Crochet Pattern: Mulled Wine Snowflake

2. Mulled Wine Snowflake

Snowflake number two is written up! It's possible that I will say this about all of the snowflakes, but I think this one is my favourite.

My extremely poor photography skills don't do it justice really but the triple picots at the end give it a nice snowflake explosion kind of feel. If you know what I mean. (I'm not actually sure I know what I mean by that.)

The triple picots can be a bit tricky to get the hang of, so I intend to do a little photo guide for the blog soon. If only that pesky work didn't take so much of my crochet time up!

The pattern can be found here. As always let me know of any queries with the pattern or if there are any errors.

Happy snowflake-ing!

Crochet Snowflake Pattern

Snowflake diameter about 5 inches.

1. All the Trimmings Snowflake

I first came across crochet snowflakes last Christmas and it was love at first sight.

I searched for patterns but couldn't find exactly what I was after, so I decided they were the perfect opportunity to stop chatting about designing, and start designing!

Inevitably, there were a few (many) false starts. But after I'd managed to figure out a couple of simple snowflake-ish designs, it was all systems go.

I've now made ten snowflake designs so far and I will be sharing them with you as I check, tweak and write up the patterns.

I've named them all after my favourite things about Christmas. And as a vegetarian, all the trimmings are definitely way up on that list.

The pattern can be downloaded as a pdf from my Google Drive. It's the first time I'm using this so I hope it works ok!

If there are any problems with the pattern or any questions etc. just let me know and I will try to help.

Happy snowflake-ing!

My Stitchy Sabbatical

In case it's not obvious it's supposed to say 'Yay!'

For a while now I've dreamt of taking some time off work to focus on all the creative things I like to do but never have enough time for. For a long time it was just a dream, but now, it's really happening.

I've handed in my notice. 

I'm leaving Paris.

And in January 2015 I'm going to start my six month stitching sabbatical in Brighton (UK).

There's only one word for it really...WoooooHoooooooooooooooooooooooo!

I've worked hard to save for this so I want to make sure I use my time wisely. Because let's be honest, I'm in no hurry to get back to the nine-five office life, so if I can figure out a way to earn some money from doing what I love then that would be ideal.

The plan so far is as follows:

• 1/2 day spent drawing (I'm going to enrol on a class)
• 1/2 day spent on crochet design
• 2 days spent writing (about arts and crafts, of course)
• 1 day spent learning embroidery (I'm enroling on the Royal School of Needlework Certificate!)
• 1 day spent sewing/learning to dressmake

I'm currently figuring out some achievable goals for this sabbatical so that I have something to work towards and show for my time off. Because despite what some people (even my own boyfriend) may think, this is not going to be six months of bum time. I am going to get creative with military precision and eke out every precious moment to build my skills and hopefully find a new way of making a living.

I just want to get started now. My stitchy fingers are itching, and although I don't believe in wishing one's life away, all I can think is roll on January!

Yarn stash stress

I get the impression that a lot of people love their yarn stash. It fills them with ideas and inspiration and they feel comforted knowing that there is always yarn there for them to pick up.

I am the opposite. My yarn stash, which is by no means enormous, stresses me out quite a lot.

This is linked to a general dislike I have of wasting anything. Wasting is wrong and bad for the environment. Wasting means that you don't get your moneys worth of something you've paid for. Both of these are big crimes in my book.

Sometimes I feel that I walk around dragging the weight of all the things I need to use. Those vermicelli noodles that I bought for a complicated dish I'll never be bothered to make again, the nail varnish set I was given for Christmas but that I can't see being able to use up before they all go gloopy.

And yarn. Lots of lovely, colourful, stressful yarn.

You would think that this yarn stash stress would mean that I don't like to buy new yarn. Hah! If only! I have, in fact, just placed an order for several new balls of yarn from Wool Warehouse. I have projects in mind for some of the balls, but not all.

I wonder, will I ever beat my stash?

