The life and times of Libby Withnall

Those of you who have been reading here for a while know I have a bit of problem when it comes to buying wool. Basically if it looks good I’ll buy…with no idea what I’ll do with it. Now have been much more controlled the last year because I know what a stash I already have. It used to be housed in 3 baskets in the laundry but the wool was spilling out and it was hard to find what I wanted. A while back I saw a great idea on Rachels blog and decided to do something similar with in my sewing room shelves (as gradually I have been selling off my books).

Here’s what I started with…

And after a bit of sorting and organising…

I wasn’t quite sure how to do it so I just sorted by type. Any advice here? I think the strangest thing is it makes my collection not look quite as big don’t you think?

Now that I can find and see all my wool easily I need to decide on my next project…. and tidy up the rest of the shelves.

Oh, and Rachel’s shelves look much better than mine….maybe I do some to buy some more wool after all…..

Okay, so I was merrily working along on this scarf…

when I ran out of wool. No problem. I always buy at least 2 balls. I’ll get the other from the wool stash. Oh, no. It’s not there. Must be one the girls used (and got so tangled it had to be thrown out).

Not to worry I’ll duck into Spotlight and get another ball. I had a little left so took my sample with me.

The ONLY one similar didn’t look quite so purple but it’s probably the light or my little sample. I buy the ball and bring it home, all excited to finish my scarf. Yes, I’m sure you know what happened next…

Can we say EPIC FAIL!!!!! Guess I’ll have to wait till next Winter to finish this….. .

Over the weekend I started work on some wrist warmers (or fingerless gloves) – using the instructions given by the wonderful Lucy at Attic 24. Last night I finished the crocheting and today I sewed them up. I’m pretty happy with them but they a little too big. The best part was quick they were too make – esp. after working on the blanket which took months.

They’ll be good for using on the computer when it’s cold…

and for patting the dogs…

Last night I finished my second crocheted blanket and it was quickly claimed by Amy. One day I will get my own…

They do look nice together in the family room.

You’ll remember this post from the other day. Well today I managed to get to Spotlight to buy wool for the scarf to match Christy’s new beanie. Isn’t it so yummy?

But let’s not talk about what else came home with me…

To be fair, some is for the big crocheted blanket I’m working on, some for a pair of fingerless gloves and the rest…..it was just so delicious I couldn’t leave it in the shop .

Having “another” bad afternoon with the girls so too stressed to write a post. Instead here’s a photo of three things that made me happy today – learning the crochet granny squares and my two loyal buddies.

Tomorrow I’m hoping to start a series of travel posts – which have been a VERY long time coming – I think Ailsa‘s been asking me for over a year !

Okay, I have to confess that since learning the knit nearly 3 years ago I have amassed quite a bit of wool. So much so I no doubt have many years of wool requirements. The main reason I have so much is when I first started buying I just bought what I liked, then I bought thicker wool as it was easier to work with, and the colours I wanted for the scraves I was knitting. Then I moved on to crochet and needed to buy thinner, smoother wool, and again the colours I wanted for the blankets.

This is my main basket, which contains the wool for the crocheted blanket I’ve been working on for far too long. Really need to get going with it and get it finished before Winter. The wool…

and the blanket…

And another basket with wool ready and waiting for when I learn how to crochet granny squares. I tried to buy enough of different colours so I won’t run out.

The bag is the wool I just had to buy in Bowral and the scarf I started to crochet….way back in January…I will take this away at Easter as it will be an easy project to work on while in the car or while chatting.

And just when you thought you’d seen it all….the BIG basket of wool that hides out in the laundry.

And you know the crazy thing – I need to buy more as I want to make a scarf for Christy to go with this gorgeous beanie and I just don’t have the right colours for it!!!

As I was writing this post I realized the REAL crazy part of buying a knitted beanie when I have ALL this wool just waiting to be used. To be honest I did say in the shop I could knit one myself but I’ve only knitted one beanie so far and it didn’t look as good as this .

Don’t you just love this cute skirt? Well, I’m proud to say I MADE it…. in under an hour. Not too bad for a novice sewer if I say so myself. I signed up for a sew-a-long with One Crafty Mumma a few weeks ago but only just got to making this skirt at 5pm yesterday. Love it!!! And it was easy. And Christy loves it too!!! I’ll definitely be making some more.

Okay, I know this book is aimed at young girls but it looks to be right at my level . I had bought it thinking to give it to Amy for Christmas but I might just keep it for myself. Check out some of the things to make…

Isn’t it all just so yummy? For my fellow Aussies I got it in Woolworths last week – I think it was around $15. I think I might go back and get a few for Christmas presents. Oh, you can also buy Made By Me from Amazon.

You know the best part? If it’s aimed at young girls then hopefully I might even be able to successfully make some of these things

I have a new addiction. After being inspired by Lucy at Attic 24, my good friend Sue finally taught me to crochet in June. She got me started on a lap blanket. It’s very easy and fun and I love watching it grow with each row I add. The only problem is that it’s getting rather large and heavy and not very transportable. When I finish this project I’ll try to learn squares so that I can work away from home.