Saturday 19 November 2016

Busy, busy, busy!

This week has been very exciting for me, very exciting and very busy.  Firstly I received my first ever commission from my Etsy shop and secondly I have been beavering away making lots of things for my craft stall at the Pudding Cup Art Market.  

I don't know if you remember this post here where I made myself a crochet hot water bottle cover? 

 Well I put a picture of it in my Etsy shop and last weekend I received a request for a custom order of 4 covers.  I must say I was both excited and terrified at the same time, (excited to receive my first order but a little worried how well they would be received...).  I think I tend to be a little over critical about my work.
The colours for the hot water bottle covers were chosen by my customer from the Woolcraft DK range.  Luckily I had all the colours she requested so could get started right away.

The covers incorporate the beautiful Sunburst Granny Square pattern by Priscilla Hewitt, which is available for free at Ravelry.  I really think that this pattern can make any colour combinations look truly amazing.





All ready to be shipped off to their new owner..


and she was kind enough to email me when she received them
"They are wonderful" she said.  Panic over!

Now time to crack on with my craft table...
 I found some Jarol Heritage yarn in my stash and made these

African Flower pincushions...



and key rings made from Fabel sock yarn.



I got the idea for the pincushions from this pattern here by Cherry Heart.  I didn't really use the pattern (I have made so many African flowers I can make them by heart) and I just winged the rest; but if any of you would like to make one, the pattern is available for free on her blog.

Perhaps they will make a nice Christmas gift for someone. 

Thank you for visiting me in the Lodge,
see you soon...

Catherine
x

Sunday 13 November 2016

This week...

 Some lovely ladies over at Ravelry have been kindly testing my Sock Yarn Baubles pattern.  I would just like to thank them all, for the time and effort they have put into this.  If you are interested in taking part in some pattern testing head on over to this group.  Designers can showcase their new patterns and have them tested and as a reward the testers get to try out new patterns before they are published free of charge.

I am very excited to share with you some photos of the baubles made with my pattern.

This one is lovely and bright.  Sock yarn is always a delight to work with as you watch the colours change as you crochet...


I love the sparkly yarn used in these two.  Anything with a bit of glitter or sparkle always gives me that "it's nearly Christmas" feeling.


The variegation in this one is very pretty...



and lastly another sparkly bauble in traditional red gold and green.


Thank you again ladies your baubles are going to make your tree look extra special this year...

Ta ta for now!

Catherine
x

Sunday 6 November 2016

Pudding Cup Art Market

Gosh, what a busy day I have had today.  I spent a couple of hours this morning at the allotment.  It was the most glorious sunny day here in Berkshire, not a cloud in the sky.  Then home to cook Sunday Lunch, Roast chicken with all the trimmings... and then after lunch I went to our local monthly craft fair.  Pudding Cup Art Market.



By this afternoon sadly the sun was disappearing and the temperature had dropped considerably, so sensibly everyone at the market had their stalls inside in the warm.  I love perusing craft fairs and especially love to stop and chat to the crafters about their wares.  I am always fascinated to hear about how things are made.  Especially crafts that I know nothing about...

This stall caught my eye as I walked in.  They were displaying the most beautiful glass jewellery.


Another table had some really cute ornaments made from Fimo clay.


More hanging decorations...


These super cute doggy face cloths.  What an ingenious idea.


Beautiful hand painted Christmas cottages, jewellery boxes and bird houses.


More tree ornaments.  These ones made from felt are just adorable.


Pretty tea cup candles.


Home made fudge!  Oh my goodness I just had to buy some of this...


and finally my most favourite stall 

The Mint Makeover, decoupaged furniture, lanterns, candles and gifts.


These stunning items are made by Sarah Jennings and would you believe it she makes them all from paper napkins.  I chatted to Sarah when I visited the market last month and she was happy to share with me exactly how she makes these beautiful pieces.  


This snowman ornament is one of my favourites, he is just so perfectly jolly.  Exactly how a snowman should be...


I chatted to Sarah again today and she was kind enough to give me lots of tips and advice about running your own craft stall.  Which leads me to my very exciting news.

Next month I will be having my very own table at the market.  I am so excited!  I have never had a stall before.  Over the next few weeks I shall be like one of Santa's little helpers busy making things to sell.

The next market will be The Christmas Extravaganza on the 11th of December at the Clewer Youth and Community Centre on Parsonage Lane, Windsor.  Starts at 12 midday  going on until 4 pm.  They will be having a bouncy castle, raffles, name the teddy bear, the teddy bear raffle and of course all the lovely artisan stalls.  All proceeds go to Whizz Kids, a charity that works to support and transform the lives of disabled children in the UK.

So if you are local be sure to pop on by...

I made it home just in time before the rain started and treated myself to a nice cup of tea and some Salted Caramel Fudge.
Delicious!


Have a fantastic week

Catherine
x

Sunday 30 October 2016

The Gilmore Girls Blanket

Over the summer holidays, The Gilmore Girls came out on Netflix and I spent many an afternoon hanging out with Lorelai and Rory.  It's nice easy viewing, perfect to watch while indulging in some afternoon hooky.  
Having very eclectic tastes myself I love the style of Lorelai's house.  I particularly love the crochet blanket you can see in some of the episodes, draped across her sofa.  It's a beautiful pale duck egg colour (this just happens to be my most favourite colour).



