crochet Archives - Page 27 of 28

The Petal Patch Harmony Blanket.

November 11, 2015blanket, crochet16 Comments

Decide to get out a woolly blanket and the cat will appear from nowhere. Trying to take pictures of a woolly blanket is even worse. 70% of the pictures I took of this blanket had cat in them. I eventually gave up.

I’ve put it somewhere safe in case she tries it on again. She has claimed too many of my blankets.

Anyway, I’m pleased to say that I’ve finished the blanket and it looks lovely. I’m quite tempted to keep it as another blanket for the living room but it isn’t really big enough. I stopped making squares for it when I thought it wouldn’t go with the rest of the room. It turns out that, actually it probably would look quite nice. I’m taking it to a Christmas/craft fayre at the end of the month to see if someone buys it…

I really enjoyed making the squares. They are the Petal Patch Motif by Betsy Makes and the colour scheme is basically nicked from Attic 24’s Harmony blanket plus a few balls of Parchment and a smattering of Grape (it’s all Stylecraft Special DK). To give a nod to both of these pilferings I am calling the blanket Petal Patch Harmony. Blankets have names these days.

It’s slightly squashed where the cat abused it. I should probably give it a wash before trying to put it up for sale.

Many of these pictures are very samey but it takes too much time, dithering about which ones to use. May as well use them all.

Once again, I used the Continuous Join As You Go. Next time I’ll move on to a new technique. Not because I don’t like this one (I actually really like it) but because I want to learn something new. I’ve seen a few different ones about that I want to try. Just need to decide which to do first.

It’s a good size for the sofa or maybe a toddler bed. It also works well draped, with nonchalance, over a chair. Perhaps I should aim for one blanket per item of furniture; I can casually arrange blankets everywhere. You’ll never find the cat again.

The border is from Edie Eckman’s Around the Corner, Crochet Borders. Number 27. I cheated and skipped every two stitches, not every other. I did it that way so I wouldn’t have to make as many stitches. I can see that it is a ever so slightly stretched but that’s the punishment I get for being cheaty. I did the same thing on the Fireplace blanket and got a way with it more because I tinkered with the pattern. I get told off a lot for not following the recipe.

Here it is, complete. It looks smaller here than in real life. Real life tells me it measures 95x125cm. 63 squares.

Main colour is parchment and I can’t remember if I used three or four balls. The rest of the colours are most definitely less than a ball each. I used: clematis, lavender, lime, meadow, plum, sage, storm, pale rose, turquoise, violet, cloud, petrol, grape, raspberry, parma and aster. Hope I haven’t missed any out… Right, onto the next project!

I made stuff pre-blog too; pretending to be a crafting blogger. When you’re not. Yet.

October 23, 2015blanket, crafty, crochet, felt, sewing17 Comments

I’ve spent years being inspired by other bloggers work. It became something I really wanted to do too. It looked fun and it looked like a good way to keep on track of what I was doing creatively. I was lazy and procrastinatey and used several excellent excuses as to why I hadn’t just done it. I’m still so new to it all, but if I had started when I first I had the notion then I would have been being bloggy for six or seven years by now! In my head, I have been doing it for six years or seven years. I’ve spent much time taking pictures of crafty projects and each time I’ve thought that maybe they would end up as a blog post. So, I’m going to put up some pictures of work that was done in the six months prior to hitting Publish for the first time. (I was going to write a post about yeasterday’s [relevant unwitting typo, that applies] kitchen endeavours but that was such a disaster that I need a few days to recover :/).

I went through a mandala phase. These two are both Made in K Town using Rico Creative Cotton. Cheap cotton, very splitty, lovely colours. This has led me towards doilies, which I still need to make more of. Soon.

I made my eldest boy an Attic 24 Ripple for his bed. It’s Stylecraft Special. Everyone loves a bit of Stylecraft rippling.

