Happy Easter!

I hope your day has been filled with whatever sweets you fancy! I got some very nice dark chocolate which shall be devoured later.

As today has been so lovely - my father and I went for a wander up to the Rose & Crown in Eglwysilan. A short car ride (but a long walk) from where we live. It's a lovely old pub and the food is always always good. We both had a very nice Sunday Beef (no horse!) Dinner and dessert. The pub has an open fire, black beams and whitewashed walls, horse brasses etc etc.

  After our food we took the scenic route back home - to the north the snow covered Brecon Beacons...  And to the south - the sea and a glimpse of Flat Holm in the distance.  

It's a beautiful part of the world to live in. I just hope this year we get more weather to appreciate it properly.

Right! Time to get back to weaving my squares! I've got some brilliant mixes of colours and textures. It's great fun to experiment on a small scale and see what happens when you mix yarns you wouldn't usually blend together. I'm working on a plan to get some of them framed as they have come out so well.

Glass Cutting!

Sometimes, being someone who loves crafts and experimenting with different things can cause you to be volunteered for things you don't expect. A case in point being last week when my brother asked if I still had my glass cutting equipment.

Yes, I do. And why did he need to know?

He'd bought a new door without glazing and was hoping to use my tools.

So I said he could borrow it and I'd show him how to use it as most of the panes were rectangular and just needed to be trimmed to size.

By the end of the week I was being requested to cut all the glass for him (my sister-in-law)! Or at least - help him far more than was initially suggested (him).

So Saturday was digging out all my glass cutting equipment and setting it all up for him and his glass. 

Here it is, unpackaged - prior to any cutting. Notice the two glass cutters in the picture. After a lesson which I insisted he cut and cut and cut some plain glass to learn how to cut and then 'snap' the glass afterwards - I cut the first piece and then let him cut his glass himself. I, however, tended to do the 'snapping' once he had scored the glass using his (well, my) cutter.

He wasn't entirely enamoured of using the cutter, he wanted to use it in a similar way to using another piece of cutting equipment. But following a very brief trial - he realised the traditional way of cutting glass worked best.

He and his wife had chosen 9 different sheets of glass colour-wise, although they all had the same texture. They were all rectangular, except for the top 3 which were curved.

He did rather well all told! They aren't set out in the order that they intend to glaze with - but here they are!

Even better, when he got home - he checked - and yes - they all fitted! So no need to use the grinder I had in the corner of this picture.

I think, overall, he enjoyed being the one to cut his own glass and would probably have a go again if he had the opportunity.

I enjoyed it too! It's been a long time since I've seriously cut any glass - so I was pretty pleased with the end result.

In other news I'm still using up the left over yarn I have accumulated over time. Hopefully I'll have some pics soon of all the pieces - prior to me deciding what to do with them all.

LYS and stash additions.

Today, as I had a day off from work, I found myself at a loose end. My initial plans (finding out the results of my MA) were no longer on the cards - so I had lots of options - but nothing set in stone.

A thought occurred to try my luck at a yarn shop in Penarth - Yarn 'n Yarns. They don't really exist on the internet - and they have had sporadic opening hours. I discovered some months ago that the owner is ill and consequently running the shop is very much on a back burner for her priority-wise. The best way to find out if it is open is to ring beforehand. Luckily they were open this afternoon, as a friend of the owner was opening it - so I caught the train and headed off to what is, in my opinion - the best LYS in the area.

Size-wise - they are a small shop - but choice-wise - phew!

I picked up some Collinette (the only place I've found that stock it in the area), some fancy yarn, some Rowan and some Noro. I could have continued if I knew my bank balance would let me! The photo doesn't really do the colours justice at all.

I do hope Yarn 'n Yarns continues for the future and the owner's health improves. It seems a shame that the area could lose what is the best shop for increasing your stash with good quality and unusual yarns. We've already lost Big Knitters, and whilst Calon Yarns and John Lewis are both good and useful in their own way - they don't have anywhere near the choice, nor indeed the amount, of yarn that Yarn n' Yarns carries.

It seems a shame that whilst the crafting world appears to be increasingly popular, little yarn shops are still challenging to run, and, should the owner no longer be able to run it (for whatever reason), once they are gone - they are gone for good. I miss Big Knitters as it was useful for getting some very nice yarn - both branded and, on occasion, locally hand spun.
Should Yarn n' Yarns vanish - then all my yarn shopping will be focused either online, at Wonderwool, or will be acrylic.

As a weaver - I don't need knitting yarns. But I do use them in my projects. Some of my best work uses yarn that I shouldn't really use - and many of those I picked up in either Big Knitters or Yarn n' Yarns. Today buying more stash was great fun - but bittersweet as this may be one of the last opportunities for me to look at the yarn and touch it prior to purchase.

Long live the LYS's of the world and their dedicated owners. This crafter will sorely miss you - should you choose for whatever reason not to continue.

A minor update

I received my results! I can now lay claim to an MA pass (with merit) after graduation which is next month! I am very pleased with this and looking forward to getting dressed up to receive my piece of paper!

I've had a serious sort out of my craft room. Now I know what I have - so I can see more clearly what I can make with it all. I appear to have quite a few cones of yarn, so I'm considering building a yarn tree as that should utilise the space in a better way. Added to that, there is a significant amount of small balls of yarn (or indeed not enough to make a ball) - so my plan is to use these up on my Hazel Rose Loom  which I picked up at Wonderwool last year. As Wonderwool is just over a month away - this gives me a chance to make some space for more purchases which will undoubtedly be too tempting to leave in Builth Wells! I have started working through my stash, and it's been fun to try and use up all the very small bits and see what interesting colour/texture combinations I can come up with. When I have more squares and less yarn, I'll start on making them in to things. Current ideas include drinks mats, pin cushions and combining different squares to make bigger items.

I'm hoping to have a refresher course in warping my loom soon. For some reason, between the warping board and the loom - it all goes horribly wrong. Quite why this is happening now is beyond me - so I'm going to take advantage of being in Glamorgan Guild of Weavers, Spinners & Dyers and borrow a member to give me some advice.

Other than that - the weather appears to have turned cold once more - so working with yarn or fleece to create items to keep me warm is always appealing!