A busy week

Hello my friends happy Friday to you all!

Today has begun with an hour working on a batch of these mini grannies. Oh they are so labour intensive at this stage and I must admit I don't like the fiddle of the ends . . . but as we all know if we want colour we have to put up with ends! As always, I'm working in a production line fashion and will do all of the round 2s in stone, then sew all their ends in.

One of the most frequent questions I get asked is how I deal with ends. Unfortunately in the traditional granny square you cant just crochet over them, as the work is not close enough to hide the ends or hold them securely, so they must be sewn in with a needle at the end. I will be writing a tutorial soon about this very topic to help the many of you who have asked.

This pretty pastel granny square blanket

 began this week and is to be a gift for a new baby.

 I have designed this colour recipe to be neutral

 and so suitable for boy or girl.

I am using

 Stylecraft Special DK

 in

cream soft peach apricot

 stone parchment lemon pistachio

 spring green duck egg and cloud blue

Its been a busy week here at Patchwork House

 with Mandala making having been an exciting task in between blanket making.

 The arrival of a gorgeous new book

Mandalas to Crochet

by Haafner Linssen

has been such a delight!

I highly recommend it!

Beautifully written with clear instructions, 

photos and charts and using UK terms!

you can find a link to it on my recommended book list

 on the sidebar to the right.

I have used

Sirdar Cotton DK

It has a fine twist which prevents splitting and a lovely sheen.

 I chose to use a 3mm hook to produce a firm texture for the mat.

The new designs I've made have been so popular

 and have flown out of my 

Etsy Shop

with great speed.

 But there are still a few others remaining if you are quick!

Finally I promised to show you the final views of the

 Juicy Fruits blanket

 which has now reached its new home.

This blanket was a special commission for a

 new yarn shop 

opening soon in Holmfirth, W Yorkshire.

For the border I chose 27 from the book

Around the Corner

by Edie Eckman

This is a great book with a fantastic choice of edgings.

 It has clear instructions written in US terms and also charts.

You can find it in my list of recommended books again on the sidebar.

It was sad to see this go as it had been a pleasure to make,

 but it really wasn't my colours,

 so I will be happy to see it soon in its new home at

Poppy's

yarn shop in Holmfirth.

Coming next

 you will see me working on some

Ombre Crochet

using again the

 Circle of Friends square

 by Priscilla Hewitt

I have been plotting and planning

 lots of yummy colour blends from the wonderful colour palette of

 Stylecraft Special DK

and I think you'll agree its amazing

 how different the square looks in these colours!

so here I'll leave you

 with a little snippet of what is to come!

Have a very happy hooky evening my friends

Heather

X X X

Juicy Fruits

The last few weeks have been very colourful

 here at Patchwork House,

as I have worked on another order

 for the popular Circle of Friends blanket.

I have been using the pattern written in US terms by Priscilla Hewitt

which you can find

HERE

Stylecraft Special DK

has the most wonderful colour palette

and it is always such a joy to work with a new recipe.

This one which I have named

 Juicy Fruits

 was put together by my customer

 and I'm sure you will agree it is delicious!

To make this blanket you will need

1 each of Stylecraft Special DK in

 pale rose

fondant

fuschia purple

tomato

spice

mustard

pistachio

sage

duck egg

bluebell

and

violet

to be joined with 

4 denim.

You can but this yarn

HERE

Stylecraft Special DK

Working in my production line mode again for speed

 there have been frequent lines and piles on my coffee table

many cups of tea and dishes of sweets

and tons of photo opportunities at every stage.

The most frequent question I am asked

 is how do I plan colours to avoid any repeats

If you missed my popular post a few weeks

 ago written about this very thing you can read it

 HERE

Planning is key

 but it's not hard

 and becomes second nature.

The colours in this lovely blanket

 have given me many exciting photo opportunities to

satisfy my love of crochet mug matches!

Another question I am often asked is about my hooks.

I use Clover Amour hooks

 which have a coated, shaped handle. 

These have stopped the hand pain that I used to get 

and enable me to be very productive, despite health issues.

Storage and organisation of projects in baskets

 helps me to keep my work area (living room) tidy

and makes the squares easily portable

 to another room (bed) or going out (car).

This is a big blanket which is a special commission.

Laying out the squares in Sudoku fashion

 helps me ensure an even distribution of colours.

To join I have used denim

 which has nicely balanced out the hot shades

 of orange and pink.

Once again I have used the flat braid join

 and adapted it to do in the continuous join as you go method.

You can read a tutorial in US terms by Baby Love Brand

HERE

I've been tempted by the vibrant colours

 to eat sweets at every stage!

Now the blanket is in 1 piece and ready for its border.

Come back next week or watch out on

 Facebook

 and

 Instagram 

for the final tadaa!

I wish you all a happy hooky weekend

and as always thank you for your support and encouragement.

This year has been difficult learning to cope with a chronic illness

 and making the decision to leave my job as a teacher.

You can look forward to more regular blog posts

 and many improvements here,

 as I seek to work out my role as a full time crochet artist.

Heather

X X X

Washing line photography

Happy weekend,

 happy Bank Holiday to those of you in UK

 and happy half term to all teachers!

I do hope you are enjoying sunshine

 and feel able to get out in your gardens.

I have been playing again today,

 playing at photographing blankets on the washing line and oh what fun!

 Simple pleasures are what fill me with delight!

Now it looks quite simple doesn't it?

 But you wouldn't believe how many shots I took to get these!

 Which bit of the line shall I use?

Which direction is the sun coming from?

