Blog Archives

'Till Needle, Thread and Fabric Meet

1/3/2019

Janie's Friday Feature

Welcome to this week's Friday Feature Newsletter - the Janie Crow equivalent of a Sunday supplement magazine....

Here I am again with another newsletter and this week Sarah and I have focussed on sewing and embroidery as a theme. As you may well know, Sarah is a very accomplished stitcher who has produced some really fabulous pieces of sewn art work and so this week she has written the main feature, which is all about an exciting forthcoming exhibition she will be involved in. Sadly my sewing skills don't even begin to compare to Sarah's, but I am a really big fan of all things stitched and often use embroideries and tapestries as the inspiration for my designs, so I have tried to add pieces into this week's newsletter that fit the theme well.

This week's newsletter also includes the usual tip of the week and palette of the week and my 'what's new' feature. I hope that whatever you have going on in your life today you will be able to settle down for 5 minutes or so to relax in our company.....

'I cannot think my day complete 'til needle, thread and fabric meet.'
- Author Unknown -

Nordiska Exhibition

Hi! It’s Sarah here with a feature that is really very close to my heart!

If you are already a fan of embroidery and the whole mid-century aesthetic then I hope that the following will be of interest to you – if not, then I hope that you will be inspired to visit a brand new exhibition in Birmingham later this month, as well as pick up a needle and thread.

Eighteen months ago I visited the Festival of Quilts exhibition at the NEC in Birmingham. I have visited this show on and off over the years, but 2017 was special. I had arranged to meet up with indigo enthusiast Lindsay Roberts. We had chatted away on Instagram, but never met – the exhibition provided the perfect opportunity and we spent a fabulous day revelling in fabric and threads! The highlight of the day was being introduced to Tanja Malo , the owner and founder of www.linladan.com.

Roughly translated, the Swedish ‘linladan’ means flax barn. The Swedish tradition of using flax or linen as both a fabric and a thread in embroidery is one that Tanja is not only keen to preserve, but also to promote within a modern context. As we become increasingly concerned about working with sustainable fibres, linen is a go to resource. It uses less water to produce and remains strong seemingly forever! I have recently been working with fabric and threads that are over 50 years old and it is as if they were made yesterday.

The chances are that if you have visited any of the Knitting and Stitiching shows, Selvedge fairs or Festival of Quilts exhibitions over the last few years you may have dropped across Linladan. I cannot imagine anyone being able to pass the glorious riot of colour that is created from little boxes of vintage linens, flower threads and silks, but Linladan is more than just finding lovely old stuff to sell! There is an ethos behind the business that encompasses provenance, fair pay and working conditions, sustainability, respect for all that is handmade and attribution for the original designers and artists and I have no doubt that the exhibition will reflect all of these qualities.

It is only through sheer hard work and determination that the Nordiska exhibition has come into being. Years of research have led Tanja to discovering not only the Nordiska archive itself, but also some of the people who were originally involved back in the 50s, 60s and 70s. This has enabled her to produce kits from the original designs with a percentage going to the original designers in recognition of their contribution and legacy.

The exhibition will include original paintings and embroideries as well as the hand drawn charts that were used to produce kits.

Tanja has been able to speak and work with those artists who are still alive and members of other families who worked at the Nordiska factory. This has enabled her to not only learn more about their practise and inspiration, but also to find out which designs were among their favourites. Many families and artists have lent Tanja examples from their own personal collections, like Kaisa Edstroms hand embroidered wedding dress from 1963 and Ingrid-Dahlman’s Sagoslottet Fairytale Castle.

It has often been difficult to find the original instructions for a design which has made reproducing the kits as exact replicas quite tricky. Linladan is now onto its second print run of kits. More instructions have been found and suitable linen has been sourced. Every effort has been made to add threads in colours as close to the originals as possible.

Moving forward, Tanja would like to continue working with the archive and encourage embroiderers to use their own palette of colours when stitching. In the 60s all prints would have been made on the same colour background. Now it is possible to make smaller print runs in different colours so that embroiderers are free to interpret the designs in their own way – using more or less colours than the original, using pastels, neutrals or even neons instead of a more traditional palette.

Next week I will be joining Tanja to help set up the exhibition. This will be the first time that much of this work will be on show to the public, so I am incredibly excited! I am also going to be teaching one hour workshops each day where participants will have the opportunity to practise some of the most popular stitches of mid-century Swedish embroidery. We will be using linen threads on linen fabric, with patterns from the Nordiska archive.

I am always amazed by how the simplest of stitches are able to convey so much.

