Spontaneous TLC

I’ve been feeling a bit delicate the past few days...perhaps it’s the Harvest Moon and the Autumn Equinox affecting me...perhaps it’s the fact that Bunny has gone on a school trip this morning until Friday (she is going to have a blast, but I miss her so much already!)...perhaps it’s Little Flower’s trials and tribulations being 3...and Darling Husband is away this weekend, too...

In any case, I’m a wee fragile at the moment, not sad or upset really, just full of emotions. So yesterday I found solace in some spontaneous TLC.

Thank you Sue for the link to the pattern!

I planned on doing a lot of errands and getting the house in order (Little Flower is in pre-school all day on a Tuesday), but instead I met a friend at our village community centre for an hour-and-a-half of crochet and chatter. A while back she had mentioned a village knitting group, so we met up to give it a go. We had some fun conversation and I met some lovely women who are all excellent knitters. They probably thought I was a bit of a folly, showing up with my crochet acorns! But hey, it made them smile, and I now have at least half a dozen knitting experts who will help me when I decide to take up the knitting needles again!

I returned home for a bite of lunch and some general chores, but soon I was stolen away once again by another friend who took me out for cake. I did have a library book to return, and I needed bread and milk, so we went into town with the intention of at least accomplishing a few things...but we thoroughly enjoyed some lovely cake first!

At this point I was feeling rather self-indulgent, taking all this time just for me. I set about making some sweet potato ginger soup and prepping some supper salad ingredients...but then Darling Husband rang to say he’d be home late.

I was about to put everything away until the next day, but then I wondered why? I was feeling much calmer after taking some time for myself – and I still managed to tick some items off my To-Do List – so instead of having some boring leftovers for dinner, I finished the soup and salad and sat down to this

And I savoured every bite! Sweet potato ginger soup and braised lentils with avocado, goat’s cheese, carmelised onions, roasted tomatoes and basil oil. Both recipes from my favourite cookbook ever

And those of you who remember this post know that I have a lot of cookbooks!

It’s funny, what I consider to be self-indulgent these days. Before children, when I was on my own working full-time, the thought of an afternoon snack break and a supper of soup and salad would be considered a natural, daily activity. The morning visit to the knit-and-natter group would be the only indulgence, as I do group activities in the evenings. How times have changed.

But now I’m going to indulge you – I will be announcing a new giveaway and a free pattern in my next post...I am so grateful you are here, and I appreciate each and every comment. Watch for a treat soon!

Chrissie x

A fine week

I hope you’ve all had a successful week getting back into autumn routines! We had fun, but I’m a bit wiped out, so pull up a chair and have some tea and cookies with me...

You deserve a treat after this busy week – these are Chocolate-Strawberry Thumbprints (though I popped a raspberry on top of one, diced strawberries on the other) and you can find the recipe here. They are delightful – the chocolate cookie has a sandy texture and deep chocolate flavour, topped by a creamy dollop of sweetened cream cheese, finished with a juicy burst of berries. Like a cheesecake petit four (and yes, I would have made these for this past week’s Great British Bake Off, they are that yummy!).

And do you like the cake plate and teacup? My grandma sent a set of these to me a while back, she was clearing out her cupboards and knew I’d love this vintage set.

You can see the shape, but I think you’re missing the pink squiggle design on the glass with the white fabric, so check it out with a darker background

I love this set! Tea and cookies taste better when served in pretty cups and plates, you know...

I made a batch of the cookies for my village craft group, which met last night. Lots of sewing, crochet, cross stitch...and I finished Grandma’s iPad cover! I came home and blocked the sides overnight

Then crocheted it together and finished it this morning

I based the design on the pattern in the new Granny Squares book, but I shortened it by a row of squares so that it would fit the iPad Mini. All that’s left is to wrap in in some pretty paper and send it on its way!

I sent off another craft project earlier this week – a simple embroidered napkin.

I stitched the little bee and hive for The Napkin Project, which is a joint venture between the artist Deirdre Nelson, Brunelcare and arts consultancy Willis Newson. The project aimed to provide hundreds of embroidered napkins to care homes to stimulate the creativity of those living with dementia. 

Research showed that textiles, such as an embroidered napkin, “can offer an immediate visual field, a source of tactile pleasure and engagement” to someone with dementia. Contributors were each sent a white napkin and had the freedom to stitch whatever they wished. I was inspired by the beautiful summer sunshine and bees buzzing around my garden.

I didn’t draw the design, I just went for it freestyle – French knots in a variegated yellow-white floss for the centre, then lazy daisy petals.

I had fun stitching the bee’s little trail from his hive

I very faintly drew a little dome for the hive, then just backstitched the design. I like the simplicity of it; I wanted it to look a bit hand-drawn and not perfect like you’d get from a machine-embroidered piece. The teeny weeny bees were most fun, one strand of floss and a tiny needle! I hope that whoever holds it finds it sweet and calming.

But I want to make my own beehive now, which is why I included my ‘hive sweet hive’ doodle in my Stitching Sundays post – are you ready for this Sunday? We’ll talk about how to transfer designs and start stitching...I hope those of you who are joining me will post about your progress, too!

Have a happy, restful weekend!

Chrissie x

Craft hangover

No unveilings today of recent WIPs, as intended, because nothing got finished. Not for my lack of trying, mind – I managed some progress on everything, from a few scarf rows crocheted, nearly all of the Dr. Seuss Sam character outlined in black floss, another fun crochet teaching session Wednesday morning...but not one thing completed. Not even a photo of my small accomplishments.

Today I had planned to put the finishing touches on at least one project, so I could show you here and start the weekend with the satisfaction of a WIP done. Last night I had my quilting friends round to help me design the back of my quilt (“design” being a clever way of saying I hadn’t bought enough of the backing fabric, so could we figure out a way to piece together scraps without spending another penny) and get me started on the border and quilt sandwich. The four of us had a jolly evening catching up, discussing crafts...and I enjoyed making a fruity Pimms cocktail, complete with fruit, cucumber, and a sprig of fresh mint from my garden.

I only had *one* refreshing glass, so why the “Craft hangover” title of this blog? Why indeed. I had such a productive day with all of my WIPs, even my very first quilt. I felt so enriched and happy after the gals left, I decided I’d stay up a bit later and make Bunny’s lunch for today, tidy up the kitchen a bit, catch up on a few blogs...so lights out just past midnight, past my normal bedtime.

Then Little Flower decided 4:20a.m. is a fine time to start the day. Ugh.

She is a terrific sleeper, normally. Never a fuss at 7p.m. bedtime, sleeps until around 6:30 each morning. Maybe I stayed up too late, maybe I had too much fun last night, because the Powers-That-Be are punishing me today! I feel like I drank a pitcher of Pimms and partied all night. I’m rubbish without a good sleep. I wish I could function on a few hours’ shuteye, but I’ve been in a fog all day.

You know the feeling? Earlier I walked upstairs, then stood in the hall for a good 30 seconds wondering what on earth I came up to get, then shrugged and went back down. Never mind. I made a feeble attempt to make progress on a WIP, but stitched the scarf stitch sequence into the blanket I’m working on (put down the hook, Chrissie, and slowly back away from the crochet...).

Mama Woodpecker has it figured out. She stayed in bed when young Woody woke early.

 

 

See him there, having breakfast all on his own? Part of me feels like she’s being a bad parent, sending him out into the world all by himself when he is so very young. But another part of me feels she’s one smart cookie, and I’m jealous that her little one can manage on his own while she gets some more sleep. And a big part of me is worried because I am pondering the parenting skills of a bird.

Darling Husband has been away on business all week, back tomorrow, so I’ve put Little Flower to bed (as usual, quite happily, though she’d better not try an early morning again tomorrow!) and Bunny and I are having a sleepover. Cuddly pajamas, hot chocolate, magazines and lights out early. That will make up for the muddled delirium I felt at 5a.m.!

Tomorrow is a new day...Chrissie x

P.S. Welcome to my new followers, thank you so much for visiting, and I promise to have more creative posts this weekend! :-)

How to make the little basket

I had some nice comments and emails about the little twine basket I made in my last post, so I crocheted another one at Craft Night yesterday – and this time I kept track of what I was doing so I could share it with you!

 

 

(Here I must beg forgiveness for the poor photo quality. It was a beautiful sunny spring day outside, so of course I decided to photograph indoors, because I’m clever like that. And of course I didn’t check the images as I went along because Dear Husband was working on the computer upstairs. “It will all be fine” will never be a thought in my head again.)

First you need a ball of twine, and a word of warning: This is not your usual crochet. Twine is stiff, and you have to work at this a bit to maintain tension and get the hook through. If you find the stitches too tight for the hook, go up a hook size and sip a glass of wine to relax your tension a bit. I’m a very tense crocheter, so I speak from experience! ;-).

You will get the flow of this once you’ve got past the initial first tiny rounds. Stick with it! It is totally worth the extra wee bit of effort – the effect is so lovely, but you also could try plain string with similar interesting texture.

So, with your twine and 5mm hook, chain 2.

Round 1: Work 6dc into first ch, join into a round with sl st

Round 2: 2dc into each st around, join round with sl st (12st)

Round 3: *1dc, 2dc in next st; repeat from * around (18st)

Round 4: *2dc, 2dc in next st; repeat from * around (24st)

Round 5: *3dc, 2dc in next st; repeat from * around (30st)

Round 6: *4dc, 2dc in next st; repeat from * around (36st)

Now here is where I stopped working the base of the basket and moved to make the sides. But this pattern is very flexible – if you want a bigger basket, continue rounds in the same sequence as listed above, adding an extra dc in each round, until you are satisfied with the width of the base. Then:

Round 7: Work 1dc in back loop only (BLO) of each st 

Round 8 – end: 1dc in each st until desired height is reached

I’m showing you the bottom of the basket so you can see the BLO round. See the ridge? I’ll put my hook in one to show you more closely.

Here is the basket before the fabric edge

I made this quite low because I wanted to complete it quickly to get this tutorial up! This can be as tall as you wish, just keep going round and round...

Like the twine, crocheting with fabric is a bit fiddly, but for the opposite reason – it is very loose and can twist to the wrong side easily. But again, you get into a groove after the first few stitches and it all comes together.

I thought I’d upcycle the scraps from my piped invisible zipper cushion I posted about here. I cut the leftover bias binding into roughly 1cm (1/2 inch) strips and tied the ends together to make a long length of fabric.

To work it into the twine, treat it as you would a colour change of normal yarn. Make a slip knot with the fabric on the hook

Then insert hook into any edge st

Yarn over, though in this case it’s fabric over, and pull back through, leaving two fabric loops on the hook

Then fabric over, and pull through both loops on the hook. First stitch complete!

 

One fabric dc in each stitch, then fasten off. I find that with these fabric strips, sometimes fastening off and weaving in the ends can be tricky because the fabric is wider than normal yarn, and hiding fabric in a contrasting twine basket is next to impossible. Feel free to see what works – and looks – best with the type of fabric you use. Here I simply tied knots with the ends of the fabric, then snipped off the tails and left the ragged ends on the inside of the basket edge to blend in with the ragged look of the stitches.

A fantastic book that offers lots of inspiration and patterns using unusual materials is this

I love Erika Knight’s designs, textures and colours. Here’s a peek inside, see what a wide range of ‘yarns’ she employs!

Let me know if you try a basket, and please send me photos. Have a lovely sunny weekend!

Chrissie x

Craft therapy

I’m having one of those weeks. A good week, actually, fun and sunny and full of activity, but manic. I’ve hardly stopped for breath. You know the feeling – it’s already Thursday, but my brain is still hovering back at Tuesday. I overbooked life this week.

So tonight I’m having a bit of craft therapy. A friend is having a few of us round for a craft evening, and the timing couldn’t be better. Craft evenings allow me to escape real life for a while, much like going to the cinema or out with friends. But at the end of a craft evening, I’ve nurtured my creative side and feel I’ve truly accomplished something!

I started my first craft group a handful of years ago. I was teaching a friend to crochet, and I knew a few others who were skilled at knitting and sewing, and I thought how nice it would be to get these few creative folks together to teach and inspire each other.

It was simple, really. A few emails to organise a date, a few cookies baked and a few introductions, and years later we have become a monthly haven of craftiness! I feel so lucky to have my craft group. We support each other’s endeavours – we share tips on crochet, knitting, sewing, stitching. We brainstorm solutions to tricky patterns; we encourage each other to try something new.

And over the years we’ve become quite close. I look forward to our meeting each month. We listen if one of us needs to unload our troubles, or we change the topic if one of us needs to ignore the troubles of everyday life (it’s easy to ramble on about craft and inspiration with like-minded friends...). And birthdays, ah the birthdays! Scrumptious cake and crafty gifts – the makings of a perfect date with friends!

 

This is a birthday gift I gave to a new friend who wants to learn to crochet. I made the little container using garden twine and some scrap strips of Tilda fabric. It’s all done in double crochet stitch, and is a good example of what a beginner can accomplish with just a bit of practice (I also love using materials other than yarn to show the versatility of crochet). I put a ball of yarn, a 4mm hook and a pattern for a crochet dishcloth inside, with the promise of crochet lessons.

I met this new friend at Little Flower’s pre-school, and we are now organising another craft group. Four of us are meeting this evening; I will teach some crochet, and I’m bringing my quilt blocks – we have an experienced quilter in this gang, so I will get some proper guidance!  

Nothing like a bit of craft therapy to get me through to the weekend...

Chrissie x

Learning and teaching

I enjoy doing workshops and classes. In pretty much anything, from drawing to embroidery, cooking to willow weaving. I can learn a lot by reading books on various subjects, but I find that a class, large or small, provides like-minded individuals who have interesting viewpoints. Teachers have many, many tricks of the trade to share, and most classes have nice tea and biscuits, too!

So recently I decided I needed some hands-on help with sewing. My grandma isn’t down the road to teach me these things, and I need guidance.

Piping and zippers. I’m in the Big Time now, baby. I’ve done my patchwork cushion; I’m ready to take on the world! In a nearby town is an organisation that offers all sorts of sewing workshops, including dresses, blinds and curtains. They also do a cushion workshop for piping and concealed zippers.

Little Flower helped me to choose this scrumptious fabric. Isn’t it just cheery? I learned how to make bias binding from my fabric (including some excellent tips on how to cut cleverly to avoid wasting loads of fabric, and how to use various sewing tools), pipe all round the cushion, and do that fancy concealed zipper.

You can barely see it, huh? :-) I sure hope I can remember how to do this again – I need to make another one pretty immediately to reinforce the technique. Now I can make all those bags and other pretties that I have in my crafty books!

This is my second workshop I’ve done with group – the first being a fun freestyle machine embroidery class – and I hit it off with the instructor, who combines knowledge and fun in perfect measure. We got to talking about crochet, and it turns out they’ve been looking for someone to teach a crochet workshop...and would I be interested?

Yes indeed! I have taught individual friends to crochet, but a group? I am intrigued and excited! My mind has been racing since, considering what to teach in a two-hour time slot, how to teach more than one person at a time, etc.

A double crochet (US single crochet) dishcloth in the works.

I thought that after the initial “Here’s how to hold a hook, here’s how to make a chain,” it would be useful to have some examples of basic crochet stitches to see and hold. So I’m whipping up a few dishcloths in each stitch. I like to see a section of a stitch, not just a row or two, so I can really understand the look and feel of the fabric made by double crochet, treble crochet, etc. I want to offer lots of tangible examples to demonstrate what is possible once you’ve practiced the tension and holding the hook.

But hey ho, what’s this?

I bought a few balls of cotton yarn for dishcloths – a pale green, a pink and this juicy Sirdar Summer Stripes, because I liked the variegated coral-pinkiness. Then lo and behold, I eyed some green, then peeked into the centre to see a rainbow of shades! (Hence the name Summer Stripes, um, I get it now...) I might just have to find a summer project to see what all I can do with that palette...

How did you learn to crochet? Did you have a project, or just do row after row to practice the stitch? And if you are wanting to crochet, what about it appeals to you? I might have to test some workshop ideas out on all of you!

I leave you with my favourite little bit of springtime, found peeking out from under one of my beloved tulips this morning. Happy crafting!

Chrissie x