 I have been away in West Yorkshire this week with a group of fabulous knitters on a Stitchtopia organised trip. Yesterday we visited the amazing HQ of the UK Knitting and Crochet Guild in Slaithwaite, where we got to see some of the items from their incredible collection, such as their vintage knitted bathing suit patterns and garments, which included the intricately Swiss darned tank top shown below.   We also got to have a guided tour of the Stylecraft Mill, which fortuitously happens to be located in the same town. Members of the lovely team at Stylecraft explained the many parts of the production line process that happens at the Mill and the workshop group were able to sample knit and crochet some of the yarns while enjoying a lovely cuppa and some cake to round off a fabulous day out - they even came a way with a cute Stylecraft goody bag too!  Today we have the delights of Saltaire and the West Yorkshire Spinners Mill in Keighley, so I have had such a fabulous yarn fix over the last few days that it will be back down to earth with a bump next week when I will be back at my desk! Gemma has been incredibly busy putting some really great bits together for this month's Quick Catch Up email as I have been away and we have a few things to tell you about, so hopefully you have a few spare minutes to catch up with all things Janie Crow.   Last week saw the release of the second set of motifs for the Spirit of Flora CAL and already we are seeing your completed motifs appearing on social media. You are such quick workers and it has been such a treat seeing your crochet out in the wild!  If you need a little guidance when working through the patterns, don't forget that there is a dedicated Facebook group, which you can find here and Emma has been incredibly busy making accompanying video support for YouTube, which you can find by following this link. Some of you may now be starting to assemble blankets made from the motifs you have chosen, so remember you can now find the patterns for the three different borders as a free download on the Spirit of Flora page on the website here. You can also find the link to the download for the three plainer squares on the same page. Thank you for all your incredible feedback on this project - your support means so much to us here at Janie Crow!  LAST MINUTE UPDATE: Andy has put a healthy number of Persian Tiles Eastern Jewels kits in stock this week. You can find them by following this link!  June the 8th was Worldwide Knit in Public Day and over on Facebook we asked our followers if they were attending any events and whether knitting and crocheting in public is something they do with pride anyway! Wendy Alison shared that she attended a huge celebration and as part of the event two thousand crocheted butterflies were attached to a fence for passers-by to take home with them. What a lovely idea.  Miriam Lowrie spent some time in the park crocheting with her little elf. What a nice way to spend an afternoon - sounds idyllic to us!  As we've finally had some warm weather over the last week or so, the focus over on Instagram has been on small items, crocheted in cotton, that might be a far more palatable prospect for those of you who are finding it difficult to enjoy crocheting large, heavy items in the heat. Crochet projects such as bunting and individual flower motifs that you can turn into corsages, fascinators, decorations or mandalas, as well as pouches and small bags can all be lovely items to work on during periods of hot weather when you might not want to add to that 'melting' sensation you could be feeling!     It has been another very busy month for me and progress on my blanket has been frustratingly slow, but all progress is progress, so here I am again to show you what has been on the hook. I was hoping to finish the set of Fitzroy motifs and make a start on Legacy but having read a bit further along in the book and looked at the first phase of construction of the blanket I decided instead to focus on the motifs needed to complete the centre. Therefore I set Fitzroy to one side and embarked on a production line of Legacy.  Legacy has the same flower at its centre as the Harmony motif but then moves into a more complex set of beaded leaves and an outer row of pretty buds. The leaves are worked by making a central stem using a chain with stitches worked into one side of it with the beads and then on the subsequent round the other side of the chain is worked into as well as the beaded stitches to create the leaf shape. As I had chosen to work production line method I threaded all the beads that would be needed for the four motifs onto my yarn in one go but discovered that made the yarn rather heavy and a bit awkward to use, so if doing similar again I would just thread enough for each motif as I worked it. Here are some close-ups of the lovely detail.  I nearly made the full set! Two are completed and the remaining two just need the framework completing. They are so pretty.  Next month it's on to Vanessa and Virginia. Fitzroy will just have to wait! I hope you all have a great month and I'll be back with an update in July. Gemma x  This week's recipe is truly in the comfort food zone as it contains one of the UK's favourite staple foods - tinned baked beans. It could perhaps also fall into the child friendly food category, but that's allowed once in a while isn't it?  We're talking about Barbecue Bean Pie from the BBC food website. One element of the pie is a batch cooked tomato and lentil sauce which is brilliant to make ahead as the quantities stated in the recipe give enough of this sauce for portions to be kept and frozen for future use. When Gemma made this she simply used a third of each of the ingredients to make the appropriate amount of sauce for the dish on its own. She says it was very tasty and with veg on the side it easily fed her family of four with the same quantify left over for another meal. Wow!  Xenobia Bailey is an American artist from Seattle who often uses textiles in her artwork, perhaps most notably for her African inspired crochet hats which have featured in TV adverts, shows and films.    She also produces crochet pieces such as large scale mandalas and, for a mosaic designed to decorate a New York City subway station, she began with a crocheted piece that was then digitised to create the final installation for the station. You can find out more about Xenobia and her work by clicking on the images above and below.  'Trilogy'  'Funktional Vibrations' - New York City Subway 34 St - Hudson Yards Are you a fan of The Muppets like we are? If so you might be interested to hear about a new book release, scheduled for later this year in October. 'The Muppets Official Crochet Amigurumi' by Drew Hill contains patterns to make 16 different Muppet characters, such as Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and Animal. Looks like great fun! Click on the image below for more information.    The last month or so has been all about workshop prep as I have designed a knitted project for the West Yorkshire trip and have a knit and crochet project ready for the trip to Peru in a little under three weeks time. It has been really nice to work on some smaller projects, especially as the weather has been lovely and warm, but I am also really looking forward to getting stuck into some new design work once I return from all the trips in early August - I honestly cannot believe the speed at which this year has flown by. Tomorrow I will be tutoring the final workshop of our Stitchtopia trip and I won't be travelling home to London until Sunday morning, so I am excited to have another day and a half with the fabulous group who have joined me on the very first five day trip to West Yorkshire. We have been invited to a birthday party on Sunday afternoon so I have my fingers crossed that the good weather will continue a while longer and that I will return home to a sunny and warm London Town! I hope that whatever you have planned for the next few days that you remain safe and well and that you get to have a little bit of well earned time with your knit or crochet projects - nothing like a little yarny TLC to finish off the week and set everything in order for the new one ahead!    We will be launching the patterns for set two of the Spirit of Flora project next Wednesday the 19th June. As with set one, the patterns will be available as paper brochures via our website or as downloads via Etsy or Ravelry.  Chelsea  Evelyn  Gillow  Marlborough There are four motifs in the set - all are shown above. You can purchase the patterns individually at £3.95 each if you want to cherry pick certain motifs, or you can purchase the set at a price of £10.95 which means you save almost £5 compared to purchasing them individually. This second set includes patterns for the following motifs: Chelsea, Evelyn, Gillow and Marlborough. From Wednesday you will also be able to find the patterns for the three blanket borders as a free download document on the Janie Crow website.  It has been fabulous seeing so many of you getting involved in this project and I know that many of the crocheters who made the blanket last year are continuing to use some of the motifs for other projects. My lovely friend Gwyn has made a crochet pouch using the Marlborough motif and some yarns from her stash. She is watched over by her crochet dragon companion, Draig and it is fab to see her lovely blanket in the background too!  When we did the photoshoot for the Spirit of Flora project at Emery Walker's House in Hammersmith, we were extremely fortunate to find original William De Morgan tiles around the fireplace in the living room. By complete coincidence this is the tile that inspired my colour choices and layout for the Evelyn motif along side the painted flowers that feature in Evelyn De Morgan's famous painting Flora. Huge thanks to Inside Crochet Magazine and Leanne Jade for the permission to use these images.  The Complete Crochet Handbook is back in stock following its reprint. We have signed or unsigned copies for sale on the website now and you can find them by following this link. The book is written in UK terms and the copy written in US terms is called The Perfect Crochet Finish. You can find it for sale on Mary Maxim by following this link.  I love using beads in my projects and always use those from the Debbie Abrahams range as they are a really good quality and come in a fabulous selection of shades. If you are a big fan of beading too, or are a newbie and want to give it a go, now is a good time as Debbie is currently offering a 25% discount on the price of her beads and some select yarns on her website here.  My Gertrude Cushion Cover features beaded leaves around the flowers and my hanging decorations, shown below, are a great use for beads too - you can stick to one shade or add a selection.   You can add beads to most stitches, so even if a pattern doesn't include beads you can choose to add them. The image above shows the Hollyhock motif from The Fruit Garden with some beads added on a couple of rows. I really love how beads add an extra dimension to a project.  