Hello and welcome to The Compost Bin. I'm Compostwoman and I live with my family in rural Herefordshire. We have nearly four acres of garden and woodland, all managed organically and to Permaculture principles, which we share with Chickens, Cats and assorted wildlife. We also grow a lot of our own food, run courses in all sorts of things and make a lot of compost!

I am a Master Composter and have spent more than a decade as a volunteer Community Compost adviser with Garden Organic and my local Council.
I'm a self employed Environmental Educator so I run workshops and events where I talk about compost, veg growing, chicken keeping, cooking, preserving and sustainable living. I also run crafts workshops and Forest School/outdoor play sessions in our wood.

We try to live a more self sufficient lifestyle here, as best we can, while still having a comfortable life and lots of fun.


To learn more about us click on the About Compostwoman tab and remember to click on the photos to make them full size!


Sunday 12 August 2012

Of crochet and curses.

 I started crocheting back at the start of May. Unlike knitting, where I was taught the very basics as a child by my granny, I never learnt to crochet. But after getting into knitting again I decided I wanted to learn to crochet, so with the help of Bron at The Wool Garden in Newent, I started on my first ever granny square.


Despite her excellent teaching it was still all a bit of a struggle for me and that small granny square caused a lot of cursing and unravelling and re doing! 

I looked on YouTube for help, but it did not make it any clearer to me. But then I bought a fabulous little book on crochet , which made what Bron at The Wool Garden had shown me click into place. I need diagrams as well as hands on tuition, obviously!



After a couple (really, just two more) of small practise squares I settled on the colours I wanted to use and the pattern I wanted to end up with and started crocheting my blanket. Confident, or what? (Foolish me!)

I decided to crochet one large square rather than lots of small squares, because I wanted to and because I am an awkward so and so. This made my task harder I think, also, because if  when I made a mistake I would have to spot it and correct it quickly. If I didn't - I would have a lot of unravelling to do! More of that later...Suffice it to say I should have done lots of identical granny squares - it would have been so much easier! But I wouldn't be told.(There's a surprise!)

I picked up my crochet most nights while sitting on the sofa. I took my crochet with me sometimes when I went out, and did odd rows while waiting in cafes or in a car park. I did this until my work in progress got too heavy and bulky.

I guess you could say I got hooked on crochet.

This is what it looked like at the end of May




And this is what it looks like now. I have another three rows of the red to add around the outside and then I will repeat the three rows of gold, then red, then cream, then red, then green, then red. And then I will see if it is big enough for what I had in mind.


I chose the colours to blend in with the sitting room and because I really really like them. I didn't have any of the gold wool when I started, which is why it appears part way through, but I like the effect. The wool I am using is Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino - some bought from The Wool Garden and some bought on line from
Fingers and Thumbs.

It is already really heavy and I have had to stop working on it over the last few hot and humid days because it was just too warm lol. But I am really enjoying working on it, even if it is going to be the most expensive blanket ever ( I justify this to myself by calling it an heirloom blanket ha ha) and even though I am a bit OCD about any mistakes - last week I cursed and un ravelled 3 rows when I spotted I had missed a stitch ( or whatever the correct term is for crochet!) That is a lot of crochet time and unravelling!

But I love doing this, just as I love knitting dishcloths - it is practical and I make something useful and I find my mind can drift off and meditate on stuff. I can even watch a TV programme now and crochet at the same time!

I have also started on a few of the items in my crochet book as well as buying several other crochet books and magazines, as well as joining a few sites and following a few blogs about crochet...

Oh dear - definately hooked!

What do you like doing as a craft? Any other crochet fans?

Thank you for reading xx

5 comments:

  1. I'm a fellow crocheter and find its very relaxing to do in front of the telly at night, you should try some amigurumi, little crocheted characters, there fairly easy to do and make great gifts! (I'm sure you could find a hen pattern!)
    http://freeamigurumipatterns.blogspot.co.uk/

    Thanks for writing such a great blog, always an interesting read.

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  2. I have never been very good at knitting or crochet, even though my MIL and my grandmother both attempted to teach me. We raise our own sheep, and I love to do simple weavings as well as locker hooking rugs. I find the feel of the yarn and wool through my fingers very therapeutic. The blanket you are building is BEAUTIFUL.

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  3. Isla Thank you :-) I love the little figures and yes! I will do a chicken ;-)

    Julia thank you :-) I must admit to being rather pleased with it - but given the amount I have re done it will take me a long time to finish!
    I love your pottery and your rugs are simply wonderful.

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  4. I have recently taken up crochet. It's something my mum taught me to do when I was a child and when she died last October I found her hooks and some wool. I took them home and started to make some Granny squares. I then bought a couple of books of patterns and now it feels like a thank you to her when I complete something. I am taking great pleasure from making more and more difficult projects and am never less than delighted with the results. My first Granny square project is a blanket that even my 18 year old stepson has described as 'lovely'. I am only frustrated at the fact that when I start I want it finished immediately-it is teaching me that patience has it's rewards in the end. Maybe that's what my mum felt I needed to learn when she died!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I have recently taken up crochet. It's something my mum taught me to do when I was a child and when she died last October I found her hooks and some wool. I took them home and started to make some Granny squares. I then bought a couple of books of patterns and now it feels like a thank you to her when I complete something. I am taking great pleasure from making more and more difficult projects and am never less than delighted with the results. My first Granny square project is a blanket that even my 18 year old stepson has described as 'lovely'. I am only frustrated at the fact that when I start I want it finished immediately-it is teaching me that patience has it's rewards in the end. Maybe that's what my mum felt I needed to learn when she died!

    ReplyDelete

Hello! Thank you for reading my blog and for commenting. I try to reply as quickly as I can and I really appreciate your interest in my life and doings here in The Compost Bin.

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