Harmony Crocheted Blanket - Work in Progress

Hello and welcome.  It is so long since I checked in I am hoping that I can remember how to do this.
It's been such a busy summer even though as you can imagine the shop has been a little quieter than usual.

 Unfortunately crafters are often gardeners and caravaners which means that my customers seem to disappear off the face of the earth for the six week summer holidays.  However they have thankfully returned with added enthusiasm and are now stocking up on my lovely yarns and fabrics.

I never thought I could be so happy and totally get why you are told to find something you love to do and then find a way to get paid for doing it.  That's what I have done and will never regret leaving the drudgedy of a mind numbing insurance job to pursue my dream of owning a wool shop.  Eighteen months after the shop opened here I am sat at my own table surrounded by hundreds and hundreds of balls of wool.  I love it.
Anyway now I can show you my latest project.

I have long been a fan of Attic 24 the blog where Lucy tells us all about her crochet and love of colour.  I  started her new Harmony Blanket design about three weeks ago just before I went off on my holidays to Winston near Durham in North Yorkshire.  The holiday was wonderful by the way and I will let you have a peak of my photos at a later date. 
I am very envious of Lucy's ability to choose amazing colour schemes that you would never think of and which really work.  I wouldn't normally dream of putting a vile shade of lime with a beautiful subtle shade of sage but she does and they just zing. 

Obviously that is why her blankets are coveted by just about everyone I suppose.  Note to self - I must try harder to think outside the box!

I stock Stylecraft Special Double Knit in the shop and on the website so that made things a lot easier to get started. I then just copied down the basics of the pattern and off I went.  I did mistakenly start with the wrong hook size but after measuring one of the finished squares it made so little difference that I carried on with a 3.5mm instead of a 4.00mm.

I still have a long way to go as I only have eighteen fully completed squares, the rest are at different stages depending on which one I feel like adding a round to at the time.  I can't stand making one complete square at a time and opt to take one set of nine and add on round and then move to a different set and do a different row on that lot.  It means I am forever referring to the colour chart but it just feels less monotonous.  When the 126 squares are all complete I will then start joining them using crochet.  The final stage is a lovely simple border.  The blanket looks amazing when it is done and on the Attic 24 website there are lots of instructions and tutorials so there is no excuse to get it wrong.  A bit of advice at this stage - I strongly recommend sewing in the loose ends as you complete each round.  There are 12 ends on every square x by 126 squares = 1512 + the border ones!
My friend Sonya is doing the blanket too but she prefers to complete her squares and has changed a few of the colours in an attempt to bust her stash.  I haven't seen her lately but will be interested to see how she is getting on.
Hopefully I will get this beauty finished soon and will be able to show you the end result.  I can't wait.

I'm back after being away for far too long.

Hello everyone and a big thank you to anyone who has visited over the last few months only to see that I had disappeared.
Life has and still is hectic and as I now work six days a week in my relatively new shop I unfortunately don't seem to find the time to blog.  However I intend that to change as there is so much I can now involve you all in.

Hayfield Bonus Buzz Double Knitting yarn - £2.79 per 100gr ball

I have had a great six months since the shop opened.  I know it doesn't seem that long but it is.  The shop has been very successful so far and the stock of wool, and now fabrics has increased immensely.

My new fabrics from £4.50 a metre

I have enjoyed choosing and re-choosing all the beautiful items to stock and hope that I have struck a good balance of quality goods which are reasonably priced.

Needlecraft Corner, 19 Ryton Street, Worksop, Notts, S80 2AY

It is a dream come true I can tell you.
Also what's great about owning my own wool and haberdashery shop is that I get to try out as many products as I want.  Well it would be rude not to wouldn't it?

Wendy Roam Sock Wool in Fosse - £5.99 per 100gr ball (75% Wool)

I have some gorgeous sock wools.  This one is a Wendy 4ply called Roam in Fosse which as you can see is a variegated yarn changing from green to blue with a number of other colours intermingled in it. It is fantastic to crochet with as it doesn't split.  It is quite firm and perfect for the lovely shawl I am making in a corner to corner stitch.  Each row increases from one original stitch which means that it immediately becomes a triangle which just gets bigger.  You are supposed to start decreasing when you get to the right size so as you progress the triangle then develops into a square but I wanted a shawl so will keep going until I reach the right size.  I thought it would be perfect for when I go out on a cool summer evening or alternately when I sit in bed knitting I can look like a granny!

James C Brett - Double Knitting with Merino - £2.75 per 100gr ball

Above is a cardigan I have started in James C Brett double knitting with merino which is the nicest wool ever. It feels so cosy and soft. I just love it.

Cross stitch in an embroidery hoop which has been crocheted round

Hand stitched heart of my own design

 As you can see, I have been busy making wall decorations.  I love just deciding what to make and then having all the equipment readily to hand.  I can then plod along and finish things in my own time and in between customers of course.
Below is a picture of our recently finished craft classroom.  It is so bright and fresh in there and painted in a vibrant sky blue which according to our research is the perfect colour for creativity. 

Our new craft classroom is available to hire.

Well I hope you have enjoyed my quick resume of what's been happening in my life.  Of course I will keep on blogging now I have finally broke my silence.  I have truly missed stopping by and it is lovely to get back on the horse as it were.
I hope to speak again soon.  Best regards, Paula x