Gardener's Ramblings

2012-01-09T15:46:00.000-08:00

This weeks challenge is kitchen cabinet organization. I think this will be quite a bit more work than the kitchen counters.

Menu plan

2012-01-03T12:56:00.000-08:00

Tuesday: Ham Tetrazzini, tossed salad (new recipe, looking for ways to use up leftover ham)
Wednesday: Grilled chicken, ranch mashed potatoes, green beans
Thursday: Vegetable beef soup, homemade whole grain rolls
Friday: black bean and corn chili, corn muffins
Saturday: homemade pizza
Sunday: Chicken and fettucine Alfredo, carrots, broccoli
Monday: Pork Barbecue on homemade buns (both leftovers), applesauce, tossed salad

2012 "Resolutions"

2012-01-03T05:52:00.000-08:00

I'm not really one to make resolutions, since I am so likely to break them by day 3. However, I ran across this organizing site a week or so ago, and organizing like this sounded like a goal that would be easily achievable.

SA

This week's project is to de-clutter kitchen counters. I like to keep my counters are pretty bare, so this isn't a very time consuming challenge for me. The coffee maker, Kitchen Aid mixer and electric tea kettle are on the counters. I used to have a bread maker on the counter as well, but mine broke a few weeks ago, and I don't know if it will be replaced. When the mail and newspapers get brought into the house, they tend to be deposited on the kitchen island. Same with Andy's keys, wallet and whatever else he might be carrying. I think I might buy a cute basket to set on the counter by the door for this sort of thing.

Cancelling the newspaper is another thing for me to consider in terms of decluttering. It would reduce the amount of paper coming into our house quite a bit, and the news can be read on-line or heard on local radio stations. Also our local paper is going to start delivering only 3 days a week, instead of the current 7 days a week, but the cost is only going down by $4 a month, which seems to be somewhat of a rip-off.

A personal goal I have in terms of organization is to get back into menu planning. For many years I made a weekly menu plan and it saved a lot of time, and probably money too, since I didn't have to run to the store three times a week, and I also made better use of leftovers. I tried to make use of items already in my pantry and freezer for the most part, and my grocery buying focused more on restocking perishable items and staples, and stocking up on good deals, rather than buying things for the next days meals. For the last few years, I haven't been menu planning and over the past year my grocery shopping has deteriorated into aimlessly wandering through the store, tossing items into my cart without much of a plan at all.

Ribbed Neckwarmer

2011-11-30T10:06:00.000-08:00

Ribbed Neckwarmer

Ribbed Neckwarmer PDF download

Easy enough for beginners, once you master the front post double crochet stitch. Don’t be intimidated by this if you are a beginner. Front post stitches are easy, and really increase the effects you are able to get with crochet. This can probably be easily made in a couple of hours if you have a little crochet experience.

Here is a video link for the front post stitches.

This site has written instructions for many different crochet techniques, If you prefer written information. You will have to scroll down a bit to find the front post instructions.

Materials:

WW yarn ( I used Bernat Super Value Yarn in gray)

Size K hook

2 one inch buttons (the buttons have to be able to fit into the holes between the stitches, so you may have to get smaller buttons if you crochet tightly)

yarn needle for weaving in ends)

sewing thread to match your buttons

needle for sewing the buttons on

Abbreviations:

HDC- half double crochet

FPDC- front post double crochet

FPHDC-front post half double crochet

Chain 92. (make sure your chain is around 32 inches long for an average size neck. You can make it longer or shorter depending on your preference.)

Row 1: HDC in 3^rd chain from hook and in each chain across. (You should have 90 stitches, but it really doesn’t matter how many you have)

Row 2 through 13: Chain 2, turn. (Chain 2 counts as first stitch) FPDC in each stitch until you get to the last stitch of the row, HDC into last stitch.)

You can continue this row until the neckwarmer is as wide as you would like it to be.

Row 14: Chain 2, turn, FPHDC into each stitch. (Doing HDC for the last row, makes the stitches a little shorter and makes the last row match the first one in width.)

Fasten off, weave in ends.

Put neckwarmer around your neck and decide where you want the buttons to be. Sew on buttons and enjoy!

Pattern is untested, except by myself. Please let me know if something is unclear, or you find a mistake.
You may sell one or two items made from this pattern, but you may not sell the pattern or publish it anywhere else. Please link to the pattern if you post a picture elsewhere.

Coasters

2011-11-04T15:04:00.000-07:00

Directions for coasters made from ceramic tiles are all over the internet. Michelle and I made these using 4 inch tiles from Menards, (11 cents each), a jar of Mod-Podge and a few sheets of scrapbook paper. The backs of the tiles are rough so we glued on some squares of vinyl to finish them off. Cork or felt would be a good way to finish the backs as well. I sprayed the finished product with clear acrylic finish, but I don't know if it was necessary.

I made these, all from the same sheet of paper.

Michelle made this set, using 4 different sheets of paper. I like these a lot better than mine, especially that one on the bottom right.

Finished another one of those projects!

2011-10-19T11:57:00.000-07:00

Last year I started a quilted purse, but after I got part of it finished, I couldn't figure out how to finish it. I designed this myself and should have done some planning before starting to cut and sew. However, it is finally finished, even though it didn't turn out at all like I had planned.

Through my kitchen window: A Pileated Woodpecker

2011-10-15T14:06:00.000-07:00

Andy and I were both in the basement the other day when we heard a loud thud from upstairs. It sounded like something had fallen up there. Andy went to check it out, and called for me to come and see what it was. This bird was pounding at the porch post. It's a pileated woodpecker. I think I've heard them in the woods from time to time, but I've never seen one before.

Autumn Beauty

2011-10-13T13:23:00.000-07:00

For a week or so we have been enjoying beautiful summer like weather here. Today it is cool and fall like, but before the weather changed we went over to the "Pickerel Lake-Fred Meijer Nature Reserve" to walk around the lake and enjoy the beautiful fall colors. This is one of my favorite places to walk, It's gorgeous in any season, but fall really shines here.
We walked around the lake, but there are other trails as well.

The first thing we noticed were these three swans hanging around next to the boardwalk. They were evidently posing for pictures.

Giveaway from Jenny of Elefantz'blog

2011-10-12T07:23:00.000-07:00

Check out this fun giveaway from Jenny, celebrating 1500 followers.

Fall Getaway

2011-10-04T16:41:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago Andy and I spent a few days up in the UP and in Northern Ontario. We took the Agawa Canyon train trip and then spent a few days driving around the UP. The train trip was fun, but it was a little early for good fall color, which was a bit of a disappointment.

We had planned to visit Mackinac Island while we were up there, but it was really too cold for a trip to the island. Instead we went to Tahquamenon Falls and visited a few lighthouses.

Old Mission Point Light House

A couple of shots in Tahquamenon Falls State Park

Old Makinac Point Light House

McGulpins Point Light House

Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

2011-07-13T17:44:00.000-07:00

In my on-going effort to use up some of those herbs I planted this spring, and to eat a healthier diet, I decided to experiment with a healthier pizza crust. I ended up trying this pizza crust recipe. I wasn't too sure about whole wheat pizza crust, but I was very pleasantly surprised. Andy liked it a lot too.

I did make a few changes to the recipe. I substituted 2 tsp. of brown sugar for the 1 tsp. of white sugar, used 3 tsp. yeast instead of 2 1/2, and added 4 tsp. of vital wheat gluten. I also used bread flour instead of all purpose flour. I also added a little minced garlic and some fresh oregano and basil to the dough.

This made a nice non-sticky dough that rolled out easily. It made two 14 inch pizzas with a nice tender, slightly chewy crust.

Oven Roasted Potatoes

2011-06-29T07:41:00.000-07:00

I decided to grow some herbs this year. I put one plant each, of oregano, thyme, parsley and basil, into a big pot and set it out on the back deck. The plants look surprisingly attractive together, and are growing like weeds. This is a recipe I devised to use up some of that bounty.

Ingredients:
4 or 5 medium sized redskin or Yukon gold potatoes
2 tsp olive oil
seasoned salt to taste
minced garlic to taste
good size bunch of fresh thyme, (strip leaves from the stems and discard the stems)

Method:
Preheat oven to 425.
Wash and cut potatoes into approximately half inch cubes. Place into a bowl and toss with the olive oil. Sprinkle with seasoned salt, minced garlic and fresh thyme leaves. Toss again to distribute seasonings. Dump onto a cookie sheet sprayed with olive oil cooking spray. Spread potatoes in a single layer. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes and turn potatoes. Bake another 15 minutes or so , until potatoes are tender.
You could cut larger cubes of potatoes, but baking time may be longer.

You can, of course use other types of potatoes, (although baking time may vary), and substitute dried thyme, for the fresh thyme.

Through My Kitchen Window

2011-05-17T13:34:00.000-07:00

Isn't this a pretty bird? I think its an indigo bunting. I see these birds every spring, but they only seem to stay here for a few weeks.

Andy took this picture through the kitchen window.

A couple of finished projects

2011-05-07T06:06:00.000-07:00

I finished both of these projects this week. Unfortunately neither of them were in that list of UFOs I posted earlier this year, so that list is still not shrinking.
Hat pattern is here. The tote is called Stash Buster tote and the pattern is available for purchase at Ravelry.
The hat is made from Vanna's in beige, and the tote is the same beige and "I Love this Yarn" in high meadow ombre. The yarn was leftover from the Bernat Mystery afghan. I used a G hook for the hat and a K for the tote.

An Owl!!

2011-04-27T05:01:00.000-07:00

I woke up this morning to the fluttering of wings outside the window. A minute later one of the birds landed in a nearby tree and I saw that it was an owl. It sat there for quite a long time, moving only its head. Owls can swivel their heads quite a ways. At times it looked like it had turned its head completely around to look behind it. This owl blended into the tree so well, that at one point a blue jay landed on it's head. The blue jay moved on quite quickly! The picture was taken through the window, (and in the rain), so it's not the best, but you definitely see that it is an owl.

More finished Projects

2011-04-08T07:14:00.000-07:00

I am still using up that lilac Caron pounder. I used an H hook for all three projects. (And there is still yarn left....)
The dress pattern is here. I didn't use a pattern for the hat and booties. As usual these items will be donated.

Recipe: Black bean and Corn Chili

2011-04-08T07:02:00.000-07:00

Black bean and Corn Chili

Ingredients:
1 pound lean ground beef, browned, and drained
I medium onion, chopped and browned with the beef ( optional, I omit this, since I have an onion hater here, but I definitely think that an onion would improve the dish)
I can (15 oz) black beans, drained and rinsed
I can (15 oz) corn, drained
1 1/2 cups salsa
2 cups water
2 chicken boullion cubes
(or substitute 2 cups of chicken broth for the water and boullion)
1 package chili seasoning mix
1 Tsp. brown sugar
1/4 tsp dried minced garlic

Method:
Combine all ingredients in a crockpot. ( I use a small 2 quart pot for this so I don't know how it would work in a larger pot) Cook on low for 4 to 6 hours. It won't hurt it to cook longer.
If your crockpot is a newer one,I'd cook it for less time, since the newer ones seem to cook at higher temperatures than my old one.

This makes 5 or 6 servings and could easily be doubled.

The heat of the dish can be adjusted by the type of salsa used, (hot medium, or mild), and can also be kicked up by adding some chili powder. This is more of a soup-like chili, rather than a thicker chili like a tomato based one would be.

This dish reheats well, but I've never tried freezing it.

This recipe was improvised from one my sister in law, Laurie, shared with me. The original recipe called for beef stew cubes, and instead of the chili mix, a variety of spices were used.

A couple of Finishes

2011-03-28T15:08:00.000-07:00

I made both these pairs of booties last week Friday, in order to avoid doing anything more ambitious, like housework.
The lilac colored ones are knit from this pattern. I used WW yarn, (Caron Pounder leftover from the doily ghan and the Lilacs in February blanket), and size 6 needles, and they are about 6 month size.
The green crocheted booties are this pattern. The yarn is Red Heart Soft, and I used a G hook.
Both pairs of booties will be donated.

Doily Style Baby Blanket

2011-03-17T11:21:00.000-07:00

This is made out of the same yarn as the Lilacs in February blanket. I had purchased an extra skein (Caron Pounder in lilac), in case I needed it to finish that blanket. I didn't use it, so I decided to make another blanket out of it. I ended up needing more than 16 oz of yarn for this blanket, so I had to buy another skein. Of course I still have most of that last skein left, so now I will have to think of something else to make out of it. I made up this pattern as I went along, but so far I've only written out the first 15 or so rows. I'm not sure that this will ever become a written pattern, since it required such a lot of ripping out and re-doing in order to get it to lay flat. As is the case with most of the baby things I make, this will be donated to the local pregnancy resource center.

