Afternoon Tea

Well if this is a question you have asked yourself before take a look at this.

This is a scarf I started whilst sipping afternoon tea at the Old Deanery in Ripon where we spent a couple of days chilling recently.

I thought this would be a good example to show the difference blocking makes to a project so I have blocked half and left the other half it it’s just finished state so we will be able to make a direct comparison.

I have to admit the pinning part of blocking this took ages and the truth is that I ran out of pins at the halfway mark so had no choice than to do it in two stages. It was having to block all the little picot edging that used so many pins.

You can see the difference already but first I will need to spray it with water and leave it in place to dry so it can take on it’s new shape.

I have tried to take a photo to show how different it looks you can see very clearly from this image how curly the edges are without blocking.

And here a close up.

I loved this pattern, the lacy, delicate pattern looked so intricate but yet was actually quite simple to do. But now it is blocked I think it looks even more lovely.

Well, what do you think?

I had better get to work pinning out this second half before it will be fit for wearing! And then I am going to make a Beanie Hat to go with it.

How I block lace (knitthehellout.com)
finished a fun shawl! (notyouraveragecrochet.com)
First go at blocking! (yarn2.com)

‘Why can’t I find pot holders any more?” This is what I was asked recently whilst on a short break in Ripon.

The hotel owner saw me crocheting in the lounge and asked me this question, so when I got home I had a look online and found that there are many around but made by, and advertised amongst craft enthusiasts. I could not find any nice ones for sale in high street stores. Always keen to take on a new challenge I scoured my computers pages for some patterns and set to work to produce…….

I think that pot holders will really enhance that old fashioned english tradition of taking tea. At the The Old Deanery where we stayed in Ripon tea was wonderfully presented in silver tea pots with a pot of hot water and, yes really, sugar lumps, where do you see those today? We loved it. It was the perfect accompaniment to an hour of crafting (me) and reading (hubby) in the lounge before heading out to see the art exhibition in the Catherdral.

The hotel owner said she has lots more teapots but without the bakerlite handles so they get too hot to hold, hence the quest for pot holders. I added the loop so they could be hooked onto the lid of the teapot to be ready in place when the tea is suitably brewed and ready to pour.

So here we have a close up of each one, starting with Daisy, this pattern is available free from many sites but I got it from Bobbles&Baubles.com we are told that the pattern originates from a dutch lady but I could not find her to give the credit deserved.

Next is the Flower Petals design, I did find another pattern for this but found that I preferred using the Blooming Flower cushion version from Attic 24. I just did less rounds of course.

Then lastly is the Star Flower, this pattern I found here at FreecraftUnlimited.com . I think this is my favourite but then I touch the others and they all feel so nice in the hand I keep changing my mind.

These are all free patterns so go on give it a whirl, they are really quick to work up however this last one took me a while to get all the twists into position.

The only thing I have not told you is that I used Debbie Bliss Bella, 85% cotton, 10% silk, 5% cashmere so they are rather luxurious. The cotton works well as it has a nice grip to it and where the pot holder pattern twists and folds you get a double thickness for heat protection. Not sure if I should look for some better value cotton yarn, any suggestions?