Color Burst Potholder

Hello my lovely people!

Has winter set in your city? How cold is it getting there? In HK its pretty bad, rain rain and some more rain. The temperatures have dropped to 15 degrees and all the woolen ware is out! Tho i should be loving the winter as we all deal with yarn and such things, i am a sucker for summer. Ask any mom with 2 small kids and i am sure they would say the same. I am putting 3 layers already for my children and oh boy its such a chore..the inners and jackets and sweaters and socks..and the list is endless..Only good thing is - i can enjoy yum food and hot cupsa coffee and Tea at any time of the day :)

Seeing rain all over i was inspired for making a spot of color.

 

You can find the free pattern HERE. The pattern is not for beginners and also the instructions are not very clear. You need to make 2 of the same circular shells and then join them both together using a combination of SCs and Chains. It gets a bit tough as you need to hold both the discs in your hand and balance the hook too. I could not follow much of the outlining from the pattern but saw a few pics and think figured it out!

Here is the back of the potholder. You can see the way the SCs have made neat lines over the edgings. Hope this pic helps you in figuring out the joining method.

Not a very happy parting shot..Lotsa rain and cold. Well i better not complain so soon as i have a good 3 months more of thie weather to deal with!!

Wishing for some sunny days, i am off now to do some domestic chores..Happy hooking, crafting, sewing, knitting..whatever you guys are up too :)

Love,
xxx

Bag IT

Helllo my lovely lovely people!!

How are you guys doing on a Monday? I have not been blogging as much as i would have liked recently, thanks to the domestic chores and the helper shortage! Boy i have missed it! Hope you guys are happy, hooking and having lotsa creative space and time in which ever part of the world you are in..

But, be it all the work from 6 in the morning till 12 in the night, the 4 odd meals, the 10 odd feeding sessions, the playing, fighting, cleaning, dirtying, school work, bouts of illness...i still cannot keep the hook down. My mother-in-law bought the lovely package of Laura Cotton which i had ordered from India. Looking at all the colors, the first thing that came to my mind was THIS bag. I am sure you guys have all seen it, admired it, hooked it - thanks to the lovely Lucy who is so kind and thoughtful in providing us with hooky delights and all  her lovely tutorials. Here's my version of it..

I wanted a market bag, being Eco-friendly is something which i am trying to adapt into my living style and trying to do away with plastic bags is a step in that direction. Tho the hubby feels otherwise about the yarn and the ordering and the postage and such money matters..tut tut..

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I have modified the pattern to be a bit more broader at the base and tapering towards the top. To do this, after increasing in the base rounds, i decreased in the body rounds to get a more fall feel to the bag. Can you make out the way it flops over and has those waves like the other leather bags? I wanted that look rather than a plain A cut kinda look...

 Isn't the bed cover lovely? It s a gift from my MIL from India. Indian textiles, especially cotton, is well known all over the world. And Gujarat is one of the best states in India to go for cotton fabric shopping!

True to the Lucy style, i could not help but attach some flowers to pretty up the whole thing..

Stack of leaves and flowers. You can find the leaf pattern HERE and the flower pattern HERE.

 Attached to the bag and straps using some buttons from my stash...

 Love all the colors of this bag, the cotton thread is real value for money and i am already in a frenzy over what all i need to order and do next!! Oh i forgot, i have some 45 days more till my other pair of hands return...Waiting...it will PASS!!!

 The straps are just 4 rounds of SC in sober colors.

 Lining too for the bag as i cannot risk the spill of liquids with 2 toddlers in hand.

Parting shot of me with the bag. Can you see how good a size it is? Would be sufficient for all my day to day market needs :) I am very pleased with it! What are you guys hooking, sewing, crafting right now? Would love to hear from you, as usual your words make blogging worth it!!

Love and more,

xxx

Good news and Bad news

Hello my lovely people!

How are you guys doing? Hope all is sunny and bright(at least the last few sunny days before winter sets in)! I have missed blogging and not been able to post much. Reasons follow...

Good news - My MIL is here, this means lotsa shopping albeit windows :), lotsa eating junk, lotsa seeing murder and mystery series and in general great to have an adult company!
Bad news - My full time helper has gone back to her hometown for a 2 month break. This translates into me doing the house hold chores and oh boy they are endless! Also translates into very less hooky and fun time for me :(( Sigh..i am managing!

Good news - Have pieced together almost 2/3rds of my Giant Granny Patch blanket both horizontally and vertically. I decided to use a SC in back loops. Was i even in any frame of mind? Rather did i even have a mind when i decided this?? But its my favorite way of joining squares. You can find the method HERE .
Bad news - I am out of yarn again and am slowly working on completing the remaining part of joining my squares.

Good news - I got my stash of Laura Knitting Cotton from India.
Bad news - Not able to even think of doing a project with it, thanks to my total lack of time!!

I am having so so so many ideas in my mind for using the Laura Cotton - so many that i just shut out that part of my brain and put a self timed lock of 2 months (till my helper comes back)

Good news - My little miss won her first prize in her school Halloween dress-up competition. She is the cutest little orange witch for me :)
Bad news - Hey!! none wrt the kids..

With small kids i have realized that no full time helper = not much crochet time! Might not be posting or making as much as i would like with my hook. But hey that can wait right? Will be back more often once the usual routine sets in. Till then, do take care and keep hooking and keep blogging. Will definitely be checking all your lovely blogs for inspiration and crochet instant gratification :)

Taata..
Love,
xxx