Teaching Classes

February 17th

Next week sees me teaching two different crochet classes.  Part of the enjoyment is working out what I'll teach, making a model to show and sometimes the half completed almost here's one I made earlier Blue Peter model.


On the Tuesday cake and crochet night, this course will focus on the ladies completing projects they have already begun as well as each week I will teach them how to make a 'small' item.


We will have the current CAL by Lucy over at Attic 24, the gorgeous Moorland blanket, mine is almost complete, just the border to go.  Look at those colours and the way they migrate from one colour scheme to another...

Moorland crochet blanket modelled by Pip

A couple of ladies are still crocheting the Scheepjes CAL from 2016 and are making an excellent blanket learning many new stitches along the way.  Unfortunately, I no longer have my model blanket to show them, but they have all seen it,  it's now been gifted to my sister.

Some of the crochet squares for the Scheepjes Cal of 2016

The small item for this week will be how to make crochet triangles and make a mini bunting, here is my show and tell piece at the blocking stage.

Mini bunting 

On Friday I travel towards the South West to teach crochet to a beginner who is keen to learn how to crochet in the amigurumi style.  I've prepared some cacti for us to make...

A trio of crocheted cacti

And also classic crocheting in the round, some easy to make balloons, these make great cake toppers by the way

Crochet mini balloons

I still have to decide which cake to bake for the Tuesday class any suggestions?

Joining in with Amy hoping you enjoyed my 5 teaching crochet projects and you all have a great week end ♥  

Blogger blogging block

February 1st   

So already month 2 and this is my first post of 2017.  May I wish you all a belated happy healthy and prosperous year ahead.

Why the silence?  Well... I could list a multitude of reasons but that would bore you half to death, so needlessly I won't list my excuses suffice to say I am back, maybe not with a vengeance but I am back.

All has been it's usual hectic time here in the eclectichome, nothing new to report on my state of crafting except to inform you I still suffer badly from beginning way too many projects and failing to complete many of them, anyone else the same? Here is my shameful list of those projects I have begun in 2017 and as yet not completed:

3D knitted and felted chicken:  used the wrong wool and did not felt as it should and now I've lost all desire

Failure 1, but I am still tempted to give it another try

2D knitted and felted chicken: again wrong wool, will I not ever learn

Failure 2, again love the idea of this chicken, so will try again

Attic 24 Moorland CAL: it's an on going current online CAL so I am on track, yay!

At least I am on track with this blanket and
I love the gentle rhythm of it

3 crocheted cati all in various stages of incompleteness, need to source mini terracotta pots so at a standstill

These were such fun to make and are going to be used
on a crochet class I will be teaching, so
must get a move on and complete them

Knitted mittens, on the second one, it's nearly done: must get a wriggle on

The easiest ever mitten pattern, am 3/4 way
through mitt number 2

Small doll crocheted  amigurami: not looking as good as I had hoped so a little 'off' this project

Am totally out of love with this and
may just abandon it

Now that I have publicly shamed myself for too many WIPs and failures, I better hop along and try to rectify the situation, I had said I would not have any resolutions this year, but this post is making me think that I should really sort out this syndrome of mine and finish SOMETHING...ANYTHING...

until next time, stay well and safe... ♥

Lampshade, why not!

July 14th

Pimp my lampshade?

Slowly ever, so slowly over the years the house has had additions of the yarny kind smuggled into
each room of the humble abode.  Why smuggled, well he that I am married to is now a tad exasperated by the quantity and number of such home made goods of the crochet and knitted kind.  At first he was amused and encouraged me with my yarny hobby and smiled at my choice.  Now into our third decade together he smiles not so much at the next produced item, hence I smuggle them in.  Others may tell white lies about dresses and shoes they have bought saying, "This old thing, no, it's been in the wardrobe for ages, you've seen this before."  To my version: "This blanket/pot cover/wash cloth/scarf...(or choose from a vast array of goods that can be crocheted or knitted), no babes, it's been in the house for donkeys, maybe you are only noticing it now as I have moved it from the other room." I say blushing and hoping he doesn't ask where was it in the other room as he cannot quite remember and is trying to 'see' where it previously was...

This brings me swiftly on to an addition that 'appeared' a few months ago and has only recently been 'noticed' with a wry smile and a "Of course you would" look.  I have covered several lampshades in the past in yarn, admittedly always crocheted, umm, now wondering about a knitted version.  anyway onto this latest crocheted lampshade, the inspiration came from the very clever Kate Rowe Kate Rowe as soon as I saw her colourful take on lampshades I knew I had to create my own version.  What better room to make it for than a teenage room!  Quirky and fun. 

The crocheted balls catch the lamp light well

 

Piercing the lampshade with holes for the
blanket stitch was the trickiest part to this make

 

Adds a sense of fun in  a teenage room

 

 

In order to make this I first pierced the lampshade base at regular 1 cm intervals with a bradle and then blanket stitched around the edge. My learning notes from this make would be to ensure that the blanket stitch on the lampshade itself was slightly looser next time, if you look closely you will see that the whole make pulls inwards, so be careful if making your own version.

