The thing about being tired in the evenings is that I often don’t have the energy to sit up at the machine, and yet this is usually the only time I get to do crafty things during the week. I had planned on having the child that takes two hour naps, but my friend got that one, so I use my child’s thirty minute naps to do things like shower and half dry my hair, or eat porridge and have a hot cup of tea. I have thought of trying to sew in that time but I’ve realised that having lower expectations about a) the length of the nap and b) what I can realistically achieve in the time keeps me happier.
And then one day last month, I remembered about the crochet bag, and the balls of yarn that I picked up in a sale at John Lewis.
So I picked myself a project from the same book that gave us the kitten blanket, Simple Crochet by Erika Knight. The stripy throw is crocheted all in one piece, which really appealed after joining all the granny squares together. I love the finished blanket (and so does the cat it was intended for) but I really needed something I could pick up and put down, and not have to think about too much. The blanket is only one stitch, and all in straight lines, so all I have to do is refer to the pattern to find out when to change colours.
Of course I didn’t have enough of the yarn, and since it’s now discontinued it took a little hunt around the internet to find more, so my colour choices were partly dictated by what was available rather than my preferences, but I like what I have, and as a bonus it was all half price. This is now my craft for weeknights, while I relax with a little Glee or some other cheerful and entertaining diversion.
Speaking of which…
8 comments ↓
I think I got the same model kid as you. I craft only in the evenings now. It takes second pot of coffee in the afternoon to keep me awake, but it works. I am still not the fastest crafter in the world, but I manage to do ok. Your tiredness will ease as your child sleeps better at night and you have less nighttime wakings. I promise! ;)
My children were pretty much the same until they were a bit older and just did one reasonably long nap a day. A portable project that requires no set up is a perfect way to squeeze in some sanity crafting time!
I’m trying to pick up as many tips as possible before I have my first in April. Having a small project that’s easy to pick up and put down sounds like a great plan!
Hi Jo,
I hope you’ll enjoy your quiet crafting time, crocheting (and knitting) is definately one of the best craft to do when you have a little one. I started knitting after having my daughter as I needed a craft that made little noise and was easy to pick up and put down and its portable. :)
I didn’t realise that kids that take 2 hour naps really existed – I thought that was just a myth.
I think the naps will get longer with age, my 9 month old will sleep for up to 2 hours now during the day -bliss!!
Oh no! Neither of these showed up in my bloglines…so there was I thinking that something must have got in the way of the Monday post, but you’ve been here all along crocheting and getting up to other other goodness…but now I am here I just feel jealous that I don’t have a transportable craft that I can do on a sofa. I like the idea of crocheting in straight lines though…maybe even I could manage that… x
Hi Jo,
Knitting (crochet), yay!
The blanket looks amazing. It will be really nice.
Yes, what is so cool about knitting and crochet is that it is so portable! I take my knitting and crochet literally everywhere (though I must make sure that there aren’t dodgy people who would potentially tease me of doing my craft in the tube).
Hope you are well. My sister is also struggling to catch up with her sleep.. Kose (my new nephew) is started to “talk” but he sounds like he is lightly coughing… LOL!
x
kyoko
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