My beaded pouches, Cafe au Lait and French Linen, can also be personalised with the addition of the Hollyhock flower and you can choose to add lots of beads to the project or just a few. I think they make perfect summer time evening bags and would be fabulous gifts. If you haven't beaded with crochet before, we have a free technique download here and you can also see free video tutorials on our Youtube channel. If you want to make the most of Debbie's very generous offer, you have just a week as the sale will ends on the 21st June.  A couple of years ago I was interviewed by Jamie and Merion on the Love Crafts podcast and it was a real treat to catch up with them again a couple of weeks ago on their new Craft Talkin podcast, which you can find here .  During the podcast we talked about The Complete Crochet Handbook, the rise in skill level of crocheters, the changing way that crocheters are looking to learn techniques and what I have planned for the future. Jamie also took the opportunity to host his 'Flower or Glower' question round and we chatted a little bit about Justin Bieber and jelly! You can find the podcast by following this link. Please follow Craft Talkin over on Instagram too.  Sarah has suggested the Waterstones book of the month, 'Tom Lake' by Ann Patchett for this week's recommendation. Here's the synopsis from the Waterstones website. Sarah says the book is beautifully written and she really enjoyed it:  In the spring of 2020, Lara's three daughters return to the family's orchard in Northern Michigan. While picking cherries, they beg their mother to tell them the story of Peter Duke, a famous actor with whom she shared both a stage and a romance years before at a theater company called Tom Lake.As Lara recalls the past, her daughters examine their own lives and relationship with their mother, and are forced to reconsider the world and everything they thought they knew. Tom Lake is a meditation on youthful love, married love, and the lives parents have led before their children were born. Both hopeful and elegiac, it explores what it means to be happy even when the world is falling apart. As in all of her novels, Ann Patchett combines compelling narrative artistry with piercing insights into family dynamics. The result is a rich and luminous story, told with profound intelligence and emotional subtlety, that demonstrates once again why she is one of the most revered and acclaimed literary talents working today.' You can find the book on the Waterstones website by following this link.  We have been trying out quite a few new recipes lately and so I have a healthy list for the next few newsletters and Quick Catch Up emails. After a special evening meal at Ottolenghi's restaurant, Rovi, a couple of weeks ago I purchased the book Flavour and have already tried the spicy lasagna, which was amazing!  Last week Andy made a delicious sweet potato recipe, which also features garlic, tahini, crispy roasted chickpeas and baby tomatoes. It was amazing! You can find the recipe over on Minimalist Baker by following this link.   Andy is away for a few days, so I have been pottering about this week catching up on a few home based jobs. I have had a bit of a cake disaster and undercooked a (usually) very reliable chocolate cake recipe and also managed to split the ganache filling for the same cake, not once but twice, so it obviously wasn't my week for baking! Oh well, it was only a cake and the bits I have managed to salvage are delicious!  Summer, my mother-in-law Gill and I are off on a shopping trip with our niece Abby to get a few things for her wedding, which is now only four weeks away, so I am looking forward to a girlie day tomorrow. Sunday will be a family day and I am hoping for some cosy crochet in my special corner of the settee, especially as the final instalments of the (dreadful but addictive) third series of Bridgerton are now out!
I hope that whatever your plans are, you are also looking forward to a nice weekend and that maybe, like me, you will get a chance to sit for a bit with some lovely knitting or crochet! Janie x  After a very busy few weeks with birthdays and family events I have finally managed to spend some time at my desk this week working on projects for my forthcoming workshop trips. I have selected my yarns for the trip to West Yorkshire in June and have pretty much decided on the design of the small project the participants will work on while we are away. For the Peru project I have selected my yarn palette and have decided on the design - just a little more sampling to go on both the projects before I can finalise them and get the patterns written. It has been really nice to spend some time knitting and crocheting this week.  The weather is still a bit unpredictable here in North London with some quite chilly days still on the cards. I am sat in a sweater and jeans whilst writing this, but had shorts and a T short on Wednesday! I got all my summer clothes out this week and washed them ready for sunshine, so I am really hoping it isn't far away, although the cooler weather does mean that my knitting and crochet projects are more likely to get done! I have a few things to tell you about this week and hope you have time to catch up with all things Janie Crow.   There's not long to wait now until the release of the second set of Spirit of Flora patterns on June 19th. With the final set of four to be released on the 21st August. The pricing per set will be in line with the first release - £10.95 for four patterns or £3.95 each.   You can find an introductory video on our YouTube Channel where I show the groups of motifs and explain which parts of the design can be found for free on the website. You can find more information by following this link. If you need a little guidance when working through the patterns, don't forget that there is a dedicated Facebook group, which you can find here and Emma has been incredibly busy making accompanying video support for YouTube, which you can find by following this link. Thank you for all your incredible feedback on this project - your support means so much to us here at Janie Crow!  Over on Instagram we celebrated some of the incredibly talented crafters who bring Janie Crow designs to life by making them and sharing their photos and videos. Just look at this beautiful Fields of Gold Blanket by Sarah (@crochet_in_the_glen), photographed in such a stunning setting.  Below is Maria (@hooked_by_maria), a self-confessed crochet addict, modelling her version of the Climbing Rose Wrap, made in a lovely palette of purples and pinks. You look fabulous Maria!  These are just a couple of the amazing projects we featured so if you'd like to see the complete reel of images Emma put together you can find it over on Instagram here.  Last month I set myself a very ambitious target of completing all four Gordon motifs and all four Harmony motifs, together with a second Bloomsbury strip and at least one Fitzroy motif. So, how do you think I did? I'm pleased to report that all of the above was achieved. We won't talk about how my poor hands are feeling after the marathon crochet sessions, together with some sample making for my teaching and some sweater knitting on the side too!  One of the features of Fitzroy that I like the most is the raised wavy line, created in a very simple way by working back post stitches around the previous row. It's such an effective way of adding texture without a complicated technique needed. Of course, there is another row of beaded crochet, this time beaded half-treble stitches (half double in US terms), which got me thoroughly confused to begin with because they are worked with right side facing unlike the beaded dc (sc US terms) which are worked with WS facing. Once I had read the instructions properly I got things back together and only had to undo two rows! Sometimes being an experienced crocheter works against you because you 'think' you know what you are doing, haha!  I've never been fond of sewing ends in but I've had a bit of an enlightenment this month in that I've realised it can actually provide some recovery time for when hands are feeling a bit overworked. On that basis I've approached ends with far less grumbling and more enthusiasm, seeing it as just another part of the pattern in a way.  So, I've set next month's targets: I have the rest of the Fitzroy motifs to finish and I'd like to make at least one of the next pattern, which is the very pretty Legacy. This motif begins in the same way as the Harmony motif with a central flower, but in this motif it is surrounded by buds and leaves with beaded stems, all set within a lacy framework. I'm looking forward to working in the round again.  For those of you working on this project too, I just want to remind you that there are some support videos over on the Janie Crow YouTube channel here. Click on Playlists and you'll find a set of videos for Bohemian Blooms. Have a lovely month and I'll see you in June's Quick Catch Up. Gemma x  Do you ever have one of those days when you open the fridge and can't for the life of you work out what you're going to cook for dinner? Gemma had one of those days recently and managed to find this Lentil Loaf recipe which was comprised of just a small handful of ingredients, all of which she happened to have in stock. Apparently it was well received!   We came across a very interesting source of information about fibres on the website of the University of the Arts London. Although other sections are not yet complete, the piece that focusses on natural fibres makes for an informative read. We'd recommend it for anyone who is interested in learning about what is involved in the production of fibres such as cotton, alpaca, silk or wool. You can find the page here or click on the image below:    It has been wonderful having the peonies suddenly burst into bloom over the last fortnight. Most of ours are planted in the front garden so we don't really see them from the house. I have been cutting them and arranging them in vases so we can have them inside - something I don't usually do, but with the threat of constant rain, cutting them means they don't get broken.    It was my birthday yesterday and I was lucky to receive some fabulous flowers including white peonies from the lovely Emma and coral from our gorgeous niece Abby and her partner Charlie - aren't they just the best!  We were really lucky with the weather a couple of weeks ago when we celebrated my Dad's 90th Birthday. We had a fabulous time, with a few surprises for Dad on the day and we all have some wonderful memories to cherish as a result. I love this pic of my Dad, Roy (right) and my fantastic father in law, Mick, warming themselves towards the end of the day with a glass of cognac under my blankets! It was my birthday yesterday so we are heading out to celebrate this evening with a meal in town. I have wanted to go to an Ottolenghi restaurant for a long time so, as a very special treat, we have booked a table at ROVI, which has loads of veggie options on the menu. We have a weekend at home ahead, with Andy heading off on a charity walk for our local hospice on Sunday so we have hoping it stays dry. I hope that whatever you have planned that you have a great couple of days.    