Crafting Balance - 3KCBWDAY7

So, this is it -  the final topic for our Knitting and Crochet Blog Week 2012.

I have enjoyed reading other bloggers' thoughts and look at their photographs and I do hope that there were a few who also enjoyed reading my posts as much as I enjoyed writing them.

While I am thankful that I can take a blogging breather again (usually I only blog about two or three times each week), I am already looking forward to next years.

Thank you very much to Eskimimimakes for coming up with this great idea!

But here is one last topic for all us all to enjoy:

Crafting Balance 

3KCBWDAY7

Are you a knitter or a crocheter, or are you a bit of both? If you are monogamous in your yarn-based crafting, is it because you do not enjoy the other craft or have you simply never given yourself the push to learn it? Is it because the items that you best enjoy crafting are more suited to the needles or the hook? Do you plan on ever trying to take up and fully learn the other craft? If you are equally comfortable knitting as you are crocheting, how do you balance both crafts? Do you always have projects of each on the go, or do you go through periods of favouring one over the other? How did you come to learn and love your craft(s)?

I totally swing both ways :)

Both crafts have their pro's and con's which incidentally pretty much go hand in hand. Things I dislike about one craft are a positive about the other, for example:


Casting on
Knitting: I find it easier to stop and recount as you have all the loops on your needle.
Crocheting: Depending on the yarn it can be extremely difficult to recount your loops if you lost count along the way. I tend to place stitch markers at 50 loop intervals.


Drop a stitch
Knitting: That can become a real bitch, especially when you only notice it ten rows after....you have to either knit backwards or if you have an easy pattern without a myriad of YON/YRN just frog away until you can pick all your stitches up again (we could be talking 100+, depending on what you are working on).
Crocheting: You only ever have one stitch on your hook, so who cares if you dropped it, just carry on as normal. Even if for whatever reason you need to frog a few rows back, you only have to pick up one stitch. Yeah, baby, yeah!

The creative process
Knitting: I get bored easy when a pattern is plain. Knitting seems kind of endless, you don't have the gratification of a completed project at your fingertips. Your very seldom get your needles out when you fancy a "quickie" project.
Crocheting: Many of my favourite crochet projects consist of smaller sections being brought together. For example blankets made from granny squares. One square can be finished within 30 - 60 minutes, so you have almost instant gratifying of having completed something.

The look of the finished projects
Knitting: There is no doubt in my mind that clothing is much nicer when it is knitted, as it feels softer and appears to be more comfortable to wear
Crocheting: Blankets, pillow cases, scarves and wraps are gorgeous when crocheted, but jumpers and cardigans just feel heavy and bulky as crocheting will be much more sturdy.

Truly, I love doing both and generally have one of each on the go at the same time - I am so glad that I rediscovered both knitting and crocheting in 2011.

I started knitting when I was in school, so around 40 years ago (yikes!!!!) and we were also shown how to crochet loop chains - but knitting was more the way to go in those days.
In the 80's and early 90's I used to knit a lot and almost all my jumpers were handmade. I only wish I would have kept them as most of those patterns have now come back into fashion!!! At some stage I was so good at knitting that I created my own patterns. But then from one day to the next I fell out of love with this craft.

Crocheting only came into my life in earnest at the beginning of 2011 because I saw THIS post by Michelle Clement that got me interested in crocheting and I started to look around the www. for more inspiration. After a few month of checking out what people created with a hook and some yarn I started to teach myself in January 2011 and I haven't looked back since.

Other craft's fell by the wayside - such as my scrapbooking and cardmaking, but I am cool with that. Right know knitting and crocheting is what makes me happy, and that is really all that matters

Improving Your Skillset - 3KCBWDAY6

I can't believe that we are almost at the end of the 2012 Knitting and Crochet Blog Week. It has been great so far and I really enjoyed working with a different topic each day.

So, what have we got in store for today? Well, this of course:

Improving Your Skillset

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How far down the road to learning your craft do you believe yourself to be? Are you comfortable with what you know or are you always striving to learn new skills and add to your knowledge base? Take a look at a few knitting or crochet books and have a look at some of the skills mentioned in the patterns. Can you start your amigurumi pieces with a magic circle, have you ever tried double knitting, how's your intarsia? If you are feeling brave, make a list of some of the skills which you have not yet tried but would like to have a go at, and perhaps even set yourself a deadline of when you'd like to have tried them by.

I am always looking at improving my skills.

