It's a Creative World

Teeny tiny crochet squares

Hi from Caz with a little weekend hooky project.
A neighbour asked me to give her a crochet refresher course as she wants to make her new granddaughter a little crochet jacket but has not crocheted in about 30 years!
Besides giving her a refresher she also asked me to give her a pattern for a 'circle in a square' square.
Because the jacket is for a baby, the square needed to be small to show off the detail. Each one measures 2.5inches.

I loved the little square so much that I decided to make a cover for my phone.
I used rowan cotton glacé with a 3.5mm hook.

So here's the pattern.

Abbreviations:
Tr = treble
Htr = half treble
Dc = double crochet

Square:
Chain 4 and join to form a ring
Round 1: chain 3 (counts as 1tr), 11tr into the ring and join with a slip stitch into the third chain of the three chain tr. (12 stitches)
Round 2: chain 3 (counts as 1tr), 1tr into the stitch at the base of the three chain. 2tr into each stitch from round 1. Join with a slip stitch into the third chain of the three chain tr. (24 stitches). Fasten off.
Join new colour to any stitch.
Round 3: 3 chain (counts as 1tr), into the next stitch work *(2tr, 2 chain, 2tr), this forms the corner. Over the next 5 stitches work (1tr, 1htr, 1dc, 1htr, 1tr)*. Repeat from * to * twice more. Now (2 tr, 2 chain, 2tr) into the next stitch. Over the next 4 stitches work (1tr, 1htr, 1dc, 1htr). Join with a slip stitch into the third chain of the three chain treble. Fasten off.

Make 4 squares and join.

I used the treble method:
With the right side of square 1 facing, join yarn with a slip stitch to the corner chain space. Chain 3, holding right side of square 2 against right side of square 1, work slip stitch into corresponding corner chain space. *1tr into next tr of square 1, slip stitch into corresponding tr of square 2. Repeat to end.
Join all 4 squares and sew in all ends.

The size of your phone cover will depending on your phone so you may need to add a round or two of trebles. I needed one round. When you fasten off leave a long tail to sew the cover closed.

Using a different yarn or hook size will alter the size of the square.

This is a great stocking filler and an ideal project for a rainy Saturday afternoon.

Happy hooking :) Caz xx

12 days of Christmas - Nesting

Crochet baskets. When I saw a tutorial for a set of seven nesting crochet baskets, I wanted to make them right away. Delving into my crochet cotton drawer, whilst I hadn't the rainbow colours of the one made by Marinke (Wink), i found seven bright colours which would do for the urgency I felt overcoming me.  

Here's how mine turned out:

The largest is 5 inches across, the smallest 2 inches. I rather like the idea of making 2 consecutive sizes and using them as a wrapping for a small gift, such as a pretty soap, or jar of face cream. 

In fact, because Marinke's tutorial is so easy, you can make these baskets as wide as you like and as short or tall as fits your need. The only things I changed were to omit the top border, and not to add a chain 2 before each round, it didn't work for me.

I love working with crochet cotton as there are no fluffy strandy bits to split and spoil the shape of the stitches; it's easy to see where to insert the hook and we all like easy, don't we?

Come back and see what else we have for you in our 12 Days of Christmas.

Cheerio for now.

Eleanor

x

A Hand-Bag?

Leanne here - Happy Saturday!

Ok, so this post is more about the importance of being organised, rather than Earnest, but I hope you still find it useful :)

A couple of years ago, whilst rediscovering my passion for knitting, I was growing frustrated with my ball of yarn getting mucky, getting pulled by other needles and hooks in my bag, being chased by the cat, or tangling around someone's foot. I decided that a pair of bamboo bag handles (free with a magazine!) would sit nicely on my wrist, and found an intarsia pattern to use up scraps of dk and two-ply, along wth some unbleached cotton for a lining... Here it is in use with a lovely lace shawl (more on that another day...!):

What do you think? I can carry it around with me by folding it into a handbag, and knit standing, sitting, anywhere, with my stitch markers conveniently to hand and my pattern safe inside! I'll link to my Ravelry project here, for you to see.

Sometimes the best little inventions are borne of necessity, so have a think about a gap in your practical life that needs filling, and post us a pic or link when you're done-'We would love to see how our efforts free inspire you :)

That's all from me- Thanks for stopping by, and please do check out the other weekend posts for even more inspiration!

Leanne xxx

www.beautifulimpressions.co.uk

www.craftaholicleanie.co.uk

 

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Mini Minion Mitt Madness

Good Sunday to you all!

I am so glad of this day of rest- I was offered a job out of the blue, with long hours, a long commute, and an immediate start... But a job's a job, especially in this economy!  Before I rejoined the rat race, however, I was able to dash off my project for today... Mini Minion Mitts!

After a laugh at a local crop over Minions, and a new knitting friend, I decided I'd try to design some mittens for my youngest Minion (5).  I found a pattern free on Ravelry and set about working out how to incorporate a simple stranding/intarsia pattern for dungarees.

