Attic24

The Crag :: Happy Memories

Sunday 22nd March 2020 ♥ Mothers Day

It already seems so long ago since these photos were taken, when in fact is was only nine days ago. It was a glorious day in Atticland and in the warmth of the afternoon we drove a few miles out of town to climb the crag. We packed flasks of coffee for J and I, hot chocolate for the Little People, and some essential chocolate biscuits too. The walk isn't a particularly long one, it only takes maybe half an hour to climb from the reservoir up to the very top of the crag, but it is tough!

I was telling Little B about the time when he first made this climb at three years old (you can read about it here), and how brave he was to make it up there at such a young age. I remember it so clearly, his struggles, the tears, the sheer determination and the utter jubilation when he reached the top. Seven years later and what a different story, that boy has sooooo much energy in his body that he practically sprinted up there, so full of life and enthusiasm. Little Lady and I were more sedate in our ascent, stopping often to take photos, chatting in between the huffs and puffs, and generally enjoying our time together. Climbing (or driving) to a high-up place to take in long reaching views is one of my most favourite things to do, and it never fails to make my heart soar. I am so very glad to live in a place where we have hills and moors and crags, that's for sure.

At the time when we took this walk, we didn't know that we were very soon to be in Lockdown, and that this would be our last drive out into the countryside for a good long while. I'm so grateful that we now have these memories to look back on, and that we made the most of that sunshiney week in mid March when we still had the freedom to roam. Being able to capture memories is one of the many reasons I adore writing my blog. It's such a beautiful way to preserve and remember the little moments in time which might otherwise become lost and forgotten.

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Today's Happy Things

♥ The bluest of blue skies today with not a cloud in sight and warm enough to walk without a coat (I still kept my vest on though, shhh, don't tell anyone). Sunny warmth is very high up on my list of happy-inducing things, and I've felt good right down to my bones today.

♥ The grass at the park is spotted with golden celandines which made me smile when we walked across it today.

♥ We took our daily exercise through the park this morning, walking up to the farm shop. We are pretty well stocked up with basic cupboard groceries and meat etc in the freezer, but as a family of five we eat a lot of fresh fruit, salad and veggies each week. I left J and the Little Peeps outside and went into the shop on my own and it took aaaaaaages to queue for the tills (keeping 2 metres distance from everyone). But finally coming out into the sunshine with a bag of fresh produce made it well worth it.

♥ Al Fresco hooky in the afternoon sun, always makes me happy! The sun stays in our back yard until around 3pm at this time of year, and I move my chair into the corner by the back door to catch the very last rays before they disappear behind the rooftops. We really need new outdoor chairs - this is a very old camping chair which is on it's last legs, but once I've draped it with a blanket it makes for a super-cosy movable crochet spot. I love this blanket so much, it's the Granny Patchwork blanket which I made in 2012/13. It's had a huge amount of use over the years, and still looks and feels wonderful. I'm very VERY tempted to make another scrappy patchwork blanket as it's a brilliant project for using up small amounts of stash yarn.

♥ A knock on the front door this afternoon, and a gift from my lovely neighbours from across the street at number 21. Their sweet Little Miss (who is around 4 years old) painted this glorious rainbow for us to stick in our window, I was so delighted! As I've probably mentioned before, our street is extremely friendly and even though we are social distancing, many of us keep our front doors open and spend time in our front gardens in good weather. It's really comforting to still be able to see each other and chat from a safe distance. 

♥ With the most delicious, juicy vine tomatoes from the farm shop, I made a Greek Salad to have with dinner tonight. Crikey, it was insanely good. We had it with small baked potatoes and sweet chilli hot smoked salmon (served cold), it's exactly the type of simple food which gives me all the happy feels. 

♥ Although we've had the most glorious sunny spring days this week, the evenings have felt chilly and I've been lighting the fire after we've eaten to keep the downstairs room warm. But to be honest, I like having the fire going for the cosy factor more than anything, it's just so comforting to  look at and listen to. I realised earlier today that my mantel is still in winter mode, and I am really looking forward to faffing it with Spring things tomorrow. I have plans to make a simple Spring garland - I'm thinking something floral would do nicely.

♥ I hope your days are passing by gently and without drama, and that you are finding joy in life's small pleasures. Sending loads of love and rainbow brightness out to you all, take care xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 

 

 

 

 

Quietly Spring

Before I begin my witterings, can I just please say a humongous ((t h a n k   y o u)) to everyone who has left such kind and heartfelt comments on my last post, and across my social media channels as well. I am hugely grateful for your understanding, empathy and encouragement after a time of such uncertainty and wobbliness for me. I really do appreciate our communications back and forth, and I cannot imagine what kind of outlook my life would have without this window I have created and without you stopping by to check in on me. We are good for each other I think, mutual benefit and all that.

I wanted to tell you about the yarn basket in the above photo - this is actually a laundry basket which sits on the floor in my studio and takes care of the considerable amount of Stylecraft Special DK over-spill which doesn't fit on my shelves. I happened to be looking in the basket for a particular colour the other day, and noticed a really lovely accidental yarn palette that had made itself on the top of the pile.....

....what do you think? I pulled them out onto the floor and thought to myself how beautifully spring-like they look, like a sudden burst of warm sunlight and fresh air combined. Isn't colour so brilliant at evoking emotions and memories, I absolutely LOVE (love love love) playing with colour for this reason. I thought you might like to know the shades, something to ponder on if you're in the mood for a pretty, airy colour palette for a project..

Cloud Blue : Storm Blue : Sage : Pistachio : Mustard

Pomegranate : Blush : Pale Rose : Clematis : Stone (I think? That last one could possibly be Camel)

Life here in the Attic at the moment is really pretty good, considering the huge amount of ever shifting changes and adjustments that are taking place due to the coronavirus pandemic. Last week threw the Little People for a loop, in particular my two Teens who were both due to sit exams in a few months time (GCSEs for little Lady and A Levels for the boy Teen). Being told that exams will be cancelled created such a sudden rift in their lives, but more than that they were both left reeling from the abrupt end to their schooling.

My 17 year old walked in the door on Thursday afternoon, stood there in the kitchen in his school uniform, shrugged his shoulders and said "well, that's it......!" It suddenly hit home that there will be no more school for him now. That really is it - he has now left school behind. Of course, he is still doing some school work from home, completing final bits of course work and preparing for an interview this week, which is now taking place via Skype. But it all feels very unreal.

Little Lady took it all quite hard, realising very quickly that no exams also meant no end of year prom, no leavers celebrations, no get togethers with friends, no summer music festivals. She was so sad about it all, mourning the loss of this rite of passage, but she rallied around with her friends and they made their last day together full of photos and good memories.

As for Little B, well he is taking it all in stride. He was sent home from school on Friday with a work pack - lots of things to keep him busy across all subjects, as well as some enticing new work books (all those crisp empty pages!) and some freshly sharpened pencils. It is proving quite hard to get him to sit down and apply himself to the empty pages, but we are taking it gently, treating this week as an easing in period and not trying to enforce rules or timetables or anything.

Me, well I'm doing just fine being at home with my brood, it feels like one great big glorious long weekend at the moment (we are only on day 2 mind you). I've got the most beautiful orange tulips on my table this week and I feel so grateful that we are all together and safe, and that home time for us as a family is a bit chaotic but mostly very easy going. 

