Merry Christmas!

As the festive season approaches, some pictures of my tree. Child friendly fake fir with bright, retro decorations and topped by a lovely pattern from Inside Crochet issue 36 by Phyllis Serbes.

 Love my glass robot baubles given to me some years ago by the lovely Susan from Loop yarn shop.

 Retro mushrooms and chiming owls make my fake fir somehow more real...

 ...while I also have quite a few personalised baubles given by dear friends. What have you got on your tree?

Have a wonderful Christmas everyone.

Fashion Crochet for summer

Some summery pieces from Fashion Crochet today. The first two are by Helda Panagary, the last by Victoria Stott. The waistcoat/cardigan above is perfect as a beach cover up while the pretty flower corsages can be worn singly, in groups or as a necklace or around a neckline.

Vicky's stunning halterneck design centres around the fashionable pineapple motif and will be a fabulous statement piece when the warmer weather arrives.

Beautiful bags from Fashion Crochet

Today's projects from Fashion Crochet are all bonnie bags designed by Zoe Clements. Zoe is the editor of Yarnwise magazine and founder of Love Crochet website. If you haven't checked out her website, you should, it is full of gorgeous patterns available to buy.
For these pieces, we had the inspiration of a Stella Macartney bag, a Gerard Darel bobbled number and a Chanel crocheted shopper. Zoe created these original pieces from the initial inspiration.
I was going to say which is my favourite, but I couldn't decide. I like the practical beach style of the 'straw' bag inspired by Chanel, which you could make even more embellished with tonnes of the flowers sewn on. The bobbled bag uses a stunning subtle metallic yarn and the texture is delectable, while the Macartney inspired bag is an every day bag, with unusual chain detailing and again an option for all out crazy embellishment, you could use the flower motifs as a fringe for an on trend accessory.

Fashion crochet projects by Emma Varnam

Today I am showcasing some of the lovely Emma Varnam's designs from Fashion Crochet.
The cute shorts are perfect for the beach, I love the royal navy crab stitch edge which looks like piping, while the mini is right on trend and perfect for any young ladies who have the legs to show off!

Go check out Emma's Blog she is a very talented designer and a gorgeous person to boot! 

fashion crochet projects

 A couple more patterns from the book - summery beach/festival attire today...dreaming of the sunshine! :)

This is a very simple cropped waistcoat perfect for layering over a vest, tee or maxi dress at a festival, while the mesh dress is a perfect cover up for the beach. Strangely enough, now is probably the perfect time to get making stuff like this for your summer holidays (once the Christmas present crochet is out of the way!)

Fashion Crochet by...me!

Finally I am getting round to posting these images from my latest book, Fashion Crochet. I wanted to write a book that showcases how wearable crochet is - it is often relegated to homewares - and with so much on the catwalks, I wanted to use the modern pieces around to inspire the projects.

This week I am hoping to post all the projects from the book so you can take a peak inside. I am proud of this book, and it will forever remind me of my little babe - I shall have to post the picture my mum has of me crocheting the ruffle scarf over her lying in my lap when she was but a few months old. Most of the projects were completed like that....anyway, here's the projects:

 

LBD. Everyone's gotta have at least one, right? So why not have a crocheted one, too? this is probably my favourite project as I don't see many crocheted dresses I want to wear, but I love wearing this one. It was also difficult working in the black yarn, but so worth the final effect I think. Also got to use some of the assorted bootiful sparkly buttons I have been collecting over the years in one project! (if you can't see them very well, they are the back fastening)

The Granny cowl was inspired by a Paul Smith number, as soon as it went down the catwalk, I knew I wanted one...so made it from scraps in my stash. A perrrrfect stash buster.
Hope you like these...more to come!

fashion crochet shoot

 My latest book, Fashion Crochet is out now, and I have been a bit slow in telling you about it. I am still waiting for my copy so to give you a little taster, here are some shots from one of the photoshoots I managed to get to. Millie was only a few months old when they were shooting for the book, so it was lovely to go along for a couple of hours worth of adult conversation, which mainly revolved around how tired I looked...
One of my favourite projects from the book is the granny skirt, below, and it looked stunning on this model. Will give you a look inside the book once I get my copy!

crochet garland pattern

 

Another new pattern in Inside Crochet this month, this time a cute little garland that is already residing above the littlun's cot. Very quick and easy to make, this one is perfect for beginners and easily adaptable - make it whatever length you wish, or even turn it into a necklace if that takes your fancy!

crochet pincushion pattern

 One of my new patterns is in the latest issue of Inside Crochet, issue 35, out today! Hope you like it. It is a pincushion with doily inspired top, taking inspiration also from Henry Moore as there is a feature on his textiles prints in the issue - they are so amazing!

Inside Crochet issue 34

Just a quick one to post a few pictures from Inside Crochet issue 34 - you only have a few more days to buy this magazine as issue 35 comes out very soon - get a preview here. Hope you like it, I loved the shoot for this one.

thanks to Britt Spring for the photography, Nicki Henbrey for the makeup. I did the styling.

Patti Wrap

As an addition to the last post, the Patti Wrap pattern in issue 33 of Inside Crochet is one of my own, inspired by the fabulous crochet in Marc Jacobs' fall collection. Just love Britt Spring's photography in these shots, especially the one above, such dreamy lighting and colours.