Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts

Monday, 31 July 2017

Nigel's Parrot

Hello all, 

I hope you are all well and enjoying the summer. I can't believe it's August tomorrow eekkkk. this can only mean one thing.....Christmas is fast approaching us all!!!! panic!!! I guess it's time to get the creative hat on and start making Christmas gifts. I also have a wedding to go to and a friend has a baby on the way. There is so much to do in such little time. 

I am proud to announce that I have recently had my pattern 'Nigel's Parrot' published in  Inside crochet. This pattern was first created last year, when my other half and I went to Bird World. It was just a normal trip until we went to a part where parrots were roaming free on branches. Nigel decided to feed a parrot but then the parrot took a shine to him. The parrot proceeded to crawl on his shoulder and remove a button from Nigel's top shirt. After a while the parrot spat out the button but did not move from Nigel's shoulder. We tried to move the parrot with food and also Nigel stood by a branch to try and encourage it to move. The parrot was having the time of his life and just swapped which of Nigel's shoulder he sat on. After 30 minutes  we had to get a zoo keeper to remove the parrot. I felt  a memento of such a funny event was needed and so I made Nigel a parrot. 

I didn't realize that the parrot had so many colours around it's face, chest and tail. The easiest way to tackle this was to make a flat piece which I sewed onto the main part of the body. I felt it captured the main parts of the parrot. It was fun selecting the colours from Drops Safran yarn. They have a great color pallet to work with so matching it to the parrot was easy. 

I hope you enjoy the pattern as much as I enjoyed them. I have also popped new patterns on Ravelry which are of other animal's I have designed such as a cat, dog and bear. 

Over the weekend I was in Salisbury visiting the family and popped into Born to Knit. It is a very sweet shop based in a craft centre. They had a wide range of colours available to select. There was Rowan, Patron and Debbie Bliss yarn. I have made some good selections and will be playing with a design soon. 

Right....better get on with Christmas patterns......

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


Wednesday, 19 October 2016

Tunisian Cluster Mittens

Hello all,

Happy days, Inside Crochet have been so kind and printed my pattern!!!!! Please check it out!!!!

This piece is a pair of Tunisian Cluster Mittens. This piece came about as I played with a new stitch pattern I had found. Once I had made head and tails of it and created the original sample I sent a picture to Rhian Drinkwater and she loved the design. Rhian suggested using the beautiful MillaMia Naturally Soft Merino. This has to be one of the most beautiful and soft yarns that I have ever worked with. I wanted a piece that would test Tunisian crocheter but the pattern needed to be relaxing. This stitch was perfect as it is quite repetitive and builds up quickly. I created the piece and sent it off and it is lovely to see how the piece has been published in the magazine. I was also touched to see a mention on the editors page.

I have a couple more patterns on their way soon and I have just been commissioned for a project next year. It is all very exciting!!!!!

I have started the Christmas presents (I know Christmas crafting already!!!!).....I am designing original pieces for my friends and family and hope that they enjoy them. In addition to this, I have my ticket ready for the Hobbycraft and Christmas craft show at the NEC. I love this show as there is a good range of craft items to buy and also there is a little Christmas Market to look at too. I am heading there on 6th November!!! I'll be there with my knitting buddy Becky and I hope to see you there. 

I am proud to announce that I will be going on my first holiday with my new man!!!!!. We decided to go to Scotland.....which I only recently remembered that it is freezing. This was a perfect reason to knit a new hat. As we are planning to go on hikes I did not want to get lost in the dark so I felt it was a good time to us reflective yarn. I made an order to Wool Warehouse and was sent (very quickly) Schachenmayr Lumio. I am a proud owner of a rib stitch hat.....with a massive pom pom!!!!!!! I am looking forward to showing this piece off and also I hopefully will not get lost with my shiny hat. 

Right, lets get back to it!!!!

