I hope you had a peaceful and happy Chtistmas time. I’ve been a bit quiet on here lately owning to being very busy. I am hoping to be around here a little more often in future if life allows!
I’m looking forward to sharing some posts about the last few months including a fabulous visit back to Gibraltar in autumn in the coming weeks all being well.
Gibraltar in October 2025
Before then though, I wanted to let you know about a very special Making Stitches Podcast episode which is out tomorrow – Episode 100!
Before then though, I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has read my posts, sent me comments and messages, listened to my podcast and joined in with the Making Stitches 2025 CAL this year. You have made it a very special one for me as I celebrated 10 years of this blog (previous Postcard from Gibraltar) and now Making Stitches.
Hello there! I hope you have had a good month and that Christmas went ok for you. I have decided to go into 2025 with good intentions and try to be up to date with things so here’s my Postcard from December on the last day of December!
It’s been a funny old month weather wise with us not so much cold and frosty weather as you might expect but plenty of grey, dull, wet and in some cases very foggy days.
In spite of the weather it’s been looking really rather pretty in our neighborhood with lots of lovely Christmas lights adorning people’s homes and gardens.
A lovely yew tree dressed for the season
The FareShare Festive Feast Wreath
I was able to pay £55 to FareShare Greater Manchester just before Christmas, thanks to the sale of patterns of the FareShare Festive Feast Wreath.
Thank you so much to everyone who has bought one! It was a thrill to see photos of wreaths which have been made so far out in the wild!
The annual Christmas Special from Making Stitches Podcast made an appearance just before Christmas. It was lovely to be able to look back at my podcast year and share a few of the highlights.
We had a nice quiet Christmas and Boxing Day, followed by a lovely walk with family in Lancashire. We visited a route by the River Yarrow near Chorley. It was rather muddy under foot but we were dressed appropriately and really enjoyed our woodland wander.
It felt good to be moving again after a couple of rather sedentary days!
Even when there are no leaves left on the trees it was still a treat to get some ‘Vitamin Tree’.
The walk saw us zig-zag back and forth across the series of small foot bridges as we followed the river.
This bright orange fungus & green moss were real pops of colour on an otherwise grey day.
I believe this spot is a perfect place to enjoy bluebells in springtime. I’d love to come back and see them myself one day…
My word, that work did us all the world of good after a little bit too much chocolate & other naughty food!
And that just about wraps up this final Postcard from 2024. Thank you for stopping by and having a read and to anyone who’s a regular visitor to Making Stitches, thank you for your continued support.
Next year is a big one for me in terms of my blogging, I look forward to speaking more about that next year as this little site celebrates it’s 10th birthday – isn’t that crazy?!
As part of my celebration I’ve decided to release a new crochet pattern each month – a very relaxed crochet-along if you will. Watch this space – more will follow very soon!!
Until then, thank you again for sticking with me to the end of another year, I hope you enjoy your evening tonight however you plan to see in the New Year!
It’s 25th October, so that means it’s 2 months to go to Christmas! Apologies for using the C-word so soon but there is a very good reason for it….
Earlier this year, I started a new job. It was working for FareShare Greater Manchester an organisation which rescues tonnes of good-to-eat food from going to waste and then redistributes it to over 200 charities and community groups across Greater Manchester who are feeding those who need it most. It’s a truly amazing place filled with amazing people. You may have heard about it back in the pandemic when Manchester United footballer, Marcus Rashford came along to help the operation here with his Mum.
Last year, FareShare Greater Manchester rescued almost 2,000 tonnes of perfectly edible food from going to waste with the help of more than 21,000 volunteer hours given by our amazing team of volunteer supporters. That food went to more than 300 charities and community groups across Greater Manchester, into parts of Derbyshire and Cheshire too and was the equivalent of 4.6 million meals which would have gone to landfill or some other form of waste management.
At a time when an increasing number of people are facing the difficult choice of whether to spend money on heating their homes or feeding themselves and their families, this work is needed more than ever.
I was so inspired by the things I see and hear about at work each day, that I wanted to do something special myself to help support that vital work, so I picked up my hook and yarn. I decided I had to make something food related and started thinking about Christmas food in particular. First I crocheted a sprout and perfected a design for it, then some pigs in blankets and before I knew it I had a whole crocheted Christmas dinner.
I then thought about what would be the classic Christmas decoration, and settled on a wreath. A wreath cover was made, the Christmas dinner was added and hey presto, the FareShare Festive Feast Wreath was born.
The next dilemma was how would I be able to make money for FareShare Greater Manchester with this wreath? It would take too long for me to make wreaths to sell, but I could sell the pattern and send the money raised from that to support the FareShare operation. So that is what I have done.
