Summer Craft Challenge 2023 : Weeks 4, 5 & 6

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

Summer Craft Challenge 2023 : Weeks 2 & 3

Hello there, this time last week I was driving north to Scotland so didn’t get round to posting before now… so here’s a look back at my last 2 weeks of crafting.

Day 8 : Saturday 29th July

It was Black Sheep Wools’ 40th birthday party yesterday & today, so I popped along to join the celebration.

Eek, there I am… I may have made one or two purchases while I was there…

It didn’t leave much time for making though…

Day 9 : Sunday 30th July

I just felt inspired to make a daisy, can’t say why – it just leapt off my hook!

Day 10 : Monday 31st July

I ended the month on a high, almost exactly a year after I started it, I finished my Dragonfly River MAL shawl by Heather at Keep Calm & Crochet On and Kitey The Yarn Whisperer. Isn’t it lovely? I have no idea why I left it almost finished for so long!

Day 11 : Tuesday 1st August

Sticking with the circular theme…

Day 12 : Wednesday 2nd August

A very uninspiring circle was all I managed today…

Day 13 : Thursday 3rd August

A very busy day today, work, housework and preparations for a family holiday (yay!) meant not much crochet time…

Day 14 : Friday 4th August

I’m trying and trying to square my circle but my brain won’t work and I’m not giving in and looking up a pattern. That’s enough for today.

Day 15 : Saturday 5th August

I didn’t manage much ‘craft’ today it was a long day of driving from Manchester to the west coast of Scotland. It was a day of firsts as I drove onto a car ferry for the first time!

Day 16 : Sunday 6th August

My crochet corner for the afternoon

I felt inspired by the Scottish sunshine in the garden of our holiday let to make a sunflower. What a fabulous spot! There’s a very good chance I won’t want to leave…

Day 17 : Monday 7th August

Sock knitting with a view today… our holiday let had the most amazing views.

Day 18 : Tuesday 8th August

It was such a beautiful day, I felt inspired by my surroundings and wanted to create a little crochet square to celebrate it. It also gave me the perfect excuse to visit a lovely yarn shop called Jinty & Baa in the village of Kirn near Dunoon to buy some yarn to make the water/loch section of my square.

If you ever find yourself in the area, I would highly recommend a visit. It’s really well stocked with yarn, fabric and other needlecraft supplies.

Day 19 : Wednesday 9th August

Sock knitting at Tarbet Castle

Nothing to see here… just an embarrassing mother sitting on a historical monument knitting socks 😂. A cruise on the Waverley Paddle Steamer brought us to Tarbet, and we climbed up to see the castle.

Tarbet Castle

Day 20 : Thursday 10th August

Sock knitting on the beach at Ostel Bay

Beach day meant sock knitting on the beach – ignore the grey sky – it was deceptively warm even the water was! It was beautiful.

Day 21 : Friday 11th August

Sock knitting at the Shinty pitch!

Our last full day in the Kyles of Bute before heading onwards to Glasgow. The boys decided to have a kick around on the neighbouring shinty pitch near to where we were staying (I managed a few rows before being roped in as goal keeper). I imagine this will be last of my spectacular backdrops for a while!

That’s it for this week, I look forward to sharing more summer craft adventures with you soon.

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2023 : Week 1

My first ever Summer Craft Challenge in 2016

Hello there, here’s the first installment of my Summer Craft Challenge for this year. In case you missed my last post or are new to the blog, back in 2016, when we lived in Gibraltar and I was a full-time stay at home Mum to three young boys, I was staring down the barrel of a 10 week long summer school holiday.

Whilst I loved being at home with my boys, the prospect of entertaining them for 10 weeks filled me with slight trepidation, so in order to force myself to spend a bit of time each day doing something that gave me joy, I set myself the challenge of doing something crafty every single day. I started it, not knowing if I’d be able to achieve my target, but I did. I also amazed myself at how much I actually created.

