Friday 31 December 2010

Mega Sale!

Wow - where did December go?!

Hope you all had a great Christmas - we did apart from the usual bugs that seem to be everywhere this winter. Having to travel back a day late from visiting relatives up-country because of the amount of snow was different!

To bring in the New Year I've decided to hold a Mega Sale - a massive 70% off all necklaces, scarves, and cowls in my Etsy shop! Happy bargain hunting!

Wednesday 24 November 2010

Handy!


I recently bought a couple of hand mannequins from ebay to display my fingerless mitts better.

They're great for photographing items for my Etsy shop and of course very useful for the craft fairs I do.

The next one is this Friday 26th November at Sainburys in Truro - please drop by and say hello if you're in the area!

Pictured here is a new fingerless mitt design in a gorgeous aubergine shade, which sold straightaway at the craft fair last weekend. Pity I hadn't had chance to make more - or photograph it once it was finished!

It is knitted in the same shape as my Fabulous Fingerless Mitts but with a moss stitch edging instead of reverse stocking stitch. I used Drops Nepal yarn which is a great wool/alpaca blend - soft and cosy.

I then played around with some Rowan Kidsilk Haze from my stash and knitted up a couple of simple short-row garter stitch rosees which I sewed on the back of each hand.

The roses were finished off with 7 tiny plum glass seed beads sewn in the centre.

You'll have to take my word that made up they are beautiful. There will be more of these in future!

Sunday 21 November 2010

KnitExpo Stash Enhancement

OK you've read about the KnitExpo, so here's what I bought..

 I couldn't resist the fabulous selection of yarns from Juno Fibre Arts, based in Devon.

It was a really difficult decision to choose just one colourway and yarn - but in the end I plumped for this delicious BFL sock yarn in the "Power Up" colourway.

Just gorgeous!
I also couldn't resist a skein of the alpaca/silk aran hand-dyed yarn from Wow!

This is destined to be fingerless mitts for my etsy shop - I'm working on a new cable design at the moment.

I also treated eldest DD to 200g of gorgeous natural cream chunky baby alpaca to do this wonderful flared ribby scarf. DD has learnt to purl and is loving the pattern!

Monday 15 November 2010

KnitExpo Winter 2010

Finally, after living here in glorious Cornwall for almost 4 years, I got to a knitting show!

On Saturday eldest DD and I went to the KnitExpo at Exeter and had a great day. It was small, but perfectly formed. Here are some of the views of the day:

 Hand-dyed yarns of course! Lots of them.

Heaven. :)
 Felted balls, felt, felted items, felt everything from Felt Folk.

I just love the way the felt balls are displayed in the sweetie jars - they look brilliant!
 I absolutely fell in love with the egg cosies from the Wool Sanctuary.

I really can't tell you why. I'm not an egg cosy type of person, and wouldn't actually use one. They just really appealed to me!

Wednesday 10 November 2010

Happy Birthday Dad!

My dearest Dad is 75 years young today - Happy Birthday Dad!

In celebration I've put together some of my favourite men's gifts from Etsy sellers in the UK to make this fab treasury:

Check it out
if you're in need of some inspiration for a gift for the man in your life!

Monday 25 October 2010

Grabbed by the Galaxy


I seem to have craft fair fever. I have booked a couple of craft fairs in November and turned down a couple more - trying not to overdo it leading up to Christmas!

I am quite taken with my latest Galaxy crochet beaded brooch and have been making lots of different colourways of them.

I've worked on a backing card for them which is great for online sales. The next mission is to create the perfect box for the brooches to display and package them at the craft fairs!

Thursday 14 October 2010

Creative supplies

I've introduced a new section to my shop recently - Creative Yarn Packs.

There are lots of crafters out there making beautiful cards, toys, textile art, etc, all using small lengths of various yarns and other materials in their creations.

I happen to have a huge stash collected over several years of yarn-addiction that needs to be tamed in size.

Hence the new section.

I love the colourways that are emerging - for example the ones pictured here - Passionate Purples and Monochrome Mania.

Friday 8 October 2010

In The Pink

29th October is Wear It Pink day to support breast cancer awareness, so what better than a treasury full of pink items from the UK Silly Sale!


