Zeens and Roger

Corner to Corner Geometric Crochet Cushion.

September 13, 2016March 2, 2026crochet, free pattern35 Comments

A Crochet Cushion

At last, I’ve finished my crochet cushion! I’m really pleased with it, even though it goes with absolutely nothing in the rest of the house! It was one of those things that just popped into my head one day. All other crochet projects were put aside whilst I got the first couple of squares done.

It has led to other ideas, too, which is great. It means that this cushion isn’t the end of my geometric crochet designing (I’ve got another pattern/tutorial up my sleeve for some time soon).

geometric-crochet-cushion-design-free-pattern

Basically, it’s corner to corner in US single crochet stitches. For some reason, I’ve adopted US speak for a lot, but not all, crochet terminology (I still call UK trebles, trebles, which can get confusing!). I added the corner tips of colour to make it more interesting; there wouldn’t have been much point in a plain c2c.

Ultimately, what I want to do is work out the pattern in Tunisian crochet, as I think you could do it all in one piece. Sadly, I don’t know how to do Tunisian crochet yet. This might well be the catalyst…

I bought an 18″ feather cushion and a plain cover (both very cheap from Amazon). This turned out to be a great fit for a 5×5 set of squares.

Making a Crochet Cushion

Stitching the squares together was easy. Right sides together and use matching yarn colours.

There are many ways to line them up, but I went for all corners pointing in the same direction.

I crocheted a crab stitch around the outside, thinking it would be a bit like piping. Turns out, it isn’t like that at all, but it was a good foundation for stitching the crochet to the cushion.

I took the actual cushion out to begin stitching.

I pinned it in place and then went around with a good strong needle, as close to the edge as possible.

And then it was done!

Do you like it?! I do! The balance of colours isn’t perfect. It was de-stash time again, and I ran out of some colours before others. In an ideal world, I would have planned that better, but you can’t go out and buy new balls just for the sake of a few metres. I even scrounged some of the lavender colour from my friend up the road.

If anyone fancies having a go, here is the crochet pattern for the C2C Single Crochet Square:
I used Stylecraft Special DK and a 4.5 hook.

Ch2
2sc in 2nd chain from hook, ch1 and turn. [2 sts]
2sc in both stitches, ch1 and turn. [4]
2sc in first stitch, 1sc in next 2 stitches. 2 sc in last stitch, ch1 and turn. [6]
2sc in first stitch, 1sc in next 4 stitches. 2 sc in last stitch, ch1 and turn. [8]
2sc in first stitch, 1sc in next 6 stitches. 2 sc in last stitch, ch1 and turn. [10]
2sc in first stitch, 1sc in next 8 stitches. 2 sc in last stitch, ch1 and turn. [12]
2sc in first stitch, 1sc in next 10 stitches. 2 sc in last stitch, ch1 and turn. [14]
2sc in first stitch, 1sc in next 12 stitches. 2 sc in last stitch, ch1 and turn. [16]
2sc in first stitch, 1sc in next 14 stitches. 2 sc in last stitch, ch1and turn. [18]
2sc in first stitch, 1sc in next 16stitches. 2 sc in last stitch, ch1 and turn. [20]
2sc in first stitch, 1sc in next 18 stitches. 2 sc in last stitch, ch1 and turn. [22]
2sc in first stitch, 1sc in next 20 stitches. 2 sc in last stitch, ch1 and turn. [24]
Sc the first two stitches together (decrease), 1sc in next 20 stitches, 1 decrease, ch1 and turn. [22]
1 decrease, 1sc in the next 18 stitches, 1 decrease, ch1 and turn. [20]
1 decrease, 1sc in the next 16 stitches, 1 decrease, ch1 and turn. [18]
1 decrease, 1sc in the next 14 stitches, 1 decrease, ch1 and turn. [16]
1 decrease, 1sc in the next 12 stitches, 1 decrease, ch1 and turn. Change colour. [14]
1 decrease, 1sc in the next 10 stitches, 1 decrease, ch1 and turn. [12]
1 decrease, 1sc in the next 8 stitches, 1 decrease, ch1 and turn. [10]
1 decrease, 1sc in the next 6 stitches, 1 decrease, ch1 and turn. [8]
1 decrease, 1sc in the next 4 stitches, 1 decrease, ch1 and turn. [6]
1 decrease, 1sc in the next 2 stitches, 1 decrease, ch1 and turn. [4]
2 decrease, ch1 and turn. [2]
1 decrease. Fasten off and sew in ends.

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Summer Holiday in Cardigan Bay.

