Silk – PipsRainbow

September 25, 2019 No Comments

Well hello my lovely ones! How are we all? Hope we have all had a good starts to the week. Ours has been busy busy as always. Usual school run and after school craziness!! But all good, all good.

It’s definitely getting more autumny now isn’t it! It is a lovely time of year though. I just adore those warm colours that all the trees and leaves delight us with each year. So magical. But I definitely think it’s layers time!! One minute your rather chilly and the next on a seriously warm side!! Layers at the ready peeps!! My usual 4 socks method has begun on my feet already!!

So I have to apologise for the rather large delay with this pattern. I had promised it many months ago, but guessing a bit of better late than never spirit needs to be going on. I’ve always wanted to design another mandala. They are such a beautiful sight, when they are displayed in all their glory with vases and pots on them filled with bright colours of flowers and sunny blooms. But I also wanted to mix it up with the yarn I used and wanted to come away from the double knit cottons that are usually used for mandalas and try my hand at a more dainty and delicate yarn such as this 3ply silk. And what better yarn to use than this beautiful 3ply mulberry silk from the very talented Abby Parkes.

So my gorgeous little ball of yarny loveliness came out of this little parcel of magic from Luxury Yarns.

It was from a previous instalment from the Ōil Yarns Club that the wonderful Abby has set up. So my parcel comprised of a skein of beautifully hand dyed yarn by Abby, a little bottle of some essential oils from the DōTERRA range and a lovely little jewel marker. You can sign up for one, two or three monthly instalments, so you can make it work for you. If you fancy a peak and are intrigued, then just follow the link below.

https://luxuryyarns.co.uk/oilyarns-club/

Trust me, you won’t be disappointed!!

Right then, so let’s get started.

Level –

Moderate (There’s a few slightly tricker stitches in this one.)

Supplies –

So for this project I have this beautiful 3ply mulberry silk yarn. I have only used about 15g of yarn, so you could definitely make quite a few with a ball of yarn. You will also need a 3mm crochet hook, some scissors and a blunt ended tapestry needle.

Stitches –

Magic Ring – Fold over the yarn to make the loop. Insert your hook through the loop and grab the working yarn (long piece) and pull through the loop. Hold the tail and the working yarn and pull so that the knot tightens, but you still have a loop. This has created a magic ring.

Slip stitch (ss) – This is where there is no height to the stitch. It’s usually used to join rounds. So insert the hook into the front of the stitch you are joining to. This is usually the first stitch you made in that round/row. So yarn over hook and pull through that first stitch then also through the loop on your hook.

Chain (ch) – To make a chain, place the yarn over the hook then pull it through the loop on your hook.

Double Crochet (dc) – Insert the hook through the stitch, front to back, then yarn over hook and pull back through stitch. You will have two loops on your hook. Then yarn over your hook and pull through both loops.

Half treble (htr) – A half treble crochet is basically one less movement than a treble. So yarn over hook, insert through space/stitch, yarn over hook, pull back through space/stitch. There should be 3 loops on your hook. Then yarn over hook and pull through all 3 loops.

Treble (tr) – To make a treble crochet, firstly yarn over your hook, insert through space/stitch, yarn over your hook, pull back through space/stitch. There should now be 3 loops on your hook. Then yarn over hook and pull through the first two loops, yarn over hook and pull through the last two loops.

Back Loop Double Crochet (bldc) – Insert the hook through the second part of the stitch, front to back, then yarn over hook and pull back through stitch. You will have two loops on your hook. Then yarn over your hook and pull through both loops.

Back Loop Treble Crochet (bltr) – Yarn over your hook and insert the hook through the second part of the stitch, front to back, then yarn over hook and pull back through stitch. You will have three loops on your hook. Then yarn over your hook and pull through the first two loops. Then yarn over your hook and pull through the last two loops.

Ok so here we go …

1 – Start by working a magic ring, then ch1. Follow this by working 6dc into the magic ring, then pull the tail right to create the first round. Finally slip stitch into the first dc stitch.

If you’re not sure how to work a magic ring, then here’s a little video for a quick reminder.

2 – Now Ch3 and work 2tr in the first stitch. Now work *2tr in the next stitch.* Repeat this ** 5 times. Finish by ss into the first tr in the round.

