Fern Gully Bag

The Fern Gully Bag is one of my newest patterns, and is available now on Ravelry, Etsy and LoveKnitting/Love Crochet.

Purchase direct from Ravelry here:

It is available in both UK and US, both versions are available to download. I think this is easier than having two listings, as it means if someone accidentally picks the wrong version, they can easily remedy.
It uses 1 x 200 g ball of Bendigo Classic Wool, and works up fairly quickly. Great project for someone who has mastered the basics and looking for a next step project.

If that isn't enough value already, there are also instructions for an alternative version of the square, one of the prototype versions that was too pretty to leave out. 

Thanks for having a look! If you do make a bag, please let me know by adding a project on Ravelry, tagging me on Instagram, or sharing on my Facebook page!

Heeeyyy!

Hi from the World's Worst Blogger™!

I have been pretty quiet here, mostly because I naively forgot how much work a now 1 year old is! 


Sadly, the blog is the first thing on the 'later' pile.  However  have been doing a LOT of crocheting, and have quite a few patterns to be released in the second half of the year. Two patterns are going to be published by a yarn company, so that's pretty exciting, and a few more will be self published.

I've been working on changing up how I write patterns, and have a beautiful new template. I'm unsure if I will republish all my patterns in the same format - which if you already have, you'll be able to access the new format at no cost- but I'm thinking of redoing a few so they can be bundled together nicely.

Anyway, I hope you're going to be as excited with the new patterns as I am!

Don't forget to check me out on instagram - @emma_crochets for updates!

Nebula Square - free pattern - Part 1.

I've started a nice easy throw, using Papatya Batik yarn in colour 554-31. I'm using three balls and as 5 mm hook (H size)
(avaliable here - not affilate link!) 

The squares are fairly simple - just 3 rounds of a solid granny square.
I'll decide on lay out once all squares are complete, so no joining as I go!

Method for square: In US terms

Make a magic ring - or chain 5 and sl st join.

Round 1: Chain 3 (counts as dc) 2 dc, 3 ch, *3 dc, 3 ch, repeat from *twice, sl st  into the top of the first dc. (12 dc, 12 ch)

Round 2: Chain 3 (counts as dc) dc into same stitch, dc into next stitch, *(2 dc, 3 ch, 2 dc) into chain space, dc into next three stitches, repeat from * twice, (2 Dc, 3ch, 2 Dc) into ch sp, sl st into first dc. (28 dc, 12 ch)

Round 3: Chain 3 (counts as dc) dc into same stitch. dc into next 3 stitches. *(2 dc, 3 ch, 2 dc) into chain space, dc into next 7 sts, repeat from * twice,  dc into next two sts, sl st into first dc. (44 dc, 12 ch)


You can continue in this fashion if you'd like bigger squares, increasing 4 stitches in each corner space as (2 dc, 3 ch, 2 dc)

Fasten off, and weave in ends.

Edited to add- 1 ball of yarn (100g/ 360m) gets about 32 squares,which measure 3.5 inches/8.9 cm width

Link to part 2 >> Joining the Square <<

If you are in a position to donate - please consider buying me a coffee. Your support allows me to produce free patterns.

Maker Monday - with O&Y Studio

Today I have a little chat with Andrea from O&Y Studio. I discovered her on instagram, and have become very enamoured with her work!


1.Please introduce yourself, and tell us what you create / your business?

I'm Andrea or Andy. I was born and raised in South Africa and moved to the USA in my twenties. I live in the beautiful Southern city of Charlotte in North Carolina.

I am the owner and designer of O&Y Studio. I hand stitch one-of-a-kind, wool-on-wool embroideries. First I crochet a circle or oval, then I mount it in a traditional, wooden embroidery hoop, and lastly, I embroider it.. The hoop becomes the frame and can be hung on a wall or rested on a shelf. I stitch mostly flowers and botanicals. I love to incorporate hand-spun and hand-dyed or painted wool yarns into my embroideries.

2. How long have you been creating?


I've been knitting and sewing since I was 4. My mother gave me my first sewing machine at age 11 and I taught myself (and my mother) to crochet in my teenage years. When my children were small I became hooked on smocking in a big way. I made custom order children’s clothing and heirloom christening gowns. I even owned a smocking shop for a while and taught many people in Charlotte to smock and to do fine hand sewing. I went on to work in retail as a buyer and set up store displays. More recently I wanted to start a new business selling my handmade items. I had a vague idea of what I wished to create but I especially wanted it to be something unique that no one else was making. I went about scouting for embroidery hoops in vintage shops and then I started experimenting with crocheting the backgrounds. When I got those proportions right, it was time to do the fun part - the embroidery. By November of 2016, I had a collection of hoops built up so I decided to launch a website and I listed my hoops in an Etsy shop. I have been most encouraged by the nice response to my work.

