Life in Colour

Well, I promised a finished granny stripe blanket by the next time I appeared on here... and I'm pleased to say that the item in question is indeed complete and already being put to good use. It's been a week of coughs and colds here in the house, so much snuggling under blankets has been required. Especially ones that are bright and cheery like the newly completed rainbow stripe. After months of doubt, I'm actually very pleased how it turned out. And I think my Mum likes it too (as it is officially hers!). There have been many tweaks along the way since I first laid out the new balls of yarn in a rainbow colour order. After completing several rows of colour, I decided the first two colours didn't work and had to come off. I managed to work out a way to do this without unpicking the whole thing - by creating a new foundation chain where I wanted it to be before snipping away the unwanted colours. I then spent hours and hours granny striping away whilst watching murder mysteries and drama on TV to get to that final row. When it went on, it became apparent to me that the first colour still did not work, so that had to come off too. So, knowing it worked before, I managed to re-chain the beginning again and snip away the first colour.
And there it was. the complete spectrum of colours. Finally, it looked how I had hoped - adding those final rows of colours really made it come together. Now it was time for the edge. Originally I had planned to just keep it simple and go round a few times with cream. I toyed with the idea of adding colour, but how could I single out just one or two colours from all those that I had used? As the cream went on, it really contrasted with all the bright colours well, so I decided to go with my initial gut feeling and keep it simple. Four rows of grannying, followed by Attic24's Bobble Shell Edging - which I love - a simple, unobtrusive border which makes for a bit more interest than a straight edge!
So without further ado, I present to you the Rainbow Stripe Blanket (note I was scrambling up on the outside furniture to get this all in shot!)

A close-up of the colours:

The yarn is Stylecraft Special DK and I used 30 colours
L-R: Lipstick, Matador, Shrimp, Apricot, Jaffa, Saffron, Sunshine, Citron, Lemon, Spring Green, Bright Green, Meadow, Green, Bottle, Teal, Aspen, Turquoise, Sherbet, Aster, Royal, Lavender, Wisteria, Plum, Magenta, Raspberry, Candyfloss, Fondant, Pomegranate, Bright Pink and edged in Cream.

I have to say I do love this yarn. I would not make something to wear from it (I still prefer my cotton for that), but for blankets and cushions it's great. The sheer range of colours is great, and it is lovely to work with. For a 100% acrylic yarn, it is soft and not at all itchy. And it is super-great value (the only reason I could afford so many colours!)
When the massive blanket was finally finished, I needed a project to fill it's boots as the 'easy to crochet whilst watching TV' type. Amigurumi and fancy squares and patterns are great, but they require counting and concentration - not good for tired evening crochet watching telly. I have a list of 'to-do' projects on my phone, but instead a new project has arisen to take this available slot. Little P does a lot of imaginative play now - tents, tea-parties etc. And she always uses my big blankets. That's fine, I want them to be in use... but when she has her tea-parties and has real food... well, let's just say it can get a bit messy! She is a clean eater by many standards, but the thought of biscuit and rice cakes getting squished into my newly made labour of love, the rainbow stripe, just doesn't bare thinking about! My ever-so-helpful Mum suggested I make the Little Lady a smaller, play picnic blanket. Great idea! That also gives me an outlet for a new design I want to try, and another chance to raid the Stylecraft stash!
I am a huge fan of Lucy from Attic24's work. And she has done it again with her Patchwork Grannysquare Blanket. I had actually toyed with a similar idea before settling upon the idea of the mahoosive rainbow stripe, so to see it done the Attic24 way has inspired me to do it now! As usual, Lucy has used an array of bright colours, which work lovely together, and to top it off, has edged it somewhat beautifully. She also used her Stylecraft stash, and seeing how it turned out meant I pushed this little project right to the top of my list. It is of upmost priority that Little P has a picnic blanket, is it not?! I was happy with my stash - I actually had 33 colours in total - but after a little 'pop-in' to a local yarn store, I acquired another 3 colours to bring the total to 36! It contains all the mentioned above, plus White, Rosehip, Camel and Copper (which did not make the blanket) and the 3 new ones - Bluebell, Emperor and Cloud Blue. And here they all are...

