True Love and Zorbing

Hello all,

It has been a busy few weeks. I have commissions to work on for Inside Crochet and the knitting collections which is exciting!!!!

I have also been zorbing. It was a lot of fun but I do not recommend doing it on a hot day!!! I went with my knitting buddy Becky and we tried to zorb on the water to begin with. This was an epic fail as we could not even stand up!!!........We decided to instead to lie in the ball and sunbathe. After this we were part of an it's a knock out round....Again I spent most of the time on the floor.......I couldn't keep stood up. Finally we did a maze where we raced against each other. As it was so hot it was like being stuck in a green house....we quickly went from running to walking. It is a good experience but I don't think I need to do it again lol. 

I went to Yarningham which was amazing.It was lovely to attend a local yarn festival which has local suppliers. I found a great stall which provided me with buttons needed for a commission I am working on. They had a lovely range and I suggest looking at their supplies. 

I attended a steeking workshop ran by Ann Kingstone. She was a lovely teacher and had really built my confidence in this area. It felt a bit scare cutting up the knitted samples I created but using the methods used in this workshop really made me want to take on a steeking pattern. 

I have created a new pattern....I feel it is a symbol of true love. This happy couple is a banana called Bernard and a sausage called Selina. This crazy combination came about as my boyfriend gave me the affectionate pet name....sausage........I went with my knitting buddy Becky it was an Andy Warhol exhibition at the Ashmolean museum in Oxford. Amongst the pictures there was one that I felt impacted me greatly. It was a picture of a sausage and a banana.....From that day I decided it was fair that if I was to called sausage he would be called banana. To commemorate this special moment, I made a pattern for a crocheted sausage and banana. The pattern is available on Love Knitting and Ravelry.

I am off to Fibre East on Sunday and I can't wait!! I will fill you in on all the lovely things I buy.

Until next time

Happy crafting 

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Baby card and wakeboarding

Hello all,

I hope you are all enjoying the gorgeous weather 

This is the perfect excuse to sit outside and knit away the hours whilst topping up your tan. 

Hopefully you have had a look at The Knitting collection 2 to see my latest published patterns. I have been working on a baby card for a colleague at work. The idea that they had was to have mini baby garments placed onto a washing line. I looked for inspiration from my Christmas stocking bunting to create little booties. I had a play around and created a teeny tiny pair booties (they are very sweet). I have created a small grow and a nappy.  I am in the process of getting the pattern checked and hopefully it'll be posted on Ravelry and Love Knitting soon.

I am pressing on with my quirky thirty list. I have actually cooked with rhubarb for the first time!!! I have avoided this for years as I remember being terrified of it as a child. I remember being told you could be poisoned by rhurbarb......as I did not know what could cause the damage...i was too nervous to eat it. I wondered why so many people would risk eating it. I was with Hannah and successfully (and safely) made a delicious rhubarb crumble. 

The next thing I have done is gone wakeboarding!! You are on a board that you are strapped to (bit like a snowboard) and you hold onto a cable. You are then pulled through the water. I found it to be an amazing experience and I really enjoyed it. I did this at Chase water and the staff were so friendly there. I would definitely recommend it!!!!

I have no idea where I have found this but I am currently reading a knitting murder mystery. Oh yes, such a thing exists. The author is Maggie Sefton and she has a series of these books. I am hoping to slowly pick them up to enjoy. I am not too far into my book but I am enjoying 'Knit One, Kill Two'......

Right, back to it 

Until next time

Happy crafting. 

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http://www.loveknitting.com/catalogsearch/result/?order=relevance&dir=desc&q=sarah+reed

The Knitting Collection two

Hello All,

I hope you are all well.

 Nigel Cat is now available on Ravelry and Love Knitting (Yay!!) please check out my designs for more. I am also proud to announce that I have two patterns published in The Knitting Collection Two. 

