Crochet

It’s a White Christmas

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Last night we had a big snow storm and woke up to 2 feet of powdery white stuff.  Timing was perfect as my in-laws had arrived earlier in the day.  Now we have a nice fire going in the wood-stove and we are watching Christmas movies.

I did have to wonder if the snow came because I’ve been crocheting lots of snowflakes out of cotton crochet thread.

I’m not usually a “threadie” when it comes to crochet.  But there is something about snowflakes worked in crochet thread that really makes it feel like Christmas time is here. Plus they are wonderful quick gifts that can be mailed easily or used as a decorative element on greeting cards and packages.

Snowflakes can be very simple or extremely complex. Personally I like to play with different ideas, sort of riffing with the hook and thread. My only guide being that I need to keep the flakes 6-sided.

Generally I start off with an adjustable slip knot, then chain 2, work 6 single crochet in the 2nd chain from hook. Pull on the beginning tail, slip stitch into the first sc of the round and I have a nice little center for my snowflake, from there out any thing can happen.

The best bit of snowflakes is that you can make lots of open spaces, then when you use the stiffening material they suddenly become beautiful crystalline looking miniature works of art.

I like to pin my snowflakes out with blocking pins on top of wax paper with one of my foam blocking pads or a piece of cardboard underneath.

Then I brush the snowflakes with my stiffening solution. I use the product “Stiffy” that I purchased at our local Michaels.  But there are lots of options out there such as Alene’s glue mixed with water or laundry starch.  Sometimes you need to experiment to see what works best for your climate.  I want to saturate the fibers enough that the flake will be strong, but not so much that it gets blobby looking.

Once the flakes have completely dried I remove the pins carefully and may use a tiny bit more solution brushed lightly over the flake and sprinkle with some glitter.

A bit of nylon line to make hanging loops and my flakes are ready to decorate the tree or hang in the window.

I hope all of you are having a wonderful holiday visit with your friends and family too.  Happy Holidays to all my lovely readers.

The Beauty of Beads

Categories Creativity, Crochet1 Comment on The Beauty of Beads

I love beads.  If I could I would completely cover projects with beads.  Even though I know that 1) the project would be very heavy and 2) it might really not be in good taste.

Beaded Bracelet for Crochet Club

A recent fun project I did with my Crochet Club kids was to make chains with beads.  We used plastic pony beads. They are easy to thread onto worsted weight yarn and come in a variety of colors.

I decided it would be fun to make a “fancier” version for myself.  I purchased some Czech Glass Beads Size 2/0 in rainbow colors and some Patons Silk/Bamboo #3 thread to string them on.

I’m sure there are other ways to string beads on thread or yarn, but the method I like is to use a dental floss threader. You can find them in the toothcare area of most pharmacies.

Making a Beaded Chain Stitch

To make my necklace I strung a bunch of beads on the thread, though I ended up only needing 25.  Using a H-8 (5 mm) hook, I chained 8 then slip stitched into the first chain, after making 10 more chains I slid the first bead up and chained around it (first bead chain made). I alternated bead chains and regular chains until I had used 25 beads up.

My length of beaded chain now measured approximately 15 1/2 inches from the loop at the beginning.  I made 11 more chains and fastened off with a 6 inch length.  Using the ending length I sewed a button to the chain and wove the end in.  Then wove the beginning length around the loop to act as reinforcement for the buttonhole.

Less than 30 minutes after starting this project I have a lovely necklace.  If you are needing a quick gift during this holiday season this is a fun one that can be made with a wide variety of beads and thread or yarn options. Have fun experimenting.

Snow-spiration

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Well the first day of December has begun by dumping a load of snow up here on the mountain (a bit over a foot at the moment).  I guess Mother Nature heard me complaining that I wasn’t feeling very Christmassy (is that a word?).

Pinecones in Snow

It now looks like a classic Christmas card out my window.  A steady flurry of flakes in the air, a foot of fluffy snow on the ground and un-plowed roads have contributed to the overall effect. All I need is a horse-drawn sleigh and I’m set.

Of course it could be Santa’s doing.  I’m guessing he really didn’t want to wreck his nice sled on our dry snowless roofs. The weather dudes are promising at least a week of the wintry temperatures we are currently enjoying.  16F in my backyard at the moment.

Living here on my mountain is beautiful, but definitely makes it difficult to think about designing garments or other crochet items for warmer seasons.

Currently my design brain is thinking about fluffy warm lap afghans and throws that are quick to stitch up. One of the Christmas gifts I want to make is a throw, but I need something that won’t take too long.

