I have a finished sock for the Lazy Days Sock CAL!

Hello! Would you believe that I designed the sock for my Lazy Days CAL and wrote it up (in all 4 sizes) in just 6 days?! Last Friday afternoon I tidied and did the housework so there were no distractions and so I had a clean, fresh environment to create in. Once that was out the way I sat down, looked at the beautiful illustration by Katie Gammie, the yarn from Liv at The Wool Shed and began to crochet! The design simply flowed off my hook, it was the most natural thing. Usually, I have a clear idea in my head or even on paper before I start, but not this time! 

The sloping lines around the cuff are is influenced by the long grasses and the detail around the ankle is inspired by the individual foxglove flowers. The speckles which Liv created as her response to Katie's drawing are carried throughout the sock and I love them - they're as scattered as the wild flowers themselves.

If you've missed my previous posts about this project, you can catch up here. 

The pattern will be released in the usual places (my website, Ravelry & LoveCrafts), there are going to be 100 limited edition kits! The kit will include the exclusive handyed sock yarn from The Wool Shed, a crochet hook, stitch markers & a few surprise extras and it will all come in a project bag with Katie's illustration printed on it. How amazing does that sound?

Next steps ... the sock pattern is going to my tech editor today and as soon as it's edited I'll send it to my lovely testing team. I'll be sharing photos of their projects to let you see how they get on with it.  After that I need to finalise the extras and begin ordering them in. I will be opening up for pre-orders towards the end of July - sign up to my mailing list to make sure you don't miss out! You can sign up here on my website.

Until next time, happy crocheting,

Marta xx

Winding yarn and other distractions

*this email contains affiliate links, meaning I get a small percentage if you order through them*

Hello! I've been a bit quiet this week with no email on Tuesday and fewer posts on social because on Monday afternoon water was pouring through the bathroom ceiling! Fortunately it stopped as quickly as it began and I had a plumber out yesterday who has found the source of the problem (no need to bore you with that here!). Needless to say it's been a bit of an anxious time and my focus hasn't really been on anything in particular - though I did manage to finish writing a sock pattern for a magazine yesterday, yay!

Other distractions have been winding up my yarn for the upcoming Aestival MCAL. My hubby bought me one of the beautiful kits from Vicki Brown Designs and I can tell you the yarn is just as stunning in real life as it looks in those photos! If you missed my email about The Crochet Project's MCAL you can read all about it in this blog post. 

In order to gain access to this mystery pattern, you need to subscribe to The Hub, an amazing space away from social media which Joanne Scrace of The Crochet Project has created. Inside The Hub there are crochet patterns, tutorials, articles, stitch here.dictionaries and a forum - right now it's just £2 a month to join with the code HUBINTRO. I have an affilliate link for you below, take a look to find out more here. The link (with a discount code) for Vicki's yarn can be found in The Hub too!

© Joanne Scrace

The other thing which has been keeping me busy is my craft room transformation. The room used to belong to my eldest but now he lives in Dundee I've slowly been changing it into a space for me to work and crochet. At the weekend someone bought the single bed from Gumtree leaving me with lots of space to continue decorating! I've kept 3 walls green and painted 1 wall off-white to bounce the light and for taking photos.

Today I'll start putting up things on the walls and moving some of my supplies from my bedroom through to there. I will deal with the big pile of mess too - there's a load of "stuff", which I've shared on socials, that I'm not quite sure where to put (you know the kind of accumulated stuff!). Next I need to find a comfy 2 seater sofa to sit and crochet on with my dog Jazz curled up beside me!

Hopefully I'll share a photo in my next email, until then, happy crocheting,

Marta xx 

PS. Looking for a project for the weekend? There's still 15% off my Air Balloon Beanie with the code JUNE22, valid on my website or on Ravelry

Update on my collaboration with an illustrator and a yarn dyer.

Hello! As promised I'm giving you an update on my collaboration with the illustrator and yarn dyer. Things have progressed and I now have the yarn and I've had a play around with some lettering. If you've just started following me, I'm working with illustrator Katie (https://www.instagram.com/katiebirdiedoes/) and a yarn dyer to bring you a CAL (crochet a-long)! If you missed it, you can read my first installment in this blog post.

So, I can now update you with news of the yarn dyer! I'm collaborating with Liv at The Wool Shed (https://www.instagram.com/the_wool_shed/) and she has brought her creative energy to the drawing which Katie made for me. Initially she dyed up 3 skeins of yarn, each with varying degrees of colour and I selected the middle one in the range. I was super excited when the yarn arrived at the start of this week, eeeeek!

Can you see the gorgeous colours? Can you see the speckling? Do you agree that it represents the drawing absolutely beautifully? I'm certainly happy and Katie is really pleased with the outcome too, which is great!

What now? I'm going to wind the yarn up into a lovely ball and then begin designing for the CAL. I can reveal that I'll be taking inspiration from the drawing and the yarn to crochet socks, my 8th pair! Once the designing stage is complete, I'll pass the pattern on to be tech edited before it's crocheted up by my lovely team of testers.

I'm not going to make this a mystery CAL so I shall be posting photos as I progress (sign up to my mailing list to receive first peeks there!). Before I get stuck in I've 2 designs I'm working on that need to get to the tech editing stage before I begin anything new (a baby cardigan and my 7th sock design), so I'll leave it here and go crack on with them!

Catch you next week,

Marta xx

PS. I uploaded a new video to YouTube this week, it's a step-by-step tutorial for my free Scrappy Blanket II, go take a look! My latest podcast episode is up on YouTube too - you can find my channel here.

