knitting

A Postcard from February 2025

~ Making Stitches ~ Leave a comment

Hello there! I do hope February has treated you well. I have had a great month, and for once actually have some photograph worthy updates for you! Here goes…

London calling

The view from Greenwich Observatory towards the City of London

I started the month with a fabulous overnight getaway to London. It was courtesy of Eldest who, for my Christmas and birthday presents paid for me to stay in a hotel near his student hall of residence and booked tickets to take me to see Mama Mia! What a lovely boy – I am one very lucky Mum!

One of the joys of train travel (assuming they are on time and you can get a seat) is the uninterrupted craft time…

Once I’d arrived down in London, we had a bit of time to kill, so Eldest took me for a walk around his neighbourhood, which is in the Shoreditch/Islington area.

Although it’s very much an inner city area, there were lots of quiet back streets to explore and wander around.

I had to stop and take a photo of this, I like the sound of the ‘Worshipful Company of Haberdashers’!

After our wander, we headed back to base so I could get changed ready for our big night out. First stop was a delicious pizza for an early tea before hopping on the tube towards the West End…..

My word, I did enjoy the show. I think I must be one of just a handful of people who haven’t seen any of the Mama Mia films. I have seen bits of them but never the whole way through, so I didn’t know the storyline at all.

It was so good and really interesting to see how the ABBA songs were used to tell the story. Eldest made a great choice getting me this present – it was perfect.

On Sunday morning, we woke up to brilliant blue skies. It was the perfect day for an explore, so we hopped onto the Tube and then took the DLR out to Greenwich. First stop was a wander to the bank of the River Thames and a quick Look at the Cutty Sark before heading towards Greenwich Park.

It was such a beautiful morning that there were loads of people out in the park and it took a bit of negotiating to get to the top of the hill to see the Greenwich Observatory.

We really were spoiled to see it on such a beautiful day. That stunning blue sky was the perfect backdrop to the skyline.

After getting an alfresco cup of coffee sitting in the sunshine by the Observatory, we made our way back down into the town centre.

Back down at the River Thames, it looked more like August than the first weekend in February – it was so beautiful! I really was lucky in so many ways during my 24 hours away from home!

We decided to take an alternative route back to the hotel and walked under the Thames through the pedestrian tunnel!

Birthday celebrations continued…

Just two weeks on from my belated birthday celebration in London, I was taken out for another birthday celebration (I could get used to this!). My lovely brother and his wife told me on by big day back in January, that they wanted to take me out for lunch as my gift.

We went to Dishoom in Manchester for the most beautiful lunch. It was such fun and the food was out of this world. The building where the restaurant is based is stunning too.

After lunch, we called in to this Mancunian institution – Peveril of the Peak. Inside are photos of famous visitors to the pub including Robbie Coltrane and the Gallagher brothers.

I can’t remember the last time I went to the pub in the afternoon! It felt like being a student again!

Loving the longer days…

One of the great things about this time of year is the fact that the days are getting longer. I took this photo on the first day when I got home from work before it was dark! It’s the simple things which make all the difference!

Spring is around the corner

Just this week I went out for a walk on an afternoon off work. The sun shone brightly and lit up this fantastic display of white and purple crocuses – just stunning!

An evening with the News Agents

Tower of Light lit in the colours of the Ukraine flag

I was blessed with two weekends with Eldest this month. He had a week off lectures owing to a ‘reading week’ and came home for a few days to see me and his brothers. On Monday evening (thanks to a last minute booking on my part when I heard he was coming home and it coincided with the show) we went to see the News Agents Live at the Bridgewater Hall in central Manchester.

We both have a fascination with current affairs and politics and love to listen to the News Agents podcast on weekdays. When they announced that they were coming to Manchester I had toyed with the idea of going but discounted it as it was on a ‘school night’, however when Eldest said he’d be here and the dates coincided, it felt like it was meant to be, so I booked two of the last few tickets just days beforehand.

We took the tram into the city centre and walked the short distance from the tram stop to the venue past the Tower of Light which was lit in the colours of the Ukraine flag to mark the unfortunate 3rd anniversary of the Russian invasion and subsequent on-going war. It felt rather fitting to see it on the way into a highly political evening of chat which was rather obviously dominated by conversations about Putin, Zelensky and most notably Donald Trump.

Our view as we waited for the show to start

We really enjoyed ourselves, it was a great show and very thought provoking on so many levels. I would highly recommend it to anyone who might be thinking of going.

As we left the venue and began our walk back to the tram, Eldest exclaimed that he had just seen Emily Maitlis at the rear of the building (her bright turquoise dress had caught his eye) then we spotted Lewis Goodall who was chatting with people who were leaving too. Eldest nearly died of embarrassment, but I went along to say how much we had enjoyed the show as well as the podcast and got a celebrity selfie (please ignore the double chin – I didn’t exactly catch the right angle!!).