The boy chose the colours. So off I went. It was reasonably speedy once the first few rows were out the way. A repeating colour pattern was a weeny bit boring though. Next time, it’s random colours, like it’s supposed to be.

I made teeny niece the mini version for her dolly. I didn’t use the same pattern. This version has more ripples so looks better scaled down. It’s actually adapted from a cushion cover pattern from Cute and Easy Crochet by Nicki Trench. When I say “adapted” I mean “added a few more rows”. The edging, I think is the one that was on the Granny Stripe made by Lucy at Attic 24.

This one was a special request for a baby blanket. My Sister in Law chose the colours. It’s Stylecraft alpaca DK. The blocks were from 200 Crochet Blocks by Jan Eaton. Don’t go thinking that all the blocks end with the same stitch count though. They really don’t. Hmm. I really liked how this one turned out but I only blocked the edge (which is from Edie Eckman’s Crochet Borders book) and not the individual squares. Next time, I will try super hard to block stuff.

One of the quickest little blankets ever. It was so much fun. The squares were done in a few days and it was the first time I used a continuous-join-as you-go. This was for a baby girl born in early spring. I’d make one of these again for sure. It was inspired by a picture I saw on Pinterest and it led me to Katie’s Kitchen.

There are six handmade things in the picture above. Six! I am responsible for five of them but the cream knitted blanket is a Mother in Law job. Three blankets, two cushions and a dolly. Huzzah.

Sewing has been worked on too. I’m better than I was but there is definitely room for improvement too. Having said that, the cherry blossom needlecase is one of my favourite felty sewn things I’ve done.

And a Mermaid’s purse! Well, another needlecase… She was lovely to make. After Christmas I plan on making more of these sorts of things and giving them a go on Etsy. I’m not entirely sure what the demand is for needlecases and such, I guess I’ll find out. I will obviously shout very loudly on here if these sorts of things head towards my Etsy shop.

Phew, I feel a bit better now. I’m off to have yesterdays’ leftovers for lunch, which thankfully, taste better than the experience that I had in the kitchen.

Lily’s Lilypad Fireplace Blanket.

October 14, 2015June 15, 2025blanket, crochet, free pattern17 Comments

At last I have finished my new granny square blanket! It has been an age. I got the wool in July, which to me seems like a loooong time ago. The first post I mentioned it in reminds me not to just click on auto edit when sorting out the photos because, crikey, those pictures need toning down. Hope I’ve improved since then. The next picture doesn’t count, it was taken indoors on a rainy day :/

These are the decorative fireplace tiles, which originally inspired the colour choices.

I used the Lily pad square from Pasta and Patchwork but I added extra chains between stitches for the first couple of rounds as my granny squares were not sitting flat. Indeed, they looked like strange nipples. They still don’t sit flat so could do with blocking. However, blocking things increases waiting time and I just want to see a crochet blanket finished. I’m too impatient for it but this crochet blanket would really benefit from blocking. Over time, it’ll sort itself out.

I used Drops Karisma for this project. It has alpaca in it and it’s super warm. It’s nice and hefty; the weight of it has real cosiness. The colours are: light beige, olive, mint, light dusty pink, dark mustard, light grey green, chocolate brown, wine red and beige brown mix. I used 7 balls of light beige and two of each for the others. It’s an odd size: 6×9 squares which is slightly over long, or not quite wide enough, depending on which way you want to look at it. I actually planned for 7×7 but I didn’t want to have that much leftover yarn and I wasn’t sure it’d be that big. Unfortunately I was a square short to add another row of 7. I eeked it out with what I could and this was the formation that used the most squares.

I think the border suits it very well and I will use it for my next crochet blanket (which I’ve already started!). The border has come from Around the Corner, Crochet Borders by Edie Eckman. It’s the last two rows of pattern 27. The corners are made up because I hadn’t laid the foundation stitches from the pattern (not enough yarn for that). I think it works beautifully well.

