Fancy Learning to Crochet?

Happy
new year! I hope you all had a lovely Christmas and are buzzing with enthusiasm
for 2013. All was lovely here - Florence's first Christmas was relaxed. We
spent a lot of time with family and we also lazed around and ate far too much,
but that was fab and just what the doctor ordered. Father Christmas bought Florence her first tooth, which
arrived, without fuss, on the 28th. All I can say is "ouch." I'm
still breastfeeding. Just.

Since
a lot of people like to take up new hobbies in the new year, I thought it'd be
a great time to put together a project for those who want to learn to crochet.
In 2012, I met several people who were keen to start but said that even the
most basic tutorials assumed that they knew all about yarn, etc. This is a real
beginner's guide. As the weeks pass, we'll make a granny square blanket,
or a cushion cover if that's your preference (you start in the same place and then decide which project to follow half way through.) All you need is 6 balls of DK
(double knit) yarn and a 4mm crochet hook. If that sounds like gobble-de-gook,
then watch the movie where I explain alll about it. You can just buy one
ball of yarn if you're not sure you'll like it, and see how you go.

I hope the
tutorials will be part information and part support - learning any new skill is
a challenge and I want to be there to assist, reassure and pass on experiences.
My own personal challenge right now is losing weight and I am a *total*
exercise novice (embarrassingly so), so I empathise with the new crocheters. If
you're an experienced crocheter and have any advice you'd like me to pass on,
then please email me. I'll give full credit to all contributers.

So, here we go.
All feedback appreciated:

medium from Claire Boynton on Vimeo.

If the embedded video player isn't working, there's a problem with Typepad. You can find the video by following this link: http://vimeo.com/57356957 

Online Yarn Recommendations:

For this project, I'll be using Debbie Bliss Rialto, as I
have it in my stash already. However, the following would also be good. I've given a brief guide to price according to which yarn you choose, too.

Lovely - http://hejhog-uk.com/debbie-bliss-rialto-dk-c-170_181_224.html
(cost approx £25 for finished blanket / cushion)

Gorgeous - http://hejhog-uk.com/artesano-dk-c-170_252_258.html
(£22)

Luxury - http://hejhog-uk.com/debbie-bliss-cashmerino-dk-c-170_181_231.html
(£25)

Bargainous luxury merino - http://hejhog-uk.com/wendy-merino-c-170_382_393.html
(£14.70)

Mid price Acrylic / merino blend - http://hejhog-uk.com/wendy-mode-dk-c-170_382_412.html
(£8.82)

Stylecraft Special DK is a nice acrylic
in several colours that comes highly recommended. I've not used this yarn or
this company, so can't recommend personally. Word on the web, though, is
they're good: http://www.countrycrafts.org.uk/special_dk.htm
(£8.94, but that's for double the amount of yarn, so you could make two
blankets!)

RICO Creative Cotton - have used this
yarn and this supplier. Would recommend both. The yarn is similar to string and
can be a bit splitty, so buyer beware, it could be tricky for a newbie. That
said, it's a good price for a natural material: http://www.first4yarns.co.uk/rico-creative-cotton-705-c.asp
(£11.40)

Hope that helps - as I say, that's just some suggestions for those who are feeling overwhelmed by their first yarn purchase, there are thousands of other options especially now it's sale
time. Just check its DK / double knit and can be machine washed (superwash).
I'm very happy to take a look at your potential yarn purchases, just PM me.

I really like www.hejhog-uk.com as their prices are
reasonable and their customer service second to none. They don't pay me for
recs though, lol, so feel free to shop elsewhere. A note of caution about Kemps
Woolshop - their prices are excellent and I've always received parcels quickly,
HOWEVER their search engine is a total PITA. I've just searched DK yarn and the
first few items are not DK weight. If you plan to order from Kemps, I'm happy
to double check that you have the right weight yarn.

Good luck!

 

With love

Claire x

 

Play Time!

Hello gang, how are you doing? Well I hope? Quite a lot of my friends seem down in the dumps at the moment, I'm not sure if it's just that January feeling. I really wish I had a magic wand. Me, I'm doing quite well actually. I don't feel ill right now, just completely knackered. However, there's no shame in having a leeetle daytime rest is there? Good. I might take you up on that later ;o)

Today's opening picture is called 'anticipation'. It really made me smile. I found it on Sunday. Charlie's school have introduced a breakfast club where one can go for a half hour play before school plus juice, cereal and toast or a yoghurt. All for a bargain sum of 50p. Charlie was so very excited about having his breakfast at school and found it very difficult to wait. I was very touched to notice he'd written "tomorrow" on the school letter, unprompted, as he was counting down. And a heart. So sweet.

