Craft – Page 2 – Emma Varnam’s blog

Oranges save January

Eurgh…. don’t you just hate Janurary…?’ My friend had just popped round with a belated gift and like many friends could find no Winter light at the end of this tunnel we call January.

‘Yes I know what your mean…but honestly I think Marmalade has put a whole new perspective on this month. I can’t wait to get stuck in! The sticky performance might take up even 3 weekends!’.

Suddenly our conversation brightened and orders were placed and promises of spare jars were made. Very like the Paddington films; marmalade has transformational powers.

I first started experimenting with this sticky alchemy a few years ago. My first attempts went spectacularly wrong and dear blog readers pointed me in the right direction of brilliant recipe books and fail-safe texts. There is nothing I adore more for a weekend breakfast than a thick sliced piece of toast, lavishly spread with salted butter and topped with a ‘homemade’ (I stress HOMEMADE) marmalade. Be still my furring heart.

I first felt inspired to make my own because acquired jars of homemade marmalade were not getting me through a years worth of Saturdays. Like many valuable things in life. My very favourite jar is not made by me… but rather one of my dearest and oldest friends. Like a cup of tea, or a meal made by someone else, the fact that the jar has been cooked by her own fair hand – and not mine, makes it all the more delicious.

But it occurred to me that I could fill the gap by making my own and the seasonal window for the Seville Orange harvest makes January a very special month.

You need to be alert early in January to ensure you bag your special oranges. I popped out on the 2nd to visit my local grocer to see if he had a delivery. These oranges are not lookers. They look more lumpy and less orange than your fruit-bowl fruit. He spotted me immediately and with a knowing nod and a cheeky smile gestured to the box stacked out on the pavement – full of golden orbs from Seville. I was delighted and phoned home to enthuse. ‘I’ve got them…the hunt is off!’ I think all were relieved.

So for the next few weeks there will be a two day performance. The first day of juicing, scraping, slicing and soaking and the second of watching, waiting, measuring, peering, checking and pouring. All in a haze of sticky citrus. The final jars will be held up to the light, to see how clear the elixir appears.

If the first week goes well, I will move onto thick cut and dark marmalade. I have ‘NEVER’ made a consistent product. It saddens me. My Dad and my husband prefer this type and in recent years the taste has been grand but the consistency is sloppy….delicious but very below par. This year… this year.

I have also bought some pink grapefruits so I am thinking of mixing it up on the third weekend. We will see. The priority my friends is to make enough marmalade to last me a year of weekend breakfasts. In addition there are special recipients – people who value the process – people I love. This is perhaps a more accessible form of ‘creative gifting’. Let’s be honest, not everyone wants a knitted or crocheted item from me (HOW VERY DARE THEY!) but some love a jar of homemade marmalade and I am delighted to show my appreciation of our friendship with a ceremonial handing over of the jar.

So we have begun and I am thrilled. It is my scientific month-long sticky hobby. Delightfully it makes me look forward to January.

The World Marmalade Awards are held every year in Dalemain in the Lake District. If you feel inspired to make your own, why not enter a jar into the competition and join the band of this most delightful of traditions. You can also visit the festival which occurs in April this year.

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Planted – Crocheted Houseplants

You know that my favourite designs are born out of…well laughter. If it amuses me…and make my son smile – it’s a win. Then, if you like it…if you want to make a design all the better.

I could never have dreamed that so many of you loved my first plant book – Crocheted Succulents. The fun we have had making cacti and succulents has been such a bonus.

It never occurred to me to make a sequel and then very slowly ideas started to come to me. The first design finished was the African Violet. A sort of ‘revenge project’…”Yes take that African Violet… you are so hard to look after in real life… I’m going to make a crochet version and that’ll teach you. Never again will me over-watering leave you as a soggy mess.”

Honestly the glorious Poinsettia fits into this category too. I find their falling leaves in early January too hard to bare. It feels like a less festive re-run of autumn. Now I can keep my beautiful red leaf plant for a following Christmas.

There are few new cacti for this book. We love them so much, why wouldn’t I add to the collection. I’ve had quite a lot of fun with flowers this time and even the Auricula which wasn’t meant to be part of the book has snuck in. Often the way. A last minute homework bit of luck.

It is difficult to choose favourites. I have many of the return projects out and about in our house at the moment. They always look incredible when mixed up with real plants… a yarn ‘trompe l’oeil’.