The exhibition will run as part of the Fashion and Embroidery Show and tickets also include entrance to Sewing for Pleasure and Creative Craft Show. Full details can be found via this link and details of the workshop 'A Thread Through Time' can be found here.

My thanks to Tanja at Linladan for letting me join in the fun and to Claudia Brookes, for the use of these fabulous images.

If you do get chance to come along, please say hello so that we can share more inspiration with you!

Tip of the week

Sarah has suggested a couple of tips this week - both are sewing related:

Sarah says she hates it when thread starts to tangle or turn back on itself. To stop it doing this Sarah suggests running the thread through bees wax to make the twist on the thread stronger and tangle free. You can find Hancock's beeswax blocks on the Beyond Measure web site by clicking on the image below.

Sarah's second tip is to use quilters tape as a guide if you struggle to sew in a straight line. You can find the tape by following this link to the Cotton Patch web site.

If you have any life hacks or craft related tips you would like to share within this section of the Friday Feature Newsletter in the future, then do hit reply and let us know.

What's New

I have added a few new pages onto the new web site this week including a workshop page that lists my dates for 2019. You can find the page by following this link.

My next workshop will be at the lovely Missenden Abbey School of Creative Arts in Buckinghamshire on the 9th and 10th March. This is a crochet motif design workshop, which is aimed at people who want to have a little play with their crochet in order to change or adapt existing motifs or possibly design their very own motifs from scratch - something that is in fact far easier than most people think and which can come quite easily once a little bit of basic information about how crochet designing 'works' alongside a pinch of encouragement is given! You can find more information on this workshop by following this link.

I am hoping to have more time to work on the web site next week and will let you know what pages I manage to put live in next week's newsletter. The shop area on the web site is still not up and running, so if you are interested in any patterns or kits, then you might like to take a look on the Just Knots web site or on Black Sheep Wools as both these stores carry good stock of my designs.

As I have told you already, about six weeks ago Andrew and Andrea from the Fruity Knitting Podcast dropped into the studio so that I could take part in an interview with them. The resulting video is on their Youtube feed, so I would love it if you would take a look! If you are a Fruity Knitting Patron you can still make use of a 10% discount on the 3 CAL projects I talk about in the episode - follow this link for more information.

Colour Palette of the Week

Last weekend saw unusually warm, bright weather here in the UK, but the last few days have been much greyer and are far more usual for this time of year and so I have chosen a palette this week that reflects this!

The image used for this week's palette has been saved on my phone for a while as I was attracted to the sophisticated choices made with colour and surface pattern on this embroidery. This kind of mixture of greys and yellows has been a really strong trend for the last few years and I am still itching to use it in one of my designs - perhaps Mystical Lanterns would look great in this tight palette? What do you think?

The image is from an account called Handmade.Embroidery on Instagram.

Instagram Favourite

I have always been a huge fan of the fashion house Alexander McQueen. You may remember me recommending that you all go to see the documentary film about Lee Alexander McQueen last year - it is an amazing insight into the vision of the incredible designer that he was, but it is also unbelievably moving and sad.

In the wake of Lee's death in February 2010 it was Sarah Burton who took the reigns at the brand and I think she has done an incredible job harnessing the legacy of Lee's vision and she continues to design simply amazing things. If you think you may not have seen one of Sarah's designs, then think again - she designed the Duchess of Cambridge's iconic wedding dress in 2011.

I am a huge fan of the Alexander McQueen Instagram account. The pictures on there are fantastic and the range of close up images in particular are really great. The images often come with the written story of the how the clothes were made and it is clear that the skill of the crafts people involved, whether they be seamstresses, leather workers, embroiderers or painters, is a really key part of how Sarah Burton makes this such an inspirational brand.

The images I have included here show pieces from the newest collection and I love how much embroidery has been used.

I want to draw your attention in particular to the black jacket with what looks like splashed red paint across it from the most recent men's wear collection - shown below.

On closer inspection the detail on this jacket it intricately stitched - isn't it incredible! When I saw this close up image I was totally blown away, and I am sure that you will be too!

There is a really good interview with Sarah Burton on the Vogue web site, within which she talks about the importance of the heritage of traditional crafts. You can find the interview by following this link.

It's nearly the weekend!

We had a fabulous time at the Unravel Yarn Festival last weekend and I would like to say a big THANK YOU to all those of you who came along to say hello! We had a new stand layout, which included our new piece of IKEA furniture that we finally managed to go out and get (!) and I was really happy with the way the blankets and throws looked on the display.

