A Dog Called Wilson

I was watching "The Great British Sewing Bee" last night, and the little dachshund called Wilson in the middle section (where the contestants had to make a dog outfit out of recycled tent fabric) reminded me of a very similar dog with the same name, for whom I knitted a sweater. But I couldn't find it on my blog, and then realised that I made this sweater before I started my blog, back in 2011. Oh it was a simpler time ....

I do love the sewing bee programme, although I can't think of anything worse than sewing to a deadline. When I sew it just has to take as long as it takes, which is often weeks. I'm sewing something at the moment, and cutting out the pattern pieces and material must have took me at least 2 hours. I also think there must be short cuts, as it really would not have made very interesting TV, me sitting on the floor cutting out tissue paper. I would also like to look at the inside of the garments, to see how much is neatened. But enough of me rabbiting about sewing ...

So partly because I have nothing else to write about (I'm working on a knitting pattern which just isn't going to plan), I thought I would show you the photos, and you can click here if you want to see the wool and pattern details that I used. Wilson's Fair Isle Sweater.

He was very cute, and had to come to my house twice for fittings. I would quite like to make something similar for my own dog, but the idea has been frowned on by the rest of the family. But I might do it anyway ...

Just a reminder that there is still time join in my Ginx Woolly Linx party for March. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.

Chocolate Labrador

I know if you follow me you might be thinking "Why a chocolate lab, and not a black one?" Simple answer, I hadn't enough black wool, but plenty of brown.  I was flicking through ravelry, looking at the other patterns that someone who had liked one of my patterns had also liked. Does anyone else do this? It sounds a bit creepy, "a knitting pattern stalker", but I often find it a good way to find patterns I like. So I came upon this pattern Rufus the Lab Puppy by Dyah Dyanita, and I thought I would give it a go.

For me this pattern was interesting, as all the pieces except for the ears were knitting in the round. Although I do knit in the round, it is usually only for socks or hats, and in my own designs I tend to knit flat and have lots of seams to sew. All the curves and shaping in this pattern were done by turning mid-row, a technique I use a lot. I can't cope with circular needles so used doublepoints, which made the legs and tails a bit of a fiddle, but this was mainly because my needles were just too long.
 
The hardest thing I found was to attach the legs and tail in quite the right place. 

The tricky thing now is keeping this little lab away from my real labrador. She destroys all her toys in a moment or two. 

Just a reminder that my Ginx Woolly Linx party for July is now running. Click on the photo above or at the top of the page to find the party. I would love to see what you have been working on this month.

Exmoor

Beautiful beach at Woolacombe. As you can see we went to Exmoor.

View from near Dunkery Beacon towards Minehead

This year's holiday was a little different for us in several ways. Firstly we left our son at home - he is 18 now, and was very definite that he did not want to come. Despite my worries, he has not starved and the house is still standing. Secondly, we very sucessfully took my daughter's friend with us, and thirdly it was Rosie's first holiday. 

We had to be careful not to do too much walking, as Rosie is still a puppy. But she absolutely loved some of the country and beach walks we did, as well as having a larger, wilder garden to spend time in. The cottage was dog-friendly, and she did not seem to mind being crated at night, as we could not completely trust that she would not start chewing. Here are just a few photos that give a flavour of our break.
 

Rosie had a great time in the garden

We toasted marshmallows later ...

Walk from Malmsmead, setting of R. D. Blackmore's novel Lorna Doone ....

These are some of the alpaca from the farm where I bought my alpaca wool

View of Dunkery Beacon, and an Exmoor pony

Top of Dunkery Beacon - highest point on Exmoor

Somebody else had made this for Rosie to sit by

Walking down from Dunkery

A caterpillar of an Emperor moth

The cottage where we stayed for the week

"The Cupboard Was Bare ..."

I had the idea to knit a toy for our new puppy. The family scoffed. Given the rate that she is chewing through shoes, they did not think that a knitted toy would last more than a few minutes. But I was sure I knew better.

I found some wool that seemed like it will be hard-wearing, and then had a scout around ravelry to see if a bone pattern exists. Of course it does, so I downloaded Fetch! by KrisKnits and got going.

For my first bone I followed the pattern exactly. It seemed fine when I started knitting, but puppies grow very quickly (or perhaps I knit slowly), so by the time I had finished it seemed a bit small. So I had a go at a larger one, just by increasing the cast on and adding in a few more rows. And when middle bone was done I thought I might as well use the remaining wool to make a really big bone. So here are the bones hot off the needles, before being given to the dog. 

She had a huge amount of fun playing with them. She really did seem to really like them. Especially the largest one.

But annoying the family were almost right. As this picture below shows what I was left with after a day of chewing. (Don't worry I did keep a good eye on her, that she didn't eat the wool or stuffing.) Middle bone is the worse for wear, but the big bone and little bone have just about survivied. I still think it is a good idea, and might work as a more long-lasting toy if I could use string or nylon twine. So you never know I might have another go. But for the moment it is probably back to the plastic chewy toys.

Meet Rosie

Meet Rosie, our new puppy. She has not been with us a week yet, but we are all in love with her. I expect you will be seeing a lot more of her, and perhaps this will become a dog blog. I haven't done much crafting since she arrived, and am having to keep all my knitting on a high shelf.  I have been banned from making her a dog coat, but ha, we will see about that.

We have never had a dog before, so it is a bit of a learning experience. At the moment it is just like having a new baby. She sleeps a lot, and then has short bursts of extreme playfulness. She is very relaxed and nice natured, and good at night. I can't wait for when we can take her out for walks.

 

I have tried really hard to get a photo of her playing, but so far none of them have turned out. I realise she looks doleful in all these photos, which is not really her character, but just how she looks when I point my camera at her.