My original plan was to make a fancy border for this blanket, but by the time I finished the petal section, it was already 40 inches in diameter. So I finished it off with a very simple scalloped border instead.

Baby Shoes

2011-03-17T09:32:00.000-07:00

I thought it would be fun to make baby shoes for donation to the local pregnancy resource center. With that in mind, I found this pattern and hunted through my fabric stash. The finished shoes are cute, but the pattern is rather carelessly written and my first attempt did not go well. However, I did manage to make these little shoes this morning. I'm not sure that I will attempt these again, although I may look for other baby shoe patterns to try.

Lilacs in February Baby Blanket

2011-02-08T16:32:00.000-08:00

Lilacs in February Baby Blanket

PDF Link

This is a very easy pattern, suitable for an advanced beginner. The hardest parts of it are evenly single crocheting along the sides for the first round of the border, and the reverse HDC round that finishes it.

Materials:

WW yarn 16 oz (I used a Caron pounder in lilac, and only had about 5 yards of yarn left so you may need more.)

K hook

Yarn needle for weaving in ends

Special stitch:

Cluster (worked over two stitches) – yarn over hook, insert hook in first stitch, pull up loop, yarn over hook again, insert hook in next stitch, pull up loop, yarn over hook and pull through all 5 loops on hook-1 cluster stitch made

Abbreviations:

Ch - -chain

Sc – single crochet

Dc – double crochet

Ss – slip stitch

Hdc – half double crochet

Note:

Pattern works on any even number of stitches, so you can make a blanket of any size. You could also make a scarf or a rectangular shawl from this pattern.

Gauge:

Unimportant.

My blanket is 36 inches square

Pattern:

Chain 85.

Row 1: Sc into second chain from hook and into each chain to the end (84 sc)

Alternatively, you could foundation single crochet 84 stitches.

Row 2: Ch 2, turn, DC into next stitch, * cluster over next 2 stitches, ch 1 *, repeat from * to * until you have two stitches left, DC into the last two stitches (84 stitches)

Row 3: ch 1, turn, sc into each double crochet, into the top of each cluster and into every chain stitch across (84 sc)

Repeat rows 2 and 3 for a total of 73 rows. End with row 3.

Do not finish off. Work border as follows.

Border:

Round 1: Ch 1, and do a round of sc around the entire afghan, placing 84 sc down each side and across top and bottom, and 3 sc into each corner. Join with a ss to beginning sc.

Don’t get too hung up on getting the stitch count exactly right. As long as you have an even number of stitches the pattern will work out. And if despite your best efforts, you happen to miscount and end up with an extra stitch, you can still make it work out.

Round 2: (work loosely) SS to corner stitch, ch 2, dc into same stitch, ch 1 and work 2 more dc’s into the same stitch, * cluster stitch worked over next two stitches, ch 1 *, repeat from * to * until you get to the next corner, into next corner stitch work 8 2 DC, ch 1, 2 DC *, all into the same corner stitch, and then continue with cluster stitch, ch 1 down the next side. Repeat around until you get to the beginning ch 2. Join with ss.

Note: If you ended up miscounting and end up with an extra stitch, just skip a stitch in the middle of a cluster stitch. It will barely show in the finished blanket, and it’s a lot easier than ripping out what you’ve already accomplished.

Round 2 makes a series of eyelets that you could weave a ribbon through if you were so inclined.

Round 3: Reverse HDC row

If you’ve never done this before it might take a bit of trying to get it, but once you do, you’ll be happy you did. This stitch makes an edge that looks a little like a twisted rope. I use it a lot for afghans, because I think it really makes the project. If you don’t want to bother, there’s nothing wrong with another row of SC to finish.

And I suppose if you are a glutton for punishment, you could do reverse sc. That just means you sc in every stitch, but you work backwards. It’s a lot harder on your hands and takes a lot longer than the reverse HDC, but it also looks really nice.

As you might expect from the name, reverse HDC is worked in the opposite direction that you would usually work in, from left to right, rather than from right to left. (I’m right handed, I’m not sure what direction a left handed crocheter would ordinarily work in)

And finally, here’s how to work the stitch, remember to work in the “wrong” direction:

To start: ch 2, HDC into the first ch 1 space, (which should be before a cluster), ch 1, HDC into next ch 1 space. Continue across, working a HDC into each ch 1 space, with a ch 1 between each HDC. When you get to the corner, work a HDC into each DC, skipping the ch 1 in between the two sets of DEC’s. (4 HDC’s going around each corner) Continue around until you get to where you started. Join to the beginning ch 2. I usually pull the yarn through a stitch, rather than slip stitching. Whatever looks best to you is fine.

Cut yarn and weave in ends.

Essentially reverse HDC is just a series of * HDC, ch 1 * worked backwards. Each new HDC twists around the last set of stitches, creating a twisted looking border. Rather than “standing up” the HDCs are “laying down” along the edge of the blanket. I find that it sometimes takes a little finagling to make the corners look nice. In this case I did a HDC into each of the 4 DC’s in the corners, and skipped the ch 1 in the middle of the DC’s. This picture will give you an idea of what the reverse HDC edge looks like.

Note: Pattern is untested, except by myself. Please let me know if something is unclear, or you find a mistake.
You may sell one or two items made from this pattern, but you may not sell the pattern or publish it anywhere else. Please link to the pattern if you post a picture elsewhere.

I've finished one of my WIPS

2011-02-03T15:46:00.000-08:00

I finally finished the Bernat mystery afghan today. I have to say honestly that I don't like it at all. I don't think that the pattern is at all worthy of a professional designer (or at least I assume that Bernat has professional designers). If I were a beginner crocheter and tried this as one of my first projects, I'd choose another craft. However, here it is. My photograph is worse than usual, but my subject isn't all that great either.

Snow-Snow-Snow!!

2011-02-02T15:02:00.000-08:00

According to the news stations around here, the snowstorm we had last night and this morning, was record breaking. Now, evidently, they only meant record breaking for Feb 2nd. Apparently the record is some paltry bit of snow, 2.1 inches, is what I heard on one station. Never-the-less, we got a lot of snow in the past 24 hours. I'd guess its somewhere between 15 and 18 inches, on top of what we already had.

Looking out the front door

Snow piled on the table on the back deck

This last picture is our front yard, taken from the family room window.

Once it stopped snowing, the sun came out and it was bright and cheerful. And this evening, when I decided to take these pictures, I noticed the end of a pretty sunset. It's hard to believe that in only a few months, it will be spring, and pretty soon, I'll be complaining about the heat!

January Snowday Scarf

2011-01-22T08:01:00.000-08:00

Pattern PDF

This is another very easy beginner friendly pattern. It can be made to any length and width, so this pattern would work for an afghan, a shawl, or a baby blanket as well.

Ordinarily I wouldn’t make a scarf that is worked lengthwise, because I hate working into a long chain. I saw a scarf pattern that I really liked, started it, and lost the pattern. It seemed a shame to frog what I had already done, so I decided to see what I could come up with. This is the result.

My scarf is about 6.5 inches wide and 84 inches long.

Materials needed:

WW yarn – I started with a 10 oz skein of Bernat Rainbow Dreams, and had some left over. I’d estimate that I used between 7 and 8 ounces of yarn.

K hook

Yarn needle to weave in ends

Of course you could use any yarn with an appropriately sized hook. I used a larger hook than I might ordinarily use with WW yarn, because I wanted the resulting scarf to drape nicely. If I was making a blanket, I probably would have used an I or a J hook.

You can easily adjust the length of this scarf by changing the number of stitches in the beginning chain or foundation row.

Stitches used:

Foundation single crochet (optional) - FDC

Ch - chain

Single crochet - SC

Double crochet - DC

Special stitch: shell = 3 DC into same stitch

Notes:

This scarf is worked back and forth in long rows. It has nice straight edges and square corners. (my picture taking skills don’t really reflect this very well.)

I have not yet tried it as a scarf worked in short rows, but it should work. Just start with a smaller beginning row, say something like 26 or 30 single crochet stitches in row 1, depending on the width you want. I do not think it will drape as nicely made this way.

Beginning ch 2, (turning chain), counts as the first DC of each row. I like to use a chain 2 to represent a double crochet, but a lot of patterns call for a chain 3. You can use a chain 3 if you prefer. I find that if I use a chain 2, my edges turn out nice and straight, and there isn’t a big annoying gap between the turning chain and the next double crochet.

Each row has 174 stitches.

Pattern uses a multiple of 4 plus 2 stitches. This means that the number of single crochets in row 1, has to be divisible by 4, with 2 stitches leftover.

Pattern:

Row 1: FDC 174 stitches.

(or you can chain 175, and sc into the second chain from the hook and in every chain to the end to get 174 sc)

Row 2: Ch 2, turn, DC in next stitch and in each stitch to the end of the row .

Row 3: Ch 2, turn, dc in next stitch, * skip a stitch, shell in next stitch, skip a stitch, DC in next st *, continue from * to * until you have three stitches left, skip a stitch, DC in last DC and in top of the chain 2 of the turning chain

Row 4: Ch 2, Dc in next 3 stitches, * skip a stitch, shell in next stitch, skip a stitch, DC in next stitch *, continue from * to * until you get to the last 5 stitches, skip a stitch, DC in last 3 stitches and in the top of the turning chain.

Starting with row 4, the shells are worked into the center DC of each shell, and the shells into the single DC.

Row 5-8: Repeat rows 3 and 4.

Row 9: Ch 2, turn, DC in next stitch and in each stitch to the end.

Row 10: Ch 1, turn, sc in first DC and in each stitch to the end. End with a sc in the turning chain of row 9.

Cut yarn, and weave in ends.

Quilting and Sewing WIPS

2011-01-03T10:38:00.000-08:00

Self designed quilted purse. It's unfinished because I don't know what to do next. Hopefully inspiration will strike one of these days.

A Walk in the Woods quilt. Pattern from the Stroll the block site. I have 11 blocks finished and the 12th (and last block) is started. Of course the blocks are only the beginning. They need to be attached together, backed and quilted.

Bird quilt. Also from Stroll the Block. The bird bath square is my own design and is from the walk in the garden quilt series on the same site. I think I have 7 or 8 blocks done for this quilt.

Winter wall hanging. I think this probably came from a magazine from Reiman publications, called Crafting Traditions. It is no longer published. This needs quite a bit of work, The appliques need to be blanket stitched on, and it needs backing and quilting.

Stroll the Block quilt. This was a free block of the month pattern at HGTV quite a few years ago. It needs a border, backing and needs to be quilted. I do not believe that the pattern is there anymore.

Fall wall hanging. Just needs some hand quilting done. I believe that this was also a pattern from Crafting Traditions.

In addition to these, I have a bunch of snowmen blocks somewhere, (I love snowmen!),a half finished paper pieced wall hanging, featuring a lighthouse, and an assortment of pieced and paper quilted blocks that I made, just to try out various patterns.

Crochet Wips

2011-01-03T10:00:00.000-08:00

I have tons of these, starting new projects is my specialty!

Scrap tote, my own design. I was trying to use up odds and ends of yarn. Just needs a top border and some sort of handles to be finished.

63 squares heirloom afghan. I have this mostly done. I need to make a few more squares, and start sewing. I started out making the pattern pictured,but I made squares from other sources as well. This might be my oldest crochet WIP.

Friendship afghan. These 8 inch squares were sent to me by ladies on the Crochetville forum. I have enough of them for a nice sized afghan, and have them all bordered. I have sewn together three strips of 7 so far.

This started out as a bottom up cardigan for me, but I know it won't get worn, so since so far it is just a rectangle, I will probably turn it into a baby blanket. Its nice and soft, and the color is a lot brighter than it looks here. The yarn is TLC Amore, which is not much fun to crochet with.

A sideways scarf. I didn't like the pattern I was using, so I frogged it back to the first two rows. Since I went to all the trouble of working into a long chain, (one of my least favorite things to do!), I am hoping to find another pattern that will work.

Cool stripes hat, almost finished. This is for one of my grandsons, and the third hat I've made from this pattern. It's all single crochet, so it gets boring, but I like the end result.

Simple lattice scarf. This is my own pattern, and about the only thing that I could do with this yarn. Its a very thin yarn, with tufts on it.