Not my best angle but a thrill nonetheless to meet Lewis Goodall!

Making Stitches 2025 CAL February Square

The All You Need Is Love February Square

Love seems to be in the air a lot during February, so this month’s square for the Making Stitches 2025 CAL had to involve a heart. It was so thrilling to see squares appearing on my Instagram account literally 24 hours after I published the pattern – wow! Thank you so much to everyone who has taken part in the Crochet-Along so far.

❤️Some of the brilliant February Squares out in the wild! ❤️

If you fancy tagging along, please do, the patterns will be living on my blog for free (there’s a section now in the main menu where you can find links to the CAL patterns so far). It doesn’t matter if you didn’t start in January – a few new faces appeared online this month and have caught up. You don’t even need to do all of the squares – just the ones you feel like! If you do make a square and decide to share it on social media – please use the hashtag #MakingStitches2025CAL so I can see your square!

I’m off shortly to put the finishing touches to the March square pattern ready for it being released tomorrow!

And finally…

Making Stitches Podcast is back! The brand new episode went live this morning and features a chat I had with Felix Ford from KNITSONIK. You can listen to it here.

In it we chatted about Felix’s work with sound, colour, yarn and stranded colourwork knitting as well as her Masters project which involved making knitted cosies for walking sticks which diverted conversations away from disability and towards appreciation of creativity instead. It also features a few snippets of Felix’s musical compositions too. Please do give it a listen!

That’s all for this time – I’m quite pleased I’ve been able to share so much with you for a change! February may be the shortest month, but it’s been a busy one – I can’t promise my postcard from March will be as exciting!

Thanks for stopping by!

Lindsay x

A Postcard from October & November 2024

~ Making Stitches ~ Leave a comment
Halloween decor in London

Hello there! This should really be a Christmas post, but life’s been very busy so it’s a Postcard from October & November instead!

Better late than never eh?

I really don’t know where the weeks have gone but the juggle with work and family meant blog writing got put on the back burner for a while.

Here’s a quick whistle-stop round up of October & November in my world.

October 2024

Half term trip to London

Back in October I took my 2 youngest sons to London to visit big brother at University. As well as visiting him in his Uni accommodation to let Number 2 Son see what lies ahead for him in the not-too-distant future, we did a bit of sightseeing.

We’d prebooked to visit the Natural History Museum as myself and Youngest had never been before. Prebooking was wise because it was so incredibly busy and we skipped the entrance queue. However, once inside it was so busy it was quite unpleasant.

I have never felt panicky in a crowd before (I’ve been to a Wembley cup final & big gigs) but this was intense.

We went to see this big animatronic T-Rex then made the decision that perhaps we should leave as it wasn’t a fun experience.

We took a long route through the museum to appreciate a bit of the architecture, then, once outside we bought an ice cream and found a nice bench to sit on to take a moment.

That bench happened to be next to the Albert Memorial overlooking the Royal Albert Hall.

We sat there for ages as Eldest read us information about the history of the Albert Memorial curtesy of Google. It was an unexpectedly fun hour or so learning about the meanings of all the little statues around the memorial. We just sat there for ages chatting – much nicer than being jostled in a hot, crowded museum!

Then we decided to walk through Kensington Gardens and spied Kensington Palace in the distance as the sun started to set.

We had a lovely meal together before Eldest directed us back to Euston for the trip back up north to Manchester.

One finished jumper!

Well it’s been on the go since about October last year, and stupidly I thought it would be finished for Christmas 2023. It is finished for this Christmas though! I really enjoyed making this Tin Can Knits pattern – for those who don’t know them, you buy a ‘real’ pattern which you can print but you also access it on the Tin Can Knits app and can mark your progress on the pattern and make notes on your app – it’s brilliant! I would highly recommend it!

[The yarn I used was Knit Me Crochet Me by Stylecraft.]

The FareShare Festive Feast Wreath

In case you missed my last post back in October, this is my FareShare Festive Feast Wreath! I started working for FareShare Greater Manchester earlier this year and decided I wanted to create a crochet pattern to help raise funds for the charity. I even made a Making Stitches Podcast episode about it. The pattern’s still available for sale in my Etsy shop if you fancy making your own!

Podcast News

As well as podcasting about the wreath pattern, I revisited a guest who I met at Yarndale this year – Becky Davies-Downes. Becky worked for decades in TV & Film costume departments and now created beautiful things inspired by British wartime fashion. You can find out more about our chat here.

November 2024

And so to November… and that month saw me taking another train journey down to London for a meeting. Thankfully I also got some precious time with Eldest again as it fell on a day he had just one lecture!

It was a bitterly cold day as I left Manchester and saw some lovely snowy and frosty scenes on the way down south. This photo was taken close to the Wedgewood factory in Staffordshire. I took so many but most were blurred as we were speeding past.

