Howdy and welcome to my colourful, yarny world!
Some of you may recognise fizzypetal.co.uk (and fizzypetal.com) from my jewellery making days. Shortly after my 5th occurrence of cancer in summer 2015, I shut down my business so I could focus on treatment and recovery.
Roll forward to January 2018. I launched Fizzy Petal’s Crochet Chronicles as both a personal challenge and to share my creative and learning adventures with the wider world. To become a proficient crocheter takes time and patience, as you’ll see throughout this site. My blog, like my crochet skills, is a WiP (work in progress), evolving as I do in this beautiful, colourful yarny world.
Why I’m Hooked
Shortly after I rediscovered crochet, life threw me a curve ball in the form of my 5th cancer diagnosis. Crochet it turns out, is so much more than just a creative outlet.
Some that are acquainted with me know I am a recurrent breast cancer survivor, and I’m please to say that I have been in remission since 2016 (thank you NHS!!!). I used to say that aside from having kids, cancer was the most interesting thing to happen in my life. From a scientific point of view, hugely fascinating. From a personal point of view – not the most fun I’ve ever had. I never grew accustomed to the process of going into surgery, which for me, was always the scariest part of cancer treatment. Watching videos on my iTouch (remember those?) used to be my only distraction which was not as effective as I would have liked it to be. While waiting for the last of one of my many surgical procedures, I realised just how much crochet quiets my mind while I’m waiting to be called in. Such a gift.
Since completing cancer treatment, my life has changed rather a lot. I became the first person on my side of the family to graduate from university, and am now a PhD candidate. This is why I have not posted as often. During the past over 5 years of academic study, crochet has served a slightly different purpose. Crocheting pretty knots with yarn helps me untangle the knots in my brain as I grapple with how to understand and articulate abstract concepts. Yet another gift.
In closing, crochet has become a daily part of my life. It helps relax my mind and keeps me steady. It is a marvellous way to reclaim time that would otherwise be lost to “The Waiting Place”, or do something productive when my hands are idle, such as when I’m watching TV. It is also a form of communication – gratitude, compassion, love and affection. Crochet is the gift that just keeps giving.
“The Waiting Place” is a reference from Dr Seuss’ book ‘Oh the Places You’ll Go!’ .
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Page last updated 21 September 2025