a creative being - all things crochet by winkieflash!

May 23, 2013
by wink
16 lovely comments

happy wips

Sometimes, your WIPs make you sad, and other times, WIPs make you happy. I currently have a couple of WIPs that are making me very happy indeed!

As some of you who follow me on Facebook/Instagram have already seen, my Noro bag is nearing completion.

noro-bag-front

noro-bag-back

I LOVE how it looks! I love all the bright colours, combined with the muted, softer tones. I used a navy green colour to join the squares and I think it really helps bring out all the vibrance. I’m planning on embellishing my bag with a combination of the following items:

noro-bag-embellishments

nicollie-labels

Some feathers, some raw gemstones, hemp rope, and that gorgeous Kaffe Fasset fabric as lining. The bag will have one of these cute labels on the inside, made by my friend Nicollie.

While I was out gathering the feathers and the other embellishments, I couldn’t help myself and purchased a fabulous skein of gradient rainbow yarn. I got this at a local yarn shop (LYS) in Zwolle, The Netherlands but the yarn is actually from Estonia. It’s 100% wool, and it was a 263 gs skein, which I wound up in a center-pull cake, making it the biggest yarn cake I have EVER made!

rainbow-yarn-project

The project I’m making with it is called the Festival Shawl, and is on Ravelry here, for free. It’s crochet and calls for fingering weight yarn and a 5mm hook, so I’m hoping this will be a nice and quick project! Already the colour change has begun, and the pattern is interesting enough to keep me happy making it (so no boring repeats of the same row over and over).

Oh, and one more thing making me reaaally happy this week: my Zatchel finally made it’s way to my doorstep yesterday! This fab UK based company had a massive sale about a month ago and I couldn’t resist. I mean, who wouldn’t want to own a gorgeous handmade daffodil yellow satchel?

zatchel_daffodil-yellow

xo,
wink

May 20, 2013
by wink
7 lovely comments

sleeves, decals and yarn

Cool sleeve, right? It’s 100% handmade and comes from this Etsy shop. What’s in the sleeve you ask? Well…

… a yarn-a-licious iPad mini of course! :) The decal (sticker) on it comes from DecalGirl. The cool thing about that website is that for some devices, you get to upload your own photos to use as a background for the decal. For my iPad cover I went crazy with some photos I took for a magazine, since they were already the right resolution/size. I really like how my iPad now feels less ‘generic’ and a little more special. Added bonus: no more scratches on the back when it’s on the table!

I’ve used DecalGirl skins for almost all of my past phones and devices, and I highly recommend them. They come in both glossy and matte finishes, and if you don’t have your own photos to use, be sure to check out the vast collection of artist’s work they have in store! They make skins for phones, tablets, laptops, game consoles – you name it.

One more thing that has made me really happy last week: my Noro yarn finally got here ♥ I’m making a bag with it, and I can’t wait to see how it turns out.

Have a wonderful yarn-a-licious week everyone :)

xo,
wink

May 17, 2013
by wink
6 lovely comments

book review: crochet noro

For my birthday I got this book: Crochet Noro: 30 Dazzling Designs. It’s published by Sixth&Spring Books, New York, and it is ah-ma-zing!

The book doesn’t have any chapters; after a brief introduction about the origin of Noro yarns, the pattern section begins. And really, who needs those pesky pages before the pattern section anyway, right? The patterns feature 30 projects ranging from wristies to shawls, and from blankets to purses and bags. There is a great variety in patterns and that is one of the things that I love about this book.

Most patterns come with written instructions and diagrams, and they could not be more clear. All stitches are explained very well and at the beginning of each pattern, so there’s no need for you to search what any abbreviations mean. Each pattern comes with a skill indicator, ranging from Beginner to Easy, Intermediate and Experienced.

