Brian's drawings

When we first came to live at the beach, Brian drew whales and dolphins (which we are fortunate to see here). To our surprise, the drawings did not sell quickly. Then last year he began to draw birds and these have proved very popular.
Here's a sample:

Humpback whale & calf - coloured pencil on black paper

Eastern rosella - coloured pencil on black paper

Rosella drinking - coloured pencil on black paper

Fairy wren pair - coloured pencil on black paper

King parrot - coloured pencil on black paper

Kookaburra - coloured pencil on black paper

Rainbow bee eater - coloured pencil on black paper

Polymer clay

Polymer clay is lovely to work with, and I'm grateful for all I learned from tutorials online.

I made beads but did not enjoy it as much as swirling discs to be used for key rings or pendants. In the craft shop it seems people have a strong preference for cool colours rather than warm, so a lot of blue items are sold.

Polymer clay bead necklaces

Polymer clay disc

Polymer clay disc

Polymer clay pendant

Polymer clay pendant

Polymer clay disc

Polymer clay key ring

Brian came up with an idea for opening ring-pull cans, using a fork which he upcycled for this purpose. We embellish the forks with clay and they sell well, especially to old codgers!

Upcycled fork ring-pull can opener

Ring-pull can opener 

Upcycled fork ring-pull can openers

Crochet

I never intended to crochet anything, but as winter approached, I was keen to knit a tea cosy so browsed the patterns on Pinterest and especially liked one with a crocheted sheep on top. Thus I learned amigurumi... and so began my love affair with crochet. 
Some research showed that many people benefit enormously from practising this craft, finding it therapeutic and even 'life-saving'. 
https://psychcentral.com/lib/crochet-saved-my-life/

Below is my first attempt at a sheep tea cosy.

Knitted tea cosy with amigurumi sheep

Six months later, here are more cosies:

Crochet sheep tea cosy

Crochet sheep tea cosy

Crochet mouse tea cosy

                                                                     

Crochet mouse tea cosy

I’m most grateful to all the crafters who freely share their skills and experience online. There are many sites offering tutorials and general advice. Planet June has an excellent video showing how to make a magic ring, which is essential knowledge in amigurumi patterns. 

One thing I found to be completely absent from patterns is the instruction to turn the work right side out! When working in the round, if you just keep going, the tail will hang outside and your work will be “wrong” side out as shown below (A). When you turn it to the “right” side (B), the tail will be inside your work and end up hidden. This is a much easier way to crochet but the patterns assume you already have this knowledge.
My photo shows the difference:

CATS have been my favourite item to crochet. 

Here are a few pictures of cats, amongst dozens I have made.

Crocheted cat & mouse

Crocheted cats - friends forever

                             

Crocheted cats - best mates

Crochet kitty

                                                                             

Meditating crochet cat

Crochet rainbow cat

Relaxing crochet rainbow cat

DOGS
After making cats it was interesting to try a dog and I crocheted a couple using the following pattern:   https://www.thelabradorsite.com/crochet-labrador/

Crocheted dog

Crochet dog

Crochet dogs - sharing secrets

DOG TREAT JARS

The jar cosies in this Etsy shop inspired me to try making a few, without buying a pattern, but I’m grateful to Angela for the wonderful idea!

https://www.etsy.com/au/shop/HookedbyAngel?ref=shop_sugg

Dog treat jar with cosy

HEDGEHOGS
Another animal that's fun to make (and quick!) is a hedgehog. I usually adapt a pattern to suit me, and it was very much the case with these pin cushions.

Hedgehog pin cushions

CACTI

Some people crochet quite elaborate cactus plants. I kept mine simple, following patterns freely available online.

Crochet cacti & hedgehog pin cushion

                       

Crochet cacti

MICE
The hedgehogs were intended as pin cushions, but when children started buying them I decided to make mice as well, using a pattern of my own design.

                                                   

Crochet mice

Chenille sticks

With a few chenille sticks (also known as pipe cleaners, although they are not used for that purpose!) I made a tiny teddy according to instructions in a tutorial I found online.
When I wished to make a dog there was no tutorial available, so I had to figure it out myself. 

Dogs made from 12mm chenille sticks

Mother and pup in crocheted dog bed

Chenille stick (pipe cleaner) dog

Chenille stick (pipe cleaner) dog 

Chenille stick (pipe cleaner) dog

Black & white dog -side view 

Chenille stick (pipe cleaner) dogs

LEMURS proved more complex, but with a satisfying result.

Chenille stick (pipe cleaner) lemurs

Chenille stick (pipe cleaner) lemurs outside

Lemurs

Felting

I was charmed by a needle-felted mouse I saw on Pinterest, and decided to try something new. With the help of online tutorials I learned to make my own mice and had a lot of fun with them.

Skiing mouse

Surfer mouse

Dog-riding mouse!

Bikini mouse

Granny Mouse

Grandpa Mouse

                                                                               

Mouse in bed

Sleeping mouse

Working with pure wool was so enjoyable that I tried some wet felting too.  It’s fun to make a juggling ball by wrapping layers of coloured wool roving around a golf ball and then alternately squeezing and rolling it (by hand) in a soapy froth.

A selection of juggling balls made a few years ago