Day 4 of Twixmas means Part 4 of the Twixmas Mandala CAL has been published. Purchasers will have had a message from Ravelry and the new part will be in your library.

I have seen some lovely Part 3s so far, the varying colour schemes make the mandalas look so different!

Here are my spoilers for Part 3

Only 2 more days to go!

The pattern can be found here.

Until tomorrow, happy crocheting xxx

Part 3 of the Twixmas Mandala CAL has been added to the Ravelry pattern library. If you have purchased the pattern then Ravelry will have sent you an email notifying you and adding it to your library. Don’t forget there are 2 versions, make sure you open the correct version for your preferred crochet terms (UK or US).

Here’s the spoiler for Part 2; I made 2 versions – the one on the left is the 4 ply version and the one on the right is the double knit version.

I love how mandalas change as new rounds are added!

The pattern can be found here.

Until tomorrow, happy crocheting xxx

Part 2 of the Twixmas Mandala CAL has been added to the Ravelry pattern library. If you have purchased the pattern then Ravelry will have sent you an email notifying you and adding it to your library. Don’t forget there are 2 versions, make sure you open the correct version for your preferred crochet terms (UK or US).

Here’s the spoiler for Part 1. I prefer my mandalas to have a flat centre so they can have something placed on them without wobbling! So this one is flat:

The one on the left is made in 4 ply cotton the one on the right in double knit cotton.

I used all the colours from my design in this centre which made the slow transition of each round more interesting.

Part 3 will be published tomorrow and the spoiler for Part 2 will be here on the blog.

Don’t forget the pattern is here, and projects can be shared on Ravelry or Facebook.

Happy crocheting xxx

I hope you all had a lovely day yesterday, whether you celebrate the occasion or not. I love the opportunity for a good roast dinner!

Twixmas, the days between 25th December and the start of the New Year, has begun and that means the Twixmas Mandala CAL has started! Part 1 has been uploaded to the Ravelry pattern library and if you purchased it you will have had a message from Ravelry that it is now in your library. If you haven’t yet purchased it you can find it here.

Part 1 is the first few rounds but it gives you a lovely dose of colour as it uses all 7 colours! It’s a very grey day here in the UK so the colour is a welcome boost for me. Don’t forget there are 2 versions, one in UK crochet terms and one in US crochet terms, so make sure you use the correct one.

No spoilers from me today, but I will share some tomorrow. Meanwhile, feel free to add photos of your progress on Ravelry and Facebook.

Happy crocheting xxx

The fun begins!

Although the Twixmas Mandala CAL 2020 starts on 26th December when Part 1 is published, the introduction to the pattern is available now here.

The introduction provides information on yarns I used and the stitches used in the pattern, plus some useful hints and tips. Until midnight GMT on 24th December you can get a discount of 75% off the pattern, no coupon code required.

The CAL is for fun, a few bright rows of crochet each day during the holidays, starting on 26th December and finishing on 31st December.  The best fun is choosing your colours!   The pattern includes the colours of yarn that I chose but that is a guide, the beauty of mandalas is how they can look completely different in other colours.

Join in the CAL on Ravelry. And have fun choosing colours!

Happy crocheting xx

2020 has been quite a year, not at all what anyone was expecting. But it is drawing to a close. Christmas is less than 2 weeks away and that is the signal for me to finalise the Twixmas Mandala CAL. The testing elves have been busy and have helped me to refine the pattern ready for you, the final pre-Twixmas checks are in full swing and next week I will publish the introduction to the pattern.

Running a CAL between Christmas and New Year, or Twixmas, has become a tradition for me. It started in 2014, so this year is my 7th Twixmas CAL and it is now established as a Mandala (yes, I did do a blanket one year – this!).

This is not a difficult CAL, in fact this year it uses mostly normal crochet stitches with the only complicated stitch being the popcorn stitch. It is designed to be fun, something to pick up each day and add a few rounds of new colour. Colour is the main benefit for me – it brightens up my winter days having some colourful crochet to hand.

The pattern introduction will be available next Saturday and will be at a discount of 75% until midnight (GMT) on 24th December. The CAL starts on 26th December when Part 1 is published. There will be 2 versions – one written in UK crochet terms and one written in US crochet terms. There isn’t a chart for the CAL but each new round has a photograph to help you. A new part will be added each day up to 31st December when the last part is published.

Usually I make my mandalas in DK cotton but this year I made 2 – one in DK and one in 4ply. I find that the 4ply version is crisper because the yarn is finer, but I confess my reason for doing 2 was simply to play with colour – one is definitely brighter than the other! Of course you can use any weight of yarn you like, just use a suitable crochet hook.

To remind you of previous years here are the last 3 Twixmases:

These are Twixmas 2019, 2018 and 2017 and are available on Ravelry. To whet your appetite I have them on sale on Ravelry until next Saturday (midnight GMT on 19th December) at 50% discount if you use coupon code TWIXMAS.

Until next week….

Happy crocheting xxx

I can’t believe we are on Part 5 already! The last couple of weeks have flown by!

I saved the best til last, this is my absolute favourite – Gentle Ripple Cowl

This is made like a scarf and joined to form the cowl using a feature join. The one above has repeated the feature join on every colour change. It can be varied so much using just one feature join and one colour to lots of colours and joins. It would be perfect as stash buster using up those leftovers which you do not want to waste, or even as a rainbow!

The pattern can be found on Ravelry here and is included in the ebook here.

If you’ve been following the CAL you should have stocked up on some small hooked gifts by now

I have thoroughly enjoyed following all the projects, keep sharing them on Ravelry and Facebook.

The next CAL is the Twixmas Mandala – more on that in a couple of weeks.

Happy crocheting xxx

How’s your gift hooking coming along? Are you ready for Part 3?

There are 3 designs in the pattern for Part 3 – Christmas Washcloths.

The washcloths have a seasonal theme and would be fabulous in Christmas colours. Find the pattern here or in the ebook bundle here. As usual the pattern is written in UK and US crochet terms and includes charts. Once you have made a few you could easily adapt them to other seasonal designs – how about a bell, a reindeer or a stocking? I would love to see adaptations!

Please share your makes on Ravelry and Facebook.

Until part 4 on Tuesday….. Happy crocheting xxx

It’s been lovely seeing the flurry of snowflakes from part 1, I hope you have enjoyed making them as much as I have enjoyed seeing them!

Today the second pattern in the CAL is published, the Advent Coasters

These are pretty coasters and a set of 6 would make a perfect present, or look great adorning your festive table.

The pattern can be found here and is also in the Advent CAL ebook bundle here. If you purchased the ebook then you should be able to find the pattern there.

Please share your makes on Ravelry and Facebook.

Until Saturday!

Happy crocheting xxx