So, each summer since then (apart from in 2020) I have repeated my challenge – some years have been better than others! Here is Week 1 of this year’s challenge:

Day 1 : Saturday 22nd July

I started off my day with some calm crochet before the storm that was about to be a 12th birthday party and sleep over…. (should read ‘not-much-sleep’ over). I sat in my pjs as the rest of the house was quiet and hooked up a few rows on the prototype of a crochet commission I’m currently working on.

I also managed some crochet while I sat and waited for the birthday boy and his friends to finish their Laser Quest session!

Day 2 : Sunday 23rd July

Sunday was a quiet one. Once our guests had departed and the house had been returned to ‘normal’ I spent a lot of time just sitting and crocheting (and not feeling guilty about it due to the lack of sleep the night before).

Day 3 : Monday 24th July

No time for a long lazy day on the sofa on Monday, back to work for me but at least it was a nice sunny evening when I took Youngest to football training. I took my project with me, sat on a bench with a couple of other football Mums and chatted while I hooked – it was very pleasant!

Day 4 : Tuesday 25th July

I can’t show you what I hooked on Tuesday as it’s for a top secret project but when I saw these two balls of yarn side by side I was sent on a trip down memory lane to my childhood and some chewy mints called Pacers. Do you remember Pacers?

Day 5 : Wednesday 26th July

Time for a bit of non-commission crochet for a change. I picked up this shawl I’ve been working on for a while, my aim is to get this completed over this challenge – there’s really not much left to do, but I keep doing a bit and putting it down – it’s taking forever!

Day 6 : Thursday 27th July

It was a super busy day full of Zoom meetings for me, then a hectic evening later so I knew my crochet time would be limited. I opted to crochet during one of the 15 minute comfort breaks in the midst of my working day – it’s all looking a bit black though isn’t it?!

Day 7 : Friday 28th July

I did such a lot of crochet on Friday but alas I cannot share it. What I can share is this cute bunny who was completed exactly a week ago ready to move in with his new family 🩵. I started him at a Crochet Sanctuary away day in March (the same one I made my Mindful Mandala at which was featured in my previous post), and I held off finishing him until his new owner had safely arrived – I’m pleased to say baby & and bunny have met and are getting on together just fine!

That’s it for this week’s Summer Craft Challenge, do you fancy joining in? If so, just tag any of your photos with #summercraftchallenge2023 on Instagram and we can all share our summer of creativity together.

Thanks for stopping by!

Lindsay x

Anyone fancy a Summer Craft Challenge?

Hello there, just popping in to say thank you for all the kind comments on my previous post, it’s much appreciated. 🩷

This is the ‘Mindful Mandala’ I made way back in March at a wonderful Crochet Sanctuary day. I didn’t post a photo at the time as we were in the midst of everything else that was going on. It was a wonderful day of yarny fun at a difficult time.

I don’t know about you, but on the whole, crochet really helps me when things are tricky. I often turn to creativity as a way of putting a positive spin on difficult days, and that’s why back in 2016, I set myself a summer craft challenge. I was staring down the barrel of a 9 or 10 week-long school summer holiday in Gibraltar with 3 young children to entertain and I was worried I might go a little bit stir crazy.

The challenge forced me to do something crafty every day of that long summer recess and it really worked. I ended up being far more creative than I would otherwise and that did me the world of good.

A few weeks back I was firmly of the mindset that I wasn’t going to do it again this year. Things were still feeling too difficult and now I am working a lot more so my time is very limited. But then I put my last blog post up about where I’ve been for the past 6-7 months and then I published a podcast episode and life began feeling a bit more like it’s ok to have fun now and again. So, with that in mind, and the fact school broke up today for Youngest (and earlier this week for No. 2 son), I guess now’s as good a time as any to kick off a challenge.

As from tomorrow, I shall endeavour to do something crafty every day of the school summer holidays as I have done every year since 2016 (apart from 2020 – owing to the fact we moved country etc!) and as I do it, I’ll document it on Instagram each day and once a week there’ll be a weekly round up here on the blog.

If you fancy joining in, you’d be most welcome to join me! If you do, just use the hashtag #summercraftchallenge2023 and we’ll see where this crafty summer takes us! 😊 No pressure at all – I may not manage every day myself – but I’ll have a go!

