Like a Sponge- Some of my Favourite Makes Part 1

I am sure you will agree there are some wonderful crochet patterns out there to inspire us all , paid and free , with some amazingly talented designers emerging daily. My goal is one day to be able to design a project to be proud of and that will maybe inspire others to design too, I know that’s a big goal!

The picture above shows one of the squares in the Nuts about Square’s Cal from 2017. Eleven talented designers got together to design one square each to make a beautiful blanket.  I used a lot of my stash to make this and the designs were stunning.  The patterns and video tutorials can be found Here.

 

 

Look at this lovely shawl by Julie Blagojevich, the Schaumburg Shawl, a paid pattern, oh so lovely to make, one of my all time favourite makes , the yarn I used was Malabrigo Lace yarn, 100% Baby Merino Wool, oh such a pleasure to use.  Such a difficult one to photograph though, and my lovely daughter gets roped in again… awww   Definitely need to make another one of these shawls, I wear this a lot, so soft, and warm but so classy.

Free patterns are also great and a fab way to experiment but be prepared not all free patterns are the same, some are well written and accurate , others not so much and sometimes untested too, I have found in some, lots of errors and omissions , so be prepared to have to make it up as you go on occasions.

I do have a few free patterns on my blog, (all tested and hopefully you think well written ) but please do contact me if you find anything that you have difficulty with, I would much rather know and put right to save hours of hair pulling, well not hours as they are only small projects and I forced my sister to test them first! haha

This little mini backpack pattern I found on YouTube, an excellent resource and really great from learning new techniques like this tapestry crochet.   The Video is all in Spanish/Italian not sure actually, definitely not English,  but I managed to follow it.   Sometimes its just the sheer pleasure that a small make can give you, so another on the top of my list.  Sorry I don’t have the link but you should find it in a search.  I used this one to pop some money in as a Christmas Gift, it was loved and cherished!

So for now as the title of this blog post says …. I am like a sponge! (No not soggy and dripping wet! )  A sponge that’s soaks up all the inspiration and ideas, my mind is bursting sometimes with ideas and also which pattern or project to do next. But for now I am content following patterns and trying new techniques because this is how I learn, especially making mistakes along the way.

I intend to update and add more of my favourites to show you, in more blog posts in the future, maybe you will try some yourself.   So this is part 1, there may be many parts , I just wish I kept a catalogue of where I found the patterns and their names and designers, would save me so much time! ( A good tip for the future).

Hope your having some fun crochet time, till next time…

 

Buttons Braids and Edgings

I have been a bit lax of late with my International Diploma in Crochet work! So many other projects on the go and so little time.  I know that sounds very familar to a lot of you!   The Diploma is a great way to learn and stretch your abilities, to help advance your work and for me, help me to design more of my own patterns, a goal I have had for a very long time.

So the photo above shows 5 different Braids which I submitted for assessment along with 3 crochet edgings and 7 crochet buttons.   I was slightly confused by Braids and Edgings, but the course tutor explained the difference – Braids are decorative and designed to be added to your projects like applique whereas ‘Edgings’ are for (yes you guessed it) suitable for say edge to edge jackets or garments, sort of a decorative finish to a project .  Sounds so obvious when I read that back!

I used a combinations of very fine crochet thread with a size 1mm hook right up to 4ply yarn and 3.5mm hook to complete these swatches, and was happy to receive ‘Excellent’ when returned from assessment.  I loved doing these as they made me think a little more about  not only how to make them and assess the type of yarn etc. but how they could be applied to my projects, so I got a lot out of this exercise.

Buttons

These were my selecton of buttons, again loved making these!  Some are stuffed with cotton, others are crocheted around other buttons and all using my favourte yarns and lots of inspiration from YouTube.  The only one that I had a bit of a “hmmm not sure about that one” moment was the large mustard button, maybe just because I probably wouldnt use that in one of my projects and as the assessor said could have been made with a smaller hook to make it more durable with wear, which I agree with, but all passed again with flying colours. Yay (Happy Dance!).

Did you notice my little tea pot mat in the background?   Well, I had a little go at the Elements Cal  designed by Sandra from Hooks and Yarn  with super video tutorials from Esther ‘Its all in a Nutshell’ .  What a wonderful pattern, all that texture, love it!   The little tea pot mat is all I have made so far though because I would need to buy yarn for the CAL (Crochet Along) which ends up being a large Blanket but I am having an innner discussion with myself trying to justify buying more when I have so much already!  Of course the stash I have is the wrong colour, the wrong weight, not quite the colours I want… sound familiar? 😀 Still debating that one but for now a tea pot mat is all I have and I love it!

Finally a little splash of colour using my button making skills (as an excuse ) to make this fun little cushion and also stash busting in the process.  Pattern is by the talented  designer Lucy from Attic 24, Blooming Flower Cushion , I may have to make more of these as it really did’nt use up much of my stash.  Any excuse eh!

Till next time happy hooking!

Christmas Crochet and Free Pattern

Well, my hook has been super busy with Christmas crochet projects this year, the first one being the adorable Christmas Santa Gonk.  A lovely amigurumi pattern designed by Ling Ryan for Hooked on Patterns, I can’t remember where I bought this one, may have been Ravelry.  So cute!

I used acrylic DK yarn for my trial run and then 100% cotton yarn by Drops, for the finished version.  If you visit  www.hookedonpatterns.com, there is a host of extras available as long as you have purchased the original pattern.

Tapestry Crochet

This is my first attempt at designing and swatching a small tapestry crochet piece.  I have always loved how this looks in knitted work and really wanted to see if I could achieve a decent crisp look.   Still working on that! haha, but the interesting thing about this technique is that you never turn your work, and the second colour is carried along the back of the swatch as you crochet.  The stitches used are all dc (UK terms) and through the back loops only. Note to self ‘ I must spend more time on this technique in the future’.

Christmas Baubles – Free Pattern

There are many lovely free patterns out there for colourful Christmas Baubles but I wanted to try something different, something more open and lacy but quick to makeup and a great stash buster too.

These baubles are made using 100% cotton from my stash and used less than 10gms to make.  I designed them to be made in two halves and joined around the centre to finish, you will need a balloon and some fabric stiffener to finish but all the instructions and details on how to make are included in my Free Pattern available to download Here.

They really brightened up my tree, especially in the daylight when the lights are not twinkling, they just added that splash of colour I needed.  I hope you try them, please let me know if you find any problems with my pattern, I would love to see your makes if you want to send me a link.

More Christmas Tree Ornaments

Are you a hoarder like me?  I keep everything that I think will come in useful for ‘something crafty’.  Well, this hoard was a blessing and was used as the centre circle for these little crochet wreath tree ornaments.  Can you guess what they were originally? – Curtain pole rings!  complete with their own little hook ready to add the tiesto hang on  the tree.

I made these to give as little thank you gifts to the ladies who come to my crochet classes and support a worthy charity.  We have raised over £1000 for Velindre Cancer Fundraising to date and have had some great fun with our makes.  These are made using DK acrylic yarn and again great stash busters.

Watercolour Doodle

Of course, Christmas wouldn’t be the same without some home made cards, so my watercolours came out for a little play and I doodled a bit to get some ideas for cards for the special people in my life.  Let’s hope I get time to finish them.  Even if I don’t, it’s so relaxing and such a stress buster when I paint, definitely right up there with crochet!

Wishing you a Happy Healthy and Creative Christmas and New Year!

Strawberry Clutch Free Pattern

Well another stash busting project…. so much stash to bust! Anyway that’s another story. Today’s story is about my love of this Strawberry Clutch Bag.  Just big enough for all the essentials, or can be used as a make up bag… its washable.. yay!   Isn’t this such a pretty stitch, I found the chart on Pinterest, lots of them actually and fell in love.    Of course I had to line it and pop a zip in, to keep all my contents safely tucked away inside.

I hand stitched the lining but my good old sewing machine came out to do the zip.  Did you notice the pattern?… ( grins..)  I actually got this pattern all down on paper, a full three page pattern and included one of the charts from Pinterest.