It really has been a crazy busy couple of months and ever since we went to the H+H trade fair in Cologne at the end of March I feel like it has been weeks since I was properly able to focus on my workload. With yarn shows, the new print run of my new book, Easter, bank holidays and family events in the mix it is not surprising that I feel a bit out of control work wise. It has been amazing seeing you all up and running with the rerelease of the Spirit of Flora patterns. There are so many fabulous versions of the design cropping up on our social media platforms and I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those of you who have been in touch to say how much you are enjoying the project. One of the reasons I chose to split the design up into bite size pieces so that each pattern will be available separately is so that crocheters can cherry pick the parts they like. This week I have seen a blanket made using the Tudor Rose motif with Gillow and it is incredibly effective. Seeing crocheters create alternative layouts for the design is also really exciting and I received some fabulous pics from Gera in The Netherlands who has made a fabulous blanket using her own colour palette and layout.  We have been working on the second set of patterns for the Spirit of Flora design and these will be available from the 19th June. The next set will include patterns for 4 more motifs and we are going to release the border patterns as a free download on the website to coincide with this set. If you haven't got involved with the project already, but fancy dipping in, you can find more information on the website here.  The Complete Crochet Handbook is back in stock following its reprint. We have signed or unsigned copies for sale on the website now as we have sent out all the copies ordered on a presale basis over the last six weeks - you can find them here. We only have a limited amount of stock as we had to compete against the likes of Amazon who didn't mange to fulfil their orders after the last print run sold out. We have another set of copies coming next week, so if the copies we have in stock sell out over the weekend we will make the book available on a presale basis once again ready for dispatch from the middle of next week. In theory we should have a smoother flow of stock from the beginning of June once the third print run comes into stock. It's been a bit bonkers if I am honest and Andy has been working incredibly hard to get the book orders out to everyone, but I am so proud of the way it has been received since the first edition back in February. The book is written in UK terms and the copy written in US terms is called The Perfect Crochet Finish. You can find it for sale on Mary Maxim by following this link. We sold a lot of kits at the Wonderwool yarn show recently so Andy has been busy making sure that our stocks are topped up again. We still have kits for the newest version of my Persian Tiles Blanket design 'Peppercorn' which was inspired by the colours used in the Sandalwood version, but made using natural yarns from the fabulous West Yorkshire Spinners range. You can find a free yarn substitution document for this colourway here and you can find more information by following this link.  If you would like to make the original navy and orange colourway of the Persian Tiles blanket using natural yarns, then check out our West Yorkshire Spinners version.  Last week I appeared on John Scott's morning show on Sewing Street TV to chat about The Complete Crochet Handbook and items from the Emma Ball range. I had prepared lots of demos, but only actually managed to show one - adding a neat border to the edge of a crochet piece. We had a great time though and you can find the show by following this link - the show starts at about the half way mark and you can find the next hour long part here.  If you haven't already listened to the interview recorded by the lovely Claire Waite Brown on Creativity Found, you can listen by following this link, or by clicking on the image above. Claire and I had a really interesting chat about creativity in general and my crochet career and it brought up a few things I haven't talked about for many years!  Due to a cancellation there is one space available on my workshop trip to West Yorkshire next month. The trip was originally sold out and next year's trip is also full, so this could be a good chance to come along if you fancy it. You can find more information by following this link - you can see the information if you change the number of passengers to 1 as the default is 2.  There are still places on the trip to Peru in July. Peru has the longest continuous history of textile production in the world, going back almost 10,000 years. Invented long before pottery and just as humans started agriculture, Peruvian fibre manipulation began with simple spun fibres but by 500 AD this rudimentary craft had developed into complex techniques. On our travels we’ll explore the processes involved in the production of textiles, including the most characteristic garment, the chullo, a knitted hat with an earflap and a calendar waistband that depicts the annual cycles of ritual and agricultural life, and we'll meet local artisans whose traditions have been passed down through the centuries. Switzerland - April 2025 Zurich, the largest city in Switzerland, lies at the north end of Lake Zurich. During our stay here, you'll enjoy two full-day workshops with me, spend a day exploring Old Town Zurich with a local guide, and sail on Lake Zurich to the home of Lindt chocolate. The Swiss Yarn Festival is the event for all wool and yarn enthusiasts! Knitting, crocheting, spinning and weaving are all represented, and you’ll enjoy a full day here.  The latest copy of Inside Crochet Magazine includes a really lovely article about why so many crochet designers are drawn to creating floral designs. The piece has been written by Lindsey Harrad and I really enjoyed reading it and finding out how other designers feel about adding flowers to their work.  I am particularly happy that the peonies in the front garden are absolutely loaded with buds this year and can't wait to see them burst into flower within the next couple of days. I think this time of year is probably my favourite in the garden, with foxgloves, allium, irises and peonies taking centre stage before the heat of the summer gives way to the plants that can cope with less water and more sunshine.  I am forever taking images on my phone of the garden, but also spent some time this weekend saving some tear sheets of flower images from the spring interior magazines. I appear to have saved quite a few images of auriculas and just love the colours of them, so maybe these will inspire something floral to appear on my hook over the next few weeks.....   Lizzie Hooper sent me her recommendation for a good book. It is called 'Four Thousand Weeks' and is written by Oliver Burke. Lizzie says: 'The synopsis is a time management book, but it's so much more than that. I raced through it and felt a renewed optimism for life after reading it. I even coppied out relevant lines from it to refer back to as it was that good! I think you'd really enjoy it as it's in easy to read sections and is more factual than fiction based.' I also have two books recommended by the Janie Crow team: Sarah recommends Rural Hours - The Country lives of Virgina Woolf, Sylvia Townsend Warner and Rosamond Lehmann by Harriet Barker and Gemma recommends the novel The Women Could Fly by Megan Giddings. The review for this book taken from the Good Reads website is as follows: 'Reminiscent of the works of Margaret Atwood, Shirley Jackson, and Octavia Butler, a biting social commentary from the acclaimed author of Lakewood that speaks to our times--a piercing dystopian novel about the unbreakable bond between a young woman and her mysterious mother, set in a world in which witches are real and single women are closely monitored.'  Andy and I have not been big meat eaters for the the last 30 years, partly because Andy has followed an arthritis diet since his diagnosis in the mid 90s. We have been fully vegetarian for 4 years now, eversince lockdown when we decided to follow our son Charlie's lead. To begin with I really missed fish and seafood in particular and every now and again I get a craving for salami or cured meat. Preparing vegetarian food from scratch is much more time consuming than a meat diet thanks to all the chopping, but it has lead us to discover some really great recipes. As Charlie is not a fan of cauliflower we tend to save it for meals when he is away, so a few weeks ago we were excited to have one of our favourites - Creamy Cauliflower Korma by the Happy Foodie. You can find the recipe here.   To coincide with the Korma making, I decided it was time to clear out my baking cupboard. As a general rule this is one of those kitchen cupboards that I open, quickly pick something out, then wedge shut before anything else falls out. To use up some flour (I found 3 opened bags of both self raising and plain) I decided to make naan bread using just three ingredients - flour, Greek yogurt (we use the Pure Nature one as it comes in a glass jar, not plastic) and salt. I used this recipe by Arman Lieu, but didn't brush them with butter. They were incredibly quick and easy to make and they tasted delicious - the perfect accompaniment to the Korma!    Last week we had a lovely time celebrating the Diamond Wedding Anniversary of my lovely Mum and Dad, with the highlights of the day being posh afternoon tea and a card from the King! We also had a fabulous evening last Saturday at the hen and stag party held in honour of our niece Abby and her lovely partner Charlie who are getting married in July. The event had a Wild West theme and I had a lot of fun with colouring pens and glue making myself a cardboard sheriff badge, pistol and cowboy boots to wear as part of my costume!   We were incredibly lucky to see the northern lights from our garden last Friday night. I honestly didn't believe Charlie and his girlfriend Ellie when they said the lights were predicted and was incredibly sceptical when they first said they could see them, but with the help of the phone cameras we got to see a really fabulous (probably once in a lifetime) display here in North London.   Today is our daughter Summer's 26th Birthday and my Dad's 90th! We will be celebrating with a joint birthday lunch today and a big party for Dad tomorrow. We are so proud and thankful to have such a fantastic close knit family and fabulously supportive friends who are bound to make the day so special.