Supported very kindly by Jane Czaja, who has tech edited the pattern, and with the full support of FareShare Greater Manchester, I have launched the new pattern on sale in my Etsy shop today.
I would be so very grateful if you would help me spread the word about the FareShare Festive Feast Wreath on your social media channels and tell all your crocheting friends about it. I would, of course absolutely love it too if you would buy a copy of the pattern and make a wreath(s) yourself!
Thank you so much for your time and for your support in this, I look forward to seeing how much we can raise for FareShare Greater Manchester together!
Hello there, I hope this finds you well and doing ok. This year, more than most, I know that Christmas can be a tricky time for people, and if that’s been the case for you, I hope you are doing ok now. I have to admit that 2023 is a year I’d rather forget, but life doesn’t always take the easy path. I don’t have many plans for 2024 as we head into this new year – we aren’t always able to control what happens to us – but it’s a fresh start and time to look forward with positivity.
The first step in doing that is publishing this, it’s not been a hugely photogenic month for me to share with you, but here goes…
London in the run up to Christmas
My ‘day job’ took me down to London for the day in early December which was super because it meant I was able to meet up with Eldest for a couple of hours and get a much needed cuddle (I think I speak for both of us here)!
On our wanderings we ended up in St Pancras Station and I found myself face to face with this beautiful Christmas tree made of books. I’d seen it popping up on Instagram a few times and it was lovely to see it in real life. It was rather busy, so I didn’t get the opportunity to sit in one of the booths and listen to an audio book, but I’m glad I saw it.
On the road again…
Just one week after my trip to London, my job took me to Birmingham! In the run up to the trip my colleagues kept arranging to meet under ‘the bull’ before walking to the venue of our meeting. Unfortunately, my train got in me in after they had left, so I missed them and got to walk on my own.
My solo walk was really rather pleasant, taking me through large town squares filled with Christmas markets, an ice rink, fun fair and over one of the city’s famous canals to the building where we were meeting. Best of all was I arrived in time for coffee and mince pies!!
Yarny things
Little Jen
Last month I shared a photo of an amigurumi head, it was the head of ‘Little Jen’ a gift I was making for my lovely friend who graduated at the start of December as an Art Teacher. I’m so proud of her for going back to University later in life and fulfilling her dream. It’s just as well I only shared her head, because Jen read my last blog post and when she opened her gift said, “I saw that head on your blog and thought that looks a bit like me! But why would Lindsay be making my head??” Well now she knows! I believe Little Jen had a trip into school to meet Jen’s pupils!
In other little crochet people news…. Meet Birthday Boy! I have reached an age when my school friends and I have a BIG birthday looming. This week, it was the turn of Steve, someone I’ve known since infant school, life took us separate ways at secondary, but he joined our sixth form at 16 and is part of the wide circle of school friends I’m still in touch with thanks to the wonders of modern technology.
Steve lives with his family in Barcelona, but came home to Manchester for his birthday celebrations, and boy, they were good!
Birthday Boy
I’m thinking about publishing patterns for Little Jen & Birthday Boy. Do let me know if you would be interested in making a ‘mini me’?
In other yarny news, work is progressing on my rainbow jumper, although it has taken a back seat in the past week. I love the colours, they make me think of a rainbow against storm clouds. Very apt given the time we’ve been through.
New Year Plans
As I write, I have about 15 hours left of 2024 and although I’m not making an New Year‘s resolution as such, I want to get back into blogging regularly again next year. My current job is coming to an end soon (it was a maternity leave cover) and I am on the look out for a new job. I don’t know what that will entail, nor how much time it will allow for fun things like this, but all being well, I’d like to grow my blog, podcast and crochet business. If you would like to sign up to my email newsletter, I’ll be sharing any news about my adventures there first.
All that’s left is for me is to wish you a very happy start to 2024, I do hope next year is kind to us all.
Lindsay X
**EDIT!**
I posted too soon this morning – just back from a lovely walk with my boys round the Cheshire town of Lymm and spotted this beauty – which simply had to be shared!
Crocheted Christmas tree 🎄 in Lymm, CheshireLeafy LymmLymm Dam
Hello there, can you believe it’s the last day of 2022? I can hardly believe it and am shocked I’ve been away from my little blog for so long.
Life (as always) has been rather busy of late and blogging found itself at the very end of the to-do list. This time though, blogging felt quite unattainable – I didn’t have the words to write or anything interesting to say either. So here goes, the jolt of moving from one year into a new one might just be the impetus I need to get me going again!
