Sunday, 25 November 2012

Skein of Green!


Earlier this year, when something clicked and I began to crochet, my wonderfully woolly and creative friend Tracey sent me a bulging box of goodies...
The blue at the back became a granny TARDIS, the red has been used successfully for my heart pattern which I am yet to reveal, the pinky colours were transformed into one of Tracey's gift bags and the blue on the top has found its way into a few Kaldred patterns. 
The green at the bottom was a wonderfully soft 150g skein of superwash merino.

I knew it would come into its own for Christmas..I had thoughts of Christmas trees, holly leaves, and mistletoe. I did use a little before I began on Christmas projects...
however these were tiny bits as I have great difficulty winding from a hank to a ball! Even the smallest skein gets a bit knotted and ravelled despite my best attempts to keep it smooth 
and its me that keeps getting wound up!
Whilst winding the green skein I ended up with an extremely distorted knotted green mess of 750m of yarn resembling a giant clump of  spongy moss!
My mum is hugely creative and thankfully patient...she likes methodical mathematical crafts, her lace is incredibly detailed - and takes hours of dedication. She took away the wodge of wool, patiently unravelled, untwisted and wound it into this huge ball of single stranded several hued green loveliness!


The tiny bit on the top was the only casualty of the long length -  and that was the cut I had made in anger to find an end to wind!


I have been hooking frantically but therapeutically with what I thought was a never-ending supply of Christmas coloured softness. I abandoned all the patterns I favourited on Ravelry in favour of the humble granny square and have made this portly pile.....


Not for a blanket, or a bag...but all will be revealed nearer Christmas!
The squares don't have to be neat for this project!

 

My supplies are satisfyingly dwindling..

 

and the ball has shrunk considerably....
 A couple of weekends ago Tracey and I met up in Brum for the second time in more than 20 years - it was so great to see her again, chat, reminisce and introduce her to Mr RW and RW Jnr! 
 She received one of the transformed granny squares.
This post is to say Thank you over the years to Tracey for her continued friendship, supplies and inspiration and to Mum for her oodles of patience...
x

Friday, 16 November 2012

Flame On!

This is the card we gave Mum for her birthday...


It started as the fourth piece of wet felt created for The dying of the Sun...seen here on the right on the line of fire!


There's a bit of everything incorporated into the needlefelting, two types of Teeswater curls and mainly shetland tops with some sari silk...


...and some crochet. 


I suppose the crochet flames could be considered my first free form crochet as I just hooked a few stitches until I got a flame shape.  They then took on a completely different form as they were needlefelted onto the piece..



I'm amazed how much my style has changed from this


to this in just a year. 


I'm always on the look out for frames and this is a great one from B and M bargains last year. The glass has been removed but the mount had padded foam on the back and a polystyrene sheet is included to pack out the box style. I might have to pop in and pick up some more, though I have quite a collection of shapes and sizes as I buy them when I see them. Also I'm never quite sure what size a finished item might be!

Part of mum's present was a crochet Poinsettia brooch from my daffodil pattern,
with a few more petals of different widths, and...you've guessed it...
a needlefelted middle!



Happy Birthday Mum!

Wednesday, 7 November 2012

Sparkly Spider Hammocks!

One of the joys of autumn is seeing nature's colourful beauty and being surprised by intricate patterns. On a chilly, dull and dewy morning last month I snapped these beauties on our lavender bush!









Sparkly jewels!


Spider trampolines or hammocks?!


Can you spot the web on this picture?


I think we have had the maker of this giant web scurrying across the living room carpet once or twice!