Showing posts with label sea. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sea. Show all posts
Do you remember a small and happy collection of Bloom yarn by Scheepjes I showed you last week? It was traveling with me to Malmö, we both enjoyed this trip very much and new design is almost finished.
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If you follow my blog for a while, you might know I have a very special relation with Sweden, and with Malmö. I come here almost every year to visit friends. And it always happens in late August when my birthday is. Last year I created a blanket in the colors of Malmö beach which is called “Birthday in Malmö”. I used wonderful pattern “Summer in Swanage” by Dedri Uys (from Look At What I Made) and just came up with a different color combination. If you missed it, please, read the story behind this blanket HERE (by the way color packs for this blanket are available at Wool Warehouse* with international shipment of order).
I am not really the kind of person who likes to vent and complain, but last few weeks were extremely hard in my life. Several unpleasant and sad things happened one after another and I felt totally damaged and exhausted. I even felt like stop designing at all. Thank you very much for your lovely and kind words and comments you sent me. They encouraged me a lot!
Shortly after Part 4 of Peacock Tail Bag CAL was published, I packed my suitcase, left my husband with a dog and kid at home… And went to Sweden. To switch off. To go to the sea. To recharge. And to become happy again.
This time it was not my birthday, but still I was on time for a birthday cake. My very good friend Fredrik had birthday on the day I arrived. I am not really a public type of a person, and you have probably noticed I don’t share much about my life. But today I feel like telling you something about my friend, who actually inspired me to start designing and to launch my own crochet brand.
It was just one of the times when I came to Malmö. I didn’t have work for several years already, as we moved to Czech Republic from Belarus and I couldn’t find a job as a journalist. So I was staying at home, with not so many friends around. And I was feeling like I become to be “no one”. If you ever felt you are not demanded, and if you ever felt lonely – I totally understand what you felt. As I was in this kind of mood for 4 years.
So once in Malmö we went out for a beer with Fredrik, and I started to vent about how poor and sad my life is and that I don’t know what to do and who to be. I was not a journalist anymore, and I couldn’t get a job as a singer. Absolute failure in everything. And he said: “Well, you are a professional crafter… But this is probably not what you want to be…” And I had a stroke. “Why not?” – I thought.
Later Fredrik and his girlfriend Elly were the first who made a custom order of crocheted pillows and blanket from me. And he was the first who bought a crocheted bear from me. And this is how I started to build my own confidence.
Why am I telling all this? I want you to know that even if you feel very bad, and if you can’t find the job, and if you feel like becoming no one – don’t give up! There is for sure something you are very good at. And you can develop yourself in this direction.
…So my trip to Malmö. It was won-der-ful. For the first time I was not staying at my friend’s place but rented a small and very cozy apartment on my own. And I was spending all my days by the sea. Crocheting and absolutely switched off. I was watching people swimming, playing with the kids on the beach and walking the dogs. And I envied every single dog that it can come to the beach every day and not just once in a year, as me.
I’ve made a lot of progress on my new project. As you may know, it will be a bathmat. I used two shades of pink-purple, two shades of blue and grey. And I know that I am in love with Bloom yarn by Scheepjes. If you haven’t tried it yet – please, read my review HERE. And Bloom can be found at WoolWarehouse* HERE, Deramores* HERE and Paradise Fibers* HERE, or in your local Scheepjes shop.
My favourite part of Malmö is called Västra Hamnen. It’s an area by the sea where famous Turning Torso building is situated. And from here you also have a wonderful view on Örresund Bridge. I was coming here every morning, had a cup of coffee at a café and then was sitting for hours with my crochet. At some point one skein of blue didn’t want to be pictured and jumped to the sea, and I couldn’t continue to grow my project. So instead I was sleeping on the beach and took the walks making friends with local dogs.
I can’t really remember how many times I was in Malmö. But surprisingly it was the first time I saw the sunset by the sea. First time in 14 years. And it was amazing. How I wish I could swim…
Here is a short video from my last day in Malmö. :) And I will be back next year...
UPDATE: this design is finished and pattern is available HERE.
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I can finally show you my new blanket. And this feels super-excited. Last week I shared a story of my relationship with the sea and with Malmö (you can read it HERE). I was inspired so much but a wonderful pattern Summer in Swanage (designed by Dedri Uys from Look At What I made), and decided to “tell” my own story about the sea. My blanket is not so bright, and yellow and blue. I chose mute and calm color palette trying to draw the landscape of beach in Malmö with its grey wood and pale green grass. I was drawing the houses and the sea in late August. The time when my birthday is.
My gauge was off from the very beginning as I am not good friends with gauge in general. My blanket turned to be a little bit wider and a little bit longer. It was not easy to take the pictures (because it is so large). And my son was actively helping my husband (you can see 4 feet beneath the blanket's edge). :)
Here are some more pictures of my finished blanket.
Surprisingly the suburbs of Brno in late November look a little bit like Sweden. You just need to imagine there is the sea right around the corner.
The largest hook I had before I started to work was 4mm (G). So I had to buy some additional hooks and decided to try Clover Amour*. Highly recommended!! Now I totally understand why Dedri uses it nearly all the time. The stitches slide perfectly on it and the yarn doesn’t split at all.
