Bringing in the Wood

This is how one dresses for wood collecting...

Remember these huge squash shaped vegetables hanging on the nets in our veggie garden? Well, we finally found out what they are, I sent a photo of them to Sean over at Livingseeds and he identified them as Zimbabwean Manhaga Pumpkins! We still have plenty ripening on the vines and I can't wait to see how they taste.

The days are definitely becoming shorter here and the sun is rising later in the mornings, much to Richard's dismay, this means less bike riding time for him before work. I love Autumn, the coolness of the weather, the falling leaves, how the garden slowly 'goes to sleep' for a few months although our garden is still green and bursting with life. I know that this will soon change...

We have been bringing in the wood from the wood pile, preparing for winter, Caiden moved quite a large amount of wood next to the fire places and Kye was there helping him by giving instructions about how he felt the wood should be packed.

I think I am going to be dyeing the wool for my Tea Leaves Cardi today, wish me luck!

Hope you have had a lovely start to your week.

Butternut Squash Knitting Pattern

Today I have been knitting up butternut squash... It was a suggestion from Caiden, he loves butternut soup:) It's an easy and simple little pattern I have knitted with the magic loop, but you can easily knit it up with DPNs in the round as well... I think a few of them knitted up and placed in a bowl would look quite fetching and even displayed on an Autumn / Fall nature table would look quite sweet too... We are venturing into Spring here in the southern hemisphere and we have just finished planting these lovely vegetables, so many varieties of pumpkin and squash, I can't wait to see what they look like...

Materials:

A few grams of handspun butternut squash yarn

Green yarn for the stalk

4mm circular needles or DPNs

Merino fleece

Wool sewing needle

Love:)

Pattern:
Cast on 10 stitches and join for knitting in the round
Round 1: Knit
Round 2: Knit into the front and back of each stitch. (20 stitches)
Round 3: Knit
Round 4: (Knit 2 stitches, knit into the front and back of the next stitch) all across the round and knit 2 stitches on the end of the round. (26 stitches)
Round 5: Knit
Round 6: (Knit 2 stitches, knit into the front and facb of the next stitch) all across the round and knit 2 stitches on the end of the round. (34 stitches)
Round 7: Knit
Round 8: (Knit 2 stitches, knit into the fron and fack of the next stitch) all across the round and knit 1 stitch on the end of the round. (45 stitches)
Rounds 9-19: Knit
Round 20: (Knit 1 stitch, knit 2 stitches together all across the round) (30 stitches)
Round 21: Knit
Round 22: Knit
Round 23: (Knit 5 stitches, knit 2 stitches together) across the round, knit 2 stitches on the end of the round. (26 stitches)
Round 24: Knit
Round 25: (Knit 5 stitches, knit 2 stitches together across the round) knit 5 stitches on the end of the round. ( 23 stitches)
Rounds 26-31: Knit
Round 32: (Knit 5 stitches, knit 2 stitches together across the round) knit 5 stitches on the end of the round. ( 20 stitches)
Rounds 33-45: Knit
Round 46: (Knit 4 stitches, knit 2 stitches together across the round) knit 2 stitches on the end of the round. (17 stitches)
Round 47: Knit
Round 48: (Knit 1 stitch, knit 2 stitches together across the round) knit 2 stitches on the end of the round. (12 stitches)

Break thread and thread yarn onto a wool needle. Thread the wool needle through the stitches, remove the knitting needles, stuff with fleece, shaping as you go to get the butternut shape. When finish, pull tight and finish off. Sew in the thread at the base of your butternut.

Stem:
Pick up 4 stitches with a double pointed needle and knit an i-cord for an inch or so.
Knit 1 stitch, knit 2 stitches together, keep knitting together until you have one stitch left and bind off.

Measurements when finished:
7 inches tall to the top of the stalk, knitted in a handspun yarn.

And there you have it, a finished knitted butternut!
Enjoy:)

Autumn Leaves and a small Giveaway...

I do so appreciate these warm autumn days we are having, each time the wind blows, a myriad of leaves gently glide towards the ground... The sun is shining through the almost bare branches and I sit here and knit... watching the boys rake the leaves into a huge pile and then swing down from the tree landing on a bed of leaves... I love how something as simple as a pile of leaves captures their attention for hours, they laugh and are happy.... and seeing their joy, makes me happy too...

GIVEAWAY:
I would love to gift someone with this autumn hand spun, hand painted super wash South African Merino wool. The colourways are vibrant and full of strength... If you would like to enter dear friends, just leave a comment. I will announce the winner in this blog post on Monday evening, please make sure I am able to reach you to let you know that you have won.

Congratulations to Angela! Please would you email me your postal details:)
Angela said...