My Magic Circles blanket was particularly popular at Unravel. It is funny - we can never predict which blanket will be the star of the show, it changes every single time! I know some people were disappointed that we ran out of both the printed pattern and the kits, so I include a link here for you to easily find them. Magic Circles is shown in the image above behind Fields of Gold and Lily Pond.

Alongside all the fabulous exhibitors, Unravel also featured talks and presentations and I was really excited to finally meet and see the work of fellow crochet designer Katie Jones, which was on display in the gallery.

We are looking forward to a quiet weekend at home. With a bit of luck I might actually finally get the last coat of paint on the hall walls! The house is in major need of a spring clean, so the wet, colder weather might well provide the perfect opportinity for us to do it, although I suspect I am more likely to sit on the settee with a box set of movies to watch on the TV and a lap full of crochet. I am trying to catch up with The Victorian House of Arts and Crafts on BBC Iplayer, so this will be a wonderful distraction from painting!!!

I would, as always, love to hear what you have planned for your weekend and hope that whatever it is you are set for a fabulous couple of days of rest and recouperation.

Sending crochet love and yarny kisses

Show Season

22/2/2019

Janie's Friday Feature

Welcome to this week's Friday Feature Newsletter - the Janie Crow equivalent of a Sunday supplement magazine....

It is a slightly reduced newsletter this week as we are currently away at the Unravel Yarn show in Farnham. This newsletter contains most of the usual features, such as palette of the week and Instagram favourite, but I have not had a chance to work on the main piece, which I had planned would talk about the current trend for all things denim. I promise (again) that this will make it into a newsletter in the future....

In this week's newsletter I have included some information on 2 forthcoming workshops that might be of interest to you. One is a crochet design based weekend workshop that I will be teaching at Missenden Abbey in a few weeks time and the other is some news in regards to the next Knit For Peace workshop in Mysore, India. Do read on further down the email for more information on both of these.

It has been a busy week at Janie Crow, which has included the first phase of the colouring in competition judging and lots of yarn kit making ready for the show this weekend. I have also started work on a new shawl design that will be released in a magazine in the autumn and so far it is really nice to be back designing again after what feels like a long gap between design projects. I am hoping that more ideas will follow, so watch this space......

Happy Friday!

'You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have'
- Maya Angelou -

What's New?

As mentioned in my introduction this week I have news of 2 new workshops that you might be interested in.

I have been lucky enough to teach on the Knit For Peace workshop holiday in Mysore, India twice before and had been in discussion with the charity about tutoring in Jaipur in 2020, however, due to unforeseen circumstances, I will now be replacing Gillian Ely and Debbie Bliss as tutor on the January trip to Mysore once again. The dates of the trip are the 18th to the 31st January and you can register your interest by contacting the charity. More information will be on their web site soon.

I will also be tutoring a weekend workshop at the lovely Missenden Abbey School of Creative Arts in Buckinghamshire on the 9th and 10th March. This is a crochet motif design workshop, which is aimed at people who want to have a little play with their crochet in order to change or adapt existing motifs or possibly design their very own motifs from scratch - something that is in fact far easier than most people think and which can come quite easily once a little bit of basic information about how crochet designing 'works' alongside a pinch of encouragement is given! You can find more information on this workshop by following this link.

Colour Palette of the Week

This week I have taken my palette of colours from a picture I took of my Dad's incredible camelia bush in his garden. The bush is currently full to bursting with these beautiful flowers and I just love it!

We have tried to grow camelias in our own garden, but have never had any luck keeping them, so I am very envious of this one that gives my Mum and Dad such a wonderful display each February.

I have to admit that the palette I have taken from this image surprised me a little as I would have predicted that the flowers were more yellowy pink than bluey pink, but I guess it might be that the shade of the trees in the garden creates different light on the flowers.

Colouring Competition

We have done our first round of judging on the Delft colouring competition this week. We received over 230 entries, which is amazing and it was really hard to make choices between the entries as the quality was so high.

We have chosen our 7 favourite colour palettes and will be crocheting the samples over the next week, so that we can reveal them to you in their crochet form early next month.

The image above shows the selection process and features graphic designer Luise Roberts, myself and Sara Huntington, editor of Simply Crochet magazine. The two other judges were Stylecraft's Brand Manager Annabelle Hill and Juliet Bernard. Please note that images above do not necessarily feature colour palettes of the selected finalists.

I want to send a big THANK YOU to those of you who took the time to send in an entry.

Instagram Favourite

My Instagram favourites to date have been based on feeds that I find attractive visually. I have featured knitters, crocheters, embroiderers and interior designers, all of whom provide bright interesting images of their work or inspiration, which in turn create a reaction in me.

