Keeping a couple of little secrets

Have you ever had to keep a little secret?  I have been sitting on two for the past few weeks and I call now finally share them with you.  The two items that I have made have now been safely delivered to their new homes.

The first up is a lovely new Mumma bear for Little B. 

 

Coming from Melbourne where layering your clothing is everything due to our 4 seasons in one day weather trick I decided that she needed another layer so a little crochet cardigan was made.  As Little B is only 1 yrs old, I needed to make something that didn’t have any hard pieces, like buttons for eyes, so when I came across this pattern in 'Softies', I knew it was perfect.

Little B’s Mum is one very clever lady who makes the most beautiful mermaid and mermen softies so I thought another style of softie might be a suitable present.  Check out Little B’s Mum’s softies here.

(Full credit to those out there who make softie toys especially if they require many limbs.  I struggled with the sewing of the limbs, trying to fit them all in so that when you turn the bodies right way out everything was sewn in place.  I must have unpicked the limbs at least 4 times as every time I tried to sew them, they slipped out of place and were not connected properly). 

 

My other little secret was a birthday present for my niece Little C.  Last year I made her this little doll, so this year I decided that I needed to make something that she could use with the doll.  I knew that she had a little wooden cradle for her dolls but nothing to put in it, so I made a blanket and sheet set.

 

 

 

I knew I wanted to make a crochet blanket for the top but was unsure on what pattern or style.  I then came across this pattern on my favourite place Pinterest.  As soon as I saw it I was hooked, I knew it was the one.  So off I went following the links only to find that the whole pattern was in French.   My experience of the French language ended in year 8 as I had an argument with the French teacher as to why I didn’t want to be in her class anymore.  She tried to tell me that art (which I was dropping her class for), was not a proper subject and it would never get me anywhere (I then went on to be a Secondary school Art/textiles teacher). 

So what was I going to do?  A couple of the clever ladies in my craft group suggested that I Google translate the pattern.  I tried that and I think a lot of the detail was lost in translation as it made no sense at all. I then decided to just give it a go myself, making a row, seeing if it looked right, if not undoing it and then trying again.  And here it is the finished product.  As you can see I also made a mattress, sheet and pillow to go with it.

I am so excited to be sharing these with you as I have had to keep them a secret for soooooooo  long.

Do you ever struggle keeping secret gifts a secret?

Anna

XO

Wyreena Goodies

Once again I have been very lucky to be able to display (and fingers crossed possibly sell) some of the things that I have made at Wyreena Community Arts Center in their gallery.  This time I have tried to mix it up a little and make some new things. A little bit of crochet, knitting, sewing and with my new love of power tools, some crochet hooks.

Here's a sneak peak at my window display.

If you are in the area please come on down and have a look (they also make the best coffee there too).


Anna
XO


Some of you might have noticed there has been a little bit of action on my side bar lately.  I have finally set up and Esme Rudy Facebook page.  Here I am, http://www.facebook.com/EsmeRudy  So if you prefer to follow things via Facebook this is now an option.  At the moment I know it looks a little messy on the side bar but hopefully soon I will get to tidying it up a little (my slightly OCD side of me is horrified at how it looks, all code like and not one bit pretty or neat, deep breaths and small steps at a time).

A month in review...May

Just a little visual something to share with you all in this post.  I felt like I didn't achieved much in May but looking back on it now through my pictures I was a little busy.

This beanie won a prize for "Best Autumn" themed beanie over at Little Red's Craft Cupboard (which is a fantastic local craft shop run by Kate.  Kate also has a blog by the same name).

A cushion for my nephew's bed (not happy with how the iron on interfacing buckled when I ironed it on).  I told my sister in law I would re-do it and she laughed at me. In her words "he's not going to noticed, he's 5 yrs old, he's just ecstatic that he has a cushion with his name on it to show to all his friends".  Boy to be that young and made happy by the smallest things.

A special little present for a little girl moving into a big bed

(out growing the cot).

A hot water bottle cover for my Mum (a felted jumper found at an op shop).

Mum has a thing for the colour green and it suits her just perfect.

And finally a special bit of knitting for a very special little boy.  Dear Master M, may this keep your little head warm while you stay in hospital.

For the life of me I just can't get this picture to go the right way.  Every time I upload it, it wants to turn on it's side.

I love this pattern for this beanie, a great Ravelry find.  It is such an easy one to knit up, even with all the distractions a 2.5 yr old can throw in the mix.

So this was my month of May and June is looking to be a busy one too.  As busy as I get I must admit I do love every part of the creating and making, and the best part is the giving it away to someone special.

Do you have a busy creative May?

Anna

XO

Coming back...

Should one ever feel guilty about the time that they spend away from their blog and those blogs that they follow?  I do.  Is that normal or is that because I put a lot of pressure on myself to make sure that I do everything or that I think that I can do everything?  Is this a female thing or is it a mother thing?  Wow this is now becoming way too deep. Really wasn’t planning on that. 

Unfortunately I have had to have an unscheduled, shall we call it ‘holiday’ from blog land as my real life got a little bit busy.  Bouts of sickness, an unplanned trip the emergency department for little O and several doctors appointments later, I am finally hoping that things will now start settling back into their normal routines.

During this time I was able to fit in a bit of not only hooky goodness but also some knitting and sewing.  On the weekend just gone I held my third ‘Esme Rudy’ stall at a local primary school spring fete.  Besides the weather being quite horrible in the morning (we’re talking heavy rain, wind and even hail), by lunch time it fined up and the rest of the day was quite pleasant. 

I met some wonderful women who had the surrounding stalls and they were very generous in the advice that they gave me about having a stall and working at markets. To Kylie, Annie and Olivia thank you for all the advice that you gave me.  It was very beneficial and will help me to plan on what direction I really want to take my work in, and for also making the time fly.  It really is a good day when you met lovely people and have great conversations.

So what did I make I hear you ask.  Well I went from our kitchen table looking like this...

Yes they are freaky little eyes looking out at you.

 ...to having a fantastic stall like this...

To everyone that bought some of my stuff I hope that it brings you as much happiness as it did as I was making it.

I hope that you are all well out there in blog land.

Anna
XO

I love a bit of bunting

Oh!  I just came across this and had to join straight away.  I loooove bunting!  I have made it for both my niece and nephew's room and made one especially for Little O's room for when he was born.  So many ideas, so many colour choices, do I sew, do I crochet??  What to make???

Please join and lets see if we can help Rachael achieve her goal (now if only I had a big enough house to hang it all).

Anna
XO