September 12, 2016March 2, 2026crochet7 Comments

A Summer Holiday in Wales

This year our summer holiday was in Cardigan Bay, west Wales. What an awesome place! I’m not sure why you’d want to read about my holiday on a craft blog, but I’m sharing it anyway! Ha.Ha. :I

Beachy Drama

It was overcast at first, but not cold. It didn’t stop us from beaching it. The first day we went to Penbryn, a National Trust beach. Three things made this a particularly interesting place to be that day. One: I learned that it was used in a James Bond movie ( a teeny weeny, minuscule moment at the end of Die Another Day). Two: There was a wedding happening right there on the beach (we stood there gawping with our buckets and spades). And three: I thought I found a dead body. I felt a bit stupid when I realised it was a faded buoy and not a pensioner’s bald head wedged in the rocks, but you know, it was a few seconds of heart-pounding interest.

I love a good cave. There were a lot of caves.

This is a hippo, or possibly a moomin.

This was our coastal walk from Penbryn to Llangrannog. We didn’t actually make it as far as Llangrannog. We had to give up because it was too hard going for the kids. Lots of uppy downy.

On a really hot day we went to New Quay. The tide was out so we had a paddle between the boats.

This was where we waited for a boat to come and take us on a dolphin watching tour. The tour was fifty minutes of wondering where they were and then five minutes of “Oh wow! Look! A dolphin!” Then we had to go back to the quay. To be fair, it was a pretty blimmin good five minutes of dolphin watching. I’d never seen one before and we got to watch a mummy and baby dolphin do some peaceful swimming.

National Wool Museum

We ditched the kids one day and went to the National Wool Museum. The kids were sent with Grandma and Grandad to the Internal Fire Museum of Power! Sounds like a pretty good place, too, but I was happy with some wool.

There were working looms, which were very loud and fast. It was mesmerising to watch, but I didn’t like the man putting his hands so close to the shuttle thingies. He knew what he was doing.

We did Newcastle Emlynn that day too. It had good antique shops and fabric shops. And some castle leftovers.

Aberystwyth

We went to Aberystwyth, which we thought was an odd place. I can imagine that it would’ve been a bit of a party town a hundred years ago, but now, a lick of paint wouldn’t go amiss on some of those buildings. I did like it though! There’s definitely a sense of nostalgia here.

We went on the cliff terrace railway. We journeyed upon a worrisome train that was working loose at the seams. The hill is so steep that you wonder how this thing can pass health and safety tests. Well, we didn’t crash to our deaths that day, so all was good.

The views were alright.

Lots of cool architecture in Aberystwyth. Having been here, it makes me want to watch Hinterlands, a crime drama filmed in the area. I hear it’s pretty good.

We had a couple of days of barbecue weather, too. Yay!

Llangrannog

Our holiday was concluded with ice creams at Llangrannog. I loved this beach. The tide was out, and I could walk round to the next bay.

Whilst I wondered about taking pictures of rocks and stuff, the boys and Husband dug holes in the sand.

I didn’t want to miss out on playing with sand either. This is my effort. It was initially just a motte and bailey castle (Eldest learned about these at school last year) but a giant octopus came and smothered it.

Llangrannog was possibly my favourite. We did lots of other stuff too but I think I’ve shared quite enough holiday snaps for today! I’m off to get my craft on. I’ve got a massive list of stuff to make now that the boys are at school.

A Crochet Blanket for the Autumn.

September 9, 2016March 2, 2026blanket, crochet14 Comments

a-granny-square-crochet-blanket-for-the-autumn

Autumn Granny Squares

I completely forgot to write about this cosy crochet blanket. I finished it before the summer holidays. It got a wash and was then stored away before I realised I should probably show it off a bit and then put it up for sale. Actually, now is a pretty good time to do it because the colours remind me of autumn, and that’s just where we’re heading.

bright-autumn-colours-crochet-join-as-you-go-granny-squares

Join As You Go Grannies

Amazingly, for me, this is the first time I’ve used a join-as-you-go method for a granny square blanket. Whilst I’ve done plenty of continuous joins, this is slightly different due to all the colour changes. It looks so much better than if I’d whip-stitched the squares together (which is what I always used to do).

