Learn to crochet?

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Not watched any yet, behind on bakeoff too, so need a few things to settle down then i shall bingewatch!
 
I actually put down my own work to watch this Crafters show so I don't miss a thing. Looking forward to John's Baycott comments as he has already done a craft show. joy what did you think - I woudn't have gone for birds - some people find them unlucky - stick to furry creatures I think.
 
Hi Pam snailtrailer I enjoyed the show too. I guess birds are small so fStsr to do... I wouldn't have done owls.. Unlucky re Native Americans.. Carriers of the souls of the dead to the next life. I loved the hares and the ram's head.

II was amazed that the larger animals were ALL wool. I thought they may have had a polestyrene block in the middle of the body as some kitters do. Any thoughts Pam?

I prefer our Baycott's work much more interesting and appealing to my tastes but LOVED the enthusiasm of the young man. Hope he does well.

Loved the plastic work of that lady.... But boy how disorganised. :). Noo electricity to run her fountain, no table. I wonder if she remembered to take any water?
 
Hi Joy movan There is a certain appeal about tiny mice - as I know when I did the felt ones. Have you tried a 'proper' mouse as opposed to the ones with legs and arms for your craft stall.

I'ts now got me thinking about what I might specialise in for the Sales Table at our next quilt exhibition next year. If that went well I might - just might - do a craft fair. I've just looked up 'craft fairs' and there are quite a few around here at this time of the year. So far my preference is bags, especially patchwork bags where I can do a lot of the work by hand.

I didn't like the plastic recycled things at all - not even the garden things - so I'll pass on that one.

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I have just realised John Baycott is not at home at the moment so it may be a while before we get his comments. John's items are small and delicate compared to this lad - who is, after all, a furniture maker and therefore his efforts at small things are clumsy in comparison.
 
Hi Pam.. I am practising the needlefelting at the moment but with the aim of building up to 'reality' and mice are probably going to be the first attempt at that. :)

II think I was interested in the plastic lady because of the recycling issue but also because I had been thinking of ways to make the bee keyrings (table filler) wings out of recycled plastic bottles...

TThanks for starting this thread, Pam. This and the music one are my favourites. X
 
Aaaagh this phone keeps putting two letters at the beginning of a paragraph plus full stops and more in the middle of sentences. :(
 
Janine said:
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Yes, that is me as well :)


movan said:
I wouldn't have done owls.. Unlucky re Native Americans.. Carriers of the souls of the dead to the next life. I loved the hares and the ram's head.
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I love birds and especially owls. I'd rather have the souls carried to a peaceful place than have them haunt me :)

movan said:
Loved the plastic work of that lady.... But boy how disorganised. :). Noo electricity to run her fountain, no table. I wonder if she remembered to take any water?
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I was concerned she did not appear to have a fume extraction system. Some plastics give off carcinogenic fumes when heated :( I did love her fountain and also wonder if the disorganisation was part of the drama rather than documentary.

It must be really difficult pricing items. You DO have to charge for your time if it is going to be a job but people don't want to pay for you to do your hobby. A man who makes and sells a lot of jewellery told me he always has a "statement piece" that is photographed and made into the backdrop of his stand. He prices it at many thousands of pounds and never expects to sell it but usually he does sell one a year. He thinks that if people see something so expensive they think the rest of his work is good value and are more willing to buy. He also keeps his stall on the sparse side with most of the stock under the stall so he can replace items as things sell. Exclusive and original are his strong selling points. He also has a family member come along and "buy" something from time to time. If one person is buying others tend to do the same.

It is also almost essential that you have the means to take card payment at shows :) People are far more likely to make impulse buys if they can pay by card as then it isn't "real" money.

I knit quite fast but quilts take around 100 hours of intense work (for a king size). I would need to charge at least £2000 for a king size quilt to pay for all the materials, wear and tear on equipment (often forgotten about) and a little for myself. I am also not sure that I would want to turn my hobby into a full time occupation as that might impact the enjoyment, having to meet deadlines and not being able to experiment so much as I needed to remain commercial.

The textile artists I know that are professional (as in it is their main source of income) tend to make small items for speculative sale and larger items are commission only. They also have a substantial income from giving talks, holding workshops and the like.

On a lighter note the October photo on the calendar that our son sent us (each month a different photo of our grandson) is of Matthew fast asleep under the quilt I made his Dad when he went to uni. Just a small quilt which made very quickly to brighten his room and which I repaired extensively last year. From the time he was tiny Matthew insisted that he could not nap unless he was covered by that quilt even though he and they have a few others :)
 
movan said:
It's Channel 5 at 8pm.THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF CRAFTING.

Last week was quilting, Fimo, crochet, etc etc.... Think it's different crafts each week but it's presented in a quite interesting way.. It isn't like Kirsty Allsop's programme.

It's people wanting to make money from their hobbies.
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snailtrailer said:
I have just realised John Baycott is not at home at the moment so it may be a while before we get his comments. John's items are small and delicate compared to this lad - who is, after all, a furniture maker and therefore his efforts at small things are clumsy in comparison.
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Got home about an hour ago and have now emptied the van (in the cold, wind and rain :( I have now got it on catchup and will watch it when I get a chance.
Thanks for the info and compliments ladies (y)

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Puddleduck said:
Yes, that is me as well :)




I love birds and especially owls. I'd rather have the souls carried to a peaceful place than have them haunt me :)



I was concerned she did not appear to have a fume extraction system. Some plastics give off carcinogenic fumes when heated :( I did love her fountain and also wonder if the disorganisation was part of the drama rather than documentary.