I decided that I wanted to try and create something similar.  First I needed some yarn.  I discovered that Woolcraft New Fashion DK had added some new colours to their range and one of them just happened to be Duck Egg.  So I ordered some right away.  I use Woolcraft yarn a lot and particularly like it for blankets.  It's a bit thicker than some DK yarns and has a really soft almost fluffy texture.  It makes lovely squishy blankets and has a good choice of colours.  


I searched the internet for the right pattern but didn't find anything I really liked.  So I had a look in my trusty 200 Crochet Blocks for Blankets, Throws and Afghans: Crochet Squares to Mix-and-Match book by Jan Eaton.  


There was one square that was almost identical.  The Circle in a Square block.  I made up a tester square and although it looked nice I wasn't amazingly thrilled with it.  I tried another test square this time in the Willow pattern (this is probably my favourite pattern from the book...).  I was much happier with how this one looked and even though the blanket will not be exactly the same as  Lorelai's, I am hoping it will have the same overall feel to it.

I added a couple of extra rounds to the block to make the finished blanket a bit more open and lacy.


This is the first time I am making a blanket in just one colour.  I was worried I might get bored making the same square over and over, but the Willow pattern is so pretty I enjoyed making each and every one.  Many squares were made over the holidays, then School started again and it got pushed to the side.


Now that the weather is getting a bit on the chilli side I am newly inspired to finish it.  I only need a few more squares and then I can start joining.  I will probably agonise for hours over which joining method to choose and then even longer deciding on a border.

To be continued...

Have a wonderful week
Catherine
x

For daily posts please follow me over on my Facebook page.


   

Sunday 23 October 2016

Glorious Sunshine and Sandy Beaches

I can't get over the weather we have been having lately and it's almost November.  We are spending a well earned weekend away by the seaside...


Just look at those skies!  The beach here at Camber is one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever seen.  It stretches for miles.  The sea a distant patch of blue on the horizon while the tide is out.


Meandering streams and pools remind you just how far it's travelled and the glorious sun glistens and sparkles on the water.


Little T is in his element.  Splashing in the water, sailing his Frisbee along the fast current of the streams, chasing after it laughing and giggling.


There was of course digging and castle building...


and collecting pebbles for mummy.

We treated ourselves to a Full English at a beach cafe with steaming mugs of tea.  Then back to our chalet...


for some pebbly hooky!



Bye for now...
Catherine
x

Tuesday 18 October 2016

Free Pattern! Sock Yarn Baubles

Hello everyone, I would just like to share with you how I made the sock yarn baubles from my  previous post.  This is my first time writing a pattern and some lovely people over on Ravelry have been testing it for me.  You can find the test page here.  

I use US terminology (I know I'm from the UK but American terminology just makes more sense!).  





You will need 
 sock yarn (small ammounts)
 3.5mm hook
sewing needle
60mm plastic bauble
ribbon for hanging
stitch marker

Stitches used
sc  single crochet
sc2tog  single crochet 2 together


Round 1 Starting with a magic loop work 6 sc into the loop, place marker in the last stitch pull tight
Do not join we will be working in a spiral
Round 2 starting in the first sc from previous round work 2 sc into each stitch around (12 stitches)
Remember to move your stitch marker up at the end of each round
Round 3 [2 sc into the first stitch, sc into the next stitch] repeat around (18 stitches)
Round 4 [2sc into the first stitch, sc into the next 2 stitches] repeat around (24 stitches)
Rounds 5-7 continue to increase by 6 stitches in each round until you have 42 stitches
Rounds 8-14 sc in each stitch around.  At this point try your crochet around your ball.  It should be a little over half way up the bauble.  If it is not over half way you can add a few extra rounds of sc in every stitch until it is ( during testing some crafters needed to add 4 extra rows here...)
Round 15 [sc2tog, sc 5] repeat around
Round 16 [sc2tog, sc 4] repeat around
Round 17 [sc2tog, sc3] repeat around
Now comes the tricky part, stretch your crochet over the plastic bauble and continue to work around the ball.
Round 18-20 continue to decrease 6 stitches in each round until you have 6 stitches.

Bind off leaving a long tail and thread yarn onto a sewing needle.  work your yarn under each stitch and pull tight.  Bind off hiding yarn inside the crochet.  Tie a ribbon onto your bauble and admire your new unique tree decoration.


Why stop at one? Why not make a whole bunch to fill your tree.

Have a great day.

Catherine
x

You might like...





Sunday 16 October 2016

Christmas Baubles? Too Early? Never!

Hello everyone, I hope you are all having a lovely weekend.  I have been busy using up the left over sock yarn that I used to make my crochet coin purses.  You can read about them in my blog post here.

So I thought my left over wool would be great to crochet over some Christmas baubles.  
What! Christmas decorations already?  I know some of you may be thinking this, but in our house it's never too early for Christmas.  We love everything about Christmas and this time of year is always spent getting ready making home made decorations, baking, shopping and countless other Christmasy things...

Every year I make some new decorations for the tree and every year little T makes some for his tree too.  Here's what I made.


The yarn is Drops Fabel and has lots of lovely colour combinations to choose from.  Drops yarn is always a pleasure to work with and is extremely reasonable.  To be honest it's the only real wool yarn I can afford to use, being on a tight budget...

It took me a few attempts to get the increases and decreases right to fit the bauble.  I used a 6 cm diameter shatterproof ball for this one.  You can get these pretty much anywhere, I think I got mine at Tesco.  The bauble is worked in single crochet in a simple spiral increasing and decreasing to fit the ball and finished off with an organza ribbon.

Of course I could never stop at just one!


I just had to try out some other colours.


I love the way the colour changes make each bauble unique.

Have a great week...
Catherine
x