Craft Corner July 2016

I will be honest, things have been a little quiet on the craft front recently. Mainly because 8 weeks ago a new small canine entered the household and, well, it is a little difficult to sit down and crochet in the evenings when you are having to get up every five minutes to check where the puppy has gone in case he:

• is trying to chase one of the cats
• is trying to clamber over the barricade in place to stop him getting up the stairs
• has made it over the barricade at the bottom of the stairs and has found all the cat toys
• has forgotten how to ask to go out and has left a little puddle on the floor somewhere (which I then slip in)
• wants to go outside and run around the back garden like a lunatic, usually whilst trying to hold on to the older dog’s tail (much to the older dog’s disgust)
• is trying to eat the handles of the saucepans
• is trying to get up onto the work top in the utility room in order to reach the dog/cat food

Not to mention the fact that he will spontaneously and very exuberantly launch himself at me as I sit on the sofa. I feel that adding a ball of yarn and small metal stick like things into the equation is just too much of a temptation. Especially as we are still very much in the chewing phase.

Even when you think he is asleep and it may be safe to complete a row or two, his little eyes open and he is intensely interested in the contents of my crochet bag. And his little needle-like claws and teeth are perfect for snagging all sorts of fabric, skin included.

He isn’t around all the time at weekends, so I have managed to crochet a bit, however the top that I started a couple of months ago isn’t finished yet, despite me saying in that post that I thought I would have it finished in a month. I hadn’t factored the puppy in at that point!

However, the back is complete and the front is almost done, which only leaves the sleeves, which don’t take much time at all and then it is just an assembly job. Hopefully I will be able to wear it before the summer is over (what summer we have, anyway).

Due to lack of progress on current projects, I thought I would share with you what I have lined up to do next/alongside:

Knitting – I haven’t knitted anything for ages as crochet is so much quicker, but I saw this pattern for a cardigan and thought it was time the needles came back out. Also it is made using a jersey yarn so it should feel lovely. I haven’t purchased the yarn yet, I was waiting until the crochet top was nearing completion before I did.

Sewing – again, sewing is something that I haven’t done in ages but The Great British Sewing Bee has been back on the TV (I am so sad it is over now) and it has inspired me to get the machine out and to start making myself some dresses again. I have ordered some patterns from Simplicity but they are taking ages to arrive. I will share them with you when they – eventually – get here.

Also on the sewing front, I picked up a couple of copies of Simply Sewing, which I really enjoyed looking through. One issue even came with a free quilting magazine, which, I will be honest, has taken me one step closer to giving it a go. I think I may start with a cushion cover, nothing too big!

All that needs to happen now is for the dining room to be cleared as it is the only table that is long enough for dress pattern pieces and that I can walk all the way round, when it is clear that is. It has become a little bit of a dumping ground!

As always, please share you current projects with me below in the comments below or on Instagram (I’m on there as KirstenHWhyte), I’d love to see them. Also let me know what you are loving or have found that you couldn’t resist. I hear there are sewing/fabric monthly subscription boxes available – I may have to sign up to one!