Bernat CAL afghan. I think this is quite possibly one of the ugliest patterns I've ever done. I do plan to finish it, but I don;t know what I will do with it. I have seen some finished versions of the pattern that looked really good, but I thought the Bernat example was unattractive, and so is this one.

Granny Stripes afghan, pattern from the Attic 24 blog, If you've never seen this blog, check it out, it's one of my favorites. I will probably turn this into a toddler size blanket and donate it to the local pregnancy resource center.

Crocheted mittens/fingerless gloves. I like these, but I am thinking about frogging them. I don't think I will use them, and all that single crocheting is tedious.

Cardigan for me. This is my third attempt at a pattern in this booklet. They are well written, and my gauge was right on, but even the smallest size turns out too big for me, (and I ought to be wearing a bigger size than that!) I am now using sportweight yarn and an F hook, for a pattern that calls for WW yarn and an H hook. We'll see how it works out.

Knitting Wips

2011-01-03T09:37:00.000-08:00

I am the world's slowest knitter. I can do lots of stitches, but I'm awkward and I have to be really careful not to drop any, because I can't pick them back up properly. Generally, I stick to the super simple patterns, but someday I would love to knit a sweater and a triangular lace shawl.

My grandma knit slippers like these for us every year. When I saw this pattern, I decided to make myself a pair. They are pretty simple, but as I said, I am slow.

Scrunchable Scarf. Nice easy pattern, which uses only knit and purl stitches.

Garter Stitch Scarf: the only thing I can do with this very soft and fuzzy yarn. I was given two skeins of it, and am working on the second one. I expect the scarf to be between 60 and 70 inches long when it's finished.

Learn to Knit Afghan from the book of the same name, by Barbara Walker. My colors are two shades of sage green, brown and cream.
I am really tired of this one, so I'm going to quit at 49 squares and make a throw. I have 9 or 10 squares left to make, and then all that tedious sewing together.....

Cross Stitch WIPS

2011-01-03T09:26:00.000-08:00

I started cross stitching when my children were little, and all three are grown up now. The front porch design has probably been a WIP for 15 years! Cross stitch is harder for me than it used to be, because my eyes are aging. I might have to get some sort of magnifier.

I like samplers because it's easy to keep track of where I am.

I optimistically started this in the fall of 2009, with the goal of finishing it in 2010. maybe 2011?

Front porch picture by Paula Vaughn. I've been working on this for a l-o-n-g time!

Winter homestead scene. This is on 22 count Aida, so I'm not sure if I will ever finish it. It's hard for me to see where to poke the needle.

The beginning of a Welcome sign. Its meant to fit into my wall hung coat hook rack, which has a place for a needlework design. I filled it with a piece of fabric temporarily, (5 or 6 years ago!).

This is a design printed on even weave fabric. It is meant to be embellished with cross stitch. I was attracted to the kit, because it said quick and easy on the package. Well, it's easy, but not really so quick!

The First of the Wip Posts: Embroidery

2011-01-03T09:17:00.000-08:00

The top one is an embroidered panel, which I intended to incorporate into an old fashioned apron. I'm not sure if I will still do that, since my mother in law made me a really nice apron a month ago, and I don't use an apron all that often. I found the pattern for this on-line a while ago, and traced it to the fabric with a water color pencil. (I hope the marks wash out!)

The bottom one is a pillowcase border. If I ever get it finished, I will make another one to match. I bought the transfer for them at Hobby Lobby. I was surprised at how inexpensive transfers are.

It's a New Year. Not a clean Slate though!

2011-01-03T09:11:00.000-08:00

Over the years, I've tried and enjoyed lots of different crafts. As a result I have a lot of unfinished objects, (UFO's) or works in progress, (WIPs) I'm going to post many of them in my blog, with the hope that at least some of them will become finished objects in the next year.

Nate's Afghan

2010-12-14T17:37:00.000-08:00

I noticed that I hit 50 followers a few days ago. This was a totally amazing thing to me, so I decided that I needed to get to work on another pattern. I had already made this afghan for a Christmas gift, so I took it out of its wrapping so I could write out the pattern.

I apologize for my lousy photography. I could blame the gloomy weather, but the truth is that I have a hard time getting good pictures, even when the lighting is perfect.

Nate’s Afghan

Link to Pattern PDF file

I made this as a gift for my son. I wanted to make a warm, masculine afghan that I could finish quickly.

Afghan is worked holding two strands of yarn together. You could certainly use a single strand of yarn with a smaller hook, but your afghan would be smaller.

Size: mine turned out to be about 54 inches square.

Difficulty: advanced beginner

Materials:

WW yarn in two colors. I used approximately 1500 yards of yarn (a little over 4 skeins of Carons Simply Soft and just under 4 skeins of Bernat Super Value) I used black and a medium shade of green

Size N hook

Yarn needle

Abbreviations used:

FDC- foundation double crochet

DC- double crochet

Ch-chain

BPDC back post double crochet

FPDC front post double crochet

St- stitch

Sc- single crochet

ss-slip stitch

Special stitch: DC two together: wrap yarn around hook once, insert into first stitch, pull up a loop, wrap yarn around hook, pull yarn through 2 loops on hook, wrap yarn around hook, insert hook into next stitch, pull up a loop, wrap yarn around hook,pull yarn through 2 loops on hook, wrap yarn around hook, pull yarn through remaining three loops on hook (if you usually do this stitch differently, do it your own way, it will look fine)

Pattern:

NOTE: Ch 2 always counts as the first stitch

Every row has 112 stitches

Turn at the end of every row

Ridges created by FPDC and BPDC should always be on the front of the afghan.

First row:

FDC 112 (or make 112 DC into a chain., I hate working into a chain, so I like to use the FDC method)

To start with a chain, Ch 114 and dc into 3rd ch from the hook and every chain to make 112 DC's in your foundation row.

Row 2 and 3: Ch 2, dc to end

Row 4: (begin mesh pattern)

Ch 2, Dc in next 6 stitches, **ch1, skip a stich, DC in next stitch, ch 1 skip a stitch, DC in next stitch, ch 1, skip a stitch, DC in next st, ch 1, DC in next 8 stitches** Repeat ** to ** to the end. (yes the beginning has 7 DC, but you end with 8 DC) You should have 8 mesh sections in this row, each with 4 ch 1 spaces.

For rows 5 to 10 . Count the ch 1 spaces as a stitch, and work the DC’s into the space into the space.

Row 5: Ch 2, Dc in next 8 stitches, including the first ch 1 space of the previous row, ** ch 1, skip a stitch, DC into ch 1 space, Ch 1, skip a stitch, DC into Ch 1 space, ch 1, skip a stitch, DC in next 10 stitches, including last ch 1 space of previous row**, repeat to section in between **’s to end, there will be 8 DC in the last solid section. You will have 3 ch 1 spaces in each mesh section.

Row 6: Ch 2, DC in next 9 stitches, **ch 1, skip a stitch, DC into ch 1 space of previous row, ch 1, skip a stitch, DC into ch 1 space of previous row, ch 1, DC into next 12 stitches,** repeat stitches between **’s to the end. The row will end with 9 DC’s. There will be 2 ch 1 spaces in each mesh section.

Row 7: Ch 2, DC into next 10 stitches, ** ch 1, skip a stitch, DC into ch 1 space of previous row, ch 1, skip a stitch, Dc into next 14 stitches** Repeat stitches between **’s to end. The row will end with 10 DC’s. You will have 1 ch space in each mesh section.

Row 8: repeat row 6 pattern (you won’t have as many ch 1 spaces to work into, but the pattern is the same) (2 ch 1 spaces in each mesh section)

Row 9: Repeat Row 5 (3 ch 1 spaces in each mesh section)

Row 10: repeat row 4 (4 ch 1 spaces in each mesh section)

Row 11: Ch 2, DC across

Row 12: Ch 2, BPDC across (this will create a ridge on the front side of the afghan)

Row 13: Ch 2, FPDC across

Row 14: Ch 2, DC across

Row 15: Ch 2, **Skip a stitch, DC in next stitch, Working around stitch just made, DC in skipped stitch** (crossed double crochet made) Repeat stitches between **’s to 2^nd last stitch from the end, DC in last stitch

Row 16-18: Ch 2, Dc across

Row 19: Ch 2, **DC two together, ch 1, ** Repeat stitches between **’s to last stitch, DC in last stitch.

Row20-23: repeat row 18, using the ch 1 space as a stitch.

Row 24-26: Ch 2, Dc across

Row: 27: repeat row 15

Row 28-29: Ch 2, DC across

Row 30: Repeat row 12 (BPDC row)

Row 31: repeat row 13 (FPDC row)

Row 32: ch 2, Dc across

Row 33: repeat row 15 (crossed doubles)

Row 34 and 35: Ch 2, DC across

Row 36: repeat row 12 (BPDC row)

Row 37: repeat row 13 (FPDC row)

Row 38: ch 2, DC across

Row 39: repeat row 15 (crossed doubles)

Row 40 to 42: Ch 2, dc across

Row 43-47: Repeat rows 19-23

Row 48 - 50: Ch 2, Dc across

Row 51: Repeat row 15 (crossed doubles)

Row 52 and 53: Ch 2, DC across

Row 54: Repeat row 12 (BPDC row)

Row 55: Repeat row 13 (FPDC row)

Row 56: Ch 2, DC across

Row 57 – 63: repeat rows 4 to 10 (mesh pattern)

Row 64 –66: Ch 2, Dc across

This finishes the main body of the afghan. I finished mine with 2 rows of sc worked around the entire thing. You could quit now if you want. If you plan to add a border, don’t cut the yarn, just continue onto the border.

SC border: Ch 1, turn, sc across. Place 3 stitches in the corner and continue single crocheting along the side of the afghan, evenly placing stitches into ends of the rows. When you get to the corner, place 3 stitches in the corner stitch, sc across the end, and continue around the e=next side, placing 3 stitches in each corner. Join round with a slip stitch, ch 1 and go around again. Fasten off and weave in ends.

I try to get the same number of sc’s down each side, so that the finished afghan looks nice and even. I don’t think one more or less makes much difference, but a few extra stitches down one side as compared with the other side can make the afghan look lop-sided.

Note: Pattern is untested, except by myself. Please let me know if something is unclear, or you find a mistake.
You may sell one or two items made from this pattern, but you may not sell the pattern or publish it anywhere else. Please link to the pattern if you post a picture elsewhere.

Easy Baby Shoes

2010-11-07T13:45:00.000-08:00

Baby Shoes

Difficulty: easy

Size: approx 3 ½ inch length.

Could easily be made larger by using a larger hook and regular WW yarn

Stitches used:

Ch chain

SS slip stitch

HDC half double crochet

DC double crochet

Special stitches:

I have described the technique I used for these stitches for the benefit of those that are not familiar with them. My way is very likely not the accepted way, since I just do whatever seems to work for me. Feel free to do these stitches the way you are used to doing them. It will work out just fine.

DC 2 together (yarn over, insert hook into stitch, yarn over, pull through 2 loops on hook, yarn over, insert hook into next stitch, yarn over, pull through 2 loops on shook, yarn over, pull through last 3 loops on hook)

HDC 2 together (yarn over, insert hook into stitch, yarn over, insert hook into next stitch, yarn over, and pull through all 5 loops on hook.)

Materials:

2 colors of light worsted weight yarn (I used TLC, which is 3 ply. It seems similar to Simply Soft) (the second color is only used for the flower, you could use a button or another embellishment instead)

4 mm (size G) hook

yarn needle

Ch 11.

Sole:

Round 1:

HDC in 3^rd ch from hook, and in next 7 ch.

7 HDC’s in last ch.

Now begin working down other side of the chain, working into the free loops.

HDC in next 7 ch.

5 HDC in last ch, join to top of first HDC. (27 stitches)

Round 2:

Ch 2, (counts as 1^st stitch), HDC in same space, 2 HDC’s in next stitch, HDC in next 6 st, DC in next 2 stitches, 2 Dc in each of the next 5 stitches, DC in next 2 stitches, HDC in next 7 st,, 2 HDC in each of the next 3 stitches, join with ss to front loop of the top of the beginning ch 2. (37 stitches)

Begin sides:

Round 1:

Ch 1, Sc in same space, sc in FLO of next 8 stitches, HDC in FLO of next 5 stitches’ DC in FLO of next 6 stitches, HDC in FLO of next 5 stitches, sc in last 12 stitches, join to first sc with SS. (37 stitches)

Round 2:

Ch 1, sc in same sp, sc in next 7 stitches, HDc in next 3 stitches, Dc in next st, DC 2 together x 5, DC in next st, HDC in next 3 stitches, sc in last 11 stitches, join with SS to top of first sc.

