greenolive

a cold and productive weekend

Judging by the temperatures we shivered through on the weekend I think we can confidently say Winter is here. A max of around 7 degrees both days – though it was around 4 dregrees most of the time – saw us staying close to the fire in the lounge room.

Luckily most of the things on my to-do list could be started while in front of the fire or in the relative warmth of the lounge-cum-dinning room. The winter coat was cut out and pinned; a second coat was cut out; the wrap vest knitted in a Jo Sharp Aran Tweed called Wintergreen was cast on; and the textile etsy shop was updated for our first ever screenprinted fabric sale! 

Today its still cold outside, but at least the sun is shinning, trying to tempt us outside. I'm only heading outside to get more wood for the fire!

I'm hoping the week ahead will be as productive as the weekend. Fingers crossed.

nature's inspiration

Whenever Drew comes to a market (which is most times really), I always pack the camera. After the heavy lifting of market set up, then his husbandly tea-making duties he's pretty much done for the day. The faffing and selling is left to me. 

That gives him a lot of hours to kill. Hence the camera. This past weekend we were at the Shirt and Skirt market at Abbotsford Convent. While killing the hours he snapped this photo of the local pea hens. 

It was only when processing photos taken the previous day at another market did I spot the similarity in colours between the two photos. A total coincidence, but wouldn't it be lovely to say the scarf was inspired by the colours of the pea hen feathers?

The weekend was full on – markets both days. Both were pretty dismal in terms of sales – no sales at one market, but two wholesale enquiries. Three sales at the other market. I'm sure the weather had something to do with it. The only slightly reassuring thing was that everyone else was in the same boat. Maybe winter markets in Melbourne are just not worth it? All I know is its a VERY hard way to earn a quid (as the poms would say). 

This weeknd is a very rare market-free weekend which while good for relaxing is not so good for the financial situation...

I'd made a to-do list: make a winter coat, stock up the online shop, sort out wholesale pricelist, make a start on those kids quilts I've been planning to sew for ages, start a knitted wrap vest for me...

one more sleep til Modish market

Guess who was lucky enough to be included in the Modish Creators Market feature on the Designer Sphere blog?

I'll give you a hint...they make great wool tweed handbags.

And if that text is just a bit too small, read all about it in the original blog post.

The details: Modish market at Malvern Town Hall, Saturday, 9am to 3pm.

daybreak

I was up early yesterday – as I was visiting my sister for the day – and managed to spot this outside the kitchen window.

After the last few cold and gloomy days, it was wonderful to wake up to this. I thought you might enjoy it too.

As I went about my business, I took a series of photos a few minutes apart. The colours are amazing.

I might just get up a bit earlier every morning and see what the day brings.

mountains of tweed

With two markets this weekend, the focus is on making our wool tweed handbags. 

Piles of wool tweed jackets in various states of readiness throughout the house. Drew tells me the house is starting to smell like an op shop!

Wish me luck, and focus. I can't be distracted by the hunt for more Harris Tweed at local op shops!

And if you're in the mood for some retail therapy this weekend –  Modish Creators Market on Saturday, then Shirt and Skirt Market on Sunday. 

modish creators market this saturday

 

This Saturday is the second Modish Creators market, and we'll be there selling our various scarves and wool tweed handbags.

The launch market back in May was a great success, if you missed it you can read all about it in this blog post.

Here are all the details – and don't worry if its wet or cold outside, the Malvern Town Hall is nice and dry!

 

moederkip giveaway

meet the maker blog profile

The Daylesford Makers Market has just launched a new feature on their market blog, a Meet the Maker profile.

The first business to be featured is Moederkip, a husband-and-wife team who design and produce children's clothing, toys and accessories.

There's a great giveaway too – a $50 gift voucher from Moederkip. Just check out the blog profile for details. Entries close midnight Sunday 20 June.

