Crocheting a small "blankie"

A friend of mine gave me an idea to crochet a simple square and attach a little amigurumi animal to one corner as a really lovely hand-made baby gift.

Here it is, a work in progress.

The square is trebble-crocheted in white cotton and the pink border is a simple scallop stitch running all of the way round in a pink cotton.

I chose to use cotton instead of wool because I wanted it to be really neat (and I thought wool is slightly less suck-proof for a baby) and I ironed it to add to that crisp look.

I'm still undecided on which little animal to crochet in the corner. Will post a pic when it's finished.

Craft fair stall ideas

I always like to have an eye out for unusual vintage objects to hang my crocheted pretties from at craft fairs.

Here is a photo list of four pretty ideas that I've stumbled across on the web.

Lace across a frame by
Natty Cooper-Hall

Really simple but cute heart brooch display
by http://aubreylynnsrnec.blogspot.ca/

Brooch display by http://mamiejanes.blogspot.co.uk
I would love to have a go at making this with balls of wool!

A pretty way to hang brooches
by http://www.etsy.com/shop/sewlola

Baby mobile inspiration

I have decided to make a baby mobile for a customer who has a budget of around £40. I have been pinning together a moodboard on my pinterest page. Below you can see a few of the pictures that have caught my eye. These are so cute and exquisitely crocheted. I particularly love the weather ideas.  

by FizzPopBang on Flickr

by Proud Child Crochet Boutique on Etsy

by Carolina Guzman on Ravelry

To view more beautiful baby mobile ideas visit my mood board by clicking here and to see my finished baby mobile that was inspired by these click here.

Roo's Christmas prezzy

My father-in-law's partner is affectionately Nick-named 'Roo' within the family.

She has a Samsung Galaxy SII like my father-in-law's.

For Christmas this year we made her a pink phone case so that they could have 'his n hers' phone cosies. 

See his here and hers below .

Yvette's Christmas present

Another cute Christmas prezzy idea is a hot water bottle case. This is a nice gift because it is so easily personalised. Think of a person's fave colour, pet or hobby and I can guarantee there is a cute hot water bottle design that can come from it.

My mother in law is called Yvette and her favourite colour is green. This is what me and my hubby came up with for her and she seemed really chuffed with it when she unwrapped it.

Steve's Christmas present

My father in law has a Samsung Galaxy SII so we decided to give him a neat, grey case for it for Christmas.

The pattern mainly consists of each round being 32 double crochet long, slip stitch together, turning stitch, turn work, repeat. (UK terminology)

This was attempt number three as we wanted it to be very clean cut and angular, which meant each round needed to be perfectly counted.

Because it was a simple colour we wanted it to be impressive in neatness and  a satisfyingly snug fit.

To detail we surface appliqued on a letter S, and gave it a big chunky button.

I think it turned out well.

Mini Martha the amigurumi bunny

This week my husband and I are visiting home for Christmas. This year there is a new member of the family.

Meet Martha...



Ever since I began to crochet I have watched the world of amigurumi from afar, with wonder; cute elephants, marvel super heros and colourful beads.

Originating in Japan, but understandably popular worldwide, amigurumi are three dimensional crocheted or knitted toys that are usually worked in the round and stuffed with wadding. 

The word 'amigurumi' is a combination of the Japanese word 'ami' which means to knit, crochet or braid and the Japanese word 'nuigurumi' which literally means 'sew and wrap', and refers to many kinds of sewn/stuffed toys.

Today I had a go at my own little amigurumi bunny. I found the making of this bunny quite tricky - especially attaching the parts together because I wasn't sure of the best way to do it - but this project was a quick one and looks pretty cute. It took just a couple of hours and it was really nice to see my work take shape and gain a personality. 

Meet mini Martha...

I'm really looking forward to making other animals in the future.