Tag: crochet

September Row

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Hello

I’m just back from the Land of LobNobs*, aka Norway.

 

The picture above was taken on one of the only dry afternoons. I had a wonderful, albeit wet, holiday where I did absolutely no sewing whatsoever. I’m still confused as I did bring my usual EPP project that I like to work on when I’m there but this year it never came out. Instead I did lots of crochet and some reading. I also received a beautiful puzzle from a friend of mine which I brought with me and finished really quickly. So I went and bought another one.

I crocheted two hats. The pattern is The CableOpticCrochetHat by Anna from Crafty Owl and I fell in love with it the second I saw it on Etsy. Sadly the first hat turned out to be too big but I refused to give up and went to the wool shop and bought more wool for take two. This blue hat was given to my mother as her head is a little bigger than mine. I then crocheted a green hat for myself but haven’t got a picture of it yet as I’m still debating whether I should add a pompom or not.

 

Right, the September templates. Here they are:

September 1

September 2

September 3

September 4

The September 4 templates are marked, so that it’s easy to know where they go.

Happy sewing!

 

*LobNobs are pretend bits of lobster. Their name makes me giggle every time I buy them. They’re rather tasty in my humble opinion.

Categories: Block of the Month, Block of the Month 2024, Crochet, English Paper Piecing, Hand sewing, Quilting, Quilts, Sewing, Templates and PatternsLeave a comment

Crochet Heaven

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Although my first love is definitely sewing and quilting, I can’t resist soft squishy wool and a crochet hook.

I’ve been crocheting with a friend via Skype most weekends since last winter to make a granny squares blanket. It’s slow progress as I only crochet with her, managing three or four granny squares per session. As the social aspect is just as important to me as the progress, I’m not in a rush. The blanket will be finished when it’s finished.

A friend of ours showed us a picture of a pretty flower blanket and wondered if this could be something for us once the granny squares blankets were done. We suggested that she should join us in the crocheting seeing that she really loved the blanket. Well she took on the challenge and we are now four women crocheting the flower blanket as her sister has also joined our little group.

We couldn’t find the pattern for the blanket so I designed a flower and after a few failed attempts we are now ready to crochet. I’ve let my daughter choose the yarn and the colours as the blanket is for her. I couldn’t wait and have started on the blanket. As my yarn is thinner than the one the others are using I will have to make quite a few more flowers so I don’t feel too guilty for sneaking in a few crocheting sessions on my own. I’m using Merino 150 by Lang Yarns in some lovely pastel colours.

I made a video for the group as a reminder on how to crochet the flowers in case they want to do some crocheting on their own. It was the first video tutorial I’ve ever made and I really enjoyed filming it. I had to laugh though as I heard some rather heavy breathing and sighing on there every now and again. You could’ve thought that I was running and crocheting at the same time.

If there’s any interest in the blanket I’m happy to post a pattern at a later stage.

 

Categories: Crochet Flower BlanketLeave a comment

Hello Blog

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Elisabeth: “Hello, Blog, how are you?”

Blog: “Lonely.”

Elisabeth: “I know I haven’t been around much, but then I haven’t been crafting much either. My mum was here for her birthday last week which means I didn’t do much (except baking and eating cakes. Oh yes, cakes, as in baking three and eating two!). I’d like to show you a couple of things now, though.”

Blog: “Great! What would you like to show me then?”

Elisabeth: “First, I want to show you a gift I got from my sister Kristine. She crocheted this lovely bag and showed it to me on Skype. When I said how cute I thought it was she gave it to me. Fabulous, isn’t it? Sadly I don’t get to use it much as Little Miss Bossy-Boots has taken it and is using it all the time.”

Blog: “That bag is lovely! What else did you want to show me?”

Elisabeth: “I suddenly had the urge to do some embroidery. The bird was inspired by a drawing I did for Little Miss Bossy-Boots. I’m not sure what I’m going to make with these two embroideries but I’m sure I’ll think of something at some stage.”

Blog: “Cute. How about turning one of them into a Kindle cover?”

Elisabeth: “Good idea, Blog, I’ll see if I can find some fabrics to go with the bird. The last thing I want to show is a really fabulous book.

You know how much I like Fat Quarterly, don’t you? I mean, I’m going to their Retreat in London, I go on and on about Katy Jones (bit of crush there?!)….. When I heard that they were writing a book I knew I was going to buy it and yesterday it arrived. I love it. Last year I bought some fat quarters and yardage of Echo by Lotta Jansdotter and I’ve been looking for a pattern to turn it into a quilt ever since. Well, I’ve found it.

This is my all time favourite block. I’m sure nobody who knows me is surprised by the fact that I’ve fallen for a block that’s called Castle Wall (for those who don’t know me: I studied Medieval English Language and Literature) and it’s by John Q. Adams, aka Quilt Dad.

Blog: ” I can see why you like Castle Wall. I’m sure it’ll look lovely in Echo.”

