Christmas decorations DIY: owl

Supplies:
2,5 mm hook
matching cotton yarn

Terms used:
ch = chain
sc = single crochet
dc = double crochet
dec = decrease, single crochet two stitches together
st = stitch

This pattern is worked in spirals. The rows are not closed. The new row starts in the first stitch of the previous row.

Pattern:
body:
ch2 (or use a magic loop)
1) 6sc in 2nd st from hook (or 6sc in magic loop)
2) 2sc in each st around (12 sc)
3) (2sc in first st, sc in next st), repeat around (18 sc)
4) (2sc in first st, sc in next 2 st), repeat around (24 sc)
5) (2sc in first st, sc in next 3 st), repeat around (30 sc)
6) (2sc in first st, sc in next 4 st), repeat around (36 sc)
7-22) sc in each st around (36 sc)
23) (dec, sc in next 4 st) in back loops, repeat around (30 sc)
24) (dec, sc in next 3 st), repeat around (24 sc)
25) (dec, sc in next 2 st), repeat around (18 sc)
26) (dec, sc in next st), repeat around (12 sc)
STUFF
27) (dec), repeat around (6 sc)
FINISH OFF

eyes (make 2):
ch2 (or use a magic loop)
1) 6sc in 2nd st from hook (or 6sc in magic loop)
2) 2sc in each st around (12 sc)
3) (2sc in first st, sc in next st), repeat around (18 sc)
FINISH OFF

ears (make 2):
ch2
2sc in 2nd st from hook
FINISH OFF

wings (make 2):
ch7
1) sc in 2nd st from hook, sc in next 4 st, 8dc in last st of chain
Keep on working in the established direction, the next stitches are worked in beginning chain
sc in next 4 st, 3sc in last st before the first st of this round
2) sc in next 5 st, 2sc in next 8 st, sc in next 4 st, (2sc) in next 3 st
3) sc in next 5 st, (2sc, sc in next st) 8 times, sc in next 4 st, (2sc, sc in next st) 3 times
4) sc in next 5 st
FINISH OFF

Make the pupils, beak and feet out of felt

Sew the wings, ears and eyes to the body.
Use glue to paste the pupils, beak and feet to the body.


Liever Nederlands? Het originele, Nederlandse patroon staat op mijn eigen blog.

Christmas decorations DIY: christmas tree

Supplies:
2,5 mm hook
matching cotton yarn

Terms used:
ch = chain
sc = single crochet
dec = decrease, single crochet two stitches together
st = stitch

This pattern is worked in spirals. The rows are not closed. The new row starts in the first stitch of the previous row.

Pattern:
Tree:
ch2 (or use a magic loop)
1) 6sc in 2nd st from hook (or 6sc in magic loop)
2-3) sc in each st around (6 sc)
4) 2sc in each st around (12 sc)
5-6) sc in each st around (12 sc)
7) (2sc in first st, sc in next st), repeat around (18 sc)
8-9) sc in each st around) (18 sc)
10) (2sc in first st, sc in next 2 st), repeat around (24 sc)
11-12) sc in each st around (24 sc)
13) (2sc in first st, sc in next 3 st), repeat around (30 sc)
14-15) sc in each st around (30 sc)
16) (2sc in first st, sc in next 4 st), repeat around (36 sc)
17-18) sc in each st around (36 sc)
19) (dec, sc in next 4 st) in back loops, repeat around (30 sc)
20) (dec, sc in next 3 st), repeat around (24 sc)
21) (dec, sc in next 2 st), repeat around (18 sc)
22) (dec, sc in next st), repeat around (12 sc)
STUFF
23) (dec), repeat around (6 sc)
FINISH OFF

Stem:
ch2 (or use a magic loop)
1) 6sc in 2nd st from hook (or 6sc in magic loop)
2) 2sc in each st around (12 sc)
3-5) sc in each st around (12 sc)
FINISH OFF

Put a little bit of stuffing in the stem and sew it to the bottom of the tree.

Use colored thread to embroider the decorations on the tree.


