Dolly days

Meet Louisa. Isn't she a sweetie? She's the oldest member of my little doll family and dates from the 1860s. I found her on Ebay a few years ago. She was seeking a good home and my heart was lost as soon as I saw her.

Her head is wax over composition (hence the hairline cracks) and her eyes are glass. I adore old dolls but perfect condition is never important to me. I prefer the loved and played-with look and Louisa would surely have lots of secrets to share if only she could talk.

She has a cloth body stuffed with straw and carved wooden hands and forearms that adjoin cloth upper arms attached to her body at the shoulders.

Her boots and lower legs are also made of wood and are attached to upper legs made of cloth. Her pretty muslin dress and underwear are in excellent condition.

Over the years I've spend many happy hours reading about old dolls and have a varied collection of books about them.

Vintage prints of little girls and their dollies appeal to me greatly. This gorgeous woodcut dates from the 16th century. I often dream of owning a REALLY old doll but they are exceedingly rare and if by chance I ever found one I know I wouldn't have sufficient funds to acquire it, so I dream on.

By complete contrast let me show you a doll I made at school when I was eight years old. Funny little thing isn't she! All the children in my class were asked to bring 'scraps' from home to create a dolly from a wooden peg (clothespin). Just look at her funny little blue arms! They are wire from a vintage TV my dad was repairing at the time. And guess what! My little peg doll won 'first prize'. The teacher gave me a silver sixpence which she said was 'for luck'. In England sixpences have been given as tokens of good luck for over 400 years.

Being given a silver sixpence must have ignited my love of doll making because I've been making them (large and small) ever since .

I like making small things best so peg dolls have always been a favourite.

Recently I experimented with polymer and paper clays as I wanted to try putting larger heads onto the pegs and give each face a tiny nose. I wanted to try making tiny arms as well.

And here is the new head viewed from the back. You can see it is quite a bit larger than the original peg head. After several coats of paint and varnish I added...

.... the eyes and mouth.Then came the hair and the tiny clothes.

And here is the finished dolly enjoying a cup of tea in the dolls house. I'm very pleased with the way she turned out. She has a pert little nose and her little (sculpted) arms are attached to thin wire so they will bend. Her legs remain 'peg-shaped'. I made her a Kate Greenaway style dress, petticoat, pantaloons and apron plus a mop cap to protect her curls.

Here she is again with a tiny lace bag in which she keeps.....

 .....a shiny sixpence 'for luck'.

Knitted daffodil

It's a little bit early to be doing a post for Easter but not too early to be thinking about knitting a little something for the Easter table. So how about a bright yellow daffodil to decorate an egg cosy? I created this pattern several years ago and have used it endlessly ever since (with a few variations along the way).

The pattern is very easy to follow (I don't do difficult). Please note I have written the instructions in a way that 'beginners' should be able to follow. If you are an experienced knitter please don't be put off by the rather lengthy instructions.

You will need a small amount of yellow DK yarn, pairs of 3.25 mm and 4 mm needles (US 3 and 6) and a couple of hours to spare.
Start with the centre trumpet. Using 3.25 mm needles (US size 3) cast on 14 stitches.
Row 1: purl
Row 2: knit
Row 3: purl
Row 4: knit
Change to 4 mm needles (US size 6). Changing to larger needles gives the trumpet a better shape.
Row 5: purl.

To create a little wavy edge to the trumpet you now need to do a picot edge as follows.
Row 6: Knit 1, (slip 1, knit 1, pass slip stitch over the stitch just knitted). Repeat the instructions in the brackets to the last remaining stitch. Knit 1.
Row 7: Purl 2 stitches then pick up the yarn between stitch 2 and 3, put it on the left hand needle and purl it as a stitch. Purl the next stitch then pick up the yarn before the next sitch and purl. Continue doing this to the end of the row (by picking up these short lengths of yarn between stitches you are replacing the stiches that were lost on the row before). You should now have 14 stitches on your needle.
Row 8: knit
Change to 3.25 mm needles
Row 9: purl
Row 10 knit
Row 11 purl. Break off the yarn leaving a length of about 20 cm (8 in). Remove all the stitches onto this length of yarn ready for drawing up later.