This is the tag that Little B made at school to tie around a pair of daffodil stems - a very thoughtful gift for Mothers Day which was much appreciated. In these times of worry and uncertainty, it's lovely to keep a hold of the little rituals and traditions which remind us where we are in the year. I only realised at the weekend that we are now officially in Spring (yaaayyyyyyy) as it was the Spring Equinox on Friday which completely passed me by. But the weather has certainly behaved itself and the past few days have been utterly glorious and perfectly springlike, I've been very impressed.

This morning  I made myself a coffee and took a blanket to sit on the steps which is a first for this year. Even the kitty ventured outdoors to sit with me, which was unexpected but rather comforting. Although normal life has been somewhat put on hold, it's still possible to sit a while and soak up the warmth and sunshine and be glad for the day to gently unfold.

Although I am really missing my sociable café times spent with friends, I am quite used to spending lengths of time in my own company. I am finding it harder to adjust to the sudden loss of freedom and it feels very strange not being able to head out to the shops or my studio. But I am taking comfort in the little things that bring me pleasure, and a quiet coffee in the sunshine is right up there on my pleasure list. 

My next door neighbour has this beautiful little cherry tree growing in his front garden and it's making me very happy to see it every day. The larger cherry trees in our neighbourhood won't be flowering for at least another month, so this is like a little sneak preview of what's to come. I absolutely love love love blossom season, it's such a joyful time of year and never fails to lift my spirits.

I managed a little bit of al fresco crochet this morning too, and it was utter bliss I have to say. Nothing relaxes me more than the soothing rhythm of hook and yarn, and the way it can gently calm a busy mind is nothing short of magic.Creativity is usually at the heart of my days, but never have I been more grateful for it. I am so so excited for spring to unfold too, and I am hopeful for many more days of outdoor hooky as we move through March and into April. Bring it on, I am beyond ready...come on, come on!!!! Springtime sunshine, I need you!!!!

In the UK we are now in lockdown, although at the moment we are permitted to head out once a day for some exercise. Here in my patch this will mainly involve strolling around the woodland close to home, and I am certainly not complaining. We went out this afternoon, all five of us. YES!! For the first time in years we had the boy Teen with us, and even though I managed to remain nonchalant and cool about it, my inner Mummy voice was screaming with delight. It was just so bloomin' lovely, all of it. The light and the warmth, the chatter and the peace. We passed maybe four or five other people out walking, and as you can see from the above photo, it's pretty easy to keep a safe distance from folks on these pathways.

Most of the trees are still bare and leafless, but there are plenty of buds showing if you stop and look for them. It thrills me to be on the cusp of the changing seasons, there is so much colour just waiting to burst forth. 

I am very thankful that we are still allowed to venture out as a family, at least for the time being. An hour out of the day to walk and breathe in the air and scenery feels like a life essential to me, and my heart goes out to all those who are in complete lockdown/isolation right now. 

I have to say, it's so lovely to be here, writing and sharing snippets of my days as we navigate this strange time in history. I hope that you are keeping safe and well, and I shall see you again very soon, I'm rather enjoying chattering to you!

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Yarndale and Beyond

As many of you already know, Yarndale is a festival of yarn and creativity which takes place each Autumn in Skipton, North Yorkshire. It was founded in 2012, with the first festival taking place a year later in September 2013. As one of the five original founders of Yarndale I've been involved in shaping and running the festival from the very beginning, and it's been a big part of my life for the past eight years.

Since Yarndale started, my life has inevitably changed as my children have grown and Attic24 has bloomed and expanded in ways I never anticipated. Attempting to juggle my family life with both Attic24 and Yarndale commitments has become increasingly difficult, especially since coming into my early fifties - for me personally this particular time of life is proving very challenging I have to say. With all this in mind, I've come to the conclusion that I really need to prioritise my health and well being and make some positive changes for myself.

So I want to let you know that last month I decided to step down from my position on the Yarndale team. As you can imagine, this was a difficult decision but I feel confident that it's the right thing for me. I'll be taking a complete break from Yarndale and won't be participating at this year's festival in September. I have loved being involved with Yarndale but I feel I really need to refocus my energies on my own endeavours and I'm very much looking forward to moving forward with a fresh outlook, working on new ideas and projects in 2020 and beyond. 

I realise that in the big scheme of things right now, we all have far more important things to think about and I really hope you are all doing OK out there and keeping safe. You know that this blog of mine has always been a place of honesty and it's important for me to be clear and upfront with you about where I'm at. I want to be able to give you my very best going forward, and being honest about how I'm feeling is a big part of that. I never, ever do well with keeping things to myself, I am most definitely a sharer! 

These are certainly troubling times, and I've never been more thankful for this online community that we are a part of. Being able to connect and share with so many lovely souls from the comfort of our own homes is such a blessing. So I shall continue to open my Attic window to share little snippets of  daily life and celebrate all the small joys and pleasures that continue to make me happy. And in doing so, I really, really hope to brighten up your days just a little. We could all do with a little unconditional brightness and simple everyday comfort I expect.

Sending love and positive thoughts out to you all, in abundance. Please look after yourselves and your loved ones.

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Brighter Times

We had a little snowfall at the very end of February, enough to create a very pretty view from the Attic, but a really hazardous walk to school. It was icy, slushy, wet and slippery, meaning that we skidded our way down the hill, slopped along the canal side and arrived with sopping wet feet and a very grumpy Little B. I really wish we had all worn wellies, but somehow I just didn't think it through in the rush to get out the door on time.

Once all the icy snow had melted down in town, things looked much brighter and I could fully appreciate the perfection of the wintry hills which surround this little rural town.

It's been extremely cold and windy here just lately, and although I can see the very first little signs of Spring here and there, it still feels a long way off. I'm hopeful that there will be no more snow though, especially now that we are in March and can pretend that Spring is imminent.

Yesterday I was on my own for much of the day, and on impulse I decided to wrap up warm and take a walk in the early afternoon. I desperately needed to breathe in some cold fresh air and clear my head. I was delighted to see not only blue skies up above but also some very early blossom looking beautifully dainty and pretty.

I climbed the steep hilly streets to enter the woodland along the top path and it was such a tonic. There is nothing better than striding out along a quiet woodland pathway, alone with my own thoughts for a while.

Blue skies feel like the biggest treat at this time of year when we are so often living under a blanket of grey cloud.

I stopped to say hello to the willow horse.....

....and swooned over the swathes of wild garlic beginning to cover the woodland banks. I keep telling myself Spring will arrive and I shall be so beyond ready for it when it finally gets here.

It was a tad muddy in the woods, and I was so thankful that in my spontaneous rush out of the door I had the good sense to yank on my short wellies. I gave myself a mental pat on the back at the precise point when the mud squelched right up over the top of my foot.

This is the little access road which leads out of the woods and back to the streets of the town. It's always blissfully quiet along here, and yesterday the dappled light and dancing shadows of the sunny afternoon made me so glad to be outdoors. 

Back at home and I had to smile as I caught sight of my sofa, strewn haphazardly with heaps of crochet and looking glorious. All my blankets are very well used and appreciated, the newest editions joining the older creations creating a rather jumbled but delightful sort of yarny nest effect. I think there are currently six blankets on this piece of furniture alone and I love the utter cosiness of it. 

