Last Post & Moving On

This is the last post I will be writing on this blog. This morning my new website went live: www.creJJtion.com 

I will continue to share my patterns and projects from there. This blog will stay in tact, it has unique content that did not move with me to the new blog. 

I can't wait to meet you 'on the other side' and hear what you think about the new creJJtion home!

After 3.5 years of blogging here it does feel a little awkward to leave. This is where the adventure began and I am thankful for where it has taken me so far. With the book coming out in a few weeks, it feels good to move on. Thank you dearly for your loyal following in the past few years and I look forward to meeting you on creJJtion.com where I wrote a special Welcome post for you.

xo Maaike

Dublin Post 1: Yarn Shopping

part one of a two-phase travel report of Dublin. two phase because I was so pleasantly surprised by it's beauty, friendliness and beautiful selection of shops, coffee shops and restaurants. and also because I thought I was smarter than my laptop and accidentally deleted all pictures we took in Rome. all of them. at least it makes for a good reason to go and visit Rome again one day, right?

in this first part of the Dublin report I am showing a few images around city centre. for a more extended overview I'd like to refer you to the lovely Emily who blogs beautifully about her life in and around Dublin here. helpful lists of things to see and do are to be found on her blog too, as well as the option to book her as a guide to experience 'Dublin like a local'.

a request on Instagram for tips and yarn shops in Dublin lead me to This is Knit in the impressive Powerscourt Town Centre. I looked them up on the www and got super excited to visit the beautiful shop and it's owners Jacqui and her daughter Lisa. after a truly delicious lunch at The Pepperpot Cafe which is in fact located right in front of This is Knit, I got to meet Jacqui and her 'delicious' shop. they carry a wonderful range of yarns, from Malabrigo and Debbi Bliss, to Irish tweed and hand dyed yarns. we chatted away about yarns, books, Ravelry and inspiring designers. of course I couldn't leave without pretty tweed skeins and a couple more yarns for future projects. they will reveal themselves over the next couple of months as I start working with them. thank you very much Jacqui and colleagues for the warm welcome in your pretty shop! too bad we don't all live close to Dublin so we can shop This is Knit in a weekly basis, right? well, there's a solution to that problem: the webshop! go have a look yourself and indulge in the beautiful range of irresistible yarns.

a couple more things I'd like to share with you, just in case you're visiting Dublin:

just one street away of the Powerscout Town Centre is Drury Street with Kaph for delicious coffee in a beautifully styled coffee shop. across the street of Kaph are the Irish Design Shop and the home and lifestyle store Industry with a beautifully designed website too, their play with typography is fantastic. we had delicious dinner later that night at Drury Buildings in the same street. Definitely our favourite street in Dublin so far, haha. 

a little more outside of the shopping streets but worth the walk are 3FE for coffee and Hänsel and Gretel for -what else would you expect- delicious pastry, cookies and pies.

my Dublin report part two is about crochet in the wild, coming soon.

Book Preview and Magazines

weeks are flying by, Summer is in full swing with beautiful flowers, long calm nights, bottles of sunscreen and little trips. husband and I visited Dublin, partly for pleasure and partly for work. soon after that came a trip to Rome, celebrating our anniversary (3 years of marriage and 15 years of kisses). both beautiful trips, we feel so lucky to be able to go places and see and experience a different culture, food and language, and to be part of it for a short while.

it is hard to believe it was a coincidence one of my pictures got published in Simply Crochet magazine when we visited Dublin, and a full article about me and my work was published in Country Chic in Italy when we were in Rome. honoured and happy I surely am with all this attention on paper. when we came home, Mollie Makes selected one of my Instagram images for their 'your month in pictures June 2014' feature. 

on top of that, today my publisher released the preview for my book PUUR haken. in less than a month, by August 5, it will be available in book stores all over The Netherlands. as of now you can pre-order here. so exciting!
I'd love to hear what you think of the preview:

last but not least, the new creJJtion website will launch this Thursday. this blog will stay in tact and the last post will refer you to the new blog. if you were following me through your blogspot account, nothing should change, if it all works. if you follow me through Facebook for sure nothing will change. if you follow me through bloglovin I am no too sure if my posts will still show up in your feed, but we'll figure that out.

a lot is going on here in creJJtion land and I'll sure keep you posted! meanwhile, enjoy your Summer.

xo

Happy Weekend

I realize it is getting silent on the blog again, these are the weeks where the publisher and I round up the final details before my book PUUR haken goes to print. it makes me happy we're almost there, but it scares me too. did I write the patterns out well? is it clear for you to understand? too much text or too little, are the diagrams clear enough, for this project shall we add this picture or may be that one… details are rushing through my mind night and day. one more week and the 2 month wait for the actual book will begin. honestly, I can not wait.

in the mean time we're enjoying beautiful warm and sunny days in The Netherlands, it almost feels like Toronto Summer. which equals perfect to me, haha. flower season is in full bloom and currently peonies and hydrangeas are everywhere to my eyes liking. a little knitting, a granny square a week with the Simply Crochet app. and a latte here and there, is how I roll these weeks. 