The border is quite plain but I didn’t think it wanted flouncy. Just some crochet scallops between every other cluster. In the alternating clusters, it’s just a UK dc (US sc). To stop it from curling too much, there are chains between them.

kind-of-autumnal-granny-square-crochet-blanket

There’s something about this blanket I really like, and I’ll be jiggered if I know what it is. Maybe it’s the simplicity of it, or it could be the autumn colour palette. I haven’t quite put my finger on it yet, but it doesn’t really matter, does it? I like it because I do!

autumn-crochet-granny-square-blanket-with-orange-border

The Yarn Colours Used

The colour scheme wasn’t a choice I made; it was determined by what I had left hidden in the cupboard under the stairs. Over the last few months, I’ve been making an attempt to get that down to a more manageable collection. I’m trying to train myself not to impulse-buy yarn too. It’s not working that well, I’ve just transferred my lustings to fabric instead.

Anyway, if you are at all curious about the colours, they are Stylecraft Special DK in: Saffron, Gold, Pomegranate, Petrol, Spice, Parma Violet, Khaki, Spring Green, Magenta and Lavender. It’s deffo less than a ball of each, but I couldn’t tell you how much exactly, as none were full balls to begin with.

join-as-you-go-autumn-granny-square-crochet-blanket

It’s a blanket that I wish I’d made bigger. Well, I couldn’t; didn’t have enough yarn stash! I hope that it finds a home…

Tour Of Britain: From Crochet to Cycling

In a complete random change of subject, I popped out to have a very speedy look at the Tour of Britain this morning. This was at the end of my road, just before midday today. I timed it very well; I was out and back home within fifteen minutes.

Fabulous Fig Recipes (For People Who Don’t Like Figs).

August 23, 2016March 2, 2026crochet14 Comments

I Don’t Like Figs

Last year I was moaning about how much I really didn’t like figs. I don’t want to say this out loud, but there’s a chance that I’m slowly becoming accustomed to their strangeness. I’m still not a big fan of figs, but I’ve found ways to make them work for me, and mostly I think that involves taking away a lot of the figginess.

When it comes to fig recipes, I like to take away the texture and disguise some of the flavour, but most recipes celebrate the unique qualities of this funny fruit, and it was tricky finding a selection that suited my tastes.

When properly ripe, figs are quite soggy; they have what I can only describe as a pappy texture. They also taste mega sweet and leave behind that sugary aftertaste that real Ribena has. I’m guessing that’s fructose!

As much as I am not keen, I still can’t leave them on the tree. It’s such a waste of a good yield. And they make a mess. So, as well as giving them away, I’ve found some recipes that work for me: a non-lover of figs…

Recipes For Using Up Figs

During fig season, I spend every other day wobbling on a giant step ladder, reaching dangerously high to grab at all the ripe fruit I can find. I have no idea why I go to such lengths, I guess I don’t like to see them go to waste.

Four Great Fig Recipes

Nigel Slater’s Fig Chutney

Nigel Slater’s Fig Chutney is by far my favourite fig recipe. It takes quite a bit of bubbling, but I’ve been highly rewarded. Especially yesterday when I had some with cheese and crackers. It’s even better after a year of sitting in a jar. The only change I made to this recipe was swap raisins for apples. I had cox growing in the garden too, and thought to use those rather than buying more ingredients. I’m not a very tidy chutney potter/canner, so it seems.

Making Your Own Dried Figs

Dried Figs are weird. They have a medicinal quality. But, when I made them, I kept going back for more, so that must mean something. It is very easy to make dried figs and I was surprisingly impressed by such a simple thing.

Fig and Lime Sorbet

I was dubious about Fig and Lime Sorbet, but honestly, there are so few ingredients that I think I was just being stupid and lazy. I haven’t made this for a couple of years, so this year will see its return. Today is probably a fig-picking day, actually, and by chance I have limes in the fruit bowl – they were for mojitos, but I’ll make the sacrifice. I love the citrus. I love lime!

Sticky Toffee Fig Rolls

I’ve not made Sticky Toffee Fig Rolls recipe yet! But the kids have asked for fig rolls, and these have got toffee in them, so they can’t be that bad! Let’s hope I get around to making them.

If anyone has any other fig recipes they’d like to suggest, do let me know. I’m trying to think of boozy things but I’ve got nothing at the moment.

I’ll be saying goodbye to figs next year. This tree is far too big for its boots, and we’re going to chop it. It needs a good pruning. I think you’re supposed to do that in January. As figs grow from the previous year’s twigs that means no figs for at least a year. However, I think it’s safe to assume that I won’t really mind!

Quick Summer Holiday Baking – Coconut Rock Buns.

August 10, 2016March 2, 2026crochet10 Comments

Cooling my coconut rock cakes. Rock buns

Quick Coconut Rock Buns

I remember making and eating coconut rock buns when I was little. Also known as coconut rock cakes, this is a really easy recipe. The kids and I made them last week. They were made and ready to eat within half an hour! Not too bad. So, if you’re having one of those days when you can’t be bothered to go out, and the kids need something to do, then this is your summer holiday treat!

