How to make a crochet baby shower blanket

On Saturday, I went to my best friends' baby shower! It was so much fun. We played games and ate lots of yummy vegan food, and she got lots of amazing gifts (like a baby grow that said "I'm glad to be out of there, I was running out of womb!)

I decided to make my gift for her after seeing a post on Pinterest for a crochet baby blanket. Here's the original link for a triple yarn baby blanket.

You use three strands of yarn (no wool for my vegan buddy!) for each stitch so it grows quite quickly and feels nice and chunky. I took a trip to Hobbycraft and bought some purple yarns in the sale. This turned out to be a bad idea as one ran out half way through and I couldn't get another ball! This blanket takes maybe 6 big balls of yarn?

 Make your starting chain about 35" / 90cm long so you have a nice wide blanket. I also used a 10mm crochet hook which is quite big.

The easiest way to learn how to crochet the single stitch is to watch a Youtube video. I know this because I spent AGES learning to crochet via a book ("Stitch and Bitch Crochet" by The Happy Hooker) and it was really tough. Crochet is easier to learn if you can see someone doing it!

I wish I had made mine a little bit wider but it didn't really matter. Then you just keep stitching until it grows to the length you want!

I did some of the crochet on my lunch hour at work!

Close up of the single crochet stitch.

At some point, you might need to weave in a new ball of yarn - I just tied a knot between the two pieces but this isn't a very aesthetically pleasing way of doing things! Youtube has some good videos of how to weave in the new colour or strand.

Half way through, I needed to weave in a different colour as I ran out of the thick, purple yarn - so I found a contrasting colour. The yarn was of a lighter weight though, so it did make the tension different. I had to do a border around the edge to make it stay square.....bit of a fail but it worked in the end!

Mixing in the new colour

The finished blanket!

I also bought a cute hat with ears, and a fluffy lion! The blanket did take hours to make but I was really pleased with it and it's inspired me to try and make some crochet cubes as a baby toy.

Can you crochet? Aren't handmade gifts just better?!

Steal her style - how to dress like the Made In Chelsea stars

I have a guilty pleasure - Made In Chelsea! For those of you who don't reside in the U.K, it's a reality tv show based in Chelsea, London.

The girls of MIC are super rich and super glamorous! They are always dressed in the latest styles so I thought I would give you some style tips you can try for yourselves.

1) Buy a hat
These girls really know how to rock a hat. Floppy hats, riding caps, bowler hats.....you name it, they've tried it.

Trilby, floppy, bowler...try them all!

Buy them from Topshop Asos and River Island

2) Invest in country casuals

Get your country goods from Joules Hunter Wellies and Barbour

3) Get furry in faux fur



Binky, Cheska, Caggie, Jamie and Millie rock the furs.

Try www.faux.uk.com and Asos


So, are you going to revamp your wardrobe Made In Chelsea style? I'm certainly going to be on the look out for a floppy, felt hat a la Millie Macintosh!

Everybody loves a kitten!

It's no secret that I love cats....if I could have a whole house full of them, I would. I don't know why we don't have those Japanese "cat cafes" where you can go buy a cuppa and stroke a cat at the same time. That would be heaven, wouldn't it?!

Unfortunately, I already have two and I don't think it's fair to them if I brought any more home. Thomas is very playful and photogenic where as Lily is a little bit more "controlled." She has perfected the disdainful look....

Thomas is just over a year old now - here's a visual of how he's grown:

A curled up cat is a cute sight!

I barely need to ask, but is anyone else obsessed with cats?! How many do you have?

My life - instagrammed!

Well hello sunshine!! Nice to see you at last.

I've had a gorgeous bank holiday weekend.....I've seen family and friends and even have a little bit of a tan. I'll let my snapshots tell the story:

 

This is my favourite picture from the weekend. That's my half sister on the left and my Nanna on the right - both enjoying their ice creams!

 

I enjoyed one too....

My other half pulled a grumpy face but don't be fooled! He had a good day too.

This lot escaped from the zoo!

 

We went to Portsmouth on Sunday where there were a lot of different events taking place. We took a walk along the seafront and the kids played at the fun fair.

Then, today, I met up with friends in town and sat in the park and mostly just enjoyed the sun! You never know how long it's going to last in this country!

 

I've got a busy week coming up - 4 days at work (including a late night to talk to some Scouts,) Chessington World of Adventures on Friday and my besties' baby shower on Saturday. I'll endeavour to blog but I'm not promising anything!

The joy of geometrics

My love affair with grey and yellow is still ongoing but I have a new crush - geometrics! I'm not sure where this trend originated from - I think it's a follow on from the chevron trend?

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, let me show you visually:

1) Fruit bowl £12    2) Ombre duvet cover £15 in double size
3) Bath mat £10   4) Towels from £4  All from Matalan

It basically involves geometric shapes (triangles, pentagons etc) usually in pastel colours being displayed on home accessories and wallpapers. And it looks gorgeous.


