Big Blue Yarn Giveaway Winner

Posted in Competitions, Giveaways by Keep Calm and Crochet On UK

And so that’s that! My four weeks of giveaways is now over – I hope you’ve enjoyed it! All that’s left for me to do is announce who has won the Big Blue Yarn giveaway.

And the winner is…

Yay congratulations Sharon! I’ve sent you an email for your address details so I can get your prize out to you.

And I have to finish off this celebration of four years of blogging by saying again that I want to thank you for visiting my blog and enjoy reading your wonderful comments. I’m very grateful to each and everyone of you and I hope we can continue for many more years enjoying our crafts together!

Until next time; keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

28Feb2018

We have a winner!

Posted in Competitions, Crochet, Giveaways, Yarn by Keep Calm and Crochet On UK

CELEBRATING MY 4TH BLOG ANNIVERSARY

WITH 4 WEEKS OF GIVEAWAYS!

So we need a winner for the lovely Wulla Yarn hooks don’t we! And the winner is….Kate Rowell, congratulations! I’ve sent you an email for your address details so I can get your prize out to you.

Don’t forget there’s still the ‘big blue yarn’ giveaway open until 9 March

Up for grabs is:

10g x Paintbox mini (DK)
10g x Scheepjes Catona mini (4ply)
50g x Drops Cotton Light (DK)
50g x Lang Cotton (Chunky)
50g x Just Yarn Cotton (DK)
50g x Patons Baby Smiles (4ply)
50g x Scheepjes Catona (4ply)
50g x Patons Fab (DK)
50g x Phildar Pilou Plus (DK)
50g x Bergere de France Barisiemne (DK)
100g x James Brett Harmony (DK)
100g DY Choice (DK with Wool)
100g x Paintbox Simply Aran
100g x Stylecraft Special (DK)
100g x West Yorkshire Spinners Essential Aran

That’s a whopping 920g of yarn up for grabs which is a nice amount to feed any hungry stash! For your chance to win enter here.

Until next time; keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

25Feb2018

Keep Calm and Crochet On U.K’s 4th Blog Anniversary Celebration | Final Prize

Posted in Competitions, Crochet, Giveaways, Yarn by Keep Calm and Crochet On UK

CELEBRATING MY 4TH BLOG ANNIVERSARY

WITH 4 WEEKS OF GIVEAWAYS!

So it’s the end of my celebratory giveaways and I wanted to end it with a fun prize from me. My feelings are that you can never feel ‘blue’ when there’s yarn around so I’ve hand-selected some of my favourite blue hues for one lucky winner to play with.

This giveaway isn’t sponsored by anyone so there is a real range of yarn, colours and weights. Up for grabs is:

10g x Paintbox mini (DK)
10g x Scheepjes Catona mini (4ply)
50g x Drops Cotton Light (DK)
50g x Lang Cotton (Chunky)
50g x Just Yarn Cotton (DK)
50g x Patons Baby Smiles (4ply)
50g x Scheepjes Catona (4ply)
50g x Patons Fab (DK)
50g x Phildar Pilou Plus (DK)
50g x Bergere de France Barisiemne (DK)
100g x James Brett Harmony (DK)
100g DY Choice (DK with Wool)
100g x Paintbox Simply Aran
100g x Stylecraft Special (DK)
100g x West Yorkshire Spinners Essential Aran

That’s a whopping 920g of yarn up for grabs which is a nice amount to feed any hungry stash. Plus I’m also adding into the parcel a cute little note book for you to jot down your new project ideas and a fun little basket to store your new work in progress in.

Here’s how you can enter:

Entering is oh-so easy. just leave me a comment at the end of this post telling me if you have a project you’d like to try with one of these yarns or perhaps there’s a yarn that you’ve always fancied playing with...Good luck!

To gain a sneaky extra entry, head on over to my KCACOUK Facebook page, leave a comment under the post about this contest and ‘like’ the page (if you haven’t already). And to gain another extra entry, why not pop over to @KCACOUK on Instagram, become a follower, and leave a comment under the post about this competition.