When I looked back I was shocked to see I hadn’t posted for so long. When I changed from Postcard from Gibraltar to Making Stitches I assumed I’d be back again very quickly but hey ho, I’m here now. Here’s a little jaunt through the past two months in my world.
Paid Work!
The main headline I guess from the last two months is that I’ve managed to secure the impossible – paid work for my crochet. I have rather excitedly been commissioned to design some things for a craft magazine. This has taken up a LOT of my time. Solid crocheting from the moment the Little Postcards leave for school in the morning until they come home! I’ve loved it, but it has been a lot of hard work.
The old spectre of self doubt popped into my head on many occasions during this work but I’m pleased to say, the first commission was gratefully received and got a stamp of approval so I’m thrilled about that. I have 3 more projects to complete by mid January and I’m in the midst of those right now.
I wish I could tell you more and show you photos of what I’ve been working on but sadly I can’t for now – just some of the yarn I have used for one of the projects (above). I will investigate further on whether I can share them once they are published.
New article published
Within the last week the latest issue of Simply Crochet magazine popped through my letter box complete with my latest article for them. It was prompted by the outbreak of war in Ukraine and the outpouring of support I witnessed in the online craft community. The main photo is of Amoami bears. This amazing social enterprise helping Ukrainian refugees featured in one of my podcast episodes too. You can listen to it here.
Inspired by their work, I ordered my very own mini Christmas Amoami bears. They were made by Yuliia. They look gorgeous on our tree this year!
A trip to the Lakes
Easedale Tarn
A very dear friend of mine and her husband moved away from our home town earlier this year and settled in beautiful Grasmere in the Lake District. It’s been something they’d been talking about for years, and this year ended up being the right time for them.
I don’t know this part of the world very well, but I have a feeling I’ll be getting to know it a whole lot better from now on!
In November we were invited for a visit to their new home – and boy what a move they have made. They have lost their old decent sized back garden but blimey with this on your doorstep, they have all the greenery they need!!
We took a walk from their front door up to Easedale Tarn. There were butties and crisps at the top to give us the energy to walk back down… what a picturesque picnic spot!
The weather was so kind to us!
It was wonderful to be able to share this with the two Littlest Postcards – unfortunately Eldest missed out by being away at University but hopefully he will be able to join us another time. It was remarkable to see a real change in the youngest two though, from their usual slightly grumpy teenagerish (11 & 15) demeanor to being full of life and scrambling over rocks as we undertook our walk.
We had one whole day of sunshine before the weather turned a bit grey and damp. We were so lucky to be able to truly see the beauty of their surroundings. We most definitely will be back!
November in a nutshell
Throughout November I took part in an excellent daily photo challenge on Instagram run by The Yarn Whisperer and The Pigeon’s Nest. It was called ‘Yarnovember’ and was lots of fun. That kept me rather busy on social media and reminded me just how much crochet has been in my life for the past few years which was such fun.
Also in November I competed my second pair of knitted socks. I picked up the ‘Hope’ yarn from Yarndale in September and used the Winwick Mum basic sock pattern to knit them. I love the colours – they are so autumnal.
I also had a lovely morning walk with Eldest to see the deer at Dunham Massey National Trust park early in the month. He managed to get home for a few days during his University reading week, and we headed out for a walk one day, coffee cups in hand to enjoy the greenery.
The big painting challenge
At the start of December I set myself a tough challenge – to redecorate our lounge in time for a surprise birthday party just over a week later. It was a tough one, but I managed it, despite 4 coats of paint to kill the pattern of the patterned wallpaper on the feature wall.
Before the paint!
I’d been living with wallpaper I disliked for 2 years, and the surprise party was the kick up the behind I needed to get busy. I’m very pleased to say I managed it (with a bit of help from the unsuspecting party recipient). We were all ready in time to welcome party guests to my lovely Dad’s 80th birthday party!
The delicious cake made by my brother & sister-in-law
Cold weather
Whilst it’s been rather mild recently, earlier this month, it was decidedly nippy. We had a proper cold snap in mid December which made the early morning school runs a bit on the cold side. I believe it was minus 9 one morning when my friend’s husband left for work. I walked with Littlest to the bus stop that day to keep him company as his friend was ill and I can confirm it was COLD! It had warmed up slightly when I drove son Number 2 to school (see below)…. It’s so hard to comprehend that a few months ago, parts of the UK were burning in the heatwave!
Back at Old Trafford
I managed to get back to Old Trafford to watch the Manchester United Women’s team play against Aston Villa. I went with my youngest two and my Dad. It was brilliant – the atmosphere is so lovely in women’s football. As you can see, the sun shone and they got a win too – a perfect trip out!
