The Blanket - Work in Progress!

When I first learnt to crochet I started making a Granny Square blanket.
I started using Rico Creative cotton and a size 5 Hook.
I am pretty much using every colour that they offer in this yarn!

Initially, I didn't know what path I wanted the blanket to lead, I just knew that I wanted it to be bright, cheery and colourful.  It also needed to be huge as it needs to cover our kingside bed, with plenty of overhang (Idon't like it when crochet blankets just sit on top of a bed)

I started by planning to just keep on getting bigger and bigger from the first granny square, but as time went on and I got more confident I thought I'd make lots of different sized Granny Squares and stitch them together at the end.

I statred by replicating the initial granny quare in size but with the colours in the reverse order.  But then after I'd finished the first two large squares in this way I thought the colour order looks terrible side by side - so they will probably be seperated now.

I'm using white as the outer border on each square to tie each square together and also make it easier to sew up at the end.

It's such a beautiful yarn, as it's cotton its really soft and heavy, perfect for a snuggly blanket.  I think that at £1.99 for 50g it's reasonable too.  It's roughly double the price of a scratchy cheap acrylic ( not to my taste!) so although it's not the cheapest its worlds apart.

I've really picked up momentum now on this blanket, and I'm determined to get it finished by Christmas!

Here's Gabe with one of the squares!

A Hooky Present

My lovely friend Nat is due her second little boy in three weeks time.
Her colour theme for the nursery ( well, clothes storage room really , as she co-sleeps!) is teal and grey.
I was in a real quandry as to what to make this bundle of joy.  A ripple blanket in grey and teal?  Well I bought the yarn, started the intial chain and decided it just wasn't quite right.
A cot mobile? no, he will never be in there anyway!
A hat and booties for when baby is in the sling? erm, not sure.
Baby leg warmers for when he's slung? - still might do!

Here is what I went with in the end:-

Excuse the awful hanging space for the photo!  We are decked with multiple Halloween bunting and decs at the moment so I couldn't hang them on the fireplace!



I'm hoping it'll look lovely with her nursey and that she loves them.  I certainly do :-)

This is her nursery wall art so I'm hopeful they'll go great:-

So now this little project is finished , onto the next things that have been burning a hole in my creative pocket:-
*  knitting a scarf for Gaz
*  Crocheting wrist warmers for myself :-
*   Finishing the forever blanket?

Creative Times!

Since I last wrote ( hooow long ago?!) I have finally learnt to crochet!

I think I shall chart what I have made so far on here as a crochet diary for future!
I have pretty much put knitting on the back burner as I just get more enjoyment out of crocheting.
What bugs me about knitting is that if I make a mistake I have no idea how to remedy it, at least with crochet you can unravel at will and start again!
I think the main thing that I alway wanted to learn to crochet for is a tea cosy.  I finally made one last week:-

I got the pattern from here:-

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/article-2219040/Lifestyle-Gran-Designs.html

and it only took a couple of hours.  I used Rico Creatice cotton and a 5 hook.
In hindsight it is too big for our Burleigh teapot, I think I am going to make another smaller one or tighten this one, I'm not sure yet.
I have been looking for a simple pattern for ages so was chuffed to find this, and more importantly it works.  It really keeps the tea lovely and hot ( so they are used for a reason ;-)

Well, We had THE conversation...

Well, Gabe and I had THE conversation yesterday...

No , not the birds and the bees one, we had the 'GOD' conversation.

Gabe and I were baking a Valentines cake for daddy whilst Kitty was asleep ( only 3 days late for Valentines day but hey ho!) and Gabe asked if we can make pancakes soon.

"funny you should say that Gabe, it's Pancake Day next week"
"why" - not an uncommon question in this house!
"erm, because if you believe in God, and you are a Christian, you believe that you eat all the sugar, and naughty things up ready to be good for lent"
"do you and Daddy believe in God?"
"we don't, but you can if you want to babe"
"erm, ok"
looooong pause
"yes, I have decided I will have a religion, I will be odd!!!!"

Excellent Gabe, you truly are embracing this family's religious views!!!

To Sleep Perchance to Dream

I have always loved my bed,perhaps a bit too much. And i've always loved a lie-in.
Since having children i've learnt that the lie-in is long gone,i've had perhaps 3 in 3 years and im ok with that,really,i am,really.
But I do really miss being able to look forward to my evening,as a chance to relax,unwind and a restful nights sleep. Kitty,quite simply is a horrendous sleeper. Last night (due to a combination of a snotty nose and too much sugar before bed ) had me up every hour most of the night. I an exhausted and quite frankly hateful today !

Sometimes she sleeps great, and im such an optimist that I presume this means that she WILL get it one day and will be a brilliant sleeper. I do kinda still believe this in my heart of hearts,i think I may have to cast a spell actually.

Until that day,i'll remain knackered and lurching from mild tiredness one day to suicide watch the next.

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Mind the Gap!

Wow! That has been quite some gap in my blog!

Ive just been pondering why,and think partlybecause  i've been quite low,and partly i've been doing other things like getting better at knitting and doing my workout dvd in an attempt at creating some endorphins and cheering myself up!

I think the longer I left it the harder it became to pick the blog back up. Just reading back through it is such a great record of life,i must carry on -even without any followers !

Well,Kitty is walking now, she has been for about a week and she is really confident with it now.  It is so so lovely seeing her walking round the house, I absolutely love it!
We went for a trip to the shoe shop and £47 pounds later she has some shiny red boots for walking outside,  so the first place we took her, the dirty muddy woods!
Well - it is a family tradition! We got the first photos of Gabe walking up Bagnall Road woods and we wanted the same photos of Kitty.  We had a really lovely time.
Here is a favourite photo! :-

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Little Gems

Gabe has been coming out with some real corkers lately, which I thought were worth preserving for posterity.
He has moved on from asking WHY about everything, and instead asks, 'mum, what would happen if...?
He woke up the other morning and greeted me with, 'what would happen if I had no eyes mummy?'
And in the cable cars at Matlock Bath on Monday, 'mummy, what would happen if the doors opened now and i fell all the way down there?' not really what I want to be imagining whilst dangling in a cable car 1000ft up!

He doesn't appear to be overly bothered by my attempts at chastising him. After I told him not to throw his toys ad that boys who throw toys don't have any toys, he turned it into a nursery rhyme, dancing round the living room singing ' boys who throw toys dont have any toys' to the 'tune' of Jack and Jill went up the hill!

The best one was probably yesterday, Gabe told me that if I am naughty he will take all my knitting to the charity shop! Hmmmn, I wonder where he has heard that?......

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