Perfect for Christmas shopping - your chance to get an amazing bargain and a unique gift at the same time!

Thursday 7 October 2010

Sale on!


The Uk Silly Sale has started early in my Etsy shop loophole - come and take a look! 

I have marked 50% off everything until the end of this Sunday.

It's a great way to get some beautiful unique bargains as early Christmas shopping. There are lots of UK sellers involved - come and see!

Friday 1 October 2010

UK Silly Sale

Woohoo - my turn for a little piece of fame - and maybe some fortune too?

I was one of the lucky Etsy sellers to be featured in the Etsy UK Newsletter focusing on the UK Silly Sale

The sale is scheduled for 24 hours from 7pm GMT Friday 8th October, but I'm extending mine over the whole weekend with a huge 50% discount on everything!

I have also made a treasury showing some of the items already tagged as part of the sale from lots of UK Etsy sellers. Of course lots more will be included in the next few days.

Take a look and get some early Christmas shopping bargains!

Thursday 30 September 2010

Friday 17 September 2010

New stash

I've had several sales from my Etsy shop recently which have enabled me to buy some more yarn stash - yay!

I bought these lovely items from Scandanavian Knitting Design.

Big Fabel is a thick sock yarn which is also great for gloves, hats, etc. I used this yarn to make the unisex fingerless gloves in my shop.

I'm hoping to make some more of this style in these colours but with a half thumb. 

I'm going to try this technique of using waste yarn to create the thumb gusset.

Eskimo is a new yarn for me. It's squooshy and thick and lovely!

I adore the colours available and it feels next-to-skin soft.

I think these may become cowls.

Wednesday 15 September 2010

Special offer

As we celebrated our wedding anniversary yesterday I decided to share the love by offering a 15% discount on all purchases from my Etsy shop.

I'm feeling happy today so I'm extending the offer to last up to midnight this Sunday 19th September.

Continuing with the recent sunflower theme, my SIL gave us these lovelies as part of our anniversary gift - so cheerful!

Tuesday 14 September 2010

Anniversary


Today is our wedding anniversary - 14 years!

I've made an Etsy treasury to celebrate of course.

Tonight we're having a meal at the Miner's Arms pub at Mithian - the food is apparently very good there.

Have a happy day everyone!

Friday 10 September 2010

Feeling sunny

I seem to be fairly obsessed with sunflowers at the moment, so I decided to put together a treasury of sunflower-themed items from uk etsy sellers to share.

Take a peek - it'll brighten your day!

Saturday 4 September 2010

Supporting local crafters

I've made a Cool Cornish Collection Etsy treasury to help support and promote my fellow crafters around the Truro and Newquay areas of Cornwall.


Take a look - there are some great items there!

Thursday 2 September 2010

Bridal garter commission


I was recently asked by a neighbour to make a bridal garter for a relative of hers who is getting married. I've been meaning to crochet something like this for a while so this was a good kickstart!

I was given a length of plum satin ribbon and the leg size. Luckily I already had a pack of size 9/0 glass seed beads in the perfect matching shade. 

I used the same silk 4ply yarn that I have recently used to make the bridal accessories, and set to work with an idea in my head and my crochet hook in my hand.

About 7 hours later I had the finished bridal garter, incorporating the plum ribbon, some backup elastic, and 200 seed beads, all hand-threaded and crocheted in.

My neighbour is thrilled - I hope the bride is too!

Tuesday 31 August 2010

Blog Feature

One of my unisex cowls has been including in a great feature on the Filigreephotos blog.

It is showcasing many items from various Etsy sellers with the theme "Cozy".

There are sections for all ages from babies to adults, plus gadgets and home cozies too,

Perfect for the time of year soon to arrive!

Wednesday 25 August 2010

Crantock Summer Craft Fair

Just wanted to post a quick note about an event I'll be attending tomorrow: it's the Summer Craft Fair being held in the Village Hall at Crantock near Newquay, Cornwall from 10am to 4pm.

If you're in the area, drop in - it'd be great to see you!

Sunday 22 August 2010

Treasury-itis

Etsy seem to have made it easier to make treasuries recently.

You can now copy and paste item URLs instead of having to search for the listing id. This makes it much quicker and far more addictive!

