I AM BACK !!!!!!
I am BACK!!!
I know it has been ages…
I have been so busy trying to finish several projects which I had committed to it and I was so frustrated because I couldn’t share any of the work I was doing… but now my last project is live I am BACK !!!!!!
It has been an amazing few months!
I have been working flat out on several things.. I should also say I did take on board a bit too much and at times I was slightly overwhelmed by the all things but now that all the blankets are available it makes it all worthwhile.
The final chapter was to deliver my last blanket to CROCHET NOW’s HQ last month! very exciting and a bit scary too… The RISE &SHINE cal has been a real labour of love! to create something to keep an audience interested and more so, happy to continue on a project that is going to run over 12 months it is NOT an easy task!!
I really hope you will like it, and with trepidation, I am waiting for the reactions online as it went live TODAY !!!!!!!!!
So I am back writing again… I missed writing my blog, but I know you all have very busy lives and I didn’t want to fill my blog with idle chit-chat and not been able to tell you what I was doing. so where to start…
Let’s go in reverse order and start with the latest project…
here are some pictures, also you will find pieces of information on the CAL on Crochet Now website… I have a few more pictures but I will post them as the CAL progresses.
The blanket is a CAL and will run over 12 months.
Part 1 can be found in Issue 27 of Crochet Now which will be in shops on Thursday 12th April or available to buy online at www.moremags.com/crocheting
I have used STYLECRAFT SPECIAL DK, (mainly using 2 strands held together) the colours are:
Stylecraft Special DK – 295m per 100g ball; 100% acrylic
3 balls in Mustard 1823
2 balls each in Fuchsia Purple 1827, magenta 1084, Shrimp 1132, Grass Green 1821, Sage 1725, Bright Pink 1435, Emperor 1425
1 ball each in Plum 1061, Fondant 1241, Pistachio 1822, Empire 1829, Petrol 1708, Lipstick 1246
(Important Note: Based on the designer’s tension, 98g of Fondant 1241 and 96g of Empire 1829 were used in this blanket. If you are unsure of how loose your tension is, we recommend purchasing additional balls of these shades.)
Stylecraft Special Aran – 196m per 100g ball; 100% acrylic
1 ball in Lipstick 1246
What I can say, is that it is really great fun, it is a project for everyone and I hope you will love it.
It is all about texture, interesting techniques, and more so COLOUR!!!
I don’t know where you are based around the world, but for us in the UK has been one VERY LONG WINTER!! we had snow in Scotland up to last weekend.. really I’m still thinking spring will never come this year!! so the brightness of the colours of the Rise & Shine kept me entertained during the winter months. To be able to create something it can be really tiring and sometimes quite frustrating too…especially when things do not go to plan, but I loved every moment of it.
But thats not all…
two more blankets I designed for Stylecraft went live a few weeks ago… both bursting with colours, one is called HYPNO and the other BOHO…
you can find them as a Pattern here:
at the same time, I made the Valentina Shawl…for Poppy’s ,
and I wrote the pattern with the help of the ladies at Poppy’s for the Walrus blanket too..they are both available on my shop at Poppy’ s https://www.poppys-holmfirth.co.uk/lucia-s-shop/lucia-s-shop and soon should also be on my Ravelry’s store.
I will write all about my Poppy’s adventures as it deserves a proper special blog entry! everyone made me so welcome! and it has been amazing to be able to collaborate with others! but I will do it in a separate entry, this one is just for touching base, dust off the cobwebs out of my blog and just let you know I am back again.
So you have: a CAL, 2 BLANKETS, A SHAWL and the WALRUS BLANKET too…
what am I doing now? …
I am helping to finish my daughter Francesca’s granny square blanket… she made 180 squares and she panicked a little when it came to joining them so I said I was going to help… ( don’t ask me why…)
I also had a dip into amigurumi…
It all started because I needed a rest from Blankets and I wanted a little project.. if you follow me on facebook you might have guessed I got a bit obsessed with it! no idea why the amigurumis are so addictive!
it might be the fact that you work on a tridimensional plane and that is a bit of a novelty to me… so I started with a Crafter Granny… then I made a bear, then I made another bear..( which I still have to complete)..then I tried a bunny but looked like out of a horror movie …then my son Giuseppe asked me to make a chameleon for his girlfriend that loves Tangled’s Pascal.. so I just finished that a day ago ready for her 18th birthday..
I am planning other things too… but I needed a few weeks of not designing, recharging my batteries by just enjoying other people amazing patterns!! and I feel the energy coming back which is a good news indeed!!
So, as I LOVE lists of TO DO’s my new resolutions are…
- do not take too much work on!!!
- write at least 2 blogs a month with updates on what I am doing,
- walk and not be a couch crocheting potato!
- be more social and not a grumpy bear hiding behind a mountain of yarn…
- organise some new exciting material for classes ( because I love teaching!!!) and put some dates in the diary.
- make more videos!
- last but not least go to London to see my daughter Valentina!!
- loads of more things that I am sure I have forgotten…
that is all for today! thank you for all your support, I love your messages and all your lovely comments on Facebook and Instagram!
and on that subject just a little note…
I understand how frustrating it must be not to be able to get either the patterns or the kits for the Eastern Jewels and the Frida’s Primavera because often they are sold out or are not available as digital downloads , but as I replied to many of you, I just designed both the patterns and I am not involved in how they are distributed.
So please get in touch with ether Stylecraft or Janie Crow if you need some updated pieces of information.
https://www.stylecraft-yarns.co.uk/
https://janiecrow.co.uk/presta/
My only direct contact with the retail status is Poppy’s and I know they have sold several packs of the Eastern Jewels, ( the Frida’s Primavera is just available from Jane ) but again they too, as retailers, depend from Jane and Stylecaft for the printed patterns so please, if you are interested, leave your email with Helen’s at Poppy’s and I am sure that if the packs will be back in stock she will message you .
https://www.poppys-holmfirth.co.uk/lucia-s-shop/lucia-s-shop
HAPPY CROCHET! thank you for reading,
love to you all
LUCIA XXX