New Blog Page

Hello Everyone

This Blog is moving to Ali Crafts Designs 

If you follow this page please click the link to follow the new blog

Please follow this link to my new blog pages  Click Here

Sorry for the changes, I am now able to keep everything all in one place, the shop with designs, the shop with yarns and the blog.

No need for me to keep signing in to different places.

Look forward to seeing you there.

Many thanks

Alison  xxx

My blog is moving....

Hello,

My new website is now live and I am moving my blog there.  If you follow on this site please now bookmark, www.alicraftsdesigns.co.uk for all future updates. Thank you.

On my new site you can now buy all my patterns in PDF format online.  I will also be adding You tube videos and free patterns as soon as I can.

Alison
x

News Update

Good Morning

Lovely bright frosty morning this morning.

This week my daughter gave me her partworks  Crochet collection to finish!! hmm to start really….. she only had 3 squares started, so that has been this weeks work to try to get it up to date, unfortunately there are 71 issues so far, I have managed to get 32 squares finished. It makes a change for me to follow someone else instructions, I am enjoying making them. It gives me an opportunity to see how other people write their instructions and to try different yarns, I don’t like the acrylic yarn that has come with the instructions as much as Stylecraft’s Special DK.

Stylecraft is so much softer.

Website news

We have been very busy building a new website and organising a shop to sell downloads.

I hope that this will be ready soon. I was very surprised at how many designs I have actually done, all of them need to be added to the new products pages.

Oh joy, that is my job and I am so slow at adding things. I have to check and double check and I still get it wrong…….  🙁

New Doll

Wisteria, a new doll is now ready for selling these are the colours that I have used for her.

Emperor, Wisteria, Soft Peach, Mocha and Lime, these colours are available in my wool store Wool to Your Door

Stylecraft Special Double Knitting is £1.70 a ball

Her pattern is available for sale as a PDF Pattern on Etsy and costs £2.40


New Blanket

Update on my new blanket it has been slow progress. So far I have 4 panels finished, the last panel has taken a while to do because I have worked from a chart.

This needed to be entered into a graph so that you will be able to follow the pattern. Another process for me to learn.

I think that I may do 6 panels, the next one I plan to start today, because Phil is out this evening.

Pattern editing awaits, I must not procrastinate any longer, I could stop here blogging it is much easier.

Happy crocheting

Ali xxx

Yarn Jumbles

Hi,

Here comes another Tuesday, they seem to be coming around very quickly these days.

I am still working on the blanket of many colours I now have 3 panels finished and as you can see, I am still working on the jumble.

I don't think that I have ever done anything so messy there are lots of ends and lots and lots of small balls of yarn.  I must have spent more time unravelling the mess that crocheting.

I hope that it will be worth all the hard work, only time will tell.

                   

We had our first sale in the wool store this week  ****  Hurrah ****  click hurrah to go to the store. 

More items are being added daily, today I have started adding some of my crochet patterns as PDF downloads. I am afraid that they may not be immediate downloads but I will try to get them sent via email within 24 hours.

My new doll pattern will be ready soon, my friend Carol is testing her now and she will be available for download from the Wool to your door online store.

This week I am on a mission to sort out drawers and then to finally sort out the rest of the house, I don't know how I have managed to finally fill a four bedroom house and the garage and both lofts but I have.    There are only 2 of us here now and it is still overflowing with stuff. 

I have lots of crafting things from when I taught for Stockton Adult Education, I taught tatting and crochet to start with and then embroidery, cross stitch, Hardanger and canvas work etc., 

then box making and card crafting as well as bead weaving and scrapbook making to name a few. 

So you can see the range of things, I still have most of the samples as well as the equipment.

I am really going to have to be ruthless to be able to part with stuff..... that is going to be hard..

I just looked in the house loft this morning to pop a couple of stray Christmas decorations up, saw all the boxes and closed the door again.. oh well one day.

Hope you are all keeping warm and busy,

Happy crocheting, 

Ali xxx

Good Morning

Good Morning,

I am back on track again after Christmas, back to the normal washing, cleaning and crocheting at last.

Our weather has been pretty dismal this week, I have put some of my schedule on hold waiting for some brighter days.

I seem to have got my brain back into gear and loving the project that I am working on this month.

Totally out of my comfort zone using lots of colours and not ones that I would have normally chosen.

*****

Update on one of my presents the Stick Man kit

I was excited to try this kit because the instructions were beautifully printed and looked very easy to follow......

I know that you can feel the but coming so here it is.... but there were no pipe cleaners included and no wool for the leaves which were on the instruction sheets and not enough brown wool for all of the children. 