Here's my latest called Misty Morning.

Such beautiful items inspired by the misty autumn mornings to come...

Friday 20 August 2010

Front Page News!


Woohoo - my Starfish Crochet Necklace was in the treasury by CardsAndCraft that made it to the Front Page of Etsy this morning!


I'm so excited as this is the first time any of my items have been on the Front Page. It certainly helps get them seen!

Monday 16 August 2010

Sunday Showcase

I am very pleased to find that I have been featured in a Sunday Showcase on the fabulous Gifted Designs blog - take a peek!

Shannon has included my Flora Crochet Coaster Duo in a lovely bright selection of items from different Etsy sellers.  Great full summer colours!

Saturday 14 August 2010

Dusting off the sewing machine

Quite literally. I hauled out my sewing machine from under the piles of yarn today and gave it a good clean before embarking on a mini project.

My daughters have both now got to the height where they no longer legally need car booster seats, but for my youngest the seat belt can be a little uncomfortable against her neck sometimes.

I looked around for seat belt pads but wasn't keen on any of the designs, so decided to make my own.

A short while later I have used up some leftover patchwork fabric, quilt wadding, and velcro, and we have the pads installed in the car.

They can be taken off easily using the velcro strip fastener and machine washed when they get grubby.

Very comfy they are too. :)

Friday 13 August 2010

To reskein or not..


I've been dyeing yarn again recently. I love doing this but my dear family endure the strong vinegar smell with varied comments!

Since receiving my fabulous wooden swift for my birthday last year, I have rewound each skein after dyeing as I think it looks better. 

The colours are spread more evenly and I think the pictures give a clearer indication of what a knitted item will look like as the colours are in short repeats.

Plus I do actually enjoy reskeining the yarn - the swift is a joy to use.

You can see my latest two yarns - Hydrangea and Nasturtium - in my etsy shop.

Thursday 12 August 2010

New widget!

Craftcult have brought out a fab new widget called "Pocket Shop" to show off items from your Etsy shop - see below right for my version.

You can choose from various skins to suit the look of your blog or site, and choose either a sliding or fading animation.

Try clicking on the mini tabs and you'll find a ton of info about the shop including feedback from previous buyers.

Most excellent!

Tuesday 10 August 2010

ukhandmade Wedding Gift Guide


The ukhandmade Wedding Gift Guide is out now! 
 
I'm so excited as my luxurious beaded angora/merino handwarmers were selected to be included.

Crammed full of beautiful items available for you to purchase, all handmade by talented uk designers and artists.

Even if you're not planning or going to a wedding, take a look - it's fabulous!

Friday 6 August 2010

Medieval Joust


We are on holiday from work this week so on Wednesday we went to a Medieval Joust!

Pendennis Castle
The event was held at the glorious Pendennis Castle at Falmouth which of course is located to give the most fabulous views over the surrounding sea and land.

Falconry display
There were falconry displays with fascinating talks about how the birds were used in days gone by, for example to catch animals to feed families for free.

Nonimus
Music from the time was provided by the talented Nonimus Minstrels - we were so impressed we bought their CD.

The Jester
A hilarious jester wandered around entertaining the crowds, as well as putting on a few of his own shows throughout the day.

The Joust





And of course there were four knights taking part in three different sessions of horsemanship and skill, culminating in the joust. Incredible!

It was a fabulous day - if you get chance to go I would thoroughly recommend it!

Thursday 15 July 2010

We did it!


Yes, we did the Race For Life 2010 last Sunday and managed to finish it.

It's a mere 5km (3 miles) which is nothing for many fit people out there, but for me - having not done any form of excercise in quite a while - it was quite an achievement.

There was a great atmosphere on the day and the weather was perfect. 

We had great fun doing the warm-up exercises. I've never been part of such a large class before!

It wasn't easy trying to keep up with moves that we could barely see being demonstrated but we had fun anyway. :)

Then we were off to the start line! 

We jogged as much as possible (and walked the uphill bits) for 5km - more than I've ever done before in my life. 

The Truro course is very hilly and everyone was bunched up together in the narrow lanes to start with.

We staggered over the finish line just under 43 minutes later - woohoo! My face was as pink as my t-shirt but we had done it.

