Learning to crochet

I have to say I've been very slack with my blogging over the Christmas break - spending lots of lovely time with family and just relaxing which has been fabulous!

I did originally have lots of plans for end of year reviews, tutorial round ups and then New Years goals and resolutions posts - but they just didn't happen and to be honest, it's been nice to step back for a couple of weeks and take this break.

However - I am now itching to get back into things and slowly finding time here and there to sneak back onto the blog and into my crafting, although I still have another week or so of family holiday to enjoy!

Just wanted to share something here - the above picture of 3 crochet hooks I bought yesterday.

I've never crocheted in my life - but have been so inspired by so many wonderful bloggers out there who do crochet the most amazing things!

My 2 daughters are also keen to learn along side me.  I've been showing them pictures of the adorable Amigurumi out there - and that is our ultimate aim - to be able to make some of those!

So, I've ordered a couple of beginner crochet books from the library, and we'll be checking out some you tube tutorials later today!

If anyone has any recommendations or tips for beginner crocheters, we'd love to hear them!

This is also part of a challenge I'm doing this year with my girls - to try something new each day in 2013.  That's right - 365 new experiences this year - anything and everything from eating new foods to trying new sports and visiting new places.  Great for us all to broaden our horizons and learn lots of new things!

So - Happy New Year to everyone - I hope your year has started well!

Do you have any plans or resolutions this year?

One pair of jeans upcycled to all this...

This year I've been making some Christmas gifts from an old pair of jeans.  I've managed to use up almost the entire pair of jeans. Here's what I made...

First I made a Lesa Bag - which took up most of the fabric of the jeans. I used part of an old dressing gown for the bag lining.

Then I made a pair of pot holders from the back pockets, using this tutorial.

Then a personalised pencil case from the remaining large leg parts:

A key-chain pouch from the last flat part of fabric:

Then finally I stitched the scraps together, braided the seams to form a handle, 

and again used part of that old dressing gown for the lining, and made another small bag:

Now all I have left is some left over seams,

Which I save for hanging loops of key-chain loops like this:

And the very last tiny scraps which I admit I threw out (gasp!!) I know - I probably should have kept them for stuffing something..or other.....

Not bad for just one old pair of jeans!

Here's another look at the final result:

I'm pretty pleased with that! 

What do you think? What have you made from old jeans?

To see lots more ideas for upcycling old jeans, look in the Clothes Upcycling linky where there are hundreds of ideas for upcycling old clothes - and more being added all the time!

Happy Upcycling!

More gifts from jeans - Denim pot holders

I managed to get yet another gift out of the pair of jeans I have been upcycling!

So far I've made a Lesa Bag, a pencil case, and now I've made a pair of Pot Holders:

I made a pair of these for myself earlier this year - so used my own tutorial which you can find here.

The pockets are perfect for slipping your hands in to grip the hot pots!

And I chose to use some tartan fabric for the quilted side, since the recipient is Scottish!

I hope she likes them!

Not a lot of those jeans left now!

Upcycled denim jeans to pencil case

I made another birthday gift this week for one of my daughter's friends.
I still had some denim left over from the jeans I used to make her swim coach a Lesa Bag

So I used this to make a pencil case:

With the birthday girl's name on the front..

And cute little doggies on the inside!

Hope she likes it!

An upcycled handmade gift - The Lesa Bag

This week I've been trying to get Christmas presents organised and made.  Here's another I finished - a new Lesa bag for my younger daughter's swim coach.

I made this one out of a pair of jeans and the lining from a dressing gown!

I made myself one of these bags out of an old pair of jeans - and I use it all the time, it's my current favourite bag.

The selection of pockets inside and out are just perfect, and the denim makes it nice and sturdy!

A pair of adult jeans is the perfect size to cut this bag out from.  The  back section had to be cut across the seam of a leg piece, but I think it looks ok, don't you?

The pattern for the Lesa Bag can be found here.

It's chock full of photos and easy instructions for each step.

So, that's another Christmas gift made and checked off my list.

And I still have some of the denim left over from these jeans - which I'm going to use for 2 or 3 more small gifts!!

Are you upcycling for any gifts this Christmas - or decorations perhaps?

Tartan gift bags

A simple handmade gift bag can make all the difference.

Our daughter's swim coach is heading back to her native Scotland for a long Christmas break, so a few of the parents have pooled together to get her a present.

Which all wrapped up in some nice Scottish tartan should be well received!

The wine bottle bag is just a simple piece of fabric folded in half, stitched down the side and bottom and the top hemmed - with a ribbon to tie around the bottle neck.

Full Solar Eclipse Cairns

Here in Cairns we just experienced a full solar eclipse!  

Very impressive and exciting!

The last one we had in Cairns was in 710AD and the next one here won't be until 2237!

So it's kind of special that we are here for this!

(this photo above was just taken with my small digital camera at full totality!)

We bought special viewing glasses which enabled us to watch the progress of the moon across the sun. Through the sunnies the sun appeared like an orange ball, and you could clearly see the curve of the edge of the moon as it slowly covered the sun.

Then as it reached total eclipse everything went dark for around 2 minutes - just like a moonlit night!

And as this post goes live, we're still in our back garden with the special sunnies on watching the moon slowly work its way off the sun again on the other side.

Last year, our eldest daughter studied the phases of the moon at school - she remarked that it's like watching the phases of the moon speeded up!

How cool!

Have you ever seen a total solar eclipse?