Crochet owls

When preparing for the birth of my daughter, we decided to go for an owl themed nursery. Shortly thereafter, owls became highly fashionable and they had invaded the high street. We have gone a bit owl crazy in this house and as always happens, people have started joining in by giving us all sorts of owl themed stuff, and I'm not just talking soft toys and gifts for the little one!

At Christmas, I was given two, very similar, owl crochet kits. In fact, I'm pretty sure that though they were sold by different retailers, they have been made by the same company.

In the olden days, when I wasn't trying to look after a toddler and work at the same time, I would have whipped those up in a week or less. As it happens, it took me a few weeks just to have the time to open the box! And another few weeks to complete both owls.

I must say, it wasn't helped by the fact that the instructions that came with them were shockingly bad. If I had been a beginner at crochet, I simply would not have been able to make the owls based on the instructions given alone. Lucky then I'm not a beginner and the end result is, in my opinion, pretty close to the pictures.

All in all, they were fun and colourful little projects and my daughter was keen to adopt them.

Gearing up for a lot of baby makes

As we get ever closer to our 20 weeks scan, and by that, the mid-point of my pregnancy, I am more and more itching to make stuff for the baby.

We have settled on a loose "owl" theme for the nursery and I've placed an order for a load of fabrics from Fabric Rehab. I'm hoping to turn those into a baby quilt, a cot bumper, some cushions and whatever else I can think of. Aren't they cute?

Inspired by the Make Lounge and their brilliant screenprinting workshop, I've also ordered a Permaset screen printing kit. Expect some pictures soon of printed baby grows and T-shirts!

I already own a couple of baby knitting and crochet books which I'm really fond of, namely
Crochet for babies and toddlers by Betty Barnden and Baby knits for beginners by Debbie Bliss. Both have great projects in them, really well explained and generally easy to make, I highly recommend them.

I've now ordered a few more books, The ultimate book of baby knits by Debbie Bliss, which I'd been eyeing for some time now as it's full of really beautiful and practical projects and I trust the author, and Cute and easy crocheted baby clothes by Nicky Trench, which I've only just discovered but like a lot already.

I'd also ordered the Big book of baby afghans but promptly decided to return it. I couldn't find one single project in the book that I liked. Every single afghan looked like something that would have been popular when I was born, in the late seventies. It's all a bit frilly and lacy and the stereotypical pastel palette made it even less palatable. It's the first time ever I have returned a book but I really couldn't see any point in keeping this one and couldn't think of anyone that might have liked it instead of me.

Now I just need to find the time to make all these lovely things!

Granny shawl

Back in April I got fed up from being cold when sat at my desk and I decided I needed a shawl to wrap myself in. After a quick search on Ravelry, I found a pattern that was not only nice and easy but also quite practical as the shape and size of the shawl allows it to double up as a scarf.

After days of debating which colours from my humongous stash I was going to use, and using the random stripe generator to know which order I was going to work the colours in, I took my yarn and my hook to craft night and made a start. The shawl is made in a simple granny stitch so it's really easy. But for some reason, it's taken me this long to finish it. Maybe it's because I started it there but this project only ever seemed to make progress at craft night and we only meet every three weeks for a couple of hours or so. I'm glad I've actually joined two different craft clubs otherwise I fear the shawl would not have been ready for the return of winter! 

Even though the weather has cooled a fair bit, it's too hot at the moment for me to wear my latest creation. I might never get the chance though, my cat is very fond of the new shawl! 

Baby crochet

A few weeks back, a friend of mine gave birth to a gorgeous little baby girl. I think it's the sight of this little bundle of joy that finally got me out of my creative block. 

I did a quick bit of research on Ravelry and found a pattern by Mon Petit Violon for the cutest ever baby booties. I had all the yarn I needed in my stash so I set out to work and pretty much finished the pair in an afternoon. I did take an extra week to stitch in all the ends and attach the flowers though, pure laziness on my part! 

When hubby saw them he asked if they were for ours but as we don't know yet what we're having, I had to disappoint him. If we are expecting a girl, I will definitely make another pair of these... or two... or three... They're just so quick to make and so so cute! 

Baby Florence and her mummy really liked the little booties. Here's a lovely shot of the two of them:

Getting Beltane ready: the Goddess shawl

My poor little blog is feeling quite neglected at the moment. I have been very busy making lately but I haven't been so good at writing about it. It's time for a catch up.

Beltane is only in a few weeks time and I can't wait. Of all the pagan festivals, Beltane is by far my favourite. It celebrates life, love, sensuality and passion. We usually celebrate it in Glastonbury where the entire town goes all out to mark the day.

Some of you may remember that my hubby's working commitments meant we couldn't go last year so this year is extra special and full of anticipation.

I can't remember how or where I came across it, but in early January I bought this pattern for a Goddess shawl which I think will be perfect. It's a really simple make and I crocheted it in just a couple of days. I picked a lovely yarn, Pattons Smoothie DK, in red, one of the traditional colours for Beltane.

Bring on May Day I say, so I can wear my shawl while dancing the maypole and jumping the fire!

Getting Redfestive ready pt IV: the final touches

The last 48h before the Redfestive Christmas Bazaar have been a bit manic, trying to finish everything I'd set out to do. I really wanted a display that would demonstrate a variety of crafts as I'm using the stall not just to sell my wares but also to promote my craft teaching. So with the help of hubby, I've managed to make those last few bits just in time (literally!) for the fair:

Sweet little crochet hearts

Beeswax candles in natural and Christmassy colours

The Christmas cake pops were very popular, unsurprisingly so as our stall was place right by the queue to Santa's grotto ;-)

Getting Redfestive ready pt III: more Christmas cutesies

After 10 very short nights, a sewing machine working on overtime and I don't know how many stabs of the needle, I can finally see the end of the tunnel! The stock for my table at the Redfestive Christmas Bazaar this weekend is nearly ready. All I have left is a few more crochet pieces (probably little hearts) which I'll be making tonight and the beeswax candles and cake pops, which I'll make with hubby's help tomorrow.

Here are the latest additions to my stock:

A picking of Christmas apples

Little lavender lovebirds

A family of adorable little owls

Crochet snowflakes (well, it was snowing last night!)