Getting Organized...

This week it is all about getting organized...

And also about turning another year older...

(thought I would sneak that in)...

My crochet classes will start back next week...

With a new venue...

and lots of new ladies starting...

I am very excited about this...and can't wait to see how it all works out...

There are lovely baskets full of yarn- yes acrylic...

but I will be adding some wool and cotton as well..

Plenty of hooks and bits and bobs too..

Above is a gorgeous Granny Chevron Blanket

that my Mum finished this week...

Made from 100% pure wool...

Oh My! it is so lovely...

and my copy of the Japanese crochet book arrived and I have been very busy

trying out the patterns in it...

This time I tried using a new Chunky acrylic that I bought at Big W

by "Sean Sheep" brand...It was a large ball of 200 grams...

It did crochet up very nicely

but I had to change both of these patterns to accommodate the size of the ply...

The head scarf pattern is amazing and I have made several to put in the shop...

and a few for myself...

I did use Magnum "super soft" 8 ply acrylic for them and they were very easy and fast to make...

Thank you all so much for your comments on my last post...

What a great response!!!

I loved reading everyone's thoughts on the subject...

and will now hold my head up high

and say "yes it is acrylic"...

and not be shy about it...

A very big thank you goes out to:

Pearly Queen

Who sent me a lovely parcel last week full of gorgeous cottons...

I can't wait to find a project for them...

and if you are after some yarn..

Pop over to this etsy shop too:

Crochetgal

I have purchased a lot of lovely yarn from this seller and she has

a large amount of good quality yarns and fantastic customer service...

Till next post...

when I am a year older...

Keep up the Granny Goodness...

Yarn Happy...

Yarn Happy...

Oh my... I love a new pile of yarn...
It just brightens my day and makes me want to create...
more granny goodness...

On the subject...

Do you call yarn, yarn...

I have always called it wool...

up until I started to blog and realised that there is a bit of confusion when you just say wool...

maybe it is something that has been just a family thing

or maybe an Australian thing...I don't know...

Whether acrylic, wool, alpaca, bamboo or soy blend...it was all wool to me...

Random thought...

If acrylic was called something else

would it get such a bad rap?

I use a lot of acrylic because it can "hold" a design better...

Don't get me wrong....I love wool...

But some patterns do call for a firmer approach...

The lovely Granny Chevrons Blankets are made using acrylic

and look amazing...

But the minute you say they are acrylic it seems to devalue them...

If they were made from wool...

it would send the price through the roof...

Mainly due to the fact that it takes 3 balls of wool to match the same quantity of acrylic...

That and the price per ball of wool begin dearer 

puts the cost on some "Granny Goodness" 

unrealistic...

What are your thoughts...

Do you prefer to buy something made from a natural product?

Have you not purchased something in wool because the price is to high

even thou you can see that it costs that much to buy the materials and then make the item?

Is wool readily available and inexpensive where you live

or is another yarn like cotton in abundant supply?

Do you like the fact that acrylic is easy care...and you buy on the "wow" factor?

Much to ponder...

Till next post...and random thoughts...

Stay safe...

African flower hexagon...

I have seen these flowers for a very long time...

But never tried them...

After not having my "wool" fix yet...

I needed to do someting with all my little bits of yarn...

Ok...piles of bits of yarn...

and while surfing the google images I kept seeing these 

and thought...why not...

and I can see now why everyone loves them...

They are just gorgeous!!!

and very addictive...



But one can not survive on crochet and bits of yarn alone...

I need cake and lots of it...
to keep up the stamina and concentration...Of course...

Granny Pictures...

Today I worked on some
"Granny Pictures"...

Using small canvas frames and making some visual impact...
Above is the first test one...

Need to source some more wool yet again...
I think if you are going to go to the trouble of wall art
you need to make it 100% woolly good...

I might sit down tonight and sketch some designs thou before I tackle a large piece...

? Does anyone buy there yarn wholesale...
Do you have a online store only or small business from home...
and still mange to buy wholesale...
Love to chat to you about how you go about it...or even if it is possible...

Thrifted winter...

I must say... I do enjoy winter warmer clothes...

But when it reaches a temp

that it is just too cold to go outside...

It get very annoying...

Even more bothersome is the fact that I need pants on under my new thrifty skirt
because the draft is to chilly for my granny knickers to bare..

I think I will be spending a few hours looking at pretty online stores for winter woolly tights
in a nice burgundy...

Thank you everyone for your great advice with my "yarn dilemma"
I am thinking now I might need to just buy some "thick" sock yarn...

I did find a brand that was "trekking" that was a 6ply...
Has anyone used this?
If so I would love to know what you thought...

I would love a linen -nylon so they would stay up...
and a 8 ply or DK...But I think that is asking too much...
Maybe you know of some thou...Let me know if you do...

Till next time...
Stay warm...or cool...
and safe...
With no drafts blowing in the wrong direction...

Yarn help...

