Maxing out on the Kitsch

 

I'd come across this Cherub in a pile destined for the bin/donation - no idea where it came from, but I didn't want it to end up in landfill somewhere so decided to upcycle it with a lick of paint. I had a box and some metallic gold spray and got busy.

It takes a well ventilated area, so I put the box outside on a high perch and started spraying from 25 cm away, holding the can upright.

The colour turned out classier than I had anticipated, so I am well pleased with the result.

After turning the Cherub gingerly I sprayed the backside as well and then had to wait 1 hour for the colour to be touch dry in order to do the undersides too. Completely dry within 24 hours. 

Now it's a nice little jewellery box for the mother in law who has everything.

Back in the flow

I was working through the entire Coronavirus-Lockdown as an essential keyworker, so while other people couldn't go to work or were working from home I was working overtime to cover shielding colleagues. Only recently did the situation relax enough to allow me to get back into books and to get stuck into my wool collection. It's this one that did it.:D The next winter looms on the horizon.

Golddust

(Also known as Handsanitiser-Gel, which was impossible to buy anywhere)

I have to state that I have only somewhat rudimentary medical knowledge working in health care compared to medically trained professionals, but this recipe is by an American MD.

First things first: I needed aloe Vera Gel, Rubbing Alcohol at (minimum) 70%, 99% is best but this is what I had, and an empty hand soap sterilised in boiling water.
Workspace, whisk and bowl with a spout for pouring had to be sterilised beforehand as well and I was careful never to touch the Gel with my (washed) hands.
It's ~2 parts alcohol to 1 part Aloe Vera blended really well, with 10 drops of teatree essential oil or a squirt of lemon juice added - I made up a quantity of 180ml to 60ml. I filled the soap container without touching and then left it for 72 hours to be on the safe side and to allow the alcohol to kill off any remaining germs in the bottle. 

I use it before leaving for work as an essential keyworker and when I come home, after washing my hands thoroughly with soap and water, as I work with the elderly.

One more try

Let's try this again...:D
I worked way too much this last year! The wool on the top I got as a Birthday present, this scarf used one skein and I still have two left. The Work in Progress at the bottom uses leftovers, that one will be given away alongside clothing for people in need. We have been culling the wardrobes and as most of it is perfectly wearable we'd rather someone got use of it.

This one still needs a brother/sister before it can join the donation

WiP

It's still cold out there.

And seeing my daughter liked this wool too

she'll be getting fingerless gloves from what's left of it.

It was cold

F for Fail

Well, this project didn't go too well...after so many socks at the beginning of the year it soon fell by the wayside, but fear not - new year, new chance. This one I finished on Hogmanay/ New Year's Eve.

The book's quite old - advertising?

Calendar

Boy, it's been a while - too many hours at work, too little spare time to get crafty. Alas some of my friends keep dropping hints about me using my photographs, so here's one I made earlier...

Results

Progress so far:  At the bottom we have "Inro"/blue, then "Konnichiwa"/ecru, "Kabuki"/green and "Geisha"/ecru and green. Right now I use the rest of the blue wool for some freestyle ones adapted from "Geisha". 
Fittingly we just had a fresh fall of snow, so I'll be sticking to knitting socks for a while...must be the nesting instinct. :))  

Work in Progress

Green and Ecru Tweed wool are up next. There's less of the Green, so I decided to try something new with it: I have never attempted socks before. Of course it couldn't be a "normal" pattern for my first attempt, no - I went for a Japanese one. After two online tutorials to make sense of the heel it took a day for a pair of socks. Not too bad!