Well, it has been an eventful half-term. I finally finished Knitted Dinosaurs for GMC with the wonderful Sarah Hatton using her superior maths brain as my pattern checker. We had a final push last Friday, e-mailing all the errata and amends back and forth until at around 5pm we finally finished. I expect poor Sarah doesn't want to see another dinosaur for at least 6 months now!
I 've finished writing all the other text and now it's over to GMC to work their usual magic with photos and styling. Can't wait to see the proofs when they begin to come back to me for checking.
So now the dinosaurs are in the can, it's time to get on with my sewing for the next book 'Sewn Nursery'. I have been sponsored for a great deal of the fabric for this book by the wonderful Nancy from Fabric Rehab. I have a sneeky preview of some of the fabric below. It is to be a cheery book full of bright primary colours to match the feel of Knitted Nursery, also by GMC and published last year by Nancy Atkinson and Sarah Jane Tavener. Can't wait to get going now.
Yummy Fabric from Nancy at Fabric Rehab
In the middle of all this flurry of work, it was half term last week which made it tricky to get on as quickly as I'd like. Added to the fact that it poured down with rain and the kids were stuck inside, all in all, it turned into a pretty rubbish holiday. The sun came out on the last day and my teenage son- a massive Tour De France fan- decided to take his racing bike out for a spin. An hour later, he staggered in covered in blood. A visit to A&E and the results are below! Today, his eye is so swollen it won't open and it is a beautifull purple colour. I swear he'll do anything to get out of school! Ah the joy of teenage boys.....
OMG, my posts are so scattered, they always seem to be about snow. Well anyway, there was more snow this Christmas which my little horrors loved as usual. Lucy had loads of fun on her £3.50 plastic sledge from good ole Trago Mills and Christmas was sniffle free which is a first for this family.
Been busy working on not one but 2 new books for The Guild of Mastercraftsmen. The first is nearly in the can: Knitted Dinosaurs and was such a fun project from start to end. There are 15 dinosaurs in all including Plant Muncher, Dino Birds, Sea Monsters and of course the Mighty Meat Eaters. All the guys, including the big bad ones became characters in their own right as soon as I got their eyes on and their faces came to life. I was almost sad to post them off to GMC for photography which shows one of two things: 1- I enjoyed the project or 2- I need to get out more!!!
Anyway, the second book I am about to get stuck into is called 'Sewn Nursery' which is a gorgeous book of sewing projects for your childs nursery. Again it is full of fun bright colours and includes toys, clothes and accessories. Will tell you more when it is nearer completion.
Both books are due out later this year and I will provide links for purchasing as soon as they are available to buy.
Been running these books alongside my usual magazine commission mayhem and am not sure what day it is anymore! Thank goodness I love my job.
Here's a sneaky peek of one of my dino pals. A big cuddly diplodocus knitted in chunky yarn and with denim patch detailing.
Here's hoping my next blog post is not entitled Snoooow again!
Well, I have finally worked out how to convert my patterns to Pdf's. Yes, I realise I am cyber challenged but this is a big thing for me. Anyway, this site does not yet support purchasable downloads (but I am informed it is to happen very soon, so fingers crossed) so I am using Ravelry as my market place at present.
My first pattern for sale is Rosie Posie Ragdoll. She is 21in high and the pattern comes complete with tips on how to work her features and hair and has additional instructions for her dress too. It's priced at £4.00 and you can find purchase here here: www.ravelry.com/people/TinaB
Hope this is the first of many patterns. Rosie was made for my own amusement really but was pictured in an interview I did for Yarn Forward and I have had several enquiries about her since asking whether I will release a pattern for her. So this is really for you guys. Enjoy!
As you know I also love sewing, especially for the little guys and am also looking at ways of producing a paper pattern so my dressmaking patterns can be made available to buy. Watch this space for further details.
Am off to make a little gypsy skirt for my 4 year old this sunny Sunday afternoon. Beef in the oven, kids out to play.....bliss!
Well, look at me! 2 Blog posts in one month. What's happening? Well, I just had to share our wonderful late weekend holiday with you all. We have been experiencing more crunch than credit like many people and decided to spend our wedding anniversary away with the kids camping on a budget. We haven't taken a single break this year what with work commitments being so full but this spur of the moment decision turned out to be really wonderful!
We left on Saturday afternoon after making a quick call to a random campsite pulled out of the blue from our camping handbook. It all fell on who answered the phone as to where we would end up. As it turned out, we ended up in Tintagel and fate being what it is, this was a great choice. Our site cost £4.00 a night (no I am not kidding) and we were able to take the kids, tent, camper and all 3 dogs which is a bargain, I think you'll agree. The site was a field (no shower block etc so it really was camping and in no way 'Glamping') but the view was absolutely stunning. We could see right over Tintagel and Boscastle and after a proper cowboy tea of bacon and beans cooked on the gas stove, the kids and dad went exploring whilst I watched the sun set over the sea and crocheted whilst listening to Radio 4. Utter Bliss!
After a mixed night sleep (kids- excitment etc etc...) we headed into Tintagel which is very commercial with many plastic Merlins and Arthurs plus ye olde Camelot Amusement Arcade in the main carpark! Aside from that though, Tintagel does have such charm and you really do feel that out of all the places that Camelot was supposed to have been sited, this one is the real Mc Coy. We headed to the beach (our shoe string budget prevented 3 kids and 2 adults going into the National Trust owned castle I'm afraid) but humans and dogs had much joy chasing waves and making sandcastles on the beach. The tide was in too far to explore Merlin's caves but we will return for a second visit, no doubt to finish the job!
Ice Creams and souvenir shopping ended the afternoon and the sun shone brightly for us throughout the weekend. My son, James who is now 14, and been swiped in the face by puberty this summer, spent all his pocket money buying me a pair of bright flowery wellies because I'd lent my old hunters to him because he'd only brought converse trainers to wear (ah the vanity of youth!) which were rubbish in a wet field and for digging in the sand. I was very touched and can no longer call him 'Mc Scottish' (sorry to all you very generous Scottish folk out there!) a name earned because he kept his wallet on a string tied to his pocket - and no I am not making it up- and never could be parted from his cash unless it was a dire emergency. He would have probably been a millionaire if puberty hadn't struck and given him a personality transplant!!!