I’m thinking Caron’s Dazzleaire will be perfect.  Because the yarn is rated a “bulky” yarn with a recommended hook size of L (8 mm).  With the fluffy “halo” of this yarn I’m thinking that I might be using an even larger hook, say a N or P hook (10 -11 mm).  Worked in a simple open stitch pattern the halo of the yarn will fill in the open spaces and help create a warm breathable throw that can be enjoyed even when the weather isn’t quite this nippy.

One item on my gift list started, hopefully this “snow-spiration” will last long enough for me to make some real head-way on the rest of my planning for the festive season.

The Love of Friends

Categories Celebrating, Crochet, Crochet Design3 Comments on The Love of Friends

As part of my celebration of Thanksgiving week I am counting my blessings again. One that I really celebrate is having so many caring friends in my life.  Especially uplifting to me is the number of them that share my passion for all things yarnie.

This past Saturday I was down in Denver for my monthly pilgrimage to The Lambshoppe for Pajamma Jam.  On the magazine rack there was the new publication from Interweave Press “Interweave Crochet Accessories” that my design, Isosceles Scarf, is in.  This is my first design for Interweave and it was quite fun to have it in a magazine that is available at many LYSs.

Photos courtesy of Interweave Press

It is a special favorite with me as well because I got to use a bit of geekery in the design of it as well as in the naming of it. How often to you get to use geometrical terms in crochet pattern names (well, if you are me, as often as possible).

My wonderful stitching friends were all very excited for me.  It is such a joy to have people who believe in me and have faith in my ability to keep on reaching for my dreams. I know that my successes in the future will be in part due to the lift they give me with their love.

If you don’t have yarnie friends that you get to spend time with I highly recommend that you join the online site: Ravelry. For many years I had no-one to crochet or knit with, then I found Ravelry and I have found yarn friends far and wide because of it.

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

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With all the recent snow here on my mountain it is certainly looking like Christmas– in fact, a White Christmas (can’t you just hear Bing singing?).

Yes, Halloween is over, Thanksgiving is just a few weeks around the corner, and it’s time to think about Christmas. Actually, if you prefer hand-made Christmas presents,  it’s already getting to be the last-minute for gift making. Which means you need something quick to make.

Little Christmas Wreath worked in Fingering Weight yarns

My first pattern in my M2H Designs line was  Little Christmas Wreath–a fun quick project perfect for the holidays. It makes a great decorative touch on packages and cards, can be made into a fun brooch to wear in celebration of the season, or even works as a napkin ring.

I actually came up with this pattern because of my own need for some quick fun gifts for Christmas. The pattern  includes text instructions (US terms), stitch charts and tutorial photographs.  You can easily vary the size by working with different yarns, or combining a sparkly yarn with a solid color for a even more decorative  touch!

It’s the Great Pumpkin!

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Okay, we all know Charlie Brown never really saw the Great Pumpkin, but I always loved Linus’s faith in the idea.

And I love Halloween, Jack-O-Lanterns, Pumpkin Pie and all things pumpkin related. So of course there has to be some pumpkin crochet in my life.

First let’s take a look at some of the wonderful fun crochet pumpkin patterns out there. If you are a Ravelry member, use their pattern search to find loads of marvelous pumpkin patterns, clearly I’m not the only pumpkin fan. You can narrow your results by using “Pumpkin” “crochet” and checking the “toys and hobbies” category in the advanced search function.

One of my faves is this lovely little pumpkin from Planet June created by the talented June Gilbrank. Which can also be made into an adorable little Jack-o-lantern.

Or the Pumpkin Time Garland by Karen Wiederhold (note: she is from the UK but it looks like her pattern instructions are in US crochet terms). I think adding some face pieces to these pumpkins could create a fun garland for a Halloween party, but left plain they would be great for a decorative garland at your Thanksgiving feast.

Of course with the busy Fall we have been having here I didn’t have time to crochet up any pumpkins.  Instead I stuck with our tradition of carving real pumpkins on the day before Halloween.

Yesterday I got out the box of carving tools and my boys and I started working on our pumpkin art.

The boys were a little grossed out by the slimy “guts”.

So Mom got the job of cleaning out the gooey stuff and separating out the seeds.  The seeds will be cooked up tomorrow for a tasty snack.

Once the pumpkins were ready to carve things got too crazy to photograph the process, but we ended up with 2 gorgeous pumpkins.

They will look very nice with our window display tonight.  Being the temperatures here on Halloween tend to dip below freezing we put our pumpkins in the front window with lights in them.

Happy Halloween Everyone.

Packing for Chain Link

Categories Creativity, Crochet, Humor1 Comment on Packing for Chain Link

Packing for my annual trip to the CGOA Chain Link conference is always an interesting experience.

First I need to choose a minimal amount of clothing.  I want to have plenty of room when heading back to fit all the wonderful yarn I won’t be able to resist.