Until next time

Happy crafting


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Friday, 18 December 2015

Santa Dash and Crocheting

Hello all,

Not long until Christmas!!!! and I hope that you have all of your knitted gifts ready to give your loved ones. If you haven't (like the rest of the knitting community) I hope your not up too late at night trying to get it done.....remember, you probably never specified which Christmas your loved ones will received their knitted gifts ;-) 

I have completed the Santa Dash !!! It took place on Sunday and I went with my friend Laura. We arrived in Warwick where we were given our Santa Outfits. It was hilarious being dressed up with a mass gathering of Santas. It was at this point I whipped out my yarn, which I had brought from Wool Warehouse. I decided to go for a acrylic yarn so it wouldn't get damaged in the rain! I also went for a chunky yarn so that my scarf would be created much quicker. I used my 10mm crochet hook and began crocheting my scarf whilst completing the Santa Dash. I decided to work 11 trebles on each row and worked on the piece until the 2 balls of yarn ran out. There was a lot of support as we completed the dash and I would do it again!!

I would like to thank Countryside Online, Myton Hospices and Inside Crochet for there support whilst completing the Santa Dash. I would also like to thank Laura as without her, I would have missed this brilliant opportunity, 

 Myton Hospices is a brilliant charity that provides wonderful end of life support. If you have enjoyed my antics and are able to give to a great cause please follow the link to my Just Giving page www.justgiving.com/sarahssantadash2015

I've decorated my house with some of my previous Christmas knits which includes the Christmas stocking bunting and my knitivity. It is also not too ling until I pull out my Christmas Jumper!! I feel my new home is ready for the family to visit so we can celebrate Christmas together. I'm really looking forward to it!!!!

I currently have two patterns in the guide to Crochet volume 5 created by Inside Crochet.. this beautiful bookazine contains 2 of my Tunisian crochet patterns from this year. Please check it out 

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for supporting my work and I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and a happy new year. 

Until 2016

Happy Crafting. 

Sarah x

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Tuesday, 1 December 2015

Man hat and Santa Dash

Hello all, 

I am happy to announce that the man hat is completed after all of the drama. As I did not have measurements, I felt it was safe to work with a 2 x 2 rib pattern. This would give the hat much give. I used DK weight yarn and cast on 112 stitches. I wanted the stripes to be distinct so felt it was best to change the colour of the yarn every 10 rows. I wanted the hat to be too big so this would allow a length to fold the hat back. This makes sure that the hat would not be too short. After much tea drinking and tv watching, I completed the hat!! I think it's fab but I felt I needed to make it clear where my loyalties are :)

West Yorkshire Spinners have gorgeous Christmas yarn, which I am now the proud owner of. They also have a beautiful sock pattern which I am currently working on. I only happened to find this pattern by going to my local knitting group at Stitch Solihull. The wonderful Anna showed me this pattern and I have fallen in love with it. The pattern has a new challenge for me as it is worked toe up. I will show it off when it is completed :) I found the pattern on the following link http://www.wyspinners.com/patterns/WYS_Holly_Berry_Free%20Pattern.pdf

I have now ordered my yarn for the Santa Dash I am taking part in. This is on the 13th December around Warwick. I will be dressing up with Santa with my friend and completed 2 laps of the park. To make this more challenging I have decided to crochet a scarf as I go around the course. I think it will be quite a laugh and hopefully I will be able to raise money for Myton Hospices which is a great cause. The charity support people through the final part of their life and also support families. If you are able to donate to this great cause please follow the link to my just giving page www.justgiving.com/sarahssantadash2015 

I have also now released my patterns on the Love Knitting website. Please check out the link to my designs http://www.loveknitting.com/catalogsearch/result/?order=relevance&dir=desc&q=sarah+reed

I think all of my Christmas knitted and crocheted gifts sorted to give to the family. I just need to sort out my decorations. I had a lovely time Christmas tree shopping but I still need to try and get other bits and bobs. I think I will be pulling out my Christmas stocking bunting and adding it to my fireplace. The dilemma is how soon can i put the tree up........

Right back to the Christmas socks

Until next time

Happy Crafting

Sarah :) 

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Friday, 21 August 2015

Second sock syndrome.......

Hi all,

I have successfully completed the Big and Little Hoot for Birmingham Children's hospital. The project was set up by Wild in Art. It was great fun and it was a brilliant way to explore the city. All 211 owls have now been spotted and I now have more time to knit again :) I am still collecting sponsors so if you are able to help in anyway that would be much appreciated. My page is www.justgiving.com/sarah-reed2015.