I am getting excited for a weekend in Dublin with my love, and paying a visit to the very promising yarn shop This is Knit. I hope to get my hands on some local tweeds, I'll keep you posted!

in the mean time, have you clicked through to Sandra's new Crochet Corner? I can tell you, it is all sorts of fabulous. very detailed stitch explanations for beginners, links to patterns, beautiful photography as usual at her blog. definitely worth a visit!

have a lovely weekend

xo

Knitting For a Change

just so I would not forget how to knit, I started a little project on two needles. no, just kidding. I don't think I will ever forget how to knit. it was just easier to work these three threads on knitting needles instead of a crochet hook. 

inspired by the current copper trend, I combined a copper embroidery thread together with a variegated yarn in copper-like colours and an organic cream white cotton. using just a simple moss stitch that started with 3 stitches and increased by 1 every row, until 22 stitches wide. I love how mixing yarns results in new textures, colours and 'fabric'. the variegated yarn will change into a bright teal in the end, I am excited to see how that will work out with the copper embroidery thread. that itself is giving just a little festive spark to the mixture, not too much. just the way I like it. this little flag-like piece you see in the pictures will hopefully end up becoming an indoor scarf to spark up my outfits, let's say for a nice dinner with the husband. I should make a deal with him: I finish the scarf, you make dinner reservations :). he sometimes reads my blog, so I'd better hurry and knit a few more rows…

xo

Last Week

a few shots of last week, enjoying the good life in Sweden. a new square from the Simply Crochet magazine app; granny Ardith. if you are in the UK you may have had a peek at the new Simply Crochet issue 19 already? there is a picture on page 9 that may look familiar to you…

with Vinnis Bambi I am working on a new large flower pattern. this yarn is so soft and pretty, due to it's combination of cotton and bamboo half shiny. if the pattern works as I imagine it to do, I'll share it soon.

pure happiness when I found my friend Annette from the beautiful Rose Valley in the Swedish magazine Handarbete & Pyssel, it's an extra edition that comes with the newspaper Expressen, but is also available separately. congratulations on the beautiful feature with your pretty squares darling! the pattern for the squares can be found in English here, it links to the flower too.

and another teaser: the new creJJtion website is actually coming together as I type and it will only be a couple of weeks before it goes live. I have been working on it with a graphic designer and technical team for months and months, and in my imagination it has been live for a long time already. I really can't wait to share it with you. a couple more weeks of your patience as we are testing the links and pages, finishing touches…

have a lovely new week

xo

Published in 101 Woonideeën

super excited, honoured and happy I am to tell you, you can now find an interview with me in the crochet special that comes with the latest issue of the Dutch magazine 101 woonideeën! it is one of my absolute favourite Dutch magazines, which makes it extra special and fabulous. the cover of my book is included, as well as two images from Instagram you may recognize. on top of that, I share a spread with darling Petra from the beautiful webshop and blog ByPetra.

this lovely special is full of crochet facts and how-to tips, interviews, links to beautiful patterns, shops and websites. if you love crochet and can read a little Dutch, you absolutely shouldn't miss out on this special.

for more inspiration, have a look here for a fabulous list of Dutch crochet blogs and links. Thank you Monique!

xo

These Weeks

hello from warm and sunny Sweden where I am typing this blog post in the shade. I am enjoying a couple of weeks mixing holidays and book-work-days in good company. in the silence of the woods, we hear more birds than people. it's just perfect here. I have even started a little adventurous knitting project with some exciting fibers: copper embroidery thread, organic cotton and a variegated cotton. more images to come. but of course, there's some crochet too. the third square from the Simply Crochet Magazine app; Mabel. a little larger than the other too. I am curious to see where this app is taking me and if I'll be able to join the squares in the end.

is it Spring going on Summer where you are?

xo

Crochet WIP

progress on my flower cushion cover. yay! I've finished the squares, decided to add a few uni coloured blocks and a little touch of yellow. it just needed that. 

I crocheted the individual squares together, light grey was planned for it but it became all too much of a grid, so I went with dark grey instead. light grey ended up as the outer border, nice and simple two rounds of single crochet. it is all blocked and ready to be sewn to a fabric cover. 

with the left over yarn bits I whipped up this rather simple and large stripe cover for a matching cushion on the couch. the last row of each colour block is done with a bobble stitch. not as fancy as the flower cushion, but I like how they go together and each get their own attention. 

the fabric cover for the stripes is done already, so I know what I'm doing this week!

have a lovely week yourself

xo

Last Week

thank you all so very much for your lovely, sweet and encouraging comments about my crochet book PUUR haken. I have to admit, it was quite scary to bring the news after months and months of keeping it quiet, and I am very happy and relieved you are so excited. Thank you!

last week I managed to work a little on the cushion cover, enjoy Spring and this little bird that just flew out of the nest, pretty flowers, an afternoon at the beach and crocheting the second square of the Simply Crochet granny square app. this week I plan to blog with more pictures about the flower cushion and it's stripy big brother.

have a lovely week!

xo