The contest is open from RIGHT NOW until midday (UK-time) on Wednesday 7th March 2018. The winner will be selected using a random name picker and I will need to be supplied with a full postal address for the prize. If efforts to contact the winner remain unsuccessful after a week, an alternative winner will be randomly selected.

Please note: Due to some international shipping restrictions this contest is only open to readers in the United Kingdom.

I would like to thank all of the people, LGC Knitting & Crochet Magazine, Happily Hooked Magazine, Hook and a Book, Medieval Colours and Wulla Yarns again for their generosity in sponsoring my 4 year Blog Anniversary giveaways.

Until next time; keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

27Nov2017

A pretty amazing weekend actually…

Posted in Crochet, Days Out, Life, Outings by Keep Calm and Crochet On UK

Although I’m currently a bit under the weather and feel like I have been like that for months (I blame little people and their germs) I need to tell you about the weekend before last as it was pretty fan-dabby-dozy and I shall tell you why in a rather longer than usual post.

Back in October, when I was down at the Knitting and Stitching show in London, I got chatting with the lovely Sara from Black Sheep Wools who told me about a special open day they were holding in November.

To celebrate becoming Scheepjes stockists they had arranged for Haak Maar Raak blogger Kirsten (think the Hygge Shawl) and Look at What I Made blogger Dedri Uys (think Sophie’s Universe) to come along and chat to people, sign books and run mini workshops. Well after discovering that Black Sheep Wool are only about 50 minutes up the motorway from me I marked the date in my calendar to go along because yarn plus chance to meet amazing designers equals no brainer right?!

If you’ve never been to Black Sheep Wools it’s a big yarn shop (with it’s own coffee shop) in Warrington who regularly hold yarny events and workshops in their craft barn. For me it was a little bit like stepping into a sweet shop – and I do so find it hard to resist squishy goodness…but more on that in a bit.

So with my lovely mum in tow (and my dad – but he read his book in the car) we set off early last Saturday morning to Warrington. When we first got there the bloggers hadn’t arrived yet which was actually handy as I got time to squish and browse. I feel I must just bring your attention to the Christmas tree in the store foyer because I’m sure like me you will feel that you need it in your life! It had been decorated, amongst other things, with all the little Scheepjes Catona Cutie Pies and looked fantastic!

But it wasn’t long before I got to have a complete fan girl moment and meet the lovely Dedri and Kirsten. Now you may recall that Dedri was my first ever designer interview (which you can read it here) but we had never actually met in person.

When Heather met Dedri!

It’s so nice to finally meet someone that you have only met virtually and I’m going to add quickly, in case any of you have done it too, that all this time I’d not realised that I’d been saying her name wrong! In case you were wondering Uys isn’t pronounced ‘yus’ as I’d been saying it but should be pronounced more like ‘ace’. And whilst we are talking about pronunciations Scheepjes I also learnt should be said like ‘Shape-yuz’ not ‘Sheepes’!

When Heather met Kirsten…

Both bloggers were so nice, open and helpful, answering all my many questions and offering really good advice on ways of looking at colours, designs and blogging! They also kindly signed a couple of my books that I took along (Amamani Puzzle Balls by Dedri and Bold Baby Crochet: 30 Modern & Colorful Projects for Baby collated by Dedri and features Kirsten).

Next mum and I took part in a mini workshop by Kirsten to make her fab Scandinavian Heart (get the free pattern here) with some yummy Scheepjes Catona.

Mum and I both decided to go for Christmassy sort of colours and had great fun making little yarn jellyfish to weave together to form the heart. It was really nice sitting crocheting and chatting about crochet in a little group.

But conscious that Dad was still sitting in the car (he was still happily reading) and we’d already been there for over three hours we decided it was probably time to leave. But of course as there there was soooooo much lovely yarn to squish and as it was a Scheepjes open day I thought it would be really rude of me not to purchase maybe a little something…

I know! I know! I have a yarn addiction! I must hasten to say at this point that although it may seem that all I do is buy nothing but yarn I promise that everything I purchased was / is all for specific projects!