Big Stitchy Finger Project: the Quilt

A patchwork quilt was the first thing that ignited my love of textiles. I was visiting Jane Austen's house in Chawton and one of the pieces on display was a beautiful and complicated looking patchwork quilt that Jane and her sister had made.

I loved how beautiful it was, the skill it involved, the image of quiet evenings chatting and working on the quilt together, and the fact that it had become an heirloom. 

'I'm going to make a patchwork quilt.' I said. 

So I did!

No.2. Machine made quilt from pattern.

That was seven years ago, and since then I've made a grand total of two quilts. One entirely by hand and one entirely by machine. One designed by me and one following a pattern.

Quilt number three is underway, and has been for a few years now. I'm not going to lie to you, progress has stalled somewhat. 

The design is a simple log cabin, that I drew up using one of my favourite craft books ever, the Quilters Recipe Book.

I'm working it by hand as my machine didn't follow me when I moved to France three years ago. I've always loved working by hand as I find a machine aches my back quickly and the noise means I can't watch the telly at the same time!  But the problem is that in reality, hand piecing a quilt together is quite monotonous, and now that I've discovered crochet with all it's varied stitches, well, my quilt has started to gather dust.

I might pick it up a few times before I move back to the UK, but realistically it will probably be sitting in my work in progress pile until I'm reunited with my sewing machine.

The two blocks that my current quilt project is made from.

Poor neglected quilt. An heirloom in the making, I hope. But not for anytime soon.

Tips for weaving in ends when crocheting

Perhaps this is evident for everyone else (I always have this feeling that it’s only me who’s in the dark), but weaving in ends took me a while to get the hang of. I started out randomly poking the yarn in and out of the fabric, which just created a mess and didn’t ensure a very secure finish. As a result, I would dread doing it.

But now that I’ve discovered a nice and simple way to weave in ends it’s no longer the chore that it was. Happy days!

Instructions
Tuck the yarn under a group of double crochet (single crochet in US) as the photo shows. You can also go back along the same group afterwards (making sure you don’t go back in the hole you came out of!) as this makes it nice and tight and secure.

I usually leave about 8-10 centimetres of end to weave in. But less is probably just as secure, I just like to be able to turn the darning needle easily!

That’s all the instructions needed for this post. It really is as simple as that!

Big Stitchy Finger Project: the shawl

It probably sounds a bit weird to say this, given my crochet obsession, but I've never been that big a fan of wool. Or 'yarn' as I understand the catch-all term to be.

I've always found it scratchy and, aside from for scarves or blankets, a bit old fashioned looking. This obviously changed as I started crocheting and discovered all the beautiful, and sometimes eye wateringly expensive, yarns out there. Plus all the pretty things that can be made with a crochet hook. I'm looking at you little amigurumi strawberries.

Now, as you are sure to find out, I'm not a very 'think outside the box' kind of person. I wish I was, but it's not to be. So it took a lady at my knitting club crocheting a doily, for me to realise that delicate items such as that could be made with a crochet hook.

The excitement was almost unbearable. It was like when I first ate raspberry sorbet and chocolate ice cream together, how had I not known forever that the two are meant to be?

In a daze I rushed to print off a doily pattern and hot footed to my local craft shops to buy crochet cotton and a small hook.

It took a bit of getting used to on my fingers, having only worked with thicker yarns and a bigger hook. But I got there and the doily was made. And I loved it.

The doily now sits awkwardly in my flat, not sure what to do with itself. I imagine I'll find use for it in about fifty years' time, but in the meantime making more doilies seemed pointless in my shoebox home.

I turned to Ravelry for crochet cotton inspiration, and fell upon the official 'world's prettiest shawl'.

Images of me wearing it at weddings and cocktail parties (I'm bound to go to a cocktail party one day, right?) rushed into my head. 

'What a gorgeous shawl.' They'd all say, 'where did you buy it?'

'Oh, what this?' I'll casually smile as I toss it over my shoulder. 'I made it.'

Queue hushed awe.