I would like to thank everyone who purchased my latest Granny Flats cushion pdf

for the "giveaway" price...

and a huge thank you to all the dear friends

who have been purchasing it at the "normal" price...

Your support is so amazing...

I too have had a little splurge tonight on etsy

and purchased a copy of a Japanese crochet book...from here...

But I am in need of a bit of yarn help...

I adore these socks...

but am not sure what type of yarn is best...

and as I will only have the picture to guide me...

I was hoping that someone might know what would work...

I was thinking cotton..

But as cotton yarn is not easy to find in Australia

maybe my overseas friends have a favorite that they like to use and would suit this project...

 Or maybe you have this book and made the pattern...and know what works best...

My book will take a week or so to arrive

which will give me time to find some yarn...

so all help will be greatly appreciated...

Thanks...

oh I almost forgot..I will re-list more patterns in the morning as it is rather late here..

and know that it is always nice to purchase a pattern and get it sooner than later...

Granny Flats Giveaway...

I will be popping some cheap patterns into my etsy shop later tonight...

20cents each...as etsy tells me I can not list for $0...

You will have to have an etsy account thou...

But the price will say 20cents...so you can click on it and go to checkout etc with a small charge...

This will be my latest pattern...Granny Flats...

for a few very quick dear friends...

If you go to my shop and see that they are all gone...I am so sorry...

But I will only list 5 in total...after that they will be listed at $6 per pattern...

Thank you all...and good luck...

Stepping Up To Green...

Today I thought I would try some green...
after reading THIS...
Cardigan...a resent thrifty find...skirt a few years old, thrifty find...

and newly acquired vintage ladder...
Great for all manner of photo projects...
or just to help me step up...

Looking to find some more

thrifty goodness...

How about you?

Grandma Rosie Rings...

While cold, wet and down right freezing

here at River Cottage...

I tried really hard to not let it get me down...

Keeping myself busier than ever...

Making some very lovable

Grandma Rosie Rings...

Of course stopping at one was not an option...



and with the help of "my shadow" as a hand model (don't tell his mates)...
More where whipped up...



packaged sweetly...
and ready to be placed in the little shop...

This is the first time I have used a "hot glue gun"
and found it fairly easy...
Does anyone find that they have any problems with your "item" staying on?
I haven't seen any movement yet...
But I was wondering...
as I wouldn't like to sell a item that in the near future...
"fell off " as that would be just dodgy......
and we can't have dodgy items
that wouldn't be "Granny Good" at all...

I hope you week is a bit warmer and brighter...and not a bit dodgy at all...

Something Special...

Today would have been my Grandma's Birthday...

 I don't need to say much on how

I am feeling...

(If you read my blog you will know how much she meant to me...)

 But...if you want to read more...

my sweet little sister has sumed it up

on her blog post

HERE...

Thanks Sis...

You have me blushing too...

My Grandma and my Grandfather...

when they were young...

Grandma Rosie Pin...

I have made some

Grandma Rosie Pins

to add to the "little shop"

as it's the June long weekend here in Australia...

The forecast is for rain...

Which is such a shame

I really love the weather to be nice over a 3 day break...

I suppose the bonus for me is that it gives me more time
with the hook and yarn...

You can find the "Rose" pattern
HERE...

If you have a long weekend
I do hope it is sunny were you live...

Grandma's English Cushion... the second...

The last three days I have manged to make

another

Grandma's English cushion...

This time I did the back in Burgundy/red...

and added little crown buttons...



I wanted to enter it in wool divisions Ravelry comp
But so far I can't quiet workout how to upload an image into the comp's page...
Hopefully I can work it out soon...



A am sure there is a few very clever ladies out there who know how it is done...
so please fill me in...

There's wool as a prize...
Yes wool...
I love wool...
Do you...
If you do and have a ravelry account pop over and enter the comp too...

The link is here...Wool Division Comp...

Granny Square and some winter warmth...

This week we are making the

Granny Square

in class...

I thought I would share the pattern with you

as it has the colour changes for each row included...

It is a tad "long winded"

but for beginners I think that is important...

You can click on the image which will send you over to Flickr

where you can then click on all sizes and print one off...If you like...

Today was a thrifting day...
The sought of day when you just hope that something lay in store
waiting patiently for you to "find"...



and there it was...
with many a coat with dusty moth balls...

A perfectly comfy
minty jacket...
"minus the moths"

Fitting me just lovely I left with a smile and some winter warmth...

So upon arriving home a quick tumble and dry
my coat was firmly on my shoulders...

Time for tea...

and a quick flick through Frankie...



I hope you week is much warmer than here...

The bonus is I get the have the fire going all day...
Toasty!!!

It's a Keeper...

Last weeks thrifting 

was just perfect...

I managed to find the most comfy cardigan

in a soft mint colour that matches 

my top that I thrifted last year...

Adding my now "it's a keeper" scarf

And it's a great outfit for a cool winters day...

or afternoon...