Once I'd managed that, I just had to get some big googly eyes (ASDA, in the back to school sale!) and crochet a little circle that I then drew the yarn through and pulled so it was overlapping the edge securely.  I stitched it on et voila! My best guess at Minions - aka My Mini Minion Mitts:

(They are nave and yellow - despite my cameraphone's best attempt and making it look black!)

Not bad for someone who hasn't seen the film, eh?

I'm having to remake them in another size, and now I've found my circulars I may try them in the round, not knit flat... If I manage to come up with my own pattern, I'll pop back here with it on my next turn!

Thanks for joining us this weekend, if you've only just gotten here, do scroll down for Lisa's masculine clocks card, and Felicia's lovely layouts.. We are scheduled back next Friday, but you should always keep an eye on this place in the week, in case we pop on to surprise you!

Leanne xxx

www.beautifulimpressions.co.uk

www.craftaholicleanie.co.uk

Doing it freestyle

Welcome to IACW! And todays post is a part one of two. We're talking about freestyle crochet and how you can put odd shapes together to make a garment. This is my first attempt at freestyle crochet and succeed or fail, you're all with me!

So the inspiration came from a photo that my mum found on etsy. It's a beautiful multi-colour coat made up of lots of different shapes. We talked about the price and while I could appreciate the £600 odd pounds it was for sale, I wondered if I could make on myself. So I bought some yarn and a few motif pattern books.

I keep the photo above in my crochet basket so I can remind myself of the mamoth task I have undertaken.
I set about making shapes. I'm using Rowan cotton glace with a 3.5 and 3mm hook. Some of the very dense shapes are better on a 3.5mm hook.

As I have no pattern I thought that the best way to construct the coat was on a dressform, so I bought Dolly here off amazon.
I have pinned alot of the shapes to Dolly so I can get an idea of the shapes will fit together, and it's also easy to see what I have rather than routing around in my basket all the time.

I'm using a dark navy blue to join so each shape stands out. Is that the right thing to do? Well I have no blooming idea but so far it's pleasing on the eye, so i'm rolling with it.

It's really starting to take shape and with each bit that I add i'm getting excited to see it done. I've got a deadline, mum comes to the UK at the end of August and I will see her over the first weekend of September. Do be sure to keep checking back to see the finished (I HOPE!!) product :)

Caz xx

A crochet blanket for a baby

Hello from a very hot and sunny Hertfordshire! It's not exactly the weather to talk about blankets but as this one is heading to sunny South Africa it isn't your typical blanket. It's made from cotton that was sourced, by the lovely Anita Mundt, from The Netherlands.

There was much excitement when the kits landed on our shores and lots of project planning discussions going on over at Facebook. There were quite a few of us that opted for the fab hexagon pattern on the lovely Lucy's blog, over at Attic24.

Lucy's patterns are well written with plenty of photographs to help a newbie. I opted to copy the join as you go method as the thought of putting all the finished hexs together at the end brought me out in a cold sweat! 

 

The blanket grew quickly and using the join as you go method meant I was able to visualise the finished blanket as it grew. It was great fun picking the colour combinations for each hex.

The dimensions are 70cmx 90cm, so it can be used in a crib, a pram or simply laid out on the grass for baby to enjoy some sunshine and fresh air.

I edged the blanket with two rounds of trebles before blocking. There are no instructions on Attic24 for the edging so i'll tell you how I did it. Join the yarn to any stitch and chain three, this counts as 1 treble. Then treble into each stitch along the straight edges. For the corners do two treble into the chain space and for the inside corners (ie where the two hex's join) treble two together. As always crochet is not an exact science so your tension may dictate how many stitches you use around the edge. Keep trying until you are 100% happy.

I do love some hooky time in the sun!

I just adore the vibrant colours and feel of the soft cotton of this blanket. Thankfully I have plenty left to make another blanket for my Goddaughter although I have chosen a differnt pattern.

Do you crochet? We would love to see your work, so please leave a link to your online gallery for us to come over and visit.
Also don't forget, you can now see us on facebook too!

Ciao Caz xx

Flutterby Butterfly Bag

Hello, Eleanor here with an easy way to fancy up a plain bag.

When I saw what Elise had done, here, with crochet flowers on a thrifted bag, I knew exactly what to do with the crochet I'd been addicted to since seeing these, by Marie.

My bag was a very basic black cotton canvas tote; it's no longer plain as you can see...

The butterflies are simply an eight petalled cotton crochet flower, folded, and in my case, with the two yarn ends stitched down to make antennae. I secured the butterflies to the bag fabric with stitches up and down the body, simple to do, just make sure to fasten off well inside.

Here are a few of my butterflies, I love the way their wings have double layers:

and my favourite:

Plain tote transformesd! I can think of lots of uses for these very easy, and very well taught by Marie, crochet butterflies. 

