Crochet Lites

My latest purchase via eBay (I love eBay)- crochet hooks that light up :) called Clover crochet lite crochet hooks. They are battery operated with an on/off stitch, have a nice ergonomic handle and are very lightweight.
OK they do seem gimmicky and yes even though I bought them I was a bit skeptical , but after having a play with them I can see how useful they will be for crocheting with dark colours. They really do show up the stitches.

Crocheted beads and wire

Saturday was the Knitting and Crochet Guilds London group crocheted and knitted wire & beads day. A very nice group of ladies attended.
We made beaded chain stitch bracelets, played with crochet beaded tubes and wire & pearl bead buttons. Everyone was enthusiastic, took notes, asked questions and shared ideas.



A big THANK YOU to Helda (of heldsland above) who kindly helped assist me and to Eleanor and Winifred for organising the day plus room and much needed refreshments.

Making beaded tubes
and buttons

Photos from the day and no I am behind the camera hidden :)

Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

I am doing a one day course for the Knitting and Crochet Guilds London group (Crocheted and knitted wire & beads 14th April near Highbury & Islington Station contact Eleanor 02089508014 for details) and decided to get all my samples ready. Arrrrrr can't find them, I think I put them in the recycling bins when I was going through a clearing mood a few months ago.

Instead of getting upset I have been making new samples :) So below is the results of the last two days of playing with beads.

I am playing with wire for the rest of the week.

Crocheted beaded tubular bracelets

Crocheted multi-beaded bracelet. This took 3 hours to string the beads onto the thread and only 25 minutes to crochet and finish. 5 metres of beads were needed.

Knitted bracelet

ChaCha rings

I bought some rings with loops at a recent show and have been playing making cha cha rings. A great way to use up any lone beads.

Total Lunar Eclipse

Wow just watched the lunar eclipse, the moon looked so big and glowed red :) eeeekkk

The London Stitch & Creative Hobby Crafts Show

I went to the The London Stitch & Creative Hobby Crafts Show at the Excel Centre today.
Got a ticket via the Internet for £7.00 (thanks to a very kind friend) and received a goody bag at the show which contained mainly food items that were very tasty (Seeds of Change organic sauces very nice) and made up for the price of the ticket and the small size of the show.

The show was so much smaller than I expected and had very little yarn or stitch related stands, I don't even buy any yarn today :( not even a magazine or book :(

There were several bead stands, which was good, I liked Totally Beads and a shop new to me, with a great range of findings at excellent prices Shop@188 :) jewellery making seems to be getting popular. And again there were lots and lots and lots....of paper crafting stands :( these shows should really rename themselves Paper craft and Hobby Shows, the stitch part is misleading.

I'll be checking out the Stitch & Craft Show at Olympia 2, Olympia , London Thursday 22nd March to Sunday 25th next :)

Chili con Quorn-i

This a is favourite recipe of mine when the weather is cold and grey.

Chili con Quorn-i

1 Medium Onion, chopped
1 Pack of Minced style Quorn (frozen or unfrozen)
1 14oz Tin Plum Tomatoes (I prefer the un-chopped ones as they seem to have more tomato)
4 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
1/2 Teaspoon Fresh Jalapeno Pepper, seeded (unless you want very hot chili) & minced
1 Teaspoon Cumin Powder
1 Cloves of Garlic Crushed
Handful of chopped Coriander Leaves
1 Teaspoon sugar (makes the tomatoes sweeter tasting and less acidy. 1 Teaspoon Honey can be used instead)
Vegetable of choice (I know not many chilli have vegetables but I like the extra taste and texture they add. I added sweetcorn and peas, but you can add carrots, green beans or whatever you prefer, experiment)
1 Large Tin Red Kidney Beans
Chili powder to taste
Salt to taste



Saute the onion in a little vegetable oil (or your preferred oil) for for 4-5 minutes until soft.
Add the quorn and continue cooking for 2 minutes.
Add the can of tomatoes, tomato paste, vegetables of choice, jalapeno pepper, sugar, cumin powder, garlic, coriander and increase the heat until boiling, if the mixture is to dry add a little water, than reboil (if required) than simmer.
Taste the food.
Add salt to taste then chili powder a little at a time until desired taste/ heat.
Simmer for a further 8-10 minutes.

Serve with rice.

Sour cream and cheddar cheese can also be added (if desired).

Tips: Make double the amount this tastes even better the next day.
If you are a meat eater instead of minced "quorn" use minced beef or chicken