Sunday Calm

 

meditate

doodle and relax

sunday calm

~

 

Another Day Another Dreamcatcher

This is my second ‘Agnes’. (a free pattern) You can see my first one in Turquoise here.

I made it with Scheepjes Sweet Treat, Snow White and a 2.5mm hook.

It took 2 balls, with just one row to go, so I had to break into a third to do the last row and for sewing onto the 50cm hoop.

I first attach the completed doily onto the hoop with stitchmarkers and then sew each point onto the hoop, threading the yarn through the work to the next point….

like this one: Ruta

also in Scheepjes Sweet Treat, but this time in Tropic 

and a 2mm hook, attached to a 40cm hoop.

Onto the next one.

 

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Crochet Mandala for Outside

Just a little bit obsessed with making mandalas at the moment and I am thinking about hanging this one outside on the wall of my garage to see how it is affected by the weather before making more.

I would really love to paint the outside of my house in bright zany colours, like Katwise, but my neighbours would ……. well you can imagine! So the next best thing might be to cover my house in crocheted mandalas

This one is in Stylecraft Special DK made with a 4.5mm hook and attached to a 70cm coated metal ring which I got from Dannells. I’m on the look out for larger hoops but so far have not found any in the UK. I might have to use some Hoola Hoops.

It is sewn onto the hoop with the same yarn

This pattern and yarn combination would stretch to a 1m hoop I think, if the edges did not cover the frame.

The pattern, Tuuli, is a free pattern by Zoya Matyushenko and I think it is my favourite of her designs. I have made it before in cotton thread, for Little Miss M, and one for myself.

I am sure to make it again – next time in white.

Please let me know if you know where I can get large hoops, maybe wooden, preferably white or a natural wood colour.

Yennefer completed

You can see the beginning of this mandala journey in this post. It took a while but at last I found a 70 cm metal hoop to attach the mandala to.

Using Scheepjes Whirl, Turquoise Turntable, and a 3.5mm hook, I cut the thread after Round 19, 24, 30 and 32 to wind off until the next colour join or two. I think I have used just over half the Whirl on this mandala and I will make another with the yarn that remains.

I didn’t block this one, I attached each point to the hoop with a stitch marker

and then using a needle and a length of the yarn, I sewed each picot point to the hoop, threading the yarn through the edge to get to the next point

It will hang on the wall above my fireplace, but I’m wondering if I should mount it on something first.

Yennefer

Sometimes to urge to start a new project is overwhelming and I have to set all of the WIPs aside and just go for it. 

Zoya Matyushenko’s new pattern Yennefer was irresistable.

The instructions are well written but do not come with a photo tutorial, so I make a copy of the photo on my laptop and then crop it and enlarge so that I can see the details as a guide.

I’m using Scheepjes Whirl Turquoise Turntable – ooooo – I just have to pause to delight in this gradient yarn – it feels gorgeous and looks so inviting – I had to stroke and squidge it for a few days before breaking into it. The photo does not do it justice. Oh the joy of the colour and how it fades from light to dark ………… ………… …….

It is soooooooooo pretty.

I tried a 4mm hook, but it did not hold together, so I am using a 3.5mm hook to make a mandala which I will sew to a metal hoop and hang in the wall. You can see other mandalas/dreamcatchers I have made here , here, here and one for a wizard here.

I am not getting the stitches even but hope, by the end, they will look ok

Zoya is a magician with crochet and creates all sorts of amazing effects. Each round is an adventure and the sense of achievement is huge and so satisfying.

I am working from the pale turquoise on the outside and by the end of Round 14, I thought I would, cut the yarn and wind off some of this pale turquoise, in order to get the full range of the gradient colours into the mandala.

At each join another strand of darker turquoise is added, I wound the yarn past one join and cut it at the next

Round 15 is started with the slightly darker yarn.

Working these Rounds is like reading an exciting book, I’m eager to get to the end of the ‘chapter’ and to get onto the next one, a real page-turner. I want to see how the next bit of the story affects the last bit and see the story unfold, each new stitch, a new character. I can’t put it down.

Sometimes I wish there was a photo to explain the next Round, so for my own future reference, this is the beginning of Round 17.

I am often asked how long I take to make a blanket or a mandala and it is always a difficult question to answer as I pick crochet up in odd moments and never time myself. But I was interested to see how long each of the ‘Petals’ took to make so I set my Stopwatch

At least I have an answer if asked about this one – if only for one part of it.

The work is much softer in Scheepjes Whirl than in a finer crisper cotton, but I’m hoping that once stretched on a hoop the details will be defined enough for a pleasing effect.

