Lariath- Live a Little.

I love waistcoats and have spent a lot of time looking for a crochet waitcoat pattern that I actually like. When came across one that I would actually wear I added it straight to my to do list! I think it is quite smart and simple looking (just the way I like things). Here it is: This is the first piece of clothing that I have made and I really like the way it has turned out. The patterns is well written and easy to follow, however I did have to keep trying the waistcoat on as I was making it because I have a very small build and most 'normal' sized clothes do not fit me. After making a few adjustments to the pattern the waistcoat fits perfectly. It is so comfortable and looks great over a shirt, I have had a few compliments whilst wearing it so overall a great make. The pattern is quite simple as far as clothes patterns go, it took me about two days to make, I probably could have done it in one day if I had the time. Find the pattern  Here . Find other clothing po...

Starting a new job and having a busy life does not make for blogging and craft time, which makes me sad as it is a hobby that keeps me happy. Now that I have a bit of time tonight I am determined to blog! I haven't made an awful lot of stuff recently. I have made a second Crochet Sorting Hat  as a request. Also due to having less time to craft, I am being more organised and have started making Christmas gifts already. I think this is the most organised I have ever been.  I love Pinterest for finding crochet patterns etc I think it's amazing that people can find and share amazing finds in one place. It was whilst browsing Pinterest that I came across Fortune's Shawlette and thought it was so pretty and something that I would actually wear. I have never made a shawl before, I haven't actually made that many items of clothing before so this was a new challenge for me. To be on the safe side I decided to use the exact yarn that was used in the pattern and I am so gl...

A very Harry Potter obsessed friend wanted me to make her a Sorting hat. It was pretty good timing to be honest as I am currently re-reading the Harry Potter books at the minute, I read them when they first came out and had the urge to re-read. I do however need to get my hands on the films just so I can compare the books to the film just for my own interest. I've never really been interested in the films. Here is the finished product: The pattern (below for link) I used is ace and really easy to follow however when I made it the first time it was way too small. At the end of the pattern it says to add extra rounds and increases until the hat fits. If I had have done this the face would have been a really small face right at the top of the hat that would just have looked utterly wrong. I used chunky yarn as suggested in the pattern however I did not have the size hook that was suggested so I used the size down but made loose stitches. Anyway, as I said, it turned out sma...

I've been really wanting a glass tank for Tim for ages, mainly so Tim has more space but also I think they look really nice and Tim can't chew on any bars etc. Don't get me wrong, the DIY Bin Cage  that I made is awesome, more so after  Adding a Door , especially for new hamsters for taming purposes. I will be keeping the bin cage for when I go away and Tim goes to a friends house to be looked after, let's face it moving a massive tank to a friends house for a week is never going to happen. I've seen a few people using an IKEA Detolf glass cabinet (put on its side/back) as a hamster cage and for a glass tank it's a really good price for an amazing size too. The only issues I have with the Detolf are space to put the cage and transporting the cage when we move....but we will deal with that when it happens. The only other issue is that Syrian hamsters, such as Tim, can escape the Detolf if there is no lid (the glass door that comes with the Detolf cannot be us...

My good friend Sarah, her son and I went away to Scotland recently. It was a nice time away, the cottage we stayed in was awesome, the view was amazing. There were young cows surrounding us...if you know me you know I love cows! Sarah brought a gift for me to try out whilst we were there; a spindle and some fibre. I have never even considered spinning before but I love to learn new things. Here is the spindle and a bit of the fibre that I was given: It is Fondant Fibre- White Faced Woodland (Rare Breed Collection) not sure how many grams I got but there was quite a lot in the bag. My first go at spinning wasn't so great the yarn was really thick and most of it was over spun. It is that thick that it will have to stay as a single: My second try was slightly better. This try I managed to get thinner bits, however it varies in thickness massively, this one will be kept as a single: My third go was a lot better, much thinner and less varied in thickness. I'm ...

I have never tried watercolour painting before, well I probably did when I was very young but I don't remember. I love to learn and try new things so I want to give it a try. For my birthday I asked my friend to get me some watercolour paints. She asked me to paint her a picture so that is what I concentrated on for my first try at watercolour. My friend loves Japan and her favourite flower is a cherry blossom so I searched for some watercolour tutorials to help me out, with this theme in mind. I found  This YouTube Video  (Keep in mind I completely new at this and my painting is nowhere near as good). I am a newbie and don't really know any techniques yet, but I thought my friend would appreciate my first attempt with the gift she gave me. Here it is: I made a little frame for it to make it looks little neater: I am hoping to try more watercolour painting in the future but it will be a long time before I am any good at it. There is so much to learn! Enjoy this p...

I wanted to make a good friend of mine a bracelet with a design of something that she loves. After searching for a long time to find something I decided on an anchor pattern. The pattern is quite simple, I decided on an alpha pattern as I find these a lot simpler than the 'normal' knotted patterns. I used 5 white background threads (or two white threads folded in half plus one more white thread), 2 blue background threads (or one blue thread folded in half) and blue as the main colour, which I kept on the skein as I didn't know how much I would need. Turns out I needed one and a bit blue skeins. I made the buckle loop out of square knots as I explained in my  DIY Spiderman Bracelet  post. The tails were made by doing a four strand plait/braid which I learned by following  This YouTube video . Click  Here  for the anchor pattern that I used. The bracelet didn't turn out as good as I would have liked but practice makes perfect. I have been asked to make ...