Hi there Craft lovers!

As you can probably see, my blog has not been updated in over 10 months due, in the most part, to my inherent laziness as a student. However, I am revamping the blog for the new academic year – I am moving back to university on the 8th September.

So here’s the plan. By September 1st, a new blog will be launched, a lifestyle blog. The main blog themes will be knitting, sewing, cookery, literature and city lifestyle (Cardiff being the city). This will enable me to stay motivated by blogging about all the different projects I undertake. I’m a very impatient person and want to begin many projects as soon as possible, and as soon as possible after I see the pattern/recipe/article/review.

Knitting: the blog posts about knitting will remain ultimately the same. I will tell you about the patterns I am knitting, perhaps even patterns I am designing *wink wink nudge nudge*!

Sewing: again, very similar to the knitting posts, although I will probably not follow patterns as much, instead focussing on raving about fabrics I’ve purchased and don’t yet know what to do with. Perhaps you could make some suggestions in the comments!

Cookery: my mother recently took it upon herself to join a slimming club and has lost SO much weight. Most of the weight loss is due to her beginning to take a joy in cookery again. When I was growing up cookery wasn’t such a huge part of our lives, instead oven-ready meals were favoured for their ease and speed. Since she has begun cooking hearty yet healthy meals again, her re-passion of cookery has weedled its way into my bones by the process of osmosis (or similar, shush I ain’t a scientist!) and so I will be cooking, baking, poaching, roasting, frying, broiling etc. etc.

Literature: How could I not? How have I not before? I’m an English Literature student for chrissakes! So yes, I will be posting reviews of books I’m reading both for my degree and for pleasure if I find the time.

The city: this is the new one. I’ve lived in Cardiff for two years and can still get lost in all the little arcades. Not to mention the new St. David’s 2 shopping centre with many, many shops into which I have not yet ventured. This will help me discover the amazing nooks and crannies I know a wonderful city like Cardiff possesses. I will be posting blogs about my adventures, whether I get lost and have to be directed home by a cheerful hobo, or get spectacularly labyrinthised and discover a cavern of wonder ( i.e. a shop with prettyful things in!) It will also include high street shops, cafés, restaurants, possibly even interesting graffiti!

So that’s my new blog manifesto. I hope you’re looking forward to reading it as much as I am looking forward to blogging it!

Hi there Knitwear fans,

I do realise I haven’t updated in rather a while either here on my blog or in video form in a vlog but I plan to do a vlog Wednesday afternoon (now being very early Tuesday morning).

For now I’d just like to share a few things. Projects will be on hold until I’ve knitted Christmas gifts and general gifts. However, after that I do intend to keep to previously stated plans and I have made a few more which include branching out into other fabrics and customisation of vintage pieces.

Inspired by the latest issue of British Vogue (November – More Dash Than Cash issue) I plan to buy a boyfriend-style plain black blazer (which will go perfectly with my latest insane purchase – the lumo yellow Christopher Kane lace dress from Topshop!) and intend to customise it with swarovski crystals and/or sequin embellishment.

I always was very good at the textile aspect of Design and Technology at school (only reason I didnt take the subject at GCSE was because I actually loathed the teacher – hi Miss Dumbrill) and I want to embrace that for my own benefits now. I probably won’t showcase the piece since it is a personal project but if you have me friended on facebook or dailybooth no doubt you’ll see a picture or two from a night on the town.

Anyway ta ta for now, I promise more updates soon my lovelies, but moving back to university and actually having bills etc to pay (responsibilities!) has taken over my life in the past month and a half.

Shelley x

Shearing, roving, dying, spinning, knitting. All by myself. All from my own produce.

I (or someone I know) owns sheep, reared and sheared in the West Country (either Somerset or Dorset). I then condition those fleeces into roving. Which I then DYE… but get this… using natural dyes from specific plants that I have grown myself.
Then going on to spin the self-dyed wool into yarn and knitting gorgeous products with it.

If you’re anything like me, that will sound very, VERY exciting.

And I am making a start on this, including making my own drop spindle to hand spin roving from a dowel and 2 CDs.

I don’t know why but I love the beginning to end process and would absolutely love to make this work and own/sell garments for which I know:

- have been hand-knitted by myself
- the yarn for which has been hand-spun by myself
- the wool for which has been sheared from a sheep I’ve met in person (hello Sir Fleecealot)
- the colours on which have been hand-dyed myself
- aaand the dyes for which have been hand-grown by myself

And I’ll even know the names of the sheep!

Nothing for you to worry about, it’s just I haven’t really heard of making lists on pen and paper…

• Finish vest top
• Finish Steggy hoodie (eehehe secret project of madness)
• Try complicated pullover for self
• Do the billion sock commissions I’ve received
• Take pictures for evidence that I’ve actually done these things…

Oh, and continue to watch this space for the wellie socks too

…I’ve had an epiphany!

SHELLEY’S WELLIE SOCKS

You know it makes sense. More to follow soon, I must begin this amazing business venture immediately.

enjoy!

I constructed my first charm bracelet on Monday. It seems to have worked rather well. I will put pictures up along with the completed Spitfire Shoes in a new Gallery section by the weekend.

However, the bracelet will not be for sale on Etsy yet as I want to go and talk to the manager of a local Vintage store, Hobos; I know they sell custom jewelry and handmade garments: http://www.hobosvintageclothing.co.uk – Not sure the website is up to date though!

Not much else to say apart from those wee gems… Obscure time of writing this is due to a 3am fire alarm that no one came to rescue us from and generally weird sleeping patterns.

Ta ta!

Hmmmm a picture to entertain you, perhaps? The Burger Bed!!

It has come to my attention that my blog entries are good… of course the person bringing this to my attention tends to be a tad biased.

The rest of the clay supplies have arrived meaning I can finally begin my charm bracelets. I did a touch of market research and the roses seem the most popular so I think I’ll do roses in assorted colours to begin with and see what everyone thinks. Still haven’t got round to the other Spitfire shoes; that’s the project for tomorrow… HOWEVER I think I can give you a little taster…

CLICK TO MAKE IT BIGGER!!!

That’s it really… hmmm; bought two dresses today, spent rather too much money! Aaand read one of my coursebooks so I suppose I’m on schedule.

Hello, hello!

Straight on to it! I have nearly finished a pair of Spitfire-themed Nike Air sneakers which will be displayed in the new gallery section as soon as they are finished.

I ordered many tools to enable me to make themed charm bracelets: the sculpey clay, glaze, eyepins, blank bracelet, moulding tools andddd, is that it? Perhaps it is… Anyway, I have some good ideas for what I’m going to make. Some Valentine themed bracelets are on the cards definitely, in time for star-crossed lovers to buy their beloveds a little token of their “appreciation”. Can’t do much this week because I have essays due in and (had an exam today) an exam on Friday afternoon.

HOWEVER, after Friday afternoon it’s straight on to arty things, much more interesting than writing essays and exams (in which I have to write yet more essays). I also need to buy/read some coursebooks, but that should be okay.

Yes so directives for next week:

• Finish Spitfire sneakers – 50%
• Experiment with new Sculpey and perhaps construct a charm bracelet
• Acquire and READ course books.

Just a little reminder for myself

Perhaps I should leave you with something interesting to look at…

Indoor Beach, Japan