Charities I knit for

A new start means  new charities to make items for. I decided to make things that I can easily send by post or give locally.

AGE UK
Age UK provide help for the elderly and have a lot to offer. I have used them myself and find them friendly and willing to help.
This year Age UK are taking part in the Big Knit in making Innocent Smoothie hats. I am taking part in this and will post pictures of my little hats.
Age UK Milton Keynes

BLYTHSWOOD CARE
Blythswood offer help to those in need and getting something for Christmas is always special. Bringing a smile to someone is the greatest gift there is.
Blythswood Shoe Box Appeal
Items required:
Hats, scarves, mitts or gloves for children and adults only

CATS PROTECTION
Knitting a blanket or a toy catnip mouse helps bring both comfort and play to cats and kittens alike.
My own cat Jessie is a rescue cat and having a blanket that she was familiar with helped her settle into her new home.
I make various blankets for my local Cats Protection and they always need more. I like to add catnip mouse as well with each blanket
Catnip Mouse

Cats Protection advises that when knitting a toy or blanket, it's best to avoid the use of stretchy yarns or small plastic items – such as those that can be used for mouse eyes - to reduce the risk of injury to cats and kittens. Loose weave blanket patterns involving the use of large needles are best avoided too.


MISSION TO SEAFARERS
Piracy, shipwreck, abandonment and separation from loved ones are just a few of the problems merchant seafarers face. Around the world, The Mission to Seafarers provides help and support to the 1.5 million men and women who face danger every day to keep our global economy afloat.
Imagine getting on a ship in summer in the Philippines, dressed in shorts and t-shirt. Soon you find yourself transiting freezing Arctic waters with only your overalls to keep you warm. Seafarers often set out on new contracts not knowing where their ship will end up or travel through, and they may need to stock up on warm clothes to see them through some of the chillier parts of the globe.
Items Required:
Balaclavas, scarves, gloves, hats
Mission to Seafarers

TWIDDLE MUFFS for DEMENTIA CARE
Twiddlemuffs  occupy patients’ hands and can reduce interference with dressings or cannulas they also help to reduce stress.
The Milton Keynes Hospital has been doing this for a while and I will make some as they will hopefully provide comfort where needed.
Having helped to nurse a loved one with dementia I know how they can often become stressed and need something to help soothe them. I wish someone had thought of this years ago as it would have helped so much in keeping restless hands occupied for a while.
TWIDDLE MUFFS

I will make something for all the above in an effort to provide comfort to others. I know getting something when you need comfort and a little support means a lot and if I can help in the smallest of ways I will be giving back something I myself received.

The Nutty Knitter returns

Two years down the line I am making a return to both knitting and posting in my blog again.

So what has happened in the last two years?

My husband has heart problems and had many trips to the hospital that meant a lot of travel as he was in hospital 40 miles away.

My sister was ill and I needed to get to see her and that was hard as she lived in Yorkshire and I live in Milton Keynes. Sadly she passed away.

Then last year my husband had a heart attack, he is okay now but it was a hard time for both of us.

I am now his full time carer and have been getting life back on track.

Dividing time between caring for the man I love, household chores, organising the home so it works for us and getting the garden sorted out. It was a jungle and needed a good old fashioned thinning out.

From the tangled mess to neat and tidy and a lot easier to keep nice.

The Patio is now tidy and we can sit in the garden and enjoy it without seeing all the work that needed to be done. 

I still grow my own herbs and I had a really good crop of raspberries and strawberries this year.

So now I am able to get into the garden and potter around and enjoy it. Colin, my husband, can sit on the patio with me and not feel guilty that he can't do things in the garden as he used to.

Life changed and that meant adjusting things to fit and coming to terms with things and that takes time and love.

Slowly I got back into the swing of things and made time for myself so I could get back to my hobbies.

So here I am making a new post to say Hi!

Blue for a boy!

I love knitting blankets they are easy to make and you can use a variety of patterns to keep things interesting. Having all sorts of colours in my stash to use up I tend to make the blankets for cats colourful to use up the yarn I have.
This time I decided to use two strands of yarn using Purples and Blues creating a blanket more for a boy cat/kitten.
This is a simple pattern that is for preemie babies but works well for cat blankets as well.
Simple Blanket Patterns                                                      

This is the end result I went with Daphne's Blanket and really like the result it looks nice and cosy I lessened the amount of stitches as I wanted a small blanket that will fit into a cat carrying basket or used on a chair. Lets face cats will decide which chair is theirs and will allow you to share it if they are not using it.

PATCHWORK CAT BLANKET

I wanted to use up some of the stash that I have and decided to create balls of yarn in the same colour range. So now I have balls of yarn that are useable from odds and ends.

I made a series of 3.5 inch squares using 6.5mm needles and held two strands of DK yarn together. I cast on 13 stitches and knitted 18 rows and then bound off.

I alternated the squares so one was straight and the other on its side to create interest and to add to the patchwork effect. I finished it off by adding a simple crochet border.

This will be given to the Cat Protection Charity.

