Russian Dolls

I've just had great fun making these lovely crocheted Russian Dolls. 

They took a few days to make because of all the embroidery detail but they were a great way to use up oddments of yarn.

The pattern is by Nicki Trench and is in the magazine Woman's Weekly Knitting and Crochet Special April/May 2011.  The pattern also features in Nicki Trench's book Cute and Easy Crochet. 

We've named the dolls Ada, Lily, Sally and Nancy.  A very colourful and jolly addition to our household.

Happy Birthday Mum

A big special HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my Mum today.  "I hope you have a wonderful day - be good to yourself - you deserve it".

Here is the card I made for her. 

It's a very pretty and dainty design. Unfortunately the photo is a bit pale.  The central motif is slightly raised and I've added a ribbon bow.  I'm really pleased with the stamped flowers in the corners - I think I matched the colours of the central design very well.

And most importantly, my Mum liked it.

Temptation

I am being led astray!!  My friend Angela from Coventry sent me a message yesterday morning to say that Deramores has a sale of Sirdar Countrystyle yarn.  This is one of my favourite yarns - great value -usually around £4 for a 100g ball - now on sale for £1.79 per ball.  WOW!! How could I resist - and with free delivery in the UK on orders over £15. 

I deliberated  - could I justify buying more yarn - no contest - of course I could.  So I sent off my order and less than 24 hours later the yarn has arrived - how's that for service.

I see some lovely Fair Isle cardigans appearing in the near future - so exciting.

New Pages

Hey!  I've finally worked out how to add new pages to the blog - a bit slow on the uptake, I know. 

So I have been busy and organised all my free patterns with pictures so that they are easy to view. 

Check out the tabs at the top to see the selection. 

Snow Doily

Despite being away on holiday and having a wonderful time, I did not neglect the crafts.  Crocheting is the easiest activity to take away - very portable.  So I packed my thread weight crochet cotton and three doily patterns. 

I only managed to complete one doily whilst away.  A second one is half-way done and I'll hopefully get around to finishing that shortly. 

Here is the finished one. 

It's called Snow Doily.  The pattern is by Priscilla Hewitt and is available for free, here. 

Quite a quick pattern to make but it's a bit too 'round' for me - I like a nice 'pointy' edging!!

Catching Up

This year seems to be going so quickly.  I blame my birthday, which took up so much time and energy - not that I'm complaining - it was the best birthday ever. 

But then Easter happened and I wasn't ready for it.  The holiday to Madrid, although anticipated for months, suddenly arrived and caused a major diversion. 

Now I'm back I realise that the house is missing all the usual Spring / Summer decorations.  We still have many of the Autumn / Winter decorations up - and this will not do, especially now that the sun is shining and the garden is starting to look so colourful. 

So out have come the sunny decorations. 

Pretty yellow and blue bunting, sunshine hanging decorations, knitted strawberries, bees and lots and lots of shells from the beach. 

So now I'm off to spread the summer sunshine throughout the house.

Holiday in Madrid

Happy May Day.  The suitcases are unpacked, the washing machine is on and I've just taken a delicious Victoria sponge cake out of the oven ready for afternoon tea.  Now I can settle down and tell you all about my wonderful holiday in Spain. 

The holiday was a special treat as part of my 50th birthday celebrations.  I've been looking forward to it ever since we booked it last year. 

My DH and I flew from Liverpool airport (very convenient) last Sunday and arrived in Madrid and we were immediately driven to Salamanca where we stayed two nights. 

What a lovely city - we had a guided tour and then just wandered through the streets seeing the beautiful buildings and visiting the Plaza Mayor.  We had a great view of the cathedral from our hotel window.  Here are some of the photos we took in Salamanca. 

After Salamanca we visited Avila and Segovia on the way back to Madrid.  Again we were impressed at how picturesque they were.  The only downside was the weather - it was freezing and I hadn't packed enough winter woollies for the trip - I got plenty of wear out of the two (only two!!) cardigans that I did take. 

Here are the pics. 

We then spent four nights in Madrid.  We explored Madrid and its wonderful art galleries.  The Prado is so impressive - it would have been possible to spend more time there but we wanted to see as much of Madrid as possible.  We loved the many plazas - each had its own character and atmosphere.  From Madrid we also visited Aranjuaz, Chinchon and Toledo.  Fortunately, when we got to Madrid the temperature improved and I was able to shed the scarf and jacket.  However, by Friday and Toledo the rain set in and it went cold again!

Here are the pics. 

It was an amazing experience - a great birthday treat - one I'll always remember.  Now after all that excitement I need a rest!!

Hello Everyone

I've just got back from a wonderful holiday in Spain.  I'll write more about this shortly and share photos. 

I'll also respond to the many comments I have received over the past week as quickly as I can - until then, I had better start unpacking the suitcases!

Easter Cards and Cakes

I had fun making these colourful cards for my girls for Easter. 

They are a patchwork of fancy papers with two strips of punched lace and a few little bits and pieces. 

I've also made them some quick cakes -topped with mini eggs. 

Very sweet and tasty. 
Have a nice Easter everyone.

