Hello................

............My name is Vanessa............

................and I am a...............

ADDICT

Seriously, that site is completely addictive..........like one HUMUNGOUS magazine, full of beautiful pictures and things to make you go 'WOW'.

The great thing about Pinterest is that the pictures always link back to the original source. There are many great crafty pics which link back to tutorials on websites and blogs. It is a great way to discover new, lovely sites you may have otherwise never come across, and be able to create something lovely.

One of my latest crafty delights came about from this in a roundabout way. 

In crochet terms, I have been wanting to do something using a diagonal for some time. In my blanket craze, I wanted to break away from horizontal stripes and granny squares. I just hadn't come across a pattern. It was one of those ideas that you have but just gets put on the back burner.

It was a little jaunt on pinterest that re-lit the fire as it were, and took me on a linked journey......

A little pic that caught my eye led me here

Although, the tutorial was in french it was easy to follow. Oooooohhhhhhh, now wouldn't that be fab I thought! I imagined one made in my head, with a lovely little border. One to snuggle under, in all its vintage looking goodness. Ooooooohhhhhh yes, I was liking this idea, very, very much. The only trouble was, I think I was a bit 'blanketed out'. I have managed to pull two blankets out of the bag these past few months, I still have yet to finish my evening sun blanket (which started life being just a cushion) and I wasn't sure whether it was a bit of an ask making another one so soon. So, I thought about it, and wondered if I could do something on a smaller scale. Something that would keep me occupied and put a smile on my face at a time when there wasn't a lot to smile about. 

I was sure I had seen something similar once quite a while ago on Vanessa's Gorgeous, Gorgeous Blog Do You Mind If I Knit

Now, I'm sure most of you know her blog well. Colour and Stripes feature heavily, so of course I am a fan and she is so incredibly, incredibly talented in so many fields.

A bit of archive searching found this post, and I thought, okay, maybe something like this might be a better option than another blanket. I could adapt the pattern from the tutorial on the french site into something smaller like a scarf. I get to do a diagonal AND whip up something that was quicker than a blanket AND that would still give some satisfaction.  Further searching led me to this, and then this and then this !!!!!!!!

Please do check out these links. Hen and LaaLaa are two extremely talented ladies. Hen was the lovely recipient of one of Vanessa's scarves (which Hen blogged about), and Hen herself makes THE MOST GORGEOUS patchwork delights. Seriously Lovely is an understatement!!!!! LaaLaa was one of the first sites I came across when I first started blogging. She has an incredibly enviable stitching and crochet talent and she just happens to be INCREDIBLY LOVELY too!!!!!

So, inspired by all the links, this is the result....................

Yeap, before you ask, that's me......helloooooooooo! It was a real struggle to stick these in. I like taking pictures, just HATE being in any with a passion! It was hard to show the scarf in all its glory just folded though. I tried it on 'Mallory', my mannequin but, as hard as she tried, even she was struggling (something about body issues that day!), so I had to model. I couldn't chop my head completely off without losing some of the scarf, so there we go. Probably to be deleted in a few days, when I can't bear the thought of them here any longer!

This was the first one. A sort of tester one. I started it using up the oddments of Rico Cotton I had left. There wasn't much of a colour choice and I'm not convinced about the colours put together. Ivory would have been nice and hot pink rather than sludgy red. I wasn't even sure if I had enough of the yarn to complete it as they were just oddments, but I did, and when I stood back, it wasn't horrendous. Not 'wow' but 'okay'. Okay enough to use. It was really just a tester to see if I could do it. However,  once I was confident I knew what I was doing, I was eager to do one in more muted colours. I have had some colours in my head for a while for an Autumn blanket, so I thought I would try them out on the scarf (Renee, these are the ones!!!!).

So this was my second attempt...........

This one was the one! The colours were more 'me'. I used ordinary acrylic mix yarn for this one, just what I had in my basket. For the first one I made the ends straight, on the second they were left diagonal, so ever so slightly different.

I like the first one, but I ♥love♥ the second. I am sure they will both get plenty of use on the school run when the cooler weather comes. They go with several coats so I am happy. I think I will maybe do another one in more luxurious yarn, so I will have a shop around for yummy yarn and beautiful colours. People who know me, would vouch for the fact that I am a HUGE scarf girl come Autumn/ Winter. I WILL do a blanket at some point though. I ♥love♥ the idea of a big square full of diagonal stripes. A palette of rich shades or one with just blue and white or red and white stripes! Oooooh the possibilities are endless!!!!! It is on the list, and I can feel the fire burning bright for this project, but for the moment, the scarves have quenched the thirst and I am satisfied for the time being!!!!!!!

Have a super Friday and the most fantastic weekend!

xxx

P.s Thanks for all your comments yesterday! It's great so many have jar love too, and have lots of packets full of little bits stuffed in the backs of the cupboards! Good to see I am not alone!!!! x