The bad news for me was that I discovered my scales were broken when I went to make them, so I had to guess the measurements. I roughly worked out that things could be rounded to the nearest cup sizes. Surprisingly, they worked well! I must have guessed the ingredient weights correctly. I’m looking at this as a positive; it means that you don’t have to be exact, which is great when baking with children.

Coconut Rock Buns Recipe

1 cup/120g self raising flour
Half a cup/100g caster sugar
115g salted butter, cut into cubes. (I cut a normal 250g pack at just under the halfway point).
1 cup dessicated coconut. If you don’t like coconut, you can also use raisins (it’d be the weight equivalent rather the cup equivalent, though, and that’d be just over 100 grams).
1 large egg
100-150ml milk. Take it easy and see how it goes. I just splosh it in and don’t measure exactly.

How to Make Coconut Rock Buns

Using fingers and thumbs, rub the flour and butter together in a good-sized bowl. This is easy and doesn’t take as long as you think it will. You can cheat and whazz it in a food processor, but that just makes for more washing up.

Stir in the sugar and coconut.

Add the egg and milk and mix into a stiff dough. It’s a bit like making ugly scones, so that’s the sort of consistency you’re after. I might have added too much milk to mine, which is why they’re a bit flat. I don’t think it matters that much, as they still taste pretty yum.

Plop some dollops onto two lined baking trays (we used two dessert spoons to help) and bake in the oven for about 15 minutes. I’ve got a gas oven, so it’s Gas Mark 6. Google tells me that that’s 180 degrees C for fan, 200 degrees C for no fan! Or 400 F.

Be warned, I gave these to a friend’s offspring, calling them coconut rock cakes. They looked at them and declared that they weren’t cakes at all and didn’t want them. As soon as I changed the name to rock buns, they ate them all…

Yummy homemade coconut rock buns. Rock cakes Easy recipe.

A Crafty Trip Down Memory Lane

August 1, 2016March 2, 2026crochet22 Comments

Crafting and Memories

The first week of the summer holidays was a trip to Southampton. In between the obligatory trips to Toys R Us and Ikea, there are the family visits. I always go and see Nanna and Grandad. They both turned 90 in January and are still very independent (to be honest, I’m always expecting them to pop their clogs). On this visit, we went through some of Nanna’s crafty gubbins, and it triggered a nostalgic twinge.

Nineteen Forties Embroidery

Look at this! Nanna embroidered this tablecloth in 1945, and she said that she’d like to pass it on to me. I’m quite chuffed about that. It’s really very pretty. It needs a bit of cleaning (anyone got any advice on how to do that?).

She stitched it whilst her brother-in-law was in hospital. He’d had his face torn apart by shrapnel in World War 2.

Vintage Embroidery With Provenance

Who doesn’t love a bit of vintage embroidery?! Whilst it’s lovely as a tablecloth, I wonder if it wouldn’t be too insensitive to repurpose it. I would rather it be regularly used and loved than folded neatly in a drawer.

Now that it’s the holidays, I won’t have much time, but I would love to try some embroidery of my own. I do tinker with pretty stitching, but don’t do masses of it. It’s another thing to add to the list.

Nanna’s Knitting Needles

Nanna also decided she didn’t want her spare knitting needles anymore. This is daft because I’m sure she’ll want some of them back. Also, I am terrible at knitting.

She hasn’t given me the ones she regularly uses. I think these are all surplus. Amongst them is a Tunisian crochet hook. I got quite excited about this as it coincides with the growing fancy that I want to learn a bit of that.

Vintage Madeira Bag

Then there’s this awesome bag from Madeira. It needs repairing, but I think it’s pretty cool. I think she said a friend gave it to her, but I’m not sure. My guess is the 1970s, but it could be much earlier.

I’ve got no clue how to fix the broken bits on this very old bag. To be honest, I haven’t checked out how broken it really is. I can just see that the fabric is coming away from the baskety bit. And the baskety bit is a bit fragile in itself.

A Handmade Patchwork Blanket

Upon returning home to Devon, I went and rummaged in my own cupboards and dug out a few things.

Nanna made this patchwork blanket for my 18th birthday. For a good couple of years leading up to that birthday, I’d see EPP hexagons here and there and ask what they were for. She was always evasive, and I wouldn’t get a straight answer, hah!

