Granny blanket update!

I've finally got some progress to report on my granny blanket! Yay! So I thought to celebrate I'd share some pictures with you.


After a lot of procrastination I eventually got round to attaching my 100 granny squares together and now it actually resembles a blanket!


After lots of thought and a few tests I decided to attach them using a slip stitch through the back loops (there is a fab tutorial here). I think it took a bit longer that stitching the squares together would have done but I like the effect so I think it was worth it.

Unfortunately, when I was finished attaching I laid it out on the floor to take a look and I wasn't happy at all! It was all lumpy and wouldn't lay flat. Very disappointing. I think a combination of my tension changing over the period I made the squares (as I was still learning) and crocheting the squares together too tightly combined to give this effect.


Oh dear! I was just hopeful that blocking would help and thankfully it did. Some water and over 100 pins later I had turned the wonky blanket above into this:

Phew! I am much happier with it now. After a few days blocking the blanket was much flatter and squarer (as in the first two pics). And in future I will block more frequently - maybe not every square but definitely smaller sections of squares.

I haven't decided whether to add any more squares to this blanket or not. My original intention was to make quite a large blanket but that was before I realised quite how much yarn making the blanket would take and the subsequent effect on my bank balance! Unfortunately due to my inexperience I chose a bit of an expensive yarn. At the moment I am planning to leave it for a bit and work on some other projects and see how I feel at a later date. I've already got lots of ideas for other things I want to make....!

Crafty Intentions 2012

I'm not really one for making New Year's resolutions but I thought it might focus my mind to think about some of things I would like to achieve this year creatively and for this blog. I have also posted photos of some of my favourite things I have made over 2011 in the hope that it might make you read this selfish post right to the end!!

My creative intentions* for 2012 are:

1. Try at least 4 new crafts - either in classes or self taught.


2. Get involved in craftivism/crafting for charity


3. Teach a crafty skill to someone else.


4. Finish my granny blanket - this will involve attaching together the 100 squares I already have and possibly adding many more!


5. Finish at least one knitting project. I've only just learned to knit and I'm not sure whether it will be my thing or not but I would like to try and make at least one thing to give it a go.


6. Hand make the majority of the cards I send.


7. Turn my Emily Peacock tapestries into cushions - this is something that I have been meaning to do for ages and I just need to get on with it!


8. Have another go at silver clay jewellery - I bought all the kit at the end of my course and its just sat in my spare room ever since. Whoops!


9. Look into getting a stall at a craft fair, probably selling mainly glass goodies, maybe with someone else.


10. Use up some of my fabric stash BEFORE I buy any more. I should probably try to do this for yarn too!


11. Write a tutorial for this blog.


12. Have 2 blog giveaways and participate in some swaps.


13. Aim to blog at least once a week.


14. Start using ravelry and documenting my projects on there.


15. And to finish on a more general intention, I always like to have several projects on the go but I would really like to get better at finishing things before starting new projects!

Phew - looks like I've got a busy year ahead! I've actually already managed to put the wheels in motion for some of these intentions already and it looks like I should probably get started on the others! If anyone is thinking of putting a list together like this then I would definitely recommend it - just typing this all out has got my brain whirring with things I want to get started on. Hmmm....maybe I should take note of number 15 in particular!!

Hope you are all having a lovely (crafty) weekend xx

*I was inspired to use the word intentions rather than resolutions by Heather - I think it sounds much more positive and less pressurising!!

100 grannies!

HURRAH! 100 granny squares with all the ends sewn in. Now for the next challenge - making them into something resembling a blanket! I'm very excited :o)

Granny Blanket Progress

I was finally reunited with my granny squares on Friday! WOOHOO! (Is it sad I was so excited by this? Probably! I don't care!) I had to leave them in France with my parents three weeks ago when I had to severely pare down my luggage to a small rucksack which was manageable with crutches. I'd been looking forward to getting them all back with their buddies at home and seeing what they all looked like together. And here they are:

I couldn't remember how many I had but I thought it was either 80 or 100 altogether so I was a bit disappointed when I gathered them together and found out it was only 60! Still, they are pretty big squares so I thought I must have the makings of a blanket by now. But actually when I lay them all out it still looks quite small!

The squares are roughly 10cm square so arranged like this they give a blanket of 60cm by 100cm. I think I'd like it to be at least double this size if not triple so I've got a lot more work to do!! I wish I'd chosen a cheaper yarn - this is going to be the most expensive blanket ever!

I've got another 40 squares on the go at the moment but have decided to join these ones together first to save having to do it all at the end and get some sense of how it will look. I've not done this before so I have done some samples of different ways of joining the squares to work out which I like best. Any opinions would be much appreciated!!

Method 1: Whipstitch together through both loops



Method 2: Whipstitch through the front loop only



Method 3: Weave through the back loops



Method 4: Single Crochet (or UK double)



Method 5: Slip stitch


Phew - that's a lot of photos! Sorry about that. I thought it might be useful to put them all here for future reference!

What do you think? Any thoughts? I think I am erring towards methods 3 or 5 at the moment. I like the fact that they are almost invisible so don't take away from the squares themselves. I am definitely not going to go for single crochet - I don't think I want a ridge between all my squares.

I'm looking forward to getting on with this soon....although maybe not today! Its hotter in London today than is California so sitting with wool on my lap might be a bit much!

I hope you are all having a lovely weekend!

xxx

Packing the Essentials

I'm off on holiday for a few days tomorrow and obviously have to take some kind of portable craft project with me. I think I may have a problem - the idea of going somewhere without something to sew or crochet makes me a bit panicky!! And I actually can't even remember the last time I watched TV without something crafty in my hands! So for the last few days I have been working frantically to turn these:

into these:

I've got a few more to do tonight before I go tomorrow. I'm only taking a small hand luggage case so the idea was that if I took a load of centres I would only need to take the creamy-white yarn to do the outsides. A few balls of cream yarn and 40 centres are still taking up quite a lot of room but hey, who needs a toothbrush and suncream?!

Hopefully when I get back I'll have another 40 squares to add to my original 20. And then I can start doing some joining! I haven't decided how big I'm going to make it yet - I would like to make it huge but I seem to be already getting crochet RSI!


(The one above is my favourite square so far!)

Because of all the crocheting I haven't had much time for other crafting this week but I have managed to make a card for the family friend we are going to see in France:

Its all embroidered on card and I'm quite pleased with it but I wish I hadn't done the wording in black - it looks a bit dark to me. If I make another one I think I might try in a grey....

Hope you are all having a good weekend and have a good week - I'll hopefully be back with some pics and a case full of granny squares next weekend!

Dotty xx

New loves – Crochet

I have decided to do a series of posts on crafts I have picked up whilst I’ve been away and not blogging. I thought I’d start with crochet. I only started crocheting at the beginning of the year and I am completely hooked! (Sorry, I never get tired of that pun!)

I’ve always liked crochet but for some reason thought it was something I would never be able to do. I suppose it’s because I have always associated it with knitting and the one time I tried knitting was disastrous – I was so uncoordinated with the needles and ended up in a grumpy impatient mess!Then earlier this year I noticed that a new crafts venue near where I live was offering drop in crochet and knitting on a Wednesday. So I headed to The Create Place and Marie gave me my first ever lesson in crochet. At first I found it so hard and couldn’t find a way to hold the hook that felt natural but eventually managed a couple of rows of single crochet. I was just getting used to that when Marie suggested I try a double crochet and then once I had mastered that a triple crochet. By the time I left that morning I was grinning wildly and I was clutching a square of purple crocheted yarn that I was insanely proud of......so proud in fact that it sat on my mantelpiece for about a month!

After that I was addicted – I went straight to the shops and bought some yarn and hooks and began trawling the internet for interesting (and simple projects) I could try.The first proper thing I made was the wrist warmers using the tutorial on the wonderful Attic24 blog.


These are coordinated to match a scarf I already have and were a really good beginner project. Plus they taught me a new stitch – half treble (which I call half double because I learnt the American terminology – v confusing!).


After that I was away and started work some circular cushion covers inspired by those in Cute and Easy Crochet by Nicki Trench. I couldn’t get the pattern in the book to work for me so with some more help from Marie I came up with these:

And in closeup:

At the same time as I was making the cushions I became obsessed with the idea of making some crochet bunting. There were loads of lovely bunting patterns about there (just look at this flickr gallery that Lucy from Attic24 put together) but there wasn’t anything that was exactly what I was looking for. In the end, after a lot of trial and error I came up with my own pattern and I’m really pleased with how it turned out.


I’m only giving you a sneak peak here as I was thinking I might do another post on the bunting and maybe even a tutorial if anyone is interested?

Finally, what would a crochet post be without a mention of granny squares! After a few months of crocheting I asked Marie to give me a lesson on granny squares. She showed me how to make a classic granny as well as her own pattern (similar to a sunburst pattern). I went away and this is what I came up with:


I was originally going to make them into a blanket but I decided a cushion would be better to start with! The cotton I used split really easily and it was going to be too frustrating to make the hundreds of squares I needed to make a blanket. Now I just need block these squares, attach them altogether and work out how to make a cushion cover…..that should be easy enough, right?!

I’ve actually already started on some squares for a blanket with different yarn but I think I’ve rambled on enough now so I’ll save that for another post!

Have any of you tried crochet? What patterns and crochet blogs do you like? I’m always on the lookout for new ideas!

Dotty xx