Onto the next petal….

 

 

Celebrating Narcissi

From the field that surrounds my daughter’s new home

There is also a cherry tree, so in homage to last week’s vase from Greenway House:

looking good against the colours in the sitting room and adorning the golden locks of the resident flower fairy

Joining Cathy for In a Vase on Monday

and

Cee’s Flower of the Day

Find Green

Find green

Put it in your heart

Wrap it all about you

Roll in it

Live it

Become it

 

Bathe in green

Bask in green

Receive the peace and love of green

 

When you truly have a sense of green

Its hues

Its colours, textures, shades and depths

 

Add layers of golden light without and within

The strong, yellow, glisten

And shining warmth of gold

 

Sprinkle silver stars above your head

Around your feet

And wear a cloak of raindrops

Casting rainbows as you move

And slowly, surely

 

Find your dance again

 

copyright Sandra Dorey

~~~~~

A poem for Spring

Part of a series I wrote over 20 years ago, it came to mind as I was doodling the mandala.

In a Nest on Monday

Hellebore and Hebe in a Lost Garden.

This little hebe is the star of the show in my garden at the moment, I just love it’s pink tips.

The hellebore sits in one of last year’s blackbird’s nest found in the loganberry which is trained against a wooden fence.

The crochet mandala is a pattern by Helen Shrimpton, called Lost Garden and inspired by the Lost Gardens of Helligan. It will be a blanket.

I had a play with the photo to create a more vintage look

Which do you prefer?

Do you think either would make a good greetings card?

Pop along over to Cathy’s Garden blog and see what gardeners all over the world are putting in a Vase this Monday.

Edit:

I’m adding a close up for Cee’s Flower of the Day

Crochet Mandala

Ever since making a dreamcatcher for Little Miss M, Another Birthday, Another Dreamcatcher, I have wanted a similar one for myself.

The design is Tuuli by Zoya Matyushenko.

I made this with Scheepjes Sugar Rush and Rico Essentials 2ply cotton yarn and a 2.5mm hook. Attaching it to a 50cm coated wire hoop from Glitterwitch.

If you make this design, don’t make the same mistake as me and make far too many loops and points on the final rounds – oops – when will I learn to constantly check the stitch count!

Here it is photographed against a turquoise background

Now to decide whether to hang it on the wall or dangling from the ceiling.

Not in a Vase on Monday

Celebrating Cathy’s 5 year anniversary

Hastily gathered on a walk this morning and quickly arranged. Couldn’t miss out on this one!

Does anyone know what this is – a tree with Ash-like leaves and white berries – upright structure, about 15 feet tall. Gorgeous!

Congratulations Cathy!

 

Another Birthday, Another Dreamcatcher

Looking for a slightly cheaper cotton yarn than Scheepjes Sweet Treat, I am trying this Rico Essentials 2ply cotton yarn which comes in 50gm balls rather than 25gm.

The colours above are from the Orange going clockwise: Orange, Fuchsia, Emerald, Orchid, Purple, Turquoise, with Yellow in the middle.

There are fewer colours to choose from in this range and the yarn seems ever so slightly thicker than Sweet Treat, but other than that I am pleased with the quality of the Rico and see little difference so far.

Little Miss M also has a birthday this month and after seeing her reaction to the Dreamcatcher I made for her big sister, I thought I had better put other projects to one side and see if I could make another dreamcatcher in time for her 6th birthday.

Her favourite colour is orange, with pink coming a close second – one of my favourite colour combinations.

You might remember the Mandala Madness bedspread I made for Little Miss M

I want to make a dreamcathcer to go with it, so I started with the gorgeously vibrant Orange

to make Tuuli,  another free pattern from the brilliant Estonian designer Zoya Matyushenko. Oh how I love her patterns, each round is a gem.

After the pink I wanted to add a turquoise, but which one?

I went for the Scheepjes: Tropic

You don’t see much of it at the front, but if the dreamcatcher dangles from the ceiling, it will show more at the back

It seems perfectly ok to mix the Rico and the Scheepjes yarn together.

I’m using a 2mm hook.

If you are tempted to have a go, you can find Zoya’s free patterns in the Files on her Facebook Group Page.

Now I’m off for a yarny natter with Cathy and her Crew over on Nanacathydotcom, always a treat on a Friday.

Edit: Here is the finished Mandala Dreamcatcher.

 

A Dreamcatcher for Miss E

A certain special person has an 11th birthday this week and I made her this dreamcatcher

Using one and a half balls of  Scheepjes Sweet Treat, Chrystaline and a 2mm hook.

I’m waiting to see if Miss E wants it hanging up on the wall or twirling free like a mobile before I add any dingle-dangles, and something to hang it up with.

