I love the quote above - because most likely it's true! When someone picks up a crochet hook and starts sharing their passion publically with friends it becomes a chain reaction - they all want a piece of your action!
Today's post is my first post of 2017 on the crafts I do in my life - crochet. I first discovered crochet a couple of years ago now (I think it's about 3 years ago) and I have been a hooker ever since - a crochet hooker that is!
There is something so deeply meditative and therapeutic about it that it instantly takes me to a portable zen den whenever I pick up my hook and crochet. It doesn't really matter what I have on my hook - it just creates that state of inner peace and calm.
Last year, as many of you know was an awfully tough year for me having lost my auntie, but I wanted something beautiful to come out of the experience so I chose to document my moods and emotions in a mood blanket. No, it wasn't all black - in fact there was only one day that black was a colour in my blanket and that was on Halloween - you know, for the sake of symbolism.
A mood blanket, more specifically a crochet mood blanket is where you crochet a square a day (any pattern) in a colour that resembles a mood that has predominantly been the most active in you during the day. For example, I always chose a bright pink when I felt loved, beautiful and happy, or a blue for when I was feeling sad, upset or anxious.
A mood blanket, more specifically a crochet mood blanket is where you crochet a square a day (any pattern) in a colour that resembles a mood that has predominantly been the most active in you during the day. For example, I always chose a bright pink when I felt loved, beautiful and happy, or a blue for when I was feeling sad, upset or anxious.
My bereavement counsellor loved my idea of documenting my journey and even took photos of it to share at their meetings where the counsellors all discussed methods of coping for their patients.
So, this year, I'm doing one again. I enjoy dedicating a small amount of my evening to focusing on my day, calling up all I was grateful for and selecting a colour and creating something beautiful to look back on for years to come. I've made a few changes, such as the square pattern, the size, and the colour meanings. For example; last year I had mint green for feeling healthy, whereas this year I've chosen a zesty and vibrant lime green for those days, and blue was for sad and anxious days whereas this year blue symbolises the days I've felt so calm and zen like. I've also introduced a few colours too that wasn't in last year's blanket and taken a couple out.
So, this year, I'm doing one again. I enjoy dedicating a small amount of my evening to focusing on my day, calling up all I was grateful for and selecting a colour and creating something beautiful to look back on for years to come. I've made a few changes, such as the square pattern, the size, and the colour meanings. For example; last year I had mint green for feeling healthy, whereas this year I've chosen a zesty and vibrant lime green for those days, and blue was for sad and anxious days whereas this year blue symbolises the days I've felt so calm and zen like. I've also introduced a few colours too that wasn't in last year's blanket and taken a couple out.
This photo is taken from my first few days into the new year - so I apologise that it's not right up to date, but it still shows the start to my year. As you can see I've had a calming, loving and healthy start to 2017 and since then it's only gotten better. In my next post when I update you on my blanket (probably the end of February) you'll see the zesty yellows and powerful confident reds.
Do you crochet? Ever created a mood blanket? If so & you've posted a pic online or blogged about it, why not leave a comment below with your link so we can all take a look and celebrate the beautiful handmade item that is precious to you.
Let's grab a hook & start a chain reaction,
Do you crochet? Ever created a mood blanket? If so & you've posted a pic online or blogged about it, why not leave a comment below with your link so we can all take a look and celebrate the beautiful handmade item that is precious to you.
Let's grab a hook & start a chain reaction,
Love Dawn-Tracy
xxx
Title | Secrets & Fries at the Starlight Diner
Author | Helen Cox
Publisher | HarperCollins
Purchase | Amazon UK
Pages | 270 Pages
About The Book
What brings Bonnie Brooks to The Starlight Diner? And why is she on the run?
As the front-woman in a band, Bonnie is used to being in the spotlight, but now she must hide in the shadows.
