Show your crafts (WIP or finished)

Bill & Ted said:
I did a bit of sewing this afternoon, I will auction it for TEAS guinea pigs with special needs rescue to help with vet bills.
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And my gorgeous one arrived earlier that I won in the auction, or should I say two because @Bill & Ted is such a lovely friend that two were in the package! Made me cry, they’re gorgeous! :love:
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A certain chunky hunk has picked his favourite already after cage clean, likes being colour coordinated does my Gigi :)):love:
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Thanks so much @Bill & Ted xx
 
Betsy said:
That is very neat knitting for a newbie. Did you cast on by yourself? Are you self taught? It is a tricky skill to master. You are doing well.
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Am I really gosh I’m blushing! 😂
Yes I cast on myself 😊 I watched a YouTube video to show me. I faintly remember my sweet nana teaching me to knit when I was very young but I had forgotten it all. ☹️
For my first row I really struggled I think I cast them on too tight? And I’m scared of dropping a stitch I don’t know how to fix that..
 
Looks lovely @Spoink! I used to love knitting, just can’t cast on or off! My Nan used to teach me and my sister years ago but never got the hang of that and not too great with my coordination these days! Sure it’ll be great!
 
Spoink said:
Am I really gosh I’m blushing! 😂
Yes I cast on myself 😊 I watched a YouTube video to show me. I faintly remember my sweet nana teaching me to knit when I was very young but I had forgotten it all. ☹
For my first row I really struggled I think I cast them on too tight? And I’m scared of dropping a stitch I don’t know how to fix that..
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The first row is always a bit tight. Once you've mastered the basic stitch (when you have finished what you are knitting you will have mastered it) then you need to master the purl stitch. Good luck! If we lived closer, I would teach you. I used to run a knitting club at a school where I used to live and I've not failed yet. I would relish the challenge of teaching a partially sighted person how to knit.
 
Betsy said:
The first row is always a bit tight. Once you've mastered the basic stitch (when you have finished what you are knitting you will have mastered it) then you need to master the purl stitch. Good luck! If we lived closer, I would teach you. I used to run a knitting club at a school where I used to live and I've not failed yet. I would relish the challenge of teaching a partially sighted person how to knit.
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Thank you that’s so kind, I’d definitely take you up on that had we be closer. 😁
I will try my best! 😊
 
Spoink said:
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Be gentle, I’m a brand newbie to knitting I’m just so proud of myself. 😂
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No it is, that's really awesome.

It was dropping stitches/making mistakes that stopped me knitting in the end as I'm so uncoordinated (dyspraxia). I switched to crochet as you only have 1 stitch to deal with at a time so it suits me better. Love your combination of colours too.
 
Spoink said:
Am I really gosh I’m blushing! 😂
Yes I cast on myself 😊 I watched a YouTube video to show me. I faintly remember my sweet nana teaching me to knit when I was very young but I had forgotten it all. ☹
For my first row I really struggled I think I cast them on too tight? And I’m scared of dropping a stitch I don’t know how to fix that..
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That’s just like me I can knit until I drop a stitch! 😄
 
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this is a lovely comfy cardigan that I need to finish soon! (Sleeve island for knitters on here)253F8670-1E51-4266-9AE2-08EF5321FBED.webp
I dyed this yarn on Tuesday for a cardigan/jumper. As yet undecided how I’ll be using the yellow. The other one is kind of a plum colour. Not the purple I wanted but 💓 it nonetheless 😆
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that’s the sock. The heel is finished and I’m working on the foot. I’m a bit socked out so may put it on pause for some days.
 
And while I'm at it, here are her paintings of Ophelia and Bianca! The idea is to have them printed on aluminium and then attach them to the two panels which make up the external hutch door to the sleeping area. They were a few weeks old here.
2. Ophelia.jpg
2. Bianca.jpg
 
Sweet Potato said:
I'm still waiting for an official diagnosis myself aged 23 a lot of women go undiagnosed their whole life because we tend not to be as attention seeking. To be fair I was able to hide it and pretend to be normal for years but not being true to yourself slowly eats away at your mental health until your rocking, flapping head shaking autistic self just can't hide any more. There are a variety of waited jackets scarfs and other portable waited blanket type things on the market but they all look a bit too much like medical equipment and not just a normal piece of clothing for my liking.
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I don’t think it’s the fact that boys are attention seeking, but rather girls understand social situations easier than boys - hence where the mimicking behaviour comes from in girls that usually isn’t present in boys (and why girls go undiagnosed, we are like chameleons and can naturally copy everyone around us - sometimes without realising so).
The main thing I wanted to say was if when you eventually get to the stage of being diagnosed (which can take years, where I live its 1 & a half years until the process begins and 3 & a half years until a full diagnosis is made), if they tell you that you aren’t, but you know in your heart that you are, don’t settle. There are so many places that begin to diagnose on a checklist full of stereotypical behaviours aimed towards boys, and even if you pass that, many places are so uneducated on what it means to have autism as a woman. A lot can write women off as not being autistic because they’ve gone so far in life without a diagnosis. It can be scary to realise you have autism, but even scarier to then go through a long, soul-bearing process just to be given a ‘no’, when you know you are. If this happens, I just wanted to recommend the Lorna Wing Centre on the NAS website. They specifically diagnose autism in girls and will always give you the right answer due to their vast experience and education. It’s always good to have a back-up in case things don’t go to plan, especially when it’s down to the education of the person diagnosing you.
Ps, love the blanket :)
 