That is one fabulous tree you have in your garden. We're having beautiful weather here too but we are coming into Spring rather than Autumn :) That merino wool looks gorgeous, the colours are so vibrant!

April 30, 2011 11:34 AM

Autumn in South Africa

The days have been cooling down here somewhat, our Oak trees are resplendent with orange, yellow and rust shaded falling leaves. We have been having a tremendous amount of rain, resulting in emerald green lawns and beautiful flowers... If this is our start to Autumn, I am most happy...

These Petria flowers are in full bloom...

What a treasure we discovered living on our Naartjie tree, a Citrus Swallowtail Caterpillar, can you see him? Oh he is so beautiful!

Another surprise, as we head into Autumn, our Almond tree is full of blossoms...

We have had a few people sign up for the Shalom Cardigan KAL, we are so excited! If you would like to join in, just leave a comment and I will add your name to the link list. To find out more details, just click on the link above or on the button at the top of the right hand sidebar:)

Autumn Equinox Road Trip

Yesterday we went on a day road trip to Haartbeespoort to visit Bush Babies Monkey Sanctuary, what a wonderful experience!

Happy Autumn Equinox to all those in the Southern Hemisphere and happy Spring Equinox to all in the North:)

xo

Linda

Acorn Nature Sewing Cards, Recycling

When I woke up this morning, I thought  I would make some sewing cards from wood, but I didn't have the correct thickness of wood for the scroll saw, so I decided to go ahead and recycle some thick cardboard boxes instead. I will go searching for wood tomorrow but for today we used card:) This was such fun and even Kye enjoyed sewing a little Maple leaf!

Materials:
Cardboard boxes from around your home
Crayons
Yarn
Scissors
Wool needle
Nail

Draw your acorn template or whatever you would like to draw onto your card and colour in.

An acorn.

Take a sharp nail and push holes through your card, make sure your sewing holes are not too near the edge of your drawing.

Once you are finished making the holes for sewing, cut out your acorn.

Thread your wool needle and tie a knot on the end of your yarn. Start sewing in and out of the card.

And there you have your finished acorn!

This is Kye's leaf that he was sewing.

Happy sewing!
xo
Linda

Autumn Oak Leaf Knitting Pattern

Happy Sunday everyone:) As promised, here is my pattern for a knitted Autumn English Oak Leaf. This was really an enjoyable pattern to design. They are knitted flat and so quick to knit up:) I think they are perfect for place holders at weddings or functions, lovely to adorn nature tables, for story telling or play or even just a bowl full of these leaves on your dining room table would look wonderful...

Materials Needed:

Yarn in lovely Autumn tones.
Knitting needles.
Wool needle for sewing up.
Double pointed needles.

Abbreviations:
Knit - k
Purl - p
Knit 2 together - k 2 tog
Knit into front and back - knit into f & b (increase)

Pattern:

I knitted these leaves in a handspun Merino yarn with size 4mm needles.
Cast on 3 stitches
Knit 2 rows.
Row 3: Knit in to the front and back of the first stitch, purl 1, knit into the f & b of the last stitch (5 stitches)
Row 4: Knit
Row 5: Knit into f&b of first stitch, knit 1, purl 1, knit 1, knit into f & b of last stitch. (7 stitches)
Row 6: Knit.
Row 7: K f & b first stitch, knit 2, purl 1, knit 2, knit into f & b of last stitch. (9 stitches)
Row 8: Knit.
Row 9: Knit 2 tog, knit 2, purl 1, knit 2, knit 2 together. (7 stitches)
Row 10: Knit.
Row 11: Knit 2 together, knit 1, purl 1, knit 1, knit 2 together. (5 stitches)
Row 12: Knit.
Row 13: Knit into f&b of first stitch, Knit 1, purl 1, knit 1, knit into f & b of last stitch. (7 stitches)
Row 14: Knit.
Row 15: Knit into f & b of first stitch, knit 2, purl 1, knit 2, knit into f & b of last stitch. ( 9 stitches)
Row 16: Knit.
Row 17: Knit into f & b of first stitch, knit 3, purl 1, knit 3, knit into f & b of last stitch. (11 stitches)
Row 18: Knit.
Row 19: Knit 2 together, knit 3, purl 1, knit 3, knit 2 together. ( 9 stitches)
Row 20: Knit.
Row 21: Knit 2 together, knit 2, purl 1, knit 2, knit 2 together. ( 7 stitches).
Row 22: Knit.
Row 23: Knit into f & b of first stitch, knit 2, purl 1, knit 2, knit into f & b of last stitch. (9 stitches).
Row 24: Knit.
Row 25: Knit into f & b of first stitch, knit 3, purl 1, knit 3, knit into f & b of last stitch. (11 stitches).
Row 26: Knit.
Row 27: Knit into the f & b of first stitch, knit 4, purl 1, knit 4, knit into f & b of last stitch. (13 stitches).
Row 28: Knit.
Row 29: Knit into f & b of first stitch, knit 5, purl 1, knit 5, knit into f & b of last stitch. (15 stitches).
Row 30: Knit.
Row 31: Knit 2 together, knit 5, purl 1, knit 5, knit 2 together. (13 stitches).
Row 32: Knit.
Row 33: Knit 2 together, knit 4, purl 1, knit four, knit 2 together. (11 stitches).
Row 34: Knit 2 together, knit to the last 2 stitches, knit 2 together. (9 stitches).
Row 35: Knit 2 together, knit 2, purl 1, knit 2, knit 2 together. (7 stitches).
Row 36: Knit.
Row 37: Knit into f&b of first stitch, knit 2, purl 1, knit 2, knit into f&b of last stitch. (9 stitches).
Row 38: Knit.
Row 39: Knit 3 stitches, turn work, knit 3 stitches, turn work, knit 2 together, knit 1 stitch, turn work,
              knit 2 together. Bind off. Attach yarn to the next stitch on the right side. Knit 1, purl 1, knit 1, turn
              work, knit 3, turn work, knit 1, purl 1, knit 1, turn work, knit 2 together, knit 1, turn work, knit
              2 together. Bind off this section. Attach yarn to next stitch on the right side, knit 3, turn work,
              knit 3, turn work, knit 2 together, knit 1, turn work, knit 2 together. Bind off.

