CHERRYHEART Archives - Lucias Figtree

Yarn,friends,more yarn,macaroons and a family’s ceilidh…part one

Lucia & Francesca / March 11, 2017November 5, 2020 / Lifestyle, Stories, Travel

Let’s start with a question:

Do I need more yarn? ABSOLUTELY NOT !!!

Do I WANT more yarn? ALWAYS!!!

Saying that let me start telling you about my weekend.

Every year I go to two yarn exhibitions: Yarndale and the Edinburgh Yarn Festival.

The reason why is because I like the spirit behind them. They both are a gathering of mainly independent producers, dyers and designers. And they are so worth going to because of the amazing talent and creativity behind those stalls.

On Friday morning my daughter Valentina and I took an early train from Glasgow to Edinburgh, Valentina had a dissertation meeting at University, and I went to the Corn Exchange where EYF is held.

I met my friend Julia from http://handknittedthings.blogspot.co.uk/ in the queue outside the building amongst many very enthusiastic and chatting ladies! It didn’t rain which was a major plus, and it wasn’t too cold either so the hour and a bit waiting outside flew by in a flurry of yarn chats!

Julia and I we went inside and we met Janehttp://janiecrow.co.uk/presta/ who was one of the exhibitors. and Sandra http://sandra-cherryheart.blogspot.co.uk/ then I just I wondered off admiring all the goodness in the show. Highlights? Far too many to mention but I especially loved Marie Wallin’s tiny stand with her jumpers with the most exquisite colour combinations,

Amanda Perkins crochet blankets http://www.amandascrochetblankets.com/home-page

The knitting Goddess http://www.theknittinggoddess.co.uk/, Eden Cottage Yarns and my friend Zoe, which was exhibiting too and has a lovely shop in Glasgow where I buy all my natural yarns. Zoe has a great selection of small independent producers, plus she dyes her on yarn also. http://www.thequeenofpurls.com/

But let me tell u what made my day…

It wasn’t the yarn; it was those ladies that somehow recognised me and stopped to say hi and to tell me that they read and love my blog, my stories and my 12 blankets in 12-months challenge.

It was so overwhelming and humbling to get tangible recognition that my rumblings online are enjoyed by you out there .!

So a MASSIVE THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!!!

I am not taking the time you are spending reading my blog for granted it is totally appreciated.

So what did I brought back with me? I already posted a couple of photos on Instagram; I bought some lovely hand dyed yarn from the Knitting Goddess, three skeins from Eden Cottage and a VERY expensive cake from this new Hungarian supplier of gradients yarn called Bilum

B .

Amanda’s new blankets book, small pamphlets on crochet shawls that look very promising and a book on knitted toys because I couldn’t resist all those mini dresses and cute animals!

Out of the show, I shared a taxi with a lovely lady from Hampshire which very kindly gave me a lift to Edinburgh centre. I went to Mademoiselle Macaroon! https://mademoisellemacaron.co.uk/

Because I haven’t forgotten about my blanket and because they have THE BEST MACAROONS IN SCOTLAND!!!! Gosh, I wish you could try them! They are delicious, and the small bakery/cafe is so quaint, you can see Edinburgh castle while sitting sipping your coffee and ejoying your macaroons and the staff couldn’t be more helpful.

yeah, as we say in Scotland: ‘PURE MAGIC!!’

and look what we got here…..can you spot the macaroon and the new squares??

More Edinburgh news tomorrow as my weekend is not over yet and I have a family Ceilidh tonight.

love to you all,

Luciaxx

The blogstars weekend…

Lucia & Francesca / February 16, 2017November 5, 2020 / Lifestyle, Stories, Travel

Overdue post…

As usual, I am always the last one writing, all the other bloggers have uploaded their take on the weekend, and Kathryn (http://www.crafternoontreats.com) has also uploaded a podcast which is very good and informative and I would highly recommend it.

http://www.youtube.com/crafternoontreatscrochet

Here are the links to the other Blogstars if you want to listen or read more:

http://emmavarnam.co.uk/stylecraft-blogstars-a-little-bit-star-struck/

http://sandra-cherryheart.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/stylecraft-blogstars-meet-again.html

http://zootyowlcards.blogspot.co.za/2017/02/yarn-yarn-and-more-yarn.html

http://getknottedyarncraft.blogspot.com.au/2017/02/blogstars-meet-up-february-2017.html

http://handknittedthings.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/stylecraft-blogstars-meet-up.html

http://attic24.typepad.com/weblog/2017/02/yarny-happenings.html

http://thetwistedyarn.com/2017/02/05/stylecraft-blogstars-meetup-aka-not-too-shabby-a-weekend/

http://theknittingexploitsofjosiekitten.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/stylecraft-blogstars-blogging-all-over.html

What did I bring back home from the weekend? (besides a big bag full of new yarns and colors to try of course!)