When you consider that I actually started knitting about 40 years ago I should pretty much be an expert, right? But I am not, because my once loved craft fell by the wayside when I hit my late twenties and I only re-discovered it last year.

As a crocheter I would still class myself as beginner as there are many ordinary stitches I still cannot do. But every year I progress in my skills and look at improving what I am already capable of doing plus add some new techniques to try.

If I don't challenge myself I get bored. There is nothing I detest more than becoming stagnant.

I can still recall last year when I tried so hard to get my head around a Granny Square.

Don't laugh, folks - I was incapable of creating the easiest stitch pattern around and I was in tears about it. I looked at You Tube tutorials, step by step photo patterns, charts, etc but I just did not get it. The worst part was that I was able to follow instructions that were classed as intermediate or advanced really easy, but the humble Granny had me stumped. But I did not give up, I tried again and again and again and after one month of continuous attempts I was there and finally cracked the Granny Square.

The problem I had was that it was too easy...I was used following more complex instructions and the sheer simplicity completely threw me, isn't that just the weirdest thing ever?

But I digress - there are still so many techniques and skills and I wish to learn in knitting and crocheting and to keep it at an achievable target, here is what I am hoping to learn in 2012:

• Crocheting - Broomstick Lace

I love the look of the garments that are created with this technique and I am sure I should be able to master this one at some stage this year

• Knitting - a pair of socks

Actually I have knitted one pair of socks before - in 1992 and they were too big, so this is definitely a MUST do for me this year

Craft Your Perfect Day - 3KCBWWC

Well, today's topic was again not calling out to me - Something A Bit Different, which is asking for a most creative post. 

M'eh...that ain't me - I am too old to get all fancy schmancy with pod casts, videos and all that jazz. So, I am taking the wild card entry for the boring old farts like me, who are content with the way they are blogging and do not want to push their creativity in that respect. 

Here we go with the Wildcard Topic:

Craft Your Perfect Day

3KCBWWC

Plan your fantasy day with your craft, It might just take up one hour of your day or be the entire focus of the day, but tell your readers where you'd love to craft, whether you'd craft alone or with friends, knitting or crocheting something simple or spending a day learning new skills.

I would say that I am actually very blessed and experience the prefect crafting day, every day :)

My typical work day looks like this:

6:00am - Get up and ready to go to work
6:40/6:45am - Leave the house/arrive a the ferry to take me to work
6:50 - 8:10am - Knit/crochet during the ferry ride (so very nice and relaxing when in the winter months you can view the most spectacular sunrises and in the summer time you can watch all the sailing boats going out)
8:30am - 5:30pm - Work
5:45 - 7:00pm - Knit/crochet during the ferry ride back home
7:05 - 7:30 pm - Prepare dinner and eat
7:30 until bedtime (usually between 10:00/11:00pm depending on how many episodes of the different CSI's are on) - watch telly and knit/crochet

Of course I do not ignore Mr P when I come home. We chat about or day and discuss plans for the weekend, but I am clever enough to be able to knit/crochet and talk at the same time :)))

Weekends are usually filled with short trips or relaxing on the balcony. But as soon as I plonk my behind on the couch and have the TV on, my knitting/crochet WIP's will join me :)

A Knitter or Crocheter for all seasons - 3KCBWDAY4

Do you enjoy browsing all the different blogs who participate in this week's topics? Granted, I do not have the time to read all of them but I already found some really cool ones I have now added to my reader list.

Today we are all nattering away about the following topic:

A Knitter or Crocheter For All Seasons?

3KCBWDAY4

As spring is in the air in the northern hemisphere and those in the southern hemisphere start setting their sights for the arrival of winter, a lot of crocheters and knitters find that their crafting changes along with their wardrobe. Have a look through your finished projects and explain the seasonality of your craft to your readers. Do you make warm woollens the whole year through in preparation for the colder months, or do you live somewhere that never feels the chill and so invest your time in beautiful homewares and delicate lace items. How does your local seasonal weather affect your craft?

What an interesting topic, which made me sit back and think hard about it.

Do I craft seasonal ?
Well, I can honestly say that I really do not have a preference for any season when it comes to knitting or crocheting. This may also be the case because for the last year I mainly created pillow cases and blankets and only the occasional scarf/cowl.
Currently I have two projects on the go which could be worn in colder and warmer months and the only reason why I chose them was that I liked the pattern.