 

I then scallop edged using a basic slip stitch, sc, dc, htr, tr, htr, dc, sc, slip stich combination to create the wavy edge on the base of the lamp shade.

 

Meanwhile I made lots of little crochet balls, use your preferred method or otherwise Lucy at Attic 24 has a great tutorial Little Balls For the hanging length I simply chained the desired length required and slip stitched into each chain to give it more strength and a cleaner finish. Sewed the lengths onto the ball and onto the scallop edging et voila!

 

 

♥  Lampshade bling  ♥

Meditative mandala madness

April 19th

Ok so I'm late to the party, so shoot me, no please don't take me literally.

Spring colours

I'll stop being silly. This post is all about mandalas.

If like me you are ignorant about Mandalas, then let me share with you what I have gleaned over the past year.

What is a mandala? 
They were first mentioned around the 4th century in Tibet and in Sanskrit the literal translation means circle. But what is a mandala? A mandala has its origins in the spiritual world and Buddhists see it as a journey from suffering to joy.  The circle is to represent a balance of unity and harmony, thus it is a concentric structure.  The detail within the circle helps to absorb ones mind and is an attempt at almost being hypnotic in its complexity and design.  The aim is to slow the mind down and to allow it to be still and calm and to try to focus the analytical mind to take a nap.  A mandala is a tool to help serve us on our spiritual journey of healing within.  Tibetan Monks after 9/11 travelled to NY  and began creating a sand mandala.  It took ten days to produce the mandala, made of many colours of sand to help New Yorkers begin their journey of healing.  Today we crochet mandalas, knit them even and more popular has become the 'mindful' colouring in of mandalas, all with the same goal, to slow us down and give inner peace.

Last year whenever I looked at my blog reading posts or delved into the world that was Facebook and glanced at IG, crocheted mandalas were popping up everywhere.  If memory serves me correctly it was the wonderful Zelna in South Africa that first drew my attention to the crochet craze of 2015.  Next up was Lucy over at the Attic and I promised my self I would whip up a mandala and send it along with the hundreds of others that whizzed their way over to her for the Yarn get together that is Yarndale in Yorkshire, but I failed miserably.

So it was with great irritation that I learnt that the latest photo challenge I am in was to have us all posting a crocheted mandala today.  Not to be left out a second time, the weekend just past saw me beavering away in the corner determined to have a completed mandala by today.  Knowing how many beautiful ones there are out there and how intricate and colourful they are, I realised that time was not on my side and for once was sensible and decided to make a quick 'granny' based mandala in the hope it would be speedy to hook up. So not a traditional intricate mandala able to absorb the mind, I tried for the hypnotic feel.  And for once I was right, it was super speedy to make!  I even finished it a day early, the sun graced me with it's presence so I was able to utilise it as the now intended table cloth for the small patio table and ate my lunch, albeit with a coat on outside.

Want to see?

A close up of the granny stitches that
made up the majority of my mandala

Fits the table perfectly, I toyed with making
it larger but decided against it in the end

Ta-dah!

I have not posted how to make it as I think it relatively straight forward, but if there is interest I'd be happy to add in the instructions, just let me know...

 

♥  It's almost time to eat every meal outside, yeah!  ♥

Time versus crafting

April 6th

It's true I have neglected this blog and my crafting for the past two weeks and I apologise to you my dear reader and to my crafty self.  This just won't do.

Time

An evil of my life at present, there are just not enough hours in the day to do ALL that I have to do, such as the boring job front which helps to being in some small beans to survive on and the desire for crafting and making.  In fact my creative juices are ebbing away with not being constantly fed by making...do you suffer from this?

Solution ?

My daughter is mid revision flow and has the most complex revision timetable made, she and my husband made it together and it seems to work brilliantly, maybe I need to timetable my life a bit more?  A timetable like hers or maybe a lovely new shinny journal, more detailed than my messy but cannot live with out hand written diary, none of this smart phone diary tech stuff for me  may help me in my quest to accomplish more in each 24 hour period.

Enough chat, look what I have managed to squeeze into my day, a daily photo challenge.  I do so love these and again this one is run by the talented Ashley of Lazy Daisy Jones It's not too late to start and each Friday a winner is chosen from the Friday's post on Instagram (IG) to receive lots of goodies. If you do not have IG why not join along with me and post your photos to my Facebook page, you will not be eligible for the competition but it would be wonderful to see your photos...  https://www.facebook.com/eclectichomelife/

What photos to post:

 

 

 

Day 1

 

Day 2

 



 

 

Day 3

 



Day 4

 



Day 5

 



 

 

♥  Tips for time management would be gratefully received  ♥



A month of crochet

27th October

I love Instagram, its all about the visual, the photos, the insta post and response.  There is nothing (so far) that I do not love about it as a social media platform.  This month I have been fortunate enough to be part of an ever growing number of crochet addicts that have joined in with Ashley from the great blog lasydaisyjones, here is her post about the setting up the crochet a photo a day for a month post: A photo a day

So without further ado, grab yourself a coffee as this may take a while here is my month of photos posting all about crochet.  I will add in the extra four days not shown below,  post October 31st.   Got your beverage?  Then let's begin...