Betwixtmas
This year I’m taking part in the Betwixtmas Makealong by Black Sheep Wools. I have had a skein of Yarn Whisperer hand dyed yarn waiting for the right project to come along and I think this is it. I took it along to Black Sheep wools and picked out two contrasting colours to make up this ‘knitted’ – yes – knitted shawl. It’s pushing my abilities and a bit of a challenge but I have enjoyed putting my hook down for a while over the last few days. I wonder if it will be finished before next Betwixtmas?!!
That’s all I have for you this time, but it’s been lovely to be back and sharing my comings and going’s with you. I hope you have had a restful Christmas – I know it’s very difficult for so many people. I wish you a new year filled with joy and creativity.
Hello everyone, happy New Year! I know it’s a bit late but you know how it is, post Christmas and New Year business got in the way of planning this post. Better late than never – at least I managed this while it’s still January…….just!
I hope your festive period was ok. I know it’s still not completely how it used to be and for many people in particular it will have been difficult.
Here’s what I got up to at the end of last year…
New pattern releases
Holly from Up the Garden Path
Following on from my patterns for Flora the Gardener and Hope the Snowdrop, in December I published the next two patterns in my Up the Garden Path collection. They are ‘Holly’ and ‘Ivy’.
Ivy from Up the Garden Path
They are both available to buy from my ETSY shop….
… and feature more beautiful illustrations by my very talented friend Emma – aren’t they adorable?!
Holly as drawn by Emma Jackson Ivy by Emma Jackson
I think Ivy has a look of Rula Lenska don’t you think?
Start as you mean to go on…
Slightly blurry in-motion snap!
Last year’s New Year’s resolution was to try and design my own crochet patterns for the first time – which I’m thrilled that I managed to see through.
This time though, I don’t want to risk failing or setting the bar too high, so I haven’t made any resolutions as such. However, in late November I reacquainted myself with my Couch to 5K app. Throughout December I carried on with my thrice weekly runs, and was lucky enough to enjoy some beautiful, sunny mornings.
I’ve now (in January) completed all 9 weeks and am running 30 mins without stopping, which I’m thrilled about – I was built for crochet not speed!!
Booster-tastic
December also meant booster time for me. The previous time I visited this vaccination Centre, there were daffodils around the place. It was funny to be back again with the leaves which had just begun appearing last time now on the floor.
Podcast Christmas Special
My guests for the first Making Stitches Christmas Special (Clockwise from top left: Heather Griffith from HG Designs Crochet, Sara Huntington, Editor at Simply Crochet Magazine, some of the staff from Black Sheep Wools in Warrington, Kate Blackburn from WhatKatieDidUK, Louise Armitage aka Gini from Gini’s Dorset Buttons, Adam Brooks from Great British Sewing Bee & Louise Murray from Hooked by Lou.
You can find the podcast episode webpage here if you want to find out more.
Christmas crochet makes
A dinky Christmas tree from a Molly Makes pattern
As always it was a busy time for my hooks in the run up to Christmas… I made a couple of gifts and a new top for myself.
A Cinderella doll for a special friend
And… you know when you set yourself a slightly unrealistic target and have to burn the midnight oil to get it done? Well I decided at the last minute to make a Christmassy tank top…. I did get it finished in time, but the ends weren’t woven in in time for the day in question…. I hope no one noticed!
Tank Top modelled on the Vintage Granny Stripe cardigan by Fran Morgan from Simply Crochet Magazine.
Happy Post
The latest book published by Sarah Corbett from the Craftivist Collective
I bought myself a little early Christmas present in the form of this gorgeous book by Sarah Corbett all about the Canary Craftivist movement which got under way last summer. It even includes a photo I took of the Manchester Flock working on crafting their canaries sitting next to the statue of Emmeline Pankhurst in the centre of Manchester back in July.
A Festive Walk
Dunham Massey, Cheshire
It was lovely to be able to return to Dunham Massey National Trust park and gardens over Christmas. It’s a fab place and just a short drive from where we live. It’s a place which instantly takes me back to my childhood and I love taking the Little Postcards there for a walk on a weekend or during the school holidays.
We got a great view of the resident deer and even spotted a couple of pure white ones.
Podcast New Year Special
(Clockwise from top left) The Crochet Sanctuary, Sarah Corbett from The Craftivist Collective, Gemma and Evie from the Manchester Flock, Mary Jane Baxter, Amanda from Mrs G Makes, Christine Perry aka Winwick Mum, Black Sheep Wools & Yarndale 2021.
