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YOP10 Week 17/52 – Halloween Fairies and a question for Blogville

Crochet

I added some more rows to Havana, but not worth a photo yet.

Felting

I have struggled to find time to make fairies the last couple of weeks, but I did manage to make 3 Halloween themed fairies on Thursday evening (well they have pumpkin coloured clothing so that makes them Halloweeneeeeee to me!) I have another 11 heads and arms prepped so hope next week there’ll be more to show.

I made some more lampshades too. They don’t photograph very well these landscape ones. I mostly photograph them as a quick reference shot once constructed and before wrapping. The colours are much clearer in life.

I also had a request to make a flower shade with bees, for a lady who likes my shades but they don’t go with the pottery base she has. So I have had a play at making one. I will needle felt more detail and bees, but this was it still damp after wet felting.

It is damp here so colours are darker than when dry

I also have felted a square to use on a clock kit I have bought as a test.

Question: What I haven’t thought about is how to indicate the hours! On a tide clock I produced I just needle felted little dots for the hours. What do you think? Would sheep at 3, 6 and 9 o’clock look odd and dots for the hours between? Then what about 10 to 2? Hmmm Dots or sheep or something else??

(Here’s a reminder of the tide clock I made.)

A tide clock works doesn’t work like a normal 24 hour clock, it tells you how many hours to low and high tide.

Knitting

I finished the 1st Christmas sock but haven’t had a chance to start its buddy. I think I may have a case of 2nd sock syndrome! That’s two pairs I have now with just one made! Who am I right now!?! Not the normal completer/finisher.

Spinning

BritSpin finished on Sunday evening and I did a post with my individual results earlier in the week. Our team results are finally in and we came 5th out of 12 teams, which is an outstanding effort for our first year. I’m super proud of our team. I did a brief post with our teams results.

I crashed a bit after BritSpin and some anxiety earlier in the week has affected my sleep all week. I hate feeling powerless when anxiety strikes. Finding out on Saturday our results has given me a real lift.

At the start of this year I had arranged to buy an Ashford Traveller spinning wheel from a lady in North Wales. I was due to pick it up on my trip to see friends and my dad in Spring but then lockdown happened. I noticed on the BritSpin Ravelry Group a picture of a candle in the lady’s memory. She very sadly died last month.

One of our Guild ladies is selling lots of her wheels, including an Ashford Traveller so I am buying hers instead. It has a double treadle (you use 2 feet) so it should help my right knee from doing most of the work. It will be a lot easier to travel with me to spinning group and to Guild days…once they are allowed to re-start. It also will take up less space and therefore fit in the living room full time. Another friend is bringing it down with her on the train, so it will be living up to its name!

Other News

It’s been a weird week, I’ve slept badly most nights and the week has gone by in a tired blur. I think I need to cast on a hat or mittens, something quick to get back to following my YOP list. Fingers crossed normality will return next week.

This is a Year of Projects post. Officially the Group is in its 10th year, but this is my 3rd year participating. If you would like to find more about the Year of Projects Group on Ravelry.

17 comments

  1. I’m not sure clocks need hours indicated, really — most people just know. But sheep for the “fields” and seagulls or rooks (too dark unless the sheep are Jacobs or something?) for the sky would do it.

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  3. I like the shade you are doing with the flowers and soon to be bees. The lady that asked for it should be quite pleased when she receives it. As for the clock. Sheep at 3,6,& 9 would be fantastic. Twelve could be the sun or moon. Whichever pleases you. The other hours could be clouds and rocks or small birds and little rocks.

    This pandemic has messed with all of us. Whether we are locked down or not. Life is not normal and our bodies are not responding normally either. Be kind to yourself. You are not alone in feeling anxious and sleeping poorly. There are many throughout the world feeling just like you are.

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  4. Hope this week is better for you. I love the lampshades, they look beautiful. And I think dots would be fine for the clock but sheep too, I agree about 10 to 2, not sure sheep would fit…birds maybe?

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  8. So many great ideas for placement and time markers above. That should be a really cute clock! And your pictures here come across pretty vibrant on my screen. Such beautiful shades. Also… I love the orange dresses on the fairies. Orange and gray is one of my favorite color combinations.

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  9. Your commissioned piece is beautiful, she will love it. As for the timepiece, I would suggest something different at each point, flower, sheep, cloud, bird, for example!

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  11. You’re team did amazing in the BritSpin, great job!!

    I’m sorry you’re having anxiety recently. Sometimes it feels like the anxiety cycle will never end, but eventually it will. I find giving myself some grace and doing some small things within my control help (your mechanisms for breaking the cycle may vary).

    With your felted lampshades, is there some kind of internal structure they go on? Or are them designed to be attached to a pre-made shade? They are super stunning!!

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    • Thanks. They are felted and then I use proper lampshade making kits that come with the backing (inside of lampshade) and the wire rings, tape and a small tool to tuck in the edges around the ring. So they are like a material covered one you’d buy in a store, just I have hand felted the ‘material’.

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  13. I am so sorry you are having anxiety and having trouble sleeping! I do hope you are feeling better and getting better rest!
    I would definitely do sheep for the hours over land (3,6,9) and would do birds for the hours that would fall over sky (10 – 2). The lampshade with the flowers is just beautiful!

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  14. I vote for the sheep idea for the 12, 9, 6 and 3. Your Halloween fairies are lovely (as are all your fairies). I hope the double treadle helps your knee so you can continue your gorgeous spinning. Congrats on 5th place – that is awesome. Sorry about the anxiety and sleeplessness. I hope it clears up for you (and me, and all of us) soon!

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