Round 3:

Ch 1, SC in same space, and in next 10 stitches, HDC in next 3 stitches, DC 2 together x 2, HDC in next 3 stitches, SC in last11 stitches, join to top of first SC with SS

Round 4, Ch 2, HDC in next 10 stitches, DC 2 together x 4, HDC in next 9 stitches, HDC 2 together, join with SS to top of first Ch 2

Round 5, Ch 1, turn, so that you are working around the shoe from the outside, SS in same space in each stitch around, ( 23 stitches) Fasten off and weave in ends.

Flower:

Ch 4, join with SS to form a rind. Ch 1 and make 5 sc in ring. Work over the tail of the yarn. Join to first SC with SS.

Pull on starting yarn to tighten ring, Ch 3, join with SS to next sc, (makes a petal), repeat around so that you have 5 CH 3 petals, join last Ch 3 to first sc. Fasten off and weave in one end. Use other end to sew flower to front of shoe, before weaving in that end.

You could use a cute button or a tiny bow to embellish the shoe if you prefer. You can also change the look of the shoe by doing the SS row (last row) in a contrasting color.

Lots more flowers in bloom

2010-06-28T16:23:00.000-07:00

My hydrangeas are exceptionally prolific this year.

Here are endless summer (pink) and Annabelle hydrangeas (white). The Annabelle hydrangeas are one of the most carefree flowers I've ever grown. I cut a bunch of them every fall and put them in vases to dry. They turn a beautiful ivory color and I keep them all winter.

A Walk in the Garden

2010-06-03T17:14:00.001-07:00

Sweet William
Coreopsis
I can practically smell the sweet scent of this pink peony.

Still more blooms

2010-05-28T11:31:00.000-07:00

Lots more things in bloom this week. I didn't get pictures of all of them, but here are a few. More poppies, red ones this time.
A purple iris. these are taller than the yellow ones I have, and have much skinnier leaves. the leaves are almost grass like.They don't multiply as quickly as the yellow ones either.
This is known to me as Jupiter's Beard. I can't remeber what the real name of it is.
A flowering shrub, Wiegella.
The first rose of the season.

More things blooming!

2010-05-20T15:27:00.000-07:00

This is a pink variety of lily of the valley. I only planted white ones, but a few years ago, some pink ones appeared among the white ones, and each year there seem to be a few more. They smell just as good as the white ones.

This plant goes by the unlikely name of trailing pink soapwart. The plant is only about 6 inches tall and is literally covered with these tiny pink flowers.

This is some sort of perennial salvia. The flowers are a very clear shade of blue.

This is a rhododendron that we planted when we moved into our house about 30 years ago. It is taller than the house. The color is more pink than this picture shows.

Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce

2010-05-05T08:50:00.000-07:00

I've decided to share one of my lazy day recipes today. I don't like to cook much, but I do like to eat well, so over the years I've collected a number of easy but tasty recipes. This is one I made up myself, and its been very well received. This makes quite a lot of sauce and freezes well. It can easily be doubled if your crockpot is big enough. I serve it over whole grain pasta, with a big salad.

Here's what you need:

1 pound Italian sausage
1 medium to large onion, chopped
small amount of olive oil
2 29 oz cans of crushed or diced tomatoes (I prefer crushed or a can of each)
1 29 oz can of tomato sauce
1 6 oz can of tomato paste
2 bay leaves
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 and 1/2 tsp dried minced garlic (or 2 to 3 times that much fresh garlic)
1 and 1/2 tsp each of dried basil, oregano and salt
3/4 tsp dried thyme

Brown sausage and onion in hot olive oil until sausage is browned and onion is soft. Drain well and add to crockpot. Stir in all other ingredients. Cover and cook on low setting for 6 to 7 hours. Discard bay leaves before serving.

Variations and Notes:

I add a 1/2 tsp of dried fennel seeds if I have them, but not everyone likes the pronounced licorice taste of it, so I only add it if it's just my family.

If you want a blander sauce you could use ground beef or turkey instead of Italian sausage, and maybe cut back a bit ont he herbs and other seasonings. If you like your food quite spicy, add some dried crushed red pepper flakes, (up to one tsp). It's been my experience that a little crushed red pepper goes a long ways!

If you want to use fresh herbs, you will need two to three times the amount of dried herbs. You can use two 15 oz cans of tomato product in place of each 29 oz can.
I've never tried this next one, but I would think that 2 or three tsp of commercial Italian seasoning could substitute for the oregano, basil and thyme.

I sometimes add a shredded carrot or some shredded zucchini to the sauce to give my family a few more veggies in their diets. Mushrooms and green peppers, (I'd cook the green pepper with the onions and sausage), would also be good, but the picky eaters around here won't eat them.

Look at What's Blooming!!

2010-05-05T08:16:00.001-07:00

I went for a walk around our property today, and was pleasantly surprised to find so many things in bloom.

This is a surprise plant. It's a variety of Lamium, and it is one that I discarded in the woods last year. I like the vari-colored leaves and it's trailing habit for my porch pots, and I dumped the entire planter in the woods when I cleaned up last fall. The soil around this plant is still a flower pot shaped hump. I think I'll dig it up and put it in a pot again this year.

Irises and lilacs are among my favorites. I received the yellow irises from a friend and they've multiplied quite a bit. This one is growing at the edge of the woods. I suspect I must have gotten tired of planting them and tossed it there.

Here's my first oriental poppy of the year. I grew this one and about a dozen more poppy plants from a packet of seed I bought for 10 cents at a yard sale a few years ago.

This is lunaria, a biennial. It's pretty, but a nuisance plant, self seeding with abandon. One plant can turn into dozens in just a few years. I pull most of the seedlings out, but I think its pretty, so I always leave a few and resign myself to the task of keeping it from taking over. It's the one that produces those pretty dried seed pods that are round and silvery, hence the common name, silver dollar or money plant.

This is a redbud tree in bloom. My father in law grew it from seed, and its growing at the edge of the wooded area around our house.

These beautiful blue and white Columbines are one of the most carefree flowers I ever planted. They grow without any pampering whatsoever. I just tossed a few seed where I hoped they would grow, and they did. The only problem is that they do self seed quite badly. No problem though, I just dig up the plants and give them away or plant them elsewhere. If I'm really on the ball, I can solve the problem by taking the seed heads off the plants before they open. These plants produce tons of seeds, many of which I've collected and given away.

The dogwood trees are also in bloom as is some of the wild honeysuckle, but I didn't feel like fighting my way into the woods to get their pictures.

May Day baby Blanket

2010-05-04T08:41:00.000-07:00

This is a relatively easy blanket, which I think should be achievable by an advanced beginner. It takes a little practice to get proficient at the crossed doubles, (mostly just figuring out which is the next stitch to skip, since the crossed Dc pulls the stitches that they have been worked into, close together), but once you get it, they are easy.

This blanket can be adapted to be a full size afghan or it can be made smaller. See end of pattern for some ideas on how to change the size.

Gauge: unimportant

I crochet somewhat loosely. My blanket will be about 42 inches square.

Materials:

WW yarn, (I used 26-28 oz of yarn.)

Crochet hook size K

Yarn needle for weaving in ends

Any yarn will work, just use an appropriately sized hook, size will vary with yarn used.

Stitches used:

St-stitch

ch-chain

sc-single crochet

dc-double crochet

Crossed doubles

fpdc-Front post double crochet (instead of working into the top of the dc in the previous row, you work around the post of the stitch from the front of it)

bpdc-Back post double crochet (same as above, but you are working the stich from the back of the post of the dc from the previous row)

Front and back post stitches form what I call “fake cables” or ridges on the front of your work. I like them because they are an easy way to add some texture and interest to crocheted fabric.

Note that all rows will have 120 stitches in them. The afghan is made in one piece. However, I have divided the pattern into sections to make it a little easier to keep track of. Do not end off at the end of a section, keep crocheting onto the next one. The afghan is made as follows:

section 1, section 2, section 1, section 2, section 1.

Pattern:

Chain 121.

Section 1:

Row 1: sc in second chain from hook and in each chain across. (120 sc) this is the right side)

Row 2: ch 2 (always counts as first dc), dc in each stitch across.

Row 3: ch 2, bpdc in each st across until you reach the turning ch, dc into top of turning ch

Row 4: ch 2, fpdc in each st across until you reach the turning ch, dc into top of turning ch

Row 5: ch 2, dc in each st across, last stitch will be into the top of the turning ch

Row 6: Ch 2, * skip a stitch, dc into the next stitch. Now, working around the stitch you just made, dc into the skipped stitch. (your crochet hook will be in front of the dc you just made)* (These two stitches made one set of crossed doubles) repeat from * to * until you get to the turning chain. Dc into the top of the turning chain.

Row 7: Repeat row 2, finishing with a dc in the top of the turning chainrow)

Row 8: ch, sc in each st across, finishing with a sc in top of turning ch

Row 9. Repeat row 7. (it’s a DC row)

Row 10: Repeat row 6. (crossed doubles)

Row 11 –13: Repeat rows 7 to 9.

Row 14: Repeat row 6. (crossed doubles)

Row 15: Repeat row 8. (sc row)

Row 16: repeat row 2. (double crochet row)

Row 17: repeat row 3. (bpdc row)

Row 18: repeat row 4 (fpdc row)

Row 19: repeat row 8 (sc row)

Section 2:

Rows 20-32: ch 1, sc in first st, dc in next st, *sc in next st, dc in next st * repeat from * to * to end of row (end this section with a wrong side row)

The rest of the afghan is repeats of the previous sections.

Rows 33-51: repeat section 1

Row 52 to 64: repeat section 2

Rows 65-81: repeat section 1

Do not cut yarn. Work a sc border all around the blanket, placing 3 sc into each corner and spacing stitches evenly across the ends of the rows. I try to make the same number of stitches in each end, so that the finished blanket turns out nice and even. I finished with a row of reverse HDC. (*HDC in a stitch, ch 1, skip a stitch* and repeat from *to*) worked all around but from left to right, rather than the usual right to left. This makes a nice rope like border.

This blanket can easily be made larger or smaller. Start with an even number of sc in the first row.

To make the blanket narrower, you could subtract some rows from section 2, (making sure to end with a wrong side row), or leave out rows 11 to 13 in section 1. This would give you a panel with two rows of crossed doubles in between the fake cables created by the fpdc's and bpdc's.

To make it wider, you could either add panels, add more rows to section 2, add some extra rows into one of the panels, or make up additions of your own.

I purposely didn’t add any very lacy stitches, because I wanted the finished product to be suitable for either a boys or a girls blanket.

A Winter Walk

2010-03-08T07:50:00.000-08:00

We've had unusually nice weather for the past week or so. Sunshine in winter can be rare here, but it has been abundant lately. On Saturday, Andy and I went for a walk on a part of the White Pine Trail which runs north from Rockford, along the Rogue River. There were quite a few people out on the trail, biking and walking. The trail was clear, although there is still a fair amount of snow on the ground.
The sky was a beautiful shade of blue, and the river was sparkling in the sunlight. We could hear the birds singing and the honking of Canada Geese. We only saw two geese on the river, but it sounded like there was a whole flock somewhere around. There was also a lone mallard swimming lazily around and some tiny animal that appeared to be playing in the water, running around on the shore of a little "island" in the middle of the river and then getting into the water to swim in circles for a few minutes. We forgot to bring binoculars, so we have no idea what it was. We were wondering if it could be a baby otter or muskrat. It seems like it might be a little early in the season for animal babies yet, though.

It's still winter, but....

2010-02-22T10:10:00.000-08:00

For Christmas this year my son gave me an amaryllis bulb. I love watching things grow, so this was a great gift for me. I planted it on Dec 26th and it grew like a weed. By the end of January it was 30 inches tall. On Valentines day the first two flowers appeared, and a couple of days later two more showed up. There is still a flower stalk that hasn't opened yet, so there should still be one or two more blooms.

Market Bag

2010-02-17T10:02:00.000-08:00

This is a small size market bag that I made to use up some leftover WW cotton yarn. Laying flat, mine measures about 14 inches wide, by 15 inches long, excluding the handles. it is quite stretchy, so it will hold a fair amount.

Materials:
WW cotton yarn:
I used approx 6 - 7 oz variegated (it was the last of one of those 14 oz skeins of peaches and cream) and 2 oz. or so of a co-ordinating plain color
G and H hooks
4 stitch markers
yarn needle

Stitches used:
ch - chain
sc - single crochet
dc - double crochet

Starting with variegated yarn and H hook:
ch 40.
Row 1: Sc in second ch from hook and in each ch across. (39 sc) Ch 1, turn.
row 2-10: SC in each ch across. (39 sc in each row) Ch 1 turn.

