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….

 

 

Bright colours to greet the Sun!!!

The sun is out and I’m wanting to wear bright colours and have them all around me!

it was iHanna who inspired me to wear turquoise nail varnish, and then I found all these other gorgeous colours too – yummy! Loving the combination of turquoise, orange and acid green.

The clothes above are floral print trousers from Landsend (last year), a Boden orange cardigan (a few years ago) and a T-shirt from, I can’t remember where. With bright pink shoes they all put a Spriiiiiiinnnnnnnggg in my step 🙂

And these needlepoint daffodil squares are just the colours I want around me at the moment:

I created the pattern and these 16′ squares about 10 years ago, and they have been sitting in a roll waiting for me to do something with them. Crazy! Should they be framed as pictures or used as cushion covers – I know I am bad at making decisions but this is ridiculous!

AND I would like to be able to sell the charts for them – now where have I stored those things …

A Spring clean is needed – and SOON!

Colour

It has been so cold for so long that there is not much colour in my garden, so I thought I’d add some of my own:

I love the shape of this terracotta urn, but it needed a re-paint. After a good clean I painted on a mist layer of watered down emulsion

For the top coat I used some water-based satinwood paint I have left over from painting the bathroom:

Having found more colours left over from decorating I had to do a few more

to brighten up the north facing wall of the garage – still not enough though – there’s more to do …