November Montage

The Photo Callenge topics for this month were: Hunt, Socks, Wild and Still. I found the first and fourth quite hard. As an aside – we had our first frost and now the fuchsia is a sorry sight!I managed to fit in both knitting – my cowl and crochet – my latest blanket that is a more symmetrical version of my original Granny Ripple. I tried to show why I consider it more symmetrical.

Surprisingly two of my posts related to cards – the two cross stitch Christmas cards I have made and a ‘never-ending card’ for someone’s birthday.

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Never-Ending Card

Having see the idea of a never-ending card on Wild Daffodils’ blog – HERE I had thought that I would like to try it.

Recently I needed a card for a Crafty Coffee friend’s birthday. She makes beautiful things out of many pieces of origami paper so I thought that she would appreciate that sort of card. (This appears to be called modular origami and the constructs referred to as Sonobe Polyhedra.)

I didn’t have much time but I managed to find some stickers in a shop when on the way to the cinema and thought my highlighter and silver pens could be useful. I made a demo model in paper to start with and scribbled on it as I developed my ideas. The final card was made with pieces of cut down postcard 3×6 inches as I had plain postcard sized pieces and it meant all the pieces could be the same shape.

Here is the first side which opens up to show Then lifting top and bottom gives which in turn opens to. If you peep through the gap in this side I think you can see the first side showing and if you open the card up top and bottom you are back at the beginning, all ready to start again.

I may have gone a bit overboard with the hearts but apart from the stars, which were an afterthought, they were all I could buy at the time.

I tried to make the card work both ways up as you can see.

The fact that the third one was in the shape of a cross gave me some ideas for Easter cards. So look out here come next Lent.

 

Mother’s Day card

I know Mother’s Day was a couple of weeks ago but I thought that I would like to share the card my daughter gave me with you. (That’s the Tram museum daughter).

It is just the sort of thing it would be lovely to make if I was good at that sort of thing.

I love peacocks and their beautiful tails and this card is so cleverly made. I can’t show you enough so you can see how to make one but I will show you a few closer views.

You can see how the tail is made from many pieces that fit together

and here is how the body is made. I love the legs dangling down.

and here is the body from above.

Not only do I keep birthday and other cards up for at least a week after the event but cards I especially like are put up on the inner window sill in the kitchen

or the bookcase in my study.

This one will definitely be joining them.

Easter cards

I made some crochet cards at Christmas with removable stars but it seemed to me after I had got into making bookmarks that cards incorporating removable bookmarks would be even more worthwhile.

Now I am not really an Easter card sending person but where people have sent me cards in the past, I have felt the need to respond. So I decided that Easter cards incorporating cross bookmarks would be something I could make for this year as I only had a few to send.

Now one of the Easter cards I get is from people who are, as far as I know, not at all religious, so for them I made this card. Quite quick and simple because I wasn’t sure what to make and as time was running short (they live in the U.S.) I had to buckle down and produce something. 🙂

But I had already started on my cross bookmarks for my christian friends.

and

Finally I got out a smaller hook and made a cross with a contrasting edging using the second pattern and a picot edge this time.

This was acceptable.

At first I hung the bookmarks on my Easter tree but it the meantime I went to ‘Paperchase’ and bought some folded card and matching envelopes as I had for Christmas.

I would have preferred a slightly less acid green but I bought three lots anyway, brought them home and printed a greeting inside.

Then all that was left was to attach the bookmarks to the front of the card, which I did in a similar way to those I made at Christmas but more simply.

Giving me three cards to send to people.

Realising that up to now I have not made any bookmarks for myself I made a cross bookmark using the second pattern with my pastel rainbow mix #20 cotton.

 

Crochet Christmas cards

These are really easy to make.

First you make the stars.

I always think six-pointed stars for Christmas cards as a reference to the six-pointed ‘Star of David’ as Jesus was a Jew and was born in the ‘City of David’.

(Pattern at the end in UK and US versions.)

I used Twilley’s Goldfingering in silver and gold and a 2mm hook.