I had my crochet for company – the Mischievous Magpie Mal from Heather at Keep Calm & Crochet On & yarn from Kitey at The Yarn Whisperer. One day I will finish this…

After the meeting, Eldest took me to Loop in London – I once visited many years ago while we made a family trip to London from Gibraltar. I remember it was at the end of a long day with lots of walking. Tired, argumentative boys waited outside with their Dad while I walked in and was slightly overwhelmed. I left after a hurried look around aware of the increasingly fractious situation outside and bought, wait for it, a pair of scissors!

This time, Eldest told me he was happy waiting outside and to take as long as I wanted (what a lovely boy!).

Similarly, I was a little overwhelmed by the colours & yarns on offer but this time I left with this lovely hand dyed skein. I wonder what I’ll use it for?

After our trip to Loop and a fabulous pizza for lunch, we went for a short walk along the canal from close to Angel in Islington. It was such a beautiful, bright, sunny day and it was lovely to escape the traffic noise and hubbub of the city.

It really was a lovely day, and a luxury to spend some time with Eldest on my own.

November yarny things..

I decided that I wanted to make myself a quick tank top. After the elation of finishing my jumper in October, I thought I’d see how quickly I could whip up a granny treble cluster tank top. I made one for Christmas a couple of years ago making it up as I went along and did the same with this. I used some ‘Nigel’ yarn I had bought at Yarndale in September. (I did have to order some more mid project as one ball wasn’t enough).

I’m really pleased with how it turned out and how quick it was to make – it goes really nicely over a denim shirt.

Also in November I challenged myself to a bit of knitted colourwork. I ordered the kit for the Season’s Greetings Festive Stocking kit from Black Sheep Wools designed by Debbie Abrahams.

It includes beading with the colourwork and is such a clear pattern to follow. I have amazed myself that I’ve managed to do it so far. I shall share a finished photo when I get that far!

And that just about brings this very belated Postcard from October and November to a close.

As it’s Christmas Eve, I would like to wish you a happy and peaceful Christmas.

If this is a difficult time of year for you, I hope you find some peace and time to do something that makes you happy.

With love,

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2024 Week 6 & a bit!

~ Making Stitches ~ Leave a comment
Knitting on the beach on the west coast of Scotland on the last day of our holiday

Well here we are, after the start of the new school year. That summer whizzed in the blink of an eye!

My summer craft challenge for 2024 officially came to an end last Tuesday evening as school bags were packed and the last minute checks were done. This year was my 8th Summer Craft Challenge, it started back in 2016 when I lived a completely different life over in Gibraltar….

I was a stay-at-home Mum of 3 young men and was staring down the barrel of a 10-week-long holiday and thought a craft challenge to do something crafty every day during the school holiday might just help me keep my sanity. It worked. It forced me actually do something for myself in the midst of beach days, household chores & attempting to entertain 3 young men in a non-air conditioned flat in the Mediterranean!

Each summer since then, apart from in 2020 when we moved back to the UK during the summer holiday and mid Covid lockdown, I have set myself the challenge. A few times a handful of people have joined in here and there but this year, I have a had a merry band of crafters who have risen to the challenge and taken part with me. It’s been an unexpected delight! Thank you to everyone who has joined in, with embroidery, crochet, knitting, baking, resin flower making, jewelry making and other crafts too.

A few of the lovely daily crafts shared during Week 6 of this summer’s challenge

In the final full week of the challenge there was slow stitching, crocheting for multiple grandsons, sock knitting and most exciting of all, a new grand daughter for Carol @nanaseamakes – huge congratulations to your family Carol on the most amazing make of the summer! 💕☀️

Thank you to this week’s featured makers : Carol @nanaseamakes Alison @alisonswoolnwalks Sandra @wilddaffodilwild Zeli @yarnstorms Marisa @mariwish & Kristina @catsy_crochet & to everyone else who has joined in with the Summer Craft Challenge this year, it’s been the best one yet without a doubt! I’ve loved seeing all your makes & meeting new people through the challenge.

So here’s what I got up to in the final week and a bit of this summer’s challenge:

Day 36 : Saturday 24th August

Day 36 of my Summer Craft Challenge was mostly spent on the road & on a ferry to a lovely spot in the west coast of Scotland.

I took a huge bag of yarn with me so I was hoping to get loads of knitting & crochet done while I was away. I was a bit tired after the long drive so just did a spot of knitting before bed!

Day 37/38: Sunday 25th August

So, as you can see, my brain went into holiday mode and despite it only being day 37 of the challenge I decided to call it day 38! Whoops! From here on in, I lost a day in the challenge (I’ll stick with what I said it was to avoid confusion but it actually lasted 46 days in total not 47 – I was telling a fib!).

What bliss, crochet & a view – a perfect start to the day! This is how I started day 1 of my holiday – first one up and with the house to myself…

Gazing out at the Kyles of Bute with a coffee & a granny square or two.

Day 39: Monday 26th August

I managed a little bit of al fresco crochet overlooking the water after being out for a nice walk!

Day 40: Tuesday 27th August

A bit of granny square crochet & blue skies on day 40!

Day 41: Wednesday 28th August

So, I thought it would be pretty cool to climb up the hill to the Tighnabruaich Ark which lies above the little town of Tighnabruaich close to where we stayed in Argyll. The ark was built by a local artist using timber which had to be felled due to disease. It was created to make a statement about climate change.

I had a couple of young men with me on the trip and asked Eldest to record me knitting so I could make an arty post for social media. You will be able to hear the wind and beginning of the torrential downpour which ensued.

It was a bit windy!

By the time we got back down the hill, I was wet through to my underwear! So much for al fresco crafting that day!!

Day 42: Thursday 29th August

Thoroughly dried out, on Thursday we had a wonderful (dry) walk in a woodland – it was blissful compared to the day before! Before we left for the day, I found myself with yet another quiet early morning with the house to myself and nothing but my crochet & the view for company! What a joy!

Day 43: Friday 30th August

This was our last full day in Scotland and I have to admit I was feeling rather melancholy about saying goodbye to this view. It was so lovely, just sitting there joining my squares and wondering when I’d next have the opportunity for such long unadulterated crochet time!

I took my knitting out with me to a local beach (you can see it in the top photo). My Mum sent me the following photo of me knitting on the beach… I have no idea what went on in the background – it looks like I’m knitting in a galaxy far, far away!!

Day 44: Saturday 31st August

I couldn’t bear the thought of missing out on my last chance to have some early morning crochet in my Scottish crochet corner, so I set my alarm a little bit earlier on Saturday morning ahead of our trip back home just so I could hook for a teeny bit more.

It was worth it! The sun was out and the view was magnificent- the best day of the holiday weather wise by far (typical!). After a very tiring 8-hour-long journey home (terrible tailbacks on the motorway in Lancashire) we made it safely home.

After that drive, I was utterly zonked and incapable of adulting that evening beyond getting the car unpacked and cooking dinner for everyone so I just sat down and picked up where I left off that morning – same position but with a slightly different view – of my back garden this time!

Day 45: Sunday 1st September

Back at home on Sunday was a hectic day with shopping, unpacking, washing etc. but I did find a little window of opportunity to start sewing in some of my granny square ends.

Day 46: Monday 2nd September

Back to work for me, and there was just a little bit of time in the evening for some candy striped crochet.

Day 47 (actually Day 46): Tuesday 3rd September

My last day of the 2024 Summer Craft Challenge and my attention has turned already to Christmas. The striped crochet is a covering for a wreath idea I’ve been working on – I look forward to being able to share its progress with you in the coming weeks & months!

Thank you for joining along on my Summer Craft Challenge adventure and for stopping by to read my ramblings! Thank you again to everyone who joined me along the way too by finding a little (or not so little) moment of creativity during the summer!

Same time, same place next year?

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2024: Week Five

~ Making Stitches ~ Leave a comment

Hello there! I hope the summer’s treating you well. I’m writing this sitting in an armchair overlooking the water and across to the Isle of Bute on the west coast of Scotland. The picture above shows how I started the week (on a walk in Cheshire) and how I ended it (on a ferry from Gourock to Dunoon). Just look at the colours in those two photos – they would make a fab blanket don’t you think?

Anyway, back to the challenge for this week…

Day 29 – Saturday 17th August

Day 29 meant just a little time for a bit of knitting & a beer after a fun day with friends including a visit to Manchester Art Gallery & one of the nicest pizzas I’ve ever eaten in Manchester city centre.

Day 30 – Sunday 18th August

Crochet while playing monopoly can be dangerous… like missing when someone lands on your property and they keep quiet about it…

Day 30 of my #SummerCraftChallenge2024 an evening of playing monopoly after a lovely day with friends including that walk in Cheshire I was telling you about before.

Day 31 – Monday 19th August

Back working on my #MagpieMAL this evening after work. Completed section 6 and attempted to begin section 7 but had too many people talking to me to be able to count stitches, so ended up frogging that bit. Shall wait for a quiet moment before trying again!

Day 32 – Tuesday 20th August

I realised as I was writing this post that although I did take this photo on Day 32 I forgot to post it on Instagram at the time – whoops! I did find that quiet moment I was seeking the day before and managed to restart that section I had to frog. Hurrah!

Day 33 – Wednesday 21st August

As of lunchtime on Wednesday, I was officially ‘on holiday’ hurrah!

I spent a very happy hour playing with my @stylecraftyarns Special DK stash in the afternoon, so I have a new WIP to play with while I’m away with my family on holiday.

I’m hoping this means I will be able to share a few more inspiring al fresco crochet and knitting photos while I’m away!