I've been in my studio today, working on some design and colour palette ideas. I've got both crochet and stitching projects in the very early design stages right now and it's very exciting inside my Creative Mind, if a bit tangled. There's a lot going on up there!

Today I attempted to choose colour palettes for both threads and yarn, delighting in thinking about Spring/Summer designs and the colours that fit. The yarn I picked out is for a Spring garland that I want to make - I'm thinking cute little primrose type flowers.

And that huuuuuuge, delicious colour chart on my table is for DMC embroidery threads, and shows all 500 colours. Five Hundred! It is a thing of inspirational beauty, and has caused much swooning and stroking I can tell you. I had to pick out just eight shades (!) which was a major challenge - after a lot of umming and ahhing I managed to narrow it down to seventeen and I'll make my final selection when I have the actual skeins in my hand.

I have to tell you I'm so happy to be back in the Attic and have really appreciated your kindness in response to my last post - thank you so much. This past week in particular has been very challenging as I've faced some difficult decision making, but there are brighter times up ahead I'm sure of it.

Oh.......I've just remembered something else I've been meaning to share too......

....I'm going to be back at Black Sheep Wools in Warrington, Cheshire on Saturday and I'm so looking forward to it. Do you remember I was there last year? I had a fabulous time and can't wait to step back into the craft barn again. It would be lovely to see you if you can make it, I'll be there with with my yarny friends Christine and Emma and alllllllllll my blankets for a day full of crochet, colour and chatter.

BLACK SHEEP WOOLS : Saturday 7th March : 10-4

It'll be a fun, informal day and it's free to attend, more details about the location etc are on the Black Sheep Wools website >> ((here))

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Fair to Middling

Do you know the expression "fair to middling"? I don't know if it's a world wide saying, or if it's something specifically linked to Yorkshire, but it really tickles me. Often here in Yorkshire it's used to describe the weather, and it means not especially good, but not that bad either, so kind of average or mediocre. It perfectly describes how I generally feel about trudging through the depths of a long Winter season - it's not dreadful by any means, but it really is my least favourite time of year by a long chalk.

The past nine weeks of January and February combined have been difficult for me on a very personal level, and it's always hard for me to know whether I should be coming here and telling you this or not. You probably just don't want to hear it?!! However my blog is (and always has been) an open, honest account of my life as it rolls out day by day, week by week and as my posts are generally unplanned and spontaneous you pretty much get the unfiltered version of what's running through my mind at the time. When I'm not feeling myself it becomes hard almost impossible for me to write, and you have probably noticed a shortage of life-posts here on my blog of late. Thank goodness for the absolute joy of the Dahlia blanket CAL which has been like a beacon of light and happiness for me during this tricky time. 

But the truth is, I've missed writing and sharing in this space - I've missed the easy dialogue spilling freely from my brain and out through my fingers and I've missed your words gently winging their way back to me. Writing my blog is a kind of feel-good therapy for me I guess, much in the same way as writing a journal or talking to a very good friend. And yes I've missed it, I've missed it a lot actually. So even though I am still wading through a few dilemmas and dealing with some "difficult stuff" in my real life world, I have decided to open up my window and invite you all in regardless. Come in!! I have missed you!! It's messy and chaotic here in the Attic, but I am choosing to ignore all that and focus on the good.

The above photos were taken on a random Monday about a month ago - our car had to be dropped of at the garage for it's annual MOT and the garage we use is about five miles away. So with the weather being unusually great for January (nothing fair to middling about clear blues skies and sunshine!) we decided to walk home all along the canal tow path instead of getting the bus. It was atrociously muddy in places, but even with all the precarious slip-sliding it was still a beautiful walk. 

Life on the home front has in general been okay these past few months, if a little mundane. I've been seeking out my stitching projects when I've needed to lay down my hook and rest my hands and I'm so happy that I found my way into the world of cross stitch (two years ago now). It's given me an absorbing creative hobby which delivers a lot of pleasure - obviously it's not as good as crochet for tipping my pleasure-o-meter over the edge but it's a pretty great second best really.

As well as this ongoing stitchy WiP ↑↑ I've been making some seasonal cross stitch pieces just lately, and have been absolutely loving them. I'll be sharing these with you very soon as they really need their own blog post I think.

Just lately I've been giving a lot of thought to my everyday routines and have been attempting to make small but significant changes to the way I balance out my time. One of the things I'm trying hard to do is to reclaim my evenings and weekends. When you are self employed and you LOVE what you do to earn a living as much as I do, it's so easy to allow it to consume every single day. Or if it's not consuming the day exactly, it has a sly habit of sneaking in around the edges and stealing away great chunks of precious time. I'm mainly talking about laptop/screen time and social media here, rather than crochet or creative making.

I have to confess it's been quite hard! I love the online creative world that I'm part of and really enjoy browsing and engaging with blogs, Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook. But I do recognise that screen time needs to have limits, and I've been making a huge effort to disengage as much as possible during the evenings and weekends. I have rediscovered my love for magazines, remembering how relaxing it is to curl up on the sofa under a blanket and gently turn the pages, drinking in the photography and reading the narrative. I'm still a work in progress though and haven't quite found the balance that I'm craving just yet, but I'm getting there. 

I've been enjoying the outdoors as and when the weather has allowed me to venture out, gosh it really has been pretty vile around here. So. Much. RAIN!!!!!!!!!! We've had aalllllll the rain, the light misty drizzle, the heavy downpours, the icy-sleety hail and snow, the horizontal blustery stormy rain, the short sharp showers and the endless days and nights of persistent wet stuff falling. The ground is sodden and flooded and there is mud and standing water absolutely everywhere at the moment.

But we've been out in it all the same, tramping around in the woodland where the pathways remain pretty solid and walkable even when the rain falls and falls and falls.

I spotted the first bluebell shoots pushing up through the leafy woodland banks and felt a rush of joy for those beautiful fresh green leaves. Thank heavens for the small signs in nature that tell me winter is losing it's grip, I live for those signs in February!

Often on the way back from the school run I find myself meandering along the canal not feeling ready to be back indoors. Fresh air and walking (even when it's wet) is pretty vital to my well being and so I make sure to allow time in the day to give myself this pleasure.

Even a dull, misty grey stroll through the park can lift my spirits, I breathe it all in and practice a little bit of mindful gratitude as I walk.

↑↑ this is one of my favourite park pathways to walk along as those trees either side are cherry trees. They don't look much in winter but in the spring they will be smothered in pink and white blossom and I absolutely can't wait for that. Can you see the old weathered picnic bench there to the right? I often stop here in warmer, drier weather to sit and drink a coffee on my way home from the farm shop, gosh I am really longing for those days to return. Roll on Springtime, I'm a-waiting for you.

A little bit of Spring gladness on my mantel as a succession of bulbs come and go. These particular hyacinths grew tall and strong and smelly and were the most delicious shade of sky blue (I wish I had photographed them before they went past their best). I replenished my old Cornishware bowl with fresh shoots this morning, white hyacinths this time round.

And in other news, after some slow, stop-start progress around the edge of my Colourwash dahlia blanket this past week I finally finished the border, yipppppeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!! I'm so so so happy with both of these blankets, they are utterly joyous and stuffed to the brim with happy sunshiny vibes. I'm hoping to take some photographs in the next few days in preparation for a bit of a Dahlia Ta-dah post - this CAL has given me so much to be grateful for, and I want to celebrate that fact.