Liever Nederlands? Het originele, Nederlandse patroon staat op mijn eigen blog.

Christmas decorations DIY: christmas ball

Supplies:
2,5 mm hook
matching cotton yarn

Terms used:
ch = chain
sc = single crochet
dec = decrease, single crochet two stitches together
3dec = decrease three stitches, single crochet three stitches together
st = stitch

This pattern is worked in spirals. The rows are not closed. The new row starts in the first stitch of the previous row.

Pattern:
ch2 (or use a magic loop)
1) 6sc in 2nd st from hook (or 6sc in magic loop)
2) 2sc in each st around (12 sc)
3) (2sc in first st, sc in next st), repeat around (18 sc)
4) (2sc in first st, sc in next 2 st), repeat around (24 sc)
5) (2sc in first st, sc in next 3 st), repeat around (30 sc)
6) (2sc in first st, sc in next 4 st), repeat around (36 sc)
7-12) sc in each st around (36 sc)
13) (dec, sc in next 4 st), repeat around (30 sc)
14) (dec, sc in next 3 st), repeat around (24 sc)
15) (dec, sc in next 2 st), repeat around (18 sc)
16) (dec, sc in next st), repeat around (12 sc)
STUFF
17) (dec), repeat around (6 sc)
18) 3dec, 3dec, ch15
Cut off yarn, leaving a little tail. Use the tail to sew the top of the chain to the top of the ball, making a loop to hang the ball from.
FINISH OFF

Liever Nederlands? Het originele, Nederlandse patroon staat op mijn eigen blog.

DIY Sneak Peak

I am working on a very cute, versatile and easy DIY. It is not completely finished yet, so you have to wait just 7 more nights.

While crafting, I love to listen to music. Lately, I am very into children's music. Great memories from when I was young, true classics and great new songs. Today I want to share one of my favorites:



What is your favorite song for kids? What did you listen to when you was young and what do you listen to with your kids/cousins/et cetera?

Fellow Birdies: I would love to sea and hear some of your favorite songs next week!

green crafting: recycled books

Last two weeks was my summer vacation. I tried a no Internet policy and spend my time crafting and reading. I succeeded in the crafting and reading part. The best that I can say is that I have no more book reader's block! That is a big thing. For a year I just could not put myself towards reading, not even a children's book! Which is very strange for me, because I am a big fan of reading. Anyways, I managed to finish one book and start another during my vacation. And I am loving it once again.
(Did you somewhere expect a but, well, here it comes:) But I did not quite succeed in the no Interet thing. The first week went by with just two or three times checking my e-mail, but the second week I was my old Internet-addict-self again. Sorry. But there are too many great blogs out there! And so much inspiration!
With my freshly lifted book readers block, I stumbled upon this great idea for the recycling of books: the living garden of knowledge in Métis, Quebec. It is made with 40000 books, in the middle of a forest.

This inspired me to search for more great things made with recycled books. I mostly found prints and paintings on old book pages, like this one from owlstudio on Etsy:

And this faery tale one on an old dictonary page by DreameryStudio on Etsy:

Garlands are always a great thing to make with recycled paper, like this lovely garland made from an old book by bibliocide on Etsy. (You should really check out this shop if you like the recycled book/paper theme!)

But what amazed me most during my search on Etsy where the sculpures, especially this one by Kenjio:

And the best recycling idea is this last one: vintage playing blocks combined with pictures from cowboys out of an old book. This makes a great toy! These 77 cowboy blocks are hand-recycled by ownbackyard on Etsy.


Happy crafting!
Love, Inkie

Are you inspired? Please show us your creations at our Flickr group.

Do you want more green crafting? Check out my posts about recycled sweater pillows, recycled maps and recycled paper crafts.

Recipe: Chicken Malakka

Today I want to share my favorite recipe with you: Chicken Malakka (or Quorn Malakka, the veggie version). I have been eating this for 3 days in a row now, and still would like some more.


