These boots are made for... snuggling!

Hello everyone! Sorry I'm a bit late this week - I was hoping to blog last night but me and Sophie were NOT getting along, and I wanted to show you all how this week's part of the CAL looks :) 

First up though, I have been having loads of fun recently making Crocodile Stitch Booties! Using this fabulous set of patterns from Bonita Designs, I've made baby ones in Stylecraft Special DK Citron:

Child ones with a Stylecraft Special DK Lavender sole and Moda Vera Fayette Jewel Mix tops:

And adult ones with a Moda Vera Marvel Green sole and Moda Vera Fayette Frenzy tops!

It is a fantastic pattern - very easy to follow and well explained for uneducated people like me who have never done crocodile stitch or rib stitch before - I highly recommend it. And, so cute!

I particularly had fun at Mum's house on Sunday, shopping in her button collection :) Do you think these were good choices?

The baby ones don't have buttons yet. I need to either figure out how to crochet buttons that are the right size and work well, or maybe get some velcro? What do you think?

And here is my Sophie's Universe progress! It took me much longer than it should have to do the last 10 rows, but I kept reading the pattern wrong and miscounting and discovering mistakes in previous rows... Sophie didn't quite go over the balcony, but it was a near thing a few times. I love the colours though!!

Here's hoping I have better luck with next week's part 5 :) 

EDITED TO ADD: Here is my sister's start on the Sophie's Universe CAL - I love how the different colour scheme gives a totally different effect!! She was inspired by the Attic24 Cottage pack in choosing her colours. 

We're all about length here...

My Opa Slippers (pattern from Mamachee) have been a raging success recently - warm, comfy and snuggly, just like a second pair of socks :) 

However, we have been having some difficulty getting them sized correctly! The pattern sizes are based on the length of the foot, and measuring your foot length correctly is everything.

Here's a little infographic about how to get an accurate foot measurement:

Measuring your foot length this way means that the slippers can be accurately sized, and therefore fit you much better :) 

Opa House Shoes!

I am not usually one for crochet clothing - to me there's something very naff and '70s about crocheted stuff to wear :P 

A few weeks ago, the amazing Tara Murray (Mamachee) had a special offer to celebrate a milestone - a free pattern from her Ravelry store! I know Anne raves about her patterns, so I just had to look through the list and pick something. That was when I found out she mostly designs hats and slippers! Gorgeous hats and slippers, but still... not my usual fare. 

But, reading through the list of patterns, I just fell in love with the look of her Opa House Shoes. I had to have it.

It took me a few goes to get the right combination of yarn and hook, and understand the pattern, but I got there. Phew!

That's my bizarre electric orange and grey mismatched pair for me - they are a bit wonky and strange where I was figuring out the pattern, but they are super warm and comfortable (that photo was taken last weekend, but I am also wearing them as I write this). 

Tonight, I did my first proper make of this pattern, in blue and black!  I ended up figuring out that for standard 8ply acrylic yarn, I needed to use 2 strands and a 5mm hook, and they came out pretty good (at least I think so!). I also added a tightening stitch around the heel to help them stay on better, and I left the "tongue" part off as I couldn't get it to sit straight rather than curly. I think it still looks ok! 

What do you think? If you've tried to make these slippers, I'd love to see them!!

Preparing for Canada - House Slippers

Hello all!

As I mentioned before, we will travel to Canada this summer. Vancouver and Vancouver Island to be exact. Man, I am so excited! Our first real holiday in two years and my first time leaving the continent since 2011 (when I was in Australia for Michelle's wedding).

I had my fair share of long distance travels over the last ten years and one thing I hate about plane rides are the shoes. My feet usually swell up but I don't like to walk around on the plane in socks. So this time, I decided to make myself "plane shoes" which I can use as house shoes in the hostels we will stay in as well.

The Oma House Slipper pattern from Tara Murray is fantastic! You have to pay for the pattern but it is well worth it! I used the size 4 instructions. Uh, no my feet aren't that tiny but instead of holding two strands of yarn together, I used a rather bulky yarn. After some trial and error, I discovered that the size 4 pattern worked best. 

As you can see, I added liquid rubber stuff underneath, so I won't slip. Undoubtedly I am not very talented at pretty figures but it should do the trick. Plus, no one will see it anyway, I reckon!

Oh, I am so looking forward to our time in Canada!

Is any of you from Vancouver by any chance and has some good yarn shop advice (or would like to meet for coffee)?

Take care

Anne

P.S. Thanks for your kind comments on Findus! I miss him a lot...