I have not finished the construction of the pieces because I need some pipe cleaners, I have crocheted all the pieces so will be ready when I find some brown pipe cleaners.

On the bright side I did enjoy making the bodies, the instructions were great..

******

I have also been preparing for a workshop that I am doing for the Cleveland Lace Guild on Saturday.

This time I am going to teach the lovely ladies there how to tat. 

This is not an easy task if they are complete beginners, so I have prepared a short video on how to turn the stitch which I will keep running continually. 

Well that is the idea, wether it works is another matter.

*******

Yesterday I was crocheting a baby jacket for a friend of my daughter, it was very straight forward and although I am not very good in working out the sizes for babies, I think it worked out ok. I don't know if the size is right yet and may have to work another one a bit bigger. I will have to wait and see..

********

I have reduced the Season Blanket pattern on Etsy and Ravelry to 60p + VAT

This blanket can be worked in 2 sizes and has 4 different colour ways for Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter

The Spring Seasons Blanket Yarn Pack has enough yarn for the small blanket and includes the pattern. It is available in the shop.  

*********

Off to add more wool to the sale in the online shop

http://wooltoyourdoor.com/

Wool to find a home for and pictures still to take

Happy Days 

Ali  xxx

Free Pattern Robert Robot

Hello,

I started this pattern a few years ago but forgot about it. My Grandson loves playing with the first one I made.  It is a free pattern, but if you could share my page with others I would be very grateful.

Materials Required

A shaded Double Knitting yarn like Stylecraft Wondersoft Merry go Round or this pattern is ideal to use up your oddments

Contrasting double knitting for edging

Black yarn for eyes and mouth

4.00 hook

Approx. 12 x 12 inch ( 30cms x 30cms) wadding

Body 

Make 2

1. 4ch., 3tr. in 4th ch. from hook, 1ch., * 4tr., 1ch. , rep from * 3 times into the same place, ss. to join in 3rd ch. 
2. Ss. into next 3tr. and into the ch. sp., 3ch., 3tr., 1ch., 4tr. all in same place, * miss 4tr., 4tr., 1ch., 4tr. all in next ch. sp., rep. from * twice more, ss. to join in 3rd ch. at beg.  ( 4 corner groups made, each with 2 blocks and a ch. ) 
3. Ss. into next 3tr. and into the ch. sp., 3ch., 3tr., 1ch., 4tr. all in same place, * miss 4tr., 4tr. in sp. between the corner groups, miss 4tr., 4tr., 1ch., 4tr. all in next ch. sp., rep. from * twice more, ending 4tr. in last sp. between corners, ss. to join in 3rd ch. at beg. ( you should now have 4 corner groups and 4 blocks, one on each side between the corners )
4. Ss. into next 3tr. and into the ch. sp., 3ch., 3tr., 1ch., 4tr. all in same place, *  4tr. in sp. between the corner groups, miss 4tr., 4tr. in next sp., miss 4tr., 4tr., 1ch., 4tr. all in next ch. sp., rep. from * twice more, ending 4tr. in last 2 sps. between corners, ss. to join in 3rd ch. at beg. Fasten off.  ( you should now have 4 corner groups and 8 blocks, 2 on each side between the corners )

Work dc. edging around the sides to join the 2 pieces together cut a piece of wadding to fit and enclose in between the squares before finishing the last side joining.

Head

Make 2 pieces as body for 3 rounds only.

Work dc. edging around the sides to join the 2 pieces together cut a piece of wadding to fit and enclose in between the squares before finishing the last side joining.

Top of head

Work 1 piece for 2 rounds only 

Fold in half diagonally to make a triangle and work all round in dc. There is no need for wadding in this piece.

Legs

Make 2

Work as for the body working 4 rounds

Fold each piece in half and work dc edging to join the edges together and add a piece of wadding as before.

Arms

Work 2 pieces as body for 3 rounds only

Fold each piece in half and work dc edging to join the edges together and add a piece of wadding as before.

Sew all the pieces together as in the picture.

Using black yarn sew eyes and mouth

beg.	beginning
ch.	chain
dc.	double crochet
htr.	half treble
rep.	repeat
sp.	space
ss.	slip stitch
st.	stitches
tr.	treble

I hope you enjoy this pattern.  You can also download a PDF version from Ravelry or My Website,

Alison x

Wool to your door SALE

Hello,

Just a quick note to say during January Wool to your door is having a sale. 5% off any order over £10.

Please use the code SALEJAN17 when checking out your order, this is shown on the payment page.

Alison x