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I hope that life is treating you all well and that you are progressing into 2023 in health and happiness. I have been more than a bit foggy brained this week as I recover from the jet lag created by our return from India. I have been so looking forward to starting on some new projects so my lack of concentration has been frustrating. Hopefully next week I will be back to my normal and will finally get going on some new design work. I know I am incredibly fortunate to have been able to travel and I have some amazing memories to make up for the short attention span, so all is good here at Janie Crow! I have a few things to tell you about this week and hope that you have the time and inclination to catch up with our news...   The team here at Janie Crow have done an incredible job holding the fort while Andy and I have been away in India with Knit For Peace. We have an ongoing issue with Royal Mail in regards to sending things abroad, but on the whole everything has been working tickety boo in our absence, so I am beyond grateful to have such fabulous people supporting me!  Emma and Gemma have been doing a great job on our social media platforms, so do check out what they have been up to on Instagram and Facebook over the last couple of weeks. This week Emma has created some especially lovely posts on Instagram including one about the costumes within Netfilx's Wednesday, which prompted me to dig out the pattern for my Mexican Diamonds scarf and add it to the website as a free download. You can find it by following this link. Emma also shared links to a couple of crochet collars/capelets that I designed a few years ago that are very much in keeping with the Wednesday vibe.  If you are looking for a crochet project kit we now have a good stock of quite a few of my designs, including The Blue House, Climbing Rose Wrap, Frida's Flowers and Primavera, The Fruit Garden Parchment and Caramel, Indigo and Crimson Dreams, Mexican Diamonds, Mystical Lanterns (which is seeing a real boom as the moment), Persian Tiles Eastern Jewels and Light Blue. Click on the images below to find more information about these projects.         You can find patterns for all my designs on the website as paper copies or as downloads via Etsy and Ravelry. We are looking forward to exhibiting at our first show of the year, the Yorkshire Yarn Festival (more information lower down this email), at the beginning of March and have a few other shows lining up now, so I thought it would be a good time to let you know that we will be taking over the Knit & Crochet Lounge at the Stitch Festival at the Business Design Festival here in London in March. You can find more information by following this link and you can get a discount on tickets by entering the code JCROW23 at checkout. It would be great if you could come along and join us on the stand where we will be making little crochet flowers that you could add to a free Janie Crow key ring!  The lovely Sarah Hazell, who carefully looks after all our pattern queries, has been rekindling her love of stitching in the weeks since Christmas and so I caught up with her this week to find out what she has been up to. Sarah has found a couple of great free workshops being run by TOAST which you can find more information about here and she also had a bit more to say about the pleasure she is beginning to find in stitching again after a bit of a break. Here is what she had to say: If you are anything like me then you may find January a difficult month to navigate. There is a huge pressure to ‘improve’ ourselves in all sorts of ways. I often think it is entirely the wrong time of year to start changing – the weather is grim and our immune systems are low, and yet this year I have found myself taking on not one, but three stitch challenges!  I have stitched quite a lot in the past, but had lost my mojo. However, I kept coming across beautiful images on Instagram by Karen Turner and her #dailystitchjournal, and thought it was high time I gave myself a little window each day to place a few stitches without the pressure of it having to be something. Karen’s ethos is very much based on selecting whatever thread you feel like using each day and using your intuition to make marks and patterns. It sounds quite daunting, but having a grid to work from really helps. I find that the size and shape of each day on the grid helps me to think about how and what I want to stitch. Some days are more intuitive than others for me but I’m getting there! If you have ever been to Yarndale, then it is likely that you will have come across the fabulous stitchery of Anne Brooke. Anne is a textile artist and teacher who also alongside other workshops, sets a yearly challenge which this year is #52stitcheshannemade. I want to learn more about how stitches can be altered so decided to join in. Once subscribed you receive a video each week from Anne, demonstrating a stitch and suggesting creative ways to interpret and explore the it. Some people are making a book of stitches, others are working on panels. I am using a piece of furnishing fabric from Ikea that is divided into painterly squares. I am being very strict and limiting myself to a ‘seashore’ palette, otherwise I will get totally overwhelmed!  I was really happy running these two projects side by side until I saw what Suraya Hussain is up to with her friend Tina Francis. If you have not come across their work before, please take a look at their boundless creativity. Suraya and Tina are not only good friends but share a passion for the power of stitch and how it can be used to measure time. Tina spent time in 2022 working on projects in the community that looked at time and memory and Suraya has been working on wraps and blankets to record daily temperatures to raise awareness of climate change. They have now joined together and are encouraging people to join in their ‘Sharing Stitches’ project. There is a video on Tina’s Instagram page where the two friends discuss past collaborations, stitch, yarn and friendship and a full explanation on how to record your days in stitch. There is an emphasis on using yarn that you already have. I had great fun sorting through my stash and assigning different colours to different temperatures. I don’t think it has to be climate based, but I am finding this not only interesting but a great way to keep me on track. I like the sense of purpose and intention behind this project and the connection it builds between stitchers. I’m still catching up at the moment so it really isn’t too late to join in!   The Getting Started information and the first 2 patterns for my Spirit of Flora Crochet Along were published in Inside Crochet Magazine on January 5th. The next pattern, which I have called Merton Abbey will be featured in the next issue of the magazine which will be available next Thursday 9th February. There are some beautiful versions of the first few crochet blocks appearing out in the wild and I wanted to share some images with you to spur you on and motivate you. I am particularly pleased to see that so many of you are embracing the stash diving advice and are creating unique projects. Gemma has selected some images from the dedicated Facebook Group, which now has over 3500 members. You can find it and sign up by following this link.  Amy Paoletti's cushion cover - beautiful tones of blue  Liesl Kleu's Moffat Flower - so pretty  Kylie Anderson's blocks - reminding me of Frida's Flowers!  Hilary Lyall's blocks - a lovely vintage feel  Karolyn Smalls - love all the different colourways Since Christmas I have been working on a new version of the blanket project, which features a more random layout. This new version also has an alternative edging too, which I designed with William De Morgan's more intricate 'Arabesque' border tiles in mind. I know from the Facebook group that many crocheters are starting to join their motifs together using the blanket layout that Inside Crochet have shared sneaky peek images of within the magazine. However, if you are working through the project it might be an idea to keep an open mind in these early stages as you may decide on your own blanket layout or might even want to make an alternative project such as a bag, a cushion or a shawl, ideas for which will all be featured in up-coming magazine issues.  While searching for some more information about William De Morgan recently I came across the knitwear collection that Loewe designed using the ceramicist as their inspiration in 2019. It really is fabulous! You can take a look here. This is a quote from the site where you can find more information and images: 'De Morgan’s Persian and medieval-inspired influence on the Loewe De Morgan capsule permeates abundantly throughout – the ready-to-wear women’s, men’s and accessories pieces serve as a fantastical ode to the artisan, and a sartorial tribute to the enduring spirit of the imagination. From the embroidered indigo, cerulean and green peacock pattern that pieces together a trench coat (as though De Morgan himself stitched each thread), and the high drama of a woollen dragon’s tale and horned knitted beanie, to the collection’s quieter moments: floral motifs adorning Loewe’s signature leather Puzzle, Hammock and Gate bags, and neutral knitwear which feature the ceramicist’s iconic dodo silhouette.'  