My knitting buddy Becky and I felt we wanted a new venue to knit at. We looked into acceptable places to knit and found that a cricket ground is the place to be. We booked our tickets and went to watch an exciting match.....however, it was not meant to be. I arrived just after 1pm and the rain began to fall. We stuck it out for 5 hours but after that, we gave up and the match was called off. Despite the rain we continued to knit our current makes. I have finally finished Christmas present number 2 for my sister. It involved a TOFT pattern and some very chunky yarn. I also picked up the Mallard sock and got most the way to completing the first sock.

The next day I persevered and completed the first sock. I have began the second sock but I am now suffering from the terrible aliment of 'Second Sock Syndrome'. I am working on the cuff and I am struggling to complete it. I feel that they way to recover from this terrible syndrome is to put on a great movie and knit to the end. I am hoping to complete it over the weekend.

I have my next project lined up, which is of course a Christmas present for my nephew. He seems to have befriended his toy T-Rex. My nephew has such a strong bond with this creature, that he now feeds it and gives it his dummy. I felt it would be nice for the dinosaur to have a little friend and TOFT have some lovely dinosaurs patterns to make up. I haven't crocheted a toy for a while and I am looking forward to working on this.

The family are plotting their holiday to Bideford and I am currently trying to spot where all of the fabulous yarn shops are. If you have any suggestions, please do share :)

I have noticed that Age UK are starting to promote the Big Knit project. This involves knitting little hats to place on Innocent smoothies. For every smoothie that is sold wearing a hat, 25p is donated to age UK. Look online for more details on how you can get involved. 

Right!!!!!! I will not be beaten by this sock!!!!!!!!

Until next time

Happy crafting

Sarah :) 

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Sunday, 7 December 2014

Tunisian Mitts

Hello All,

I can finally take a breath as I have completed all of my Christmas knitting. I am looking forward to the open day at TOFT alpaca on the 20th December and I hope to see you all there. If you are a little behind with your knitting and need a place to go with lovely cakes, I suggest that you go to TOFT's knit night. At the moment it is on every Thursday 4pm-8pm to provide you with time to catch up with your festive projects.

The Christmas stocking bunting is on my fire place ready for Santa. Maybe as there are so many mini stockings I will get loads of gifts this year. I feel this was one of the cleverest schemes that I have hatched muhahaha. ......... Unless I have been naughty which means there will be a lot of coal for my fire place........


The final project that was published in Inside Crochet was Tunisian Mittens. This was a good challenge that I had set myself as I used a special way of crocheting. I have used this technique before and it involves a long crochet hook. With standard crochet you would work with one stitch at a time. However, with tunisian crochet you have a front pass where you pick up stitches on the hook, this means there could be 20 stitches plus on the hook at one time!!!!. You then work a back pass where you remove these stitches so you are back to one on the hook. You never need to turn the work and the stitches can mimic knitting stitches. There are not many books out there to provide guidance on this technique but I recommend a workshop with City Knit's In Birmingham. The courses there are a reasonable price, the tutor Kate was lovely and extremely knowledgeable and it is a good excuse to visit the lovely shop in the gorgeous area of Bournville. 


As I am a beginner at tunisian crochet, I wanted a project that did not require increases or decreases. I have learnt three stitches which were a standard, knit stitch and purl stitch and wanted a project to combine them together. This is where is the mitten was created. I used the wonderful Erika Knight's yarn. I love the texture and colours and feel this really added the the project. I also wanted to use different colours which is again another skill. I really enjoyed making this project and I hope that you do too. I feel that if you are new to tunisian crochet, this is a good place to start. 

I have added a couple of new patterns to my Raverly page so please check it out. There is not a crochet mug cosy and a knitted Christmas gift bag.

Until next time

Happy crafting. 

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Sunday, 26 October 2014

Lounge Around Socks

Hello all


As you are all aware I have the curse of the freezing cold feet. I do love a pair of socks to chill out it and to keep my toes toasty. 

