Lily Pond CAL - Block Seven

I am writing this blog sitting at the kitchen table in bright sunshine this morning. We seem to have been waiting for our warm sunny weather for so long this year and it really is a treat to know that we are in for a scorching day here in London town, however, my mood is not really as it should be on such a lovely summer's day. I heard yesterday that a fellow crochet designer Marinke Slump (otherwise known as Wink) took her own life on Friday after a battle with severe depression. Wink was a fabulous crochet designer, her projects were bright and fun and she will be sadly missed within the crochet community.

Wink's death has of course sparked a huge wave of condolences and expressions of sadness on social media forums and so the crochet community has come together and asked that people pay their respects by sharing a crochet mandala with the hashtag #mandalasforwink. You can also share a photo of yourself with flowers in your hair is you would rather #wearingflowersinmyhairforwink

You can read the final posts on Wink's blog by following this link. You will also find a wealth of her lovely mandala designs on her web site should you wish to make one. You can find more information about making a mandala in her memory by following this link.

Today the penultimate set of patterns for the Stylecraft CAL have been published via their web site. The patterns feature another lily flower block and you need to make 4 of them if you are working on the Lily Pond CAL. There is also some finishing that you can do this week so that you are all ready for the final set of patterns in a fortnight's time. A link to this set of patterns is here.

The Medium Lily Flower in this set of patterns is made in a very similar way to the last few you have made, so there are no major surprises, but there is a little bit of making up to do.

Below are the step by step images for making the Medium Flower Block:

Once you have completed the flower at the end of Round 6 you need to create the frame work for the remaining part of the block. In the same way as you have worked for all the other larger flowers, you need to build a framework behind the existing petals by working into the remaining parts of stitches on the reverse of the work. Make sure you catch both yarn loops which sit centrally between the petals:

The image below shows the framework from the reverse side of the work

The image below shows the framework from the front side of the work 

Knitters and Crocheters are famous collectively for the fact that the majority of them hate the sewing up and making up process of their projects. This is to be expected I suppose, as the craft they enjoy is the knitting or crochet and the making up is simply a by product of this process, however if you spend a little time practising and make sure you are relaxed and calm about the process you will find you will achieve some great results!

It is my experience that many crafters leave far too little time for the making up process and therefore get frustrated when a piece isn't completed in the space of about half hour! I have been known to sit for days working on the finishing process of a piece, indeed, one of the crochet blankets in my book 'Homespun Vintage' took me 3 days solid to put together and work the edging!

If you do the finishing in the stages I suggest you will find the process far easier than doing it all in one go at the end. I always sew my yarn ends in as I go along; sewing in after I complete each block so that they are ready for the finishing process once all the crochet is complete. I also mark my pieces with stitch markers so that I can line them up easily to join on the reverse side.

I know that the slip stitches along the side of some of the swatches have driven some of you crazy, but making slip stitches along a side edge, which are then used as the stitches to join your pieces together is the neatest way I know of joining crochet pieces that have been worked in rows. 

If you would rather not have a pronounced ridge on the reverse side of the work, you could always use slip stitches instead of double crochet (US single crochet) as your joining stitches, but you will need to make sure you don't work your stitches too tight. If you would rather sew your pieces together you could use a mattress stitch. 

I hope you enjoy working through the patterns in Set 7. Thank you to all those of you who have taken the time to send me lovely emails and pictures of your projects - I am so glad that so many of you are having a lovely time working through the Lily Pond CAL.

Janie x

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Lily Pond CAL - Block Six

We are very lucky to live near some beautiful woods and parks right on the edge of the green belt to the north of London. I love living here because we get the best of both worlds - the lush countryside of Hertfordshire one way and the excitement of the city the other way. I adore the fact that I have miles of countryside right on my doorstep and have always loved my time walking the dog over the woods whatever the weather and whatever the season, it gives me some really great thinking time and of course a little exercise, whilst also making me a total hero in the eyes of our dog who is happy to charge around the woods like a loony for an hour, circling back to check on my progress every few minutes.