So I began the task of making granny squares. I like this project, as there is no fiddly colour changing mid-square, and as I'm joining as I go along, I won't have to sew it all together at the end. I'm picking colours somewhat randomly, just being careful that each colour fits in witht hose around it. I'm not sure how big to make it yet - it is just a play blanket, so it will be either 5x5 or 6x6 with a border. So far I've done 13 squares and I like the way it is coming along!

Last week I also tied up another couple of loose ends. That of the Itty Bitty Bunny from Simply Crochet magazine. He turned out OK I think - not my favourite thing ever but as usual, Little P loves it which makes it worthwhile! It was an experiment using variegated yarn for the first time in amigurumi, and I think I like it, although I don't think that particular yarn worked overly great for that pattern, as some of the shapes seemed to come out longer and thinner! But here is the bunny, propped up as unable to sit alone (but I did want a floppy bunny so that's OK right?)

The other big effort of the week was writing up my Monty Moo pattern. And it is here, up and running, ready for download! I posted it to Ravelry when I finished it, and he's had quite a bit of love. Numbers taking a peep over here soared over the last few days (by my standards anyway!) which is always good. It's nice thinking people like my creation, after all the effort I put in designing him, writing up the pattern and testing it! Plus he is free, and there don't seem to be many (what I call) nice cow patterns about. So good luck to him, and I hope someone, somewhere will make him a cousin or two!

Well, that's a roundup of this weeks crafting - the weekend is looming and it's a Birthday one for me. Whilst that is mildly exciting, I am also highly excited about the prospect of getting to play on my friend's sewing machine on Sunday! Maybe I can create a little something with the scotty dog fabric I bought a while back.... or maybe I'll chicken out! We also need to discuss our future plans for exciting things! And there will be a new craft squeezing it's way into my life, as we embark on a needle felting course in a couple of weeks! Wow! I had my present early from said friend as we went out to dinner to mark the beginning of my Birthday celebrations, and along with a lovely notebook, I received a beginners needle felting set and a place on a course to learn how to use it! Exciting! More on that when it comes around in a couple of weeks! Must go for now, I think I can fit another square or two in before the Little P returns!

It's All Coming Together...

I have been relatively busy of late... as usual the Little Lady is full of beans and needs entertaining non-stop! We get out a lot more now, as 'home' is just too boring for her. She needs a high-octane lifestyle of shops, adventure play parks, toddler groups and general 'stomping' around in her wellies. I can't complain, it's great fun, and you realise what a joy it is when your child hits this toddler age. She is now stringing 3 or 4 words together, mainly to throw orders at me I might add, and running around everywhere. I don't think my daughter can sit still for one moment! She seems quite a bright little one, she just doesn't miss a trick. I really have to watch what I say, as she listens to everything, and either copies it, or holds me to it. This change in her development recently is fantastic, but it comes at a price - toddler tantrums! Shouting, sitting on the floor in protest, saying 'I'm not' and pushing all the boundaries to test me out - what a joy! It's fine at home, but when we're out and about and she starts, passers by look at me like I'm an evil Mum if I'm saying 'no' to her. It's because she is too cute, and even in her tantrums, she still manages to say 'please Mummy'. It is hard to refuse that little voice but I have to remain strong so she doesn't turn out to be a spoilt little Princess!
When she does stop to rest, which is essentially when she goes to bed, I manage to get a little crochet time squeezed in. I've been busy making some items I cannot show, as they are presents and have not been given yet - I don't want to spoil them! There has also been a great deal of getting on top of my projects and organising my general self. Using the wonders of modern technology I have installed a great little reminder/to-do list app on my phone and can now keep track of my life. I had so many things 'I need to do' or 'want to make' floating around in my head that I really needed to organise it a bit better, as some things got a little bit lost! I now have my personal memos and a list of crochet projects I want to make. It's also quite rewarding checking the box when one is finished! Simple things!
One box soon to be checked, will be the Rainbow Granny Stripe Blanket.... yes, can you believe, I shall probably finish it today! I'm on the very last round of edging (I'm saving it for when the football is on later, as I can watch that and crochet at the same time, as I don't have to pay too much attention to it!) Next post on here will show the completed blanket, and I will probably honour it with it's own little page too, I think it deserves it, as it has been a mammoth project to say the least!
I also decided it was time to write up my Monty Moo pattern for the blog, and that's what I am doing this morning.

