Meet the Maker: Lynsey Hall

Following the abandonment of my virtual world, I would like to re-enter, not just with a birthday blog post, but with another maker for us all to meet. 

So here is what today's maker is sharing with us.

Our first and most important questions then, to kick us off.

Tea or coffee? 

Coffee in the morning but tea from then on. I had a chocolate truffle tea at knitting group last week and it tasted lovely, as though a chocolate digestive had been dropped in it but minus the lumps!

Biscuit or cake? 

Biscuit, I love the crunch. I don't have a favourite as such, I do like chocolate ones and have a brill recipe on my blog ;-)

So before we talk about your make, tell us a bit about yourself. 

I'm Lynsey, I grew up in a little village called Woodnewton in Northants but moved to Nottingham for university where I have remained and now live with my boyfriend and two cats Edith and Sophie. I don't have a business but I have considered setting up a shop on etsy (if I can stop knitting for myself). I do keep a blog and it can be found at www.thediaryofanovicecrafter.blogspot.co.uk 

 ...and what about the item that you are sharing with us? 

I have made some socks! I have always wanted to learn how to knit socks because in my experience there is nothing nicer to have on your feet. I was told by a lot of people that they are very difficult but this made me more determined. I enrolled on a workshop and decided they would make a great gift for my boyfriends Father for Christmas. I used a neutrally shaded yarn as a lot of the options were very bright and therefore not the most manly. They took a lot longer than planned to knit but alongside a cardigan and a multitude of other projects I had them finished within a month, I probably could have had them done in a week.

How long have you been knitting and how did you learn? 

I learnt to knit when I was little but I only knew about the knit stitch so could only really knit squares in garter stitch. I started again in April 2012 after finding a half knitted scarf in a cupboard. I loved it and so with the help of colleagues learnt how to purl and knitted a lot of practice squares. Since then I have had a lot of help from Eleanor Burke who owns and runs Knit Nottingham, the most amazing little yarn shop.

What inspires and motivates you? 

I'm inspired by other people and things around me, I see things that have been knitted and get so excited about the thought that I might be able to do the same. My motivation oddly comes from suffering with anxiety, knitting and crochet offer a lot of comfort so I am motivated to keep going knowing it will help my mood. I am also motivated by the sense of pride I feel when I complete something, I love knitting and crocheting things as gifts and the responses I receive from the receivers just makes me want to make more.

Any crafting heroes? 

Mrs B! It was her blog that got me started again and my journey has been amazing. Forever grateful.

Do you have a crafting space?

I do, I have recently commandeered the spare room and created a lovely and cosy space. I got a desk from eBay and some cheap shelves and before I knew it I had a beautiful area to sit and relax whilst crafting. It is currently being used by my boyfriend though who is working on a history project.

What other projects are you working on? 

This will be a long list! I have nearly finished an Aran cardigan, a tunic I have been knitting for yonks (it's boring to knit), a stunning shawl, a blanket, a picture knit cowl and there are plenty more balls of yarn for a number of other planned projects.

So can we join you in your virtual world? 

You certainly can. I can be found on twitter @lynseymhall and also on my blog www.thediaryofanovicecrafter.blogspot.co.uk 

Finally, some quick fire questions that we are dying to know the answers to.

Favourite colour? 

Purple (at the moment)

The best season? 

Spring

Your favourite food? 

Salt and vinegar spiral crisps.

The best day of the week? 

Sunday (good excuse for a roast dinner and channel 5 have films on all day)

What is the best word?

discombobulate - just fun to say, I had to google it to see what it meant.

Favourite place? 

My home

Your biggest achievement? 

Keeping my head above water!

I'm certain that most would agree, that for someone who only re-started knitting less than a year ago, this is a pretty impressive make! Thanks for your time Lynsey and I hope lots of you head on over to Lynsey's bloggy space to follow her crafty antics!

Lots of sunshine,

Mrs Crafty B

Crafting Daydreams for a Year!

A year ago, I published my first ever blog post. With no idea what I was doing and no view as to where it might take me, 'Crafting a Daydream' was born. I decided to use a pen name, Mrs Crafty B and keep my family as anonymous as possible but share what I could with readers who were interested in my crafty journey as I attempted to stop daydreaming about all of the things I wanted to do and start crafting them.

It seems ironic that a year on I am writing this post having found my self in a state of nowhereness. After spending the last month or so feeling, lets say 'a bit under the weather', crafting has come to a hault and my energy has been spent on my beautiful Baby B, who at 18 months now, is keeping me well and truly on my toes. My days spent as a self employed childminder and a busy mummy and wife have seen me tucked up on the sofa every evening unable to life my arm, click some buttons and join my 'crafty twitterarmy' or update my virtual aquaintences on my projects. For that I am truly sorry but know this...I have more to come.

My blog was intended to be a medium by which I could note down my projects to share with like minded people and find motivation to complete things on my never ending to-do list. For that, it has worked. I regularly converse with lots of crafty people online and become inspired and motivated by their enthusiasm for their passions. I have learnt so much and I am continually entertained by various bloggers. I hasten to add here that not everything I read is about crafts. Mrs Crafty B has many sides *insert winky face*.

In the last year I have completed many projects, started new ones, extended my project list, started a community crafts group, organised (and successfully held, thank god) a charity crafts fair, I have inadvertently helped friends by encouraging them to pick up their crafty tools, I have made new friends, I have been inspired and most of all I have almost filled up my crafty notebook with ideas and designs for future projects.

Life events this year may cause a bit of havoc with my BIG crafty plans but now I am more motivated to give guests in my virtual world something to read that they are interested in. My focus has slightly shifted in that when I started this blogging malarky, it was solely for me. I have been sucked into the world of 'likes, followers and subscribers' and I never thought that come my first bloggy birthday, I would have so many. I will be continuing my 'Meet the Maker' feature on the blog and I hope to introduce a few other new features. Most of all, I want to produce some crafty tutorials of things that I DO know how to do. I hate that I feel cocky instead of confident whilst typing that but there are some crafts that I do well and I have learnt so much from others that I would love to give something back. I hope to start with some easy to follow crochet tutorials so watch this space!

I really hope you feel compelled to stick with me on my journey and spread the word that everyone is welcome to come and craft a daydream with Mrs Crafty B.

Love, tea and cake,

Mrs Crafty B