I ended the year podcast-wise with a second Christmas Special which was released on New Year’s Eve. It featured my chats with Sarah Corbett from the Craftivist Collective, as well as Gemma and Evie from the Manchester Flock of Canary Craftivists, Mary Jane Baxter also made an appearance speaking about her epic trip around Europe in a camper van called Bambi stitching as she went. I looked back at my visit to the Crochet Sanctuary in Spring and to Yarndale in September last year, and heard from some of the staff at Black Sheep Wools in Warrington. I also included chats with two new friends of mine who I met last year; Christine Perry aka Winwick Mum who helped me on my sock-making adventure and Amanada from Mrs G Makes.
You can find the podcast web page here if you want to take a listen.
New Year’s Eve walk
Fields outside Wigan, Lancashire
We were treated to a stunningly beautiful and warm day on New Years’ Eve, and made the trip to Wigan to visit my brother and his wife. Just a short walk from their home is open countryside and it made for a very picturesque walk.
It was just the perfect way to end the year. In lovely company and enjoying lovely weather in the fresh air.
And that brings this rather late December round-up to an end. I promise I won’t be as tardy with my January post!
Thank you so much for stopping by and making it to the end of this rather epic post. I promise I’ll be back again soon!
Hello there! It’s the last day of November already eek! I’m not ready for December!!
It’s been a busy old month – perhaps that’s why it’s gone so quickly. It’s only now I look back at what we’ve been up that I’ve realised it’s been quite a lot.
In the latest twist of the Covid story it’s also been a month of regular trips to our local testing centre every time anyone gets a cough or sniffle or we are alerted about a close contact. I think we may have been about 10 times lately – I’m thinking of asking for loyalty points!! Fortunately all tests have come back negative.
Here’s what we’ve been up to this month…
A golden tree at the end of the rainbow
Yet again this year, after over a decade away from the UK I have loved seeing the beautiful colours of autumn this month. I may no longer have little people at home who like to make pictures out of autumn treasure, but I can’t help but pick up pretty leaves when I see them!
No it’s not Christmas yet!!
Eek – am I the only one who gets freaked out by early Christmas decorations? I took Littlest out for hot chocolate on 1st November to a local café and they had a huge tree, giant baubles… the works! On the first of November!!! Maybe I’m just a Scrooge but it’s seems a bit early to me. This photo was of the Trafford Centre on the first Saturday of November…. Christmas lights galore!
Meeting real people in real life!
One evening early in the month, I had the most wonderful time ‘out out’ in Manchester. Since February/March last year I have been a virtual member of a super community for podcasters.
After months and months of zoom virtual meet ups where we hear from real ‘professional’ podcasters and swap advice and help amongst our community, I actually got to meet everyone in real life!! What a thrill. (People were so much taller than I expected after spending so long just seeing them on my phone/laptop screen 😂! )
The occasion for this meet up was to celebrate the club’s 3rd birthday and the 30th meet up in total. There were drinks and even birthday cake!
If you are a podcaster yourself or are thinking of starting your own podcast do come along to a future zoom. The group’s called MIC’s Podcast Club and although it’s based in the North West of England, there are members from much further afield (like America) and I was still living in Gibraltar when I first joined. You can find them on Twitter @MICsPodcastClub and maybe one day you can have the thrill of seeing your own podcast up in lights on the wall of a real-life meet up!
Costa del Ship Canal
Littlest’s football match got cancelled one week and instead the team coach opted to run a team building training session in our local nature reserve.
It was a perfect morning for it – definitely worth setting the alarm for an early start on a Saturday!
Just look at those blues and the golden leaves….
That water almost looked Mediterranean – well almost – it is the Manchester Ship Canal!
Plastic hedge be gone!
In this era of everything needing to look perfect and be convenient, we end up with situations like astroturf and plastic hedges. I am not a fan at all. I’m a bit more slap dash and enjoy going with the flow with nature, plus I really enjoy gardening. So when we inherited this delightful plastic hedge at our new home last year, it’s days were numbered. It did a lot better than expected as other jobs took precedence but this month, it’s time was up.
It didn’t take long, it was so rotten inside it practically fell apart – very little force was needed at all. I’m looking forward to installing a rather more environmentally friendly replacement soon!
Yorkshire Sculpture Park
A few weeks ago I received a message from a lovely friend I used to know in Gibraltar. She, like me has moved back to the UK and is now based in the South East of England. She wanted to let me know she and her partner were having a few days up North and would I like to meet them at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park? Yes! Was my answer!!