Dedri made a superb job writing the pattern down. It was very easy to follow, with lots of progress pictures (I don’t even want to think how much time she spent to explain everything – both with written text and the pictures). The putting together part is especially detailed and very helpful if you are not very confident with sewing.
I would only mention a small thing (which is not necessary at all but I am just too crazy about keeping everything in order). In the original pattern there is only one instruction given for sand half-triangles. But I found it helpful to mirror second half-triangle since there is a ridge formed by the row of hdc. This is not really important so much, as the ridge can bring additional charm to the blanket and help to imitate the “sand effect” even better (especially if you put sand triangles together with huts alternating their right and wrong sides).
As I wanted the whole blanket to be in the same color palette, I used the same colors for the sea as for huts and sky. It helped to reduce the yardages and I used only 18 skeins of Colour Crafter* yarn by Scheepjes in total. If you haven't heard about this yarn - please, check my review HERE.
You can now purchase a yarn pack for Birthday in Malmö blanket at Wool Warehouse HERE*. It includes 18 skeins of Colour Crafter yarn along with printed copy of the pattern. Separate skeins can also be found HERE at Paradise Fibers* (US).
1054 Haarlem (55g – 1 skein)
1065 Assen (80g – 1 skein)
1035 Kampen (55g – 1 skein)
1062 Dordrecht (55g – 1 skein)
1710 Ermelo (1 skein)
1064 Veenendaal (1 skein)
1722 Alphen (2 skeins)
1063 Rotterdam (2 skeins)
1218 Zandvort (2 skeins)
1099 Wolvega (3 skeins)
1203 Heerenveen (3 skeins)
Huts: 1054 Haarlem, 1065 Assen, 1722 Alphen, 1035 Kampen, 1099 Wolvega, 1062 Dordrecht
Sandy triangles: Make 5 with 1218 Zandvoort
Sandy half-triangles: Make 2 with 1218 Zandvoort
Sand:
Rows 1-5. Zandvoort (1218)
Rows 6-11. Ermelo (1710)
Rows 12-16. Veenendaal (1064)
Row 17. Zandvoort (1218)
Waves and Sky:
Rows 18-23. Heerenveen (1203)
Rows 24-29. Heerenveen (1203) and Wolvega (1099)
Rows 30-35. Wolvega (1099)
Rows 36-41. Wolvega (1099) and Alphen (1722)
Rows 42-47. Alphen (1722)
Rows 48-53. Alphen (1722) and Wolvega (1099)
Rows 54-56. Wolvega (1099)
Rows 57-60. Wolvega (1099) and Rotterdam (1063)
Rows 61-72. Rotterdam (1063)
Rows 73-74. Zandvoort (1218)
Rows 75-76. Zandvoort (1218) and Heerenveen (1203)
Rows 77-89. Heerenveen (1203)
Row 90 (edge of the blanket = row 92 in the pattern) – Heerenveen (1203)
Sand below Huts:
Rows 1-3. Ermelo (1710)
Linen Border:
Rnd 1. Assen (1065)
Rnd 2. Veenendaal (1064)
Rnd 3. Rotterdam (1063)
So here it is! If you decide to make Summer in Swanage blanket in my colors – please, share the pictures with me. I would love to see them.
And I am very happy with my new blanket. Now I can keep my own sea and my precious memories... forever :)
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*This blog post contains affiliate links. Thanks for your support!
Here are some more pictures of my finished blanket.
Surprisingly the suburbs of Brno in late November look a little bit like Sweden. You just need to imagine there is the sea right around the corner.
Dedri made a superb job writing the pattern down. It was very easy to follow, with lots of progress pictures (I don’t even want to think how much time she spent to explain everything – both with written text and the pictures). The putting together part is especially detailed and very helpful if you are not very confident with sewing.
You can now purchase a yarn pack for Birthday in Malmö blanket at Wool Warehouse HERE*. It includes 18 skeins of Colour Crafter yarn along with printed copy of the pattern. Separate skeins can also be found HERE at Paradise Fibers* (US).
