A few projects I haven't shared - 2016

There are quite a few knitting projects I haven't posted.   Some labours that helped keep me sane, on the train - commuting to and from work long hours in the city.

Pink dolphins, rainbow horses...  for various rainbow people I know.

I will be knitting at a less rapid rate now - for a good reason.  Not needed as much - so that is good.  I am doing what I am meant to do now - again.

Have a few precious patterns to share at some point as well - designs.


Rainbow horse - for Sariah (Canada)

This too quite a few iterations before I got the design right.  I remember walking through the train station with trailing rainbow wool...listening to podcasts from my brother.

My sister-in-law termed this an "alicorn", as in all.  She has both wings and a horn - made from a shell found on a NZ beach.

Blue dog and blue hat for Elizabeth and Emma (Canada)

Made out of same stretchy blue yarn as the dog, knitted the toque first (to be warm and comfy). So the blue dog that came later matched.

Rainbow dolphin for Mel (NZ)

Interesting - the thing about dolphins.

Love the shape - the first dolphins I knitted were small ones for my daughter.  Then larger ones for her and her friend (orcas, they are actually dolphins).  Then for the first time I used a beautiful rainbow wool for a special person at work named Mel.

Pink dolphin for Phoebe (NZ)

Then the dolphin rampage began.  I was creaing making the perfect pink dolphin for a lovely friend I worked with's daughter.  Still knitting the dolphin from the tail up.  I wanted a really bright pink.  I gave this lovely pink dolphin to my little longtime pal Phoebe.

Fluoro pink dolphin for Charlotte (Christchurch, NZ)

I knitted the dolphin a huge circle of water as well, the first time I graphed out a circle.  I was covered in the huge circle blanket on the bus!  The first photo is taken at a coffee shop with Shane.  We are feeling strain from me always being absent at work at this time.

Purple dophin for Hannah (South Africa)

For Shane's close friend's daughter Hannah, a few special girl.

Night Star dolphin for Hanool (NZ)

The final iteration I made of a dolphin was for a close colleague's newly born son, Hanool.  This was a design I really worked on, and realised how much better it was to knit it from the nose, and ending at the tail.  The shaping is easier - and the tail could be made more realistically at it is a wide shape with delicate swerves, not a double leaf sort of shape.  The fins are made by leaving large buttonholes (knitting back and forth to create a gap), later I pick up stitches and knit the fin.  I recorded my design as I created it.  Interestingly, I can often feel intuitively some things about a person when I make them something as I am connecting my energy to theirs.  I felt this child would be full of laughter.

The Story Teepee (Christmas 2016)

Then in a moment where I helped my recovery from burnout by creating a "story teepee" intended for storytelling to children, storming around neighbourhood cutting down bamboo poles (although I did not feel well).  Attaching together a huge semicircle in an empty community hall.   Borrowing a sewing machine to sew a teepee (a gift from a friend).  Figuring out the crazy shenanigan of making the calculated top fit.  Dyeing it with the kids,  some of their friends, Shane.  It did get used for a coupleof stories, but mostly was a necessary act - rather than a useful teepee to be used in future.

Note:  In the end as it got smaller I realised it's far easier to throw over and sew cloth onto the poles - like the First Nations people in Canada did with their skins...  And was a bit too tender a matter to talk about until now.

Seal and ocean jumper for Arwyn

Project of love - for a little ocean - forest girl in Canada.

I have been working on this little jumper (sweater) for awhile - jumpers take wayyy longer than toys. And I do find freestyling easier than following patterns.

Many stages I had to reknit a few times until I got it right. After hood and arm tops I had enough of any future direction and just knit straight down, blending towards green from blue.

Ocean to forest. For a 4 year old (so very oversize for the baby I knitted it for but she looks chunky so will grow into it soon!)

For Lena McCuaig's baby Arwyn in Canada. Her people are nature artistic people so thought they would appreciate the meaning though colour-work got a bit stiff!

So Earth hoodie.

A few projects this year - 2017

Purple Dolphin Friend for Troy's Blue Dolphin

Some captions pasted from my fb page Nonnie's Cool Ideas.  (Also enables my record keeping).