Little Ones said:
I don’t think it’s the fact that boys are attention seeking, but rather girls understand social situations easier than boys - hence where the mimicking behaviour comes from in girls that usually isn’t present in boys (and why girls go undiagnosed, we are like chameleons and can naturally copy everyone around us - sometimes without realising so).
The main thing I wanted to say was if when you eventually get to the stage of being diagnosed (which can take years, where I live its 1 & a half years until the process begins and 3 & a half years until a full diagnosis is made), if they tell you that you aren’t, but you know in your heart that you are, don’t settle. There are so many places that begin to diagnose on a checklist full of stereotypical behaviours aimed towards boys, and even if you pass that, many places are so uneducated on what it means to have autism as a woman. A lot can write women off as not being autistic because they’ve gone so far in life without a diagnosis. It can be scary to realise you have autism, but even scarier to then go through a long, soul-bearing process just to be given a ‘no’, when you know you are. If this happens, I just wanted to recommend the Lorna Wing Centre on the NAS website. They specifically diagnose autism in girls and will always give you the right answer due to their vast experience and education. It’s always good to have a back-up in case things don’t go to plan, especially when it’s down to the education of the person diagnosing you.
Ps, love the blanket :)
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by more attention seeking I simply meant easier to notice and especially at school age boys are more likely to kick off or mess about if something is to hard or too easy where girls with autism are more likely to sit quiet I guess it's the Autism that's more attention seeking rather than the person. I studied speech and language therapy for 2 years didn't finish my degree but I have a strong understanding of what Autism is, I even did part of one of my placements in an autism diagnosis unit for under pre-school aged children and I now work as a special needs teaching assistant working primarily with Autistic children and young adults. So I was quite hurt when I first asked my GP and was met with the reply "why would you want that? Autism's for children" fair to say I asked for a second opinion. I already have an informal diagnosis given by some psychology expert that was friends with my occupational therapist. After a half hour appointment he confirmed that I was autistic I was baffled how he'd come to that conclusion so quickly when I'd been so rubbish at explaining myself but looking back he may have been convinced by the fact I gave short closed answers to all his broad open questions while rocking backwards and forwards messing with a fidget toy (I was nervous) and then talked at him for 15 mins about vintage sewing machines when he asked me if I had any hobbies 🤣
 
Sweet Potato said:
by more attention seeking I simply meant easier to notice and especially at school age boys are more likely to kick off or mess about if something is to hard or too easy where girls with autism are more likely to sit quiet I guess it's the Autism that's more attention seeking rather than the person. I studied speech and language therapy for 2 years didn't finish my degree but I have a strong understanding of what Autism is, I even did part of one of my placements in an autism diagnosis unit for under pre-school aged children and I now work as a special needs teaching assistant working primarily with Autistic children and young adults. So I was quite hurt when I first asked my GP and was met with the reply "why would you want that? Autism's for children" fair to say I asked for a second opinion. I already have an informal diagnosis given by some psychology expert that was friends with my occupational therapist. After a half hour appointment he confirmed that I was autistic I was baffled how he'd come to that conclusion so quickly when I'd been so rubbish at explaining myself but looking back he may have been convinced by the fact I gave short closed answers to all his broad open questions while rocking backwards and forwards messing with a fidget toy (I was nervous) and then talked at him for 15 mins about vintage sewing machines when he asked me if I had any hobbies 🤣
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My doctors appointment was the worst too. I went to try and get a referral for a diagnosis, but also because I have OCD and one of my compulsions was (and still is, but to a lesser degree) controlling my life entirely, I was so miserable. I had always known I had OCD but had only recently learned it could be a by-product of a bigger issue - autism. The doctor I went to was so rude, barely even listened to me and was dismissive. I think doctors listen to one thing you say and create their own narrative sometimes, she referred me for anxiety to learn mindfulness techniques such as breathing exercises etc. I explained to the doctor that this was something I couldn’t do as manual breathing is one of my compulsions and I end up manually breathing every moment of my waking life for weeks, even months. It’s horrific. She told me there’s ‘no such thing as can’t’. Ridiculous. Fair to say I didn’t get any of the help or referrals i wanted and i decided I’m no longer going to the GP for anything regarding autism or mental health again as there’s no worse feeling than opening up about the worst parts of your brain and being dismissed entirely. That meant paying private for a Lorna Wing diagnosis, worth it though to know I was going to be listened to and receive the correct diagnosis
Professionals who are trained well to understand autism (in both genders and not just the stereotypes) generally can diagnose it so easily, it’s just to which level that takes the longest time. The doctor I mentioned failed to see any validity when I asked for the referral and still didn’t when I sat there displaying signs of the beginning of a meltdown after she laughed off my request. It was easily one of the worst moments of my life, i don’t think medical professionals realise how damaging and disheartening it is when they don’t fully listen to patients, they should really provide more education about autism to all parties involved in the diagnosis.
It’s nice that you’re now part of SEN, autistic people generally understand and communicate better with other autistic. It must still be a tough job though, I don’t know if I’d be able to do it!
 
