I think it is safe to say that I am utterly addicted to crocheting! It’s not something that everyone would admit to, but as it stands, I’m one of them!! I’m not even sure how and when it happened really. I don’t think it was a gradual thing either!! All I know is I love giving people little crocheted parcels of love.
I will never forget the sheer joy of finishing Benedict and presenting him to my daughter, who bless her cotton socks, adored him from the word go. She was so excited that I had made him for her and she was only 3 at the time. This picture was taken way back in early 2015. I was chuffed as I was visiting my Grannie and I’d designed and made my own tail for him on route there. (Should have known then that my crocheting love would grow.)
Looking back now, most of his limbs look like they may fall off at any moment and I definitely had no idea about weaving in ends!!! But hey, she loves him and that’s all that matters. Once Benedict was completed, there was definitely a mad rush to get started on Hank!! He was one of my favourites from the lovely Edward’s Menagerie at Toft. He took me a while, but he was definitely a lot neater than Benedict! I will never forget finishing his fleece though!! I vowed I would never make another sheep after that fleece – it seriously nearly finished me off. My 3mm hook was never the same again!!
We were on holiday in Majorca on my parents in laws yacht. And all I needed to do to finish Hank, was his fleece. It was only chaining 8 and slip stitching to attach, then repeating this process. You had to cover all of his head and body! Well my husband bet me I couldn’t finish him that night!! You will soon learn about me that when someone (especially my husband) bets me to do something it generally gets completed!! So there I was in the dark at anchor with a tiny torch light above me, frantically finishing his fleece!! Everyone else had gone to bed!! I am happy to report that I managed it! He was finished!!
Then came the grannie square blanket!! That was definitely when I knew I loved crocheting!! As if I didn’t, this blanket would never have been finished!! I dread to think how much it costs!! A little person enjoyed playing with it whilst I was making it.
As I wasn’t following any pattern or anything, I just bought as and when I needed more! So the final amount of balls of wool I used is a completely unknown sum. I know that I could potentially weigh it! Which would give me an idea, but the thought frightens me!
It’s the size of a single bed and made out of the beautiful Sublime Baby Merino Wool. I love this wool and so does my mum. It’s so utterly soft and really lovely to crochet with. My mum makes my children the most incredible cardigans and jumpers out of this wool. I urge you to try it, if you haven’t done so already. You will be converted I am sure. I still haven’t quite finished the blanket, as I would love to finish it with a border. But my daughter won’t let me for some reason! I think she thinks it will change it too much and she likes it the way it is. Oh well, I might have to sneakily do the border while she is out. I’m sure she will love it when she sees it.
Being utterly addicted to crocheting means that you basically live, breathe and sleep thinking about crocheting. There isn’t a moment that goes by when I’m not thinking about a new or existing project or otherwise crocheting one. I have been known to carry wool in my pocket and a hook, so I can sneak in a few quick stitches in between making the dinner or running around after my little ones!! I think I’ve mentioned it before, but I have even been known to carry a hook & yarn around in my salopettes on a ski holiday!! Crazy, I know, but I did manage to do some up the mountain!
Many people ask me how I manage to crochet so much and well kind of keep the house tidy and clean. Well here’s how, if you are sitting down and not eating or holding/playing with a baby/child or driving. Then you can crochet!! Haha! Only joking! No I basically will work like a whirlwind to get house jobs done when little one is asleep or otherwise get him to help me with them, so that I can crochet at every opportunity. Sometimes him helping isn’t such a good idea, as he can empty a washing machine quicker than I can fill it, but hey, he tries!! Bless him.
I basically squeeze every inch out of every minute of the day to the point where the only time I’m not doing something is when I am sleeping. (Hang on, I may have had a dream about a project last night!!! Ooops) Pj crocheting is always a more comfier affair.
So yeah, there’s a proper addiction going on isn’t there!?!? The best place, as many of my Instagram/Facebook followers will know is on a car journey or in the car waiting for a little one to wake up.