Trying to "re-invent" the hair...

after watching THIS tutorial...

How cute is this girls hair...

Into Blue...

I started this scarf by doing a simple flower...

From my Chunky Flower Tutorial...

And just kept adding them...

I think it is turning out to be a very nice pattern...

I am really unsure if I will put this into the shop to sell it

or keep it for myself...

I am very into blue...

It could be a "keeper"...

Chevron Granny Blanket Pattern

Thank you to all the lovelies who have e-mailed me 

and received this pattern as a pdf...

I have now worked out how to upload this to flickr

so everyone can enjoy and print off there own

without the worry of e-mailing me...

Not that e-mailing me is a worry...

But you know what I mean...

So please click on the picture below

and it will send you off to flickr where you can click on all sizes

and have a copy to keep...

P.S...classes were wonderful last night

with many of my ladies finishing there very own Nana Square...

We are starting the Granny Square next week...

and the all worrying changing colours as you go...

I am sure they will all be fine at it thou...

Nana Square Tutorial...

I am teaching my class this week

the Nana Square...

as I think it was a easy one to start beginners on...

After drawing the diagram and writing out the instruction

I thought I would share it all with you...

You will need to click on the images

and it will hopefully send you to flickr where you can

go to all sizes and print off one that you will be able to read...

I have never written and uploaded instructions like this before so I am unsure 

if it will all work...

Cross fingers...

and happy crocheting...

p.s....I almost forgot...
It is written in English crochet terms...
So for American terms...change all dc to sc
and all tr to dc...

I am here...I promise...

So many things have happened recently
but I assure you I am here...

I promise...

Just a short but unexpected hospital stay for

"my shadow"

A case of two lurgy bugs at the same time...

and a heart that just doesn't cope very well with it...

But we are home

and doing much better...

"Oldest and Dearest"

is unexpectedly home for a short break

and this time I have managed to teach him how to crochet...

He is on to his second wristwarmer...
and this is only day 2...
As you may note from the photo he has done nothing else but crochet...
"desperate need of a shave I am thinking"

Of course he wanted to be "unconventional"
and have them different colours...
I wonder where he gets that from...

This week I am starting some classes at the local primary school
so I will be teaching a class of about 9 local ladies
how to hook
like the rest of us..
and hopefully I will have them
loving
crochet as much as I do...

More Nana-er-ing...

The weather has turned cold...

The thick woolly tights are out

and all the kids have the lurgy...

A fine start to the season of Freeze...ing...

I really never mind pulling the warm and woolly clothes out of the wardrobe...

But I did note that not many"updates" have been made to the 

clothes "collection" in some time...

I do hope the thrifty store is stocked up soon...

I am in much need of some

second hand "Laura Ashley","Colorado"

and maybe the odd 

"Hammock and Vine"

well... one can dream!!!

Image for the Hammock and Vine website...

I don't usually "borrow" images but this is my favorite...

Little Nana Square cushion...

This cushion is a order for a lady in town...
I really love these little squares...they make the colours the focus...
and in pure wool it is so soft...

It wasn't too difficult to do these squares...

Just a couple of rows of tr(dc)'s and a outer row of dc(sc)

and hand stitched them together

with a simple whip stitch...

 

 I really shouldn't say this cushion is "little" thou...

It is about 45cm square...

Nice and Big...

I would look amazing on a plain couch

a real statement piece...

I have called this a Nana Square as I think it would be easily confused with

it's Granny Square counterpart...

Thing I Must Remember

To always....

always...

back up my computer...

My "new-secondhand" laptop...3 months old...

Blew the hard drive...

as a result...

Lots of

"Oh dears..."

and other words I care not to repeat...

I of course didn't take the advise given to me

and "back up" my work...

So lots of photo's now lost...

setting that I now can not remember...

Thanks to Kate...I have pdf copies of my last 3 patterns...Whew...

and I have had a lovely day out at the "Little Shop" up the street...

With lots of
Granny Goodness all round...

Flowers everywhere...

Lots of bright colours...

Someone to keep me company... "Rin Tin Tin"

and making everything look picture perfect for the day...

and what a glorious day it was...

I think it made up for the stress of losing my computers

bits and bobs...

Thank you all for begin so patient with me...

At the moment I can only recieve e-mails and can not send on the laptop...

another setting I can't remember...

So it will take me a bit longer to work that out...

and maybe a few other things...

Like buying a "thingy me jig"

to save my files onto...

short interuption

Due to computer problems...

Yes the "new" laptop...

I will be having...I hope... a "short" break...

and will be back...

SOON...

Cross fingers

xxx

Colours to warm...

After a freezing cold night(-2 degrees) and day(15 degrees) here at River Cottage...

I am enjoying working with some

bright yet warm colours...

My favorites...are...

these...

A bit blingy with the photo but

they are...

Mustard Yellow,

Dark Purple,

Green Teal and Tangerine Orange...

What colours are you loving...