I felt that I had understood the basics of knitting socks that I wanted to challenge myself further. I had never crocheted a sock until I created this pattern. I very quickly found that the knitted and crocheted sock rules differed. For a start, with a knitted sock you tend to need to use smaller needles. If a smaller hook is used, the sock would become so tight that you cannot get it over your ankle!............which I sadly discovered by experience when I managed to cut the circulation from my foot. The only solution seemed to be to use a much larger hook size than recommended with the yarn. 

When crocheting, the pattern forms a spiral which was apparent in the yarn that I used. I absolutely love West Yorkshire Spinner's yarn and wanted to make a pair of socks in the bull finch colour. The way to compensate for this was to make the first sock starting with the hook on the inside and then have the hook on the outside for the second sock. That way the decreases and the stripes were on opposite sides so that they looked like a pair. 

I love the pattern as it combines working in the rounds with working straight which makes it really interesting. Hopefully, it will avoid second sock syndrome. 

The socks are really comfy and I was chuffed with the end result. I want to thank Inside Crochet for publishing the pattern in their latest magazine. 

I am truly in the knitting festive spirit. I have ordered some of my family members yarn and began the Christmas projects. Hopefully I can get them all dome before the big day :s

Until next time

Happy Crafting

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Saturday, 8 February 2014

A New Yarn Thief



Hello all,

I am very surprised to see that it is now February. The 2 remaining projects that I thought I would complete before now are .......still not completed :s. I have began to hand quilt my Christmas decoration but I feel it may be a couple of months before it is fully completed. My patchwork blanket is still one patch short but I have found a sewing club (that welcomes knitter too) where I can go to finish it. The group runs Wednesdays at the Quilter's Den in Warwick. This shop sell items to quilt with and the workshops are great full. It's well worth checking out the website  http://www.thequiltersden.co.uk/ The sewing group was lovely as I felt really welcomed and it was nice to see a mixture if crafts under one roof. 

I have not been able to post current projects as I have had interest from a magazine. I will post what I have been up to when I can. Not too long though :) 
The Dinosaur blanket 

I travelled down to Reading to visit my sister. I was able to pass on the dinosaur blanket and she was please with the outcome. This will hopefully be something she will use more when the new addition to the family arrives. Whilst in Reading I though it would be a great opportunity to sample the local yarn shops. To my horror I could not find any independent ones (Oh No).On a plus side it did mean that my yarn stash is not going  to take over the house. I have managed to force the current room shut and no one must every enter or they will drown in a sea of yarn. John Lewis had their yarn section which was lovely and I particularly liked their display. 
Badger the Yarn Bandit

Whilst in Reading, I felt that my project was safe from the yarn bunny bandit....however I was wrong. There I was just quietly working on a new design when out of the blue something jumped into my knitting bag!!!!!!! I looked and to my horror, there was a new yarn bandit.....a little black and white cat also known as Badger. He ran away with a ball of yarn and he also stole some of my work. I was in such a state of shock I let him keep it :s

To help recover from this sadness, I have booked to attend two events. The first is tomorrow and is at Guthrie and Ghani http://www.guthrie-ghani.co.uk/. This is a cute shop located in Birmingham in an area called Moseley. Lauren (from the Great Sewing Bee) runs this shop and it welcomes not only sewer but knitter and crocheters too. This is a fair Isle workshop where the end product is a pair of lovely mittens. I wanted to go as this work shops covers knitting with 2 hands...which I am not great at. I am also intrigued to see how to change colours in rib stitches. I am really looking forward to this :) Check out the website as there is a monthly Knit and Natter group too. 

I have also booked to attend The Sewing/Hobbycraft/Stitch show at the NEC between 20th-23rd March. I enjoyed the show around Christmas and thought that if the opportunity was there again, I would go. I will be on the hunt for knitting and crochet bargains. 

With that, I have a project downstairs that I am dying to get on with :)

Happy Crafting

Sarah Coad

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Monday, 27 January 2014

Catching Up.......again

Hello all,

I am currently undertaking my spring cleaning in the form of finishing off my left over projects. 