This week is a very special week for me, and I wish I had a bit more energy for it. My Doctor Who scarf is blocking, my orders have been made and posted and so I have that very rare combination of some time to myself and nothing to do. So I have been playing.

I have been pondering making textile pictures for some time. My notebooks are also very popular. It was natural that I would use these media to play with, I think. I've also been considering doing some craft fairs, and I suspect they're the sort of thing that would sell.

Looking for inspiration, I asked my Facebook friends for their favourite lyrics or film quotes. I got loads of brilliant ones, and have tucked away a few for future reference. Then, completely by chance, my friend Deb put this as her status update: "Wish I had a money tree so Andy could work less hours. We'd love to see more of him and his beard!"

Which inspired this:

It gave me a chance to play with my newly found love of machine embroidery - bliss. My favourite bit is the texture on the trunk and the apple button that's fallen off the tree. The sentiment is for my lovely husband, Dom.

The back of the notebook can't be plain. So look what fell out of the sky of inspiration:

I suspect we'll be seeing more of that apple motif. I'm quite taken with it.

I wanted the notebook to be practical too. So I made three flaps for holding folded paper, tickets, photos or postcards. Plus two business card holders - one for your cards and one for other people's.

What do you think? Do you like it? I'm planning to spend the whole week playing - it's a really liberating experience. I'll post the fruits of my labour - good and bad - as I go through the week.

If you want to help inspire the creative tangle in my head, please drop me a note with your favourite lyric, film quote or saying. I'll happily credit you with the inspiration and add a link back to your blog, if you wish.

Sending you lots of creative vibes

Claire x

 

Jumping Back In

Day 1 : Frog or Finish* Organise, Create

 

Well hello, Blogland. It's been a while, hasn't it?! I've missed you.

It's been a strange year 2010, pretty difficult but also pretty positive. I started off suicidally depressed and ended up, well, almost normal. I've made a lot of things along the way, and I've learned a lot about myself. I spent quite a lot of it in therapy, I got used to the discipline of using my Lady Shed / studio every day. From nowhere I've built up a lovely little business almost without knowing how it happened; I've just been doing what I love and what feels right. I've swapped the diagnosis of depression for that of ME / CFS (and I actually think they both were accurate) and I'm learning how to manage the CFS and am having more and more good days. I would say that I'm almost back to normal, health wise, except for the medication and crutches. However, I suspect I have invoked the Law of Sod as today I feel crappy. You've gotta laugh.

I feel the need to explain my absence from the blog in recent weeks. When I first crashed and burned I needed to understand what was happening to me - and the best way I could do this was by blogging. I didn't want to talk to others, you know - the real life people, and so it was great to analyse my feelings on here. Gradually more and more folks started to follow the blog and I got performance anxiety - I needed the blogland version of Viagra. When you hear that others are struggling too it feels wrong to just talk about the positives, and a bit... erm... depressing to carry on just about the negatives. So I wasn't quite sure what to write about.

Also - and I'm not sure if this is common with those recovering from depression - I suddenly felt the need to be very private. Much more private than I have ever been before. Like a fresh, naked plant shoots from the earth I wanted to protect myself and I wanted to be alone. This has been tricky for my extended family because I've not wanted to be with them either. Just me, my husband and my boys. And my fabulous online friends who have only ever accepted me for being me and have never questioned my absences or the times when I went over the top.

Anyway, right now 2011 feels a bit scary. I'm guessing it's the first time that I have properly planned forwards. Christmas was lovely in bits, and tense at times. I'm looking forward to time alone to look at my goals.

I'm not setting new year's resolutions because I am still doing the 101 in 1001 project. I'll review that here soon. However, I have chosen three themes to work on every day - I want to be:

Creative, Organised and Kind <3

Each day I will endeavour to do one of the three and take a photo.