Does the local seasonal weather affect my craft?
Not too much, only in the way that when it is really hot I do not craft full stop as my hands will get too sticky after working with the yarn and needles/hook. And also I do not like the added warmth from the project when it is resting on my lap.

In retrospect though I would say that I am more tempted to knit/crochet hats and scarves when it is colder outside, but generally I just go with what I fancy at the time. If I come across a fabulous pattern for a cable jumper in spring, I will go ahead and knit it - even though I may not be wearing of for many months to come.
As with anything, I have to be inspired by it at the time I see it and then I will commit to it then and there. I am not someone who can pre-plan knitting or crocheting.

Your Knitting or Crochet Hero - 3KCBWDAY3

Did you all miss me yesterday?

Yeah, yeah - I know, like a hole in the head...

Anyway, today's topic is something I am happy to contribute to, so let's see what we will be talking about:

Your Knitting Or Crochet Hero

3KCBWDAY3
Blog about someone in the fibre crafts who truly inspires you. There are not too many guidelines for this, it's really about introducing your readers to someone who they might not know who is an inspiration to you. It might be a family member or friend, a specific designer or writer, indie dyer or another blogger. If you are writing about a knitting designer and you have knitted some of their designs, don't forget to show them off. Remember to get permission from the owner if you wish to use another person's pictures. 

To be honest I have not any specific person that I would class as my knitting or crocheting hero/guru.
There is so much inspiration out there in the www and I take delight in many little things from here, there and everywhere.

I have blogged before about the artwork that Marcel Wanders and Joana Vasconelos crochet and if there is anyone around I would class as my "I-am-in-awe-at-what-you-do" guys, they'd be it. I just love to look at their creations but I would not want to try to do anything similar.

There are oodles of blogs I look to for inspiration, which I faithfully follow through my Google Reader. But I have noticed that a number of them only inspire me for a certain amount of time and then get bored on move onto others.

Currently I am always excited when I see new posts popping up on these blogs (in no particular order)

• Pumpkin Spins
• The Rainey Sisters
• Signed With an Owl
• According to Matt
• AnaZard Atelier

Colour Lovers - 3KCBWDAY1

I am so excited that we are kick starting the Knitting and Crochet Blog Week 2012 today.

The idea came from Eskimimimakes who gave everyone who liked to participate topics to play with for each day.

Today's topic is this:

Colour Lovers  
(3KCBWDAY1)
Colour is one of our greatest expressions of ourselves when we choose to knit or crochet, so how do you choose what colours you buy and crochet or knit with. Have a look through your stash and see if there is a predominance of one colour. Do the same with your finished projects - do they match? Do you love a rainbow of bright hues, or more subdued tones. How much attention do you pay to the original colour that a garment is knit in when you see a pattern? Tell readers about your love or confusion over colour.

Colour is so important and is one of my main reasons for purchasing anything - clothes, every day items, bedding - the colour just has to be right.
I have always been drawn to pinks for some reason, maybe because I use to be such a tomboy. I used to wear proper Lederhosen and dress in earth tones, hanging around with the boys, climbing trees rather than playing with girls and dolls.
But even though I am always buying pink things, you hardly find me wear that colour...weird, no? The majority of my wardrobe consists of black clothes. Maybe a little beige thrown on occasions, but certainly not pink.

For even stranger reasons, when I look to knit or crochet items of clothing I never choose black. I wonder why that is, seeing that I don't really wear colourful clothes...
When I look at a pattern I am not influenced at all by the colour, it is generally the style or the technique that draws me in and I start to look at my favourite online stores to check out colour ways that would appeal to me.

Oddly enough though, the other day when I was looking for some inspiration, I came across a Sirdar pattern for a cardigan and I loved the colour combination so much that I bought - for the first time ever - the exact colours and yarns as given in the pattern.

As for pillow covers or blankets that I crochet for our front room, well they all have to feature mainly purple tones as our room looks like this:

So, what would you expect to find in my yarn stash colour wise? I honestly thought that I had mainly pinks, blues and greens in there, but imagine my surprise when  the first layer revealed this:

and the bottom layer told this story:

What have I learned today by looking in more depth at what colour I choose for my knitting and crocheting?
It looks to me like I am an earth tone kinda girl and if in doubt I go for the neutral beige tones.

• I want to change that and set myself a target of using at least one bright colour this year which with I am either knitting or crocheting an item of clothing.

P.S. - Just in case you may want to know, I am sitting out tomorrow post as a photography challenge is not if interest to me

FP - The Pineapple shawl

Oh how I love thee...............

