Frida's Flowers CAL Part 2

I am writing this having literally just finished joining Part 1 to Part 2 of the Frida's Flowers Crochet Along.  I would have finished sooner but stupidly I joined some of the hexagons incorrectly so had to unpick and redo...oh the joys! But I got there in the end!

Part 2 is called Dahlia Bud the pattern for which became available on 19th April and used Cream and Saffron for the centre flowers and Petrol for the hexagon (these are the Special DK colours).

 

As with Part 1, I decided to do all the centre flowers first.  I don't think there is any particular benefit of doing it this way, it just works for me.  I like to complete one stage at a time before moving on to the next although it is always tempting to do a full hexagon. 

When moving on to the hexagons I hit a bump in the road when I came to the end of the dreaded Round 5.  For some reason I really struggled with this round to begin with, I just couldn't grasp it and can honestly say that I only got through it with the help of the large community of crocheters who are also taking part in this CAL.  There is a group on Facebook that is purely for people taking part in this CAL so that we can help each other and display our work.  It's a fantastic group and was a life saver!  I also discovered that a lot of other people found this round difficult so at least I didn't feel as much of a fool!!

So to try and make it easier this is my understanding of the end of Round 5:

• Do the chain 3 as normal, the dc into the chain space and then chain 3 again.
• Your hook then goes in the top of the treble done on the previous row which, when looking at a treble, the hook needs to go in the gap to the right of the post. 
• Slip stitch in this and then chain 3 for the beginning of Round 6.

Unfortunately I didn't take a photo of this but hopefully the above makes sense!

Once Round 5 clicked into place I was well away!!

 

 I couldn't resist posting this photo.  It's the same colour as my bottle of Bombay Sapphire!!

 

 

I did all four full hexagons before I then moved on to the half hexagons.  I found these relatively simple and did them fairly quickly (for me!)

 

I also managed to block all the pieces from both Part 2 and from Part 1 (thank you Bank Holiday Monday!).  This is the first time I have ever blocked anything so it was a learning curve for me but it worked out well.  I used rubber children's play mats I bought from Amazon for about five pounds...bargain! The pins I also got from Amazon and I just made sure that they were rust proof.


And last and by no means least I was ready to join as per the chart on the pattern. 

Here's to Part 3 which came out today!

Frida's Flowers CAL Part 1

I have yet to finish my Lily Pond blanket (all the individual pieces are finished, I just have to put them all together!) but I could not resist starting the Frida's Flowers Blanket, both of which were designed by the very talented Jane Crowfoot.  I figured that once I had finished each part I could do my Lily Pond inbetween.  Makes sense right?!

Colours used here are Meadow, Ivory and Fuchsia Purple

 

Both patterns are free to download from the Stylecraft webpage as well as the pattern for the Frida's Flowers Project Bag which I am not doing...yet! I do love it though and it was specifically designed so you can keep your Frida's Flowers project in it.  I am trying very hard to not buy any more wool but the temptation is always there. 

The desire for more wool is always strong!

I am using the Stylecraft Special DK pack which is always great to work with.  I got my pack from Topstitchcrafts which has free delivery and has both the cotton and special dk pack in stock (when I last checked anyway).

The chart below shows the colour combinations.

So having finished Part 1, I can honestly say I think I am going to really enjoy doing this crochet along, and dare I say it even more than the Lily Pond. 

The fuchsia purple is such a pretty colour

I found that I preferred to do all the flower centre pieces first so I was able to get a bit of rhythm going without having to keep looking at the pattern and also so I could put meadow and ivory away.  I also think (for me anyway) that it stops me from getting bored.  I then alternated doing a full cosmos and a half cosmos.

Here's to Part 2 tomorrow!

Pretty Lily

My current WIP (work in progress for anyone who doesn't know what this means!) is the fabulous Stylecraft Lily Pond Blanket CAL (Crochet Along) designed by Jane Crowfoot.

Part 1 - Doing a foundation row was much harder than I thought it would be but I got there in the end.

When I started this blanket the only experience I had with crochet was the granny square but I loved the idea of a challenge and I am SO glad I went for it as I have learned so much so far and I'm not even finished it yet.  I would definitely recommend this for anyone who wants to learn lots of new stitches (the bobble stitch and the pin wheels were great fun once I cracked it) and because you do it in sections it doesn't feel so daunting compared to making a blanket in one go i.e. a granny stripe blanket (although this is on my to do list!). 



How cute are the bobbles???

I started this CAL about 2 weeks in so I have always been behind everyone else but it was so nice seeing everyone else's blankets progressing when I was a couple of steps behind especially some of the wonderful different colour schemes people used.  I was a bit boring in that regard and stuck with the Stylecraft Life DK yarn.  In fairness though one of my favourite colours is teal so it made sense for me really!

I have just started Part 6 although all 8 parts are now available to download at Stylecraft Crochet Along and I have to say that when starting this I thought I would enjoy doing the squares the most i.e. the lily squares but I found working in rows much more enjoyable.  There is something incredibly therapeutic going along a row, getting to the end, turning and starting again...don't ask me why, I just find it very satisfying! lol

 

I generally found the pattern instructions very clear and concise with some really good pictures but the side edges just boggled my mind and therefore I have avoided doing these.  I did try after I did my first Part 1 piece but found it very difficult and ended up getting just a tad annoyed.  I am going to watch Sarah Garner's video on YouTube and hopefully something will click.  I appreciate I will have to do this at some point but I am having a "head in the sand" moment!

 

So this is the plan; crochet all the parts (in order if I can), block all the individual pieces and then join them all together...well that's the plan anyway...we shall see! Watch this space...

P.S. I have never blocked anything before so this will also be a new experience for me but be sure I will be blogging about it!