When you finally get there……..

A few months ago, I actually cannot remember when! I started a gorgeous crochet sunflower blanket designed by Amy Solovay. I had searched the internet to find a sunflower blanket pattern for my daughter. Amy’s pattern was perfect. It was simplistic yet detailed. The 3D effect gave the square an additional element of intrigue. I had many questions of “how did you make the square like that”.

Though many patterns came close, they lacked the design style that Amy’s pattern had. They had too many steps or to complicated to achieve the flower look. The beauty about Amy’s pattern is that you could crochet as many or as little squares that you wanted. You could make a blanket, a pillow, a handbag or even place mats or coasters. The pattern is centered on making one square so that you can adapt it to what ever you want. I will be making some place mats and coasters as well to go along with this housewarming gift for my daughter.

And now finally I am at the stage or joining the squares and watching the blanket take shape! I can’t wait to finish this blanket, its going to be so beautiful. A field of sunflowers set in a beautiful crisp white cotton. I used Four seasons Brighton for this blanket as I found it was the perfect combination of softness and sturdy enough to hold the stitches.

I will put the link to Amy’s pattern below as I have been asked many times for the pattern. Thank you for following along on this journey with me. Catch up with you all next time.

Vicky

Pattern designed by: Amy Solovay available at: http://knittingandcrochet.net

Work in progress Wednesday 12 July 2023

Hope you all are doing well. This will be a short post but I wanted to put up some work in progress. I am up to square 165 in the #365daysofgrannysquareschallenge and also making slow progress in the 3d granny square blanket.

Quietly crocheting behind the scenes…..take a look at my progress so far

Time can sometimes be a friend and sometimes a foe. The last few months have been hectic and time has gotten away from me. It’s been a long time since I have been able to get back to my blog. Though having this time away has allowed me to complete more granny squares and keep working on the sunflower blanket.

Crochet sunflower squares in progress

The 3D Sunflower Crochet Granny Square blanket by Amy Solovay has been fun to make. I researched a lot of patterns and this one was my favorite. The squares are easy to make and the 3d effect looks outstanding in a blanket. I am half way through in crocheting the squares and will hopefully be ready to join them soon.

I have also been working on the #365daysofgrannysquareschallenge by Yarnuptopia. I started the challenge on January 1. I originally commenced the challenge back in 2016 and got to March. I had to let it go as other things came up. I was so happy to pick it up again and so far have made 90 squares. This challenge is amazing. I have learnt so many new stitches and techniques and have learnt to put colours together I normally wouldn’t have thought to. Below are some of the squares I have made so far.

I will be sewing these squares into blankets once I finish the challenge.

Thank you for reading this post. I hope it’s inspired you to crochet.

Catch up with you all soon

Vicky

It’s been a while…..work in progress Wednesday…take a look at my latest projects

It’s been a while since I have been able to write in my blog it’s been a busy year so far and I just haven’t had a chance. This year I decided to finish a challenge I started way back in 2016. It’s the 365 days of granny squares challenge by Yarnuptopia. https://yarnutopia.com/365-days-of-granny-squares/

It’s a fantastic challenge if you are learning how to crochet want to brush up on your crochet skills. Each day a new square is made using patterns from designers around the world. Each pattern is unique in it’s combination of stitches but they also have common themes such as floral patterns or texture squares. The challenge is divided into months with a new square for every day of that month.

I recommenced the challenge starting on the April square as I had finished all of January to March. Most of the patterns are available on Raverly.com or by following the link above.

If I get time each week I will add more information about each square. Here is a gallery of the squares I have made so far this year.

As you can see each square has its own individual flair. Nadia has put together the colour combinations and each square I think suits it’s chosen color quite well.

I hope you can join in with me on this challenge and I look forward to updating you all soon on the latest squares I am making.

Enjoy your day everyone

Vicky

Work in Progress Wednesday……Take a look at my latest projects this week.

