Learning to Crochet !!! A Jack & 2 Bruce's . . .

A wet afternoon Hello to you all friends,

Sorry I have been absent from my blog of late.

On Monday of last week my dear friend Shirley came for the day with the plan to teach me to crochet ! ! ! Shirley has the patience of a saint & is one of those people who, no matter what they turn their hand to, does it sooo beautifully. I - on the other hand - am a slow & hopeless learner & bumble my way through things mostly getting by on "a wing & a prayer." Pretty much all of what I know in the handcraft field has been self-taught by me making loads of mistakes & learning from them. (actually this could be said for all of my life lessons in fact) ! !
Shirley was such a kind & patient teacher but when her husband collected her at the end of the day I told him she will need either a packet of panadol or a strong drink ! ! ! :-)
We did dissolve into laughter a few times - I couldn't even get the hang of the chain stitch in the first row.
Finally - at the end of the day - this is my attempt - it is going to be a jar cover (I can hear you lot roaring with laughter you know ! ! ! )

The next day I went into town & bought myself a thicker skein of wool as I kept splitting the yarn with my crochet hook - " that's the secret" I thought - I'll get thicker yarn & then it will grow real quick - this is my attempt since . . .

Growing isnt it ????!!! If you get out your magnifying glasses ! ! !

So that was my crocheting attempt - however - I am determined to not let it beat me & to keep trying to master it. So - when you have all picked yourselves up off the floor laughing - watch this space ! ! ! :-)

I took a few things into the Hospice Shop last week & of course I had to come home with some other things - Someone in the house commented "wasnt it possible to actually leave things there without coming home with more things ...???!!! " (Hello??)

this sweet little dish was the princely sum of $1.00

I just LOVED this dainty little jug

Remember last post where I showed you the pics of me cutting out the very fluffy bear fur ???

Me kneeling on the floor covered in bear fur . . .

And remember back in March when I wrote the post about Phoebe & Midge (the 2 bears I had to make for an order) ???
Well the daughter of the lady that ordered Phoebe & Midge came to see me to ask me to make up some kitset bears she had bought long ago & never got round to completing.
Same scenario - I open my mouth to explain that sorry, I am rather too busy with other sewing - the lady leaves with the bear kitsets still here . . . (* * * yes, yes I know) ! ? !
I wanted to get on to them as they had been sitting in my sewing room for a month or two.
The kitsets were all D'Lyell Bear designs from their Bearzerk Range - the 1st one was Jack - a jointed bear with little magnets stitched into his paws & just above his eyeline so that he could put his paws together or play peekaboo & cover his eyes

Please God let me have a nose embroidered on me

That feels better . . .(the glass eyes look a bit startled in this pic)

No - dont look at me, I'm shy

The 2nd two kitsets were for Bookend Bears - these took me a bit of figuring out but were really quite neat when they came together -

Well a face would be nice if you dont mind

Ouch - please be a bit careful

Whoops - got that last photo in the wrong order sorry folks - not sure what I did there ! ! ! :-) - or how to reverse it ! !
They are filled with lots of plastic pellets which weight them & make them hold the books up . . .

the two Bruce"s complete at last . . . THANK GOODNESS !!

I dont really think my photography does them justice - they are really gorgeous & heavy & floppy & have big fat pellet filled tummies - one would make a great doorstop if you enlarged the pattern a bit more.

In between the showers this past week I managed to get outside & get some pruning done - I see the hyacinth bulbs Mum gave me are peeking through on my mossy old scales out on the deck . . .

They smell sooo lovely too. Such an old-fashioned smell.

I filled my old (falling-to-bits) wheelbarrow with some of the gourds I had dried for a splash of colour up on the deck area . . .

Mostly though I have been inside keeping the fire going. . .

Sitting on the couch working on a new boy golly - a pattern I havent done for quite awhile - (named Bernie)

The doll that sits beside me is called Lizzie & her and I have quite a few conversations & put the world right while I am stitching away . . .

My Mum is coming to stay next week & I am looking forward to that - its been awhile since Mum came up - we like to craft together & I am hoping to get some doiley dollies completed while she is here.