Grande Project ~ 5

picture by Marie-Thérèse

it's hard to believe we are already at the fifth update of this Grande Project, and Marie-Thérèse is almost done with the crochet baby poncho for her baby girl. she wrote me she enjoys crocheting this poncho so much, she's a bit sad it's almost done.

pictures by Alessandra

Alessandra's table runner is growing rapidly, row by row and she also wrote me how happy she, is working on this project. two ladies happy crocheting, I'd say mission accomplished.

as for me, I am only just a little jealous of the sunny and warm pictures from Indonsia. a little. 

ahum ok, not just a little haha

not so much sunshine and warmth today here in Canada, however quite a growing and shining blanket in my home. while it's raining cats and dogs I am weaving in ends, and making progress with the new color blocks in light blue and pink/red. I couldn't decide on choosing pink or red and ended up using both.

three projects, the same yarn, all coming close to being finished...

if you've missed the previous posts, look here for the beginning

update ~ 1

update ~ 2

update ~ 3

update ~ 4

Grande Project ~ 4

pictures by Marie-Thérèse

it's Wednesday... time for a Catania Grande Project update

Marie-Thérèse started with her baby poncho last week, and has added quite a few rows this week. it is coming together nicely as you can see. the shape is showing very well on the vase, so cute and pretty. she says: I love to crochet with this yarn. it doesn't fringe and feels very soft. the colors are very pretty. I am very happy with the yarn and plan to use it for future projects for sure!

pictures by Alessandra

last week the yarn arrived with Alessandra in Indonesia, and she started crocheting the first rows of her table runner. the colors she picked are red, green and pink. I rarely work on a project without a shade of white in it, so I was eager to see how these colors would work together. and I love it, it gives a real dense color splash. she says: I remember entering for the yarn challenge, and never thought of the possibility of winning, there are so many great crocheters out there! but now I am in and I am playing the game with joy. I am usually an acrylic yarn girl; it is a little elastic when you work with it and I like that. so at first I was a little scared to work with cotton. but after the first rows, I can say Catania Grande is just fabulous in your hands. it is soft enough and a pleasure to work with. what I like most is the quality of this cotton; when you crochet with it, it doesn't split in fact it keeps it's shape. I love it!

and my own project, the baby blanket, is taking shape as well. I am almost half way! it is becoming a decent size blanket, quite thick and sturdy, yet very soft and even warm. I can't wait to start with the second half of the blanket and pick my colors for it. light blue for sure, I am doubting on red or pink... oh and then there are quite a few yarn ends to weave in. not looking forward to that at all haha.

three very different projects, in different color combinations, coming along nicely if you ask me! stay tuned, there'll be a new update next Wednesday

a big hug to Marie-Thérèse and Alessandra for playing along with me, I am so lucky to have these dedicated girls on board with this project!

if you're new here and would like to know the background of this project:

this is how it started

update 1

update 2

update 3

Grande Project ~ 3

update on the Catania Grande yarn challenge from Indonesia: the yarn has arrived in good order, both Alessandra and myself are very pleased with this news. next week we will get a glimpse of the first stitches she made with these red, pink and green pretties. I can't wait to see the start of her oval table runner!

Marie-Thérèse has taken off with the little baby poncho she is making for her daughter. when she sent me the pictures earlier this week and I opened them on my computer, I instantly got a big smile on my face. don't you just love the way the colors work in these first rows? I love it, so so so tiny and cute. she works with a crochet hook size 5 mm and it works perfect with her tension I think. 

and last, the progress of my own blanket. I struggled and tried, started over and over again, but finally found a way to work the squares up in rows instead of separate ones. I must admit I am quite pleased to see how these first rows came out. the yarn is nice to work with, I don't find it very stiff which is good. I choose a hook size 4.5 mm and this works perfectly with my tension I think.

wow, now we are all three in the game for this weekly project I am really getting excited about it! it is so great to see pictures coming from Indonesia and the Netherlands and share them with you. I await the pictures like a little girl awaits her candy, haha. I love it when the internet facilitates projects like these.

