There will definitely be crochet showing up on this blog as I’ve become just a little obsessed by it. I love the fact that it can be a repetitive, very mindful process when there is a simple stitch or pattern repeat. Other times it can be a feat of crochet hook gymnastics to make complex stitches and it exercises a part of my brain that has been dormant since maths O’ Level because there’s LOTS of counting!
I made some cat baskets last year which Trillian instantly took to.
Trillian’s basket was made with bits and pieces of old yarn I had lying around, working with several strands to make a thick chunky yarn.
Purdy’s was a bit more adventurous – my sister rescued a load of cones of fine machine knitting yarn from a skip a few years ago, so I thought I’d have a go using multiple strands to get the thickness I wanted.
I ended up using 24 strands which was rather challenging! I discovered that doing it like that makes a lovely thick yarn with a fantastic mix of colours, but because they are not twisted together, it is not firm enough to make baskets, it’s just too floppy.
As you can see in the picture, I used it for the base, but reverted back to a chunky mix for the sides and also used a basketweave stitch to make it sturdier.
I’m currently making a rather complex blanket from a free pattern I found online called Mandala Madness.
There are 18 separate blog posts giving the instructions for this blanket and these photos show part 4, so this is going to keep me occupied for some time. I’m learning new stitches along the way and playing a fine game of yarn chicken as I go. (That’s where you think you have enough to finish a round, but as you get closer to the end, you become less and less sure – will it, won’t it? So frustrating when you discover you’re half a dozen stitches short!)
If you love knitting, crochet, spinning or other yarn related stuff, then I’m sure you’ve heard of Ravelry.com – a brilliant website for connecting the yarn obsessed, finding patterns and tons of inspiration. You can find me there and check out more of my projects at ravelry.com/projects/glendaww.
Love your cat baskets.
Enjoying your blog site also.
Thanks Teresa, they were ignored for quite a while, so I nested one inside the other and Purdy loves that, so they’re both hers now!
Your cat baskets are great and I look forward to seeing many more makes on your blog including your mandala blanket
Thanks Jackie, I just wish the cats didn’t get bored so quickly. The cat baskets just get ignored now, sigh!
I love seeing your crochet Glenda – the mandala looks quite adventurous. I’m having a go at something which I thought would be rather less testing, but I can’t get past row 3 – it appears that I can’t count up to 181! Check out Moorland Blanket ‘crochet-a-long’ (I don’t do acronyms!), on Attic 24 blog – a very talented lady called Lucy, who lives in Skipton. Best wishes to your ‘Male Model’! Carol xxx
Thanks Carol, that moorland blanket looks gorgeous and uses the same yarn that I’m using for my mandala madness blanket. I think I have most of the colours she used as well, so when I’m done, I may use that stitch to make a cushion or two to go with my blanket!