Day 33 of my #SummerCraftChallenge2024 completed in an array of colour! 🌈

Day 34 – Thursday 22nd August

Day 34 of my #SummerCraftChallenge2024 was mainly dominated by GCSE results in our house. I’m pleased to say it was good news – phew! Sending best wishes to everyone else who was involved in such things. It’s an emotional time whether they bring positive or negative news.

Aside from that there were Granny Squares a plenty and the start of a new WIP for my holiday project.

Day 35 – Friday 23rd August

I had a very happy half an hour knitting at the hairdressers getting my holiday hair cut and to hide the silver which keeps appearing.

Do you take your craft projects to the hairdressers? I always do. They’ve stopped asking if I want a magazine to read now as they know I always have something in my bag ready to whip out!

The Summer Craft Challenge 2024 at large!

My word what a creative week it’s been for those of you joining me with the Summer Craft Challenge this year. There’s been slow stitching, sock knitting, blankets and plenty and this stunning embroidery of summer 2024 memories!

I’m still so thrilled that I’ve got company on this creative wander through the summer and so it’s so inspiring to see such lovely work! Thank you all for joining in Marisa @mariwish, Sandra @wilddaffodilwild , Carol @nanaseamakes, Kristina @catsy_crochet, and Alison @alisonswoolnwalks.

If you’d like to join me with a little bit of creativity every day this summer, please do. Just take a photo of your moment of creative fun and upload it to Instagram using the hashtag #SummerCraftChallenge2024 – there are no rules, just fun! Post once, occasionally or everyday – it’s up to you! 

That’s all for this week, I hope you’ e enjoyed my creative meander through the past seven days. I hope your week ahead is filled with fun & creativity!

Take care,

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2024 : Week Two

~ Making Stitches ~ Leave a comment

Hello there and welcome to the second weekly round up of my 2024 Summer Craft Challenge.

It has been a very busy week for me doing the juggle of work, school holidays and podcasting too. It’s made me realise that maybe I’m doing a little bit too much. I’m going to have a look at what I can reduce to allow for a bit more down time!

As a consequence I haven’t had much concentration space to allow for much creativity as my creative juices have been consumed doing other things! There has been a lot of mindless knitting happening as a result so my photos this week aren’t the most inspiring – apologies for that.

Here goes…

Day 8

After the struggle I had last Friday getting in a tangle with my yarn winding for the Magpie MAL by Heather from Keep Calm & Crochet On UK (Yarn by Kitey of The Yarn Whisperer) I decided to take it nice and slow and really enjoyed sitting quietly winding yarn cakes with the rest of my yarn for this project on Saturday.

Day 9

The MAL began in earnest for me on Sunday morning accompanied by a cup of coffee enjoying the peace and quiet before the rest of the household woke up!

Day 10

Back to work and after a busy day I sat down to enjoy a few rounds of my long term project – a top down sweater by Tin Can Knits. I’m loving this section as you just go round and round and round and don’t need to think too much!

Day 11

Tuesday and more continuous rounds of knitting….

Day 12

On Wednesday I had to double up on the creativity – knitting while editing my podcast episode for Friday. (Normally I have my episodes edited further in advance but the juggle meant it was a bit last minute this week which doesn’t help with the stress levels). A lot of the editing process involves listening back to sections so I used my hands to knit while doing that.

You can catch my latest episode here, it features a chat I had with Jane Abraham, who is also known as The Cornish Knitter on YouTube. I found our chat fascinating as she talked about the challenges faced by more mature crafters – please do have a listen!

Remember these cushions I made in week 1? Well they went into a gift I was making for my good friend whom I saw on Wednesday evening – they were the stuffing for a….

…. Cuddly VW Camper Van. I can now share it as it’s been gifted and gone off to its new home up in the Lake District!

Day 13

Well Thursday was a day and a half. Full on, in person outdoors in the sun for 8 hours meeting and chatting to people all day long with work. My batteries were a little flat by Thursday evening so a teeny amount of knitting was all I could manage.

Day 14

A good night’s sleep was just the medicine to be able to get back to reading a pattern again and trying something more exciting for Friday’s crafty moment – back into the Magpie MAL and loving it!

Join in!

A few of the other Summer Craft Challenge Instagram posts this week!

This summer, more than on any of my previous Summer Craft Challenges (dating back to 2016) I’ve been joined by quite a few other crafters and it’s been fabulous to see so many other people enjoying a bit of creativity every day. It really helps me by encouraging me to dig out even a teeny bit of quiet and calm when I’m super busy, I hope it’s helping everyone else too.

There’s been quite a bit of variety of crafts too this week – did you know it was International Embroidery Day on Wednesday? I didn’t! There was quite a bit of slow stitching on the IG squares this week along with plenty of crochet, knitting, a fabulous doggie outfit ready for a Rock Choir event and a resin dipped flower!