This week my Instagram Favourite ticks all the boxes mentioned above, but more recently Jeanette Sloan has also become one of the leading voices within a very important discussion on social media. If you haven't checked out Jeanette's feed already, then you can find the link here and by clicking on the image above.

It's nearly the weekend!

I told you last week that we were heading off to the NEC in Birmingham to the Stitches trade show and had been invited to the British Crafts Awards ceremony. Well, we had a lovely day at the show and at the event in the evening where I was really thrilled to come runner up, behind the wonderful Dedri Uys of Look at What I Made, in the crochet designer of the year category. Dedri has been in the running for the award many times so it is really great that she finally won. The image below is of Dedri with Anita Mundt from Scheepjes.

As I already said, this weekend we are at the Unravel Yarn show in Farnham. We are really happy with the stand - we did make it to IKEA at last and have a new 'open wardrobe' as part of our stand layout. I think the new piece of furniture shows all the blankets off really nicely and so I will put some images on my Instagram feed. If you are coming along to the show please drop by the stand to say hello - we are in the Great Hall.

If you have been visiting the new Janie Crow web site you probably won't have noticed much of a change since you last visited, so next week it is my intention to get some more new pages on there, so do keep looking out for new things.

Whatever you are up to I hope you have a lovely weekend. If you want to get in touch simply hit reply and let me know what is on your mind.

Sending yarny love and crochet kisses

Healthy Habits

15/2/2019

Janie's Friday Feature

Welcome to this week's Friday Feature Newsletter - the Janie Crow equivalent of a Sunday supplement magazine....

As always I cannot believe just how fast the last week has flown by - the older I get the quicker my time seems to go - it can be a bit scary at times!

This week Sarah and I have been looking at ways of putting healthy habits into practice or keeping in line with those you may have already created. As I have said many times before I found myself in a situation where I needed to reboot my habits and routine a year or so ago, when I felt that everything had got a little bit out of control and when my work in particular was taking over too large a chunk of my time. By working through some very simple exercises over the course of a few months I managed to rearrange my life a little to make room for the things I felt I was missing out on.

It is really easy to loose sight of your goals, be they personal or work related, and get caught up doing things you may no longer enjoy. I have a series of 'post it' notes on the wall in the studio that say things like 'Gym', 'Family', 'Delegate' and 'Prioritise' on them to help me stay in control. I have recently also started using a timer on my phone - I set it to go off at hourly intervals so that I can judge how much time things are taking me, as I do have a habit of spending too much time on small things that are not massively important and so leave too little time for all the other things that need to be done.

Last year one of the things I was really guilty of was filling my spare time with work - I think when you are self employed this is an easy thing to do, so over the past year I have tried to create some new pass times and hobbies. My sourdough bread making, for example, has become a good distraction and (although my waistline has possibly suffered a negative effect as a result) I feel the process of making the bread 3 or 4 times a week provides me with some really good therapy!

The other thing I have started to do again is walk and Sarah mentions the positive effects of walking within her piece further down. When I had my beloved dog I walked over the woods with her every day, but since loosing her 18 months or so ago the walking habit died too! Sarah has some tips for keeping up with healthy habits and has written a great piece for this week's newsletter, so do scroll down to take a look.

As usual this week's newsletter features both a palette and a tip of the week alongside a few other bits and bobs that I hope you will find of interest. As always, if you have anything you want to say to us, simply hit reply and send us an email.

Happy Friday!

'There are always flowers for those who want to see them.'
- Henri Matisse -

Keeping Healthy Habits

Sarah here!

I am really pleased to be joining you again for the Friday Feature and hope that you are all feeling the benefit of any changes you might have made to improve your sense of wellbeing. If like me you started off full of good intentions at the beginning of January and have managed to wander slightly off piste, take heart, you are not on your own. This can be a tricky time of the year to navigate. The festive season is well and truly behind us, but the weather is still unpredictable and although there are the odd signs of spring, there isn’t quite that ‘smell’ in the air yet. However, this could be the best time to check in on the benefits of a healthier lifestyle without all the pressure of the “New Year, New Me” stuff. A few daffodils and twinkly lights is a good way to remind yourself that lighter, warmer days are on their way.

Coming out of your comfort zone at the darkest, coldest and bleakest time of the year, can feel like a bit of an ask. I wonder if this is because we associate healthy habits and regimes with notions of giving things up. How can we help ourselves to stay on track and keep the glass half full? When that sense of overwhelm starts to build up, one of the best things we can do is to simply stop and give ourselves time to reflect and re-assess what we are trying to achieve. What are the building blocks we need to put in place to keep up our momentum? When I started to research this piece there were several simple and obvious ways to help keep us on track – ironically these are always the easiest to lose sight of when life gets busy. So here is a gentle reminder:

A good night’s sleep is one of the most restorative, mood and energy boosting treats you can give yourself – and it is the quality, rather than the quantity of the sleep that matters. I recognize that this may be really irritating to read for those who struggle to sleep as I guess you will have tried all of the following. however, it may help someone and it certainly got me thinking about how I approach the end of the day.

Make sure your bedroom is dark, quiet and well ventilated.
Try to go to bed and get up at the same time – trickier at the weekends I know, but changes in this routine can often lead to migraine.
Avoid screens, (even the TV) an hour before you intend to go to sleep.
Exercise regularly.
If you do wake up you could try reading or do something else relaxing until you feel tired again – do not be tempted to check your devices!

I often watch the TV before going to bed and, although I read once in bed, this checklist has made me think about when I watch some of my favourite programmes. Rather than staying up late to catch something, I am going to try recording it and watching it at a better time. It’s a small change, but if it improves the quality of my sleep then it’s a bonus.
Healthy eating has never been easier, but it can still be a struggle some days. I grew up in a house where homemade cakes and biscuits were always available and no dinner was complete without pudding! I still punctuate the day and reward myself with sweet things. Deep down I know this is not good for me.

In a previous Friday Feature you may remember I mentioned that I was going meat free during January. Well, I have stayed meat free and am still really enjoying exploring new recipes, tastes and textures. I am more conscious of the importance of cooking from scratch and how batch cooking can prevent relapsing into bad habits. I have eaten out a couple of times and given in to dessert, but the important thing is that as a family we are making more conscious decisions about what we eat. Preparing food for and sharing new dishes with friends is a habit we have no trouble maintaining!

My attitude to exercise is probably worse than my passion for cakes and puddings! P.E. lessons terrified me at school, but I was very good at ballet, so I do appreciate the importance of exercise and the tremendous boost it can give to our wellbeing. I guess it is another case of finding what works for the individual. I love walking and take my dogs for a run twice a day, so not a complete couch potato! I think walking is a great way to exercise and allows you to make discoveries along the way. Who would have thought that this photo was taken in the heart of Birmingham!

Despite my treks with the dogs I could definitely do more and so recently we have started walking to the local supermarket instead of taking the car. I often leave things upstairs so that I have to make several trips – sounds crazy, but every little helps. I have also discovered a five minute morning yoga routine that I am going to try. I know that lots of you run, cycle, work out and do yoga, so I hope you are not too appalled by my less than energetic ways. Finding the time to exercise can often be a constraint, but anything is better than nothing, so that will be my starting point!

And finally – STRESS!

We need a small amount of stress to function and to keep motivated but too much is detrimental to both our physical and mental health. It is something we will all face at different points in our life and the triggers will be different for all of us. However, we can develop habits or strategies to alleviate this pressure when we are often at our most vulnerable. Not a day goes by without some report about the negative impact of technology (and often specifically social media) on our health and wellbeing. I have been as guilty as the next person on the number of times I check my phone and counting the number of likes a post gets on Instagram. Apparently, every time you get a like on Facebook or Instagram you get a little hit of dopamine, every time you see something new you get another hit – that is why it is so addictive. The dangers are well documented – constant connections to our phones leads to lack of focus and concentration and creativity, poor sleep and probably most harmful of all – endless comparison with the apparent success, luck and gorgeousness of other people. This is not intended as a rant against the use of social media, just a gentle reminder that it is OK to take a break!
Chances are that if you are reading this feature it is because you crochet, knit or stitch, possibly all three. Working with our hands and engaging with calm, rhythmical and repetitive action leads to a state of flow, similar to meditation. Our focus and concentration improves and our self esteem improves. It helps us to feel grounded in an ever virtual world. These are great habits and certainly the ones I feel most easy to maintain.

Everyone’s circumstances are different and it is so easy to forget to take care of ourselves. Without some level of self care, both our physical and mental health is likely to suffer. Self care is not a hedonistic concept it is about developing a calmer, balanced and healthier lifestyle, often through tiny changes. Two books that I refer to all the time are Self-care for the Real World and Rituals for Every Day. They are written by two sisters, Nadia Narain and Katia Narain Phillipsand published by Penguin Random House. The emphasis is on suggesting ways to look after yourself and boost your sense of well being, rather than dictating a regime. They are realistic and recognize the curve balls that life throws at us.

