About Me

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United Kingdom
Hi there & welcome to Annie's Place. A place inspired by and named after my late Grandmother Annie. Somewhere I can be creative, and share my love for all things handmade. I like nothing better than sitting with hook & yarn, crafting something home spun & completely unique, or rustling up some yummy baked goodies. I live in a town with a beautiful embankment, situated on the River Great Ouse. You may know me as CosyKitty on Ravelry. Why not stop a while.....?!!

Monday 21 March 2016

Crochet Granny Squares Bag Reveal : Camden Lock : Jef Kearns

We are speeding through March, heading towards the Easter Bank Holiday Weekend. It's still very nippy here in my corner of Bedfordshire, and the forecast for the Easter break is far from favourable. Ah well, you never know what might happen.....






































At the end of my last entry here I did hint at what I've been working on. A crochet bag no less. My very first attempt at something like this. Heavily inspired by a couple of crafters who offer fantastic free tutorials. 

The first being the late Marinke (Wink) of A Creative Being. Very much missed in our community. Her squares bag pattern is awesome, and definitely a fantastic resource for any would-be bag maker. The other source of inspiration came from Brittany at B.Hooked Crochet, who offers some step-by-step video tutorials.






































Now I know some of you like to know the particulars, so I'm just going to mention the materials I used. I'm not sponsored and gain no incentive for mentioning them here, but like to give you a bit more info should you wish to replicate this for yourself. 

The yarn is Stylecraft Classique Cotton DK in Shrimp (3674). 3 balls was sufficient for me to make this size bag which consists of 24 squares (pattern from B.hooked link above), worked up on a 4mm hook. The lining material is Bhandari Chennai in the Reena Colourway, that I sourced from a local independent department store. I bought a metre and that would easily line 2 bags, so I have some left over for another project. 






































I hand-lined the bag as I do not have a sewing machine, nor have any experience of using one. I'm pleased with the overall finish considering I didn't have a clue. I very nearly didn't bother, as I thought I'd make a hash of it. With a little thought, and a bit of trial and error I sussed it out. So glad I didn't just give up. 

The handles I purchased from Hollie Craft on Ebay. I plumped for 2 pairs as it worked out slightly cheaper than buying a single pair. I'm sure I'll be making another bag sometime in the near future so made perfect sense. The big button is from Hobbycraft, the brand is Vogue Star and colour reference 123.

So there you have it, my first handmade bag! 
I look forward to using it........






































Before I go, I thought I'd share a couple of collages from a recent trip to Camden Lock Market in London. I drove down, parked opposite Regent's Park and sauntered through Primrose Hill, along the canal tow path to the market.

It's been some years since I've been there, and let me tell you it's VAST. Goodness me, the sights and smells were a feast for the senses. I enjoyed having a good browse amongst the hundreds of stalls. Just wish I had endless pots of cash to spend! Suffice to say I had to be very disciplined. 






































Did I mention the food? OMG, the food stalls/outlets/restaurants are on another level. There is something for every palate. The only thing that puts me off is how busy it gets. This was a quiet Friday afternoon in Winter and it was still bustling. The Summer must be a nightmare! 

Don't get me wrong I like the vibe of the place, but it's never pleasant when there's hundreds of bodies trying to occupy the same square metre of space. 

Just one last thing before I do disappear, and btw thanks for staying with me till the end. I know I've waffled on a bit. But I wanted to share with you this amazing flautist who I've just been introduced to. His name is Jef Kearns, and I love this instrumental track in particular entitled 'Lavender'. 


This will be the soundtrack to my Summer this year.......