I think I brought back quite a few things that slowly have decanted down after the excitement of the weekend.

Below are some pictures I shall start with some pictures because to me images speak 1000 words and also do not make spelling mistakes!

The pictures are not mine they are a few of Helens http://www.theknittingexploitsofjosiekitten.blogspot.co.uk and Sofie http://www.Stylecraft-yarns.co.uk) uploaded on our chatroom and I’m so glad they were taken because I was far too busy chatting and doing things! Helen and Sophie did capture beautifully what for me was the spirit of the weekend.

So what do you see?

You see colors, a table full of yarn, lots of sample garments, coffee, a beautiful sunny room with brick walls and a high ceiling and some very happy, busy, crafty ladies!

If you can get a feeling for this atmosphere, it is because that is what we all got in common not only us at the weekend but all of you out there that read our blogs and follow our yarn and other stories online. We all love making things.

I didn’t know what to expect for my first meeting, I knew the bloggers, as you do, by reading their stories online, or having briefly met them at shows like Yarndale or the Edinburgh Yarn Festival. I was really looking forward to the weekend, but I also had a certain degree of apprehension being the last to have joined the group. The apprehension went out of the window in 2 seconds! As they couldn’t have made me more welcome, it felt like catching up with some old friends.

So if I could summarize what I liked most of the weekend I would say sitting together chatting about not only crochet related issues, but also the quotidian, lots of little windows opened on ordinary lives, with family, work, pets, hobbies, travel, food, likes and dislikes. You name it.

Then I had a Eureka moment as I found out that the main reason why I like making things, and talking about it, it is because I love the social side of it.

A sort of déjà vu moment where I remembered when I was a little girl under the fig tree with my grandmothers and their friends. It is hard not to see a common theme: friendship. That doesn’t matter where you are, or what language you speak; all that matter is that you take TIME to make something and been creative. It is a bit like being an artist or a poet or a musician, you make things that make you happy and also creating things that make others happy because they understand what you are doing and why you are doing it.

That applies to many of the bloggers and also to the ladies that look after the archive of the knitting and crochet guild which, some of us visited on Friday afternoon. It was a warehouse-like building which sat unassumingly in a back street in Scholes, near Huddersfield, in Yorkshire. I wish I had taken a picture of the door because I had to bend down ( and I m not a giant ..) to get in and there I was in Aladdin’s cave!!!

There I was, amidst rows upon rows of shelves with boxes. Each box with details of the contents. The most amazing collection of EVERY single pattern ever published for both knitting and crochet, and also yarn samples and lots of crochet and knitted items. All of which I wish I could’ve examined and enjoyed for hours and hours.

I have been a member of the knitting and crochet guild for few months, but I had no concept of the amazing work that these ladies, which are all volunteers, do to preserve this extraordinary archive of creativity and also to promote the craft!

For a very small fee you can support them and become a member it makes a huge difference to their work, so please have a look at their page:

http://kcguild.org.uk/

One of the things I liked most is that the work of cataloging the items and the patterns it is also a research of the origin of the items and the story behind them. Who made it, when, where and why. How amazing is that?

This is one of the lovely items we saw a bed cover donated to the Guild and the original pattern that had been used.

Well, that is a snippet of my visit, I m sure I will think of something I forgot and write some more as it comes back to me. Hope you are all having a lovely week,

many thanks,

Lucia xx

so where to start?

Lucia & Francesca / November 28, 2016November 5, 2020 / Lifestyle, Patterns, Stories

After my all singing and dancing introduction, I thought better I start with something easy …
If you follow me on Facebook, you probably have seen my round cushions that I made a few months ago. A lovely lady called Pamela asked me the other day how I did my blue denim one and if I had the pattern for it.
It is very simple to make, and it is 2 flat round circles, joined with some lovely little flowers and leafs as decorations.
The pattern I followed for the circle can be found on several blogs, and books but I like Lucy,s one at @attic 24: http://attic24.typepad.com/weblog/crocheting-a-flat-circle.html there is a photo tutorial too.

another blog you might want to have a look to it , if already you are not familiar with is Sandra @cherryheart http://sandra-cherryheart.blogspot.co.uk/

http://sandra-cherryheart.blogspot.co.uk/ she posted two new cushions just yesterday!
The yarn I used it is STYLECRAFT SPECIAL DK in denim. My circle is 22 rounds wide, and it measures 45cm (18in) in diameter.
I used a 3.5 hook because I wanted a dense fabric, so please do a little swatch with your yarn of choice, so you are happy with the results.