Barbara Hepworth sculptures
Before we moved to Gibraltar, we lived in Wakefield just a stone’s throw from YSP and it was a regular destination for us as a family on a weekend. It was so lovely to be able to go back there – albeit briefly while the Little Postcards were at school.
Ai Weiwei’s Chinese Horoscope Characters
The weather was so kind to us. It was very cold but it was beautifully sunny. The perfect conditions for having a wander through the beautiful park and sculptures.
Close-up of one of Ai Weiwei’s Chinese Horoscope headsYou can never have a big enough hand bag!A Diamond ring made out of car wheels!
We didn’t spend too long together as I was clock watching to get back across the Pennines in time for school pick up, so we didn’t get to see the whole of the park but one exhibition both myself and my friend (who’s also a crafter) enjoyed immensely was one by Joana Vasconcelos who likes to create amazing things out of everyday objects… like giant stilettos out of pots and pans…
…. Lots and lots of crochet!!! Viva crochet!
Just look at that intricate work!!
Close-up of the above statueAnimal heads enrobed in intricate crochet
But the next fabric structure stopped us in our tracks… it was huge!
The photo doesn’t do it justice – it was giant and filled the huge exhibition space. It was a combination of patchwork, embroidery and very complicated crochet.
The photo above shows the end of one of those tentacles and was over a metre in diameter.
There were also pictures made of bulbous crochet structures…
Finisterra 2018Close-up of above pictureHeartbreak 2015
How about this for a giant pouffe for your living room?
There was also a sculpture made purely of red plastic knives & forks..
Red Independent Heart #3
And then more examples of intricate crochet covering everyday household items…
A double sinkDetail of the sink piece aboveA urinal called ‘Purple Rain’
And a fabulous chair…
The back of the chair above
The Joana Vasconcelos exhibition is on until 9th January 2022 both in the underground gallery and with pieces in the open air too. The artist’s work is said to be “sculptures that comment with a feminist perspective on cultural identity and tradition and celebrate the creative lives of women” – YSP Guide.
It was a lovely visit to the YSP and fabulous to be able to see my friend again – who I hadn’t seen since pre-Covid times. I can highly recommend a visit if you haven’t been, I’ll certainly be back when I can spend longer there.
Sock knitting update
Remember the pair of socks I was knitting thanks to Christine Perry aka Winwick Mum’s fabulous book?
Well they’re finished!!
Knitted using the Winwick Mum Basic Sock Pattern in West Yorkshire Spinners 4ply in ‘Brightside’ also designed by Winwick Mum
I now have toasty warm toes!
In other crafty news, I’m currently working on Eleonora from Coastal Crochet’s Winter Walk Scarf CAL.
It took a while to get started as my hand-dyed skein I’d been saving for the right moment got into rather a big tangle…
But I got there in the end…
And I’m on my way!
Making Stitches Podcast
In podcast news, there have been 2 new episodes this month – both of them yarn inspired.
Emma Leith (photo credit: Emma Leith Atelier)
The first was with the hugely talented and inspiring crochet designer Emma Leith. You can find that here.
Sara Mulvey from Black Sheep Wools (Photo credit: Black Sheep Wools)
The second was a real treat to record because it meant I was able to go ‘back stage’ at the fabulous Black Sheep Wools Craft Barn and speak to Sara Mulvey. What a joy it was to have a proper chat with Sara after months of watching her videos through lockdown – it was such a positive part of a rather unpleasant time. You can listen to Sara’s episode here.
And finally…
My first ever crochet patterns have been launched and are available to buy from my Etsy Shop!
There’s Flora the Gardener and Hope the Snowdrop and all being well they will be joined by some more friends very soon!
And that’s just about it for this month. I hope November has been kind to you.
Thanks so much for stopping by!
Lindsay x
Edit: I forgot to mention the snow! We also has some of the white stuff fall in the last few days – super exciting even if it was very cold!!
I hope you have had a decent festive period, it’s been rather muted but also rather nice to be at home too with no pressure to attend events either. We now find ourselves in Tier 4 like much of England and my friends in Gibraltar are in lockdown due to a huge spike in Covid cases there after being relatively unscathed until this point. I do hope they manage to get things under control over there very soon.
I’m having an internal debate about when to take the decorations down, there’s something a bit sad about packing the twinkly lights away for another year and yet there’s something nice about having clear surfaces and a fresh start too, maybe I’ll do it tomorrow…
Anyway, here’s this week’s Sunday Postcard and the first one of 2021.
First snow! ❄️
It was a big day in our house when we woke up to this on Monday. A generous dusting of white stuff had arrived while we slept and for Littlest it was his first experience of snow ever!
