Hello and welcome to Patchwork House . . . . .
my little corner of the world in England, where you will find me addicted to colour and playing with yarn!


26 January 2014

Starburst Crazy


Each weekend I am going to feature
 one of my popular blanket makes . . .

The idea came to me
 when I was reordering my facebook albums .
 I couldn't believe it
 but out of 35 albums
 I have 11 different blanket types!

So I thought this might be of interest to you
and this week will begin with
the starburst or sunburst flower.

I first discovered this sweet little starburst flower
  in Mollie Makes issue 2
and in the book called
The Gentle Art of Knitting
by Jane Brocket
(This book is mostly knitting with 2 crocheted blankets)


I think it is fair to say
 that I have a love affair with this
 delicious indulgent little circle


there are often piles of them
 to be found adorning the surfaces of
 Patchwork House


there is something so sumptuous
 about their soothing symmetry and tantalising textures
from the 3 different stitches used


it has to be said
 that I am very OCD 
and love nothing better than 
some good organised crochet . . .
it is more time efficient to make all the centres first


then plan the second rounds
and finally the thirds


choosing the colours is the best part


and finally that satisfying sight of a basket full
 ready to be joined


my preferred method is join as you go
and you can read my tutorial


the texture added by join as you go
adds a lovely three dimensional quality
 and makes the blankets feel so rich


they come together really fast


and once you have mastered the technique


you can join the whole blanket in one go


with the added bonus of no ends!!!


Apart from blankets
 they are great for scarves


so soft and snuggly


and pretty cushions
with different sides front and back


This week my love affair continues


as I have the pleasure
 of working with shades of raspberry and plum


to make a large throw for a bed


121 flowers made
and waiting patiently


 to be surrounded
 with rich sumptuous cream!


My favourite yarn for blanket making is
Stylecraft Special DK which comes in over 80 fabulous shades.
 It is machine washable and very affordable.
You can buy it 

Come back next week for the big reveal!

Till then happy hookin girls
and 
big thanks
 for all your lovely comments and emails

Heather
x x x














19 January 2014

Happiness is . . .


Happiness is 
days at home with plenty of ME time

new hooky projects


lazy mornings
 coffee in pretty mugs
 and delicious new colours to work with


the satisfaction of completed projects


striking blues
and
pretty pinks


but what has been making me really happy this weekend
 is my stripey blanket

zig zags
spots
strips
stars
catherine wheels



and colour


I cant get enough of this project
but I'm being strong willed and it is rationed in between orders!
Fortunately it seems you all like it too
 and orders for stripey blankets are rolling in 
with a baby version coming up very very soon!

Have a lovely hooky week my friends
and
 thank you
 for all your kind words
Heather
xxx







12 January 2014

January 2014 ~ 2/52



 This week was back to school
so new pen pots for my desk
 were in order
 to brighten up the classroom


Now . . . a run through my week
 to show you what I've been up to
here at Patchwork House

a beautiful Cath Kidston inspired ripple


has been a treat to make


followed by these pretty spring colours


for a starburst pram blanket


OOOHhhh
 I always love the texture created
 by the join as you go method!


then a cheery rainbow


was to brighten my week


I'm always soooooo excited
when I get a rainbow order
 as I just love to choose
 the colours from my stash!


The first week back at school took for ever . . .
the holiday is now a distant memory . . .
the weekend couldn't come fast enough
and my weekend treat
is some selfish hooky!

I am taking part in the 2014 crochet along along on facebook
making the As-we-go stripey blanket


I chose this as a personal challenge to learn some new stitches
and I am totally addicted!

The pattern is written in English 
by Hannah Davis on her blog
and you can find it

it is really well written
 with clear instructions
 and many photos to help
but do note
 that it is written using US crochet terms,
 however the English equivalents are given!

Here is my progress so far . . .


My favourite stitches have been
 the bobble, the star and the zig zag

I am planning
 a little each weekend on this
 and will give you regular updates as to my progress!



Next week sees the start of a large bed throw in raspberry and plum

Have a good week my dears
and do pop back next Sunday for my weekly update!

Happy hookin

Heather
X X X









5 January 2014

2013 The year of the hook!

What a fantastically hooky year I've had
so so busy with new makes
orders on top of orders
 a fantastically busy facebook page
busy family life
and of course work too!

Here is just a little 
of what I've been hookin
to satisfy my crochet addiction this year


Hotties galore . . .
 some granny squares


some stripes


Granny shawls by the dozen



 and granny cowls


cushions in plenty . . .
some starburst flowers


some ripples


  coasters and mandalas 


blankets blankets and more blankets

some plain


 many baby ripples


gorgeous granny squares


girly grannies


pretty daisies


starburst flowers by the ton


 many granny ripples


and the oh so colourful
Elmer!


Then there were pretties


 and granny chic


 and some new makes that I know will be popular this year

a cute granny tea cosy


and stripey phone socks!


I have loads of new makes in the pipeline
and an order book full up to Easter already!

Thank you all for your custom in 2013

Thank you for your friendship and chat
especially on

and

This year
 I am planning a weekly blog
 on Sundays
 to round up my week

Do pop in next week to see what's on my hook
and hear tales from
Patchwork House

Heather
x x x


Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...