Crafty in the Med

I am here to enjoy meeting other bloggers and to share my love of craft ,mostly crochet, my thoughts and my daily happenings here in Alicante,Spain, my adopted country. I belong to a local choir because singing and music makes me happy. Flea markets and book shops are two of my favourite places to be. I read lots......sci´fi/fantasy,buried treasure, and off world adventures. I have a passion for history! I walk and walk and walk for about 10 months per year during the hot months I swim.

Wednesday 15 August 2012

Promise kept with Dory



Promises and pie crusts are made to be broken.  ~Jonathan Swift

Now are they Mr Swift???    A promise is a promise and I don't agree with Jonathan Swift mine are not made to be broken otherwise I don't promise.
I'd philosophically add and advise that you shouldn't make a promise lightly and then you won't break it!

My promise is about reaching its completion but had to undergo a bit of blocking before I send it off to the other side of the world...to a place called Toowoomba. Sure some of you know where that is :-)

How did this all come about well I sent my sister a bronze wrap for her birthday and my neice wanted one. I of course promised I would get around to making one for her.

Bronze Wrap made in April 2012

Its very rare I do the same pattern twice as I enjoy trying out new designs much more then repetitive crochet,so I wasn't really sure what sort of shawl I wanted to make for my neice. I thought possibly something light,airy,young looking and browsing through Lynne at Pieceful  blog I found just what I was looking for. I found the Dory shawlette  and the pattern can be purchased here on Ravely. I used
Freedom spirit,Twilleys of Stamford 100% wool.
It was a real dawdle to make not at all difficult.   Nearly nearly finished too!
At present it is laid out on the spare bed undergoing the blocking process.
I had done blocking before but on much smaller items such as doileys and lace crochet dipped in starch but never anything so big. Luckily Lynne also gave me some tips about that too so I have managed to improvise,that and reading the tutorial on MarrieB at Purals and Pleats .

Step 1. Soak garment in lukewarm water with a dash of wool wash and leave for approx 30 mins.
Step 2. Do not wring at all,lightly squeeze and lay out on a towel




Step 3. Roll up in the towel

Step 4.


STAND ON IT

Step 5.

and walk across it!!!!

Step 6.
Now here is where Lynne's advice came to the fore.
Spread it on a towel across the bed. I didn't use a towel I used an old impermeable sheet I had from when Cookie baby was a little girl.
 By using this sheet I was able to cover all the bed and it therefore helped to keep the shawl taunt.
so this is before I started blocking the shawl.

Step 6. I had no T pins (blocking pins) so again I had to make do with what I had and those were normal pins.


open the windows and leave it for 24 hours approx to dry.



I had to shut the bedroom door in case Willie Shakespeare decided to have a nose. He may be yonks old but he hasn't lost his need to know everything that is going on in the house. He is so nosey!!!. I could just see him coming out of the bedroom his nose and paws covered in pins!!!

There you have it folks not at all complicated and later this afternoon it should be dry and ready to send off to OZ.


Amanda :-)




18 comments:

  1. How gorgeous, it's beautiful, what a lucky niece you have! I thought it looked lovely before blocking, but could really see the difference after you pinned it all out, definitely worth it.
    ALso... My fantastic giveaway is here... grinning from ear to ear - thank you so much! xx

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  2. Lucky sister
    Lucky niece.

    Beautiful work Amanda

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  3. Oh she will be so happy. What a lovely gift, and the blocking looks superb.
    Hugs,
    Meredith

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  4. Beautiful shawl, Amanda, if I were to have such a talent :( . Love the earthy colours.

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  5. I love how this Bloggy world brings such talented people together, what a GEORGEOUS gift! Ada :)

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  6. Very delicate n exquisite work Amanda!
    Blocking sure helps a lot in this shawl. I too block most of my work :)

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  7. Ooooh Amanda, the color is so pretty and it blocked out beautifully! What is that lovely yarn you used?
    Watch out these shawls are addicting! You will want to make another soon. Thanks for the shout-out : )
    Lynne xx

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    1. hello Lynne

      How right you are they are addictive as i am already thinking of doing another one but using a different yarn. I bought some yarn from Charlotte at a Little Bit of Wooliness before she left Spain and this yarn was with the bundle. Its Freedom spirit,Twilleys of Stamford 100% wool. I can't get it here though but from the UK.
      it was really lovely to work with.

      A x

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  8. I have promised myself that I will complete a wrap this year! I love them on cool nights and let's face it, they're so fashionable:-D
    I agree with you that Jonathan Swift obviously didn't take his promises seriously--I do too! XOXO

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  9. What a lucky girl your niece is!
    June

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  10. It's beautiful Amanda, she is really gong to love it, what a difference blocking makes it's worth the extra effort for the finished result, I love the colour too :)

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  11. The phrase I know is:
    promises are like pie crusts - easily broken
    ...I much prefer that one and it does seem to be true...

    Personally I would strive not to break a promise, but not everyone seems to feel that compunction!

    Really pretty shawl BTW!

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    Replies
    1. Hello Penny,
      of course quotes have lots of variations. A promise doesn't seem to have the value it used to have...in my books it does.

      Thanks for your comments

      A :-)

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  12. It is amazing how blocking really can make all the difference, it was lovely though even before the blocking! Stunning colours too! I wish I had your talent - Yvonne xx

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  13. Hi Amanda!
    What a gorgeous shawl you have so lovingly stitched and blocked! Thanks for giving a "how to do it" on blocking. Your niece is ging to be so thrilled with your amazing workmanship! What a treasure!
    Thank you for your thoughtful comments and visits to my blog. I love sharing thrifty and helpful ways to make a house a cozy home.
    Have a good rest of the week, my friend!
    Blessings,
    Carolynn xo

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  14. What a lovely shawl! I admit to being lazy when it comes to blocking, but it really does make the difference!!
    As ever, thank you for the lovely comments on my blog xx
    Rachel x

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Thank you for your comments. I do read them and try to reply to all as well.Please keep them coming. Amanda :-)