Happy crafting!

Lindsay X

Farewell old friend….

The Rock of Gibraltar painted my me at one of my watercolour lessons

Way back in the summer of 2015, I set off on a blogging adventure. Inspired by the likes of Lucy at Attic24 and several other craft bloggers, I decided that I would have a go at sharing a few snap shots of my life on the Rock. At the time, I had a the unique selling point that I was based in Gibraltar, and at that time, there were no other craft bloggers active on the Rock. I thought that even if no one was interested in what I was making, at least I could share beautiful photos of my sunny surroundings way down in the south of Europe.

The Upper Rock Nature Reserve

I felt compelled to share some of the quirks and beauty of where I was living at the time – a much misunderstood place from the outside. There is so much more to Gibraltar than the day trips from cruise ships and bus tours from along the Costa would have you believe. There’s much more than red phone boxes and fish & chips, British bobbies and Marks and Spencer in the sun. It’s home to a diverse group of people with origins from far and wide, the fortunate byproduct of it’s geographical location at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsular and just a short distance across the Strait of Gibraltar from Morocco and the African continent beyond.

The Europa Point lighthouse with the Strait of Gibraltar beyond

Soon I began sharing a series of blog posts called ‘A stroll around Gibraltar’ as I took my camera and later my phone along on walks around the narrow streets and back alleys of Upper Town and into the Nature Reserve of the Upper Rock – in fact my post about the ‘facts and figures of the Med Steps’ remains my most read post to date. I posted more than 200 Sunday Sevens posts and hosted a Friday Photo Challenge on Instagram one year as well.

The view northwards from part way up the Med Steps

I also used Postcard from Gibraltar to share what I was making, from the dressmaking and watercolour classes which I was able to attend once all three Little Postcards (my three sons) were old enough to all go to school, as well as a number of community crochet projects I joined in with from Yarndale worldwide appeals for crocheted bunting and mandalas to Eleonora from Coastal Crochet‘s Seaside Stashbusting blanket and Changing Tides blanket crochet-alongs.

My Seaside Stashbusting blanket inspired by Sandy Bay in Gibraltar

As our family went on trips around the place I would blog about our travels in my ‘A Postcard from…’ posts which included Rome, The Algarve, Carcassonne, and skiing in the Dolomites, as well as UK destinations like Manchester, Cheshire, and Suffolk.

A few photos from one of our holidays in Suffolk as I worked on an Eleonora Tully design from Little Box of Crochet for that year’s Summer Craft Challenge

Postcard from Gibraltar also opened doors for me and I began writing for an online parenting magazine in Gibraltar which now no longer exists sadly, I also got articles published in print for the Calentita! Gibraltarian food festival magazine. In short, Postcard from Gibraltar gave me the confidence to venture back out of my domestic set-up after many years being a stay-at-home Mum.

My Attic24 cosy stripe blanket at Europa Point

In 2020, along with everything else which was happening in the world, close to home for us, change was afoot. We found ourselves moving back to the UK after 11 very happy years in Gibraltar. It was a big adjustment, which wasn’t made any easier by the pandemic, but we survived! At the time, I wondered whether I should continue with Postcard from Gibraltar as it would no longer be ‘from Gibraltar’. I had begun my new podcast project ‘Making Stitches Podcast’ by then, and whilst it brought me very welcome creative distraction – especially during lockdown, I felt I would miss Postcard too much if I just finished it, so I kept it going in a slightly less regular, less sunny and blue skies kind of a way!

I may be in the north of England now but we do still get occasional blue skies!
(Photo taken at Dunham Massey this week)

More than 2 years on from our move though, I think the time is right to say goodbye to Postcard from Gibraltar. I won’t be saying goodbye to it completely though. This blog and all of the previous posts will still be available to read and if you should search for Postcard from Gibraltar online, it will still lead you here. Postcard from Gibraltar is evolving, just as I have, and from now on, will be known as Making Stitches.