I have to be careful with this blanket; I think there might still be a pin lodged in the quilted layers somewhere. I found about three when I got it and managed to get a couple out. I use it regardless, pins be damned. It is not quite twenty years of age.

Having made a patchwork bag using English paper piecing, I know how this sort of thing is a proper labour of love. And her hexies are smaller than the patchwork bag I made!

A Classic Crochet Granny Blanket

This is the crochet granny blanket she made for my eldest boy just over seven years ago, when he was born. It’s a classic granny, and it is this hotchpotch blanket that made me go to my local wool shop and buy my first crochet hook!

A Simple Crochet Chain

Rewind to some point in the 1980’s… This tatty-looking thing in the above pic is the first piece of crochet I ever attempted. I made this foundation chain and decided that crochet was rubbish.

I don’t think it helped that I was told that I must hold the hook a certain way (Nanna and I don’t agree on hook hold). Knitting was easier for me back then; I could make squares and scarves and things. This crochet failure was tied to the middle of a Nanna-made crochet blanket that I had as a little girl. I threw it away last year. It was stinky and holey. The foundation chain is the only bit that remains.

Traditional Knitted Baby Blanket

She knitted this white baby blanket for Eldest boy also. It’s quite traditional to gift a white knitted baby blanket. I was given more than one at the births of both my boys.

And as usual, the cat wanted in on it so she clambered on Nanna’s blankets and went to sleep.

I’m still feeling funny about old things (not Nanna and Grandad, the other stuff). I’ve been sorting through my old work from when I first started school. I blame going back to Southampton.

Old School Work!

This was when I went to the Hall of Aviation in Southampton (now called Solent Sky). I took my boys last week. It’s still awesome.

Sindy’s Wedding Outfit

I don’t know if I blame Southampton that much. It might also have been before that because I asked my sister to dig stuff out a few weeks ago. I was watching the Sewing Bee and had begun to wonder when I first started sewing.

I used to sit for hours, hand-sewing outfits and accessories for my Sindy doll. After a while, I graduated to the sewing machine. I was around ten when I made this wedding outfit from the leftovers of my other sister’s christening gown. It has set in sleeves!

My step mum helped me do this, as I don’t think I could have managed those sleeves alone. I think I need to ask Sister to go back in the loft to see if she has the red corduroy dress I made her for Christmas when I was twelve, and she was two… I was dead proud of myself!

Nanna Knitted Doll Clothes

What Sindy/Barbie wouldn’t want knitted clothes?! Some Nanna specials.

I particularly love this woollen coat. I actually think my mum knitted this. It wasn’t passed on to my sisters; it was the only one I kept.

Speaking of my Mum. I’m fairly certain she knitted baby blankets, too (pictured above and below). One knitted, one crocheted. Both in the seventies, for my brother. I’m sure she’ll correct me if I’m wrong.

She said this crochet blanket wasn’t suitable in the end. Too many holes for baby fingers to twist up in.

Anyway, I’m gonna go. I didn’t realise there was so much from the past that still exists. What the blazes am I gonna do with it all?! Hope no ghostly cooties are clinging to all the dust.

How to Sew a Felt Cat Brooch

July 23, 2016March 2, 2026free pattern14 Comments

Summer Holiday Crafting – Sewing Felt Brooches

Whilst I was sewing lots of felt bits recently, I had a thought that it would be nice to share how I do it. It doesn’t happen often. Some sewn felt kitty cats I made were quite popular, so I decided to use my design to show you how to make a brooch. Sewing felt is great, no fraying edges to worry about, it’s versatile and quite sturdy.

I’m making a felt cat brooch here, but you can create any design. Even if your drawing is shocking, something interesting will come out of it. I do not care for the excuse that a person is not creative; it’s complete nonsense. If you want to have a go, just do it. And, since we’ve just begun the summer holidays, I can tell you that this is a fabulous project to do with the kids. My boys love doing this kind of thing. Summer holiday crafts are a must.

As well as making felt brooches, keyrings work well too. Or if you can’t be bothered to source brooch backs and keyrings (get them from Etsy or eBay), then a few inches of ribbon attached means that it can become a hanging decoration.

This is a good craft project for those who don’t have loads of supplies. A square of felt and a couple of buttons cost less than a quid. You can reuse old buttons. You can even repurpose old scraps of fabric instead of using felt. Change the thread for yarn, if that’s all you’ve got. Whatever.

Materials To Sew a Felt Cat Brooch

Here are the things you need to make your own hand-sewn felt cat brooch.

