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Trying something new 

Ive been crocheting for a long time, more years than i care to remember but even an old dog like me can learn something new occasionally.  

I’ve been having a go at corner-to-corner (C2C) crochet, and I love it. If you do not know what it is, it is a way of working to create shapes by working corner to corner, literally! I decided to give it a go because I wanted to create a blanket from the yarn cakes I have made from odd ends of yarn. 

Variegated yarns do not always work well in crochet because of the different size of the stitches. As the lengths of colour in my yarn cakes are quite long, this is the ideal pattern to use as you get broad blocks of colour. 

So, having decided to give C2C a go, I opened Pinterest to look for a tutorial. Now, normally I can follow a written pattern quite easily but even with pictures, I could not get this! Next stop YouTube, so much easier following while someone else did it. 

I am an experienced crocheter and can pick up most things quite easily.  I have just started teaching a beginner’s class for people brand new to crochet and those who have tried in the past. The first thing I tell them is to use every resource available when you are learning, including your classmates as they all learn at different rates and can help each other out. 

I always think a day is not wasted if you learn something new and you are never too old to learn. 

Hookers do it with WIPs and chains! We’ve all laughed at phrases like that but a serious crocheter always has WIPs, works in progress. January is a great time to go through your project and decide what to keep.

As I’ve said before, January is my time to make things for me and this quite often means finishing things. I’m working on a baby blanket for my friend’s first grandchild. I started it on holiday in September and the baby is due soon!

Spurred on by the deadline, I got the project out to take a look and didn’t like what I saw. The pattern was heavy and way too big. So, it got pulled back and I’m remaking it.

I found this lovely free pattern and decided to make it. I got quite a bit worked up, then decided it’s way to fancy for a baby, too many holes for little fingers to get stuck in. So, once again frogged it

In the end, I opted for a simple granny square, with a circle at the centre. And I have yarn left for some little accessories.

I’m sure mum-to-be will love this.

Don’t be afraid to pull something back if you don’t like it. It’s not a waste of time, just getting it right.

January for me is a time to take stock, both literally and figuratively. As this is my quiet time, I go through all my WIPs and decide what I’m going to finish and what I’m going to frog.

When my Nana taught me to crochet, more years ago than I like to think about, she got all her wool from pulling back hand knitted garments she sourced at jumble sales. That is virtually impossible now as handmade garments are rare to find and much cherished. But using up all your short ends of yarn and frogging things you don’t love are a great source of new yarn.

The rise in popularity of yarn cakes, self-striping colours in a flat ‘cake’, has also sparked a new trend of making your own cakes. Gather together all your bits of yarn, sort them by weight, then by colours. Use a knotless join, then wind them into a ball. You can get mechanical ball winders that produce a flat cake.

So, get sorting this January, you will discover a whole wealth of reloved craft materials.

The 12th night has passed and we are officially out of the Christmas period and it’s time to look ahead to a new year. New year’s resolutions are so easily broken, so this year I’m going to try something new instead. I read that it’s much easier to try something new for 30 days than try not to do something, like eating sweets!

What’s better than a new craft for a new year. I’m going to try Calligraphy. I’ve had a kit for some time and now is the chance to try it out. Watch this space.

I always take a bit of a break from my own workshops at this time of year. Mostly to give myself time to tidy up the craft room after the Christmas chaos but also to take stock of what’s on the agenda for the year, what went well last year – and what didn’t!

Amongst what went well, were the Crochet courses I ran. So much so that my last lot of beginners are moving up to the advanced. I’m starting a new run of beginners lessons from January ( that course is already full) and another session ready to start at Easter time.

For a couple of years, I’ve been doing online demonstrations. I love doing it, either through Facebook Live or also with the Royal Voluntary Service. They run a Facebook page called the Virtual Village Hall. It started up during lockdown to give people chance to take part in all the activities that they would have done in groups at their local village hall. 

They have classes for everything – exercise, meditation, languages, cooking and, of course, crafts. And this is where I come in. They asked me to do one demonstration for Easter three years ago and I’m still doing them! I do a couple of classes each month on lots of different things – I’m always trying a new craft and once I’ve got it I do a workshop. 

I find it very easy being on camera, it’s like talking to yourself, so easy for me Ha ha. Once you get the hang of setting up the camera and connecting to the VVH, then it’s a doddle. I’ve built up a little following of regular viewers,  

So, if you use Facebook, search @virtual village hall for live classes or go to their YouTube channel to look at past classes. Check out my demo’s while you there. 

Ive been working on a new line of designs – Wee Jack’s Pet Emporium – inspired by my little fluff munchkin. Being a true crafty pet momma, I’ve made quite a few things for jack over the last year he has lived with us and I thought I’d try them out on the wider public.

Now we are ready to roll! Ive set up an Etsy shop (again) and booked a table at a sale. Ive got my stock ready, not just dog accessories but toys for cats, and small animals too.

Yet again I’m putting myself out there in the hope that someone will buy something. I’m always very optimistic when I start these venture but the truth is I’ve hardly ever sold anything. It can be quite dis-heartening if you let it. But, I enjoy the process of designing and making the items, then marketing them, so as long as I don’t lose any money, I’ll keep trying.

And that’s the business of craft selling. You won’t make a fortune unless your very lucky but you will get to spend time with like minded people, online and in person.

So do you want to see some of my new line?

Pop along to our Etsy shop, https://weejackspetemporium.etsy.com if you would like to buy anything. Please !