I’m going to be interested to see which ones you choose first to make. I suspect you might start with the cacti and then work up to inserting more wire and canes for gravity defying sturdiness.

In general – this is just so much fun. My great hero – Debbie Bliss told me that one of her first commissions was a knitted houseplant. She made it for a very famous national singer/songwriter. That feels like stepping into the footsteps of a very wise and generally hilarious woman and I am very fine with that.

Tell me which projects appeal to you. If you want to see a little video where I talk through the projects I have popped one on my YouTube channel.

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Bailey Bear – a teddy to hug

It is a plain fact – I make things that I love. With toys, I’m often inspired by the children I know – I look at their soft toys and observe how they carry them – how big they are. Are they held by the paw, the ear?…frequently by the foot.

You might have thought that I have made enough bears and bunnies. But there is always a new yarn, a new size, a new child that inspires me and so I have to make a new design.

Bailey Bear is a good ‘best friend’ size. Not a baby bear – but a traditional ‘this is my very special soft toy’ size. I have made the feet in a way that I really like. I have thought about the length and width of his arms. This bear also has a tail. Being specific the bear is approx 35cm tall (excluding the ears) and 20cm at the widest part.

You know that the face matters a lot to me. A kind smiley face is very important. In the majority of my designs I like to work from the nose out, as this enables me to place the ears exactly where I want them. I have gone for a larger eye, because this adds to the friendly appearance.

If we want to go all technical I have used a nice tweed DK yarn. I’m loving tweed yarns at the moment. The little flecks in the fibre gives a little life to the finished crochet fabric.

Because winter is around the corner, I occurred to me, wouldn’t it be fun to add in a little cardigan, perhaps even a bobble hat and a key hole scarf. Let’s be honest I have been making key hole scarves for me – why not Bailey?

The bobble had is striped – but you could very easily make it plain. The cardigan is a new pattern. I made the sleeves first and then worked on whole strip for the body of the cardigan and added in the sleeves as I got towards the yoke. All you need to do when you finish is to sew up the sleeves under the arm and sew on a little button.

I have made the first clothes in my festive favourite of Duck Egg Blue with Red and Cream. But you choose what you have in the stash.

In my imagination, this is the sort of bear that would look just gorgeous peeking out of a stocking on Christmas morning. All smiles and cheers of joy. Immediately the ted would be tucked under the arm and new adventures would be planned.

I think I could add to the wardrobe – what do you think? But for winter I think Bailey will be just warm enough. I have placed a PDF pattern in my blog shop for just Bailey and if you want to make the clothes there is an additional pattern. Just to be safe you will need 100g of DK yarn for Bailey.

Well I hope you like my new bear. I really rather fond. Do tell me about new clothes ideas and I will add them to a list. Have a happy hooky week.

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A Gingerbread House…for a mouse

The past few weeks have been busy work weeks, long days and full of the traditional plate spinning. The crochet making has been very much at the end of the day. A couple of rows here and there.

But…but…I have had a yearning for a new (old) idea. A little gingerbread house. A gingerbread house just right for a mouse. These are the sort of projects that help me drift off to sleep in the night. What kind of base shall I use ? A plastic…no…I have loads of cardboard. What yarn shall I use? Cotton? No… The correct answer was staring at me. It had to be Stylecraft Special DK in Gingerbread. Sometimes I wonder what my yarn shop must think of me. I go in and buy a ball of brown, cream and pink…what on earth are you making!

When I began designing for the Houseplants book I strode to the till of Black Sheep Wools with 17 balls of green. All different. They know now not to bat an eyelid.

‘What are you making now Emma?’

‘Oh a book of Houseplants’.

‘Of course you are…. (an eye brow is raised by the customer behind…overheard at the yarn shop).

So when I return home with my random balls of wool, I begin to stitch as soon as I can. I had already worked out the size of the house panels. Years ago, 2015 to be exact, I designed a little dolls house for the fabulous Inside Crochet Magazine. I loved this house. The original was given to a little girl who I adore and she had many hours of fun play with it. I haven’t made a second since. But I have always known I would improve it. Coincidently it is one of my most pinned images on Pinterest. That has always put a bookmark in my mind that I should return to it.