The photography for this book is truly exquisite and such a joy to gawk at. The art direction is very good, as is the styling, and you can see that the people who made this book had a lot of passion doing so. The book is hardcover and bound, and my copy stayed open on the table very easily, making it easy to have next to you when you work a pattern from it.

There is one project in it though that I just don’t understand. As you know, Noro yarns can be quite precious and not for everyone’s wallet size, so the Nesting Bowls project doesn’t make any sense to me. Who wants to keep their knick knacks in a Noro nesting bowl? No thank you, I’ll save that expensive yarn for something else!

Crochet Noro: 30 Dazzling Designs is the third Noro book out there, following two Knit Noro books. Nine designers were asked to provide patterns for this book, which gives it that eclectic mix of fantastic patterns that are almost timeless.

This book currently retails for $17,95 (on Amazon here) and I highly recommend it. Even if you only make half the projects in this book, the other half is wonderful to look at on a rainy afternoon, making it a perfect coffee table companion in my opinion :)

xo,
wink

ps This book was gifted to me by my mom, and I didn’t receive any financial compensation for this review. Opinions stated are my own and I fully stand by them.

May 15, 2013
by wink
7 lovely comments

these days

noro_project_rowan
noro_project_rowan2
kaffe-fasset-fabric
flute-love

This is pretty much what my days this week have looked like so far. I’m still working on my Noro shawl; it’s a pattern from this Crochet Noro book and I’m using Rowan Siena cotton yarn to make it. I was gifted this yarn for my birthday by my sister and it is just so lovely! It calls for a 3mm hook size, a size that I consider to be small, but still I love working with it. When this shawl is finished, it will be the perfect summer accessory. That is, if it ever becomes summer. I don’t know about the weather in your parts of the world, but around here it’s been nothing but cold and rain!

I got this crazy psychedelic Kaffe Fasset fabric! Staring at it is like taking acid (I imagine). But I love the vibrant colours and crazy patterns; it will be the perfect lining for a bag I’m about to make. I ordered 5 different skeins of Noro Silk Garden Lite to make it; when they’ve arrived I’ll showcase them here. I plan to make a simple bag with it using solid squares, and then embellish it with wonderful beads, lace ribbons and perhaps buttons… I’ve got lots of ideas for this bag. If only the yarn would get here; my fingers are itching to get started! When this bag is finished I may keep it for myself, or I may put it in my Etsy shop.

And then, there’s music. I have been bitten (yet again) by the flute virus. That happens every once in a while, and this time it’s for real. I’ve signed up for flute lessons and I start after the summer. I’ve also contacted a former flute orchestra I used to play in, and they were happy to invite me back! So come June, I’m playing there again, which I am super stoked about. Some of you know my flute history (I’ve blogged about it a little here) and know that it has always been a dream of me, to one day attend music school. I have no idea if that will happen this time around, but I am sure going to try my best. I just want to play music!

What are your plans for this week? Does the sun shine where you are? (and if it does, could you maybe send a little this way?)

xo,
wink

May 13, 2013
by wink
21 lovely comments

free printables!

Remember my goals for this year? One of those goals was to create free printables for you guys. I wanted to make a tag that you could keep with your ongoing projects (or WIPS) where you would write down what yarn you were using, what hook size, and other details about the projects.

Well, I made them! :)

You can print them on A4 sized paper, and cut them out. There are 10 tags on one page. I used colored card stock to print my tags, but you could also use regular printer paper. I punched out holes in the corner of each card, and voila! :) Cute huh?

The little crochet girl on the tags is a design that D made for me a while ago. I’ve always wanted to use it on my blog but I never really had room for her. But she is perfect for these tags, don’t you think?

This is how I use my tags; tie a string, piece of yarn or a ribbon to your tag and attach it to your project, WIP, or basket. This way you’ll always have all the vital information at the ready.

Tags include room for: the project name, yarn, hook size, made for, and notes, such as the start date, or where you got the yarn.

You can download the free PDF here.

Have fun! :)

xo,
wink