I must say, it's so so good to be back here again, like cleaning my windows and loving the view after a time of misty, foggy greyness. More soon!

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Dahlia Blanket CAL :: Part 7

It's been seven weeks since the Dahlia Crochet-A-Long began right at the very start of the New Year, and as in previous years I've been beyond thankful for the timing of my CALs. I find January and February a struggle on so many different levels and having a sense of purpose to my weeks helps enormously. Add in the uplifting colours, gentle creativity and vibrant online community and these dull winter days really do feel more joyful for me.

I hope very, very much that you feel the same?! I hope that you've enjoyed these weeks of glorious floral colour, the sunshiny flowers and happy stripes. And if you've been hooking along and making your own Dahlia blanket, I hope with all my heart that you're loving the journey, no matter how fast or slow it is. I always keep my patterns and tutorials freely available on my blog so that anyone can find them and use them at any time in the future.

As you know I made two versions of the Dahlia blanket, and although I love both of them very much I think the colourwash really stole my heart.

These Dahlia shades are bright and bold (even the paler shades seem to have a vibrancy) and there is something so soothing about bringing order to strong colour palette by arranging them in a tonal way.

photo credit : Floret Flowers

The above photo by the super talented Erin Benzakein of Floret Flowers just steals my breath away and certainly had a creative influence on my Dahlia colourwash blanket.

I have loved immersing myself in these beautiful colours, it's been therapeutic and wonderful. Actually, I've been pondering on the Dahlia colour palette for almost a year now - I start thinking and planning for my CAL blankets at the end of April usually, so I live and breathe the whole thing for a really looooong time. A lot of heart felt emotion and passion goes into each and every blanket I design and make, and it is my hope that I can pass some of that happy emotion on to you. Whether you like to crochet yourself or just appreciate me sharing the colourful photos of my creative journey, my aim is to bring about a spark of visual happiness to be enjoyed wherever you are in the world. 

So last week there was a lull in the CAL as we took a little break to catch up if needed, and to take stock of yarn quantities and any tidying up that needed seeing to. And by tidying up, what I really mean is darning in those ends. Yeah, that. I am one of those people who always, always, always darns in my ends as I go along, as I cannot deal with the idea of having to do the ends all at the end. I would honestly not be able to cope with the drama of that. But whichever way you prefer, you will need to have all your ends darned in neatly before you make a start on the border.

YARN QUANTITIES

This information is mainly for those of you who are making a blanket from a yarn pack (eg 15 x 100g Stylecraft Special DK) where you have a limited yarn quantity. My blanket measures 120 x 175cm before the border, and after 99 stripes I ended up with around 25-40g of yarn left over, depending on whether I worked 6 or 7 stripes in the main body of the blanket. 

I have some Salter kitchen scales which are super useful for yarn weighing and I can highly recommend them as an addition to your crochet kit!

I thought it would be useful to give you an approximate idea of how much yarn you will need to work the Spike Stitch border, so you can weigh your balls and make sure you have sufficient.

Rounds 1, 2, 5 and 6 (the dc rounds) use approx. 18g of yarn.

Round 3 (the treble round) and Round 4 (the spike stitch round) use approx. 30g of yarn.

I've chosen six colours for the border, all of which should have around 35-40g of yarn left. I sincerely hope that your tension has been good, your finished blanket size has turned out spot on and that you have enough yarn to make the border that I've designed for this blanket.

Designing borders is a huge amount of fun, it's such a fabulous challenge to come up with something new that finishes off a blanket project to perfection. I love love love (LOVE!) working those loooong stretches of blanket rounds on a border, it's just the most rhythmic and soothing thing to me. Being on the edge of the Edge however is bittersweet - the final round of a project that has spanned many months can often be tinged with a little sadness. I really felt it with this blanket!

COLOURS

I chose six colours to make the Spike Stitch border, and they are worked in the following order ::

🌸 1. Pomegranate 🌸 2. Blush 🌸 3. Claret 🌸

🌸4. Magenta 🌸 5. Powder Pink 🌸 6. Boysenberry 🌸 

If you are choosing your own colours for this border, then I thought it might be helpful to give you a little guidance.

Round 1 : a narrow dc round : Generally speaking, the first round of any border can be a little uneven, so it's best to choose a colour that blends as much as possible with the body of the blanket - opt for something mid-tone (not to light, dark or bright)

Round 2 : a narrow dc round : you can choose to blend this with round 1, or choose a lighter/darker shade to make it pop out a little.

Round 3 : the treble round : this round wants to really stand out as much as possible, so think about the darkest or lightest/brightest colour you might have in your palette (I went for dark and used Claret)

Round 4 : the spike stitch round : this should have a high contrast with round 3, so if you picked a dark colour for round 3 then round 4 should be something light and bright. If you went for a light coloured round 3, then round 4 should be a dark shade.

Round 5 : a narrow dc round : I think this round should pop right out so choose either a really light or a really dark colour to contrast with Round 4.

Round 6 : final dc round : this is the final frame of the border, so choose a colour you really like. I generally prefer a darker finishing round, but this is a personal choice.

I have to say, I am so ThRiLleD with how this border turned out!! It was one of those times where I could clearly visualise what I wanted to create in my mind, and the sampling came together really fast (three attempts, oh maybe it was four actually) and I felt that jolt in my heart which happens when an idea finally comes to life. 

As explained above, the Spike Stitch border is made in 6 rounds. The first two are narrow rows of double crochet which almost blend into the body of the blanket. The 5th and 6th rounds are also double crochet and provide a finishing frame for the blanket. But it's the middle two rounds where the magic happens.................

......it might look complex but I promise you it's not.

Round 5 is made by working groups of 2 trebles, with skipped stitches in between - those skipped stitches are left free to accommodate the spikes in the next round, in exactly the same way as the Dahlia Spike stitch stripes.

Round 6 alternates spike stitches with little dc stitches (long, short, long short - it's a beautiful rhythm!), which has the effect if creating little heart shaped petals in the row below. It's so simple, but I think extremely effective.

I've created a full photo tutorial for you, and you can find it by clicking on the following link >>

SPIKE STITCH EDGING  TUTORIAL

I also made a simple written pattern that you can download/print if you don't need the step by step help and prefer to have a traditional printed pattern to pop in your bag. You can find it by clicking on the following link >>

DOWNLOAD DAHLIA EDGING PATTERN

I'm so happy with the finished look and think this border really does an amazing job of taming those flamboyant stripes and keeping everything in order. 

Often I find that striped blankets work better with a simple narrow border, but somehow this particular combination of bright colours and spiky stripes called for something bolder. I would LOVE to hear what you think of it.

It's maybe worth pointing out that you don't have to use this border if you don't want to - you might prefer something simpler, in which case you could stick with narrow rows of dc (have a look at the Moorland Edging), or maybe try something like the Linen Stitch border if this suits you better. I am more than happy for you to make your blanket your own, you know I'm not precious about these things and really enjoy seeing all variations. 