I’ve used a Continuous Join As You Go to join the granny squares together. I learned this method using a fabulous JAYG tutorial, it’s the clearest one I’ve found. I used two UK trebles in every other stitch, which is different from the cluster used in the tutorial but the principle is the same.

I’m properly pleased with this new blanket. I will be waving goodbye to it at the end of the month when I hand it over to my sister in law. A Lily Pad blanket for Lily, or, Fireplace Blanket.

Next, I’m focusing on Halloween decorations, hopefully there will be a post about that and I’m also working on a new pattern for something Christmassy. It doesn’t feel right liaising with Father Christmas before I’ve sorted Halloween but there you go.

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The garden in late summer.

September 8, 2015September 8, 2015crochet, flowers, garden10 Comments

Before I post endless pictures of the garden, I had better show at least one recent crochet project. This is a cute baby bonnet I made for a friend, whose baby girl was born last week.

I made it in a DK cotton. I thought cotton would be best for a teeny weeny new born.

I found the pattern on Pinterest. It was a lovely pattern, very easy to follow. It is here. You can add a couple more rows to make it bigger. Once I’d finished, I wished I had. However, it fits! Not for long though.

Any way, the following pictures are more for my benefit than any one else. I’m posting them so I can see how the garden looked in the late summer of 2015! The answer is, messy.

I have always taken pictures of the garden and over the years it has changed quite a lot. The photo’s are a reminder because otherwise I’d assume it always looked the same. It’s easy to forget.

Busy bee.

He didn’t mind having a camera poked at him in the slightest.

It never occurred to me before that sunflowers would seed themselves. I said in a previous post that it is because of my dodgy homemade compost. The Hollyhocks are doing surprisingly well but they’re very spindly. Just the white ones arrived.

I’ll be interested to look back on these in a year or two. I hope to make some changes to the planting but need to have a think.

The Honeysuckle had it’s best year so far. Lots of flowers appeared. We hacked it back to just a few inches last year. Did the trick.

I could have taken some pictures of a different area of the g arden I suppose. Um, Maybe the tatty looking veg patches. Everything is coming to an end.

I have been busy crafting and taking too many pictures. So many, that sorting through them has been blah. So this post is a bit of a filler really. I will be getting my bum in gear and doing some more crafty business in the next couple of weeks.

Some more Leibster questions

September 1, 2015crochet8 Comments

Back garden at 6am last Thursday and contrary to the saying, the shepherds did not need to be warned, it was a nice day.

Last week I nominated Esshaych for the Liebster Award. Well, Esshaych has nominated me back and I get to answer some more questions! Esshaych is a great blog for those (like me), who enjoy amigurumi. If you don’t know what this Liebster thing is about have a look at my last post.

Here are the questions I was asked:

1. What is your favourite craft, and why?

I like lots of different crafts but crochet is probably the one I do the most. I also enjoy sewing little things such as bags, purses and toys. I’d like to say I’m a regular clothes maker too but I can’t find enough time.

2. Best thing you’ve ever made?

I made Beth Doherty’s fawn and I love him.

He isn’t perfect and he’s covered in dust now. He’s so tightly stitched that he can stand all by himself. I’m proud of that!!

I’ve been asked to make these for people but I’ve been putting it off as I remember some tricky techniques involved. The pattern is in this book.

3. And the worst?!

I was asked this question before and I’ve made some pretty shoddy things over the last few years. I attempted to design a crochet cupcake that was just an embarrassment and the first blankets I made were terrible.

4. Do you have any superstitions?

I secretly worry after I’ve walked under a ladder.

5. Do you prefer to read books or watch movies?

Both. But they’re often sidelined if I need to do something crafty. I can’t crochet and watch tv at the samew time. I miss too much of what’s going on.

6. Your favourite place you have visited?

Not sure I have an ultimate favourite but Lydford Gorge on Dartmoor is amazing (even better if there are no other visitors). Any where on Dartmoor is cool. There are lots of piskies running around. You will never see them watching you. They’re there.