Paper and pen/pencil.
Scissors.
Felt fabric (or other thickish fabric).
Buttons for kitty’s eyes.
Embroidery thread (or normal sewing thread doubled up).
A sewing needle and a couple of pins.
A small amount of polyfibre fill.
Brooch back, keyring or 15cm length of ribbon.

Draw Out a Design – The Template

Draw out the design of your choice: cat, dog, fish, fruit, flower, blah blah. Cut it out. A tip here is to go slightly bigger than you want the finished item to be. The finished thing will work up slightly smaller than you expect.

Keep shaping to a minimum too, you don’t want to give yourself the headache of awkward corners, or thin poky-out bits. Keep crafting simple; that’s the key.

Cutting Out Felt Pieces

Pin your template to two layers of felt and cut out. As above, keep to simple shapes as it’s so much easier. I do two layers together so that they’re both the same shape. These will be the front and back pieces.

Separate Embroidery Threads For Sewing

Cut your thread to about 40cm. If your threads are too long, you run the risk of tangles. From experience, it just isn’t worth it. My Nanna used to say that the length of the thread should be from your fingers to your elbow.

If you’re using embroidery thread, then it usually comes in six strands plied together. You need to separate out two strands, as in the picture above. This might seem daft, but a whole thickness of embroidery floss is too bulky and looks naff. Alternatively, use sewing thread doubled up so you’re sewing with two strands. This doesn’t produce as nice a finish, but it’s good enough.

Tie a knot in the end. If it’s the kids who are sewing a felt cat brooch, I tie the ends of the thread together to keep it on the needle. My boys always yank the thread off the needle. Always.

Attach Button Eyes To The Felt Cat

I start with the big, wide, button eyes. You can place them anywhere you like. I like to go wider (leaving room for edge stitching). Poke your needle right through his eyes! Ouch! Keep knots on the back. Stitch the needle in and out of the button holes at least three times.

Where Do You Want Kitty’s Nose and Whiskers?

I recently bought a fancy pen for drawing embroidery designs. It cost about £3 from a fabric shop. The ink disappears after a few hours, so you can draw your face and not worry about scruffy pen marks. If you’re not that fussed, you can free-style it or see if a soft pencil works.

Being able to see where to place the embroidery stitches is very useful.

With the embroidery thread, you’re essentially colouring in. For the nose, use a satin stitch, which is just stitches placed really close to one another. For the bit under his nose, I change to a running stitch and follow the line I drew.

YouTube is your friend when learning stitches. It’s a good place to learn a bit more about embroidery and how to do the stitches. They all have different names!

I ran out of my first lot of thread at this stage. It’s best to leave maybe 8-10cm of thread at the end to give yourself a sufficient amount to tie off and weave in. Then just grab a new length to continue stitching.

It doesn’t matter about the thready mess you create on the wrong side, as you won’t see any of it. Just as long as it is kept to the wrong side.

A Hand Stitched Kitty Face – A Felt Cat Brooch

A little kitty face sewn! If you still have a decent amount of thread left, don’t tie it off yet, as you can use it to sew the two sides together.

Put this kitty face to one side while you complete the next stage.

Sewing On the Brooch Back

Sewing on a brooch back is similar to sewing on the eyes. I go in and out of each hole three times at the top and three times each for the bottom holes (bottom holes! Haha!). Make sure the brooch back is the right way up and that it’s placed towards the top middle.

Make sure you sew it to the correct side of your felt/fabric, too. Essentially, match the front and back pieces so that you haven’t accidentally got one of them the wrong way round. Not all designs will be symmetrical. Always check!

Almost there. Just need to sew the front and back together.

Sewing Felt Pieces Together

Rethread the needle, and it’s time to sew the front to the back. I use a whip stitch. I used to use a blanket stitch, but it uses a ton of thread. A whip stitch looks similar when looking straight on. Make sure the stitches are neatly done; they will be visible. They’re a design feature!

(If I was using ribbon, it’d be at this stage, near the top that I’d get it ready to stitch between the two layers).

Again, if the thread needs changing, tie off the old stuff and knot in the new all inside your felt kitty. No one will ever know about the mess!

Add Stuffing Inside The Felt Cat Brooch

When there’s only a couple of inches left to sew, kitty needs to acquire some chub. I’ve got a bag of toy stuffing (bought from Amazon), but if desperate, go and destroy a cushion (or but perhaps you shouldn’t :/). Another alternative could be yarn ends if you’re a knitter or crocheter. Anyway, stuff lightly with your chosen filling, match up the open pieces and carry on with the stitching.

To finish off, the last stitch to the back needs to be poked upwards and out again, next to another stitch, as in the left photo above. Check the front to make sure you didn’t go through to the face too.