Recently I made the decision to stop taking custom orders and business to business orders and turn my crochet business back to what it originally was, a fun hobby. Since I have done that I have been able to finish old projects and work on some new ones.

I am onto block 5 of the Tunisian crochet blanket I am making. There are 16 blocks in total so I will be working on this for a while. The pattern is from the book Tunisian Crochet from absolute beginners to advanced written by Dijana Warrender. The book is available on Amazon. Its a wonderful book which takes you through all the main stitches used in Tunisian Crochet as well as fun projects to make and also, a sample blanket to brush up on your skills. I have yet to attempt any of the projects in the book apart from the blanket, but my plan is to be able to make each one.

Above is block 5. It is a mixture of Tunisian Purl stitch and Tunisian Knit stitch. with the purl stitch you bring the yarn in front of the project and the knit stitch you insert the hook in the space between the stitches. This gives the project a beautiful textured affect.

The second project I am working on is a simple granny square blanket using yarn I have in my yarn stash. It’s a bit more colourful than my usual choices of yarn but I am loving how the colours work together and they definitely brighten up the room. The yarn is an 8ply acrylic and I am using a 4.5mm crochet hook and making mini granny squares and joining them together in a formation of 4 x 4 squares to make a larger square. This is a great project if you have bits of yarn you want to use up or just want to crochet without having to think to much about the stitches. Its simply a series of treble crochet stitches (UK terms). I love how versatile granny squares can be and the colour combinations are endless.

I am slowly getting through these projects. There are many more for me to finish but I will leave them for another time. Thank you as always for reading my posts and happy crocheting to you all.

Vicky

Tools of the Trade….. Take a look at what I use to block my crochet squares

With any type of trade or craft, the tools you use make all the difference in your finished work. With crochet getting that perfect finish is not always easy, but lucky for us there are many gadgets on the market that can help.

I found this amazing blocking square on Amazon. It is cheap and effective and you can move the pegs to suit your size square. Best of all you can layer squares one on top of the other to save space. The pegs hold the squares tight into place and once you remove them they keep their shape. I leave mine on the block for a few days so that they keep their shape. To give them an extra boost. Spritz each square with water so that they dry into shape as well.

There are many more blocking tools on the market. Including large foam blocking squares and pins for blankets and larger items. I have found Amazon to be a treasure trove of many tools and gadgets for crocheting and other crafts. I definitely will be looking there in the future for more items I need.

What is your favourite place to shop for your tools and gadgets? Thank you for taking the time to read my blog post. I will keep you updated on more items I have found on amazon.

Vicky

Throw Back Thursday……..Back to where it all began

Next month will be 10 years since I started my crochet business! Where has the time gone? One minute I was thinking what can I do to earn an income from home and here I am 10 years later doing just that! A lot has changed in that time, but my love of crochet certainly has not!

My love of crochet first began years before when my mum tried to teach me how to crochet. As a teenager I did not grasp the concept and quickly gave it away. When I was looking for a business to do from home, I remembered my mum trying to teach me and I thought well maybe I should give it another go. Our local news agency has an “Art of Crochet” series so I thought why not! Here is my chance.

I was slow to start but as I bought each issue, I was learning more and more and growing more confidant in my abilities. I wasn’t able to to finish the first series blanket as I couldn’t get all of the issues. When series 2 came out I was super excited as this time I thought well I can do it, I can get all of the issues and finish the blanket this time. Well that wasn’t the case, but lucky for me my sister had the series and lent me the missing issues and I was finally able to finish the blanket! So here it is the finished blanket. Not sure if I have shown you guys before as its been awhile since I have been able to blog.

This blanket now proudly sits in my lounge room as a constant reminder of what I can achieve and how far I have come in the last 10 years! I have so many new projects to talk to you guys about this year. Despite the dreariness of Covid, I am determined to make this year my best year yet!

Thank you to all who have joined me on this journey and have supported me throughout this time. I really appreciate each and everyone of you.

Take care and thank you as always for reading my blog. I am hoping to hop on tomorrow and show you my lasted work.

Vicky

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