Back in the autumn, you might remember I posted about my sudden determination to learn to crochet as a result of this mad little project by Toft Alpaca Shop.
Well, after a few months on and off crocheting (mixed in with my misguided attempt to knit an advent garland, but that’s a stressful story better left untold) I finally sat down and finished the Sophia the Flamingo kit – and I’m so pleased with how she turned out!
As a beginner to crochet, having only messed about with granny squares as I mentioned in my previous post, starting with a project like this was a little risky; after all, I was going from a few shaky squares straight up to shaping my very own bright pink, lanky toy bird.
With Toft, though, I needn’t have worried. The instructions were really clear, and they referred me over to the shop’s brilliant instructional videos on their YouTube channel for help when I got stuck. The videos were extremely helpful, and I found myself using them a lot to make sure I got things right.
I did stumble across a few issues, though. Being a crochet newbie my tension was awful at the beginning, meaning the head and body turned out smaller (and the neck shorter) than they should have been, and the first leg ended up with a teeny tiny foot. Luckily, after these parts I realised I needed to loosen things up a little. I also really struggled with counting the stitches when working with the black yarn, leading to a few pretty wonky toes!
Ultimately, though, I’m delighted with the finished project and am really pleased I decided to order the kit. It has everything you need, Toft’s Alpaca yarn is beautiful and bright, and it all comes wrapped up in a lovely drawstring canvas bag (which makes a great project bag).
Oh, and this is just the beginning for me and Edward’s Menagerie – my boyfriend picked up on all my (repeated) hints during December and fixed me up with the full book of patterns for Christmas. I’ll post a proper review on the book when I’ve made a few more birds, but it seems great so far!
Thanks, Toft, for inspiring me to pick up a new craft – and for giving me the means to fill my apartment with silly birds.
Hook, Knit and Stitch 