It felt right to adapt what I’m already doing to compliment what I have been working on with Making Stitches Podcast. In the last two years, that has gone from strength to strength and is now in it’s 6th Series with more than 50 episodes featuring interviews with creative people from many different disciplines including crochet and knitting (including my old friend Eleonora Tully from Coastal Crochet), dressmaking, embroidery, textile art, weaving, yarn dying and more. In addition to this, I have made a foray into crochet design myself with the launch of my amigurumi crochet patterns. My life has changed quite a bit from what I was doing back in Gibraltar and it’s time this blog caught up with me.

Looking south towards the Rock – photo taken on Alcaidesa beach

I will still post my monthly Postcards (because I would miss writing them too much) although I can’t guarantee I’ll be any more prompt with posting them (!) and I’m pretty sure I will have another go at a Summer Craft Challenge again next year, so in a way nothing has changed, just the name.

View of Gibraltar from La Linea

Thank you to everyone who has read my posts, liked them or commented through the years and a special thank you to those of you who have become friends through this medium too. Your support, although virtual, has been very much appreciated over the years and it’s that which has kept me going. Who knows what lies ahead?

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2022 : Weeks 5 & 6

It would appear that I have let things slide somewhat with this blogging lark! Here we are in October and I’ve just realised I never actually officially ended my Summer Craft Challenge 2022 – that will never do!

So here, an awful lot later than previously intended, is the final installment of my Summer Craft Challenge….

Day 30 : Saturday 20th August 2022

First half of my main summer project completed – the beginning of the Dragonfly River MAL by Keep Calm and Carry on Crocheting & The Yarn Whisperer. I found the slub yarn really quite tricky to get to grips with to start with, but once I got into a rhythm with it, it was fine. Although, that said I am really looking forward to the next section as it is all in the gorgeous aqua blues of the accent yarn used in the accents of this section I’ve just completed.

Day 31 : Sunday 21st August 2022

Sewing in ends is right up there in my least favourite jobs alongside ironing I’m afraid, but I embraced it and felt very virtuous once all the loose ends were tidied away today. This means I can now continue with the rest of my cowl without a guilty conscience. What’s more I even got so into it that I actually revisited an old project (my Crochet Sanctuary Christmas 2020 blanket CAL) and finished off all the loose ends on that too!

Before…
And after!
Now both sides are respectable 😂

Day 32 : Monday 22nd August 2022

Back on the Granny Square bandwagon!

Day 33 : Tuesday 23rd August 2022

The Granny Square grows…

Day 34 : Wednesday 24th August 2022

No crochet as such for me, just some tech editing for my Oakley and Agatha patterns I launched earlier this week.

Day 35 : Thursday 25th August 2022

It may have still been the summer holidays but some things continue – like music lessons. So while number 2 son made music, I sat in the car and made amigurumi!

Day 36 : Friday 26th August 2022

Sadly there was no craft today – I was too busy packing the two youngest of the family off on a trip and packing for myself and Eldest to go on holiday too….

Week 6

Day 37 : Saturday 27th August 2022

Three train journeys gave me loads of time to get hooking. Lots of progress was made on my Dragonfly River MAL en route between Manchester and……. Paris!!!!!!

Day 38 : Sunday 28th August 2022

Too much sightseeing for me today to manage any more than a quick row before collapsing into bed!

Day 39 : Monday 29th August 2022

My last evening crocheting dragonflies in Paris.

Day 40 : Tuesday 30th August 2022

Crochet, orangina & a Brie baguette on the EuroStar très French!

Four train journeys today… 1 Paris Metro, 1 Eurostar, 1 Intercity between London and Sheffield and finally 1 Trans-Pennine Express from Sheffield to Manchester and home = lots of hooky time.

Day 41 : Wednesday 31st August 2022

No exotic location for my crochet today, just back on my sofa at home!

Day 42 : Thursday 1st September 2022

Back to in-car crochet during music lessons again.

Day 43 : Friday 2nd September 2022

Whoops I may have accidentally started a new project….

Day 44 : Saturday 3rd September 2022

Can you guess the theme of my newest creation?

