Throwback Thursday and lots of grannies

Here are a couple of photos of a pattern I had published two years ago:

 

 

 

The shawl is called Sunset Shawl and I can’t believe two whole years have passed since the magazine came out!

 

 

 

I’ve been spending a lot of time on Instagram recently (you can find me there: elizyart_crochet) and throwback Thursday is something that I’ve really enjoyed so I’ve decided to do it on my blog too!

 

 

 

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This week I haven’t finished any of my WIPs but I did start and complete a little project. I’ve been making granny squares to send to a yarn bomb that is taking place in California in a few weeks’ time.

 

I have had so much fun making granny squares! I’d forgotten how easy they are to make and how soothing the repetitive process is, it’s the perfect project to work on in the evening to relax.

 

 

I made plain granny squares:

 

 

 

Decorative ones:

 

 

 

 

And this final one is my favourite. I love the colours in the yarn.

 

 

Here is my little bundle of crochet ready to be mailed to Santa Barbara:

 

 

 Once the yarn bomb is over the pieces will be used to make blankets for the needy. That's why I chose to make granny squares and flowers, I'm hoping it will be easy to recycle them into a blanket.

 

You can find out more information and participate over at yarnbomber.com

 

 

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Anyway, I had so much fun making these, that I’ve even started a granny project.

 

 

 

 

Yes, that’s right, ANOTHER wip! I had a bit of a disaster on the first granny though:

 

I fixed it with a different skein of yarn and don’t think it shows too much.

 

 

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How is your week going so far? What have you been making? And has anyone ever taken part in a yarn bombing project before?

 

Have a great day!

 

Yarn makes things prettier....

....it really really does! Don't you agree?

 

 

 I like to make lists. I write to do lists for all kinds of things – my crochet, jobs around the house, shopping lists. I forget things otherwise.

I tend to write these lists down on post it notes and stick them to my desk but I saw a little cork pin board in the supermarket and thought it would be neater than my post its.

 

 

 

 

It wasn’t all that pretty looking so I got out my left over cotton yarn stash and starting thinking what I could do to make it more ‘me’.

 

 

 

I wanted to cover up the frame so I started doing foundation double crochet (treble in UK terms). The wonderful thing about doing foundation crochet stitches is that I find  them neater than regular chain stitches then a row of stitches into the chains and another great thing is that you can see straight away how big your piece is going to be.

 

 

 

Have you ever tried foundation crochet stitches? I totally recommend you try if you haven’t!

You can use them in any pattern that starts with a row of continuous single, half double, double, treble etc crochet, just substitute the first row of instructions. For example, if the pattern says Ch 21, sc in 2^nd ch from hook and each ch across, all you need to do is 20 foundation single crochets.

Anyway, back to my pin board!

When I’d done enough foundation double crochets to cover one edge of the frame, I did 4 double crochets in the same stitch to create a corner. I carried on this way until the strip covered the whole frame.

 

 

 

I changed yarn colour and did some reverse single crochet all the way around. I LOVE this stitch! It’s so easy but so intricate looking.

 

 

 

I got out my eco-friendly glue and stuck the crochet to the board. Cuter, but something was still missing.

 

 

 

 

I made some yarn flowers – yarn flowers are guaranteed to make anything look prettier!

 

 

 

Here is my new pin board:

 

Can you see my first to do list ? :)

What is on your to do list today?

 

 

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Have a creative and happy day!

Yarn over...

...it's like a makeover but with yarn :)

 

I bought myself something yesterday. My favourite kind of shop is any that sells yarn (or fabric) and my second favourite shop is Bijou Brigitte. They sell earrings, necklaces, bracelets and all kinds of pretty things.

 

 

 

 

I came back with something that I've been looking to buy for a while, a jewelry holder. It was half price too!

 

It is made of metal and painted white. It looked pretty enough but I though a little bit of yarn could make it even better.

 

So out came my yarn and hooks.

 

 

 

I started to crochet around the frame,

 

And I made some flowers

 

 

And this is the end result:

 

 

What you do think of my yarn over? I think it's going to be a perfect addition to my home :) 

 

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Have a wonderful day everyone, be happy, be creative and love the people around you

 

xx

 

 

 

 

Pretty little things

It's been really hot in Madrid recently. REALLY hot. 40ºC or 103ºF. So hot, even the flowers close up and shy away from the sun and heat:

 

 

 

These flowers are so pretty normally. I keep trying to get a photo of them to show how pretty they are. Half of the flowers are a deep purple and the other half are a mix of yellow and red flowers. I'll share a photo with you all when I can :)

 

 

When it gets this hot, our diet switches to salads and cold dishes:

 

 

 

 

I have been making cakes though...but I've not been baking...

 

 

 

I've been busy making yarn cakes! These are the best kind of cakes that exist :)

 

 

When they are wound you can really appreciate the different colors in a skein of yarn.

 

 

 

 

I think that yarn often looks even prettier when wound like this.

 

 

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Carrying on with yarn news, I had a delivery arrive today:

 

 

 

 

I've been waiting every morning this week in case it arrived. It's like being a kid on Christmas morning again when I wait for a yarn delivery. Do you feel the same when you're waiting for a crafting package to arrive? Some women get like that over shoes and things, but for me it's only with yarn :)

 

 

Aren't these summery tones:

 

 

I've got something special planned for this yarn but I need to finish off some wips first. I'm trying very hard to have a maximum of 5 wips at any one time at the moment.

 

 

 

In this order were 4 skeins of Caron Simply Soft:

 

 

Oh yes! Caron know how to make big balls :)

 

 

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My birthday is in April. I can't believe three months have flown by since I got given this beautiful gift by my husband:

 

 

 

I've tried to get a really sharp photo but I hope this is enough for you to see what it is.

 

It's a crochet hook charm necklace!

 

I love this necklace. I love wearing a hook - it's nearly as much fun as holding one :) It's so nice to have a piece of jewelry that feels unique to me. I've had people ask about it and when I tell them it's a great conversation starter.

 

Do you like to wear jewelry? Do you have any craft related pieces? Do you make your own jewelry?

 

 

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I've joined twitter this week too. You can find me there: @ElizyArtCrochet 

 

I sent my first ever tweet this morning. If you have a twitter account, let me know your name and I'll drop by and say hi :)

 

 

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

 

xx