Cwtch of Comfort Catch Up Part Deux!

Ok!

We had a massive donation of big squares from a lovely lady who is the aunt of a friend.

 She'd made them with the view that they would be lovely baby blankets but unfortunately they were too small at 19inches squares each.  So I put most of them together to make a massive teen/young adult size...

I had one square left over so I made that one into another baby blanket

We also had two more baby blankets donated, this time from a local group called 'The Knitting Nanas'

Absolutely lovely, thank you so much!

Our good friend Bonnie also finished off the toddler sized blanket she was putting together from donated squares-isn't it beautiful?  She uses a different method putting squares together that I'm keen to try out...

The last blanket from donated squares is another toddler size-there were a number of odd or left over squares, different sizes and they ended up to one side-

Very pretty I think!


Just before our big handover night, my friend Gaelle brought over a stunning toddler blanket that she has made-it is so soft and lovely!

We've had our massive handover evening which I will post separately but there were a few blankets brought on the day that I'd like to show you as well...

These two were brought along by Susan and Julie who have come along to our meetups and helped put together the group blankets-they are really lovely!

Another blanket was brought along by Harrie-it was made by her friend in memory of her baby daughter-it's a beautiful knitted blanket xxx

Last, and most definitely not least, is a beautiful blanket made by my lovely friend Harrie!  It was from a conversation with her a few years ago when I was teaching her how to make a granny square that she told me about Cwtch of Comfort and when she reminded me earlier in the year, it resulted in a fantastic effort by so many people :-D  She has made a pink and white blanket in memory of her friend's son who died tragically-it is called 'May the Force be with You' as he was a big Star Wars fan xxx

So, stay close for the big finale!  Myf is going swimming so I shall thrill you with all the details when we get home.....

Long absence-so lets catch up!

How are we all?  I have been working a lot over these holidays and so between that, trying to get some quality time with Myf and finishing up the big blanket project, I don't feel I've had time to sleep!  Needless to say, I need to do some serious catching up so let's start off with a Cwtch of Comfort update.

So firstly-my wonderful sister Thea made this lovely baby blanket for us-isn't it beautiful?  It is te same design she used for a baby blanket for her youngest so it's very close to the heart xxx

She also sent in squares for the 'Sister's Blanket'

Speaking of the Sisters Blanket, I've finished that as well :-D  I made some squares in pale green and one in yellow to complete the set and put it together-I love how soft it is and how it has been created from the skills of three sisters, we're so different but here we're complementary :-D xxx  I've been so delighted to finally collaborate with them, particularly for something so important

I also finished putting together the blankets that the ladies from my crochet group worked on at our get togethers-there's the big beautiful yellow child size blanket...

And this toddler size blanket...

It's been lovely putting together blankets with my group-some of the ladies have never done it before so they really enjoyed learning a new skill!

Finally, we have the last two child sized blankets made with donated squares-
 I had to make a few extra squares for this one once I had the idea in mind!

 I had a lot of trouble figuring out how to put the lilac and white one together but I think the effort was worth while!

One of the ladies from my group, Bonnie, had donated loads of lilac squares for this blanket-there was one left over that seemed a little sad on its own so it became its own baby blanket :-D

I just went around it improvising which was a lot of fun...


There are quite a few more blankets to show you but I'll do that in a separate post :-)  Thanks for reading! xxxx

3rd Blanket down!

I've finished another one!

This one is 40 squares (toddler size) and I tried a few different things with the border.  First, after the standard granny round to tie it all in, I tried out a 'crossed double crochet stitch' that I've read about but never tried.  So simple!  You do a normal double crochet stitch (I use american terms) and then do one in the stitch behind it so it crosses over.  It's quite a subtle effect but I think in strong colours, it would really stand out.  I finished off with a spike stitch variant for the last round-I think it looks quite lovely!  It adds quite a bit to the dimensions as well-this blanket measures 34" by 52".

A friend of Bonnie's also donated these two lovely blankets for Cwtch of Comfort

This one is narrow but long, I think it'll be a good size for a premature baby.

This is a fabulous size!  I love the design.