I have two pages of horribly scribbled notes which I am working through to re-check the pattern, before typing it up nicely as a shiny PDF file which can be downloaded from my blog soon.... So watch this space! My work station is the coffee table in the lounge this morning, notice just the important things - my work, my magazine, my cup of tea and my iPad, playing some music for me to sing along to as I work.

The magazine in question is 'Simply Crochet'. It's just the second issue made by the team at Mollie Makes. I love it, it's so great to finally find a magazine that had modern, fresh, quirky crochet in it and not just old fuddy-duddy patterns! The lovely Two Birds Craft have their stitch markers (the ones I reviewed here) featured in this month's issue - I'm so happy for them as they really are great little things that make traditional split ring stitch markers null and void - get them on their Etsy page!
One pattern in particular caught my eye in this month's issue - the Itty-Bitty Bunny!

A very cute floppy bunny with minimal detail. I had purchased some yarn earlier in the week, and thought I may try it out on this bunny pattern. The yarn is King Cole Bamboo Cotton Prints, in Candy Twist. I've never used a variegated yarn before in amigurumi, so I wasn't sure how it would work up. But I loved the colours so much! And, as the bunny was so simple, I thought the yarn may work well for that pattern. I shall have to wait and see! I'm liking how it's working up so far, after completing the head and body pieces, but it will be on pause for today whilst I finish the blanket and cow pattern (hopefully!)

If I want to stand any chance of achieving those goals, I must leave it there and get back to them! So, until next time...

The Craft Cupboard

Today I decided that my 'craft cupboard' had actually become somewhat of a hazard. When the door was opened, an avalanche of fabric, yarn, paints, stamps and buttons fell in the general direction of... well, everywhere! Tidying it was actually quite rewarding, as I began to realise I have actually accumulated quite a good lot of 'stuff'. I like it when I have an idea, and then can say 'I have just the thing for that!' Trouble is with that logic, is space. It uses quite a lot of it!
But a few days ago I decided that the Little P and I would make a card for her Gran's Birthday, and I was pleased to say 'I have just the thing for that!' Ok, so getting the crafty boxes out with the Little P was a bit hectic to say the least, and there were only a couple of major incidents, one involving a button spillage and another throwing clear cling stamps everywhere... but by the end we had made a card. I was quite chuffed actually, for a spur of the moment thing. I used Distress Inks to make a background and then stamped the words 'Happy Birthday Gran' on the top. The Little Lady then stuck pretty paper flowers on, followed by buttons. She loved the craft boxes and had a great time wading through stamps and paper and buttons. Hopefully I may pass this craft addiction on to her and we can have 'crafty time' together!
It was good to have a sort out, as the cupboard was getting a bit, well... full. I do love my crafting, obviously crochet is my número uno, but I'm dead excited about getting to use these too...

Yep, that's a couple of Lino blocks and equipment I need to have a go at making my own Lino block stamps. I've never done it before, but keen to have a go! I've just got to print off the image I want to try then when I get the time (as ever! - crochet time is priority!) I will give it a whirl.
I finished the owl square cushion last week too, very pleased with it, and so is Little P, who is constantly dragging it around and playing games with it. I love the little owl squares, and the fact I could explore my DK cotton-based stash and use a whole load of different colours. I'm not sure I would like to make a blanket of those squares though, as there are a lot of ends to sort out, it's much better when you can just hide them away! It seems the Mollie Makes crew liked the squares too, as Gathered magazine featured a picture of mine in their 'readers makes' page and Simply Crochet magazine picked it as their 'square of the week' on their Facebook page. Thank you for the owly love! It's lovely to see something I've made liked by people at magazines I really enjoy reading, it's really rewarding. I must credit the pattern to Repeat Crafter Me - its great and very easy to follow.