You will now begin working in rounds.
Row 11 and Round 1: Sc in each st across. When you reach the end of the row, turn work so that you can sc across the ends of the 11 sc rows. Do not ch 1. Do one sc in the end of each row. (11 sc) when you get to the other side, sc in the loose loops of the beginning chain. (39 sc) Make a sc in the other ends of the 11 sc rows. Join to the first sc of the round.
Round 12 - 15: Ch 1, Sc in each stitch around, join the stitches of each round to the beginning sc of that round. You should have 100 sc.
(Don't worry if you don't. As long as you have an even number of stitches when you get to the mesh part, the pattern will work. Actually, for that matter, you can always fudge a little in the first row to make it work, its only a market bag after all!)

If you want a larger solid bottom, just do more sc rounds, until the solid part is a high as you want it. I would probably have done more if I wasn't worried about running out of yarn.

Start mesh pattern, continue to work in rounds:
Round 16: Ch 4, (counts as first dc plus ch 1), skip a stitch, *DC in next st, ch 1. Skip a stitch * repeat from * to * around, join in third st of the beginning ch 4, slip stitch into the space created by the ch 4. (I don't know quite how to write that, it would be like slip stitching into the ch 1 space)

round 17-32: Ch 4, DC into next ch 1 space, ch 1, *DC into next ch 1 space, ch 1*, repeat from * to * around, join into 3rd ch of beginning ch 4, slip stitch into space created by the ch 4.

Again, you can add more rounds here to make the bag taller.

round 33-35:
Ch 1, sc in each stitch around, join to beginning st
Fasten off.

Start handles:
Lay your bag down flat and mark the stitch on each side. Count out 12 stitches on either side of this stitch and place a marker in each of them. This should give you 25 stitches front and back between the markers.

Join contrasting yarn at a marker.

round 1: Sc from that marker around the side of the bag to the next marker. Ch 30. Skip the 25 stitches on the flat side of the bag, (it will be either the front or back depending on where you joined your yarn.) Sc into the next marked stitch and continue to the next marker. Ch 30 to make the other handles and join to the beginning sc with a slip stitch.

Round 2 - 6- Ch 1, sc in joining stitch and in each st and chain around (110 sc) Again it doesn't really matter if you have a different number of stitches.

At the end of round 6 fasten off.
Still using the H hook, do a round of SC around the inside (circle part) of the handles.

Using a G hook, do a round of sc around the inside of the handles and around the top of the bag. I found that using a smaller hook for this made a slightly less stretchy handle.

Fasten off, weave in ends.

Once you have made one of these bags, you will find it very easy to make a larger bag using the same general idea.

Pattern is untested, except by myself. Please let me know if something is unclear, or you find a mistake.
You may sell one or two items made from this pattern, but you may not sell the pattern or publish it anywhere else. Please link to the pattern if you post a picture elsewhere.

Baby Blanket

2010-02-01T16:28:00.000-08:00

Last summer I was gifted 2 skeins of variegated Red Heart soft yarn. I started out making it into a baby sweater, but it just didn't seem to look right. Since it was a gift to me, I wanted to turn it into something special. This is what I came up with. This blanket has been donated to the local pregnancy resource center.

The pattern is simply made up of 12 granny squares. I did 5 rounds of variegated, 3 rounds of white and 1 round of pink. After I sewed the squares together, I did a row of sc in pink around the entire thing, and finished it with a round of reverse HDC.
I like reverse HDC for edging blankets because it looks good, and is way easier than reverse sc.
If you have never used it, give it a try.
I do HDC, ch 1, skip a stitch, HDC in next st, ch 1, skip a stitch,etc. It is worked right to left, rather than the usual left to right.

This is the square pattern I used.

Check this out!! A give-away!/sorry, it's now over

2010-01-10T12:52:00.000-08:00

Stephanie, over at this blog is giving away this cute apron that she made herself. Go check out her blog.

Ashlea Scarf

2009-12-16T15:23:00.000-08:00

This is a very easy scarf pattern. Although the lacy stitch pattern looks a little complicated, it uses only chains, and single and double crochet stitches. Once you establish the pattern, it is only a simple one row repeat, which is easy to memorize. It is simple to make this design wider or narrower, and I think it would make a pretty shawl also.

Notes:

I used WW weight yarn and a K hook. The stitch pattern is quite dense in places, so it drapes better if you use a hook that seems a little large for the yarn. I crochet loosely.

This pattern uses a stitch multiple of 4 plus 1. Then you add 3 more to your beginning chain for the turning chain. (which in this case means that your beginning chain has to be a multiple of 4.) This means that you could make a narrower scarf by subtracting 4 stitches or make a wider scarf or a shawl, by adding stitches in multiples of 4.

My scarf turned out to be 7 inches wide. If I made it again, I might make it a little narrower, but this scarf is going to a "warm the homeless project" that was organized by one of my co-workers so the width will be welcome for warmth.

Stitches used:
ch: chain
dc: double crochet
sc: single crochet

Special stitches:
cluster: 1 dc and 1 sc both in same chain or stitch
v stitch: 1 dc, ch1, 1 dc all done in the same chain or stitch

V stitch in v stitch means that you make a v stitch in the chain 1 space of the v stitch in the previous row.

The chain 3 that starts each row is there to give the scalloped effect along the edge of the scarf and is not used as a working stitch. Just ignore it when you get to the end of the row. The last cluster is worked into the last actual stitch of the row, not the turning chain.

The Pattern:

Chain 20. Remember to use a hook that is a couple of sizes larger than the yarn calls for, so that your scarf will drape nicely.

Row 1: Make cluster into the 4th ch from the hook), **skip a ch, v stitch in the next ch, skip a chain, cluster into the next ch**, repeat from ** to **. You should end with a cluster in the last chain. Ch 3, turn

Row 2: Skip the first sc, make a cluster in the next st, (which is the dc of the cluster below),
**v stitch into the v stitch below, cluster into the DC of the cluster below**, repeat from ** to **, ending with a cluster in the last DC of the last cluster. Do not stitch into the ch 3 turning chain.
ch 3, turn.

Repeat row 2 until your scarf is as long as you want it to be.

The pattern consists of clusters worked in the DC of the clusters in the row beneath alternating with v stitches worked in the chain 1 space of the v stitch in the previous row.

If you don't want the scalloped edge, using a ch 2 as a turning chain will make the edge straighter. If you choose this option, you would need to subtract one chain from the beginning chain.

Pattern is untested, except by myself. Please let me know if something is unclear, or you find a mistake.
You may sell one or two items made from this pattern, but you may not sell the pattern or publish it anywhere else. Please link to the pattern if you post a picture elsewhere.

It's winter!

2009-12-04T10:49:00.000-08:00

Up until yesterday we had been enjoying unseasonably warm weather for this time of year. In fact our grass was still green and we've only had a few frosty mornings.
This morning we awoke to around 10 inches of snow on the ground, and it has been snowing most of the day. No wonder my snowman looks so happy. He's sitting on the front porch on a bench that my dad made me a few years ago.
I'm not overly fond of snow, but it is very pretty. It's a perfect day to sit by the fire and read a good book. (which is exactly what I'm going to do after this!)

Christmas Coasters

2009-11-13T09:47:00.001-08:00

I call these Christmas coasters because I used variegated yarn in red, white and green, but they don't have to be festive.

This could also be used as a decoration for a purse, or a hat.

Mine turned out to be just slightly over 4 inches from point to point.

Materials:
WW yarn (I used cotton)
size I hook
Yarn needle

Stitches used:
ss- slip stitch
ch- chain
sc- single crochet
Hdc- half double crochet
dc- double crochet
trc- triple crochet

Pattern:
Ch 3 and join with SS to form ring.

Round 1: Ch 3, (counts as a DC) and make 11 more DC in ring, join with ss to top of beginning ch 3. (12 dc)

Round 2: Ch 1, sc in same stitch as join. ch 1, sc in next st, ch 4, *sc in next st, ch 1, sc in next st, ch 4*. repeat from * to * around ending with ch 4. ss into top of first sc. You should have 6 ch 1 spaces and 6 ch 3 spaces.

Round 3: Ss into the first ch 1 space, *into the next ch 3 space work sc, hdc, dc, trc, dc, hdc, sc, ss into next ch 1 space*. repeat from * to * around, end with ss in top of first ss.

Fasten off and work in ends.

Pattern is untested, except by myself. Please let me know if something is unclear, or you find a mistake.
You may sell one or two items made from this pattern, but you may not sell the pattern or publish it anywhere else. Please link to the pattern if you post a picture elsewhere.

A November Sunset

2009-11-11T15:16:00.000-08:00

Our weather has been exceptionally nice the past few days. It's hard to believe it's November. Last night the sunset was really beautiful.

Smoky MountainsVacation

2009-10-30T16:24:00.000-07:00

We spent the last week in the Great Smokey Mountains National Park area. Fall is such a gorgeous time of year to visit there.

The first two pictures were taken along the Gatlinburg bypass road, and the other two were taken in the park.

The second picture from the bottom, (the road through the trees) represents one of my favorite scenes. The road through the trees seems so peaceful, and I love the idea of not knowing what's beyond the bend.

The last picture is the view from a picnic area (Metcalf Bottoms) where we ate lunch one day. Even though it was cold and rainy here in Michigan it was 75 degrees and sunny in Tennessee that day.

Crocheted Lattice Clothes Hanger Cover

2009-10-19T16:57:00.000-07:00

Covered hangers keep your clothes from sliding onto the floor. This is easy to customize to any plastic hanger.

WW yarn
Size G hook
Plastic clothes hanger
Yarn needle

Stitches used:

SS - slip stitch
Ch – chain
Dc – Double crochet

The beginning ch 2 represents a DC. All rounds are joined with a ss to the 2nd ch of the beginning ch.

I chain loosely, so I use a ch 2 to represent a DC in this pattern. If you wish, you can use a ch 3 to represent the beginning DC of each round. You will have to add a chain at the beginning of every round and join each round to the third chain of the beginning chain.

This pattern is a lattice design worked in rounds. Each round has 8 DC in it, and they are separated by spaces made of varying numbers of chains in order to make the cover fit around the hanger.

To begin each new round after round 2, ss to the next ch space.

Keep trying the cover on the hanger you are making it for and add chains as needed for the cover to fit. The fit should be snug.
It took 13 rows to cover the hanger I used. I have two different brands of plastic hangers, but they are almost exactly the same size.

PATTERN
This pattern covers half the hanger, so you will need to make 2.

Ch 4, join into ring with SS.

Round 1:
Ch2, Dc into ring, Ch 1, + 2 DC into ring, ch 1 +, repeat x 2 from + to +. You should have 8 DC and 4 ch 1 spaces.

Round 2:
Ss to space between first 2 dc, ch 3, + Dc into next space, ch 1 +, repeat from + to + around, join

Round 3 and 4:
Ss to ch 1 space, ch 3, +dc into next ch 1 sp, ch 1+, repeat from + to + around, join.

Round 5 to 7:
Work same as rounds 3 and 4, but increase every other chain space to 2 chains.
You will have 8 dc’s with 8 spaces, 4 will be ch 2 spaces, 4 will be ch 1 spaces.

Rounds 8 to 10:
Work same as round 5, except increase every chain space between the dc’s to 2 chains.
You will still have 8 DC’s and you will have 8 ch 2 spaces.

Rounds 11-12:

Work same as previous rounds, but increase every other ch space to 3 chains.

Round 13:
Work same as previous rows, but increase each ch space to 3 chains.

If this is too small for your hanger, just continue in pattern, adding chains to the spaces as needed for your hanger. Keep trying it on the hanger as you make the cover.

Make another half the same and fit them over the clothes hanger. Sew together down the middle. I sewed all the Dc’s together. I just wove the yarn through the chains to get to the next pair of DC’s.
Alternatively, you could tie the two halves together on both sides of the hanger, at the top and bottom with yarn or ribbon. This would make it easier to remove the cover at a later time if you wanted to.

Pattern is untested, except by myself. Please let me know if something is unclear, or you find a mistake.
You may sell one or two items made from this pattern, but you may not sell the pattern or publish it anywhere else. Please link to the pattern if you post a picture elsewhere.

