Macmillan Crochet Square

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Gemstone Blanket 'Energised' Crochet Pattern

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Chatting about Pear Upside-Down Cake, Tadpoles and Romantic Hearts Crochet Pattern

It's been busy around here since the last blog post on Wednesday last week.  I'm never at a loss of having things to keep me busy thanks to being craft and book mad and that's not changed much while we are in lockdown.  I don't know about you but I often have trouble stopping for a break (and sometimes lunch) when I get in full swing with something, especially if it's something outside in the garden.  Total awareness of time disappears when i'm out there pottering about.

Work on my upcoming crochet blanket pattern has been going at a great pace and alongside this i've been having loads of inspiration coming through for other patterns for later in the year.  The release day for the pattern for the Gemstone Blanket titled 'Energised' is Wednesday next week so keep an eye out for the announcements. 

What a great way to start the day on Monday..........with a rainbow in my teacup :-)

Speaking of colours; what about the colour of these Snapdragons?  Aren't they delicious?  These are self-sown from last year's crop so a nice surprise to see then popping up amongst the 'Love in the Mist' I showed you last week.  Swiping through the photos on my phone on Thursday and coming across this one,  I had this silly little poem compose itself in my head.  It turns out it was useful in cheering a few people up, and an appropriate reminder to me later on in the day when I had a meltdown over the sink being filled with dishes yet again when the washer was empty.

"Try not to be snappy like a Snapdragon today, 

instead find some time to be silly and play.

If you can't do that then find a hook,

to go with some yarn, 

or a nice chunky book."

Last Friday saw the one year anniversary of the last episode of Game of Thrones.  What a night that was and what an ending!  It was fun seeing that memory popping up in my Facebook feed, but let's face it, it's not always great in flashing up memories that are actually lovely.  Some of them have been inappropriate or unfortunate for being referred to as a memory you might want to be reminded of.

More baking again this week.  This
time an upside-down cake combination inspired by the can of pears in the cupboard combined with an urge to bake. Traditionally this cake is made using pineapple rings and sliced glace cherries but I didn't have any of them on hand and I was in the mood for a bit of experimenting.

Many of you asked for the recipe in response to the photograph of the cake on Facebook and Instagram.  I was reluctant to do that because i'd used a recipe out of a book.

However, I did rummage through my own handwritten gathering of recipes for the upside-down recipe I knew I had, and which i'd be able to share with you in good conscience.

Wouldn't you know it, the ingredients are the same.  So here is the recipe, with my own bits added for Upside-Down Cake.



 ******************************************************************************
Pear Upside-Down Cake 

1 400g can Pear Halves or fruit of your choice.
125g Self-raising Flour
125g Baking Margerine or Butter
125g Castor Sugar
2 Large Eggs
1 tsp Baking Powder
1tsp Vanilla Essence
Note:  (For this Pear version of the cake I added 1 tsp Ground Ginger to the mixture instead of the Vanilla because it's a good combination with Pears.  If you make a version with Pineapple or other fruit, I don't think Ginger will work well for flavour, so use Vanilla Essence instead.)

To make:

Preheat oven to 180˚C Fan
Line a 20cm round baking tin.

Beat eggs.

Cut pear halves into slices, but not too thin.

Put all the ingredients into a mixing bowl and beat until the batter is pale and creamy.

Arrange the slices of  pear onto the bottom of the cake tin, then place the batter on top and level it out.

Bake for 25 minutes or until the knife comes out clean when inserted into the cake.  Note: The knife tip may have moisture on it from the fruit, but you will see the difference between this and unbaked cake batter.

Leave to cool before turning the cake out onto a plate. 

Enjoy x

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The tadpoles in our garden pond are doing well and have begun to develop their little legs, which you may be able to see in this picture.  As you can imagine it's difficult do photograph them because the minute I get close to the pond surface they dash away and hide.  There aren't as many as there were right at the very beginning when they first hatched, but there's still plenty of them to ensure a lively population amongst the ivy in the flower beds in a few weeks time.

Regretably i've not been on the ball with planting seeds into propagators this year so i've sown directly this time.  Yesterday the winds had died down so being outside was pleasant once again, allowing me to get stuck in with sowing,  sorting out the compost, tidying up the pots and re-potting some plants that needed more space.  One of them was a succulent that had been growing in the conservatory and which took a tumble off the window sill because it had become so lanky and top heavy.  Sadly quite a few of it's petals (are they called petals?) broke off but it's still okay, has a larger pot and the addition of some skewers to keep it upright until it settles it's roots.

Seeds sown in the giant pots yesterday were tomatoes, spinach and radishes.  In previous years we've planted much more, but with no longer having the raised beds because our dog loved to scamper through and 'water' them, we've had to use giant pots instead which has changed what we plant.  I would like to change this in future because we do miss growing our own vegetables.

The twigs you see here are to prevent birds and the resident squirrels from scratching about in the new soil and compost in the giant pots - or so I hoped.  This morning I came out to find that there had indeed been some disturbance, so all going as planned the mesh that's now been added will prevent this from happening again until the plants are well on their way.