3 – Ch3 and work 1tr in the first stitch. Now work 2tr in the next stitch. Now work *1tr, then 2tr in the next stitch.* Repeat this ** 5 times. Finally ss into the first tr stitch.

4 – For this round, you are going to work back loop treble stitches. Start by chaining 3 then *1bltr in the first stitch. (Remember you only work your bltr stitches in the back loop of the stitch below. This is where the arrow is pointing in the photo below.

Then work 1bltr, followed by 2bltr in the next stitch.* Repeat this ** 6 times. Finally ss in the first bltr.

5 – Chain 2, *1htr followed by ch1.* Repeat this ** 24 times. Ss into the first htr stitch.

6 – Ch3 then work *2tr and ch1 in the ch1sp.* Repeat this ** 24 times. Ss into the first tr stitch.

7 – Now ch3 then work *3tr in each ch1sp.* Repeat this ** 24 times. Ss into the first tr stitch.

8 – Chain 3 and work 1tr in the first stitch and chain 3. Work *1tr in between the next 3tr cluster and chain 3.* Repeat this ** 23 times. Ss in the first tr stitch.

9 – Ch3 work 1tr in the first stitch and ch5. Work *1tr in the next 1tr stitch and then ch5.* Repeat this ** 23 times. Ss into first tr stitch.

10 – Ch3 and now *work 4tr into each 5chsp.* Repeat this ** 24 times. Ss into the first tr stitch.

11 – Ch2 and *work 1htr in first stitch. Then miss a stitch and chain 1.* Repeat this ** 48 times. Ss into the first tr stitch.

12 – Ch3 then *work 3htr in each ch1sp.* Repeat this ** 48 times. Ss into the first tr stitch.

13 – Ch 1. Now work *1bldc in each stitch.* Repeat this ** 144 times. Ss into the first bldc stitch.

14 – Ch1 and work 1dc in the first stitch. Chain 5, miss 4 stitches, then work 1dc the next stitch. *1dc in the next Stitch, chain 5, miss 4 stitches then 1dc in the next stitch.* Repeat this ** 23 times. Ss in the first dc.

15 – *Ss into the ch5sp. Now work 6tr stitches in the ch5sp, then ss in the same ch5sp.* Repeat this ** 24 times. Ss into the first ss.

16 – Work 1dc in the first stitch, *then ch8 and work 1dc in between the 2dc stitches from the round below.* Repeat this ** 24 times. Ss in the first dc.

17 – Work 1dc in the first dc stitch, then ch9 and then work 1dc in next dc stitch.* Repeat this ** 24 times. Ss into the first dc stitch.

18 – In the ch8sp work 2htr, 4tr, 2htr and then work 1dc into the next dc.* Repeat this ** 24 times. Ss into the first htr stitch.

19 – Work 1dc into each stitch. Repeat this ** 216 times. Ss into the first dc and fasten off.

And there you have your beautiful mulberry mandala. Don’t forget to sew in your two ends!!!

Can’t wait to see all your creations!! Don’t forget to share them on social media.

As always, any problems or questions just give me a shout.

Happy hooking!

🌈Xx

(Free pattern designed and brought to you by PipsRainbow. Thank you for not copying or recreating it. ☺️Xx)

Oh I do like to be beside the seaside!

The British Seaside…

I just don’t think you can beat it. The sea air, golden sands, crashing waves and constant tide change and of course, the serious amount of ice cream that has to be consumed. Bliss. There is something rather special about a British Seaside trip, that I don’t think can be found anywhere else in the world.

It’s been our yearly pilgrimage to Cornwall and the sunny south. And as always we have loved it. It seems to call us every year. I think since having children, it’s been our go to holiday. And in the past 6/7 years we haven’t missed a year.

The Cornish definitely know a thing or two about how to make someone’s summer holiday by the seaside special. Seriously – Rainbow Teapots at The Cherry Tree Cafe in Padstow!!!! Definitely a spot of PipsRainbow heaven going on!!!! We had a lovely lunch there and it is well worth a visit if you are in Padstow. They made the kids feel at home and my daughter reckoned her cake was the best she had tasted out!! As you can imagine, we go every year!!

And of course you can’t go to Cornwall without having a Cornish Cream Tea at the wonderful cafe at Bedruthen Steps.

The National Trust walk to the beach will definitely help you burn off some of that cream tea too!!!