Shell Baby Booties

2009-10-17T16:29:00.001-07:00

Shell Baby Booties

Size: sole is about 4 inches long

WW yarn

H hook

Ribbon (optional)

Stitches used:

Ch – chain

Ss – slip stitch

Hdc – Half double crochet

Dc – Double crochet

Sc – single crochet

Pattern:

Beginning chain counts as a stitch.

Round 1:

Ch 3, 7 HDC in 3^rd ch from hook, join to top of beginning ch. (8 HDC)

Round 2:

Ch 2, Hdc in same st, 2HDC in each st around, join to top of beginning ch. (16 HDC)

Rounds 3 to 6:

Ch 2, Hdc in each st around. (16 Hdc)

Start working back and forth in rows. 4 stitches in the round will be left unworked.

Row 7:

Ch 2, Hdc in the next 11 stitches. (12 Hdc)

Row 8 and 9:

Ch 2, turn, Hdc in each st around (12 Hdc)

Row 10:

Ch2, turn, Hdc in next st, HDC 2 together 4 times, Hdc in last 2 stitches (8 HDC)

Now you will again work in rounds.

Round 11:

ch 1, turn.

You will be working along the ends of the rows just completed.

Make 6 sc evenly spaced across the ends of rows 7 to 10.

Sc in the 4 stitches left unworked from round 6, then make 6 more sc evenly spaced along the other ends of rows 7 to 10.

Join with a ss to the first sc on the other side. You will have a bootie shape with a slit in the heel. (16 sc)

Round 12:

Ch 2, HDC in each st around Join with SS to top of beginning ch 2. (16 HDC)

Round 13:

(eyelet row)

Ch 3, skip a stitch, + Hdc in next st, ch 1, Skip a stitch + repeat from + to + around , join with SS to top of beginning ch (8 ch 1 spaces)

Round 14:

SS to a ch 1 space, ch 3, 2 dc in same space, make a 3 dc in each of the other ch 1 spaces, join with ss to top of beginning ch 3.

Fasten off, leaving a tail long enough to weave down to the slit in the heel and sew it up.

Weave in ends. Thread a length of ribbon through the eyelets, or make a crocheted chain to use for a tie.

These booties can be made smaller by omitting a round, or larger by adding a round or row. They can be made taller by adding a row of sc or another shell row at the end.

Shell Baby Hat

2009-10-17T16:02:00.000-07:00

Shell Baby Hat

Size 3 to 6 months

Materials:

WW Yarn

Size G hook

Stitches Used:

Ch - chain

Ss - slip stitch

Hdc - half double crochet

Dc - double crochet

Shell – 3 dc in same space

Beginning ch of each round counts as a stitch.

Join each round with a ss in top of the beginning chain.

Round 1:

Ch 4, 11 Dc in 4^th ch from hook, join with ss to top of beginning ch. (12 DC)

Round 2:

Ch 3, Dc in same st , 2 dC on each st around., join with ss to top of beginning ch 3 (24 DC)

Round 3:

Ch 3, + 2 Dc in next st, DC in next st + repeat from + to+ , 1 more Dc in same st as beginning ch 3, join with ss to top of beginning ch 3. (36 DC)

Round 4:

Ch 3 and Dc in each st around, join with SS in top of beginning ch 3. (36 DC)

Round 5:

(this row still increases the diameter of the hat.)

SS to next st, ch 3, 2 more DC in same st, + skip a stitch, 3 DC in next st +, repeat from + to + around, join with SS in top of beginning ch 3. (18 shells, each with 3 DC)

Round 6 to 12

SS to the center st of the next 3 DC group, do 3 DC in center stitch of each shell around.

Round 13:

Ch 2, HDC in next st and in each st around.

Fasten off.

Notes: You can easily make this hat bigger by adding some extra stitches in row 4.

Remember that row 5 increases the number of stitches again by 1/3, so don't add too many stitches. You need an even number of stitches in row 4 to make the pattern work.

You could also make the hat larger just by using a larger hook.

Add extra rows of shells to make hat taller.

If you want a turned up cuff add a few more rows of Hdc at the end.

Snow-Yo Man

2009-09-02T05:35:00.000-07:00

I saw a really cute snowman made from fabric yo-yo's the other day. I wondered if I could re-create it in crochet and this is the result.

First you will need to make at least 6 yo-yo's. These are three dimensional, similar to the kind that are made for use in quilts or for embellishing things, rather than the flat circles that I would consider a crocheted yo-yo.

This snowman would work in any size yarn; for example: thread would make a tiny ornament. Once you get the basic idea of how he is constructed you can easily make him taller, shorter, fatter, etc.

You could also make a Santa, by using red yarn for the yo's, maybe with a black center yo-yo for his belt. Add a Santa face and hat, put a buckle on the belt, embellish with some whiskers and you will have Santa Claus. A pumpkin is another idea that would work up really easily this way. I think it would even work to make an angel.

Pattern
Gauge is unimportant.

First make 5 different size yo-yo's. You will need a total of 6, but two of them are the same size.

Materials
-WW yarn in white, (I estimate that I used between 3 and 4 Oz), small amounts of black, orange, and blue
-H and G hooks
-buttons, beads or whatever you would like to use for embellishment
-small amount of white stuffing for head
-Yarn needle
-sewing needle and black thread (used to sew embellishments onto the snowman, you could glue them on instead)

Stitches used:
Ch -chain
SS -slip stitch
DC -double crochet
HDC -half double crochet
SC -single crochet

Special Stitches
These are the way I did these techniques, not necessarily the correct way. You can use whatever method you like. Neatness and accuracy aren't that important here, since this won't show much.

DC 2 tog -Double crochet two together
Yarn over hook, insert into next stitch, Yarn over hook, pull through two loops on hook, yarn over hook, insert into next stitch, yarn over hook, pull through two loops on hook, yarn over, and pull through all loops on hook

HDC 2 tog -Half double crochet two together
Yarn over hook, insert into next stitch, yarn over hook, pull through two loops on hook, yarn over hook, insert in next stitch, yarn over hook, pull through all loops on hook.

Body of Snowman:

The body of the snowman is made up of yo-yos:

Use White yarn and H hook

Note: Start all DC rows with a Ch 3, start all HDC rows with a ch 2, (these count as stitches)
If a row is done in SC, start with a ch 1 and do a SC in the same stitch. In this case the ch 1 does not count as a stitch.

Finish all yo-yo's by gathering as directed in Yo-Yo 1.

Everything except the scarf is worked in rounds.

Yo-Yo 1 (make 2)
Leave a very long tail (say around 24 inches) on one of these to use for sewing the yo-yo's together. If you forget, don't worry about it, you'll just have to weave in an extra end!)

Ch 4 and form into a circle with a ss.

Round 1: Ch3 (counts as first DC( and do 11 more DC in the circle.) Join to top of beginning Ch 3 with SS (12 DC)
Round 2: Ch 3, Dc in same st, 2 DC in each st around Join to top of beginning Ch 3 with SS. (increase a stitch in every stitch) (24 DC)
Round 3: Ch 3, 2 DC in next st, *1 Dc in next st, 2 DC in next st* repeat from * to * around Join to top of Beginning CH 3 with SS (increase a stitch in every second stitch) (36 DC)
Round 4: Ch 3, DC in next st, 2 dc in next st, *dc in next 2 st, 2 dc in next st* repeat from * to * around Join to top of beginning ch 3. (increase a stitch in every third stitch) (48 DC)

Now start decreasing:
Round 5 and 6: Ch 3, DC decrease over next two stitches around, until you get to the last st. Dc in that st, and join to the top of the beginning ch 3

Fasten off, leaving a tail 8 or 10 inches long. Thread this tail into a yarn needle and weave the yarn through the stitches of the last row. Pull together tightly to gather the yo-yo into a fluffy shape. If its not fluffly looking enough for you gather up a few random stitches from the previous row also. The gathered side is the top of the yo-yo.

You should have something that looks like a squashed ball, pretty flat on the bottom and sort of ruffly and wrinkly on the top.

Yo-Yo 2: (make 1)
Made the same as yo-yo 1 with the addition of one more increase row.

After round 4 do a row where you increase in every 4th stitch. (60 DC)

Do two decrease rows, same as rounds 5 and 6 of yo-yo 1.

Yo-Yo 3: (make 1)

Same as yo-yo 1, except use HDC in place of all DC's. Use HDC's to do decrease rows rather than DC decrease.

Yo-Yo 4:
Same as yo-yo I except:
Round 1 and 2: Do HDC's in place of all DC's
Round 3 and 4 : Do SC in place of DC's
do only one row of DC decreases before gathering.

Yo-Yo 5:
Same as y0-yo 1 except:
Do round 1 Same as yo-yo one.
Round 2: Use Sc in place of DC
Do one decrease row using DC stitch.

This should give you 6 yo-yos, in 5 different sizes.

Fasten off and weave in all ends except for the long tail that you left for sewing the yo-yo's together. To assemble the snowman's body from the yo-yo's stack them in this order, starting from the bottom and working up to the snowman's neck:
#1, 2,1,3,4,5. The largest yo-yo is second from the bottom and they get progressively smaller as they go up. If you wanted to, you could make an additional yo-yo #3 and use it as the bottom yo-yo. This would give a more rounded silhouette to the snowman. The bottom yo-yo should have the long tail for joining the yo-yos together.
To join them together, thread the long tail onto your yarn needle. Pull the yarn up through the center of all the yo-yo's. when you get to the top, turn around and go back down to the bottom. Make sure you catch some strands of the top yo-yo before you go back down. You can either fasten off or repeat this step to make the joining a little more secure.
I forgot to leave a long tail, so I just brought a long strand of yarn up through the yo-yo's back down again and then I tied the ends together and tucked them into the bottom yo-yo.
One time up and down seemed secure enough to me, but my snowman is just going to sit on a shelf.

Here's what the snowman should look like so far

HEAD

Use white yarn, and G hook.

Chain 3, join with SS to form circle.
Round 1: Chain 2, 9 HDC's in circle. Join to top of beginning ch 2 with a SS. (10 HDC's)
Round 2: Ch 2, HDC in same st, 2 HDC's in each st around Join to top of beginning ch 2 with a SS. (20 HDC's)

(If you want a larger head do another increase row, increasing in every 2nd stitch as in yo-yo one, before continuing. My snowman's head was too big, when I did this. I actually still think my snowman's head is a little too big, but this is a matter of personal preference. You could make it smaller by doing 10 HDC's in round 1 rather than 12)

Rounds 3 to 7: Ch 2, HDC in each st around, Join to top of beginning ch 2 with a SS.
Round 8: Ch 2, HDc decrease in next 2 stitches around, HDC in last st. Fasten off, leaving a long tail.

Weave in beginning yarn end. Stuff head with stuffing. To some extent you can control the head size by the amount of stuffing you put in it. Thread tail on yarn needle, and gather bottom of head together to form it into a ball. Leave a tail long enough to use for sewing the head to the body.
Sew head to body.

HAT

Use black yarn and G hook.
Work through round 2 of Yo-yo 3.
(note that if you made a larger head, you may want to work another increase row (possibly in sc) before starting the sides of the hat)

Start sides of hat:
(if you are using very stiff yarn, you may be able to get by with HDC's rather than SC's here and do fewer rows)
Round 3: Ch 1, Sc in same st, sc in the front loop only of each st around. Join to top of beginning ch 2 with a SS. (24 SC)
Round 4and 5: Ch 1, Sc in same st, and in each st around. If you want a taller hat do another row or two.
Last row of sides of hat: Same as row 4 and 5 but increase round by 2 sc (26 sc)

Start Brim:
Round 1:
Chain 2, and turn. Hdc in same st as joining. 2 HDc in front loop only of each st around Join to top of beginning ch 2. (52 HDC)
Round 2: ch, Sc in each st around. Join to first st.

You can make the brim wider by repeating round 2.
Fasten off and weave in ends. Shape hat brim with your fingers.
Sew hat to snowman's head. I used the end tail to do this.

Scarf

Chain 45, (or however long you want the scarf to be,), turn and HDC in 2nd chain from hook and in each chain across. Fasten off. I added some fringe to the ends of my scarf.
Tie scarf loosely around snowman's neck.

Now that the snowman is assembled, give him some personality with embellishments.
I used beads for eyes, buttons for buttons, and sewed a cardinal button to his hat. I made an orange yarn french knot for a nose, but I haven't managed to give him a mouth yet. I've tried three times to embroider one on, and none of my attempts worked out. I'm going to leave it like this for now and buy some smaller black beads next time I'm out and use those for his mouth.

Pattern is untested, except by myself. Please let me know if something is unclear, or you find a mistake.
You may sell one or two items made from this pattern, but you may not sell the pattern or publish it anywhere else. Please link to the pattern if you post a picture elsewhere.

