Crochet

I haven't done any crochet for years, but last weekend I was looking through my stash and was wondering how on earth I was ever going to use any of it up at the moment. I needed to do something that produced results quickly, time is still a bit sparse at the moment so anything that can give me almost instant gratification is very welcome. Several of the other bloggers I follow have recently featured crochet and I love Granny Squares to distraction, apart from the fact that is all I can do as far as crochet goes is beside the point
I have never tried to read a crochet pattern or chart, but have found my copy of Happy Hooker and several crochet books I found in the charity shop last week, and I plan to spend the day having a little peruse of them and see if I can make any sense of them.

Here is my little pile of squares so far, I will more than likely make some sort of scarf with them, there is not enough yarn to make any kind of reasonable sized blanket with. Each one is about six inches square, and takes just under an hour to do, most are a single colour, but to use up the oddments of yarn where there is not enough to do one square I have a few multi coloured squares as well.

I went along to our local S & B this week, it has only been running a few weeks, but I had not had the chance to go along to one before this week, it was a very pleasant evening of chatting and knitting (and crochet). I helped a couple of the ladies with their crochet, mostly on how to hold the yarn and keeping the tension. There are quite a few beginners there and it is great to be able to pass on the crafts to newbies, I have tried recruiting several of the ladies in our various charity shops this week, loads of them used to knit but in their own words they have no-one to knit for, as I said, why can they not knit for themselves and there are many charitys out there who would be extremely grateful for knitted gifts.
While I was in one shop looking through their collection of knitting needles a lady asked if I knit, and when I answered in the affirmative she then offered me her collection of needles she no longer uses any more. I nearly snatched her hand off , she gave me her number and I will be ringing her later on, this lady has bone needles, I adore old bone knitting needles and am so excited. Off to study the mystery of crochet patterns now, hope everyone is having a lovely weekend.

I started this scarf for the Grandaughter quite a few weeks ago, last weekend I figured I would get it finished for her, can I find the damn pattern, can I hell. I wrote it out in one of my many notebooks, not just any notebook though, it was one I use for work, one of several. Guess I will have to do a full scale search later today.
Stop press, just went upstairs to get something else and there it is sat on the stairs with some other bits and pieces, Mr Roadside must have found it yesterday when he was tidying up, how good is that.
I found the pattern on another blog, unfortunately I cannot remember which one so I cannot tell you whose pattern it is, it is a nice easy one though.

Back In The Land Of The Living, Well Almost.

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of doing everything but knitting. We have taken over the Diner and things are going really well, loads of great feedback. I am the chief cook and bottle washer, the first to arrive and the last to leave, it is pretty full on and I have been getting in at night and throwing myself into bed to get some sleep almost as soon as I walk through the door. I have given up my other job, even I, superwoman that I am cannot work twenty-four hours a day five days a week, it was a bloody hard decision as I loved my other job and the lads I worked with, but it was only a temporary contract and the Diner is a permanent job.

A few years ago I knitted some socks for my nephew, they were way too small, I had seriously miscalculated just ho

w big his feet were, anyhow, I found them recently and tried them on the Grandaughter, they fit her beautifully. I then showed her my socks in the same yarn, she was seriously impressed that we had the same socks. She was so impressed with her own hand knit socks that she refused to take them off for five days, I had to promise to knit her some more (in pink of course) so we could prise them of her feet to wash them. I even managed to get her to sit still long enough to get a photo of them.
I had a great day at Unravel 2011, and spent loads of money, laceweight mostly, I didn't find anything to do the Maidenhair Shawl in though, will have to keep on looking for that. I shall try to do a post soon with pictures of all that I bought that day.
Today I shall knit, it is my treat to myself.