Winter Fantasy Cardigan

After a summer-long hiatus, this project was recently picked up again.  At that point, it needed a few inches of knitting on the body and both sleeves. A few rows on it every night and it is finally done. I sewed the buttons on it last evening and wove in the ends this morning.

I like stranded work so this was a good, fun project. Knitting top-down meant reversing the instructions and doing some recalculation to adjust gauge. The cardigan is on the smaller side, because I was tired of baggy sweaters (and perhaps am a bit deluded about my actual size). All-in-all it was a satisfactory project and just the thing to bring back the knitting mood.

Dollhouse Kitchen Highlights

Kitchen was one of the most daunting part of the dollhouse, bathroom being the other. (I'm still figuring out, how to make a toilet.) What made it more challenging, was that the girls wanted it as realistic as possible. They wanted cabinets, drawers and fridge that could open and close. And, I had to made everything from scratch.

I started with this set of drawers. These were a easy start, made with matchboxes, and popsicle sticks. I used beads for drawer knobs.

Next was the sink. It was trickier but turned out OK. The sink is made from styrofoam egg carton. The cabinets underneath were hinged, though it was my first attempt and they are far from perfect. But as my husband keeps reminding me, curbing my perfectionist streak, it is just a plaything for the kids.

The range was easy and looks cute. The oven opens too. 

The hinges for these wall cabinets took some time and effort. These turned out a bit wonky, which seems to be the theme for this dollhouse. The hinges made it possible to open the doors, but keeping them closed required some thought. Velcro was my solution.

Then came the wall tiles. These brought together all the elements.

The refrigerator was my least impressive piece and hated the making of it. But girls are happy with it, and I cannot bear the thought of redoing the whole thing, so is stays. Here too, velcro came to my rescue.

The girls found some food erasers to fill it with.

Lastly, the dining set with four chairs. The red cushions go with the window curtains.

Next comes the top floor of the house. At this point in time, I am almost done with the interior of the house, and am working on the exterior. The end is almost in sight.