I've also been hammering the rainbow granny stripe blanket. I'm now on the final colour! So then I need to plan what to do with the edge. I'm not sure whether to keep it neutral with cream, or whether to add colour in with the cream to make it a bit more interesting.

Whilst emptying the cupboard earlier, I found the cushion cover I made at the beginning of the month at the sewing machine course. I thought I'd take this opportunity to show it off! It really is a very basic envelope style cushion cover, and not in my colour choices, but the fabric was already cut and ready for us to use. But it's not about that at all, it doesn't matter how it looks, what matters is I made it! My very first sewing machine project! I really enjoyed the course and learning to use the basic functions of a sewing machine and overlocker. I really did love the overlocker, but it looked so complicated, how on earth do you thread one of those up?! So without further ado, here is my baby -

Notice the ric-rac detail. For a complete novice seamstress, keeping a straight line down the middle of that stuff was very tricky! I never really thought about the construction of things like that before, so it was great to see how to make something like that, and very useful too. Hopefully that cushion cover will be the start of a whole new world of creation. When the course ended, we obviously had to go and buy some fabric to give it another go on our own at some point. We found a lovely little shop and I bought a metre of fabric and a couple of fat quarters (Amy Butler fat quarters to be precise!). So I'm just waiting for an opportunity to have another go at something on a sewing machine - my friend's craft room is up and running, I shall be visiting it later for a sneak peak - and I'll also drop a hint about using her machine! Of course I'd love my own, but current circumstances do not allow for this, and I'm not sure it would fit in my craft cupboard even though I have cleared it up a bit!

Right, must be off, a little hooky time before popping to see the craft room in all it's glory!

A Year In Crochet

It's now coming up for a year since I first picked up that trusty old hook and yarn for the first time, and tried to teach myself the art of crochet. How I persevered I'm still not entirely sure, as I don't usually stick at things if I don't get them straight away! But something about crochet had me hooked (no pun intended). I was having a look through some of my makes over the last year (see most of them on my Ravelry page)
My first hooky adventure, and where it all came together, was Squiddly Dudley, from Nicki Trench's book 'Super-Cute Crochet'. I had bought 'posh' yarn as I liked the colours, but it wasn't the easiest yarn to get started with! However it was super soft and looked nice - and so it should for how much it cost me! I actually found working in a spiral and seeing the shape forming helped me to understand basic crochet, rather than working straight back and forwards rows of stitches. Considering he was my first project, I was dead chuffed how he turned out. The stitching on of his numerous legs was haphazard and untidy, and ends poked out everywhere, but that kind of adds to his charm. He was my first crochet creation and I was a very proud hooker!

I made a whole host of animals after him. Including giraffes, monkeys, elephants and rabbits. A selection of the few I still have are pictured below.

By this time I also began to understand yarn a bit more. Indeed, I may have started realising not everything was simply 'wool'. I experimented with a few, but soon settled on a favourite, cotton based! King Cole Bamboo Cotton was one I instantly fell in love with, as it was super-soft and not at all 'itchy', and more importantly, came in a range of great bright colours. I still use it as my first choice for amigurumi today. I also discovered Sirdar Snuggly Baby Bamboo - not strictly a cotton, but feels and works like one, and also comes in lots of bright colours. It also works up similar to the Bamboo Cotton, so I often use both alongside each other in a project.
For a while, I only dabbled in amigurumi. And to be honest that was enough. I thought, and still do, that it is amazing how you can turn a ball of yarn into one of those cute stuffed animals. I could quite happily make them forever! I had found something I totally loved doing, and that was a creative outlet for me, something I felt I had lacked over the last few years.
But eventually I was tempted into other forms of crochet. Mainly due to the discovery of the amazing Attic24 blog. Finally I had seen something which summed up what I wanted to do - create bright and cheery items and not wishy washy dull things.
The first things I had a go at from the Attic24 library were the Striped Yarn Bag and the Happy Flower Decoration. I was enjoying learning different types of stitches and techniques, rather than a single crochet around a spiral. I also discovered another cotton yarn which I love - Rico Creative Cotton Aran - widely available in lovely bright colours. A bit splitty, but you do get used to it - but the colours and feel of it are totally worth it - and it's cheap too!