Using a separate length of yarn (not the one threaded through the stitches) stitch together the two short edges of the daffodil trumpet and secure. Now pull the thread that passes through the stitches, draw up and secure tightly. This will form the inside of the trumpet. Fold the trumpet along the picot edge and secure the cast on edge to the back of the daffodil. Don't draw up this edge. (shown above). The trumpet is complete.

You will need 6 petals. I have used a paler yellow for these. They are knitted in garter stitch which will ensure they don't curl.
Using 3.25 mm needles cast on 7 stitches. Work 5 rows. Knit 2 stitches together at the start of the next and every following row until you have 3 stitches remaining. Break yarn 20 cm (8 in) from the work and remove stitches onto a sewing needle. Draw up and fasten off (petal above left). Now draw up the cast on edge and secure to give the petal a nice curled shape (petal above right).

Stitch 3 petals to the back of the trumpet as shown above.

Stitch the remaining 3 petals behind the first 3 petals as shown above.

To make the stamens/stigma for the centre of the flower. Cut a piece of yarn (orange or yellow) 20 cm (8 in) long and wrap round a needle as shown.

Tie 6 knots as shown above.

Thread each tail of yarn through to the back of the daffodil and secure tightly. The bloom is now complete and ready to add to your egg cosy.

As you'll see I've made the trumpet in the centre quite short as I didn't want the

 bloom to flop forward. A couple of extra rows before and after the picot row will give you a longer trumpet. For the stem I used a green plastic knitting needle which I simply pushed into the back of the flower.

The daffodil together and a white narcissus with an orange centre (knitted same as above) make a pretty corsage. The stems are easily done with green yarn. Cast on 14 stitches. Work in stocking stitch for 2 rows and cast off. The stem will automatically curl showing the back of the stocking stitch. Use this as the right side and stitch together the two long edges to form a stem.
To make a very simple knitted egg cosy use 3.25 mm needles. Cast on 32 stitches. Work 4 rows in garter stitch and 15 rows in stocking stitch. Break yarn and thread stitches onto it. Draw up and secure. Stitch the two short edges together and you have a simple egg cosy.

I found a bulb catalogue a very useful source of daffodil pictures as there are dozens of different shapes and shades to choose from.

Happy daffodil knitting

Inspiration from Japan

If you read my last post you might be wondering if I managed to finish the 'little something' I was knitting in clematis coloured wool. Well, yes I did and you'll find out just what it was if you continue reading! But first......

These little cuties come from Japan and are known as kokeshi dolls. The first kokeshis were made in the Tohoku region of Northern Japan in the 19th century. Crafted from turned wood they were just a basic head and body with hand painted decoration (you'll see some examples if you follow the link above). Today they are made in all sizes and colours but their shapes have remained fairly simple.

These cute little ladies always make me smile so I decided to try and knit a little kokeshi style character of my own. And here she is, welcoming visitors to her Japanese garden.

She stands just 6 ins (15cm) tall and is very demure don't you think? You will find knitting instructions at the end of this post.

She and I share a passion for Japanese gardens and we'd like to invite you to take a little stroll with us through the garden that we have put together using pictures from various books.

In we go through a little bamboo gate and up a crunchy gravel path beside a deliciously cool trickling waterfall. 

On towards a peaceful pool where cranes wade beside a little island topped by an ornate stone lantern.

Crossing the wooden bridge we can stop and watch the brightly coloured carp basking in the sunshine.

And finally we arrive at the pavilion. How about some tea, Japanese style?

Tea for two  

In springtime you'll be dazzled by the many coloured azaleas and rhododendrons.

Clematis scrambles

Wisteria dangles

and tall primulas sway in the breeze at the water's edge.

And just look at that pink cherry blossom admiring its own reflection. Who can blame it!

Thank you for taking the time to walk with us through our make believe Japanese garden. We hope you enjoyed your visit. Please call again soon.

Kokeshi doll pattern:
If you'd like to knit a little Japanese style doll like this it is an easy pattern to follow. The basic shape is a tube 54 rows long. I used DK yarn and knitted in stocking stitch.
Using 2.75 mm (US size 2) needles cast on 26 stitches. Knit 10 rows khaki, 5 magenta, 1 black, 11 magenta, 3 black, 6 magenta, 18 flesh colour. Finally knit 2 tog and take off remaining stitches onto a length of yarn ready for drawing up.

