Thursday, 27 February 2014

Spreading crochet love...


Real life commitments and deadlines have taken over this week. How dare they! Days filled with work projects, volunteer group meetings, fundraising activities...basically a polar opposite to the nothingness of half term.

So I have very little yarny stuff to share with you – I won’t bother taking a photo of a crochet chain of 322 stitches, in a calming yet rather boring shade of off-white (it will look much more interesting when there’s more crochet completed!).

Crochet, music and soft focus...ahhhhhh
I will share gratuitous photos of things that make me happy, while I tell you that a dishwasher can actually double up as a kitchen cupboard. Yesterday I never got round to emptying the dishwasher, but instead grabbed clean plates for lunch, platters and bowls for dinner, mugs for tea and cups for water...then put all these dishes right back into the then-empty dishwasher at the end of the day.

Bag o' yarn....mmmmm
My fridge is on the blink. I’ve been storing milk outside, and we’ve eaten or frozen all the other food, while I wait for the repairman to get the right part to fix it. (Oh a part of me actually *hopes* it can’t be fixed, so I can beg borrow steal to get a *pink* Smeg! A girl can dream!)

pink, pink, pink
I have the Frozen soundtrack playing constantly in my head. The girls sing it nonstop, creating their own music videos or acting out the movie, but even when they’re at school the music fills my brain. It is a wonderful soundtrack, but even Beethoven gets tiresome after hours and hours of nothing else, let alone Disney.

Chocolate-covered shortbread, because everything is better dipped in chocolate
But hey, enough of my whinging! Let me share with you what has been getting me through the ups and downs of the week!

A fabaroony notebook and indulgent bath petals...and chocolate!
A wonderful parcel arrived yesterday, right when I needed it. Pretty, pampering, caring gifts from the lovely Sue at sweetpea family. Even a fun-filled present for my girls...


Which made them squeal with delight (and Little Flower exclaimed, “Mummy, these are the loveliest chocolates!” in a very princess-like voice).

Sue sent me these goodies as a thank-you for helping her plan her crochet workshop – I’ve been teaching more workshops lately, so I have a good amount of info, handouts and advice that I was more than happy to share. She will be a wonderful teacher, I am certain!

Now I am spreading the crochet love, setting up workshops here, there and everywhere...I have one planned for my village community centre, a series is already booked for a gorgeous little haberdashery in Petworth, The Cotton Wool Store...


...and last week I ventured to the craft mecca that is Eternal Maker in Chichester, and they want me to teach there to coincide with their new yarn department! Woo hoo! (Of course you do realise that I’ll be asking for my fee in fabulous fabrics and buttons!)


So instead of making progress with my crochet projects, this past week I have been writing amigurumi workshop handouts and setting up more workshops. It’s all good!


I enjoy teaching crochet more than I could have imagined. In this great big world of stress, schedules and crowds, where every minute is overloaded with information and electronics and way too much information for any one person to adequately process, I have found it incredibly fulfilling to teach others to stop, focus, create, play and relax, quietly with simple hook and yarn. What I originally started as a little hobby for myself has evolved to mean much more. I leave each workshop elated that the participants are happy, pleased with themselves that they are learning a new skill.


And it’s just like any craft group or meeting with a like-minded friend – it’s nice to have others oooo and ahhhh over some pretty crochet with me!

So what can I oooo and ahhh over from you this week? Link up your crochet below!

Chrissie x





Sunday, 23 February 2014

A bag for Little Flower


Little Flower joined a ballet class a few weeks ago and subsequently spends most of the day on her tippy toes, fluttering around the house (fairy wings optional). The most delightful aspect of the class, to her, is that the ballet outfit is a pretty pale purple. The only thing that would make it better would be rainbow tights.

So the happy bright fabric from last week’s post has been crafted into a bag to keep her kit:


The pattern is from Helen Philipps’ lovely book:


I decided to add a cross stitch initial, to practice my skills. Little Flower loved the look of the variegated floss, and it picked up the colours of the stripy fabric:


I made a modification to the pattern – I know that sounds silly, given the fact that I have only completed one cross stitch design so far, but hey, it’s just a needle and thread! The pattern came from this book, which I think I'll review for you all soon, it's fun! 


The initial design has a blossom with four petals. I wanted a violet flower, so I doodled a bit on the page and winged it!


I’m pleased with how it turned out – and now I want to do another one with a solid-colour initial. I think that would look rather lovely!


The main bag fabric is from Pretty Fabrics & Trims, which specializes in smaller quantities of bits n' bobs, perfect for small sewing projects and lovely little embellishments. It is run by the lovely Sarah, of A Little Happy Place.

Have you ever worked with variegated floss? I wonder what else it could be used for...

We are making the most of the last day of half term; I suspect tomorrow morning is going to be a bit slow and grumpy in our household. I'm already feeling a bit blue about returning to "real life"! Perhaps I'll delay it by popping to the yarn shop in the morning, just to browse, of course...

Best wishes to you all for a happy day! Link up your stitchy projects below!

Chrissie x



Thursday, 20 February 2014

Purple, rain


We’re having a quiet half term, full of tea parties, games, coloured pencils, short walks, and visits to the library and playground. Little Flower has eaten most lunches under the kitchen table, pretending she’s Mrs. Tittlemouse. And now she’s wearing fairy wings, leaping from chairs in absolutely sincere attempts to learn to fly. I *love* childhood.


We all feel like real homebodies, snuggling under blankets and being generally lazy. Perfect conditions for crochet!


Purple is the shade of the moment here, with 10 more royal-hued hexies nearly complete.

I’m making swift progress on my purple scarf (that is, when I actually pick it up and work on it, the rows whip up super-quick)...


However, I’m starting to wonder what I’ll do with the edges to girly it up a bit. Remember, this is actually another Manly Scarf, I just enjoyed the stitch so much, and I loved this richly coloured yarn, that I decided to make one for myself.


But I’m a girly girl, and I need something to prettify the ends. I’m not one for tassles or loose strands of yarn hanging down. I’m considering little pom poms, like those found at the lovely creJJtion, but will it work with chunky yarn? Hmmm...scalloped edge? Flowers? Suggestions please!

You’ve seen the purple, now here’s the rain:



Ugh. That’s not pretty. Here’s rain with an orchid:




Still grey and rainy, but at least a bit more elegant...

Welcome to my new followers this week! I suffered some internet glitches this week, so I'm still catching up on your latest blog posts, bear with me! 

A big thank you to all the wonderful comments on my last post. I read and treasure every one of them!

Please link up your latest crochet projects below...

Chrissie x