I finished my gingerbread house yesterday and had fun decorating it with some surface slip stitch and some buttons. This Christmas I see that huge bows are making a come-back to I thought it would be fun to make a huge bow for this little door.

At this stage I haven’t finished the interior. I will do that hopefully this week. But me being me….I have made a little inhabitant. Peep-bo…

So there you go, midnight imaginings of a crocheter. Old ideas revisited to create new seasonal decorations. The little girl is still inside the head of this much older crafter.

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Quick – quick- slow projects

You might think that after completing 40 knitted squares for my latest blanket…I would have had enough of garter stitch. But, Oh no this simplest of stitches is not out of my system yet. If you learnt to knit at all, you will have knitted garter stitch, the bumpy ridges created by making a plain knit stitch on every row.

Your memories of childhood garter stitch might mean that you are haunted by limp stretchy knitting and can’t ever imagine to returning to this basic pleasure.

The simple can really be beautiful. I find that a thicker yarn and larger needles really brings out the texture of this stitch. For my recent blanket I have knitted the squares in an aran weight yarn with a 5mm hook. Looking at this photo, if you are not a knitter – you will say…’hang on a minute, what have you done there. its on the squiff?’ Yes, you are right it is knitted diagonally and doing so makes it both more interesting but also a more stable square.

It is also possible to elevate garter stitch even further by slipping the first stitch of every row, which provides a nice neat edge and really well defined places to sew the squares together.

So at the beginning of this week I attached all my blanket squares together and completed my edge. I’m hoping that I will be able to release it as a pattern soon for those who are interested.

Before I embark on my next project – or indeed return to an abandoned project, I have cast on a few accessories.

I have used the left over Stylecraft Grace to make a few quick and easy beanie hats for friends. This yarn appears very light and airy but is pleasingly an aran thickness and so knits up quickly. I work a seamless pattern in the round. As the weather cools quick and easy beanie is invaluable as an emergency hat. Small enough to pop in a handbag or workbag – just in case.

On Friday I made a version in the sumptuous claret tones of ‘Hip’ and then thought…’Wouldn’t it be fun if I made a neckerchief scarf to compliment the scarf’. The pattern I use is a classic design. You can find photos of the design from the 1930’s and it has also been reproduced as a costume staple for Miss Marple. There are reasons why some things become classics – usually because they just work. I always return to the same pattern which is available on Martha Stewart’s website. It is a great pattern because you can adjust the instructions to match the yarn you have available.

In order to ring in the changes and avoid being too matchy-matchy, I worked two strands together. I combined the Grace ‘Hip‘ with Stylecraft Special DK in Lipstick. (I had this left in my stash). The combination of the two yarns creates a satisfyingly robust fabric. The mohair ‘Grace’ adds softness and the Special DK provides a pop of colour. The shape of the neckerchief is effortlessly chic at the neck – plus very cosy without dangly scarf ends.

A couple of observations – I think I should always combine two yarns together to make this scarf, it creates the ‘just right’ texture. Secondly…oh my word I was playing ‘yarn chicken’ at the end of this project. This is all the ‘Grace’ I had left. That is too close a call. Finally, you know you are pleased with a project when you contemplate not giving a gift away and start making convincing arguments in your head that the recipient might not even like it…is it their colour anyway? There is only one thing for it. Cast on another and see if you can satisfy that garter stitch knitting bug with one more project.

Yarn Chicken is when you risk finishing a project with the yarn you have left…there is that sense of impending jeopardy. Will you be able to finish without having to buy another ball of yarn!

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Autumnal Grace

Is there a phrase for crafters who have finished a project and they can’t wait to wear it or use it? A WIP fashion-dash? A quick knit flit? Crochet crush race? I don’t know but if there is one will you tell me?

In the past few weeks I have been finishing off old projects and started dwelling on new ones. Let’s start with the finishing. When I got my sticky mitts on the new aran mohair from Stylecraft ‘Grace’, I knew I just had to make something. The colours are scrumptious. Soft but with a depth that creates brilliant combinations. My order arrived in the late Spring and other projects and quite frankly higher temperatures persuaded me not to start my project.

I even began to noodle around with ideas at the end of August, but the humidity was still a little high for mohair making. Honestly this yarn is so beautiful, but it is very suited to cooler weathers. The patterns for the yarn are incredibly tempting and very very ‘NOW’ in terms of what is currently on the high street.

