It's never too late to learn!

I recently saw a photograph somewhere of a lovely crocheted coat made entirely from granny squares.  I thought 'I want a coat like that' but the only way I would get one would be to make it myself.  Unfortunately I can't crochet but have set about learning.   I fell in love with this beautiful yarn which is more vibrant than it appears here, and have decided to make a waistcoat first to see how I get on.  The yarn is 4ply and quite soft.  It will be fine for a waistcoat but already I can see that a double knitting yarn would be better for a coat and make a firmer and more practical fabric.

Granny squares are the simplest type of crochet so I bought myself a little book of designs and started with the basic one.

I am slowly building up a nice stock of these.  What a pity I'm not a size 12 - I wouldn't need nearly so many to make a garment!    I found that I could work out what I was supposed to be doing better from the photographs in the booklet than from the written instructions.  Not the best way to learn perhaps but our local wool shop runs classes for beginners in knitting and crochet which should enable me to learn the terminology and follow a pattern.   I shall put my name down when the next ones are announced.

It is a lovely therapeutic pastime and this weekend I have even sat in the garden making my little squares.  I have also got dirt under my fingernails at last and done my first gardening of the year.  The front garden looks as if it has had it's hair combed as my husband has cut the grass.  There was quite a chorus of lawn mowers from all directions around us over the past few days - the sunshine has obviously stirred all us fairweather gardeners into action.

It has been so lovely to sit outside in a sheltered corner and I have seen several butterflies, ladybirds and bumblebees.  I hope the weather doesn't turn colder again and take them by surprise.   The snowdrops which were such a joy a week ago have suddenly disappeared, but all sorts of other things are arriving to take their place.   It really is a lovely time of year.