Yarn: Sirdar Luxury Soft (125g)

Hook size: 3.00

Time to complete: 12 hours

...my most worn and most loved crocheted item to date and I am bit late in sharing it here, I have to admit.

As soon as I finished this shawl I didn't even bother blocking it because I wanted to wear it straight away.

It sounds strange but as soon as I started this shawl I feel in love with its lightness and texture straight away, which is probably why I got this done within a matter of days and I am seriously thinking of doing another one in a different colour.

I do think that the yarn itself helps a lot as well as it is the most wonderful to work with and to wear: Sirdar Luxury Soft. It you get a chance to work with this yarn, DO it - as Sirdar have discontinued it snap it up whenever you get the chance. It also has a great running length, which makes it perfect for projects like wraps, scarves or shawls as you only need two balls for an good sized shawl.

But I digress, when I just now had a few days off work, I decided I should really block this shawl to make the pattern stand out more, and BOY am I glad I did, because I love it even more now.

It will probably get an outing today, as Mr P and myself are off for the day to make the most of the sunshine.

If you want to see a few more finished projects, head over to Tami's Blog

WIP Wednesday

Wheeeee, I am back on track with my posts :) but I am not quite there yet posting my WIP's and FP's when they are actually in that particular state.

This here WIP today has been on my needles since 31 March but somehow I always had something else I wanted to show, so this went into the "must-post-this-next-week" queue...ahem. By now, this beauty is actually only a few rows away from being completed, so these pictures are somewhat giving a wrong impression, because I am done so much further. 

The pattern has been taken from the Spring/Summer 2012 edition of Designer Knitting (formerly Vogue Knitting) and I am SO in love with it *sigh*. Ins't this poncho to die for?

Image source

What I love most about it is that the poncho is long at the back and shorter at the front and is soooooooooooooooo easy to knit up as the pattern is very memorable. I am now at the stage where I don't have to look anymore, I can knit this baby blind :)

WIP status: 01 April 2012

Close up of lace pattern:

It is actually Pumpkin's fault that I have discovered this particular magazine. She blogged here about the cardigan she had on her needles which made me look at the mag - and I knew I had to have it after I saw the poncho on the first page.

Once I had the mag in my hands and decided that I desperately wanted to knit at least 70% of all patterns featured, I knew I had to sub to it....but now to wait until the next issue is going to test my patience. But I already have a stash of yarn waiting for the next project from this issue :)

And to finish this post of, here is another looks at the WIP status from last week

I know what you are all wondering - if I am actually going to keep it AND wear it? Hand on heart, I can answer this with a big fat YESSIR because I already tried it on and I a totally loving it. Now I have to hurry up and finish it so I can finally give the yarn (which had been frogged 2,876 times previously) its deserved outing.

See more WIP's from across the blog on Tami's Blog

and over at Ginny's

The Journey has ended

** Photo heavy post **

contains vintage nudity 

The good thing about being a card maker is that you always have a card at hand for every occasion, especially birthdays. And it is very rewarding when you know that your nearest and dearest keep all of the cards you've sent over the years.

The bad thing about being a card maker is when you have hit a slump, a complete lack of inspiration and your stock of cards has diminished. Then you actually have to take the walk of shame to the (dare I say it) card shop (gasp) and buy-a-card (gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh) 

As you may recall, I stopped all paper crafting pretty much at the end of last year (the projects I showcased since then were new to the blog but all created in 2011) as there was no mojo left. And there still is no desire of drive to actually pick up where I left off.

So, during the Easter weekend I took a huge empty basket and filled it with all the products I haven't used or even looked at for at least a year. That got rid of about 60% of all my stash and I handed it downstairs to the charity shop. They were delighted, which made me happy.

All other bits and bobs that I have kept have gone into a big storage box which will live on top of our wardrobe. If I have not reopened this and made use of any of the products within the next six months, they will also go to charity. This is actually the way in which I get rid of all surplus stuff that I am not using, be it hobby related or clothes - once a year I go through all my shelves, wardrobes, etc and look for things I have not touched in a while: they go into a box with the date marked on the top. The next time I have a clean out and I come across those boxes, everything that's inside will be given away. 

Anyway - getting our hobby room back into a space where you can actually see the walls inspired me to pick up my minimal supplies I have readily available and I made a card for an impending birthday. You know what? I am glad I am giving all my stuff away because I am not feeling the paper crafting anymore. The card I created is nothing I am proud of, it is ok-ish but I am not loving it.

