Blue Monday

Yesterday was Blue Monday – said by some to be the most depressing day of the year.

Blue Monday was originally dreamt up by psychologist Dr Cliff Arnall in 2004 as a way to help a travel company sell holidays.  He even devised this formula for it:  

 

 

As a nod to this epic piece of marketing genius we have decided to use today’s post to highlight some blue items that have caught our attention and share them with you.

 

 

 

for more about all the featured products

 

Flora Fibres Yarn can be found here:  florafibresyarn

Iolair Yarn can be found here:  iolairyarn

Moorit is stocked in a number of local yarn stores across Scotland and Worldwide.  You can also buy either a physical or digital directly from them here:  moorit

Popcorn + Crocodiles are here on the internet:  popcornandcrocodiles

Mothy and the Squid need no introduction, but you will find Jillian’s current collection here:  mothyandthesquid

Sunshine on Leith is the current instalment in our Collab Club.  Pre-orders will close on 21 February.  To secure yours please complete our order form here:  our-collab-club.  For everything else Bobble and Badger related visit here:  BobbleandBadger

 

What You Were Making In 2022

We’re a little late to all the reviews and wrap ups that traditionally happen at the end of the year or beginning of the new; but I’m sure we can be forgiven due to our tardiness being caused by our change over from Perth Festival of Yarn to The Scottish Yarn Festival!  Still, it’s better late than never and in this post we wanted to share some of your makes with what you’ve found at our events, or special collaborations, during 2022.

We decided to pick a random twelve in a nod to how many months we have in the year, and we’ve made our selection from those we’ve been tagged in on social media, as well as trying to represent both knitting and crochet.  So, without further ado, here are your wonderful creations from the past year which we hope will inspire you all as you plan your projects for 2023.

 

 

The wonderful @woolkinsonknits made a hat with a DK weight skein of ‘Hot Fuss’ by Edelweiss Fibres which was released as part of our 2022 Hit Parade Collab Club.

@unaroodesigns snapped up a cone of DK weight Castlemilk Moorit x Teeswater from Caithness Yarns at our inaugural Scottish Wool Producers Showcase in April and made herself this fab and functional Over It Slipover by Lily Kate Makes.

Our long time girl crush @needleandfred came up from Manchester to visit us at Perth Festival of Yarn this year as she was taking a year out from vending responsibilities, but she honoured us not only by creating our Official Commemorative Skein for the event but also by rocking up wearing a Love Note Sweater by Tin Can Knits in said colourway!

@laurenknitsx picked up the 2020 Advent Calendar Kit from Wee County Yarns in September and in no time at all had whizzed up this wonderful Christmas Socking for her little one.

 

 

@bobbleandbadger_yarns couldn’t resist a skein of fingering weight Bride of Frankenstein from BuzzinYarns to make these vibrant socks.

@h_crochetsthings hooked up this beanie from their own pattern back in February with a DK skein of Summer Nights by @kalokshekellen from Perth 2021.

@eliza_b_makes was another crocheter quick off the mark with her cosy wrist warmers.  She used a @zeensandroger pattern from Inside Crochet and yarn from @zakamiyarns

@hannahkross was specifically on the hunt for a skein of sock yarn she could knit with while taking part in the Kiltwalk this autumn.  She chose this skein of self-striping from @fibrepunk

 

 

@life_at_westering paired her beautiful Zakami Yarn with the Bridesmaid Shawl by Michelle DuNaier which looks perfect with their woollen coat.

@karolines.knits was looking to explore no-nylon sock yarns and after speaking with the inspirational @annfieldangoras crafted these Morrison Socks by Jenny Blumenstein in just over a week.

We were honoured to have esteemed designer and author, @purlemma, join us at Perth last year.  Emma created her Merrow Berries pattern especially to showcase the Haste Ye Back collection of mini skeins we put together as a collaboration with ten Scottish dyers in 2021.

@commuter_knitter snapped up a fingering weight skein of sock yarn from @atthisyarns to use as the main colour in her pair of ‘Perth Socks.’

 

We’d love to feature more of your makes on our Community page throughout the coming year, so please do continue to tag us in your social media posts with anything you have made with yarn or fibre from any of the events we have curated for you since 2016.  Where possible we’ve added the Instagram handles of all makers so that you can go and give them some love and see what other crafty endeavours they’ve been up to.

 

Last Minute Christmas Crochet Makes

We are in the final straight to Christmas now and, no matter how well we try and prepare, a crafter always has last minute gifts to make and give.

These sweet little crochet decorations by Maddison Overill are perfect for a quick last minute gift and great for using up oddments from your scraps or yarn advents too.  Included in the pattern are instructions on how to make a wreath with jingle bells, Christmas pudding, parcel, and bauble.  

 

 

for more on the patterns

The pattern booklet including the above festive ornaments is available to purchase on Ravelry here:  christmas-decorations

(Please note the mini pudding in the Ravelry images is a separate free pattern from yarnspirations and is not included.)  If you are unable to access Ravelry you can reach out to Maddie directly through her Instagram page @thehouseoflangford

 

for more on the designer

Maddison Overill is a multi-disciplined textiles teacher who works both in secondary education and independently at local yarn shops in Essex and the surrounding areas.  She also has a regular YouTube podcast: