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Showing posts with label crochet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crochet. Show all posts

Sunday, February 26, 2012

Perfect Sunday ....(and what I has been up to!)

So here am I, sitting in the garden, with my laptop on my lap! I can't see a thing on the screen, but I'm hoping to get the gist of a blog down, and correct it later (or maybe just leave it for the heck of it!)  The weather is fabulous, a spring chill in the air, but warm enough to be sitting out in just a cardi and track suit bottoms (Sundays are for slobbing a little aren't the?) Spot is at my side
(and just as I typed that she got up and moved! LOL - she sooooo has to have the last word) and I'm noticing that it won't be long before i have to start mowing the lawn.  I can see a robin sitting on the edge of my incinerator (mostly used for red-mite infested bedding! - sigh) and the church bell is tolling 2 o'clock. I also started (well started isn't quite right as it was 11 o'clock) but I "started" my Sunday with the most perfect brunch courtesy of Attic24, and her recently posted instructions on how to poach an egg.  As a chicken keeper i do love a poached egg on toast, and mine often come out ok, but sometimes really don't, Turns out I had all the right ingredients (water, eggs, vinegar) but in slightly the wrong ratios. - Poached eggs on toasted homemade seed bread is a good way to start a Sunday:- All pretty awesome eh?


So, the week has been pretty busy. Started on Monday with a trip up to the NEC to the CHSI trade show. (as per my last blog post!) Not much for a small trader to be able to get as all the minimum order values were really quite high, but it was good to look around and see what is available, and how the coming seasons are being interpreted.  And the feedback from the magazines was really encouraging about the Crafters' Barn, so that made me feel good about that too. (it's always so scary thinking about starting a business and then realising how much it's going to cost - It makes it a bit easier when other people think it's a good idea too!

On Tuesday, i went to visit Bruce at SKD to get some yarn for my latest commission. This is something that has been on my order books for a while but I haven't been able to source good yarn for it, as it needed to be super-bulky, specific colours, and non-itchy! Not much of a task then?! Luckily Bruce and Birgitte have just started with a new range of yarns from Sandnes-Garn and their Easy Merino fit the bill perfectly.  I decided to drive over and see SKD though as it saved on postage and meant I could have a bit of a squish of some of the rest of their range. (Who can honestly resist the opportunity to squish??!) - I also came home with 2 balls of Alfa, and 2 balls of Kashmir/Alpaca - just for research *ahem* (The kashmir/alpaca is soooooo soft and lovely, I couldn't stop picking it up and stroking it)

Finally, yesterday I went to Unravel. - Fab day, met friends, had lots of hugs, lots of squishing, and not much purchasing (which was good as I really am running out of yarn storing room!)  Saw a fabulous new range called Ruth and Belinda, really lovely yarns and accompanying patterns, well worth a look. And relented on a 24mm pair of knitting needles so I can use one for some broomstick knitting and crocheting trials.

The granny squares throw has been finished. - Would you like to see photos?????...... No???........ well look away then cos I want to show this off! :-)






(Actually not the best photos as the sun has gone in every single time I've got this baby out to photgraph it, but you get the gist!) - It's big enough for a double bed, and is crocheted in Rowan Renew.  As per usual Rowan got the pattern wrong and i sent back (luckily I finished it quickly enough that the same dye lots were still in circulation) 2 balls of Digger, and 2 balls of Trailer. I needed 3 extra balls of Tractor *rolls eyes*.  I've told Rowan, as the quantities in the book in hindsight can't possibly be correct due to the colour sequencing, and if you wanted to take your time over this project (which would be understandable as it's huge!) you'd be a bit stuffed at the end to find all the qty's are wrong. Rowan have apologised and acknowledged the mistake, so it should be in the errata soon.

Right, this post is becoming a little too epic, so it's time to draw to a close for another week or so, before I bore you all to tears. Have a good week everyone, and I hope that a little spring comes to you all this week one way or another.  'Til soon ♥

ooh P.S. Just 2 days left to vote in the poll below, please do if you haven't already. And if you have..... thank you everso x

Monday, January 02, 2012

Not quite sure how this happened?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Here we are all raring to go for the New Year. It's the year when I want to make the Crafters' Barn and Noo's knits really become something special, and  I have to say Noo's knits is going very well at the moment. I currently have around 4 weeks worth of knitting orders lined up.

However at the moment I have another large blanket project on the go - I'm not quite sure how that happened, except to say I have learnt my lesson about leaving wonderful Pattern Books lying around.

It turns out that MrNoo totally fell in love with one of the blankets from the book and has asked me to make it for a member of his family. The pattern is the Granny Squares throw.