This bad boy has sealed my paper crafting fate - it is over :((((

Now, please don't get me wrong - I am not posting this to fish for compliments, heck no! I am posting this to  bring it home to myself that my paper crafting journey has come to its end: we had eight wonderful years together but for now we are going separate ways.

If you have the time, who not join me on a reflection of this journey to show you how I have now come full circle. The cards I have chosen are the ones I have liked best during the particular year.

2004

2005

2006

2007

close your eyes NOW if vintage nudity ain't your thang and scroll on 

2008

2009

2010

2011

WIP Wednesday

...well okay, so it's Thursday already...sue me :)

I usually write up my blog posts for a whole week during the weekend and set them to schedule. I try to make sure that my Wednesdays and Fridays are "reserved" for the WIP's and FP's but somehow I lost track over the last couple of days.

Let's be a rebel and have the WIP Wednesday on a Thursday - ooooooh, I feel quite the punk now :)

Remember THIS WIP?

Uhm, ya - as you may have guessed, it did not survive my CFS (Compulsive Frogging Syndrome).

Whilst the pattern was easy to follow and there was nothing really wrong with the garment,
I made it look ridiculous

So....I frogged away again (quite therapeutic at times, I tell ya) and found myself another pattern.

I love me some lace patterns that don't require endless counting but are easy to remember without having to whip out the pattern every turn of the needles. The Odette Waterfall cardigan by Sian Brown certainly ticked all the boxes.

This was the status a few hours after casting on 

WIP status: 31 March 2012

Close up of the pattern

And this is how far I had come by 06 April 2012

By now I am almost at the second opening for the armhole, so I'd say about 60% done and this time I am sure fairly confident that the cardi will survive...but hey, you just never know with me, right?

Check out some more WIP's over at

Tami's Blog and at Ginny's Blog



Oh, and before I go, don't forget that I have not one but TWO give-aways going at the moment:

BreAlly yarns - click HERE
Handmade PIF - click HERE

Crochet Love - Lace garment

You may have noticed that currently I am on a drooling expedition...looking around the www for some cool inspiration as to what I could feasibly crochet myself in the coming months/years.

The other day I came across this cute lace garment and I am totally in love with it.

image taken from: http://www.asia.ru

I can't get the image close enough to make out the exact stitches, but it looks like some sort of flower/granny pattern. Shouldn't be too difficult to make up my own version though, as I have quite a few Japanese patterns downloaded.

Not sure if I would go for the beige colour or rather do something bright. What do you think?

Oh and I found another similar garment, which I think I love even more, lookey:

image taken from: 4.bp.blogspot.com

Happy Birthday Mr P

It's only been a few weeks since we celebrated my birthday and yesterday it was Mr P's turn. I remember in the past people always used to say that relationships where both partners have the same star sign are extremely difficult and pretty much doomed.

Take into consideration that we are both Aries, which are quite head strong and stubborn, you could be excused for thinking that we are a disaster waiting to happen.

Well, that's what I thought 14 years ago...and look where we are now :)

I just remembered that I never shared the pictures we shot when we went out for a pub lunch with Mr P's mum and step dad for my birthday, so let's rectify this straight away.

As we were blessed with the most amazing weather at the end of March, we took a leisurely stroll down to the Lifeboat, a lovely pub situated on the waterfront of the River Medina. Can you believe that we have been living in this area of the Island for around ten years now and not once managed to walk ten minutes down the road to the pub? Yeah, shocking, I know!

It looks lovely from the outside

And it looks lovely from the inside too, shame about the rowdy crowd tho'... (wink, wink)

We had a most wonderful day, so of course we decided that for Mr P's birthday we are going to do something similar.

Oh, we had plans to go to the mainland and take a stroll along to Hamble, or alternatively to walk to Bembridge as we haven't been there for quite some time. But  the weather had other plans for us and decided to be grey, overcast and downright miserable...

Now, we don't mind if it is not overly sunny but for a nice walk you want at least clear skies. So we settled for a walk over to  Cowes and Gurnard, and stop off in a few pubs along the way.

Our first stop was the Portland Inn, which we have passed so many times when we walked through Gurnard and we always said that one day we should check it out. So, the birthday boy decided that it was time :)

It looks not that inviting from the outside:

But the inside made us fall in love with the pub straight away. It looks like someone's living room/dining area. So cute with the many vintage touches. The pig and sheep blackboards on the top shelf and the condiments served in a vintage cup and saucer, had me squealing with delight.

