Cover girl

WooHoo! Great news I made the cover of Inside Crochet issue number 81 and not just a small photo but the main image. For the lovely yarn I used please go to my online shop below I have made some suggestions of possible colour variations. Dont forget to share pictures of your completed sunrise stole on my facebook page as I would love to see them.

Twit twoo luggage

Issue 77 Inside Crochet you will find my Magical Owl bag pattern

Full kits are in either DK or Natura at my online store

I would love to see your completed bags, so please post pictures on my facebook page.

Hearts and Stars

Really chuffed to announce that I am inside "Inside Crochet" again! This time it is my "Hearts & Stars Wreath". It is designed with Christmas in mind but is suitable for a few occasions. And it is designed with the beginner in mind as it is created from almost all dc (US-sc) with a few short rows for shaping.

I used a wire wreath ring for support which you can get from your local florist (or on line) and electrical tape to cover the wire to prevent it rusting. Light stuffing and some buttons give it a 3D look. And the bells on the ends of the streamers give it a festive feel.

So go and grab your copy quick! All images © Inside Crochet and used with permission.

Remember those Crochet Cables?

Well, what got me started on them was creating a Poncho for Inside Crochet.

I love this poncho and it has been so difficult to keep it a secret. Thankfully, it is now published so I can share!

I had the poncho back in October and have been wearing it. It is so warm and snuggly.

I used Aran Tweed Knitting Wool from Kilcar in Donegal, Ireland. It comes in 200g skeins (Length = 320 m / 350 yards) Lilac-4812. The Poncho uses 8 skeins. You can buy online from COMMODUM art and design. They also sell on eBay, just search for “Donegal yarn”.

It is aran weight and 100% wool. It may seem a bit expensive, the conversion rate (at the time of designing) made it about £10 (GBP) for 200g. But when you consider that the Sirdar Click cost me £3.25 for 50g, it is actually a very reasonable price. It is lovely to work with and gorgeous to wear. The poncho is in Januarys Inside Crochet (issue 37) which was out at the end of December.

And there is a matching Hat and Mitten set on Rainbow Valley. The Hat uses 1 skein and the mittens use 1 skein.

I have been working very hard!

In the summer I had a Crotat article and pattern published in Inside Crochet. I have re-written the article, taking into account feedback from readers and teaching workshops, so that it now includes more detailed instructions and more advanced techniques. But the best news - for all of you - is that all of this hard work on Rainbow Valley.

If you have a go, I would love to see the results. Pop along to my Facebook page and post there.

What a bad, bad blogger!

I knew I hadn't blogged in a while but it wasn't until I signed in that I realised quite how long it was since my last post.

What can I say apart from the fact I have been really busy.

First of all the bad news. The home I working in has closed down. This means that I and all the other staff have been made redundant. And all the residents have been moved to new homes.

The good news is that I have been doing really well with the crochet. I had a "How to Crotat" article and Crotat Coaster pattern in Issue 19 (July 2011). The six months of the contract is almost up so this pattern, along with a matching oval one, will be available soon. I am working on a whole new free "How to Crotat" download. After getting some feedback and giving some lessons, I am including more pictures and instructions to make it easier to follow.

My "Barefoot Sandals" were in Issue 20 (August 2011) I will be designing some more of these to publish when the 6 months of the contract is up.

And I had some "Crotat Jewels" published in Issue 22 (October 2011). All of this has been very good for business and the knock on effect has doubled the sales on my site. There are also some new Crotat patterns on Rainbow Valley.

And, when you are a famous designer - DMC send you freebies!

All in all, its been quite an exciting time. The problem is that I still need a job as this really doesn't earn me enough money. It would be wonderful to be a full time designer but needs must.

And some things never change. Its tea time so I need to go and cook it.

Inside Crochet 18 is out

Yes, Issue 18 should be in the shops and I am in it again with the final part of my Alphabet Mobiles.

For anybody who wants the matching Uppercase and Numbers, you can get those on my site.

I have finally finished designing the Crotat Mini Bags I have been working on. The last one gave me a bit of a headache as the butterflies just wouldn't go right. This one is "Urban Camouflage". I was going to call it something really boring like mono stripes.

