Here come the Bee's

Maybe its because it has been a beautiful spring week with the sun shining or its the fact the windows are not shaking every 20 minutes because of the no fly zone over the UK caused by ash from a volcano in Iceland, but I have managed to update the whole of the nezumiworld.com website (all 132 pages) plus added a new chart "Here come the Bee's". This is to complement the last chart "honeycomb" I am currently using this chart to make a scarf, I will post it when finished and hopefully now keep updating the site and blog more regularly :)

Mother's Day Flower Brooch

Today in the UK its Mother's Day, and this crocheted flower brooch is for my mom.
The flower could also be used to decorate a card or present, added to a ribbon for a pretty neck tie or to a hair tie, try different colour combinations & yarn weights

DK yarn/worsted weight

4.25mm - 4.5mm UK/ (6/G USA) hook

(I used Patons Morocco DK colour - Papaya and Coral Mix shade 83a its a new cotton/polyester mixed yarn in pretty colours, but any DK/ worsted weight yarn can be used also for mini flowers try a lightweight sock or lace-weight yarn)

Abbreviations:
(how to make the stitches plus more at NezumiWorld main site)
st – Stitch sts – Stitches
dc (UK)/ sc (USA) – Double Crochet (UK)/ Single Crochet (USA)
tr(UK)/ dc (USA) – Treble Crochet (UK)/ Double Crochet (USA)
ch – Chain

picot - to make a picot make 3 chain than slip stitch into the 1st chain

Pattern:

Ch 27
Row 1: 2 tr(UK)/ 2 dc(USA) into the 3rd ch from the hook, 2 tr(UK)/ 2 dc(USA) into every ch to the end, 1ch, turn
Row 2: [1 dc(UK)/ 1sc(USA) into the tr, 2 tr(UK)/ 2 dc(USA) into the next tr] repeat to end, 2 ch, turn
Row 3: [1 tr(UK)/ 1 dc(USA) into the next tr, 1 picot, 1 tr(UK)/ 1 dc(USA) into the next tr] repeat to the end
Roll flower together and sew, add brooch back

Busy, busy, busy

Thanks to everyone who emailed why I was not posting, I have been teaching 6 days a week, trying to develop some new designs, plus my poor mom had a very nasty accident in the nursing home (the stitches were removed last week and she is healing well now), so the blog and website have been very neglected.
Hopefully from now on I will be slowing down a bit (for a short time anyway) and can start blogging more.
Here's some photo's of the the students work I thought it might be nice to show what we do together.

Resin button

Today I made a little silicone mould of a glass bead using a 2 part mix (Gedeo Siligum-Silicone Moulding Paste), I have used liquid latex to make moulds before but this method was so easy. Just mix equal parts of the white and blue mixture together press around the shape you want place on a level surface and 10 minutes later you have a usable mould for plaster, polymer clay, silver clay or resin.

I used the mould with a uv resin (Lisa Pavelka Magic-Glos) I am making some buttons for a bracelet, I will post more of them soon, here's a finished one I am just experimenting to see which ones I like.

Winters here

Today the heavy snow arrived and London transport ground to a halt.
It was so cold and slippy, but for a short time (before the snow turned to slush) everything looked clean an bright.

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Knitted Pumpkin

Knitted Pumpkin

Abbreviations:
k = knit
p = purl
kfb = Knit into the front and back of the stitch (this is an increase)
k2tog = Knit two stitches together as one stitch
sts = stitches
st = stitch

Materials:
Double knit/ worsted weight yarn used in orange & green
Knitting needles appropriate to yarn used (I used 4mm)
Polyester toy stuffing, Polyfil or scraps of yarn
Scraps of black felt

Pattern:
Using orange yarn cast on 6 sts
Row 1: [kfb] X 6 (12sts)
Row 2: p12
Row 3: [kfb, k1] X 6 (18sts)
Row 4: p18
Row 5: [kfb, k1, k1] X 6 (24sts)
Row 6: p24
Row 7: k24
Row 8: p24
Row 9: k24
Row 10: p24
Row 11: [k2tog, k1, k1] X6
Row 12: p18
Row 13: [k2tog, k1] X6
Row 14: p12
Row 15: [k2tog] X6
Change to green yarn (leave a length of orange yarn to use for sewing up)
Row 16: p6
Row 17: k6
Row 18: p6
Row 19: k6
Row 20: p6
Row 21: k6
Cast off leaving a length of yarn to sew up stalk

Sew up stalk using green yarn

Sew up pumpkin body using orange yarn leaving a small hole, stuff pumpkin body until fat and sew up hole

Cut 2 small triangles and 1 large triangle out of black felt (or embroider eyes & mouth) sew onto pumpkin