It must be really difficult pricing items. You DO have to charge for your time if it is going to be a job but people don't want to pay for you to do your hobby. A man who makes and sells a lot of jewellery told me he always has a "statement piece" that is photographed and made into the backdrop of his stand. He prices it at many thousands of pounds and never expects to sell it but usually he does sell one a year. He thinks that if people see something so expensive they think the rest of his work is good value and are more willing to buy. He also keeps his stall on the sparse side with most of the stock under the stall so he can replace items as things sell. Exclusive and original are his strong selling points.

I knit quite fast but quilts take around 100 hours of intense work (for a king size). I would need to charge at least £2000 for a king size quilt to pay for all the materials, wear and tear on equipment (often forgotten about) and a little for myself. I am also not sure that I would want to turn my hobby into a full time occupation as that might impact the enjoyment, having to meet deadlines and not being able to experiment so much as I needed to remain commercial.

The textile artists I know that are professional (as in it is their main source of income) tend to make small items for speculative sale and larger items are commission only. They also have a substantial income from giving talks, holding workshops and the like.

On a lighter note the October photo on the calendar that our son sent us (each month a different photo of our grandson) is of Matthew fast asleep under the quilt I made his Dad when he went to uni. Just a small quilt which made very quickly to brighten his room and which I repaired extensively last year. From the time he was tiny Matthew insisted that he could not nap unless he was covered by that quilt even though he and they have a few others :)
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I had a blanket like that too. If I close my eyes I can still 'smell' it. :)

I love owls too... Just wouldn't reproduce one.. Bit daft with superstition at times.

To be honest I really looked forward to seeing the fountain working. I guess the high price was because of the cost of the pump too. At the end of the day, I just really enjoy the programme.
 
Off to an auction tomorrow. There are loads and loads of buttons - metal and plastic but I won't be bidding on them as I already have a bookcase full of jars of buttons.

The furniture often sells for very little and I sometimes think some of the little tables with water damaged tops would make wonderful upcycling projects. Not that I have the time !!!!!! With so much up and down to my parents at the moment I am only doing hand work.
 
Hi everyone,

I have downloaded the craft programme and will watch it later.

Joy movan I found a site yesterday that has loads of patterns for little animals that basically all start with the same cube pattern and you just add different details. I attempted this one which is far from perfect but didn’t take too long.

If you like the sound of them I could email you the patterns I downloaded. They include a whale, bat, rabbit, squirrel, Fox, unicorn and Santa x
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Thanks Helen Puddleduck for writing such a useful piece, full of information. As members of various craft groups we are used to selling to each other and so price accordingly. I believe the work is only valued when it is priced correctly. When I used to make cake for the WI market there was a formula - cost of ingredients plus one third for fuel - and a third for labour. That was fair and still competitive with local traders.
 
movan said:
Ooooh. Love needlefelt and love wooden things. Maybe the plastic will show us a way to re-use plastic and make pin money. :). X
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I have seen several patterns using strips of plastic bags crocheted to make more bags.

ps bees swarming nicely

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Sus3v said:
I have seen several patterns using strips of plastic bags crocheted to make more bags.

ps bees swarming nicely
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When I did my stint in West Africa, 16 years ago now, there were bags and purses for sale made by women who wove waste plastic bags. Plastic waste was a horrendous problem even then ( whatever I took with me, I brought back)
 
Bear with me and my rubbish attempts please.. I really struggle with craft. ... But the £1.table is going to be quite full.

I am concentrating on getting used to handling the wool and understanding all the crafts entail. One day I will be as good as some of the brilliant crafters on here. This is my just finished pig. I didn't know what he was going to be when I started.

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His little tail.

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Went to the Buckfastleigh Wool Gathering today, some lovely things, hand dyed yarn, knitted items, lots of needle felting kits and “fluff” and so on. There was a table of raffle prizes and one of the items was labelled “ child’s prayer flannel” ( I’m fairly sure the last word was flannel.) it was a small crocheted square. Anyone know what it is, history of it ? Can’t seem to find anything online and never heard of it before.
 
Hollyberry said:
Went to the Buckfastleigh Wool Gathering today, some lovely things, hand dyed yarn, knitted items, lots of needle felting kits and “fluff” and so on. There was a table of raffle prizes and one of the items was labelled “ child’s prayer flannel” ( I’m fairly sure the last word was flannel.) it was a small crocheted square. Anyone know what it is, history of it ? Can’t seem to find anything online and never heard of it before.
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Is this of any help Pauline?

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would love the hat without the octopus eyes and body bit at the back, what a fun way to brighten up the dull winter days to come and keeping ears warm..

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movan said:
Bear with me and my rubbish attempts please.. I really struggle with craft. ... But the £1.table is going to be quite full.

I am concentrating on getting used to handling the wool and understanding all the crafts entail. One day I will be as good as some of the brilliant crafters on here. This is my just finished pig. I didn't know what he was going to be when I started.

View attachment 338682

His little tail.

View attachment 338683
Click to expand...
For all my posts with little items I made, I have not yet attempted an animal with legs to fill and eyes to dot, etc.etc. Is £1 enough?
 
davanne said:
Joy I love your cat......I really fancy trying needle felting but I’d probably end up stabbing myself with the needle.
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I got up in the middle of thenight to put Dettol on my fingertips. :) x
 

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