I asked Troy if she wanted me to knit her a cool little bag for her device with this wool she had chosen (they take them to school) to give her good energy as she is starting Intermediate at a new school (Grade 7!).

She said No I don't need one, but could you make my little blue dolphin a friend? She had the little dolphin toy in her bag. I made it in one evening -

Then I realised the advantages of making tiny toys - I can make more little friends for kids more quickly.

Then I made her dolphin named Galaxy a little bag out of a cloth sample (they are real easy to lose too!)

Then I tried to make a tiny seal for the firsg time as prey for her Orca toy I had made awhile ago (killer whale, has an opwn mouth and red lining bag inside so it can eat.).

But that my first go turned decidedly turtle like...

Sorry Troy channelling someone else...

I gave the turtle to Mikayla - with her dreamcatcher.

Dreamcatcher for Mikayla (Canada)

Mikayla is studying marine biology in Vancouver, Canada (my friend's daughter).

Metal web (real spiderweb pattern), leather strips holding a glass orb with knitted leaves holding it.

The web holds the Earth...precious life in balance

Seal (prey item) for Troy's Orca

Finally got round to making tiny seals for Troy's Orca to eat.  First attempt at teeny animals.  Learned to use smaller needles!

Earth hoodie for Arwyn - and a little "seal person" (Canada)

Back to school 

The following projects are for new friends of mine, and also old, at my new role working as a teacher aide at a primary school.  I can't post photos of the kids - just the toys / gifts.


Cosy Purple Scarf with Blue Pockets 

For being kind to the boy I work with, ahelping him make friends.  (First friend and social inroad for autistic boy I work with, he has awkward social skills but this angel responded with love.)  Now the lad has many friends (though they don't ALWAYS want to play with him - he is doing as great as possible though).

Purple Bird (small knitted)

For a student - for coming a long way with learning (and because she's a little monkey).  A very cute and precocious little girl at the school I work at.  Also learning how to make small toys - with smaller needles - like the fantail and other native animal finger puppets you can buy at the Auckland Zoo.

Sock Monkey

Made for a sweet, artistic girl (one of the students in the class I am a teacher aide). Nervous to move away to ChCh. Made her a travelling companion.  I also made the monkey a really cute print backpack with a rose ornament attached to zipper as a pull (Troy designed it with me).  

Sewing is wayyyy quicker than knitting!!

Pink cat

To another young pal confidence.  I made this cat during a lovely trip to Tawharanui with my family to find snow and stay in a cabin.

Flying Squirrel 

Very fuzzy - suitable for the young man I work with who is very tactile.  

But my knitting is going to slow down....I have started my journey back into drawing and painting world.

Amazing infographic on carbon impact

from article here:

https://phys.org/news/2017-07-effective-individual-tackle-climate-discussed.html

Dream about missiles

When I awoke this morning, my head was full of dreams.

The last one was the most disturbing - and is the one I am sharing here.

I arrived back at my family home, the Jones home.  There were open gardens everywhere with seeds and good foods planted in long furrows in black soil.  I saw a closeup of the beautiful seeds in their groove in the soil, full of life.  Shane was there, planting.  My father was working in the gardens as well, on the other side - there was of a low barrier which ran along the centre of the gardens.   It had a roof or canopy overtop.  There were many rectangular gardens full of soil.

Partly obscured by the barrier wall, I saw two objects which we could not plant.  I could not figure out what to do with them.  They did not belong in the soil.  They did not belong anywhere.  When I held one of them straight up that was closest to me, on the right of the wall, I could see by its shape it was a deadly missile.  It was almost as tall almost as me.  It looked like a long pole with an angular shaped spade at the end, all of a grey manmade material.  It was an unnatural shaft that did not belong in the ground.  The other one looked like a space rocket or shuttle.

I wanted to ask my Dad about it, but he got angry at me for mentioning this.  I then got upset and asked why I was always in trouble for mentioning something that was truly there - was just speaking of it.  My mother explained he would be angry at anyone that mentioned it, not just me.  There was also a big feeling of his work around him at this time - his work with early computers.  When he was angry - I could see one of the garden plots was hollow and full of disks, computer things.

It was like a secret - this deadly power that did not belong anywhere.