Day 45 : Sunday 4th September 2022

More pumpkin crochet for me – this time alfresco at a football match. It was a pre-season friendly which ‘we’ won 3-0!

And that brings my Summer Craft Challenge to an end for another year. Thank you for joining me on another yarny summer adventure. I may not have managed a 100% record for doing something crafty every day this time, but I gave it a decent try.

Are you up for joining me next year?

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2022 : Week 3

Hello there, how are we at Saturday already? This was meant to be published last Saturday but there’s something about the school holidays when routine goes out of the window and I completely lose track of what’s going on! I have a feeling I may not be alone in this!

Here’s what I’ve been up to craft-wise lately…

Day 15 : Saturday 6th August 2022

Day 15 of my #summercraftchallenge2022 and thankfully I found some time for crochet at the end of the day! Progress is being made on this lovely #dragonflyrivermal project. I’m loving it! 💙💚🤍

Day 16 : Sunday 7th August 2022

You know when you realise you are only 2 rows off finishing a project but you can’t find the pattern so decide to wing it?! Well about to frog the last 2 rows for the second time… I’m off to look for the pattern! 😂

Day 17 : Monday 8th August 2022

There are days when football training is pretty bleak and miserable, but there are also days when it’s brill. Today was one of those days, sunshine, lovely parents to chat to and a spot of crochet in the evening sunshine ☀️. Making progress on my #dragonflyrivermal – I reckon I’m about a quarter of the way through. Still loving it!

Day 18 : Tuesday 9th August 2022

More alfresco crochet today! Our annual picnic at Marbury Park in Cheshire… I even saw a couple of dragonflies although they were too fast to photograph.

Day 18 of my #summercraftchallenge2022 was very pleasant working on my #dragonflyrivermal from @kcaco.uk & @the_yarnwhisperer in the sunshine & dappled shade of the Northwich Woodland.

Day 19 : Wednesday 10th August 2022

No time for crochet today… it’s be a day filled of utility sewing – name tapes and school trouser hems. I did give the neighbours a treat though as I dragged the ironing board out into the sunshine in the back garden so my long standing WIP and finally finished scarf/shawl could block in the sun! They’re used to watching me pose amigurumi dolls about the place, but they must’ve thought I’d gone properly bonkers to be contemplating ironing in the hot sun ☀️ 😂.

Yarn by @woollywumpkins
Shawl Pattern : Easy One Skein Crochet Shawl by @anniedesigncrochet

Ta-dah!

Day 20 : Thursday 11th August 2022

Nocturnal crochet for me this evening and back to the #dragonflyrivermal – Day 20 of my #summercraftchallenge2022

Day 21 : Friday 12th August 2022

Crochet in the garden this evening whilst admiring my new solar fairy lights… Day 21 of my #summercraftchallenge2022

And that’s last week’s crochet adventures complete! I’m off now to write the latest installment!

See you soon!

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2022 : Week Two

I can’t believe that week two of the school summer holidays is over already… where has the time gone?!

Here’s a little crafty recap of what I got up to this week – and despite having no plans to have a traditional summer holiday this year I even managed some beach crochet!!!

Day 8 : Saturday 30th July

Day 8 of my challenge was also day 1 of the Dragonfly River MAL from Heather from Keep Calm and Crochet On UK (@kcaco.uk) and Kitey from The Yarn Whisperer (@the_yarnwhisperer).

No dragonfly crochet for me yet, but a pleasant time winding my skeins into yarn cakes – aren’t they just gorgeous colours?! 💙💚🤍. I can’t wait to get started….

Day 9 : Sunday 31st July

Due to the hectic nature of things, I only had a few snippets of time to get crochet done. I’m being firm with myself and won’t let myself begin the #dragonflyrivermal until I’ve finished my current little person from my latest Up The Garden Path School Days pattern – once he’s off my hook I’ll be diving straight into dragonfly river believe you me!

In the meantime, here’s my dragonfly river yarn from @the_yarnwhisperer in all it’s beautiful glory (above)! Oh and a teeny tiny tank top too (below)!