I stepped away from knitting and put my quilting hat back on. I started a Christmas decoration about 2 years ago and I have only just had the courage to finish this. I had to make a lot of strips of material and sew it all together. I am at the point where I cannot go any further without any assistance. This means I will be making a lovely trip over the the Quilters Den in Warwick. If you ever want to take up quilting I would stringky recommend that you go there. Anita (the owner) has the patience of a saint. She is a great teacher and I do know how she manages to split her time equally between all of her students. She runs a sewing group on Wednesday evenings and this is where I will be taking my project. I also would like to complete the quilt I started. This was a monthly course that I attended but I missed one session. This will be another project that I would like to complete this year. 

I have also had a clear out of some items that I am not using. Please look on my Ebay shop 'Knit's Not Perfect' for my things I need to sell such as books and magazines. I am at the point where I think I have too much yarn......I did not think that I would ever reach this point. I feel I will be spending a few months on ebay just trying to clear, so I can save up more money for more yarn :p

I have finally typed up all of my written projects, which means I cannot loose them. Happy days :). With my new tablet I will ensure that I write projects as I go to avoid this mess again :s. I have been working on some designs which have been in my head for a while. Hopefully some of them will be printed in Inside Crochet :) Watch this space! 

I am learning new stuitches too. I am enjoying working with raised Treble stitches and tonight I will hopefully be looking at a double crochet rib. 

I will be heading to Reading at the weekend so I will be visiting some of their local yarn shops :)

I have to get back to the day job now!

Happy crafting

Sarah x

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Wednesday, 1 January 2014

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Welcome to 2014 :-)
I have had a great Christmas and start to the year. I am now able to talk about my Knits prezzies :-) to start with I am glad that Ravelry exists. I alway find it difficult to think of what to make for my dad. Luckily I found a pattern for a Star Trek Enterprise ship. The pattern is from http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/starship-enterprise-amigurumi. The project was fairly straight forward and quick to do and was appreciated in the end. =

My sister has been taliking about Ragdoll cats for a while so I thought I would make her one. I have owned the book Best in Show Cats, by Joanna Osbourne and Sally Muir and though I would utilise it. I used larger needles and yarn for my project. The pattern can be at times challenging as I had to learn how to make loops when knitting and the wrap around technique. I was happy with the result and my sister is now a proud Ragdoll cat owner..........well sort of.
My brother requested an elephant teapot cosy for his girlfriend and I found a pattern: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/elephants-on-the-tea-cozy. I used drops yarn and decided to sew on the eyes as opposed to add buttons. I made a tension square to make sure that it fitted the teapot which I'm glad I did.

My husband was in desperate need of a new hat and I had chunky wool left over so used the following pattern- http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/that-favorite-winter-hat. I adapted it by adding a few 2 x 2 rib rows. This pattern was great as it knitted up quickly and looked good.
The final 2 makes were original designs. On holiday my brother won me some prizes by playing a game called Doodle Jump. To thank him I thought I would make him the character. As I could not find a pattern I created my own. I think it's OK as he knew what it was. For my sister's boyfriend I made a lion as I heard he liked them. I used the chain loop method to make the mane and this was effective. Pictures of all of my Knitmas makes can be seen on my Facebook page.

I'm currently working on my other sister's baby blanket. She liked the following design - http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/dinosaurs-blanket. I did begin to knit it but found the design a bit tricky as many colours were used in each line. For my sanity I have decided to adapt the pattern into a crochet design. I will post when completed :-)

I am proud to announce that I have a pattern printed in the latest  edition of Inside Crochet. It is a comforter which is enjoyable to make. I wanted to use a wavy chevron design for a long time and this seemed to be the perfect project. Claire selected some beautiful yarn (Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino) in colours that complemented the concept. I love how the magazine have photographed my project and the pattern layout is lovely too.I would like to thank Inside Crochet and Claire for giving me the opportunity and I hope we can work together again soon.
My new years resolution is to try out Tunisian crochet and use my loom



I hope you all have a great 2014

Happy crafting
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Sunday, 22 December 2013

Final Part of The Christmas Jumper

Hello Everyone, 

What a busy time it has been! I did my last two craft fairs of the year, which was great fun. I need to seriously replenish my stock in preparation for next year. However, before I do that I need to knit up my jumper and a baby blanket.



