Crafts Beautiful - Quick & Crafty - Let's Make Cards Magazine

Hi Joules,
I just found your message I keep getting lost. Not sure where I put things and where I found things… oh dear that must be a sign of something.

You must have a wonderful time having your babies at home all the time. Snap I have 4 too oldest 12 too, youngest 7.
I just had a look at your site, it looks great,very professionally done as are your products. 
Good Luck with this exciting new venture.
Zheena
x

Aww thank you Zheena, your kind words mean alot to me.

Jules x

Morning!!

I had no idea that ‘making up’ would be so difficult!!! I spent most of my knitting time last night trawling the internet and through books for decent diagrams showing how to do garter mattress stitch.

I learnt that you need patience, good eyesight and a sense of humour!!!!! I also didn’t understand how to do back stitch properly.

In the end , I freestyled because I was so eager to get at least one boot done. It looks okay but I want to try again and do it properly. I need size four needles as well because I think the finished boot was a bit big (it did say on the pattern to use size four for smaller ones but my partner could only get size 5).

Oh well, it’s been an adventure, this first ‘not just a scarf’ knitting project but then it wouldn’t be so satisfying if it weren’t for the challenge.

I will be so pleased if/when I master ‘making up’. If anyone has any tips, I’d be really grateful.

At least it’s Friday!!!!I

How’s it going Jules?Any plans for the weekend? I’ll get there, promise! 

R x

Hi Ramona, great to read your posting and well done for not being disheartened about your struggle.

I do confess to not always doing the recommended stitch when making up, and often just “wing” it so to speak, making it up as I go along as long as it looks okay.

As for my plans for the weekend, I have none.  Our car is off the road due to its MOT failure and us not being able to afford the repairs.  The cost of public transport here is sky high.  It’s at such times I wish we lived somewhere like Manchester or Birmingham as the bus and train travel is so cheap.  When we last visited relatives near Manchester, we bought a family bus ticket that lasted for the whole day on all of the network, and it only cost £6.00!!!  Here, to get the family to Torquay (about 20 minute drive away) would cost around £15.00.  A massive difference, and one that we can’t just afford to do often!

Still,we have the beautiful beaches and stunning landscape of Dartmoor....I keep telling myself that

How about you?  What are your plans Ramona (sorry for my waffling...)

Jules x

Hi,

I know what you mean about public transport - I cycle to work (apart form today - it was just soooo gusty last night) and I worked out that I save myself about £400 a year!!! All my money still seems to disappear though (lol)!

I’ll post properly at lunch.

Have a good morning

R x

Hi Ramona,
Has Owen alfie got warm toes yet?
Are you finished and pleased with your project?
Oh............ do tell!

Hi Joules

I had a car problem too this week. I wore the brake pads down so badly I had to have new discs too.... Aaaargh!
Hope you get your car back soon. As you say you have the beaches and that wonder of mother nature, the sea, I love to stand on the beach and look at the sea, nothing quite like that I think.

Zheena
x

Hi all,

I finished one boot using 5mm needles (read further back - I STRUGGLED a lot with making up (I can’t express the pain in smileys, I don’t think). I’ll post a pic of it tonight. I love the way this thread has turned into a crafting soap opera Sorry guys!! One day, you’ll tune in/log on and they will be finished, I promise.

Anyhow, this weekend I had to do some hasty papercrafting with my boyfriend for his Dad’s birthday. We decorated a CD scrapbook envelope (HOTP)and made a compilation for him of all his fav music.

I also promised to cook a meal to take round to his parents house as the other half of our present. I had a very busy afternoon searching for fresh spices and herbs, then cooking. It was a recipe from a book I got at Xmas and the measurements were in cups. Totally unrelated to knitting, I know, but does anyone know how to convert cups into tablespoons? I just guessed but it would be nice to know as I want to learn to cook ‘properly’ this year - especially curries (my favourite food at the moment-mmmmmm - the thought of it is even nice at this time of the morning!!!!!!! ).

My partner’s (Mark) Mum has lent me some 4mm needles so I shall get back on the case with the bootees tonight. 

How was everyone else’s weekend?

All the best,

R xxx

Ramona,
Sorry to hear you are still toiling   with the bootees (get to spell right eventually) . My sewing and finishing on knits was always freestyle. Try and keep it in the style of the project though. I hardly ever use backstitch as its too heavy and inflexible on knits.

Your next question about tablespoons and cups raises all sorts of joys as well . I have a cook book which claims to offer conversions, but apparently British, American and Australian cups are all different sizes!
I can offer that 1 tablespoon is 20ml and approximately half a fluid ounce, and in the same table 1 cup is 250ml and about 8 fluid ounces. All these are volume measures of course.
There is a charming little NB at the bottom of the table which says that American and Australian cups are 8 fluid ounces but that English cups are 10 fluid ounces. Don’t you wish you’d never asked!
Gives an approximate comparison anyway.

ahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!! I need a new brain now So does that mean that one cup is twelve and a half tablespoons?? I would love to get it nailed. Thank you so much for that! I thinkw hen I do post some recipes, I’m going to insist on using tablespoons as a protest!!!

Seriously, thank you paperkate for that and the knitting sympathy.  I will get there. The support from the forum has been tremendously encouraging. I don’t feel so bad about resigning to ‘winging’ the making up. Life’s just too short!!!

All the best

R x

Don’t fret about winging it. Have a laugh on me then!!!!
I used to make cakes according to the book and like I was taught at school.
Weigh everything out, beat the eggs and sugar, add the flour tbsp at a time to avoid the egg curdling. Used to take hours doing it.
One day I had just measured everything out into little dishes on kitchen table and the inevitable phone rang. Phone then was still on a telephone line in the hall.
Came back into the kitchen to find my 3 year old had tipped everything into the mixing bowl and was tasting and going ‘yum yum mmmmm.’
Attacked the whole thing with mixing spoon and shoved it in the oven. Not my son obviously! Talk about a wing and a prayer !
Lightest and most luscious cake made ever - before or since!

And yes I think 1 cup is 12 n a hlf tbsps. Good starting point anyway. Could send you the full chart and conversions if you really want a sore head! Ok, I won’t then!

LOL! I know what you mean. That’s a great story - your face must have been a picture.

What I’ll do is just sew my bootees (sp?!) as neatly as possible.

As for the cups/tblspoons answer - thank you so much for clearing that up. It was going to bug me!