Thank you Ruth, they are very much appreciated xxx

We've had some gorgeous blankets donated for this project-they've been a joy to receive!  I'm so impressed by the skills and talents of people and by the generosity.

Joyce, from the SIBOL ravelry group, donated a blanket early on-and this week, I received another stunning blanket from her.  She's used a heart pattern throughout that gives such a lovely textured effect.

This is absolutely beautiful Joyce, thank you so much xxx



My friend Lisa has two little ones and she has very kindly donated a blanket that was made for her when her little ones were babies.  It's a gorgeous circular blanket that will definitely bring comfort to a grieving family.

She also has been hard at work with her mum making some squares and blankets for us as well!

There are some pink squares as well that I can't use for this project but I'll keep them aside with some of the other squares I've received that I can't use here for another blanket.

We met up on Wednesday night for another crochet along-this time to put together the squares for one of the child size blankets.  I brought down 80 squares in yellow and white with lots of spare yarn and we had a great time!  I showed some ladies how to use single crochet to attach the squares together into long strips of ten-I'll put these together a little later.

We had a lovely time again and met a couple more new faces!  We also talked about staying as a crochet group after the Cwtch Of Comfort project is finished, with the plan of regularly making donation pieces for charities close to our hearts.

A little belated...

I meant to blog this the other week but I've just been so crazy busy with work, squares, my gorgeous daughter and I completely forgot that I hadn't shared this stunning blanket with you.

My sister Jess is one of the most talented crafters I know.  She (along with my other sister Thea) was the main force behind teaching me to crochet, encouraging and inspiring me.  She's been crocheting for many years, since we were kids, and she makes such beautiful things.

When I started this project to help support 'Cwtch of Comfort', I called my sisters and asked for their help.  They've both offered to make blankets as well as some squares to go into a special 'Sisters Blanket' made by the three of us.  Jess sent hers in a couple of weeks ago and it's so stunning!

It's so soft and tactile-she's worked it with bobbles in the border to match up to the squares.  Isn't it lovely?

These are the squares for our special blanket.  Just waiting on Thea now...

TWO blankets finished already!

I am so proud to be able to share these with you today.

I started the first blanket last weekend as soon as the deadline arrived-I can't tell you how excited and keen I've been to get cracking with these beautiful squares!

This is our FIRST blanket made with the donations from all you lovely people-it is a child size (80 squares) so it measures approx 46" by 62" and I think it has a beautiful balance of squares-it has a very peaceful feel.

Isn't it lovely?

The second one I started yesterday morning at 5am and finished at 10am this morning before I went to work (Myf and I spent most of the day in Cardiff as well!)  It's a toddler size (40 squares) and measures approx 42" by 46"-I think it's gorgeous!

Neither blanket has an official name-feel free to suggest one!  We're meeting up at the Blueberry in Pontypridd again on Wednesday to put together another child size blanket and I'm planning to take a list of the suggested names to put into a hat...In the meantime, the lovely Bonnie is hard at work putting together two blankets from the squares I've passed along to her and I'm on to the next blanket...
Watch this space!


A massive thank you to EVERYONE who has donated squares, wool or/and blankets.  Working together, we will be donating 20 blankets to Cwtch of Comfort for the 2 Wish Upon A Star Foundation, which works to support families going through the horrific loss of a child.  The difference YOU'RE making is incredible and inspiring xxxxxxxxxx

Squares from Manchester!

My lovely sister Jess (blog post all about her coming up) has been so supportive of this project and, despite recovering from a fractured elbow (OUCH!), has been making squares, a STUNNING blanket and getting together with her crafty friends to make squares as well.

One of these friends, Clare, has sent in 7 lovely squares in pale yellow and pale purple along with some extra yarn for joining.  She enclosed a card telling me a little about herself-she's a confident knitter but new to crochet and wanted to show her support by making some squares.  I think these are really lovely and I'd never have guessed that she hadn't been crocheting for years!

Thank you Clare-they are perfect for this project! xx

I also received a parcel from Jess yesterday with squares from her group-the Sale Happy Hookers-

So a very big THANK YOU to Fiona, Shona and Jane for these beautiful squares.  You have all done a fabulous job on them xx