It is made of 130 odd granny squares -
  40 odd of 3 different colours combinations. The above is one combination, which I have made 43 squares of since Christmas Eve!  I'm not quite sure how I got into making another big blanket so soon really!  Should keep me out of trouble for a while though. ;)


Monday, October 10, 2011

Sad News & Ally Pally 2011

I'm sorry everyone, I've been AWOL again. It's been a bit of a fortnight if I'm honest, and although writing about it may well have actually been a good thing, i just didn't feel the love for blogging during it.

All you blog-readers should know, though, that my beautiful Silkie-mama was taken by a fox last week. So no more pictures of her. Super-sad as she was brooding 6 new silkie eggs for me. I had left the door to the house open as i was away for the day, and the fox must've found a way in. Tbh i do leave the house open often and have never had an issue, but there you have it, it's happened, and I'm gutted (and have to admit to bawling my eyes out at the time - especially as it was a bit of a raw day for me anyway)  So the fox has not only denied me my chicken cuddle, but has possibly cost me £120 in lost chicken sales (silkies sell well as they are such good mums), assuming a 50% female hatch rate. Plus it'll cost me every bit of £30-£40 to replace her possibly,( and that's money I haven't got at the moment). Although i won't do that yet as having such a little bird hasn't always been easy. She was way too small to be in with the big girls - plus she was broody every other fortnight, so she spent most of her life in her own house and run, but alongside the big girls so she could see them. But it wasn't always the most convenient of situations. So I need to consider carefully what to do next.  She was a wonderful mum though and she did me proud with around 6 hatches.

If she had already hatched the chicks i really wouldn't have felt as badly about it. She was getting old, and i s;pose the fox needs to eat as much as the next animal. And she would never have been worth plucking and dealing with for a human meal. And if they die naturally you are not supposed to bury them any more, so that would have meant a huge fire (a cremation service if you will)  So, another 6 months down the line and I'd have taken it much more pragmatically. But the timing sucks both financially and emotionally and I'm heartbroken to have lost the only chicken that would actually be cuddled! - She really was a little snuggler.

Anyway, moving swiftly on.......

Last Thursday Mum and i made our annual pilgrimmage to Ally Pally for the Knitting and Stitching show.  I took a certain amount of cash (and no credit cards so I couldn't be tempted to abandon my budget!) and am very happy with my purchases:

I got a 3 month subscription to The Knitter, and Molly Makes (not hugely impressed with the latter, but that's the beauty of a cheap 3 month sub!) I got a thread box (no an ice cream tub is not a suitable substitute).  "Crochet lace innovations" by Doris Chan. And three lots of yarn:  3 Skeins of pure silk, 10 Skeins of green Mirasol Sulka and 4 skeins of Subliime Kid Mohair blend.

We had a really lovely day, it wasn't overly crowded and we had plenty of time to amble around and decide how to spend our money. The highlight of my day was very definitely meeting Doris Chan, especially as i was wearing my Jewel jumper at the time. At this time of the year it is one of my most wearable jumpers, and i think I may have helped boost her book sales just a little! *blushes*.  So amazing to be noticed by the designer of something you are wearing though - especially if it's a make that you are happy with. It was definitely one of those Big Grin moments!

So there you go, a mixed week. But we are now starting a new one, and I have a smile on my face and a skip in my step, because life is too short not to have.  I have lots of ideas for the yarn I bought at Ally pally - all of which is destined for The Crafters' Barn. - So if you fancy any of it, - keep a look out in my shop.

Have a great week, and I'll be back soon xx

Sunday, August 14, 2011

A few changes Chez noo

So, a few changes are afoot chez noo soon - d'you want to hear about them?

(Please say yes otherwise this post is done already!)

Firstly, my lovely neighbour, who is a spritely 89 and 11 months, has recently hurt her shoulder very badly. It has somewhat incapacitated her and I've been doing what I can to make sure that she gets to the shops and has plenty of food in, and mowing her lawn etc. - She has been paying me for my "services" which has been hard to accept but I know that it is about keeping Independence and I am helping her do that so I've got used to it a bit. however, last week MrNoo and I had a bit of a brainwave. We wondered if she would allow us to use the rear half of her garden, in payment for the odd chores and taking to shops. It would give me more space for the more roaming veg (potatoes, squash) and also those veg that you need loads of - onions and carrots for example. Plus i could put some extra chickens in there which would help with the weeding, and allow me to repair the extreme damage the littlies have done to my lawn.  Now of course I could do a lot of this in my garden, but i like having enough lawn for Spot to play tail-chase, and to get my hammock out, and all those kind of things, so this would be perfect.  Well I broached the subject on Saturday, - and the lady - she say "Yes".  I nearly squealed with excitement.  We have said that we will replace her rear fence as part of the deal, as i think I'm generally doing better out of it than she is, and anyway it is as much to my benefit as hers as it will help with privacy and security for both of us. - it's all very overgrown at the moment, and there are rocks and bricks. But the chickens will soon help us clear it and then we can get planning.  We are hoping to get the fence done before winter and start to clear. We might not get much planted this year - although you never know the length of autumns we have had in the last few years there's always a possibility.