Napkin rings

2009-08-10T12:16:00.001-07:00

These are very simple. I wanted napkin rings to go with my Christmas dishes. However, it would be really easy to make these to go with any set of dishes.

My rings turned out about 2 inches in diameter, and about 1 1/2 inches high.

I used Lustre-sheen yarn and a F hook. I think size D or E would've been a little better, but I can't find any of my smaller hooks. I also used 1/8 inch wide ribbon.

Chain 26 and join with a slip stitch to make a circle.

Round 1: Being careful not to twist the chain, CH 1, and then SC insame stitch, and in each chain around, joining to the first SC with a SS.

Round 2 and 3: Ch 1 and SC in same stitch and in each stitch around, join with a SS.

round 4: Ch 3, *skip a stitch, HDC in next stitch, ch 1*, repeat around, skip last stitch, join to 2nd chain of beginning ch 3 with a SS. (You are doing a HDC in every other stitch, with a ch 1 between them.) If you wish to use wider ribon, you may need to do DC in place of the HDC's. In that case start the round with a chain 4)

Round 5: Ch I, SC in same ST, and in each St and chain 1 space around. Join with a SS.

Round 6 and 7: repeat rounds 2 and 3.

Fasten off and weave in ends. Weave a short length of ribbon through the spaces of round 4 and tie in a bow.

If you wanted to use WW yarn, you will probably want to begin with a shorter starting chain. Thread would also work with a longer starting chain.

Pattern is untested, except by myself. Please let me know if something is unclear, or you find a mistake.
You may sell items made from this pattern, but you may not sell the pattern or publish it anywhere else. Please link to the pattern if you post a picture elsewhere.

Dark Chocolate Scarf

2009-04-06T17:05:00.000-07:00

This scarf works well for a man, since it isn't at all lacy.

This isn't by any means an original stitch pattern. I've seen it or something very similar in several patterns.

I apologize for the lousy picture. I tried to get a close up picture to show how nice this simple stitch pattern looks. It kind of reminds me of frozen waffles. Eventually I will get a better picture and replace this one, but I don't seem to be able to get one today.

Materials:
Worsted weight yarn (I used one 6 oz skein of TLC Essentials in dark brown, to make a scarf that measures about 7 inches wide by 5 feet long.)
size K hook (6.5 mm)

Gauge; doesn't matter
My scarf came out about 7 inches wide. I worked the scarf quite loosely.

Stitches used:
ch - chain
sc - single crochet
sc2tog - single crochet two together (insert hook in 1st sc, draw up loop, insert hook in next sc, draw up loop, put loop of yarn around hook, and draw through all three loops on hook)

Chain 22 loosely(or any even numberof chains depending on the width you want)

Row 1: sc in second chain from hook and in each chain across (21 sc) (pattern works on any uneven number of stitches)

Row 2: ch 1,* sc2tog in next 2 sc, ch 1*, repeat from *to* until you get to the last stitch, sc in last stitch.

Row 3 and following rows: ch 1, *sc2tog using the sc and the ch 1 loop from the previous row as the two stitches that you sc together, ch 1* repeat from * to * until you get to the last stitch, sc in last stitch.

Continue row 3 until the scarf is as long as you want it to be.

Last row: sc in each stitch and ch 1 loop across. (21 sc.)

This doesn't make a perfectly straight edge, but I like the way it looks, kind of a subtle wavy edge,so I leave it as it is, but if you wanted to you could edge it in sc.

I also like this stitch pattern for dishcloths because it is quite solid, but not too thick to get into small places.
You can also do this stitch by stitching into the chain loop rather than into the ch 1 space. I just think it's easier to go into the space, and it makes the stitch a little more solid.

Pattern is untested, except by myself. Please let me know if something is unclear, or you find a mistake.
You may sell items made from this pattern, but you may not sell the pattern or publish it anywhere else. Please link to the pattern if you post a picture elsewhere.

Ribbed Dishcloth

2009-03-18T13:49:00.001-07:00

Ribbed Dishcloth

This dishcloth has rows of ribbing to give it a little texture, so it works well for scrubbing.

My picture isn't very good, but it gives you an idea of the texture.

Finished size: about 10 inches wide x 11 inches tall

Materials:

Sugar and cream twists or any other WW cotton yarn, about 2 ounces

Size J hook

Stitches used:

Ch = chain

Sc = single crochet

Hdc =half double crochet

Fphdc =front post half double crochet

Bphdc =back post half double crochet

Pattern:

Chain 30

Row 1: sc in second chain from hook and in each chain across. (29 sc)

Row 2: ch 2 (does not count as stitch) hdc in each stitch across

Row 3: Repeat row 2

Row 4: ch 1, sc in first 2 stitches, +Fphdc around post of next stitch, Bphdc around post of next stitch+ repeat from + to + ending with FPHDC, until you get to the last two stitches, sc in last two stitches (29 stitches).

Repeat rows 2 to 4, six times. Your dishcloth should measure around 9 ½ inches, and you should have 7 Front post/back post rows.

Last row: ch 1, sc in each st across (29 stitches).

(optional) Work a row of sc around the entire dishcloth, placing 3 sc in each corner.

Fasten off and weave in ends.

Pattern is untested, except by myself. Please let me know if something is unclear, or you find a mistake.
You may sell items made from this pattern, but you may not sell the pattern or publish it anywhere else. Please link to the pattern if you post a picture elsewhere.

Another Simple snowflake

2009-03-09T08:22:00.001-07:00

I tried to block this one with spray starch and it didn't work out very well. the picture is lousy, but I think the general idea is there. This pattern is suitable for a beginner.

I used size 3 thread and a C hook. My flake is about 4 inches from point to point.

Stitches used:

ch chain

ss slip stitch

dc double crochet

tc triple crochet

Ch 5, join with ss to form a ring.

Round 1: Ch 3, dc into ring, ch 2, *2 dc into ring, ch 2*, Repeat from * to* 4 more times, join to top of first ch3. (You should have 12 dc and 6 ch 2 spaces.)

Round 2: Ss to first ch 2 space, ch 3, dc, ch2, tc, ch2, 2 dc all into first ch 2 space, in each of the other ch 2 spaces work the following: 2dc, ch2, 1 tc, ch2, 2dc. Join to top of first ch 3.

Round 3: ss to first ch 2 space, *Ch 7, ss into fourth ch from hook, ch 4, ss into next ch 2 space. Ss in next 2 DC. Ss in space between the next 2 DC and ch 3, join with ss to same space. SS in next 2 dc and into next ch 2 sp.*, repeat from * to* until you get back to the beginning.

Finish off. Stiffen and block.

Tagged

2009-02-11T11:42:00.000-08:00

Marie Anne challenged me to a 6th picture post.
The sixth folder in my picture file only has 5 pictures, so I will post that one. Its a dishcloth that I made recently.
Here is how I made it. This isn't much of a pattern, just a way of makeing a thinner stretchy crochet fabric.
Chain 29. (or any uneven number to get the width you want)
Row 1: Sc in second chain from hook and in each chain across. (28 SC)
Row 2: Ch1, sc in first st, * sc in FLO of next stitch, in BlO of next stitch* repeat from * to * until you get to the last stitch, sc in last st.
Continue with row 2 until you dishcloth is the size you want.
Finish with a row of sc through both loops to make a more solid ending row.

If I was a little more ambitious, I would have added a single crochet border all around.

Pattern is untested, except by myself. Please let me know if something is unclear, or you find a mistake.
You may sell items made from this pattern, but you may not sell the pattern or publish it anywhere else. Please link to the pattern if you post a picture elsewhere.

Toddler or Small child slippers

2009-02-04T11:37:00.001-08:00

Size: can be made to fit from about age 2 to age 4

Materials: Worsted weight yarn

H hook

Stitches used:

Ch (chain)

Hdc (Half double crochet)

Dc (double crochet)

Sc (single crochet)

Ss (slip stitch)

Slippers are made starting at the toe. The first part is made in the round and then you will be turning at the end of each row to form the ankle opening. Beginning chains count as first stitch in all rows. Slippers can be made to fit a longer foot by working row 7 once or twice more. You could also work an extra round 3. The slippers are designed to come up toward the top of the instep, so they will stay on little feet better.

Chain 4, and ss into first ch to form a ring.

Row 1: Ch 2 , 8 hdc in ring, join to top of beginning chain 2 with ss. (9 hdc)

Row 2: Ch 3, dc in same stitch, 2 dc in each stitch around, join to top of beginning ch 3 with ss (18 dc)

Row 3-6: Ch 3, turn, Dc in each stitch around, join to top of beginning chain 3 with ss. (18 DC)

The following rows are no longer worked in rounds.

Row 7-10: Ch 2, turn, DC in next 13 stitches (14 DC)

Form heel shaping:

Row 11: Dc in next 4 st, * dc decrease in next 2 stitches*, repeat from * to * once, DC in last 5 st (12 st)

Row 12: Ch 2, turn, Dc in next 3 stitches, *dc decrease in next 2 stitches * , repeat from * to * once, Dc in last 4 stitches.

Join top two corners of slipper with ss,

Row 13 and 14: Ch 1, sc evenly around ankle of slipper, join to first sc with ss.

You can work an extra round or two of row 13 to make the slipper come up higher on the ankle.

Fasten off leaving enough length to sew back of slipper together. Weave in ends and finish.

To make the slipper a little larger add another repeat or two of row 7.

Textured Stripes Purse

2008-12-31T07:44:00.000-08:00

Textured Stripes Purse

This purse is worked in rounds. The different stitches used in the various rounds result in monotone stripes appearing because the stitches are a different texture. This purse can be made to be a cross body bag, a shoulder bag, or a handbag. It can easily be made shorter, and even smaller in diameter, by decreasing the beginning chain by multiples of 3.

Materials:

Nylon Crochet yarn in taupe and black (I used a little over one spool of taupe and a smaller amount of black)
G hook
Stitch markers
2 D rings
Large button for closure
Tapestry needle
Fabric for lining, basic sewing supplies (optional)

This pattern will work with any yarn, used with appropriate hook.

Gauge: not important, finished size may vary depending on yarn and hook used. The body of my bag is about 10 inches by 10 inches

Stitches used:
Ch (chain)
Sc (single crochet)
Ss (slip stitch)
Dc (double crochet)
St (stitch)
FLO (front loop only)

Notes: mark the first sc of each round just to make it easier to see where you started. Each row will be joined to it’s beginning st with a ss.

Pattern:

Ch 31

Bottom of bag:
Round 1: sc in second ch from hook (mark this stitch), sc in each ch across.(30 sc), place 1 extra sc in last ch, sc across other side of chain. Place 1 extra sc in last ch, join with ss to beginning sc.

Round 2: ch 1, sc in each sc, around, placing 3 sc in marked sc and 3 sc in last sc before joining. Join to 1^st sc of round with ss. (66 sc)

Round 3: repeat round 2, placing 3sc in each end to make a smooth turn. (70 sc)

Round 4: repeat round 3 (74 sc)

Round 5: repeat round 3 (78 sc)

If your stitch count is off, don’t worry. You will need a multiple of 3 to make the pattern work out, but the pattern doesn’t start until round 16, so you can add or subtract a stitch or two to make it work. It won’t show on the finished project.

Begin sides:

Round 6: Sc around in FLO of each stitch (78 sc.) Join with ss in beginning sc.
Round 7 – 11: sc around, join with ss in beginning sc.

Join black.

Round 12 and 13: Repeat round 7.

Join taupe.

Round 14: Repeat round 7.

Round 15: Ch 3, (counts as DC), dc in same st, 1 dc in next st, sc in next st, +2 dc in next st, 1 dc in next st, sc in next st+ repeat from + to + around. Join with ss in top of beginning ch 3.

Round 16: Ch 1, sc in top of each of the next 2 dc, sc in sc, +sc next 2 dc together, sc in next dc, sc in sc+ repeat from + to + around, join with ss in top of first sc. (78 sc)

Round 17: Repeat round 7

Round 18-20: Repeat rounds 15 to 17.

Rounds 21-23: Repeat round 7. (78 sc)

Round 24: ch 1, sc in same st, + dc in next st, sc in next st + around, end with a dc in last st. Join with ss in top of first sc.

Round 25: ch 3, +sc in next st, dc in next st, + repeat from + to + around, end with sc in last st, join to top of beginning ch 3 with a ss

Round 26-29: Repeat round 24 and 25

Round 30 –38: Repeat round 7. (78 sc)

Round 34-39: repeat rounds 15 to 17 twice.