Last week I decided to surprise you all with another free crochet pattern called the Romantic Hearts Square.  It's an oldie but a goodie that i've given a bit of a revamp. If you didn't see the release announcement, not to worry because it's waiting for you here

Monday was Bank Holiday and an unexpected surprise filled the sky that afternoon.  Isnt' it great?  It was thanks to Pilot Rich Goodwin.  You can read about him and why he did it here

In closing, a reminder that i'm aiming to release the pattern for the Gemstone Blanket titled 'Energised' on Friday this week so keep an eye out for the annoucements here and on Facebook and Instagram. 

Wishing you a good week.
Stay well and safe,
K x

The Big Reveal: Sunny Sunflowers Blanket is complete

Here it is in all it's glory!  My completed Sunny Sunflowers Blanket.

Guaranteed to brighten up any setting and will be extra lovely in Autumn with it's complementing colours and cosy for those slightly fresher evenings.

This morning I updated the pattern to include the instructions to make the border.  You'll find the pattern for the blanket by visiting my website.

I'd love to see if you make your own blanket using this pattern, so please remember to tag me in on your posts and also use #sunnysunflowersblanket and #karenwiederholddesigns so others can find them.

Wishing you loads of fun if you choose to make your own blanket or project using the squares.

Karen  x



PS,  If you like this pattern and would like to show your appreciation, please gift a donation to your local Samaritans or Mental Health and Wellbeing Charities.  The work they do has a special place in my heart.  Thank you x

How to crochet a Granny Square

Click the image to be taken to the pattern and step by step photographs.

If you need any help, please feel free to get in touch.

K x

Alternative use for the Sunny Sunflowers Crochet Square

Photo by Karen Wiederhold

Do you love my Sunny Sunflower crochet square pattern that I released last week, but you don't want to make a blanket?

Why not leave off the final two rounds of the pattern, which turns the centre circular motif into the final square shape, and use it as a heat protector/coaster for your teapot.  I love finding the versatility within my projects while designing them🌻.

You'll find the pattern in my Free Crochet and Charity Patterns section.

Photo by Karen Wiederhold

Photo by Karen Wiederhold

#sunnysunflowers #karenwiederholddesigns #sunnysunflower

Updated Edition of the Mitred Granny Square

So pleased to re-release my pattern for a Mitred Granny Square, which was first published here on the blog in February 2013.  Mitred granny squares create a patterned blanket with a multitude of colour, shading and pattern effects depending on the rotation and sequence of each square  - so there's lots of fun to be had in creating your unique blanket. 

Click the image to be taken to the pattern.

Wishing you loads of fun and please feel free to tag me on your pictures on Instagram and Facebook using   #karenwiederholddesigns and #mitredgrannysquare so I can see your fabulous creations.

Mitred Granny Square Pattern first published here in 2013

This is a pattern that I came up with in around 2013 for a granny square with a difference.  I have gotten a bit bored with the look of the granny but wanted to make a blanket that was easy to make while watching TV or chatting with a modern twist to the traditional design.  With some trial and error the Mitre Granny Square came about.

It has been a firm favourite on this blog since I first published it here February 2013, so if you missed it first time round, here it is again to enjoy.

Have fun.

Mitred Granny Square Blanket

The pattern for the Mitred Granny Square (Optical Illusion Blanket) which used to appear in this post has moved to my website as is still free to download.  Click the image above to be taken to it.

Thanks for visiting,

K x

How to Crochet a Granny Square

This was the first crochet motif I learned to make and it has been used time and again for all sorts of projects.

Make a whole batch of small motifs and join them to form a patchwork style blanket or cushion cover.  You could make one very big square consisting of several rounds and have a giant one-square blanket. 

Stitches used:

Ch = Chain

SS = Slip Stitch

Tr = Treble Stitch

1.  Ch5, SS into first chain to join into a ring.














2.  Ch3 (acts as first Tr), Tr11 into the centre of the ring, SS into space between first and second Tr's to close the round.

3.  Ch3 (acts as first Tr)Tr2  Ch2  Tr3,  then *Ch1, skip 3 Tr's then into next space Tr3 Ch2 Tr3* repeat from *to* two more times, Ch1,  SS into space between first and second Tr's to close the round.

 

 

4.  SS along top of Tr's of previous round to the corner space.  Ch3 (acts as first Tr) Tr2 Ch2 Tr3, * Ch1, Tr3 into space, Ch1 Tr3 Ch1 Tr3 into next corner*.  Repeat from *to* two more times, Ch1, SS into space between first and second Tr's to close round.











 

5.  Repeat in the style of round 4, working corner sets in each corner and Tr3 groups separated by Ch1 along each side. 

Grow your granny square to whichever size you choose, working each round as before in Round 5.  You will notice that with each round you make the number of Tr-groups increases along each side of the square.

Instructions by Karen Wiederhold  ©2000 - 2021   All rights reserved.        Personal use only. 

 

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