Our walk includes a visit to a large lake in the centre of the woods. Back in the 1930s through to the 1950s you could hire small boats and take a row around the lake, but now it is the domain of fishermen and dog walkers like me. It is a quiet, pretty place, where I see herons, squirrels and the occasional deer, but this time of year it is extra special because the water lilies are starting to appear. Their leaves are busy growing up through the water and the buds of the lilies are beginning to show through and I just can't wait for the day when I get to the lake and first of the lilies are in bloom. As soon as they appear I will post some images.

image courtesy of John Keogh

Jack's Lake in 1942

If you're doing the Lily Pond CAL you will probably know that today is new pattern day! You can download pattern set number 6 'Bobbles and Wavy Shells' from the Stylecraft web site by following this link.

As with a few of my other blog posts in regard to the Lily Pond CAL, I don't have a huge amount to tell you about this piece, so instead of waffling on, I am posting the step by step images so that you have a larger version than those used in the patterns to refer to. 

The block starts in exactly the same way as Block Four, 'Bobbles and Pinwheels' and you can see the step by step images for making the bobbles by following this link to my blog post about Block Four. On Row 4 you will make a wave by working a pattern repeat of stitches that range from double crochet (US single crochet) thorough to double treble crochet (US treble crochet).

Make sure you count your stitches after Row 5. Having the wrong stitch count will affect where the fans are made on the next row and you could find that your pattern is out of sync.

On Row 6 you will make some fans using the mint shade of yarn - all 7 stitches are worked into the same stitch. 

The pattern has a four row repeat. Every alternate row is a row of double crochet between the rows where you make the fans. 

I love this stitch formation as it reminds me of ripples in the water and of the water lily leaves beginning to form on the top of the pond water.

On Row 18 you need to work a combination of stitches in order to create a straight edge. Once again it is important to check your stitch count before and after you work this row.

Once you have completed your piece you need to sew in your yarns ends. I tend to do this as I go along so that I don't have a major sewing job to do once my crochet is complete. 

Once you have completed your 4 blocks, you need to work a row of slip stitches along each side. You are going to place a motif from Block Three between each strip so make sure you crochet your edges in the correct shade - Teal where the Lily Bud will join in and Olive along the remaining side. the images below show the slip stitches along the edge of Block One, but the way you work the slip stitch rows is the same. 

Join the Lily Bud motif using double crochet (US single crochet) on the wrong side of the work and matching one side of your slip stitch to each full stitch around the motif. 

If you prefer a flatter seam you could do your joining using slip stitches, but you will need to use a larger hook than the one used for double crochet (US single)

It is hard to believe that there is now just a month before the last set of patterns are released for the CAL. As you are now beginning to put your motifs and blocks together, Stylecraft have posted Blocking and Pressing instructions which you can download from their web site and you can link to a blog post which includes this information by following this link.

The response to the Lily Pond CAL has been really amazing and I am so happy that Stylecraft supported me in this project. I am a major fan of their yarns and so have been working on a new blanket project which we will be releasing as a kit very soon. I have pasted a taster image below in the hope that it might whet your appetite for another Janie Crow project and I will add more images and info about this project very soon.

The kit will be available in both Life DK and Special DK and we are currently aiming to have kits ready for dispatch in about a month's time, so watch this space!

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Workshops in India

When I was in India at the beginning of the year I got an email from Dame Hilary Blume, founder of the charity Knit For Peace, asking me if I would like to tutor a workshop in Mysore in 2016. The timing of her email couldn't have been more perfect as I had by then fallen head over heals in love with India and I knew that I would definitely want to return as soon as I could. Of course I agreed to tutor the workshop without hesitation and am already getting really excited about the forthcoming trip.

Knit For Peace is a fantastic charity and I am so pleased to have the chance to get involved with them. Knit For Peace is an initiative of the Charities Advisory Trust and it grew out of projects initially developed in Rwanda and India where women from traditionally hostile communities came together to knit clothes for street children and orphans. Knit groups have since been set up in other locations all over the world and the charity supports them by providing yarn and needles and by guiding the distribution networks in order to make sure that the knitted items reach the places they are most needed.