3. Do you start with ideas or materials?

I have the materials already, so I start with ideas. Flowers are my inspiration 90% of the time. The flowers I have growing in my garden inspire me. I love photographing flowers and have built up quite a library that I used this past winter when I didn’t have much blooming in the garden. Some of my flowers are realistic but mostly I love to do my own interpretation choosing the colours from the palette of the wools that I own. I have a little notebook of "Things I want to try” - colour combinations to use, different flowers I wish to stitch and other applications I would like to attempt. I have built up quite a stockpile of woolen yarns, many of them I bring back in my luggage from trips home to South Africa (from the area surrounding my family's sheep farm) or on other trips if I have time to go and find a new wool shop!


4. How relevant is social media to you and your business?


Social Media has had a lot of importance to me in my business. I've been growing an Instagram following of my @oandystudio account and most of my sales have come from there. My Facebook business page is definitely not growing in the same way, however, I have made a few sales though Facebook so I know I need to give it time, after all I’ve only been doing this for five months.


5. Would you like to add anything further?


Please consider following me in my social media and please tell me you discovered me on Emma's blog!
My Instagram account is instagram.com/oandystudio and my Facebook page is at facebook.com/oandystudio/


For more about me and my embroideries, you may check out my website and if you care to, please subscribe to my mailing list oandystudio.com
You can either access my shop through the website or through Etsy: etsy.com/shop/oandystudio

If you are a “pinner” and prefer Pinterest, I’m on there too and have a board of my hoops… pinterest.com/oandystudio/

Maker Mondays- Adelaide Hills Yarn Co.

Welcome to this Monday's instalment of the blog series -

Today's Makers are a little different, Adelaide Hills Yarn Company.

Please introduce yourself, and tell us what your business?


We are Diana and Amanda, two friends who met whilst working together and developed a love for crocheting and using chunky yarns. We decided to start our own on line T shirt yarn store to make the products more accessible to Australian crafters. Our products are used by crocheters, knitters, weavers and macramé artists. 

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How long have you been established?

We officially opened Adelaide Hills Yarn Co in June last year (2016), so not even 12 months yet. We have been delighted with the response that we received to our yarns, and can hardly believe how far we have come in such a short time. We have since added other 

products other than T shirt yarn.

Do you start with ideas or materials?

We started our business with just an idea. We had the materials in mind, and months were spent sourcing what we wanted

How relevant is social media to you?

Extremely. It is the foundation of our business really. We have built our business from nothing using Instagram and Facebook alone.

Anything else to add? 

Our products are made from factory offcuts from the textile industry that would otherwise go into landfill. We are pleased to be able to make a difference, no matter how small. 

My Textured Clutch pattern uses Adelaide Hills ribbon and rope yarn. You can find the pattern here: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/textured-clutch-pair

Find the Adelaide Hills Yarn Co shop and Facebook page here:

https://adelaide-hills-yarn-co.myshopify.com

https://www.facebook.com/Adelaidehillsyarnco

If you would like to be a 'Monday Maker' email me a [email protected]

Maker Mondays with Mikaela Bates from Vivid Kreations

Time for the next Maker Monday! Settle in, while we take a look at the face behind Vivid Kreations, Micaela Bates

Please introduce yourself, and tell us what you create?

Hi, I’m Mikaela from Vivid Kreations. I live in Ipswich, Queensland in Australia, though I am originally from Echuca, Victoria. 

I was (am) a secondary English and Italian teacher but I am currently lucky enough to be at home with my adorable 5 year old son. My partner and I run our own mobile detailing business and I have started my own business, Vivid Kreations. 

I love many different creative art forms though my biggest passion is crochet. I love to design items that are suitable for the warmer Queensland weather but still have a measure of comfort and cosiness, as well as beautiful items for the home. 

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How long have you been crocheting and designing?

I discovered crochet just after moving to Queensland in 2013 and I was off down the rabbit hole, learning everything I could and thinking about crochet all the time!

My first design came the following year when I was looking for a summer friendly Santa hat pattern and couldn’t find one- and so the Slouchy Summer Santa hat was born. 

I haven’t really stopped designing since but I only started publishing my patterns last year. 