And some of it was a lovely gift! Because I was one of the first 50 customers in store I also got an exciting Schjeepes goody bag in which I got the purple Schjeepes Catona (this is fast becoming one of my favourite yarns to use for my ami’s), the really inspirational Schjeepes YARN Bookazine Tropical Edition (which I LOVE by the way), two mini Schjeepes YARN pattern books, the big Schjeepes window sticker and two great Schjeepes wooden buttons.

The next day mum and Dad came back round to my house to look after the girls as Mr. KCACO.UK and myself were off for a spa day! I know! Sooooo exciting! You may remember that this year we had celebrated our tenth wedding anniversary and as I gift I bought us a spar day. We usually aren’t so extravagant as this with gifts but ten years – it’s an achievement well worthy of a bit of a special gift.

We ended up going to Mottram Hall in Cheshire which has an outside sort of spa bit with a hot tub and steam rooms. It was so strange to be sitting outside in a swimming cozzie in November but it was really fun, they’d decorated ready for Christmas and I have to say their tree’s were pretty amazing ranging from Harry Potter themed to Alice in Wonderland (which was my favourite).

We also had fantastic back massages and enjoyed a most delicious afternoon tea.

All too soon the weekend was over and it was back to reality with a Monday-ish bump. But cake, back massages, crochet and yarn – it doesn’t get any better than that really does it!

Until next time folks! Happy hooking, keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

25Oct2017

Crochet Book Review | Edward’s Crochet Doll Emporium

Posted in Amigurumi, Book Review, Crochet, Inspiration, Tah-Dah, Yarn by Keep Calm and Crochet On UK

Disclaimer: I received a sample copy of the book to write this review however I have not been financially compensated by the supplier, book company or the designer to write this review. All opinions expressed are my own and based on my own experiences of using the book / pattern.

When the lovely folks at Pavilion books asked me if I’d like to review Edward’s Crochet Doll Emporium I didn’t need asking twice! I’d already got the book on my wish list, as I’m a big fan of Kerry Lord’s, and have all of the other ‘Edwards crochet’ books so was extremely eager to have a peep at the new book.

Edward’s Crochet Doll Emporium by Kerry Lord is published by Pavilion. Photographs by Kristy Noble

Ed’s dolls is a wonderfully innovative book where you can design your own doll using mix-and-match crochet patterns. Cleverly each pattern is contained within flippable pages which means, like a child’s flip book, that you can make hundreds of different doll combinations each with amazing wardrobes!

Edward’s Crochet Doll Emporium by Kerry Lord is published by Pavilion. Photographs by Kristy Noble

The book is split into sections with instructions on how to make the main doll, then there are two flip sections:

First you choose a ‘head’ – there are beginner and advanced heads to choose depending on the hair style (or facial hair).
Next you choose what they are going to ‘be’ with the bottom ‘outfit’ flip – with costumes for an astronaut and a princess, a ballerina and a footballer, a mermaid and a pirate, a surgeon, a punk and more.

You can make so many different variations of doll! As always I like to make something from a book before I review it and I was inspired by the doll Kerry made of herself – so I thought that it might be really fun to try and create a mini me.

I used TOFT DK yarn to make my doll (as I already had some in my stash from last years TOFTfest and my recent visit to The Knitting & Stitching Show). TOFT DK yarn is pure wool, seriously soft and gentle on the hands – lovely to crochet with. It also has a really great colour range to represent skin tones. I went for ‘Oatmeal’ skin and ‘Chestnut’ for my hair.

All the patterns are in UK terminology and come with detailed instructions and accompanying photos for stitches. In addition the book includes step by step instructions for stuffing, sewing together and adding the dolls features. The patterns are also arranged in order of difficulty so their’s something for beginners and for people with more ‘advanced’ crochet skills.

The body for my doll worked up easily and I chose to give my little doll pants and a boob tube (instructions included in the book for the advanced dolls) so I would be suitably attired underneath my clothes…it seems more than a little weird to be sharing a photo of me in my underwear with the world – but here I am…

I had great fun styling my hair using a spare hair clip and just a normal hair band to tie it back as I usually would my own hair.

The hands are some of the cutest things I have ever made! Like ever! There are options for beginner or advanced hands (these are the advanced) and whilst any doll would look cute with either I do love the little digits.