I have opted to make a scarf which I know will be great for the Autumn and goes nicely with my blush pink coat.

I will now infuriate the crocheters by saying the dreaded words….’I just went with the flow, and made up the pattern as I went along.’ Sorry – but sometimes I don’t want to rigour of pattern writing and just want to stitch. But the idea is based on the ‘Zesty Scarf’ which I designed for Inside Crochet Magazine Issue 121 in 2019 and this pattern would work for this yarn.

I have chosen the colours: Oyster, Petals, Hibiscus, Hip, Long Grass and Storm. I have just one ball of each and there was loads left over and I have used the rest to knit a few cute beanie hats for friends.

If you are worried about shedding with this scarf (fibres coming off onto other clothes) I haven’t noticed much at all and I have worn it this week many times into the office. There is nothing nicer than finishing a piece of clothing, realising that it doesn’t disappoint and then wearing it almost immediately. That my friends is the adrenalin rush of craft – the WIP Fashion Dash – if you will.

So I have a couple of other projects on the hook. My ‘Croknit’ blanket, which I am just joining together. It’s an evening comfort project. You know, snuggled under the squares in front of the telly. Then I have a yearning to make another teddy. A new size and pattern, just in time for the festive season. If I am going to get this ready for you I had better hurry up. But I will concentrate on this one in the next week. I really am enjoying chatting on Instagram and Facebook with followers about names and colour choices. The best ideas come from you. So while the bear in nearly finished, I need to make a mini cardigan and a bobble hat. Hopefully he will be a fun addition to the festive makes.

So there you go a bit of an up date. My new book launched this week on Create and Craft TV and you can get signed copies there – and in my next post I promise I will give you a bit of an update. Have a lovely week!

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Mists and Mellow garter stitch

I have definitely seen the change in the season? This morning I think I felt it more crisp outside and the light was low and golden. There are a few trees starting to turn… and guess what? I have found a gleaming conker on the pavement. I hope I never get too old to feel the thrill of this annual treasure.

How many projects do you have lined up in your head? None? One? Or perhaps 3-4 like me. These last few weeks I have had a yearning for simple stitches. Simple patterns with lovely thick aran yarn. We had a few days away before the new term started and I grabbed 2 balls of aran weight yarn I had in my stash (Stylecraft Highland Heathers).

But even in the last week of the summer holidays, my mind had turned to autumn projects. I had just finished my Stargazer Blanket and it was edged and folded. I placed it next to me, a constant companion as I wrote up the pattern. But pattern writing does not preclude the beginning of a new project.

Perhaps my favourite two stitches to knit in aran are moss stitch and garter stitch. I went for the pure simplicity of garter stitch. Every row a happy knit row. There is something firm, weighty and textural about a simple garter stitch knitted square. It shows off subtle tones of a tweed yarn beautifully. I used Highland Heathers DK quite a bit in my last toy book ‘Cute Crocheted Woodland Animals’. The natural fleck in the yarn suited the homely character of the animals. I really like the weight and the finish of the same yarn in Aran.

So here I am throughout September making square upon square in cosy yarn. When I travel I do love to grab a short double pointed needle as it is economical on space and I have carried on using one as my pile of squares have increased.

What will it be? Well I have an idea to combine both my yarn crafts together in one project. I’m not a slow knitter, some would say quite fast – not Shetland fast – but quite fast. But to be fair my crochet is the speediest craft. My plan is the create a blanket for collaboration – the love of the crocheter and knitter together. We will see. I am half way through and will need to make all the squares before I know it will work.

What is your favourite stitch and does it change with the seasons?

Thank you to all of you who have loved my Stargazer Blanket I am so encouraged by your support. Please do send photos if you have success with the pattern. I love to see them.

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The Stargazer Blanket

There are some projects that you know will be very special even before you start them. This blanket belongs in that category.

I have always loved patchwork quilts and I was browsing some beautiful designs on Pinterest and thought, ‘If only I had more time to sew and make a beautiful traditional quilt’. I am realistic – this is never going to happen. But then it occurred to me that I can create a similar effect in crochet. For me, this is a much faster goal.

I definitely chose a joyful colour palette to be cheery. I love using Stylecraft Bellissima and Bambino (its the same yarn). The yarn has a lovely soft quality and the hues are clear but slightly muted. As I played around with the colour I adapted my design. As you can see from one of the earlier images, I mixed up the colours. But then I felt it would be lovely to create a muted rainbow… and the more I played, the more I enjoyed the combination.