Then came the first blanket. Attic24's Summer Garden Granny Square was the pattern I used. (Take a full look at my blanket details here) I enjoyed this longer term project, hooking up squares, and joining as I went along. I was thrilled with how it looked when it all came together. It's still one of my favourite creations to date, and almost too nice to use!

I got the blanket bug by now, and I moved on to yet another Attic24 pattern - the Granny Stripe Blanket. This time I wanted a big blanket, so I decided I needed something bigger than DK weight yarn or it would take forever. I chose King Cole Comfort Chunky, as that was what was available in my local shop. It felt nice and soft and came in nice bright colours - so that was sorted! This blanket seemed to take forever, but I also had a lot of other smaller projects running alongside it. It was well worth it however, as me and the little lady are always snuggling or playing 'tents' underneath it!

Around this time I also plucked up the courage to have a go at designing my own amigurumi. I started with a long-legged floppy bunny thing, which didn't turn out that great, but I then made my Monty Moo. Totally designed by me - I was very proud with how he turned out. I do plan to put the pattern up on here one day, but need to test it first!

Another blanket made it's way on to the scene - the massive Rainbow Granny Stripe - a birthday present for my Mum (whose birthday was in October) but it's still not finished! I'm plodding along with it, 3 colours to go now, and then the border!

Along the way I have also made some cushion covers, bunting, hats and scarves, and plenty of little animals. I designed Ronald the Reindeer, and wrote a pattern up for him here, and a simple amigurmi strawberry here. I thought, in the style of 'Team America', I need a montage...

So, with my first anniversary of crochet coming up, I can say it has had a huge impact on my life! Finding that creative streak again has uncovered a whole side to me that had got lost for quite a while, and it's great! When I'm not being Mum, my primary role, all I can think about is crochet. It has also spawned a whole host of other craft endeavours. I want to try, when I get time, lino printing - I bought basic supplies the other day to give it a go. I also want to learn to use a sewing machine and be able to whizz up all sorts of things. Me and a friend went on a sewing machine course last saturday, to make a very basic cushion cover. My friend, who shares the same passion as me, got a machine for her birthday, but has never used one either, so we thought a course may be the best solution! And it was fun! I think we both took to the basics of using a sewing machine and my personal favourite, the overlocker, very well, for complete beginners. Great fun, and an enormous sense of achievement that maybe we could actually do this! This meant we had to go buy fabric to try it again - and we picked some lovely patterns to give it another go (however said friend has been somewhat busy with an important essay or something...pffft, but we will give it a go again!) I will post pictures of the fabric and cushion, but light has faded and photography conditions are poor!
So, back to now... I'm still trying to crochet whenever I can, but a dreaded sickness bug struck the little lady earlier this week, and me this weekend, so there's been minimal hooking this week.
A couple of weeks ago I decided to start the owl granny square cushion cover I had been planning for a while. I used a pattern I found on Ravelry by Repeat Crafter Me, and adapted it to suit my needs. I'm alternating the owl squares with plain, basic granny squares, and I'm pleased with how it is coming along!

I also finished the Christmas Tree Skirt - I'm happy with the finished product, and it will be ready for next year. I finished it off with a simple edging and added buttons and a tie to fasten it. The little lady had to stamp on it outside whilst trying to photograph it!

the edging...

the buttons and tie...

the close-up...

the whole thing, without child!

Before Christmas, I also finished the Striped Elephant for my friend's new nephew/niece due imminently. That elephant is still a pleasure to make and the pattern has been worth every penny I paid for it - find it on Ravelry here.

I've just realised, this is quite a long blog - I've been busy typing whilst keeping an eye on the football - my boys won and I'm just watching the opposition in action now. I'm a Manchester United fan and always have been, since I can remember - I think my Dad brainwashed me as a baby, I hope to do the same to my little one - she already has a kit!
Also, I received a great present in the post (a present to myself that is!). I had ordered some yarn from the US at the beginning of the year, and yesterday it arrived! It is Lily Sugar 'n Cream Solids, and is, you guessed it, 100% cotton. It comes in 75g balls and is worsted (aran) weight. It comes in loads of amazing colours! I got mine here, and even with delivery to the UK, it worked out cheap, something like £1.90 a ball including delivery. I bought 14 balls - thought i better make the shipping charge worthwhile. It looks great, can't wait to use it!

