Blankets, blankets and ... some more blankets

Hello everyone,

I know it's only been like a day since I've published something, but about 2 minutes ago reality hit me... My week off is almost over, so from next week on it's back to teaching and lesson planning and a bit less crafting and blogging... Sigh... So, I decided to post one more message this week and from the title I'm sure you can guess the subject... Right... The wonderfully magical world of blankets...

It might sound strange, but when I started to crochet again (about 2 years ago) it didn't take long for me to put aside the many amigurumi patterns I had obtained in order to take on a more daunting task: crocheting a blanket. At the time a friend of mine was expecting a baby girl and so I started the google hunt for a beautiful girly baby blanket. After a lot of searching, going back and forth and asking dear mummy's opinion for about a zillion times, I decided to go for a cute little kitty cat blanket I found on The Gingerbread Lady's blog (http://gingerschatz.blogspot.com/2010/04/kitties-in-row-afghan.html). When I first saw the pattern I was actually scared that I might not be able to do it. I mean I hadn't been crocheting that long and English isn't my mother tongue, so it was a bit of a challenge for me (lucky I like a good challenge once in a while ;-) )... Of course I decided to change some of the colours to make it more girly (yes, you've guessed it... pink!), and it didn't take long for me to love the result. Just look below to see the end result...

And even my fabulous hippopotamus wanted a picture with my first blanket...

So, as you can see, I used a lot of white and then I alternated between soft baby pink and a very hot pink. And I also finished it with a hot pink border (I thought it made the blanket a lot prettier). Now in the meanwhile I've remade this pattern into a grown-up version: one in pink (which is currently waiting to be wrapped as a birthday gift for a friend who claimed it when she first say it...) and one in purple (which was supposed to be for a friend, but due to some difficult family situations I've grown quite attached to it, so I promised to make her a new one). For a few picture of the purple version (yes, I was able to take more than one), look below... ;-)

And yes, the hippopotamus wanted a picture with this one as well...



And so we come to a different blanket I've made, though compaired to the one above, it's extremely simple. During one glorious day at the boyfriend's I told him that his place was so colourless (lots of greys and browns, but not really any bright and happy colours) so I asked him 'what if I make you a blanket you can throw on the couch?'. He seemed to like the idea, but then came the conditions to the blanket: I was not allowed to do anything fancy (no kitty cats, granny squares, waves or anything), no colours that fit my description of brights (so no pink, purple, turquoise, lime green, yellows and all those other colours that remind me of spring and summer), it had to contain red (his favourite colour, and if you think I got to choose the shade of red, guess again, I had to show him the different reds and he chose the final colour) and he had to pre-approve the pattern before I started... So many conditions... Although they kind of clouded my day, I decided to get started and eventually ended up with the following, "manly" blanket...

As you can see, it's a very simple pattern which I just made up (not that difficult this one: it's all double crochets and always the same rows: 1 red, 1 white, 2 red, 1 white, 3 red, 1 white, 2 red, 1 white, 1 red, 1 white, 2 red, 1 white, 3 red, 1 white,... As you can see, very simple). And believe it or not, he actually loves it... I'm still not too sure about it, but at least there's now a bit of colour in the living room...

Which brings us to my current work in progress... Although I'm starting another purple kitty cat blanket (at home), I've already started work on a blue wavy blanket (at the boyfriend's: I do spend most of my weekends, and therefore free time overthere). The initial idea for this blanket I found at my best friend's house (our beloved Zjizjipke: you can find a picture of her blanket on her blog, so just take a look at my blog list), so I searched the internet and found a pattern for a wavy blanket on attic 24 (http://attic24.typepad.com/weblog/neat-ripple-pattern.html). Trust me, it's far from finished, but I can show you a picture of the progress nonetheless...

When it's actually finished, I'll let you know... I already know what's next on the crochet programme anyway, but that's something for later... So I hope you've enjoyed reading this as much as I've enjoyed writing it... And I hope to see you again soon!!

Big hug!!!
Crazy Crafter

2 days of shopping... I present to you... My loot...

Hello again,

So... As I've already tweeted, the past 2 days have been filled with some shopping... Meaning we went to Ikea (always fun) and a cute little market in Holland known for its cheap fabrics.

Let's start with Ikea... I managed to keep a hold on myself and not overdo it. So I only bought 2 gorgeous pillows (see below, along with some close-ups of the fabric to clarify its gorgeousness) along with a small pillow which will be the perfect stuffing for my flower pillow (the story of the flower pillow with its pictures will follow as well) and some adorable fabric covered in butterflies and cars... And then some kitchen stuff for dear mummy and boxes for the boyfriend, so I was really good ;-)

It's so sad that Ikea doesn't sell this fabric... I suppose in time I'll have to buy a few more pillows, tear them apart and obtain the fabric in that way... I mean it's so pretty...