Do you start with ideas or materials?

I generally start with an idea. I have notebooks full of ideas all over the place! I have just started to organise them into my bullet journal so I can find them again and get more patterns written up to share.

Sometimes I am inspired by a particular yarn that’s just shouting to be something specific but usually an idea will come to me from a need (most often wishing for a lighter weight version of something so I can actually wear it!), an interesting stitch pattern or from something I’ve seen.

How relevant is social media to you?

Social media is definitely important for me in a few different ways. 

Number one is connecting with other makers. I am constantly inspired by the amazing things other people have made, which energises me and keeps me excited about my craft. 

Two, it’s perfect for sharing what I’m doing and to help me learn from other people who share their tips and tricks. 

Three, it’s a great way to get my designs out into the world in a way that feels friendly and not pushy.

Anything else to add? 

I believe that creativity is an important part of life. It’s enjoyable, satisfying (even when it’s challenging) and engages our minds in a way that motivates us and promotes learning. 

As a teacher I approach pattern writing like I would creating learning materials for my students and I try to make my patterns as accessible as possible. I want anyone who follows my patterns to be able to achieve success and feel proud of what they have created and capable of trying the next thing that comes along. 

I am also starting a blog to share my creative journey: my crochet and other creative projects; my love of colour in the world around us; and exploring what creativity means and how it is beneficial for all of us.

Links

Website/blog

http://vividkreations.com.au

Etsy

https://www.etsy.com/au/shop/VividKreations

Ravelry

http://www.ravelry.com/designers/mikaela-bates

If you would like to be a 'Monday Maker' email me a [email protected]

Maker Mondays with Bec Morris from Pinch Me Beautiful

Welcome to this week's instalment of the blog series -

Today's we interview Bec- weaver extraordinaire, who appears online as Pinch Me Beautiful!


Please introduce yourself, and tell us what you create?

Hi I’m Bec - I’m a beach loving, coastie mum of two. On any given day you can find me drinking tea, baking brownies and I also like to make pretty woven wall hangings in-between the school runs. 

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How long have you been creating?

Well, after having my second baby I was feeling like I needed something creative - just for me. So I decided to start blogging and Pinch Me Beautiful was born (around two years ago now.) Randomly I bought a ticket to a local weaving workshop and something just clicked. My mum owns a wool shop so I have always been around yarn but could barely knit a scarf. Once I started I couldn’t stop! Soon my house was filling up with weaves. Then my friends and family started admiring my new hobby and asking me if they could buy them - and then and the custom requests started rolling in people love one-off pieces. It was from there that my business slowly started as people grew more and more interested.    

Do you start with ideas or materials?

Generally I’m not one to have a plan. Usually I just find a few skeins of yarn I love, or sometimes I’ll have an idea in mind. I like to take inspiration from around me, like the beach or a painting, or even a funky pattern. Then I just start and usually it all just evolves. For example, a customer posted me one of their pillowcases to use as inspo for a custom weave - It was really fun designing that way. I also find a lot of inspo from the beach but generally the designs evolve and I think, ohh a pom-pom would look good there. Sometimes I do stubble across a beautiful piece of roving or a skein of yarn and I know exactly what I want to do with it. 

customer's pillowcases

How relevant is social media to you?

Social media is a big part of my business. I love to be able to share my work online and embrace my other passion; photography. Because Pinch Me Beautiful all started as a Blog. 
It gave me the platform to share and sell my weaves. It is a great network and community - I love tagging the creative people who make the materials that I use, we all share each others images and use Instagram as a way to inspire each other, trade techniques and keep in touch. Instagram is also one of my fave hobbies - It’s my outlet to sharing myself and getting back in touch with my creative side after having my kids. And my profile isn’t just pictures of my weaving, it’s all the things that I’m grateful for, beautiful beaches, my awesome kids, style, fashion, baking and my ridiculously cute chubby cheeked cat. 

Anything else to add? 

You can find my blog at http://pinchmebeautiful.blogspot.com.au It has lots of recipes, DIY projects, pom pom love and stories from my life. Even though it’s been over a year since I posted, I still consider it live, people still seem to enjoy it and maybe one day I’ll get back into it - if the orders ever slow down a bit. 

Insta …https://www.instagram.com/pinchmebeautiful/

Facebook..https://www.facebook.com/pinchmebeautiful/

Shop..http://pinchmebeautiful.bigcartel.com

or just search the hashtag #pmbweaves

If you would like to be a 'Monday Maker' email me a [email protected]