Must go, other 'normal' jobs to do now, with maybe a little bit more crochet before the little P returns!

Back on Track!

Well it's been a while since I've had the chance to write on here, what with technical issues and a poorly little P, but I finally have the chance to sit down and type at my new workstation - iPad and wireless keyboard - thanks brother for sorting me out!
The little lady had a horrible cold which seemed to last forever, so she just wanted her Mummy all the time. It was lovely to get cuddles as I don't usually get too many, but it did mean crochet time was reduced! Only the little P could get away with that! I do have a few creations to show for myself over the last 3 or 4 weeks however, as I have made the most of what crochet time I did have.
The change in temperature has sparked a new line of crocheting for me... hats and gloves and scarves! I refuse to buy little P woolly items, as I can easily make them myself, but they kept getting relegated down my 'to make' list. Eventually it got to the point when I felt terrible that the little monkey had no woolly hat and gloves in the cold weather we have had... so I halted other productions and got to work on protecting my daughter from the cold!
I scoured the internet for quite some time to find the 'right' hat for the little P. I wanted a beanie, but a pretty one, not just a boring round and round hat. I also wanted to use King Cole Bamboo Cotton as it's nice and soft on her little head, so I needed a pattern for DK weight yarn. Eventually I came across one on Ravelry as a free download. It is called 'Perenni' and it's by Deanne Ramsay. It was a very easy pattern to follow, although it took me 3 attempts to get the size right for the little P! I'm chuffed with how it turned out, and she looks super sweet in it! I also tried to make some mittens for her too... I wanted ones with thumbs, but a lot of the patterns for her tiny hands don't have thumbs, so I had to improvise a tad. They turned out not too bad for complete guess-work, and they fit OK, but will she wear them? NO! Maybe when it gets a bit colder.... here's hoping!

and the detail of the pretty stitching...

I then decided to make myself a snood/cowl type thing as I saw pattern I liked on Annaboo's House. She recommends super-chunky yarn with a 15mm hook so I ordered some Sirdar Indie in Apache. I have fallen in love with this yarn, it's super soft, maybe a little bit itchy, but the colours are amazing that you forget all about that! I got straight to it the day the yarn arrived, and finished it that same evening. Super-quick and easy to follow pattern with great results! A cosy snood for cold weather! No more silly scarf ends poking out of my coat!

As I loved the yarn so much, I had a look at some of the other colours and decided I needed a bit more. I thought I could make little P another hat... this time a chunky earflap hat with a bobble on top. So I visited a local shop where I knew they stocked it, and bought a couple more colours.... Madison and Crazy Horse. I used the lovely Madison for the Little P's hat and I plan to use the Crazy Horse to make another cowl type-thing for myself. 

The Crazy Horse...

and the beginnings of a hat in Madison...

I have also been back on the amigurumi. I had an order for 2 rabbits, which I've been slowly assembling over the last month, but they are finally finished and will be off to their new home soon! 
And I finally finished the hair on the amigurumi doll, now named Polly Dolly. It's plaited and tied up with bows and finishes her off nicely. Little P seems to like her, she gets dragged around by the hair a fair amount, which I'm sure is a sign of affection!

Meet Polly Dolly...

and a couple of sweet bunnies...

Also, my kind brother went on a trip to Barcelona for a few days, and brought me back a present, a cactus pin cushion! It's really nice, too nice to stick pins in maybe! They were for sale on a stand on Las Ramblas, all handmade and loads of different designs and colours. 

There are also a few exciting things coming up for me... Fresh Stitches Mystery Crochet-Along starts in just 2 days, so looking forward to receiving the first bit of the pattern for that! And some more exciting things in the New Year if all goes to plan (all crochet related obviously!) which I won't talk about just yet but am very much looking forward to them!
Now I must go, bed is calling, and me and little P have to be out early to a Music class! Until next time...

