Cherry Pi is Finished and Northmoor Lock started!

It's finished!!

I unpinned my Cherry Pi shawl on Saturday morning and wore it to the crochet workshop I was teaching in Horwich that day - it was admired a lot! 

I also wore it yesterday and I plan on wearing it a lot more.  

Here I am modelling it!

You can wear it in many ways and it is the perfect shawl for those 'not as warm as they should be' spring days. 

I'm now catching up to Michelle who is over halfway through the next shawl from the book we're crocheting, Northmoor Lock.

I started mine last night using a skein of hand dyed sock yarn from The Knitting Goddess called 'When Granny Weatherwax Knits Socks' in the colourway Octarine. The pattern crochets up very quickly and I'm nearly halfway through my yarn so it's nearly time to start decreasing (and I only started it last night!) 

Here it is at the beginning.

I'm hoping to have this finished by the end of the week so I can take it away with me on my mini-holiday to Northumberland.

You can find the link to buy the ebook featuring 6 beautiful shawl patterns, including Cherry Pi and Northmoor Lock, designed by Joanne Scrace of The Crochet Project here: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/cherry-pi-2

Cherry Pi is Blocking!

This morning I blocked my Cherry Pi shawl.

I finished it on Monday and, I have to be honest, I just couldn't see how it was going to work. I thought I had completely messed up the pattern and that I was going to have to rip it back. 

There was much discussion between me and Michelle about this (she is quite lucky as she hasn't finished hers yet do she can learn from my experiences) about my worries and pre-blocking traumas. 

I was so wrong!

This morning I've blocked my shawl and it is magical! I know blocking makes a big difference to your crochet but with the Cherry Pi shawl it is just amazing. Here it is on its first block (this shawl calls for an aggressive block which doesn't mean shouting at it but blocking it a bit further later on!)

Joanne Scrace of The Crochet Project and The Shawl Project is a shawl designer legend! 

New Studio Space!

I've been in my studio in Nooch for nearly 9 months now. I loved my space - working and teaching in there. It's been fabulous. Yesterday I moved across the shop into a bigger, brighter space.  It's got a hard floor so I don't have to worry about getting the floor wet, more windows so plenty of natural light and more space so I can fit more people in for workshops! 

I'm really looking forward to working and teaching in my new space!!

The Shawl Project - Cherry Pi Update

They are nearly finished! Although this hasn't been without its many traumas.

Sarah's Traumas

1) I crocheted 5 rows and then ripped them back as I didn't think they looked right only to see Michelle's looked exactly the same.

2) I ran out of yarn with a good way to go. The 2 balks of yarn I was using had been opened and possibly some of it used. Luckily, I was using a commercially produced sock yarn and could order another skein - phew!

3) I realised I'd gone down a hook size rather than up (I'm a tight crocheter) but after trauma number 2, I think that was a good thing.

Michelle's Traumas

1) She kept making a mistake on one if the tows which she only discovered on the next row and had to rip lots of crochet back.

2) She has run out of yarn. Her yarn is a gorgeous hand dyed so emergency yarn cannot be purchased. We are currently contemplating the following options: buy an accent colour for the last repeat or rip back yo the mesh section, pull a few rows out so there's enough for the pretty lace section. Michelle is rather traumatised!

Despite our traumas, we do love, love, love the shawl. It is so pretty and lacy. We have learnt that really we need to gauge swatch for the other shawls to make sure it's correct (I'm a bit of a wing it crocheter - I like to live on the edge!). 

I'm hoping to finish mine over the Easter weekend so be ready for some before and after blocking pictures.