It is a free pattern by Zoya Matyushenko from Estonia, if you join her Facebook Group.

It is not as complicated as it looks, and Zoya’s instructions are very clear and easy to follow, but I did find Round 25 a bit of a struggle which was also the round when the first ball of yarn ran out. Thank goodness for Facebook Groups where everyone is so helpful with handy hints and advice on how to get through the tricky bits.

 

There is only one photo for this pattern (her paid for patterns have a photo for each round), but I had the photo enlarged next to the pattern on screen and that worked well. ( I have obscurred some of the instructions)

 

Zoya’s patterns are a delight, each round creates beauty

Stopping here would make a sweet little coaster or mat.

(or in yellow a little Sun to applique onto a fabric collage)

I must discover how to join foundation rings in a neater way – any tips?

It was blocked to pull out all the picot points – I love my new blocking pins –

before attaching it to the 45cm wire ring with stitch markers

I try to use small independent suppliers when I can and found Glitterwitch, based in Kent, UK. A very efficient service and nice friendly communication with Jan the owner.

After attaching the mandala to the ring with the stitch markers I sewed each point on individually with the same thread, going over the ring 5 times, and sewing through the picot, working from the back.

Here it sits on a nail in my hall.

Of course it is also Teddy’s birthday and since she is part of the family, she got a couple of new dresses, with a bag to keep them in.

The little Tote Bag comes from my Society 6 Shop

It is one of my paintings photographed and printed on fabric.

Can you guess what Miss E’s favourite colour is. 😉

I’m in the process of writing a pattern for the dress, but in the current heatwave, my brain is not co-operating very well.

There seems to be a heatwave in most of the Northern Hemisphere this Summer – how are you all doing? I’m loving the early mornings and glorious evenings.

Happy Friday!

Mandala Monday

Happy Holiday Monday!

Joining Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for her wonderfully heartwarming ‘In a Vase on Monday’. Pop over and visit her post and in the comments you can click on links to visit vases from gardens all over the world – and bathe in a flurry of flower petals.

I’m playing with primroses, hebe leaves and hyacinth pips to create a couple of mandalas

I’m caught up in a meditation of mandalas at the moment

This is a paid for pattern:  Illusion Mandala designed by Tatsiana of Lilla BjornCrochet.

It made my brain ache the first time I made it and it took me a week to make – but it is a fantastic pattern with very clear instructions and a photo tutorial.

So I started another

and another

All made with Stylecraft Special DK and a 4.5mm hook

I do hope you are having a bright and happy weekend wherever you are

Also joining Cee’s Flower of the Day.

 

 

Primroses in a Vase on Monday

and in a crochet mandala celebrating our clocks Springing forward here in the UK.

Scheepjes Sweet Treat Cotton

Pattern: Mandala Madness by Helen Shrimpton with a plain centre

One of my granddaughters was born on Primrose Day so I will be using the one of these photos to decorate her birthday card.

 

Joining Cathy and her happy band of gardeners for In a Vase on Monday.

Candy Swirl Giveaway

Have you tried any of the yarn ‘cakes’ that seem very popular at the moment?

I had to have a go and started with a Stylecraft Special Candy Swirl, colour: Fruit Salad

I especially like the ones I’ve seen where the colours gradually blend into each other, so I was a little disappointed that this one did not do that…..

…… but I was absolutely amazed that it seemed to have been created perfectly for Zoya Matyushenko’s design ‘Sol’, with the colour changes occurring on or near each round change. I did not cut the yarn at all, this is exactly as it came out, with a little yarn to spare.

The yarn is 100% acrylic DK worked with a 4mm hook.

I loved making it but now that it is finished and blocked, I don’t really have a use for it.

It measures 17″ or 43cm across

It could be a large table mat, or attached to fabric to make an 18″ cushion cover – do you have any other ideas?

Would anyone like it?

I’m offering it to you lovely lot first – after a week I’ll put it in my Etsy shop at a nominal price.

The ‘cake’ cost £6.99 but I’m happy for it to go to a good home for free. I would love it to be used in some way.

You can go to my ‘Contact Me’ page and message me if you would like it.

I’m not expecting a rush, but if there is more than one person who would like it, I’ll put names in a hat and draw one out next Friday.

~

Over at Nanacathy’s place there’s much to have a good old yarny natter about

WIP Wednesday

Progress so far.

I’m building the mandala back up again.

This free pattern is by Helen Shrimpton  (I have made a few alterations.)

