My Uncle Ted With My Girls

That baby at the front is my Ruby, 26 next month, and her sister Claire on the right is turning 30 tomorrow! I remember making those trousers! Yellow pinwhale cord. And the shirts. Now I buy clothes at the op-shop and K-Mart because I'm too busy sewing fun things to make clothes. I used to love it. I wish I'd had more to do with Teddy, I really do. I need not to work.

The Top Is Done!

The back may be as complicated, that's the thing.

I knitted the Owls from the Owl Vest pattern posted on Ravelry by Jodi Haraldson. For my Mumma, who collected owls. Well, you know, she collected them years ago and had just found them and pulled them out... but it's translated into Mum=Owls and Purple. The rug wool I used was from a stach Mum, Grandma and I had. We had tons and I've only just sent it along (I know where it is too so the temptation is there). Boopy La is allergic to wool although I think we need our own Wagga in any case.

Now to clean the fluff out of every corner of the house and put the furniture back (until I start the back at least).

Again, here's a bit of blether about Wagga's.

Claire's Wagga. Shhh! She's turning 30!

It's for her birthday next week. It's difficult to photograph it inside the dark lounge room. In fact it's difficut to lay it out in there too. I've dragged the chaise aside and crammed the furniture to one end. If we want to watch tele we have to climb and snuggle in the corner.
It's like a cubby house. I like it.
I want to show you how it goes. I make bits, with a bit of a scheme in mind (which evolves and presents itself as you go along), then lay them out. Then you can see if it needs more brights in that corner or if the effect of the longer strips is working etc.

I doubt you could make one that looked bad if you tried. I had a lady in one of my classes who made the other Wagga (with my old pattern)... she had a bag of fabric and instead of choosing the next colour she just put her hand in the bag and grabbed the next one. She might have three reds of the same cloth, sewn next to each other, but it looked amazing. In fact, it gave a look that no amount of trying would achieve.

I start by:

1: Making a pile of colours that look good together. Throw these on the floor. Roll over in them naked to get a proper feel for the project.

2: Put the rest away. Most important. Get dressed.

3: If you have a 'flash' colour that would look a bit loud and bright in a big piece, cut it small and add something to the side. These flash colours give life and movement, albeit in small bits.

4: Continue in this way! Look at the pictures, as bad as they are. It's like BUILDING. I love it more than anything! I say that out loud, frequently. I love doing this!

Look here too.

5: Lay you cameo's out and move them around a bit to get a little thing happening. Make sure you overlap them a bit to account for seams. If you think a colour would look better bigger, just add more of it rather than another colour.

6: It's best to vary your sizes. Areas of intricate piecing, areas of large blocks. I'll frequently make a section, then cut it down the middle through all of the seams.

7: Joining is just filling in the gaps. Occasionally this will look good as one colour or range of colours. It's up to you.

I want you all to make some. They're more fun than lots of things that are really good fun. Much more, and I'm desperate to share the love.

I've used one of Mum's dresses and the pinky hound's tooth (woven in Yackandandah where my Granny and Gramps lived) was Mum's but she hadn't used it yet. The knitted bit was done by my Grandma but never got finished or sewn together.

Uncle Teddy

Teddy and Grace.

Teddy and my cousin Christopher when he was one years old.

Teddy passed away on Thursday night (21st May 2009). My Mum's little brother. Both died of lung disease, which makes you wonder. Such a lovely man. He was generous, warm, chatty (!) and loved his family more than anything. He was like my grandfather (Dah) in personality and included his sons in everything. Even though we hadn't spent a lot of our lives together, I loved him dearly and he me. It's nice to know that.

Sadly, Aunty Grace's sister will be buried also next week. Two funerals for the family.

Love to Grace and my cousins and their families. Love to Grace and Dawns other sisters. xxxxxx

More and More and More and More and...

Baby. I've just put eyebrows on. 1 1/2 anyway. I like this one.

You can't see it, but just off camera there's a really funny clown. He just told a joke about a goat. I wasn't listening so I'm not really sure.

This little vampire/blow-up-doll was meant to be singing. She looked like she was a choir girl kindly singing Christmas Carols on a frosty Christmas Eve somewhere in the 19th Century.

I can't think. Dad's just had a hip op (worked well) and I'm staying there looking after him. I'm doing Cert IV in Training & Assessment too, which is so huge and arduous that this alone would cause my brain to freeze. Of course, our company has decided that we should do the course over 12 weeks, in spite of the Tafe continuously asking them to review the situation... lotsa homework and Dad to boot. It's brought the whole Mum dying thing back too, the same hossie, the same sleeping over. And I'm such a home bod, I need my home quiet time.

Stop ya whinin' woman.

Not whining, just sharing! Be nice!

Anyway, these take no brain. Pity I forgot that I'd smallened the eyes (I know smallened isn't really a word) on the previous incarnation of this design. It looked better too. Bugger! These are for the kids and two spares.

Jaden's Pirate

I can feel a ne Pot Holder coming on. The little boy is 9!! Well, on Thursday, but we're having cake tonight.

Lucy Ellen and Mary Ellen

I'm in love with Mary at the moment (on the right). I can't remember if I've told you about her, excepting for the fall into the lift well business. Anyway, I've found out where she's buried. She's in Sydney's Rockwood Cemetery, Section 6, Grave 906. I got a bit teary when my query was answered. Was she alone up there? What was she doing? I want to know. I'm on holidays (of sorts) for a couple of weeks (interrupted by my course on Wednesdays)... and I intend to look at the newspaper archives from the times, and inquests?

My Nanna (my great grandmother) is standing behind Grandma, the little scamp who can't stay still enough for a photo.

This is the collar and one of the cuffs that Mary made. The collar is quite large, 35cm across. Made of silk rouleau with silk faggoting (awful name I know). I wore it a couple of times in the 80's but they're not my colours. I completely love Mary's clothes. It's exactly the style I want to wear.