I will be joining Emma on her stand at the Spring Fair trade show on Sunday and Monday at the NEC Birmingham. I am really looking forward to seeing the items from Emma's lovely collection on display and will post some images from the show on Monday so long as all goes to plan.   We have some more items from the collection coming into stock next week, including greetings cards and notepads, so I am really looking forward to showing you these very soon. Don't forget that you can also support your local Emma Ball stockists. You can check out our YouTube video where Emma and I talk about the collection here and I have also posted our live chat from a few weeks ago on our Instagram Feed.  Andy and I are already looking forward to exhibiting at Yorkshire Yarn Festival in early March. The show organiser, Sophie from Botanical Yarns, has lined up some really fabulous fellow exhibitors and I will feature as the guest at the Saturday evening craft night event where I will be doing a short presentation and Q&A session.  Tickets are still available for the 4th & 5th of March and you can purchase them in advance by following this link. Tickets for workshops are also still available and you can find more information by following this link and clicking on the menu.  If you're looking for a simple recipe that's very quick to prepare, Gemma recommends this Mushroom Stroganoff recipe from the BBC Good Food website.  Gemma doubled up the ingredients to serve more than two. It was great for using up a glut of mushrooms and went down a storm with the family, no leftovers in sight!   I love Friday afternoons with the promise of the weekend on the horizon. For us, Saturdays usually involve a lay-in with a good book and a lazy breakfast of eggs, either fried or poached, toast and lots of lovely coffee as we contemplate what to do with our day off. Tomorrow, however, Andy has an appointment for an MRI scan (for his sore shoulder) at 6.50am! Yes, you read that right! 6.50am! So this week our Saturday will involve a bit of a rude awakening, but hopefully they will get to the bottom of what is going on with Andy's shoulder and of course, we are incredibly lucky to have our fabulous NHS looking after us. At least we only have to get up early one Saturday whereas the hospital staff are there bright and early week in, week out....  We have been trying to be a bit more healthy since we got back from our trip to India and have been upping the exercise a little, so no doubt the weekend will involve a walk or two and a bit of batch cooking in a bid to stop us from picking between meals! I am of course hoping to find some time to plonk myself on the settee to crochet as I need to finish my new colourway of Mystical Lanterns and also hope to finish my current book 'Live Life in Crescendo', which I am finding a really good read. I hope that you have a good weekend and that life treats you kindly whatever you have planned... Janie x    I am writing this email from the gardens of The Green Hotel in Mysuru where I have been teaching a workshop for Knit for Peace. Sitting here in the relative tranquility of the garden it is hard to believe that we are just over a fortnight into the new year and that Christmas was only 4 weeks or so a go - it seems like a lifetime already!  If you follow Janie Crow on Instagram then you may have seen that over the festive period we created a stream of posts that we called the '12 Days of Blankets' which ran from Christmas Day through to the 6th of January. Each day we featured a blanket design and shared images of the same project 'out in the wild' on our stories. It was a really successful idea, with many crocheters across the globe sharing their projects with the blanket hashtags so that we could see what they were up to. If you want to take a look you can still find the posts on our Instagram feed and each post features the relevant hashtag for the day.  Over the next few weeks we will be featuring some of the projects that didn't make it into our 12 Days of Blankets feature, such as The Climbing Rose Wrap, which made an appearance on the feed a few days ago.  On Day 4 of the event we featured my Fields of Gold Blanket with the promise that we would donate all proceeds from pattern sales that day to the UNHCR to help Ukrainian refugees. We tallied up the sales via our download portals and paper sales and were able to add the fabulous sum of £150 to our amazing fund-raising total, which now stands at of £5150. Thank you to everyone who got involved. We really appreciate your support. If you would like to make a donation to the UNHCR you can do so by following this link.  Sharing the projects created by you guys 'out in the wild', such as the fabulous version of Fields of Gold made by Lizzie Montgomery shown above, is something we are passionate about here at Janie Crow so please make sure you use some hashtags so that we can find your posts on social media. Using #janiecrow or #janiecrowpattern on Instagram will help us find you, but if you also add the name of the project, such as #mysticallanternsblanket or #persiantilesblanket for example, then we have more chance of seeing and sharing your work. If you want to share images on Facebook then you can do so via the Janie Crow page which you can find here. Postal Services Just a quick note to say that we are still having an issue with sending post to countries outside of the UK. This is due to a cyber glitch with Royal Mail. Our website is currently taking orders but we will not be dispatching some of our post until we return from India week beginning 30th January. We hope that the postal service will have returned to normal by the time we are back to work. We thank you for your patience in advance.  This time last week we left the cold, wet and windy UK to fly to Mysuru and since then we have been having a great time here in the warmth of this fabulous city. I am sure I will never tire of India. The people are so incredibly friendly and the city is so vibrant and colourful that it is a designers paradise!   Last weekend was the Harvest Festival and so we were taken out to a village in the suburbs of Mysuru to see the festivities, which feature cows and oxen, which are sacred here, as an integral part. You can see from my images at the top of this email how adorned the animals are with many of them painted using turmeric and decorated with flowers and fruit.  Like most of India, Mysuru was hit badly by covid so Knit For Peace continue to do great work out here helping to combat poverty, focussing in particular on the health and education of women and children. We hope to visit some of the projects before we go home next week. If you want to find out more about the work of Knit For Peace and receive any information about future trips, please head over the the KFP website by following this link. By the way - I learnt just before we came away (via Michael Portillo's Great Indian Train Journeys series) that the updated name for Mysore is Mysuru, so please excuse the fact that within this email I have used a few different ways of referring to this great city!   The Getting Started information and the first 2 patterns for my Spirit of Flora Crochet Along were published in Inside Crochet Magazine on January 5th. The next pattern, which I have called Merton Abbey will be featured in the next issue of the magazine which will be available in February. It has been really exciting seeing versions of the first few crochet blocks out in the wild over the last couple of weeks and I am particularly pleased to see that so many of you are embracing the stash diving advice and are creating unique projects. The dedicated Facebook Group now has almost 3000 members and you can find it by following this link.  Since Christmas I have been working on a new version of the blanket project, which features a more random layout. This new version also has an alternative edging too, which I designed with William De Morgan's more intricate 'Arabesque' border tiles in mind. I know from the Facebook group that many crocheters are starting to join their motifs together using the blanket layout that Inside Crochet have shared sneaky peek images of within the magazine. However, if you are working through the project it might be an idea to keep an open mind in these early stages as you may decide on your own blanket layout or might even want to make an alternative project such as a bag, a cushion or a shawl, ideas for which will all be featured in up-coming magazine issues.   We have had such an amazing response to the Emma Ball & Janie Crow Collection already and I cannot wait to share more items from it over the next few months.  Some stock items are now live on the website ready for you to take a look. We have stitch markers, note pads and small note-lets as well as the tin items for you to choose from. More items from the collection, such as tote bags, project pouches and mugs, will come into stock in the early spring. You can check out our YouTube video where Emma and I talk about the collection here and I have also posted our live chat from a few weeks ago on our Instagram Feed.  Andy and I are already looking forward to exhibiting at Yorkshire Yarn Festival in early March. The show organiser, Sophie from Botanical Yarns, has lined up some really fabulous fellow exhibitors and I will feature as the guest at the Saturday evening craft night event where I will be doing a short presentation and Q&A session.  Tickets are still available for the 4th & 5th of March and you can purchase them in advance by following this link. Tickets for workshops are also still available and you can find more information by following this link and clicking on the menu.  he Janie Crow team have been busy getting ready for a new feature that we have imaginatively called 'Friday Motivation' over the last few weeks. We originally thought we would create 'Motivational Monday' emails but decided that the feature might be better suited to social media as we head into the weekend - a time when many more of us are able to dedicate a little bit of our precious time to a bit of TLC.   Our Friday Motivation posts will feature on our Instagram feed every Friday (funnily enough) so do look out for them over the forthcoming weeks. Emma has created a lovely Friday Motivation post today that features out in the wild images of the Spirit of Flora CAL and talks about stash busting. Take a look by following this link.   We are very fortunate to have a day trip to an Elephant sanctuary, a coffee plantation and a golden temple lined up for tomorrow and then on Sunday we will be visiting one of the projects funded by the Charities Advisory Trust. I will be slipping my crochet hook into my travel bag as I think we have quite a lot of time on the road ahead of us which could be valuable crafting time! With the weather in the UK decidedly chilly I am sure that many of you will be staying close to home for the next couple of days. I hope that what ever you have planned that you have a smashing weekend and that you are able to stay warm. I will be back in a couple of weeks with a quick catch up email when I hope to bring you up to date with news of new projects. Sending much love from India! Janie x   I hope that you have enjoyed a fabulous Festive Season and that you are safe, happy and healthy as we take our first few steps into 2023. I am just popping into to wish you a very Happy New Year and to thank you for all your incredible support over the last 12 months. 2022 was an amazing year for us. It was a year full of changes as we got used to working from home and getting back out in the world after the pandemic. We have also been part of lots of exciting projects and events and I am very proud of the crochet designs I have created over the course of the year too. Our social media presence has really grown, with our followers on Instagram almost doubling and our YouTube Channel and Facebook page reaching more accounts than ever before. As we head into 2023 we have a lot to look forward to with the first patterns for my Spirit of Flora CAL being the very first event in our new calendar, closely followed by our workshop in Mysore, India, in less than two weeks time. I am very excited about what the new year has in store and hope that you will feel inspired to join in with crochet projects or come along and say hello at shows and events over the forthcoming months. Janie Crow wouldn't be where it is today without the support of wonderful people like you and the incredible crafting community that we are all a part of. I hope that our solidarity in an ever changing world and our allegiance to the joys of our craft will continue into 2023 and that the New Year will bring us all feelings of mindfulness, relaxation and accomplishment, which in turn will lead to creative fulfilment and a sense of inner peace and positivity. Happy New Year!   We are so excited that today sees the retail launch of the Emma Ball & Janie Crow Collection. We have had such an amazing response to the collection already and cannot wait to share more items from it over the next few months.  Some stock items are now live on the website ready for you to take a look. We have stitch markers, note pads and small note-lets as well as the tin items for you to choose from. More items from the collection, such as tote bags, project pouches and mugs, will come into stock in the early spring. You can check out our YouTube video where Emma and I talk about the collection here and I have also posted our live chat from a few weeks ago on our Instagram Feed.   The Getting Started information and the first 2 patterns for my Spirit of Flora Crochet Along project will be published in Inside Crochet Magazine on January 5th. You can find more information by following this link.      It has been a bit of an odd week here at Janie Crow. We started the week with a huge snow shower that left us with thick ice and freezing conditions for the rest of the week. Low temperatures (currently -5 here as I write this) have made it difficult to keep my crocheting fingers warm, so I have been doing quite a lot of stuff on my PC, like catching up with emails and pattern checking, but we have also been getting ready to reveal our fabulous new collaboration, which you can read about lower down.  Yesterday saw the final instalment of the Glad Tidings Wrap Advent CAL. Thank you to all those of you who took part - I hope you enjoyed it and that you are pleased with your wrap. The pattern has now been archived on Ravelry as the CAL was just 15 days long, but don't worry if you are not up to date with your wrap as the patterns will stay on Ravelry for everyone who signed up before there 15th. Emma and Steph have been working hard on the collated pattern and we will be releasing it again as a single pattern next year. I have been working on the projects that I will be taking to Mysore with me in January and am also creating a new colourway of my Mystical Lanterns project, so I have lots to keep my fingers occupied in front of the TV in the evenings. It has been really cold here, so we have not been venturing very far. The settee is such a lure at this time of year! We will be 'breaking up' from work next Wednesday the 21st December and will be returning on the 4th January, so I am looking forward to a nice break. I have lined up quite a few projects to work on while I am away from my desk and particularly hope to finish my knitted tank top that has been a work in progress for almost a year! The video to accompany Part 8 of the Sunshine and Showers blanket project will be posted on our YouTube channel next week, so do look out for that if you have been following along.  I feel very honoured to have been asked to join Jamie and Merion of The Love Crafts Show Podcast for a chat. The recorded programme will go live on Spotify on Tuesday next week (the 20th December) if you fancy tuning in. If you haven't listened to the podcast before I urge you to give it a listen - its a great programme to craft along to and we chatted about lots of crochet related stuff!  We have been getting lots of attention on Instagram lately, especially since we launched the teaser images of the new Spirit of Flora CAL and I have finally got my head around creating (very basic) Reels! This week I posted the image above of some fabulous bunting my friend Rosemary made using the Mystical Lanterns blanket pattern as the basis. Rosemary started making the bunting while we were away in France on a workshop recently and she added a border with a picot edge and little elephant charms and bells to make it extra special - isn't it fabulous! This post has had more than 11k views on Instagram, which is just amazing! I have recently joined an organisation called A C I D (Anti Copying In Design) and so my website and this newsletter now carry their logo and copyright statement. Janie Crow patterns will be updated with the logo over the next few months, so if you have a download pattern in your Ravelry library you may find an email alert to let you know that the pattern has had an update.   We have been keeping a really big secret, but now the cat is out of the bag! Emma Ball has been designing fabulous accessories for the craft world for the last two decades and is well known for her signature style of hand painted birds and animals placed within hand knitted backdrops. Emma’s company now supply many stockists across the UK and overseas with quirky gifts, stationery, homeware, textiles, and greeting cards. With a history of creating limited edition art prints, Emma not only produces her products using her own designs, but also those of other artists so that she can offer pieces to suit many tastes. I am really excited to reveal that I am the latest artist to join this list. Emma has used images of my crochet pieces to create some fabulous items including many of the signature things we have all come to know and love her for, such as project bags and totes, tins, stitch markers, notelets, and cards. Items from the collection will be revealed over the next few weeks and stockists will be able to start ordering them to sell at retail in the New Year. Emma and I will be busy posting images and information on our social media channels, so do look out for more information soon. We are incredibly proud of this collaborative collection and we hope that you will love it too! We recorded a video interview this morning which we will post on our YouTube channel next week so please look out for that and follow us on social media if you want to find out more. You can find Emma's web site here and her Instagram feed here.   As you may already know, we have released some teaser images of my new CAL Spirit of Flora over the last couple of weeks along with some advanced information about the project. The images have been very popular on social media and I am so pleased to know that so many of you are hoping to follow the crochet along in the new year. The first pattern will be published in Inside Crochet magazine in January. You can find more information about the project over on the website and I have posted some further information about yarn and tension over on my blog. If you want to purchase a yarn starter pack we still have amore than 20 in stock on the web site. Please note that these will not be dispatched until 6th January. Working with Stylecraft Yarns and Inside Crochet Magazine is an absolute joy and it is wonderful to have so much support from them. I am sure you will agree that the images taken at Emery Walker's House in Hammersmith are fabulous - there will be many more to come over the forthcoming months.    The design of my new crochet along was inspired by the work of ceramicist William De Morgan who was a member of the Arts and Crafts Movement. You can find out more about William and his wife Evelyn, who was a renowned Pre-Raphaelite artist by following this link to the De Morgan Foundation.   Sarah Hardy, Director of the De Morgan Museum, has been incredibly helpful over the last couple of months and has given me permission to use quite a few images from the collection including the one above of one of William's tile designs and the beautiful painting 'Flora' created by Evelyn in 1894. The painting, inspired by Botticelli’s Primavera, was made entirely in Florence and is a celebration of the city and its Renaissance artists.  When the nights are really cold and frosty I am very lucky to be able to curl up on the settee with my crochet for a warm and cosy evening. I know that I am in a very privileged position to be able to do this and often find myself thinking about those who are not so fortunate, especially those who are displaced or homeless, at this time of year.  Gift giving also comes from this point of privilege, so if you are in a position where you can find a little extra money, I urge you to make a donation to our two chosen charities this festive season. We are supporting UNHCR, who tirelessly support refugees the world over, and CRISIS who support the homeless. I know it's a tough time for many with all that is going on with energy bills and the cost of living, but even the smallest donation will help these worthy causes.  Tuesday 20th December You can listen to an interview with me on The Love Crafts Show Podcast Thursday 5th January First Instalment Spirit of Flora CAL - Inside Crochet Magazine Sunday 19th & Monday 20th February Stitches Trade Show NEC Birmingham Saturday 4th & Sunday 5th March Yorkshire Yarn Festival Thursday 23rd & Friday 24th March Janie Crow in the Crochet Lounge - The Stitch Festival Saturday 22nd & Sunday 23rd April Wonderwool Yarn Festival   Despite our far flung locations here in the UK my little Janie Crow team managed to all collide with Andy and I in the same place at the same time last Friday for our little festive do! We had a lovely evening, although it all went far too quickly. It was a real treat to finally catch up in the flesh rather than chat via WhatsApp, email or Zoom.   If you are wondering who everyone is, the top image is of me with Emma, who helps me with Instagram and is responsible for liaising with our fabulous Graphic Designer, Steph, to produce our patterns. Emma is relatively new on board and has already been a bit of a God send to me as she now does a lot of our YouTube tutorials and most of my step-by-step photography. In the second image Sarah is on the left and Gemma is on the right hand side. Sarah is responsible for putting the wording of my patterns into the Janie Crow style and is an excellent proof reader. She also deals with our pattern queries and comes along to help us at shows. Some of you may have met her at events and so you already know what a lovely human being she is! Gemma is responsible for our Facebook posts and she looks after our Etsy and Ravelry stores too. Gemma has recently done a fabulous job posting the Glad Tidings Wrap patterns and is another real asset to us here at Janie Crow. I am so thankful to have these amazing ladies in my life! As life has once again been pretty hectic over the last couple of weeks I am looking forward to a relatively quiet weekend. I am off to a carol concert with my Mum this evening but have very few other plans. We still have a few festive decorations to put up as we have not been able to put anything outside yet due to the snow! I will be back in your mail box on Monday 2nd January and hope that you all keep well and safe between now and then. Thank you for all your incredible support in 2022 - you're all amazing! Janie x 'Winter, a lingering season, is a time to gather golden moments, embark upon a sentimental journey, and enjoy every idle hour.' John Boswell   With the last postage dates before Christmas looming I have popped into your inbox with a list of lovely things that I think would make the perfect gift, either for a friend, a loved one, or just for you!   SPIRIT OF FLORA - STARTER PACK     INDIGO AND CRIMSON DREAMS BLANKET KITS     PERSIAN TILES - SANDALWOOD BLANKET KIT DELLA Q MAKERS RANGE The Della Q range of makers accessories are a stylish way to carry around all you need to knit or crochet on the go! I have made my mini messenger my go-to bag for everyday as, not only can I fit my every day items into it, but I can also pack in my yarn and hooks. With pockets, yarn guides and cutters an integral part of the bag, and stitch markers also added in, the bag provides all I need to craft on the go!  DELLA Q SADDLE BAG  DELLA Q MINI MESSENGER BAG  DELLA Q MAKERS BACK PACK  DELLA Q MAKERS ROLL TOP BAG  DELLA Q KNITS SACKS (PAIR) FESTIVE DECORATIONS TO MAKE If you have a little bit of spare crafty time and some left over odds and ends of yarn in your stash maybe you would like to have a look at all the festive decoration patterns we have in store. You can choose a paper copy or, if you want to opt for a download version, you can visit the Janie Crow stores on Ravelry and Etsy.  BEADED CROCHET DECORATIONS  FESTIVE DECORATIONS  TWINKLE BUNTING  TWINKLE BUNTING  FESTIVE MINI STOCKINGS  My friend Rosemary made this fabulous bunting using the Mystical Lanterns Blanket pattern. Isn't it wonderful! Rosemary used bells and little elephant charms to make it so special. SMART ACCESSORIES   I just love the Cohana thread snips and itsy bitsy, teeny weeny scissors we have in stock. The thread snips make the best present for any crafter and come in a choice of colours in a lovely presentation box. The mini scissors are just adorable and are perfect for travelling - be sure to take a look at all the images on the web site before ordering so that you are aware just how tiddly they are!  We have a few other smart accessories in stock, such as pendant embroidery scissors and JUL shawl pins. Check out our accessories page for more information.    THINKING OF OTHERS When the nights are really cold and frosty I am very lucky to be able to curl up on the settee with my crochet for a warm and cosy evening. I know that I am in a very privileged position to be able to do this and often find myself thinking about those who are not so fortunate, especially those who are displaced or homeless, at this time of year.  Gift giving also comes from this point of privilege, so if you are in a position where you can find a little extra money, I urge you to make a donation to our two chosen charities this festive season. We are supporting UNHCR, who tirelessly support refugees the world over, and CRISIS who support the homeless. I know it's a tough time for many with all that is going on with energy bills and the cost of living, but even the smallest donation will help these worthy causes. Janie x   It has been such an exciting week here at Janie Crow as we have kicked off the Glad Tidings Wrap crochet along and launched the preview images of my next blanket CAL, Spirit of Flora. It has been so great to see your reactions to both projects and I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you so much for all your incredible support.  I have a few things to tell you about today, including a bit more information about both crochet along projects mentioned above, so I hope you have 5 minutes spare to catch up with all things Janie Crow.   As I have said already, we released some teaser images of my new CAL Spirit of Flora yesterday along with some advanced information about the project. The images went down a storm and I am so incredibly relieved to hear that so many of you like the look of the design, which is (another one) based on the work of a member of the Arts and Crafts Movement. You can find more information about the project over on the website and I have posted some further information about yarn and tension over on my blog. If you want to purchase a yarn starter pack we still have a few in stock on the web site. Working with Stylecraft Yarns and Inside Crochet Magazine is an absolute joy and it is wonderful to have so much support from them. I am sure you will agree that the images taken at Emery Walker's House in Hammersmith are fabulous - there will be many more to come over the forthcoming months.   I have spent this week catching up with some of the less exciting aspects of my working life, such as doing my accounts, pattern checking and having a little tidy up in the studio, but I am looking forward to launching into some new design work next week. I have the project for my workshop with Knit for Peace to prepare, so that will be the first thing on my list. If you fancy joining me in India for what will probably be my last visit to the wonderful Green Hotel in Mysore, you can find more information by following this link. It is a really good feeling to be at home again after a busy couple of weeks of shows and workshops. It is a full six weeks before we head away to India for the workshop in Mysore, so I am looking forward to a slightly calmer time in the lead up to the New Year. I can't quite believe that we are less than a month away from 2023 and that I am beginning to fill up my new calendar with plans and commitments! Apart from our trip to India we have a few more workshop dates in the diary for next year and I am beginning to make more plans for events. We will be at the Yorkshire Yarn Festival the very first weekend in March. Early Bird tickets for this event are available now and you can find them by following this link or clicking on the image below. I will be hosting the craft night on Saturday 4th and am already really looking forward to the event - especially as there are some really great names within the list of fellow exhibitors.  We currently have a good stock holding of kits and yarn packs if you are looking for a new project to keep you busy over the festive period or want to add one to your gift list. If you head to our web store page here and scroll down to KITS AND YARN PACKS you can easily see what we have in stock. We have packs for Bloomsbury and Sussex Gardens in stock for the first time in quite a while and kits for the Sandalwood version of Persian Tiles will continue to be added to stock over the next week or so. STOP PRESS! Starter packs for the Spirit of Flora CAL are now on presale as we have sold out of our initial stock. The expected dispatch date for the packs is from next Wednesday the 7th December.  WEEKEND BARGAIN ALERT! For this weekend only we have reduced the price of the Crimson Dreams blanket kits by 15% so that you can save over £10. This is a limited offer on a first come, first served basis. Kits for Crimson Dreams will return to their retail price of £74.50 on Monday, so you may need to be speedy if you want top grab this deal!   As I have said already the Glad Tidings Advent CAL, has started this week, with the first set of patterns launching yesterday and the second set today. It isn't too late to join in and crochet along as the CAL will be released in daily parts via Ravelry until the 15th of December. If you haven't taken a look already, you can find lots more information about the project and what you will need to to do to get involved by following this link.  If you want to use yarns from your stash you will need those that work to a 4 ply weight. You can use as many or as few shades as you wish. Alternatively, if you want to treat yourself to some new yarn to make the wrap, we have partnered with 2 of our favourite indie yarn producers, Eden Cottage Yarns and The Knitting Shed and they can help you make some lovely colour choices to make an extra special project. The cost to join the CAL is just £6.95 and it will only be hosted via Ravelry. If you would rather not join the CAL, but like the look of the wrap and fancy making it in the future and not within the time frame of the CAL, the pattern will be available in an amalgamated form in the future - at the moment we are unsure what price point this will have. If you have read through the Getting Ready document and still have questions, then do get in touch by hitting reply. The document is available for free here and is also listed within the Ravelry project folder here if you want to sign up.  Over on Facebook we have been looking at the back catalogue of Crochet Along designs from the last few years and inviting our followers to share photos of their projects with us. We started by looking at the Monet inspired Lily Pond blanket and many of you told us that this was one of the first projects you made after learning to crochet and felt a huge sense of achievement as a result. For Vicky Wiltshire this was indeed the first real pattern she followed after learning to crochet and she even enlarged her version to fit her bed:  Emily Anne Tran has just finished making Lily Pond as a Christmas gift for her 87 year old father, who loves Monet's Waterlilies. What a beautiful photo and a beautiful gift!  After show casing Lily Pond projects, we turned our attention to Sunshine & Showers, which many of you are working on at the moment following the relaunch of the pattern to celebrate its 5th birthday this year! Susan Spicka made this blanket to gift to a friend and loved it so much that she has bought the yarn to make two more! She certainly made a great job of it:  Yvette Whitehouse is making a beautiful job of hers too:  The collection of videos to accompany the Sunshine & Showers pattern is growing each month and videos to help you with parts 1-7 are now available over on the Janie Crow YouTube channel here. When we looked at the Frida's Flowers CAL, Khay Dixon shared a photo of her very clever adaptation. She made a shawl which she then wore to a Frida Kahlo exhibition. Such a great idea and Khay says she has received lots of compliments on it, which is not surprising at all!  Thank you to everyone who took the time to share photos with us. We really do love seeing your versions of JC projects, particularly some of the amazing colourways that you put together for them.  As we dive headlong into the festive season, we love the idea of these knit and crochet Christmas postbox toppers, which will be forming part of a Christmas trail for children on the island of Guernsey this December. We have a feeling it might not just be the children taking part!   At this time of year, it's always nice to have a really comforting, warming evening meal and this Cheese and Tomato Potato Bake comes recommended by Gemma. She used fresh tomatoes, together with some sun-dried tomato paste to make the sauce and an extra mature cheddar for the cheese layers. So yummy!    I have had a slightly 'dodgy' ankle and foot this week, I think due in part to an ill fitting pair of boots, so I have had a whole day on the settee with my crochet and have been sitting down far more than usual. As my foot now appears to be slowly on the mend I am hoping to get out and about a little more over the weekend and hope to squeeze in a walk or two. I am thinking of putting up a few festive decorations over the next few days too, but it still feels a little early to go the whole hog and get the tree up. Maybe it's time for a bit of crochet bunting and a few lights and candles though - I love it when the house starts to feel festive! If you are planning your decorations and want to add in some pretty crochet things, don't forget we have lots of patterns (that are also great stash busters) on the website.  Last weekend we decided that instead of offering Black Friday deals we would create a Yellow and Blue Friday event and so promised to donate 20% of the income on pattern sales taken over Friday, Saturday and Sunday to our chosen charity UNHCR to help the people of Ukraine. I am really pleased to reveal that we raised a total of £156, which we have rounded up to a lovely donation of £200. Thank you so much to everyone who purchased patterns. I hope that wherever you are and whatever you have planned that you will have great weekend. Janie x    The weeks before the Christmas holiday can be great fun, but it is also a time when there is much to do and things can get a little stressful. During this period I love settling down on the settee in the evening with a crochet project and soon find that the rhythmic action of making the stitches calms my mind and helps me feel more settled, even after the most fraught days.  This project was originally designed for Jimmy Beans in the US and was released in December 2021. Now that the pattern has reverted to me, we have decided to relaunch it this year as our own Advent Crochet Along. We will be releasing a section of the pattern every day for 15 days, with the first pattern available on the 1st of December. If you decide to join you can expect to receive an email notification with a download link (via Ravelry) for each day's section of the pattern. At the end of the crochet along, we’ll send you the link for a complete pattern with all parts of the pattern combined into one document. You can find a free 'Getting Ready' download document, which includes more information on yarn, hooks and equipment, as well as a more in-depth explanation of how the CAL works and what you need to do to join in, by following this link. Emma recently posted a great reel on Instagram where I talk about there yarn requirements for this project, so if you fancy a bit of stash diving or are still a bit unsure of what yarn you need, do check out this video for more information. If you feel ready to sign up for the CAL you can follow this link to Ravelry where you can also find the 'Getting Ready' information as the first document within the download set. Signing up via Ravelry will give you access to all parts of the pattern from 1st to 15th December and the amalgamated final pattern once the CAL is over. If you don't want to work through this project as a CAL, but do fancy making this lovely shawl, we will be releasing the pattern as a paper brochure and as a download via Ravelry and Etsy. Please note that the full pattern might be available at a higher price. Patterns will be available in UK & US terms. I hope that you fancy joining in and that if you do, working through the Glad Tidings Wrap over the first couple of weeks of December will help create some calm in your life and that the result, which could make the perfect festive gift, will bring you much joy too.  I had the most amazing day when Claire, Leanne and I did the shoot for my new crochet along project at Emery Walker's House in Hammersmith. It really was the most incredible location, crammed full of Arts and Crafts Movement furniture and textiles as well as the most beautiful original features.   The new CAL is coming soon and I cannot wait to show you some of the reveal images on the 1st December when we and other Stylecraft stockists will also have starter packs available for the project. This CAL is a little different to my previous designs, with more of an emphasis on crocheters creating their own unique designs rather than following mine to the letter. I think it will be incredibly exciting, especially as I will also be encouraging you to stash dive and create alternative colour combinations. The CAL will be published in monthly pieces over the course of a whole year in Inside Crochet magazine starting in January, so do look out for subscription offers and more information very soon.  Sarah and I had a fabulous day out last week visiting Leighton House in London's Holland Park. The building was the home to Victorian artist Lord Leighton and it includes the most amazing decor, including the stunning 'Arab Hall', which features incredible tile panels and beautiful mosaics.   It has certainly been a month for seeing a wealth of surface design inspiration as Andy and I were also treated to a visit to the Cathedral in Bordeaux as we popped in on the last day of my recent workshop trip to France. The hand painted pillars and wall panels really were fabulous and I am sure the colours will be very influential on my future palette choices as they were just so stunning.    I am writing this from Harrogate as Andy has a stand at The Knitting & Stitching Show. We are not here with our Janie Crow hats on, but rather to exhibit Andy's hooks, needles and accessory stock. We have had a really big sort out at our storage units and have also brought along lots of reduced yarn, so if you are attending the show and are looking to nab a few yarny bargains do come along and visit us on stand YV14. This week I have been working on the project for our very last workshop of the year, which will take place in Bournemouth next week. Once that project is complete I will start to sort out the project for my workshop in Mysore, India in January. There are still some places on this incredible trip and you can find more information lower down this email.  We have had an amazing reaction to the patterns and kits for my Indigo and Crimson Dreams blanket, which originally featured as a crochet along project in Inside Crochet Magazine and I am so grateful to all of you who have shown so much positivity towards the design. We have added a couple of helpful videos that Emma has shot to help with a couple of the more tricky bits of the design. You can find these over on our YouTube channel. When I appeared on Yarn Lane TV a couple of weeks ago I demonstrated the heart motif and how to make the Half and Half Granny motif - something that we have not shown in our own videos. You can find the recording of the show by following this link. The demo comes about out an hour and 15 mins in. I was lucky enough to be on the show for 2 hours, so you will also find other demonstrations within the same video, including surface crochet and how I make crochet leaves.  You can find kits for both colour ways, (Indigo and Crimson) by following this link and the 24 page paper pattern brochure by following this link. Download patterns are available via Etsy and Ravelry. You can find more information about this project and all links on the website page here.  We have a few new projects for there Festive Season. My Twinkle Bunting pattern (shown below) was released during the first week of November and I have already reminded you about the Advent CAL, The Glad Tidings Wrap, which will take place over the first couple of weeks of December.  We have seen a bit of a run of sales for Christmassy things. We have quite a choice now including the Festive Decorations, Beaded Decorations and Festive Mini Stockings - click on the images below for more information. All are great stash busters!     Are you looking for something fun and a tad quirky for you and your family members to enjoy over the Christmas holidays? If you are a bit tired of the usual board games and party tricks, then how about taking a look at the Knit For Peace Party Kits.  Knit For Peace say: 'It comes in a box, crammed with yarn, needles, hooks, haberdashery and notions. Curated by textile artist Eliza Kenan, no two kits are alike. The Party Kit is all that’s needed for a fun filled get together with friends and neighbours (enough to keep 12 people crafting at the party!) There are activities for a wide range of skill levels and it provides the perfect excuse for getting in touch with old friends – invite them to your craft party! The perfect gift for anyone who loves knitting and crafts.' Kits cost £125 and KFP will waiver the £10 postage fee for any Janie Crow customers. Only available in the UK. Click here for more information - all proceeds go to the charity.  There are still places on my knitting and crochet workshop in Mysore, India in January with Knit For Peace. If you have been thinking about joining me, then I suggest you don't hesitate too much longer as booking will close very soon due to the length of time needed to apply for a visa.  The trip is almost 2 weeks long and all meals, trips to the charity's projects and workshops are included in the cost of the trip. You can find more information by following this link.  The video that accompanies Part Seven of my Sunshine and Showers blanket pattern is live on our Youtube channel here.  The patterns for each part of the CAL, which are split into 12 pieces, are available for just 95p each with the 'Getting Ready' document available to download for free here. You can find more information about the project by following this link. Yarn packs for the project (which is shown above centre right) are available via the website here. We also have kits in stock for the Primavera version of my Frida's Flowers blanket which is shown alongside the original version to the left.  We managed to secure another delivery of yarn to make kits for my Sandalwood version of Persian Tiles. The kits will be added to the website (as we build them) next week, from Wednesday onwards.   Sarah has recommended this recipe for Banana Bread which she made in her slow cooker. She says it was really yummy!    We will be at the show in Harrogate for the whole weekend, but I am hoping I might be able to squeeze in some time to take a wander around the town at some point. Harrogate is such a lovely place with some really impressive buildings and fab shops. It is especially lovely in the lead up to Christmas when everything is wonderfully festive! We have a couple of days at home next week and then we will be off to Bournemouth on Thursday for our final workshop of the year, so it is busy, busy, busy! I have to admit I am looking forward to a bit of a rest in December. I really enjoy these weeks in the lead up to Christmas and especially like catching up with friends and family over the festive period. I hope that whatever you have planned for the forthcoming days and weeks that you are able to enjoy a bit of down time too. We are so grateful to all those of you who follow our feed on Instagram. We have reached more than 80k followers this week, which is just incredible. I would like to thank Emma for all her help with Instagram and Gemma who does such a great job on the Janie Crow Facebook page - another of our social media platforms which is gaining followers all the time. I leave you with a link to watch the John Lewis Christmas Advert just in case you haven't managed to see it yet. I think its another cracker! Janie x   It is feeling decidedly chilly here in North London today and, after a very wet week, where the rain has seemed incessant at times, I have found myself indoors with my crochet quite a large proportion of the time. This is the time of year when I often feel inspired to work on new projects, so I have been busy trying to get myself organised for the forthcoming months. With autumn very definitely knocking at the door, I have been enjoying immersing myself in the world of lovely crochet to cheer myself up! I have quite a lot to tell you about this week including news of our Advent CAL, the Glad Tidings Wrap, which launches today. Gemma has also added in some fun things to this week's Quick Catch Up email, including her Facebook round up, her 'Words From The Web' piece and a lovely autumnal recipe. I hope you have five minutes to spare to catch up with all things Janie Crow...    Here at Janie Crow we have been getting increasingly excited this week about the release of the Glad Tidings Advent CAL, which will start on the 1st December and run through to the 15th. The patterns for the CAL will be released in daily parts via Ravelry and you can find lots more information about the project and what you will need to to do to get involved by following this link.   The wrap was originally designed for Jimmy Beans in the US and featured as their Craftvent CAL this time last year. Since then we have been working on the pattern in order to put it into the Janie Crow style and split it into easy to follow parts that will be released daily. We have also used this time to make some new versions, with my lovely test group making the wrap using yarns they found by rummaging through their stashes.  