Freshly Baked Bread

I've just baked some bread and the smell is so delicious.

It must be lunchtime by now!!!

Stash Basket

This crochet pattern for a basket for your stash is a great idea. 

It's generously sized and very easy to make. 

The pattern is available free from Purl Bee and uses worsted weight yarn.  I used aran weight yarn from my stash.  I wasn't sure if I would have enough of one colour to finish the basket so I used Rowan aran in Blood for the base and Stylecraft aran in cranberry for the sides and handles.  I used approximately 300 metres of yarn for the whole basket.   

Very useful and a great way to use up bits and pieces - it would also look good striped. 

The Arrival of the Easter Bunnies

Easter weekend is fast approaching and it's time for the Easter bunnies, chicks and eggs to come back out of storage.  Here are some of them.

Now to arrange them around the house for a nice jolly Easter.  No doubt the collection will be added to again.

Cropped Cardi Finished

Well it only took just over a week but I've finished my mohair cropped cardi. 

The pattern is from Designer Knitting magazine S/S10.  The pattern is for three-quarter length sleeves but I didn't have enough yarn for this so settled for short sleeves instead.  I must say I'm very happy with the short sleeves I think they work well on the cardi. 

The pattern calls for worsted weight yarn but I used 4 ply mohair used double throughout.  I used Patons UK Misty which comes in 25g balls - using a total of 7 balls. 

Nice and quick to knit with an interesting pattern - it will make a lovely cover up for the summer evenings.

Cute Little Bluebird

Grace is constantly searching Ravelry for interesting patterns - I'm sure she's supposed to be revising for her exams!  The other day she spotted this pattern for a cute little bluebird.  I thought I would knit it up for her as a surprise. 

The pattern is by Berroco and is available free here.  The bird is only about 3 inches tall.  I used aran weight yarn but the pattern calls for worsted weight yarn so should result in a smaller bird. 

I made the beak of my bird shorter and fatter than the pattern because when I originally knitted it up, it didn't look right.  The new beak fits just perfectly.  The body is knitted in the round - so no seams.  The wings and tail follow the same pattern.  Quite quick to knit and very cute. 

Delicious

We're just about to sit down with a cup of tea and some of these lovely biscuits I have made. 

They're chocolate sandwiches, filled with chocolate butter cream.  Mmmm delicious.

Raine Finished

Here is the lovely black cardi I have just finished. 

The pattern is Raine by Kim Hargreaves from the book Cherished. 

As always with Kim's patterns it is really well written and clear to follow.  The styling of the cardi is great.  Double breasted with 4 buttons, a lace edged peplum and a double rib pattern up the front. It's beautifully fitted around the waist. 

The pattern is knitted in double knitting weight yarn - I used Sirdar Balmoral in Butler Black.  Full details can be seen on my Ravelry page here.

I am madly in love with this yarn at the moment.  Last year I knitted  Bea in pink Balmoral.  I have worn it so many times and it has retained it's shape and there has been no bobbling.  It has a lovely expensive feel to it even though it is very reasonably priced.  At the moment Black Sheep Wools have a sale on - the Balmoral is only £1.68 a ball.  I've bought as much as I thought I could get away with - so I've got plenty to keep me going for a while. 

A Weekend of Sports

We have quite a few interesting days for watching sport on the television this weekend. 

In the morning it's the qualifying session for the second Formula 1 race of the season from Malaysia.  Lunchtime sees a televised football match between Everton and Wolves.  In the afternoon it's the Grand National (not that I enjoy seeing those poor horses falling over the high fences).  In the evening it's day 3 of the Masters golf tournament from Augusta. 

Sunday morning is the Formula 1 race and Sunday evening is the final round of the golf tournament. 

With all this wonderful sport to watch I need to carefully plan my knitting (sitting and doing nothing else is completely out of the question - I can't sit still that long).  I am just sewing up a lovely black tailored cardi that I had put to one side while I knitted Eve's cardi.  I'll be able to show you pictures shortly.  So now I am excited about a lovely cropped cardi in one of my many magazines.

It's from the Spring/Summer 2010 edition of Designer Knitting.  The pattern calls for Worsted weight mohair yarn.  I'm using some 4 ply mohair from my stash but knitting it doubled.  Here's what I've done so far. 

The pattern has three quarter length sleeves.  I would quite like to have full length sleeves but I've started panicking about the amount of yarn I have.  The length of the sleeves will depend on how much yarn I have - it may well end up sleeveless!  We'll just have to see how it goes. 

Enjoy your weekend - even if you're not watching any sport.

Afternoon Tea

The school holidays have begun.  Eve is busy studying and revising for her ever nearing exams.  So we treated ourselves with a little afternoon tea. 

I made cheese scones (delicious when straight from the oven), dainty sandwiches and lots of cranberry chocolate muffins.  Don't worry we didn't eat all the muffins - we saved a few for when the others get home!

Mothers Day

Happy Mothers Day.

Here are the cards I made for my Mum and Mother-in-Law.

I hope all Mums everywhere have a wonderful day today.