You may be wondering what has happened to the Colourwash dahlia blanket? Well, due to an ongoing ailment in my hands my crochet time has been very limited during the past three months. I've had to hook in short, concentrated bursts with pain relief and take days of rest in between, which has meant I'm still slowly working on my colourwash border. I'm using the exact same pattern and colour combo though, and will show you how it turns out when I celebrate my grand Dahlia Ta-Dah moment here on my blog, very soon I hope.

Before I finish up here, I just want to say a massive warm and heart felt THANK YOU to you for joining me on this journey. I am so grateful for all the friendship and lovely comments, and for the way in which you always show such enthusiasm for the projects I come up with. Thank you for making time to visit with me in the Attic, I appreciate it very, very much. Thank you.

Here are the CAL links that you might need.........

🌸 DAHLIA YARN PACK

🌸DAHLIA SPIKE STITCH TUTORIAL

🌸DAHLIA  EDGING TUTORIAL

🌸DAHLIA PRINTABLE PATTERN 

🌸DAHLIA PRINTABLE EDGING PATTERN

🌸 DAHLIA BLANKET INTRODUCTION

🌸 CAL PART 1 

🌸 CAL PART 2

🌸 CAL PART 3

🌸 CAL PART 4

🌸 CAL PART 5

🌸 CAL PART 6

 

Dahlia Blanket CAL :: Part 6

So tell me, how has your week been? Has it been mellow and cosy and full of glorious colour in amongst the routine of everyday life? In the middle of winter I do so appreciate the utter comfort of having so many colourful crochet blankets to cosy up in, it's one of my greatest pleasures. It's even better when you can indulge in a colourful sofa snuggle and be engaged in some therapeutic hooky rows at the same time, it ticks so many of my pleasure boxes all at once.

Week six of the Crochet-A-Long and it's a little bittersweet as we come to the final colours and rows of the dahlia blanket. I've been crocheting along in real time myself this past week as I still had four stripes left to make on my mixed stripe blanket. Sadly my hands are really not in the best shape at the moment so crochet has to happen in slow intense bursts followed by a lot of rest. But oh, I have so enjoyed creating the final stripes of what has been a joyous  blanket journey. I managed to crochet a little at the café on Tuesday afternoon which is something I love to do - social crochet is such a beautiful way to spend time and I cannot imagine my life without it. 

As a result of the very popular Facebook group "Hooked on Attic24", I have been delighted to see this online community spread to encompass real life get togethers all over the world. It makes me incredibly happy to think about this, it's such a wonderful extension of the joy and friendship that I see every day in the online world. 

^^ I had the pleasure of joining in with the Dorset group back in the Autumn, and last weekend there was another meet up at my old stomping ground at West Bay. Sadly I couldn't make it, but I was certainly there in spirit. What a lovely photo, it looks a tad breezy?!

^^ This photo made me so happy, it's a group who call themselves the Ya-Ya-Yarners, and they meet up all the way across the pond in Alabama, USA. Heellllloooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am waving to you from my Attic window and wishing I could meet you all in person, wouldn't that be fun?! One day, maybe I'll trip around the world with my blankets and visit all of you who follow along from afar.

I continue to find a lot of happiness in our online groups, with both Facebook and Instagram gifting me a daily dose of dahlia friendship. Diane shared her dahlia tuber purchase, and it made me wonder how many of you might be considering growing some of these glorious flowers this year? The promise of all that living floral colour is hard to resist, no?!

This past week I asked if anybody was joining in with the fun and quirky #crochetinthewild hashtag....I find it fascinating to think of us all connected by colourful stripes all over the world, and I love to imagine what our different views might look like.

Would you like to see?

Here in the UK we are of course slap bang in the middle of winter, but there is still beauty to be found outdoors.

^^Kaz posted this stunning photo of her blanket enjoying some outdoor time - dahlias and snowdrops (oooo, and mossy-moss too) looking beautiful together.

^^ Sue @cotefleurie on Instagram took her dahlia blanket outside for us, doesn't it look stunning? She lives on Jersey in the Channel Islands, and you might remember she shared a very similar view with her Sweet Pea blanket last year. Love love love it, thank you so much Sue.

^^ This lovely dahlia blanket went on a road trip to the coast of Ireland (thank you @lifedownthelane)

^^ And this dahlia blanket is soaking up a stunning view by the looks of it. I don't know where in the world it is, but it looks inviting!

^^ Jan popped her dahlia blanket outside to share with us - did you spot the tantalising little hint of lemons hanging from the tree? Jan is in Cyprus and the Dahlia looks very at home in the sunny Mediterranean climate.

^^Mary is all the way across on the California coast, gosh I am quite envious of all the sun these blankets are getting!

^^ Jennifer is in Australia where of course it is mid Summer and I understand that it's veeeeeery hot there right now. I absolutely can't imagine what heat feels like at the moment, it's been so chilly here of late, even my bones have felt cold!

^^Marnie is also in Australia and her dahlia is co-ordinating beautifully with the flowers.

^^ Kerry is also down under and took her blanket out into the beautiful wildness just outside her garden. It looks so lush!

^^ This stunning photo was taken by my friend Teresa and I absolutely LOVE it. It's so beautiful! She took her dahlia on a little trip especially so she could show us her stunning local scenery - the spectacular Columbia River Gorge in Oregon, USA. Thank you so much Teresa.

^^ Another gorgeous view, this time all the way across the world in New Zealand. Heather, thank you very much for sharing your delicious crochet spot, I am more than a tad envious of your beautiful sea view.

The CAL plods along at a steady pace week after week, and it's absolutely wonderful to see so many of you having fun on this journey. I've seen a good many dahlia blankets just getting off the starting blocks this week which is fantastic - it's never to late to join in the fun! A gentle reminder that this isn't a race, and that all pattern and colour info will remain on my blog indefinitely for you to dip into whenever you wish, even if that's a year from now.

Of course, some of you have been making smaller lap blankets, baby blankets and throws and so the ending has arrived more quickly. It's been a delight to see some dahlia blankets already finished - the above blanket was shared by Jo and I think it looks stunning.

^^ David is a talented crocheter from Canada and he decided to use the dahlia colours to work up a Neat Ripple blanket. He then opted to use the "Skinny Block Stitch" border from my Summer Harmony blanket (find the pattern for that HERE) and I think it's gorgeous! I can't wait to see it finished.

^^ Mandy finished her dahlia blanket using my "Spot On" edging (find the pattern HERE) which looks lovely with the little pops of yellow shining through. Oh, and just look at those luscious pom poms on the corners, don't they look wonderful? They really do remind me of the perfectly round pompom type dahlia flowers that I saw growing in the summer. 

So - week six is all about finishing up the last of the stripes, and there are just twelve to make this week. 

When you come to your final row of your final stripe, the pattern will change very slightly. 

Chain-2 to start the row as usual, then simply work 1 treble into each stitch across (no chain spaces, and no skipped stitches). This will give you a nice flat edge to end your blanket, ready for the border.

I wonder how you will feel when you fasten off the last row, will you be overjoyed, or will you feel a little bereft?

This has been such a colour-filled journey from start to finish, and I really, really hope it's brought you much happiness and pleasure. I know I've certainly felt uplifted by the memories of summer flowers and warm golden days as I've crocheted my stripes, a real mood lifter for sure.

Ninety-nine stripes complete, and I absolutely adore this blanket.

I LOVE it!

Here is the colour info for Part 6 of the "MIXED STRIPE" Dahlia Blanket, we're making the final 12 stripes this week.