So if you would like to have a bash at this one, the link for the full pattern to download or print is HERE.  Feel free to let me know how you get on, this is the first time I have written up a complete pattern, so any typos or errors please, please, let me know! Hope you enjoy…

Other News from the Creative Corner….

I have been such a busy bee lately…  getting all the preparation ready for my upcoming workshop.. well its a new one for me, a Speed Crafting night with 5 other ladies each with different crafts , the workshop is  based around Mothers Day.. so I’ll be there along with other crafters,  hopefully enthusing ladies with the joys of crochet!

As well as the preparation for the workshop, I am also having to re-do the last batch of swatches I sent off for the International Diploma in Crochet, which some of you know , got lost in the post. 😦   These swatches included the Tunisian one and two colour samples, along with 3 others, so not too much to re-do… good to practice though right!  I will post my efforts before the next batch goes off, I am loving the Tunisian crochet and have now invested in a whole set of hooks ! I  have so many ideas already so its justified right?

One swatch I am struggling with is a square of raised double rib.. I don’t know why I am finding this one so tough.. a basic stitch and I am very familiar with the front post/back post stitches, unless its my combination of them, anyway  I have to do a re-submission for this one, my feedback from Annette who agreed with my opinion on this sample sent (I feel that there should have been more texture) … she suggested a smaller hook than usual, so I’ll give that a go, also I used an acrylic /cotton yarn so maybe 100% acrylic next time as will be more stretchy.

Above left my sample, and right is the photo that Annette sent me as a guide.So looks like my evening crochet is planned!

Till next time… Have a Happy Crocheting Weekend ! (with wine if possible- naughty me!)

 

Mandala Bag

Another stash buster project.. found this lovely bag on Corina’s blog Stitch 11 thank you for sharing Corina!  I love mandala projects so had to give this a go.

The pattern was really easy to follow, although as per usual I made a few adjustments to suit me.  When sewing up I used a double crochet seam on the outside to give some texture, and of course  lined my bag.

Because the bag has a block bottom, I adjusted the lining by sewing and cutting across the bottom as per photos so it fitted beautifully.  I also added a little padding between the lining and the bag to make it a little stiffer. Isn’t that a fab fabric! I knew I kept that scrap for something.

So my bag ended up just the right size for all those essentials! Yay.

I have enough of this lovely ball of wool for one more bag… hmmm this one will have to be one of my designs I think…. Happy Hooking 😀

 

 

Stashbuster Yarn and Eureka Moment!

I am being so disciplined at the moment and using up my odds and ends in some pretty stash busting projects ( more bags and clutches will be posted soon), BUT….. don’t you just hate those tangled bunches of yarn that you just can’t throw away and are also such a pain to work with? Or is it just me 😉

There is so much milage in these little odd ends and bits and pieces, messy but a good resource for smaller projects.

Well ladies, I just had a Eureka moment, at least thats what I thought it was, it may have just been a bright idea that I have seen elsewhere but didn’t register until now, either way what a great idea!

Firstly grab yourself a bag of cheap plastic pegs, the ones with the curve on the edges like mine below.

These are perfect as the yarn just snaps nicely through the end of the peg and holds well… also I really really like the sound of that yarn snap when you pull it through ( sad but hey, little pleasures)…. Once the yarn is snapped and held in place wind as per the photos below.

Every now and again wrap around ends and snap so the yarn does not slip back off.  You can wind away to your hearts content until your yarn is really well behaved and wound nicely in its new home ready for your next project.  Neat eh!

You can make the little yarn pegs as small or large as the peg will hold, I know pegs vary in size but I found even these standard little pegs hold quite a lot of yarn.  Also great if using multiple colour ways in one project.

I have discovered another great feature of using these, if you drop them while winding, or crocheting, they don’t roll away under your sofa and you can retrieve with no pain!  Also they look so pretty in my little dish.  😀

So now I am moving on to using these beauties for a stash buster project for my Crochet Class, just in time for Valentines.  Hope you enjoyed my little indulgence and if like me this idea really hits home then great!  If you already knew about this little neat trick … why didn’t you tell me before! 😉

Happy Peg Hunting! Bye for now.