I hope you have a great weekend and that you are able to eat something nutritious, get outside and breathe some fresh air, but also find time to rest and relax with your current project.

Tip of the week

The new Janie Crow web site now has 14 free technique downloads and a range of helpful YouTube videos uploaded to help you on your crochet journey. You can find them by following the links.

This week I want to highlight one of the videos - 'How to make a neat ring' - as it features a great little tip on how to make sure your slip knot isn't visible in your foundation ring when working in the round. The images above show how much better the ring can look if you use this tip. You can find the video by following this link.

What's New?

The response to the new web sites has been amazing - thank you to all of you who have taken the time to comment on them and get in touch.

For those of you who don't already know, the new Just Knots web site is a retail site that replaces our original Janie Crow one and for the time being historical links from Janie Crow, such as those in past newsletters and magazine features for example, will be automatically redirected to this site. Going forwards though, anything related specifically to me and my design will be featured primarily on the new Janie Crow site.

About six weeks ago Andrew and Andrea from the Fruity Knitting Podcast dropped into the studio so that I could take part in an interview with them. The resulting video went live on Tuesday via their Youtube feed, so I would love it if you would take a look!

Colour Palette of the Week

I wanted to feature a bright and cheery palette this week. I took this image in February last year - I remember going out and getting a bunch of tulips in the hope that they would cheer up a dull and miserable couple of days. The image was taken with the lights on at home, so it isn't brilliantly clear, but I think I have managed to create a nice palette of shades from it - I really do love purple/dark red shades with bright greens.

I remember thinking that we were heading into spring this time last year and then we had all that snow! We did the Spring Knitting and Stitching show in thick snow (the worst that London has seen for years) and had snow again when we were at the Edinburgh Yarn Festival and that was mid March, so I am guessing there is still a chance that we haven't had all our winter weather just yet - it is lovely to start thinking about the spring though isn't it!

Colouring Competition

The colouring competition has been a huge success - our postman, Dave, has been kept very busy this week delivering all the entry forms! I have been incredibly restrained and have yet to open a single one of them. A small group of us will be going through the entries and picking our favourites next Wednesday and I really can't wait to start looking through them.

I want to send a big THANK YOU to those of you who have taken the time to send in an entry. We will be revealing the 5 finalists in early March - so do look out for more information on that very soon!

Instagram Favourite

I have recently started following the work of quite a few embroiderers on Instagram. I really love the detail of some of the things they are doing and have been really surprised at how innovative and exciting the craft has become.

I have been following @fistashka.art for a few months now and I just love it when her work comes up on the feed. Polina, the embroiderer behind Fistashka Art, is from Russia and has been embroidering since 2015. Recently she has been concentrating on lovely moth and butterfly brooches, but you can see from the image that she also works on mini portraits and larger pieces.

'My works are often compared to Impressionist paintings, because my embroidery recalls this style. I am inspired by the works of Van Gogh, Monet, Renoir and Russian painters.'

Freddie Fever!

Last week I featured Mark @theguywiththehook as my Instagram favourite - I hope you followed the link and liked his feed.

This week Mark has completed his tribute to the legend that was Freddie Mercury. Isn't it amazing! You can find the pattern via Mark's blog by following this link or clicking on the image above.

It's nearly the weekend!

I am looking forward to a day at home tomorrow, although we didn't make it to IKEA last weekend, so it may well be that we decide to squeeze this in at some point. On Sunday we are going to head up to the NEC in Birmingham to visit the 'CHSI Stitches' trade show. I am really looking forward to this as we are going to catch up with Sarah while we are up there and I have been invited to attend the British Craft Award ceremony in the evening.

Thinking about the event on Sunday reminded me that I was recently sent some images from the British Knitting and Crochet Awards party back in October. I thought you might like to the one above as it is not often that Lucy from Attic24, Dedri from Look at what I made and myself manage to collide at the same time. The image also features Sarah Neal, Editor of Let's Knit magazine.

Next week we will be heading off to exhibit at Unravel Farnham. The show starts on Friday and runs through to next Sunday. If you are planning to visit the show please drop by our stand to say hello - we will be in the main hall.

Next week's newsletter will focus on Denim, which is a really big trend for spring, so I hope you will join me. In the mean time I trust you will have a wonderfully creative and enjoyable week...

Thing 1 & Thing 2

8/2/2019

Janie's Friday Feature

Welcome to this week's Friday Feature Newsletter - the Janie Crow equivalent of a Sunday supplement magazine....

