About Me

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United Kingdom
Hi there & welcome to Annie's Place. A place inspired by and named after my late Grandmother Annie. Somewhere I can be creative, and share my love for all things handmade. I like nothing better than sitting with hook & yarn, crafting something home spun & completely unique, or rustling up some yummy baked goodies. I live in a town with a beautiful embankment, situated on the River Great Ouse. You may know me as CosyKitty on Ravelry. Why not stop a while.....?!!

Tuesday 1 January 2013

'Colour me Happy'...New Year


Well I made it through the festive mayhem, and out the other side. Though I have to say my body clock is well and truly out of whack. Too many late nights and late awakenings has really messed things up. I'm sure I'm not alone on that one?

There were lots of lovely moments, lots of laughs, sharing it all with loved ones. Plenty of good food and drink, Christmas TV, cosy moments snuggled under my granny blanket snoozing, bliss. I hope you all had a wonderful time, but I'm always mindful of those that struggle this time of year. It can be the best of times and the worst of times, that; I'm acutely aware of. With that in mind I send love, luck and most importantly the best of health to everyone for the coming year!

I'm really very excited about my blogging journey this year. I have so many things whizzing round in my crafty mind I'm fit to burst! Of course crochet is at the top of the list, but I plan on widening my horizons a bit. See, I still consider myself a novice really and would like to become far more proficient in this wonderful art form. I know it's quality, not quantity that's important, but I am a bit of a slow coach when it comes to finishing projects.  I pledge to complete my UFO's before moving on to anything new (yeah right?! ;)

To ease me in to 2013, I've started with something very simple. A tea light holder made from a recycled glass jar, with a jacket made from scraps of yarn.   
Trust me, literally anyone can do this. Wash up an old jam, coffee, pasta sauce jar, whatever you have to hand.  Grab a pile of your favourite yarn, and some scissors and you're good to go. 

Rope in a volunteer, because you'll need an extra pair of hands for this too. All you have to do is take a ball of yarn in whatever colour your heart desires, unravel a piece & wrap it round the jar, leaving enough length to easily tie it in a knot at the front. Cut the required length and that'll be your template for all the other lengths of yarn you'll need. Go ahead and cut at least 10 different pieces of yarn to get you started. The possibilities are endless here, you can coordinate it to your room's colour scheme, or you can just be completely random.  Whether you want to cover the entire jar, or just part, again it's up to you. 

Right then, once you've got your stash of little yarn strings you can get to work wrapping them round the jar. It's as easy as that, just tie it round, asking your trusty helper to put their finger on the yarn to stop it from slipping, so you can get a good tight knot. Repeat this process one underneath the other, until you get the coverage you require.  No gluing necessary, no mess, hurrah!!

You'll be left with a lovely ruffle of yarn down the front of your jar, that you can clip to size, depending on the desired effect you'd like to create.  I prefer to keep the ends fairly short, but not so short that they might come undone.  I hope you know what I mean? As long as your knots are good and tight, you shouldn't have a problem. Then drop a tea light in and you're all done.  I suggest you invest in a box of long matches, so that you can light your candles with ease.
I'm sure I'm not the first to have thought of this idea, so forgive me if I'm repeating something you've seen before. This is just my interpretation :) x x x x x x x x

14 comments:

  1. What a fab idea - thanks for sharing:)

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  2. Wow, that's a great idea, they look gorgeous they are a really good idea for brightening up the home for next to nothing - will be putting these on my to-do list.

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  3. what a fun and cute idea! Have a happy and colorful new year!

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  4. Fun yarny goodness to start the New Year.
    Thanks,
    Meredith

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  5. What a lovely colourful start to the year! May 2013 be full of beauty and creativity for you!

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  6. Well I'm definitely looking forward to your blogging journey in 2013 as well! :D Love the yarn lights, I definitely thought that there was glue involved. I will try these, so clever and pretty! :-) xxxx

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  7. Such a cute idea! Very cheerful :-)
    (I also love the Emerson quote--it brings back fond memories of my Mum--she always told me that as a child... and it still rings true!)

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  8. I love the yarn lights, these would be great in the summer dotted around the garden. Another one for my list. Take care. x

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  9. Love when simple crafts make all the difference. So pretty!

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  10. Hello - I found you from your visit to K-town. How many of us are inspired every day by Lucy. Can she possibly know the impact she's had - the increase in tulip photos and rainbow crochet - Your blog and your photos are beautiful. Congrats on starting your blog. I've been blogging for a little while myself you are welcome to take a visit to me at www.flythecoopcrafts.blogspot.com I've added you to my feeds and will be following your crochet stories as you post them. : )

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  11. Love the idea :) Simple and beautiful :)

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  12. I've just made one of these-i think i need a clap for managing it on my own!! Not easy at all, it looks really good!
    Thanks for the idea-ill be putting a picture on my blog tomorrow but I will link back here. Hope thats ok x

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  13. Hi, i've just found your blog via Pintrest, and i'm very thankful i have. I'm a relatively new crocheter but i have just seen your jars too and i love to recycle them and use them with tea lights so this is another idea i can add to a recently decorated jar that might possibly end up with the teachers at the end of term, I shall follow now :)

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Thank you for visiting me here at Annie's Place, and for taking the time to leave a comment. I appreciate each and every word x x x

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