My latest pattern release: Tweed with a Twist Scarf

Hello! I'm pleased to bring you news of my latest pattern release and offer you an early bird discount of 20% off the pattern!

Here are the details of this super squishy design ...

• A textured scarf in aran weight (10ply) yarn.
• It’s worked up in crossed double trebles to create texture & squishiness!
• The pattern repeat is really easy to remember which makes it a good choice for a mindful crochet project.
• I used 3x 50g balls of debbie Bliss Donegal Luxury Tweed Aran.
• This is an INTERMEDIATE level pattern, written in UK & US terms.
• I’ve made a captioned YouTube video, showing you exactly how to work these crossed stitches.
• There is no right and wrong side to this scarf, simply throw it on and wear it!
• The pattern is available on LoveCrafts, Ravelry and on my website.

15% off Tweed with a Twist Scarf pattern from now until 23:59, Wednesday 15th, 2022.

Use code TWEED at the checkout on Ravelry and on my website.

Don't forget that I'm here should you have any questions both now and during your project. Simply reply to this email or send me a DM on Instagram.

Happy crocheting,

Marta xx

New crochet pattern coming soon!

 

Hello! Yesterday I took the dog, Jazz, on the train for the first time and she loved it - I think she thought it was just like a big car and she LOVES the car! The purpose of the trip? We were headed into the nearby town of Broughty Ferry which is half way betweeen my house and my eldest son's flat and we were meeting up for a long overdue photo shoot! There were 2 items which I wanted photographed; my customised denim jacket with the flower panel and my next pattern release - Tweed with a Twist scarf. The weather was in our favour - dry, overcast but bright - perfect for the seaside backdrop I was hoping for! Jazz really enjoyed sniffing along the beach and exploring a new town too.

So, once the photos are edited and sent to me I'll slot them into the pattern, add the video tutorial which I made in the morning before I went out, and upload the pattern to the usual places! Sign up to my mailing list to be first know when it's live and give you the biggest discount code - look out for an email next week!

Until then, happy crocheting,

Marta xx

Pattern of the month for June

Hello! Introducing my Pattern of the month for June ... Air Balloon Beanie! I know, I know, it's not really hat weather (well not here in the northern hemisphere anyway!) but it's never too early to be prepared, right? Also, unlike blankets or jumpers which drape over you adding extra warmth as you work, small items like hats are perfect for the summer months because the air can still circulate.

Here are the details about the hat you need to know ...

• It's an intermediate level pattern designed to be crocheted in 2 colours.
• 4 sizes are available; child, teen, adult M, adult L.
• The pattern is very easy to adapt to suit any size of head.
• It's written in UK and US terms.
• The pattern gives instructions for 2 colours but you could be as creative as you like with the number of colours!
• I used Rico Essentials Merino DK for this design. 2 balls are enough to crochet each size.
• It's available on my website, on Ravelry and on LoveCrafts.
• There are charts and video tutorials to guide you.
• This project has that "one more row" quality I know so many of you love!

You can save 15% on my Air Balloon Beanie pattern throughout the month of June. It's usually £4.50 - use the code JUNE22 on my website or on Ravelry and it's yours for just £3.82. 

Don't forget to tag me on social media or send me a photo if you make one because I'd love to see!

Marta xx

Are you joining in with The Crochet Project's MCAL?

 © Joanne Scrace

Hello! I'm here this week to tell you about The Crochet Project's upcoming MCAL! Now I think about it ... CAL and MCAL are not terms I covered in my crochet acronyms post the other week ... so, if you haven't come across the terms before; CAL is short for crochet a-long and an MCAL is a mystery crochet a-long. But what's a crochet along some of you might still be asking? It's when people work on a project at the same time as each other, posting photos on social media and cheering each other on in the process. Usually it's timed for the release of a new pattern but sometimes there can be themed CALs, for example I saw a Christmas in July one advertised yesterday!

Back to the The Crochet Project ... there is a new MCAL this summer, beginning with the first clue on July 8th. Because it's a mystery, we only have a few details including the name, Aestival Shawl (aestival means belonging to, or appearing in, summer), the type & quantity of yarn required and there has been a hint dropped that delicate lace sections are included.

I've taken part in this annual MCAL in the past but one significant change this year is that it's going to be exclusive to The Crochet Project's brand new Hub. The Hub is a monthly membership which gives you access to crochet patterns, tutorials, articles, stitch dictionaries and a forum. I thought it sounded like a great place for all things crochet, joined straight away and have become an affiliate member! At the moment membership is just £2 per month with the code HUBINTRO and you can of course cancel any time.

Back to the shawl ... Joanne Scrace has designed the Aestival Shawl and she has teamed up with one of my favourite indie yarn dyers, Vicki Brown Designs, to create limited edition yarn kits for the MCAL. Each kit contains 2 skeins of Kid Silk Fluff (69% silk/ 22% Kid Mohair/ 9% polyamide per 100g/ 350m) and there are 3 colours to choose from!

I've ordered mine, but I'll keep my colour choice secret for now! Kits cost £46 (plus shipping) but you can use code AESTIVALMCAL to get 10% off. You can access The Crochet Project's page with more info on the MCAL and a link to the yarn kits here. Of course, you can crochet the shawl in whichever yarn you choose - perhaps there's something in your stash?

I hope this post has been of interest and I look forward to some of you joining me in The Hub!

Happy crocheting,

Marta xx 

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