My Crafting 2015

Let's face it 2015 has been a rubbish year for my family. I'm not going to focus on that though. Instead I am looking back at my crafts of 2015. This is after all a craft blog. I gathered all my photo's of my crafts over the last year and put them into their own folder. Unsurprisingly there weren't that many of them. I am sure it would beat 2014 though as I was trying to finish my degree back then.

What surprised me this year was how many pairs of socks I did manage to get finished. There were 8 of them. A whole 8. I was sure there would be far fewer. I give myself a pat on the back for that one. Especially since only 2 of those pairs was done in the basic sock pattern. Only 3 out of the 8 were not made with Lisa's yarn. I'm not sure I can pick a favourite. The last pair in the collage was the last pair I made for my mum so they have a soft spot. It's also one of my favourite patterns which I have used over and over again. You can see the socks more clearly here. The ones that really pop is the yellow and green which was a pair that I did for my gran. Sadly it doesn't looked like I blogged about those socks and I have no idea what pattern I used. I didn't document it anywhere (this is where those organisational posts will come in handy).

As for crochet, I think this has mainly been a year for it. I managed to crochet two blankets. One for a baby shower and another for my mum (funnily enough it's the red one). I also crocheted a couple of squares which contributed to a blanket being given to someone as a leaving gift. There are another three blankets in that montage all of which are unfinished. The first image shows a blanket I started for myself. It's for when I buy my new home (next year people). It's almost finished but I haven't touched it in a long time. As you know the brown and beige squares were originally going to become a blanket for my gran. I am now donating it to someone else who is in the same situation my gran would have been in had she still been with us. The last, is of course the blanket club. I have loved taking part in that. Since my mum worked on some of those squares too it feels like it's a project we have done together, which was why we originally joined up.  The other good thing about this blanket is that I have learned a lot of crochet skills from it and so felt comfortable enough to sign up for the Acer crochet along. I thoroughly enjoyed that and hope to take part in others.

The end of the year has been when I have been at my most productive. I got quite a few things finished and as a result both my sister and I ended up with a set of winter woollies. I quite enjoyed working on this. I plan on doing a set for my sister each year. I want to use different patterns so will have to get searching for next year. The hat will have to have a pom pom though as my sister will insist on it.

Sadly, I have done very little in the way of sewing. I embroidered a bag for Lisa's little boy which was a gift from my mum and I. I stitched a few magazine freebies. I started a clock. And I started a hexie cushion. That's it. I have dozens of other unfinished sewing projects from previous years. I don't think I should start any more until at least one or two are finished.

It doesn't seem like I have had a particularly productive year. I spent most of my focus during the spring and summer on my mum's garden. Most of the work was hers though and I can't take the credit for it. I very much enjoyed photographing the results though.

I was busy with the blog itself. It's had the most traffic this year than any other and I have been trying to evolve the blog into something that people can use as a tool whether it's to try a new idea or to get some inspiration from others. My favourite post is probably the most boring which is the one with tips on blogging. I hope that other people will find it useful and I hope that it will also encourage some of you talented lot to get writing. I've added pages to the top of my blog which I hope that people will find useful and that I hope to continue to add to.

So that's pretty much my 2015. Looking forward to 2016. Please look out for my post at the end of the week. I hope to post about my plans for next year. Oh, and remember, if you would like to be a guest blogger next year let me know.

Blanket Club Month 11

A four day week and a training day included has meant that I am behind in all the things I have planned. That includes blog posts. It turns out you can't do it all (especially after a Christmas night out on top of that). Next week I have a whole week off but I plan on spending it with my family. It's my sister's birthday and I want to make sure she is thoroughly spoiled. So for that reason I am moving back to two posts a week. For the next couple of weeks anyway.

So November has been and with it everyone in the blanket club received their final square. I am 100% in love with this colour. I love blue, any shade of blue but this one is a firm favourite. I'm glad that it was saved for last. I also love the buttons that Lisa made to go with the box. She posted these buttons on her facebook page a while back and I greatly admired them. So happy to be a proud owner of two. Will have to think of something special for them.

As for the square. I love it. Although, I'm not sure if I am doing it right and I have a feeling that I might have to be frugal with the yarn to get all 26. I like it though and it measures up to the same size of the other squares so I'm not going to worry too much if it's right. Sadly I have only got two squares done. Just not enough time in the world at the moment.

Month 12 will be a little different and that post will be a little late in coming. Month 12 we get our joining yarn. We have the option of picking the colour for that one. I picked cream as I want the colours of the squares to pop. Cream is always my go to colour for joining. I will need to decide the order of the squares and my joining method. I keep changing my mind on that one. Feel free to send me links to some ideas/tutorials.

Lisa has also announced next years blanket club. It's a graph based pattern. Each month you are sent a graph and the yarn to make a large square. Lisa had pattern testers try the first square and it truly is lovely. Not for me though. Next year I have other projects that I need to concentrate on and so I have to be strong willed when it comes to signing up for things.