To form a tube gather the base of the doll and then stitch the back seam leaving the top open for stuffing. Using a suitable fibre fill, stuff the body firmly (but not so firmly that the stitches are stretched too much). Run a length of flesh coloured yarn through the stitches at the point where the face meets the dress and draw up to form the neck. Secure tightly. Stuff the remaining head then draw up the top and fasten securely. You now have your basic tube (with a neck).
The sleeves - Cast on 12 stitches in khaki, change to magenta and knit 14 rows. DON'T FORGET as you knit these rows you need to shape the bottom edge of each sleeve so decrease one stitch at the end of alternate rows (6 times). Cast off remaining 6 stitches. Knit a second sleeve making sure the shaping is on the opposite edge.
The arms and hands (both identical) - Cast on 5 stitches. Knit 8 rows. Knit 2 tog across the final row and take stitches off onto yarn. Draw up to form the bottom, finger end. Stitch arm/hands flat to the body (tuck edges in a little bit before stitching down to make the arms look more real). Position the sleeves over the arms leaving just the hands protruding.Tuck the sleeve edges under and stitch down.
To give the impression of a wrap-over dress use black stitches around the neck (see photo). I've used lazy daisy stitch for flower decoration round the hem.
The hair is done with long stitches of black yarn which completely cover the flesh coloured head beneath. I popped a little black top-knot on and held it with yarn to match the flowers.
You might prefer to use sewing thread for the features as it is much finer than yarn and will give better results (I used two strands together). The eyes are a single straight stitches in black and the mouth 'v' shaped straight stitches in red. Blushing cheeks are achieved with red pencil crayon.... You now have your own little kokeshi doll and all she needs is her own Japanese style garden!

Woolly pencils

Don't you just love coloured pencil crayons?

I have a polished wooden box containing 72 different shades and it excites me just to look at them.

New crayons were always a gift to be treasured when I was young and I still have an old box containing the much used remnants of my crayoning childhood.

My pencil crayons and a colouring book kept me busy for hours.

These days my creative colouring is often done with knitting yarn so I decided to marry the two and experiment with knitting a pencil crayon.

First I made a blue one.

Then I made green and magenta ones. If you'd like to give it a go here is what you do...

DK yarn and 2.25 mm needles (US size 1). Stocking stitch throughout. The knitted fabric should be quite firm as you don't want a lot of stretch.

Choose your colour and cast on 9 stitches. Knit to the required length (I did 20 rows). Change to beige (wood colour). Knit 1 row then knit 2 together at the start of the next 4 rows (5 stitches remain). Change to main colour and knit one row. Remove stitches onto a sewing needle and gather tightly. Roll the knitted piece to create a pencil and ensure all the loose ends are tucked inside. Stitch to close. Make the pointed (sharpened) end as 'pointy' as you can. To knit a fatter pencil simply cast on more stitches and knit more rows, its as simple as that. Perhaps a child's old hand knitted sweater could be cheered up with the addition of a few knitted pencils in bright shades! 

Pencil CosyThis was an after thought and I think it could catch on!

The previous pattern (nine stitches on 2.25 mm needles) will create a tiny tube that perfectly fits a standard pencil. The cast off edge is at the top. Finished with 2 rows of garter stitch. You should weave in the loose ends then wrap the knitted piece round the pencil which makes it easier to stitch the seam and close the bottom. A few beads and a woolly tassel produce the finishing touches. Little girls will love these pencil cosies and they'd make cute little gifts for their friends.

Mice and a dusting of snow

We awoke to snow this morning which meant my day could be spent indoors keeping cosy and warm... Hurrah!

I thought this little line of white mice and snowflakes was just right for today. The mouse pattern repeats every eight stitches, the snowflakes every six so its easy to knit and floats on the back are kept short.

I haven't added colour to the chart as it makes it easier to follow.
Yes, I did say we'd had overnight snow... Here it is!!!!!!!

It had all melted by mid afternoon!