I hope that whatever you have planned for the next few days that you will be able to nab a little bit of hooky time! The new series of Bridgerton started on Thursday evening, so I am hopeful that I will be able to catch up with it at some point over the next couple of days - a perfect background to a bit of restorative crochet! Janie x  It has been a totally bonkers week with the release of the first four patterns for Spirit of Flora on Wednesday and lots of preparation for the Wonder Wool Wales show, where we will be exhibiting at this weekend, with set up today!  In case you missed it - here is a recap of the Spirit of Flora pattern release: The first four patterns are now available. They can be purchased separately at a price of £3.95 each, or in a bundle of four patterns for £10.95, which means you save £4.85 compared to purchasing them all separately. The reason we have split the patterns up like this is so that you can cherry pick individual motifs if you want to. I think the possibilities for the layout of the motifs is pretty much endless and I am already thinking about what projects would look like made from just one block, or a couple. I was laying in bed last night thinking about what a beautiful blanket repeated blocks of the Tudor Rose motif would make!  There will be two further pattern releases over the next few months. The second set of four patterns will be released on June 19th and then the final set of four will be released on the 21st August, with the pricing per set in line with the first release - £10.95 for four patterns or £3.95 each.   You can find an introductory video on our YouTube Channel where I show the groups of motifs and explain which parts of the design can be found for free on the website. You can find more information on the website by following this link. When we released the patterns on Wednesday we initially had an issue with the listing on Ravelry as their moderators said our patterns were an infringement on those that appeared in the magazine. Obviously the patterns aren't, but it seems you cannot have repeated patterns for the same project listed on the site. Gemma has now been able to list the patterns on the main Spirit of Flora page , which you can find here. The patterns are listed at the top and you can follow the links to find them. If you need a little guidance when working through the patterns, don't forget that there is a dedicated Facebook group, which you can find here and Emma has been incredibly busy making accompanying video support for YouTube, which you can find by following this link. Thank you for all your incredible feedback on this project - your support means so much to us here at Janie Crow!  On Instagram last week followers were invited to share images of their Janie Crow projects using #myfavouritejaniecrow in order to be in with a chance to win the fabulous Emma Ball, Spirit of Flora goodies shown below.  Congratulations to Hilary who won the first prize and runner up JaViDaCrochet. We hope they enjoy their prizes. Do take a look at their amazing work on their Instagram profiles. We have featured a couple of their images below to give you an idea of how lovely their feeds are!   On our Facebook page it has been all about Spirit of Flora over the last couple of weeks as we counted down to release day this week, but we also shared a link to the Creativity Found Podcast on which I was a special guest recently. A couple of our followers shared with us that this was the very first podcast they had ever listened to and how much they enjoyed it, so do have a listen.   I've made good progress with my Bohemian Blooms project since I was here last month. My aim was to have all four Gordon motifs completed and that has very nearly happened, with two completely finished and the other two just needing their pesky ends sewing in and their slip stitches added to the sides. 'Ends' I hear you say, surely she should be sewing those in as she goes along? You are absolutely correct, I confess to a total lack of self-discipline with ends, but in my defence I was enjoying the crochet so much I didn't want to stop and sew in, I just wanted to keep hooking! Here's the first fully completed Gordon in all its splendour:  My next aim was to have completed at least one Harmony motif and I'm pleased to report that I managed that as well! I thoroughly enjoyed crocheting this motif. It was nice to be working in the round rather than rows and I've always liked the way rounds are layered to create texture and that gorgeous 3D effect in motifs like this. The final round adds surface crochet (the round in blue that you can see in the image below) and it was interesting to see how that pop of contrasting colour totally lifted the motif.  So, what's the plan for the coming month? Well, I'm aiming to have the full set of Gordon motifs completely finished, ends and all, as well as the second Bloomsbury strip completed. I'm a quarter of the way through the repeats on that one. Then there will be three more Harmony motifs to make and I'd like to have at least one of the next part made too. That is Fitzroy, another block worked in rows, similar to Gordon, also with a row of beaded crochet (can't wait!). Quite an ambitious task list but I'm hoping the motivation of seeing the little piles of completed blocks growing will be the incentive to spur me on! See you next month. Gemma x  This week's recipe suggestion from Gemma is for a lovely carrot and coriander soup.  Spring is really taking its time to warm up here in North London, with some particularly chilly days this week, so a warming bowl of soup at lunchtime always goes down a treat. This interesting recipe/article in The Guardian newspaper discusses the many possible variations and is well worth the read.  A few weeks ago on both Facebook and Instagram we tackled the thorny subject of AI (Artificial Intelligence) in the world of design and talked about the increasing number of images that are appearing on social media of so called 'crocheted' works. This is now starting to feed through to selling sites such as Etsy, with AI generated images being used to sell crochet patterns. You can read more here or click on the image below:  We regularly do a web search to find interesting crochet postbox toppers and have shared some fantastic versions with you in our newsletters, but we have to say that this is one of our favourites so far! It was made by Amanda McNath in Rottingdean last summer.  If you've ever been to an English seaside resort, you may well have experienced the slightly unnerving (or perhaps very terrifying) phenomenon of having your lunch stolen by a hungry seagull! In Venice a few years ago we saw one steal a whole large pizza from a poor boy's freshly opened take away box. It flew off across the water and guzzled down the whole pizza in just a couple of gulps mid air - How greedy!   Hopefully by the time you are reading this Quick Catch Up email, Andy and I will be well on our way to completing set up for Wonder Wool Wales. As we don't do anywhere near as many shows and events as we used to, we are really looking forward to being on our stand all weekend and have packed lots of warm clothes to help us keep cosy!  Our fabulous friends Sarah and Paul will be joining us on the stand for the weekend and we will have lots of goodies on display, including all our sample blankets, cushions and wraps. We will also have lots of the wonderful Emma Ball stock (including items from the new Spirit of Flora range) and the Della Q crafters bags, so if you are coming to the show, please pop along to our stand to say hello!  Next Tuesday will be Andy's birthday, but as things are so busy at the moment we won't be heading out to celebrate until next Friday when he has requested a family meal at his favourite Indian restaurant. Cheers Andy and Happy Birthday! Now that the first set of patterns for Spirit of Flora have been released I am hoping that the next couple of weeks will prove a little calmer and that I will be able to continue with some new design work. I have started a new piece of crochet, which I am really enjoying and so it has been a little frustrating not being able to find much time to dedicate to it. I have a couple of workshop projects to sort out too, so there isn't really spare time to procrastinate! I hope that whatever you have planned over the next couple of weeks goes to plan and that you are able to find time to settle down with your hook and favourite project for a restorative yarn fix too! I will be back in your in-box in a fortnight's time with the May newsletter....    Today sees the release of the newest version of my Persian Tiles Blanket design in the shape of 'Peppercorn', a blanket inspired by the colours used in the Sandalwood version, but made using natural yarns from the fabulous West Yorkshire Spinners range. You can find a free yarn substitution document for this colourway here and you can find more information by following this link.  If you would like to make the original navy and orange colourway of the Persian Tiles blanket using natural yarns, then check out our West Yorkshire Spinners version.  The Getting Ready information for the launch of the revamped Spirit of Flora patterns is now live on the Janie Crow website. The free downloadable document includes information about yarns needed, the pattern release schedule as well as crochet related information such as choosing your project layout, how to achieve the correct tension, reading charts and dealing with yarn ends, as well as some background information about my inspiration and design process.  The first four patterns, Leaf Trellis, Moffatt Flower, Merton Abbey Flower and Tudor Rose, will be published in less than a fortnight's time on 24th April and you will be able to purchase single patterns or a bundle of all four, either as download or printed copies in UK or US terms. We will release four further patterns in June and the final four in August. The patterns for plainer crochet squares and the three edging patterns will be available for free on the website over the next few months, alongside a download document designed to guide you through the making up and finishing process.  Emma created a lovely reel on our Instagram feed this week where she focussed on the first four motifs we are going to release. You can find it by following this link.   With the re-release of the patterns for the Spirit of Flora crochet along project on the horizon we have been looking back at my past CALs and I can't believe that I now have ten projects under my belt since 2015! All the projects listed below are still available and I have added links so that you can find more information about each of them. 2015: Lily Pond 2016: Frida's Flowers 2017: Sunshine and Showers 2018: Bohemian Blooms 2019: Climbing Rose Wrap 2020: Fruit Garden 2021: Indigo Dreams 2022: Glad Tidings Wrap 2023/24: Spirit of Flora   My lovely friend and fellow Stylecraft Yarns Blogstar Emma Varnam has written a great piece about art inspiring crochet design in the current issue of Inside Crochet Magazine. Emma talks about her love of Brambly Hedge and how the work of Swedish artists Carl and Karin Larsson has influenced her work. She has been kind enough to also include some of my work, along with a few of my words on the subject of how art inspires my crochet design. I’d love to know what paintings or pieces of artwork have inspired you. Do you have a favourite painting or painter? Is there a textile or fashion designer you love? Let us know how the work of artists makes you feel and whether or not you can see a link between the work of other designers and the world of art.   We have some fabulous new additions to the Emma Ball range of accessories in stock now. You can find them by following this link to our store. You can find our fabulous range of project pouches and bags here and the tin collection here. I am so pleased with all the new items that feature the Spirit of Flora design. They are just so colourful and cheeryl!  