yearning for yarndale

Last year I couldn't crochet . My closest friend excitedly went to yarndale and I wished  I could have gone.

This year I cam crochet and we made plans to go but family issues and redundancy and lack of cash in general  meant neither of us could go

The I Gerber full off picture of the bunting , yarn bombing  not to mention the mandala and I feel disappointed  so to cheer myself I decided to make a mandala . Well not true really it's a vintage vase coaster  but it's basically sane thing lol.

It's actually something I made before here is my original

And here is today's effort

Love these colours and remind me of lucy choices . It cheered me up and broke my gloom.at missing out I hope it does the same to any of you also not lucky enough to go . Who knows I may see you next year

freebie friday

 Thought I would share  a little tip with you . It seems on Fridays we get treated to a few freebies. The wool ware house regular have patterns for free issued on a Friday . Got to be worth a look


As a extra treat today a kind  designer on ravelry is offering one free pattern for today only if you use the coupon freebiefriday

http://www.ravelry.com/designers/glamour4you


If you read this after today why not check out her page some lovely designs especially with Halloween coming

If your wondering I got the skull balcony hat for my neice

Have a good weekend

an elephant never forgets

But I certainly do


After my last post about the problem.of the elephant  bum I couldn't face picking up my hooks . But I braved it today  all I had to do was one some motif attached on one side


Easy you might think but no...

 I kept getting a weird bumpy seem  . I did the edge over and over  with same result but then I decided to do what I should have done from the start and read tutorial.on join as you go


You guessed it was doing it wrong !!!! So with that sorted it should have Been full steam ahead  but no that would be to easy  I then  joined the next motif in wrong place !!!

Hopefully that's is for the teething troubles but I have my doubts lol

Any way it is  so far

oh bum !!!!!!!

This was going to be a lovely positive post  but instead of telling you how happy I am with new projects I actually feel like this

 What happened to cause this I hear you ask 

Well would you believe it was a some African flower motif . Yes  after posting my last bird 

I am now stuck with the very same pattern. Ok that's not exactly true I can make the  motif but can't construct it . I am making the elephant that I have Bern promising my son for ages . I love the colours yellow orange and grey  and excited to share with you


So I set about making the motif and constructing the bum when disaster struck I could not join it in the way I was meant too. Heidi patterns  are very clear yet two and half hours later the bum was not sewed on . Eventually I think I got it . Here is the result

As far as i can tell this is right it had better be my sanity can't take it any more lol

I am.however  pleased with how these look I have gone done another hook.size and it made a far my pleasing size and density assuming I can actually construct this beast it should look.good ...... well fingers crossed lol

happiness revisted

I know it's no secret to regular reader that I love Heidi bears . The simple African flower motif never fails to amaze me as it takes shape to create a lovely animal.


Regular readers know my sin obsession for ducks so I decided to make him.one of  the birds of happiness.

This is not my first try at the pattern but I was surprised that I had forgot the basics lol. It soon came flooding back as I finished it I couldn't help comparing it to my first attempt back in April


Here is first attempt

My son loves red so I decided to use it as my main  colour. I have to say I love it

I think you can see a improvement . I think also using a smaller needle helped the whole thing is just more cheerful.and better made. Taking this new confidence I am.preparing o make another Heidi bears pattern the elephant my son is begging for. At least I won't have to worry about forgetting the motif lol

tree top treats

While I am working on a larger projects I am also making tree decorations . I originally was using the free kit with simply crochet magazine but the wool isn't very nice  so am back to and generic dk and results much better . I love the simplicity of red and white .

I love the little swirl sweets  so quick and easy ..m sure by time tree goes up will be swamped with decorations  best get hooking then. 

a celebration bird

This is my 100th post I don't think I have ever kept at a diary so long and certainly not a blog but I did wonder what I should do as my post . I am also getting to the anniversary of first learning to crochet so I wanted it to be something good I attempted some very tricky most but messed them up and the result  was not picking up my hook


So then today my new copy of simply crochet came . It's a bumper issue ready for Xmas . How could I not find something I wanted to make. And what really stood out is the free attic 24 kit to make a board bird


It seemed fitting Lucy work opened my eyes to what was possible Crochet . I really thought it was all granny squares and bunting untill then.  So I set to work a three hours later here it is

Forgive the photo . It's really hard to get it right but it is actually really cute. The pattern was in a book of various decoration . I love the early and the colour so think I will make a few for my tree.


So that's it the my 100th post thanks for reading . I hope you enjoy reading it here's to the next 100!!

once you pop you cant stop

That might be the saying but it's certainly not how I feel. I have spent all morning doing popcorn stitch and as I done last one the sense of relief was overwhelming.

Any way do you want to see if it was worth it?

This is the finished lap quilt. It's very simply closed granny squares lightly stuffed. Stitched together by single crochet and then the dreaded popcorn stitch border. It the perfect size to fit in your lap perfect for my mother in law who last year had a nasty fall this can keep her warm and she can't get tangled up and trapped in it.also if she out in wheel chair can fit with no danger of the wheels catching. All in all I am happy with this project and that means I am ticking awAy the projects on my Xmas list

the yarn thief part two

You may remember my story about the French company bergere and the terrible treatment they received by the online crafting community well I decided to use my points. I treat myself to a set of knit pro wave hooks which with the other came in at bargain of under  ten pounds. I was so excited to order then my points vanished I contacted the company angry that I was being treated lime this due to people's previous greed but thankfully the company emailed me and reset my points and the second time the order was a success. Less than a week  later they arrived and here they are.

 I love these hooks and feel really lucky to have a full set. You may remember a friend bought me one for my birthday last month and it was so good to UAE I knew I needed all of them

Since getting them I can comfortably crochet much longer and so have nearly finished my mother in law lap quilt so for now will love you and leave you  but don't go far my ta day won't be long

surprise surprise

 September is a funny month kids back at school Christmas before you know it and I must stay focused and stick to Xmas projects and yet I am.distracted. a face book group is doing a mystery crochet a long . I know it's a hat. I know it's the advanced and I know it's in chunky but other than that I gave no idea. I am taking g part as its fun to join in and its four rows a week  so it's a tiny acceptable distraction


So here is today efforts

As you can see there is no telling what army this hat will be but I am looking forward to finding out . Any way that's enough distractions back to work