Getting ready for round two!

Quick Catch Up
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Yay it is Friday once again! It has been a busy week here at Janie Crow - we are working on a new area of the web site and have some exciting things in store for you over the next few weeks so that has taken up a lot of my time this week. My motivation to crochet is still pretty poor, so I am hopeful that my crojo will return some time soon. I am trying not to think about it too much so that I don't over think it and make a problem for myself. I have been pretty consumed by working on the Stephen West MKAL hand knit project in the evenings and at the weekends so at least I have been a bit creative!

I discovered today that have been nominated within the Craft Influencer of the Year category of the Craft Business Awards once again. I was fortunate enough to win this award for 2020 and would love to do so again. If you would like to vote for me then click on this link or on the image below to be taken to the online voting forms.
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​This week I have a few things to tell you about and Sarah has been busy curating a couple of items for you too, so I hope you will stick with me for the next 5 minutes or so and catch up on all things Janie Crow.....
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Fruit Garden CAL - Take Two!

The Fruit Garden Crochet Along project will start all over again from next Tuesday (3rd November) and will run through to February 2021.Stylecraft and myself made the decision to re-run the project because so many people could not join in last time around due to circumstances surrounding the pandemic. 
 

Rather than being the ‘poor cousin’ to the first publication, I see the second release as the fabulous ‘after party’ to the main event; If you choose to join in with the CAL the second time around you can make the most of tips and hints from those who have already completed the project. You can also get ideas for alternative colour ways or layouts and you will have a wonderful project completed in time for the spring. I also feel that a second release will help support those who may have fallen by the wayside first time round - sometimes leaving a project and returning to it at another time can be a really good learning process and having more support going forwards is bound to lead to less disappointment and more completed projects.
The yarn substitution document for the new 'Love is Enough' colour way will go live on Tuesday and I have recorded a short video to accompany the release. You will need to download the original patterns plus the yarn sub document to work through the project. If you wish to make the blanket in one of the original colour ways or using yarns from your stash then you do not need the new documents.

You can find the introduction document for the Love is Enough colour way here and I do suggest that you take a look at the Getting Ready document too.

We had hoped to have some of the Naturals - Bamboo + Cotton kits on the web site for today, but we are still waiting for one shade of yarn to arrive. As soon as we have kits in stock again I will let you know. If you are looking for ideas for alternative colour combinations or want to use up yarns from your stash then why not take a look at the Stylecraft Yarns CAL Facebook page here.
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My ideas for using up apples!
Sarah Hazell

We have been really lucky to receive lots of free cooking apples. A friend dropped a bag round the other week and so I decided to make a Dorset Apple Traybake. I like a traybake because they are easier to cut and good for packed lunches! This is a simple but very delicious recipe. I used a gluten-free substitute self-raising flour so that everyone in the family could enjoy it and it worked really well. You can find the recipe by following this link or clicking on the image below. 

A couple of local people have been kind enough to put boxes of their excess apples out for others to help themselves to. So, on a couple of my morning dog walks, I have filled a bag with apples and come home to make compote. I have found it quite soothing to chop up apples and add them to a pan of melted butter and dark brown soft sugar as a way to start the day. Once cooked I have been adding Ground Sweet Cinnamon to the mix – not only does this taste good, the house smells amazing too!
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I must admit that I don’t follow any particular recipe, but if you are looking for ideas, here is one from Rachel Cooks to get you started and a sugar free, 3 ingredient, option is here via the minimalist baker.

We really enjoy it on our porridge in the morning.
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Halloween
Sarah Hazell

With Halloween this weekend I am sure that many of you will have been carving pumpkins, so we were really pleased to see this post from Peace with the Wild reminding us to use our resources wisely. 
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I must admit that I had never considered how many pumpkins are carved each year and was shocked to discover that more than half of the 24 million pumpkins carved in Britain will go to waste.
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I think this lovely illustration from @rachelraisin highlights some really interesting ways to use up your pumpkins as well as provide activities for children over half-term. Pumpkin Pie anyone?
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Instagram Favourite - Ridge & Furrow
Sarah Hazell
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I am not quite sure how I dropped across this feed, but I am really glad that I did! We love feeds that feature fabulous interiors here at Janie Crow and we enjoy making and finding things for our homes, whilst becoming more conscious of repurposing and reclaiming the craftsmanship of the past. 
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Ridge & Farrow are a husband and wife interior and exterior design team who ‘specialise in making spaces that are in keeping with their environment, whether that be inside or outside. They say that they...'like to make things that feel like they’ve always been there.’
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Not only does Elle Kemp share inspiring images of reclaimed and reinvented interiors, but I really enjoyed reading through some of her blog posts. In ‘Sustainable Style’ Elle discusses her concerns for the environment and how she feels she is not doing enough, which I am sure resonates with a lot of us. She goes on to talk about the small ways she is going to tackle this dilemma and the importance of having the conversation in the first place. I am looking forward to her future posts, especially on mending and altering clothes. 

With many of us working from home now you may also be interested to read her post on making a garden office.
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Online Workshops & Events
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Over the last week I have received a couple of emails that showcase online events that are perfectly suited to this time of year.

Selvedge Magazine have launched their Winter of Making events. To be honest I am not sure that my purse strings will stretch to any of these events as they tend to be pretty expensive (to say the least), but I am really interested in quite a few of them, especially the Swedish Embroidery Workshop. 
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​Anthropologie have also launched a range of workshops and events - these are a little more reasonably priced depending on which you choose. Summer and I quite fancy joining the calligraphy one, which seems a lovely way to pass 45 minutes, especially as it is only £5!
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The Big Walk For Shelter
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Here at Janie Crow we know that we are lucky to have a roof over our heads, cosy beds, yummy dinners and a healthy yarn stash to keep us warm through the winter months. We also know that there are thousands of people who are not so lucky.

With the colder months fast approaching we want to do something to help the charity Shelter look after some of those who will find themselves on the streets this winter. 
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Team Janie Crow will be taking part in a 10km walk on Thursday 10th December and we would love it if you would send us a small donation via our Just Giving page here. 

Every four minutes a household becomes homeless. 
For more information visit the Shelter web site here.
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​It's Nearly the Weekend!

​You may remember that at the end of last month I told you that I was planning to give up chocolate, crisps and booze for the month. Well in the end I didn't manage to completely swerve all 3 of these things, but I definitely managed to cut down on my consumption! I have had my first chocolate bar of the month today and have probably eaten less than half the number of crips that I usually would. I have also cut down on the wine drinking so I am feeling pretty virtuous! Sadly my abstinence has not led to the huge weight loss as | was hoping, but I do feel like I have a bit more energy and my skin is definitely better, so I plan to keep going! 

We had a fabulous walk in town last Sunday. We walked from Paddington along the canal to Little Venice and then along past London Zoo (where we saw the Warthogs by the side of the water), through Camden Town and ending up at Kings Cross. Thankfully the weather was incredibly kind so we had a lovely couple of hours.
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​The weather is not looking so good this weekend and so we will be sticking a bit closer to home. I have started working on a crochet jacket project designed by Jenny King. Andy has the kits for this project in a couple of colour ways on the Just Knots web site and I could not resist pinching one when they came into stock! 

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend. I will be back here next week, hopefully with some news of my festive patterns. 

Don't forget you can email us to let us know if you want any questions answered in next month's video Q&A. See you soon and take care....

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