With almost 4 weeks to go before the first part of the pattern is released via Ravelry on the 1st of December you have plenty of time to source your yarn. If you want to use yarns from your stash you will need those that work to a 4 ply weight. You can use as many or as few shades as you wish. Alternatively, if you want to treat yourself to some new yarn to make the wrap, we have partnered with 2 of our favourite indie yarn producers, Eden Cottage Yarns and The Knitting Shed and they can help you make some lovely colour choices to make an extra special project. The cost to join the CAL is just £6.95 and it will only be hosted via Ravelry. If you would rather not join the CAL, but like the look of the wrap and fancy making it in the future and not within the time frame of the CAL, the pattern will be available in an amalgamated form in the future - at the moment we are unsure what price point this will have. We are planning to post a lot more information on our social media platforms over the forth coming days and weeks, so if you are on Facebook or Instagram do take a look. If you have read through the Getting Ready document and still have questions, then do get in touch by hitting reply. The document is available for free here and is also listed within the Ravelry project folder here if you want to sign up.  I had a lovely time celebrating Yarn Lane TV's second birthday party and felt incredibly touched to have been given 2 hour long slots on the show on Wednesday. During the first hour I chatted about my Indigo and Crimson Dreams blankets and demonstrated how to make the half and half granny square and the love heart. You can find the show archived on the Yarn Lane web site here.  After the lovely Stuart Hillard had recorded his hour-long show, where he talked about his fabulous Head Over Heels yarns, I appeared again to talk about Magic Circles, Mexican Diamonds, Persian Tiles and Frida Primavera. I demonstrated how to join pieces of crochet together and how to work surface crochet as well as how to make a crochet leaf. You can find the video for the show here.  On Tuesday we released our new festive pattern 'Twinkle Bunting'. I love how decorating the house at Christmas time brings back so many family memories. We have some decorations that date back quite a few generations and I especially like these old pieces. When setting out to design this bunting I wanted to create some crochet motifs that echoed the shape of our precious vintage Christmas tree baubles. I have added beads, bells and little 'shisha' mirrors to add a touch of sparkle and I am so pleased with the results.  The pattern for the bunting is written with three classic shades in mind - Navy, Mustard and Grey, but you could raid your stash for multicoloured left-overs to create a very different, vibrant look as in the image above. You can find more information by following this link and you can find the 8-page paper brochure pattern here. You can also find the download version of the pattern (which is in UK terms) on Ravelry and Etsy.  I had a great time in France last week tutoring a workshop where the group focussed on making some festive decorations using a collection of my patterns, including the new Twinkle Bunting. The fabulous group of crocheters came up with some really lovely ideas, such as wreaths and hanging decorations. You can find a few images on my Instagram page by following this link.  If you fancy having a go at making your own decorations too and want to use any of my patterns as the basis for your designs, just click on the images to be taken to the pattern pages. If you share your makes on Instagram, please use the hashtag #janiecrow so that we can see what you've been up to - we just love seeing your makes out in the wild!  We had a show & tell a couple of weeks ago over on the Facebook page and as usual we loved seeing all your lovely makes. You showed us your many versions of The Fruit Garden Blanket, as well as Magic Circles and Mystical Lanterns, but two of our favourites were this gorgeous Fox Lovey made by Yvonne Teunisson and a fabulous Christmas cushion cover made by Mary Woodall Cude.  We think we have found the pattern for the Fox Lovey here and have found the Noel cushion cover pattern for sale on Etsy via Two Little Birds here.   For those of you who are knitters, the wonderful charity Woolly Hugs are helping a Care Leavers project with their request for hat and scarf sets for young care leavers. The sets are given to care leavers (from foster and care homes) who are provided with Christmas dinner by Care Leavers Christmas Dinners. The deadline for posting is 21st November. You can find all the information at the Woolly Hugs website via this link or click on the image below  We absolutely love this story about Diana Baker, aged 77, who took on the amazing challenge of a wing walk on a 1940's biplane to raise money for a dementia charity. An anonymous crafter has made a crochet postbox topper in her honour. We think they are both amazing!  Most of us will have seen the images of Tom Daley knitting and crocheting between dives at the Olympics but this article delves a little deeper into what role yarn crafts have played in his life over the last few years. It's an interesting read. You can follow Tom's yarny tales over on Instagram @madewithlovebytomdaley.   At this time of year Gemma is lucky enough to have access to a plentiful supply of windfall cooking apples and this is one of her favourite recipes to make in the slow cooker.  You can leave out the cranberries if you're not keen and a garlic clove or two makes a good addition. It's a great accompaniment to all sorts of meals and you definitely don't have to wait until Christmas day to make it!  I am looking forward to my first full weekend at home in a while. I had a good clear up in the front garden last Sunday as we had a deluge of fallen leaves and I wanted to make it look nice for Halloween. I decorated the little iron table that sits outside our front door with a lantern, some cute little squashes and lots of clementines. We really enjoyed greeting all the little 'Trick or Treaters' who visited us, despite the rain! There are more leaves to clear up this weekend so I am hoping it stays dry long enough for me to do the same job all over again!  I was really pleased to finish my hand knitted 'orchid' sweater while I was away in France last week and think it will make a very cosy addition to my wardrobe. I have made a pact with myself to finish some of my WIPs before starting anything new, so have returned to working on a slip-over made in Rico yarn that I started at the beginning of the year. You can find the pattern I am working from here if you fancy taking a look - it is a really simple knit. If you want to watch something uplifting as we head into the weekend then I suggest you take a look at this video of an awesome teacher who has created an individual greeting for each of his students. What a guy! And - if you fancy a laugh at some members of the animal kingdom, then why not take a look at the images selected for the comedy wildlife awards here. I think the one below is probably my favourite!  Oh - I almost forgot! Andy has been doing quite a lot of work on the website over the last week, updating our stock levels of kits and patterns. He has finally had time to add the Cohana range of snips and scissors to the store and update the stock levels of the items in the Della Q makers bag range. You can find the Cohana pages here and the Della Q listings here. I think these items would make great gifts, so if you are beginning to think about presents, either for yourself or for others, do take a look. I hope that whatever you have planned for your weekend that you will have a lovely time. I will be back in 2 weeks with my November newsletter, but I hope that you will keep up to date with all that is going on here in the meantime via our social media channels. Do get in touch if you have any questions or things you want to show us. Sending yarny hugs.... Janie x    It's already a really busy week here at Janie Crow and it's only Tuesday! I know I usually pop into your inbox on a Friday, but I am here today to let you know that my new pattern 'Twinkle Bunting' is now available. I love how decorating the house at Christmas time brings back so many family memories. We have some decorations that date back quite a few generations and I especially like these old pieces. When setting out to design this bunting I wanted to create some crochet motifs that echoed the shape of our precious vintage Christmas tree baubles.I have added beads, bells and little 'shisha' mirrors to add a touch of sparkle and I am so pleased with the results.  The pattern for the bunting is written with three classic shades in mind - Navy, Mustard and Grey, but you could raid your stash for multicoloured left overs to create a very different, vibrant look as in the image above. You can find more information by following this link and you can find the 8 page paper brochure pattern here. You can also find the download version of the pattern (which is in UK terms) on Ravelry and Etsy   I had a great time in France last week tutoring a workshop where the group focussed on making some festive decorations using a collection of my patterns, including the new Twinkle Bunting. The fabulous group of crocheters came up with some really lovely ideas, such as wreaths and hanging decorations. You can find a few images on my Instagram page by following this link.  