A very crafty Christmas

Posted on December 27, 2013 by The Little Room of Rachell

Between Christmas and New Year I inevitably find I drift around in a bit of a haze. Driving merrily along to go through a village on my way to sale shopping I came across this…

I just forgot we’ve had ~~a little~~ a lot of rain this week. After taking these photos of what are usually fields I turned my car around and went another way as the road was blocked with flood water. If it does carry on as predicted the water on either side of the roads will not be contained within the fields and water meadows. I’m not thinking about how much water surrounds us.

I have obviously been a very good girl this year…

Aren’t these the best kind of presents? So much to be busy with into the New Year, so much inspiration. I was also lucky to be given a Hobbycraft voucher and bought the fabric in their sale. A metre for £5 was too good to miss especially as the material feels pretty good quality. In fact I’m thinking I might get ahead and sew some gift bags for Christmas 2014! After finding bargain packs of 10 cards, 3 for £1, I’m having a forward thinking day. (I know, I know, I’m making you cringe right?!)

What was your favourite present? Have you been given crafty Christmas gifts too? I’d love to see what you’ve been given if you want to post a picture somewhere and put a link in the comments below.

Time to curl up and catch up with more Christmas tv and film now. Lebkuchen, chocolate and glass of port anyone? Don’t judge me.

Crochet OFSTED?

Posted on September 5, 2012 by The Little Room of Rachell

I’ve undone and re-crocheted block #1 (of the Stylecraft practice set) because I had a message yesterday saying that the reason it was smaller in size than the babycashmerino block was it had 12 rows in the first half, as opposed to -the correct- 13. Oops! Once I know there’s a mistake or something wrong, it will bug and bug me until I have to do something about it.

The funny thing is that the new and improved block is the same size as the version before, and still the same (smaller!) compared to the other DBBC block. I think it’s due to the fact that although the yarns are both DK one is definitely thinner and more wiggly than the other, plus I’m using a 4mm hook with the babycashmerino, versus a 3.5 mm hook for the acrylic. I’m honestly not at all worried about the differing sizes and I wouldn’t mix the two types of blocks anyway; it would be like using margarine and butter in the same sandwich. ;-)

Oh well, maybe I will get a ‘satisfactory’ rating from The School of Crochet OFSTED team but I don’t care. This is a fun project to practise and improve my skills, while learning new techniques.

Sorry for writing the most boring blog post ever! Xx

Week 1: CAL Blocks #1 #2 #3

Posted on September 3, 2012 by The Little Room of Rachell

I was really keen to start crocheting something new, so I crocheted the first 3 blocks last week. I was feeling a little apprehensive about how long they would take me to accomplish, since I am probably only at an intermediate crochet level at this stage. Will I understand the patterns? Will I master bobble stitch (block #4 uh-oh) spike stitches and the dreaded popcorn which always makes me nervous for some reason, although I’ve never actually tried making one. They’re probably a cinch? I’m also between projects because I’m meant to be darning in all those pesky ends of the Rhubarb Ripple and the Target Squares blankets, but my fingers get itchy if I don’t do any crochet for a day or so.

CAL Resolution: I’m going to darn in every single end when I’ve finished a block before I begin another. Darning is fine, but not 1000 ends at once which holds up the exciting final stage of joining or edging.

Have you made any CAL resolutions? Go on, spill if you have – I’m so nosy.

Here goes then….

#1 Triangle Stripes

#2 Tiny Textures

#3 Square Target

It was all going so well with #1 until the decreasing rows

If the paper can stay this is fine!

Redo – carefully! Counting is the answer.

Stylecraft special DK (SSDK) 6″ square-ish!

Debbie Bliss baby cashmerino (DBBC) Bliss indeed! My first posh wool, it’s so soft to work with and the stitch definition is amazing. Compare block #2 SSDK & DBBC
This is 6.5″ square using a 4mm hook

Oh fudge! I thought this was a perfect first attempt. The needle highlights where the error began

Second try. Ohhh! Spot what I’ve done? (Ignore the tape measure) I added an extra row for this block to try to square it up, then decided to stick with the written pattern for the next attempt (I swear there is one more row in the pictured block in the book…)

HURRAY! Third time lucky
SSDK 3.5mm hook 5.5″ square

Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino: 4mm hook 5.5″ high & 5.7″ wide
This is my patch of marigolds

SSDK 5.5″ square

The outer pink is darker than shown – photo taken under the apple tree so the sunlight was dappled

Pleased and a bit proud of myself, mistakes and all it’s been good fun

The plan so far:
>I’m going to carry on using the two hook sizes for the two yarns.
>I’m not going to stress about the differing sizes as there’s blocking, which I’ve never tried but is meant to work like magic, also some clever soul suggested using the larger blocks for one project, the smaller ones for another.
>I’m just going to enjoy the challenge of crocheting the blocks and decide what to make out of them later.

:-D

PS:: I’ve found out a mug of earl grey tea on a lap-top does not reach a happy conclusion. Just to let you know in case you’re breezily sitting with your drink right there…. DON’T!

Rhubarbing & Rainbowing

Posted on March 17, 2012 by The Little Room of Rachell

So, this is how the newly christened Rhubarb Ripple blanket’s going. (Imagine you’ve gone to the end of the garden to cut some rhubarb for a Sunday crumble, and have taken your blue colander to place the sticks into. See? Everything needs a name.)