Next came the clothes….I used the C:1 flip dress option which I made in blue upon which I embroidered yellow and grey flowers (to symbolise the pattern on my dress). I then teamed up my dress with a slightly smaller and longer C:2 yellow scarf and some C:10 black boots.

There weren’t any real accompaniments for a crocheter doll so I improvised and made a little work basket, complete with mini balls of yarn and a WIP. I also cut to size an old 3mm hook I had to fit the dolls hands.

TOFT have started to make some amazing little accessories for the dolls; aside from a range of different coloured dolls eyes (I used the brown) they have the cutest little glasses! However these have proven so popular that they sold out quickly so I wasn’t able to get some – until then a bit of floral wire had to suffice for my specs.

I finished off my doll with a bit of blusher on the cheeks (this isn’t something suggested in the book but something I added as I pretty much always have rosy cheeks!) and with that voilà I was finished…want to see me?

I think there is a definite likeness between me and my mini doppelganger! What do you think?

I had great fun making this doll! And I would thoroughly recommend this book to anyone that enjoys making dolls or amigurumi, or to anyone that fancies making a mini-me. The only problem I envisage is that everyone will want one!

Edward’s Crochet Doll Emporium by Kerry Lord (Pavilion Books) is priced at £16.99 and is available to buy now from the TOFT website and via many brick and online bookstores.

If you enjoyed this crochet book review you may wish to check out some of my other crochet book reviews.

Until next time folks! Happy hooking, keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

4Oct2017

And the winners are…The Knitting & Stitching Show 2017

Posted in Competitions, Crochet, Giveaways by Keep Calm and Crochet On UK

Is everyone ready! We have have ourselves some winners…but first I’d like to say thank you to everyone that submitted an entry, I really enjoyed reading your reasons why you’d like to attend and / or who you’d like to go to the show with. And we also have to say a big THANK YOU to lovely people from the Knitting and Stitching Show for providing the ticket prizes.

So without further ado the winners, picked via this random name picker tool, are…

Elisabeth (Isis) Plutt
Miranda Shelley
Helen Robinson
Martina Kocourkova

and the ticket winner from Instagram is…

Nannabess14

Congratulations my lovelies! I’ll be in touch today to request your contact details so that the tickets can be posted out to you.

And to everyone else sorry if you didn’t win this time but there’ll be more giveaways and special offers for you coming soon. And don’t forget the special discount for tickets still applies. Just quote KEEPCALM17 and you can save £2.50 on advance adult ticket price (or £1 for concessions) which makes the tickets £12 instead of £14.50/£13). You can buy tickets here or call 0844 581 1319.

Until next time! Keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

1Oct2017

Win tickets to The Knitting & Stitching Show 2017

Posted in Competitions, Crochet, Days Out, Giveaways, Inspiration, Outings, Sale / Special Offer, Yarn by Keep Calm and Crochet On UK

In just under two week’s time, the Knitting & Stitching Show opens in London and I’ve got FIVE pairs of tickets, kindly donated by the lovely organisers of the show, to giveaway to KCACO.UK readers!!! I’m giving away FOUR tickets here on the blog and for those of you on Instagram I’m giving away ONE ticket over there.

I’m extremely excited about this show as it’s going to be my first time going to the Ally Pally (otherwise known as the iconic Alexandra Palace). And the Autumn show is set to be the biggest textile event in the UK! With hundreds of workshops, demonstrations, interactive features, professionally curated galleries, as well as 300 exhibitors selling specialist craft supplies. As a veritable celebration of textile crafts it’s a paradise for makers! I can’t wait!!!

This, ladies and gents, is a huge huge show! You can spend a day re-stocking your yarn stash, learning to knit, getting help in the crochet clinics, having a go at a sewing demos, mastering the art of tailoring and so much more. There has never been a better excuse to get involved in craft! Seriously just take a look at the full list of workshops here. I want to do them all!

The Knitting & Stitching Show London takes place from 11^th-15^thOctober and the tickets are redeemable any day except Saturday.