This was the post on Instagram that made me excited and want to join in...

Day 1
Say 'hi'

How to introduce oneself?  In the end I opted for a large and small hook and a simple written 'hi'.  What would you have done?  It was interesting from Day 1 to see how each person interpreted the same idea in a different way.  The rest of the month was no exception.

Day 2
Current WIP

I have several works in progress, some have been sitting there for months, umm, actually one for almost two years now...

Day 3
A colour combo

I love this blanket combo, I'm not usually a pink person, but I love these muted colours and somewhere in there is what we call in Norway, gamle rosa, which is old fashioned pink and I do so like that, a chalky pink.

Day 4
A blanket

I had several to choose from but I love reds and this was made at the beginning of the year on my first ever crochet course that I taught, this will be it's first Christmas outing and I am excited to be snuggling down under it soon.

Day 5
Chunky or lace

It had to be chunky for me as I have not yet branched out into the world of lace, but one day.  Making my own t-shirt yarn was fun, this was written as a guest post for the very talented Phil at The Twisted Yarn, T-shirt yarn, guest post

Day 6
Preferred hook

I have far too many crochet hooks, but I do seem to return to this very simple hook made in Norway which used to belong to my grandmother, then mother and now me.  I love it.  All that hooking(?!?!) that has been produced by this little hook...

Day 7
Square or circle?

These past 12 months have seen an enormous number of mandalas being made, but I still love a granny square best.

Day 8
Future project

The littlebeenz, has so many beautiful patterns and I loved making her Sunday shawl, I've bought this Monsoon stole pattern too, so sometime after Christmas this will be my go to make, can't wait.

Day 9
Fave stitch

In UK terms, I love a treble stitch, it's so fast and you can hook up something so quick with it.

Day 10
Cushion

I could not choose between these two as they were made to compliment each other.  I love these as they are only crocheted on one side and the other I used oilcloth, so they can be used outside even on damp furniture or grass and not be ruined.  We use these ALL the time outside.

Day 11
Fringe or border?

I love a good fringe me, but it's borders all the way in crocheted items that I make.

Day 12
Fave book

I do not actually have a favourite crochet book as I dip in and out of so many, but his has perhaps been the most useful for me.  I would not want to be without it.

Day 13
Scarf

As with many who crochet there have been numerous scarves made along the way, this was made a couple of years ago, but I still am in love with the colour combination of this variegated yarn.

Day 14
Fave make

Despite  being made three years ago now, this 5 metre long heart bunting line is still my favourite.  It's so colourful and jolly and is brought out on many happy occasions that just seeing it now brings a smile to my face.

Day 15
Yarn storage

I was lucky enough some years ago to acquire old staff room pigeon holes.  Using chalk paint one sunny day I created my yarn storage, see post here... Yarn storage

Day 16
Where u crochet

There is no set place where I crochet, I crochet, wherever and when ever I can...

Day 17
Fave yarn

At present my favourite yarn is a toss up between cotton yarn and the chunky Rowan alpaca, it's soooo soft.

Day 18
Christmas make

This was hard for me to choose as there are so many, but in the end I opted for my Christmas cork trees, just love their cuteness.

Day 19
Who taught you?

Originally I was taught by mamma as a child, but soon fell out of love for crochet and became more interested in sewing, spinning and weaving.  More latterly after spending a long summer with mamma, she reminded me of crochet and with her help and you tube, I have not looked back.

Day 20
Vintage pattern

I did not have anything for this, but turned to mamma's crochet and this cardigan brings back many memories.  Mamma crocheted this sitting at her mother's hospital bedside...

Day 21
Pastel or brights

I love the feel of pastels but I am always drawn to brights.  

Day 22
Amigurumi
 

This was my commissioned piece for a large UK company to help them in their environmental week.  Meet Eric the Green Champion.

Day 23
A crochet blog

To choose just one?  This was so hard.  In the end I opted for the great blog of Annette, whose Nordic shawl I have made and love to wear.

Day 24
Flowers

Most who crochet will eventually crochet flowers but what to do with them all?  I hit upon the solution of making some into rings, here is a small selection.  See post here... Crochet rings

Day 25
Yarn stash

As well as having a great yarn storage, current WIP's are often stored in bags all over the house in each room, so should I have a spare minute or two, I can just pick up and squirrel away a few minutes or hours...

Day 26
A gift idea

I was supposed to wait until December to reveal any gift ideas, so here is a sneak view of one completed gift.  I find men not only hard to buy for but very hard to make for too.  There are only so many hat, scarves and mittens one can wear!  So a mittened ice scraper it will be this year...

And finally today...

Day 27
Stitch markers

I tend to use whatever is to hand from safety pins, paper clips, odd pieces of yarn in a contrasting colour to that which I am working on, the odd homemade stitch marker and I have a few bought ones too.  Never next to me when I need one though!!


We still have four days left of the month and you can see the themes in the top photo from Lazy Daisy Jones.  I shall not spoil the surprise and add them in now, but will come back to this post, post Oct 31st and add them in.

Hope you have enjoyed my journey of my crochet life through these photographs, it sure was fun putting them together.

  ♥  What's your month been like?  ♥