The Renegade Craft Fair London 2014

There are less than two weeks to go now until The Renegade Craft Fair in London! It's a great place to shop for unique handmade Christmas gifts and chat to the makers.

I had a lovely time there last year and I will have a stall here on 22nd and 23rd November, showcasing my new Fair Isle Jewellery collection alongside my Harris Tweed and Knitted Button collections. Located in The Old Truman Brewery on Brick Lane, it's a few minutes walk from Liverpool Street Station/Spitalfields Market. 

If you're planning to visit, come and say hi!

Louise Dawson Design featured in the UK Handmade Winter Showcase!

I'm delighted that My Dark Blue Harris Tweed Brooch has been included in the UK Handmade Winter Showcase! Check out the lookbook, it features some beautiful handmade pieces from UK Designer/Makers- great for gift ideas. I'm tempted by more than a few pieces!

On Instagram in October

Here's a look behind the scenes at what I got up to in October, as told through my Instagram photos... 

I made a giant felt dice for Mr Writer for his Dungeons and Dragons games!

Friends of ours had a baby and I finished this Attic24 Neat Ripple Pattern crochet blanket for him. Read more about the pattern here

Walking around the Marks Hall estate in Coggeshall, Essex and enjoying the Autumn colours. I shared more photos of the estate here

I broke out the winter coat and walking boots but for one blustery day  only! It's been unseasonably warm for the time of year, so for the time being, even as we head into November, my winter coat stays in the wardrobe!

October 2014 marked six years since graduating from my Fashion and Textiles degree. Here we are, the class of '08! 

This is how lunch times at the day job look for me! I like to make the most of any time I have to craft, so after a bite to eat I get crafting! I work in a creative place so everyone crafts around the kitchen table at lunch times. My boss describes the work kitchen as "A hive of industry!"

I've started making some Christmas cards!

We visited Saffron Walden, a really pretty little town

For Mr Writer's birthday we made carrot cake to take to his work. Nom nom nom...

Nelson chilling out, enjoying a cosy Sunday evening. The nights started drawing in!

I finalised the Fair Isle jewellery collection I've been working on and had a great photo shoot!

Busy working on new pieces for The Renegade Craft Fair in London at the end of November!

Rounding off October with a mini Halloween party for my niece! (Pumpkin carving by my sister!)

Here's to a great November!

What have been your October highlights? 

I've just launched my Fair Isle Jewellery Collection!

I'm very happy to tell you that I've just added my new Fair Isle knitted jewellery collection to my Etsy Shop! I have used Shetland wool to hand knit each brooch and necklace as this was traditionally used for Fair Isle knitting and I love to use British made materials.

The pieces are very easy to wear- I've been wearing mine with my favourite Tweed jacket. Each piece comes packaged in a beautifully hand decorated gift box too, making them the ideal Christmas gift. I've really enjoyed making them so I'm so excited to finally be able to share them with you!

Fair Isle Jewellery Collection Sneak Peek

Here is a sneak peek at how the Fair Isle jewellery collection is coming along! I had another fab photo shoot at Hammonds Photography Studio on Friday so I've got some great images to use and I'm now busy writing up Etsy shop listings! As well as the Fair Isle range of necklaces and brooches I will also be adding some new Harris Tweed pieces. I'll let you know when the pieces go live in the shop later this week!

Marks Hall, Coggeshall, Essex

On Wednesday, Mr Writer, Mum in Law to be and I went for a lovely chilly autumnal walk around the grounds of Marks Hall, in Coggeshall, Essex. It's such a colourful time of year for getting out in the countryside and the landscape at Marks Hall is beautiful (check out the Mistletoe in the trees, I find it fascinating!). Also, I don't know about you, but I love wearing my winter coat, cosy knits and walking boots. 

 Here are some photos I took along our walk...

Attic24 Neat Ripple Pattern Blanket

Some friends have just had a baby boy (he's lovely!) and over the weekend I finished the crochet ripple blanket I have been making for them. It's a car seat/buggy sized blanket and I chose the lemon and cream wool so it would suit a little boy or little girl.

 Regular readers will know that I'm a learner at crochet- I spent years playing around with what I call my made up crochet, but it's only recently that I've knuckled down and started to learn properly! Having previously made a Granny Square blanket for my niece I wanted to try out something a bit different, so for this blanket project I followed the Attic24 Neat Ripple Pattern. 

If you would like to learn to crochet or are looking for crochet inspiration, I'd recommend checking out the Attic24 blog- Lucy fills her blog with beautifully colourful projects, which she breaks down into step by step written instructions with photos. She makes reading a crochet pattern much less daunting! I did do a lot of practicing before I got the pattern right, but I got really into it and now I've definitely got the crochet bug! Now to choose the next pattern...

What are you crocheting at the moment?