If you’d like to join me with a little bit of creativity every day this summer, please do. Just take a photo of your moment of creative fun and post it on Instagram using the hashtag #SummerCraftChallenge2024 – there are no rules, just fun! Post once, occasionally or everyday – it’s up to you!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2024 : Week One

~ Making Stitches ~ Leave a comment

Hello there, well that’s the first week of the school summer holidays done in our house and that means week one of my Summer Craft Challenge is done too.

It’s been a really rather special one for me – I’ve been doing this every summer since 2016 (except during 2020) and occasionally other people have joined in here and there. It was primarily a way to give me a focus during the long summer school break (10 weeks long back then when we lived in Gibraltar) with 3 young men to look after and entertain. It had the benefit of reminding me that being creative is good for my mental health and it’s so easy to become overwhelmed with all the things which need to be done at the cost of carving out a little time for yourself.

Back when I started, I invited people to join me and never before has it been so whole heartedly done – thank you so much to everyone who has tagged along with me!

Here’s a little look back at this week in craft..

Day One

This time last week, we were in beautiful Grasmere in the Lake District visiting our good friends who live up that way. School finished the day before and we headed straight up to Cumbria that afternoon. We woke up, had breakfast and headed to the Mere for a morning out on the water. We all took a turn kayaking and while I waited for mine, I sat on the shore hooking! We even had a visit from an inquisitive duck!

Crocheting by the water at Grasmere

Day Two

Still in the Lakes, we hiked to Elterwater for a wonderful Sunday lunch in a hotel – it was delicious and all the more tasty thanks to our walk to get it! I took my yarn and hook with me to get some more al fresco crochet in – it ended up being crochet on the move as we caught the bus from Elterwater to Ambleside after lunch.

Elterwater

Day Three

We traveled back home on Sunday and I took Monday off seeing as it was the first proper day of the holidays. There were lots of jobs to do, as is always the case after a trip away so the first chance I had to sit down and do something creative was after dark! I’m hoping to finish this Tin Can Knits top down jumper I’ve been working on since before Christmas at some point this summer. I’ll keep you posted!

Day Four

Another busy day. Back at work but did manage a bit of knitting while there was still light in the sky!

Day Five

I ditched the yarn this evening and blew the dust off my sewing machine to repurpose an old unwearable school shirt into something new – a couple of little cushions for a project I’m working on.

Day Six

That project I was making the cushions for is finished. It’s a gift so I can only share a sneak peak and this is it. Once it’s been gifted, I promise I’ll show you what it is!

Day Seven

Today, I thought I’d crack out a new project I’ve been saving for this very purpose – the Mischievous Magpie MAL (Yarn by Kitey from The Yarn Whisperer & pattern by Heather from Keep Calm & Crochet On).

I got over excited and went a bit hell for leather on the yarn winding and got myself into a bit of a pickle. I was unraveling hours later as I watched the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games! I’m pleased to say I got there in the end…

Join the challenge!

So, as I said before, quite a few people joined me this week. You can see some of that creativity above – what a thrill! Thank you to you all for tagging along.

If you fancy joining in, please do, there are no rules. Just take a photo of your moment of creativity and post it on Instagram with the hashtag #SummerCraftChallenge2024

Until next time, enjoy your summer crafting!

Lindsay x

A Postcard from April 2024

~ Making Stitches ~ Leave a comment

Hello there, I hope May is treating you well! I was really meaning to get this post out at the start of the month, but somehow life got very busy and here we are half way through May already!

Well, better late than never, here’s a little look back at April in Making Stitches world!

A flower show

Last month, the first ever RHS Urban Show happened at the Mayfield Depot, close to Piccadilly Station in the centre of Manchester.

It was an interesting event – where we were greeted by a pair of very friendly pot plants!

One of the balcony gardens – this one was for an artist

There were many beautiful stalls from plants people, an exhibition of balcony gardening from a local group of students – there was even an indoor forest! (See below 👇).

It was a really beautiful use of a huge network of warehouses and tunnels. Inspiration was everywhere and it was nothing like anything I’ve experienced before!

There was even an art exhibition included…

… which included lovely felting…

… and punch needle work too.

And I came home with this beauty! 🪴

On my needles

I’m still knitting my Tin Can Knits top down basic sweater. It came out in a trip to the hairdressers with me last month, but hasn’t seen much action lately as I have been working on a rather large and all consuming crochet commission (which unfortunately I can’t share with you). I’m thrilled to say that went off in the post this week so I can get back to doing other things now – phew!

Podcast news

Well this was exciting – Making Stitches Podcast got a double page spread in Simply Crochet Magazine! What a thrill!! It sparked some really lovely messages from crafty friends who were surprised to spot me in their favourite magazine!

I’m pleased to say that work has begun on the next series of the podcast – I’m looking forward to being able to share that with you again soon.

Other news

I’m thrilled to say that last month, I started a new job! It’s a great role using my skills for a really important charity. I’m chuffed to bits. They’re a lovely bunch of colleagues and I’m looking forward to the future with them.

