Woven Advent Calendar Numbers

unikatissima Woven Advent Calendar Numbers

I’ve seen a tutorial for a cute gift wrapping from woven Space invaders and thought immediately: it must be possible to decorate an Advent calendar with them!

It is ;-)

 

For the number I used paper from an Christmas ad and for the background plain printer paper.

Here you have all numbers, enjoy :))

unikatissima Woven Advent Calendar Numbers

 


Links:
Gift wrapping from woven Space invaders (Geeky weaves!)

Crocheted Row Counter

unikatissima Crocheted Row Counter

Recently on a weekend I wanted to knit 78 rows. I always loose count, because I simply don’t like to keep a tally where I must lay the needles out of my hands.
And I didn’t have the right beads for a row counter bracelet or the wire for a knitting row counter, so I crocheted quickly something from stash yarn ;-)

My crocheted row counter consists of 2x nine connected loops (you can take ten loops too, what you prefer).
For the first loop I crocheted 9 chains, then always 5 chains and a treble treble in the first of the 5 chains.

Then I colour marked the first and the fifth loop (embroidered with different coloured yarn).

Technically you should use the row counter after the edge stitch, but I’ve used yarn that is slightly too thick and used my row counter before the row.
The disadvantage is then, that the row counter always glides over the whole needle, but I’ve been satisfied anyhow with my first shot from the hip ;-)

Technically too I should steam my row counter because it curls, but I could use it anyhow.

Well, and now the use: For me the yellow row counter counts the one place digits, the green one the tens place digits.
I pick up the next loop on my needle every other row when I come along, I’m counting thus double rows.
I don’t plan to knit more than 198 rows in an item, so two row counters are well enough for me ;-)

After having done the ninth loop of the yellow row counter I’m taking the first loop of the green row counter on my needle = row 10.
From row 11 on I use the first loop of the yellow (= 1) and the first loop of the green row counter (= 10) on my needle = row 11. etc. etc.

It worked well for me in any case and I’m nearly looking forward to knitting my next item where I have to knit a lot of rows ;-)

 


Links:
How To Crochet A Treble Treble Stitch

Here at unikatissima:
Row Counter Bracelet
Knitting Row Counter

Wire Votive

unikatissima Wire Votive

At last a new votive ;-))

 
    What you need:

  • a high drinking glass where a tealight easily fits in,
  • wire (I used plain garden wire) and
  • a tealight of course ;-)
 

That’s what you do:
First you bend a loop where the tealight will rest later on.
I made it here slightly triangular.
unikatissima Wire Votive

 

Then you bring the wire to a height of about the half or two thirds of the height of the tealight, put the tealight on the loop bent before and bent the wire once around the tealight.
unikatissima Wire Votive

 

You see that the tealight and the wire around it still fit in the glass.
unikatissima Wire Votive

 

Now you only have to bring the wire straight up and make a sharp bent to suspend the tealight at the rim of the glass.
Subsequently you can embellish the end. I only bent a spiral, but of course you can thread on beads or similar.
By the way, it’s best if you let the tealight ‘float’ a little bit above the ground.
unikatissima Wire Votive

 

So, the beautiful summer evenings may come now ;-)

 


Links:
Here at unikatissima:
Entries containing the word ‘votive’

Train Your Brain

riamore Train Your Brain-brainificator

I have here a little toy toy again to clear your head – and train it at the same time.
Simply add up the five figures – the faster you are the more points you get.

And still better: you can get the Brainificator Add Up 5 Brainificator Add Up 5 as online version online version as well as Android App for you to train your brain virtually everywhere :)
And after that you’re relaxed and can give yourself over to crafting again ;-)

Note: Brainificator Add Up 5 is donationware with which you support unikatissima’s blog.

 


Links:
Online version (brainificator add up 5 simulation)
Android App Version at Google play (Brainificator Add Up 5 C)
Online version (brainificator add up 5 simulation)
Android App Version at Google play (Brainificator Add Up 5 – Requires AIR for Android)
At the apps you can see screenshots.

English Wikipedia entry for ‘Donationware’
German Wikipedia entry for ‘Donationware’

Lace Knitters Advent Calendar 2011

unikatissima's Lace Knitters Advent Calendar 2011

The pattern is published! :)

It’s time again: unikatissima’s Lace Knitters Advent Calendar 2011 can start on December 1 ;-))
This time we will knit a shrug or a scarf/a shawl, just as you like.