7. What craft supply did you purchase last?

I bought some cream DK with dark speckles in it. I was trying to see if it would make a good amigurumi snowy owl (it won’t).

8. Dolls – Yes or No?!

Yes. I want to sew some dolls but they always end up at the bottom of the to make list. 🙁

9. Ever been to any gigs/concerts? If so, what was your favourite and why?

When I was 15 I went to see Blur and REM at Milton Keynes Bowl. It was so hot that day. It was the first time Blur sang Country House! I loved that song! I also saw Primal Scream around the same time. I can’t say that either of these experiences blew me away. I’ve seen other bands since but it’s been a while. I’d like to take my boys to a festival when they’re a bit older but I don’t think they’d like it in the dance tent (that’s where I’d head to now).

10. Do you own any cacti?

No but I’m not averse to the idea. We do need more plants in my house. I’d like some in the bathroom to make it look like a jungle.

11. Favourite colour/colour combo?

Green and brown are my favourite colours.

And below are the questions from Ericka Eckles. She was one of my nominees and has gone to town on her answers. They’re fabulous!

If you could have a fantasy date with anyone who would it be?

I love this question. I am going to say Nathan Fillion. I don’t really fancy him but I think he’s very funny. Love Firefly and love Castle. In a minute I’ll remember someone super hot and wish I’d said them. No! I won’t, that’s mega shallow.

What pieces connected with what you love to do, do you really treasure….

All the uniques things that no one else has. Handmade things. My crochet case is handmade as is my needle case. And I love all the ladybird books I’ve collected. I love looking at the pictures and I like the fact that I can get one down from the shelf to show my children an interesting fact about the weather or something.

What do you wish you were better at/could do?

I’d like to be a fancy knitter and super dressmaker. Given the time, I could definitely get better at both but I want to do everything NOW and that’s frustrating.

(Friday evening at the front of the house).

Hopefully I’ll be able to share some more stuff soon. Back to normal next week, once eldest son has gone back to school. I’m looking forward to helping at a fairy fancy dress party in a couple of weeks. There will be mucho crafting involved in that. And for the last couple of weeks I have already had Halloween on my mind. Definitely gonna do crafty shenanigans for that…

Pens, Pencil Cases and Getting out there.

August 25, 2015August 25, 2015crochet, free pattern, sewing7 Comments

I bought pens! So many pens. I am not entirely sure what I’m going to use them for. It was a bit of a naughty purchase really but they were only £6.99 from WHSmiths.

Looking at Pinterest last night I learned that, contrary to what I believed, they are actually useless for tarting up plates and cups. Not that I was planning on drawing all over my crockery but it leaves me with one less option. My first thought upon getting all these shiny new things was where to put them? Well…..

I made them a pencil case all of their very own! It didn’t take very long and I had to get the sewing machine out to do a proper sewing thing anyway (more curtains). It is based on the mini zippered bag but I’ve made this a lot so I didn’t need to follow the tutorial.

I love the fabric. I bought it in May, in a little shop in Exmouth called Creative Sewing. It sells the loveliest, prettiest, poshest fabric. I only bought a few fat quarters and some ribbon because I couldn’t afford much else. Now I have a new home for my pens. The children are not allowed these pens, we’ve only just redecorated.

Look! It’s me!! I made these little guys a few weeks ago and tagged Simply Crochet magazine on the picture I instagrammed. I was pretty chuffed to see them in the magazine. Now I know they don’t make up pretend readers! I don’t often buy magazines (not reeeallly), let alone make the patterns within the pages but I did this time. It has definitely given me a boost but I am wondering if I should aim higher next time. I’m thinking about focusing more on my own designs and seeing what happens if I shout loud about them… for example:

These little hooters are becoming really popular. I posted the pattern at the beginning of the month. They are my Granny Owl Decorations. A few days later I twigged that I should probably put them on Ravelry. I did and it went a bit mental for a couple of days. Then yesterday, completely out of the blue, they gathered loads of interest after someone (I’ve no idea who) posted a link on their Facebook page. Very interesting, very exciting. I guess I need to be less scared about what I’m doing. Stop being a wimp. And I guess I should say “Thanks” to those who have found and liked my owlies. There will definitely be more patterns from me in the future.