I have agreed to tutor a couple of residential workshops for Stitchtopia next year. I will be going to Switzerland in April and will be returning to West Yorkshire to do a week long tour in June. I am also hoping that a trip to Morocco is on the cards for Autumn 2025 - I will let you know about this one when more information is available. Switzerland - April 2025 Zurich, the largest city in Switzerland, lies at the north end of Lake Zurich. During our stay here, you'll enjoy two full-day workshops with me, spend a day exploring Old Town Zurich with a local guide, and sail on Lake Zurich to the home of Lindt chocolate. The Swiss Yarn Festival is the event for all wool and yarn enthusiasts! Knitting, crocheting, spinning and weaving are all represented, and you’ll enjoy a full day here. West Yorkshire - June 2025 Join me in West Yorkshire for 6 days of workshops and yarn-themed excursions. On this retreat, visit the Knitting & Crochet Guild, a treasure trove of textile wonders. The collection is housed in a former mill in Slaithwaite, a village also home to Stylecrafts, where we will have a behind-the-scenes tour of the mill. Our learning of wool production continues with tours of British Wool in Bradford and West Yorkshire Spinners. There will also be the opportunity for some local sightseeing as you spend some time in Saltaire Village, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Peru 2024 Peru has the longest continuous history of textile production in the world, going back almost 10,000 years. Invented long before pottery and just as humans started agriculture, Peruvian fibre manipulation began with simple spun fibres but by 500 AD this rudimentary craft had developed into complex techniques. On our travels we’ll explore the processes involved in the production of textiles, including the most characteristic garment, the chullo, a knitted hat with an earflap and a calendar waistband that depicts the annual cycles of ritual and agricultural life, and we'll meet local artisans whose traditions have been passed down through the centuries. I am busy designing both knit and crochet projects for participants to make while we are away in Peru.   I am really looking forward to the meet and greet event at yarn store No3 Royston next Wednesday 17th April. The evening will include my talk about my design process and crochet career followed by a Q&A session. There will also be a chance to show off your Janie Crow makes and enjoy some nibbles and drinks. This is one of the few events I will be doing this year, so it would be great to see those of you who can make it! you can find more information by following this link or clicking on the poster image above.  I am not the most committed reader and tend to like books that are easy to pick up and put down - the type that I can dip into and not have to think about too much. As a result I tend to opt for more factual books, those about lifestyle choices, health and diet for example, alongside arty books such as artist profiles or collections of art works. Despite my poor reading record I am really drawn to books and often mooch around book shops in the hope of finding a good read. I am definitely an advocate of Tsundoku, the Japanese art of collecting and arranging books in a pile ready to (maybe) read at some point!  I thought it might be good to start adding a book recommendation to the monthly newsletter and so I invite you to send in the details of your current favourite read so that I can share it with others. I will kick off with a book that I have mentioned before - it was recommended to me a few months ago by Sarah at Inside Crochet Magazine: 52 Ways to Walk, by Annabel Streets. You can find more info by following this link.  Emma's been making yummy granola this week using this recipe from Cookie and Kate.  Homemade granola is quick and easy to make and oh so delicious! Andy used to make it for us here in the Crowfoot household, but it was just so good that we tended to eat it when it was still warm and fresh out of the oven, so for the sake of our waistlines we reverted to our daily porridge and Weetabix! If you're in the UK and looking for environmentally friendly ingredients to make your own granola, make sure you take a look at Quaker Oats as they come plastic free in a cardboard box. Ditto Flahavan's Oats, which are organic and come in paper bags. If you can find a local refill store to purchase your nuts and seeds too then the plastic use is reduced even further. Perhaps now is a good time to ditch those instant oat cups and traditional cereals?   Having referred in my introduction to the dreadful weather of late, it is a relief to have had a little bit of sunshine the last couple of days. It has even been a little warmer and so, as the evening light is getting longer since the clocks changed a fortnight ago, I am looking forward to a weekend at home. We went to see Les Miserables at the theatre last weekend and it was fantastic! I have been hoping to go for years, since seeing the film in 2016, so it was a dream come true to finally get there. I have been humming the tunes all week and might have to dig out the DVD over the weekend to watch the film again. A perfect accompaniment to a spot of crochet I think! The garden is finally springing into life and we have had some really beautiful tulips coming into flower over the last week. The peonies are coming into bud too, and as they are one of my favourite flowers, I am really looking forward to them flowering in May. I really love this time of year in the garden.  If you are looking for a bit of colour in your life - I stumbled over a great fashion site called Farm Rio this week. The knitwear is wonderfully retro 80's and the dresses are colourful and packed with pattern - great inspiration if you are looking for colour palettes.
Talking of colour combinations - this week has seen the reveal of Kaffe Fassett's collaboration with Morris & Co to produce a range of fabrics for the Free Spirit range. I have to admit I am not totally sold on the revamped shades used to update William Morris's amazing designs, but it is always good to see Morris designs at centre stage. We have a quiet weekend ahead, but a busy couple of weeks to look forward to before we get to the end of the month. I hope you have a lovely couple of days ahead whatever you are doing. Janie x   I am incredibly proud to have been awarded Best Independent Pattern Designer in the 2023 Yarn Industry Awards hosted by Craftworld. It means a huge amount to have won this category, especially as I was listed among some super talented fellow designers at the voting stage. The award is not only recognition of the work I have put in over the years, but it is also a testament to the dedication of my fabulous little team who continue to support me in so many ways. Crochet has been proven to be a mindful pastime, beneficial to body and soul. It can help people combat physical and mental illnesses and I love that the craft creates a physical representation of our time spent. I cannot imagine my life without crochet and hope that it will continue to be a big part of my future. Huge thanks to all those of you who took the time to vote in the Industry awards – it truly is an honour to receive this award. I have written a short blog post about my life as an independent designer - if you want to take a look you can find it here.  Last week we released the free Getting Ready download document for Spirit of Flora on our website, alongside another one that will guide you on your layout choices. The first four patterns will launch in less than 4 weeks time on the 24th April and I am really looking forward to seeing how you will interpret my crochet motifs if you are planning to work through the project. Don't forget you can find lots of information on the dedicated Spirit of Flora Facebook Group and if you want to purchase a kit you can find them on our website by following this link. Patterns will be £3.95 each and will be available as downloads or paper copies either singularly or as part of a bundle of 4.  The second print run of my new book The Complete Crochet Handbook should be in stock by the end of April, which is a little earlier than we expected. We have the book for sale on a pre-sale basis on the website and you can find it here.  If you have been patiently waiting for the US crochet terms version of the book to come into stock, then you might be pleased to know that we have partnered with our friends Mary Maxim, where you can find the book, which is called the Perfect Crochet Finish, for sale. Follow this link for more information.  Mary Maxim also now have kits in stock for the Marrakesh version of Persian Tiles, which you can find here.  We have some fabulous new items in stock from the EMMA BALL range, including some really lovely new project bags, pouches and bucket bags that feature the Mystical Lanterns design and Spirit of Flora. You can find all the fabric bags here. We also have some new tins - they are super cute and include Fruit Garden, Spirit of Flora and Fields of Gold designs. You can find tins by following this link. Our range of Emma Ball stitch markers has grown to include some that feature the Fruit Garden and Spirit of Flora designs too. I think these would make fabulous charms for bracelets and they can also be worn as earrings or a brooch. You can find stitch markers here.  We have these fabulous Magnetic page markers (shown above), which are a really clever way of keeping track of where you are in your book and we also have new lens cloths to accompany our expanding range of glasses cases. Stitchtopia have released information about two workshop trips that I will be tutoring next year. I will be going to Zurich for week long trip, which will include a visit to the Switzerland Yarn Festival with a group of knitters in April 2025 and I will also be tutoring a repeat of the West Yorkshire Knitting Retreat in June. You can find information about the trip to Switzerland here and the trip to Yorkshire here.   Andy and I had a great few days in Cologne when we visited the H+H trade show last weekend. There was so much fabulous yarn on show that we hardly knew where to start squishing! Seeing the show rammed with yarn producers and craft suppliers was a total joy and it was wonderful to catch up with lots of old friends and make some new ones. Of course we also made the most of the copious number of brew houses, great food spots and the tourist sites, which include the majestic cathedral. We headed home on the train feeling inspired, happy and at least a kilo heavier!  On both Instagram and Facebook we shared the recreated version of the Oscars photo where Justin Bieber rocked up wearing a Persian Tiles blanket, with Jane and Andy taking the starring roles this time. Andy definitely won the vote this time around and with the fabulous backdrop of the Marrakesh version of the blanket, we couldn't agree more!  We also shared with our followers the first image of a new version of Persian Tiles, named Peppercorn. This was originally intended to be a natural fibre version of the Sandalwood colourway, but we weren't able to match some of the colours in the lovely West Yorkshire Spinners range and so Peppercorn, Sandalwood's almost identical twin, was born!  We know that many of you are eagerly awaiting the arrival of this one, so keep it in mind that we will be releasing the free yarn substitution download document within the next couple of weeks and we hope to have kits in stock soon too.  It has been another busy month, with not as much progress made on my motifs for Bohemian Blooms as I had hoped, but I'm not going to be hard on myself and am determined to just enjoy the journey as it evolves. In last month's diary I was working on a production line of Omega motifs, the small squares that form the corners of the inner and outer sections. I'm pleased to report that they are all finished, including ends being sewn in. I've also made a start on the second of the Bloomsbury strips. This time I am pre-cutting the lengths of yarn as Jane suggests in the book and I'm also sewing the ends in on each repeat to keep that manageable too.  