 check out her website for this and so many other amazing patterns.

Below is what the mandala looked like when I decided to unpick the edge. I didn’t feel happy with the solid row of folded trebles followed by the semi-circles of dark turquoise, it seemed too heavy an edge. If I was going to use it as a tablecloth as originally intended, this edge would have been fine as not all of it would have been seen at once.

But now I’m thinking I would like to attach it to the painted canvas and hang it on the wall, so a softer edge will please me more. Crochet as art is something I’m getting a teeny bit excited about.

~

I unpicked about a week’s work – thank you to everyone who helped me make the decision. Once the decision was made it felt good to quickly undo it.

Experiment time: The Lime Juice (pale yellowy-green) still seemed too solid a line

so I broke it up with some of the pale turquoise.

I’m much happier with it now and will add a row of white next and then there will be more decisions to be made about the final few rows.

The end is is sight!

Made with Scheepjes Bonbon cotton thread and a 2mm hook.

Crochet Mandala

I’m on Part 17 of Mandala Madness by Helen Shrimpton.

The end is in sight.

I started this project back at the beginning of August and it has gradually taken over my every waking hour – very little else gets done. I hate to have to leave it, I wake early in the morning to work on it and I’ve enjoyed seeing it grow and develop. It is the first project I have done for myself for ages and I love it.

Huge gratitude goes to Helen for the amazing pattern and to Esther of It’s all in a Nutshell for her wonderful video tutorials.

I have made a few alterations along the way:

1. Spiro Star at the centre (tutorial here)
2. Baby pineapples in Part 10, instead of bobbles in diamonds
3. Plain single crochet instead of extended single crochet in Part 12.
4. Missing out the back posts in Round 86 to create a slightly more broderie anglaise effect.
5. And I plan to do a lacy edging, yet to be decided – any ideas or suggestions would be very welcome.

But other than that it is Helen’s pattern.

It is made with Scheepjes Bonbon cotton yarn and a 2mm hook.

The finished piece will measure about 1m across when finished.

I finished the 11th ball of the Chrystaline (main colour) just before the end of Round 102. So far I’m still on the first balls of Lime Juice, Candlelight, Snow White and Tropic.

If you would like to see some other yarny beauties and have a good old natter, pop across to Nanacathy.

Crochet Mandala

Progress so far

I am loving seeing how this one develops, although , to be honest I am finding doing so much of it in one colour a challenge. It is harder to follow the pattern at times and my colour hungry eyes want to add more variety.

I am using Scheepjes Bonbon and a 2mm hook.

The main colour is Chrystaline, with touches of Lime Juice, Candle Light and Snow White.

In this photo I have just come to the end of the 5th ball of Chrystaline. Although the dye lot is supposed to be the same, the centre ball is lighter, I like it that way though. I’m thinking of using a darker turquoise later in the pattern.

What a relief to get to the rows where I wanted to put some pineapples in – well they are meant to represent pineapples. They are a bit titchy-tiny, but they are pineapples to me!

You might remember I have a passion for Pineapples .

I’ll sneak them in where I can!

The ‘fruit’ is in Candle Light, the softest of pale yellows and the ‘leaves’ are in Lime Juice, which is slightly greener than in the photo.

The pattern I’m following is Helen Shrimpton’s Mandala Madness

with an alternative Spiro Star centre.

Over at Nanacathydotcom, Cathy holds a Knit and Natter on Fridays, so put the kettle on and pop over there for a good ol’ chinwag about all things yarny – she’s knitting gloves with fingers! The patience!

Orderly

touch, smell, remember

how did life get so busy

miss beachcombing days

 

All these shells and pieces of coral were collected in Abu Dhabi in January 2014.

Two weeks of warm sunshine, sitting on the beach, wandering slowly along the shoreline, knitting, reading and arranging shells ……. ah! ………… sigh …….

You might recognize some pieces that have been used in my shell pictures.

My entry for our One-A-Week Photo Challenge, this week’s prompt: ORDERLY

combining with

Ronovan’s weekly Haiku Challenge: TOUCH and MISS

I could happily spend days arranging collections of objects in an orderly fashion – how about you?

Monday Mandala

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Joining Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for ‘In a Vase on Monday’

with Purple Loosetrife, Marigold, Gardeners Gaiters, Pelargonium, Erigeron

and

Cee for Flower of the Day

Crochet Spiro Star as a centre for Mandala Madness in  Scheepjes BonBon cotton, using a 2mm hook.