just some little things keeping me smiling this week...

~ sampling our first ever freshly picked apples

 ~ a hot tip received last week

led us to a clump of plum trees, all ripe and ready for a picking 

tucked away

 in a quiet lane on the outskirts of town.

We may just happen to be passing by this particular spot this time again next year...

~ more fresh local produce, walnuts and homemade carrot cake

 ~ crochet covering rocks (pattern here)

~ some crafting ready to go, just awaiting a quiet moment to get stuck into it.

~ peaceful sleeps in new vintage floral

make me a rainbow

One of my girls told me last week that I was a very clever mum, 
and then she asked me

"Can mums make rainbows?"

Well, of course we can...Us mums can do anything, Right!

 Here is my rainbow pattern.

 I call it a rainbow hug.
  

Firstly chain stitch a row to fit around the base of your tin or glass jar or whatever you choose to hug.

At the end of the row turn back into each chain with a double crochet, join with slip stitch and tie off. 

 Add a new colour, double crochet a row, join with slip stitch and  tie off. 

 Repeat with rainbow colours until you have reached the height of your tin.

Use as desired.

No time to Crochet - If you keep a  bag of mixed yarn in your handbag for those times your stuck waiting, ie; school pick up, doctors/ dentists, airports, kettle to boil etc...hook a quick row here and a quick row there and in no time you will have your very own rainbow.

Anyone else got a special pattern for a rainbow?

a little Crochet hat

A lovely Sunday drive out to a nearby creek was a great time to try out the girls newly crocheted hats. I started this little project a few months back but it was tossed into a corner because I struggled to find the time to complete it.  I'm over not finding the time anymore and I'm back to my old ways of making the time.

 I've started getting out of bed 1/2 an hour earlier to allow myself some quiet time to start the day.  I've allowed myself a little time to crochet or read or just sit when it's nice and quiet and I have no one else to look after but myself.   Add a cup of coffee to that and there's no better start to the day. If my schedule permits I've been enjoying another half hour or so of hooking in the afternoon, just before the older lot jump off the school bus.

When I first moved to this lovely cold climate a few months back I searched the web for some patterns I could crochet for the children, particularly miss Laura. Mostly beanies, scarfs, mittens etc, all easy patterns I could whip up quickly before the snow arrived. Well it didn't happen, with all that was going on I just wasn't in the right space for creative time.  This little hat was always on the top of this list, it was a bit cute and being in a colder climate now, a woolen hat like this would be perfect for spring sunshine.  And it is, with plenty of protection to the face and neck and wonderfully warm and cosy on the head, it is just perfect for these cooler spring days we regularly have here.  

This wonderful Pattern is available here at  Bizzy Crochet blog.
She shares some wonderful free patterns. Quite a talented lady! 

This one is certainly  an easy pattern to follow  Still being new to crochet I am finding that each time I crochet something new the more I understand the stitches, and the patterns really start to make so much more sense after a while.  I think I did a pretty good job,  the hat was suppose to be 1 -3 months but  mine are fitting a three year old and Miss 7 1/2 months.  I did use a larger hook, I do crochet loosely and maybe a few stitches were dropped or doubled up on here or there but the basis of it looks pretty proportioned, don't you think?  I also added a pretty little flower and draw string (made up of a simple chain stitch) to thread  around the bottom row, just before the hat flares out, it makes it nice and snug to the head, and adjustable to head sizes as well. I think we'll be getting a lot of use out of these.

Tangled

Finding a little time to crochet these days is quite rare so when Laura got hold of my wool I let her enjoy her time just as much as I enjoyed mine. Hopefully we'll have a new little crochet hat soon.

My Crocheted Home

There have been a number of crochet projects I have been working on since I took up the hook back in early April this year.  I can be a tad impatient when it comes to reaching the final stages....that together with my keenness to learn I've started and stopped and started and stopped and then finally I stopped starting and I continued one by one until I had finished, all loose ends included.

A mug cosy, this was a special gift for Mrs Moo. 

 

 I've experimented with a few different styles of flowers, one of my next projects will be a crochet flower necklace.

I stitched this gorgeous flower (tutorial available from

 Bunny Mummy) onto a boring old beige cushion. It looks lovely in the lounge room now. Brings in a little feminine touch . . .

 

I was very excited to find this pattern for a tissue box cover over at The Royal Sisters, I'm making one for every room of the house now, some maybe in just one colour.  I really hate looking at boxes of tissues,  I usually hide them in a cupboard, but with lots Winter sniffles at the moment I need to have them out and handy to grab at anytime. 

 My bed blanket is an on going project. This one gets kept in the car now so if I ever get stuck waiting for something or someone, I can just whip it out, and hook whilst I wait.  Time passes so quickly  and I don't get cranky at anything or anyone for wasting my time while I wait! I am finding Crochet so relaxing and therapeutic . . . I wish I had discovered it years ago.

 I'm totally hooked on granny squares....I started to make a cushion with these bright squares but after a while thought they may  look better wrapped draped around my neck . . . if you look closely (please don't look too closely) you will notice I am still just finishing of the red edging on one side, I will be finishing that tonight. 

(Did you also notice Bonnie, the cat, running up the tree!)

 Then there is my Crochet Bunting, I first came across these at one of my favourite crochet blogs Crochet with Raymond. I didn't finish off the same though, it got a little fiddly for me! They look lovely hanging up in my little Annabel's room. I did most of these during the car trip to Gran & Pops this past holiday.

I can't take any credit for the beautiful bedspread, it was one of my first ever Op shop finds, and still one of my favourite. 

 

Fun and Easy to make, Triangle Granny squares joined with chain stitch. I'm still a little bit wonky and loose with my stitches but I'm sure as time goes I will improve. 

 What do you think of the little barbie beanie? 

 It was suppose to be an Easter egg!  

 I've been collecting books from the op shops lately and have come across some amazing fashions and crochet ideas for the home, plus I have found some very interesting crochet blogs out there with a wealth of information, crochet tutorials and endless inspiration.

Check out these beauties...

What a world Crochet has opened up for me!

My Creative Space

I lost count of how many times I said I was going to learn to crochet this year. I would be happy to just learn to do a Granny Square. So I finally did it and now that I've started, well, I just can't STOP!

This is ONE BIG GRANNY SQUARE

 Lucky I have a King Size Bed

 Should fit nicely by the End of Winter!!!

 with a couple of little cushie covers. . .
Go to Kootoyoo for more creative crocheting