Leaf Stem:
With double pointed needles, pick up 2 stitches at the base of your leaf and knit an I-Cord.

Sew in all your ends, and you have a beautiful Oak Leaf:)
Enjoy!

Please note, this pattern is for personal use only, and not for resale, items knitted from this pattern may not be sold for commercial purposes, thank you.

Autumn Acorn Knitting Pattern

Thought I would share my Autumn / Fall Acorn pattern, it is perfect for nature tables, home decor if you knit a few and place them in bowls or even as a little gift that has been left by the tooth fairy:) It is a very easy knit, I have knitted mine in a handspun yarn with size 5 mm circular needles, left over scraps of yarn will work perfectly too:)

I have knitted this acorn with the Magic Loop Technique:) Enjoy:)

Materials:
Circular needles to suit the yarn you use
Yarn in acorn colours
Fleece for stuffing
Double pointed needles
Wool needle for sewing up

Pattern:
Cast on 6 stitches and join as for the magic loop technique.
Round 1 : knit
Round 2:  knit into each stitch (12 stitches)
Round 3 - 4 knit.
Round 5: purl
Round 6: change colour, knit round
Round 7-10 knit.
Round 11: (knit 1, knit 2 together) continue until end of round (9 stitches)
Round 12: (knit 2 together until the end of the round (5 stitches)
Thread a wool needle onto the end of the yarn and thread needle through your stitches, fill your acorn with
fleece. Shape it to a wonderfully round and firm shape, making it pointed at the end of the acorn and then pull your wool needle tightly and finish off the top of your acorn.
Sew in all you ends.

Stalk:
At the base of your acorn cap, pick up 2 stitches with a double pointed needle and knit an I-cord for a few rows to the desired length. Cast off.

Have a great day everyone, happy knitting!
xo
Linda

Please note, this pattern is for personal use only, and not for resale, items knitted from this pattern may not be sold for commercial purposes, thank you.

How to make a Kite Tutorial

Today was a wonderful day, we did all our schooling in the morning, Erin has begun Ancient Egypt, Jenna is busy with Renaissance Biographies and Cady is learning about time and money. We had a slight breeze here today and when I went outside I saw Erin was busy trying to build a kite to enjoy this lovely Autumn wind. So we set about making a simple kite with materials that we had at home...

Simple Kite Tutorial:

Matreials: ( Just use what you have...)

Wooden skewer sticks (we just joined ours to make them longer)

Selotape

Scissors

Brown paper

Tissue paper

Yarn

First I joined the skewer sticks to lengthen them. Then I joined the sticks to make a cross. Make sure your horizontal stick is not in the centre, it must be attached higher up. This helps the kite to fly beautifully:) The horizontal sticks must also be shorter than the vertical sticks...

Cut some long tassels with your tissue paper...

Attatch the tassels to the bottom of the kite.

Attatch a long piece of string to the center of your kite so that when your kite is flying in the air you can hold onto it! And there you have it, a simple little tutorial on how to make a kite with items from around your home... We have been running up and down the garden and these kites have worked so well, I am totally amazed and I am sure we will be up early tomorrow morning making more kites. It's great outdoor exercise!

 

Happy kite flying!
Warmly
Linda