The first design is titled 'Big, Bold and Beautiful' which is a summery tea cosy. I developed this concept with Claire Montgomerie. I wanted to design a project that used a seed stitch, I had previously designed a seed stitch hat (which is available on Ravelry and Love Kniting by the way). Claire selected some beautiful summery colours to create this tea cosy. The yarn used was chunky King Cole yarn which was soo bright and soft to the touch. The cosy is made in 2 halves and then sewn together at the end. I like how the white row splits each row of colour change. There were quite a few ideas on how to top the cosy. I originally tired a flower but Claire and I decided to use a fun pom pom instead. Make it today and please send me any projects as I would love to see it. 

The second pattern in the collection is 'Take Away A Piece of Summer'. Claire again selected the lovely yarn for this project. It was Stylecraft's Special DK. the colours were vibrant and the yarn worked well in showing the texture of the stitch. The project involved a double moss stitch but it was also made in the round. It was a good challenge to work on this project. I think the pattern is sweet and also quick and easy to make. 

I have ticked another thing off my Quirky thirty List!! I attempted to make pottery. The workshop was at Whichford Pottery and the day was quite a laugh. I had a go at throwing, which is playing on the pottery wheel. I found it OK to start with but attempting to make a leveled pot at the end was extremely challenging. I succeeded in making a few wonky pots....I also want to add that my experience was nothing like the scene from Ghost......The second half of the day was making free form items out of clay. I was not too sure what to make so I I was lucky to have the opportunity to press a baby chick. I will post up a picture if they survive the Kiln.....fingers crossed....

Right back to my latest commission.

Until next time

Happy crafting. 

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Nigel Cat

Hello All,

I am beginning to get my Crojo back again. A crojo your knitting or crochet mojo (haha did you see what I did there). My need for knitspiration was great so I decided to go to my local knitting group. 

I really enjoyed the Stitch and Sip session at Stitch Solihull. It takes place on a Saturday morning 11am-1pm and there are a lovely group of people who attend. They are all so friendly and welcoming and willing to give advice on your current project. There is also a fab selection of drinks and teas. After being surrounded by so many lovely projects, my Crojo instantly returned. 

I was asked to create a cat and this is what I have been working upon. I decided I wanted it to be bright in colour so chose the scrumptious Stylecraft Jaffa. The yarn is acrylic and soft which was purrfect for this project. I managed to buy this lovely yarn and the toy stuffing needed from Christines yarn shop.

I recalled how much I did not enjoy making the head and the body separately and then sew them together. For my design I decided to make the head and body in one piece. I wanted the cat to be in a sitting position and so made the legs to suit this pose. After some work, Nigel cat was born. I'm just finishing off the pattern typing and it'll soon be available on Ravelry and Love Knitting. 

Hopefully on Friday 13th May a bookazine that I am featured in will be released.....more on that next time. 

I am officially 30 (I am slowly accepting this) and I have completed 2 tasks on my Quirky Thirty List. The first was playing the lottery. I have never brought a lottery ticket until now and I have come to conclude that it is a waste of money as I only got one number !!!! bbbboooooo. I'll have to keep saving to get my knitting shop in the future......

The second thing on my list was to attend a Drum and Bounce class with my friend Bithiah. The class is an aerobics session which takes place to a drum and bass sound track......It was really tough and I thought I was going to collapse at times. I am also in extraordinary pain today......However, despite this it was such a great laugh, I'd recommend that you have a go. 

Right back to the next project

until next time

Happy crafting

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http://www.loveknitting.com/catalogsearch/result/?order=relevance&dir=desc&q=sarah+reed

Skiing and Spas

Hello all,

This is the month where I turn 30 (I cant believe it!!!). I have been keeping myself occupied by challenging myself to do things that have previously scared me. I have also been knitting. 

So far out of the two things I have tried,.....50% of them I already regret. I have now got quite obsessed with Groupon and found a deal to try skiing. It was at the Snowdome and the idea of cruising down the slopes seemed extremely appealing. Also the idea of knitting away in a snowy log cabin by a log fire sounded brilliant. However, the reality was completely different. I was unable to stand still so would automatically fall down the slope....and yes I mean literally falling......On one occasion I did this ssoo well I managed to ski down the slope on my shoulder!!! I really felt for the instructor as on the few occasions I made it down the slope I had to grab her legs, arms and her waist.......I feel that skiing was not my calling....

