Grow your Blog..........

Hello and Welcome to the Summerhouse by the Sea.

This is the first time I've taken part in the 'Grown your blog 'party held by  2 Bags Full and to be totally honest with you I only remembered in the nick of time that it's running today, oops never mind.

 

So my names Clare and I've been blogging for a couple of years now at the Summerhouse by the Sea here in the UK.  Above is a picture of my lovely Old  I mean vintage Summerhouse which is home to my crafting and is affectionately know around these parts as the shed.

Where I love to create all sorts of things from crochet to arts and crafts, there is always something going on here and a ever growing pile of WIP's

Since I've been blogging and crocheting I've been making seasonal wreaths and last year saw me complete the set with my Summer and Autumn Wreaths and I was lucky enough to have a picture of my Summertime wreath published in Crafts Beautiful magazine, (such a wonderful surprise)

I'm in blanket making mode at the moment, working on a couple of Attic 24 Cosy Blankets and also a granny blanket. I'm a bit of a one for starting new projects.

As well as working on getting things finished for a local craft exhibition due to start at the end of February with themes of The Owl and the Pussycat, Fantasia, Egypt and Masks (still in the planning stage eek).

So what else goes on here at the Summerhouse, well a lots of resting too as I suffer with quite severe ME/Lyme disease and spend most of my time stuck in bed, but a positive of this is it's led me to discover my creative side, as regular readers will know I had a bit of a tough time with my health over the last twelve months and my blog and all the other lovely like minded people you meet in blogland have helped cheer me on through the tough times so I very grateful for that.

 One last thing you all should know about the Summerhouse is that it stands in a garden full of beautiful flowers and I quite often like to share mosaic's of what's going on out in the garden.

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you have enjoyed you're visit. I've recently set up a Facebook page for the blog which you can find 'here'  feel free to have a look around the blog archive too.

You can also follow me on Bloglovin or Google if you'd like to

Happy Crafting

Clare xx

 

Four Seasons in a day.

Hello.... I hope you don't mind but seeing as I've completed the last seasonal wreath, I thought it was time to celebrate and indulge in a little more yarny wreath love.

I really am so thrilled to have completed the fours seasons especially as things have been so bad healthwise for most of the year.  I'm so glad that I decided to go ahead anyway and make the final season.

So be it Winter, Spring, Summer or Autumn there can always be a bit of yarny goodness in the form a wreath up on the wall here at the Summerhouse

Spring was the first wreath I made and looking back at it now I still love it, but think it might need a few more additions, you know the finishing touches that I have learnt along the way making the other wreaths.

As for Summer made earlier this year, I just love all the Roses and I'm still amazed it found it 's way into a magazine.

Now Autumn, at the moment I think is my favourite of all my wreaths (ssh don't tell the others) it might be because it's the one I just made I'm not sure, but I do love the colours of this one.

Finally we have Winter, made in the gloomy light of late last year as the nights were drawing in, I have a bit of a soft spot for this one too.

Which season would you pick if you had to?

Thanks for all the wonderful comments that have been left about my wreaths over the time I have been blogging I really do appreciate every word, although I'm not the best at responding to the comments, I do read them all it's just my time is very limited by my illness each day.

Thanks again.

Happy Crafting 

Clare x

Five seconds

Hello........Just a quick post today as I have quite a surprise to share with you

Yesterday evening a friend wrote on Facbook that my Summertime wreath was in Crafts Beautiful magazine (Aug) on the 'Your Space page' !!!

Wow really!! was my response, so off I went to find my copy that had also arrived yesterday. I'd resisted opening my magazine as I was saving it to take to the hospital today.

What a surprise, after the initial shock wore off I was over the moon, to see my little make in a magazine, happy, happy. My five seconds of crafty fame !!

Here's my wreath hanging in our lounge this morning,  the magazine says it was made in a weekend!! which maybe possible for someone it full health, but mine took me a few weeks to put together making some new roses and using some of the flowers from my Spring and Winter version of the wreath.

 I'm cockahoop and over the moon that they featured my make,  been smiling all day, despite the fact I'm off to see the Cardiologist for the first time this afternoon, to see if as well as ME/Lyme I have POTS.

The Internet is a amazing thing really, that someone crafting from there bed while ill can end up with a photo of there make in a magazine, so keep crafting everyone, you never know !!

Happy Crafting

Clare xxx

Quick question before I go is anyone else having trouble with there blogger reading list, mines only showing one blog, the latest one to published, that I follow I can't see the others, so I'm sorry of I miss you're post.

May's Mosiacs

Hello...... I can't believe it's June already, so long to May, which has to be one of my favourite months of the year.

Sadly I spent most of May feeling pretty rotten and stuck in bed, so not a awful lot got done here at the Summerhouse. I did make it out to a Bluebell wood which was well worth the energy payback.

There has been little bit of crochet here Roses and a Poppy, I finsihed off my Spring time Mandala and I completed some granny squares for my Springtime throw.  The garden sprung to life and I even made a little May Day basket to celebrate May day.

I'm trying to play mandolin for 10 minutes each day trying to get my hands working as I'd love to be well enough to attend the Sorefingers Music School Weekend in October it's good to have something to plan for and look forward to, only time will tell if I'll be well enough to go.