have a lovely day

Grande Project ~ 2

pictures by Marie-Thérèse

hello, it's Marie-Thérèse from The Netherlands. it is an honor for me to post here and get the chance to test this Catania Grande yarn together with Alessandra and Maaike. much sooner than I expected, the yarn arrived on my doorstep when I came back from a lovely walk with my kids and dog last week. the envelope, the pretty wrapping and a very sweet card, all so lovely. I am very excited that this crochet test project can start now!

about the pattern I chose. my intentions were to start a poncho for my baby daughter, similar to the one I am making for myself. the collar is made of a few granny's, finished off with granny stripes. when I calculated the sizing for my daughter, it would be way too large. therefore I decided to work with a different pattern that is made of just granny stripes. 

I picked the pink, green and white. Maaike added the light blue for me and I love how the colors work together, I will include the blue for sure. now I have to decide in which order to use these colors. I will start with pink, then white, followed by green. the rest will come together as I go, Maaike's crochet work is a good source of inspiration for me. and I am very sure this is going to be one pretty poncho! 

thank you very much for your lovely contribution Marie-Thérèse, I am really curious to see the poncho you are making for yourself too. that must be such a pretty sight in a few weeks from now; mom and baby in the same style poncho.

let me apologize for posting the Wednesday post on Thursday, but I am not really feeling well this week. must be that delayed Spring that is not yet here to warm me up. oh well, it will pass. 

in the mean time I re-designed the blanket for this Grande test project because I wanted to include dark blue yarn since Alessandra and Marie-Thérèse are not using it. this first row looks pretty messy and it is pretty messy too, haha. it is my attempt to make squares without crocheting separate squares first. does that make sense? an update will follow next week, by then you will see if it worked out.

good news from Indonesia; the yarn arrived at Alessandra's place too! more about that and her table runner project next week

on a side note: today is the last day for you to enter the book give away here... I will pick a winner tomorrow

Grande Project ~ 1

thank you for your kind comments regarding the new Gatherings Magazine here, on Facebook and on Instagram. it means a lot to me that you like it so much! I will post details of my projects in the coming weeks. 

today a new Wednesday series starts here : the Catania Grande project with Alessandra from Indonesia and Marie-Thérèse from The Netherlands. you all came with wonderful project suggestions for the challenge to test this new yarn. a few weeks ago I made that tough decision and picked these two ladies. in the far top picture in this post you see the yarn I shipped to Marie-Thérèse, for her to make a baby poncho for her little girl. Below it is the yarn I shipped to Alessandra, who is planning to make an oval table runner. 

the yarn has arrived in The Netherlands, and I can't wait to see and share with you the first pictures from Marie-Thérèse and her poncho project. shipping to Indonesia is of a total different kind, so we have to have a little more patience for the yarn to arrive at Alessandra's doorstep. 

in the mean time, I am showing you my thoughts and drafts on the blanket I am planning to make with this yarn. magazines are a big source of inspiration to me, and I tear out pages that spark ideas. I keep them in a folder and leave the other half of the spread empty, for me to draw designs. in this case a beautiful flower arrangement. I am thinking of translating this color scheme into a crochet blanket that's made of different squares, or I might dare to try my first chevron pattern... more about this next week.

Yarn Challenge : The Reveal

well, as said yesterday, I did it. out of all your wonderful, great, new, refreshing, surprising and overall lovely ideas I picked not one but two ladies who will crochet along with me to test the new Catania Grande.

the first one is Marie-Thérèse from the blog MaSaJa 

who will be making a baby poncho for her 2,5 month old daughter

the second one is Alessandra from the blog homemade@myplace

who will be making an oval table runner with scallop edging

congratulations girls, I will be in touch with you to inform you about the details and to get your addresses for shipping. once the yarn has arrived we will start sharing pictures and stories here on my blog. it can take a little while, since the yarn goes to Indonesia and The Netherlands for these projects. so exciting!

thank you all for participating and sharing your ideas, you are one clever and creative group of lovely people!

hugs