Suzy's Magic Feet

When I was younger, I had a pair of multicolour wool slippers that I called "my magic feet", because they were so very cozy and colourful.  I am extremely fussy about slippers, and those were the only kind I ever found to be both warm and comfortable to wear.  I loved my magic feet.  I vowed many times, over many years, that I would one day learn to make them - now I and my children can have cozy feet forever!

I had someone show me how to increase and decrease crochet stitches, cut out some soles from an old sheepskin, and got to work.  I had to backtrack several times in the process, but once I'd made one pair, I knew how to do it. 

I did learn from a few mistakes along the way: wooden needles are not strong enough for working through leather!  Had to make an emergency trip to the charity shop to look for a new needle, and then try to match the size and tension of the stitches to those I'd done with the first needle.  Next time I'll know better.

I'm no expert crocheter (crocheteer? crochetess? Is there a word for one who does crochet?), but once the soles are ready, I guess I could make a small slipper in about the time it takes to nurse a baby to sleep.

In my search for low cost, low tech, high sale value, practical crafts to have as my workshop repertoire, one of the criteria I have been bearing in mind is safety and practicality for working with small children underfoot.  Sleeping children are ideal to work with, but they don't always stay that way.  One of the things about crochet that I particularly appreciate is that it only involves one needle, a dull one, so it can be done quite safely with a sleeping baby in one's lap, and when the baby wakes up, the project can instantly be set aside, ready to pick up again as soon as another opportunity comes along.

Crochet is also wonderfully portable.

I made the first slipper while in the car and in the outpatients' waiting room, bringing the Munchkin to an appointment.  The second I made while putting the girls to bed.

The soles are cut from a 'second' sheepskin bought at the pannier market.  The wool came with Munchkin's knitting fork , but she preferred to use a more slender yarn, so we traded.  A bit of time, and not much skill with a crochet hook, and Lovely Boo has little warm feet that won't slip on the cold floor.

That's magic.

Woolly Pants

I spend a lot of time dealing with nappies these days. (I mean diapers, by the way, but it gets too confusing to swap between British and Canadian terminology, so I'll stick with nappies.) My lovely little assistant is very handy for trying out different designs.  Her big sister helps, too, by keeping her entertained, but she prefers not to be photographed. 

Here, Lovely Boo is wearing a couple of old jumpers (sweaters) which have been deliberately shrunk in the wash, cut up, and stitched into a very simple design.  Old woollens with stains, holes, or which have lost their shape or shrunk in the wash can make an ideal waterproof, breathable, all-weather nappy cover.  Soft, comfortable, easy to put on, leakproof, holds a nappy firmly in place, warm in winter, cool in summer, and doesn't need frequent washing.  The only drawback is that real wool knits are not so easily come by these days, and synthetic wool just won't work.