Ashley Has a New Hat

 

 

My youngest son was complaining of the cold, so as us knitters know a woolly hat makes a lot of difference to our body temperatures, so I thought I would make him one.  A quick browse in the surfy shops and I could see what style was in, can't believe how much they charge for factory made acrylic knit hats! Good old Bendigo 12 ply in the stash and in an afternoon, Ashley now has a new hat.  It is such a lovely feeling when you create something for your loved ones.

 

One of his mates has also asked for one......hmmmm I might be kept a bit busy making hats I feel.

 



Gloves For Winter





Well I finally can take a deep breath and relax! I have just had the busiest 6 months ever with more people than ever ordering their knitted accessories from me, which is so totally amazing and exhausting all at the same time. I have loved every minute of it and hope to expand on my range to include new pieces for 2013/2014. 

 

 I do however have a couple of new items to share for us Southern Hemispherians (not sure if that is even a word but hey, I'll use it just the same).

 Flip Top mittens in a gorgeous bright shade of cerise, this style of mitten proved very popular this year and I think while people love fingerless mitts, sometimes you still need to cover up those finger tips. Made from Bendigo Woollen Mills classic 8ply, they are also extremely hardwearing and warm.

But if you like the look of a fingerless then these mitts are just perfect, made from Bendigo alpaca, they are gorgeously soft.  If any of the above appeal and/or you would like to know more, they are available at my Etsy and Madeit shops.

Until next time, happy knitting!

Black Friday Cyber Monday Sale

Simply head on over to my Etsy shop and check out my ready to ship and if you enter the code: BLOGSH you will also receive 10%** off the item price.

**discount only on ready to ship items.

Pink and a bit of Mary Tyler Moore

There seems to be a bit of pink happening at Shazzas lately!  The first is a hat I made to give to a local lady who shaved her hair off for a cancer fundraiser.  It is another version of my flapper style hat.

 

 

A pink modern vintage crochet scarf, which seems to be a contradiction of terms but it is a style I am seeing everywhere, I would call it vintage as I remember the style from the 70's whereas in 2012 it is definately modern!  A lovely scarf to snuggle into on a cold dreary day just the same.   

 

And as the title of this blog post suggests, a bit of Mary Tyler Moore.  A customer requested this little gem and I had an absoloute ball making it, I can imagine in other colours it would be lovely, but it wouldn't be a Mary Tyler Moore hat?!?

 

 

 

Beret Blocking Process at Shazzas

My Berets all go through a very important process before they are deemed ready to sell to the public. The knitting process is only the first step and really is just a floppy hat with very little shape to it. Once it is off the needles it gets a bath in warm water with baby shampoo added to it, I use Johnson's Baby Shampoo because if it is good enough for babies it is good enough for my hats. I let the hat soak for about 20 minutes so that the fibres are nice and relaxed, hey it is a bath after all, I rinse in more warm water and gently squeeze the excess water out. It is wrapped in a dry towel and left for about half an hour and then it is ready to block on my very special hat blocking board made for me by my a friends father. I used to use my mothers pavlova plate as it was the perfect measurement, 31cms (12 inches) in diameter, but as the plate has very special memories for me it was too much of a family heirloom to risk breaking.



The beret is then stretched over the blocking board and you will see how the lace pattern opens up beautifully as the wet fibres are stretched into shape, this then all sits for about 12 - 24 hours in a warm place to dry completely. The beret is carefully removed and any ends sewn in, I never sew them in first as they need to mould and settle into their righful place and any that are sewn in too tightly may cause pulling.



There you have it, a nicely shaped beret ready to wear, definately worth the extra effort of blocking.

A Crocheted Scarf

Found this great 1970's pattern for a scarf, changed it around a bit to give it that modern vintage look that is so in fashion right now! I made it in Bendigo Rustic 12ply Berry.

I have discovered Pinterest it is an amazing visual site where you can have pin boards and pin images that you find on the internet and search what other people are finding, love it! Oh and if you would like to see what I pin you can check out my pin board.

oh well till next time,
happy knitting

Babies Hats and More Tea Cosies

I made these tea cosies for a friend and love how the simple flower works so well. All made with Bendigo Classic 8 ply of course, what great colours!


Baby aviator hats, must have item for your little ones, made to order in sizes 0 through to 24 months in Bendigo Luxury 8 ply which is gorgeously soft against babies skin and best of all, machine washable.


I will be having a stall at The Branch Handmade market which will be held Friday, September 30 · 6:30pm - 9:30pm at The Branch Christian Church Innocent Street, Kings Meadows Launceston behind the bowling alley. I will have the little watermelon hats plus a lot more handknitted goodies for sale, come along and say hi if you are in the area.