Having not done it for a while, I was really looking forward to having another go at adding beads to crochet and the Gordon motif gave me that opportunity. I had an interesting start to Gordon, as despite my dc tension piece working to exactly the same tension as Jane's, a quick check after the first few rows showed that the motif was going to be a lot wider than expected! So, I undid those rows and had another go at the chain, being much more disciplined about making my stitches neat and consistent and was able to achieve the width needed. I must have been very relaxed first time round! I so enjoyed making this piece. The details, such as a row of dc worked around the back posts of the previous row to create a ridge, the bobbles at the narrowest points of the wave section, and of course the beads, all made this a really interesting piece to crochet. With the Easter holidays now upon us I'm itching to get on with the other three!  By the time I write again next month I am hoping to have completed the full set of Gordon motifs and also made at least one of the next pattern, Harmony. This is the first flower motif and it features surface crochet to add detail. The flower sits within a lace frame and forms the centre point of each side in the outer section of the blanket. Gemma x  Today's recipe suggestion comes from our lovely Emma, who says this 'no-knead' bread recipe works every time without fail. We all love a loaf of homemade bread here at Janie Crow, so no doubt the rest of us will be scurrying off to the kitchen to give this a go. Emma has even provided us with step-by-step photos and you can find the recipe here or by clicking on the images below.  Here's the dough in its cosy bed for the night  Ready to go in the oven  The finished loaf, ready for eating with lashings of butter!  We love reading stories about crochet being used for good causes and so we loved seeing this amazing Easter Egg that has been created in the village of Hurst, Berkshire, to raise money for Bowel Cancer UK in memory of a fellow villager. The Hurst Hookers made 260 granny squares, which were then attached to an egg shaped wire frame and finished off with a rabbit on top! Bowel Cancer UK is a charity that is close to our hearts and so we wish the Hurst Hookers lots of luck with their fundraising efforts. If you want to support them by making a donation, you can find their Just Giving Fundraising page by following this link.  Earlier this month the annual World Book Day took place. The aim of the day is to encourage more children to read, and here in the UK it usually involves children (and the grown ups!) dressing up as favourite book characters for the day. There's always room for interpretation though and Debbie Williamson in Forest Town, Nottinghamshire and Margaret Upton in Ticknall, South Derbyshire decided to get involved too, and made the most amazing post box toppers for the occasion. We particularly like the Very Hungry Caterpillar's selection of snacks!     As it's a long bank holiday weekend in honour of Easter, we thought you might like to make use of a discount code we have put in place for the next couple of days. You can get 20% off the price of our download patterns via Ravelry and Etsy and 10% off anything in our web store by using the code BUNNYHOP (all one word and uppercase) at checkout. The offer ends at 9pm (GMT) on Monday April 1st.  We are heading up to Humberside for a few days to visit Andy's family over the weekend and I am really looking forward to seeing some sandy beaches and the sea and spending time with the family. The weather forecast is not looking totally dreadful, just a tad chilly and windy, so hopefully we will get to take some nice walks in an effort to counterbalance the chips and ice cream! I hope that you have a great weekend, whatever you have planned and that you manage to find a bit of calm and tranquility with your favourite yarny project. Janie x
  The Getting Ready information for the launch of the revamped Spirit of Flora patterns will go live on the Janie Crow website next Wednesday, 20th March. The free downloadable document includes information about yarns needed, the pattern release schedule as well as crochet related information such as choosing your project layout, how to achieve the correct tension, reading charts and dealing with yarn ends, as well as some background information about my inspiration and design process.  The first four patterns, Leaf Trellis, Moffatt Flower, Merton Abbey Flower and Tudor Rose, will be published on 24th April and you will be able to purchase single patterns or a bundle of all four, either as download or printed copies in UK or US terms. We will release four further patterns in June and the final four in August. The patterns for plainer crochet squares and the three edging patterns will be available for free on the website over the next few months, alongside a download document designed to guide you through the making up and finishing process. As I said in my newsletter introduction, we have put a lot of work into making these patterns as easy to follow as possible and I think they are looking particularly lovely, especially as they include crochet charts and layout diagrams, things that weren't a part of the original release schedule in 2023. I will be sending an email update to you next week with links to all the information you need to get yourself ready for what we hope will be a really re-run of this exciting project. The email will also include information about pattern prices and links to where you will be able to find them, as well as a chance to purchase a project kit if you want to use yarns in my original colour palette.   I have started to look at design inspiration for the projects I am going to create for participants to make on the Textile Traditions of Peru workshop trip in the summer. The itinerary for the holiday in July includes visits to all the incredible sites, such as Machu Picchu and Lake Ticicacca, as well as outings to textile related businesses. As much of the focus of the tour is on textile production and the creation of beautiful alpaca yarns I have decided to create a knit and a crochet project for participants to make while we are away.   At the Stitchtopia Festival last weekend, quilting and patchwork tutor Karin Hellaby talked about her trip to Peru last year. She told us about the things the group got to do and the places they visited and she showed us some of her incredible images and videos - some of which I have shamelessly copied from her Facebook page to feature here. Karin has tutored more than 60 trips for Arena Travel over the last decade and so it is huge praise when she called the holiday her 'best trip ever'! There are still a couple of places left on the trip with me in July and you are able to bring a companion at a reduced price if you share a room. The cost of my trip is £1000 cheaper than other listed trips to Peru on the Stitchtopia site as the price has been upheld from last year. If you are interested in joining me please follow this link for more information. I am so incredibly excited about the opportunity to go to Peru and can hardly believe that the plane seats are booked and the trip is a definite 'goer'. I have created a Pinterest board to help kick start my design process - you can find it here if you fancy taking a look.  Thank you for the brilliant response to the new Marrakesh version of Persian Tiles. Our first stock of kits sold out almost immediately, and there are only a small number of our second batch of kits left in stock. You can find them here. You can source the yarn for this project from other Stylecraft stockists and some of them have made up kits too. You can find a list of yarn stockists here and the free download yarn substitution document here.  It has been a week for stock updates for the Persian Tiles kits as we now also have stock of the West Yorkshire Spinners version (shown above) and we have Sandalwood kits in too!  We know that quite a lot of crocheters choose to interpret their blankets as wall hangings and we often get asked about how to mount them. We hang the blankets up to display at shows using poster clip frames, but for something more permanent you may find you need to attach a fabric backing or some kind of curtain tape along the hanging edge to stop the yarns from stretching. A few weeks ago I was sent this lovely image by a lady called Karin Brinza who has created an amazing layout of Spirit of Flora and hung it on her wall. Isn't it great!  As I am quite an impulsive online shopper I decided to put myself on a three month 'buying ban' from the first January. As we near the end of my period of abstinence, I am starting to line up a few things that I might just have to have once my ban is over. One of my first purchases could be one of these beautiful rugs from the William Morris Collection on Ruggable. I am particularly keen on the bird and pomegranate design and think it would look great in my living room. That said, I am wondering whether to prolong my purchasing ban as it has definitely made me really question whether or not I need things rather than simply want them - and of course I have saved a few quid along the way!  We currently have a pretty healthy stock of Della Q Makers Canvas products in stock. We have backpacks, rucksacks and messenger bags, as well as tote bags, needle cases, knit sacks, buddy cases and scissors in various colours.    I am pretty smitten by the new midi backpacks, which I think are the perfect size for transporting a knit or crochet project and all your bits and bobs. The Della Q range now includes a fabulous purple shade which is just lovely!  Muhammara is a roasted red pepper and chilli dip and this yummy stew uses aspects of the dip recipe to create a really delicious chickpea based dish.  I made a version from the One Pot, Pan, Planet cookery book by Anna Jones, but as the recipe is only available in the book I am linking to a similar recipe by Dishing Out Health, which includes blobs of greek yogurt and is served with some tasty looking pitta bread. The recipe I used made quite a lot of stew, so we had left-overs which tasted even better the following day after a night in the fridge. This is a really easy recipe, especially if you use roasted peppers from a jar! Definitely a dish I will be making again and again.   I had Monday off this week as I was away from home teaching at the Stitchtopia Festival for the whole of last weekend. As a result I have spent all week feeling a bit muddled about what day it is. Tuesday felt like Monday, Wednesday felt like Tuesday and ditto for the rest of the days this week - I was one step out the whole time, so it seems odd to already be writing about what I am planning for this weekend. The weather has been really naff yet again this week, with loads of rain making the garden incredibly soggy, so I am really hoping that the weekend will provide some brighter days. Our lovely cousin Kassie will be 30 on Sunday so we will be celebrating her birthday with pizza and bowling over the weekend and I will be aiming for a couple of walks as I seem to be sticking to my walking habit. Next week is set to be a busy one and so, as I am feeling a little run down after very little time off lately, I think I will be spending a bit more time than usual snuggled up in a duvet with a book or my crochet!  I will be back in your inbox on Wednesday with more information about the Spirit of Flora relaunch, so do look out for that. Until then, I hope you have a great couple of days and I leave you with this image of Andy and I recreating the now iconic pic of Justin and Hailey Bieber at the Vanity Fair Oscars after party last year. You can vote for who wore it best on our Instagram page here.