But our one and only favourite place is Mother Ivy’s Bay and the wonderful Padstow Lifeboat Station. I don’t know what it is about this place, but it just seems to fill me with happiness. It seems magical somehow. It draws you into this seaside summery bliss. Everyone seems to relax into the holiday mode and the beach and waves call to us each morning to get up and play.

My daughter seems to have turned into a complete seaside fish or mermaid as she likes to put it. We couldn’t get her out of the water! Whether she was on her body board or just wave diving, she was in the water!! She kept diving under the waves and popping up like a little seal and then back under again!!! Funny!! And what was the activity she wanted to do when we got home, drum role please… we went swimming in our local pool!!! One little mermaid!!

My son on the other hand, being younger, got cold quite quickly, so was quite happy to paddle and play with his little boat. When I wrote this, I had him snuggled up in my arms in our beach tent. I think too many rock pools and waves had got the better of him.

I remember my daughter doing the exact same thing. She would just zonk out under a pile of towels in the tent and have a well earned nap and wake up slightly freaked out as to where she was, until she remembered. She used to do the same on her grandparents boat. Lie down in the cockpit, under a pile of towels and off she would go. Wish I could do that! Never been one for taking a nap just anywhere really!! My Mum used to say that I slept well as a baby and then it all went to pot when I was a child!! Not sure why. Maybe the fear of missing out and the call for adventure.

It’s funny when you go on holiday, as to what different things that everyone takes!! When my husband and I we’re wee nippers, we used to bring a whole bag of books that we would consume over the holiday. But alas, as I am sure that many parents will concur, I took one and opened it once. Funny. It’s all about the kiddies on holiday isn’t it. There definitely isn’t a moment to just sit and concentrate on a book. I know it will come, as the kids get older, but I definitely don’t want to wish this time away!!! So books seem to be a non starter for us at the minute.

I did however, manage to sneak a few crocheting projects with me into the beach bag each day. Most got covered in sand and possibly sun cream, but they seem to have survived.

It’s normal right to bring 4 projects on holiday with you isn’t it? Well I did and yes I did work on each of them. Some more than others!! I managed quite a lot on my silk infinity scarf. This was the silk yarn that I brought from the wonderful Abby at OrchideanYarns. It’s so utterly gorgeous.

It has the most incredible bluey/lilacy colours all intwined together with hints of forget me knot and periwinkle blue and even hydrangea. My Gran used to love these colours. I swear her whole bedroom was a shower of pale blues! So here’s how I am getting on. Can’t wait to share the pattern with you all.

Another of Abby wonderful yarns that found it’s way into our holiday bag was her beautiful Hydrangea Platinum Sock Yarn that was part of her monthly Ōilyarns Club.

My daughter managed to twist my arm and I ended up designing and making her a pair of socks. She had a grin from ear to ear when they found their way onto her feet one morning!! And I did think it was rather apt, that in Cornwall the one flower that you seem to be surrounded by each day, is the beautiful hydrangea!!

And of course I had to bring my Seaside shawl along!! This little lady has been following me around for a year or so now.

The only rule is as some of you may know is that I can only work on it when I am by the sea. It’s a bit of an issue though as I keep taking other projects with me when I we go away, so it doesn’t seem to get finished!

Heyho, I quite like the long process! I wonder how many holidays I can stretch it over!!

And finally my little cashmere number. This scrumptious little baby is just too good to be left behind. I brought it from the wonderful Wool Warehouse website. It wasn’t cheap, but by golly it’s soft and will be so so soft around ones neck. Hoping to get going with it more soon and share the pattern with you, as hoping it will keep my neck warm this winter!!!

So back to my Using Up Year and I couldn’t resist designing a little turtle. My husband and son have you some rather smart matching swim shorts that my mother in law bought for them. They are rather special and have a little friendly turtle all over them in the colours yellow, blue and green. Even though both of them brought different swim shorts, it was their matching pair that came out everyday and was washed every night ready for the next seaside adventure. Bless!!! Will share my little turtle pattern with you guys within a week or two.

Anyways, wishing you all a lovely rest of the week.

Here’s to all you holidays makers. May your holiday be a mix of fun, magic, love, family time and laughter. (And of course a spot of crocheting!!)

Happy hooking chaps!!

🌈Xx