Meet Lola

As I was making the border for this mini-afghan I couldn't get Barry Manilow's Copacabana song out of my head! You know the one...."her name was Lola... she was a showgirl, with yellow feathers in her hair and a dress cut down to there"... and I thought Lola was a rather fitting name for this mini blanket. I'd like to think Lola the showgirl would very much love to own this snazzy little number - and with a "dress cut down to there" it would help keep things from getting too chilly whilst doing the merangue...

So as you can see, Lola is now covering the stash box as originally intended. Apparently all that was needed was a little light steaming with the iron and a frilly edge and she now hangs beautifully over the box.

Thank you as always for your enthusiasm regarding my crochet goings on. It is always lovely to hear from you. My husband is busy painting the other two Ercol chairs for the dining room, so my next project will be making two new seat pads.

Hope life is rosy in your part of the world x

**The border is made using the pattern from Nicki Trench's Cute and Easy Crochet book. **

I used a 4.5mm hook and it suited the edging very well, making it "lacey" in appearance.

A little vintage... a little crochet

Good morning dear readers...

It is Tuesday morning... mid August.... summertime... I am typing away in the comfort of my bed with the heated blanket on and the wind howling outside and rain lashing against the window...

Summer has forgotten us here in the north of England this past week and it has done nothing but rain. I like rain and it hasn't really bothered me staying in more. Staying in on a rainy afternoon is cosy and at the moment I need the comforts of home as there has been a lot of change going on lately. Rainy days are not so good for trying to photograph spaces indoors however, but I did the best I could.

So during a long weekend off with my husband we had a very relaxed time and found day trips suitable for rainy days... which is how we discovered GB Antiques in Lancaster. This is a fabulous rabbit warren of furniture and home accessories both vintage/retro and antique. It took hours to walk around everything and maybe because there was just so much and it was over-whelming, we only came away with this embroidered tablecloth. The tablecloth was a gem of a find though and in immaculate condition; the colours are perfect for our dining area.

If you ever find yourself in the vicinity of Lancaster, a visit to this centre could offer up some gems...

But what about crochet!

Well, I started hooking a cover for my yarn stash box. The background colour is midnight blue. I love the way the colours look together and it is refreshing to have some darker crochet in the room. The only trouble is, it did not lie right on the box when it was finished. So it has been made redundant and I don't know if it is worth trying to salvage it and make it into a blanket of some kind? I'm a little fed up that this project did not turn out as expected, but it is not the end of the world...

I think the day is fast approaching when our living and dining area will look like this crochet room featured on knithacker.com:

This image scares my husband.... the "crochet on walls" idea excites me...

Sending crochet rainbow loveliness your way.... x

p.s. blogger will not allow me to leave comments at the moment... but this does not mean I am not reading and enjoying your blogs. Alice, I enjoyed reading about the snow and I still get excited when it snows here and Claire, I loved your post on going to the Avoca mill and seeing how the blankets are made (the blanket in the picture above is Avoca and my favourite).

Remember this?

Granny chic scarf by House of Holland for Autumn/Winter 2011...

I blogged about this way back in March and it has been on my "to do" list ever since. Well, now I have my own version. It has been a joy to work on because I have been using  new colour combinations and the granny square pattern from Mollie Makes .

I used Stylecraft double knitting acrylic yarn and Stylecraft double knitting "Lifestyle" yarn which is a wool and acrylic blend with a 4.5mm hook. The larger hook meant the scarf grew very quickly and the pattern has produced a lovely soft warm scarf.

I just love the way the colours look framed in black and this colour combination may be my new obsession for some time to come!

Now I just need the autumn chill so I can wrap myself up in this wonderful rainbow-granny scarf... I'm looking forward to it very much.