FLOWERS….
There are hundreds of amazing flowers out there to be inspired with! You can source some on the internet on Pinterest, just type crochet flower, on the search engine, or you might have some books in your library.

I love books because I love something tangible to hold, but they can be pricey, so I buy mine mostly second hand from Amazon, charity shops, bargain bookshops, TK Maxx.., etc. so when you go shopping for other goods spare a moment to find a hidden-gem! Another source for free publications it is Danish electronic publishing platform for magazines, catalogues, and newspapers called
@ISSUU
https://issuu.com/
ISSUU has a tool, CLIP, that allows readers to take a snapshot of any part of a publication and share that on social media or through email.
Under’crochet’ you can find lots of magazines from around the world, books and articles. It is especially useful if you, like me, love Japanese crochet books.
One note about Issuu, I read some controversy about infringing copyrights, so if you are unsure about it, please accept my apologies, as, I assume, having over 100 million active readers all over the world, it is a legit site.
Back to Japanese books, I love them as they are made with lots of care, they have lovely pictures and great diagrams, the only downside is the price especially when you add the delivery costs to the UK. So I always have a look on Issuu first, and check if they got a digital version of it, and if I like it I might buy it otherwise I just pick a couple of patterns that might be useful.
If you want to buy Japanese crochet books and are in the UK the best platform it is Etsy. I get mine from:
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/pomadour24
Pomadour24 is a very reliable company so far, I bought books from them few times, they come beautifully packed, via airmail, in about a week. I am waiting for delivery in the next few days …
a note:
I might mention in my blog websites and links where I buy materials or patterns I would like to say that any of those companies does NOT sponsor me, I just provide you with some information that you might find useful. In the eventuality that I get asked to try or test something, I will make that very clear to you all.
Besides If I want to sell something I have a shop here, at the moment it is empty, but I might use to sell blankets or whatsoever in the future.
The blog is a platform for me to share my experience and my unbias view only.

the pattern for the flowers on my cushion is:

FLOWER

1st round: make a magic loop,2ch (to make the first dc),11dc in the ring, pull the ring tightly close n ss on the top of the 2ch. (12dc)

2nd round: change colour,2ch , dc at the base of the first ch,*3ch, skip a dc from the previous round,1dc on the next dc,* repeat **6times, close the round with a ss.( 6dc, six ch3 spaces) do not cut the yarn

3rd round: in the three ch-space work: 1htr-3tr-1htr,1ss on the dc of the previous round, repeat all around; fast off the yarn.

4th round: new yarn, fold the petals of round 3 as we are working on the back of the flower, one dc around the dc of the 2nd round,5 ch; repeat all around do not fasten off the yarn,

5th round: ss on the dc of the previous round, in all the ch5 spaces, work as follow: 1htr,5tr,1htr. ss on the last dc and there you go you got a flower!

LEAF

a little basic leaf:

Ch 8, start on the second ch n work as follow: 1dc,1htr,3tr,1htr,1dc on the last dc work 3 dc together. This makes one side of the leaf.
Now turn, we are working on the foundation chain row as follow: 1dc,1htr,3tr,1htr, 3 dc in the last ch. That makes a little comma that looks quite lovely n very ‘leaf-like’.
As I said, please experiment and see how you like your leaf, there are so many of them to choose from all easy n VERY quick.

for some extra decoration, you can add a little embroidery of chains in the centre of the leaf.

leave a long tail so you can sew your leafs n flowers on your circle!

FILLING YOUR CUSHION
I like to use feathers pads because I like how they ‘sit’.Normally I have no issue with the squares ones, but I tried to buy some round feathers pads on the internet, but they have been of poor quality, I ended up returning them n tried a different source, still not so good either. So be aware of that. Another point is if your cushion measures 18 inches consider to buy a bigger pad. Especially if you have used acrylic yarn (like I did), it stretches quite a bit, and you want your cushion to look nice and plumpy.

HAPPY HOOKING!!!