Janie x  Yesterday was the official publication date for my new book 'The Complete Crochet Handbook' before it was moved to the 18th of February due to overwhelming demand. It feels a bit strange to be celebrating the release of a book which is now pretty much sold out, but I am certainly not complaining!  If you want to get your hands on a copy of the book, you will now have to wait until early to mid May. We have the book for sale on a pre-order basis on the website and you can choose between a signed or un-signed copy. We will be doing more promotion surrounding the second release date, so do look out for that soon! If you are in the US and want to find a copy in US terms the book has an alternative title of 'The Perfect Crochet Finish'.  The Magic Circles blanket is one of our best selling patterns and it has been wonderful seeing many colourways of it appearing out in the wild over the last few years. We have been working on our own new colourway and so have the team at Stylecraft, so the colour substitution documents for not just one, but two new colourways of Magic Circles are now available to download from the website. A few weeks back we revealed the Supernova colourway, created by the team at Stylecraft Yarns as an exercise in playing with colour, and we mentioned another colourway that was more in keeping with the Magic Circles scarf palette. That one didn't yet have a name, but now it does and I'm happy to introduce Skimming Stones!  Skimming Stones  Magic Circles Wrap This new version of the blanket echoes the colours I used in the scarf and the palette reminds me of early morning walks on the beach, pretty, wet pebbles underfoot, pinky hues of clouds in the sky and fleeting reflections across the water. You can click on the images to be taken to the free yarn substitution download documents and you can find yarn packs for all three colourways of the blanket for sale on the website.  Supernova Yarn Etc is a fabulous independent (and award winning) yarn store in Harrogate in the North of England and it's run by Fiona, who made a big career move from horticulture to yarn back in 2016. Fiona recently decided to launch her own yarn brand for the store and The Harrogate Yarn Company Mercer DK was born!   Fiona says 'The idea for having my own yarn spun just for Yarn Etc came from wanting to be able to supply a lovely, natural, British yarn that was a bit special to our many local customers and the many visitors from around the country and the rest of the world. I wanted a yarn that was the essence of Harrogate. Beautiful colours, lovely texture and spin and just lovely to work with. It’s a proper yarn that is being very well received by everyone who uses it for their projects and we are very proud of it. I loved working directly with the mill to produce the yarn and the dyers to get exactly the colours I wanted. I really enjoyed working closely with a great graphic designer, Rosie of Rapport Creative Design, who is based locally, to bring my yarn brand to life. The ball ands on the yarn make me so happy, as they feature some of the wonderful architecture we have here in Harrogate.'  You can find out more about the yarn over on the Yarn Etc website here. The shades have the most wonderful names, such as Agatha's Claret and Cold Bath! It's a versatile yarn suitable for all kinds of projects and customers of the shop have used it for garments, hats, cowls, scarves, blankets and more.  We have been working hard to get the Spirit of Flora patterns ready for when they will be re-relased in a couple of months time. The Getting Ready information will be available on the Janie Crow website from the 20th March and the first set of four patterns will be released on April 24th, followed by two further pattern releases across the summer. As we are still in the pattern layout and checking process we have not yet made definitive decisions about pricing, but all going well, the patterns will be available in paper brochure and download format. We have included charts and beautiful layout diagrams and have also created patterns in US terms. No further advice is available at this time, so please be patient and look out for more information soon!   Over on the dedicated Spirit of Flora Facebook Group this month Julia Hill laid down a challenge for makers to photograph their completed Spirit of Flora blankets in public places and post those photographs on social media using the hashtag #spiritoffloraphotochallenge. Just take a look at these!  Thank you to Julia Hill, Herbie Kio, Hilary Lyall and Handmade in Iver for sharing their stunning photos. We look forward to seeing lots more Spirit of Flora blankets out in the wild soon! Over on Instagram our lovely Emma has been waxing lyrical about Moon Phases (see what we did there!) and even created a Janie Crow Moon Phase chart. We have been pondering the question if and how productivity and creativity are influenced at all by the phases of the moon 🌙  Here at Janie Crow HQ we were happily surprised to find out that we should be refining and polishing projects at the time of the waxing gibbous moon and it made us smile because we’ve been checking and updating the Spirit of Flora patterns.  26th February 2024 Where did the last four weeks go? February seems to have been a very busy month, eventhough it always feels like one of those months that doesn't have a lot going on. When I signed off last month I had started the first Bloomsbury motif, which is one of the long strips that forms part of the outer edge of the Bohemian Blooms blanket. The first of the Bloomsbury strips is now complete, but for a few yarn ends left to sew in. Only three to go! I didn't use Jane's suggested method of pre-cutting lengths of yarn for this but I'm going to try that for the second strip. I loved how the long strip of stripes was suddenly transformed into so much more once the edge rows were added and the line of surface crochet was the icing on the cake. Am I the only one who always takes ages to work out how to attach the yarn at the beginning of a piece of surface crochet? A bit like crab stitch, it always seems to take a few unsuccessful attempts before getting into the swing of it!  The next motif in the book is the Omega motif and there are eight of these to make. These form the outer corners of the blanket (before the border is added) and the corners of the inner square, as part of the 'frame' around the nine central motifs. I decided to use the production line method to make these. It can feel a bit like hard work using this method, but the satisfaction at the end, when you have all the motifs made, is well worth it!  I still have a couple of Omega motifs to finish off, but I'm looking forward to moving on to the 'Gordon' motifs this month. The inspiration for the Bohemian Blooms blanket comes from the work of Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant, who were part of the Bloomsbury Group during the first half of the 20th Century. 'Gordon' is named after Gordon Square in London, where Vanessa and her siblings lived after the death of their parents. The Gordon motif is worked in rows and the four panels form part of the outer section of the blanket. I'm quite excited to be moving on to this one as it is the first that includes beading. I have crocheted with beads before, but it was some years ago so wish me luck! I'll let you know how I get on in the March Quick Catch Up. Gemma x  Today's recipe recommendation of Margarita Cheesecake Mousse comes from Sarah and, as she made these for us last weekend, we can confirm that it is a really delicious desert. Sarah served it with a cheeky shot of tequila on the side, but this is not an essential addition if you are not a fan.  The recipe can be found on the Delish website here, if you fancy giving it a try.  The Longest Yarn are a non-profit association of crafters from all age groups and walks of life, based in France. They are knitting and crocheting an exhibition called The Longest Day in time for the 80th anniversary of the D-Day Landings on June 6th 2024. Created with guidance from historians, in order to be historically accurate, each of the 80 handmade scenes has been selected by the creator to depict the story of this day in history, each scene unique and made with care. You can see some images of the scenes below and find out more on the group's website here.  If you have any spare time on your hands and a yarn stash that could do with being a little bit smaller, the wonderful charity Woolly Hugs have a number of ongoing projects that welcome contributions of yarn throughout the year. You can find more information about all of their projects by clicking on the link here.  Woolly Hugs regularly run craft sales through their Facebook page and the Spring/Easter Craft Sale and Auction is due to begin on Tuesday 5th March to raise money for their work. The sales always have a wonderful array of items made by crafters up and down the country and it's a great way to shop for handmade gifts, so do take a look by following this link.   Like Gemma, I am a tad flabbergasted at the speed at which time is flying by. It is exciting to be heading into spring proper, with lighter evenings and slightly warmer weather, but seriously - where did February go? I have been busy walking most mornings and am planning a slightly longer jaunt over the weekend again. It is still incredibly wet and muddy over the woods and park where I walk, and I regularly get soaked through, but the positive effects of being out in the countryside is definitely worth a soggy strip off when I get home!  We will be celebrating the book publication with a meal out and a glass or two of wine this evening - nothing too raucous though as I have been invited to attend the Debbie Bliss knitting workshop at The William Morris Gallery tomorrow. It is incredibly kind of Debbie to have offered me the chance to attend and I am really looking forward to it. If you fancy coming along you can find more information over on Debbie's Instagram page and tickets can be purchased via Eventbrite here.  Next weekend I will be tutoring four workshops as part of the Stitchtopia Festival with Arena Travel, so next week will be dedicated to some prep work. I am working on a physical mood board for my Peru trip in July, which I will take along to display and I will be teaching beaded crochet flowers (my favourite) and some great finishing techniques, so it is set to be a great weekend. There are many other workshops on offer, with some great tutors. You can find more information by following this link.  If you are one of those annoyingly organised people, you might already be thinking about projects for Easter. It falls quite early this year at the end of March, but there is still time to make some lovely crochet items to decorate your home or giveaway as gifts. I found some free patterns on the Craftworld website here. I have checked that they are definitely free and know that they are from a trusted website. Quite a few of the projects would make perfect weekend makes and I especially like the crochet wreath that I have shown a snippet of in the pic above. To access the patterns you need to be a member of the Craftworld club, it's free to join up and being a member has quite a few perks, so if you fancy making something, why not take a look.