The area in which we sat in was so cosy and cute, look:

The locals were really friendly as well and started chatting to us, someone's cat (she looked like a cross between a Persian and a Maine Coon) just strolled in, took a shine to us and jumped straight onto my lap - as you do...

It was surreal but really enjoyable.

We then walked along the seafront back towards Cowes and stopped off in The Woodvale, where we've been once before and as it was packed at the time we thought we should give it another try.

The outside looks typical for a seafront hotel/pub

The inside..well, it was heaving with people again and the only space we could find was right at the back, next to the pool table...ugh, a big pet peeve of ours to have pool tables in an eating/drinking area.

We did not take pictures (it's not that nice looking anyway) as there were people in the way everywhere and quickly downed our drinks and took off.

So,  the birthday boy had to make the choice - carry on pubbing or get some chips and go home?

See for yourself what Mr P decided:

Yum Yum.

The odd bits you see on the right are actually sausage in batter. The other day we watched Man vs Food again (I LOVE watching Adam pig out) and were introduced to the cozy dog. Mr P told me that you can get battered sausages in the UK too, so our idea was born to try it next time we'd go to the chippie.

Well, while Mr P enjoyed his battered dog, I really did not dig it and seeing that it was his birthday, I let him have both pieces. Mr P was one happy camper (spot the b-dog in his hands?).

The day didn't end there though - as was his wish we carried on with our fatty/greasy day, bought some pizzas for later and got back home to have another movie night (as is the custom on our birthdays...)

WIP Wednesday - BreAlly Yarns

I have quite a number of blogs (crochet and knitting) that I follow, one of which is Crochet Concupiscence. To be honest there are not that many posts that I actually read on there but I love it for the links to other bloggers. Most of my subscribed blogs I have found through CC and for that I am ever so grateful.

The other day, CC had a review of BreAly Threads and I was taken by the wonderful colour ways offered in Brenda's store.

I simply had to order two skeins of the Cheyanne Colourway and within four days I had the skeins in my greedy little hands

The yarn looks absolutely delightful but I am being honest, I hate working with it.

I had no idea just how stiff and scratchy it would be and how thin it is (harder and thinner than embroidery floss) so I am a little disappointed.

I had five WIP's started with this yarn including the above which I intended to become a summer lace scarf but I am not feeling it. I tried using both threads together, tried ace pattern, solid patterns, using a 2.0mm, a 3.0mm and a 3.5mm hook but nope, BreAlly Yarns and me will never become lovers, ever.

If any of you out there want the yarn just post a comment and I will draw one of you to win them . I am confident there must be someone out there who can love this thread as much as it should be loved.

Oh, and I do ship international.

Now, for some WIP's that are loved and which will bring their creators some joy, check out Tami's Blog

Pay It Forward

A little while ago I was lucky enough to be drawn as the winner on Kate's Blog Signed With An Owl.

You can read the post about it here.

And here are the amazing things that Kate spoiled me with:
** The Mug Rug

** The Candle Holder (plus additional tea lights)

** The Perpetual Calendar

Aren't those great? I am such a lucky girl to have been drawn as a winner and I am very thankful to Kate for sending international.
The parcel itself could probably tell a story because it took TWO months to get to me. The U.S. postal service was perfect. It left NY on 26 January and arrived in my LOCAL depot on 31 January. This is the usual time frame for US - UK parcels. But the lazy postmen just sat on for a couple of months...crazy! Especially when you think that I called the depot and asked if they have a parcel there sitting for me.

But anyway, I never gave up on the parcel and knew eventually it would wing its way to me - both Kate and I were relieved when the day finally came :)
Thank you again Kate, for your generosity!

Now it is my turn to host a giveaway and being the lazy sod I am, I have copied the rules straight from Kate's post here

The rules of this giveaway are that I now have 365 days in which to find three bloggers who would like a handmade gift from me and are prepared to do the same.

It's so simple.

Here's how you can enter: 

1: Be a follower of this blog somehow and leave a comment. 

(entries accepted from all corners of the globe and you don't have to have your own blog to enter, either)

You can gain an additional entry into the draw by:

2: Posting a link on your blog or website about this giveaway, linking directly back to this post.

3: Adding the giveaway button to your sidebar and linking to this post. 

If you do any of the extras above, then make sure you comment to let me know as you want your extra entries in the virtual hat, right?

I will close this giveaway on 25 April 2012  so make sure you get those comments in and spread the word :)