What you need to make Chicken of Quorn Malakka:
chicken or quorn
onion
mushrooms
red pepper powder
soy sauce
stroganoff sauce
(indonesian) peanut sauce
pineapple
bean sprouts
spaghetti


This is how you make it:
Start with boiling spaghetti, cause this takes up most of the time.
Bake the chicken till it turn a little brown (When you use quorn, you'll add the quorn later in the process).
Add the diced onion, bake it till it's glazy.
Add the mushrooms (and quorn for the veggie version) and bake them too. (I like my mushrooms quite big and bake them very short).
Add red pepper powder together with the mushrooms. The more the better! (Well, not all of it, about one or two teaspoons will do).
At the end of the baking, add a little soy sauce.
In the meanwhile, you can prepare your sauce. For the sauce I use a mix of stroganoff sauce and peanut sauce. Don't bother making them from scratch, the ones where you just have to add water taste just as good!
Put the sauce in the pan with all the goodies you baked. Let it get to boil.
When the sauce boiles you can add pineapple parts and bean sprouts. (I usually use canned pineapple, because it is so much cheaper! Best part is that you can add the juice too, which makes the Chicken Malakka taste even better!).
Let the sauce boil for a couple of minutes.
Put some spaghetti on a plate, pour the sauce over it and digg in!

Chicken Malakka tastes even better when you serve a simple salad with it, made with lettuce, tomatoes, eggs, onions and a simple mayonaise-based dressing.

bon appetit!


The wonderfull prints that I used to illustrate this article are made by the llustrator Michael Toland and available as prints on Etsy.

green crafting: recycled sweater pillows

Today's post is some inspiration I used to come into the mood for te online sewing class Home Ec. This summer, I am finally going to learn to sew! That is: I am finally learning how to use my sewing machine for more than the basic straight lines and shortening of my trousers. One of the things I want to learn is sewing my own pillow cases (with zipper). I have some old clothes cut out in squares already and I am looking for some great old sweaters to use to. I was not really sure about the sweaters, till I did a little search on the internet. Recycled sweater pillows can be so beautiful! I really need a trip to the thrift store now.
Here are some of the beauties I found online (including some links to DIY's):


Sweater pillow DIY on Country Living


Sweater Cushion DIY by Refashion on Refashinoso


Flower Garden Accent Pillow by FeltSewGood on Etsy


Patchwork pet bed on Apartment therapy


Bright Tiles Pillow by lolagodiva on Etsy


Fish scale pillow by plytextiles on Etsy

Happy crafting!
Love, Inkie

Are you inspired? Please show us your creations at our Flickr group.

Do you want more green crafting? Check out my posts about recycled maps and recycled paper crafts.

yarn stash

I just spend over an hour sorting my yarn stash. Well actually, just a quarter of my stash.
Sometimes I remember the days my stash was still small, like this beautiful stash from Making Chicken Salad:


But nowadays, it looks more like this:


(This is actually a little part of my friend Marije's stash :-) )

I use a part of my cd cabinet, a couple of purple boxes, a wicker basket and my couch for storing my yarn. I am looking foreward to the day that I will have a huge cabinet with lots of compartments to store and display my yarn. In the meantine the couch works just fine and I like to daydream looking at great yarn collections of other people online, like these:




What does your stash look like? What do you use to store it?

(All pictures link to the original source)

green crafting: recycled maps

While cleaning my house, I found a big box filled with maps. A lot of these maps I am never going to use again, they are old or from places I probably won't visit again. But I think they will be a great addition to my craft supplies. The first thing that came to my mind was using it as stationary (as an addition to my vintage map stationary that I bought a couple of years ago). But a little search on Etsy and other places on the web gave me a lot more ideas.

What do you tink of these?

Map heart garland by lovefromchloe on Etsy

Vintage map magnet by pommesfrites on Etsy

Recycled NYC subway map by ecoist

Gift tags by Milomade

Maps & Butterflies by Image Surgery


I also found some cute DIY's:
- Map coasters
- Vintage map bangle
- Butterfly art
- Vintage map treat bag
- Map lamp

Happy crafting!
Love, Inkie

Are you inspired? Please show us your creations at our Flickr group.

