Thursday, October 1, 2009

niffler leg warmer

i, too, chose to tackle care of magical creatures this past month. my original hope had been to get an early start on my dog's halloween costume. alas, things didn't turn out quite as planned.

Here's what I posted on Ravelry:

Addreamy of Slytherin, here, signing up and handing in my homework.

My Niffler (who refused to come consistently when called, so never did acquire a working name other than HEY!) sustained an injury very early on in the month. I consulted with Hagrid, who claimed that long nasty scrapes were common in Nifflers, but due to the property of their blood, could not be healed magically. Therefore, he cleaned and bandaged the wound, but charged me with the task of keeping the Niffler from licking or removing the bandage.

Have you ever tried to keep an animal from mucking with a bandage? i tried several methods, including a bubble-headed charm (which interfered with the Niffler’s finding function and made it depressed), an impedimenta spell (which i have never managed properly and succeeded only in a series of low brick walls), and even a nasty-smelling potion. That was a disaster. ‘Nuff said.

Finally, i hit on making a “leg warmer” cover for the entire leg. This worked like a charm.


Having now returned my Niffler, i forgot to get a picture of her wearing it, tho, so my long-suffering springer, Sydney, was volunteered to stand in. Unfortunately, her paws are much bigger than the nifflers, so we could only get it on half-way!


The whole thing so traumatized my girl that she then had to take a nap….

Saturday, September 12, 2009

working with something new


for the niffler challenge in care of magical creatures, i have chosen this golden "intermezzo" ribbon-yarn from trendsetters. the plan i have is to create a scarf out of golden coins.

so far it is challenging to crochet with since the 5/8" ribbon has its own little holes, but i have made two little circles so far. it might just work. :D

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

classes posted!

YAY!
HPKCHC classes have been posted today and they all look so interesting, i am not sure what to do. they have a bumper crop of students this go round and i was sorely tempted to get more involved in leadership there. *smacks head*

so for classes, we have

herbology: research project
"Your yarn must be 50% or more from plant origin, ie. bamboo, cotton, hemp, corn. Post must contain brand and fiber content, picture of finished object, and a description of what it was like to work with and how it affects the project. Points awarded based on complexity of project, wit, originality, and evilness. (Trying to bring the evilness into Herbology. Not as easy as it seems, folks, short of having everyone knit with Devil’s Snare…)"

charms: augamenti
"a) create something water-related, be it colours, waves etc. -or -
b) create something a little more literal like a goblet, something that imitates the jets of water or a fire hose (firemen optional but welcome and yes the professor knows where some minds will take this one and that is also fine :D)"

transfiguration: blocking
"Blocking is a form of alchemical Transfiguration, that takes your knitting and crocheted items from mundane to ethereal. Your assignment this month is to knit or crochet an item, and then transfigure it, through blocking, into a work of art."

potions: common cold prevention
"Pepperup Potion
- Cures the common cold. You can identify someone who has recently taken this potion by the distinctive steam coming out of their ears for several hours after drinking it. But demand has been heavier than usual this year, and supplies of Pepperup Potion are short. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Knit, crochet, or sew something to keep somebody warm."

defense against the dark arts: “What I Fought On My Summer Holidays” -
"It’s September! The month for the traditional back-to-school essay about what you did on your summer holidays. Explain and show an example of which spell you practiced, creepy creature you fought, or scary Death Eater plot you unraveled over the summer holidays. Extra points for house colors, making the prof laugh, or being especially awesome."

not sure what the quidditch challenges will be...and OWLs...well, they are still out of my league, i think.


:D

Monday, August 24, 2009

todd paschall

mair and i just stumbled onto this dude and the photos he renders in crochet!

todd paschall's site

take a look and see if your mind doesn't start flowing with ideas.
if you could get as much image control as a cross stitcher, what would YOU render?
hmmmmmmm!

Thursday, August 13, 2009

the nautilus challenge



there is a nautilus knitting pattern out there, but since i am not really much of a knitter as much as crochet ninja and since i am determined to become fluent in crochet, i am working out my own pattern.  this is my third try.   

the approach i am using this time was to use the fibonacci numeral sequence that i was introduced to during a challenge at the HPKCHC on the very first row, then to just enlarge very gently from there, turning at the top--one stitch in each stitch. (i am farther along than this scan shows.) after i make aobut 8 rows of single crochet, i will proceed back down the other side the the original chain, reversing the fibonacci in decreases.  if it works out, i will go on to add tentacles and friendly little eyes!

cross your tentacles for my success!

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Sign Ups Are Open!

sign ups are open over at Ravelry.com for the Harry Potter Knit/Crochet House Cup!

mair and i are in.

are YOU? :D

Friday, August 7, 2009

slytherWIN!

at ravelry's harry potter knit/crochet house cup, the last day of term was august 31st and we SLYTHERINS nailed that house cup like it was a snake on the gaunt's front door! woot! i especially enjoy the natural team spirit that makes it easy for slytherins to pull together strategies for winning. a good example was the slytherin quidditch team gathering themselves together for a knit/crochet-along of scarves for potions class! boo on people who think we all just cheat! FIRST, we simply look to see if the rules suggest any good legal "work-arounds". so there!

secondly, i was so excited to find i was nominated for a prize for july for "zeh kee! she flies!" i don't think i had a chance to win, but i did garner 50 "loves".

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