Which brings us to the market in Holland, more precisely Tilburg... And I must say, for me it was a fabric walhalla filled with gorgeous and often scandalously cheap fabrics... Let's say there's one booth were all fabrics cost as little as € 1 per meter... So now you have an idea of cheap... The following pictures can give you a general idea of what I've bought overthere, so you know I've got lots of projects to come (though I still have to start my sewing-with-a-sewing-machine lessons)...

Now for some close-ups of the prints...



So... That's about it for the shopping spree... Now I just need to finish the projects I'm working on right now, which includes a flower pillow and a purple hexagon purse... I hope to be able to show you the pictures soon... And, you'll notice pretty soon that I never like to work on one thing at a time (just like I never seem to read just one book at a time)... So I'm currently still working on a blue wavy blanket and I've just started work on a hello kitty bag... As for now, I think I've talked enough, and I hope to see you again soon!!!

Love,
Crazy Crafter

Right... Crafting... The beginning... And our beloved Audrey...

Hi again,

So… Let’s continue… And start at the beginning… So, I didn’t start crafting until a few years ago. Before that the only crafting experience I had was situated somewhere during elementary school… Anyway, since it was winter and I’d just bought some colourful wool, I decided to make a scarf, and another one after that… And then another one. Crazy thing is, none of those scarves are currently in my possession since my little sister has a knack for claiming things she likes. Each of the scarves was about a quarter of the size they were to become when along comes the little sister begging me to give them to her when they’re finished… Being a good sister (and fearing the wrath if I don’t give in) I give her not 1, but 3 scarves (I guess a girl can never have enough scarves…), leaving me with none… As to the appearance of the scarves, they’re all 3 quite different. For the first one I decided to play around with stitches and I managed to create a checkerboard effect. The second scarf was my first experience with creating cables, and I must say that they worked out beautifully. So we come to the third one, which was made in multicolour wool. For this scarf I used a stitch my mother taught me: the scarf stitch (in Dutch sjaalsteek) which made the scarf a lot thicker than a normal scarf. And I promise, if I catch one of the scarves separated from my sister and I happen to have a camera with me, pictures shall be taken and posted!!!! During the same time that I was working on the scarves, I was also working on a present for a friend of mine who is absolutely crazy about snails. So I cross stitched a snaily edge for a little guest towel (I’ve asked her for a picture, so I hope I can post it soon). Next thing I know, a friend of mine decides to move, so I have to create a house warming gift. Since she’s a real movie buff and a great lover of pink, I decided to create a poster sized cross stitch pattern of Audrey Hepburn in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”. The picture below was my actual source of inspiration…

I must say it’s still not finished… But for good reason. When I was about a quarter into the ginormous job, she had already moved and so I decided to give her a sneak peak. Turns out she didn’t really like it… Result: I’m quite offended (I’d put hours of work into it) and I decide to put it at the bottom of my craft box. I will however be finishing it later for another friend who said she would love to have it hanging in her living room… So there’s still hope… AND… I have pictures, so here goes… The first 3 pictures depict the design I made (a lot of colouring work on the computer, printing and then taping everything together)…

As you can see, I used thicker lines in order to create 10 stitch boxes. I must say that was one of my more brilliant ideas. It made counting the stitches a whole lot easier. Now the following pictures will show the work the way it looks now. I’ve also included a close-up in which you can see that it really is a cross stitch poster I’m creating…

So there you go… Some pictures of a huge work in progress. When I actually find the time to finish it, I’ll keep you posted. And of course I’ll show you the final result when it’s actually there

So enjoy the rest of your day, and hopefully you’ll drop by again soon…

Love, Crazy Crafter…

Oh my... We have arrived

Well, good morning to you all…

I must say I seem to find this whole blogging experience a bit daunting and frightening, but I suppose that if you never try it, you’ll never know how amazing it can be. The idea of this blog has been creeping in and out of my mind for some time and a few weeks ago I decided to ask my best friend if she might want to share a blog with me. After all, we’re both crazy about crafting (especially crochet, but also knitting and (in my case the beginning of an obsession with) sewing). Imagine my shock and surprise when she told me “Well, don’t tell anyone, but I’ve already got a blog”, though she wouldn’t tell me the name (she’s not afraid of strangers, but family and friends scare the h*** out of her)… Sigh… I am, however, a very curious little kitten and decided to go hunting… And, voila, a little over a week later I found it and … I absolutely loved it. I actually told her the news of my discovery a few days ago, it’s only fair she should know. And then I told her about my blog ambitions (no names yet, of course, just to keep it fair ). Anyway, if you want to take a look, here’s the link to her blog http://zjizjipke.blogspot.com/ AND you can also find her on twitter https://twitter.com/#!/Zjizjipke As a true 21^st century woman, she likes to have followers

Owkay, so that’s that… Now, I’m not going to post any of my creations yet… I still have to put some pictures on the PC and organize them. Hopefully I can complete this tonight, so I can show you some of my work tomorrow… In the meanwhile, you can always follow me on twitter (https://twitter.com/#!/CrochetCrafter) and I’ll try to keep you posted… So for now, enjoy the blog, enjoy crafting and enjoy life…

Bye…..