Little Ones said:
My doctors appointment was the worst too. I went to try and get a referral for a diagnosis, but also because I have OCD and one of my compulsions was (and still is, but to a lesser degree) controlling my life entirely, I was so miserable. I had always known I had OCD but had only recently learned it could be a by-product of a bigger issue - autism. The doctor I went to was so rude, barely even listened to me and was dismissive. I think doctors listen to one thing you say and create their own narrative sometimes, she referred me for anxiety to learn mindfulness techniques such as breathing exercises etc. I explained to the doctor that this was something I couldn’t do as manual breathing is one of my compulsions and I end up manually breathing every moment of my waking life for weeks, even months. It’s horrific. She told me there’s ‘no such thing as can’t’. Ridiculous. Fair to say I didn’t get any of the help or referrals i wanted and i decided I’m no longer going to the GP for anything regarding autism or mental health again as there’s no worse feeling than opening up about the worst parts of your brain and being dismissed entirely. That meant paying private for a Lorna Wing diagnosis, worth it though to know I was going to be listened to and receive the correct diagnosis
Professionals who are trained well to understand autism (in both genders and not just the stereotypes) generally can diagnose it so easily, it’s just to which level that takes the longest time. The doctor I mentioned failed to see any validity when I asked for the referral and still didn’t when I sat there displaying signs of the beginning of a meltdown after she laughed off my request. It was easily one of the worst moments of my life, i don’t think medical professionals realise how damaging and disheartening it is when they don’t fully listen to patients, they should really provide more education about autism to all parties involved in the diagnosis.
It’s nice that you’re now part of SEN, autistic people generally understand and communicate better with other autistic. It must still be a tough job though, I don’t know if I’d be able to do it!
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It's hard I think all doctors try to act like a filter so that only those that really need the help get through but those that need the help most are usually those that struggle to push for it themselves and it's the same in children's services when parents that clearly have undiagnosed Autsim or learning difficulties themselves are having to push through a system that's not built for them on behalf of their children. I'm so glad you found your way to a diagnosis and I hope it's really helped you to understand yourself as it has for me.
 
Sweet Potato said:
It's hard I think all doctors try to act like a filter so that only those that really need the help get through but those that need the help most are usually those that struggle to push for it themselves and it's the same in children's services when parents that clearly have undiagnosed Autsim or learning difficulties themselves are having to push through a system that's not built for them on behalf of their children. I'm so glad you found your way to a diagnosis and I hope it's really helped you to understand yourself as it has for me.
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It has helped me 100%, it’s strange how much the world begins to make sense, and how you begin to understand every aspect of your behaviour throughout your entire life. My mum thought something wasn’t quite right with me (for lack of a better term) when I was around 3y/o but never did anything about it. But, information on it has increased massively since then, I don’t think girls were thought about much unless they were non-verbal. I’ve seen many instances where parents usually consider a diagnosis for themselves once their child is diagnosed. It just shows how little knowledge most people have on the subject before researching, I would never have wondered if I had autism if I hadn’t happened to read that a lot of people who have OCD are autistic too. Receiving a diagnosis for me was life changing, even if nothing in my life actually changed
 
I had a spare empty cardboard box and made a little maze/interactive box for my 2 piggys. I didnt want to use any tape so cut a slit and inserted the cardboard in so pretty simple to do if anyone wants to try but is cautious like me of using tape/glue as we know how much they like to nibble. Snapchat-937317901.webp
 
So, today I taught myself to use a sewing machine and made these face masks for my parents.
Not bad for my first try I thought. [Pats self on the back]
...Just don’t look too closely at the sewing! 😂
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