wool week freebies

The weather is slowly turning. Cold wet winds are trying to push out our warmer days and banish summer for another year. This change in temperature and climate makes me start thinking of blankets, crumpets, hot drinks, boots, scarves and hats!

So with great timing it's just been UK Wool Week (or Love Wool UK). It's time to get your needles or hooks out! I was in Leeds over the weekend, where there was an event on in the Corn Exchange sponsored by Rowan. On display were some lovely knitted & crochet goods and the lovely people from Rowan have put the patterns for free (yippee) on their website!

Union Jack Heart Cushion

Ripple Patch Cushion



Moss Stitch Ripple Large Cushion

Crochet Swirl Cushion

My main reason for being in Leeds was to see the Kaiser Chiefs at Kirkstall Abbey on Saturday afternoon/ evening. It was a really good gig, the band are from Leeds so it was a homecoming concert (and it kicked off their UK/ World tour).

I travelled by train, and I'm glad to say they were all on time and they all turned up!

Reviving my Spirits

In between doing my best impression of Florence Nightingale I made this lovely Tea Fruit Loaf from a Sainsbury's recipe card that I picked up a few years ago.

It is very quick and easy, and apart from soaking your dried fruit for a while in tea, it comes together very quickly.

The recipe is as follows:

350g mixed dried fruit (I used 200g sultanas, 100g raisins, 50g currants)
350ml tea
Cover the fruit with the tea and leave overnight (or a few hours depending how desperate you are)
Mix with:
2 beaten eggs
200g dark brown soft sugar
270g self raising flour
1teaspoon of cinnamon

Put into a lined loaf tin, and bake at 170deg C or fan 160 deg C or gas mark 3 for 1.5 hours. I checked mine at 1 hours fifteen minutes and it was ready, so out it came. Cool on a wire rack and eat as soon as you want to (preferably with a nice cup of tea). Sainsburys suggest you spread margarine on it, I leave that up to you!

I have also been having a go at Attic24's crochet star decorations. Hooky fantasticnous! One wonky point but I got there in the end!

Have a lovely weekend. BTW My son is a bit better today.

spring colour

spring daffodils, for some much needed colour on a drizzly wet day.


a daffodil hat for the Easter Bonnet parade, at school tomorrow.



ripply colours of love, the more I crochet, the more I think it is art

loving length of wavy ripples, this is to be a king size blanket, so I've got many many more ripples to go!

I hope you enjoy these colours as much as I do!

Yummy Yarn

So this is what I've been buying with my hard earned cash (and a few sales on ebay). Crochet has me hooked!!!

This is all Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran, chosen primarily, because I already had quite a few balls of it, but it is lovely and soft, and warm!

Fabulous colours!

The reason I need so much yarn?

By the way, it's not enough!

I am crocheting a georgeous ripple blanket.

The pattern is supplied by Attic 24. If you haven't looked at Lucy's site, you must. She is fantastic! I'm hoping one day, I can buy her a coffee or tea and a slice of cake to say thank you!

Half Treble Anyone?

Oh I love You Tube, and generous people who pop up their video tutorials on there, and other sites.

So thanks to the KnitWitch I can now do a Half Treble (UK) or a Half Double Crochet (US). And by learning that I've now forgotten the other stictch that I learnt the other day!!!

I'm attempting to make the lovely wrist warmers, first spotted on Attic 24's site. I'm using a merino aran, that I accidently bid on on ebay (clicking before reading! I was after cashmerino!) Still it's a very nice blue. I'm doing 1 colour, as oppossed to multi, but I am a beginner. I'm definitely going to do the edging. And so far, so good. I was crocheting away watching a film on TV, that I already have on DVD!

Happy Hooker

Last weekend I attended a 2 hour beginner's crochet class with Jan Eaton. She is actually retired and living close to me! So we were very lucky to have her run this class, as she normally does not do this anymore. Her friend works at the museum, where the workshop was, so I think that is what swung it! Anyway, Jan is a really really nice lady, full of life, very funny and incredible patient and friendly. 2 hours would never belong enough to get into much crochet, but she taught us how to chain stitch, slip stitch and do a treble stitch, and we all got started on some granny squares.

I have to say I'm now doing them every night, using up old wool that I have from a knitted blanket I made a while ago. I'm using Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran, I know this is cheeky, but if anyone has any (even just a bit of it, enough for a round, I'd be ever so grateful!) As with all things woolen, it starts getting expensive very quickly. My colour scheme is purple, pinks, green, blue, I'm not 100% happy with those colours, and think I need a few more to help blend the whole thing together. I'm probably going to add in some orange, rusty red, and a lime green, to give it some zest! So I'm putting my crochet hook on hold, until I pick up some more colours, that I can work in. I did however pick up an Erica Knight book up from the library, for some inspiration!