I hope this newsletter finds you all well and happy and that you have some great plans for the weekend. The weather is particularly miserable here in North London today, so I hope it is a bit brighter where you are. When it is a bit grey and rainy I find it quite hard to feel motivated and I have to admit that the idea of the settee and the company of the TV is quite alluring at the moment, but this weekend is in fact set to be quite busy because of two really exciting things:

Thing One: My new JANIE CROW web site has officially gone live today! The site it is not totally up to speed, but I am so desperate to show it to you that I decided it should go live regardless - I hope you will like it! You can find more information about the new site in the 'What's New' feature lower down this email.

Thing Two: I will be taking over the Instagram feed at Simply Crochet Magazine from tomorrow morning through to Sunday evening, which means I will be busy sharing images and stories for the weekend. Please do drop by to take a look!

This week I had planned to take a look at the new fashion trends for spring and had wanted to give you an over all view of what will be in and what will be out this year. There is one key trend that I really want to write about, partly because it relates so well to my yarny world, but also because I have always been a big fan of DENIM. Sadly though, with all that has been going on with the new web sites and all the catching up that needed to be done after our trip to Vogue Knitting Live, I have decided to schedule this piece in for a future newsletter.

Don't forget that the colouring in competition closes next Friday, so you only have one more week to get your entry back to us in the post. The overall winner will receive £150, a yarn pack of their personal colour design, they will have their colourway included in a revised Delft pattern AND they will be featured in Simply Crochet magazine. The two runner up prizes are the same, but will receive £50 each. I think these are pretty great prizes, so, if you like a bit of mindful colouring in and are looking for something to do over the weekend, why not download the entry form (after reading the competition guidelines) and get colouring in!

I hope you will enjoy five minutes away from what you are doing to take a short break in my company whilst you read through this week's newsletter - as always, if you have anything you want to say or contribute please hit reply and let me know!

Don't get your knickers in a knot. Nothing is solved and it just makes you walk funny!
- Kathryn Carpenter -

Tip of the week

I received an email a few weeks ago from a lady called Maggie Fork who has asked about sewing in yarn ends. I am a real stickler for dealing with yarn ends as I go along rather than leaving them until the end of a project and I must admit to being a bit fussy about it!

You can find a free technique download called 'Dealing With Yarn Ends' on the new web site by following this link. The download talks you through how to weave in ends and how to sew them in and is one of 14 free download files.

What's New?

So at long last we finally have TWO new web sites! I know, I know - they've been a long time coming, but I hope that after all this time they will be worth the wait!

The new Just Knots web site is a retail site that replaces our original Janie Crow one. The web site is looked after in the main part by Andy and Sue and will act as one of our supported retailers of the Janie Crow brand. For the time being historical links from Janie Crow, such as those in past newsletters and magazine features for example, will be automatically redirected to this site, but going forwards anything related specifically to me and my design will be featured primarily on the new Janie Crow site.

I would really like it if you would take some time to have a quick browse of both new sites - they will remain under construction for the next few weeks and the JANIE CROW one in particular has a lot more to add, but I am hopeful that you will find lots of interesting things on there already.

My new site is basically the home for anything related to me and my design. You will find free technique downloads, links to my Youtube channel, my blog and specific information about my designs on there and eventually you will also be able to shop for patterns and browse a small eclectic range of items such as bespoke crochet hooks and shawl pins. The new site will not be selling kits, yarn or other more generally sold items as these will be available via other stockists. You can find information on stockists and trade sales by following this link.

Colour Palette of the Week

This week's palette is taken from a photograph I took at my Mum and Dad's house earlier on today. My Dad always plants these lovely little irises outside the dining room window in the autumn so that they appear this time of year and I love the fact that they start to bring a little bit of colour to the garden.

The mild weather has meant that Dad's camelia is also really busy producing the most beautiful flowers. I will try to remember to get an image of these to share with you at some point too. I love the fact that the bright shades of winter blooming plants are made all the more special by the grey weather - pops of colour really catch my eye this time of year and I love the bright purple, yellow and green of Dad's irises, even if I did take the picture from inside of the rain splashed window!

Colouring Competition

As I said in the introduction to this week's newsletter there is just one week left until this competition closes. You can enter as many times as you like, so why not unleash your creativity and enjoy some mindful colouring in?

Simply colour in the motif chart to create your own version of my Delft blanket design, then pop it in the post to us along with your written entry form to be in with a chance of winning a great prize. You can find the downloadable information pack and competition guidelines here and the competition entry form here.

The original Janie Crow Delft Crochet Blanket was inspired by the blue and white Delftware from the Netherlands. It is made up of a single motif, plus a half motif, worked in three colour ways: Dark, Medium and Light. Only one colour is worked in each round, and each colour way uses all the yarns – they just appear in different rounds and amounts.