I'm so glad my friend Sue talked me into doing this with her. It's truly inspiring (and very emotional) reading the papers on people's backs saying why they're taking part. 

Stunning to think the cancer touches so many people's lives. Great to know we helped to raise money to find ways of helping anyone needing it.
Thank you to everyone who sponsored and supported us.

I'm happy to say that it has inspired my daughters too. Next year we're hoping to walk the Falmouth Race for Life with them, and run the Truro one again to see if we can beat this year's time.

Fingers crossed!

Monday 12 July 2010

Jam-packed


On Saturday was our village's annual horticultural and domestic show. 

It's fantastic - a little piece of history that has been going on for over 50 years virtually unchanged!

It takes a lot of time and effort throughout the year to prepare for the day, and we help out with it as much as possible. 

It's so worthwhile - a really community event.

There are masses of entries in over 300 categories, including fruit and vegetables, flowers, handicrafts, art, cooking, and loads of children's sections.

There is a brass band, coconut shy, bouncy castle, face painting, barbeque, cream teas from the W.I. and the local guides helping out on the sweets and ice cream stands.

Just wonderful!

Oh and my "All the Fun of the Fair" crochet mat won second place in the Crochet section. :)

Thursday 8 July 2010

Fairground win


Yay - thanks to everyone who voted for my fairground crochet mat in the recent UK Etsy Challenge. 

It won!

Now I'm entering it into the local horticultrural and domestic show this Saturday to see how we get on there.

After that I'll be listing this winning item for sale in my Etsy shop. :)

Tuesday 6 July 2010

Wedding Season

I have found myself drawn to wedding designs recently - I don't know whether it's because it's the season for beautiful summer beach weddings or because there's a ball of heavenly ivory silk yarn next to my chair!

The latest item is a crocheted short scarf or head wrap. I crocheted it with a 2.5mm hook in a simple trellis stitch and added some mother of pearl chips to each end. The weight from the pearl accentuates the drape of this gorgeous yarn.

It can be used either as a scarf or wrapped around the hair for a luxurious hairband. The silk feels so wonderful against the skin!

Monday 5 July 2010

Voting time!

The vote is open for the Fairground challenge until late Wednesday 7th July... if you have an Etsy login please visit the thread to check out the entries and cast your vote - thanks!
http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=6565745

Monday 28 June 2010

UK Etsy Challenge - Fairground


I stumbled across the UK Etsy Challenge group on Flickr a while back and decided to join in.

The current challenge is to create a Fairground-theme item, and the closing date is 4th July. The entries are rolling in and and there are some very inventive ideas - take a look!

My entry started life as a doodle...

It changed slightly as I crocheted it into life. I'm pleased with the result - loud and entertaining!

From the centre you can see the helter skelter, balloons, then the structure and seats of the big wheel.


I wanted a spiral for the helter skelter, and found just the "how to" article I needed in a back issue of Interweave Crochet that I used to subscribe to.

I've never entered a challenge before or created anything like this from a doodle before and really enjoyed it.

I'm looking forward to seeing what the next theme is - maybe you'll take part too!

Thursday 24 June 2010

New style hairband


I've been playing around with alternative fastening metods for my crochet hairbands, and have come up with a loop and button fastener that I really like.

It means that your hair doesn't get caught in a tie as you're knotting it. The hairband easily fits most sizes of head from adut to child, as the button can be slotted through any part of the strap after going through the loop.

And of course who doesn't love buttons!

The first completed hairband with this new style fastener is the Tropical Sea version, crocheted from turquoise and jade cottons - perfect for summer!

Sunday 20 June 2010

Summer Fete


Yesterday was our local school summer fete - what a brilliant day!

We had fantastic weather so the many stalls and activities were well-received. The Searchers wild west re-enactment team put on shows during the day which went down very well.

I was helping DH do the barbeque stand - I've had my fill of cutting bread rolls for a while!

I had made 3 crochet flower hairclips during the week - bit of a last-minute project. I sewed button centres and attached them to mini barrette hairclips.

I used my free sample pack of Moo business cards and punched holes in to fasten the clips through - worked a treat! 

I donated these to another stand and happily they all sold.