PS I’m many places online. Over on the right you can see my Instagram, Facebook and Twitter pages. Please Follow/Like and what have you. And I’m also on Pinterest (all.the.time). Have a look! Thank you. X

Catching up with crochet blankets and changes in the garden.

August 12, 2015August 12, 2015crochet, flowers, garden, outside, veg patch8 Comments

I haven’t been working on these squares since the summer holidays began. I honestly didn’t think the holidays would have much of an impact on my crafty gubbins but it absoloutely has. Progress has slowed right down. However, this is still a good batch of squares. So far, there are fifty two and shockingly, ends have already been sewn in. Some ends have been sewn in. A few. I want over a hundred to make this blanket. I can’t remember the exact number needed. It doesn’t matter at this stage. I’ll have a play and then decide.

I love the pattern for this one. It takes a weeny bit longer to make than a regular Granny but it looks that much more special. It’s called the Petal Patch Motif by Betsy Makes. I’ll give myself an Autumn deadline for this one.

I’ve also been having a good old tinker around with this pattern. It’s the Lily Pad square and it’s very pretty. I’m particularly looking forward to seeing this one complete. I have a feeling it’ll look lovely.

The first square I made is the one on the bottom right. The middle is tighter and kind of went nipply (?!). I added some chains between stitches for the first couple of rounds, which sorted that out. I have also only just twigged that it’s someone called Lily who will become the owner of this blanket! Lily pads for Lily. Hee!

This tile is the inspiration for the colours. I wrote about it a couple of weeks ago and haven’t moved on that much further. Fingers crossed that the colours match in real life. It’s tricky colour matching by photographs.

Will I be getting ripe figs this year? Last year, the tree was laden with fruit but none of the blighters ripened. I always get excited about seeing them ripen but truthfully, I thinks figs are a bit pappy. However, I do like to pass them on to friends. People get excited by homegrown figs and I like to hand out bags and bags of them.

My runner beans are in full swing. I flippin love runner beans. I’m tempted to make chutney this year. I have a good recipe somewhere and I haven’t made any for a few years. Hmm. I could make some courgette chutney too…

The pink Japanese Anemone is looking fabulous at the moment. I wish I could say the same for the white one I got a couple of years ago. The white one is in too much shade and I’m not sure the ground, in which it sits, is that nutrient rich. I might dig it up and move it.

Scroll past these if you like. I’m gonna add another anemone picture next too…

Behind, on the right is Arron’s Rod, I think. A bit weedy but it is adding height. I really need to research some flowering plants that are about 6 foot tall. Any suggestions?

Helloo baby garden spider. I saw loads of these in the spring when they’d hatched, so I knew they would find themselves homes. He flashed his belly at me.

The garden in the summer looks a lot different to how it was in the spring. There are brighter flowers and it looks a lot less organised. I don’t know how to plan planting very well and it shows.

I’m astounded that the Hollyhocks flowered. They have been affected by rust. I sprayed them with Rose Clear, which has antifungal things in it. It seems to have helped them to recover just enough. Not just for roses it seems. Beside it, the Crocosmia is mightily happy. It isn’t bothered by rust.

Several Sunflowers have come up at the bottom of the garden. I didn’t put them there. What I did put there was homemade compost. I deny putting Sunflowers in the compost though. I have no idea how they got there. Lots of self seeding has gone on down at the bottom of the garden. That Borage has barged its way in. And there is what I suspect to be Verbena Bonariensis coming up too. The pink flowers are Lavatera but that was deliberately planted.

