Busy as a bee!

And here's just one of the things I've been doing. I'm very pleased with these new rattle toys but as I commented on the previous post, I'm just too busy to write up the pattern.

What am I doing? Well, lots of things. This week I have to finish off the items for a swap I'm doing on Ravelry. Next week we have the huge yearly car boot sale in our little town. I won't be selling anything this year, but it's something to look forward to. The following week, I may be holding my first official stall on our local organic market! I'm just wondering when I'll find out... I sent in my application but haven't heard anything back yet and it's in two weeks' time! In any case, I have to crochet, crochet, crochet so that I'll have enough stock, and I suppose that if I don't get a place, I'll just have to sell my items elsewhere or wait until the Spring sale in May. I've ordered some more organic yarn from the UK, including some Alpaca wool  that I'm trying out for the first time. I thought it would be nice for cosy winter hats. It's already getting a bit chilly around here.

On with my list... early November I'm organising a short trip to Paris with my son. Last time I went to Paris was almost thirty years ago! We're really looking forward to it. We've booked an apartment near to the Eiffel tower, and we'll probably visit the usual tourist places. I'd also like to go to the Cité des Sciences, and to visit the new Islamic art section in the Louvre. Then there's Montmartre, le Marais, the Arc de Triomphe, and my son wants to go and see Jim Morrison's grave at the Père Lachaise cemetry. If you know any other spots in Paris we absolutely have to visit, please let me know in the comments :)

Then towards the end of November I'm off to South Africa! It's a trip for work, where we'll be holding a conference. Once it's over, I'm going on safari with two of my friends. We all agreed that it was a pity to go so far without seeing some of the country. So we've organised a short trip to the beautiful countryside, with a trip both to a land safari and a day in the nearby wetlands. I can't wait!

When it was my birthday, I wrote up a list of 50 things I would like to do before my next birthday, a kind of bucket list but with a time limit. Visiting Paris is just one of them, as is holding my first real sale of my crochet goods. It feels good!

Teddy rattle MkII

Remember these teddy rattles? Well, I wasn't entirely satisfied with the result, even though lots of my friends and family told me they were fine, cute and very nice. Hmm, I thought, there's something missing. And I found the shape of their head could be improved.  So, back to the drawing board. This new teddy has a slightly bigger head, and most importantly he has arms! Much better, don't you think? 

Spicynat's mum and baby owls

Spicynat has kindly given me permission to share her gorgeous Mom and Baby owls, aren't they just the cutest things? I love the way she's done the eyes. Spicynat shared her pics on our flickr group. We're looking forward to seeing other owls, doudous, etc that you've made using the patterns from this blog :-)

Purple stripes

Hello there!
I had lots of bits of Debbie Bliss eco aran yarn left over in my stash, so decided to make a stripy owl. Her eyes are a bit small and her beak is a bit big, but I think it gives her character. She even rattles. If you want to make an owl, the pattern is here: http://isitatoy.blogspot.fr/2011/12/free-owl-pattern.html Remember to post a photo of your creations on the flickr page too!

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

Do you believe that at my age I'd never read Rebecca? A couple of people I mentioned it to were surprised, but I reckoned it's never too late to put things right - so I read it. And what a delight! This book is just wonderful. I was worried that it was going to be a bit stuffy and old fashioned, with it having been written in the 1930s. I thought it wouldn't have the 19th century charm of Jane Eyre or Little Women, nor the excitement of more modern literature. But I hadn't expected the way it totally took me into the narrator's thoughts, willing her to do or not to do things, or feeling such pain, or relief, on her behalf.

The story is told in the first person by the narrator, whose name we never learn, a young woman whose parents have both died and has no other family, and is employed as a "companion" to an American woman, Mrs Van Hopper, who is travelling in Europe. The narrator is naive and a bit clumsy, she hates her job. At 21 years old, she can't stand having to entertain Mrs Van Hopper's boring friends.  But the two women meet Max de Winter, an English widower, who happens to be staying at the same hotel in Monte Carlo. When Mrs Van Hopper is taken ill, the narrator has more time on her hands, and accepts Mr. de Winter's offer to go for a drive. Their relationship quickly blossoms, and when it is time for Mrs Van Hopper and the narrator to move back to the States, Max de Winter proposes to the young woman who is half his age, they marry and travel in the Mediterranean before going back to Manderley, his huge English mansion that has so many reminders of his dead wife, Rebecca. The housekeeper, Mrs Danvers, will not let anyone forget what a wonderful woman Rebecca was. But maybe things are not quite what they seem...