This one is "Rainbow Waves" and made in pretty much the same way as the Urban Camouflage. Just with a lot more colour.

I went a bit patriotic with the "Fleur De Lys" one. After all, I was designing it when all the hype about the wedding was on the TV.

I love this colour, its so fresh. So I made the "Daisy Chain" bag from it.

And here is the "Butterfly Parade". The smaller one was made with my new hook. Scarlet Dash very kindly sent me one to play with. Its a 2mm Prym Bamboo Hook.

When it arrived, I though it was far too fragile, it just looks too thin. And I needed to sand the head to make it suitable for crotatting. However, it is surprisingly strong and supple. The head had to be sanded a few times as I was scared to take too much off but, eventually, I got it right. And, unlike the metal crotat hook, I was able to use it for both "normal" crocheting and crotatting. It saved switching back and fore between two different hooks.

I have to admit though, it did take some getting used to.

Is it that long since I last posted??????

Inside Crochet issue 17 is out, with more lovely pictures of my alphabet. I didn't make these ones, they did. Can't wait to see what they come up with for next month.

And, I have won an award! Do you remember my A-Z of Chatteris in Photos"? The Cambridgeshire Association for Local History" has given me an award for it. I have to tart up all posh and go and collect it on June 4th at Denby Abbey.

I am still crocheting hard, working on patterns for both the site and Inside Crochet. I officially went self employed on April 1st. I have never bothered before as I have always spent loads more than I earned on hooks, yarn and thread. But, with the work I am doing for IC, I am going to be in the black this year.

So, as part of all this, I have set up a Facebook page.

I only joined Facebook originally because the family nagged me. I haven't been on there much but last weekend a lady emailed me to tell me that somebody has been using my pictures to advertise that they are selling items made from my patterns.

I contacted them about it, they apologised and took them down. The silly thing is, if they had asked first, I would have given them permission. When I told them this, the excuse was that they were new to it all.

New to what? Didn't their mother teach them manners???????

Anyway, all this brought me to the realisation that Facebook is a great (and free) tool for reaching potential customers and interacting with them.

Very steep Facebook learning curve coming up!

Any help appreciated.

And, to help me get lots of "Likes" for my page I am having a prize draw of a £5 Paypal voucher when I get to 500 and a £10 Paypal voucher when I get to 1000. You will be able to spend these on my site, my Etsy shop or my Folksy shop.

All you have to do is put a link to my Facebook page and this post on your blog, then leave a comment to let me know where the links are.

When I get to 500 I will draw for the £5 and when I get to 1000 I will draw for the £10.

The vouchers can be used for patterns or finished items and if you are entered into the first draw, you will also be entered into the second draw.

Ooooh! I am all excited.

I feel like a kid at Christmas but I really can't help it. I have been officially published in Inside Crochet. And I get paid for it! Yes, I know I have been in mags before but not like this. I have never been paid before for a start. Anyway, if you want to see a free online preview, you can click on the picture.

And there are more to come. The full Lowercase Alphabet is going to be published this and the next two issues.

And I have to say, the photos they have taken are lovely and make my letters look stunning.

Now, as to why I haven't blogged in ages.

Well, there has been all this overtime in work. And there have been the driving lessons and studying for the Theory Test. And there has been all the time spent working on more patterns for IC.

And there has been all the time spent working on a new pattern for Rainbow Valley. This one is "Scrapbooking with Crotat". As you might have guessed from the name, its a motif pattern for scrabooking - or anything else you would like to use them for - and is all crotated.

Crochet Tatting is a form of tatting done with a special type of crochet hook and combined with crochet to produce a unique effect. Here are just a few of the motifs from it, I think there will be 15 different designs in all, along with some basic instructions.

It is almost finished and will be published in April, along with a slightly revamped site.

I have started working on a crotat jewellery one as well.

New Pattern Finished

This is the Alphabet Upper case set, which is finally finished and on my site. All 26 letters in glowing colour!!!

Here are some Christmas themed words I made with them.

This Heart and the Star are free patterns on my site, at least, they should be by the end of today!

I have also finished the Lower Case set but you will have to wait a few months for these as "Inside Crochet" are going to publish them.

But I am going to do a Number set which will be available on my site as soon as it is done.