Living in a world of Yarn

For the past few months (well years really)! Since learning how to crochet (thank you Zoe and Youtube) I have moved right away from scrapbooking and papercrafting. Prefering to spend my evenings curled up in my arm chair with some form of wooliness on my lap. because of this my house and campervan are now filled with beautiful (even if I do say so myself) colourful cushions and blankets. During the summer holidays inbetween camping and beach trips I managed to complete three blankets and five cushions, a couple of pretty scarfs and some flower brooches. I'm over the moon tonight to reveal my latest completed project a Hexagon bedspread for our bed. I used this tutorial for the hexagons and the joining method.  I started this project back in March and knew that it would be one of the projects that I picked up and put down every so often completing other things in between.But this evening I have finally completed it. Here "she" is taking pride of place on our bed looking wonderful!!!!

The lacy border (taken from this shawl pattern)  took 400grams of yarn alone and I used another 10 balls of cream and 8 balls of colour in the body of the blanket. There are 140 motifs and no two of them are the same.

Gracie is very happy this bedspread is finally done because she gets to snuggle with our old one in her basket each night :)

TFL

Px

three days in Glasonbury (in as few words as possible!)

 

TUESDAY
Wake up it's 2.30am
On the road 3.38am

4.30am on the ferry with a hazardous gas bottle!
Mainland for dawn
Bambi #1 near miss
Bambi #2 near miss
Chatting with drunks in the Abby carpark at 7.30am
Standing in the rain waiting for a cafe to open
Heaphy's under new management = no veggie breakfast!!! WTF!!!!
Two slices of eggie bread and syrup instead!
Hit the shops!
Gypsy luck cost!!!!!
Campsite
Showers
Dinner
Spirit freeing rite for Diggi
Read
Bed
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ 
Don't look!!!!! no glasses I can't see anyway!
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

WEDNESDAY
Rain rain rain!!!!!
Eggie bread repeated
back to the shops
missed lunch Oops!
Pub Stop
Sore feets
Campsite
Coffee and cake 
Campsite watching
Dinner

Crystal diary's
Showers
Invaded my bugs!!!
Read
bed
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ



THURSDAY
UP!!!
Bitten to dead
Last minute shopping
Caught by the Gypsy's saved by Sami   "I got mine!"
Chalice Well
Cleansed - Blessed - Charged
Buzzing with the energies
Bye Bye Glasto
Hello Avebury
Heat Wave!
Avebury Circle - NO Thimbles!!!!!!
Hope the Sheeps don't eat my feets!
The energy has changed!    Sami is wiped out - while I'm super charged.
Walking the circle leaving blessed pebbles in the rock nooks.
Jenni is dead :(  - so much for gypsy luck!!!
Husband called - AA called
kettle on
coffee drunk
Jenni is ALIVE!!!! - she runs on Witchcraft and Reiki
AA Cancelled
Husbands informed
On the road
Dinner at the ferry terminal - Pikeys!!!!!
Jenni still working!
Ferry crossing back to our Island

Pinspiration strikes again!!!

My friend posted some beautiful crochet neck wear yesterday morning on pinterest and asked if we could have a go making something like them. I'm on school holidays at the morning so my days are pretty much going to be filled with cuddling cocker spaniels and crocheting so I thought why not! 

Here's what I came up with after a few hours of playing 

I had a nice little bundle of twists, leaves. these were quite easy to make, the twists are just a length of about 30 chain stitches for foundation then the second row is three double stitches in each of the chains. the piece will naturally twist as you hook. The leaves start with a foundation chain (change the length for each one) slip stitch from the end up 10 stitch and then start tot he leaf shape, each side of the leaf is: 1sc, 2ds, 2ts in the next two stitches, 2ds 1sc turn and repeat on the other side of the chain. continue slip stitches to the top of the original chain.

 

and then the main scarf part. I made a chain that I could wrap around my neck twice with enough length left over, to look glam ;) 2nd row is just a case of repeating triple, chain, triple, chain all the way along the chain. this gives you a woolly ladder. then I hooked a chain in purple on a smaller hook (so it was tighter) and threaded this through the ladder.

 I then made a flower added some beads some funky fibres and layered the whole lot together. The flower has a safety pin sewn to the back of it to attach to the other end of the scarf to help it stay in place.

 I'm ever so happy with how this turned out although it's not a patch on the original ones for sale on etsy, they are AMAZING!!!! this one is for my friend, I'm going to make myself one in reds and blacks so I can wear it with my bloodstone outfit.

