Contents

Monday, April 23, 2012

3KCBWDAY1: Color Lovers

This blog post is part of the 3rd Annual Knitting and Crochet Blog Week:


Introduction to the topic:

Color Lovers: Colour is one of our greatest expressions of ourselves when we choose to knit or crochet, so how do you choose what colours you buy and crochet or knit with. Have a look through your stash and see if there is a predominance of one colour. Do the same with your finished projects - do they match? Do you love a rainbow of bright hues, or more subdued tones. How much attention do you pay to the original colour that a garment is knit in when you see a pattern? Tell readers about your love or confusion over colour.


What a great topic to start with, isn't it? And honestly - who doesn't love a bright and colorful piece of crochet? When I'm browsing the crochet boards on Pinterest I always feel myself drawn to the most colorful pictures first, and it's the same with linkparties - nevermind how simple the pattern or item, if I like the colors I'll definitely check out the link.

And the color palette is the main reason why Catania by Schachenmayr is my favorite yarn to work with, here are some impressions of my stash:


Aren't the colors just awesome? Catania is a cotton yarn suitable for hook sizes 2.5 - 3.5mm, and it's my first choice yarn for most of the items I'm making. All of my motifs for the Beyond the Square Challenge are made with Catania, and last year I've made the whole collection of my Bavarian Popcorn Flowers with this cotton yarn as well:


Recently I've also made a flower garland especially for this blog week topic, using almost every color I've got in my stash:


Of course I couldn't resist to add little buttons to the flowers :) If you like this garland, please stay tuned: I'll be celebrating my first blog anniversary in May, and of course there'll be another giveaway with this garland as one of the prizes!

The negative side of this yarn addiction: it has probably spoiled me for any other yarn available here in Germany. I often admire bright and colorful blankets on american or british blogs and wish these yarns (most of them are acrylic yarns) were available in Germany. So please: if anyone of you out there knows a great acrylic yarn that comes in lots of bright colors and might be available in Germany, please let me know! Maybe you know an online-shop that ships to Germany, or maybe my German readers have got some suggestions for me (I like the quality of Bravo by Schachenmayr, but unfortunately the colors always seem a little bit dull compared to Catania).

That's it for today - some colorful pictures, the promise of a giveaway coming soon, and a little cry for help: a perfect start into this blog week :)

Today's unique tag is 3KCBWDAY1. Just type this code into google and you'll find more posts about today's topic.

Hope to see you tomorrow,
 


43 comments:

  1. Nice to find your wonderful blog via blogweek, this is so much fun! This is my first time participating haha. Love your colour choice, I love rainbow but I never use it myself. It looks so pretty on blogs and pictures, but you won't find it in my home. I'm a fan of more...boring colours hahahaha. So glad I can still enjoy the rainbow madness here on your blog.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oooh, I love Catania too. I think I have splurged all colours over the last few weeks. Terrible ;-) If you're looking for fabulous acrylic yarn I can recommend Phildar 3,5: LOVE the colours. Hope they are available in Germany though. I am looking for Schachenmayr Universa (fabulous acrylic yarn) but haven't found a website that sells it online and ships to NL so if you know a place: let me know!
    Have a great week,
    Esther.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh your pictures are so lovely. That garland is such a cute idea!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I do love your crochet flowers; bright, but not so as to hurt the eyes. They are so pretty :-)

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a lovely post and a great blog! Nice to find you through blog week! I love your flower garland, what a brilliant idea. Laura x (www.cutecrochetedcreations.blogspot.com)

    ReplyDelete
  6. wow that yarn is gorgeous, and the garland is super cute - lots of colour in your gorgeous post today. have a colourful monday xxx

    ReplyDelete
  7. I am happy to find your blog. I have been searching for some crochet ideas and it looks like I fit pay dirt here! Haha. The colors you use are so cheerful and the garland is a great idea! The buttons add a nice touch. I will return now that I have found you, enjoy this week! Erin

    ReplyDelete
  8. Great array of colors in that photo, I love it!! It's so easy to get hooked on a nice cotton yarn :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. I would also fall in love with those Catania skeins...if I had access. I think I started following your blog when I first saw your Bavarian Popcorn Flowers...but I also love the garland. Great start of Blog Week. Isn't this fun? Thanks for leading us to the Challenge.
    Ana BC

    ReplyDelete
  10. Love the colours of Catania! I think we are very lucky in the UK as we can get almost every colour in acyrilic yarns, but I have to say I'm very jealous of Catania!

    ReplyDelete
  11. What a beautiful garland. I'm loving this blog week already...I don't think I've seen your blog before and now I've discovered you! :P

    ReplyDelete
  12. I can see why you like the Catania, the colours are gorgeous....Love your flower garland!

    Lovely colourful, cheery post!

    ReplyDelete
  13. I love that pile of motifs! You do beautiful work.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Beautiful Work!

    Lovely garland..