Do you want more green crafting? Check out my post about recycled paper crafts.

party time

I am a day late, sorry for that! Weather is crazy hot here and buzy preparing my 30th birthday party :) I'll be 29 for just one more night.

Acording to the weather forecasts it will be 30-something degrees on the party day, saturday. This has had a big influence on my shopping list: I need a lot of icecubes, cold drinks, icecream and salads for dinner and lunch. I plan on making special icecubes, with a little leaf of mint or a little piece of fruit in it. I hope to do all the cake baking tomorrow. This is the first time I plan to make all cupcakes and mini apple cakes. Usually I make a couple of cupcakes, but mostly big apple cakes.

I am not sure about the decorations yet. I'll definately do something with flowers and garlands. But maybe some balloons too. I would like to go with an all green and natural theme, but I don't know if I'll have enough time and energy for that.
A great inspiration for the decorations is this video:



But, as I am planning, having great ideas and wanting a lot, it is also hot, very hot. This makes me want to go to the beach all day, swimming, canoeing, reading in the shade, and be lazy all day long.

DIY Make your own butterfly net

Summer is here! This is the time of year I love to be outside all day long. Cycling, walking, or just sitting down and watching all the life around me. Sometimes I take my flora (a book about wild plants) with me and try to figure out all the names of the wild plants I find. And other times I take my butterfly net with me to catch some insects and try to figure out their names. I mainly catch dragonflies (Odonata), which are pretty easy to bring to name.
For quite some years now I have a 'professional' butterfly net, which can be folded. But before that, I used to make my own. Today I will share my 'recipy' for making butterfly nets.


You will need:
- an old badminton racket
- tule or even better, lace curtains (simple ones, with tiny (<1mm), but not to tiny holes)
- scissors
- needle and thread

Take the cords out of your racket.
Cut out a piece of the tule or curtain, that is al little wider than the circumference of the racket and about as long as your arm.
Fold the fabric in half.
sew along the bottom and side of the fabric, leaving about 2,5 cm of the side from the top and the top open (this is one of the sides you made a little wider than the circumference of the racket). I prefer to sew rounded edges on the bottom of the net, but straight workes also fine.
Cut of the excess of fabric.
Fold the top of the net around your racket and sew it. You can make a nice tunnel to go around the racket or simply fold the fabric round the racket and use the holes that are left after you took the cords out to sew through.
Your butterfly is ready to use.

Please be carefull with the insects you catch. Make sure you don't harm them and they don't hurt you.

Rainbows

I am knitting a rainbow laptop sleeve at the moment, using recycled and new cotton yarn. Rainbows are ideal for using up your stash.
I found some inspiration online, some of which I share here. If you want to make one of these, beneath each picture, there is a link to the pattern on Ravelry.


Rainbow scarf


Rainbow scarf


Rainbow dress


Rainbow mobile

Etsy finds: macarons

When I was in France this spring I tasted macarons for the first time in my life, delicious! I hope I can find some here to serve on my birthday in July.
But for now, I just enjoy all the lovely handmade macaron goodies on Etsy.


Dollhouse miniature macarons


Felt macarons


Macaron overdose ring


Macaron soap

a quick hello

Today went by fast. Far to fast. It is bedtime already and I haven't even blogged.
So today just a quick hello from me and the Lupins from my garden.

yarn bombing nature

We have had some wonderfull, sunny days here. I spend most of the time in the garden, working, taking pictures, knitting, crocheting and just sitting in the shade enjoying the weather.
I find the combination of yarn and nature really inspiring (even if it's just the garden). I always need a long, long time before I finally decide what to do with a freshly bought or recycled ball of yarn. But somehow, when I sit outside with the yarn and a crocheting needle, inspiration comes to me. The result is not always as pretty and cute as I imagined, but that's another story.
Maybe the best combination of nature and yarn is yarn bombing nature! Here are some pictures of yarn bombing projects from around the world to inspire you.


I am in love! I want a pond filled with these cute ducklings.



What a great and subtle way to yarn bomb.