The second activity that I have taken part in was going to a spa. I made a slight error in that I booked myself in for a deep tissue massage. I had never had a massage before and expected a lovely relaxing session. However, I ended up leaving feeling battered and bruised......although I felt much better the next day. I also indulged in a facial and a body wrap, which was amazing!!!! I feel I am a spa girl and could happy image myself knitting away at a spa. 

The spa was also a lovely treat as my best girlfriends joined me in celebration of my birthday, I received so many lovely presents but the one very relevant to this blog was from my knitting buddy in crime. Becky presented me with a great top that I am sure to wear to all future knitting shows :-)

The next thing on my list to do is a pottery course....how wrong could that go....:-s

until next time

Happy crafting 

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http://www.loveknitting.com/catalogsearch/result/?order=relevance&dir=desc&q=sarah+reed

Well....I managed to loose a month

Hello all,

The last month has flown by in a blink of an eye an I have no idea what's happened. I hope you are all well and enjoyed your Easter. I have my chocolate to munch through whilst I'm knitting!!!

One of the main reasons that I have lost a month was that I have been working on a commission with quite a short deadline. It's been very exciting working on these projects and hopefully you will be able to see them in May. It's been so lovely to have projects to get my teeth into and I feel full of knitspiration.

I have been playing with different knitting stitches and to expand my skill set. One stitch that I love is a rice stitch. This involves having a row with an odd number of stitches. The combination of stitches are P1, Ktbl to the end but ending with a P1. The next row is a knit row then the two rows are repeated. I love the texture created by this stitch and it is visually appealing. Check out my shops on Ravelry and Love Knitting for my Rice Stitch hat.

I have started looking into different knitting events taking place over the country. Some that I have my eyes on are Fibre East and London's Yarn Crawl. Last year, my knitting buddy Becky, and I went to Fibre East and were impressed with the range of stalls. fingers crossed she can join me again. The Yarn Crawl is an equivalent of a pub crawl. It involves travelling around yarn stores around London. I am hoping this is something that I can get involved in.......I suppose I should start saving my cash now :-\

Love your Yarn Shop day is coming up soon. It's worth looking into what events are taking place at your local yarn shop and supporting them. 

I have a new project under way. I have been requested to create a cat....hopefully when I work out how to make this I will post a piccy. 

Right back to the projects 

Until next time

Happy crafting 

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Double the fun!!!

Hello all, 

I have completed my piggies order. The patterns are from one of my favorite knitting designers called Anna Hrachovec. Her quirky designs are so fun to make up and absolutely adorable. This pattern was from her first book called Mochimochiland. The second piggy has a mighty fine Mohawk going on. It was a great pattern as it was worked in rib stitch and then turned inside out. The little piggies have been sent to their new home and they have been well received :-)

I have started to work on a design for a cushion. I have returned to Tunisian crochet and I am working with West Yorkshire Spinners Yarn. I have found a basket weave stitch which I think would make an interesting design. I quite like the textures created. I will post a picture when I have a completed sample. 

I am approaching my 30's and have decided to make a list of things that I would like to do. This list includes things like a pottery course and a life drawing class......One item is attempt to break a world record. I haven't got to far into researching something that fits my talents (such as eating a lot of food) However, on Facebook I have found a knitting related one I  could join in with. Occ Barton On Humber are a group that create shoe boxes full of lovely things to send to different countries. One thing they are requesting are for knitters to knit teddy bear hand puppets. They are hoping to have the record for having the longest number of knitted bears in a line. This is a way I could tick this item off my list. If you are also interested, check out their Facebook page for more details.

Right, back to it :-)

Until next time

Happy crafting. 

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http://www.ravelry.com/designers/sarah-reed

http://www.loveknitting.com/catalogsearch/result/?order=relevance&dir=desc&q=sarah+reed