New project!

Usually, when I have finished a pattern, I am at a loss for what to get on with next.

Not this time though, I have already started it!

I used to make a whole load of quilted items which I sold. Included in these wre names.

You can see "Benjamin" on the wall - along with the "Pooh and Friends" set on his bed.

Now I am designing all of these letters in crochet. The uppercase ones will be about 20cm tall with the lowercase a corresponding size.

Of course, a REALLY long project.

I suppose I had better get off here and get on with it!

November Calendar

And it is only one day late!

But I have been busy.

This month there are two versions in the zip file, one for wide screen.

I have been using a wide screen monitor in work and I hate the way it stretches everything. You would think there would be a setting for a widescreen monitor - but there isn't.

So I created the calendar in a widescreen shape, then squished it to a normal screen size.

When it is installed on your desktop, it will all be the right shape.

It does look rather wierd here though.

The Poppies are from my Scrapping Flowers and Friends pattern and are available as a free digi download.

Don't you just love it ..............

............ when a plan comes together?

Hmm, maybe I have been watching too many re-runs of the "A-Team"

But still, I have finished my new Christmas Lanterns Pattern, complete with better pictures!

And to celebrate, I am giving some of the prototypes away.

On offer I have one each of the Angel, Candle, Stocking and Christmas tree lanterns.

They do not include the tea lights, you will have to supply them yourself.

I also have a copy of the pattern to give away.

However, you are going to have to work for them by entering a a prize draw.

All you have to do is add a button or link to my Christmas page on my site, then leave me a comment on this post to tell me you have.

You also need to let me know which one you would prefer to win.

You can download instructions on how to add the button to you blog and use the "Ask Me" button on the left if you have any questions.

The more I see of Ravelry, the more I love it. I have sold 12 patterns in the last week - which is really good going for me.

I have also had about 130 downloads on my Christmas tree pattern. And I set up my very own group on there.

Do you remember the wonderful Advent Calendar we had last year? Well SC is going to make another one this year.

Of course, that will mean loads of free Christmas projects are need to fill the numbers.

If you have anything you would like to donate, please use the "Ask Me" to email me your contact details and I will pass them on.

It doesn't matter whether the site is commercial or not, as long as the project is a free one and available online to the public.

Do you Ravelry?

I didn't but I do now!

I actually joined in August 2008 but got so confused with the place that I gave up. And, just afterwards, I started the new job which took up lots of my time.

However, I have recently been re-investgating and found it a wonderful place!

Ravelry is a site for Knitters and Crocheters. It has an ENORMOUS data base of patterns which is continually added to by its members.

There are groups and forums you can join and lots of help pages.

If you are a designer, it is even better. You can add your designs to the database all for free. You can get linked to your patterns as the designer which allows you to do all sorts of things with them. Quite what, I haven't found out yet because this takes a little while to do.

However, with 1000's of users all over the world, its a resource worth using.

So, as if you can't gues, the reason I haven't been about as much recently is that I have been busy adding all my patterns to Ravelery. I started with the Christmas ones and have been doing bits and pieces of the other - both free and for sale.

Before you get linked as a Designer, it is a bit long winded as you first have to add them as project, then add them as a pattern to be able to use the photos from the project.

However, it is worth it. I have sold 4 patterns in the last 3 days and all of them have been recently listed on Ravelry.

I would like to think this is no coincidence!

The other thing I have been doing is working on some new patterns.

One, a free pattern for these Christmas trees is finished. Click here for the Christmas Tree Free Pattern.

The small one (about 11cm tall) is made with Dmc Petra size 5 and a 2.00mm hook. I added brads for the decorations when it was finished.

The large one (about 16cm tall) is made from DK and a 4.00mm hook. I threaded the beads on the yarn first and worked them in as I went along.

I am about to add the pattern to the Ravelery database and, if you do make them and are a member of Ravely, add them as a project.

Of course, the other thing I have bee working on is those lanterns.

I "borrowed" this lovely tree to take the photos. It looks so much better than my cupboard under the stairs!

As promised........

Photos of the new lanterns

First of all, here is the Candle.

I wanted something relatively simple as some of the more complicated things I was working on just weren't going right.

I was pleased with the way this turned out, simple but effective.

Again, please excuse the bad photos, take with the IXUS on ISO3200. But you should be used to them by now!

As soon as I am able to get a decent evening, I will go out and do the decent ones on a long exposure. I just have to wait tuntil its not too windy.

And here is "SnowStorm", although I am not quite sure if that is the right name of it.

Any suggestions?

It is the same as "Starburst", made with 11 motifs in the smaller size bangles.

This weekend I bought some new candles, just under £5 for a pack of 6 in Wilkinsons. This is roughly the same price as you can get them on eBay and you don't have to worry about the postal strikes.

Something else I have been doing recently is re-investigating Ravelery. I joined over a year ago and got so confused with the place I gave up. Now, whether it is me or them I don't know, I am finding it a bit easier to negotiate.

I have been adding some of my free patterns to their database and, when I work out what I can and can't do, may add some of the ones for sale.

In the meantime, if anybody wants to add me as a friend I am Enfys on there as well.

Just one more thing I couldn't resist showing you, I bought this cute little phone sock in Peacocks, only £1

Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh!

I have felt like that a lot over the last couple of weeks.

It always seems to happen when I have an idea for a pattern that needs to be done pretty quickly, something comes along and throws a spanner in the works.

This time, it was my Dearest.

He very kindly offered to reformat the computer for the Care Home as it was playing up. So, on the Thursday evening the boss dropped it off at our home and he got to work. He did most of it on the Thursday evening and I went into work on the Friday telling her that she would have it back on Monday.

My Dearest likes to be very thorough and she probably would have been safe to have it back on Friday but he likes to play with them first. We had it on all day Saturday putting it through its paces. Benjamin even went on Facebook with it. Any minor glitches were ironed out and the puter was working like a dream.

The only problem with all of this was that my Dearest realised how slow and out of date ours are. He decided to go to PC World "for a look".

Yes, you guessed it, we came home with a brand spanking new puter.

He set it all up on the Sunday and expected me to move my 550,000 photos and files over in 5 mins flat and then complained that he couldn't do what else he wanted to do because mine was taking so long to do it. He didn't listen to my suggestion that he do his first and I could do mine during the week while he was in work.

And did I mention that we now have Vista? With Windows Mail that doesn't support Gmail? And that isn't compatible with the drivers of half our hardware?

Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh!

I am not going into the details but pretty much everything is sorted out now. There have been one of two minor casualties but nothing major. Although is did mean that I spent most of my time I should have been working on the pattern installing various software and hunting online for updated drivers or new free programs to replace the ones that don't work with Vista.

I have taken pics of the new lanterns but that is going to have to wait until tomorrow because I have run out of time!

Angels and Stockings

This can conjure up the most peculiar images but I assure you it is all perfectly innocent!

The thing is, I finished the prototype of the Angel lantern last night and am so pleased with this one I couldn't wait to share.

Again, really rubbish photos but the Ixus on ISO3200 is so much easier and quicker than getting out the tripod etc for times exposures.

She does need a little tweaking here and there but, on the whole, I am really pleased with her.

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And here is the stocking.

I just need to write the patterns for this lot now then get on with the next one.

I forgot the hanging loop and there are some ends need sewing in but the photos show the main bit.

Any suggestions for what you would like to see?