Comfy Beanie

I knit beanies like nobody's business, particularly as my careless boyfriend is always losing the ones I make him. Anywho, I found this soft blue wool at my local craft store, and it was marked down (an important aspect for a poor, lowly student like me) and thought what a warm delicious hat it would make. Here are the results:

The red one is one of the first beanies I ever made and I still love it because it's bright and loose. I love making beanies because the take only a day or two to make and require little concentration. Also I can be as free as I want with cabling and what not. Basically all it takes is to cast on around 100 stitches, 110 if you're looking for a looser fit. Cabling makes them tighter. Once the knitting reaches around 15 to 20cm you simply begin to decrease to around 11 stitches and pull them together. Then sew it into a magnificent beanie. They make good makeshift and yet personal gifts.

Cropped Stripy Cardigan

I've been on a knitting spree lately (I tend to switch between knitting, painting, or paper crafts, obsessed with one at a time), and the latest creation is this, my striped cardigan.

I adjusted a simple pattern for a long cardigan, making it shorter, and the sleeves shorter, and making it stripey. The stripes were actually very helpful in making sure every piece was the right length. Hope it inspires :)

Soft Chewy Caramel Fudge

I have a killer sweet tooth, I can't help myself, particularly when it comes to this fudge. I make it a lot for gifts and always get rave reviews. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
125g butter
395g tin sweetened condensed milk
2 Tbsp golden syrup
1 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup good white chocolate

Method:
1. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan, then add to it the condensed milk, golden syrup, and brown sugar.
2. Stir over a low heat until it comes to the boil, then simmer for 11-12 minutes stirring slowly and constantly (simmer for 9-10 minutes for a more traditional fudge consistency).
3. Remove from heat and stir in the white chocolate.
4. Pour into a prepared tin lined with baking paper. Allow to cool. Refrigerate for 2 hours.

It doubles nicely for all the piggys out there, of which I am a proud member. Hope you love it as much as I do

Creating Curls Without Heat

If you have straight hair, like me, you probably wish you have curly hair, like I do. This is a cute boho hairstyle to be worn for a day, and when you take it out it gives great curls. I do the hairstyle after my morning shower, wear it for the day, sleep in it that night, and have great curls for the next day, plus wavy hair for the day after that. Three days of great hair in one! I love it.

These are the photos from the site I found this : http://bridalmusings.com/2011/02/fantastic-easy-hairstyle-for-the-diy-bridebridesmaid/

Knitted Lacy Cropped Wrap-Around

I found this lacy pattern in a book of designs by Victor Herbert that I found in a charity shop for $1. He calls the pattern "Shells and Fans". I used the pattern to create a very different style of top from what he had made, and in a very different kind of yarn but I think it turned out great, and am excited to work on many more lacy projects.

Paint Brush Holders

I've finally gotten around to sorting out our spare room, turning into my craft/sewing/painting room. I needed a place to put all my paint brushes so I decided to dress up some old glasses with yarn. I used a wine flute and a beer glass, so they would hold different lengths of brushes nicely. It's pretty easy and I think it looks great. All you have to do is wind the yarn around the glass, gluing as you go.

Paper Cherry Blossoms

 This is another craft that requires a bunch of patience but I think it really paid off. I think cherry blossoms are just so beautiful and have that sort of oriental zen factor that gives them simplicity even though they're so detailed and dainty.

Click here to see the tutorial I used to make the flowers. I used plain printing paper that I swirled pink watercolour paint onto, this way none of my blossoms are quite the same as one another.

Before I began this craft I had found this square black vase for cheap and it gave me the inspiration to put something contrasting into it, I decided on the pretty intricacy of cherry blossoms. I was lucky in finding some branches I thought were perfect that were dead on a tree in my backyard. I tied them together (with yarn, my handy tool that I use for everything) so they sat just how I wanted them to and slid them into the vase. I stuffed around them with newspaper to hide my very messy blue yarn tying.

With them arranged I glued my flowers on, with some general craft glue. I guess you can arrange the flowers on the branches however cherry blossom look in your head, but I had an idea that they look great grouped together and towards the ends of the branches.

The finished product. I feel a little bit proud each time I walk past it.