We also had a birthday in Making Stitches world, I am now the mother of a 20 year old… how did that happen?? And for Youngest, there was success for his football team as they won their league cup. 🏆

That’s all I’ve got for you this time I’m afraid other than some really pretty blossom which appeared in my back garden last month. I do love this time of year – it feels so full of promise for the summer ahead!

Until next time, take care of yourself.

Lindsay x

A postcard from December 2023

~ Making Stitches ~ 8 Comments

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.

It was fascinating to see the bull which had played a significant role in the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in 2022. He’s called Ozzy after Ozzy Osborne and he was the centerpiece of the games’ opening ceremony. You can read all about his life after 2022 here.

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.

You can sign up for my newsletter here

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, Cheshire
Leafy Lymm
Lymm Dam

A Postcard from November 2022 – no, make that 2023!

~ Making Stitches ~ 8 Comments
The River Mersey

So, hello there… it’s been an awfully long time since I’ve been around here… I thought that as we head towards the end of this year, it was time to blow the cobwebs & dust off my blog and check in with you.

It’s been a year and a half – 2023 – you know … and as I dipped into my drafts folder to open a new blog post I found this – A Postcard from November 2022 a post which was started but not finished. My word, a year is a long time and an awful lot can happen in that time.

These three first photos were indeed from November 2022, beautiful sunny blue skies above the River Mersey. Little did I know when I took them that the rug would be ripped out from under our feet – it’s just as well we don’t know what lies ahead…

The River Mersey

It’s funny really that one of the things which sparked my desire to post was a photo I took while I was on the very same walk with Son number 2 last weekend!

Taken on the same path as the above photo 1 year apart!

This new photo is of the same path, although I may have been facing a different direction, I’m not sure. It’s funny that when big things happen, that we cling to the small routines to keep our heads above water.

If you haven’t been around this way for a while, I’ll put you in the picture. This year we lost a hugely important person in our family. It’s been an unfathomable loss for me and my 3 boys. Life has changed forever in so many ways, obvious ones and in many other ways too.

Aside from the emotional side of things, I have had to return to ‘formal’ work which has meant less time for fun creative things. I have continued to make when time allowed and after taking half a year off from Making Stitches Podcast, I managed to get back into the swing of things with that. Blogging though, fell off the end of the ‘To Do List’.

Life is so different in so many ways from how it was this time last year, I have found strength I didn’t know I had and I have found my friends and family to be amazing. People are so kind.

I’ve learned many things, but the two most important ones are to lean on friends when they offer help and to keep putting one foot in front of the other.

The River Mersey last weekend

So, the real reason for me blogging is that I had been meaning to get around to it. I miss my monthly updates – looking back through the back catalogue, they form a rather interesting diary for me.

Did you keep a diary as a child? Or maybe you still do now? I did as a child – I wasn’t that great at it but I have a 5 year diary from when I was young somewhere and it’s probably about half filled. I bought another one 5 years ago… this year has been the final year and, to be honest I didn’t feel like filling that in either very much.

One thing I had done pretty regularly, since starting this blog (as Postcard from Gibraltar) many moons ago, was post updates, so I shall attempt to do that again I think. Here goes….

A new project on my needles

A few weeks back I went to Black Sheep Wools to have a catch up with my sock knitting friend, Christine Perry aka Winwick Mum. It was our first catch up of 2023 (because of the reasons outlined above). It was so, so good to get together again and catch up on each other’s news.

I went armed with a planned purchase in mind – I wanted to have a go at knitting a jumper. I haven’t knitted a garment for myself (other than socks) since Eldest was a baby. That was a beige cardigan (with variegated flecks of brown) with a cable pattern up both sides of the front. It ended up being an ok fit, but a bit itchy and had a distinctly ‘homemade’ look to it.

I have been squishing this desire down for ages saying to myself : “you don’t need to buy more yarn”, “you’ll never finish it!”, “it’ll probably look rubbish if you ever do finish it”, “why not carry on with one of your *many* WIPs instead??” – you know the drill…

Anyway I gave myself a good talking to and bought the yarn anyway! I am making a Simple Sweater by Tin Can Knits and had planned to do a rainbow striped yoke, but when I priced up how much it would cost to buy all the different colours I wanted in order to make it (bearing in mind I might never finish it and it may look rubbish if I do) I decided to opt for this (much easier on the pocket) super rainbow yarn instead. It’s called Knit Me Crochet Me and is made by Stylecraft. There was a lovely jumper knitted up in the shop made in another colour way which caught my eye. So there you have it, a jumper in the making … eventually!

I did make really good progress to begin with then when I tried it over my head it was so tight it felt like I was being choked (my fault for using the wrong size needles). This meant I lost a week’s worth of progress, but I’m back on track.

