By Helen

a grand day out in York...

Si and I were meant to go to the  Yorkshire Show.  I was so looking forward to it, seeing all the sights, tasting the food, thanking the sheep for giving us yarn.  Last year's show was soooo good: I was very excited about going again.  The weather had other plans; and for the first time in 154 years the show was cancelled because of all the heavy rain; think Glastonbury style mud with extra animals.  Si decided that he would go into work and take the day off later in the year.  My head was already on holiday, so I decided to take the day off.  A whole day off to myself: this is not usual as I work part-time, but my none-working days are usually full of other things.  This was a treat day; not to be filled with house-work and other stuff that is no fun.  The day was to be a fun day.  I decided to have a day out in, my home city of York!

I started the day with a visit to a friend who is very unwell at the moment.  Rather than walking through the streets, which I love to do – nosing in peoples’ gardens, I walked in the sun-shine (yes sun-shine) around the city walls...

After visiting A, I popped into Grace and Jacobs...

If you have never visited Grace and Jacobs, you need to.  It is a gorgeous little shop full of yarns and fabric….

It also has a small studio where classes are held…

I did manage to leave Grace and Jacob’s empty handed, something of an achievement!  I did book myself on to a course for making the prettiest fabric flowers.  I don’t feel too guilty, I like to have things in my diary to look forward to and this is just one of them!

Then I went to the Quilt Museum...

Again, if you have never visited: go.  I have the upper most respect for the quilters: as I stand in awe, I fully acknowledge that I will NEVER have the patience or accuracy needed to quilt.  The exhibition was fantastic: really inspirational.  I was instantly drawn to this purple quilt…

I loved the subject matter of this…

And thought this one to be very appropriate…

The best thing about the Quilt Museum is that the exhibitions change every three months, so there is always something new to look at.

I needed a pick-up up of coffee and cake so went to a new café, which I have wanted to go to for a while, The Flax and Twine...

The tea-room was sooo pretty…

And the coffee and cakes were AMAZING.  Another place you will have to visit in York.  Feeling full I mooched around for a bit, popping in to shops, saying hello to friends and taking more photos…

 

York’s most iconic building York Minster, taking the photo I realised that I don’t visit the Minster anymore.  I volunteer at the Minster as a guide showing visitors around, but I don’t actually visit myself.  By then my feet were getting tired, so I headed home for some serious hooky time…

I loved this day.  It wasn’t the day I was expecting: but it was a grand-day out!

crochet wire course part two…

So where did I get to?  Oh yes, I was about to share with you some other amazing crochet wire work that the very talented ladies crocheted, on the course last weekend.  I hope you are ready for some serious ta-dah moments?

This is another piece by Julie, our tutor….

Isn’t it fabulous, the way the colours work together?  M decided that she was going to crochet herself a fully set of jewellery, earrings and a necklace...

I think that this is just brilliant, especially as the earrings match each-other!  Think making socks here, you have made one, you are really happy and then you realise... you have to make another, and it has to be the same!

The lady who crocheted this (sorry I have forgotten your name) took a very precise approach to crocheting, everything was thought out and counted, and what a result…

This is something that I can only ever aspire to.  It is not in my nature to be so accurate, but I do love, love, LOVE the results.

This is what A crocheted, a gorgeous sea blue necklace…

Isn’t it stunning?   A only learnt to crochet back in March. Yes March, this year.  That’s four months ago.  Just think what she will be crocheting this time next year…

It was a wonderful day.  A real treat.  An inspiring tutor, a wonderful workshop, infectious creativity and, oh, that lunch…

crochet wire course part one…

Do you remember me telling you about a course I had booked on to?  Well the course was yesterday, it was amazing, and I have to tell you all about it.  I arrived at ArtisOn just in time for a quick cup of tea before the course started.  Our tutor Julie Glaze started by showing us some of her fabulous works, as inspiration.  My favourite piece, was a beautiful vine of sliver flowers…

Then it was our turn!  Julie started us nice and slowly, by getting us to crochet chains, so that we got used to crocheting wire and got even sized stitches….

Once we had mastered crocheting a chain, we threaded beads onto the wire and started to work them into our stitches…

By lunch time, this had become my first ever crochet wire piece of jewellery…

Julie was great at teaching and so flexible, this allowed us the freedom to crochet whatever we wished, earrings, necklaces, pendants; the only limit was our imaginations.  We paused, to give our fingers a rest and for lunch.  Lunch was AMAZING, a real treat: baked veggie risotto and salads, followed by three (yes three) choices of pudding.  I have to confess that I had a little of each pudding: choosing which to have would have been far too difficult.

