Gnomeland...

I had time this weekend to knock up another couple of these little bracelets.  They are such fun - I wear mine quite often.

They are both up for sale in my Etsy shop - I'm sure someone you know would like a gnome for Christmas...

Half term is over, so it's back to the day job today - how I wish I could be home crafting instead!

The Party's Over....

It's the last day of the school holidays - back to the day job tomorrow.  Sigh...
But for a last day, it has been pretty good - I've achieved a fair bit today so far, including clearing out three cupboards (which was about five years overdue), mowing the lawn, ironing a week's worth of clothes as well as the usual chores. 

I also managed to make another gnome bracelet last night - this time in shades of red.  It will be going into my Etsy shop shortly.

These bracelets have given me a bit of an inspiration boost - the idea of creating mini-scenes on a crochet band has got my creativity working overtime.  I have a vast collection of beads and a lot of them are little birds or animals, so the possibilities are endless.

I received a notification today that one of the paintings I entered into the Artists & Illustrators Artist of the Year 2013 competition has been featured on their website.  See it here. That's encouraging - if they think my work is good enough to be picked out for show already, I might stand a chance for a place later on.  Keep your fingers crossed for me!

There's No Place Like Gnome...

I bought these cute gnome beads just for the fun of it without any real idea of how to use them. I was initially thinking of using head pins and wire, but yesterday had a bit of an epiphany and thought about incorporating them into a crocheted bracelet.  The brown band is crocheted, the grass is embroidered and the flowers are tiny buttons.  I absolutely love this - I'm in two minds as to whether or not to keep it for myself or put it in my shop!

It fastens with a button and sits snugly on the wrist.  I have three more gnome beads which means three more bracelets - please leave a comment if you think it would be something people would want to buy. Your feedback is always invaluable - my taste is always a little left field, so I can't always judge what would be popular to buyers!

Also had time to finish this shawl/scarf last week.  As I knitted this yarn, the patterns put me in mind of the ripples left in the sand when the tide goes out, with water trapped in the ridges - so this scarf has the title 'Water's Edge'.  It will be going into the Etsy shop later today.

I have also been knitted all the various components for the  car to be used in the animated film.  It's nearly done, it just needs assembling and the detailing such as numberplates, wing mirrors etc.  I am very curious to see what it will look like when assembled!

While photographing the above in the garden this morning, I spotted this leaf with a dew drop on every point.  I do wish I was better at photography!