Bonnie only has one person who she can turn to: her friend Esther Knight, who waitresses at the Fifties-themed diner. There, retro songs play on the jukebox as fries and sundaes are served to satisfied customers. But where has Esther gone?
Alone in New York City, Bonnie breaks down in front of arrogant news reporter, and diner regular, Jimmy Boyle. Jimmy offers to help her. Can she trust him?
When the kindly owner of the Starlight Diner offers Bonnie work, and she meets charming security officer Nick Moloney, she dares to hope that her luck has changed. Is there a blossoming romance on the cards? And can Bonnie rebuild her life with the help of her Starlight Diner friends?
Guest Post - Author Take Over
Today, as part of the blog tour I am handing it over to Helen Cox who has a great guest post for you all. I hope you enjoy!
Who
doesn’t love a good writing metaphor? To most people who put pen to paper, New
Year is a time where the year ahead feels much like a blank page. We can almost
smell the freshness of the paper, like when your teacher used to give you a new
exercise book at school.
It’s
that sense of possibility that ignites a passion in us. The blank page is an
adventure that hasn’t yet happened, and that idea is insanely inspiring.
The fact
that we’ll have doodled and scrawled all over the cover in an unsightly fashion
by the time term ends is irrelevant. The fact that there’ll be crossings out
and spelling errors and prose that is so pretentious you want to poke your eyes
out with your own pen when you read it back… who cares?
Because
right now, anything can happen on that untouched blank page.
My New
Year’s Writing Resolution is to embrace that sense of possibility not just at
the beginning of January, but for 365 days of the year. To imbue my daily life
with the magic of the written word as much as is humanly possible (told you –
pretentious prose and I’m not even half way through January yet).
I’ve
chosen this particular resolution because, to be honest, I’m a firm believer in
living in the moment. Living by this principle means that it’s not just the
next year that’s a blank page, but every day, every hour, every minute. Every
sunrise can be a fresh start. Every chime of the clock, a bell heralding an
unexpected and delightful plot twist.
Let’s
face it, you have no idea what I’m going to write in the next few seconds. You
could make some guesses but I could write any word in the entirety of the
English language. Or I could make one up just to confuse you.
My
giraffe is wearing a top hat.
See.
You
didn’t know that was coming.
Which
means it might have made you smile and if it did I’m chalking that up as a win.
For me,
it’s important to keep a sense of excitement about what I’m writing. If the
author is, in any way, weary or disgruntled I’m fairly sure the reader will
sense it somehow. That kind of feeling is more contagious than any of us would
like.
Treating
each day like a blank page also helps us overleap one of the biggest obstacles
we face with major writing projects: how daunting they seem at the beginning.
When writing a novel, eighty thousand usable words seems a long way away when
I’ve only written ten words in total. Seven of which will probably be edited
out of the final draft.
Taking
writing projects minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day, is a prudent way
of managing the self-doubt that can so easily creep in. It will also ensure
that writing becomes a daily practise. And it doesn’t matter whether you only
add a line of poetry to your body of work today, or whether you write a five
thousand word short story in less than two hours. Every word you write is a
triumph. Every word you write is filling the void before you with meaning of
some kind.
Author | Jill Mansell
Publisher | Headline
Release Date | 12th January 2017
Pages | 412 Pages
Source | Review Paperback Copy
My Rating | 5/5
MEET ME AT BEACHCOMBER BAY is a romantic, funny and unputdownable new novel about love and friendship from Jill Mansell, bestselling author of THE ONE YOU REALLY WANT and YOU AND ME, ALWAYS - 'A glorious, heartwarming romantic read' Woman & Home. Perfect for anyone who loves Lucy Diamond, Milly Johnson and Katie Fforde.
Love is in the air in St Carys, but you'd never know it - the people of this seaside town are very good at keeping secrets...
The man Clemency loves belongs to someone else. She has to hide her true feelings - but when she ropes in an unsuspecting friend to help, wires start to get crossed.