Autumn Happenings

Well, Autumn suddenly seems upon us, and I hate cold weather. I hate jumpers and coats, and having to try and find new ones to buy. However, this year I am particularly excited about crocheting myself, and my daughter, some lovely cosy warm things, hats and scarves! In fact, I have already started on a scarf for myself, a simple stripy one... I have only just started it really but here's a piccy of the progress so far...

It's a pattern I found on Ravelry, called Fall Country House Scarf. I'm using Sublime Cashmere Merino Silk Aran yarn, in 3 colours, Seashore, Sprout and Vanilla. I'm loving this yarn, lovely and soft, and not itchy at all, a problem I normally find with scarves! It's lovely to work with, I'm using a 6mm hook as I don't want the stitches too tight, but nice and airy.

Back to other news.... I am plodding along with my mum's rainbow granny stripe blanket. Something was niggling me about the first row, I wasn't a huge fan of the colour 'Camel' and didn't think it blended with the others, but more importantly, the chain turned out to be too tight and caused the edge to ripple up and make the blanket all wonky. I really didn't think I could do anything about this, as it was the first colour with the foundation chain, apart from pulling the whole thing apart, which after countless hours of grannying away, I was not prepared to do. But then I had a thought. Could I possibly crochet a chain along the bottom of the next colour, ensuring I connected all the stitches, before ripping off the first Camel-ly colour? The answer was, yes I could. I wasn't sure how well it was going to turn out until I took the leap and removed the first colour, but it actually worked really well, and I think the blanket looks so much better now. It's straight and parallel, and it hasn't got that camel colour standing out on the end.

How it looked all wrinkly with camel...



and without the camel and a new foundation chain...

Much happier. I'm also liking how the colours are coming along, now I'm getting to the greens and blues.

It does look rather cheery, especially on dreary wintry evenings. Only trouble is, I think it's going to work out a lot thinner than expected, despite my calculations! The rainbow will be complete and it will be more the shape of a hallway runner than a big rectangle blanket, so I may have to repeat some of it.... will tackle that when I get to it!

My other main project recently was a gift for a friend's daughter, who had her 1st birthday. She loved her stripy elephant I had made earlier in the year, so thought I'd make her something else too. This time I wanted to make something I hadn't made before, so I scoured Ravelry and found the prefect thing... the KISS Series Lion by K4TT. I have wanted to find the perfect Lion, and this was it! I love his mane and how floppy he is. He is truly awesome. I had to pay a little bit for the pattern, but really don't mind when it's this amazing. I used my trusted King Cole Bamboo Cotton DK and a bit of Sirdar Snuggly Baby Bamboo with a size 3.5mm hook. He was fun to make, and definitely what I was after. I didn't want to part with him in the end, and nor did my little P, so I may have to make another one! Here is the Lion in question...

 

 

Finally, I have made something for my little P. Some bunting. It was going to be for her cot, but I got carried away and made it bigger so it hangs on the wall. I used Pink Milk's Simple Crochet Bunting Tutorial to get me started, but added a few touches of my own, including a contrasting edge. I also cut out letters and flower shapes to sew on to give it a personal touch. Yes, I had to sew. I'm not overly hot on that, but learnt how to blanket stitch and used that method, though I think for the future I may invest in invisible thread so you can't see how bad my sewing is! I used Rico Design Creative Cotton Aran and a 5mm hook (which I have also fimo'd a handle for...another post sometime soon). Sorry about the quality of the pictures, but they were taken in the bedroom, which was dark and dingy due to the rubbish weather!

 

 



It's lovely and colourful and brightens the wall up loads. Little P loves it too, except she keeps pointing at it rather than go to sleep!

I have also made a few other things....guess I haven't posted for a while! A basket, some coaster/placemat things for my parents and a couple of amigurumi strawberries (pattern here) for the little P. I plan to make her a whole load of crochet play food, one day!

So now I will continue with my scarf. Or maybe the stripy blanket. Looking outside, I think I need both! Until next time my friends...