Here are the shades and yardages:
1054 Haarlem (55g – 1 skein)
1065 Assen (80g – 1 skein)
1035 Kampen (55g – 1 skein)
1062 Dordrecht (55g – 1 skein)
1710 Ermelo (1 skein)
1064 Veenendaal (1 skein)
1722 Alphen (2 skeins)
1063 Rotterdam (2 skeins)
1218 Zandvort (2 skeins)
1099 Wolvega (3 skeins)
1203 Heerenveen (3 skeins)
Colorway for Birthday in Malmö blanket
Huts: 1054 Haarlem, 1065 Assen, 1722 Alphen, 1035 Kampen, 1099 Wolvega, 1062 Dordrecht
Sandy triangles: Make 5 with 1218 Zandvoort
Sandy half-triangles: Make 2 with 1218 Zandvoort
Sand:
Rows 1-5. Zandvoort (1218)
Rows 6-11. Ermelo (1710)
Rows 12-16. Veenendaal (1064)
Row 17. Zandvoort (1218)
Waves and Sky:
Rows 18-23. Heerenveen (1203)
Rows 24-29. Heerenveen (1203) and Wolvega (1099)
Rows 30-35. Wolvega (1099)
Rows 36-41. Wolvega (1099) and Alphen (1722)
Rows 42-47. Alphen (1722)
Rows 48-53. Alphen (1722) and Wolvega (1099)
Rows 54-56. Wolvega (1099)
Rows 57-60. Wolvega (1099) and Rotterdam (1063)
Rows 61-72. Rotterdam (1063)
Rows 73-74. Zandvoort (1218)
Rows 75-76. Zandvoort (1218) and Heerenveen (1203)
Rows 77-89. Heerenveen (1203)
Row 90 (edge of the blanket = row 92 in the pattern) – Heerenveen (1203)
Sand below Huts:
Rows 1-3. Ermelo (1710)
Linen Border:
Rnd 1. Assen (1065)
Rnd 2. Veenendaal (1064)
Rnd 3. Rotterdam (1063)
Don't forget to subscribe to Weekly Newsletter not to miss a single post. And you can also follow me on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram.
*This blog post contains affiliate links. Thanks for your support!
I made my first crochet granny square blanket 5 years ago, before my son was born. A nice lady brought me a huge box of colorful yarn and I decided to take this crochet adventure. To be honest I am not a blanket kind of person at all. It takes so long time (and yarn!) to make one. And I am usually not patient enough. So it took me 5 years before I made another one.
When I saw the picture of Summer in Swanage blanket by Dedri Uys (Look At What I Made) for the first time (late at night), I felt that my hair were standing up. I felt a kind of electrical impulse all over the body, I could hardly breath. This blanket was so beautiful, and it was about the sea. I could almost hear the music of the waves when I was looking at it… I fell in love. And I just needed to make the one for myself.
If you know me a little bit already, you may also know that I am totally addicted to the sea. I was born in Belarus with no access to the sea. I live in the Czech Republic now with lots of gorgeous mountains but no sea. For the first time I saw it when I was 14 years old and we went with the schoolmates for a summer trip to Bulgaria. That time I was not impressed at all. My skin was totally burnt and it was not really easy to enjoy the sea.
My love hit me back in 2002 when I first time came to the Baltic Sea. My English is very poor and I lack the words to describe my feelings when the huge, enormous sea suddenly hugged me. No, I was not swimming. I cannot swim and I am afraid of the water. But I was “hearing” the sea. It was “talking” to me. And I was totally lost, frozen and loved.
I love cold sea. Pale and grey. I love pale yellow sun and wet sand. I love the smell of salty, cold sea wind. That night, when I saw Dedri’s blanket for the first time, I felt very strong to tell my own sea story with it. Not really a sunny holiday story. But the story of my birthday(s) in Malmö.
It is really strange but during last 14 years I celebrated my birthday in Malmö probably 4 times… Not that I specially seek for this opportunity to visit my friends every year in August and celebrate my birthday with them, but it just happens like this (I hope they are not tired of my visits and baking birthday cakes for me. As I cannot really promise I will not come again... :)
First time it was in 2003 I guess. My friend Fredrik suggested that we should take the bikes and to go the beach late in the evening… Just to mention I am unable to ride a bike as well and I almost broke someone's car when falling down onto it behind the first corner… But somehow I managed to reach the sea. It was night already. It was my first birthday in Malmö. And I totally cried out - sitting on the wooden bench and looking into the dark waves… That was a very strong moment. And I clearly remember it till today.
Malmö is one of the largest cities in Sweden. Technically it doesn’t lie by the sea, but by Öresund channel with the famous bridge connecting Sweden and Denmark. It takes 15 minutes to go by train from Malmö to Copenhagen airport.
But for me this channel is the sea. :) There are several beaches in Malmö: with the sand and with the wood. In the summer they are crowded by people. I haven’t seen any beach huts, and I am not really sure if there are any.
When I was choosing yarn for my blanket (Colour Crafter* by Scheepjes – read my review here), I was thinking about the colors of the houses, and of the grey wood. And I was mainly thinking about my own mood and my vision of this place. I was trying to translate my feelings via this blanket.
I enjoyed every single stitch. I called my blanket “Birthday in Malmö”. And I love it.
Next week I will share the pictures of my finished blanket together with the shades and exact yardages I used. You can check Colour Crafter yarn at Wool Warehouse* and Paradise Fibers* (US). Both retailers ship yarn internationally.
Update: complete information about the shades and yardages for this blanket is available HERE.
Don't forget to subscribe to Weekly Newsletter not to miss a single post. And you can also follow me on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram.
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| Summer in Swanage blanket by Dedri Uys |
My love hit me back in 2002 when I first time came to the Baltic Sea. My English is very poor and I lack the words to describe my feelings when the huge, enormous sea suddenly hugged me. No, I was not swimming. I cannot swim and I am afraid of the water. But I was “hearing” the sea. It was “talking” to me. And I was totally lost, frozen and loved.
Update: complete information about the shades and yardages for this blanket is available HERE.
Don't forget to subscribe to Weekly Newsletter not to miss a single post. And you can also follow me on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram.
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