Then choose crochet items to go with clothing.  Why haven’t I made more stuff for myself lately?!  Ugh!

Look desperately thru sketch pad and stash for quick projects and yarn to make up a few nice items.   Get lost and distracted by the stash, the sketch pad and the stitch dictionaries.

Completely cover guest bed with the various items I want to include.

Re-discover pieces I forgot about, check to see if any will work for this trip.  Realize that I’ve got 10 more ideas I want to create proposals for to bring with me.  Realize there are only 5 days left until I leave for Greensboro.  Run around in circles screaming with waving arms, frightening the cat and amusing the children.

After finished with above exercise resume packing in a calm and orderly manner.  Make sure not to forget the chocolate.

Pi Recipe

Categories Crochet, Crochet Design, How Tos, Tips and Tricks6 Comments on Pi Recipe

For you that know me well, you know that isn’t a spelling error. I’m really not one for cooking or baking, and no one wants a recipe for Pie from me.

But when it comes to recipes for crocheting creativity that are related to applied geometries, that is a whole nuther story.

Some of you may remember that old equation from your school days of  “Pi R square” (and the standing joke was, “No, Pie are Round”).  Pi is literally the secret to understanding circles, and the secret to making hats that fit perfectly.

Baby Doll's New Hat

Pi = 3.14  in reality it is a much longer decimal than that.  But taking the number to 2 decimal points is more than sufficient for our purposes.  In fact, with a little adjustment to our calculations, taking away the decimals all together works too.

I love making hats as gifts and often they are my “go-to” project when I just need some instant gratification crochet. I don’t know that I have ever made a hat from the brim up. I much prefer the ease of working with top down construction.

My favorite thing about working top down is how simple the foundation is. Start with an adjustable slip knot, then chain a couple stitches, work the first round of stitches into the first chain…Voila! You are off and running. Crown down construction also allows for some really simple decorative stitch work for the brim.

There are lots of fabulous hat patterns out there, and you can make sure that your hat fits yourself or your giftee perfectly by using some simple math. 

Baby Doll's Head Circumference Measurement

You are going to need a couple of measurements.  You need the circumference of their head, which means the distance around their head measured at eyebrow level. 

Baby Doll's Hat Depth Measurement

And you’ll need the “depth” measurement, which is referring to the length of the finished hat from middle of the crown to the edge of the brim.  Being I like my ears covered by my hat I measure to the bottom of the earlobe.

Target Diameter Measured

Baby Doll’s head circumference is 17.5 cm and her “depth” measurement is 6.5 cm.  So my calculation for figuring out how big to work my beginning circle is: 17.5 divided by 3.14 = 5.57 cm. Which I round down to 5.5 cm.

If you are making a gift hat and can’t measure the recipient’s head there are a couple of online sites that  have some helpful measurements for averages.  TotToppers, Wooly Wormhead,

Some other things to consider when personalizing a hat are preferences of the wearer: how snug they prefer their hats to be, if they want the hat to cover their ears, if they like extra coverage over their ears.

Typically you want a hat to be a bit smaller than the head circumference.  This is called “negative ease”.  Negative ease depends on the fabric of the finished hat (or garment) to have some stretch to it. The amount of stretch needed is dependant on how much negative ease is planned for.

Target Depth Measured

Once I achieve my target size for the diameter of my circle I will then continue working rounds without increases until I reach the depth (or length) that I want.  If I am just winging the depth, I’ll stop when I think I am nearing the length I want. Then flatten the hat so the center of the crown is halved I measure the length.

Now it’s your turn.  Using a hat pattern you love see if you can make a hat that fits you perfectly. Or try winging a hat using your favorite stitch in the round.

In the Beginning

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I love teaching others about crochet and how to crochet.  I love it because teaching new crocheters (or mostly new crocheters) brings me back to my own beginnings playing with yarn and hook, as well as giving me the opportunity to look at crochet with fresh eyes.

During this summer’s school break I have been teaching crochet weekly to one of my son’s school friends and her grandmother (who knew quite a bit already).  My young student had been taught some of the basics from her grandmother, like chaining and single crochet stitch.  We have been playing with shaping in crochet and working in the round. 

It has been so exciting seeing this young lady take-off in her creativity with crochet.  She even sallied forth and made a hat without any pattern.  I was so happy to see the results of her experiments.

This fall the 3 of us will be organizing a Crochet Club as a weekly afterschool group for other students and community members to play with hooks and yarn. 

I hope for those of you that crochet and knit that you give yourself the gift of sharing your hobby with others every chance you find.  It is a fabulous confidence builder for everyone to be able to create something with their own hands as well as being a skill that they can pick up again at any time.

Then you too can delight in returning to your own stitching beginnings and gain new excitement and understanding of your craft.