This year everythings works a little different: the actual pattern consists of 6 little patterns that can be knitted in whatever order you like.
To get the surprise feeling of an Advent calendar the 6 little patterns are named block 1-6 and are meant to be selected by rolling a die :)

But of course you can arrange the little patterns in advance to get a design that you like.
To get inspiration you may want to look at the project descriptions (read more further below).

You find the Advent calendar at ravelry (where else? ;-))

    Part of it is a file that contains

  • the terms of use (valid as well for the announcement file as for the actual pattern later)
  • an instruction on how to make a shrug from a rectangle (with pictures) and
  • descriptions for 4 projects I made with the pattern.

My terms of use are also available in German.

The project descriptions contain e.g. the sizes of the four items, the used yarns and how much I needed, the needle size etc.
If you’re a ravelry member you can use the links to the used yarns via my project pages, additionally you can look in the group unikatissima what yarns were used for the last Advent calendar.

Additionally you find on the same page more PDF files, in fact the actual pattern with a chart and written instructions and a file with the German legend to the chart.

Addendum: I made all projects with a provisional cast-on for reasons of symmetry and today I eventually found a tutorial for this :))

I always have to cheat a little bit when picking up the stitches, because one ‘looses’ one stitch. Cheating means here that I knit sometimes stitches together and sometimes I make 1 by picking up the loop that lies between the stitch just worked and the following stitch and knit into it to fake a yarn over. It just depends on how the original first row looks.

If you have problems with my cheating technique, you can simply knit a couple of rows in garter stitch to ‘hide’ every unevenness.

I hope that everybody will enjoy the knitting again! :)

 


Links:
unikatissima’s Lace Knitters Advent Calendar 2011 (Lace Holly)
Lace Knitter’s Advent Calendar 2010 (Lace Christmas Rose)
Project pages for Lace Knitter’s Advent Calendar 2010
ravelry
group unikatissima at ravelry

Provisional cast-on (Techniques with Theresa)
=> ‘mine’ is the Open, a.k.a. provisional, cast on

Here at unikatissima:
Lace Knitters Advent Calendar 2010
unikatissima’s Lace Knitters Advent Calendar 2010
Entry: ravelry

YouKnits Antimacassar / Placemat

unikatissima YouKnits Antimacassar/Placemat a

An older acquaintance has bought a chair from suede and has forgotten, that the leather will wear down at the arm rests in the course of time.
When she realized this, she asked me to make her brown antimacassars for the arm rests matching the brown chair.

My first thought was: YouKnits!
Because what could be easier (and more appropriate ;-)) than designing a beautiful lace pattern and knitting an antimacassar for the arm rests from? ;-)

Because I haven’t seen the chair myself, but had two different brown yarns (socks wool and crochet thread) I simply made two pairs ;-)
And they were well-received :)

On the photos you see the antimacassars for the arm rests, but they could as well be used as placemats ;-)
(If you click on the photos, you can see larger versions of the photos (in a new window, scroll down there and click on the pictures).)

unikatissima YouKnits Antimacassar/Placemat b

 

And that have been the overview pictures that I got from the YouKnits designer:
unikatissima YouKnits Antimacassar/Placemat a
It is knit with the following Youknits:
009a-#09009a-#09
021b-#12021b-#12
009a-#09009a-#09

 

unikatissima YouKnits Antimacassar/Placemat b
It is knit with the following Youknits:
025a-#15025a-#15
024 – #15024 – #15
025b-#15025b-#15

 


Links:
Here at unikatissima:
Design your own Lace with YouKnits
YouKnits Designer

At ravelry:
YouKnits lace example placemats

Fast Rice Salad

unikatissima Fast Rice Salad

I presented really fast food before, today a (not as healthy but also very fast) rice salad for hot days:

 
    Ingredients:

  • boiled rice
  • tinned fish with sauce (e.g. herring with tomato sauce)
  • some vegetables (sweet pepper, tomato, cucumber)

Preparation:
Dice the vegetables and mix with the rice and the tinned fish incl. sauce.
Ready ;-)

The boiling of the rice takes the longest, but that happens by itself and I’m doing it right in the morning to have the rice ready at noon.

 


Here at unikatissima:
Fast Food