King-sized bed spread for Tigers footy fansBy John Lewis
Shepparton News
16 September 2019Ellis Bargain Yarns' Darren Ellis with the Tigers king-sized bedspread he continued to crochet even though the original customer failed to claim it.
Richmond footy fans can rest easy in the lead-up to the AFL finals after a hand-made bedspread ordered by a Tigers fan was never claimed.
Now it's up for sale at Shepparton's Ellis Bargain Yarns on Corio St.
Store co-owner Darren Ellis said he began crocheting the giant woollen Tigers flag last December and was halfway through the order when the customer disappeared.
Despite being an Adelaide Crows fan, Mr Ellis soldiered on with his first crochet project under the direction of his partner and co-business owner Marian Reeves.
"I got so far into it, I thought I might as well continue," Mr Ellis said.
The 57-year-old has been knitting nearly all his life, after a childhood accident left him unable to spend too much time outside.
"When I was 14 months I was scalded when I pulled a baby's bath of hot water over me - I've still got the scars," he said.
"My mother taught me to knit when I was eight to give me something to do."
Darren uses the C2C - corner to corner - crochet method.
Last year, Ms Reeves taught her partner how to crochet and he hasn't stopped.
He said the Tigers bedspread took him 728 hours until June to finish, using 21 balls of wool.
Ms Reeves said he would have finished earlier if the original pattern downloaded off the internet had been in centimetres not inches.
"It was way too big. So I picked it all apart and started again," Mr Ellis said.
His new-found crochet skills are also finding a new market.
He now has orders for Collingwood, Essendon, Melbourne and West Coast Eagles bedspreads.
He said the designs were changed slightly to avoid copyright issues.
Mr Ellis said he enjoyed crochet work because it kept his mind and body active.
"It keeps the fingers strong and stops me thinking about getting old," he said.
His Richmond bedspread is up for sale at $250.
"That just covers the cost of the wool," Mr Ellis said.
Ellis Bargain Yarns' Darren Ellis with the Tigers king-sized bedspread he continued to crochet even though the original customer failed to claim it.https://www.sheppnews.com.au/news/2019/09/16/810535/king-sized-spread-for-tigers-fans