If I was lucky enough to win I'd buy one of their colourful pencil rolls.

quick knit: kids top knot hat

a free pattern to inspire you to knit this winter

I've been making these knitted hats – I call them top knots – for about a year now. They are a quick and easy knit, and are an excellent way to use all those one ball yarns in your stash.

I'd always loved them, thinking they were oh-so-cute, but until the Healsville market on Sunday I'd only sold one or maybe two at each market when I took them to sell. But at Healsville my luck changed – I sold six of them. It might have been the colder weather, the new way I displayed them, or perhaps the reduced price – whatever the reason, this week there are six very cute kids walking around in a top knot.

I thought you might like the pattern so you can make one for your very own cutie. Its a made-up pattern, but that means you can use any yarn you want and knit any size you need.

Top knot pattern

Materials:
> approx 80m of yarn (a full ball or leftover yarn)
> set of needles to suit the guage of the yarn
> wool needle to sew up sides

Sizing:
You can make the top knot any size you like:
> measure the circumfrenence of the head you are knitting the top knot for
> divide that by two – this is the width you will knit
> using the tension info for the yarn you are using, work out how many stitches will knit up to that width – you don't have to be too precise!
> measure the person's head from the eyebrows, across the top of the head and to the back of the head – this measurement is the length you will need to knit.

Instructions:
> cast on the number you stitches you calculated, use a needle a size bigger to allow for a loose cast on
> knit every stitch in every row until you have made a tall rectangle that measure the length you need to knit
> cast off.

Finishing:
> fold the knitted rectangle in half, so the cast on and cast off ends meet
> sew up the side seams using your favourite method
> attach "top knot" threads in each corner.

Design ideas:
> why not add buttons or a felt flower to decorate the top knot?
> you could use stocking stitch, moss stitch, or any stitch you like
> why not use several colours – especially good if you have lots of small bits of wool. Maybe stripe? Or perhaps one colour for the front and another for the back?

Have fun! You won't be able to stop at one.

suit sleeve + recycling = new scarf

  
I've always loved menswear. The colours, the fabrics, the cut, the design details, the tradition. Even the whole idea of Savile Row intrigues me. 

In the past, this love has inspired the wool suiting scarves and the new-ish Harris Tweed Handbags. The scarves made from menswear fabrics, the handbags made from real menswear such as wool tweed jackets.

Recently, the inspiration and design process has evolved further into a new scarf design, the Suit Sleeve Scarf. 

Made from the recycled sleeves and button cuffs of the lighter-weight wool jackets I've been collecting, and paired with soft wool fabrics that have been lurking in my stash for just such inspiration, the scarves are classic and timeless.

They are simpler, softer and more drapey than the original wool suiting scarves. And quicker and easier to make, which translates into cheaper to buy.

I'll be selling them at the Daylesford Maker's Market this Saturday, and also at the Healsville craft market on Sunday. Hope they do well.

the complexity of colour

 

 
Training and working as a graphic designer for 16 years, I have a great affinity with colour. My days were filled with pantone colour chips, CMYK colours and paper stock colours. As most of the work I designed was one, two or three colours I got to play with PMS colours a lot!

It always amazes me the way we react emotionally to colour. Maybe its not the reaction itself that is amazing, but rather the strength of that reaction. Colour is evocative, complex, subtle...

I love creating colour palettes, whether they be from PMS colours and paper stock, or yarns and fabrics...and now there are all these online colour palette generators its even easier. Rather than creating a colour palette from nothing, you can create one from a favourite colour photo. I know this is nothing new, but I've finally dipped my toe into the water...

The photo above was one I took at the Abbotsford Convent a few weekends ago, while we had a stall at the Shirt and Skirt market. I loved the texture and colours, especially the subtlety of the colours.

Using an online colour palette generator, I created a colour palette from the photo. Once you see the palette, you begin to see the colours in the photo differently. 

While generating colour palette can be highly addictive and while away the hours, its also a great design tool. I can see it coming in handy in the near future.

If you are looking for some colour inspiration visit the colour collective blog – this colour palette is a recent favourite or the regular colour me pretty feature on the decor8 blog.