Obviously, you don't want pattern on every surface so pick a few key items - like a geometric rug and cushions - to stand out and keep everything else subtle but colour coordinated.




Keep it simple for maximum impact

I scoured the high street for you (what a tough task!) to find the best places for geometrics:

1) Matalan are calling it "Pastel Pop." This is geometric on a budget. You could redecorate a whole room for £50 with their collections!

2) John Lewis are calling it "Pioneer." This is the designer option..... There are some cheaper options (like this geometric picnic mug for just £2.50) but the majority of items are a bit more costly. Cushions are around £35 and the matching furniture will set you back by a few hundred pounds.

3) For wallpapers check out Graham and Brown for quality patterns, or if you're on a budget try B and Q for a range of retro styles.

4) Have you seen the Mini Moderns Buddha of Suburbia range? Lush. I'd like it all please.

The backgammon range from Mini Moderns

This is one trend I need in my life!  I'll be incorporating a few bits and pieces

 into my spare bedroom - will you?

Kindle surprise!

After much thought and deliberation (I'm not one to buy on a whim!) I decided to get myself a Kindle from Ebay. I managed to get the keyboard model for £50 with over 900 books on it!

I love to read and I had been using the Kindle app on my phone but I did find it annoying to have the glare of the sun on the screen in the summer.....Today, the sun came out for the first time in a decade and I took my new Kindle outside and felt very happy.

Kindle Keyboard with free case!

A retro armchair in the sun? Yes yes yes!

It's amazing how much better a little sunshine can make me feel. My retro upcycled armchair followed me into the garden and even my zombie skin got a little colour! That's how I spent my afternoon....



I kept my outfit casual and cool. First time this year for a white top! 

In other news, I've been getting out my biggest crochet hook (having been inspired by Pinterest) to make a blanket for my preggers friend. She's a vegan so I made a special effort to find yarn without wool in it. Easier said than done....

Crochet hook size 10mm

This blanket should be quite quick to make as it uses only the single stitch and 3 pieces of yarn as one thread - so it grows really quickly! I've been happily crocheting away whilst watching tv in the evenings.

Single stitch crochet

It's currently a bit bigger than this but I think I've got a while to go yet! Luckily, I've got the next 2 days off - if I don't get distracted by sun worshipping that is....

P.S I know that I've only been posting once a week recently....if the sun continues to shine then I'll have more to post. Pinky promise!



Top tips for saving money, budgeting and finding a bargain!

They say that you should write about what you know, well I know A LOT about saving money!

Everytime I watch Superscrimpers (a UK tv programme) I end up shouting at the screen! The tips are really obvious to me. The people on the programme are idiots. It's really not hard to live within your means and there is no excuse for over spending on your income. Here are my top tips for staying in the black:

1) Buy your clothes out of season
Some of my best bargains (limited edition Hunter festival wellies for £15!) have been bought at the "wrong" time of the year. I buy wool coats in summer and tea dresses in winter. Shops need to get rid of these items to sell the more seasonal options, so they are going to reduce them heavily to entice you in.



Is your piggy bank feeling the strain?

2) Shop around and put some effort in
I don't find all these bargains without a little elbow grease! It really helped when I worked in a shopping centre because I could visit some of my favourite shops daily to check prices. Now, I have a little charity shop next to my work place and I can look out for items they have discarded around the back of the premises. I love to upcycle!
 You do have to put in the hours in order to find bargains. Sign up to your favourite shops' email newsletters and chances are that they'll frequently let you know about sales and discount codes. Which brings me on to:

3) Discount code websites
We use these a lot. Especially if we go out for a meal. You can find discounted prices, get a free starter etc or find free delivery for your clothing orders. My favourites are Vouchercodes and Fashionbeans

Dollar signs might not be helpful
if you live in the UK!

4) Look for the signs
That's a bit cryptic isn't it?! What I mean by this - look out for clothing that has been grouped together on rails or merchandised sideways - chances are that the shop is ready to go into sale mode. Topshop and other Arcadia Group stores will write the sale price in pencil on their labels the day beofre the sale starts. If the item is going to be £15, they will write 0015 on the label.

5) Pick a day. any day
Certain restaurants will do special deals depending on what day it is. For example, Slug and Lettuce do half price food on a Monday and Wetherspoons have a discounted curry night on a Wednesday.
Also, bank holidays and Easter are a great time to go shopping. Most shops will do an extra discount on their stock to entice you out of the house!

6) Designer outlets
Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth is quite near to my house and also has some lovey restaurants so we can make a day of it. Sometimes, the stock is not great but every so often you can get a great deal. Paperchase is particularly good for discounted greetings cards and photo albums.


Is that enough for now? I have soooo many more tips to share with you but I don't want to overwhelm you! Bonus points if you've read even half of what's above and haven't just skim read the titles!
Let me know if there is a specific area you want help with.....

:)