It was such a treat to see and completely changed the way I look at my new garden, I feel very lucky to have a little patch to call our own especially now we are effectively back into lockdown.
It was also rather fun to sit by the window and crochet snowflakes while looking at the real thing outside!
After the snow came the freezing fog which enveloped us in a rather murky gloom for an entire day. I found it quite atmospheric although not everyone in the house agreed.
Then more snow arrived on New Year’s Eve…. and a heavier dusting.
Doesn’t it just make everything look magical?
Missionaccomplished!
I set myself the challenge of completing my Christmas Eve blanket (pattern by The Crochet Sanctuary) by the end of the year seeing as I had missed my initial Christmas target (whoops). I didn’t manage to finish the border but the blanket is finished for now (last stitches completed on New Year’s Eve) so I’ll take that as a win. I love how it looks and really chuffed I managed to pull off the mosaic crochet Christmas trees too – my first attempt at that technique and I love the effect.
Party time
My word, I know how to party. A new crochet project in front of Jools Holland’s Hootenany is how I rolled on New Year’s Eve! I did have a few bubbles though curtesy of my lovely brother and sister in law’s Christmas gift hamper! Cheers!
Since New Year we haven’t really done anything of note, a bit of preparation for the return (or non-return) to school and a bit more crochet for me. I will share more pictures when and if they are worth showing!
I will leave it here for now and hope you are doing ok where ever you are and whatever restrictions you are facing. I had a look at my ‘best nine’ photos on Instagram and it’s a sign of the times that my lockdown rainbow featured, I’m glad it was filled with two of my favorite things though – crochet and Gibraltar!
Until next week, take are and thanks for stopping by!
Hello there! I hope you have had a decent Christmas – it’s been a strange one hasn’t it? Just like probably everyone else, we had a quiet one seeing limited people, but it was nice nonetheless. Now it’s the countdown to the end of the year and all that 2021 will bring – good things I hope!
Here’s this week’s Sunday Postcard…
Del Boy…
Last Sunday as Littlest and I popped out for a walk to deliver the last of our local Christmas cards, we were stopped in our tracks by a certain yellow Robin Reliant belting out music and shouting happy Christmas messages to bemused looking passers-by! It was quite a sight!
A Manchester Bee for our tree
As I picked up the last few last minute gifts for Christmas I happened across a fabulous selection of stalls in John Lewis in the Trafford Centre called Curated Makers. It’s a cooperative of local makers who create the most lovely crafts of all sorts. I treated myself to a Manchester bee for our tree. You can find Curated Makers on Instagram.
A pre Christmas walk at Dunham Massey
When we first arrived in Manchester in the summer I imagined that we would be regular visitors to our nearest National Trust property ‘Dunham Massey’ however because I didn’t have a National Trust membership at the time and because of lockdown that didn’t happen until this week. I treated us to a NT membership and booked for us to visit the deer park and gardens. It was wonderful.
The grounds were decorated for a special after dark Christmas experience but we enjoyed it in the daylight.
It’s such a lovely tranquil place and was managed so well by the staff and volunteers to be Covid safe. We will be back again soon if we can.
Christmas visitors
When we first moved into our new home in October, we bought a bird feeder for the back garden. It’s been rather unloved by our feathered friends so far but this week there were sparrows and thrushes fighting to get to the seed! Word must have got out that there were tasty treats available! I look forward to seeing many more birds in future!
Finished for Christmas?
‘Christmas Eve’ blanket from The Crochet Sanctuary
Did I finish my Crochet Sanctuary Christmas CAL in time for Christmas? Sadly not, but I am on the final part, so I’ll take that as a win! I’m hoping I can manage to get it finished before the end of the year if I possibly can.
Happy Stitchmas in podcast news!
On Christmas Day morning the latest episode of Making Stitches went online. This extra long bumper Christmas episode features several different makers sharing their ‘Stitch Stories’ from 2020. Among my guests were Eleonora from Coastal Crochet and Lisa & Lynda-Rose from the Crochet Sanctuary as well as four Making Stitches listeners who spoke to me about how their crafts have helped them this year.
You can listen by searching for Making Stitches on your favourite podcast app or just Google Making Stitches.
Thank you Eleonora!
Eleonora is top middle of the above mosaic
My lovely blogging friend Eleonora from Coastal Crochet published the most amazing blog post today all about Making Stitches! I’m utterly thrilled and chuffed to bits that she did this for me. Do please have a read…. you can find it here.
Eleonora’s Instagram post from today featuring Eleonora in a rather lovely red coat on Christmas Eve!
