Back to blogging ...

Hello! I have been a bit quiet on here over the summer due to wonderful weather, school holidays, days out, running a holiday club at church, family visiting from London and all the little day to day things that pop up in the summer months! So, here I am, schools are back, the weather is just beginning to turn and I am refocussing on my blog and my business! In this blog post I would like to share some of the projects that I have completed over the summer and a few of my current WIPs.

3 little cakes

I made these little cakes from a DMC Natura amigurumi kit and they were such fun to crochet!

toddler size socks

These toddler size socks for my niece were super quick to crochet up! I used Paint Box Yarns sock wool and mostly followed a Kat Goldin pattern with a change of heel design to add in a gusset.

Skimming Stones Shawl

 I couldn't resist joining in with The Crochet Project's MCAL, it was amazing to feel part of a big group of like minded people via Instagram and the Facebook group. I used Milbury 4ply (85% BFL, 15% silk) from Eden Cottage Yarns

unicorn!

Another one for my niece - a unicorn that I designed as I went along using up cotton from my stash.

Malvern Cowl

After the MCAL I had some yarn left over so I crochet a Malvern Cowl following Joanne Scrace's pattern, one I have had my eye on for a while!

Mitred Square Blanket

Since early summer I have been working on this Mitred Square Blanket using up scraps from my 4ply stash.  I knit 1 or 2 squares every day and it is slowly growing - hoping to be finished to gift this at Christmas time!

Hoooked project

This jute Hoooked yarn is a recent WIP - it's a bowl/ basket type thing, creating as the feel of the project takes me so I am not sure how it will end up yet.

more socks!

We have taken quite a few train trips this summer and I have always taken my crochet or knitting with me! I have begun another pair of Fallen Leaves socks by Vicki Brown using Cascade Yarns Heritage Prints.

on the train

Here I am on the train to Aberdeen with my knitting (I was knitting a square for my Mitred Square Blanket).

outside Wool For Ewe

Once in Aberdeen we walked out to Rosemount to visit Wool For Ewe - one of my favourite yarn shops! Here is my hubby just before popped in to squish all the yarn!

current project

Well, that take me up to my current project, an aran weight granny square blanket! This one is a stash buster, using up lots of random balls of aran I had accumulated (and perhaps buying a few more along the way!).

Now that I am re-establishing my term time routine I will be back with more regular updates so stay tuned,

Marta xx

A visit to Queen of Purls wool shop, Glasgow

Last week I took a mini break to Glasgow with my husband. Our three boys were on holiday in Gibraltar with their local Scout Group so we took ourselves off to Scotland's largest city to explore for a few days! I can probably count on one hand the number of times I have been to Glasgow (I was born in Edinburgh hence it's the city I tend to gravitate towards if I am in need of a city trip) so we decided to stay right in the centre and use it as a base for delving into our surroundings.

Day 1, top of my list, was a visit to The Queen of Purls wool shop! Trying not to look too much like tourists, we walked along using Google maps on our phone to navigate our way to the shop. We found it easily enough, recognising the minty colour of the exterior paint straight away!

This impressive piece of artwork was the first thing I saw as we came through the door! Since posting the photo on Instagram, I have found out it's called a God's Eye - this is a very complex version of the ones I remember making with lolly sticks at school.

Moving round, I found one side of the shop was devoted to wool in all the colours of the rainbow! There was a large selection of Jamieson's of Shetland wool, which I have used for many projects including a Croft Hoose Hat I made (pattern by Ella Gordon) and a Paul the Toadstool (pattern by Lalylala). I really like this wool because I find that as I work each stitch I feel like I am engaging with the traditional heritage of wool in Scotland. Not sure if that strikes a chord with anyone else - maybe just me? Let me know in the comments.

Moving on a little I was blown a away by the gorgeous, rich colours of The Queen of Purls hand dyed wool! The colours were bold but in tune with nature - think of all the vibrant autumnal colours you can see in the park. The yarns are available in skeins and have either a Merino or Blue Faced Leicester base. The colours are not all over solid but have just the right amount of subtle variation to keep them exciting and alive.

As well as the pure wools there was a small selection of yarn by well known brands such as Wendy, Opal and West Yorkshire Spinners - plenty for sock knitters in particular to choose from!

There was also a wall featuring many different colours and varieties of wool tops for spinning and felting. My phone battery was almost dead, so I didn't get a photo of this wall, sorry! I did take a snap of my hubby, loom knitting a hat while he waited for me to look around ...

So, what did I buy? I chose 2 of my favourite Queen of Purls Citadel DK colours - Flowers of Sulphur and Space Junk (wonderful names too!). I have already begun a crochet scarf design based on this pair of colours, a fabulous "grellow" combination. The photo below shows my work in progress swirled into a snail shape to keep it slightly mysterious for now.

Until next time, 

Marta xx