Creativity is important to me because I feel the urge, deep down in my soul, to make things. I also hope to do a textiles degree in 2012 (I need to save up first!) This year will be about experimentation and preparation for the bigger goal of my degree. Also, the creativity works it's magic and makes me feel happier, more relaxed and healthier. Therefore, it's currently a priority in my life.

being Organised is key to me achieving my goals. I'm not the most organised woman in the world. Hell, I'm actually spectacularly DISORGANISED.  I find personal organisation really challenging. However, in order to reach my goals I know I have to get my head around it. This includes practical things - like organising my deadlines, my studio space and paying off our credit card so that I have more choices.

Kindness is very important to me too. I'd like to think I do a reasonable job at being kind to my family and friends, but I want to increase what I do. Also, hand on heart, I'm not always very kind to myself. So this resolution involves eating more healthily, exercising, getting my hair cut and looking after myself. It also involves giving of my time and resources to charity (note - not just giving money, but my time to being a governor at our local school, as well as donating things I've made and items to charity shops). Lastly, I want to be involved with random acts of kindness. Blessed is the hand that giveth.

So, this leaves 2011 with the fantastically abbreviated COK Project!

* Day 1, as you can see from the picture at the start, was a Frog or Finish day. Frogging is a knitting term - when you rip it, rip it, rip it back. I have lots of projects that remain unfinished (I like to do several things at once) so this is their ultimate fate. Either I finish them, or they get turned back to yarn and the needles freed. I finished this crocheted cushion - RIP the summer shrug. C'est La Vie.

 

Day 2 : Working on Charlie's Quilt, Create

Its been a year in the making so far, and it needs to double in size - and that's just the top. I will finish it in time for the arrival of his new bed sometime this year. This is an ongoing project.

 

Day 3 : Making Recycled Christmas Tags, Create, Kind (recycling)

 

Charlie and I cut up the old Christmas cards before recycling the backs, and made gift tags for Christmas 2011. I was rather proud of how they turned out, and remembered doing exactly the same thing with my Mum in the 1970s. Funny how these simple, cylical things can feel so good.

 

Day 4 : Tidy The Corner, Organise

 

You would not believe what a mess this corner of my studio had become with the rush of Christmas orders. This is where I store my yarn, buttons, ribbon and findings.  Thankfully it's now restored to quiet calm where my creative juices can take hold.

Cozy blankets and dark days

The thing with a blog about depression is the worry that for everyone else reading it, it's going to be rather, erm, depressing. This fear has prevented me from posting too much over the past week.

It's been an up-and-down sort of time. There have been good days, baked cakes, delicious roast dinners, home-made blackberry ice-cream made from brambles in our garden, two days out to the beach, feeding monkey nuts to the squirrels, hours and hours on my lovely, lovely afghan with which I am in mad, mad love, a boat trip, a day out to the farm in which I held day old chicks and made friends with an old farm cat with one ear, who snuggled into my lap like he'd always been there and promptly fell asleep - and of course, my lovely, lovely boys with whom I am so lucky to spend my life.

There have, however, been lots of dark days. That hollow, haunting fear, the anger with myself, the complete frustration with the world, lots of tears, the lack of sleep, the depressive ruminations and the people that I feel let down by, over which I have lost far too many tears. I can't get perspective on this yet, but I can tell myself that sometimes a good spring clean of one's life is necessary and helpful. I am usually an upbeat, positive, optimistic person, so I guess that when I have my down days they are going to be bad - just because we experience ups and downs equally. At least deep depths mean high highs, I guess. The worst thing for me is not lows, but would be experiencing a sort of bland, magnolia sort of life. 

I have a doctors appointment on Thursday because something needs to change. I don't know whether my medication needs altering, or whether I need to stump up for private CBT, or have my coil removed (the GP suggested that the progesterone it releases might be making the depression worse, but I really don't want this to be the case as it's so convenient.) In addition to the depression I am experiencing a lot of post-shingles pain, and it's quite excruiating at times. The thing that helps the most is Solpedeine Max as usual painkillers don't seem to touch it. These have the effect of making me feel all warm and snoozy, which is lovely. So I am trapped in a depressed, but ultimately comfortable, place and whilst I desparately want to leave it, I am also afraid to walk in to the sunshine. Any sort of rebirth metaphor would be appropriate here.