The numbers in brackets indicate which rows of the pattern you need to refer to.

Click (( HERE )) for the printable worksheet.

88. Spice : (pattern rows 3 & 4)

89. Apricot : (5 & 6)

90. Lemon : (3 & 4)

91. Shrimp : (5 & 6)

92. Magenta : (3 & 4)

93. Claret : (5 & 6)

94. Fuchsia Purple : (3 & 4)

95. Fondant : (5 & 6)

96. Powder Pink : (3 & 4)

97. Saffron : (5 & 6)

98. Tomato : (3 & 4)

99. Lipstick : (5 & 6)** Remember to crochet the final row without any chain spaces!**

For those of you who are making larger double or king size blankets, you might wish to add an additional set of stripes on at the end to make your blanket slightly longer. This is optional of course, and you can stop at any point when you are happy with with the overall length of your blanket. 

>>Optional stripes for larger double/king blankets (using two yarn packs)<<

100. Blush

101, Fuchsia Purple

102. Spice

103. Lemon

104. Powder Pink

105. Fondant

106. Magenta

107. Claret

108. Shrimp

109. Saffron

110. Pomegranate

111. Apricot

112. Tomato

113. Boysenberry

114.Lipstick **Remember to crochet the final row without any chain spaces!**

If you are making the Colourwash version of the Dahlia blanket, the final part will use three colours - Fuchsia Purple, Magenta and Boysenberry. I absolutely love the rich pinky-purple hues and these are some of my favourite dahlia colours of all.

I wonder if you have a favourite part of the colourwash blanket? Do you prefer the paler, more subtle shades, or the rich pinky-purples? Or do you crave the sunshine yellows and firey reds and oranges from the beginning section?

The final stripes provide quite a contrast to the pale centre section of the colour wash, but they balance out the start of the blanket beautifully.

Take a look..................

...........isn't it lovely to look at? I really enjoy running my eyes up and down those bands of colour, reminding myself of that glorious flower field in early September. Such happy memories.

I'm super happy with how the Dahlia colourwash turned out, and it's definitely one of my favourite blankets to date. If you've made the colourwash version, are you happy with it, is it what you expected? Do let me know what you think, I'd love to hear!

Here is the colour info for Part 6 of the "COLOURWASH" Dahlia Blanket, we're making 12 stripes in total this week.

Remember there are 2 crochet rows for every stripe.

The numbers in brackets refer to the pattern rows, to help you keep a track of the pattern repeats and how each rows starts and ends.

Click (( HERE )) for the printable worksheet (please note that the colourwash list is on page 2).

88. Fuchsia Purple : (pattern rows 3 & 4)

89. Magenta : (5 & 6)

90. Fuchsia Purple : (3 & 4)

91. Magenta : (5 & 6)

92. Fuchsia Purple : (3 & 4)

93. Boysenberry : (5 & 6)

94. Fuchsia Purple : (3 & 4)

95. Boysenberry : (5 & 6)

96. Fuchsia Purple : (3 & 4)

97. Boysenberry : (5 & 6)

98. Fuchsia Purple : (3 & 4)

99. Boysenberry : (5 & 6)** Remember to crochet the final row without any chain spaces!**

It's a huge amount of creative fun making two versions of the same blanket, and I've really enjoyed seeing the similarities and differences as they have grown.

It's been a lot of work, but so so worth it. I've absolutely loved my Dahlia journey so far, and I'm really looking forward to seeing these stripes with a finishing border added.

At the end of part 6, you will have 99 stripes, and it's time to take stock a little and prepare for the border. You will need to darn in all your ends - darn  them neatly into your crochet rows, making sure to leave the stitches at the end of each row free from any darning so that you can easily work into them when you start the border.

It's also a good time to take stock of your yarn - rewind your balls if they've become a little bird-nesty, and if you have kitchen scales you can weigh what's left to make sure you'll have enough to crochet the border.

If you followed the Mixed Stripe, most of the colours should have been used 7 times in total. However, there will be six colours that only appeared 6 times - Claret, Boysenberry, Magenta, Pomegranate, Blush and Powder Pink. I ended up with approximately 35-40g left of these colours which I know will be plenty for the border rounds.

If you followed the Colourwash, it'll be Boysenberry and Claret that you have most left at the end, although you should have approximately 25-30g of all the other colours.

I'll be sharing the pattern for the border in two weeks time on Friday 21st February.

Until then, enjoy your blankets and make sure you find some time for a bit of a cosy snuggle!

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

🌸 DAHLIA YARN PACK

🌸DAHLIA SPIKE STITCH TUTORIAL

🌸DAHLIA PRINTABLE PATTERN

🌸 DAHLIA BLANKET INTRODUCTION

🌸 SNEAK PEEK of BLANKETS

🌸 CAL PART 1 

🌸 CAL PART 2

🌸 CAL PART 3

🌸 CAL PART 4

🌸 CAL PART 5

 

 

Dahlia Blanket CAL :: Part 5

I have to say, I absolutely love love love Friday's during my crochet-a-long months, they shine up ahead, a beacon of brightness lighting up the end of each slow week. The gentle rhythm that the CAL brings to my life in the midst of winter is so very welcome, it really is the very best thing for keeping me afloat in what can often be rather difficult months. I know I've said this already but it never hurts to repeat the sentiment - thank you SO MUCH for joining me on this colourful journey, I really appreciate your company more than I am able to say.

I hope you've all had a good week and if you've enjoyed having some colourful crochet in your hands then I hope it has brought you comfort and pleasure. I know there are a good many of you reading my blog who don't actually crochet (and that's absolutely OK with me), so I hope you still find something in these weekly CAL updates to uplift you.

This week on social media, I've been thoroughly enjoying getting to meet so many furry (and feathered) friends of yours who've been enjoying the squish of the growing dahlia blankets. I know my feisty little kitty makes good daily use of the cosy comfort piled upon the furniture and it always brings about a certain feeling of contentment to see a happily snuggled little animal. Shall we take a look?

^^ This is Milo looking impossibly handsome underneath Marlous' blanket..

^^ and here is Jon Snow keeping a firm paw on "his" Dahlia blanket (Sorry Charlotte, but you do you know it's his)

^^ This is sweet Gracie snuggling into Chrissy's Dahlia stripes..

^^ and Sacha looking incredibly chilled out on Jan's blanket.

^^ Awww! Emily shared this lovely photo and that sweet, sweet face made my heart melt.

^^ Ruby really loves a good snuggle and Tracey's blanket is perfect for the job.

^^ Beans is also enjoying the comfort of Toni's Dahlia stripes..

^^ and Wilf looks absolutely adorable wearing Lynn's blanket...some dogs are just too cute for words aren't they?!

^^ this gorgeous photo was shared on Instagram and made my heart boom - how beautiful do the stripes look, but also how insanely photogenic is little Iko? Many thanks to @littlepawscrochet on Instagram for sharing some beautiful photos of her Dahlia journey.

I've seen so many beautiful cats and dogs sharing your love of crochet blankets, but there are other pets who also appreciate a fetching stripy creation..... 

^^ Oh Betsy, you sweet, sweet little thing!  I have a major soft spot for guinea pigs (we still have out piggie Lola who is a rather ancient 7 years old now), and Verena made my day by sharing this photo with us.

