Macramé

 

Macramé is something I have wanted to try  for a long time. Many months ago I bought this kit at Spotlight and last week I finally sat down and made the plant hanger.

I really enjoyed the process and was very proud of my hanger.

 

Sadly, a few hours after hanging it up on the deck, there was a loud crash... The knot at the top had slipped, the pot was broken and my poor fuchsia plant only barely survived...

Although I had done exactly what it said in the instructions, it obviously wasn't working. I bought a new pot (plastic this time instead of stoneware) and added some glue to the knot. So far it's still hanging!

I also bought supplies to make some more macramé projects, like a bag and another plant hanger. Stay tuned!

Mandala Pillow 3

Here's the third Mandala Pillow - yes, I do really like this pattern! This one is a birthday present for my eldest son's girlfriend.

 I used yellow cotton 8 ply from Bendigo Woollen Mills, my favourite yarn.

Here it is together with the first Mandala Pillow I made:

Peg basket

 

My peg basket fell apart and I decided that instead of buying a new plastic one, I would crochet a basket. I used the twine that I bought in 2018 to make a market bag. Very happy with the result - it's so satisfying to make things to use in daily life.

I've also made some more motifs for my Double Wedding Ring Blanket. One row is now done:

New project

I've made a start on my queen-sized Double Wedding Ring Blanket! So far I've done four motifs. It's not going fast, because I have also just started studying for a history degree via Open Universities Australia!

 And... it's jacaranda time again! Isn't this a beauty?

Small Double Wedding Ring Blanket

A few days ago I finished this small Double Wedding Ring Blanket - a fabulous pattern designed by Jennifer Olvarez.

I love the pattern that is created by these motifs, but wanted to see if I enjoyed crocheting them before I committed to a larger project.

And I did indeed enjoy it, so I have now ordered enough balls of red Cotton 8 ply from Bendigo Woollen Mills to make a queen-sized blanket!

The other day I saw a post on Facebook about these leggings and I couldn't resist...

 ;-)

Ringo the Flamingo

Here's Ringo, the friendly flamingo! Made for my youngest son, who plays the drums and is a Beatle fan :-)

The pattern is from the book Crocheted Wild Animals by Vanessa Mooncie. In 2019 I made the owl from that book.

The yarn that I used is cotton 8 ply from Bendigo Woollen Mills, plus a bit of variegated yarn from Spotlight for the feathers.

The best thing about finishing a project is that I get to do a photo shoot for the blog and the socials!

Now to decide what I shall crochet next... Any suggestions?

Requiem for a Rainbow Cushion

 In 2013 I made what I still think is my best creation ever: the Giant Rainbow Floor Cushion!

It was a project for the first issue of Love Sewing Australia, a magazine that sadly no longer exists. I had been asked to make 'a floor cushion with piping'. Having never made anything with piping before, I was quite proud of how it turned out!

It found a place in the living room of the house in Brisbane that we lived in at the time.

My kids (then 10, nine and seven years old) loved it and often used it to read, play, or even sleep on.

When we moved to our next house in Brisbane it got a place in my eldest son's room:

In the year that we lived in Sydney, we didn't have much space. None of the kids wanted it in their (small) bedrooms, and it was a bit lost in the room that doubled as our bedroom and lounge.

But then we moved to the Gold Coast and adopted Barney, a rescue dog...

 And he immediately claimed the Rainbow Cushion! On hot summer days he would lie on the tiles with his head on the cushion:

Here is the boy of photo 3, a few years older!

After two years of daily use by Barney the cushion wasn't looking very good anymore, so I restuffed it:

The cushion moved with us to the house that we live in now, but recently I realised that it had really reached the end of its life.

The colours were faded, the fabric was torn in several places...

Time to let it go! I've bought a new 'orthopedic' cushion for our old dog and, after taking the two photos above, dumped the Rainbow Cushion in the garbage container.

Farewell Rainbow Cushion, we will never forget you! Maybe one day I will make a new one...

(and if you want to make one too, you can get the pattern in my Etsy shop!)

Another Bertie Baby Blanket

 Yesterday I finished this baby blanket, using up the blue yarn from the Sea Colours blanket.

It's another Bertie Baby blanket, similar to the one I made last year. I love this pattern, it's so easy to crochet and looks so good!

 This one is for a baby boy expected in October. A big part of it was done while watching the Olympics.

I'm trying to decide what to crochet next. Maybe it's time for some amigurumi?

Mandala Pillow 2

 A friend recently admired the Mandala Pillow I made a while ago, so I made one for her.

I used blue cotton 8 ply from Bendigo Woollen Mills and made a pillow with some white fabric from my stash. In retrospect I'm not sure if that was the best choice - but it's finished now and my friend is happy with it, that's all that matters!

I may make another one of these pillows as I really like them!

Lotus and Blossom Mandala 3

  

 

This week I finished my third Lotus and Blossom Mandala (you can find no.1 here and no.2 here). 

 

 

I stretched it in a hoop and it is now hanging in our bedroom (the colours look very different in the indoor photos - it's really the same mandala!). It goes very well with the Classic Lone Star Quilt.

This third mandala only took me three weeks to crochet. I enjoyed making it just as much as the previous two - I might even make a fourth one!