Does it look like salami? Personally, the thought never crossed my mind, but that's what a lovely person said earlier when they saw the photo above!
Definite highlight of this last week (possibly 2022 so far) was attending The Stitch Festival in Islington, London on Friday. I had never heard of it before, thanks Instagram for your targeted advert which clearly worked. My friend and I arrived early and were welcomed by an array of fabrics, small craft businesses, workshops, supplies and talks. It was any artsy/creative crafter's delight, even just walking around was enjoyable as there were bright colours and enthusiastic sellers everywhere. The workshops for the day were sold out (I think many book ahead for them online) and included "lessons" such as how to use sewing machines, paper craft, big crochet / knitting, introduction to dressmaking etc.
This was definitely a yarn lover's paradise, as I'd say hand-dyed yarns were a particularly popular item stocked by many stallholders. I found the gems above sold by a lady with the best Scottish accent ever and maybe I was taken with the fact that they had come all the way from somewhere I imagine to be quite remote. Or maybe it was the irresistible colour of this yarn! So good I had to buy two!
Isn't it gorgeous?! This yarn is 60% SW (Superwash) merino, 20% baby alpaca and 20% silk and has been hand dyed by the folks at www.bowfiddleyarns.com
I have crocheted a couple of small flowers using it, and as it is to touch, it's also very easy and smooth to work with. I haven't decided on a final use for it; I may have get the knitting book out and see if there's a shawl or scarf pattern I fancy making. Could possibly make a good zip purse too...
My other buy (along with a small packet mix of sequins and beads and a pair of sharp embroidery scissors) were these little beauties. They were sold on large spools for 10p per metre by www.ginisdorsetbuttons.com I guess for people to make Dorset buttons, but I thought I'd use them to crochet small motifs and also to make friendship bracelets from. See photo below:
The top two flowers have been crocheted using the yarn at the top of this post, the bottom flower using one of the Dorset button (I assume it's perle cotton embroidery thread or something very similar). The friendship is also from 4 of the threads. I like this colour combo for the friendship bracelet, not so much for the flower which may be better when they're plain or have no more than 2 colours in them. The top two flowers I think would look striking on a black background, or stitched onto a tote bag. What do you think? What else could they be stitched onto, and what colour background would you like to see? Let me know in the comments below, or via Instagram @liulinglinguk
Thank you so much for reading, please do forward onto anyone who may enjoy this post / the photos.
Lingling