My husband, bless him, will always do nearly all of the driving when we are off on our outings, so I can squeeze in however long the journey is, worth of stitches. The only problem with this is when I should be navigating! Ekk!! Yeah I may sometimes get into trouble for this!! Heyho! I can see how annoying that might be when your husband is realising that we are potentially getting lost and I am just sitting there crocheting away!! Not a smart move, I can tell you!
I remember getting off the ferry in France a few weeks ago and desperately wanting to carry on with the slipper socks I was making, but knowing that might tip my husband over the edge!!! You will be pleased to know, it stayed in my bag, but unfortunately we still did get a little lost!! My fault entirely!
Holiday crocheting is always lovely. I honestly get excited about which projects i’m going to take with me. Most people think about which shoes will go with which outfit, but in my case it’s – have I got enough wool? Maybe I should take one more project just in case I finish those? I even realised I could stash wool in the car doors for that wonderful moment when you realise you have a few minutes of possible crocheting!! This was on a beach in Cornwall. My daughter was fast asleep in our little beach tent beside me. Happy days!
Smiles here was made in France on our latest holibobs! (And yeah probably while I was supposed to be navigating!)
Have you ever come across Lite up crochet hooks? These are literally pure genius!! I found these whilst desperately trying to find a way to crochet in the dark on the landing, whilst waiting for the little man to drop off. They are absolutely brilliant!! Great for camping or even just when crocheting with dark yarn and there isn’t enough light.
I have even got one of these as a present for my lovely Mum for christmas. Mum is a knitter, but I think she will find one of these extremely useful when she has dropped a stitch and needs to see clearly which one to hook up. I am slowly building up my stock, buying when I need to for different projects. I recently brought one for my slipper sock projects. I haven’t mentioned yet, but I have started a serious love for slipper sock crocheting at the minute, but that’s another story!!
The other thing about being utterly addicted to crocheting is the yarn storage!! Hmm, not sure if I should admit this – in case my husband reads it. Ok, so here goes – I have wool, cotton, any types of yarn really, in the majority of the rooms in this house. I don’t think anyone who lives in this house knows this, but it’s true!! I don’t know why, but there seems to be little mini piles all over. Some ready to be put away, some for new projects, some for ideas for new projects. Seriously, it is everywhere. These were on the window ledge in our bedroom for ages!!
I am doing my best and trying to use it up, but whenever I go into a wool shop I seem to come out with something. I recently took my friend into our local shop that’s based on a lovely farm outlet centre. It’s a lovely little shop with some really nice yarn. Now this is a bit of a proud will power moment! So I entered the shop and bought what I needed and that was that. Buy I then saw some new sublime merino wool that was a delicate rainbow coloured effect. I think it was the Sophia addition, but i’m not sure. Well my heart was saying buy some, scarf for my daughter was the top of my list, but then something actually stopped me! A little crochet hook on my shoulder screaming you have a ridiculous amount of projects to finish at home, you do not need another! So I walked away. Can you imagine!!
At the minute, my to do list is as long as my arm. And it’s so tricky to know what to do first. There is so much to do, so I am having to prioritise for Christmas at the minute. So thinking about which will take the longest and which needs doing first. It’s so hard to decide! I’ve just designed a robin for my sister to make for our Grannie. Not sure if it’s ready yet though, the hat needs some tinkering with. So that’s priority really as I need to pass the pattern on to her. Grannie loves robins, she always says that it’s Grandad flying in to take care of us all and check everyone is ok! Hopefully she will like it. Think it needs a Pom Pom on the hat!! And I have also made a simple christmas tree decoration. One that you can make up quite quickly, so would be good for an extra little present for someone. Hoping to get both patterns on my blog soon.
Well there you have it. My confession is complete!! I think it’s time to finish these slipper socks & a cuppa is definitely on the cards.
Happy hooking everyone. Keep going on those Christmas projects – it’s nearly December!! Ekk!!
🌈Xx