I also bought folded A5 sheets of card and matching envelopes from ‘Paperchase’ in dark blue.

I cut myself a piece of white card A6 size and marked out a hexagon where I wanted the star to go and then placed it on top of the front of the unfolded card. Underneath I placed an odd piece of polystyrene that I had so I could stick the end of my compass through the points of the hexagon.

Originally I was going to cut a hole and fit the star in it, which is why I have the extra lines. All you need is a hexagon.

(Mine was marked out using a vertical central line to locate the centre of the circle and top and bottom points then the normal straight edge and compass way of drawing a hexagon using a radius of 1.5 inches, which seemed about right).

You need to pull the points on the star well to work out the correct diameter. The holes should be where the points are when stretched.

You then push a sharp pin, needle or compass point through the corners of the hexagon and remove the white card.

Then take a piece of sewing cotton; I found about 18 inches (45cm)  was a good length; and make a good knot on the end and thread through one of the holes.

You then make a small stitch into the back of one of the 3 chain points and thread the needle back through the same hole being careful not to go into the thread coming out of the hole.

Repeat this procedure for each hole in turn going round the hexagon. You then need to gently pull the cotton on the back and the points on the front till the points of the star hide the holes and the cotton at the back is taut.

Then turn over

and finish off the thread by doing several stitches as illustrated: first into the starting length by the knot to make the loop tight and then to the final length to secure the end.

If I had beautiful handwriting I might have done the words below the star with my gold and silver pens but as my handwriting is very uneven I bought peel off words at a craft shop.

I would have preferred two sheets the same as the silver one but there was not a lot of choice. The silver letters came off so easily but the gold ones were very tricky.

Finally I stuck a label on the back of the front of the card with instructions on removing the star after Christmas is over.

The card and the envelope together cost me 75p. The Goldfingering was £3.50 a ball and I think one ball will make about a dozen stars so say 30p a star. The lettering sheets were 89p each. So I think the cards should cost me a bit less than £1.20 each to make. I haven’t made them all yet but expect to do about two dozen.

Christmas Star patterns

UK version

Using Twilleys goldfingering in silver or gold and a 2.00mm hook.

Start: 6 ch loop.

Row 1: Working into the loop: 7ch (= 1dtr + 3ch), dc, 3ch, then repeat {dtr, 3ch, dc, 3ch} 5 times. Slst into 7ch loop at start.

Row 2: Repeat {6ch, slst into top of dtr) six times. Last slst is into slst of previous row.

Row 3: Repeat {4ch, tr into 6ch loop of previous row, 4ch, slst into slst of previous row.} six times.

Row 4: Repeat {6ch, dtr into top of tr on row below, 6ch, slst into slst of row below} six times.

Row 5: Repeat {dc under loops of rows 3 & 4, 5dc under loop of row 4 only, 3ch, 5dc under loop of row 4 only, dc under loops of row 3 & 4.} six times. Slst to fix final dc.

Pinch the 3ch at the tips of the points and pull hard. Sew in the ends

US version

Using Twilleys goldfingering in silver or gold and a 1/B hook.

Start: 6 ch loop.

Row 1: Working into the loop: 7ch (= 1trc + 3ch), sc, 3ch, then repeat {trc, 3ch, sc, 3ch} 5 times. Slst into 7ch loop at start.

Row 2: Repeat {6ch, slst into top of trc) six times. Last slst is into slst of previous row.

Row 3: Repeat {4ch, dc into 6ch loop of previous row, 4ch, slst into slst of previous row.} six times.

Row 4: Repeat {6ch, trc into top of dc on row below, 6ch, slst into slst of row below} six times.

Row 5: Repeat {sc under loops of rows 3 & 4, 5sc under loop of row 4 only, 3ch, 5sc under loop of row 4 only, sc under loops of row 3 & 4.} six times. Slst to fix final sc.

Pinch the 3ch at the tips of the points and pull hard. Sew in the ends.

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As always please let me know if you find any mistakes.