Back soon

x

CRAFTernoon Tea, Anyone?

Well hello there, it's been a while since I last saw you- do come in and rest a while, perhaps a cup of tea? I've some lovely chocolates to go with it, in this cute little box I decorated...

Why thank you, you're too kind! It was just some strips and stickers from an old scrapbooking kit, great for for using up scraps of stash... Sorry? Yes, I know there's only one egg in it... It came like that, ok? ;)

Quick change of subject- Do you like crochet? I've been working on a couple of bunny motifs (I don't normally do cutesy, but these are the right side of kitsch for my taste):

My favourite is the first, but I can't find the pattern so am having to do it by eye- but the second has lots of free motif patterns on her blog... Plus, if i make it in brown and red, and add antlers, I could make a Rudolph garland for Christmas! Actually, for more inspiration on crochet motifs, there's an awesome little Pinterest board here worth a look too :)

Back to food, I have to get a wriggle on with my carrots for the kids... Yours don't like veg? Oh, don't worry, they'll love these (and isn't it cool how they're displayed?):

How do you make them? I'm glad you asked ;) You need some strong double sided tape, a paper crimper (not essential), a strip of green paper, and a rectangle of orange card or patterned paper...

First, lay double sided tape along both short ends and one long end of the orange rectangle, and remove all the backing- I know! Trust me :) Roll into a long tube, using the tape from the long side to secure the edge.
Next, flatten one end of the tube. The tape will hold it shut, but if you run about a centimetre/half inch of it through the paper crimper, it'll create a really good seal.
Fill about two thirds with goodies (not vegetables!), fringe your green paper, and keep ready for the next step.
Then, start to flatten the other end PERPENDICULAR to the first one i.e. the OPPOSITE way, so if you looked from above it would look like an X but before you have sealed it completely, insert the green fringed paper, to provide the carrot greenery, and run through the crimper again to seal.
Oh, you're welcome! They're just so quick and easy I thought you'd like to give them a go :) Great for children to make, or parties!

Well, I'd best be off, lots of Easter prep... I still have nest cakes to make, Simnel to sort, an Easter tree to decorate... And I'm sure you're busy too!

Oh, go on then, you can have that last egg... But only if you promise to come back later to meet a new teamie, and then drop in tomorrow and see the rest of the girls- They've really missed you! 

Pasg Hapus, cyfeillion!
(Happy Easter, friends! That's the Welsh in me)

See you soon,
Leanne

www.beautifulimpressions.co.uk
www.craftaholicleanie.co.uk

Beaded Chevron Crochet Trim (with free Pattern)

It seems that chevrons (or zig-zags) are everywhere at the moment but I do like them. I put together a simple pattern for some crochet chevron trim. There are added beads for interest and a bit of bling (this trim will be popped on a Jubilee scrapbook layout I have in mind). 

Anyway, I've added a pile of photos to show how I added the beads onto the trim (got a bit carried away with the step-by-step process..and must thank my youngest ds for taking these photos for me while I held the crochet).  The pattern works without beads too, but if you want beads, you must thread them onto the yarn before you start.  I used my go-to hook (2mm) and fave PATONS 4ply cotton yarn.

The trim is worked in rows and at the end of each row the work is turned.  Beads are added from row 2 then on every row (so basically just don't add beads on row one). 

The pattern is free and easy....

Crochet Chevron Trim

by A.B.McKenna 2012

Row One: Begin with 4 chain stitches.  Into the 4th chain from the hook do 3 treble stitches, 1 chain then 1 treble stitch.  Do 4 chain.  TURN the work.

Row Two (keep repeating this row until the trim is the length you want):   Into the one chain space  from the row below, do 3 treble stitches, 1 chain then ADD BEAD NOW 1 treble stitch.

The beads are added in the middle of the final treble stitch of the row.  After the first yo of the treble, the bead is pushed along the yarn to the hook.  Photos...

 

Photo 14 shows the same step as photo 1, so just carry on until the trim is the length you want.

 

The trim is ready to add to a Jubilee LO.

See you next time,

Mandy McK

 

New Crochet Flower Free Pattern... 'Tahiti Blossom'

I thought it was about time for a new crochet flower design.  This flower has seven petals and is called 'Tahiti Blossom'.  It would look pretty embellishing a bag, or on a headband, or as a scrapbook embellie, or pretty much on anything you can think of :)

 

It's not the easiest pattern... I'd say more 'intermediate' or 'confident beginner' sort of level. 

Here it is in green...

I have made a free PDF download for this pattern.  The pattern download below is in UK stitch terms.  I do plan to make a USA version with their stitch terms (this will be posted free on my blog asap).  

It would be great if you'd link a photo if you make this flower as we'd love to see it here at IACW!

Download Tahiti Blossom Free Crochet Flower Pattern UK terms

OK folks.  Have a fab week,

Mandy :)