If you fancy having a go at making your own decorations too, and want to use any of my patterns as the basis for your designs, just click on the images to be taken to the pattern pages. If you share your makes on Instagram please use the hashtag #janiecrow so that we can see what you've been up to - we just love seeing your makes out in the wild!    As I said already - it is a busy week here at Janie Crow and I have a big list of things to do, especially as I will be on Yarn Lane TV tomorrow morning at 9am and then again at 11am to celebrate the channel's birthday. I hope you will be able to tune in as I will be demonstrating some little crochet techniques and talking about some of my blankets, including my most recent blanket release Indigo Dreams. That's pretty much it from me for now, but I will be back in your inbox on Friday with a quick catch-up email that will include news of how you can join in our Advent CAL project the Glad Tidings Wrap.     We have had an amazing reaction to the patterns and kits for my Indigo and Crimson Dreams blanket, which originally featured as a crochet along project in Inside Crochet Magazine and I am so grateful to all of you who have shown so much positivity towards the design. This week we have added a couple of helpful videos that Emma has shot to help with a couple of the more tricky bits of the design. You can find these over on our YouTube channel.  You can find kits for both colour ways, (Indigo and Crimson) by following this link and the 24 page paper pattern brochure by following this link. Download patterns are available via Etsy and Ravelry. You can find more information about this project and all links on the website page here.  I had a great time at The Knitting & Stitching Show at Alexandra Palace here in North London last week. It was great to see so many of you and be out once again amongst fabulous yarny folk. Big thanks to the team at Stylecraft for allowing me to have a place on their stand. The show was the final one of the year for Janie Crow but we are looking forward to being at the show in Harrogate with Andy's hook, needle and accessory stock, so I hope to see some of you there too.  This week I have been putting the finishing touches to the block a month project which will feature in Inside Magazine from January next year. I am incredibly pleased with the way this design has turned out and hope that you will love it too! We will be doing the photography shoot for the project at Emery Walker's House in Hammersmith next week. If you take a look at the location you will see it is another house with an amazing Arts and Crafts Movement interior, so it will be no surprise to hear that the CAL design is another one inspired by my love of William and May Morris's artistic companions of the time. I can't wait to show you some of the motifs and explain exactly how we envisage this project working - I am so excited about it!  (c) Knitting Holidays in France I will be doing my final spot of tutoring of the year during the last week of October when we will be in France with a group of lovely crocheters at Sue and Culli's 'Knitting Holidays in France' venue near Bordeaux. I haven't done a workshop for Sue for many years - this will be my first time back in France for more than 5 years, so I am really looking forward to the trip. Look out for images on my Instagram feed while we are away.  We have a few new projects coming soon. My Twinkle Bunting pattern (shown above) will be released during the first week of November ready for the festive season and we will be releasing the information about our Advent CAL, The Tidings Wrap (shown below), which will take place over the first couple of weeks of December. The project is a great stash buster project and the result could make a fabulous gift too!  We have seen a bit of a run of sales for Christmassy things. We have quite a choice now including the Festive Decorations, Beaded Decorations and mini stockings - link on the images below for more information. All are great stash busters!   We will have yarn and bead packs for the original colour way of the beaded decorations in stock next week.   We are so grateful to all those of you who follow our feed on Instagram. We have reached more than 75k followers this week, which is just incredible. To celebrate reaching the number we have added a code for a 10% discount on all sales via the Janie Crow web site this weekend. Please follow us over on Instagram to find the code which will be in place until midnight Sunday.  I have been joining a large pile of crochet motifs into a big blanket this week. It has been the perfect project to keep me warm as it is definitely getting cooler by the day here in North London. I read a news article recently that said that sales of blankets has soared over the last few weeks and it made me feel very proud to think that my blanket designs might be keeping some of you warm this winter. We have a Sandalwood and Royal Garden blanket at the ready year round in the living room, but I am going to have a root around to pull out a few more so that we can all snuggle up and get cosy.  When designing a new project I tend to choose to use yarns that have a wool content as they not only give the yarn a good drape but they also make the blanket warmer. Stylecraft's Life DK has 25% wool content and the fabulous ReCreate DK, which is 100% recycled, has 40% wool.  I can't quite believe that I have been invited to tutor a knitting workshop with Stitchtopia in Peru! The workshop went live on the Arena Tours site a couple of weeks ago and there are now just 4 places left, so if you fancy joining me you can follow this link for more information.   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 really excited by the prospect of this incredible trip to Peru, a country that has a rich history of intricate knitting traditions. When we think of Peru we imagine bright colours of lush vegetation, foliage and flowers and the incredible surface pattern of costumes, jewellery and artwork as well as the breathtaking scenery and archaeological sites. I am sure this will be a truly inspirational trip and I am really looking forward to all that we will see and experience on this journey of a lifetime.  The video that accompanies Part Six of my Sunshine and Showers blanket pattern will go live on our Youtube channel here over the next few days.  The videos for parts one through to six are available for free on my YouTube Channel already. The patterns for each part of the CAL, which are split into 12 pieces, are available for just 95p each with the 'Getting Ready' document available to download for free here. You can find more information about the project by following this link.  We managed to send out most of our Sandalwood kits last week, but have a small number left to put together. These will be added to the web site early next week all being well. We have sent another yarn order to Select Yarns in the US and expect another batch of yarn to arrive with us next week.  We will try to get the kits in stock next week before we go to the workshop in France, so if you are waiting for a kit please keep checking the website as they are likely to go quickly once they are added to our stock.  I love green, leafy vegetables! I think kale, spinach, chard and cabbage are up there in my lists of favourite foods alongside cheese and chocolate, so I was really excited to try this recipe that accompanied our veg box last week.  I made this for lunch and cooked it on the hob, but I reckon it would be just as good done in the slow cooker, so will give that a go next time - it really was delicious!   I am pleased to be home for the weekend with not many plans after quite a few hectic weeks. Summer has already arrived with her lovely dog, Rocky and we are planning a weekend where we will not be venturing far from home. Tonight we are lining up an evening on the sofa after a rare take away treat from our local Thai restaurant. We will be scouring Netflix for a film perfect to accompany my knitting as I have set myself the challenge of completing a sweater in a month - the same amount of time that it will take participants to complete the Stephen West MKAL. I have started the Orchid Sweater by Georgia Farrell after seeing it on display at Black Sheep Wools a few weeks ago on our way to Blackpool.  I have a few crochet pieces to sort out ready for the shoot on Monday and will be scouring around the house for a few props to take along too. I really enjoy shoots and am so looking forward to seeing Emery Walker's House. Please send positive vibes for good weather so that we don't have too much trouble with the light! Next week is a little calmer for me now that my big crochet project is close to being completed. I am looking forward to formulating some new plans ready for the projects I have in mind to work on when I return from France. I really enjoy the buds of new design ideas and adore the early stages of a new design so I am really looking forward to the next few months as we lead up to Christmas. I hope that wherever you are and whatever you have planned, you are heading into a lovely few days over the weekend and into next week too. I will be back in your inbox in a couple of weeks time with a Quick Catch Up email. Sending yarny hugs.. Janie x  |
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