Insta-print fun!

Hey there

Apologies for the long absence.  Although there has been some knitting activity in these parts (particularly some adorable baby knits for a few of my friends who are expecting little bundles of joy in the next few months), I thought I'd quickly share a different type of project.  

By way of background, I am lucky enough to have my own office to work in.  It's reasonably large so there's space not only for my L shaped desk where I do most of my work, but also a small round table for meetings / visitors and also plenty of storage space.  The one eyesore in my office however, is a big support pole grey and a little unsightly.  

Ever since my first job, I've always tried to decorate my office to bring a little colour and personality to my space.  I'd already added some cushions for a little pop of colour and some cute little touches here and there, I did feel like the overwhelming feature in my office was a really huge, unsightly grey pole.  So I decided to decorate.

Although I forgot to get any "before" pictures, here's an inspiration picture:

We found that on holiday on Copenhagen !  We were the cheesey couple that did a terrible kissy picture in front of it but I won't post that one here.  

I did love that heart though - and I thought that on a curved surface like the pole, it wouldn't be super obvious as a heart.  It also meant I could add a fun feature without having to try to cover the entire pole or have a square blob in the middle of it.

Step 1 was to find some pictures.  This was easy.  I have an Instagram account and on my recent 5 week holiday in Europe, I posted 1 photo a day.  I really loved this set of pictures and knew I'd want them to be part of this feature in my office.  I also had a range of other pictures I liked on my feed that I could pull from.  There are a couple of different websites you can do this through and I think I used this one. 

Step 2 was to get them printed.  There are loads of places you can get this done online.  Some places specialise in printing Instagram pictures so you don't need to do step 1 but they tend to be more expensive (and I assume better quality).  As the quality wasn't a concern for me, I chose a budget option which was the Big W photo lab which printed 4" square photos for 15c each and posted them to me within a week for about $4 postage (there is an option for store pick up but I thought postage straight to the office would be easier for me).  I think I spent about $15 total.  If you're also in Australia, you can find a link to the Big W photo lab here.  As I knew I'd need to touch them to stick them up and I'd likely brush up against them, I chose to go with the matte prints and I like the way the white boarder adds some consistency to the pictures.  

Step 3 was to use some blu tack and have some fun!  Actually, I originally tried washi tape but I found the patterning on my tape to be a little distracting. Here's the end result:

Can you see the heart shape? Maybe this view is better?

All of my holiday pictures makes up the first (nearly) 4 rows of the heart.  The rest are a selection of my other favourite pictures.  

I had a lot of spare photos too and as I add more Instagram shots, I might get more printed with the hope of maybe covering that entire pole in pictures.

I've been getting a lot of comments about how nice it is to have a pop of colour in my office, and I also get a lot of questions about many of my holiday pictures which is a lot of fun!

If you want to see my Instagram feed, I'm "Beeboppity" over there.

Hoping to come back to you with some knitting soon! 

Cheers

B!

An accessory-finishing parade!

Hi there!

Long time no see!  It's a little embarrassing how neglected this little slice of the Internet.

For a few months there, I had lost all of my crafting time and mojo to work and travel but just as the cold weather settled in, back came my time and mojo - June has been an accessory-finishing parade!

The first thing I finished a couple of weeks ago was a teeny tiny version of the A Most Bespeckled Hat pattern that I am so obsessed with.  I made a baby version for my friend's brand new little girl (pictured on my hand for scale).  I'm told it's a little lose and slouchy on her now but I'm sure she'll grow into it.  For this tiny version, I used size 3 needles with fingering weight Cherry Tree Hill scraps that I bought on destash years ago.

I was on a little hat streak and the next thing I was the Pretty Gallopavo in Dream in Color Starry in the colourway Black Pearl held double on size 8 needles.  I made it for my coworker K's birthday.  She very sweetly asked for a black hat with a pom pom and I was finally able to use up this sparkly yarn I bought from Eat Sleep Knit years ago.  

I was lucky enough to get away to Singapore for the June long weekend and on my flight over there (apparently while we were still ascending according to the picture), I finally finished the beautiful Herrington Cowl out of some beautiful yarn that I bought when I was in Paris in January.  It's the Lil Wiiz yarn from the Lil Weasel (which is DK weight so a little thicker than the fingering weight the pattern calls for) on size 4 needles.  The result is a lovely, squishy little cowl that's perfect with my grey coat!

Then, on the flight back home, I started a sweet little baby set for another little girl born in June.  I had been a little disorganised so I had to buy some yarn over in Singapore (which was a little bit of an adventure).  I chose some Olympus Milky Baby to pair with the leftover pink from my Herrington Cowl.  I started with a Sixteen Hearts Hat and I loved the chart so much, I made up a pattern for mittens so I could use it again!  They seem really tiny so I'm not sure if they'll fit (fingers crossed anyway).  I topped off the little set with some Saartje's Booties.  As the yarn was a little thicker, I made the smaller size and hopefully, they'll fit her at some point.  I got them in the post the other day and I really hope they get to this little lady very soon!

And finally, this weekend, I've spent some time working on my sweater project which is so tantalisingly close to being complete.  I'll post about it when I can show it all in it's finished glory, mistakes, little regrets and all.

Until next time!

XOXO
B

A end and a beginning of some Pretty Little Cities

I've been working on Pretty Little Sydney since last August (just after I finished Pretty Little Paris) and this weekend, I finally finished it!

I absolutely love Satsuma Street designs.  They are modern, bright and something a little bit different.  It's also a great way to express two of my great loves - travelling and crafting!



It's certainly been a long time coming but I've already started stitching my newest project - Pretty Little New York! 

I'll hopefully be able to get Sydney framed up very soon, and finish Pretty Little New York in less than 8 months after starting it!

Oh and I guess a little explanation for the delays in blog posts.  I've had an incredibly busy couple of months!  I was offered a new job, then went on holiday for 5 weeks all around Europe (I hope to write a little more on that later), then I started my new role (which has been fantastic but very busy) and before I knew it, it's March!

I hope to settle into a regular posting schedule soon because I have some really fun crafting projects in the pipeline!

XOXO
B