Two thirds of 84

Hello,

Yes, I am pleased to announce that I am TWO THIRDS of the way through my 84 stripes of double crochet!!

 

I am using 7 different colours of Patons 100% cotton DK, each separated by stripes of limestone so that makes 14 stripes, which when double crocheted using a 3.5 hook measures about 12 inches/30 cm in length.

 

So I am planning to crochet these 14 rows 6 times which makes a total of 84 different coloured stripes to crochet and I have completed 4 lots of 14 stripes (56 stripes) so I am two thirds of the way through 84 stripes - YIPPEE!

This is the blanket that I started some time ago, probably September 2013, and which I have posted about here. Much of the crochet has been done while travelling to and from cross country races and football matches - sadly the season for both sports is now finished so I'll have to find time elsewhere..... ummmm, I'm sure that dusting and hoovering can wait while I crochet a few rows.
   

Unfortunately, as I said in my previous post, I realise that the blanket is going to be narrower than I intended so I am considering what I can do once I have finished the stripes to widen the blanket, possibly a wide, single colour border.

 

 

So even when I have completed the 84 stripes I will still have some serious crocheting to do before the blanket is finally finished.

 

 

  

So please hang on in there - it may be some time before I reveal the finished article. 

Have you a major crafting project on the go at the moment? Do you prefer smaller projects that be completed relatively quickly?

Wishing you a good week

xXx

Remnants

Hello,

Recently I spent a few hours on a Saturday making a patchwork cushion, I posted about it here. I had a smallish piece (measuring approximately 22 cm by 30cm) of patchworked material left over which of course I couldn't discard. I pondered over what I could use it for and a small zipped bag seemed the most obvious answer given it's dimensions.

So on Thursday when I was in town I found myself at the harberdashery market stall and without hardly a blink of an eye I'd bought an 8 inch zip in bright yellow. (I hadn't actually measured the piece of material before I left home and I hadn't taken it with me to colour match so purchasing a suitable zip was pure guess work). But luckily it was the right size and colour. So here is my remnant and said zip.

The remnant wasn't quite wide enough so I used my newly purchased patchworking equipment to cut an extra strip of green which I sewed onto the right of my remnant. 
My patchwork class taught me the importance of ironing each piece as you sew.

Then I cut some more of the same green material that I'd used to back my patchwork cushion to a suitable size to act as a liner to my bag.
Wow - it's so much easier to cut accurate strips of fabric using a cutter and cutting board than scissors!

Now to find some cotton. As you can see I have quite a collection/mess of cotton threads, stored in a lovely wooden box. There must be a yellow in there somewhere to match my zip....

Would you believe it, the only yellow I could find was this one below in the middle of the photo! But I reckoned there was just enough to sew in an 8 inch zip. For the remaining sewing I was happy to use green thread of which I have plenty.

And thus my zipped bag began to take shape.

In fact, I became so absorbed in the task I forgot to take any more photos until I had finished!

And here it is!

I'm not quite sure why these photos show a grainy pattern to some of the material.

I like the lining too.

I am pleased with my little bag made out of remnants - and all for the price of a little time and an 85p zip!

Happy sewing!

xXx

Fresh air

Hello

Having said in my last post that we had hardly ventured out during the Easter holidays, later that day four of us made the short journey to a country park - with the promise of a trip to the cafe afterwards. Sadly, but understandably, younger son wanted to stay at home and do more revision. (I think he also quite likes to have the house to himself for a while - well, don't we all?)

So here are a few photos of our leisurely but very pleasurable walk. Above is a statue of King Lear, I always think it looks rather out of place here, despite the lake being called King Lear's Lake.

 

A rare, quiet moment for my daughter - usually she is challenging us to run to the next bench, the next tree..... did I say this was a leisurely walk?? 

Someone was going the same way as us ... until some cyclists frightened him away!

 A gorgeous coot on her nest

We spent several minutes watching this heron catch fish. 

It stood stock still, waiting for fish.

Until suddenly it dived it's head in ... and success!

It was funny watching the heron swallow the fish, you could almost see it wriggling its way down the heron's gullet.