Day 10 : Monday 1st August

Day 10 of my challengeand he’s finished! I had to somehow give him glasses and the only way I could think of doing it was by chaining embroidery cotton then sewing it into place. I’m reliably told by Youngest he looks nothing like his human counterpart. There’s nothing like kids to completely deflate your pride 😂.

Aside from that – it means that I’m free to get started on my Dragonfly River MAL!!! Rather conveniently I have two longish train journeys to make tomorrow so my MAL will be keeping me company!!!

Day 11 : Tuesday 2nd August

Manchester Piccadilly

Day 11 of my challenge and it was my first day on the #dragonflyriverMAL by Heather Keep Calm and Crochet On UK & Kitey from The Yarn Whisperer.

Coming into Birmingham New Street

Well I had 6 hours to kill on trains, so what better pass-time than this? Started at Manchester Piccadilly, frogged at Stockport, started again, then frogged at Macclesfield, started again and it was 3rd time lucky! Progress shots at Birmingham New Street & almost at Oxford!

Just outside Oxford

Final picture on my return trip – and I’m loving it! Not sure I’ll have as long to dedicate to it every day though!

Homeward bound

Day 12 : Wednesday 3rd August

Day 12 of my challenge didn’t see quite as much crochet as yesterday – just time for one row of the #dragonflyrivermal in the afternoon sun! ☀️

Day 13 : Thursday 4th August

Beautiful Lytham St Annes

Day 13 of my has been a beach day! I made crochet waves on the beach at Lytham St Annes in the sunshine!

Crochet on the beach

It was a super day organised by one of the mums at Youngest’s old school. There were loads of families there, lots of digging in the sand, football, games, hotdogs, amusements and summertime fun…. And a teeny tiny bit of crochet too!

Day 14 : Friday 5th August

Day 14 of my challenge was so busy I didn’t have time for any crochet sadly. But I did have time to drop this little chap off to his new home, so hopefully this counts. (Well I make the rules so l’ll say yes – but must do better tomorrow!)

The recipient was thrilled to bits with him despite the damning review from Littlest that he looked nothing like his human counterpart! So that was a job well done.

That’s all for this week’s installment of crafty shenanigans. Let’s hope the coming week is full of crafty fun too!

Thanks for stopping by!

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2022 : Week One

Well folks it’s that time of year again when I challenge myself to do something crafty every day of the school summer holidays, take a photo of it and share it. It’s become a bit of an institution round here. Being a stay-at-home Mum, and especially when we stayed in Gibraltar where they have longer school summer holidays (8+ weeks some years) I clung to my craft as a little routine to get me through!

Now don’t get me wrong, I love my children, but often the things I like to do would get cast aside in favour of family stuff. But by carving out as little as 5 minutes some days meant I had a little slice of time in the day to focus on my hands and unknot my brain.

So, last weekend was the first of this summer’s break and I thought I’d pick up the summer craft challenge baton again and run with it… here goes:

Day 1 : Saturday 23rd July 2022

Why not start with a WIP I was working on in last year’s summer craft challenge? This Daisy hexie blanket was a kit from Yarn Lane. The pattern and most of the yarn is by Marriner Yarns but I’ve decided it looked too samey so am alternating the penultimate round with varying pastel shades from my own stash (predominately Stylecraft Special DK). We’ll see if my plan works in about six years’ time when I finish! 😂

Day 2 : Sunday 24th July

More hexies today, but done with bleary eyes. Do you spot the balloon? It was Youngest’s birthday very recently but as it was very hectic with end of term excitement on the big day, his party was last night – including a ‘not-very-much-sleep… over’. I managed to find a few moments before dropping off after the post party clear up for a bit of crochet!

Day 3 : Monday 25th July

Just before the end of term, youngest was invested into one of the local scout groups. I had been putting off sewing the new badges on for a couple of weeks but decided to crack on before the new school uniform began arriving with all the required name tapes and hem alterations. Not exactly ‘fun’ sewing, more untility sewing but more colourful than what lies ahead!