It's not been the easiest project to get started on as there were some initial errors in the pattern. But the pattern author replied really quickly to my emails through Ravelry and now everything is on track.

I have made 7 of the 19 panels, and have even been (trying to) weave in as I go. Which is pretty virtuous behaviour as far as I'm concerned! 

It's going to be a long process, as each panel takes a good few hours' work, but I really think it will be something to be proud of when I'm finally done.

Then all I will need is a cocktail party or wedding to wear it to. Any invites?

Creative? Not me.

I love making stuff. Have loved it for years. But whenever anyone says that I'm creative I always shake my head.

Just because I love to create, doesn't make me creative, does it?

A little look at dictionary.com shows the meaning of the word 'creative'. Sure, I'm 1 (like everyone, right?), but 2? Hmm I'm not sure about that.

creative[ kree-ey-tiv ]

adjective

1. having the quality or power of creating.

2. resulting from originality of thought, expression, etc.; imaginative: creative writing.

3. originative; productive (usually followed byof)

I can follow a pattern and my stitches are quite neat. I can design and even make a quilt (honestly, it's easier than it looks). But my ideas are rarely original, and when faced with a blank canvas, my mind is often just as blank.

I think this comes partly from trying too hard to be 'creative' and different, rather than just doing what I want to do and what I find attractive.

I sometimes wonder if an innate creativity will be unlocked at somepoint. I can't love making stuff so much and have no talent at all for it...can I?

I guess the answer is, who knows. All I can do for now is keep plugging away at making things and at doing what I love. Perhaps, in time, my hands will become skilled enough to produce the creativity I hope is lurking somewhere inside of me.

Tips for blocking crochet

'Blocking'. A word that since I have known it has always been followed or preceded by 'Urgh.' I didn't get why I had to do it, I didn't have the tools I apparently needed (no room for spare mattresses chez moi unfortunately), and I didn't get how to do it. 

Well, courtesy of my sampler blanket I’ve had to teach myself, and eventually I’ve found an easy way to do it without even having to buy any new or special materials. Hurrah! 

Instructions 

In case you're still questioning this blocking idea, let's start with...

Why bother: 

Here’s a before and after blocking photo of a square for my blanket. I readily admit that I am a reluctant blocker, but this photo convinces me that it really is necessary sometimes. It’s time to just accept that and move on. 

Tools: 

I have read that playmat blocks are really good, and perhaps I’ll invest one day, but in the meantime there is no need as I have found that the yoga mat gathering dust behind my bed is a very good substitute, and as it’s long and thin it’s nice and compact too. So the only tools I need are as follows: 

• Yoga mat (if you don’t have a yoga mat it’s fine to use towels but I found this not quite so easy for the pins to go in)
• Old sheet/pillowcase(s)
• Measuring tape
• Pins
• Spray bottle (I actually bought one from a hardware store but it would be easy just to reuse an old cleaning product one that has been thoroughly washed out.)

How to:

The first bit is simple. Cover the yoga mat in a sheet. Not too taxing a task, right? The next step, however, had me stumped for a little while. How did I place those pins correctly to stop the pesky crochet squares escaping from them? The answer will be clear to those clever sciency types out there, but for me it was trial and error to realise that it’s all about the angle...

Simply place the pin so that it’s leaning away from the crochet work and the naughty little piece won’t try to escape. Success!

Big Stitchy Finger Project: the Blanket

It's not called a "Granny Square"
for no reason!

"Crochet is for old people." I said a few years ago."I'll do it when I'm a grandmother."

I was wrong. For it didn't take being a grandmother to get me hooking, it took a week at my Mum's village in Devon around Christmas time 2012.

Where she lives is lovely and picturesque with rolling hills, the sound of cattle lowing, and historic cottages that just ooze charm. But charm and prettiness can only go so far when the peak of weekly entertainment is the free Thursday Tesco bus.