Rounds 40-41: repeat round 7. (78 sc)

Join black.

Round 42-43. repeat round 7 (78 sc)

Join taupe.

Round 44 and 45: sc around (78 sc)

Round 46: Mark the middle of the front and the back of the purse.

Sc to the marked middle back st, and into the marked stitch,. ch 3, sc into the 2^nd and 3^rd ch from the hook, ss into the side of the last sc you made on the main part of the purse, (you have formed a tab to sew the button onto), then continue to sc in each st around until you get to one stitch before the marker that marks the middle of the front part of the purse. Ch 2, skip the 3 stitches at center front, (this will form a button-hole) continue to sc around until you get to where you started the round. Join with a ss to the beginning sc.

Fasten off.

Begin working the side shapes for the handles.

Mark the stitch on both outside edges of the bag.

Working from the wrong side of the bag, join taupe to the 5^th stitch before the marked side stitch.

Row 1: sc in that stitch and in the next 10 stitches. You have stitched 5 stitches on either side of the marked stitch and in the marked stitch (11 sc)

Row 2: ch 1, turn, sc across (11 sc)

Row 3: ch 1, sc in first st, sc 2 together, sc in next 5 stitches, sc 2 together, sc in last st

( 9 sc)

Row 4: ch 1, turn, sc across (9 st)

Row 5: Ch 1, turn, sc in first st, sc 2 together, sc in next 3, sc 2 together, sc in last st. (7 sc)

Row 6: ch 1, turn, sc across (7 st))

Row 7: Ch1 , turn, sc in first st, sc 2 together, sc in next st, sc 2 together, sc in last st (5 sc)

Row 8: sc across (5 st)

Fasten off.

Repeat for other side.

Join black with a ss and sc around the entire bag, placing one sc in the sides of each of the rows of the raised sides, and one sc in each st around. Work the sc for the button hole around the chain rather than into the chain.

Handles;

Using taupe, make a chain the length that you want the handles to be. Remember that the handles will stretch some.

Row 1: Sc into the second ch from the hook and sc to the end.

Row 2: Ch 1, turn and sc across again. Fasten off.

Join black with a ss in the first sc of one of the long sides of the handle and sc across. Fasten off. Repeat for the other side.

To assemble.

Attach a D-ring to each side of the purse body, by folding over the side tabs and sewing them down over the flat part of the D ring.

Attach handles to D ring using same method.

Sew button to center of button tab.

I made a lining by simply measuring the bag and cutting two rectangle to fit (plus a little extra for seam allowance). I sewed up 3 sides of the rectangle and hemmed the open side. I then hand sewed the lining into the bag. I added a pocket to my lining before I sewed the rectangles together.

Here is a picture of the bag partially finished. It shows the stripes better:

Snowy Day Moebius Neckwarmer/Hood

2008-12-22T06:29:00.000-08:00

Snowy Day Moebius Neckwarmer/Hood

I like the concept of a moebius strip, kind of a circle without an end, so a few years ago I made a moebius shawl. I started to make a moebius scarf this year, and it turned into this.

This pattern will work with any hook size and yarn.

I used 2 skeins of Red Heart Soft yarn and a J hook.

Stitches used:

Ch (chain)

Sc (single crochet)

Dc (double crochet)

Pattern:

Chain an even number of stitches. The chain should fit around your face loosely if you want to use it as a hood as well.(My chain was about 32 inches long.) If you just want a neck warmer, make a chain that fits comfortably over your head, or even larger if you want a looser cowl.

Join the ends of the chain together with a ss, being careful not to twist the chain.

Row 1: Chain 3, sc in same chain as joining, skip a stitch, + dc, sc both in next chain, skip a chain+ repeat from + to+ until you get back to where you started. Last chain should be unworked. Skip that chain and turn the work so that you can continue the pattern in the other side of the foundation chain. Continue in pattern +dc, sc both in same chain, skip a chain+ until you get back to the first ch 3. You should have one chain left unworked at the end. Skip that chain and join with a ss to the beginning ch 3.

You have worked one row, but it will look like you have done two rows because you have worked into both sides of the foundation chain. The turn creates the twist. After a few rounds you should clearly see a twist developing, although it should be apparent right away.

Row 2 and following: Ch 3 and turn. (you will be working in the opposite direction from the last row.) sc in same stitch as beginning ch 3, skip a stitch, +dc, sc both into next stitch, skip a stitch+ repeat from + to + until you get back to beginning ch 3. Join to top of ch 3 with a ss. Again you have worked around both sides of the neckwarmer.

Turn and work in the opposite direction for each row. All stitches are worked into the DC’s of the previous row, and the sc’s are always skipped.

Continue with row 2 until the neckwarmer is the size you want it to be. You can make this just big enough to be a neck warmer or you can make it longer and pull it up over your head as a hood.

I finished mine with a row of single crochet, but this is optional.

My 20 year old daughter suggested that this would make a nice accessory worn with a sweater.

If you made this larger it would work as a cowl, or still larger and it could be a shawl or capelet.

You can make this with other stitch patterns, as long as they are reversible. Half of your stitches will be upside down in the finished item. Some stitch patterns won’t require you to turn your work at the end of every row, and you can just keep working in the same direction.

For this fit, I started with a chain about 32 inches long, approximately 170 chains the way I crochet. Mine is about 14 inches in height, which is where I ran out of yarn. If you just want it for a scarf, 7 inches is ample.

Peek-a-Boo baby Blanket

2008-12-17T15:20:00.000-08:00

This is the same stitch pattern as the scarf here: Peek-a-Boo scarf

Pattern requires a multiple of 3stitches, plus 2.

I used:

Lion Brand Pound of Love (about 12 -13 oz)
a size K hook (6.5 mm)

For row 1, I started with 92 foundation DC,.(alternatively, you could start with 94 chains and then double crochet into the 3rd chain from the hook and in each chain to get a 92 DC) I did 55 rows of the pattern, ending with a row of DC. I did 2 rows of single crochet around the entire blanket to finish it off. My finished blanket is 34 inches square.

Stitch pattern is as follows:

Row 2: Ch 3, turn, (Counts as first dc here and throughout), skip next st, 3 dc in next st, * skip 2 stitches, 3 dc in next st* repeat from * to * until you have 2 st left, skip a stitch and dc into top of last DC

Row 3: ch 3, turn, dc across

Repeat rows 2 and 3 for the pattern.

Peek-a-Boo Hat and Scarf Set

2008-12-17T06:48:00.000-08:00

Fits 4-6 year old

Hat:

Finished size: 18 inches around at cuff, 7 inches from bottom of cuff to crown.

This hat is stretchy and can easily be made larger by using a larger hook. It can also be made taller by repeating row 7.

Materials:

2 ½ 0z Lion brand Pound of Love

H (5.0 mm) hook

Stitches:

Ch (chain)

Dc (double crochet)

Ss (slip stitch)

FPDC Front post double crochet

Hat is worked in rounds, starting at top.

Chain 4, join to first chain with a ss to form a ring,

Round 1: Ch 3 (counts as first dc here and throughout), 9 dc in ring, join to top of first ch 3 with ss (10 stitches)

Round 2: Ch 3, dc in same stitch, dc in each stitch around, join to top of first ch 3 with ss (20 stitches) You are increasing in each stitch

Round 3: Ch 3, 2 dc in next stitch, * dc in next stitch, 2 dc in next stitch* repeat from * to * around, join to top of first ch 3 with ss (30 stitches) You are increasing in every other stitch.

Round 4: Ch 3, 2 dc in next st, * dc in next 2 stitches, 2 dc in next st* repeat from * to * around, join to top of beginning ch 3 with ss (40 stitches) You are increasing in every third stitch.

Round 5: Ch 3, dc in next 2 stitches, 2 dc in next st, * dc in next 3 st, 2 dc in next st* repeat from * to * around, join with ss in top of beginning ch 3. (50 stitches) You are increasing in every fourth stitch

Round 6: Ch 3, dc in next 3 stitches, 2 dc in next st, * dc in next 4 stitches, 2 dc in next st*, repeat from * to * around, join in top of beginning ch 3 with ss (60 stitches) You are increasing in every fifth stitch.

Round 7: Ch 3, Dc in each st around, join to top of beginning ch 3 with ss (60 stitches)

Round 8: Ch 3, 2 dc in same st, skip 2 stitches, *3 dc in next st, skip next 2 stitches* repeat from * to * around, ending with sk 2 stitches, join to top of beginning ch 3 with ss

Round 9-13: repeat rows 7 and 8, ending with row 7.

Row 14: ch 3 , FPDC around post of next st, * dc in next st, FPDC around post of next st* repeat from * to * around, ending with FPDC around post of last st. , Join with ss to top of beginning ch 3.

Round 15: ch 1, sc in each stitch around. Fasten off and weave in ends.

Scarf:

Finished size: mine is 5 inches wide by 54 inches long

Scarf can be made any size by adjusting starting chain and number of rows

Pattern requires multiple of 3 stitches plus 2

Materials:

Lion brand Pound of Love (amount depends on size)

J (6.0mm) hook

Gauge: unimportant

Stitches used:

FDC (Foundation double crochet) (or alternatively you could make a chain and dc into it)

Sc (single crochet)

Dc (double crochet)

Ch (chain)

Row 1: FDC 158 stitches (or ch 160 st, dc into 3^rd ch from hook and into each chain for total of 158 dc)

Row 3: ch 3, turn, dc across (158 st)

Row 4-7: Repeat rows 2 and 3, ending with row 3

Do not fasten off: Work edging:

*(sc, ch1, sc) in corner, place 2 sc in end of each row of short end of scarf, (sc,ch1,sc) in corner, sc in each stitch of long side of scarf* repeat from * to * once more, join to beginning sc with ss. Fasten off and work in ends.

Double Flower Bookmark

2008-12-17T06:44:00.000-08:00

Supplies:

Size 3 thread

C hook

Stitches used:

Hdc (half double crochet)

DC (double crochet)

Ss (slip stitch)

SC (single crochet)

Ch (chain)

Gauge: doesn’t apply. You can use whatever thread and hook you wish. The finished bookmark may be a little smaller or larger

Directions:

Bottom motif:

Chain 4, join with ss to form a ring.

Round 1: ch 1, (all following stitches are worked into the ring formed by the chain 4 loop), **sc, ch 3** repeat from ** to ** 5 more times, join to beginning sc

(motif is finished) You should have 6 chain 3 loops.

Next ch 60 ( for bookmark part) Try to chain fairly tightly and evenly. This part can be made longer or shorter to make the length you want.

Begin top motif:

SS into 4^th chain from hook to form a ring.

Round 1: Repeat round 1 of bottom motif.

Round 2: SS to first chain 3 loop. Into each chain 3 loop work the following: SC, HDC, 2 DC, hdc, sc. (When you get to where the chain joins the motif, just work across the front of it.) to end ss into the first sc of the round.

Fasten off and weave in ends.

Super Simple Crocheted Snowflake

2008-12-17T06:35:00.000-08:00

This snowflake is very easy and can be worked up in just a few minutes. It is shaped somewhat like a 6 sided star.

I used Lustersheen and a size C hook. (I couldn’t find any white size 3 thread, which is what I wanted to try this with.)

Stitches used:

Ch (chain)

Dc (double crochet)

Sc (single crochet)

Ss (slip stitch)

Directions:

Chain 4, join with ss to form a ring.

Round 1:

Ch5, (counts as DC and ch 2) ** 2 dc into ring, ch 2**, repeat from ** to ** 4 more times, Dc into ring, join to 3^rd ch of beginning chain. You should have 6 chain 2 spaces.

Round 2:

Ch 3 (counts as first Dc), dc into next dc, ** ch 2, Dc into next ch 2 space, ch 2, DC in each of the next 2 DC**, repeat from ** to ** 4 more times, ch 2, join to top of beginning ch 3. (you should have 12 ch 2 spaces)

Round 3:

Ch 1, sc in same stitch, sc into next DC, ** sc into next ch 2 space, ch 5, sc into next ch 2 space, sc into next 2 dc** repeat from ** to ** 4 more times, sc into next ch 2 space, ch 5, sc into last ch 2 space, join with ss into top of beginning sc (you should have 6 ch 5 spaces)

Round 4:

**Ss to ch 5 space,

Into the chain 5 space work the following stitches:

Sc, ch 2, sc, ch 3, sc, ch 4, sc, ch3, sc ch2, sc**

Repeat around. Join to beginning ss and fasen off.

Shape and block as desired.