Giveaway

All you need to do to enter the giveaway is to leave a comment on the bottom of blog post about why you’d like to go to the show. The competition closes this Wednesday 4 October 5pm (GMT) with the winner being announced Wednesday 4 October that evening here on the blog. And make sure to check out my Instagram feed for the chance to another pair of tickets. Good Luck Everyone!

Special Discount

But if you want your ticket’s RIGHT NOW I’ve also got a special discount for you! Just quote KEEPCALM17 and you can save £2.50 on advance adult ticket price (or £1 for concessions) which makes the tickets £12 instead of £14.50/£13). You can buy tickets here or call 0844 581 1319.

I’d like to say a big thank you again to the shows organisers for offering this special deal to my lovely KCACO.UK readers!

Until next time; keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

2Aug2017

Yarn Review | Patons Tahiti

Posted in Crochet, Yarn, Yarn Review by Keep Calm and Crochet On UK

Disclaimer: I received a free sample of this yarn however I have not been financially compensated by the supplier to write this review. All opinions expressed are my own and based on my own experiences of using the yarn.

Whilst Paton’s Tahiti range isn’t exactly a ‘new’ yarn on the market it was a yarn that was new to me. I have to say that fingering yarn is not something I have worked with very much – mainly because I feel slightly intimidated by tiny hooks! That said I’m always excited to try some new yarn play so I was most excited when I was sent a sample of Tahiti ‘Wildfire (Shade 7623’) by the lovely folks at laughinghens.com.

I wanted to create something just out of this one ball and so I got out my hook and waited for that inspiration. And you know what, I discovered that actually using a small hook made a refreshing change…but more about that shortly. Let’s check out the yarn’s vital statistics first shall we:

Weight: 3 Ply / Fingering
Blend: 99% Cotton, 1% Polyester
Yarn Ball Weight: 50g ball
Yarn Ball Length: 280m / 306yds
Wash instructions: Machine wash 40°
Price: £5.50 (at the time of this post)

So now we know a bit more about what we are dealing with I’ll tell you a bit more about the yarn. Paton’s Tahiti comes in eight different shades all inspired by elements and nature. With names like ‘cyclone’, ‘peach beach’ and ‘jungle’ it’s perhaps not surprising that the tonal range is vibrant and the colour transitions are long and smooth. As you know I love working with any style of variegated yarn; I find it such fun to watch the colours reveal themselves turning any project, as if by magic, into something special! As a designer I also love how anything that you crochet with yarns like this will look totally different dependant on the size of your project and stitches used – sooooo many possibilities!

The touch of polyester gives the yarn a slight stretchiness which would work well for lightweight garments as it creates a light, flexible fabric which returns back to shape when worn. This cotton doesn’t have a firmness about it that some cottons have, so it wouldn’t work for something like a hat – unless you were looking for something a little more floppy.

The recommended hook size for the yarn is a tichy (eek!) 2mm-3mm (US size 2/0 or C/2) however even though, for my design, I was working with a tiny 2mm I found the yarn really nice and easy to work with.

You know what I decided would be a great design for the hot weather of summer – a lightweight skinny scarf! The scarf pattern will be ready for you next week! But because I love you I’ll let you have a little sneaky peep at it…

I have to say I really enjoyed working on this design, it was great for hooking on the go – that lady hooking on the bus to work; yes that was me!

I’m also muchly in love with the rich colours of this yarn and the contrast between the purples and orange on the final scarf well I just adore them…but you’ll have to wait till next week for my reveal!

In summary if you are looking to make some lightweight accessories like shawls, baby wear, fine knits, or something I really want to have a go at some point, socks then you should give Paton’s Tahiti a go! If you are interested in owning some of this yarn for your very own then it is currently available for purchase via laughinghens.com

Until next time, happy hooking and keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

19Jun2017

Pattern Release | Pembroke Seascape Shawl

Posted in Crochet, Designing, Giveaways, Pattern Release, Tah-Dah, Yarn by Keep Calm and Crochet On UK

For 2017 year’s edition of Indie June LoveCrochet.com wanted to do something special so they invited a group of designers to create a collection of knitted and crocheted garments featuring The Yarn Collective yarn (which I blogged about here). The result is the Coastal Adventures Anthology – featuring eight beautiful patterns with inspiration from Scandinavian summers on the coast.