Seven long, dark, cold days stretched ahead of me. Just me, my Mum, and her passion for crime dramas. In a state of desperation I scoured the craft magazines at WH Smiths looking for inspiration. I saw the first edition of a crochet magazine that came with wool, hooks and DVD instructions. "That'll do." I said. 

And so a new addiction began.

Over that week I learnt the basics. Nearly giving up several times as handling that hook and keeping the tension right is not the easiest thing to grasp. Literally.

But eventually I got there, and to celebrate I bought the book '200 Crochet Blocks' as an added little Christmas present, with the idea that I'd make a sample blanket and teach myself new techniques.

And although I don't like to brag, that approach has really worked for me. It has indeed meant that I'm working on different stitches all the time. And different blocks mean that I don't get bored, which is something I'm inclined to do quite quickly once I've mastered(ish) something.

I chose pastel colours because I think they're pretty and a bit different to what blankets are usually worked in. (Perhaps there was a little part of me thinking it would make a nice blanket for any future small person but let's not go there!)

Eighteen months or so later I am only ten blocks away from block completion, and I'm really starting to believe that I might finish it. I know there is still the blocking, joining and perhaps a border to do (which will be interesting seeing as I don't think any two blocks are actually the same size), but I've decided to bump it up my priority list because even though I used to think that crochet was just for grandmothers, I don't want this blanket still in my "work in progress" pile when I'm a granny myself.

Stitching a life's ambition

I often think that crochet is an excellent way to watch telly guilt free.

Evenings spent re-re-re-re-etc.watching Pride and Prejudice aren't wasted with a hook and some pretty yarn in hand.

Sometimes, I wonder if the programmes I'm watching could somehow have an effect on what I'm making. For example, while on holiday at my Mum's at the beginning of July I watched a lot of Wimbledon while making a baby blanket. Will the little one who ends up with that blanket grow up to have good tennis skills?

Just imagine...I could assign a telly theme to each thing I make...

There could be the 'Period Drama Doily' that is guaranteed to increase the levels of politeness and chivalry in your life. 

Or the 'Rom-com Rag Rug' that will ensure unlikely romantic connections and adventures (and that you will live in an appartment that most people couldn't afford on your salary.)

People could request that a particular programme is watched during the making of, say, some baby booties for their newborn. I might have to organise a pre-approved list though. I don't want myself getting tied into hours upon hours of something like Made in Chelsea.

And I guess I would have to avoid thrillers and murder mysteries as it wouldn't be very socially responsible to work those thoughts into a scarf or pair of gloves. And fast cars too for that matter. I'll have to tell Nerd (my boyfriend) to watch the Grand Prix in another room. I'm sure he'd understand, it wouldn't be right to pass on dreams of driving dangerously fast to a little one.

Yes, there's definitely no reason to feel guilty about hours of telly watching if crochet is involved, as long as the right kind of programmes are being watched.

I'm dreaming of a crochet Christmas

Ok, so I know that July is not yet out and that we're having the hottest days of the year and all that...but I think it's time to start planning for Christmas.

I'm not taking about getting the turkey ordered (which would be weird anyway as I'm a veggie), but about getting presents organised.

You see, I've decided to go a bit Kirstie Allsop and make as many as I can myself.

This has several benefits, such as potentially saving money and learning/honing some skills. But also, I've quite simply run out of other ideas for interesting presents. 

My crochet bible

The list of makes is, so far, as follows:

• Four pairs of socks (pattern from my crochet book)
• Three pairs of child's wrist warmers (pattern from my crochet book)
• Two (perhaps more) sets of snowflakes (will test out some internet patterns)

I may also make some pom pom baubles and Christmas decorations. And today I bought some yogurts in glass jars with the idea that I can crochet some jar cosies and make them pretty tea light holders. I might make some cards too.

Oh my what am I doing typing here I'd better get working!

Here's hoping that my makes turn out ok. I have five months to practice. And if they're all a total disaster, I guess there's always the nice tin of M&S biscuits option.

Welcome!

I love to craft, and I love to write.

So here's a thought.

Let's write about crafting!