Whatever you have planned for the next few days I hope you have a great time and, as usual, if you want to get in touch, simply hit reply..... Janie x    My workshop trip to Peru has been confirmed this week, so I have started to look at design inspiration for the projects I am going to create for participants to make while we are away. The itinerary for the holiday in July includes visits to all the incredible sites, such as Machu Picchu and Lake Ticicacca, as well as outings to textile related businesses. The tour is entitled 'Knitting Traditions of Peru', but it seems to me that the trip will be just as exciting for crocheters as it will for knitters, as much of the focus is on textile production and the creation of beautiful alpaca yarns. I have therefore decided to create a knit and a crochet project for participants to make and have created a Pinterest board to help kick start my design process - you can find it here. I have already done a little bit of sampling with some fabulous bright yarn shades.  This really is a trip of lifetime so Andy and I have raided our piggy bank so that he can come with me. There are still a couple of spaces left on the trip, which is held at last year's price at £1000 cheaper than other trips to Peru on the Stitchtopia site. There is room for more 'plus ones' if you want to bring a friend or partner too, and you don't have to start your journey from the UK, so it is open to everyone. If you are interested in joining me please follow this link for more information.  Thank you for the brilliant response to the new Marrakesh version of Persian Tiles. The kits went out of stock almost immediately, so I apologise to any of you who were disappointed not to have nabbed one. Keeping good stock levels has been incredibly challenging over the last year especially, due to lots of different factors affecting global yarn production, but we will have more kits in stock soon, so do keep an eye on the store page. You can source the yarn for this project from other Stylecraft stockists and some of them have made up kits too. You can find a list of yarn stockists here and the free download yarn substitution document here.  On Sunday the 4th February I appeared on Stuart Hillard's birthday weekend show on Sewing Street TV. I had a fab time with Stuart showcasing my new book The Complete Crochet Handbook. The UK edition of the book was due to be published on 29th February, but it has proved so popular that it has already sold out at trade and many places no longer have it for sale on a retail basis either. Our own stock sold through in less than a day, which is totally bonkers! The reprint of the book is not likely to arrive until early May so we have added it to the website on a pre-sale basis. You can find it here. Please note that your order will not be dispatched until early May. If you are in the US you will find the book under a different title. It is called The Perfect Crochet Finish and is due to be published early March. You can find it available for pre-sale on US sites. You can see the recorded Sewing Street Show by following this link. My slot starts at about the 3 hour 38 minute mark. I demonstrated how to add beads to crochet, how to create a neat ring and how to do a quick joining method when making granny squares, so there might be something of interest to you within the programme, where we also talked about some of the new Emma Ball items. Which leads me nicely on to say that we now have some lovely new things in stock from the Emma Ball range, including new tins, cards, glasses cases and even a new 1000 piece jigsaw. Follow this link to see all our Emma Ball stock, or click on the images below to see specific items.    They say that imitation is the highest form of flattery, but I am not sure who 'they' are and, after my recent experiences with copy cat crocheters, I am not sure I agree! Over the last few months we have discovered a Spanish translation of all the Spirit of Flora patterns being offered for sale by a lady in Argentina, a printed Persian Tiles top for sale on a fashion site and dresses made using the Mystical Lanterns motifs for sale on the webstore of a high end knitwear company. Oh, and a copy of the Persian Tiles blanket on the cover of a Spanish craft magazine - and that's just within the last six weeks or so!  I find these copies incredibly upsetting. Not because I seek to profit financially from the sale of items, but because the people putting selling them have not put the background work in and, by copying, have not shown due diligence to making sure that they are creating something original. In the case of the 'designer' in Argentina translating the Spirit of Flora patterns and selling them under the radar via WhatsApp Business it is pure theft - no more, no less. If you see any copies of my work that appear to be unauthorised, please let us know about it. You can reply to this email, or in the case of Spirit of Flora, you can also let Inside Crochet magazine know. If you do email us, please include as much information as possible and some links. Thank you!   I have been nominated in two different categories in the Yarn Industry awards for 2023. I am really proud that my name appears in the 'Best Independent Designer' section and within the 'Best Online Personality' category. I am up against some true giants of the yarn world, many of them with many more followers than me, so I am flattered simply to have been nominated, but if you do want to vote for me, or any of the other fabulous nominees, please follow this link. Voting closes on the 22nd February.  Before lockdown I was an avid sourdough bread maker. I used to prepare it in the evening, prove it over night in the fridge and bake it in the morning. When bread flour became scarce during the pandemic my poor starter (Keith) died and I sadly haven't made a sourdough loaf since.   Last weekend I saw a video on Instragram showing a no knead technique for making Focaccia and felt it was time for me to dust off my bread making kit and have a go!  It was a great tasting loaf and I had fun making it. If you fancy having a go too, you need to be around to play with the dough pretty much all day and I would suggest going a little easier on the oil - it was delicious, but boy was it calorific! You can find a link to the recipe video here.   What have you got planned for the weekend? After a relatively quiet one last weekend we have a slightly busier couple of days ahead. We are going out to see a music concert tonight in Camden Town and I am booked on to a workshop on Sunday afternoon, which I am really looking forward to. It is an embroidery on knitting workshop tutored by Judit Gummlich who I have wanted to meet for a while as I really admire her work. Judit has a really beautiful feed on Instagram and you can find it here. The workshop is at the Wild and Woolly yarn store.  I have been struggling with (what my Osteopath tells me is) a twisted pelvis for the last month or so. After a session with him last week it has eased, but I am still in quite a lot of pain with it at times and will be heading back to see him again early next week. I have found that walking really eases my lower back and is beneficial in other ways too.
My lovely friend Sarah Moran recommended a great book to me called 52 Ways to Walk by Annabel Streets. The book is a lovely one to dip in and out of and suggests a different way of walking for each week of the year (hence the title), so with the gym out of bounds for me for a while, I am really making the most of this gem of a book and am really enjoying my daily wander. Next week is shaping up to be a relatively quiet one, with more work on the re-release versions of the Spirit of Flora patterns for me and the team, but I am looking forward to the Stitches trade show at the NEC next Sunday. If you're going to be there too, please do say hello if you spot me! Janie x |
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