Honestly this was just going to be a ‘me’ project. No plan for at written up pattern, just crochet for the love of crochet. But I was so encouraged by how so many of you messaged me with your love for the pattern.

stargazer-crochet-blanket-patchwork-emma-varnam

I have made a large ‘kingsize’ square. It has 9 stars. I have designed 2 motifs – one way of combining the colours is used 5 times and the other motif is used 4 times. I think it would be easy to make a lovely baby blanket just using one star – or a lap blanket using 4. I have given the yarn quantities in the pattern for all three sizes.

I have written the pattern in UK crochet terms and there is a colour diagram showing how the colour squares fit together for both motifs. There is also a stitch diagram for the solid square and for the half and half square. This diagram shows you how to work the stitches up to row 3, it gives you the idea of the pattern. But each square has 5 rows. The photographs provide a suggestion of how you can fit the stars together. But don’t feel restrained by my design, place each star on the floor and see how you like them to fit together. For the edging I used a very simple double crochet stripe. When the blanket is this colourful. You don’t need to have a fussy border.

My top tips for making this blanket are:

Have fun and enjoy making it.
Make up enough squares to make a star, then block those squares so they are nice and neat. I would sew or crochet those square together so you have the wonderful sense of the blanket growing.
You might find you solid squares are much looser than your half and half squares. If this is the case, try working your solid squares in a small hook – perhaps a 3.25mm or a 3mm.
Make sure you are economical with your tails. A large blanket uses a lot of yarn. I make sure I fasten off my yarn with enough to weave in the ends 3 times. But I am economical with my yarn
I have enjoyed used this yarn – but if you have yarn in your stash please use my design as a guide and whittle down your yarn collection

For me this design flew off my hook. I began it in June and finished it in mid-August. But right from the beginning I knew it would be a perfect Autumn project. As the blanket grows you can snuggle under it with your hook and yarn in hand.

If you make up this blanket (big or small) I would love to see how you get on. It is such a brilliant feeling to see us all working together to create something special. Finally, thank you for your encouragement and enthusiasm. It makes the world of difference and motivates me to keep on making.

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Late summer making

I am not sure if this is true for you, but the season seems to have sped up. The very hot weather has made plants and trees believe it is early autumn. Blackberries and plums appear to have ripened almost a month ahead of time. I’ve had a few days off this week and have used the time to do bit of experimentation with autumnal crochet and to enjoy one of the my favourite activities…jam making.

Some friends of mine have a beautiful old plum tree in the garden and kindly offered me their crop to make some jam. Usually at this time I make raspberry jam, but having some fresh fruit straight from the tree couldn’t be missed. All the better because I could spend some time preparing the fruit and standing over the pan. Making any kind of marmalade or jam is a bit like alchemy. You are creating a preserved pot of captured flavour. But I can never guarantee how it will end up. The acidity of the fruit, the colour, the depth of flavour… or the distractions of the door bell…taking my eye off the boil. These are all factors that change the end result.

In all of the preserving books they suggest that for plum jam, you take a nut-cracker and open up the plum stone to release the kernel inside. This is about the size of a pine nut. You then cover about 2-3 of these in some boiling water and leave them for a couple of minutes. After a while you remove the outer skin. These pure white nuts are then added to the boiling jam. I had never appreciated that they smell exactly like almonds. A beautiful strong smell of marzipan. Incredible.

On the hook, I have been inspired by the soft tones of the flowers in our garden pots. I have some balls of Stylecraft Grace which I have been playing about with. This is a mohair aran yarn. It has beautiful subtle tones and I know it will make a lovely scarf for late autumn. I have begun my making… but on hotter days this project is set aside for other less sticky pursuits.

In the midst of pattern writing and checking of the Stargazer blanket, I have two new ideas of blankets in my mind. One has knitted squares another is new crochet patchwork pattern. My mind flicks between the two.

So there you go at least 3 projects on the go and other pattern checking and preparing for pattern releases in the Autumn. I wonder if this is my favourite part of the yarn year. We seem to be on the cusp of the next season and my mind turns to cosy plans. What have you got on your hook or needle? Has the next season begun for you too?

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