It took a lot of time but I am proud to announce that my jumper is completed and ready for Christmas. For my first ever jumper, I think it doesn't look too bad. The pattern was from Sue Stratford's Christmas jumper book and the pattern was easy to follow and really tested my skills. This is the first project where I did a tension square. I practiced my intarsia, which was fine until I managed to knot the wool repeatedly :s. I also practiced weaving the wool into my work so it was tidier on the back. I also finally learnt how to ptbl. I avoided it for years but I finally watched you tube and now get it :). I like the technique suggested for M1 which involves wrapping the yarn round. I found this much easier to work with and will use this method in the future. I also learnt the importance of reading instructions before jumping ahead. I had to do the bottom of my jumper twice as the first time I did a 1 x 1 rib instead of a 2 x 2 gggrrrr. I had to adapt the pattern as I found the arm lengths too short. I decided that each time I increased I would add an extra row to ensure it is long enough. I am happy with the project and I am sure it will bring much festive joy.

I attended the Knit Night held at TOFT. It was a good evening as we all gathered to try and completed Christmas Projects. At the time I was working on my jumper but I did learn two new stitches. As I had learnt how to ptbl, I was able to learn how to do a twisted rib stitch. This looks lovely and I can't wait to incorporate it into a project. I also learnt about crocheting into the front and back of the post to create a stitch equivalent to the knitted basket weave. It was a great evening and I would recommend attending a knit night if you get the chance. You also have to check out their huge mugs. They are great as they come with a knitting pattern on it :) 

My Christmas knits are completed and wrapped and I hope everyone enjoys them. I will be able to post what I made after the big day. One project that I can post is the one I made for my mum.....as she has already opened her present. This was the first time that I had used the yarn specifically for scarves. It looks complicated but once you get your head around it, it's quite easy to use. I liked the project as progress could be seen quickly. I hope my mum enjoys it as I was happy with the end product.

I also began the mission of tidying my yarn stash. I had been avoiding it so long as I had needles, mixed with wool and mixed with crochet hooks :s. After two hours, I was able to untangle it all. One of my New Years resolution is to keep the draw tidy. 

I have had 3 great knitting gifts. The first was a knitting mug from my school friend Becky (many thanks). I use this every morning for breakfast :). I also have a new knitting mug for work. This was given to me by Secret Santa, thank you by the way Frankie :) The final gift was a Knitting Loom. I have read a lot about these and wanted to get hold of one. A colleague at work gave it to me and I was really chuffed. Amy (my colleague) said that she had seen someone create a rug. This sounds great and If I can get large enough yarn, I like to give this a try. 

You have been updated with my adventures. I will shortly begin work on the blanket for my sister. I wish you all a Merry Christmas.....and if I  do not post between Christmas and New Year, have a safe and Happy New Year :)

Thanks all and happy holidays :)

Knit's Not Perfect 

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Friday, 13 December 2013

The Knitting Collection and Rabbit Thief Strikes Again

Hello all,

I am finding Christmas to be an extremely busy time for knitters. Over the last week, I have completed my Christmas knits for the family......well almost all of them apart from my sister's, which is a blanket. I have already said that this will not be completed by Christmas. 


I attended another great workshop at TOFT where I made a snowflake decoration. The teaching was good and the pattern was easy to follow. I successfully made a beautiful snowflake......and a second one for TOFT to keep. I also met a new knitting friend known as Yiknits on Raverly. He has a website (http://www.inopportunetimes.com/) which is  full of his lovely creations. Yi told me about Romanian Crochet (which I have never heard of) but I would like to look into more. 

I did my craft fair at Coleshill which was great. People seemed to like my designs and I sold a few items. There was a great range of crafts and also a choir which really got you into the festive mood. Due to selling well, I was left with no Christmas decorations for my next Christmas fair on Saturday. I have frantically been making some more so I have some stock once again.



On the 29th November The Knitting Collection was released with some of my patterns inside. It was a coaster, mug cosy and tea cosy set. The yarn was selected by the skillful eye of Claire Montgomerie and from there the designs was made. If you every have the opportunity to work with Claire I would recommend it as she is extremely supportive and always there if you need guidance. I think she has done a great job with the bookazine and I hope it does well. 