After lunch we went back to crocheting.  Give my love of crocheting flowers; I had to give it a go in wire.  Crocheting trebles and double trebles, in wire, proved a little trickier than the morning’s chain, but I am glad that I persevered.  Are you ready of a ta-dah moment?  Ta-dah…

After some uming and erring (brooch, hair-clip, brooch, hair-clip) I attached the crocheted rose to a kirby-grip and popped it in my hair…

I am chuffed to bits with the result, a grown-up formal version of the hair-clip I crocheted a couple of weeks ago.

There is so much more that I need to share with you, not to mention the GOURGOUS work created by the other very talented ladies on the course.  You will just have to come back and read my next posting…

June’s crochet flower…

With all the wet weather we have had (and still seem to be having: it’s just thundered – should I be blogging during a storm?) lately the only flower, in my tubs and pots, that have bravely showed their colours are the fuchsias.   Fuchsias look so bright and cheerful, in amongst all the greenery, which is flourishing.  Their petals are like little pockets of hope that one day, this summer, the rest of the garden might look as colourful…

Fuchsias were the natural choice to be June’s crochet flower.  The first fuchsia, I crocheted solo.  No pattern for back-up, just working my hook, crocheting and hoping.  I don’t think that results were too bad…

I then turned to the very talented Lesley Stanfield’s book 100 flowers to knit and crochet.  The pattern for crocheting fuchsias is in the advance designs section at the back of the book.  Me crocheting from an advance design – I struggle with the basic patterns, seeing them more as guidelines than absolutes.  I was strict, I followed the crochet pattern, to the stitch.  I don’t think it turned out too bad either…

I think the one I crocheted to my own design can hold its petals high next to the one crocheted from Lesley’s book…

Do you like the crochet hooks, that I used as stems?  I think a combo, of both patterns would be the best way forward:  crocheting Lesley’s inner bell, my outer petals and definitely the bead for the stamens.  Think I know what I’ll be doing later…

cooking up a feast…

Si and I love having friends over and cooking for them; and that is exactly what we did a couple of weeks ago.  It was the perfect opportunity to cook something from my new cookbook.  Rachel Khoo’s The Little Paris Kitchen…

Ever since watching The Little Paris Kitchen I had been hooked, so when the cookbook came out, I knew that it was destined for my bookshelf.  After spending time reading the recipes and looking at the beautiful photographs: I decided what to cook. 

The meal was to start with galette aux pommes de terre et poires avec Roquefort (potato and pear galette with Roquefort.   I have to say my galette looked NOTHING  like Rachel’s…

But then I have not been trained at the Cordon Bleu cookery school.  Despite their appearance they tasted fantastic, even if I do say so myself!  Next I made boulettes de viande avec une sauce piquante et des pates d’Alsace (meatballs in spicy sauce with Alsatian pasta), only I substituted the Alsatian pasta for good old penne.   This did look like Rachel’s…

The only hick-up with this, was I felt like I was eating gravy with pasta.  Nevertheless it tasted good!  Next came dessert, which Si offered to make.  Si carried on the Rachel Khoo theme choosing to make a dark chocolate and raspberry pudding…

This was good, very VERY good!  Chocolate and raspberry loveliness, what more can you ask for?

All of the recipes were very easy to follow and we keep trying out different things from the cookbook and from Rachel’s amazing blog.  I would recommend that you try some out and create your own Little Paris kitchen in your own little home,…

Enjoy x

looking forward...

The next couple of months are going to be busy ones: there are so many lovely things that I am looking froward to; a long hot summer (hopefully), holidays (definitely), trips out and catching up with friends.  I can't wait!  One thing that I am looking forward to is a crochet course I booked myself on ages ago.  Often when you see crochet courses advertised they are aimed at beginners: I don't consider myself a beginner anymore!  The one I found is different: crochet with wire.  The course is held at ArtisOn an arts and craft studio in the beautiful market town of Masham, in the Yorkshire Dales.  It will be a bit of an early start but it will be well worth it.  The course tutor Julie Glaze is amazingly talented, her work is just fantastic: I can't wait to learn from her.

Inevitably, my excitement got the better of me and I when out and bought some wire to play with, just in case I was a natural...

