Crafty Catch-up Session

Today I was finally motivated to take photos of all of the craft projects I've been working on over the last month or so. I used my trusty light tent - which I'm still getting the hang of, so the light may be a bit dodgy on some of them. But I figure the important thing is that I'm sharing!

FINISHED PROJECTS

I bought these toys for my little niece and nephew. My niece had only just been born. I didn't have time to make anything from scratch but I still wanted her teddy to be a little bit personalised. So I knitted a bow for it with some lovely soft yarn from my stash. It took a couple of hours. You can't see it very well in the picture, but I used decreases at each end to make the end curve back a bit. I was quite happy with the effect.

The other finished item is a tea cosy for a teapot I received for Christmas. I crocheted it to fit, and it took a couple of goes to get it right! It clings onto the pot without needing any kind of fastener. It has a cut-away bit at the back which looks weird, but it fits snugly under the handle, and I'm pleased with it. I was watching the Pride and Prejudice mini-series while I was making it, so I guess that's why I was influenced to choose the classic colour scheme and girly bow decoration.

UNFINISHED PROJECTS

This section has many more projects in it!!

First up is my Squares Blanket. I've decided it will be a blanket now, not a couch cover. I think I'd be better off making my couch covers from fabric (when I eventually get around to it!) So I now have 4 finished squares; plus 2 finished that need weaving in; and 5 squares in progress. I still haven't decided how big the finished blanket will be (i.e. how many squares I'll need in total), but there's plenty of time for that.

I started this one quite some time ago. Remember I was having an obsession with filet crochet a while back? Well, this is the project I decided on. It depicts a horse-head, nice and retro. It was originally going to be a doiley, but pretty soon I realised that it's going to be enormous! I'm using fingering weight cotton, which is a smaller gauge than I'm used to, but I can see why people normally use thread cotton for projects like this. I didn't want to use such a thin thread, but after a while I realised - no matter what size the thread is, it's still the same amount of work! Duh!
So I might make it into a (large!) cushion or possibly a wall-hanging.

This is a headband/earwarmer that I started a while back. I had the idea to make a series of crochet squares and join them together. I chose some from 200 Crochet Blocks that were nice and decorative, but didn't have too many holes that a cold wind could blow through. The colours came to me like an inspirational lightning bolt as well! I had to buy the grey yarn because I didn't have any suitable in my stash. I've finished the 5 squares, and I've stalled at the stage where I need to figure out if they fit around my head or if I need to enlarge them somehow. I hope I get around to it before the weather warms up!

Finally we have a project that I started just the other day! I came down with a bout of Startitis and decided I needed to start on a baby blanket for my niece. I made one for my nephew when he was born, and that one took me 6 months! So I thought I'd better get started. I chose 2 lacy-ish motifs from 200 Crochet Blocks (increasingly love that book!) and I'll do them in different colours, all with a cream-coloured outer row. This first colour is horrendous, I know! But I'm hoping it will blend in all right in the end. I don't know yet if I'll need to buy some wool for this, or I'll be able to work it all from my stash. We'll see!

I also have some sewing projects from the last few months, but I thought I'd save those for next time.

Unexplained absence - explained!

It's the middle of winter, it's freezing cold, and the light is terrible for taking photos. Those are my excuses for not posting too much lately.
Now that's over with ... if you're interested, you might want to have a look at my Health & Fitness Blog. There are very few pretty pictures or any craft-related content at all really, but I usually post at least 3-4 times a week. I whinge, I complain, I talk about highs and lows, and I review books. Here's a nice picture of some food to get you in the mood:

Love,
Katie.

{Ditzy Tuesday} Bathing

I haven't been in the mood to do much crafting lately, sorry to say. So I thought I'd post something a little bit different. I've always wanted to try soap-making, and if I knew how to make something like this, I'd certainly give it a go! How cute!

Source: alphamom.com.

{Ditzy Tuesday} Sweater Clips, I Swoon!

How badly do I want to try making these sweater clips?! Cardigans are my first love, and I can imagine myself with a set of clips to match each one. It seems to be very easy - just some clip-on earrings and a chain.
I've been doing a few things lately, but haven't had the time or right light conditions to take pictures of them. I'm hoping to show them soon.

Source: muchlove-anna.blogspot.com.

{Ditzy Tuesday} New from Old

I've been thinking a lot lately about altering my old, boring clothes and making something new and fun from them. This shirt alteration is very cute, and I can see myself jazzing up an old shirt or t-shirt in this way.

Source: rufflesandstuff.com.

{Ditzy Tuesday} Warm!

I love the look of this warm and smooshy scarf. No scarf is too thick for me at the moment!

Source: Chunky Oatmeal Infinity Scarf on Pinterest.

In The Kitchen : Tofu Jerky

On the weekend, I had a sudden impulse to make tofu jerky! I've made meat jerky before; tofu is quite a bit cheaper! I chose Portuguese Chicken flavour for the marinade:

I cut the tofu up into slices. I know from my experience with drying meat and vegetables that they shrink by up to half, so I kept the slices quite large:

I poured a bit of the marinade into a plastic container, but it was so thick it wouldn't come out! So I added some vinegar to thin it out a bit:

I alternated layers of tofu and marinade, making sure the tofu was thoroughly covered:

It's best to be generous with the marinade, as it will settle and you don't want any of your tofu to be exposed. I went ahead and put the whole bottle in, to make sure there weren't any gaps around the edges:

I put the container in the fridge overnight. The next day, I fished the tofu pieces out, wiped them off and laid them on the dehydrator. Even though it's a bit messy, I think it's best to use your fingers, as you don't want the tofu to break up:

I lined the base of the dehydrator with foil to catch any drips (I learned this the hard way after making beef jerky!) I laid out the tofu slices with space in between so they air nicely:

I left them in the dehydrator for about 6 hours, turning them half-way through (that's why they have marks on them). It's important to dry them enough so that they're chewy, but not so long that they go completely dry and hard. This is how they looked at the end:

If it was meat, I would have thrown the marinade away. But as tofu is non-meat, it's safe to save and use for something else (we used it as a sauce for sausages and mash).
The tofu jerky came out quite well. Yum! I found it an interesting snack for when I need some protein - different to the nuts I normally eat, and definitely more convenient compared to tofu as it comes normally.