Crochet Heaven

Well happy Easter!

As you can see, I've been a busy bee. It was lovely to visit Greenwich and see all the quirky buildings and the independent shops on the high street. Greenwich is of course steeped in history, what with the Royal Observatory, Planetarium and Cutty Sark all within spitting distance of each other. 'Cutty Sark' was once a Scottish term meaning short dress apparently, hence the scantily clad lady poised at the front of the boat. Bijou and with a village feel, I couldn't help wondering how we have allowed the rest of the UK to be blighted by chain store fever with the same coffee shops, clothes shops, pubs, restaurants and supermarkets in most of our towns and cities. Ok, so I do shop in many of these stores but I am always cheered by the sight of an indie store.

Here's my stack of crochet squares and a quick snap of the lovely colours I've chosen for the blanket I'm making. Next week I will be popping over to meet fellow blogger Anna from Anna's Creative Corner over on the other side of London. I very much look forward to catching up with her and marvelling at some of her latest luscious knitting projects.

Shape Shifters

More woolly adventures! Not much news today, so just a quicky. Here are the latest crochet granny squares I've made. I will eventually sew them all together and - hey presto - produce a blanket.

My First Crocheted Granny Square

So here it is, my first crocheted granny square! I've completed the first three rounds and it's a little untidy, but the basic shape is there. Remember to check my previous post for the Crochet Geek free pattern YouTube clip if you would like to learn how to crochet one yourself. Hopefully one day, I'll be able to create something as nice as the finished objects featured on Meme Rose and Planet Penny's blog spots...

Essential Amigurumi How to - Making Arms and Legs

From time to time you come across some real gems when travelling through the twittersphere. Yesterday I spotted a tweet from Erich containing a link to their helpful blog post on making amigurumi toys. Joining limbs and other body parts to knitted or crocheted toys can be tricky the first few times; it may sound obvious to seasoned knitters and crocheters, but pinning limbs in place before stitching them on is also essential for getting that rounded shape where the limb meets the body. Rosie here (see below) was my first knitting project. I had trouble putting her legs on evenly; however, I still adore her! I intend to check Erich's blog more regularly as I found the way they pinpointed and addressed a specific crochet technique like this really handy.

At time of posting, the Roman Sock blog which I featured in my top 10 crochet sites list last week  published a useful video tutorial on amigurumi tips. Video clips are so accessible and have helped me with many techniques since I started knitting. Check it out, Brie knows what she's talking about.