Using all the yarns in each motif is a foolproof way of ensuring a harmonious overall blanket design, but it is not the only way. Those of you that follow my blog or receive my newsletters know that I find inspiration for my colour palettes wherever I go. When I have an idea, I surround myself with the yarns that evoke the same feelings and start to design. I am fortunate in that I have an abundance of yarn in my studio, but you can do the same using felt tip pens, coloured pencils and paper.

I find it fascinating how recolouring a design can completely change the way it looks and I love to see other crocheters versions of my designs, especially those that have used an alternative colour palette. With this in mind Luise and I thought it would be really fun to invite you to colour in a chart representation of one of my Delft design to see what wonderful ideas you can come up with. Dont' worry - this isn’t a design competition! You do not need to know how to design, or even how to crochet, all you need to do is colour in a chart and pop it in the post!

The idea is that the entries will be judged and a selection of finalists will be chosen after a public vote. Winners will be given prizes and the yarn colour packs for the new colour ways, which will include the winner’s name and inspiration, will subsequently be available via Stylecraft stockists. The colour substitution documents for each new colour way will also be available as free downloads via this web site and will feature in an updated version of the Delft Blanket crochet pattern later on this year.

Instagram Favourite

My Instagram favourite this week is theguywiththehook. I love Mark's work and am especially intrigued at the moment to find out how his crocheted Freddie (top left of the image below) is going to turn out!

Mark has just released his brand new Tibet Tiles crochet blanket design, which is shown quite a few times in the image above and you can find his blog post and the pattern by following the link here.

Fruity Knitting

About six weeks ago Andrew and Andrea from the Fruity Knitting Podcast dropped into the studio so that I could take part in an interview with them. The resulting video is due to go live on Tuesday via their Youtube feed, so I would love it if you would take a look.

If you haven't seen any of the Fruity Knitting podcasts before then I suggest you do so! Andrea has interviewed some really influential makers, designers and yarn producers and she and Andrew always include some great features in their programmes, which are always really professionally produced and interesting to watch. I had a streaming cold at the time, so I am hoping I don't sound too snuffly!

It's nearly the weekend!

I know that this newsletter is once again heading out a little late, but hopefully it will land in your inbox at a time when you are able to take some time out and enjoy it! As I have already said - we have a busy weekend of web site buidling and Instagramming (is that a word?) ahead of us, but we are also planning some family time and maybe even a (brave?) trip to IKEA to look at display stands - we are heading into show season, so I am hoping we might find a cool solution to displaying my mounting pile of blankets!

I leave you this week with this lovely image sent to me by Linda Smith via my Facebook page. I just love Linda's use of the lilac shade in place of the blues I used on the original version of Fields of Gold.

Hope you have a lovely weekend and a good time next week - if you're heading out for a Valentines Day celebration then I hope you have a really nice time!

Sending crochet love and yarny kisses.

'Till Needle, Thread and Fabric Meet

Janie's Friday Feature

'I cannot think my day complete 'til needle, thread and fabric meet.'- Author Unknown -

Nordiska Exhibition

Tip of the week

What's New

Colour Palette of the Week

Instagram Favourite

It's nearly the weekend!

Show Season

Janie's Friday Feature​

'You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have'- Maya Angelou -

What's New?

Colour Palette of the Week

Colouring Competition

Instagram Favourite

It's nearly the weekend!

Healthy Habits

Janie's Friday Feature

'There are always flowers for those who want to see them.'- Henri Matisse -​

Keeping Healthy Habits

Tip of the week

What's New?​

Colour Palette of the Week​

Colouring Competition

Instagram Favourite

Freddie Fever!​

It's nearly the weekend!

Thing 1 & Thing 2

Janie's Friday Feature

Don't get your knickers in a knot. Nothing is solved and it just makes you walk funny!- Kathryn Carpenter -

Tip of the week​

What's New?

Colour Palette of the Week

Colouring Competition

Instagram Favourite​

Fruity Knitting​

It's nearly the weekend!

Author

Archives

Categories

Services

Contact us

Support

'I cannot think my day complete 'til needle, thread and fabric meet.'
- Author Unknown -

Janie's Friday Feature

'You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have'
- Maya Angelou -

'There are always flowers for those who want to see them.'
- Henri Matisse -

What's New?

Colour Palette of the Week

Freddie Fever!

Don't get your knickers in a knot. Nothing is solved and it just makes you walk funny!
- Kathryn Carpenter -

Tip of the week

Instagram Favourite

Fruity Knitting