I went to the Harry Potter experience and I was pleased to see that there were some knitted items on display :) I have since decided that Mrs Weasley is my favorite character and has a talent for designing.

If you have the time to go to Warwick, Please do! they currently have a knitted/messy sheep trail where you look for sheep in the shop windows and record their names. It is great fun and there are over 95 sheep to find :) I only have 4 more to do when I return again. 

As I was preparing items for the craft fair on Saturday, the rabbit thief struck again! There I was innocently knitting, when I noticed that I had ran out of yarn. As I looked to the floor I saw the face of Caramel the rabbit aka rabbit thief. In her mouth I saw my beautiful yarn being chewed. As I tried to get her, she ran away with my yarn. I managed to get it back.....once I wrestled her down. Just to add insult to injury, I began to knit again and my cat (Kitty) came over and began to attack my knitting needles. So I urge you be aware of these menaces to the knitting society. 

 I have my final two craft fairs of the year over the weekend. On Saturday 11am-3pm I will be at the Coventry Frost Fair which is held in the Coventry Cathedral. Many local talents have gathered to sell our goods. The event on Sunday is at Ansley. This is 10am -3pm at ANSLEY VILLAGE CHURCH HALL Birmingham Road, Ansley, CV10 9PS. I am also looking forward to this event.. I will be at these events, finally continuing to work on my Christmas Jumper :) So hopefully my next blog will provide you with a progress update. Come on down of you're free. 

Just a reminder that there is no Knit's Not prefect knit night this month as it is the festive season....and I don't have a venue :s

Back to the day job

Happy Crafting

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Tuesday, 3 December 2013

Christmas Jumper Part 4 and Craft Fairs

Hello All,

Sorry for the delay between this and my last post. I have been plotting out my families Christmas knit projects (which I need to find time to do), working on new items for my craft stall (which I need to find time to do) and my Christmas jumper (which I need to find to do)

I am so happy to know that Raverly exists as a reference site. I have been able to locate all of the patterns I required for Christmas. I will take time out at the weekend to work on each project :)

I have three craft fairs coming up. I will be alone on the stall so I need to create new items for more of a range and to take up more space :s. At present, I have created a tablet cover which seems to work well. However, I may make up some minions. I think after these craft fairs, I will be able to focus more energy into my Christmas jumper. 

As present I have a completed sleeve and have begun work on the front of the jumper. I had a mini panic as I thought I would not have enough wool. So in order to ease my anxiety, I ordered more wool from the woolwarehouse website. On this occasion I thought I would pick it up from in store. However, I did not realise that you had to wait for them to email you to collect the items before you turned up :s. I have learnt my lesson and will not make this error again.

I had a good day at the Ashby St Ledgers craft fair. The organiser, Lucinda, managed to get a great range of crafts on the day. She also was able get many people through the door. This is an event that I would like to attend again if there is the opportunity as it was such a great atmosphere. 

I attended TOFT's knit night and this was great. There were some new people learning how to crochet and more experienced people doing a twisted rib stitch........I have no idea what this is. It was a nice relaxed evening and of course tea and cakes was provided. I would recommend anyone to go there, the next evening will be 19th December and we will hopefully be crocheting reindeer decorations. 

I have had a couple of orders for animals, which I cannot post yet as they are Christmas presents. I can say that they are completed and I will post pictures soon. 

I have found out that my mum would like a scarf with frills. I have just brought the special yarn and now looking at it.....I am quite confused :s.  Hopefully there is a good You Tube video to help me out. eeekkkk.  I am also plotting out a baby blanket for my sister :) That's right I will be an Auntie in April. How exciting, I will have a little baby to cover with my knitted goods :)

Next Sunday I will be at another craft fair. This is on Sunday 1st December at Whitacre Christmas Fair, Nether Whitacre Social Club, 64 station road, Whitacre Heath, near Coleshill, Birmingham, B46 2EH. The event runs from 1pm - 6.30pm and sounds like it will be a beautiful event as there will be Christmas singers and a Santa's Grotto. If you are free please pop down.

That is everything that I have been up to at present. I will keep you posted with anything new :)

Happy crafting