Secondly, i think  a few months ago I mentioned that Job2 were making me redundant (sort of) as they want someone full time and office based and it's not a position i was interested in (especially having read this week that ladies are not allowed to wear sandals in the office in summer due to H&S risks of dropping things on toes and scalding from kettles; are they serious? is this normal?  What about the slippers I wear at home, will they soon be outlawed - anyway I digress............)  So I have been thinking of jobs/businesses which could be predominantly home based. Obviously there is my crafting obsession hobby, and i will soon(ish) be setting up a website to sell some handmade items.  I've outlined a brief business and marketing plan and think that, although it would never make me a living on its own, I can turn a bit of profit for just padding out the income a bit.

I've also been investigating copywriting & SEO (search engine optimisation).  I love writing, and when i read back over my blog I am sometimes surprised that I do actually make sense (it doesn't always in my head! LOL) So with a bit of study and reading, I am hoping I may be able to do that in a self employed or part time capacity, and if nothing else it should mean I can build a really good website for my crafted bits..  And of course there's always the book-keeping for MrNoo's business, which keeps me quite busy, and I have been neglecting lately in favour of job2 a bit.  Plus with the possibility of extra chickens next door I should have more eggs to sell, and maybe even spare veg and plants? - None of them alone would make enough to call a living, but hopefully a little of all of it put together will keep baked beans on the table and the mortgage paid.  Anything more than that is a bonus!

So it's all very exciting, and my to-do list has grown to pages and pages. But I'm up for the challenge (all of them) and have loads of ideas and plans.  Hopefully the blogging won't suffer, cos it'd be lovely if you all came on the journey with me.

I'll try to start with pics of my new back garden extension later in the week! ;)

'Til soon x

Sunday, July 03, 2011

Colour!

Today I have finished two blankets (like buses, none for ages then two at a time)

First there is my nephew's sockyarn blanket. It was made originally when he was born, but he's now nearly 4 and it needed lengthening, so here is a Big Boy's Blanket!


Made from sock yarn scraps, it's just mitred squares of 31 stitches, with a slipped stitch edging so once the first row is done you can pick up and knit on.  It's about 5ft long now, should last him a couple of years!

Secondly I have finished my blanket of sunshine:
It is the Willow Block from Jan Eaton's book 200 crochet squares. Made in Rico cotton in 15 colours. Each colour took each position in the square twice, so there are 30 squares, and 4 rows of DC around the edge.  I have more yarn to do more edging and I may well at some point, but for now it's finished!  I haven't measured it but I'd say it's around 4ft x 3ft 6.















 The garden is also really colourful at the moment, with the marigolds particularly showing their form:


There they are above, bordering my rampaging vegetable bed. Any minute now those yellow flowers will be joined by red runner bean flowers and ripening tomatoes, and the yellow courgette flowers.

The petunias are also pretty awesome now, they have a gentle fragrance, and a neon colouring - fantastic:
The photo doesn't do them any justice at all, they are deep and bright, like a perfect velvet. Amazing colouring.

I'd have taken photos of the Gazanias too as they are also beautiful colours, but they have not deemed it sunny enough today to open fully - I love how they open what they consider a sensible amount for the day - rain, and they stay tightly closed, cloudy - and they open just a tad, full on burn your bits sun - and they turn their faces up to the sun as wide open as they can be and enjoy the warmth on their petals. - It's all very clever.

I have also chosen my July challenge, but it's tucked away in my Lovely sock project bag. (Mine has meeces on, it's super cute and awesome!) and quite frankly I'm too lazy to get it out to photo - especially as I haven't even cast on yet. It's waiting for me tho'!

So there you have it, colour on a Sunday. And now the evening sun has come out and is at the best it has been all day - I feel a little garden knitting coming on, while I listen to the blackbird staking his claim to his territory!  Hope you all had a great weekend.

Thursday, August 05, 2010

Latest update, 20 squares done

I'm not blogging about much else at the moment am I?






I'm trying to be really random with the colours, but it's funny how difficult random is when it comes down to it!