For the first time in Ronan's life his charm has failed him in winning over the woman he wants. Loving her from afar appears to be his only option.
Belle seems to have the perfect boyfriend, but something isn't quite right. And now a long-buried secret is slowly rising to the surface.
The truth has a funny way of revealing itself, and when it does St Carys will be a very different place indeed...
I devoured Meet Me At Beachcomber Bay in 4 sittings - simply because I could not put it down. Having never read a book by Jill before I was utterly ashamed of myself for having never given this author my time and attention. Please accept my apologies and know that I will make it my mission to read more of your work this year.
Meet Me At Beachcomber Bay swept me away from the very first page to the magical land of Cornwall. I was very pleased to read the mentioning of Newquay in it as it is one of my favourite places in the UK. I became instantly fond of the characters, each one had a tenderness that just made you sit up, take notice and care. Well, I say all the characters - there was one that really did my nut in and I'm just glad he got his marching orders.
A story of love, friendship, loss, heartbreak, all embraced with healing from illness, adoption & post-adoption, new life + new beginnings, it is hard to not fall in love with this story.
I laughed, I cried, my heart skipped a beat, and ... I think literally every emotion you can have I had whilst reading this book making it one of the (if not THE) most emotive storyline I've ever read. I wish I could go back and visit them all, share an ice-cream or two and just catch up with them. The characters feel like old friends now and that is down to Jill Mansell's sheer pure talent with writing.
The plot was so jam packed with terrific twists and turns, it had me guessing every step of the way. From an unexpected arrival, to an adoptive child being torn over his parents, not to mention the brilliant inclusion of a same sex relationship.
Meet Me At Beachcomber Bay has been a terrific start to 2017 for me, and I urge you all to read it. You will not be disappointed. I have been recommending it so many people whom I know would thoroughly enjoy this.
Meet Me At Beachcomber Bay swept me away from the very first page to the magical land of Cornwall. I was very pleased to read the mentioning of Newquay in it as it is one of my favourite places in the UK. I became instantly fond of the characters, each one had a tenderness that just made you sit up, take notice and care. Well, I say all the characters - there was one that really did my nut in and I'm just glad he got his marching orders.
A story of love, friendship, loss, heartbreak, all embraced with healing from illness, adoption & post-adoption, new life + new beginnings, it is hard to not fall in love with this story.
I laughed, I cried, my heart skipped a beat, and ... I think literally every emotion you can have I had whilst reading this book making it one of the (if not THE) most emotive storyline I've ever read. I wish I could go back and visit them all, share an ice-cream or two and just catch up with them. The characters feel like old friends now and that is down to Jill Mansell's sheer pure talent with writing.
The plot was so jam packed with terrific twists and turns, it had me guessing every step of the way. From an unexpected arrival, to an adoptive child being torn over his parents, not to mention the brilliant inclusion of a same sex relationship.
Meet Me At Beachcomber Bay has been a terrific start to 2017 for me, and I urge you all to read it. You will not be disappointed. I have been recommending it so many people whom I know would thoroughly enjoy this.
It's out the 12th January in Hardback -grab your copy here!
Author | Angela Marsons
Publisher | Bookouture
Source | Review Copy
Pages | 320
Purchase | Amazon
My Rating |5/5
Two girls go missing. Only one will return. The couple that offers the highest amount will see their daughter again. The losing couple will not. Make no mistake. One child will die.
When nine-year-old best friends Charlie and Amy disappear, two families are plunged into a living nightmare. A text message confirms the unthinkable; that the girls are the victims of a terrifying kidnapping.
And when a second text message pits the two families against each other for the life of their children, the clock starts ticking for D.I. Kim Stone and the squad.
Seemingly outwitted at every turn, as they uncover a trail of bodies, Stone realises that these ruthless killers might be the most deadly she has ever faced. And that their chances of bringing the girls home alive are getting smaller by the hour . . .