Not a great year so far

2016 is proving to be a challenge so far.
Our Disability Benefits were cut and the review did not go well. We had to get a new cooker as the old one packed up, the computer joined in the act but thankfully we got a new one with the Insurance we paid on it. Our cat Dylan had a problem with his teeth and needed to have a lot of them taken out. Then he had a really bad infection and was really ill with it. Sadly this was the start of his health going down hill rapidly, after a few more infections he had lost a huge amount of weight. Then Friday 27th may he was euthanized as there was nothing more they could do.
We miss him dreadfully, he was a rescue cat, no one wanted a four year old cat, but we did, that was 6 years ago and he was a lovely cat.

This was Dylan in January this year before he was ill.

So this year has been eventful but not in a nice way. I have been knitting and made some things for the Cat Protection Charity.

 This is a pink cat dish cloth that can be used as a potholder.

 

This yellow dishcloth is brighter than it looks here.

This leaf set was made for them to sell and a little different from the usual coasters, they can be used for drinks in the summer the larger one can be used to stand a jug of homemade lemonade on it.

Now I am knitting small squares to make a cat blanket. These a few that I made already.

It will take a while to make the blanket but it will be nice and soft as I am using two strands of DK yarn held together.

I will be posting more as I get more knitting done.

Garden and Tea cosies

I have been away for ages as I have had a lot going on. The garden needed a lot of attention and took up all summer to get it back under control

We grew this amazing Amazonian Lily and it has a wonderful scent then we had Nastitiums scrambling through the Wegilia bush

Colin ( my Husband ) tended the plants and we had a lovely crop of tomatoes as well as various herbs.
Strawberry plants provided deserts galore this year and slowly but surely the garden turned in to a jungle
















It took us the rest of the summer and into autumn to get the garden back under control

It was worth every minute and now I can settle down to my crafting again.















I have been busy making Ta cosies for a friend in America. She loves a cup of tea and has a lovely teapot but no cosy. So I made her these.

Her pot is a 4-6 cup pot so I knitted this one as her kitchen is Green.












Then I made her this one

It is a thicker cosy and I added the rose on the top to give it a more personal touch and to brighten it up.
 I also made this one

Yes it is a tea cosy an Owl Tea Cosy. Why an owl? well she is a Harry Potter fan and what better than an owl. They are now on there way to her and I am hoping she will get them in time for Christmas.

I had some news a week ago that I was not expecting, I have Cataracts forming and Macular Degeneration. The cataracts will eventually be removed but even though it can be done any time they wait until they are 'ripe' and do them one at a time and you can wait 6 months between each eye being done. Macular Degeneration is different they can do nothing about it, however it takes a long time for it to rob you of your central vision. I will do all I can to help myself and still knit and craft, nothing is going to stop me even if I have to find new ways of doing things and take up a new crafting hobby. Life is a challenge and I am meeting it head on.

Slytherin SanDisk cover

I love my little SanDisk it holds my Audio books that I listen too and some music as well.

It is tiny and holds so much but I did not have a cover for it and wanted to make something that would keep it from being marked.

I belong to a Team on Sparkpeople.com that is Hogwarts based, yes we are all adults with families and jobs and some are retired but we all love Harry Potter and Hogwarts. Sparkpeople.com is all about Healthy Living and they have teams you can join to give you support as you get fit and shed the unwanted pounds.
In the Hogwarts team we are in the  Hogwart Houses of Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Gryffindor. We have various activities that include Creativity, Reading, Journaling, various exercise themes and learning to create meal plans and how to incorporate housework into your exercise plan. It is based on Hogwarts and has Terms and we also have some Role play which is great fun. Does it work? well for me it does I have lost 14 pounds since March 2015. and for me that is brilliant as I am making lifestyle changes rather than following a set diet.

I am in Slytherin House, last term I was in Ravenclaw, we change Houses so we can get to know new people in the Hogwarts team.
So I decided to make something for myself that shows my support for my House and is useful and made this.

The pattern is here
Ipod case

It is easy to make and I completed it in an evening I made the snake by making an I-cord. 

How to knit Icord


My I cord was made by casting on 2 stitches, I made the head like this once my Icord was long enough to create a nice snake I increased by knitting front and back in the first stitch and the second stitch. then I knitted the second row just as you would normally on straight needles.

Row 1 KFB in both stitches
Row 2 Knit
Row 3 KFB in first stitch knit to last stitch KFB
Row 4 Knit
Row 5 K2tog knit to last 2 sts K2tog
Row 6 Knit

When you end up with 2 stitches on the needle cut the yarn so you have a long length of yarn and using a darning needle thread the stitches onto the needle and pull tight sew in the ends.

You now have a snake add some red thread for a tongue and glue on some tiny goggle eyes and sew the snake to the cover.

This was an easy project and fun to do, I made one for my friend who is also in Slytherin House and has helped me find free audio books to download.
This is her case

You are never too old to have a bit of fun in life. These hold the SanDisk and the earphones easily so they no longer get tangled up and my SanDisk is always safe.