^^ A first time appearance in one of my CAL posts, we have the cutest little hamster! Say hello to Nacho!

^^ Helen's beautiful bunny is curious about that carrot-coloured ball of yarn..

^^..and Tilly is making herself right at home eating crackers all over Faye's blanket, how very nonchalant!

^^ Oh, I adore this photo, it made me hoot with laughter! Please say hello to Andy-The-Bird who belongs to Louise, he is obviously trying his best to help with the yarn situation!

^^ Here we have a very rare sighting of a lesser spotted Snow Leopard (aged 10), making her way slowly across the length of a beautiful rainbow Dahlia. Quite the well behaved pet, don't you think?!

^^ And finally, no furry or feathered pets in this household, but please say hello to Sue's companion Mr Prickles!! Another laugh-out-loud moment for me when I first saw this on Facebook!!

Thank you so so much for all your photos, and for continuing to make our online CAL community such a fun-loving place to be. 

Now I think it's time for a little bit of a flower fix............

I think pretty much all the dahlias I've shared with you in my posts up till now have been the big show-stopper types. You know, the huge dinner plate varieties and the very popular pom pom types which most people think of when they think of dahlias. When I visited Halls nursery, there was a whole glorious section the the growing field given over to much smaller dahlias, the type that have more open daisy-type faces. Here are just a few to give you a visual treat.................

To my mind, these are just as spectacular as the bigger brutes and I absolutely fell in love with them. Their simplicity is incredibly charming, and the colours stunning. They also have the added bonus of being a magnet for bees and butterflies which really added to the joy of the day for me - SO many butterflies flitting around those beautiful flowers, it was a delight!

Back in the Attic and I have to say I am really, really enjoying my Dahlia blankets. As you know, I have a lot of crochet blankets in the house (all over the house) but there is something very special about having the warmth of this particular floral colour palette during the winter months. It often feels like the sun is shining out of those stripes, they make me feel ridiculously happy.

I mean, just look at all that glorious heated colour ^^ !!! Yum, yum, it's so deliciously optimistic and upbeat, just like the flowers that inspired it.

So we are onto part five this week which sees us approaching the final stretch. I know some of you decided to stop at the end of Part 4  to create a shorter lap blanket or a throw instead of a full length snuggle/bed blanket. That's absolutely fine by me, and remember you can stop at any time if you feel your blanket has reached a length you're happy with.

Doesn't it look rather glorious? Like row upon row of flowers growing in a field perhaps?!

^^ this is how my Mixed Stripe dahlia is looking at the end of part 5 - you can see Tilly is carrying out her weekly Quality Control Inspection, giving it her full attention as per usual. 

Here is the colour info for Part 5 of the "MIXED STRIPE" Dahlia Blanket, we're making 18 stripes in total this week.

The numbers in brackets indicate which rows of the pattern you need to refer to.

Click (( HERE )) for the printable worksheet.

70. Saffron : (pattern rows 3 & 4)

71. Fondant : (5 & 6)

72. Fuchsia Purple : (3 & 4)

73. Claret : (5 & 6)

74. Spice : (3 & 4)

75. Powder Pink : (5 & 6)

76. Shrimp : (3 & 4)

77. Lemon : (5 & 6)

78. Fondant : (3 & 4)

79. Lipstick : (5 & 6)

80. Magenta : (3 & 4)

81. Boysenberry : (5 & 6)

82. Tomato : (3 & 4)

83. Apricot : (5 & 6)

84. Saffron : (3 & 4)

85. Pomegranate : (5 & 6)

86. Blush : (3 & 4)

87. Fuchsia Purple : (5 & 6)

Next week (part 6) there will only be 12 more stripes to add, making 99 in total. Remember you can stop at any time if you feel your blanket has reached the right length for you.

I'll also be giving out an extra set of colours next week for those of you making larger Mixed Stripe blankets, in case you feel like adding onto the length and making your blanket longer than 175cm.

If you are jaunting along with the Colourwash version of the Dahlia blanket, this week it's all about the PINKS. Those beautiful rich, deep hot pinks with a hint of purple sneaking in. 

You'll be leaving the orange tones behind (one final stripe of Shrimp) and going full tilt through the heat of the pinks. There will be the remainder of Pomegranate, then onto the delicious play between Magenta and Fondant, with one stripe of Fuchsia Purple tucked right at the end of week 5.

I think these colours are my favourite dahlia colours of all, I absolutely love the utter prettiness of them.

They are very bold shades, but also very warm and inviting too....

...perfect summery tones of pink and purple.

So, so pretty.

Part 5 of the Dahlia colourwash brings a lovely feeling of balance to the whole blanket....

....and I absolutely adore the way these stronger pinks and purples tie in so well with the reds and oranges from the beginning.

Isn't it joyful?

I really do love love love it. 

Here is the colour info for Part 5 of the "COLOURWASH" Dahlia Blanket, we're making 18 stripes in total this week.

Remember there are 2 crochet rows for every stripe.

The numbers in brackets refer to the pattern rows, to help you keep a track of the pattern repeats and how each rows starts and ends.

Click (( HERE )) for the printable worksheet (please note that the colourwash list is on page 2).

70. Shrimp : (pattern rows 3 & 4)

71. Pomegranate : (5 & 6)

72. Fondant : (3 & 4)

73. Pomegranate : (5 & 6)

74. Fondant : (3 & 4)

75. Pomegranate : (5 & 6)

76. Fondant : (3 & 4)

77. Pomegranate : (5 & 6)

78. Fondant : (3 & 4)

79. Magenta : (5 & 6)

80. Fondant : (3 & 4)

81. Magenta : (5 & 6)

82. Fondant : (3 & 4)

83. Magenta : (5 & 6)

84. Fondant : (3 & 4)

85. Magenta : (5 & 6)

86. Fuchsia Purple : (3 & 4)

87. Magenta : (5 & 6)

I haven't seen many of you making the repeating stripe, but those that have popped up on social media have been absolutely stunning I have to say. The above blanket is Eva's after part 4 and you can really appreciate the mesmerising rhythm created by repeating the stripes in a set order. It really is beautiful. 

I hope this week is full happy creativity, and that you find some joyful colour to lift your spirits wherever you are in the world. Enjoy your days, I hope they have stripes in them!

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

🌸 DAHLIA YARN PACK

🌸DAHLIA SPIKE STITCH TUTORIAL

🌸DAHLIA PRINTABLE PATTERN

🌸 DAHLIA BLANKET INTRODUCTION

🌸 SNEAK PEEK of BLANKETS

🌸 CAL PART 1 

🌸 CAL PART 2

🌸 CAL PART 3

🌸 CAL PART 4

 

 

 

Dahlia Blanket CAL :: Part 4

Every week when I sit down to write my Dahlia update, my mind always drifts back to that one glorious day in September when I travelled up to Northumberland to visit Halls of Heddon. It was such a special day and so full of colour and excitement that I find I can still replay much of the experience inside my Creative Mind as I were watching a film. I honestly don't think I shall ever forget that visit and the sheer joy of walking amongst so much thriving floral beauty.

It was quite the experience taking J along with me too, he is very supportive for the most part and copes remarkably well with my very quirky ways. He was actually brilliant company on this trip, and the above two photos came from his phone (he took hundreds!). Being able to walk among the flowers when they were in their prime was just the loveliest way for me to feed my creative soul and absorb a huge dollop of inspiration and colour-energy. I shall always remember it, and the way it made me feel.

