More Wee Mouse Photos and Pattern

As promised here are a few more photos of my mice, this time with what is a bit more of a wedge of cheese. Hard to find a piece of cheese that was perfect. This bit is jarlsberg and had the shape but not quite the holes. But the emmental in the shop had lovely holes, but were all cut into cubes shapes. I have spent quite a lot of time recently looking at cheese!

So at last the pattern is published. Thank you to Jennifer, who proof checks for me, and is brilliant. However careful I think I have been she finds something!

As mentioned before this pattern is knitted with 4-ply or fingering wool, and takes a small amount, about 15g. Well it is a wee mouse. I thought of this idea partly because of To a Mouse poem by Robert Burns. It is Burn's Night on 25th January so I have roughly the right date to publish the pattern. My daughter is off to visit one of her friends in Cambridge today, and is going to a formal Burn's Night Supper, followed by a ceilidh. I don't think she has experienced either before, so it will be interesting to see what she thinks

So here are links to the pattern on Etsy, ravelry and LoveKnitting, and I hope anyone who buys it enjoys making some mice, and you don't find they are overrunning your kitchen.

"The Traditional Christmas Elephant"

Many weeks ago I decided to design a new pattern for a Christmas decoration. But what to do? It all seems to have been done before - stockings, baubles, snowmen etc. So I had the idea to research some more unusual symbols of Christmas from other countries. Did you know about the traditional Norwegian Christmas mouse? The Swedish Christmas goat? Or even the Christmas spider from Ukraine?
  
But even with this research I couldn't really come up with an idea that I thought would make a good decoration. So my next plan was to start a new Christmas tradition - The Christmas Elephant. Will it catch on? Probably not. Perhaps I could say it originates from the little-known fact that the Three Kings really travelled to Bethlehem on elephants.

So although I know this is completely the wrong time to bring out a Christmas pattern, here they are - Christmas Elephants. (I toyed with the idea of the Easter Elephant, but decided that was just a step too far!)

The pattern contains instructions for both large and small elephants. They have a felt backing, and my pattern contains photos and instructions on how to put the elephant together. You can also make it with or without the coloured seat section.  

What is great about these elephants are that they really are a very quick make. I can knit several in an evening, so if you were looking to give the decorations as gifts it is ideal, as they are handmade and personal but not too time-consuming. You can use up oddments of wool that you have left over from other projects.

I think the elephants would also make a great hanging baby mobile toy. Perhaps I shouldn't say that - as I don't want to distract you from the real concept, The Traditional Christmas Elephant.  Spread the word, I know this is going to be big!

The pattern is available on ravelry, Craftsy, and Etsy, and will be on LoveKnitting shortly.