Zero waste meat shopping - also the European and oldschool way

Feeling so much better now I am following changes I had made earlier and then weakened from during my tired professional mom phase.

Invested in good glass containers too - so these are reusable and very hardy, also won't get stained by meat blood etc - sterilisable.  The lids are a hardy plastic.  These are called Luminarc Keep N Box, from the Warehouse (NZ).   Smaller ones $8 larger $12.  We keep it simple by using these containers only for meat.  

The wonderful idea is to go to a butchers shop (or meat counter in a grocery store where they use a scale) and refill these reusable containers INSTEAD of throwing out polystyrene meat package every single time we consume meat.  Sams Butchery is happy to tare the scale to zero with containers on and bingo sorted.

Then put into freezer.

  
for more ideas

Lifegiver - and the power of time

 

I wanted to post on the subject of working as a parent long ago - but something kept me from doing it.  I wanted to post a photo of a totally exhausted looking mom, black under the eyes - but I am glad I have had the full circle of the experience before sharing it.

When I first started working full-time, with two children, then 8 and 10, I first experienced the thrill of first fear of the challenge, then happiness at success when I did well.  At first I had a lot of stored energy and "hunger" (as they say in MMA).  I gave all my time and energy to my work to make sure I succeeded.  I felt great relief after years of looking for a "proper" job that I was fulfilling my potential after years of education and temporary jobs, building up my skills from home.  For the first time I was providing my own financial contribution to the family.  And, I was growing very quickly in the area of my future dreams (illustration).

But as time went on, I experienced some extreme tiredness at times - when you are working 110%  work and also at home to cook dinner (starting at 7pm) and keeping up with housework on the weekend - and then the guilt creeping in...

At first I did do it all, and well, but eventually my family relationships started to take strain as I spent all available time either at work.  My husband, the most independent one came last.  Definitely no time for friends and helping out in the community.  My family's home in time became more and more dingy and dark, with no Lifegiver giving it new spirit.



I discovered what being time-poor and financially better off was really like - not very glamorous.  Like having a great meal before you, but with no time to eat it.  Wasteful.  I bought quicker, more packaging intense foods (before I had spent heaps of time buying lower packaging / locally sourced food as possible  (e.g. bringing my own containers to whole food stores, my own containers to a butcher who can fill and weigh instead of buying meat in polystyrene trays at the grocery store).  Now that there was little time I sailed past the grocery store on the way home,  grabbing a few expensive things in a rush.  In those moments the needs of my family's survival in that time-poor environment broke my resolve to live better for the future.

I learned for the first time why many families don't take the time to think and make choices that preserve the environment.  Even when you are educated and aware, having no time (being in survival mode) wears you out so you just can't.

No energy to swim against the current, to find new paths - as I always had.  Energy to think..energy to fight.

I am so glad I know this now - the most difficult challenge of all - the choice of balance between making money for your family, and raising one.

In the end, in short - I took a vacation to see family, gathered energy and came back resolved to change my situation before I got worn down again.  I negotiated a more family friendly workweek (only had that courage as I was willing to take any job that allowed me to have more and time with family - even if it was a demotion).

To my surprise my work was accommodating.  I was then able to return my family to a healthy and fun balance when I was able to put my energy back into it (and my husband and I both had a newfound respect for the role of a mother in a family - Lifegiver, I call it).

I also realised the importance of time in people's choices of whether to spend their energy on conserving environment - whether they went out of their way to make new patterns, or to become more aware.  In a way a society which keeps people really busy protects itself from change - people don't have time to think - or grow gardens!  Or whatever...

Life works in mysterious ways. Although I will always feel sadness over any missed time sharing my children's magic childhood years - I am glad I have learned a key hurdle to people being able to make choices beyond everyday survival.  That is, to live in a way, which is (I think a very powerful word - which cannot be overused), sustainably...  for people to really fight for change - in their habits, in our choices, for our society to change we must first fight for balance and space to do so.

Two days ago with mischief I brought two little reusable containers to Sam's Butcher in Silverdale, and as the lady weighed the meat in them and I avoided buying two polystyrene (styrofoam) containers - my heart was ever so light.

These various interactions are small, but they are everyone - and everywhere.

I sincerely wish everyone luck in fighting for some of that golden precious time - life giving space.