I’m really excited to now reveal what I designed with The Yarn Collective’s Pembroke Worsted Yarn. May I introduce to you my new Pembroke Seascape Shawl!

The rectangular Pembroke Seascape Shawl, made from the softest hand dyed merino wool, is as light as a sea breeze!

It’s just perfect for covering up on a chilly summer evening or on an adventurous stroll around a coastal path.

I always think shawls are fun to crochet when I’m making them (I really should make more!). I’ve had such fun with this one adding different stitch patterns which beginner and advanced crocheters should enjoy. The shawl’s sinuous ripples and texture, combined with the cool grey and blue variegated colours, are inspired by marbled ocean waves lapping at a pebbly beach.

Although the pattern may look complex it is very straightforward and will be readily picked up by beginners.

Click on the following link to purchase the pattern and add to your 💗 Favourites on lovecrochet.com or Ravelry.

Exclusive Giveaway 🎉

For your chance to win a copy of my new design simply head on over to Ravelry or LoveCrochet and add it to your favourites or show it some love by commenting below this post with your Ravelry username / or email address.

Bonus Entry: Re-pin any of the pins above, copy & paste the URL of your re-pin in the comments below.

Winners will be randomly chosen on Friday 23 June 2017 around 7pm GMT

And…

Enter any coastal inspired projects in the LoveCrochet Community and enter the #IndieJune2017 competition for a chance to win £100 to spend at LoveCrochet!!! So exciting!!! Can’t wait to see your finished projects.

Until next time; keep calm and crochet on my friends xx

24May2017

Yarn Review | The Yarn Collective Pembroke Worsted

Posted in Crochet, Designing, Inspiration, Works in Progress, Yarn, Yarn Review by Keep Calm and Crochet On UK

Disclaimer: I received a free sample of this yarn however I have not been financially compensated by the supplier to write this review. All opinions expressed are my own and based on my own experiences of using the yarn.

Luxury yarn – sometimes you just have to splurge and get that hand-dyed loveliness that you’ve got your eye right!? Or does it seem a bit scary?

I like to think of luxury yarn as my ‘special’ occasion yarn…it’s something I’ll use when I want to make something for a ‘special’ someone – especially if it’s anything that is going to worn a lot. Anything that you want to last and perhaps become an heirloom well that’s where luxury yarn comes in. Whether you are making something as a treat for someone else or because you are going to put a lot of work into a beautiful pattern, I’ve learnt that it often pays to choose a luxury yarn.

I recently had the pleasure of designing with some of The Yarn Collective Pembroke Worsted yarn which just oozes luxuriousness from every fibre!

Oh so lovely and squishy!

From that first squish when I got it out the packaging I just knew it was going to be a pleasure to crochet with…and it really was! But more about that in a moment, the first thing we need to establish, to be all proper and yarn reviewy, are the vital statistics of the yarn which are:

Weight: Worsted | 10ply
Blend: 100% Merino Wool
Yarn Ball Weight: 3.5 oz/100 g
Yarn Ball Length: 200m / 219yds
Wash instructions: Hand-wash
Price: £16.90 (at the time of this post)

Pembroke Worsted yarn comes in 10 different shades designed by Bristol Ivy, an influential American knitwear designer, all inspired by the rich, pure tones of gems and minerals. It’s hand painted in small batches using a combination of solid shades and close tonal colours to create perfectly blended varicoloured skeins.

The Yarn Collective

Honestly this yarn was a dream to work with! It’s a lighter worsted yarn with a recommended hook size of 4.50mm (US size 7) – though I found it’s very adaptable dependent on the design.

I have designed a brand new pattern with the stunning icy grey-greens of ‘Tellurium’ (shade 308). I love working with variegated yarns – it really keeps things interesting as you work and the colour changes in the Pembroke Worsted are pleasingly regular and add a lovely dimension to a pattern. You’ll have to wait a bit longer for my big reveal but I can give you a little sneaky peep…

So if you are looking for a versatile worsted weight luxury yarn that will create beautifully soft, yet durable projects then I would definitely recommend The Yarn Collective Pembroke Worsted yarn.