Untangling a dark web of secrets from the families' past might hold the key to solving this case. But can Kim stay alive long enough to do so? Or will someone's child pay the ultimate price?
It's no secret that it is in fact Angela Marsons who corrupted my reading passion from chick-lit & romance and got me hooked on crime thrillers with a psychological twist. I fell head over heels in love with this addiction when I read her debut novel Silent Screams, and now, after reading Lost Girls - A D.I. Kim Stone Novel #3 I'm hooked again.
The thing with addiction is you are left with the question of; "Can I ever get clean?" and I have to say - if Angela continues writing the way she does - I'm done for! There's no way I can ever become 'clean' from this genre.
Lost Girls had my heart beating so fast and launching itself in my mouth I was almost begging the tormentors to stop and at the same time, I was desperate for Kim Stone to find the evil buggers and get them locked up!
I do firstly have to say that the ending - Angela - You did GOOD - REAL GOOD there! I did not expect that!! I was kept on the edge of my seat right up until the very end and then like a hit of something naughty - the come down leaves you feeling out of sorts (which is why I recommend having more than 1 of Angela's books to hand - that way you can continue your addiction reading feast immediately!).
When 2 girls go missing, best friends and under the age of 13 your heart really does begin to break. We see it all too often in the news, and Angela captures this torment spectacularly. I was close to vomiting at times when I read about the kidnappers stripping the children 'naked' and then getting the clothes left in their parents garden - whilst Kim Stone and her team are there I might add - ahem! However, apologies if this is a 'spoiler' for you, but I have to reassure you that the young girls weren't fully naked, they still had their swimming costumes on! It's not much but it does give you a sense of relief and reassurance. Perhaps?
As with any crime thriller with a psychological twist, I strived to work it out and crack the case - but Angela is just too good for me. I can't even begin to build a theory because Kim Stone comes along and smashes it to pieces when she connects the dots quicker than a bomb disposal expert can cancel the wiring of a timed bomb!
Lost Girls had a brilliant ending - one that left me breathless, screaming OMFG! in shock at exactly just who was involved in this awful crime, and one that also brought peace and solace to some families in the story.
Like I said, I had to start book 4 after this one because I simply was left wanting more. Excellent Work Angela! You've done it again!
Title | Kindred Spirits
Author | Rainbow Powell
Genre | Young Adult
Publisher | Macmillan
Pages | 63
Rating | 4/5
'Everybody likes everything these days. The whole world is a nerd.'
'Are you mad because other people like Star Wars? Are you mad because people like me like Star Wars?'
'Maybe.'
If you broke Elena's heart, Star Wars would spill out. So when she decides to queue outside her local cinema to see the new movie, she's expecting a celebration with crowds of people who love Han, Luke and Leia just as much as she does.
What she's not expecting is to be last in a line of only three people; to have to pee into a collectible Star Wars soda cup behind a dumpster or to meet that unlikely someone who just might truly understand the way she feels.
Kindred Spirits is an engaging short story by Rainbow Rowell, author of the bestselling Eleanor & Park, Fangirl and Carry On, and is part of a handful of selected short reads specially produced for World Book Day.
I adored this short book that was an utter treat to read.
We meet Elena, who is attending her first ever "line-up" for the latest Star Wars movie.
Whilst the story is entirely based around waiting in line for the latest Star Wars movie to open what it features is much more than a waiting game. We see friendships form and moments that had me saying-out-loud "OMG This is just the CUTEST story ever!" Which in hindsight now makes me realise that at 28 years old - I'm becoming one of those "oldies" that teens find repulsive and annoying. Oops!
There were moments where I was laughing-out-loud especially when the cinema finally opened and Elena and her new friends were admitted to "FINALLY" see the movie they'd been waiting for.
Overall for a really short read (63 pages) it was such an engaging and fun read. It's made me want to continue reading more of Rainbow's work.
I'm awarding it 4/5 as I just wish the story was longer - but given the context of it being written for World Book Day, I can't complain too much.
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