Unicorn blanket

I've always wanted to make a graph crochet blanket but didn't have a subject in mind from which to make one. Back in August I thought about making a unicorn blanket for Poppy but wasn't sure if such a thing existed. Um, hello... of course it does!! I found this graph pattern on Pinterest.

SO, four months later I finished it. I have to say that it was one of my biggest and most testing projects. I only finished it on December 23rd! My wrists were sore and I think I was suffering from unicorn fever but it was done.

It is huge!! Pretty much double bed size. It is 900 small granny squares. I used the join-as-you-go method (thankfully) and used shades of Stylecraft Special DK and a 4mm hook.

I am not sure I'd undertake a graph blanket of this size again but I am thinking about making smaller ones that will be for sale in my Etsy shop.Even though I was a little bit fed up of it by the end seeing Poppy's face when she opened it on Christmas morning makes it all worthwhile.

Advent Calendar

A bit belated but I wanted to share the advent calendar that I made for my daughter this year. 

It's 23 crocheted mittens and a mini stocking for the 24th December.

I took inspiration from a pattern in Simply  Crochet (Issue 11) - photo above. 

My plan was to crochet one a day during November so I'd be finished in plenty of time. The reality was on the 27th of November I still had 20 to make! ! Oops! 

Each one then needed to be numbered which I did with white thread (red for the White mitts). It was soooo stressful trying to get it finished for the 1st but I finished late on the 30th. Phew! 

Poppy was so excited to wake up on the first of December to see it. Each day has a little chocolate treat in. On the 24th she'll wake up to find a note from Santa's elves wishing her a merry Christmas and a Christmas Eve box under the tree with new pjs, dvd and some popcorn in. That way we can have a nice relaxing Christmas Eve watching a film before tucking up in bed and waiting to see what the big man brings! 

 

Crochet Mood Blanket 2014 Update.

It has been far too long since I updated on the progress of my mood blanket. Here it is looking glorious, taken last weekend 

At this point I was 24 days (squares) behind but I spent a lot of time on it and now I'm only 5 behind. Not too shabby considering how busy life has been with the run up to christmas, completing customer orders and starting a new job. 

I'm on row 19 now. The last row. Can't believe a) I've stuck with it all year b) it's nearly finished and c) how lovely it looks!

Time to think about whether I carry on this project for next year. 

Cross Stitch Project Completed

After doing a few small cross stitch sets I decided I'd like to have a go at making something larger. I wasn't sure what I wanted but I knew that it had to be something that I would want to hang when it was finished.

I finally settled on a kit called 'Victorian Charm' that was of a large gothic/victorian style house at night-time. Lots of  fun details and because it was on a dark aida the finished result would look quite striking.

I started it at the beginning of July and I finished it last week. Three months from beginning to end. It is by far the most detailed cross stitch I have ever done! There were times when I felt like I wasn't making any progress, times when I felt like I hated it and times when I felt like I could only see the mistakes I had made. I have even ended up with a callous on my 'sewing finger' - lovely! Despite this I did really enjoy making it and I think the end result is worth all my time and effort. I can't wait to hang it!

 

It measures about 22 x 54cm so I think it will make a good piece to hang in my hallway. 

The kit was great, good quality pattern and threads. Plenty of each colour included (I have quite a bit left over!) The aida was a good quality too. 

I've already started my next cross stitch project - a christmas sampler. It only has four colours! So different from this piece which probably had about 25/30 colours and different thread combinations. I predict that the Christmas one will be a little bit more relaxing.

 

Customer Reviews.

There is nothing more pleasurable than receiving positive feedback on an item you have made. Everything I make is made with love. I know it's a cliche but a little part of myself goes into everything that I make and knowing that someone else has that item in their home is a lovely feeling.

On that note I'd like to direct you to Mum First, Doctor Second a blog by Lucinda. She recently purchased one of my bears and you can read her review here.

Not only that she shares some of her other recent purchases from Etsy and why shopping on Etsy is a pleasurable experience. Something I wholeheartedly agree with.

If you are interested in owning your own bear you can find them in my Etsy shop, Merry Peridot .

Drawstring Crochet Bag

This is a quick project I hooked up yesterday. Poppy needed a bag for her football kit so I had a quick search and came across this free pattern from Lion Brand.

The pattern uses chunky wool. I didn't have any to hand in a suitable colour or quantity so I used three strands of DK. I used two in Stylecraft Special DK shade Grape and  one of Stylecraft Merry Go Round. I used my 10mm hook. I would say that because I deviated from the pattern by bag was not quite as big as the one pictured in the pattern but it is the perfect size for a football kit including training shoes. I also made the straps slightly shorter because it is for use b a six year old.

Here is the finished bag:

And this is a better picture of it in daylight and worn by it's owner who is very pleased with it and she received several compliments from her school friends.

I would say that overall this bag took me about four hours to complete. So a quick and easy project with a great result!

Christmas & Unicorns

Any mother of a small girl has to deal with the incessant unicorn love right? Well, I do! Poppy is six and the love for unicorns is very strong in this household. I recently had to break it to her that unicorns aren't REAL! She was a *bit* upset to say the least!

That is why I have started to make one of her Christmas presents already. A unicorn blanket! It is huge already and I'm not even half way finished! I wanted to start it early in case I get distracted by other projects (I have quite a few pieces that are in the middle of being worked on!)

It's not subtle is it?

I've been wanting to do a crochet blanket using a graph for ages and this seemed like the perfect opportunity.

I found the graph here (bless you Pinterest and Ravelry). I'll post another picture when it is completed.