Part of the waterway here is the Grand Union Canal.  I quite fancy having a week's holiday on a barge, I always imagine that it must be very relaxing, just cruising along a canal at a slow speed, through beautiful, unspoilt green countryside and hearing the gentle lap of water as you fall asleep.

I'm not sure why people are so against wind turbines. To me they represent green energy and appear as sleek and modern sculptures - years ago did people adopt the same antagonistic views to windmills? Personally, wind turbines are almost the modern version of a windmill (although of course serving different purposes), but I appreciate that is just my opinion. 

By the time we got back to the car and had driven to the local garden centre the cafe had closed. 

I apologized for not being able to fulfill my promise of a cup of tea but no-one was bothered. We had enjoyed a pleasant while in each others' company and visited new places. 

Don't you love it when a short walk bring suchs pleasure? And have you ever had a holiday on a barge? I would love to hear what you thought of it.

Best wishes

xXx

Frivolous world of hot chocolates

Hello,

You probably think this is a bit strange (I think my family do) but some time ago my elder son ordered a hot chocolate while we were out and as it looked quite spectacular I decided to capture it on my phone. Since then it has become a bit of a tradition for me to take more photos of his hot chocolates and now I also find myself taking photos of our food in general while we are out. Strangely it captures the moment quite nicely and we look back at the photos on my phone and can say "oh yes, that one was taken at that little cafe we found by chance because our usual cafe was full" etc.

 

Work is fairly stressful at the moment and thus I've found it hard to concentrate on reading or crafting this week, and we haven't ventured far during the Easter holidays as the young people in our house are revising so as I was at a bit of a loss about what to post about, I decided a frivolous post was in order, showcasing a small selection of hot chocolates taken on my phone!! 

The photo above was taken in a motorway service station (a little disappointing as it was squirty cream) and the one below was in a cafe in Matlock (a stick of chocolate that gradually melts in the hot milk) . 

 I love how this hot chocolate spills over the sides of the mug!

 But the piece de resistance has to be this colourful hot chocolate, also from a cafe in Matlock. 

And finally, these last photos were taken this week when we did manage to venture out to visit our local organic farm for a family lunch - we persuaded younger family members that a break from revision is good! 

 

 Scrambled organic eggs on homemade bread followed by scones, cream and jam - delicious!

 If you are still reading this, thank you for bearing with me on my frivolous journey through the world of hot chocolates!

Hope you are enjoying your weekend and wishing you a good week.

xXx

Craft books

I treated myself to THREE craft books recently - how extravagant is that! But in truth, they cost £21 in total and given that one is hardback I thought that wasn't a bad price - especially when you consider that magazines are often £5 each and I haven't bought a craft magazine for several months now. Have I justified my purchases enough now? Maybe just about.

So what did I buy? Well, as I have now ventured into the world of  patchworking and jelly rolls I thought I liked the look of the two jelly roll books, and the knitting book I've borrowed from the library for months so I thought maybe it is time I buy my own copy. 

So, what do I think of these books? Well, probably my favourite of the three is "The Knitted Home" by Ruth Cross.

As knitting books go, this is rather different. While the book does include patterns, it also explains how the patterns can be adjusted to suit your own needs and wishes. And the patterns are just so ...... organic? Just look at the throw below. Ruth suggests that this is a major project and not for the faint hearted but wouldn't it look fantastic when finished?

 

I love all the colours Ruth uses in her projects and the styling of her projects is simple but very effective. The photo below shows the throw above, a second throw and a foot stool.

The table runners below look relatively straightforward to knit but look stunning as a simple table setting. 

And this is a wall hanging! I love it and although I'm not sure how it would look in our house, Ruth gives you the confidence to feel you could adjust the pattern to suit your own style.

And just look at the ripples in the sea inspired wall hanging below. What a statement that makes!

Umm, I admit I don't make many projects from my craft books but I do enjoy browsing through them for inspiration and I am so glad I now have my own copy of this book.

Hope you are enjoying a lovely Easter Sunday. 

xXx

(PS. This is my own personal review of the book, no commission received)