The Rainbow Granny Stripe is progressing in a very random fashion. It’s not at all challenging to make and so the ‘what next?’ element of choosing the colours keeps it interesting. Meanwhile I’ve planned the colours for the RR, but there’s no taping tufts of yarn to a card for me…that would be far too professional!

I’ve almost certainly broken the cardinal rule of crochet by changing from a 4mm hook to a 3.5mm as I go, but there was no way I was undoing it all. The tension was definitely going to be too loose with the larger hook. I can see where it changes, but if I hadn’t told you would you have guessed? Be honest if you spotted it – I’m interested, but not changing it now! :-)

The blankets are for small girls who like pretty, that’s why they’re so bright. The next one will probably be more sutble.

The little cotton strip on the top of the pile is for a jar cover.

Sadly I’ve got another streamer of a cold and so am not feeling very dynamic today. It’s particularly a shame when you’ve had a busy week and have plans to do fun stuff at the weekend.

I’ve instructed friends & family to hit me on the head with a large box of balm tissues if I crow about how many colds I used to have when I was younger and how much healthier I am these days….I’ve had two corkers of a cold since I said that last. What a wally.

I feel so blah that I’ve just text downstairs to ask for another cup of Lady Grey and a pint of water…well I’m ill….

A few drinks, and some chatty comments below would definitely cheer me up in fact. I seem to have a lot of visitors to The Little Room but few cheery hellos….go on…introduce yourself, I like meeting new people. :-)

Crocheting in bed

Posted on January 24, 2012 by The Little Room of Rachell

I really did go downhill yesterday, I thought that the streaming cold of Sunday would be better and probably nearly gone by yesterday but I woke up feeling really horrendous. I was even slightly tempted to take a photo to prove how hideous I looked and felt, but am truly glad I didn’t….it would be scarey viewing.

I’d read a tweet at the weekend which said something like ‘if all you want to do is sit up in bed and crochet – while watching a movie, then do’ (Or 140 characters worth of similar advice anyway!) I’ve never considered bed and crochet as being compatible; I have enough trouble with my hooks sliding down between the cushions, or onto the floor when I’m on the sofa. But as I was feeling so fragile, and bed was the cosiest place, I decided to try.

So far Mr Scrappy only had a body and one leg or arm which was all green when it was meant to be stripey.

(Here’s why it’s plain green, not colourful…)

I settled down against my pillows with my audio book of Me Before You by Jojo Moyes and made another one.

Anything you notice about them?!

I sighed and decided to carry on making Mr Scrappy’s body….while laughing out loud and feeling a little teary as the book progressed…

Lynne’s advice about using a stitch marker when crocheting in the round is sooo helpful. It really works!

Ok, so after going back and making another arm or leg I could see that crocheting after 2 glasses of wine, while watching Red Dwarf, might not have been such a great idea the other night…

I’ll undo the freakishly big plain green one and save the wool for another section of Mr S.

Not bad crochet for a poorly Rachel – especially while choking and sobbing over Me Before You.

I can’t recommend the book enough, it’s amazing by the way. So amazing I might even be listening to it again from the beginning.

Crocheting more of Mr Scrappy took my mind off how terrible I was feeling and I might even crochet in bed again one lazy weekend. Hopefully without all the germs!

Crochet doings

Posted on January 13, 2012 by The Little Room of Rachell

Morning!

Here’s what I’m doing at the moment, though I’ve haven’t done much crochet this week as the work I’ve put off for so long has to be done by next Thursday. I’m going to be working next Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday elsewhere so time is lacking. I can see a long weekend of sighing and a lot of Earl Grey being drunk next to a red-hot lap top! It’s my own fault, if we really need to talk blame… *smirk*

Here it is in all it’s-all-wibbly-needs-blocking-badly-‘glory’.

I’ve unravelled the first circle so far, it’s the larger one, and am going to make one of those folded circle birds everyone seems to making at the moment.

The other circle is new and improved with a smaller 3.5mm hook, and greater attention to detail…those stitches have to be counted and recounted as I go, there’s no getting away from it.

Lynne said that she goes into the back loop when ss into the 3rd chain at the end of a curcuit and she still has gappy bits, so not to worry. She is the master of knitting and crochet, so I’m not worrying about it.

These aren’t the colours I’d have chosen to put together, but I’m using scraps. The surprising thing is I’ve had many compliments on the colour combination! It’s made me like them more. I know. I’m a sucker for flattery…

This is what I call (I know; I sound like Miranda’s Mum!) The Hilton crochet. I stayed in the one in Nottingham last November without taking any crochet. I madly thought it would be good to have a break for a few days. My fingers started itching in an alarming way, so much so that there seemed only one thing to do – I had to go to the John Lewis, conveniently located next door to the hotel, and buy a hook and some cotton.

Experimenting with a different middle. I prefer this to the usual GS cross.

Those pesky ends!!! …Actually it’s not popular to say this but I don’t mind the darning at all. It makes a change and doesn’t take long at all.

Rowan HK cotton. It’s my first go with it. I like it but I’m not sure it works for clothing or a blanket, not for me anyway. Plus it’s mahoosively ££££££ for the 50g you get. They offer a nice range of colours though, I can imagine using it for decorative bits and pieces.

This is probably going to be a bag, only 25 more squares to go I reckon. Don’t hold your breath for a big reveal soon. It’s not going to happen too quickly!!!