And that brings this week’s Sunday Postcard to an end. Thank you for stopping by. Do take care of yourself, and I’ll be back again soon. Happy New Year when it comes.
Hello there, thanks for stopping by. Before I begin this Postcard, I just want to say that I know this coming few days is going to be difficult for many people this year more than ever. Following the announcement yesterday of even tougher restrictions in parts of the UK, many people’s plans have been left in tatters.
I’m really sorry if you have seen your Christmas plans reduced or even cancelled, or if your work situation has been rocked even further after this turbulent year. I don’t know what I can say or do at this point other than say you are not alone, even if you are physically isolated. Do reach out if you need someone to talk to.
Now to the usual tripe! Apologies that this year I’m not sharing uplifting photos of the blue skies and seascapes of Decembers gone by in Gibraltar… my location has changed this year to a rather greyer but no less friendly and happy Manchester in spite of everything that’s going on. Here goes…
Final flat pack delivery
Finally after almost 2 months of living in our new home, our final furniture delivery of 2020 arrived a couple of weeks ago. Eldest now has a desk for his homework and I have a bookshelf for my crafty books – hurrah! That means several more boxes have been unpacked. They are getting less and less!
Keep on running!
My Couch to 5k training is continuing. I’m pleased to say I have now passed the point at which I stopped last time. Having a training buddy with me is a huge boon and makes us deliberately schedule in our runs, plus now we can hold a conversation most of the time too, so it feels like less of a chore! I snapped a brief bit of sunshine on one of the morning training sessions last week.
A Postcard birthday
We had a family birthday earlier in December – it gave me the chance to bake an old fashioned Victoria sponge with buttercream & jam filling. Yummy!
Christmas lights
There are some super examples of Christmas decorations in the streets near where we live now. I am planning on taking the Little Postcards on a nocturnal walk to see them as soon as we get a dry night! I love Santa in the camper van and this house (below) has Santa projected onto an upstairs window complete with “Ho ho ho!” sound effects!
More baking
It’s just as well I’m running at the moment – there’s been a lot of cake-age going on Chez Postcard lately. Middle Postcard has been having to do his Food Tech lessons at home so last week was Swiss roll. The last time I made a Swiss roll I was at school!! It turned out alright. Although I would have preferred jam as a filling to chocolate spread – the chef had the final choice naturally.
Model making
In addition to baking there’s been model making on the go too. This is a waterfall which had to be produced for an end of term geography lesson. Hours of work went into it, I’m still finding paint splatters in the kitchen!!
Empty Malls
I had to make a trip to the Trafford centre last week for a couple of Christmas bits. The joy of living close by means I can be there when it opens and before the hoards arrive. It was a successful trip and I was able to leave just as it was getting busy.
Crafty bits
I got some very unexpected happy post this week… this pack of Scheepjes yarn and a super case of Knit Pro crochet hooks. I recently renewed my subscription to Simply Crochet magazine which had elapsed this year while we were moving about from house to house. I had received the magazine for several years while living in Gibraltar but as an overseas subscriber I never received a subscription gift. This time I did! Woo hoo! What a treat – thank you Simply Crochet!
Strictly Crochet…
Wasn’t the Strictly Come Dancing final glorious last night?! In the words of the great Craig Revel-Horwood, it was “Fab-u-lous”. The only problem was I had to keep stopping my crochet to give the dances my full attention! I love that Bill & Oti won – they were my favourites after Caroline & Johannes left.
So what was I working on whilst watching Strictly? My Crochet Sanctuary Christmas blanket CAL. Will it be finished by Christmas this year? Who knows? I’m trying though… I’m over half way…
Don’t look too closely at the unorthodox bobbles near the top… I did one bobble row 4 times because I kept miscounting it and getting it wrong, so when I discovered later on that I’d missed 3 bobbles a few rows back I couldn’t face unraveling and added them afterwards. Shhh! Don’t tell anyone!
Last Friday I released another episode of Making Stitches Podcast featuring a weaver called Agnis Smallwood. She spoke to me about how she first got into weaving, her enjoyment of passing the skills of weaving and other crafts onto her students and how she found colour inspiration in her lockdown veg patch. You can listen by searching for Making Stitches on your favourite podcast app.
And that brings this Sunday Postcard to a close. It’s been a funny old run up to Christmas, and my mind keeps being taken back to the many Christmases we enjoyed in Gibraltar. We may not be there right now, but it will forever stay with us, just as our Christmas tree is reminding us.
Wherever you are in the world, I hope you have a peaceful Christmas and are able to find joy in these coming days.
