When I left Suffolk today I noticed a few 'lasts' of the year...
The last few raspberries..
The last...really the last... cooking apple on the tree..
One of the last roses..
One of the last dips in the pond for Fred...it will soon be too cold.. (can you see the twigs sticking out of his head... what a scruff)..
And empty fields after harvest is over...Autumn is really here...
Yipee! Time for...hot water bottles, wrapping up arm, mugs of hot chocolate, walks in the crispy leaves, windy beaches...and most of all...
Beautiful autumnal COLOUR everywhere!
What do you love about autumn?
Last night I felt a certain shiver and when I walked into the garden I could definitely smell that autumnal smell... I don't know what it is.. a chill in the damp air maybe... but my first thought was, "Scarves", closely followed by, "Hot water bottle"!
I know it's a little sad, my daughter calls me a geek, but I do love wearing scarves and I LOVE going to bed with a hot water bottle! Now I know that there is a joke about English women preferring to go to bed with a hot water bottle rather than their husband, but I don't count in that because my hubby works in Madrid...
In August I blogged about some new yarn in stock - Louisa Harding's Hand Dyed Grace... I couldn't wait to see how it worked up, but then I forgot to blog the results... so here it is.....
Close-up of a green crochet scarf / cowl ... I don't know what to call this. It is a scarf with no ends, a large loop really... there are 3 ways to wear it...
Long...(excues the slight blur in the photo)...
Medium (wrapped twice)..
Or short, as a cowl (my favourite)..
My daughter is modeling... she only agreed to do on the proviso that I cropped her out almost completely!
This scarf/cowl used 2 1/2 skeins of Hand Dyed Grace...it is great to work with, and is lovely and soft...not at all prickly...
Can you spot the mistake though? I really should have worked 2 skeins at once because the hand-dyed nature of the yarn means that the skeins are unique, which resulted in a 'blocky' appearance in the middle skein... live and learn x
It has taken 4 months (not really, so many other projects got picked up and dropped along the way) but it is finally complete.
My first hexi-blanket....
The hexi pattern comes from an old book called:The Harmony Guide to Crochet Stitches published by Lyric, and the hexi is called a, 'Traditional Hexagon'. 49 lovely hexis in Debbie Bliss Eco Baby pure cotton.
It hardly needed any blocking, but I gave it a swift tweek....
By the time it came to take photos the sun had gone in...so the washing line gave the most light - now don't go looking at the 'grass' please - it needs mowing I know.. in fact there are more dandelions than grass, and what grass there is has been half dug-up by the fabulous Freddie...
I know Fred looks innocent - believe me he isn't... only this afternoon he pinched my last jelly baby!
Anyway.. I brought the blanket inside to see what lamplight does to it... all very mellow....
I'm proud of this first hexi creation - now I don't know whether to store it or sell it!
Now listen up ladies...I found 2 GORGEOUS GIVEAWAYS today and promised to reblog them..
The first I found was over at Little Woolie where Jules is giving away the most beautiful cushion which she has only just finished...you have 2 weeks to sign up so double click quick!
Isn't it gorgeous?
The second giveaway is at Lisforlove - Look what the lovely Penelope is giving away:
You only have one week to sign up for this one...Good luck everyone!
How fast do Tuesdays come around? This last week has flashed past as usual and each night has ended with a frantic crochet session to keep up with Gingerbread Girl's One-a-Day challenge over on Ravelry.. So far so good... 13 lovely little squares..
I am sewing in the ends as I go, blocking and stitching them into groups of 4.... hopefully when it comes to the final 'sew-up' it won't be a huge labour of love....
This project is quite calming really - no rush to complete this huge blanket, just a tiny wee pressure to spend 30 minutes a day...and the pattern flows easily off of the hook without even a second thought for a stitch count... bliss!
If you pop over to visit Gingerbread Girl now you will find links to other One-a- Dayer's Tuesday Tallies... we are a crafty bunch :)
I have an exciting moment coming soon.. do you remember this hexi-blanket starting back in June?
Well...it is almost done...I have sewn it all together, and I am just doing a lovely colourful stripey edging.. hopefully tomorrow will be time for my Ta Dah....
How fast do Tuesdays come around? This last week has flashed past as usual and each night has ended with a frantic crochet session to keep up with Gingerbread Girl's One-a-Day challenge over on Ravelry.. So far so good... 13 lovely little squares..
I am sewing in the ends as I go, blocking and stitching them into groups of 4.... hopefully when it comes to the final 'sew-up' it won't be a huge labour of love....
This project is quite calming really - no rush to complete this huge blanket, just a tiny wee pressure to spend 30 minutes a day...and the pattern flows easily off of the hook without even a second thought for a stitch count... bliss!
If you pop over to visit Gingerbread Girl now you will find links to other One-a- Dayer's Tuesday Tallies... we are a crafty bunch :)
I have an exciting moment coming soon.. do you remember this hexi-blanket starting back in June?
Well...it is almost done...I have sewn it all together, and I am just doing a lovely colourful stripey edging.. hopefully tomorrow will be time for my Ta Dah....
Hello! It's been a while since I last blogged...
Things have been a little complicated here...culminating in our poor little old poodle Molly nearly giving up the ghost a couple of days ago (severe diabetic not eating!)... anyway it is all calmer now and Molly is perky and cheerful again. Here she was at the weekend in the sun...
The lovely Alice from 'Crochet with Raymond' really cheered me up with her last couple of posts... you should see her latest project...quick...pop over now and have a peak..I guarantee you will love it!
I am taking part in the Ravelry group, 'One a Day', set up by Gingerbread Girl ... there are 231 of us so far!
Today is the first 'Tuesday Tallie' to see how far we have got.
The pattern I have chosen is called, Sunny Spread (by Ellen Gormely)and the pattern is free here... I am using the same pattern as Gingerbread Girl, but she is using colour *sigh*....
So here is a close-up of my first square:
Here are my first 6 squares - 4 being blocked and 2 queueing...
My blanket will be a present for my daughter who is planning her wedding for next summer, but she likes plain colours... so it will be a bit of a cream-out ... I think the other 230 'One-a day'-ers are doing wonderful things with colour.. so I will pop over there regularly for a colour fix :)
Also on the good news front is that my website 'Stockton Crafts' is up and working again after 3 weeks offline... new yarns for winter are coming in thick and fast, so I'll post updates of those too soon..
I'm glad to be back :)x