Go around the stitch you popped out next to and then repeat the process two or three times more. Or just keep going until the thread comes to an end. Lose the thread inside the newly hand-sewn felt kitty cat, or carefully snip off any threads still showing.

Voila! A hand-stitched cat face made from felt!

It is done. Miaow.

As well as sewing a cat felt brooch, you can sew any kind of felt critters. Here are some other handmade felt decorations, keychains and brooches that I’ve made before…

Have a good summer!

I have linked up here…

Block Colour Crochet Ripple blanket.

July 12, 2016March 2, 2026crochet19 Comments

block colour crochet blanket. drapey drapey.

Colour Block Ripple Blanket

Excuse me whilst I saturate one single blog post with several pictures of the same thing: a crochet ripple blanket! I took many photographs and enjoyed doing so. I’m spreading my joy. There also might be a “reward” at the end of this post, in the shape of different things.

This ripple stitch baby blanket will be on Etsy by the end of the week (I tell myself), along with many others. I need to stop hoarding crochet blankets!

This was such a quick and easy blanket to crochet. It was one of those where you don’t have to think, just crochet. Love those mindful crochet projects. The only fretful moment was when I ran half a row short of the shrimp. Luckily, I had a small walnut sized ball left from previous adventures, so I didn’t have to buy a new ball of yarn just for the sake of a few metres.

I’m now wondering what other colour combinations will work well. For many years, I would make all sorts of blankets, in all sorts of colour combinations but I’ve recently begun to notice a pattern emerging. I think I might be developing some sort of crochet style. It might not be a good style, but I suspect there’s one there nevertheless.

Taking repeated pictures of the same thing is confusing; I hope I’m not posting the same pictures twice.

Stash Busting Crochet Blanket

This is still me using up the significant yarn stash I have. I’ve been really good recently. I don’t think I’ve bought any yarn since May. (I’m not including the stuff I bought at the Bovey Craft Festival. Special circumstances!

Here are the details: It’s Stylecraft Special dk in Denim, Shrimp, Navy, Mustard and Sage. I used Attic 24’s Neat Ripple and I think I chained 115 to begin, just right for a baby blanket. The border is Parchment and I used it to fill in the ripples and make a sort of picot edging.

These are some other blankets that I’m planning on Etsyifying this week. I’ve bagged them up and weighed them. Looking at Royal Mail yesterday was exhausting. The pricing schemes are baffling. In the past, I’ve made the mistake of not charging enough for p&p, and I want to avoid doing that again. It’s blinkin’ expensive no matter which way you do it, and I worry it’ll put people off. But! I shall stop looking for excuses and just give it a go.

And on a different note, I’ve put up a picture on my Facebook page to show my summer fete stall. Feel free to go and have a look. It was a very hot and sunny day, which was great (I feared rain). I had no idea what to expect, hmm, it was OK. Having shared the fete blog post locally, I had a few visitors who came over especially to see me, which was lovely. But overall, I don’t think I had stuff that made people spontaneously decide to splurge. Eeh, I don’t know! It was a learning experience, and I’ve even had interest off the back of it, so that’s good. Exposure innit!? I hadn’t considered that that could happen.

Ottery Pixies

And in the interests of sharing all that I do (not just the stuff that makes me feel pleased with myself), here are some cheeky pixies!

Er, yep, I made these cheeky, embroidered pixies!

I have no idea what was going on in my brain. A bit cutesy, aren’t they?! At least they make me laugh, and that can only be a good thing! What you must do is go and look up Pixie Day in Ottery (try wikipedia too). It’s another tradition here, in town, alongside the more famous Tar Barrels. The local kids from scouts, guides, beavers, etc., run around the town dressed up as pixies for Midsummer. It’s a long story, but a fun one.

Anyway, I’m off to do some stitching now. The sewing machine is calling me this week. This morning I drove to Exmouth to go to a closing-down sale at a fabric shop. I spent so long choosing that I didn’t have time to go to the other fabric shop (probably a good thing; I’ve spent all my pocket money).

I’ve linked up to…

Summer Fete Fun!

July 7, 2016March 2, 2026crochet22 Comments

Crafted Items To Sell

For four weeks, I’ve been making, sewing and crocheting. OK, I know I always make things, but this time I’ve been making things with a specific purpose. A month ago I was asked if I fancied having a craft stall at the school’s summer fete. I thought “why not?” Hopefully I’ll get to sell a few things and help towards raising money for the school. Sounds alright. I enjoyed doing a similar thing last Christmas. That was my first time doing such a thing and I found out that I really enjoyed myself!