What really frightens me - and deep down what I think I need - is to be signed off work. I have no idea how it would work, it would be most incovenient for everyone involved and I am sure that my reputation would be damaged in a very public way. I went in for a day last week and it was much, much tougher than I thought it would be, and the pressure isn't on at all yet. I feel as though I am starting to get better; that the wound is covered by papery-thin new skin. But it still hurts and feels very raw, and it would be wrong to assume I am completely healed. Deep down I am sure that it's going to take a long time to get better, but I can't shake the guilt that I am lazy, taking advantage of people and not committed.

My camera battery needs charging (no metaphor this time!), so I don't have the usual raft of pictures for you. I will try to get it charged (once it has been located) and update later tonight. However, I have been overwhelmed by the desire to sit and make blankets. I have made two in the last week - and bloody big buggers they are too. One was done in a day using size 20 needles and used up a whole heap of old yarn that I'd had for a long time and wasn't sure what to do with. It looks fab, and is really squishy. The kids and cats love it. I enjoyed being lazy and watching 'Dirty Harry' whilst it was being completed, but the combination of the big needles and heavy fabric gave me chronic RSI in my hands (oo-er)

The second blanket is the afghan - it now has 12 large squares and 11 rows of edging. I haven't measured it, but it's at least single bed size. I am in mad, mad love with it. I can't say much more to convey my affection but, as with all love affairs, every time I make a change, add a square or a new colour I initially think it has been ruined, only to find it has been enhanced beyond my wildest dreams. I don't care if other people don't like it, it really is like a third baby to me at this moment in time.

I haven't done much else in the way of crafting, despite putting the hours in, because those are such big projects in their own right. However, we did get up the shelves in the kitchen to display my lovely ceramic nick-nacks and it looks amazing. It really shows off the bunting tea set well.

Will get those pictures up, and update with some of the other projects I have done this year in the meantime. Thanks for sticking with me - especially through the depressive bits, and thank you for all the lovely comments, I am so touched by them all. Bloggers rock x

You win some....

New stash - hmmmmmmmm....

Last week I said to Dom that walking away from your business is very much like leaving a long term relationship. That mixture of feeling guilty, anxious, bereft, excited for the future, selfish and sad is all too familiar. It's weird because I didn't expect to feel so emotional about it at all. A lot of people have said that I had good business reasons to close the business (which I did, and it's comforting that other people respect and understand the decision I have made) but even so, they don't seem to understand the process of grief that I feel. Even things like having to re-dream your future, because your plans have now been changed enormously, feel the same.

What I hadn't prepared for is how much losing your business allows you to see who your real friends are. Like leaving a relationship people have to choose. My real friends have responded with love, reassurance and generosity of spirit. Without exception I have cried whenever they have sent me their heart felt messages, and they have meant so much on a very, very fundamental level. However there have been a couple of surprises. One person whom I expected to be there for me has been conspicuous by her absence. And another, someone I considered a close friend, has really shown her true colours and is currently and unashamedly trying to profit from the situation. It feels as though I have been slapped in the face. I had a good cry this morning (and shouted at Charlie, which I regretted instantly, but he caught me at a bad moment - I must make it up to him later). I actually feel really hurt, and rather silly that I ever considered the "friendship" to be more than a business relationship. And upset that I'm allowing it to effect me and my family thus.

The weather today has been sunshine and showers, some of them thundery with hailstones, and that's kind of an appropriate metaphor for how I have been feeling. On the whole, I feel much more postive than the last couple of days. However, there have been some quite dark moments. I keep trying to put a positive spin on things - the best I can come up with at the moment is that it's a healthy process to weed out the bad things, a sort of cleansing. A spring clean. And that feels good.

On the other hand, my lovely, lovely husband has taken me out for the day to get some jobs done and to cheer me up. He's brilliant and gently but firmly getting me to do the necessary things, help me prioritise and get me out of the house. We did some chores, like paying in cheques, taking the dry cleaning in and collecting my prescription, then he took me to a local cafe for lunch (which was a bit grim - frozen omlette) and cooed with me over the three newborn babies at the table next door. Then he took me to Dunelm Mill for a browse, to two local wool shops for a restash (yay!) and bought me the new edition of House Beautiful.

Speaking of which, I have only had a quick flick through but I was inspired by this gorgeous kitchen that I thought I would share with you:

Finally, he also treated me to some hand made chocolates and local cheese for dinner from a new deli in town. Despite some of the nasty shocks of the day, I have to say that I really, really am blessed.