As for my resolution at the start of the year to try and do some art each month, well here's May's effort a postcard size water colour to try and capture the magic of the Bluebells, I'm so tempted to add some fine blue glitter to the bluebells.

Out in the Summerhouse garden May was Marvellous, so many Roses, no wonder I was so inspired to make them the focus of my Summertime Wreath

The year in books

May saw me finished April book Hunting Unicorns by Bella Pollen, although I found the book a little slow in places I enjoyed it in the end, I found the second part of the book much better than the first. 

May's book was 'The Voice of Angels by Francesea Brown, as I mentioned before I was lent this book as the author also suffered from ME before finding her Spiritual path and recovering, I have to say I found it fascinating read.

So onto June, where I'm escaping off to historical  Devon, Summer days of old and Pirates with Daphne Du Maurier 'Frenchmans Creek'  I have to say I'm already ahead with this months read as I've nearly finished it, when I done I'm planning to re read  'The Lyme Disease Solution' by Kenneth Singleton MD,  I say re read and my memory is like a goldfish these day.

Well that's about it have a wonderful June one and all.

linking up with the year in books 
and Nicoles KCCO

Clare xx

Summertime Wreath Ta-Dah

Hello......... So it Ta-Dah time

First off before we get to the full on Ta-Dah, I'm going to take you on a little tour around the wreath. 

 Here's the bottom left. 

then the left side of the wreath, 

as you can see this ring of Roses includes several of different Rose patterns

Then we get to the top, 

the centre rose is Stylecraft Special DK Pomegranate, and is not as bright red as it appears in the photos (I always seem to have trouble photographing reds!!)

Here's the top right, Roses Blossoms Anemones and Butterflies, I think the finishing touches are added by placing a pretty bead between the pins and some of the flowers

Then the bottom left with glitter Butterfly, well you always need a bit of Sparkle

Here's the lower part of the wreath

So it looks like we are there, it still amazes me how quickly this one came together, are you ready..... so exciting.

Ta-Dah

My Summertime Wreath

I hope you like it ? it's not as fancy as the Wintertime one with all it's Sparkle or the Springtime one with it's variety of blooms but I do love the Roses and colours seem to fit well together.

So welcome to Summertime here at the Summerhouse by the Sea.

It's official even if the sun has not got his hat this morning.

Linking up with Ginny'sYarn along

Happy Crafting

Clare x

 

Summertime Wreath: Putting it all together

Hello..... It amazes me but I've got there much quicker than I thought possible with this new wreath. To tell you the truth this is mostly because I have used flowers from both my Springtime and Wintertime wreaths

From Springtime I've borrowed Roses

and Little Flowers (both patterns from the wonderful Attic 24 )

Butterflies too

and Anemones (which are flowering in the Summerhouse garden at the moment.)

You can find the tutorial for them 'here'

From winter I've borrowed Little blossoms

and more Roses.

So in the end I only had to make make seven Roses to complete the wreath. I made most of them using a pattern from Nicki Trents 'Cute and Easy crochet with flowers' book

Choosing a Summery palette of Reds, Pinks Lilacs Blues and Purples mostly Stylecrafts Special DK and all from my stash which is a bonus.

I'm using the same wreath as my base with it's green knitted cover, you can read more about how I covered the wreath 'here' As I said in my last post I love using the one wreath base that changes with the Seasons, (only Autumn to do now !!)

As always I'm using the little trick of a stitch marker to hang my wreath by.

So we are already there, time for the pinning of my Summertime wreath, it's hard to believe that it's has all come together in less than two weeks, flowers, beads pins, ribbon and sparkle all at the ready.

See you next time for the big Ta-Dah

Clare xx

Ring of Roses

Hello............ Well I decided to go for it and make a Summertime version of my crochet wreath, now I realise there is not much time, and Summer is upon us, but never the less I'm going to go for it.

 I've been thinking about what really represents Summer here at the Summerhouse by the sea and decided on Roses lots and lots, so I've set to work on my Ring a Roses.

 

Both my Spring and Winter wreaths include Roses as they seem to flower nearly all year round here. So I'll be using some of the pre made Roses in my Summertime wreath, partly as time is of the essence and my energy levels are low but also as I kinda like that my wreath evolves as the seasons go by with some flowers staying and some going just like out in the Summerhouse garden  

Over the passed week, I've been playing around with a colour palette for wreath

 and have starting making some larger roses. I'm using two of Nikki Trent patterns from her 'Cute and Easy Crochet' books

I've also started playing around with the wreath layout, to get a idea about things, it's still a work in progress with more rose to make and I'm thinking some daisies too.  It needs a lot more work,  more pinning and re pinning to do until I'm happy, but I love this way of working with the wreaths as you get a great look at what's needed what lacking and what's still to be done.  

It's always fun to play around with the colours, in this way, and helps to see if the balance is right, which I know is not right yet.

As I'm stuck in bed with a relpases and a flare up (Herx) of symptoms from restarting my Lyme disease treatment I'm glad I've decided to attempt a Summertime wreath, it's such a great way of taking my mind off all the thing I can't do (that need doing) around here at the moment.

If you need me, I've escaped off to the wonderful world of crocheted flowers for a while.

Happy Crafting

Clare x