She also has a blended ombre club next year which works the same way as the blanket club. Each month you are sent the yarn and at the end you are left with a beautiful stole. Go to her facebook page at For the Love of Yarn if you fancy signing up.

Blanket Club Month 10

Last week October's blanket club box arrived from the lovely Lisa. I was immediately taken by this lovely green. It's so festive which is fitting since all the shops are preparing for it now AND I have even seen my first Christmas tree. Too soon even for me. Anyway, I loved the green and the deepness of the colour will contrast well with the other squares. The freebie this month was these lovely polka dot scissors. I love them and they'll come in handy since I'm always losing mine.

The square this month is called a Victorian granny and I love it. I love the pinwheel design in the centre. It looked more complicated than what it was and surprised myself with it turning out first time.

I've now almost completed the first skein. Sadly, I don't think I am going to have enough yarn for all 26 squares. That's okay though as I have kept all the leftover yarn from the other squares and I should squeeze out a few more with those.

After this there will be just one more square before we receive thee joining yarn. I couldn't resist taking a photo of the first 9 months all together. Loving the bright colours. I have been having a rethink about my joining. I'm in two minds as to whether or not to make one large blanket. Going to have to have a think about that.

Meanwhile our Lisa is planning next years blanket club and although I told myself I wasn't going to be joining that one I'm now thinking about it. You know it's probably going to happen!

October WIP

How has the time flown so fast? Feels like I only just posted Septembers WIP. Yet here we are. I am pleased to say that October also consisted of a few finishes. However, this is about what I am working on. I started a second acer which I am making to go with my hat. This is instead of the cable scarf. Gave up finding one that I liked. It's a little coarser than my first acer and definitely thicker but I think it will be cosy. Going to need it as I am freezing already.

After washing my fabric, which was where we were at with my last WIP post, I made a start on my hexies. I have maybe 20 more to go before I have enough for the cushion for my sister. If that works out I have plenty of fabric to make a matching cushion. These are addictive and I hope to have them all finished soon.

So I started the cowl from the cowl kit I bought from Lisa. And then I finished it. I asked for two skeins of yarn in the kit and so I have started a hat to match the cowl. I originally planned to look out a pattern for a slouchy hat but being lazy I just used the same pattern that I did for my last hat. I'm using bigger needles so that the hat will be less fitted.

Lastly I am still working on this months yarn blanket squares. I have about half of the last skein finished. Shouldn't take me too long to finish.

Blanket Club Month 9

This months blanket club box arrived from Lisa of For the Love of Yarn. Of course I was still half way through one skein of yarn in the previous month. Oops! I absolutely love the coral. It's a lovely colour and follows on nicely from last month yellow (for those who are joining as they go). It actually reminds me of a pair of socks I knitted once, for my gran I think. Same colour but this yarn is much softer. It also has little splashes of red here and there which I love.

The little extras this month was this lovely ribbon. I love ribbon. Have a box full of it as I used to buy ribbon whenever I saw it on sale. These will be lovely additions, or maybe I should actually use it. I especially love the lace and think it would make a lovely addition to some ankle socks. I think I even have a pattern that involves stitching some ribbon to the cuff.

I didn't cheat. I finished off the yellow squares before I even started this months. This months square involved a new stitch which I had never heard of let alone done before. Thankfully Lisa kindly provided a link to a youtube video which showed how to do it. Being too lazy to type it all in I just typed the stitch into the search engine and used this video which was handy. Although frustrating. Too long spent working up to the stitch while I'm shouting at the screen to just hurry up and show me how to do it. It worked though and if you want to learn it go ahead and view it. You will also find it linked on my new page titled craft tutorial links.

With this square I had to leave out a round so that it would be the same size as all the others. It's the way I crochet. The logical step would be to leave out the last round but that made it too small. Someone else had the same problem and they mentioned that they had left out the third round rather than the last. It made no sense to me. I tried it though and sure enough it worked. I have almost finished the squares for my mum's blanket and won't be long in moving on to mine. Loving this new stitch.

Blanket Club Month 8

August's blanket club box arrived while I was in York so I had to wait a whole week before I got to see what colour we got. Of course it meant I had something to look forward to after a week of fun. I wasn't at all disappointed with the colour. In fact this was what I was hoping for. I was wondering if a yellow would be coming up and here it is. It's gorgeous and by looking at it I can pretend we had a summer. A laser cut felt coaster also came with it. It's almost too pretty to use. I don't want to risk damaging it. Lisa's little label did say that you could attach it to a project of some kind. Would be interesting to see what people do with it.

As for the square pattern itself, it's a type I have never done before. It's called a mighty solid. you start at one corner and work your way out. I've seen it done with the traditional granny square and it makes for a lovely blanket. I've been enjoying working on them. I always like to give something new a go. They do need pinned though. And I hate pinning but I get to use the lovely pins that came with another of the yarn blanket boxes.