And lets not forget the icing on the cake - this gigantic posy of dahlias that I was able to bring home to the Attic. 

As you know, I had already begun my own Dahlia blanket journey back in September and so had the pleasure of seeing the real life blooms alongside the stripes. I was wowed all over again by this beautiful colour palette and the happy memories it now holds.

For those of you making your way along on own dahlia journey, I very much hope you are feeling the joy of these colours and that they are lifting your spirits? I've been really loving our online community this week, and the happiness that I've felt from you all as you've run these colours through your fingers. I'm going to share some photos that have caught my eye, showing how the dahlia colour palette has been working it's inspirational magic.......

^^ Jenny has used her dahlia blanket to attract butterflies, how very lovely is that?! She used my Meadow Butterfly pattern to bring a little bit of extra colour and charm to her stripes and I absolutely love it.

^^ Kate has chosen to make granny squares with her dahlia colours, and I know that we are in for a treat with this blanket. I'm really looking forward to seeing more as it comes together.

^^ Darlene has made excellent progress with her Dahlia Willow squares, edging each one in SSDK Meadow to bring them all together.

^^ Natalie has also been experimenting with making Willow squares, using 3 colours for each square. The Willow Square pattern is by Jan Eaton and can be found in her fabulous book "200 Crochet Blocks for Blankets, Throws and Afghans" which is a brilliant resource.

^^ Kate is making tremendous progress with her blanket, gosh this photo really stopped me in my tracks! She is making Sunburst granny squares and already I think they look amazing.

^^ Lynn's been making flowers with her dahlia colours......

....which she made into a really pretty garland. I love it!

^^ Jan couldn't resist the colours in the Dahlia yarn pack and made herself a gorgeous bunch of flowers.

^^ Linsey decided to make her dahlia colours bloom and whipped up a very pretty cushion. She used my "Blooming Flower Cushion" pattern and I think it looks stunning.

^^ Annamaria has just started out making a dahlia cushion using a V-stitch ripple pattern.

^^ Anita has combined her dahlia colours with white to make this very striking pattern in mosaic crochet. I absolutely love the effect and am really excited to see more of it as it grows. The pattern is the "Casablanca Afghan" by the very talented designer Tinna Thórudóttir Thorvaldsdóttir.

^^ Another stunning pattern by Tinna is the "Havana Afghan", and Alison has used the dahlia colour palette to bring those mosaic crochet rows alive.

^^ Annette couldn't resist the lure of a very pretty mandala, don't the colours look great?

^^ This photo stopped me in my tracks when I came across it on Instagram (thank you @piggyandpickle). Its the start of a large circular afghan (the "Circular Fall Mandala Throw" by Lisa Gentry). I think the dahlia colours look absolutely scrumptious!

^^ Anne is also using her dahlia colours to create a stunning circular blanket, and already it is looking fabulous. She's using the "Mandala Madness" design by Helen Shrimpton.

^^ Last but not least is this beauty which popped up in the Facebook group a couple days ago. Ashton is using her dahlia colours to make the very popular "Sophies Universe" by Dedri Uys. It's so beautiful!

This week we are moving into the second half of the dahlia blanket, and part 4 sees another 18 stripes grow and bloom. Your blanket should be looking and feeling deliciously blankety now, lots and lots of squishability and colour therapy right there in those stripes!

Oh, oh, oh.......doesn't it look soooooooo good???!!!

The warmth of this colour palette is such a tonic at this time of year....

....so much beautiful dancing colour - I look at these stripes and can just picture the rows and rows of dahlias in that sunny field.

So here is the colour info for Part 4 of the "MIXED STRIPE" Dahlia Blanket, we're making 18 stripes in total this week.

The numbers in brackets indicate which rows of the pattern you need to refer to.

Click (( HERE )) for the printable worksheet.

52. Shrimp : (pattern rows 3 & 4)

53. Apricot : (5 & 6)

54. Saffron : (3 & 4)

55. Fuchsia Purple : (5 & 6)

56. Tomato : (3 & 4)

57. Fondant : (5 & 6)

58. Powder Pink : (3 & 4)

59. Magenta : (5 & 6)

60. Claret : (3 & 4)

61. Pomegranate : (5 & 6)

62. Spice : (3 & 4)

63. Apricot : (5 & 6)

64. Lemon : (3 & 4)

65. Tomato : (5 & 6)

66. Boysenberry : (3 & 4)

67. Blush : (5 & 6)

68. Lipstick : (3 & 4)

69. Shrimp : (5 & 6)

If you are making the Colourwash version of the Dahlia blanket, this week you will be needing four colours in total.

You'll be finishing off with Powder Pink and moving beautifully onwards through the warmer, deeper pink tones (oh, hello gorgeous Blush, Shrimp and Pomegranate)

I adore this part of the blanket, and these sweet pink blooms are amongst my favourites. The warmth of these colours will really begin to add balance to the colourwash blanket, and they do a really good job of bringing us gently out of the pale mid section.

I know when I was making my own colourwash dahlia, it was part 4 which really made me fall head over heels in love with it.....

.....all the heart eyes 😍 !!!

I absolutely love love love the boldness of these stripes and I think they really do show off the colours to perfection.

Here is the colour info for Part 4 of the "COLOURWASH" Dahlia Blanket, we're making 18 stripes in total this week.

Remember there are 2 crochet rows for every stripe.

The numbers in brackets refer to the pattern rows, to help you keep a track of the pattern repeats and how each rows starts and ends.

Click (( HERE )) for the printable worksheet (please note that the colourwash list is on page 2).

52. Powder Pink : (pattern rows 3 & 4)

53. Blush : (5 & 6)

54. Powder Pink : (3 & 4)

55. Blush : (5 & 6)

56. Powder Pink : (3 & 4)

57. Blush : (5 & 6)

58. Shrimp : (3 & 4)

59. Blush : (5 & 6)

60. Shrimp : (3 & 4)

61. Blush : (5 & 6)

62. Shrimp : (3 & 4)

63. Blush : (5 & 6)

64. Shrimp : (3 & 4)

65. Pomegranate : (5 & 6)

66. Shrimp : (3 & 4)

67. Pomegranate : (5 & 6)

68. Shrimp : (3 & 4)

69. Pomegranate : (5 & 6)

A couple more beautiful dahlia blankets to share with you -

^^ Ingrid is showing us how stunning the "mirror repeat" effect is after four repeats...

^^ and Elisha is two repeats into her "repeat" colour order.

I think both of these blankets are really beautiful and I can certainly see how the repeating effect works to create a very calm, harmonious look.

I hope so much that you are loving your dahlia blanket journey, and if you aren't hooking along right now that you are enjoying all the floral eye candy I'm throwing your way each week?! Have a wonderful, colourful week my lovelies....

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🌸 DAHLIA YARN PACK

🌸DAHLIA SPIKE STITCH TUTORIAL

🌸DAHLIA PRINTABLE PATTERN

🌸 DAHLIA BLANKET INTRODUCTION

🌸 SNEAK PEEK of BLANKETS

🌸 CAL PART 1 

🌸 CAL PART 2

🌸 CAL PART 3