Daphne du Maurier tells a gripping story. Her characters are fascinating, and the final twist takes you totally by surprise. A pearl of a book.

This is the first book review on my blog. One of my birthday resolutions was to keep track of the books I read, and this is the first book I've finished since then. By writing them on my blog I'll be able to keep track, and you'll be able to read the reviews, and maybe enjoy reading some of the books too.

Sammy snake finger puppet free pattern

I've made this little finger puppet several times, so decided to (at last!) write up the pattern and share it here.

For this, and all of my patterns, please respect my designer rights and do not claim this pattern as your own. You are free to use the pattern to make, give and sell toys but please credit me as the designer. If you want to share this pattern, please do not reproduce it on your site, but link back to  http://isitatoy.blogspot.fr/2012/07/sammy-snake-finger-puppet-free-pattern.html. Thank you!

This is the IDEAL last-minute little gift for the small children in your life. It is really quick and easy to make with a tiny amount of yarn, and kids love it! I've offered it to all ages from three to seven, and they all had great fun with their little snake. It works best with worsted/aran yarn, though I've also used DK with success.  The DK yarn makes a smaller snake, but it still fits tiny fingers. The eyes are embroidered, and for the tongue you can either choose the easy option, as I did, just by pulling through the tail of yarn, from the wrong side, or you can use felt, and if you're feeling adventurous, you can crochet a tongue  using embroidery thread. The pattern for the tongue is down below, at the botton of this post. Have fun, ssssssssssss.

You will need:

A small amount of yarn
A crochet hook that corresponds to your yarn (I used a 4mm hook with aran, or a 3.5mm hook with DK)
Embroidery thread for the eyes
(optional) Red or pink felt or embroidery thread for the tongue

The pattern for the crochet tongue can be found below the main pattern.

Row 1 - make a magic circle with 5sc
Row 2 - 2sc in each st (10)
Row 3 - sc around (10)
Row 4 - [1sc in next st, 2sc in next st], continue around (15)
Row 5 - [1sc in next st, 2sctog], continue around (10)
Row 6 - sc around (10)
Row 7- [1sc in next 3 sts, sc2tog] twice (8)
Row 8-10 - turn. sc in same st, sc in next 5sts (6)
Row 10 - turn, sc in 6 sts, 2ch
Now you continute to work in rounds again.

Row 11 - 1sc in 6sts, 2sc in 2 ch sp
Row 12-13 - 1 sc around (8)
Row 14 - sc2tog, sc to end (7)
Row 14-15 - sc around (7)
Row 16 - 1sc in 5 sts, sc2tog (6)
Row 17-19 - sc around (6)
Row 20 - sc2tog x 3
Fasten off and pull end to the inside of the snake, trim ends.

Embroider the eyes, then make the tongue by pulling the beginning thread through to the right side and trimming it to tongue size. Or by cutting out a piece of felt, pulling the end through the middle of the magic ring, and sewing securely in place. Otherwise, you can make a tongue from embroidery thread, as follows:


Snake tongue

You will need:

Red or pink embroidery thread (or another colour if you feel like it)
a small crochet hook (I used a 1.75mm hook)

ch 9
1 ss in 2nd ch from hook, 1 ss in next 2 ch
ch 4
1 ss in 2nd ch from hook, ss to end. Fasten off and knot the ends. Pull the end through the middle of the magic ring, and sewing securly in place.

Please let me know if you find any mistakes in the pattern, or if anything is not clear and I will make corrections. If you make any cute snakes, feel free to share them on our flickr group.

Teddy rattles sneak preview

I recently ordered some rattle inserts to add to my toys, and I decided to make some proper baby rattles with a handle for baby to grab and shake. Being a fan of teddies, of course, I've made a teddy rattle, based on the chubby teddy and teddy doudou patterns. I'm still busy testing the pattern, but I wanted to give you a sneak preview of this quick, easy project. I love making them I hope you will too! Keep your eye out for the pattern, hopefully in the next day or two.

I must apologise for being a bit quiet on the blogging side, but don't think I've been here sitting around doing nothing. I've been very busy thinking up new patterns, testing and trying out some new ideas. You might also have noticed that the blog has changed a bit. I've added links to my new facebook page and the flickr group (please join in!). I'm also busy grouping the free patterns and recipes on new pages (not quite finished that yet).  I'm removing some links that weren't really very successful, and have altered the layout of the blog. All of this is work in progress and I would love to get your feedback. If you have any more ideas about how I can improve the blog, please let me know.

Bye for now!