I am almost half way through what would have been my mum's yarn. I'm not sure that I will get mine finished too before the next box arrives but you never know. To be honest I just want to enjoy the lovely bright colour. I'm not sure that I will get all 26 squares out of the yarn as it does take quite a lot but as I am waiting until I have all 12 months before I decide on the order it doesn't really matter.

If you are liking the idea of a blanket club Lisa is planning another one soon. You can follow her on her facebook page, For The Love of Yarn, where I am sure she will be posting details when she starts the next one.

I am posting this a day early as I am planning a mini extra post for Wednesday.

Blanket Club Month 7.

The plan is to try and give an update about the blanket club each month. I had planned to do that from day one but never managed it. Better late than never as they say. This months box came last week. Sadly my camera isn't doing it justice. It's a light teal which just happens to be one of my favourite colours. Each month Lisa also sends us a wee gift. I should really do a post just on these little gifts as a lot of thought goes into them. This months gift is a measuring tape in the form of a snail. I actually almost bought myself this very same tape a few months back. Glad I didn't now (although elves seem to steal and hoard all my tapes).

As I said, my camera isn't really doing the colour justice. The shade is really somewhere in between the two photographs. This months square is a traditional granny. Love a traditional granny. It always feels like coming home. You can never go wrong with it. Although, I do have to forcibly stop myself from continuing after the three rounds are done. Force of habit. I am the queen of the large granny. I have just been in the mood the last week or so to do these small projects and as a result I have almost finished my mum's squares for this month. No need to feel sad for me as I will have my own to do next. You can feel sorry for me when they are done.

I also caught up with my own squares. I had two months to go when I received the teal. I was tempted to just make a start on those but my will power held out. Two days of solid crochet and this is the end result. I am in love with those colours.

Yarn Blanket Club Update

 I think you can be forgiven if you don't remember that I am taking part in another crochet along. Well, actually, it's called a blanket club but I think it can be thought of as a crochet along to. I first mentioned it when I made my return to the blogging world back in February. The lovely Lisa set up a year long club. She sends us out scrummy yarn each month with a pattern crochet square pattern (as well as other goodies). It's now six months down the line and I have maybe mentioned it twice.

My mum and I are were doing this together and she was actually ahead of me before she was too tired and ill to carry on. Thanks to my good friend Lisa I have been keeping up with it. So here are all 6 months of my mum's squares.

Alas, that doesn't mean that I kept up with my own. I was over 3 months behind. Still on the green squares and only half way through them. Yesterday I was proud of myself for finishing month six of my mum's blanket. Then I get a hint that month seven is on its way out. So today I hunted out my squares and got to work.

I am now only 3 months behind (or just a little over 2). I finished the green and have made a start on the blue (which is my favourite colour so far - no surprises there).

I have been working on other things too but they have all taken a back seat to getting these little squares up to date. If you follow me on instagram you will probably have a better idea of what I've been up to. For everyone else, I promise that blog updates will still take place. Meanwhile I am about to put the kettle on for a much needed coffee and get back to those blue squares.

Spring Plans

It's been an awful week for weather. Every time we think the sun is going to stay out it starts raining with the occasional hail stones and even a flurry of snow. This spring I have been promising to help my mum with her garden. However, every time we plan to do something the bad weather interferes. I was able to sneak out and take a few photo's of her daffodils.

It hasn't stopped me from picking up some seeds and there are still some time to plant them. I usually buy seeds for my mum each year. It's something both my sister and I have always done. This year I have picked up a few extra. Some of which my mum had requested for her hanging basket and some I picked because of the colours (and because they attract bees).

I also couldn't resist picking up some bulbs even though they can't be planted until much later. As my mum has a love of red I couldn't walk away from the Canna Lily. Fingers crossed the weather will better the next time we plan to go into the garden.

In the meantime I have the next yarn from the blanket club to work on. I love the green which is fitting for spring. I have only managed a few of this months squares but they do seem to work up quickly. This months little extras are the two pretty crochet flowers. Lisa has asked that we send some photo's of what we do with them. It might be a while before I am able to do it but I have plans for them already!

I have also been buying up a fair share of magazines. After a few years of limiting myself to one or two I have went a little mad of late. I really need to work on something from at least one of them so it doesn't look like I'm needlessly wasting money.

One of my recent magazine purchases was Simply Crochet. It's not a magazine I regularly buy unless I spot a project I know that I will do. This time though it was the freebie that caught my attention. It came with a tunisian crochet hook and there is a pattern in there for beginners. I have always wanted to give this a go since a friend of mine took it up a few years ago. Maybe this will encourage me to do finally try it.

It also contained an article on blogging. It gave hints and tips from various bloggers. I thought it was quite interesting and worth reading if you are thinking of starting up your own blog. It also has a good list of some crafting blogs which are worth checking out.

Speaking of which, I have updated my crafting blog page and added a few more to it. If you like a good crafting blog please go have a look. Oh and if anyone would like to get into blogging and would like to do a guest post here then please feel free to let me know. I don't get anything out of it other than the chance to showcase some talented people.

Lastly, I have a few planned posts coming up. Including some pinterest posts which I have been missing.