Signals and birds

This week I’ve been working out of office and away from home, so my routines, activities and projects have been a little different. I miss my sewing machine and all the art and craft supplies I have at home, but I have by no means been idle. I tried to pack my bag cleverly, and I'm very pleased that, with less competing projects around, I've actually managed to work more in my Thailand journal. This is a detail from a page I made about hand signals used by divers to communicate under water. Head over to Flickr if you want to see more.

Another project that was suitable for taking with me was the slipover I started knitting a few weeks ago. By now I've finished the back piece. The yarn's a bit chunkier, so the work progresses nicely.

I wish I had cable needles, as that would make it easier to knit on the train journey home tomorrow. I wouldn’t want to poke my seat neighbour with the long needles, so I’ll just leave the knitting in my suitcase. To amuse myself, I’m probably going to continue on a small Christmas cross-stitch kit that I found among my UFOs. I didn’t have any suitable project to bring on the train this time, so although a cross-stitch kit isn’t my number one choice, I’d rather sew mistletoe and holly than stare out of a train window for four and a half hours. I tried journalling before, but didn’t feel comfortable drawing with a stranger sitting next to me. Mind you, with a Christmas cross-stitch kit around Easter, the embarrassment factor is just a question of degree…

Today I'd like to share a project with you. I've mentioned before that I sent one of my finished projects to a special person, who's going through some difficult times. She’s a great source of inspiration to me, and I wanted to show her my support and appreciation. By now the bandana I sent her has arrived, so I’m going to share some images of it with you. I made it following Natalie Chanin's directions in the Alabama Stitch Book, but with my own bird design. I really like Natalie’s techniques and would love to try making a bigger project, like a tank top or skirt covered in appliqué. But that’s for later. For now, I’m warming up with bandanas. I made one for myself too last summer, and found it very useful, so I’m probably going to make more of them in different colour schemes and patterns. Perhaps I’ll start one for my next train journey.