Tom wears a tie to work most days, and a while back he asked if I would knit him one. After a bit of online research I settled on this pattern and started knitting. The first version I made wasn't quite right, as I used a yarn with cotton content, and the end result was…

In the spring I planted a small tansy plant in the garden, never realising how big it might grow. Now it's early autumn and the plant is taller than me and threatening to take over the flower bed. I really only planted it for embroidery purposes.  I've also been reading that dyeing with tansy can…

a) Scandinavian and Scottish winter weather feels very far away at the moment, but that doesn't mean I don't love looking through the windswept and grey photos of my latest book purchase, Knitting from the North by Hilary Grant. I first heard about this book on Nicole's podcast and fell in love with the aesthetics…

My littlest sister is expecting her first baby soon, and I wanted to make her something useful for everyday Mum-life. She said she had her eye on a particular tote bag and zip case that our sister-in-law used with her first baby. So I took measurements from those items and tried to reproduce them –…

Upon purchase of three beautiful skeins of silk/merino yarn, I decided I’d have to make another 3-colour cowl (I knitted this one as a gift last summer). The yarn was hand-dyed by my friend Nikki, who runs Dark Harbour just up the road from me, so I was able to choose them in person which…

I'm starting to get excited about my trip to Melbourne at the end of March. I'll be teaching workshops along with Felicia Semple and Elizabeth Barnett at this event, and I'm starting to gather materials and inspiration for the work we'll do there. As well as stitch guides and instructions for the projects, I'm hoping…

The summer has been so grey and cold, that when the warmth does appear it's almost a surprise. We had a day like that today – cicadas singing, even, and I managed to knit a few rows sitting outside in the garden. I've nearly finished the cowl I've been working on this month. And this…

We've not had many summery days here in Wellington, but I wanted to capture a little bit of sun when it appeared recently. Perhaps some warm weather is still on its way, like a parcel lost in the post? I made a few sun catchers (details here) with flowers pressed back at the start of…

My kind friend Poppy let me borrow one of her tapestry weaving looms and gave me a lesson on how to use it. I must admit I found it more difficult than I'd been expecting. I used to get frustrated easily and give up when faced with a new challenge, but I'm happy to report…

=============== a) Some Sunday morning knitting with blueberries. I'm making another one of these cowls (the first one I made was a gift). It won't be long before autumn is here again… b) A linen project bag for my etsy shop, inspired by current side-of-the-road flowers… c) A late crop of sweet peas from the…