Knit For Peace have also made the connection between charitable giving and the desire people have to prolifically knit & crochet. The charity not only supports those in need, by making sure knitted items reach them and helping them set up knit groups, but it also focuses on those who wish to create items to donate. Once Knit For Peace made it clear that they were happy to accept knitted items for distribution they were inundated with knitted and crocheted items, such as sweaters, cardigans, hats and blankets.

The process of knitting or crocheting, rather than the physical outcome of our work, is often sited as the reason us knitters or crocheters spend so much time sat on our bottoms working away on our projects! Knitting and crocheting can send us into a trance like state and it has been medically proven to have a calming effect on mind and body. Whilst many of us have a recipient in mind when planning a project, there are a lot of knitters and crocheters who simply have a desire to make things and who perhaps no longer have anyone to give to. This is where Knit For Peace fits in beautifully as it sources the best suited destinations for the knitted and crocheted items to travel to, such as premature baby units here in the UK, homeless charities and many other organisations who help those living in extreme poverty all over the world. Knit For Peace estimates it supports over 11,000 knitters and crocheters - how cool is that!

Knit For Peace supports the two particular groups of knitters and crocheters (those who make in order to donate and those who make for themselves, friends or loved ones) by giving both an outlet for their work. The charity has an extensive range of download patterns for items you can donate once completed and provides the infrastructure to make sure your knitted item arrives where it should in the world, but it also organises workshops and events aimed at those who wish to improve their skills and have a jolly nice time in the company of like minded people.

The charity launched their workshops in India in 2014 when Erika Knight tutored a workshop in Mysore, followed by Debbie Bliss who tutored this year. Erika will be tutoring another workshop this Autumn and the itinerary looks amazing as the trip includes a few days in Delhi, a visit to the Taj Mahal in Agra and a stay in (my most favourite place ever) the 'pink city' of Jaipur. You can find the itinerary and more info on the web site by following this link.

I adored Jaipur when I visited in February - it is where we got to ride painted elephants and visit the incredible Amber Fort which hides a mirrored palace within it's walls and looks over the Maota Lake with it's palaces and beautiful gardens.

The shopping in Jaipur is amazing too, with shops and markets galore. The people are so friendly and helpful and we had great fun looking through beautiful saris and amazing jewellery. 

I will be tutoring the Mysore workshop in January 2016 and places are already beginning to fill up. I have been told that there are just 5 places left on my workshop, with 11 places already allocated to knitters/crocheters, at least 5 of whom are also bringing their partners. The trip includes 11 nights full board at the beautiful Green Hotel in Mysore and all meals, bottled water, transport to and from Bangalore Airport, local taxes and of course visits to projects and places of interest as well as the workshops. There is an abundance of things for non knitters and crocheters to do, so partners are more than welcome and will be very well looked after.

I am starting to think about the project for the trip and have decided to include both knit and crochet within the workshop structure, although participants can choose whether or not they want to knit, crochet or both. I have started a Pinterest board with some lovely colourful inspiration images and I will be inviting participants to give me an idea of what kind of project they would like to do. A link to the Pinterest Board is here and there are some images from it pasted below.

I think it would be nice to do a project made from knitted or crochet strips and patches which can be decorated to make a completed item. I love appliqué designs and would love to encourage participants to have a go at adding some fun India inspired pieces to their work. The images below are from projects I have already designed using this idea in my book Homespun Vintage.

There is more information about the 2015 holiday in Mysore here with some really positive feed back from the group of knitters who attended this year. 

As I have said already, I am so excited about my involvement with Knit For Peace and am so grateful to Dame Hilary in particular for all her support. We are hoping to have a really exciting new project to tell you about within the next few months, but in the mean time, I hope you will visit the Knit For Peace web site for more information on their work and how you can get involved with this great charity. 

It would be particularly nice to meet you on the Mysore trip if you fancy it, but if your budget doesn't stretch that far then maybe you would like to knit and donate one of the projects that currently feature on the Knit For Peace web site, such as a 'Twiddlemuff' (which have been designed to help those suffering with extreme agitation, such as those with Alzheimer's) an example of which is pictured above. You can find a link to the download patterns on the Knit For Peace page here

Happy Knitting & Crocheting!

Janie x

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