    Kisses

    ReplyDelete
  15. What gorgeous colours! And I love your flower garland - will certainly stay tuned! I don't know if this is any help for your yarn search but Rico Creative Cotton is made in Germany and I would be surprised if it's all exported. It's a heavier weight that your beautiful Catania cotton - you would need to go up to a 4mm hook size but the colours are super and in the UK it's very reasonably priced as well. Happy Hunting! Elizabeth

    ReplyDelete
  16. Such delicate work and a wonderful choice of colours. Nice to find you during Blog week!

    B x

    ReplyDelete
  17. I love all of the beautiful colors and crochet projects in your post. Gorgeous blog as well! The Bavarian Popcorn Flowers will be the perfect decoration for my new bike, with a button added, of course:)

    ReplyDelete
  18. Lovely post, Barbara. Your garland is so pretty. Try Deramores for acrylic yarns. They will deliver to Germany for £4.95 no matter how much you spend. Hope that helps :)

    ReplyDelete
  19. Your garland is so pretty! What lovely colours you have in your stash - great post. :0)

    ReplyDelete
  20. Your beyond the square motifs are so lovely, I want to reach into the photo and snuggle with them!

    ReplyDelete
  21. The Catania yarn is beautiful. I am a big fan of cotton, too. Your garland is gorgeous.

    ReplyDelete
  22. I am the same, the bright coloured picture draw me in straight away, even though, I don't use bright colours myself.
    I am so pleased you told us which yarn you are using as I have been wondering since you started the "beyond the squares" motifs.
    If you want a good international retailer for acrylic yarns I can recommend Deramores.com - Stylecraft DK is my favourite acrylic and is very affordable. Deramores ships world wide

    ReplyDelete
  23. I love the flower garland you created to show your stash colors. Beautiful!

    Pinned: http://pinterest.com/kathrynvercillo/best-photos-from-knit-and-crochet-blog-week/

    ReplyDelete
  24. I'll confess, I bought Beyond the Square because it was a colorful looking book! I was browsing through blog week posts, and I'm thrilled that you are working through Beyond the Square-- you've inspired me!!
    I love love love all the colors you use!

    ReplyDelete
  25. Those colors are absolutely gorgeous!

    ReplyDelete
  26. Thank you all so much for your lovely comments!! And thanks for the yarn suggestions, I'll be checking out the yarns and online shops as soon as possible! :)

    ReplyDelete
  27. Your photographs are lovely. I used to live in Germany and it does seem the the colour palette is different. It's lovely but perhaps a little more reserved. The quality of the yarn is excellent though, which isn't always true of the zany acrylics (Stylecraft being an exception). I wonder if any of the online retailers would deliver to you, or do you prefer to see the yarn for real before you order?

    ReplyDelete
  28. Hi!!! Your blog is great... I'm loving this Knitting and Crochet Blog week.... helps to find lots of interesting blogs, like yours!!! lolol
    Regards,

    ReplyDelete
  29. I love how you have everything of the color wheel! The stitch patterns of the Granny Motifs really pop out.

    ReplyDelete
  30. Hi, it's my first time with blog week and I'm so happy to have found your blog! Your garland ia so pretty with that lovely yarn. I love to use cotton too. I'll be back to chat another day,
    Becky

    ReplyDelete
  31. This is a beautiful blog.... and the motifs! I am smitten! Your choice of colors matches my own tastes. Delighted that I found your blog through this week's fun.

    ReplyDelete
  32. Wow, what lovely yarn and projects! Your photo collage with the Beyond the Square pieces and the popcorn flowers is stunning! So glad I came across your blog via the Knit and Crochet Blog Week.

    ReplyDelete
  33. We're all thrilled to have found you, your blog and your awesome crocheted garland! While I'm not into 100% acrylic too much, if you want color extraordinaire, you're in the country of Wollemeise. What more can one ask for when it comes to color? :)

    ReplyDelete
  34. Garland? Can you explain what you mean by that? I find sometimes as I visit blogs people use terms differently in different parts of the country. When I think of garland, I think of Christmas Tree Decorations.

    I don't like working with cotton, it doesn't hold it shape well and seems hard on the hands. I only use it for washcloths. Your German Cotton must be much nicer. For acryclics on line there are so many choices, Mary Maxims, Vanna through Lion Brand, Caron's colors are awesome, but do stay away from that nasty simple soft.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Love the colors of that yarn! Will def have to check it out and see if its available near me. :) Your flower garland is beautiful and would bring fun and whimsy to any room.

    ReplyDelete
  36. I love your picture of the 'beyond squares' delightful!

    ReplyDelete
  37. I love these pictures! I've admired your color choices in the past, so it is interesting to hear that you feel you don't have access to the colors you are looking for.

    ReplyDelete
  38. Your flower garland is so cute! I love the mix of colors you have.

    ReplyDelete
  39. Love all the colors of Catania too! And your flower garland is really lovely!

    ReplyDelete
  40. I love Catania too! the flower garland is ssoo pretty!

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.