What does the background look like?

 Is it the back view or the front view of the blanket?

Then waiting for the breeze to blow

 to catch some wonderful movement in the blanket!

Stylecraft Special DK

Of course its far easier

 to take a picture when the blanket is flat on the bed, 

but look how the sun makes the colours come alive!

This beautiful pastel granny blanket made in vintage style,

 is made by my Mum and you will find it for sale here in my

 Etsy Shop

 It is 100x120cm for £85 plus postage

Another recent make

 was this gorgeous plum starburst flower blanket.

There were sadly no blue skies that day, but the daylight

 is fantastic for showing off the wonderful colours.

Stylecraft Special DK

The use of a dark background was a lovely choice by my customer

 and it really made the flowers pop!

 Isn't it great how the back looks as good as the front!

I've been asked if I'd just washed the blanket and was it there to dry.

 Well the answer is yes and no!

I always machine wash my completed blankets

 following the instructions on the ball band.

 I use my usual detergent and fabric softener and then tumble dry on low.

 Magic happens in the washing and drying process

 and your finished blanket will be oh so soft.

So the washing line is just for display!

This was made in the gorgeous soft

Stylecraft Special DK

using wisteria clematis boysenberry fondant pale rose candyfloss and cream

 with plum for the background.

The pattern is by Jane Brocket

 from the book

 The Gentle art of knitting

 and was also featured in issue 2 of Mollie Makes magazine.

Every blanket needs a border just as a picture needs a frame

I used the book by Edie Eckman called Around the corner

so whatever you are hookin

 enjoy your extra day off this weekend

 and hopefully some outdoor hooky too!

If youre planning a new project or just enjoying topping up your stash pop over to Deramores and you will find a fabulous 25% off all weekend!

Sale !!!

Please note: This sale is now live! Offer ends midnight BST 30^th May 2016. Cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer, promotions or discount items. Terms and conditions apply.

25% off all yarn! (Please note this promotion is valid for the northern hemisphere only and the southern hemisphere will receive 15% off all yarn) our sale will be running throughout the weekend to give you all plenty of time to get your hands on some brilliant deals. Click here to shop now: http://www.deramores.com/knitting-yarn.

This weekend I am having a treat of a little selfish hooky

 making myself a summer bag

 in colours inspired by Cath Kidston.

 I am using the lovely thick cotton DK

Stylecraft Classique

making it up as I go!

Next week I will buy some pretty coordinating floral fabric

 and make a lining 

and I promise to come back and show you the finished result!

Have lots of hooky fun my friends

Heather

X X X

Colour makes my world go round

Mandala making is such a pleasure.

 "What are they"

 I hear you ask!

 Well a mandala is a circular geometric pattern,

 a beautiful colourful piece of crochet.

 They are perfect for using up scraps of different coloured yarns,

 for practising different stitches and just for the joy of making.

 My home is full of them

 and when we moved house recently

 I had such fun unpacking them and 

finding new homes for these treasures!

 "What do you use them for"

 I am often asked!

 They make wonderful table centres,

 are perfect as a mat under a jug of flowers or ornament.

 I often use them just on their own

 for the sheer indulgence

 of having some colourful crochet on view to enjoy!

In the past I've made small plain coloured coasters,

 medium and large mats

 for vases and extra large as a table centre.

The week I've been exploring on Pinterest

 and spent many happy hours browsing and collecting patterns.

 There are many very talented and kind designers out there,

 all around the globe,

 who have written and published their patterns for free.

 You can visit my collection

HERE

Last week I began making medium sized mandalas

 and used the lovely pattern by  Crochet Millan called

 the little cherry blossom mandala.

They measure 18cm in diameter

 and are a perfect size for under a vase.

You can visit the blog and find her on

 Facebook

 and

 Instagram

 too.

This week I have been using

 Sirdar Cotton DK.

 It is a beautiful yarn with a soft sheen that does not split.

 It is available in 29 gorgeous colours, 

comes in great 100g balls and has fabulous stitch definition.

 and I used a 3mm hook to give a nice firm texture.

So when you compare yarn prices do notice this ball

is double the size of most cottons

 which are sold in 50g balls,

 which makes it excellent value for money!

 Photographing these beauties was such fun,

 they are now listed in my

 Etsy shop

 and are selling fast!

As you know it is my pleasure to share

 and I like nothing more than setting up a photo shoot

 here at Patchwork House to show you my crochet in action.

 It is with great joy

 that I read all your lovely comments and feedback

 and I thank you for your continued interest in my work.

 So following on from all the love that this 

extra large table mat has received

 I will be making some similar next week for my shop.

 This mandala is 40cm diameter

 and is most striking

 as a table centre either alone or under a dish or vase.

After hours of admin behind the scenes,

 doing all the necessary computer work

 that goes along with my work here at The Patchwork Heart,

 it's time or me to get back to my hook.

Just look at these gorgeous colours

 I'm having the pleasure of this week!

 My customer chose well

 and I'm enjoying this juicy fruit colour recipe so much!

Colour Recipe ~ Juicy Fruits

Colour Recipe ~ Stylecraft Special DK

 in mustard, spice, tomato, fuschia purple, fondant, pale rose,

 violet, bluebell, duck egg, sage and pistachio to be joined with denim

This is a Circle of Friends blanket using the pattern by

 Priscilla Hewitt

 and again I am enjoying working in a production line!

 If you missed my post a few weeks ago about

 how I plan colours you can read it

 HERE.

Have a lovely hooky weekend my dears

Heather

X X X