...I have a lot to learn!

shop, shop, shopping...

Every now and then a girl needs a binge, a good old shop.  For some girls it is shoes, for some girls it is handbags , now I will admit for having a soft-spot for both of these, for me it is yarn (and books).  The last time I had a real yarn binge was when I went to Harrogate, to the Knitting Show and that was back in November, six whole months ago. 

I went to Ramshambles and here is what I bought...

The rainbow!  I have lots and lots of ideas of what to crochet with these, the problem will be deciding on just one of my thoughts!

Some Debbie Bliss' Party Angel, a mohair and silk mix.  I love the shimmer that runs through this yarn.  I think it will be quite difficult to crochet with, but the results will be worth it.

Not going to tell you what I am going to crochet with these two!  But two of my friends will (hopefully) be very happy when they see the results!

I have no idea what I am going to crochet these into.  These two were complete impulse buys.  I love the way the colours change, I love the feel of them.  I am thinking, possible, granny squares - I'll let you know!

All in all a good shop, most of what I bought I wanted and the others, well, I am sure that I will crochet them into something.  At the moment I am just enjoying looking at my purchases, thinking and dreaming of crochet.

May blossom...

I have been sooooooooooo busy since my holiday I don't really know where the time has gone: I seem to have done nothing but work, no time for the good things of crochet, garden or baking.  One thing that has kept me going is the beautiful May blossom which seems to adorn every tree in the city.  It is all so lovely it makes my heart sing.  I love how the blossom makes the trees look fluffy.  I love how the blossom drops on to the ground making a carpet of confetti.  I love how, even on a grey day, the blossom cheers you up.  Here are a few of my very favourite...

Enjoy your bank holiday weekend: make sure you get out and see some blossom...

having a wonderful time...

Sorry that I haven't blogged this week: we have been away, having a wonderful time.  Here is a little clue as to where we went...

Yep, that's right we have been with the soft sweet showers of April to Canterbury.  I decided to be wholly cliche about the holiday and read the Canterbury Tales, something that I have never done until now.  I have to confess that I am reading a modern translation and in prose, but still, I think that Chaucer would approve.  So far, I am enjoying the tales.

Canterbury is a beautiful city full of amazing architecture...

Gorgeous gardens...

Fabulos tearooms...

Tiny Tim's was sooo good we ate there twice in two days!  We brought back a stunning little tealight holder...

The perfect souviner made by the talented people at Canterbury Pottery. 

All in all a wonderful mini-break...

read all about it, read all about it...

I have a confession to make.  I am a magazine junky.  There I admitted it.  I am sure that I am not alone in this addiction.  To try and curb my habit: I limit my visit to WH Smiths to once-a-month, and go armed with one ten-pound note.  April’s visit was such a success, I can’t tell you how pleased I am with my purchases.   Well, that is not strictly true, as I am about to tell you.  I came away from the shop with two wonderful magazines…

I was a stranger to Mollie Makes , and was only tempted to buy this issue because of the free (yes free) crochet gift on the front cover.  The magazine is just b-r-i-l-L-I-A-N-T.  Not only have the lovely Mollie Makes’ team provided the pattern, hook, brooch back and yarn to make a delightful flower brooch, the rest of the magazine is just fabulous.  The magazine doesn’t limit itself to one craft so there are an array of treats waiting for you within it’s cover.  There are patterns, reviews, interviews and inspirational photographs.  The whole magazine is a delight.  I can’t wait for next months (which is out next week) where the free (yes free) gift is a set of vintage buttons.

One of my monthly stables is Inside Crochet.  I buy the magazine out of habit and because it is the only UK crochet magazine that the shop sells.  The magazine usually has two or three patterns that I can’t wait to follow.  This month…

...is different.  I want to crochet ALL OF THEM.  I can’t remember the last time Inside Crochet was this good.  Although I will spend a happy afternoon checking out my back issues just to make sure.  I don’t know which of the patterns to start with.  Should it be Lynne Rowe's Skinny Scarf?  Or perhaps Christine Harvey's cheerful spring flower pots?  Or maybe Helda Panagary's  funky hibiscus coasters?  If I am feeling ambitious Sian Brown's beautiful lace trim top? 

There are so many wonderful, amazing, fabulous things out there, thank goodness for the long weekend.  Here’s to spending time curled up on the sofa flicking though magazines and crocheting…