So, there are all these colours going on. It’s a bit of a muddle. It looks nice enough but I need lessons in planning. Maybe an overhaul for next year? Do I start now? I’m not sure what to do.

Crochet granny owl decoration. Free pattern!

August 5, 2015September 18, 2019crochet, free pattern14 Comments

[EDIT:: for 2019 I have written an update and created a video tutorial on YouTube. Please go HERE to find out more. Cheers.]

A while ago I wrote about how I was working on a crochet pattern. It was something that I came up with a few years ago but I wasn’t entirely happy with it. I dug out my old and poorly written pattern and decided to play around with it and give it a makeover. I now think it is ready to unleash so it can fly off and make new friends!

Here are lots of crochet granny owls in various stages of making. They don’t take too long to put together.

I’m only hurting them because I love them.

I made eight in the end, each of which turned out a little different depending on how I tweaked the pattern.

What I like is, you can add bits or leave bits off. Wings, tufty ears, hangy loop. The wings can be sewn on completely or half sewn on so that they flap about.

Owly with wings and tufty ears.

Owly without wings and tufty ears. This one has suffered a minor injury to his hanging loop. He was attacked by a scissor weilding boy.

A friend of mine knew what I was up to and offered to help turn my pattern into a fancy pants PDF that could be downloaded. This is something I have no experience in and I am unbelievably grateful that she spent so much time making it for me. She is an amazing artist and graphic designer, it looks so pretty! I have given her a open favour in return, I wonder what it’ll be…

The PDF should be just below. It has the pattern and some (hopefully) helpful pictures.

GRANNY OWL PATTERN (2)

I love these owls. I feel a weeny bit of proud of myself! They’re very cute. I think a snowy owl version would look lovely hanging from a Christmas tree. Or, I’m thinking of a Halloween version?! I’d love to see one of those. Also, I’m sure it could be turned into other creatures besides an owl. Can’t think of any at the moment though…um… turn it upside down, add a few curling tentacles and it’s an octopus??

If you like this pattern, please visit my Facebook page and “Like” it’s just over on the right of the page. Instagram is also there if you fancy following me! Thanks.

I’m also on Pinterest come and have a look. I flippin love Pinterest!

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Sewing curtains, re-homing a crochet blanket and enjoying summer.

July 23, 2015July 23, 2015blanket, crochet, flowers, garden, outside, sewing6 Comments

Last week I said I wasn’t allowed to buy any more fabric…. I have….

Half a tonne of it. Lots of it. Loads. I’m making curtains, it’s totally legit. When I said I wasn’t allowed to buy any more fabric I had forgotten that I’d planned new curtains. It was not an impulse purchase but a careful, well thought out one. I started on the first curtain the other night but was scuppered by having bought the wrong header tape. I blame IKEA, I don’t think they do the normal header tape anymore and it wasn’t for normal curtains, it was weird. Anyway, by the time the replacement stuff we ordered from Ebay turns up, I’ll have hopefully sorted out all of the other curtains ready for the tape. I can’t wait to have new curtains!

I got a request from a friend on Monday night asking if I had a spare baby blanket they could have to give as a present for someone. Actually, I had three from leftover experiments. This is the one they chose. Unfortunately, it wasn’t actually finished. Thankfully I’d sewn in the ends already. However, it had no border so I had to quickly whizz around it a few times and find a pretty edge that would suit a baby girl. This is the blanket.

It was initially going to be for a baby I knew but once I’d almost finished, I decided it wouldn’t suit said baby and stored it away with all the other abandoned projects. Poor blanket. Luckily, someone else saw the potential in it and asked if they could have it. Yes. Good.

There isn’t a pattern for it, it’s just a basic granny stripe mixed in with a variety of doubles, half trebles and trebles in a random order. I used Stylecraft Special DK. I quite liked it once it had its border added. The border was inspired by various different patterns I’ve seen around. It’s a bit hotchpotch.

The garden is getting pretty again after its June lull. It makes me ponder what I need to do for next year, to ensure I have colour in more places. I’ve noticed that the greenfly have come to party on my Sweet Peas.

My six year old and I went outside this morning and snipped all the Sweet Peas and some Lavender to make posies for his teachers. It’s the last day of school today. I shook off the greenfly before he handed them over.

There is loads of Borage in the herb bed, I didn’t realise it was such a prolific self seeder. There are so many plants. It’s managed to travel to some other parts of the garden too. I’m going to have to keep on top of that.

The bees flipping love it. It would make me feel guilty if I took too much of it out. I’m going to have to keep it to one part of the garden but still make sure the bees have enough to keep their tummies full.

Bees are also having a great time in the Nasturtiums. I’ve spotted more bumble bees here as opposed to the honey bees on the Borage. I don’t know any other type of bees. I could well be mixing my bees.

I’ll soon be running the risk of repeating myself with the garden pics. I’ll need to look at past blog posts to remind myself of my blatherings.

Here, another one of Borage! I put them in ice cubes last year. Looked absolutely nothing like those pictures you see on Pinterest.

A few more crafting projects started and some summery garden stuff.

July 16, 2015blanket, crochet, fabric, flowers, garden, outside, veg patch10 Comments

Okay, I think these are the only finished things this week. They’re little crochet brooches. The pattern for the raccoon is from issue 33 of Simply Crochet magazine. I made the fox so that he had a friend. Same pattern just different colours. The raccoon pattern is designed by Becky Garratt. I looked at her blog and I like it very much.

This is new wool for a blanket that has been “commissioned” (my Sister in Law has asked me to make it). The colours have been taken from a tile from a victorian fireplace. I’m assuming that once the blanket is finished, it will drape beautifully somewhere beside the fire on a cold winter’s day (or something like that). It is Drops Karisma and seems ok, I’ve not used it before. I have made a tentative start but the pattern I’ve chosen might need tweaking.

Last week I started the Petal Patch blanket. I found the pattern for this on Betsy Makes and it makes a change from the standard granny without going crazy. I really like it. I have pretty much pilfered the colour scheme from Attic 24’s Harmony blanket.

I can’t decided whether to complete this first, or put it aside whilst I concentrate on the fireplace blanket. I know what I should do but I also know what I want to do. Actually, they will both be fun to make so I guess it doesn’t really matter. This Petal Patch blanket will take at least a few weeks more though as I want about 100 squares and so far I think I only have 25. I haven’t been working as fast as usual either. This is because of a hurty wrist and a yarn tangling toddler.

I bought this fabric in May, I think. It isn’t posh quality but it was less than £3 a metre, so I don’t care.

I made a bag out of it first and this week I hope to make a summer skirt. If, once I’ve finished, it looks good I will post some pictures. I should probably take a picture of the bag too. I have found what looks to be a good free pattern for the skirt.

This isn’t my hand, it belongs to my blanket wanting Sister in Law. She is into embroidery and when she visited last Friday, she whipped it out whilst me and some other fab people did our crochet. I wanted to share it simply because I like it!

Moving on from the crafting projects I am reminded that the garden is thirsty. These Anagallis are my new favourite flower. For about five years it was a Salvia, which I think is called Cambridge Blue but my Mum gave me some Anagallis seedlings after I spotted it in her garden last summer. These guys look like they need a drink.

Both the Salvia and the Anagallis are here. I expect the Salvia is feeling a bit miffed now.

Down at the bottom of the garden, the Crocosmia is just beginning to flower. It was here when we moved in. I don’t mind it too much, so it has been allowed to stay. This picture doesn’t show the Lavatera that has come up behind it but it does show the Salvia, which looks so much better in real life.

I went upstairs and took a picture. Everything is looking quite nice from this angle!

Hopefully I will get the sewing machine out tonight. I’d like to make a start on that skirt.