My main concern this time is that I have no idea about the kind of things people might like at this time of year. Christmas is easy, as everyone is always up for buying a new festive decoration (or two) for the tree. Summer? Not got a clue. I might have misjudged this but I’ve gone for a little bit of everything. It’s a learning experience and I’ll find out a lot, I’m sure.

I’ve said previously that I don’t think this is the sort of event for selling baby blankets but I’m taking some anyway. You never know. By the way, these blankets have been made over a period of a few months, not just churned out in the last four weeks!

Decorative Felt Brooches and Keyrings

There will be loads of felt designs. They’re all my own designs. I’ve got either brooches or keyrings. I think the owls are my favourite.. or the bedazzled fish. And the cats! The cherries look fabulously kitsch! I think I love them all.

I’ve got some random makes too. Leftovers from playing/experimenting. I really like the crochet rose brooches with felt leaves. The rose is Attic 24’s May Rose.

Heart Hangers

Speaking of Attic 24, these are the May roses used on a sweet crochet heart. Have a look at the original Heart Hangers for inspiration.

Someone has already asked that I put one of these aside for them so I do hope that that’s a good omen for the rest of them.

Crochet Hairclips

It would appear that I’ve got a thing about these May roses, I’ve used them for hair slides too (not many though, as I know that there is another stall that’ll be there, selling hairclips and I don’t want to tread on any toes ;p ).

For the crochet bows, I started with a pattern from Nicki Trench’s Geek Chic Crochet, but it was too big and took far too long to make a single bow. Iused fewer stitches and used quicker stitches too. For some reason, I find trebles much easier and less fiddly than half trebles. Most of these are made using yarn scraps that were left over from blanket making. There’s a lot of merino stuff, and the pastel coloured ones are a merino yarn mixed with cashmere. It’s lovely stuff to work with.

Crochet Heart Keyrings

Puff hearts are from Planet June. Very cute.

There’s something about a pile of blankets that I love. It’s a good job too. I have a mountain of crochet blankets in my house. And that’s the ones that are here to stay. I’m not going to mention the ones I was supposed to put on Etsy six months ago.

This little crochet ripple blanket will be finished by the weekend. Just in time for the summer fete. There are so many more things I wish I had time to make. It seems that I have just about run out of time. However, I would like to point out that this really isn’t everything that I’ve made over the last month. I might share some other things on Instagram, too. There will be loads more…

You’ll just have to come and see me to find out what else there is. I might look like a misery guts, but I’m honestly not (I do suffer from Bitchy Resting Face though), so if you’re at the school fete in Ottery St Mary this Saturday, come over and say hello! I think it’s 12-3pm. Thanks very much. X

How to Successfully Create a Blog Post Full of Random Things.

July 1, 2016April 17, 2018crochet9 Comments

The title is a lie. I have no idea. I’m just going to share photographs that have no business being in a blog post of their own.

I don’t know where I’d been but I arrived in the hallway a few days ago to find a load of plastic animals everywhere. They looked kind of good, so I took pictures.

I bought them from a charity shop last Saturday, all bundled up in a plastic bag . They were placed all the way to the top of the stairs.

Every now and then, one would clatter down to the bottom, having been batted about by a predatory feline.

In a break from making lots of small things for next weekend’s school summer fete, I’ve been making yet another crochet blanket. A crochet ripple blanket, to be precise. I wasn’t sure I was going to like it as I’ve not experimented with block colours before. I can’t remember why I chose the colours I did. I think it’s a mix of trying to be cheerfully bright and trying to use what stash is still hiding in the cupboard under the stairs.

Speaking of school fete stuff… I’ve been making butterflies. I’m not sure how these will turn out once they’ve been stitched together. I don’t think they’ll be terrible but again, I’m veering away from my comfort zone.

I got a positive response over on Instagram from one kitty I made, so I decided to make a few more.

I’ve had help too. He needs more training.

And I think I’ve mentioned a couple of times before about a “spider” who became trapped inside my little camera. This is the sort of thing that Husband seems to think is unacceptable. Whilst it was annoying that a smudgy, leggy looking blob kept interfering with my snap shots, I had sort of become accustomed to the idea of an eight legged friend living on the lens.

One YouTube video later and the screw drivers were out. I don’t think I know anyone else who would take the time to attempt such operations.

And yeah, it wasn’t a spider at all. I am gutted. A friend had even advised I name him. He became known as Roger. I shall mourn him. Roger the miniscule speck of dust. 🙁