Crochet from Scratch Workshop at Hazel Court

I had a great time yesterday tutoring a beginners crochet workshop with a lovely group of ladies. This is an intensive workshop as, unlike many other crafts, the basic skills are probably the trickiest to learn. The good news is though, that once you have those under your belt, it gets much easier and you can soon start creating some lovely items which are quick to make too. It's amazing what you can produce with a hooked stick and a length of string! These ladies worked really hard, but as you can see by the photos they still managed to have some fun too.

Crochet is experiencing quite a resurgence in popularity of late and crochet classes seem to be in great demand at the moment. I keep max numbers with this workshop pretty small to ensure a quality learning experience, and so this class was fully booked pretty early on with a number of people being left disappointed. But the good news is I'm holding another one in Feb next year, so if you missed out this time around here's your chance to bag a place.

Craft Stall debut at Moira Furnace Folk Festival

I like a challenge and there's nothing like a deadline to keep you motivated, and putting together my first craft stall at Moira Furnace Folk Festival, as well as being involved in putting together a creative textiles exhibition provided both of these.

Having just got back from the TSG Summer school, I then had just over 2 weeks to complete my exhibition pieces and to prepare for the craft stall.

So first off I needed to make some items to sell ! - so I had a very intense couple of weeks dyeing calico shopping bags, fat quarters and threads; making brooches & cards; and printing off some knitting patterns.

Next I had to think about how to display it in a 3x3m gazebo and here's the result:

After all that prep & set up I could settle down to enjoying the event. It was lovely chatting to customers who dropped by for a colour and yarn fix. As is usually the case when fellow textile-o-philes get together, many were also very generous in sharing hints' tips and techniques. One lovely lady even demonstrated her rag rugmaking whilst holding on to my gazebo to stop it blowing away in a gale - and that's before entertaining us all with a spirited performance in the national spoons orchestra! - A big thankyou to 'Ballast' Jean - you know who you are :).

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Fast forward to fall

Well that has to be the fastest summer ever! I've been a very busy bee over the last 6 weeks or so, hence the lack of blog posts. So now I need to play catch up......

For a number of years I've been promising myself a 'creative summer' where, rather than go away on holiday, I use my holiday leave to immerse myself in all things creative - and this year I did precisely that.

At the end of July I spent a week at the Textile Study Group's Summer School at Harper Adams Uni in Shropshire. These summer schools are excellent so if you ever get the chance to go I would highly recommend them. They have 3 courses to chose from each year run by exceptional artists/tutors who are   Members of the TSG and leaders in their field. This year I opted to study with Sian Martin working with every day throwaway fragments, bringing them together to make beautiful surfaces to stitch on.

My 'efforts' made in the class

It was a very intensive week, I learned a huge amount, plus it was great to catch up with a few people I'd met last year, such as the lovely Judy Alexander, plus I met some lovely new & very talented folks. You can see some of the other students' work on Sian's blog.

So I arrived home fired up and exhausted at the same time, with just a moment to catch my breath before launching into preparing for the rest of my creative summer events - 2 'firsts' for me: a craft stall at Moira Folk Festival; and the launch of the Stitches Coven exhibition in Swansea, which I'll tell you about in my next post or two.

One Pleasant Summer's Morning

One Pleasant summer's morning

When all the flowers were springing out

Nature was adorning

And the wee birds sweetly singing out......

This folk song comes to mind this morning - I love early morning time in the garden when it's cool & peaceful and everything smells so fresh and, well, gardeny! And it's great to steal a few moments from a usually jam-packed day to take in some of the beautiful flowers - Mother Nature is an amazing designer isn't she?

I am always intrigued by the structure of things and find it amazing how plants know to grow a certain way -  this fuscia is a great example.

This morning I'm also enjoying these blowsy sweet peas - aren't they lovely?

Like many people, I find nature to be a great source of inspiration. What inspires you?

Another finished object - yay

In an earlier post I confessed to being a serial 'starter' of projects, and resolved to have a Rule of 3 where I could only have 3 unfinished projects on the go at any one time. And I have (for the most part) managed to stick to this.....only I was of course referring only to my knitting projects- ha ha!! Yep, there are also other types of Un - Finished - Objects lurking in my closets! Back in April I had just started swatching for a new design with some Rowan Summerspun yarn I'd picked up on my travels. I finished the knitting of it a week or 2 ago, but have only just had a chance to block it. Blocking is so important for getting a great finish, particularly with lacy knitting,  and often seems like a mysterious process needing specialist equipment - but the truth is you can keep it pretty simple - I just pin the item in question onto a towel on my work table for most things - though for serious blocking such as for a cobweb lace shawl, then specialist blocking wires are recommended. Up until now I have tended to just use ordinary quilting pins for blocking as these are sturdy and long with large flat heads which can't disappear into the knitting.  Though recently I treated myself to some proper rust proof blocking pins which I've used to block the sharflette (cross between a scarf and shawlette) I designed which has a lace border. Before pinning it out I soaked it in cool water for a few minutes - but more often than not I tend to pin out dry then dampen thoroughly with a plant spray filled with water.





If you've never blocked your knitting, or don't see the point in it, then take a look at the before and after blocking piccies. I hope you agree it really does make a difference on how your stitches 'behave' and shows off the lace patterning to it's best. What you can't tell by a photo though is it also improves the handle of the knitted fabric considerably making it much smother, softer and enhancing the drape significantly.

Before blocking

After blocking

So it's all dressed up and ready to go now but, if you follow me on facebook you will be aware that, I'm now trying to think of a good name for it. Am thinking it would be great for summer evenings outdoors when the temperature drops.....or breezy days on the beach when you want a little extra layer around your neck. I'm also thinking along the lines of 'french village market'..... 

Update: You guys came up with some excellent suggestions for a name, and after much deliberation I went with Sea Holly. The pattern for Sea Holly is available to purchase here.

It's knit with Rowan Summerspun yarn in Greenwich - a mix of pretty turquoises & blues - I've had a few great suggestions already but would love to hear yours! Whoever makes the best suggestion for a name by Friday 12th July can have a free PDF copy of the pattern when it is available (very soon!). To make a suggestion just leave a comment below, or on my facebook page if you prefer. And please do pass on to your friends too :)

If you like the look of lace knitting and would like to develop your skills , then you may be interested in my Lavish Lace workshop in Swansea on 20 June 2015. Lace knitting is undeniably beautiful and has become increasingly popular over recent years, yet many knitters feel daunted by taking on such an apparently complex project. If you have been too afraid of trying lace, or are seeking to further develop you skills in this type of knitting , then this is the class for you. This workshop is ideal for those wishing to develop their fine lace knitting skills, and will provide a foray into all-over lace patterns with the addition of beads using the crochet hook method.