I Crocheted a Raven!

 Whatever possessed me?

    Well, actually it was another request from a customer.

    'I know how you like these little challenges,'says he 'So could you crochet me a raven?'

    In the background, Graham was hissing at me, 'Say no! Tell him we are too busy!'

    As I quite fancied having a go at crocheting a raven, I agreed to do it.

    That was a mistake.

    This was perhaps the fiddliest item I have ever crocheted. I did find a recipe for a little bird on the internet, but when I tried it out, I didn't like the proportions I ended up with. They were more for a cartoon chick type of bird, with a large head and triangular shaped body. So I put that on one side and started again.

    But the main problems with this project was that I was crocheting with a small hook (3mm which is small for me) and I'd decided to use up some thinner than usual wool, and it was all done in single crochet, black on black.

    There was no contrast, so following the stitches was very hard work for me. I couldn't go fast, because I was having to make it up as I went along.

    When I had finally finished the main head and body shape. I then had to figure out how to make the legs and feet, as I wanted the bird to be able to stand. I had a bit of garden wire, so I cut four lengths of it so that I would have four claws, then the four wires were twined together to make the legs and the joining bit opened out inside the body and stuffed around, to try and make sure the legs would stay in place.

    The tail was made as part of the body, but then I had to make an oval piece to go underneath and between the legs as it didn't look right just pulling the edges together together. Once the body was all together, I covered the legs and claws by wrapping black wool around them and fastening by holding the ends of the wool with the bent over ends of the claws - I'd already scratched myself with the wires and I didn't want anyone else doing that - and a strategic bob or two of glue.

    The pointed beak was a separate piece, as are the wings, and for the eyes I used two haematite beads.

    The finished raven stands about 15cm tall (6") - and don't anyone ask me to make another one, because it is not going to happen!

    I took the raven outside and stood it on the edge of the bird bath to take a photo.

It was at this point that I noticed our peony bud had, at long last, opened!

    All of April we have had a very large bud on the peony. We only planted the peony last autumn, so I wasn't sure whether it would flower this year - peonies can be notorious for not flowering, or for developing buds which do not open.

    I had had a look on the internet and it seemed the buds might not open for all sorts of reasons:

Your peony might be planted too deeply - well we knew this wasn't the case because we'd checked that last autumn (and Graham had actually dug the root up and re-planted it with a growth bud sticking out of the ground), some folks said you need to plant it near an ants nest as the ants eat the waxy substance which seals the bud closed. Some folks said you should pour warm water over the bud - presumably to try and melt this same waxy stuff.

    Others simply said it needed lots and lots of warm sun to make it open - and this April has been cold, grey and wet. I think we had one day of sunshine near the beginning of the month and that was it!

    But over the Bank Holiday weekend we have had sunshine, and the same again today, with some good warmth and that seems to have finally triggered the bud to open.

    And it was worth the wait!