A winter jacket WIP + A new toy
I must admit that last week was not a good week. A never-ending cold, a realisation that I’m allergic to my cats and a bad case of asthma have made me wish I had a new body/immune system/nose/house/pets.
But I digress.
I’m here to talk to you about my knitting which I have been doing quite a bit of. I’m taking advantage of my extended time resting on the sofa to
Who would have thought that boring grey acrylic yarn could actually look this nice. You heard me right – ACRYLIC.
I like how the ribbing shapes this jacket. The jacket looks flattering on me. It’s also more interesting than kniting plain stocking stitch but repetitive enough to knit while my brain is mushy. The pattern is from DROPS and
The sleeves and collar still need to be knitted and I’m hunting around for nice buttons. I was thinking that fabric covered buttons or even ceramic ones might look quite nice on the jacket. Do you know any Etsy/online shop selling beautiful buttons?
Richard uses the light on his laptop too. It clips-on to the laptop screen and gives him enough light to type but not bright enough to wake his sick, sleeping wife trying to get an early night. Gotta love that.
Anywho, good to see you again and I hope you have a great week. Ciao! 
Calculator Cozy
My darling husband, Richard, has a fancy graphing calculator. It’s much larger and heavier than a regular scientific calculator. It came with a thick and bulky leather case which he did not like very much.
So Richard went through our sock drawer and pulled out a sock. It just happened to be one of the old socks we got on a flight to Singapore. I think it’s the blue that drew him to it. He thought it would be just right to replace the chunky calculator case.
One day as I was looking for stationery on his desk, I saw his sock-covered calculator. As a crafty person, this just won’t do! I cannot imagine my husband pulling this calculator out at a meeting and slipping the sock off onto the desk! What was he thinking?
So with my newly acquired felt making skills, I handmade him a custom sheet of felt in two shades of blue. He liked it and gave me a design brief for his new calculator cozy. The main priority is that the cozy must by slim, light and easy to use. He liked the snap fasteners on the Aunt Flo’s purses and wanted the same closing on his cozy. He is a perfect client! He knows what he wants and he is open to ideas. Gotta love that.
Here it is! A Richard-approved calculator cozy
Well, Richard has been nagging at me to rest now. I’ve had a cold for over a week and I’m not that much better. “I have not seen you rest since you’ve fallen sick! GO TO BED!” he says endlessly. I’m a terrible patient. I can’t stand not doing things. But I must rest. So I’m going back to bed and I hope all of you are in the pink of health!
Take care and have a good week! I might see you soon.
Stop that door!
Door stops come in so many shapes and sizes. But handmade ones seem to have a pretty standard look.
Photo & tutorial by Make & Do
Photo & tutorial by Faded Plains
I do like the look and shape of these sand or rice filled door stops. I think the handle is handy dandy and I can pick fabrics that would suit the room it’s in. It’s rather easy to make and the tutorials are easy to follow. But the problem for me is that these door stops are not washable. I can imagine that they’ll look pretty grubby after a while. I’m too much of a clean freak to want that.
Then I found this clever door stop by Cooplet.
Photo & tutorial by Cooplet
This door stop has a tub filled with gravel inside. The sewn fabric disguises it very cleverly. But I don’t have a round tub or container like she does. Plus, it doesn’t have a handle.
So I fudged it. I took elements of all three door stops and made up my own with my newly acquired Ikea fabric remnant. (Yes, Cath, I should be sponsored by Ikea. 
)
The cute fox greets me as I walk in the room. Isn’t it adorable? It even looks intrigued to see who just walked past. If the fox’s eyes start to freak you out for some reason, there is a scenic Japanese garden on the other side. Ahh… the serenity…
Inside the door stop is a recycled ice cream tub filled with garden pebbles. Heavy enough to hold the door open on the windiest days. The fabric cover slips off easily for washing too.
That reminds me. I’m out of ice cream!
Have a foxy weekend everyone!
Happy bananas!
I had a good friend over today for afternoon tea so it was a good excuse to do a bit of baking. I tried a new banana bread recipe and it’s soooo delicious and moist. The trick is that it has sour cream in it! As you can see from the picture, there is only half a loaf left. I sent her home with a couple of slices for her hubby to try. This is one banana bread you definitely want to boast about and share around. 
I halved the recipe and cooked it in a regular sized loaf pan. The recipe called for 4 small loaf pans. My cooking time doubled but it was well worth the wait! I’m saving another slice for tomorrow and I think I’ll have it toasted. Mmmm…
Banana sour cream bread recipe available here on AllRecipes.com
P.S. Honey, don’t worry. I froze the other half for you to have on the weekend. I miss you and can’t wait for you to come home on Friday.
A purse for that time of the month
Problem 1: You need to carry your feminine hygiene essentials to the toilet but you don’t want to take your bag with you. This is especially ackward when working at an office, in school or when you don’t have pockets to slip the sanitary napkin/ tampon/ pantyliner into.
Problem 2: Your colleauge or friend gets her period but she doesn’t have any supplies with her. You want to give her yours but there are too many people around. A tad embarrasing for her and you don’t want to be sneaking around like you’re her drug dealer!
Solution: Store your essentials in Aunt Flo’s Purse! It looks like a little make-up bag or tissue holder. You can now carry your feminine hygiene supplies inconspicously because no one else needs to know that you’ve got your period.
CLICK HERE FOR TUTORIAL
Step by step instructions with plenty of pictures to make your own Aunt Flo’s Purse
Want one but don’t want to make it yourself? I have these Aunt Flo’s purses available at my handmade shop. Free shipping worldwide too!
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