TFL Px

Weekend holidays in Jenni van-Ladybug

We have just had the first of our weekends away in Jenni. Friday as soon as school broke up I changed out of "school clothes" and into some a little more "festival". We sailed across to the big island on the 4.30 ferry and headed off on our first proper Jenni adventure!

We attended the Village Pump festival in the White Horse Country Park. As soon as we arrived Trav set about putting his flag pole up and hoisting our three flags. While I became the little housemaker and made Jenni into a mini home :) Cooking in her was so much fun I felt like I was playing house in a grown up 's wendy house ;)

 

As this was a bloodstone event we were attending, we were due to dance out on both the Saturday and the Sunday with another Morris Team. Here we are in full kit on the Saturday morning.

 Saturday early evening was spent gathered together listening to the music from the main tent, telling stories and enjoying time spent with our Bloodstone friends. I however enjoyed a bottle of Disaronno a little too much! I paid for this with an amazing hangover the next day and earnt myself the name "The Disaronno Kid"

 Mother (our Bloodstone Squire) having some fun on Jan's mobility scooter on Saturday afternoon.

  Jenni was perfect! I was so pleased to have my own little space to take time out and as it turned out recover from drinking a little too much on the Saturday night. I can't wait until we go away again in two weeks time. 

 TFL

Px

Heartbroken!

Diggory Lumpkin

-0-

RIP

01.08.2003 - 16.07.2012

-0-
 

Rainbow Bridge

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here,
that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge.
There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together.
There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigour;
those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again,
just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by.
The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing;
they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and
looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent;
His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group,
flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet,
you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again.
The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head,
and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet,
so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....

Never again to be separated.

 There are no words for this loss.

Px

Ladybird Campervan and Crochet blankets

I haven't been to blog land for quite a while and the crafty projects that need posting have been mounting up. Sam and I have finished not only the curtains in my camper van but we have also re-covered all the seats and the tables in pretty fabrics.

 With the new mellower colours in Jenni the madly bright blankets and cushions I made last year really don't work. So I set about making new blankets and cushion covers in vanilla, red, blue, navy aqua and pinks. The idea was to echo the Cath Kidston look without the Cath Kidston cost.

My first blanket is heavy in the navy and Red, I like that as I need to bring more navy into the van.  I finished this one (which is made using the same granny square I made my friends blanket with earlier this year) on Thursday just in time for our first camping trip, that in the end didn't happen as the van still isn't back from the garage :( steering wheel issues :(

The second one that is still a WIP is a little more girlie and pink this one is for me to snuggle under, the first I might allow Travis to use from time to time ;)As long as his is good and not covered in campsite mud that is! 

I have also made good progress on four cushion covers making all the front covers and just have the reverse sides to either sew or hook I can't decide how to finish them. I'm planning to have them all completed by the first week in August as Sam and I have a trip away together in the van to Glastonbury :)

Jenni update.

Over the bank holiday weekend in-between all off Bella's puppies packing their bags and moving to their new homes. Sam and I spend a few hours shopping for and making new curtains for my Jenni van. Although Trav had measured the windows I still wasn't quite sure how to work out how many meters of fabric to buy. I settled on four of one pattern and two of the other with my plan to be spots on the small windows and stripes on the main windows. 

We double the material, not only so the prettiness would show inside and out but to help keep the van warm. I had to rope Travis into helping with the curtain hanging as I just couldn't get up under the wooden pelment and screw in the little loops for the curtain wire hooks to go in. 

We managed to make all if the side curtains and I have enough material (just) to make curtains for the two small rear windows. I have decided after seeing the curtains in place that my blankets are just "too colourful" and I need to make new throws and cushions in cream, red, blue and a small amount of pink.

the view inside

 

 and from outside

 I popped back to town this morning and bought what I hope is enough to completely curtain the driving portion of the van. Hopefully I'll have time to make these this coming weekend.

 I want to say, a massive Thank you!!!!! to Sam as I would never have figured out how to measure, cut and sew such lovely curtains without her!!! I learnt so much on our sewing day and I'm pleased to say the curtains I made look just as good as the ones Sam made :)

Love you Sami!!!

The Puppies are five weeks old.

I just wanted to share some photos that we took on Friday evening of Bella's puppies. 

Nanny and her babies

Khaleesi

 

Bo 

Yogi

Little boy no name (still looking for a new home)

Isla Du 

Humphrey

Bentley

TFL

Px