More Crochet Washcloths & Other Things...

I don't know what came over me last week, but I just didn't want to leave the kitchen. The day after making my Christmas Pudding & Cake I got a hankering to make some shortbread. Now, I absolutely LOVE shortbread, it's probably my all time favorite biscuit, but I don't usually make biscuits that involve the dough being rolled out and then cut into shapes. I'm usually in a rush and dollop teaspoons of dough onto a baking tray then flatten them a little with floured fingers, in the oven they go and out pops some random shaped biscuits. 

The other day however, I lovingly rubbed the flour and sugar into the butter, rolled the dough out and then rummaged through my drawers to find a nicely shaped cookie cutter. Luckily I managed to find a festive star cutter and then away I went. 

I loaded the oven up THREE times and to be honest was quite shocked at how many I ended up with but D was very happy with the overall result. With each batch that I put in the oven the stars got thicker and thicker, because while I enjoy cooking I hate standing around waiting for things to cook! Plus I love really thick shortbread that flakes apart when you eat it.

When all the washing up was finished and the shortbread was snugly nestled in its jar I discovered that I'd lost the urge to be in the kitchen and it wasn't long before my crochet hook and yarn were back in my hands.

This week I continued making my little washcloths, until.....I ran out of cotton yarn. Fortunately I'm expecting more to arrive in the mail any day now, but here is what I managed to make.

My little stash is slowly growing.

I finding that using different colours stops the repetition becoming tedious, and as I've mentioned before I really love this pattern. Each washcloth takes about an hour to make, so when I have a little bit of time to spare to pick up the hook this is a great project. It's so quick that I can easily start and finish a project in one sitting and have an instant sense of achievement. I find that when I make something as a gift then it becomes extra special and the finished result makes me even happier that normal.

While I'm waiting for some more cotton yarn to turn up in the mail, I decided that another small project is needed to keep my hands moving.

I found this star pattern here, and used up odds and ends of acrylic yarn. Working up each spike of the star was very quick and easy, sewing it all together was a bit more tricky and time consuming but I am very pleased with the results. 

I decided to hang the stars in my favorite gum tree, I had to hurry because the sunlight was starting to fade. 

A friend gave me these labels as a birthday present because I enjoy making jams and chutneys, I find it amazing how something as simple as a label, a piece of paper and some string can change a plain looking jar of jam into beautiful gifts for the people I care about.

This is D's pride and joy. I go all gooey over crochet and for him it's this truck, I think that I fall a distant second behind this in his list of much loved things! We spent all morning yesterday loading up and rolling and strapping the tarp on. While putting the cover on is an added job that needed to be done it's also a sign that there is rain about. Hopefully everyone who needs a drop will get some, until then my fingers are crossed that we will be lucky enough to find ourselves under a rain cloud.

Have a great day.

Xxx