Elisabeth: “I can’t wait to start but I have to finish some work stuff first. At least I have a project to take to the Sewing Retreat. Although how much sewing I will be doing I’m not sure but more about that later. See you very soon, my dear Blog!”

Categories: Crochet, Embroidery, Fat Quarterly Sewing Retreat, MusingsLeave a comment

Granny Cushion

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I loved making the Granny Square Pincushion and thought it would be fun to make a cushion cover using Ali’s tutorial for the square with the popcorn flower.

So, Little Miss Bossy-Boots and I trundled into town and she chose the colours for her cushion cover. No surprises there; we came home with a bright pink and a mellow purple yarn. They had a lovely soft orange that I would have loved to combine with the pink but as I had promised Missy that she could choose whatever she liked I bit my tongue.

This is the front and all in all I like it. I made a bit of a mess joining the squares together but I know now what to do differently for next time. In fact I loved making these little shares so much that I’m thinking of taking all my little bits of leftover yarn from other projects and make a blanket.

Here’s the back of it:

Did you spot the giant buttons? Well, yes, hmmm. I didn’t have any in the right colour or size but I really wanted to finish the cushion cover and show it off. They will be changed sometime in the near future, I promise.

I didn’t want to put just a regular insert in the cover but made one using a lovely flowery fabric with butterflies and birds that peek out through the holes especially at the back.

I bought it a few years ago and have no idea what it’s called or who it’s from but I thought it was perfect for this cushion.

Categories: Crochet, Home Projects3 Comments

Snow

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These last few weeks have been difficult as I’m struggling with the most horrendous cold. It’s still with me but I can feel that I’m going to be back to normal again soon. Despite not feeling well I’ve been trying to get some sewing and crocheting done as I have a stall at my daughter’s Christmas Fayre. Let’s just say it might be quite empty….

On Sunday, Little Miss Bossy-Boots wasn’t feeling well so I sat on the sofa with her in the afternoon watching not one but TWO films. I can’t just sit there doing nothing and as I’d finished my scarf by then I decided to crochet some hearts and snowflakes.

The snowflakes are a free pattern by Lucy from Attic 24. If you haven’t discovered her yet, please, do hop over and have a look; you won’t regret it, I’m sure. I love her blog and I love all her colourful crochet projects. Her Blooming Flower Cushion is on my to-do list and I’m really hoping to get some hooky time in over the holidays.

BTW if you’re wondering what I’m going to make with the gazillion snowflakes I’ve crocheted already come back later…

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Amigurumi

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I love making amigurumi, the lovely little crochet cuddlies (or not so cuddlies). It’s been a while since I made one, in fact it was January when I finished Xolpoth the friendly alien. However, as I was sorting out some of my pictures I stumbled on lots of pictures of the amigurumi I made for a friend’s wedding. When Little Miss Bossy-Boots’ godmother got married last summer she asked me to make an amigurumi for each child that was invited. I thought it was a really nice idea and started crocheting until I had 18 of the little critters. Don’t worry, I’m not going to show you all of them but I will show you a few of my favourites.

The penguin:

 

The bee:

 

The pig, which Little Miss Bossy-Boots brought home again:

 

Jasper, who never made it to Germany where the wedding took place. I admit it, I have a great love for ginger cats and he stayed with me:

 

And last but not least, Spoldink, my first alien:

 

Seeing all these amigurumi again has made me want to make more. Yep, the crochet hooks are out again. Prepare to see a few more on this blog!

 

Categories: Amigurumi, CrochetLeave a comment

Florence Fish

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I am in the process of writing a tutorial on how to crochet this lovely but very easy fish. Somehow it seems to take much longer than anticipated. So, here’s a little taster:

Cute, isn’t she?

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Finished!

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It took me much longer than anticipated to finish this little amigurumi which I started when Little Miss Bossy-Boots was ill. Life just suddenly filled up with everything but time to sew or crochet.

However, here’s the finished project: Xolpoth, the Alien.

I started making amigurumis last year after receiving The Encyclopedia of Crochet Techniques by Jan Eaton and seeing a picture of “Binky Rabbit” in the gallery section. It was love at first sight and I decided to try making something like that. I didn’t have a pattern and that was quite evident when I looked at the finished project. It was a very strange looking “thing” that could only be identified as a rabbit because of its ears and tail and it ended up in the bin. Continue reading Finished!

Categories: Amigurumi1 Comment

Crochet

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I didn’t manage to get any crocheting done Saturday afternoon despite sitting on the sofa with Little Miss Bossy-Boots. She was really poorly and wouldn’t leave my lap for even two seconds. This made me determined to get the crochet hook out on Sunday and this is what I came up with:

As you can see I didn’t get very far.  Any guesses at what it is? I’m hoping to be able to finish it today and post a picture tomorrow. Continue reading Crochet

Categories: AmigurumiLeave a comment