Monthly Archives: April 2021

Pink…….

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Photo by Madison Inouye on Pexels.com

Ok so this last week has been all about shades of pink and this week I’m continuing using pink. I’m not sure why I’ve been drawn to the colour pink as it isn’t normally a shade I’d deliberately choose which got me to thinking a little about the colour and its meaning.

Did you know there is such a thing as colour psychology? This suggests different colours can affect mood, feelings and even behaviour. Pink is usually considered to be a calming colour often associated with love, femininity and kindness. Pale pink shades are often described as relaxing whereas bright and vibrant shades are thought to be stimulating. Whilst pink has been demonstrated as being calming it has also been found that this effect doesn’t last and in fact the colour can cause agitation the longer the exposure.

Colour preferences are often related to personal experiences or cultural influences. So if you are drawn to a particular colour you can usually relate it to fond memories whereas if you don’t like a specific colour it can be because they associate it with unpleasant memories.

I can’t say on reflection that the colour pink has any positive or negative memories for me, so why did I choose to use a variety of shades of it? Firstly, because I happen to have a good variety of pink shades in my stash and thought it would make for a different version of the fancy Nancy mandala by Dedri Uys.  Secondly, I have a pattern that has been playing on my mind and so decided to purchase some cheaper acrylic yarn (not my normal yarn of choice) to try out the pattern.

I think the mandala has turned out well and looks pretty; it was also my first time adding beads to a piece of work and definitely won’t be my last.

Now this new yarn although from one of my favourite companies for cotton and wool I am not really feeling this acrylic, which is beautifully soft but I’m not liking the way it is crocheting up (I’m not sure it’s the right yarn for the pattern!) and I’m struggling to get my tension right and of course there’s the colour – perfect for a ballet blanket I know but I just don’t like it. I love the pattern though and will be making it again but probably in a cotton mix. The pattern is the Juliet Blanket by Owlbhooked.

Scheepjes Colour Crafter Yarn and filet crochet

The blanket uses filet crochet which is a technique that uses just two stitches, a treble and chain (uk), It creates an open grid-like crochet made up of solid blocks or runs of treble stitches separated by spaces – the chain. This builds up the pattern or picture creating a pretty openwork piece of work.

I will continue and complete the blanket to practise the filet technique before purchasing a more suitable yarn as I don’t have enough of any one particular colour in my cotton stash.

What are your thoughts on colour? Do you like pink? Does it evoke positive memories? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Stay safe. Until next time.

Mandala Pattern: Fancy Nancy by Dedri Uys

Yarn: Scheepjes Catona 100% Cotton

Blanket: Juliet Blanket by owlbhooked

Yarn: Scheepjes Colour Crafter 100% Acrylic

WiPs

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Flower garland

Well I can honestly say that I have done very little if any crochet since I completed the garland, I can’t decide if I’ve lost my crojo or feeling guilty that I have a few wips, for those not in the know a wip is a work in progress, or just want to do so many other patterns I don’t actually know what to.

So what have I done? Well just to try and tidy my mind I spent a day sorting out patterns and this has now added to my confusion as I discovered some that I really want to do but don’t have the appropriate yarn and because of the size of my stash and a self imposed ban on buying anymore yarn for the foreseeable future I am now feeling rather fed up and like a young child having a temper tantrum I’ve stamped my foot and gone into a sulk, so nothing is progressing.

So there I think I have just answered my own question – I’ve not lost my crojo  I just don’t want to do what I should be doing! All the more irritating as I can see two of the wips.

As England starts to open up on the 12th April, meaning non-essential shops will be allowed to start trading again and cafes, restaurants and pubs with outdoor areas being allowed to serve meals and drinks – I am starting to think about meeting up with a small group of friends for regular crochet and coffee or knit and natter depending on the individuals preferred discipline and hoping for somewhat warmer weather and that our choice of cafe will happily accommodate us for a couple of hours. It will be good to get back to some sort of normality. So maybe that is my opportunity to work on a wip, probably the V-stitch stash blanket I started last summer as it isn’t complicated therefore allowing me to chat without forgetting what I’m doing. So does this then allow me to purchase some new yarn to start a filet crochet blanket or using something from my stash to make a wall hanging or mandala? My eldest daughter has put in a request for mandala, could this be my inspiration and therefore delays the inevitable purchase of new yarn for a little longer? But I really want to do that blanket…

Now with a heartfelt tinge of sadness I’m sure you will all have heard by now Prince Phillip has died at the age of 99yrs. This has caused great sadness across the country (UK) and I’m sure the world. Although it was inevitable due to his recent illness and impressive age, his presence at the Queen’s side, albeit from behind the scenes in more recent years will be missed.

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh 1921-2021

I’ll sign off now, until next time keep safe.

Easter, Flowers, garlands…

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Pale Pink Camellia first flower in my garden!

Camellia’s originate from China and are also known as a tea plant and in Japan they are often called a Japanese Rose. The Camellia represents the union between two lovers in China and in Latin the word Camellia means “helper to the priest”. They symbolise love, affection and admiration.

So I’m a little late with my blog, the Easter weekend ran away with me and now it’s Tuesday!

I hope everybody had a lovely weekend. What a mix of weather? Warm and sunny, windy and sunny, cold and snow! Only in the UK could this happen. Anyway, enough about the weather, for those who celebrate Easter I hope you were able to celebrate the way you wanted and for those that don’t I hope you had a lovely relaxing bank holiday and I hope everyone got all the chocolate they could eat.

Now about the crochet, seeing this is what this blog is meant to be about… I’m sure that previously I said that I wouldn’t be making anymore flowers for a while. Well how wrong could I be? I follow the lovely blogger and crochet designer Lucy @attic24 and she lives in a truly beautiful part of the UK and posts lovely photo’s not only of the area where she lives of which I am only slightly jealous but also of all her amazing crochet of which she is exceedingly prolific. I have now completed or adapted several of her patterns to gift to people or for my own purpose this brings me nicely to why I have ended up making more flowers  – It’s all Lucy’s fault! On one of her recent blogs she had decorated her mantel for spring and hanging from the mantel was the cutest of garlands. For some reason I couldn’t get the garland out of my head and eventually gave in and made my own, following Lucy’s patterns for Polyanthus flowers and Hawthorn blossom.

Is there any significance in a polyanthus? It is a hybrid of the wild primrose and primulas and is one of the first flowers to open at the start of spring. It is often viewed as a symbol of femininity. Hawthorn trees are often referred to as fairy trees as it was believed that fairies lived in them. Christian tradition denotes that the hawthorn was representative of their struggles to suppress pagan beliefs. The hawthorn flower is regarded as a symbol of love, abundance and longevity.

Did you know that garlands have been part of religious rituals and traditions for a long time? In Egyptian times flower garlands were placed on mummies to celebrate the entering of the afterlife. Garlands were used by the Greeks to decorate their homes, temples and banqueting tables. During Roman times rose petal garlands were worn and carved wooden garlands decorated homes. In Renaissance paintings garlands are a recurring theme. Garlands of foliage and tiny flowers were popular in the Byzantine culture. The 15th and 16th centuries popularised the wearing of garlands, especially rose, at festivals, weddings and pageants. They became of religious significance when they were draped over religious statues during the European Middle Ages and Hindus across the world have attached spiritual meaning to flowers by the wearing of them and the embellishing of their statues with blessed garlands.

Lucy definitely chose the perfect pairing of flowers for her garland and it explains its prettiness. I certainly enjoyed making this garland and I think it would be the perfect garland for weddings and not just spring ones, what do you think?

I will blog again at the weekend as I have some wips that I can introduce you to. I really need to knuckle down, that’s if I don’t get distracted by new patterns, ideas etc, and try and get these completed although, they won’t be that quick as they are largish projects and so a distraction isn’t such a bad thing as it ensures I don’t get bored!

Bye for now