present - and this very sweet project bag with pin cushion was waiting inside the wrapping paper. Anthea also included a lovely calendar of scenic Australia and what may be the tiniest pair of scissors I have ever seen!
Thank you so much, Anthea, for the lovely gifts!
And thank you ChookyBlue, for another year of sneaking, planning, stalking (?) and making new friends all over the world!
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