Day 4 : Tuesday 26th July

An odd day with appointments and shopping, but still time to begin another project! A little head for another school child to be gifted.

Day 5 : Wednesday 27th July 2022

Leg number one done after a busy day chasing round on the hunt for new school uniform!

Day 6 : Thursday 28th July 2022

And then there were two!

Day 7 : Friday 29th July 2022

And finally a body! Just needs his head, hair, tie & jumper….

I’m feeling rather pleased that I haven’t fallen at the first hurdle and have managed a complete week! Here goes for week 2…..,

Thanks for stopping by!

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2021 (Week 6)

I won’t say it’s gone by in a flash, it has in some ways but in others it’s gone slowly. The school summer holidays are over (two of my three are back in school today, Number 3 goes tomorrow) and that means this year’s Summer Craft Challenge is over too.

Back in the summer of 2016 I set myself the challenge of doing something crafty, even if it was just for 5 minutes, every day of the school summer holidays. At the time we were living in Gibraltar, far from family in the UK, and although we would fly home to Blighty for a few weeks, the 9-week-long Gibraltarian school break was more than a little bit daunting. By doing something fun and crafty each day, I thought that would break things up for me. Also by blogging about it, it forced me to keep going.

I find it’s so easy (when you’re busy) to forget about crafts. They get put on a back burner and forgotten about as I get consumed with everything else going on. However, the longer I am without a crochet hook or needle in my hand the worse my mood becomes. By setting myself this challenge it reminded me to not forget my crafty projects and also made me consciously plan what I would do ie. Was it portable to take on holiday or for a day out?

I managed to fill that first 9 weeks with fun makes, and every summer holiday since (apart from last year when we moved house and country over the summer back to the UK). This year I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to keep the momentum going in a new (old) country with fewer days at the beach and lazing about, but I did. I achieved something crafty on every day bar one – as you will see.

Here’s my final installment…

Day 36: Saturday 28th August

Just over a week ago, I packed up the car and drove us all to Whitby for a little holiday. This was the one day all summer that I didn’t manage to do anything crafty (unless packing and unpacking fall into that category). It was a lovely day nonetheless and the sunshine welcomed us to the North Yorkshire coast!

Day 37: Sunday 29th August

After a day exploring Whitby, I had the chance for an evening with a chilled vino and my hook… now that’s what holidays are for!

Day 38: Monday 30th August

I brought my liberty patchwork kit with me on holiday and day 38 meant hexies.

Day 39: Tuesday 31st August

Our last night of the holiday – by the time we were all packed up there was only a little bit of time to sit down and crochet.

Day 40: Wednesday 1st September

Back home again and after all the washing was done I sat down to make a few more hexies.

Day 41: Thursday 2nd September

This is my least favourite sewing job of the year… school trouser hems and name tags. The most monotonous job! It can only be improved to my mind with a decent podcast playing in your ears and a cup of coffee by your side!!

Day 42: Friday 3rd September

Back on the crochet again, playing with amigurumi patterns.

Day 43: Saturday 4th September

Saturday evening in front of the telly gave me the time to work on another seven hexies, in blues & greens this time. I’m really looking forward to joining them all together.

Day 44: Sunday 5th September

I ended this year’s summer craft challenge with a very unremarkable bit of crochet … a mistletoe leaf – well at least that’s what it’s supposed to look like!! It was a busy day yesterday making the most of good dry sunny weather to get to the bottom of the laundry pile and getting the last few bits and pieces sorted ready for returning to school this week. I was almost falling asleep as I did this last night!

So that marks the end of this summer’s challenge, it’s been good fun and just the impetus I needed to keep me going with my crafting when all things family seem to get between me and few moments of craftiness. I managed to either crochet or sew on all but one day of the past 44 days so I’ll take that as a victory.

I also managed to complete a couple of things…

My Making Stitches craft room wreath from Simply crochet Magazine

And….

My Little Box of Crochet heart cushion

Thanks so much for joining me in this daily quest and thank you for stopping by!

Lindsay x

Summer Craft Challenge 2021