In other news, I have silky sitting on a few eggs, poor love keeps going broody and it seemed only fair to give her a chance to be a mum again.  I don't hold out a lot of hope on these tho' as I'm not sure the cockerel has been doing his rounds lately!, but we'll see what happens. Heavens knows where I'll put them if they hatch, they may well have to come indoors in a box for a while!

There's not much else to tell you at the moment, life is ticking along as normal. The veg patch is doing ok, but i've had to stop watering all my pots and window boxes. It's coming to the end of the season anyway and they did so well early on, but I'm on a water meter and we haven't had any decent rain since early May (and even then it wasn't really a lot) so my water butts emptied a long long time ago. So now I'm just finishing off my veg then I'll call it a day for this summer. I've done well, courgettes, bean, a few peas, and plenty of potatoes. So no complaints and definitely cheaper than the supermarket!

Spot and I haven't walked quite as much as usual, it's really incredibly hot for a dog with a long fur coat, and she still hasn't learnt that she'll last longer if she doesn't run round like her a*s is on fire. But we have walked a few evenings along by the river where I did my 5k training and that's lovely, and usually ends up with me rescuing her from the river where she dives in and then realises it's too high to get back out!  I swear she'd jump off a cliff face without a seconds thought if that was what took her fancy at the time!





All of these walk photos have been taken during July - very late for little ducklings (which probably explains why there's only one) I expect it was a second brood?

Right another coffee, and then.............. well who knows, the sun is trying to peek through so maybe a walk if it's not too hot, although I really should do some work................. sometime!

Friday, July 23, 2010

12 down 18 to go






It must be a good thing when I have to stand on a chair to get them all in a photo......no?  Still hoping to get thirty squares from the pack .… we'll have to see if i make it. I'll need to buy more anyway for an edging as I don't think I'll be able to decide on an edge colour til I've seen all the squares. But I'm hoping for 30 to make it 6 squares by 5.  I still think it's sunshiny!

An unheard of occurrence is happening this weekend. I'm missing the grand prix!!!! This is because my friend and damm fine musician TJ Johnson and his band are playing at Ronnie Scotts on Sunday lunchtime. It's such a coup to get a gig there and I can't wait to be there to support them

Have a great weekend everyone xx

Sent from my iPhone

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Cameo

Well I'm obviously on a bit of a roll lately! Here is the newest finished article from the Doris Chan Everyday Crochet  book.

The Pattern is Cameo, made in 5 1/2 balls of  Drops Cotton Viscose (very splitty yarn :( ), on a 4.5mm hook.  If I made this again, or any of the variations on this pattern, I would stop the body just below the bust, and go back and do the armholes and straps as it'd be  much easier to get a good fit and try it on along the way then. I made it longer than the original pattern, and added one set of hip shaping as in the pattern Somnambulista which is based on the same design.(and which I think may be my next "must-have") I also needed the straps way longer than the pattern - an extra 10 stitches, and it still could have been longer. (But then I have always known I was a bit "thick set" around the shoulders!!!!)   All in all very happy with the finished article. The yarn had been frogged, and I also had to re-do a few bits of this (mostly the straps to get them the right length), and it became very very splitty because of that. But it's made up nicely.

Finally,  I have made my first sunshine square:-


After a few false starts I have decided on the Willow Square from the 200 Crochet Blocks  book.  I should have enough yarn to make 30 squares, which will make a throw 48" x 40" - It's going to be a slow process tho' so I'll just mosey along with this as and when.

Now I'm off to watch the British F1 Grand Prix - I won't be moving from the sofa for a few hours!

Thursday, July 08, 2010

*Squeee*

My Lucy Colour Pack of Rico Creative Cotton has finally arrived. Doesn't it just look like sunshine in a bowl? I think the girls at First4yarns have done a sterling job, they have been totally inundated (which I'm sure is a good thing) and have depleted both theirs and the manufacturer's supplies several times over. But patience has won the day and I think most orders have been completed now.  Now, what to make in it??! LOL

Friday, July 02, 2010

Jewel in the Crown

This is Jewel (Ravelry Link) by Doris Chan   (blog link!).  Fantastic pattern and the first quite complex crochet pattern I have followed.  It's crocheted top down with raglan sleeves. i had a bit of trouble to start with as I was over complicating the pattern, but once I understood the way it was written I was well away.

This won't be the only pattern I make from this book!

Sunday, May 30, 2010

Sock yarn remnants!





I've caved and bought Lucy's Colour Pack from First4yarns, but as it's out of stock at the moment, I had an idea to appease my desire for some bright colours............. left over sock yarn!  I had started this a long while ago, but it got put in a corner and forgotten! I'd only done a couple of squares so have resurrected it and am now going great guns.- I'm loving it!! ;)  The square designs are from 200 Crochet Blocks ......
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