On my hook…

A mini person in the making

I am in the midst of a gift for a special person… who may read this blog so I can’t show any more than this. I will, however share this little ‘mini me’ once it has been gifted. I was thinking of writing up the pattern if it gets a decent reception, so watch this space!

A trip to the theatre (and the spooky world of Uncanny)

Last month I was lucky enough to have the chance to see Danny Robins, Evelyn Hollow & Dr Ciaran O’Keefe in action at the Lowry in Salford. I have been a fan of the Uncanny podcast since it first started, having listened to The Battersea Poltergeist previously.

When the Uncanny tour was first launched very early on this year, I really wanted to go and see it. I had no one to go with – none of my friends are into the podcast so, seeing as it was a matinee performance, I decided to go it alone. My first time ever doing that!

It didn’t faze me at all and in fact I ended up sitting next to a lovely lady and her son who commented on the fact she would never be brave enough to go to the theatre alone and shared her sherbet lemons with me! I would highly recommend it! I had my first solo cinema trip last year and that went fine – once it’s dark no one can see you are alone anyway! And if anyone has any judgements about it, it’s their problem not yours!

I pre ordered a copy of the Uncanny book and was able to pick it up at the show too – signed!! It was a big fan girl moment!

Crochet & Podcast News

My latest episode of the podcast features Fran Darlington-Pollock, CEO of the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity. The charity is joining forces with Black Sheep Wools in the run up to Christmas with their A Bed for the Night / Deck the Halls campaign. Money realised from selling wool packs and patterns for Christmas decorations will support the charity’s aim to provide 1,000 beds for rough sleepers over Christmas. It costs £30 for a bed for the night and the associated wrap around care. You can find out more information on the Black Sheep Wools website.

Also in Podcast news, at the end of October I went down to London to the Independent Podcast Awards. It was a fantastic night and I was able to meet up with some friends from my local podcasters club (yes they do exist – it’s our Christmas party tomorrow!). Making Stitches Podcast didn’t win but blimey the standard of the other podcasts was high so it was an honour to be considered alongside them!

You might spot Making Stitches on the shortlist (bottom right)!

Winter is here…

The temperature levels have fallen considerably in the last few weeks – this photo was taken on that walk by the Mersey a week ago – it was the end of the afternoon and the frost from the night before still lay on the fields. Yesterday it was -4 degrees when I scraped the ice off the car to drop the boys off for school!

Super cold days usually mean clear skies though so I’m not complaining – blue skies and sunsets are far preferable to damp greyness!

So that’s all from me, thank you for stopping by, it’s been nice to be back again!

Until next time…

Take care,

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2023 : Weeks 4, 5 & 6

~ Making Stitches ~ 2 Comments

Well, I didn’t do too well with keeping my Summer Craft Challenge posts up to date and consistent did I? Life got in the way and all of a sudden we’re over half way through September! So here is a whistle stop dash through the last 3 weeks of my summer craft challenge for 2023 because if I don’t post it, I’ll feel like I failed! I did, however post most days to Instagram so I’ll cut myself a bit of slack!

Here goes…

Week 4 : Saturday 12th August to Friday 18th August

This week began whilst still on holiday in Scotland (Glasgow to be precise) knitting socks, and after a long drive back home (without knitting or crochet that day) I ended up crocheting circles back at home in Manchester!

It was Granny Square Day on 15th August and I shared this Daisy Granny Square I designed while sitting next to some daisies beside the water in Argyll the previous week…

I hope to be sharing more about this square, along with some others I’ve come up with in the coming months.

Week 5 : Saturday 19th August to Friday 25th August

Work was nearing completion on my Potato Field Shawl this week including whilst watching the Lionesses in the World Cup Final. Plus I discovered this haul of Granny Squares when I opened a bag I hadn’t looked though for a while. I think I feel another project coming on!

Week 6 & a bit – Saturday 26th August to Tuesday 3rd September

And we made it! Schools went back for my youngest 2 on Wednesday 4th September – we survived the long summer break with creativity along the way. I also managed to completely finish my Potato Field Shawl. I’m really pleased with it. You can find the pattern details for it here my rainbow colours stripes were made with yarn bought at Yarndale last year from Cuddlebums Yarn.

By this point I had just turned the heel of the sock I was knitting – I’m pleased to say I got it finished in time for Eldest to take away to university with him. I used yarn by West Yorkshire Spinners in Peacock and followed Winwick Mum’s Basic Sock pattern. This is my third pair to date…. I know there will be more!

I’m not sure whether he’ll wear them in public but at least they’ll keep his feet warm in bed if he needs them!

Thanks for following me on my annual Summer Craft Challenge. It’s been fun and much needed respite in this my first summer ‘holiday’ back in structured employment. It’s been a juggle at times balancing work, children and sanity, but we just about got there. Creativity is almost always the answer for me when things get tricky – failing that there’s chocolate!

I hope to be back again soon!

Lindsay x