Cushiony Crochet!

Well, I have been busy again with these round crocheted cushions - there is something so theraputic about going round in circles and the flowers and frill are a satisfying way to finish it off - however there are only so many of these pretty cushions one can adorn ones house with - so these two are for sale - £15 each plus £2 p&p - If you would like one, please e-mail me and I will send you a paypal invoice. I am also happy to make these to order in any colours of your choice


The pink one is a paler pink on top and a darker strawberry pink underneath - it has a cream frill
PINK ONE NOW SOLD


The blue one is a pale blue on top and cream underneath with a cream frill
Hope you like these as much as I do
Natalie x

Loving to crochet

I am just loving crochet at the moment, and inspired by similar cushions made by Julia and Jane I decided to make one of my own, and I am just loving it! - It is so nice to start a project and see it through to completion, especially since I have recently taught myself to crochet and six months ago, didn't even know how to hold a hook!
In the background is the granny blanket I started in the summer, and I am hoping this photo will guilt trip me into sorting it out - typical of me, I thought I could take short cuts and didn't bother to block the pieces, but now I have decided I must take apart the pieces I have stitched together so far, block them and then crochet them together.
Here is proof that I blocked my circular cushion

It really does give a better finished result and I am now planning on making some more of these cushions to display (and hopefully sell) in my next shop window display which will be in shades of dusky pink and mink.
Almost forgot there about my one year giveaway - I put the names in a hat (well, actually a bowl) and the name the little hand pulled out was English Teacup, so congratulations and hopefully I will get a little parcel of goodies off to you in the next couple of weeks.
Next on the 'to do' list is working on the heart swap, I have been paired with Gemma and I can't wait to see what heart shaped lovlies she sends me - I love receiving things in the post! - Anyway hope you are all having a wonderful weekend and enjoying the mild spring weather
Natalie x

Sunday: Fun with yarn

On Sunday, with a few hours to relax and do as I please, I felt like I wanted to make something, It has been a while since I knitted or crocheted anything and I decided to do a bit of both. I had seen the tutorial over on Lucy's blog and thought I would have a go, and without really knowing how, I managed to create these cute little flowers. Lucy's instructions are so well written and the photos so clear, that I honestly think anyone could make them - so thank you Lucy!
Although the flowers are very pretty, I don't yet know what will become of them, but it did give me the idea that I would like them to adorn an item of clothing, and so in a few hours I knocked up this hat for Georgia, It has a deep rib which tuns up and the rest of the hat is knitted in double moss stitch. I added two of these little flowers in the same colour as the hat, this time with a button in the centre. It was a very satisfying project combining both knitting and crochet, not bad to say 6 months ago I didn't even know how to hold a crochet hook!

I have a feeling that these little flowers are going to be turning up everywhere from now on!

Tumble Driers, Haircuts and Granny Squares!

What a strange week it has been so far - nothing out of the ordinary has happened, but it just seems to have been a loooonnnngg week!
I have a couple of days off work now, the first in ages, I am off tomorrow to take delivery of a new tumble drier, my old one finally gave up the ghost at ten years old - probably decided it had had enough after years of being overworked! I have gone for a condenser tumble drier this time, as the siting of it is nowhere near a window, and have tried to find one as energy efficient as possible, but the best I could find has a 'C' rating.
The in-laws are also coming through tomorrow for a long weekend, so me and the hubby are taking advantage by having another night out - (the second this year - steady!) and I am having my hair cut and coloured on Saturday in preparation and am really looking forward to it.
My eldest son has joined the Filey Sea Cadets this year, which you can find out about here He is desperate to get his uniform, but I must admit to being a bit concerned when he announced after one session that he thinks he might like to join the Navy - he is only 10!

Thank you to everyone who had a look at my new website and was kind enough to leave a comment, it seems from your comments that we have achieved what we set out to do which was create a clean looking, easy to navigate website which was free from gimmicks. We will be advertising in the christmas issue of Ideal Home magazine, and each issue thereafter, so if you read Ideal Home, look out for us! I have done a little draw, and the winner was Kelly, so thank you very much Kelly (and everyone else) for taking the time to comment, and if you e mail me your address I will pop a little something in the post for you!
Finally, I can't go without letting you know about my Granny square progress, as you can see from the pictures, I have completed 29 and have another 16 which are waiting for the final two rounds of pink to be added, so that's 45 in total. I had originally intended for this to be a 56 square blanket, but I now have another plan for it, and so it may become bigger, but details of that in my next post.
Have a good weekend everyone - Natalie x

Holy Moly - I can crochet!!!

Just wanted to share this with my blogging friends - I am not quite sure how it happened, but - I seem to be able to crochet! I have been practising like mad over the past week or two, and there has been much unravelling and starting again, but bit by bit it seems to be clicking into place, (might have something to do with the fact that I'm a Capricorn and can be very determined). There were times when I thought I was never going to 'get' it but finally, on Sunday, I produced a 'Granny Square' and have made two more since (without using the pattern I hasten to add!). The squares measure 6" each, So I reckon 42 or 49 of them will make a good sized blanket.
This is one project I'm determined to finish, as I do have a history of starting lots of different things and never finishing any of them - So I expect you, my blogging friends to keep hassling me on whether I've done any more squares for my blanket.
Its hard to think of needing blankets to snuggle up on the sofa and keep warm, the weather here today is glorious, but I'm sure it will be with us all too soon
Bye for now
Natalie x

Cups, Cushions and Crochet!

At the weekend, Tim's Dad and Step mum came through again to see us for a couple of days - We had a lovely time, exploring Scarborough's Italian Gardens, eating fish & chips and sitting in the sun - Saturday was glorious weather, but unfortuntely I forgot to take the camera, never mind, I really enjoyed the Italian Gardens and am sure I will be going there again before the summer is out. The Gardens are located just off Scarborough's Esplanade and not far from the building where they film 'The Royal' on ITV. Sunday was a different thing altogether, a really bad sea mist hung over Filey all day - The beach was packed, but it was like sunbathing in thick fog - you couldn't see more than 10 metres in front of you, so there was no point in taking any pictures.

However, Terry and Sue came bearing gifts, and for me, were these 8 lovely pink floral mugs. I have put 4 under this little cabinet that hangs in the kitchen and the other 4 are hanging from my other little kitchen shelf. They look lovely and are really nice to drink from too.


Next Saturday, will be my niece Sophia's 1st Birthday and we will all be travelling through to Sheffield for her party. I know she has loads of clothes (because I pass a lot on to her!) and I'm sure she is not short of toys either, so I decided I wanted to make her something she could keep. I made her this cushion onto which I have appliqued her name, and trimmed it with cream lace and some little dragon fly motifs - I am really pleased with how it has turned out and I hope my sis likes it too!


For a long time now, I have wanted to learn to crochet, but the time has never been right, however I am determined this time, and armed with these 2 books I have been practising away. I am a fairly accomplished knitter (my mum taught me at a very young age and I remember making my first item of clothing - a maroon tank top at the age of 10) but trying to learn crochet from a book is harder than I thought. I did however manage to make this little heart using this pattern

I don't know how i managed it, and lets just say it didn't look very 'heart-shaped' until I blocked it, but its a start!
The lovely Lucy over at Attic 24 has been very helpful, giving me tips on which yarns are best to use - so all I need to do now is keep on practising. I am aiming to make heaps of ripple and granny square blankets for this winter, when I can't afford to have the gas on!
Hope you all enjoy the last day of July and I'll be back in a couple of days
Natalie x