Till next time
x x x x

16 comments:

  1. Very nice . Happy Spring with love Janice

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  2. Your bag is really great and I really like the lining too, you did a fantastic job of it! xx

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    1. I'm glad you think so Amy. I'm happy with it, and won't be so daunted next time. Thank you for taking the time to leave a message :)

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  3. I am in love with your bag, well done. I love the color and the square you picked to make it with.
    Hugs,
    Meredith

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    1. Hey Meredith, so nice to hear from you! Happy to know you like my latest make. Hugs, Sharron

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  4. Hi Sharron,
    I always love seeing your updates in my inbox. So lovely to see what others are doing, and their projects.
    I was wondering if you block your granny squares? I am making a jacket from granny squares and finding that blocking 100+ squares is a rather tedious task and am questioning if it is worth the extra effort?
    Thanks
    Jenna

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    Replies
    1. Hi Jenna, thanks for stopping by. Yes yes yes DO block your squares! I agree it's tedious, but you will be so glad you did when your finished piece looks so much neater. I definitely favour blocking in order to get the neatest, most uniform squares. Have a great day :)

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  5. Hi Sharron, your tutorials are fantastic! I love this bag! I've been wanting to make a colourful one with hues of blues (leftovers from stash) and now I know how to make it. I really love the beautiful bright colour combinations you use and also the pastels. I just love, love, love your work! You inspire me!
    I grew up in chilly Melbourne Australia and learnt basic knitting from my grandma. I've self taught myself to crochet (love the Internet). I now live in sunny, warm, Brisbane, Queensland so I mainly knit & crochet with cotton blends or acrylics, (I'm allergic to wool anyway).
    Rambling now, but I really wanted to let you that you inspire me!

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    1. Wow Karen, what a wonderful message to wake up to here in dull grey England. You have put the sunshine into my day with your kind thoughts. So happy to know you like the bag project and feel inspired to make something similar! Yay for sharing the crochet love :) I only learnt to Crochet myself about 6 years ago, via YouTube. Like you, self-taught and have never looked back! Sending you warmest wishes from the other side of the world. Thank you x

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  6. I love your bag the colour is gorgeous, the market looks great but I agree with you about the crowds I can't stand really crowds places it would have to be an early morning visit during the week for me before it got too busy. I'm going to listen to that soundtrack now, have a lovely day. :)

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    1. Morning Linda, thank you so much for leaving me a message. Glad you like the colour I chose for the bag, Shrimp, Salmon Pink, Orange seem to be quite 'on trend' at the moment. So Trinny said on 'This Morning' last week, lol. Not that I take any notice of trends really :) Nice to know I'm not the only one in regards to crowded places, never pleasant especially when it's hot! Thank you for taking the time to listen to Jef, I hope you like it even if it's not normally something you would listen to. I think he's super talented. Have a wonderful day, Sharron

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  7. Dear Sharron, I love your bag, it looks so wonderful. What a great colour! I just had the same idea a couple of weeks ago. I finished the squares yesterday, using a grey cotton yarn. I will show my bag as soon as it is finished. Viola

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    1. Hey Viola, that's wonderful news. I look forward to seeing your bag! Your crochet work is wonderful too. I especially love your mini grannies blanket. So amazing! Have a lovely day. Sharron

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  8. Hello Sharron,

    Your bag has turned out lovely, I bet it is nice and roomy inside. Perfect for packing your next project to crochet on the go! Whenever I go into Antwerp on the bus, I always take at least one of my current projects along with me. 40 mins bus time = relaxing crochet time = making good progress. Also I never get bored!

    About a year ago I also made a similar bag from granny squares, you can find it here:
    http://myfunkycrochet.blogspot.be/2015/03/a-colourful-granny-square-crochet-bag.html

    Right now I am working on another type of bag, a mochila bag: http://myfunkycrochet.blogspot.be/2016/02/mochilabag-crochet-new-funkycrochet.html

    It was also lovely to read about Camden Lock, it reminded me of the last time I went there with one of my daughters, must be over 4 years ago!

    Hope you have a lovely Easter!
    Ingrid xx
    Myfunkycrochet.blogspot.be

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  9. Lovely post Happy Easter to you xx

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Thank you for visiting me here at Annie's Place, and for taking the time to leave a comment. I appreciate each and every word x x x

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